Drinking a lot of water does not do any good to the body, according to two experts in the United States. In fact, they warn, drinking too much water could be, in certain cases, harmful.

In a study, Dr Stanly Goldfarb and Dr Dan Negoianu, both of the Renal, Electrolyte and Hypertension Division at the University of Pensylvania, the United States, have denied the popular belief that drinking a lot of water clears body toxins（毒素）better, improves skin, and helps reduce weight.

Dr Goldfarb and Dr Negoianu say that they found little proof to back the public opinion that drinking 8 glasses of water every day benefits health. At the same time, they fond little proof of harm in drinking 8 glasses of water every day.

It is widely believed that in some cases-such as athletes, people who live in hot, dry environments, and those with certain medical conditions-drinking a lot of water indeed helps, but no studies have been done to prove the benefits of this practice in average, healthy people, the website medheadlines.com reports.

The study at the University of Pennsylvania also examined reports that some people experienced increased headaches when their consumption（消耗）of water was low. In one small study, which the doctors reviewed, the group drinking the most water reported fewer headaches than the control group, “but the difference in the number of headaches was o small between the two groups as to be considered unimportant.”

The researchers concluded that there is no scientific proof to support that average, healthy people need to drink at least 8 glasses of water each each day.

The website medheadines.com says that, according to an Indian doctor, drinking too much water is harmful. If water enters the body more quickly than it can be removed, problems can occur.

1.What’s the key message delivered in the passage?

2.We can learn from the passage that 8 glasses of water every day_______ .

3.Who may agree that drinking lots of water helps to lose weight?

4.According to the passage, we know that_______.

Once there was a man who had two children, a boy and a girl. The boy was good-looking but the girl was not.

One day they found a mirror for the first time and they saw what they looked like. The boy was very pleased and he said to his sister, "How handsome I am! I look much nicer than you!"

The girl did not like what her brother said and gave him a hard push.

"Go away!" she said.

Their father saw what was happening. He went up to them and said to the boy,

"You must always BE good as well as LOOK good."

Then to the girl he said, "My dear, if you help everyone and do your best to please him, everyone will love you. It does not matter that you are not as good-looking as your brother."

1. Once a man had ____.

2. The boy saw what he looked like in the mirror and was pleased because he ____.

3.The girl gave the boy a hard push because ____.

4.Father told the girl that ____.

5.What can we learn from this story?

I made a promise to myself on the way down to the vacation beach cottage. For two weeks I would try to be a loving husband and father. Totally loving. No ifs, ands or buts.

The idea had come to me as I listened to a talk on my car radio. The speaker was quoting a passage from the Bible about husbands being thoughtful of their wives. Then he went on to say, “Love is an act of will. A person can choose to love.” To myself, I had to admit that I had been a selfish husband. Well, for two weeks that would change.

And it did. Right from the moment I kissed Evelyn at the door and said, “That new yellow sweater looks great on you.” “Oh, Tom, you noticed,” she said, surprised and pleased. Maybe a little puzzled. After the long drive, I wanted to sit and read. Evelyn suggested a walk on the beach. I started to refuse, but then I thought, “Evelyn’s been alone here with the kids all week and now she wants to be alone with me.” We walked on the beach while the children flew their kites.

So it went. Two weeks of not calling the Wall Street firm where I am a director; a visit to the shell museum though I usually hate museums. Relaxed and happy, that’s how the whole vacation passed. I made a new pledge to keep on remembering to choose love.

There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment, however. Evelyn and I still laugh about it today. On the last night at our cottage, preparing for bed, Evelyn stared at me with the saddest expression.

“What’s the matter?” I asked her.

“Tom,” she said in a voice filled with distress, “do you know something I don’t?”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…that medical checkup I had several weeks ago…our doctor…did he tell you something about me？Tom, you’ve been so good to me…am I dying?” It took a moment for it all to sink in. Then I burst out laughing.

“No, honey,” I said, wrapping her in my arms. “You’re not dying; I’m just starting to live.”

1.From the story we may infer that Tom drove to the beach cottage __________.

A. with his family                              B. with Evelyn

C. all by himself                               D. with his children

2. During the two weeks on the beach, Tom showed more love to his wife because __________.

A. she looked lovely in her new clothes

B. he could afford time to care for her

C. he was willing to be a good husband

D. she was seriously ill

3.The author says, “There was one thing that went wrong with my experiment.” What was the one thing that went wrong?

A. He praised her sweater, which puzzled her.

B. She insisted on visiting a museum, which he hated.

C. He knew something about her illness but didn’t tell her.

D. He was so good to her that she thought she would be dying.

4.By saying “I’m just starting to live,” Tom means that __________.

A. he is just beginning to understand the real meaning of life

B. he is just beginning to enjoy life as a loving husband

C. he lived an unhappy life before and is now starting to change

D. he is beginning to regret what he did to his wife before

Providing small classes for at least several grades starting in early primary school gives students the best chance to succeed in late grades, according to groundbreaking new research from a Michigan State University scholar.

The research by Spyros Konstantopoulos, a professor of education, is the first to examine the effects of class size over a period and for all levels of students. The study appears in the American Journal of Education.

He is also a member of a group for the Department of Education’s Instiute of Education Sciences that will give official advice on class size to the states. He said the advice will mirror his research: the best plan is to provide continuous small classes(13 to 17 students) for at least several years starting in kindergarten or first grade.

“For a logn time states thought they could just do it in kindergarten or first grade for one year and get the benefits,” He said. “I don’t believe that. I think you need at least a few years in a row where all students, and especially low-achievers, receive the treatment, and then you see the benefits later.”

His research used data from the Project Star study in Tennessee that analyzed the effects of class size on more than 11,000 students in primary and middle school. He found that students who had been in small classes from kindergarten through third grade had actually higher test scores in grades four through eight than students who been in larger classes early on.

Students from all achievement levels benefited from small classes, the research found. “But low-achievers benefited the most, which narrowed the achievement gap with high –achievers in science, reading and math, ” he said.

Although the study didn’t consider classroom practices, he said the reason for the narrowing gap is likely due to low-achieving students receiving more attention from teachers.

“This is especially important in poorer schools because teacher effectiveness matters more in schools with more disadvantaged and low-performing students, ” he said.

1.The professor argues about ________ .

2.The result of the research shows that _________.

3.What can we infer from the passage?

4.The underlined word “This” in the last paragraph refers to _______.

— I’m sorry to hear that some villagers got disabled in the earthquake.

   — That’s too bad, but _______.

A. all is well that ends well               B. the darkest hour is nearest the dawn

   C. where there is life, there is hope    D. it is good to have friends in trouble