We often hear that 60 is the new 50. Just check out images of your grandparents or great-grandparents and notice their stooped (驼背的) bodies, their wrinkled faces when they were barely pushing 60. What a contrast with energetic, gym-going sexagenarians (60几岁的人) of today!
A research, overseen by gerontologist Taina Rantanen, compared adults born in 1910 and 1914 with those born roughly 30 years later. Both birth groups were examined in person at age 60 and again at 70 with the same set of six physical tests and five measures of cognition.
According to the research, the later-born group could walk faster, had a stronger hand grasp and could use more force with their lower legs. On cognitive tests, the later-born group had better verbal fluency, and scored higher on a test matching numbers to symbols. But not everything changed across the generations: measures of lung function were surprisingly not changing, and there was no improvement in the short-term-memory task of recalling a series of digits.
There are many reasons why people are aging better, including improved medical care and a drop in smoking, but the key factor shown in the study of physical function was that the later-born adults were more physically active and had bigger bodies, which suggests better nutrition. For brain function, the key seems to be more years of education.
Education is a powerful influence on aging and health, says Luigi Ferrucci, scientific director of the U.S. National Institute on Aging: “With more education, you are probably going to have a larger income, which means you are more likely to go to the doctor, and have good nutrition.” He also points out that the average life span is seven years shorter in a poor state such as Mississippi than in a wealthier one such as California. “Here we still have lots of people who cannot take the drugs they need because they cannot pay for them,” he says. In short, 60 may be the new 50 for many of us but not for all.
8. How does the writer begin the passage?
A.By imagining a scene. | B.By making a comparison. |
C.By raising a question. | D.By presenting an image. |
9. Which of the following is true about the research?
A.Everything didn’t change across the generations. |
B.The later-born group could hardly grasp things more tightly. |
C.The later-born group did worse in matching numbers to symbols. |
D.There was a little improvement in short-term memory in both groups. |
10. According to the research, what contributes most to physically aging better?
A.Improved medical care. | B.Education. |
C.Better nutrition. | D.Energetic images. |
11. What is the main idea of the passage?
A.Many reasons contribute to people’s better physical function. |
B.Today’s energetic sexagenarians have much better images. |
C.Education is the key to people’s aging better. |
D.People today are aging better in many ways. |