Many healthy women in their late 70s tie up their walking shoelaces (鞋带) or hiking boots to stay active. But not Suzelle Poole. Six days week, the willowy (苗条的) 78-year-old Dallas ballet instructor laces up her dance shoes and teaches classical ballet, as she’s done for decades.
Madame Poole, as her students call her, also regularly performs ballet throughout the Dallas area as a guest artist with local dance companies. And she dances at the assisted-living centers along with her students. “People in care centers can relate to me because I’m about the same age.” Poole said, “I hope to get them interested in exercise. Plus, I enjoy showing them that it is never too late to do something you love.”
Ballet has always seemed as natural to her as breathing, she said, beginning with the first day when she took lessons at age 7 in London, where she was born. “I loved it from the start,” she said. “and when my parents took me to watch the well-known Margot Fonteyn in a ballet, I just knew it was something wanted to be a part of forever.”
Because 30 is the average age for most dancers to retire, Poole said, she thought she would be lucky to continue performing into her late 20s. Nobody was more surprised than she was when she continued to dance into her 40s, 50s and beyond. “I didn’t set out to be dancing ballet in my 70s,” she said, “but I’m certainly happy that it turned out that way. I have strong feet, strong knees and very strong back.” she added.
1.How is Suzelle Poole different from those of her age?
A.She often goes for walk. B.She starts learning ballet late.
C.She keeps fit through dancing. D.She loves collecting hiking boots.
2.Why does Suzelle Poole dance in care centers?
A.To meet dance companies’ requirement. B.To motivate people there to stay active.
C.To support her students’ volunteer work. D.To make friends with some people there.
3.According to the text, we know that Margot Fonteyn ________.
A.informed Suzelle Pooles’ parents about her talent
B.continued dancing ballet with Suzelle Poole on stage
C.taught Suzelle Poole to dance ballet for several years
D.inspired Suzelle Poole to devote her whole life to ballet
4.What can we say about Suzelle Poole’s dancing ballet in her 70s?
A.It is out of her expectation. B.It is her original dream.
C.It earns her nothing but reputation. D.It has little to do with her health.
高二英语阅读选择中等难度题
Many healthy women in their late 70s tie up their walking shoelaces (鞋带) or hiking boots to stay active. But not Suzelle Poole. Six days week, the willowy (苗条的) 78-year-old Dallas ballet instructor laces up her dance shoes and teaches classical ballet, as she’s done for decades.
Madame Poole, as her students call her, also regularly performs ballet throughout the Dallas area as a guest artist with local dance companies. And she dances at the assisted-living centers along with her students. “People in care centers can relate to me because I’m about the same age.” Poole said, “I hope to get them interested in exercise. Plus, I enjoy showing them that it is never too late to do something you love.”
Ballet has always seemed as natural to her as breathing, she said, beginning with the first day when she took lessons at age 7 in London, where she was born. “I loved it from the start,” she said. “and when my parents took me to watch the well-known Margot Fonteyn in a ballet, I just knew it was something wanted to be a part of forever.”
Because 30 is the average age for most dancers to retire, Poole said, she thought she would be lucky to continue performing into her late 20s. Nobody was more surprised than she was when she continued to dance into her 40s, 50s and beyond. “I didn’t set out to be dancing ballet in my 70s,” she said, “but I’m certainly happy that it turned out that way. I have strong feet, strong knees and very strong back.” she added.
1.How is Suzelle Poole different from those of her age?
A.She often goes for walk. B.She starts learning ballet late.
C.She keeps fit through dancing. D.She loves collecting hiking boots.
2.Why does Suzelle Poole dance in care centers?
A.To meet dance companies’ requirement. B.To motivate people there to stay active.
C.To support her students’ volunteer work. D.To make friends with some people there.
3.According to the text, we know that Margot Fonteyn ________.
A.informed Suzelle Pooles’ parents about her talent
B.continued dancing ballet with Suzelle Poole on stage
C.taught Suzelle Poole to dance ballet for several years
D.inspired Suzelle Poole to devote her whole life to ballet
4.What can we say about Suzelle Poole’s dancing ballet in her 70s?
A.It is out of her expectation. B.It is her original dream.
C.It earns her nothing but reputation. D.It has little to do with her health.
高二英语阅读选择中等难度题查看答案及解析
Many people turn to doctors or self-help books, but they forget a great thing that could help them fight illness: their friends.
Researchers are only now starting to pay attention to the importance of friendship in health. A 10-year Australian study found that older people with a large circle of friends were 22 percent less likely to die during the study period than those with fewer friends. A large 2007 study showed an increase of nearly 60 percent in the danger for obesity among people whose friends gained weight. And last year, Harvard researchers reported that strong social ties (关系) could improve brain health as we age.
“In general, the role of friendship in our lives isn’t well realized,” said Rebecca, a professor at the University of North Carolina. “Friendship has a bigger effect on our psychological (心理的) health than family relationships.”
While many friendship studies are about the close relationships of women, some research shows that it can do good to men too. In a six-year study of 736 middle-aged men, having friendships reduces the risk of heart disease. Only smoking was as important a danger factor (因素) as having little social support.
The exact reason why friendship has such a big effect isn’t clear. While friends can send a sick person to the hospital or pick up medicine, the advantages go well beyond physical help. Friendship clearly has a big psychological effect. “People with stronger friendships feel like there is someone they can turn to,” said Karen, a doctor. “The message of these studies is that friends make your life better.”
1.The three studies in paragraph 2 show that ________.
A.social ties have something to do with health
B.friends can help us lose weight
C.old people need friends the most
D.having more friends makes us healthier
2.Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined word “obesity”?
A.health B.unhappiness C.excitement D.fatness
3.What does the underlined sentence in paragraph 3 mean?
A.Friendship is more important to women than to men.
B.What people need most is a friend’s care.
C.The value of friendship hasn’t been fully understood.
D.Friendship is more important than family relationship.
4.Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A.Smoking and lack of friends are also risk factors for health.
B.Friendship and family relationships have equal effects on health.
C.Close friendships are good for women but not for men.
D.It is clear why friendship has such a huge impact on health.
5.What is the passage mainly about?
A.How to keep healthy.
B.The importance of doctors or self-help books.
C.The relationship between friendship and health.
D.How to improve family relationships.
高二英语阅读选择中等难度题查看答案及解析
The big examination is approaching. Assignments and tests will keep many of you up late at night, and you may plan to make up for your lost sleep during the weekends.1. A study shows that the habit of sleeping in on weekends doesn’t fix the damage done by a lack of sleep during the week.2.
In the study, 36 healthy young men and women with different sleep requirements were divided into three groups. The first and second groups were asked to sleep nine hours and five hours a night respectively. The members of the third group slept for five hours on weekdays, but rested as long as they wanted on the weekend.
The researchers found that people who lacked sleep ate more snacks and gained weight quickly. 3.That could be partially due to the change of the biological clock. In order to catch up on their sleep during weekends, people in the third group would habitually eat later, changing the release of hunger hormones. “4.” explained US researcher Polotsky. And even if they tried to sleep for as long as they wanted to during weekends, it was still inadequate to meet standard sleep time because they found it difficult to fall asleep.
“5.”Polotsky told CNN. “Because short, inadequate sleep schedules will lead to an in ability to change blood sugar and increase the risk of metabolic (新陈代谢的) disease in the long term. ”
For this reason, the American Academy of Sleep Medicine recommends at least seven hours of sleep each night for adults and much more for children.
A.But is it useful?
B.Do you feel excited about it?
C.Even worse,it may damage your health.
D.And these people are more likely to fall ill.
E.However,this wasn’t the case for the first group.
F.They may feel tired even after a full night’s sleep.
G.It increases appetite,so you’re hungry and eat more.
高二英语七选五中等难度题查看答案及解析
Eyesight plays a very important role in our daily life. Every walking moment, the eyes are working to see the world around us. Over forty percent of Americans worry about losing eyesight, but it's easy to include steps into our daily life to ensure healthy eyes. Here are five suggestions for a lifetime of healthy eyesight:
Schedule yearly exams.
1. Experts advise parents to bring babies 6 to 12 months of age to the doctor for a careful check. The good news is that millions of children now can have yearly eye exams and following treatment, including eyeglasses.
Protect against UV rays .
Long-term stay in the sun creates risk to your eyes. No matter what the season is, it’s extremely important to wear sunglasses. 2. Give your eyes a break.
Two-thirds of Americans spend up to seven hours a day using computers or other digital products. 3. Experts recommend that people practice the 20/20/20 rule: every 20 minutes, take a 20-second break and look at something 20 feet away.
4..
As part of a healthy diet, eat more fruits and vegetables each day. Vitamins C and E help protect eyesight and promote eye health.
Practice safe wear and care of contact lenses.
Many Americans use contact lenses to improve their eyesight. While some follow the medical guidance for wearing contact lenses, many are breaking the rules and putting their eyesight at risk. 5.
Otherwise: you may have problems such as red eyes, pain in the eyes, or a more serious condition.
A.Eat your greens.
B.Eye care should begin early in life.
C.They can properly protect your eyes.
D.Stay in good shape by taking more vitamins.
E.Parents usually don’t care about their own eyesight.
F.Always follow the doctor’s advice for appropriate wear.
G.This frequent eye activity increases the risk for eye tiredness.
高二英语七选五中等难度题查看答案及解析
Life is to be enjoyed. There’s no point in giving up something you enjoy unless you get something back that’s even better. When people eat more healthfully, exercise, quit smoking, and manage stress better, they find that they feel so much better that it reconstructs the reason for making these changes from fear of dying to joy of living. The latest studies show that when you exercise and eat right:
YOUR BRAIN receives more blood flow and oxygen, so you become smarter and think more clearly, have more energy, and need less sleep. Two studies showed that just walking for three hours per week for only three months caused so many new neurons (神经细胞) to grow that it actually increased the size of people’s brains!
YOUR FACE receives more blood flow, so your skin glows more and wrinkles less. You look younger and more attractive. In contrast, an unhealthy diet, chronic emotional stress and smoking reduce blood flow to your face so you age more quickly. Smoking accelerates aging because nicotine causes your arteries (动脉) to narrow down, which decreases blood flow to your face and makes it wrinkle earlier. This is why smokers look years older than they really are.
YOUR GENES change. In May, a study was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showing that changing your lifestyle changes your genes.
YOUR TELOMERES (染色体端粒) get longer. Telomeres are the ends of our chromosomes (染色体) that control how long we live. As telomeres become shorter, then cells age more quickly, thus shortening our lives.
Besides, one of the most interesting findings in the study was that the mothers’ awareness of stress was more important than what was really occurring in their lives. The researchers gave the women a questionnaire and asked them to rate on a three point scale how stressed they felt each day, and how out of control their lives felt to them. The women who were aware that they were under heavy stress had significantly shortened and damaged telomeres compared with those who felt more relaxed. On the contrary, some of the women who felt relaxed despite raising a disabled child had more normal appearing telomeres.
In other words, if you feel stressed, you are stressed; if you feel fine, you are fine.
1.Which of the following are good for lengthening one’s life, according to the passage?
① eat healthy food ② drink plenty of water ③ take exercise
④ get up early ⑤ go to sleep early ⑥ release one’s stress
A.①③⑥ B.③④⑥ C.①⑤⑥ D.①②③
2.The underlined words “your skin glows” in Paragraph 3 are closest in meaning to “your skin looks _________”.
A.white as there is plenty of sunshine
B.soft as you exercise enough
C.pink as you are healthy
D.smooth as there is much blood in it
3.In the author’s opinion, when you exercise and eat right, you will experience some changes EXCEPT _________.
A.brains becoming cleverer B.genes being changed
C.arteries turning narrower D.faces having fewer wrinkles
4.The best title for the passage would be “___________”.
A.Eat Better, Live Better B.Smoke More, Age Sooner
C.Less Stress, Fewer Diseases D.Feel Better, Live Longer
高二英语阅读选择中等难度题查看答案及解析
Recent data released from the Department of Labor in the US show that for the first time in 10 years, women make up more than half (50.04%)of the workforce. Many have celebrated this milestone as proof that women are inching toward equality in the workplace. After all, a symbol of women's equality in America has always been increased via labor force participation.
For women in today's economy, however, increased employment also carries an increased burden. Women earn less, have less flexibility in terms of their work schedules to meet caretaking demands, and are more likely to experience discrimination based on gender or sexual harassment than their male counterparts in the workforce.
Women earn less than men in nearly every occupation for which there is available data. If we do nothing, women will not reach economic equality with men until 2059.For women of color, it will take more than a century:2130 for black women and 2224 for Hispanic women(those from Latin America).This means women will have to work longer or hold multiple jobs to make ends meet and to care for their families.
Increased employment among women has not translated into less work at home. Many women in the workforce are still primarily responsible for the lion's share of housework and caretaking responsibilities compared with men.
A new study by Oxfam America-Institute for Women's Policy Research finds that women in the United States spend 37%more time on household and care work than their male counterparts, limiting career choices and economic mobility, and affecting their overall health and well-being. Black and Hispanic women spend nearly twice as much time on unpaid housework and caretaking demands as their male counterparts.
Much has been made about our strong economy as measured by how well the stock market performs and low unemployment. There's no doubt the increase in workforce participation among women will help boost this narrative. However, it does not mean that women are more economically secure.
In today's economy, working and middle-class families continue to struggle with rising housing and health care costs, stagnant wages and a shift to a technology-driven economy fueled by automation and the loss of manufacturing jobs. These trends have an extreme impact on women.
1.Why have people celebrated women's taking up more than half of the workforce?
A.Because women are likely to replace men in some fields.
B.Because that is the symbol of labor force participation.
C.Because it indicates more equality for women at workplace.
D.Because the data was released from the Department of Labor.
2.The numbers in Para.3 are used to emphasize that
A.women's inequality is a hard nut to crack. B.women have to bear an increased burden.
C.women earn less than men in every occupation. D.women of color see no hope to reach equality.
3.Why doesn't women's employment mean women are more economically secure?
A.Manufacturing jobs are increased by high-tech automation.
B.The trends in today's economy are unfavourable to women.
C.Economy is measured by the performance of the stock market.
D.Women are responsible for rising housing and health care costs.
4.Which would be the best title for this passage?
A.Women's Participation and Economic growth.
B.Over Half of Women Have Entered the Workforce.
C.Women Spend More Time on Household Than Men.
D.Women's Increased Employment Carries Increased Burden.
高二英语阅读选择中等难度题查看答案及解析
Try this: For an entire day, forget about the clock. Eat when you’re hungry and sleep when you’re tired. What do you think will happen?
You may be surprised to find that your day is much like most other days. You’ll probably get hungry when you normally eat and tired when you normally sleep. Even though you don’t know what time it is, your body does. These patterns of daily life are called circadian rhythms(生理节奏), and they are more than just habits. Inside our bodies are several clocklike systems that follow a roughly 24-hour cycle. Throughout the day and night, our inner clocks direct changes in temperature, body chemicals, hunger, sleepiness and more.
Everyone’s rhythms are different, which is why you might like to stay up late while your sister always wants to go to bed early. But on the whole, everyone is programmed to feel tired at night and energetic during the day. Learning about our body clocks may help scientists understand why problems arise when we act out of step with our circadian rhythms. For example, traveling across time zones can make people wake up in the middle of the night. Regularly staying up late can make kids do worse in tests.
“There is a growing sense that when we eat and when we sleep are important parts of how healthy we are,” says Steven Shea, director of the Sleep Disorders Program at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
One way to learn about how our body clocks tick is to mess them up and see what happens. That’s what neurologist(神经病学家)Frank Scheer and his workmates did in a recent study. Staying up night after night, their studies suggest, could make kids extra hungry and more likely to gain weight. And regularly sleeping too little, Scheer says, may be one cause of the recent increase in childhood obesity.
1.What will happen if you forget about the clock according to the passage?
A.You will feel upset.
B.You will behave normally.
C.Your body will not know what time it is.
D.You will probably get hungry more easily.
2.Mike feels energetic at 12 midnight while Tom feels sleepy. What advice would be given by the writer?
A.Both should see a doctor. B.Tom should see a doctor.
C.Both should take it easy. D.Mike should have a watch.
3.How do Frank Scheer and his workmates study body clocks?
A.By seeing what happens when they are messed up.
B.By asking questions and collecting answers.
C.By studying people traveling across time zones.
D.By programming people with man-made clocks.
4.What will the writer most probably talk about next?
A.Other examples of what people will do when their body clocks go wrong.
B.Some effective medicines that can keep people from putting on weight.
C.The importance of eating healthy food.
D.What circadian rhythms are and how they work.
高二英语阅读选择困难题查看答案及解析
When there’s a heat wave, ocean temperatures rise. That heat causes coral reefs (珊瑚礁) to lose their color, which shows the corals are dying. Fish then leave, and without the fish activity, reefs fall silent. A new study finds playing the sounds of a healthy reef can attract fish back to dead or dying areas. Indeed, those sounds could help bring a reef back to life.
Tim Gordon, a biologist at the University of Exeter in England, studies the effect of sound on sea animals. He and his research group “felt surprised at so many different sounds you can hear on a healthy reef”. They were shocked by how quiet the reefs became as they died. That got them wondering: Could sound help renew dying reefs by attracting fish?
So Gordon used pieces of dead coral to create small patches (小块) of reefs along the Great Barrier Reef. He placed them at least 25 meters from each other and from other reefs. Gordon left eleven patches alone. These served as his controls. He set up a loudspeaker around another eleven patches. The speakers played healthy reef sounds. The last eleven patches served as a different type of control. They got a set-up that looked like the loudspeaker but played no sound.
Fish arrived at all three types of patches. But they showed up more quickly at the ones that had sound. Besides, those small reefs ended up with twice as many fish by the end of the experiment. Reefs with sound also had more species overall. Gordon found no difference between the two types of controls. It was sound, not the speaker set-up , that had attracted the extra fish. Playing healthy reef sounds adds another powerful tool to restore our reefs, Gordon says.
1.What has led to the death of coral reefs?
A.Too many fish. B.Noise pollution.
C.Loss of their color. D.High ocean temperatures.
2.What is the purpose of the second paragraph?
A.To introduce sounds of a healthy reef. B.To raise doubts about dying coral reefs.
C.To explain the reason for the new study. D.To show the positive effect of fish on corals.
3.What did Gordon and his team do in their study?
A.They played healthy reef sounds for two groups of patches.
B.They created 33 patches with the collected pieces of dead coral.
C.They set up a loudspeaker around all the patches of dead coral.
D.They played sounds to attract fish to approach all the patches.
4.What is the main idea of the text?
A.Healthy coral reef sounds attract fish back to dead reefs.
B.Dead coral reefs are especially dependent on healthy sounds.
C.The speaker set-ups of coral reefs are attractive to most fish.
D.Underwater speakers may remind coral reefs of possible threats.
高二英语阅读选择中等难度题查看答案及解析
Many artists late in the last century were in search of a means to express their individuality. Modern dance was one of the ways some of these people sought to free their creative spirit. The beginnings of modem dance were happening before Isadora Duncan, but she was the first person to bring the new dance to general audiences and see it accepted and acclaimed.
Her search for a natural movement form sent her to nature. She believed movement should be as natural as the swaying of the trees and the rolling waves of the sea. Her great contributions are in three areas.
First, she began the expansion of the kinds of movements that could be used in dance. Before Duncan danced, ballet was the only type of dance performed in concerts. In the ballet the feet and legs were emphasized, with virtuosity (技巧高超) shown by complicated, codified positions and movements. Duncan performed dance by using all her body in the freest possible way. Her dance stemmed from (源自) her soul and spirit. She was one of the pioneers who broke tradition so others might be able to develop the art.
Her second contribution lies in dance costumes (服装). She discarded corset, ballet shoes, and stiff costumes. These were replaced with flowing clothes, bare feet, and unlimited hair. She believed in the natural body being allowed to move freely, and her dress displayed this ideal.
Her third contribution was in the use of music. In her performances she used the symphonies (交响乐) of great masters, including Beethoven and Wagner, which was not the usual custom.
She was as exciting and eccentric in her personal life as in her dance.
1.. The best title for the passage would be“_________”.
A. Dance in the Twentieth Century
B. Artists of the Last Century
C. Natural Movement in Dance
D. A Pioneer in Modern Dance
2. According to the passage, nature meant_________ to Duncan.
A. something to conquer B. a model for movement
C. a place to find peace D. a symbol of disorder
3. The paragraph following the passage most probably discusses_________.
A. Duncan’s further contribution to modern dance
B. The music customarily used in ballet
C. other aspects of Duncan’s life
D. audience acceptance of the new form of dance
高二英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
It comes as no surprise that many parents walk along their young children ____ their safety.
A. in search of B. in place of
C. for fear of D. for lack of
高二英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析