I’ve had private health insurance my entire life. My parents were advocates of it and insisted I maintain my insurance after I left home. To be honest, I’d never really thought about it until I married and started a family of my own.
Pregnant with our first child, health insurance afforded me the doctor of my choice and a private room in the hospital of my choice. Many of my friends chose the public system and, although discharged from hospital (出院) much earlier, were provided daily home visits from a midwife (助产士) in the days following birth.
I’m happy to say all our babies were delivered safe and healthy. And while I have no regrets about “going private”, it wasn’t cheap despite my health insurance. My friends, on the other hand, paid nothing.
It wasn’t until my children turned one year old that I began to question whether health insurance was worth the monthly expense.
On the few occasions when the kids needed emergency care, we were referred to a new public hospital nearby and received first-class treatment. At that point we began to wonder if the money we were spending on private health cover could be better used elsewhere. Before I cancelled our insurance, though, I was diagnosed with cancer and that changed everything.
Thanks to my health insurance, the time between diagnosis and my first surgery was less than a week. I could recover in my own hospital room and know the team of specialists who were caring for me would be the same throughout my journey. Ten years later, they still are.
Other cancer survivors I’ve befriended along the way went public with their treatment and have no regrets either, which leads me to this conclusion: there’s no right or wrong when it comes to health insurance. I’ve kept it all these years because I like having peace of mind that my family will receive the treatment they need, when they need it. There are pros and cons for both, and only you can decide what best suits your situation.
1. What did the author think of private health insurance before her marriage?| A．It wasn’t cheap. | B．It was far from enough. |
| C．It didn’t affect her much. | D．It indeed gave her peace of mind. |
| A．They had harder deliveries. | B．They spent less time in hospital. |
| C．They had weekly home visits from a midwife | D．They were not well cared for after childbirth. |
| A．Get money to cover medical expenses. | B．Maintain her private health insurance. |
| C．Use her insurance money somewhere else. | D．Do something to change the public system. |
| A．Choose your best fit. | B．Buy private insurance if you can. |
| C．Keep both public and private insurance. | D．Spend money carefully when it comes to insurance. |
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【推荐1】A T-shirt that constantly monitors the heart's activity and detects abnormalities could help protect people against stroke. The T-shirt, which can be washed up to 35 times before it needs replacing, has been developed to improve the detection of dangerous heart conditions like atrial fibrillation（心房颤动）,which causes an irregular heart rhythm and raises the risk of stroke.
At least one million people in Britain are known to have this condition; however, it's estimated that at least another 50（）, 000 have it but haven't yet been diagnosed because they have no obvious symptoms. Some will have symptoms such as chest pain, dizziness and fatigue； but a large number of people have no idea they're ill until they suffer a stroke.
Detecting atrial fibrillation involves carrying out an ECG（心电图）.Conventional ECGs are done in a hospital and involve highly trained teams of staff attaching up to 24 separate electrodes（电 极）to different parts of the body to measure electrical signals. But most patients experience abnormal rhythms only intermittently（间歇地）. This means the chance of picking them up during a short hospital check is slim.
Doctors sometimes issue patients with a device called a Holter monitor to wear under their clothes to try to pick up cardiac(心脏的）problems. This is an electronic box which clips onto your waistband and is connected to a series of electrodes worn on the upper part of your body. But the box itself is quite bulky, hard to hide beneath clothing and involves a dozen or more wires being attached to the patient's chest.
The Cardioskin T-shirt, which is made from cotton, could be a much more convenient alternative and can be worn 24 hours a day—meaning it is more likely to pick up any abnormal rhythms in the patients heart. It has 15 tiny electrodes woven into the material which are strategically placed around the chest area to track the electrical signals from the heart as they travel across the main part of your body.
The electrodes are powered by a battery which can be removed easily when you need to wash the T-shirt and feed results to a microchip which then sends them out wirelessly to an app. This converts（转换）the data into an easy-to-read chart showing if the heart rate is abnormal. The results are shared with the patient's doctor so they can check the patient's heart without having to call them into the hospital.
Martin Cowie, a professor of cardiology at Imperial College London, said, "Cardioskin could be an important development for cardiologists.”
1. How many British people are having dangerous heart conditions according to the text?| A．Less than 0.5 million. | B．Less than 1 million, |
| C．At least 1.5 million. | D．At least 2 million. |
| A．The difficulty in detecting atrial fibrillation. |
| B．The benefit of detecting atrial fibrillation. |
| C．The process of detecting atrial fibrillation. |
| D．The future of detecting atrial fibrillation. |
| A．To show the advantage of a Cardioskin T-shirt over it. |
| B．To introduce a way to check the patient’s heart. |
| C．To encourage people to care about their health. |
| D．To explain why doctors like using the device. |
| A．It has a battery that can be charged easily and quickly. |
| B．It can be worn a month without being washed. |
| C．It has electrodes placed all over the T-shirt. |
| D．It can make the process of diagnosis timely and convenient. |
| A．New ECG that could be an important development for doctors. |
| B．Hi-tech T-shirt that could help doctors spot risk of stroke. |
| C．Holter monitor that could track patients' heart problems. |
| D．Cardioskin T-shirt that could prevent patients from diseases. |
【推荐2】Photosynthesis (光合作用) is a unique skill of green plants — they turn water and carbon dioxide into oxygen and food via sunlight. A group of Chinese scientists, however, “copied” the process on animals.
To understand the new breakthrough, it is important to know how photosynthesis works. Plants take in carbon dioxide and water from the air and soil. Within the plant cell, the water is oxidized. This transforms the water into oxygen and the carbon dioxide into glucose (葡萄糖). The plant then releases the oxygen back into the air and stores energy within the glucose molecules.
In the study, the researchers from Zhejiang University developed an independent and controllable photosynthetic system, according to the study published in Nature in early December. They separated thylakoids, a part of the cell where light reactions take place in plants, from young spinach (菠菜) leaves. The scientists then wrapped the thylakoids with the cover of animal cells, which made the implanted thylakoids more acceptable to foreign bodies.
The mice used in the study were suffering from arthritis (关节炎) meaning cells in their cartilage had degenerated and could not be repaired by themselves. With the thylakoids implanted into the mice and exposed to light, the mice recovered. Their metabolism (新陈代谢) returned to normal.
In arthritis, the patients usually have energy loss since fewer energy-carrying molecules are generated. The implant, however, can correct the imbalance by storing more energy via photosynthesis.
The researchers also claimed that their tests would have medical usage. “It can be used as part of solution for degenerative diseases because the natural photosynthesis system may repair cells. It may also delay the aging process in cells. The study showed an exciting achievement that opens up possibilities of metabolism engineering,” commented one of the paper’s reviewers Francisco Cejudo from the University of Seville in Spain, reported Xinhua.
1. Why does the author mention the way photosynthesis works in Paragraph 2?| A．To help us understand how scientists apply the principle to animals. |
| B．To explain to us the definition of photosynthesis. |
| C．To prove plants’ ability to release the oxygen back into the air. |
| D．To show us how plants turn water and carbon dioxide into oxygen. |
| A．To lead to light reactions. | B．To provide them with nutrition. |
| C．To prevent them from degeneration. | D．To help them work better in foreign bodies. |
| A．By repairing a broken metabolism. | B．By getting rid of degenerated cells. |
| C．By helping maintain energy balance. | D．By offering energy-carrying molecules. |
| A．Suggestions for future studies. | B．The significance of the study. |
| C．The limitations of the study. | D．Other findings of the study. |
【推荐3】When I was in nursing school, I had to focus more on my studies than other aspects of life, and learn so much in a short amount of time. However, the clinical experience of nursing school allowed me to have the opportunity to put what I learned in my classes and readings into action.
One of my favorite experiences during my clinical training was when I had a patient who was first starting chemotherapy (化疗). My nursing instructor Marie told me that patients often experience an anaphylactic (过敏性的) reaction to the medicine when they first start chemotherapy, so it is important to give the medicine at a slower rate. Marie said that if we had a patient who reacted to the medicine, we should stop running the chemotherapy, check the patient’s blood pressure, and then give the appropriate medicine from the emergency kit.
When I checked my patient a couple of minutes after starting his chemotherapy, I asked him questions related to an anaphylactic reaction. I also noticed his face was getting a little red and he looked short of breath. He mentioned having lower back pain, so I immediately stopped the chemotherapy, started taking his blood pressure, and reported it to Marie. His blood pressure was within his normal limits, so we gave him Benadryl via his IV. The Benadryl helped the patient, and we had the Benadryl running when we started his chemotherapy again, but at a slower rate. This time the patient did not have an anaphylactic reaction, and tolerated his chemotherapy well.
This experience taught me how important it is to assess your patient and to teach your patient beforehand about the reaction the patient could have due to the medicine. Marie and I taught our patient about the reactions he could have due to the chemotherapy; due to our teaching, our patient recognized his symptoms and was able to know that what he was experiencing was an expected reaction. During the clinical training, I had many experiences where I had to think on my feet and conduct nursing care quickly. These experiences taught me a lot about how to be a nurse and emphasized the importance of conducting proper patient care.
1. Why did the author stop giving the patient chemotherapy?| A．He had high blood pressure. |
| B．He had a reaction to the medicine. |
| C．He failed to tolerate the back pain. |
| D．He refused to answer her questions. |
| A．Giving the patient immediate first aid. |
| B．Making adequate preparations in advance. |
| C．Assessing the effectiveness of the medicine. |
| D．Telling the patient the possible reactions of the medicine. |
| A．Rewarding. | B．Dangerous. |
| C．Interesting. | D．Painful. |
| A．To express gratitude to her instructor. |
| B．To encourage others to take up nursing. |
| C．To share her clinical training experience. |
| D．To stress the importance of medical treatment. |
【推荐1】My name is Alice. Early last year, I was troubled by an anxiety that crippled ( 削弱 ) my ability to do anything. I felt like a storm cloud hung over me. For almost a year I struggled on, constantly staring at this wall that faced me. My perfectionist tendencies were the main root of this: I wanted to be perfect at whatever I did, which obviously in life is not possible, but it consumed me.
One day, I attended a presentation by wildlife conservationist Grant Brown at my high school. His presentation not only awed and inspired me, but also helped emerge an inner desire to make a difference in the world. I joined a pre-presentation dinner with him and that smaller setting allowed me to slowly build up my courage to speak one-on-one with him—an idea that had seemed completely impossible. This first contact was where my story began.
A month later, Brown invited me to attend the World Youth Wildlife Conference. Looking back, I now see that this would be the first in a series of timely opportunities that my old self would have let pass, but that this new and more confident Alice enthusiastically seized. Shortly after I received his invitation, applications to join the Youth for Nature and the Youth for Planet groups were sent around through my high school. I decided to commit to completing the applications, and soon I was a part of a growing global team of young people working to protect nature. Each of these new steps continued to grow my confidence.
I am writing this just six months since my journey began and I’ve realised that my biggest obstacle ( 障碍 ) this whole time was myself. It was that voice in the back of my head telling me that one phrase that has stopped so many people from reaching their potential: I can’t. They say good things come to those who wait; I say: grab every opportunity with everything you have and be impatient. After all, nature does not require our patience, but our action.
1. What was the main cause for Alice’s anxiety?| A．Her inability to act her age. | B．Her habit of consumption. |
| C．Her desire to be perfect. | D．Her lack of inspiration. |
| A．She decided to do something for nature. | B．She tasted the sweetness of friendship. |
| C．She learned about the harm of desire. | D．She built up her courage to speak up. |
| A．intelligent | B．confident | C．innovative | D．critical |
| A．Practice makes perfect. | B．Patience is a cure of anxiety. |
| C．Action is worry’s worst enemy. | D．Everything comes to those who wait. |
【推荐2】I remember exactly how I felt when I was listening to instructions on what to do in the water for my first ever whitewater rafting (漂流) trip. It was a mixture of fear and excitement—feelings I usually get before I begin a new adventure. I had been in Costa Rica for three days and one of my goals for the trip was to raft down the beautiful Pacuare River.
I think it is stories like this that lead people to tell me I have an adventurous spirit. But was this experience really adventurous? My tour guide has gone down the river many times, but the excitement was gone and he was just doing his job. Another couple I had met on the trip had been to Costa Rica six times. To them, it was just another trip.
I think a big part of any adventure is in the novelty (新鲜) of the experience. You have to break new ground and experience what you’ve never experienced before. Part of the fun of adventures lies in not knowing what the result will be. That’s not something you get from things you know really well.
The second feature of adventure is fear. Anything adventurous has a little bit of fear in it. That doesn’t necessarily mean overcoming your biggest fears. Just a little fear is all that is needed.
It doesn’t matter if the thing you’re doing has been done before by other people. If it is new to you and something you feel nervous about, it is adventurous. This is why my rafting down the river in Costa Rica was adventurous to me while to my guide, it was just another day on the job.
For me, one of the greatest things about adventure is how it affects me internally (内在地). Before an adventure you only recognize your limits; afterwards you realize that you have no limits. That’s an amazing thing to think about and something I think everyone should experience.
1. How did the author feel before the first whitewater rafting?| A．Excited but hesitant. | B．Calm and hopeful. |
| C．Amused and relaxed. | D．Excited but fearful. |
| A．Because the trip lost freshness to them. |
| B．Because they were doing their separate jobs. |
| C．Because they overcame their fears completely. |
| D．Because they didn’t like the trip actually. |
| A．Overcoming the biggest fear. | B．Knowing something well. |
| C．Facing the unknown result. | D．Breaking one’s old ground. |
| A．First experience of whitewater rafting trip. |
| B．Love for outdoor adventurous experience. |
| C．Memory of living in Costa Rica. |
| D．Understanding of the adventurous spirit. |
【推荐3】When Chery Hanbury stepped outside her home the morning after Hurricane Irma swept through her Bradenton, Florida, neighborhood, she expected to see a few of her neighbors out surveying the damage, too, and cleaning up debris. What she did not expect to see was an actual superhero at work.
But that's exactly what she spotted when a man in a red and blue outfit using a chainsaw to cut a tree that had fallen across her road caught her attention ''I thought, OMG! Spider-Man! '' she said. ''I was shocked. I couldn't believe what I was seeing.''
Hanbury called her family outside to see too, and her husband Alan was able to snap two pictures of the mysterious good Samaritan. "Spider-Man worked the tree, then swung off and jumped in his little black pickup with a friend and flew off " said Hanbury. ''I do not know why he was dressed as Spider-Man, nor do I know the name or identity of the masked man. ''
Hanbury's own two daughters, Ciara, 22, and Skye, 21, are grown, and most of the neighborhood withdrew before the storm, so unfortunately, no children were around to witness the Spider-Man in action. However, Hanbury said he was a welcome surprise and provided a laugh that lifted the spirits of those who experienced the scary storm. "It was a silver lining after waiting a long week for the hurricane to arrive, she said. ''People were terrified and exhausted.''
Thankfully, the hurricane wasn't as bad as it was predicted for Hanbury's area. ''We still have lots of people without power, and my neighbors' generators (发电机) are running at the moment. But for the most part, we just have high numbers of trees and power lines down with much debris, but everyone is safe! '' she said
Now that her photos are going viral(疯传), Hanbury hopes Spider-Man knows he is cheering the spirits of people in Bradenton and around the world. ''To Spider-Man, I would like to say, 'Thank you! ''' she said. ''I'm glad we have real-life heroes. ''
1. What was out of Hanbury's expectation?| A．The hurricane hit her home town suddenly |
| B．Her neighbors were evaluating the losses. |
| C．A real-life hero was doing disaster relief work |
| D．Her husband spotted a Spider-Man outdoors |
| A．many people managed to leave before the hurricane |
| B．a Hanbury's neighbor was dressed as Spider-Man |
| C．the hurricane caused serious damage to the area |
| D．the superhero wanted to give the children a surprise |
| A．Fortunately, the hurricane didn't arrive a week later as predicted |
| B．After a long week's waiting people felt very tired and depressed |
| C．People waited in line to welcome the Spider Man to help them |
| D．The hero brought the victims of the hurricane positive energy |
| A．Hurricane Irma Sweeps Through Bradenton |
| B．Real-life Spider-Man Shows up to Help after hurricane |
| C．Spider-Man Is shot after Hurricane Irma |
| D．Children Wish the Spider-Man to Give a Welcome Surprise |
