Growing up, I knew I was different. My father had left and he never came back. As I later discovered, the abandonment triggered my anxiety attacks. I feared being alone, unwanted, unpopular and unloved.
My first attack came in a ninth-grade class: the teacher asked me to walk in front of the class, but I couldn’t do it-I was soaked in sweat, shaking. My symptoms began every morning from the moment when I stepped inside the school building.
Throughout my childhood, I was no stranger to the doctor’s office. My mother tried everything she could in hope of a breakthrough. There were times when I thought suicide could be the only way to make the pain stop.
By age 16, I had shut down socially. Most of my peers were going to parties, playing sports, and dating. But I was a prisoner in my own home.
Then one Sunday morning, my wake-up call came from a magazine article. Freddie Prince, Jr., was on the cover. The article detailed the pain of losing his father at a young age. I felt as though I were reading my own life story. The only difference? He was now a success.
That article inspired me to explore a new treatment option for myself. I wanted to turn my life around as well. So I hit the library and the Internet,and I began to realize how my negative thoughts controlled my physical well-being.
Immediately, I made a plan to take charge of my life. Shortly after following the items I had listed, I was able to stop seeing a therapist. I never returned to high school, but I did go to college. After graduation, I pursued a career in television news. My relationships have changed for the better, too. I’ve made new friends and reconnected with many from the past.
The anxiety isn’t completely gone, but whenever it returns, I know the feeling will pass, and know I have the power to change my life, only if I give myself a chance.
1. The writer’s anxiety attacks were mainly caused by _________.| A．the high school which he attended | B．the teacher who asked him to walk |
| C．the writer himself who was fearful | D．his father who left in his childhood |
| A．his mother took him to the doctor | B．he read a magazine article |
| C．his pain finally stopped | D．he went to college |
| A．He went to see therapists. | B．He returned to high school. |
| C．He contacted his old friend. | D．He didn’t suffer any attacks. |
| A．anxiety attacks are not lasting if we have proper treatment |
| B．we shouldn’t keep ourselves away from the outside world |
| C．we can change our lives if we give ourselves a chance |
| D．fathers are not supposed to abandon their small kids |
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【推荐1】Losing your ability to think and remember is pretty scary. We know the risk of dementia（痴呆症）increases with age. But if you have memory slips, you probably needn’t worry. There are pretty clear differences between signs of dementia and age-related memory loss.
After age 50, it’s quite common to have trouble remembering the names of people, places and things quickly, says Dr. Kirk Daffner of Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston.
The brain ages just like the rest of the body. Certain parts shrink, especially areas in the brain that are important to learning, memory and planning. Changes in brain cells can affect communication between different regions of the brain. And blood flow can be reduced as blood vessels narrow.
Forgetting the name of an actor in a favorite movie, for example, is nothing to worry about. But if you forget the plot of the movie or don’t remember even seeing it, that’s far more concerning, Daffner says.
When you forget entire experiences, he says, that’s “a red flag that something more serious may be involved.” Forgetting how to operate a familiar object like a microwave oven, or forgetting how to drive to the house of a friend you’ve visited many times before can also be signs of something going wrong.
But even then, Daffner says, people shouldn’t panic. There are many things that can cause confusion and memory loss, including health problems like temporary stoppage of breathing during sleep, high blood pressure, or depression, as well as medications like antidepressants.
You don’t have to figure this out on your own. Daffner suggests going to your doctor to check on medications, health problems and other issues that could be affecting memory. And the best defence against memory loss is to try to prevent it by building up your brain’s cognitive（认知的）reserve, Daffner says.
“Read books, go to movies, take on new hobbies or activities that force one to think in novel ways,” he says. In other words, keep your brain busy and working. And also get physically active, because exercise is a known brain promotion.
1. Why does the author say that one needn’t be concerned about memory slips?| A．All of them are just age-related. |
| B．They exist among fifty-year-olds. |
| C．Not all of them are symptoms of dementia. |
| D．They occur only among certain groups of people. |
| A．Our interaction skills worsen. |
| B．Our whole brain starts shrinking. |
| C．Most parts of our brain stop functioning. |
| D．Communication within our brain weakens. |
| A．Having regular physical checkups. |
| B．Turning to a professional for assistance. |
| C．Staying active both physically and mentally. |
| D．Taking medicine that helps promote one’s brain. |
【推荐2】Human tears could carry a flood of useful information. With just a few drops, a new technique can spot eye disease and even glimpse signs of diabetes(糖尿病), scientists report in ACS Nano.
“We wanted to demonstrate the potential of using tears to detect disease,” says Liu Fei, a biomedical engineer at Wenzhou Medical University in China. It's possible that the t cars could open a window for scientists to look into the entire body, he says, and one day even let people quickly test their tears at home.
Tears contain tiny sacs(囊) stuffed with cellular(细胞的) messages. If scientists could capture these microscopic mail bags, they could offer new information on what's happening inside the body.
But collecting enough of these sacs is tricky. Unlike fluid from other body parts, just a trickle of liquid leaks from the eyes.
So Liu's team invented a new way to get the sacs from tiny volumes of tears. First, the researchers collected tears from study participants. Then, the team added a solution containing the tears to a device with two nanoporous membranes(纳米多孔膜), shook the membranes and sucked the solution through. Within minutes, the technique lets small molecules(分子) escape, leaving the sacs behind for analysis. The result surprises scientists very much. Different types of dry-eye disease left their own molecular fingerprints in people's tears, the team found. What's more, tears could potentially help doctors monitor how a patient's diabetes is progressing.
Now, the scientists want to make use of tears for evidence of other diseases as well as depression or emotional stress, says study coauthor Luke Lee, a bioengineer at Harvard Medical School. “This is just the beginning.” he says, “Tears express something that we haven't really explored.”
1. Which of the following can provide some information on the inside of the body?| A．Tiny sacs. | B．Body fluid. |
| C．Molecular fingerprints. | D．Nanoporous membranes. |
| A．A new way to make sacs. | B．Procedures of obtaining sacs. |
| C．The cause of the experiment. | D．Hope for diabetes patients. |
| A．Further research on tears is to be made by scientists. |
| B．Scientists have discovered more evidence about tears. |
| C．Scientists have done more than enough research on tears so far. |
| D．Scientists merely use t cars as evidence of mental problems. |
| A．An official document. | B．A personal blog. |
| C．A fashion journal. | D．A science report |
【推荐3】Recent studies suggest that people who suffer multiple brain injuries are at significant risk for developing chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE), a brain disorder that causes a variety of dangerous mental and emotional problems to arise weeks, months, or even years after the initial injury. These psychological problems can include depression, anxiety, memory loss, inability to concentrate and so on. The majority of people who develop these issues are athletes who participate in popular high-impact sports, especially football.
Although new sports regulations and improvements in helmet technology can help protect players, amateur leagues, the sports media, and fans all bear some of the responsibility for reducing brain injuries. In response to the growing understanding of this danger, the National Football League (NFL) has revised its safety regulations. In an effort to diminish the amount of head and neck injuries on the field. NFL officials began enforcing stricter penalty calls for helmet-to-helmet contact, leading with the head, and hitting a defenseless player. Furthermore, as of 2010, if a player’s helmet is accidentally wrenched from his head during play, the ball is immediately whistled dead. It is hoped that these new regulations, coupled with advances in helmet design, will reduce the number of brain injuries, and thus curb further cases of CTE.
However, new regulations at the professional level cannot protect amateur players, especially young people. Deadly cases of CTE have been reported in victims as young as 21. Youth, high school and college leagues should also adopt safety rules even stricter than those of the NFL. Furthermore, young athletes should be educated about the serious dangers of head injuries at an early age. Perhaps the most important factor in reducing the number of brain injuries, however, lies not with the players,the coaches, or the administrators, but with the media and fans. Sports media producers have become accustomed to showcasing the most aggressive tackles and the most intense plays. NFL broadcasts often replay especially violent collisions while the commentators marvel at the players physical prowess. Some sports highlights television programs even feature weekly countdowns of the “hardest hits”. When the media exalts such dangerous behavior, professionals are rewarded for injuring each other on the field and amateurs become more likely to try to imitate their favorite NFL athletes. Announcers, commentators, television producers, and sportswriters should engage in a collective effort to cease glorifying brutal plays. In turn, fans should stop expecting their favorite players to put their lives on the line for the purposes of entertainment.
1. Based on information in the passage, it can be inferred that all of the following statements are true except that____________.| A．brain injuries can lead to various mental and emotional problems |
| B．NFL officials have done little to address the problem of CTE |
| C．it is not enough to adopt new regulations to reduce brain injuries at the professional level |
| D．sports media is to blame for encouraging brutal plays that often result in brain injuries |
| A．inconsistent application of safety regulations for all levels. |
| B．lack of education about the dangers of head injuries. |
| C．amateur players’ desire to imitate professionals. |
| D．the adoption of stricter safety rules by youth, high school, and college leagues. |
| A．praises |
| B．criticizes |
| C．shows |
| D．mentions |
| A．share his knowledge about CET caused by brain injuries |
| B．warn his readers against playing football to avoid brain injuries |
| C．call public attention to the new regulations adopted by NFL |
| D．convey his ideas about the problem of CET |
【推荐1】My folks bought their first house in the early 1940s after Dad got a better job in Marquette, Michigan. We lived just inside the city limits in what was still a rural area.
In the spring of 1948, when I was 6 years old, my parents bought a calf (小牛) to replace our cow, which had been killed the year before. So one day we drove to a local farm and returned with a white and brown calf we named Tubby.
We didn’t own a truck, so Tubby rode home in the backseat of Dad’s car with my 9-year-old brother, Steve and me. As you can imagine, the trip was a lot of fun for us kids.
Later that summer, Mom thought it would be cute to take a picture of me sitting on Tubby’s back. All went well until the flashlight of the camera sent Tubby charging off on a run, with me holding on for dear life and my heart pulled to my throat.
I lasted for about 30 feet before I hit the ground. Mom was quick enough to shoot a follow-up picture, so we had photos of me both on and off Tubby!
When summer had passed, the day arrived for poor Tubby to fill our freezer (冰柜). I must have been somewhere else with my mom on the fateful (决定性的) day, because I have no memory of what happened. All I knew was that the barn (畜棚) was empty, and that we had plenty of meat for dinners.
I hadn’t lived on the farm like my mother, so I didn’t understand that what had happened to Tubby was not unusual. Livestock (家畜) aren’t meant to be pets, and most farm kids know and accept the truth.
Whenever we had beef for dinner, I would tearfully ask, “Is this Tubby?” This went on for a couple of months until Dad had enough and declared, “No more cows!” That made me feel better about poor Tubby.
1. Why did the parents buy Tubby?| A．To raise it for meat. | B．To produce enough milk for the kids. |
| C．To keep the kids company. | D．To have Tubby help with farm work. |
| A．The writer witnessed Tubby killed. |
| B．The writer felt happy to see the freezer filled with meat. |
| C．The writer’s mother thought it natural to kill Tubby for meat. |
| D．The writer felt excited on Tubby’s back when it was running off. |
| A．Sad. | B．Thankful. | C．Moved. | D．Hopeless. |
【推荐2】My father had returned from his business visit to London when I came in, rather late, to supper. I could tell at once that he and my mother had been discussing something. In that half-playful, half-serious way I knew so well, he said, “How would you like to go to Eton?”
“You bet,” I cried quickly catching the joke. Everyone knew it was the most expensive, the most famous of schools. You had to be entered at birth, if not before. Besides, even at 12 or 13, I understood my father. He disliked any form of showing off. He always knew his proper station in life, which was in the middle of the middle class, our house was medium-sized; he had avoided joining Royal Liverpool Golf Club and went to a smaller one instead; though once he had got a second-hand Rolls-Royce at a remarkably low price, he felt embarrassed driving it, and quickly changed it for an Austin 1100.
This could only be his delightful way of telling me that the whole boarding school idea was to be dropped. Alas! I should also have remembered that he had a liking for being different from everyone else, if it did not conflict (冲突) with his fear of drawing attention to himself.
It seemed that he had happened to be talking to Graham Brown of the London office, a very nice fellow, and Graham had a friend who had just entered his boy at the school, and while he was in that part of the world he thought he might just as well phone them. I remember my eyes stinging (刺痛) and my hands shaking with the puzzlement of my feelings. There was excitement, at the heart of great sadness.
“Oh, he doesn’t want to go away,” said my mother, “You shouldn’t go on like this.” “It’s up to him,” said my father. “He can make up his own mind.”
1. The house the writer’s family lived in was _________.| A．the best they could afford | B．right for their social position |
| C．for showing off | D．rather small |
| A．it made him feel uneasy | B．it was too old to work well |
| C．it was too expensive to possess | D．it was too cheap |
| A．it drew attention to him |
| B．it didn’t bring him in dispute (争论) |
| C．it was understood as a joke |
| D．there was no danger of his showing off |
| A．He was very unhappy. | B．He didn’t believe it. |
| C．He was delighted. | D．He had mixed feelings. |
| A．Children who can go to Eton are very famous |
| B．Children can go to Eton if they will |
| C．It is very difficult for a child to get admitted by Eton |
| D．Children don’t have the right to decide whether they will go to Eton |
【推荐3】When I met him, I had a lot of anger inside of me. I’ve lived my whole life in Spanish Harlem, but in my neighborhood, there are shoot-ups all the time. I know kids who have been shot (枪击) or beaten up. I have friends who ended up in prison. I could have ended up that way, too, but Mr. Clark wouldn’t let that happen.
Mr. Clark worked long hours, making sure I did my work. My grades rose. In fact, the scores of our whole class rose. One day, he took our class to see The Phantom of the Opera, and it was the first time some kids had ever been out of Harlem. Before the show, he treated (招待) us to dinner at a restaurant and taught us not to talk with our mouths full. We did not want to let him down.
Mr. Clark was selected (选拔) as Disney’s 2000 Teacher of the Year. He said he would draw three names (抽签) out of a hat: those students would go with him to Los Angles to get the award (奖品). But when the time came to draw names, Mr. Clark said, “You’re all going.”
On graduation day, there were a lot of tears. We didn’t want his class to end. In 2001, he moved to Atlanta, but he always kept in touch. He started giving lectures about education, and wrote a best-selling book based on his classroom rules, The Essential 55. In 2003, Mr. Clark took some of us on a trip to South Africa to deliver school supplies and visit orphanages (孤儿院). It was the most amazing experience of my life. It’s now my dream to one day start a group of women’s clubs, helping people from all backgrounds.
1. How many students finally went to Los Angles with Mr. Clark?| A．None | B．Three | C．Fifty-five | D．All |
| A．a show | B．a book | C．a classroom rule | D．a speech |
| A．might not have won the prize |
| B．might have been put into prison |
| C．might have joined a women’s club |
| D．might not have moved to Atlanta |
| A．He thinks highly of Mr. Clark. |
| B．He looks down upon Mr. Clark. |
| C．He doesn’t show his attitude towards Mr. Clark. |
| D．He takes a neutral(中立的) attitude towards Mr. Clark. |
【推荐1】A Joke and Balloon
In 2001, a young girl called Laura Buxton released a balloon from her bedroom window in Staffordshire, England. Attached to the balloon were a joke and Laura’s e-mail address. “At the time, I thought it was funny,” said ten-year-old Laura. Amazingly, six weeks later, Laura received an e-mail from another ten-year-old girl who lived in the town of Buton, about 200 kilometers away. In the e-mail, the young girl explained how she had found the balloon and she enjoyed the joke. Incredibly, the little girl’s name was also Laura Buxton.
A Walking Book
During a tour of the US, the British actor Sir Anthony Hopkins lost one of his favorite novels, a copy of The Girl from Petrovka by George Feifer. Inside the book was a dedication (献词) from his mother. He searched everywhere for it, but the book had disappeared. However, three years later, Hopkins was on the London Underground when he noticed a copy of the book on the seat next to him. On opening the first page, he saw his mother’s familiar handwriting.
Supermarket Surprise
66-year-old John Foundergen of Liverpool had been trying to trace his brother for decades. Many years before, there had been a family argument and the two brothers hadn’t seen one another since. However, one day, John met a woman in a supermarket who said, “Hey, you know, you look just like my husband.” You can guess the rest.
Delayed Gratitude
In 1965 Roger Akua, aged four, was saved from drowning by a woman called Alice Blaise. Nine years later, Roger saw a man drowning on the same beach. Roger dived in and saved the man. Roger later found out that the man was Alice Blaise’s husband.
1. Why did Laura Buxton release a balloon?| A．To tell a story. | B．To ask for help. |
| C．To have some fun. | D．To convey her kindness. |
| A．It is written by a British actor. | B．Hopkins found it written by his mother. |
| C．A passenger gave it to Hopkins. | D．The handwriting of Hopkins’ mother can be found in it. |
| A．Strange stories. | B．Moving stories. | C．Adventurous stories. | D．Fairy stories. |
【推荐2】Mr White came out of the airport. He asked every taxi-driver’s name. Then he took the third taxi. It cost $5 from the airport to the hotel,“ How much does it cost for the whole day? ”he asked.
“$100,” said the taxi-driver. This was very expensive but Mr White agreed.
The taxi-driver took Mr White everywhere. He showed the driver $100 and said, “what about tomorrow?”
“Tomorrow? It’s another $100 tomorrow.”
“Ok,” said Mr White, “If that’s the price, see you tomorrow!” The driver was very pleased.
The next day they traveled to several places. And in the second evening they went to the hotel again. Mr. White and above all, $100 a day is good money. So he asked Mr White, “Where do you come from?”
“I come from New York.” Mr White answered.
“New York!” said the driver, “I have a sister in New York. Her name is Susannan. Do you know her?”
“Of course I know her. She gave me $200 for you.”
1. Mr White got to another place _______.| A．by train | B．by air | C．in plane | D．by ship |
| A．expensive | B．cheap | C．nice | D．fair |
| A．his sister brought so much money to him | B．his sister knew Mr White |
| C．he got $100 a day | D．he became a guide of Mr White |
| A．Mr White didn’t know the taxi-driver’s sister | B．the driver knew Mr White was his sister’s friend |
| C．Mr White was given back $ 200 | D．Mr White knew the taxi-driver’s sister |
【推荐3】I was blind, but I was ashamed of it if it was known. I refused to use a white stick and hated asking for help. After all, I was a teenager girl, and I couldn’t bear people to look at me and think I was not like them. I must have been a terrible danger on the roads. Coming across me wandering through the traffic, motorists probably would have to step rapidly on their brakes. Apart from that, there were all sorts of disasters that used to occur on the way to and from work.
One evening, I got off the bus about halfway home where I had to change buses, and as usual I ran into something, “I’m awfully sorry,” I said and stepped forward only to run into it again. When it happened a third time, I realized I had been apologizing to a lamppost. This was just one of the stupid things that constantly happened to me. So I carried on and found the bus stop, which was a request stop, where the bus wouldn’t stop unless passengers wanted to get on or off. No one else was there and I had to try to guess if the bus had arrived.
Generally in this situation, because I hated showing I was blind by asking for help, I tried to guess at the sound. Sometimes I would stop a big lorry and stand there feeling stupid as it drew away. In the end, I usually managed to swallow my pride and ask someone at the stop for help.
But on this particular evening no one joined me at the stop. It seemed that everyone had suddenly decided not to travel by bus. Of course I heard plenty of buses pass or I thought I did. But because l had given up stopping them for fear of making a fool of myself, I let them all go by, I stood there alone for half an hour without stopping one. Then I gave up. I decided to walk on to the next stop.
1. The girl refused to ask for help because she thought .| A．she might be recognized | B．asking for help looked silly |
| C．she was normal and independent | D．being found blind was embarrassing |
| A．began to run | B．hit a person as usual |
| C．hit a lamppost by accident | D．was caught by something |
| A．The bus stop was usually crowded with too many people. |
| B．More lorries than buses responded to the girl. |
| C．It took too much time for the girl to catch the bus. |
| D．It was not always reliable to make a good judgement. |
| A．confident | B．proud | C．shy | D．brave |
