【推荐1】Conventional wisdom says that hardship can make us old before our time. In fact, a new study suggests that violence not only leaves long-term scars on children’s bodies, but also changes their DNA, causing changes that are equal to seven to ten years of premature aging.
Scientists measured this by studying the ends of children’s chromosomes (染色体), called telomeres, says Idan Shalev, lead author of a study published in Molecular Psychiatry.
Telomeres are special DNA sequences which prevent the DNA in chromosomes from separating. They get shorter each time a cell divides, until a cell cannot divide any more and dies.
Several factors have been found to shorten telomeres, including smoking, radiation and psychological stresses such as being treated badly when young and taking care of a chronically ill person.
In this study, researchers examined whether exposure to violence could make children’s telomeres shorten faster than normal. They interviewed the mothers of 236 children at ages 5, 7 and 10, asking whether the youngsters had been exposed to domestic violence between the mother and her partner; physical maltreatment by an adult; or bullying. Researchers measured the children’s telomeres—in cells obtained by swabbing the insides of their cheeks—at ages 5 and 10.
Telomeres shortened faster in kids exposed to two or more types of violence, says Shalev. Unless that pattern changes, the study suggests, these kids could be expected to develop diseases of aging, such as heart attacks or memory loss, seven to 10 years earlier than their peers.
Shalev says there is hope for these kids. His study found that, in rare cases, telomeres can lengthen. Better nutrition, exercise and stress reduction are three things that may be able to lengthen telomeres, he says.
The study confirms a small ­but­ growing number of studies suggesting that early childhood adversity imprints itself in our chromosomes, says Charles Nelson, a professor of pediatrics and neuroscience at Harvard Medical School.
1. The new study found that ________.

A．hardship can change a child’s aging

B．violence leaves scars on a child’s mind

C．violence can speed up a child’s aging

D．hardship has a long ­term effect on a child’s mind

2. According to the text, telomeres ________.

A．are at the ends of people’s chromosomes

B．can help prevent DNA from separating

C．can make a cell die quickly

D．become shorter before they die

3. Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?

A．Violence can cause quick cell division in children’s body.

B．Researchers measured the children’s telomeres from their legs in the study.

C．Being treated badly will make a child’s telomeres shorten faster.

D．Children who have shorter telomeres may have a heart attack earlier.

4. What is the best title for the text?

A．Violence Aging Children’s DNA

B．Children’s Changing DNA Patterns

C．Violence and Telomeres

D．The Function of Telomeres

【推荐3】A father in Indianapolis last week accused his wife of feeding their child bleach(漂白剂) to help cure her autism（自闭症）— something his wife had read about in a Facebook group.

Police arrested the 28-year-old mother on Saturday after she reportedly put drops of hydrochloric acid（盐酸）and water-purifying solution in her young daughter’s drinks. The potentially dangerous chemical combination, which becomes an industrial bleach, is marketed as Miracle Mineral Solution or Master Mineral Solution, which its advocates claim will cure a number of diseases, including autism, cancer, AIDS and hepatitis（肝炎）.

Police did not release the names of either parent, or the age of the child, who was removed from the home by Child Protective Services.

The Food and Drug Administration issued a warning in 2010 advising people using MMS to stop immediately and throw it away, citing side effects ranging from uncomfortable to life-threatening, according to the warning. But the MMS website calls it an ＂amazingly powerful compound＂ that has ＂stood the test of time because it works — and works well!＂

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there is no medication that cures autism, a developmental disability that can cause noticeable social and behavioral challenges. There are medications, however, that can help manage the behaviors connected to autism, such as high energy levels, depression and seizures（疾病发作）. Some supporters of autism’s neurodiversity movement are against curing the disability, believing it to be a natural human variation central to autistic people’s identities.

Still, MMS is among many boasted ＂cures＂ for autism sought by hopeful parents that are considered harmful and banned by the FDA. Parents in the past, for example, have turned to chelation therapies（螯合疗法）to treat their autistic children, which are over-the-counter products used in severe cases of lead or iron poisoning that eliminate minerals and metals from the body. Supporters of the treatment, however, say it ＂cures＂ autism by removing toxic chemicals. Side effects, according to the FDA, include dehydration, kidney failure, and death.

Some parents have tried hyperbaric oxygen therapy, too, which involves breathing pure oxygen in a pressurized room or tube. While the therapy is an accepted treatment for severe conditions such as decompression sickness — a danger of scuba diving — it is not recommended for illnesses like autism because of insufficient evidence showing it helps, according to the Mayo Clinic. The treatment’s side effects include seizures and lung collapse.

For parents looking to treat autism — which in 2016 affected one in 68 children in the country — a quick Google search may still point them to MMS, which is promoted on some healing blogs and highlighted as a successful treatment at a 2012 AutismOne Conference.

Title：A mom feeding her daughter bleach to treat     1    

Some     2     medications for the disease		Side effects or danger
About MMS	1. It is     3     for Miracle Mineral Solution. 2. It can be used to     4     water. 3. Supporters     5     it can cure autism, cancer, AIDS and hepatitis.	1. Feeling uncomfortable. 2. Posing a     6     to life.
Chelation therapies: normally a     7     for lead or iron poisoning.		1. Dehydration. 2. Kidneys     8     to function normally. 3. Death.
Hyperbaric oxygen therapy:     9     in pure oxygen in a pressurized room or tube.		1. Seizures. 2. Lungs fail to     10    .

【推荐1】Some pigs tend to be optimistic while others are pessimistic, according to a new research that is meaningful to animal welfare. The study, published in the journal Biology Letters, is the first to show that mood and personality interact in an animal, influencing judgment.

Asher, a researcher at the University of Newcastle's Institute of Neuroscience, and her team housed groups of pigs in two types of environment. One reflected standard commercial conditions and the other was cushier with more space and plenty of soft, deep straw. After the pigs got accustomed to these new homes over a few weeks, the researchers picked 18 pigs from each type to train and test their judgment.

“To do this, we trained each pig. In one corner of a training room there would be a bowl with chocolate sweets — pigs love them — and at the opposite side of the room there would be a bowl containing coffee beans, which pigs find bitter­tasting,” a researcher said.

Over a number of training trials, pigs learned to go to the bowl reliably when it was in the corner where they had figured out to expect chocolate sweets. On the contrary, they quickly learned to avoid the bowl when it was in the corner where they would expect to find the coffee beans.

The researchers next placed an unfamiliar bowl in different locations, to see how the pigs would react. Some gaily dashed to the bowl no matter what was inside, showing optimism that it would contain their favorite sweets. Others, however, behaved as though they expected it to contain coffee beans, displaying pessimism.

The findings suggest that a one­size­fits­all answer to animal welfare issues does not exist. Even if pigs are just equal to bacon or other meat for some people, there is still cause for concern. Studies have suggested that how an animal is treated during its lifetime can directly affect meat quality and taste.

1. What was the study trying to figure out?

A．How to make pigs happier.

B．The similarities between humans and pigs.

C．How living environment affected pigs' mood.

D．How pigs' mood and personality affected their judgment.

2. What does the underlined word “cushier” in Paragraph 2 mean?

A．Simple.	B．More comfortable.
C．Unpractical.	D．Less free.

3. What do the findings of the new research imply?

A．People should treat pigs equally.

B．People's health relies on meat quality.

C．People should meet pigs' various needs.

D．People's attitude toward pigs is totally wrong.

【推荐2】Patients with a long-term illness can be very bored while recovering at home. This can be especially true of children who may feel cut off from their friends and classmates. Now, a Norwegian company features a robot, which keeps kids in touch with friends and the classroom to make them feel less lonely.

The robot called Avatar I (AVI) “sits” in the classroom, taking the place of the child, and allows participation and engagement(参加) with teachers and classmates. In other words, the children can take part in classes from wherever they are recovering with their school friends’ help. They carry the robot between classes and place the robot on their desks.

The Norwegian company created the robot with its co-founder, Karen Dolva, who explains how the robot works. She says from home the child uses an iPad or a phone to start the robot, control the robot’s movements with touch, and talk through it. The child can take part in classroom activities. The robot is equipped with speakers, microphones and cameras that make communicating easy. So it acts as the eyes and the ears and the voice of the child who is too ill to be physically at school. Inside AVI is a small computer connected to a 4G network.

AVI was designed to be tough. It won’t allow water to pass through it and can take a fall from a desk without damage. AVI is large and looks like a human for a reason. Dolva says it can’t be just a tiny camera because the other kids can’t pick it up and take it with them. This is important because the robot is supposed to be a friend to the children. Hopefully AVI will help some children feel less lonely while they are absent from class.

1. What is the robot mentioned in paragraph 1 mainly designed for?

A．Getting the sick children connected with schoolwork.

B．Helping the robot make more and more friends.

C．Helping the sick children lighten their loneliness.

D．Making the robot take care of the sick children.

2. What can the sick children do through the robot?

A．They can recover from a long-term illness very soon.

B．They can see their teachers and friends at any time.

C．They can ask the robot to do homework for them.

D．They can do classroom activities at home or at hospital.

3. What does the third paragraph mainly talk about?

A．How the company has created the robot.	B．How the robot can work successfully.
C．What functions the robot are equipped with.	D．What benefits the robot can bring about.

4. Where does this passage probably come from?

A．A health report.	B．A science magazine.
C．A public lecture.	D．A product instruction

【推荐3】When newspapers and radio describe the damage caused by a hurricane named Hazel,girls named Hazel are probably teased by their friends.To keep out of trouble,the Weather Bureau says,“Any resemblance between hurricane names and the names of particular girls is purely accidental.”

Some women became angry because hurricanes are given their names,but many other women are proud to see their names make headlines.They don’t even care that they are the names of destructive storms.Because more women seem to like it than dislike it,the Weather Bureau has decided to continue using girl’s names for hurricanes.

In some ways a hurricane is like a person.After it is born,it grows and develops,then becomes old and dies.Each hurricane has a character of its own.Each follows its own path through the world,and people remember it long after it gone.So it is natural to give hurricanes’ names,and to talk about them almost if they were alive.

1. What happens to girls named Hazel according to the passage?

A．They suffer from hurricanes.

B．The Weather Bureau look for them.

C．Others often make fun of them.

D．They can’t find boyfriend.

2. The underlined word“resemblance”probably means ______.

A．trouble

B．difference

C．sameness

D．success

3. According to the passage,which is more reasonable?

A．Some women feel unhappy because hurricanes are given their names.

B．A lot of women complain of the Weather Bureau.

C．Many women want to be known.

D．All the hurricanes are caused by women.

4. Public opinions make the Weather Bureau ______.

A．consider the disagreement of some women

B．go on naming hurricanes after women

C．name hurricanes after men

D．look for a new method to name hurricanes

5. It is natural to give hurricane names because ______.

A．they become old and die

B．all of them should be remembered

C．each hurricane has its own day to come

D．each hurricane has its own character