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Do you know how it is when you see someone yawn and you start yawning too? Or how hard it is to be among people laughing and not laugh yourself? Well, apparently it's because we have mirror neurons (神经元)in our brains.
Put simply, the existence of mirror neurons suggests that every time we see someone else do something, our brains imitate (模仿)it,whether or not we actually perform the same action. This explains a great deal about how we learn to smile, talk, walk, dance or play sports. But the idea goes further: mirror neurons not only appear to explain physical actions y they also tell us that there is a biological basis for the way we understand other people.
Mirror neurons can undoubtedly be found all over our brains, but especially in the areas which relate to our ability to use languages, and to understand how other people feel. Researchers have found that mirror neurons relate strongly to language. A group of researchers discovered that if they gave people sentences to listen to ( for example :"The hand took hold of the ball" ) , the same mirror neurons were triggered as when the action was actually performed (in this example, actually taking hold of a ball).
Any problems with mirror neurons may well result in problems with behavior. Much researeh suggests that people with social and behavioral problems have mirror neurons which are not fully functioning. However, it is not yet known exactly how these discoveries might help find treatments for social disorders.
Research into mirror neurons seems to provide us with ever more information concerning how humans behave and interact(互动).Indeed, it may turn out to be the equivalent (相等物)for ncurosciencc of what Einstein's theory of relativity was for physics. And the next time you feel the urge to cough in the cinema when someone else does--well,perhaps you'll understand why.
【小题1】Mirror neurons can explain .
A.why we cry when we are hurt |
B.why we cough when we suffer from a cold |
C.why we smile when we see someone else smile |
D.why we yawn when we see someone else stay up late |
A.set off | B.cut off | C.built up | D.broken up |
A.relate to human behavior and interaction |
B.control human physical actions and feelings |
C.result in bad behavior and social disorders |
D.determine our knowledge and language abilities |
A.Ways to find mirror neurons. |
B.Problems of mirror neurons. |
C.Existence of mirror neurons. |
D.Functions of mirror neurons. |
The world economy has run into a brick wall. Despite countless warnings in recent years about the need to address a potential hunger crisis in poor countries and an energy crisis worldwide, world leaders failed to think ahead. The result is a global food crisis. Wheat, corn and rice prices have more than doubled in the past two years. And oil prices have increased more than three times since the start of 2004. These food-price increases, combined with increasing energy costs, will slow if not stop economic growth in many parts of the world and will even affect political stability. Practical solutions to these problems do exist, but we'll have to start thinking ahead and acting globally.
Here are three steps to ease the current food crisis and avoid the potential for a global crisis. The first is to promote the dramatic success of Malawi, a country in southern Africa, which three years ago established a special fund to help its farmers get fertilizer and seeds with high productivity. Malawi’s harvest doubled after just one year. An international fund based on the Malawi model would cost a mere $10 per person annually in the rich world, or $10 billion altogether.
Second, the U.S. and Europe should abandon their policies of paying partly for the change of food into biofuels (生物燃料). The U.S. government gives farmers a taxpayer-financed payment of 51 cents per gallon of ethanol (乙醇) changed from corn. There may be a case for biofuels produced on lands that do not produce foods — tree crops, grasses and wood products — but there’s no case for the government to pay to put the world’s dinner into the gas tank.
Third, we urgently need to weather-proof the world’s crops as soon and as effectively as possible. For a poor farmer, sometimes something as simple as a farm pond — which collects rainwater to be used in dry weather — can make the difference between a good harvest and a bad one. The world has already committed to establishing a Climate Adaptation Fund to help poor regions climate-proof vital economic activities such as food production and health care but has not yet acted upon the promise.
【小题1】 An international fund based on the Malawi model would______.
A.cost each of the developed countries $10 billion per year |
B.give poor farmers access to fertilizer and highly productive seeds |
C.decrease the food prices as well as the energy prices |
D.aim to double the harvest in southern African countries in a year |
A.we should get alternative forms of fuel in any way |
B.it is misleading to put tree crops into the gas tank |
C.it is not wise to change food crops into gas |
D.biofuels should be developed on a large scale |
A.The world has made a serious promise to build farm ponds. |
B.A Climate Adaptation Fund has been established to help poor. |
C.A rain-collecting pond is a simple safeguard against dry weather. |
D.It makes a great difference whether we develop wood products or not. |
A.slow down but not to stop economy |
B.act now so as to relieve the global food shortage |
C.achieve economic growth and political stability |
D.develop tree crops, grasses and wood products |
Fear plays no part in this latest problem.“I’m not afraid I'll lose my children.I won't lose my children. We live together, and nothing, nothing,” she repeats, her voice rising when speaking to John's lawyer, “will stop me from being with my children. A law? Yeah, right. Don't disturb me when it comes to my children. You are never going to win. If John wants to see them, I cannot stop him. He's their father—I want them to see him! However, his visit in his present condition will disturb the children's stable (稳定的) life.”
John, who has spent much of his time in California, recently, has only hired a house for himself in Pennsylvania, according to his lawyer. "If he'd like to stick to a regular life, I'd be more than happy to do that," Jane says. "The best thing for any child of a divorced (离婚的) parent is a stable life. I want nothing more than for him to set up a stable life for himself, so that he can be part of making our children's lives more stable. "
While matters of money and care won't be settled for weeks, Jane hardly puts her life on hold. Last week the ABC network announced that Jane would return with her own show, Twist of Jane, in which she gives advice to other moms.Jane and her eight children will also return to ABC in a series of Jane Plus 8 specials showing them on various adventures.It’s a rest for Jane, who insists that she needs her new,busy life to provide for her family.“I have to lead such a life, and I’m thankful that I’ve built it to the top where now I can support my children.”she says.
And whether a bellicose(好斗的)dance judge or a bellicose former wife, Jane plans to keep on facing attacks on her. “Some people try to knock me down—only to make me more fierce,more protective,more determined to do better,”she says.“Go ahead, take me on. This will just make me stronger.”
【小题1】According to Jane in the first paragraph, the law
A.can’t take her children away from her |
B.can’t do anything with the case |
C.will best settle the problem |
D.will disturb her children |
A.To live with John. |
B.To hire a house for John. |
C.To allow John to see the children |
D.To ask John to set up a regular life. |
A.Jane’s life is very difficult. |
B.Jane continues to live as usual. |
C.Jane almost can’t control her lire |
D.Jane works very hard to live a happy life. |
A.Proud. |
B.Fierce. |
C.Determined. |
D.Independent |
If you are looking for an animal to take the title of “most violent fish in the sea”, then the tiger puffer (河豚) fish would have to be a strong contestant. Not only is it deadly poisonous --- though that doesn’t stop people trying to eat it --- but it is also able to scare off enemies by inflating itself to become much larger than normal, when it is young it even chews on its own brothers and sisters.
Tiger puffer fish attach their eggs to rocks near the bottom of the sea, often at the mouths of bays. Then the larvae (幼鱼) move to the entries of rivers and lakes once they have grown a little. Then, having put on a lot of weight, they head out to sea. There’s no innocent childhood for the puffer fish, as Shin Oikawa of Kyushu University in Japan and his colleagues found out when they put the larvae of tiger puffer fish in the lab and monitored them for two months. They found that the larvae went through three steps in which their metabolic(新陈代谢) rates increased dramatically when they reached body weights of 0.002g, 0.01g, and 0.1g. When a larva went through one of these steps, its behavior also changed. For instance, once a larva had passed the first level it would have grown its first tooth and could start attacking larvae that had not yet reached that stage. Similarly, any larva that had reached the 0.01g or 0.1g levels would start attacking lighter larvae.
The researchers noted that the baby fish had a “relatively small mouth”, so rather than swallowing their brothers and sisters whole, they would bite pieces out of them. Despite this limitation, the fish caused plenty of deaths --- up to 12 per cent of the deaths that happened in the lab each day.
Those fish that grew fast enough to be able to chew on their fellows had an advantage. The extra food accelerated their growth and development. Tiger puffer fish are likely to be faster and swifter, so they can deal better with enemies.
As the name suggests, puffer fish can inflate to make themselves seem much larger than they really are, thus scaring off enemies. They do this by filling their stomachs, which are extremely elastic(弹性的), with water. If that’s not enough of a threat, the tiger puffer fish --- like most of the other puffer fish in the family --- carries a deadly toxin(毒素). Eat one puffer fish and the poison will paralyze (瘫痪) your muscles, including the muscles responsible for breathing, so death is usually caused by a lack of oxygen. Famously, the fish is a delicacy in Japan, where highly qualified chefs produce dishes that contain the safe level of the poison. Interestingly, the puffer fish does not go to the trouble of producing the poison itself. Instead, it hosts bacteria (细菌) that produce the stuff. It obtains these bacteria from its diet, so the youngest adult fish are not poisonous.
【小题1】All of the following statements account for the violence of puffer fish except that_____.
A.they are very difficult to catch |
B.they can become larger to threaten enemies away |
C.they kill their younger companions as they grow up |
D.they are deadly poisonous |
A.can only grow to a weight of 0.1g |
B.do not change their behavior as they grow up |
C.like to find a safe place to hatch the next generation |
D.begin to grow teeth when they reach the third level |
A.Its inner organs. | B.The air it breathes in. |
C.The diet it eats. | D.The bacteria around it. |
A.Puffer fish can only produce poison when they face danger. |
B.People like eating puffer fish even though they are poisonous. |
C.The larvae are more aggressive than adult puffer fish. |
D.Young puffer fish taste better than adult puffer fish. |
阅读理解:
A
There are three branches of medicine. One is called “doctor medicine,” or “scientific medicine.” Scientific doctors try to observe sicknesses, look for logical patterns, and then find out how the human body works. From there they figure out what treatments may work. This kind of medicine is believed to date from the 4th century BC. Although nowadays it is successful, in the ancient world this approach probably did not cure many patients.
A second kind of medicine is called “natural cures,” or “folk medicine,” in which less educated people try to cure sicknesses with various herbs(中草药). These folk healers also use observation and logic, but they are not so aware of it. They try things until they find something that seems to work, and then keep doing that. Folk medicine flourished long before the development of scientific medicine and was more successful in ancient times than doctor medicine.
The third kind is called “health spas,” or “faith healing.” Sometimes this may be as simple as touching the holy man and being immediately healed. Other times, a magician may make you a magic charm, or say a spell, to cure you. Some religious groups organize special healing shrines for the sick. In these places people rest, get plenty of sleep, eat healthy food, drink water instead of wine, and exercise in various ways. They also talk to the priests and pray to the gods. If you are feeling depressed or you have been working too hard, going to these places may be just the right thing to make you feel better.
1. Doctor medicine ________.
A. has a longer history than folk medicine
B. has been practiced for around 1,600 years
C. bases its treatments on observation and logic
D. was very successful in curing sicknesses in ancient times.
2. According to the passage, which of the following is NOT used in health spas?
A. Magic power. B. Various herbs.
C. Religious faith. D. A healthy life style.
3. According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?
A. Folk healers choose different herbs to cure diseases without any sound basis.
B. People who practice folk medicine need lots of formal education on herbs.
C. The success of folk medicine led to the development of doctor medicine.
D. Natural cures worked better than scientific medicine in ancient times.
4. The author’s primary purpose in this passage is to _______.
A. describe different types of medicine
B. argue for the importance of medicine in health care.
C. show the crucial(决定性的) role religion plays in medical treatments.
D. compare the educational background of three different types of patients.