Researchers at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center mapped brain changes after a year of aerobic workouts and uncovered a potentially significant process: Exercise increases blood flow into two key areas of the brain associated with memory.
The study, published in the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, showed this blood flow can help even older people with memory issues improve cognition, a finding that could guide future Alzheimer's disease research, according to UT Southwestern Medical Center.
In the study, researchers followed 30 participants who were 60 or older and had memory problems. Half experienced a year of aerobic exercise while the other half did stretches. “We've shown that even when your memory starts to fade, you can still do something about it by adding aerobic exercise to your lifestyle," said Binu Thomas, a senior research scientist of UT Southwestern Medical Center who led the study. "The aerobic exercise group showed a 47% improvement in some memory scores after a year; the other group showed slight change. Brain imaging of the aerobic exercise group, taken while at rest at the beginning and end of the study, showed increased blood flew into the specific brain areas that played important roles in memory function."
Many teams across the world are trying to determine if aerobic exercise might fight memory loss. Evidence is growing that it could at least play a small role in delaying or reducing the risk of Alzheimer's disease. For example, a 2018 study showed that people with lower fitness levels experienced faster retrogression of vital nerve fibers in the brain called white matter related to memory.
“Blood flow in the brain connected with memory improvement is still a part of the puzzle, and we need to continue piecing it together," Thomas says. "But we've seen enough date to know that starting a fitness program can have lifelong benefits for our brains as well as our hearts."
1. What is the study mainly about?A.Old people have memory issues. | B.Exercise improves memory. |
C.Aerobic workouts benefit mental health. | D.Alzheimer's disease can be cured. |
A.Earlier memories were refreshed. | B.Memory scores showed very small change. |
C.Brain imaging remained the same. | D.More blood flew into memory-related areas. |
A.Growth. | B.Recovery. | C.Decline. | D.Extension. |
A.Further research work requires doing. | B.More people experience memory loss. |
C.Mystery of brain blood flow has been solved. | D.Signs of memory loss can be discovered earlier. |
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【推荐1】Food sometimes gets poisoned(中毒) with harmful things. A person who eats such food can get an illness called food poisoning. Food poisoning is usually not serious, but some types are deadly. The symptoms of food poisoning usually begin within hours of eating the poisoned food. Fever is one of the most common symptoms.
Certain microorganisms(微生物) cause most types of food poisoning. Bacteria and other microorganisms can poison eggs, meat, vegetables, and many other foods. After entering the body, these tiny living things release(释放) poisons that make people sick.
Some chemicals(化合物) can also cause food poisoning. They are often added to food while it is being grown, processed, or prepared. For example, many farmers spray chemicals on crops to kill weeds and insects. Some people may have a bad reaction to those chemicals when they eat the crops.
Some plants and animals contain natural poisons that are harmful to people. These include certain kinds of seafood, grains, nuts, seeds, beans, and mushrooms.
When people handle food properly, the risk of food poisoning is very small. Microorganisms multiply rapidly in dirty places and in warm temperatures. This means that people should never touch food with dirty hands or put food on unwashed surfaces. Food should be kept in a refrigerator to stop microorganisms from growing. Meat needs to be cooked thoroughly to kill any dangerous microorganisms. People should also wash food covered with chemicals before eating it. Finally, people should not eat wild mushrooms or other foods that grow in the wild. Some of these foods may contain natural materials that are poisonous to humans. In addition, some types of fish can be poisonous.
Most people recover from food poisoning after a few day of resting and drinking extra water. If people eat natural poisons, they must go to the hospital right away to have their stomachs emptied.
1. Which of the following statements is NOT true?A.Food when poisoned can make people sick. | B.Food poisoning means death. |
C.Food poisoning comes in varieties. | D.Food poisoning can be serious. |
A.are always accompanied by a fever | B.are too common to be noted |
C.can be noticed within hours | D.can he ignored |
A.some chemicals | B.low temperatures |
C.some tiny living things | D.certain natural materials |
A.mushrooms should not be eaten |
B.vegetables are safer than meat and seafood |
C.natural poisons are more dangerous than chemicals |
D.different types of food should be handled differently |
【推荐2】When our Scottish puppy reached doggie adolescence, she suddenly stopped obeying my commands. Previously, if I called “come,” Annie would fly across our yard to my arms. Now, the 8-month-old gave me an aggressive “make me” look and ran the other way.
Our dog trainer advised us to stop complaining. “She's a teenager,” she said. Now, a new study is backing that up: Dogs, it says, experience an oversensitive period just like human teenagers. “There is abundant folk knowledge that the behavior of adolescents differs from younger or older dogs,” says Barbara Smuts.
Puppies bond with humans much as children do. “But owners often feel like they're failing when their puppies reach adolescence,” about 8 months for most dogs, says Lucy Asher. Like teenagers, adolescent dogs can disregard and disobey their owners. Indeed, teenage dogs are the most likely age group to land in U.S. shelters.
To see exactly how adolescence changes dog behavior, Asher and her team monitored 70 female dogs being raised as potential guide dogs. They asked caregivers to score the puppies on separation-related behaviors, like trembling when left behind. Dogs with high scores on this behavior entered adolescence earlier-at about 5 months, compared with 8 months for those with lower scores. Various factors cause human teenage girls with poor parental relationships to also enter adolescence at a younger age. Thus, similar to humans, dogs that have bad relationships with their caregivers see changes in their development.
According to Smuts, adolescent dogs that were stressed by separation from their caregiver also increasingly disobeyed that person, showing the insecurity of human teenagers.
Because of the similarity between adolescent pups and humans, dogs can serve as a model species for studying adolescence in humans, the scientists say. The temporary nature of dogs which disobey the owners may make us worry less when our pups suddenly get minds of their own.
1. The author's attitude towards his dog's misbehavior can be best described asA.tolerant | B.delighted | C.unsatisfied | D.indifferent |
A.run after | B.pay no attention to | C.bark at | D.defend against |
A.Many adolescent dogs like staying in American shelters. |
B.Adolescent dogs will never follow their owners' instructions. |
C.Adolescent dogs are fond of being separated from their caregivers. |
D.Dogs having poor relation with their caregivers enter adolescence earlier. |
A.Both young dogs and teenagers rely on their parents. |
B.Many researches have shown young dogs are aggressive. |
C.Adolescent dogs feel more anxious and frightened than teenagers. |
D.Like human teenagers, dogs get difficult when they reach adolescence. |
【推荐3】Many people are aware of the beauty of a solar eclipse (日食), but are surprised to learn that lunar eclipses are often just as impressive. While a total solar eclipse lasts only for a few minutes and can be seen only in a small area of a few square kilometres, a total lunar eclipse can last for several hours and can be seen over much of the planet. Therefore, the beauty and stability of lunar eclipses make them a favourite of both amateur and professional photographers.
Lunar eclipses generally occur two or three times a year, and are possible only when the Moon is full. When we see the Moon, we are actually seeing sunlight reflect off the surface of the Moon. When the Earth passes between the Moon and the Sun, however, the Earth’s shadow falls on the Moon, and a lunar eclipse occurs.
The type of lunar eclipses—total, partial, or penumbral (半影的)—that occurs depends on both how much of the Moon passes through the Earth’s shadow and through which part of the shadow it passes. A penumbral eclipse occurs when the Moon passes through the Earth’s outer shadow. This type of eclipse is brief and frequently goes unobserved by anyone but astronomers. By contrast, total and partial eclipses occur when all or part, respectively, of the Moon passes through the umbra (本影) of the Earth. These eclipses are quite easy to see and are widely observed.
Unlike solar eclipses, lunar eclipses are safe to watch. Solar radiation that occurs during an eclipse of the sun can cause a form of burns of one’s eyes know as eclipse blindness. In fact, the only way to safely view a solar eclipse is using specially designed equipment. However, since the Moon’s light is reflected sunlight, it is completely safe to watch a lunar eclipse without any special equipment, although a pair of binoculars (双筒望远镜) can certainly help the viewer appreciate the beauty of this phenomenon.
1. What does the underlined word “stability” mean in Paragraph 1?A.Strength. | B.Position. |
C.Steadiness. | D.Visibility. |
A.When the Moon passes between the Sun and the Earth. |
B.When all of the Moon passes through the Earth’s umbra. |
C.When only part of the Moon passes through the Earth’s outer shadow. |
D.When only part of the Moon passes through the Earth’s umbra. |
A.They are longerlasting than most solar eclipses. |
B.They are more common than partial or total lunar eclipses. |
C.They are the result of the shadow cast by the Moon onto the Earth. |
D.They are more difficult to observe than other types of lunar eclipses. |
A.Moonlight is much weaker than sunlight. |
B.A lunar eclipse is briefer than a solar eclipse. |
C.A lunar eclipse lasts much longer than a solar eclipse. |
D.Special equipment can be employed to view a lunar eclipse. |
【推荐1】History of amusement parks takes us back to the bar-periodic fairs, like the Bartholomew Fair which started in England. These can be considered a parent for the modern amusement park. Opening in the Elizabethan period, the fair had developed as a center of amusement with entertainment with fun, food, games, and many other attractions. The beer festival held in Munich, Germany which started in 1810 and the country and state fairs in the US, also played a part in the brief history of amusement park. Unlike the Bartholomew Fair, these annual events were usually held during an important time when crops were ripe, which deserved to be marked.
Amusement parks are also known to have grown out of the pleasure gardens that became very popular at the start of the Industrial Revolution. These were the zones where one could shun the dull urban life for a short while. We can find the oldest and still-surviving amusement park in the world: Bakken in Denmark, which opened in 1583. These parks consisted of fireworks displays, rides and the modern railroad to accommodate the growing expectations from their customers.
Another turning point in the history of amusement parks was the world’s fairs which began in 1851. The Crystal Palace in London, England was a landmark and celebrated the industrial achievements of the world. These were seen as symbols of economic and industrial success. In the last decade of the 19th century, the electric trolley lines became extremely popular. Mechanical amusements, dance hall, sports fields, and restaurants were included as regular entertainments, as the history of amusement parks reflects.
The golden age in the brief history of amusement parks didn’t appear until people especially Americans spent less time on work and got a steady rise in their personal income. A number of amusement parks including the Kiddie Park were set up outside major cities and in the countryside, to make full use of this new economic opportunity. The original Kiddie Park is located in San Antonio, Texas and is still in operation today.
1. What was the purpose of the early Munich beer festival?A.To show local attractions. | B.To celebrate harvest together. |
C.To found a center of amusement. | D.To create a stable agricultural market. |
A.Avoid. | B.Tolerate. |
C.Experience. | D.Complain. |
A.The Industrial Revolution. | B.More time and money for fun. |
C.Advances in technology. | D.Development of the world’s fairs. |
A.Bakken was originally opened in 1583 in London. |
B.The Crystal Palace is the oldest amusement park in the world. |
C.The Kiddie Park located in San Antonio is still open at present. |
D.The Bartholomew Fair was seen as economic and industrial success. |
【推荐2】Interactive software that “reads” and analyses footprints left by black rhinos (犀牛) can be used to monitor the movements of the animals in the wild, giving conservationists a new way to keep watch on the endangered species and help keep it safe from poachers (偷猎者), according to a Duke University-led study.
The software, called the Footprint Identification Technique (FIT), uses advanced technology to analyze more than 100 measurements of a rhino's footprint. Because each rhino's footprint is as special as a human fingerprint, the analyzed images can be collected electronically in a global database of previously collected footprint images for matching.
“If you find a match, you can identify the individual animal who left the mark and, by plotting the locations of all the other places where marks have been seen, track its movements without disturbing it or coming into close enough contact with it,” said Zoe Jewell, a professor at Duke University's Nicholas School of the Environment, who co-led the study and is co-creator of FIT.
“It's a cost-effective approach that not only protects the health of the rhino and the human, but also brings a centuries-old tracking skill into the 21st Century,” she said. Jewell and her colleagues are now working with Namibia's Ministry of Environment, Forestry and Tourism to train wildlife conservationists, land managers and local guides how to use FIT.
Namibia is home to an estimated 2,000 black rhinos, or about 90% of the species' total population worldwide. Though legally owned by the government, the animals are distributed geographically on private lands across the country.
The FIT software can also do a survey of footprints throughout the protected area and take measurements from each footprint to estimate the number of rhinos in that area. This can be useful information for calculation resource needs to monitor the animals effectively. This creates an interactive library that anti-poaching patrols(反偷猎巡逻)can use to search for animals at the highest risk, including those whose footprints haven’t been showing up in recent years.
1. What is the purpose of the software?A.To promote the development of technology. |
B.To protect black rhinos from being hunted. |
C.To analyze the footprints of illegal poachers. |
D.To save endangered species across the world. |
A.It owns various functions. | B.It goes to the market. |
C.It is perfectly practical. | D.It is more than popular. |
A.It brings the best advantage for the lowest cost. |
B.It helps increase the population of black rhinos. |
C.It raises people's awareness of the environment. |
D.It strengthens the tie between humans and nature. |
A.Optimistic. | B.Hopeless. | C.Worrying. | D.Uncertain. |
【推荐3】Foxes with nine tails, flying dragons that can spit fireballs and creatures with human-heads and snake-bodies. Many magical creatures are recorded in Chinese legends and myths. Now a group of young Chinese people has brought them to life.
Called “jialegeling”, the group is made up of three founding members—Zhang Jialing, Zhu Ying and Bao Kai. They personify the mythical figures from The Classic of Mountains ad Seas(《山海经》)with costume makeup and location shooting.
Recalling the origin of the idea, they spoke of their experience using social media six years ago. They found that cultural products from Japan, the US and Republic of Korea were popular among users. However, Chinese legends were unfamiliar to most of them.
To faithfully show the creatures in the legends, they learned special effects makeup and created props (道具) by themselves.
It takes Zhang at least four hours to apply makeup and get in the costume for each character, Zhu says. The team members often get up in the early hours so they can shoot during the day. Despite the lack of funding, the group insisted on shooting on location because the ancient texts had records of the natural features of the areas where the creatures emerged.
That means their journey could not sail smoothly. With some topography (地貌) having disappeared over the past thousands of years, they needed to find areas with similar natural features. Even though some places could be easily found, they still faced difficulties. Once when filming in a desert, Zhang became severely sunburned, resulting in her skin peeling. Another video with underwater scenes required Zhang to dive dozens of times and Bao to film in the water the entire time.
“Fortunately, our efforts seem to have been seen by people. Many of our viewers are even calling us ‘ancient culture inheritors’. When we set out on this journey, this is exactly what we hoped would come.”
1. Why does the author mention many magical creatures in the first paragraph?A.To make comparison. | B.To provide examples. |
C.To support an argument | D.To introduce the topic. |
A.They were much impressed with Chinese legends and myth. |
B.They were experienced in personifying the mythical figures. |
C.They found it easier to profit from shooting culture-themed videos. |
D.They intended to display ancient Chinese culture’s charm to the public. |
A.They suffer from a great lack of sleep. |
B.A shortage of fund sets them a barrier. |
C.They have trouble finding suitable places. |
D.Making up and getting dressed are time-consuming. |
A.Creative and committed. | B.Determined and careful. |
C.Confident and grateful. | D.Passionate and curious. |