When building houses, people used to think about not only the climate of the areas but also the building materials and the fashions for their houses. However, since electricity became more and more expensive, people began to pay much more attention to the energy they could get for their houses and the new ways they could find to protect their houses from both cold and heat.
Now, houses of an old yet new type have been widely built. In some parts of the world, people share their houses with their livestock（家畜）.During cold weather, they gather their cows, goats, or other animals and keep them on the first floor of their houses. The reasons are that the animals can be protected from the cold and that they can help to heat the houses as well. The body heat given off by the animals rises to the second floor of the houses, where people live. By sharing their houses with their livestock, people gain a source of heat.
People who live in or near cities do not usually keep livestock. However, home builders use the fact that heat rises. This natural law can be used in building houses in these areas. Instead of keeping livestock on the first floor, builders fill it with large rocks. As they are open to the sun’s rays during cold weather, these rocks take in heat. They also give off the heat, and, of course, the warm air rises into the living areas of the houses. So these houses are energy-saving.
House-building becomes a great challenge to building designers and energy engineers. They try to meet this challenge by learning from old traditions and by using modern technology. And someday in the future, people will be able to live in more energy-saving houses.
【小题1】What did people begin to consider as electricity was no longer cheap?

阅读短文，回答问题。

Stress occurs all the time in most people’s lives. Too much stress, however, can seriously affect physical and mental well-being.

Stress decreases the quality of life by reducing feelings of pleasure and accomplishment. At some point in their lives, almost all people will go through stressful events or situations that limit their ability to cope.

Financial concerns are one of the main stressors for a man. He is supposed to be able to “support” his family. In today’s economy, a family living on a single income is rare. Most often the woman is working outside the home also. Job-related stress may increase the risk of heart disease. It appears to have a greater effect on a man’s arteries(动脉) than on a woman’s. Men who report the most stress have almost five times the risk of having more serious artery disease.

One temporary treatment for job stress may be stress-reduction exercises. Sometimes these techniques can be quite easy and simple. Taking a few minutes to practice relaxation or meditation can help to ease some of the stress. Taking a vacation, developing interests outside of work, and finding supportive friends who will listen can help to relieve stress. Sometimes, changes in the workplace or renegotiation of the demands of the job may be needed. This may require joining with other workers to document stress conditions.

More and more marriages are ending in divorce now. It is not uncommon for a man to find that he is the primary caregiver for his children, or that he has joint custody(联名保管(户)). This may involve a lot of changes for him. It can be very stressful until a routine is formed. This is especially true for a man who has not been able to be involved much in raising his children because of his job.

There are support groups that a man can join to help him deal with these changes. Changes a man goes through in middle age may increase stress. If he is not active, he may gain weight. Staying active, eating a healthy diet, and getting plenty of sleep will help to decrease the stress. In addition, exercising and talking to someone can also help to relieve the stress.

Getting rid of stress from life is impossible. However, stress management techniques can decrease some of the harmful effects of stress.

1. Almost all people are affected by stress sometimes in their life because __________.

A. they are lacking in the stress management techniques

B. they will unavoidably come across things beyond their ability

C. they are too busy working to do physical exercises

D. they are so selfish that they think family is a burden

2. If a man feels stressful, he can try the following means EXCEPT ________.

A. having a chat with friends

B. doing some physical exercises

C. changing the workplace

D. working harder to make more money

3. According to the passage, a middle-aged man may feel even more stressful when he __________.

A. finds that his wife still has to work

B. notices that his weight remains the same

C. realizes that he doesn’t have to change his job

D. deals with a lot of changes negatively.

4. Judging from the context, the underlined word “ease” most probably means __________.

A. making more comfortable               B. making less difficult

C. making less serious                         D. making less complicated

5. From the passage we can infer that __________.

A. it’s dangerous for a man to be under stress from work for a long time

B. it’s likely for a man to be free from stress if he lives a healthy life

C. it’s very stressful for a working man to share the care of children with his wife

D. it’s common for a man to be the only wage-earner in a family nowadays

When building houses, people used to think about not only the climate of the areas but also the building materials and the fashions for their houses. However, since electricity became more and more expensive, people began to pay much more attention to the energy they could get for their houses and the new ways they could find to protect their houses from both cold and heat.
Now, houses of an old yet new type have been widely built. In some parts of the world, people share their houses with their livestock. During cold weather, they gather their cows, goats, or other animals and keep them on the first floor of their houses. The reasons are that the animals can be protected from the cold and that they can help to heat the houses as well. The body heat given off by the animals rises to the second floor of the houses, where people live. By sharing their houses with their livestock, people gain a source of heat.
People who live in or near cities do not usually keep livestock. However, home builders use the fact that heat rises. This natural law can be used in building houses in these areas. Instead of keeping livestock on the first floor, builders fill it with large rocks. As they are open to the sun’s rays during cold weather, these rocks take in heat. They also give off the heat, and, of course, the warm air rises into the living areas of the houses. So these houses are energy-saving.
House building becomes a great challenge to building designers and energy engineers. They try to meet this challenge by learning from old traditions and by using modern technology. And someday in the future, people will be able to live in more energy-saving houses.
【小题1】What did people begin to consider as electricity was no longer cheap?

      When building houses, people used to think about not only the climate of the areas but also the building materials and the fashions for their houses. However, since electricity became more and more expensive, people began to pay much more attention to the energy they could get for their houses and the new ways they could find to protect their houses from both cold and heat.

     Now, houses of an old yet new type have been widely built. In some parts of the world, people share their houses with their livestock（家畜）.During cold weather, they gather their cows, goats, or other animals and keep them on the first floor of their houses. The reasons are that the animals can be protected from the cold and that they can help to heat the houses as well. The body heat given off by the animals rises to the second floor of the houses, where people live. By sharing their houses with their livestock, people gain a source of heat.

     People who live in or near cities do not usually keep livestock. However, home builders use the fact that heat rises. This natural law can be used in building houses in these areas. Instead of keeping livestock on the first floor, builders fill it with large rocks. As they are open to the sun’s rays during cold weather, these rocks take in heat. They also give off the heat, and, of course, the warm air rises into the living areas of the houses. So these houses are energy-saving.

     House-building becomes a great challenge（挑战）to building designers and energy engineers. They try to meet this challenge by learning from old traditions and by using modern technology. And someday in the future, people will be able to live in more energy-saving houses.

56．What did people begin to consider as electricity was no longer cheap?

      A．The climate of their areas.                    B．The energy for their houses.

      C．The fashions for their houses.               D．The building materials for their houses.

57．People in some areas gain a source of heat by _________.

       A．keeping their livestock downstairs        

    B．protecting their livestock from the cold

       C．sharing their houses only with their cows                             

       D．living on the second floor with their livestock

58．The underlined words “natural law” in the third paragraph refer to the fact that ________.

       A．heat raises the temperature in the houses

       B．heat goes in the upward direction

       C．heat goes up if temperature is raised

       D．heat increases the temperature of rocks

59．From the passage, we can conclude that __________.

       A．people will no longer consider building materials in the future

       B．energy-saving buildings will become more popular in the future

       C．almost all people will move into the houses heated by large rocks

       D．energy engineers will devote themselves only to modern technology

When building houses, people used to think about not only the climate of the areas but also the building materials and the fashions for their houses. However, since electricity became more and more expensive , people began to pay much more attention to the energy they could get for their houses and the new ways they could find to protect their houses from both cold and heat.

Now, houses of an old yet new type have been widely built. In some parts of the world, people share their houses with their livestock. During cold weather, they gather their cows, goats, or other animals and keep them on the first floor of their houses. The reasons are that the animals can be protected from the cold and that they can help to heat the houses as well. The body heat given off by the animals rises to the second floor of the houses, where people live. By sharing their houses with their livestock, people gain a source of heat.

People who live in or near cities do not usually keep livestock. However, home builders use the fact that heat rises. This natural law can be used in building houses in these areas, instead of keeping livestock on the first floor builders fill it with large rocks. As they are open to the sun’s rays during cold weather, these rocks take in heat. They also give off the heat, and, of course, the warm air rises into the living areas of the houses. So these houses are energy saving.

House building becomes a great challenge to building designers and energy engineer. They try to meet this challenge by learning from old traditions and by using modern technology. And someday in the future, people will be able to live in more energy saving houses.

1.What did people begin to consider as electricity was no longer cheap?

A．The climate of their areas.                 B．The energy for their houses.

C．The fashions for their houses.              D．The building materials for their houses.

2.People in some areas gain a source of heat by _________.

A．keeping their livestock downstairs

B．protecting their livestock from the cold

C．sharing their houses only with their cows

D．living on the second floor with their livestock

3.The underlined words “natural law ” in the third paragraph refer to the fact that ________.

A．heat raises the temperature in the houses

B．heat goes in the upward direction

C．heat goes up if temperature is raised

D．heat increases the temperature of rocks

4.From the passage, we can conclude that _______ .

A．people will no longer consider building materials in the future

B．energy saving buildings will become more popular in the future

C．almost all people will move into the houses heated by large rocks

D．energy engineers will devote themselves only to modern technology

5.What is the meaning of the underlined word “livestock” ? _______ .

A．animals raised especially for economical benefits   B．furniture

C．plants kept in the house                  D．general appearance of the whole family