Just five minutes of exercise a day outdoors can improve mental health, according to a study.

   Researchers from the University of Essex, UK have found that as little as five minutes of a “green activity” such as walking, gardening, cycling or farming could help to improve mood and increase self-esteem (自信).

  Many studies have shown that outdoor exercise can reduce the risk of mental illness and improve a sense of well-being, but the new study, led by Jules Pretty and Jo Barton, was the first to determine how much time needed to be spent on green exercise for the benefits to show.

   Barton and Pretty looked at data from 1,252 people of different ages, genders (性别) and mental health status (情况) taken from 10 studies in Britain.

   They analyzed their different outdoor activities including walking, gardening, cycling, fishing, boating, horse-riding and farming in locations such as a park, garden or nature trail (路径).

   They found that the mental health changes were seen after just five minutes. With longer periods of time exercising in a green environment, the positive effects were more apparent.

   Looking at men and women of different ages, the researchers found the health changes were particularly strong in the young and the mentally ill.

   Green and blue

   A bigger effect was seen with exercise in an area that also contained water – such as a lake or river.

  “This is because historically we are drawn to water to survive and it is in our genetic (遗传的) make-up to be at one with nature,” the researchers wrote in their report.

   Pretty said those who were generally inactive, or stressed, or with mental illness would probably benefit the most from “green exercise”.

   “Employers, for example, could encourage staff in stressful workplaces to take a short walk at lunchtime in the nearest park to improve mental health.”

   He also said exercise programs outdoors could benefit youth offenders.

1.How is the study this article refers to different from other studies?

  A. It involved more people.

  B. It took longer to finish the research.

  C. It determined the exact amount of time needed.

  D. It was led by just two researchers.

2. What can we conclude from the findings of the study?

  A. Just five minutes of “green exercise” daily can help improve mental health.

  B. Gardeners and farmers do not need “green exercise”.

  C. Walking in a park with a lake will weaken the effect.

  D. “Green exercise” is not suitable for the mentally ill.

3.. According to Pretty, _______ would probably benefit the most from “green exercise”.

  A. stressed, inactive people B. office workers

  C. youth offenders            D. women and children

4. What is the main problem discussed in this article?

  A. Physical well-being.       B. Outdoor exercise.

  C. Mental illness.            D. Harmony with nature.

French novelist Jules Verne (1828～1905) is often called the father of science fictions.Although he was not a great traveller himself，his characters journeyed to the moon (in From Earth to Moon)，Under the sea (in Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea)，into a volcano (in A Journey to the Centre of the Earth)，around the world (in Around the World in Eighty Days) and to many other places.

Jules Verne was born in the French city of Nantes in 1828.When he was a boy he ran away from home to work on a ship.However，his father soon found him and brought him home.After that he decided that any future travel he did would be in books.In 1847，his father sent Jules to Paris to study to be a lawyer.Even though he was busy writing，Verne passed his exams in 1849 with high marks.

When Jules told his father he did not want to be a lawyer，his father was very angry.He stopped sending his son any money，so Jules had to earn a living by his writing.Over the next few years he wrote many stories and plays which brought him only a little money.Then，in 1856，he met Honorine de Viane，a rich，young widow with two children.The couple married the next year and their only child Michel was born in 1862.

After his marriage，Verne worked as a businessman in Paris.However，he was not very successful at his job and spent most of his time writing books and doing research for the next one.In 1863，he published his novel Five Weeks in a Balloon and in the following year he published A Journey to the Centre of the Earth which brought him fame.His books became so popular and earned him so much money that he was able to leave his job and work full time on his writing.

In his lifetime，Jules Verne wrote more than 50 books and he became a rich man.Many of this imaginative novels have been turned into films.

1.Jules Verne became rich because of his________.

A．father? B．marriage

C．business? D．writing

2.When Jules Verne was brought home by his father，he decided that________.

A．he would go on more travels in the future

B．he would do as his father required

C．he would be devoted to writing about future travels

D．he would stop writing about future travels

3.Which book can be considered as a turning point in Jules Verne’s life?

A．Five Weeks in a Balloon.

B．A Journey to the Centre of the Earth.

C．From Earth to Moon.

D．Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.

4.What can we infer from the passage?

A．Jules Verne was appreciated by film makers.

B．Jules Verne was not clever enough to learn law.

C．Jules Verne’s stories and plays won him big fame in the 1850s.

D．Jules Verne’s wife helped him a lot in his writing career.

  Just five minutes of exercise a day outdoors can improve mental health, according to a study.

   Researchers from the University of Essex, UK have found that as little as five minutes of a “green activity” such as walking, gardening, cycling or farming could help to improve mood and increase self-esteem (自信).

  Many studies have shown that outdoor exercise can reduce the risk of mental illness and improve a sense of well-being, but the new study, led by Jules Pretty and Jo Barton, was the first to determine how much time needed to be spent on green exercise for the benefits to show.

   Barton and Pretty looked at data from 1,252 people of different ages, genders (性别) and mental health status (情况) taken from 10 studies in Britain.

   They analyzed their different outdoor activities including walking, gardening, cycling, fishing, boating, horse-riding and farming in locations such as a park, garden or nature trail (路径).

   They found that the mental health changes were seen after just five minutes. With longer periods of time exercising in a green environment, the positive effects were more apparent.

   Looking at men and women of different ages, the researchers found the health changes were particularly strong in the young and the mentally ill.

   Green and blue

   A bigger effect was seen with exercise in an area that also contained water – such as a lake or river.

  “This is because historically we are drawn to water to survive and it is in our genetic (遗传的) make-up to be at one with nature,” the researchers wrote in their report.

   Pretty said those who were generally inactive, or stressed, or with mental illness would probably benefit the most from “green exercise”.

   “Employers, for example, could encourage staff in stressful workplaces to take a short walk at lunchtime in the nearest park to improve mental health.”

   He also said exercise programs outdoors could benefit youth offenders.

How is the study this article refers to different from other studies?

  A. It involved more people.

  B. It took longer to finish the research.

  C. It determined the exact amount of time needed.

  D. It was led by just two researchers.

What can we conclude from the findings of the study?

  A. Just five minutes of “green exercise” daily can help improve mental health.

  B. Gardeners and farmers do not need “green exercise”.

  C. Walking in a park with a lake will weaken the effect.

  D. “Green exercise” is not suitable for the mentally ill.

. According to Pretty, _______ would probably benefit the most from “green exercise”.

  A. stressed, inactive people B. office workers

  C. youth offenders            D. women and children

What is the main problem discussed in this article?

  A. Physical well-being.       B. Outdoor exercise.

  C. Mental illness.            D. Harmony with nature.

President Bush may talk about a plan to Mars, but Bruce Jones thinks there is still a healthy thirst for exploration into underwater worlds on our own planet. After growing up with a grandfather in the marine construction① business, Jones quickly got a feel for the water. He started diving at age 9 and, by the 1980s, began offering advice for those interested in the submarine② business. By 1993, he was running his own company, U.S. Submarines, which designs and builds submarines for others.

Jones has $40 million spent in building a hotel where the most expensive rooms will be 50 feet under the sea off Eleuthera Island in the Bahamas. Unlike the Jules Undersea Lodge — the only undersea hotel now, just off the coast of Key Largo, Fla. — guests at the Poseidon won’t need to put on a wet suit to their rooms. They also won’t need to worry about changing pressure levels since the rooms will be kept at above-surface pressure. Instead, they can move easily to their $1,500-a-night underwater rooms by escalator③.

“I think there are a large number of people who would be interested,” said Jones, “including anyone who is looking for a different experience.”

Each room will feature strong walls that look out onto coral④ gardens. There will be controls in each room that guests can use to change the lighting of the underwater worlds outside their windows and to provide food to fish swimming just outside. It sounds exciting— but will it happen? It’s hard to say.

“By now I envisioned⑤ we’d have whole underwater cities,” Cooper said. “It’s about time some of these visions became reality.”

Notes:

① marine construction  海洋建筑

② submarine  adj. 海下的

③ escalator  n.  自动梯

④ coral  n.  珊瑚

⑤ envision  v.  展望

1. The first paragraph takes President Bush for example in order to ______.

  A. praise President Bush’s plan to Mars

B. humorously introduce the main subject to readers

  C. support President Bush’s plan to Mars

D. show Bruce Jones is against President Bush’s plan

2. According to the text, who had a great effect on Bruce Jones?

  A. His father.     B. His friends.       C. His grandfather      D. His grandmother

3. According to Bruce Jones’s undersea hotel, we know that ______.

  A. fish outside can be seen through the hotel’s walls

  B. the hotel has been built and came into use

  C. it will be easy to swim into the underwater rooms

  D. visitors will have to wear wet suits against water

4. According to Cooper’s words, his attitudes towards the underwater hotels are ______.

  A. disappointed       B. critical       C. objective      D. hopeful

French novelist Jules Verne (1828—1905) is often called the father of science fiction. Although he was not a great traveler himself, his characters travelled to the moon (in From the Earth to the Moon), under the sea (in Twenty thousand leagues under the sea), into a volcano (in A journey to the centre of the earth), around the world (in Around the World in Eighty Days) and to many other places.
　　Jules Verne was born in the French city of Nantes in 1828. When he was a boy he ran away from home to work on a ship. However, his father soon found him and brought him home. After that he decided that any future travel he did would be in books. In 1847 his father sent Jules to Paris to study to be a lawyer. Even though he was busy writing, Verne passed his exams in 1849 with high marks.
　　When Jules told his father he did not want to be a lawyer, his father was very angry. He stopped sending his son any money, so Jules had to earn a living by his writing. Over the next few years he wrote many stories and plays, which brought him only a little money. Then, in 1856, he met Honorine de Viane, a rich, young widow with two children. The couple married the next year.
After his marriage, Verne worked as a businessman in Paris. However, he was not very successful at his job and spent most of his time writing books and doing research for the next one. In 1863 he published his novel Five Weeks in a balloon and the following year he published A Journey to the centre of the earth which made him famous. His books became so popular and earned him so much money that he was able to leave his job and work full time on his writing.
In his Lifetime, Jules Verne wrote more than 50 books and he became a rich man. Many of this imaginative novels have been turned into films.
【小题1】When Jules Verne was brought home by his father, he decided that ________.