According to a recent report, about 15% of the people in the UK are members of gyms. But are they more likely to be fit?
A study found that gym members were 14 times more active than people who didn’t belong to any health club. Gym members did six hours more exercise a week, and this activity did make them fitter than non-gym members. They also spent less time sitting down every day than non-gym members. The results were the same for men and women.
The study included 405 people between the ages of 30 and 64, and the main characteristics of those who were gym members were the same as those who were not. ''But gym members did more training than non-gym members, '' said the lead author, Elizabeth Schroeder of the University of Illinois.
While it might seem clear that gym members exercising more are healthier than non-members, Schroeder says this has not been directly shown before. However, the study is only designed to show a tie between gym membership and more exercise. It may be that active people like to join gyms. In the study, people who exercised as much as gym members were also in good health.
You can get the same benefits wherever you exercise. This study shows a gym membership can make you do more exercise, but other research shows that exercising outside has other help. Outdoor activities can make you feel happy about life—especially if you run through a forest.
Outdoor exercise is also more enjoyable than going to the gym. The first five minutes of outdoor exercise is especially helpful in making people feel good. But Schroeder says that a gym may also encourage greater exercise because it can be social and fun.
1.What did the new study find out?
A.Gym members had healthier eating habits.
B.There were fewer women gym members than men.
C.Gym members did at least eight hours of exercise a week.
D.Gym members were more active than non-gym members.
2.In the study, researchers studied ____________________.
A.some sports lovers
B.405 gym members
C.people from different age groups
D.30 gym members and 64 non-gym members
3.Which of the following will Elizabeth Schroeder agree with?
A.Women should do more gym exercise.
B.We should be careful with outdoor training.
C.Outdoor exercise is better than gym exercise.
D.It is easier to keep exercising if you go to the gym.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Of all my dreams, my least favorite is the one where I'm in a car. It always begins with me driving, but eventually I realize that for some reason I'm sitting in the back seat. I can’t keep the car under control, rushing toward the roadside until, screaming, I wake up.
This is like the passenger experience in Waymo's self-driving cars. You sit in the back seat of a vehicle and watch as the wheel turns itself above an entirely empty driving seat.
''We made you live your nightmare, '' a Waymo staff member joked after I exited one of the company's fully self-driving car, following a quick drive inside its secret testing site. Waymo, a self-driving car company, arranged these rides for 40 journalists at this site.
There were also some demonstrations(演示). We watched as a Waymo car was cut off by a speeding vehicle. Then the employees created a situation in which a pile of moving boxes fell into the street just as another car passed in the opposite direction. Throughout the day, the cars performed impressively, driving with the level of care you might take if you had a wedding cake in the back seat.
During these demonstrations, Waymo gave information about what it was planning to do with these vehicles. The company has laid out four ways that its technology could be made available to the public. But Waymo's CEO, John Krafcik, wouldn’t show which of these was likely to come to market first, or on what kind of timeline.
I can't help but admire that Waymo is succeeding in developing this technology. There are countless possibilities at play on the road. The task of programming software to react to all those situations is unimaginably complex. What a great breakthrough!
1.How did the author feel about her self-driving experience in her dream?
A.It was puzzling. B.It was terrifying.
C.It was amusing. D.It was inspiring.
2.The author is probably _______________.
A.a newspaper reporter B.a professional driver
C.a software developer D.a Waymo staff member
3.What did the author intend to prove by mentioning the wedding cake in paragraph 4?
A.The employees performed well.
B.The self-driving cars worked well.
C.The self-driving cars ran at the same speed.
D.People could depend on the cars in emergencies.
4.What can be inferred from the passage?
A.The self-driving car will come to market soon.
B.The programming software needs to be improved.
C.The technology will make a difference to people's life.
D.The company still has no plan to put the technology into practice.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
Next week, strangers with a truck will take away everything we own, except the clothes on our backs, the car we will drive, and as much stuff as we can pack into it. It's called moving. Some people do it often. For others, like me, it's a rare experience. In all my adult years, I've moved only three times.
My first husband and I moved into our first house with a bed, our clothes and a few gifts. That was a lifetime ago. Over the years, I filled that house with three children, a few dogs and enough stuff to reach the ceiling.
When the kids grew up, I lost my husband to cancer, and I began to learn about letting go. First, I let go of the idea of being in control. Life isn’t about being in charge of what happens; it's about being in charge of what we do with it. Next, I let go of putting off the things I care most about, like keeping in touch with the people that mean the most to me. I let go of the people whose lives are about anger or hatred, and tried instead to surround myself with those who shine with kindness. Finally, I let go of being alone---I remarried. I eventually moved to a new city with my new husband, and after that move, I promised I'd stop collecting meaningless things. But 12 years later, here I am, still learning about letting go.
Yesterday, while cleaning out a dresser, I found a box filled with old keepsakes. Nothing in that box may mean much to anyone, except me. They are treasures for me because of the memories they preserve. We finally decided to keep them, hold them close and never let them go. We’ll all move someday from this world to the next, but we won't need a truck to do it. We'll take nothing with us and leave behind a memory of the life we lived, the mistakes we made, and all the love and kindness we tried to show. That memory might not be a treasure, but if we're lucky, someone will keep it and hold it close and never let it go.
1.According to paragraph 3, which of the following might the author advise?
A.Never let all the memories go as they are.
B.Put off the things that mean the most to you.
C.Wherever you go, you should be kind to others.
D.Life is 10% what happens to you and 90% how you deal with it.
2.The underlined word ''keepsakes'' in paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to_________.
A.something memorable B.something expensive
C.something unpleasant D.something beautiful
3.What is the author's main purpose in writing the article?
A.To stress the importance of letting the past go.
B.To give advice on how to make choices before moving.
C.To share how she learned to make important choices in life.
D.To explain how our memories can pass on to later generations.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
How to clean your dirty laptop
You know your laptop is dirty, But when's the last time you cleaned it? 1.. The keys are clean, the screen is free of smudges(污迹) and you fall in love with that three-year-old laptop all over again.
Gather your supplies
“You don't need much to clean a computer,” said Jolie Kerr, a cleaning expert. “I use exactly found things to keep my laptop clean: Rubbing alcohol, microfiber cloths, cotton swabs(棉签) and canned air.” 2.. They'll work fine, but they’re probably overpriced compared with what you have at home.
Start with the inside
3.. If there are visible dust bunnies in the vents, you' re let it go far too long without a cleaning In that case, you may want to open it up or take it to a repair shop for an in-depth cleaning.
Wipe down the outside
4.. “The most critical thing when cleaning a laptop or desktop computer is to app the cleaning product to the tool you're using to clean, never ever directly onto the computer” Ms. Kerr said.
Get rid of bad smell
Let's say you have a particularly terrible case of dirty laptop, and even after the above steps, your laptop still carries the bad smells. Getting rid of those is a challenge. 5.For that you can turn to the world's best natural deodorize(除臭剂): Charcoal.
A. Next comes the fun part: Making that laptop shine again.
B. Then, take your computer apart and check it carefully.
C. Don’t bother with specialty cleaners you see at electronics stores.
D. Once you’ve gathered your tools, it's time to start cleaning the inside.
E. They also make nice add-on gifts for those in need of a new computer.
F. Cleaning the surface can help, but a lot of those smells may also be inside.
G. Using a freshly cleaned laptop is almost as satisfying as getting a new one.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
I live in an apartment building in a planned community, including private roads. I have lived in this _______ of mostly professionals and retirees for over three years, but I had met only a few of my _______.
After the _______ had stopped falling, we were left to _______ ourselves because the city and state services didn't work. I went out to the parking lot to dig out my and my girlfriend's _______. I took a large metal piece of my desk to _______ as a shovel. After about 30 minutes of digging, some of the neighbors _______ with snow shovels and told me if I helped them, they would _______ me. I agreed and we dug out each other's cars. The streets were _______ due to a state of emergency declared by the governor, so we had ________ to go.
As I said, I only know my ________ neighbor, one who is elderly. But we all (we were 10 guys, all together, in the beginning) put our heads together and figured out who was too ________ or too ill to dig themselves ________ and went about, as a team, helping them. ________ the day went on, more and more people ________ us, men and women. We became an army of snow ________. Our only motivation was concern for the people who were ________ and our growing friendship.
Everyone was concerned for each other. Someone asked me if I had enough ________ to get by. It was typical of the spirit of the day. I ________ a lot of friends that day and we were planning a party to be held at the club house in spring.
Kindness and ________ for others has countless rewards!
1.A.hometown B.city C.community D.country
2.A.friends B.neighbors C.workmates D.classmates
3.A.snow B.rain C.wind D.dust
4.A.know about B.communicate with C.look for D.care for
5.A.wheelchairs B.bicycles C.cars D.coaches
6.A.mend B.buy C.treat D.use
7.A.kept out B.came out C.broke out D.took out
8.A.miss B.offer C.help D.provide
9.A.kept B.locked C.trapped D.closed
10.A.nowhere B.somewhere C.anywhere D.everywhere
11.A.strange B.humorous C.immediate D.clever
12.A.young B.old C.unhealthy D.unconfident
13.A.out B.up C.in D.down
14.A.Because B.As C.While D.Although
15.A.fell B.saw C.greeted D.joined
16.A.diggers B.supporters C.players D.helpers
17.A.beat B.stuck C.pressed D.struck
18.A.meat B.drink C.water D.food
19.A.trusted B.met C.made D.visited
20.A.concern B.confidence C.happiness D.honesty
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容(1个单词)或括号内单词的正确形式。
A new study has found that graduate students are six times more likely to show depression symptoms 1. the general population. Researchers led by Evans, a scientist, surveyed 2,279 students in 26 different 2. (country). Approximately 40% of the surveyed graduates scored middle 3. severe for anxiety. Nearly 40 percent of the surveyed graduates also showed signs of middle to severe depression. It’s not hard 4. (understand) why life as a master student can drive some people crazy. Long hours in researching, social loneliness and feelings of not being respected 5. (complete) can break even the most motivated persons among us. When this situation persists, the anxiety and depression can become part of their life. The relationship 6. their teachers is another aspect 7. can deeply influence a graduate student’s mental health. Among the graduates with anxiety or depression, only half agreed that their professional teachers 8. (provide) real help. These unbelievable high rates of anxiety and depression, when 9. (compare) to the general population, are alarming and should serve as 10. wakeup call for the academic world, expert Evans says.
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
假如你是李华，今年双十一你网购了一件物品，但是没有按时收到，而且物品有质量问题。于是你决定向店家的客服(Customer Service)写信投诉。
内容包括：
1.投诉的内容；
2.对你造成的影响；
3.索赔要求。
注意：1.词数80左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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难度: 中等查看答案及解析
阅读下面短文，根据所给情节进行续写，使之构成一个完整的故事。
Ariana caught another whiff(难闻的味道) and tried to hold her breath. She moved away slightly, but Ashley only moved closer and continued talking. Ariana felt trapped. She wanted badly to tell Ashley that she didn't smell very good. But how could she do that without hurting her feelings? Instead, she gathered the remains of her lunch to throw in the trash, thankful for the excuse to get some fresh air. She looked back to see Ashley eating quietly. Ashley's hair was tangled(乱糟糟的) , and her clothes were dirty. Ariana forced herself to go back to the table and take her seat, vowing(发誓) that she would not sit with Ashley tomorrow.
When Ariana got home from school, she complained to her mother, ''There's a girl named Ashley who likes to sit next to me in school, but she smells bad. ''
''She's probably having a tough day, '' said her mother.
''No, it's not just one day. She smells bad a lot, '' Ariana explained. ''Nobody else likes to sit next to her, either. ''
''I don't think you understand Ashley's situation, so let me ask you this..., '' Her mother's tone was serious. ''Who makes sure that your hair is combed every morning so you'll look nice when you go to school? ''
''You do, '' answered Ariana.
''Who makes sure you're bathed and cleaned every day? And your clothes are washed and neatly ironed? ''
''You and Daddy, '' Ariana said again.
''Do you live in a nice home? Do you have enough to eat? ''
Ariana nodded, beginning to feel guilty. She was starting to understand now. Ashley couldn’t help her situation because she was only seven years old—the same age as Ariana. Grown-ups are supposed to take care of kids.
''Why doesn't her family take better care of her? '' Ariana asked.
''Not all children live in the best situation, '' her mother said. ''The best thing you can do for Ashley is to treat her with kindness and sympathy. ''
注意：1. 所续写短文的词数应为150左右；
2. 应使用5个以上短文中标有下划线的关键词语；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1:
Ariana bit her bottom lip. Sadness for Ashley filled her heart.
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Paragraph 2:
At the end of the school year, the second grade prepared to go on a field trip to the zoo.
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难度: 中等查看答案及解析