【推荐1】Migraine is a disease that has a number of symptoms, including head pain that can stick around from four hours to several days. While migraines can occur partly because of genetic factors, attacks may happen by chance, set off by a cause in the environment.

One common cause is food, and some common dietary causes include alcohol, salt, sugar, chocolate, and caffeine. But there are many others, and scientists continue to identify more. For instance, a Brazilian study found that watermelons brought on a headache within minutes in about 30 percent of the participants.

Some of the newest research is looking at which foods and what kinds of diets can prevent or lessen migraines. A new study published last year by a team of researchers found that a diet higher in fish oils rather than vegetable oils helped people ease their headaches. In the study, those on a diet lower in vegetable oil and higher in fatty fish had a 30 to 40 percent reduction in total headache hours per day, serious headache hours per day, and overall headache days per month compared to the control group.

Tanya Kamka had suffered weekly migraines for most of her life. Then, in her 50s, she joined the NIH diet trial and increased her intake of fish. After only a few months, “I haven’t had a migraine, not even a mild one, in over two years,” she says.

For others, the solution comes from plants, not fish. A 60-year-old man joined a study on the food-migraine link and turned to a diet, which includes a lot of dark, leafy greens. After two months he was experiencing only one migraine a month instead of the 18 to 24 a month he’d suffered before.

Clearly, people with migraines react to food in very different ways. What works for one person may not work for another.

1. What can be learned from paragraph 1?

A．Environment can cause migraine.	B．The main cause of migraine is genes.
C．Heavy headache can lead to migraine.	D．Migraine lasts for at most four hours.

2. What is paragraph 2 mainly about?

A．The length of migraine.	B．Factors that lead to migraine.
C．The most common cause of migraine.	D．A Brazilian study about the cause of migraine.

3. What did the new study last year find?

A．Taking more fish oils can help lessen migraines.

B．People taking more vegetables can reduce migraines.

C．More fish oils and less vegetables can cure migraines.

D．The control group may have 30%-40% less migraines.

4. Why does the author mention Tanya and the 60-year-old man?

A．To prove that different foods can help with migraines.

B．To tell that both fish and plants have good effects on migraines.

C．To suggest that fish oils work better than plant oils on reducing migraines.

D．To show that the influences of food on migraines vary from person to person.

【推荐3】Did you ever notice your shadow at different times of the day? Shadows change as the day goes on.

In the morning the sun makes long shadows. In the middle of the day, the sun seems to be right over your head and your shadow is very, very small. As the sun goes down in the afternoon, shadows grow very long again. But the long afternoon shadows fall in a different direction from the long morning shadows.

Long, long ago people told time by the shadows. Put a piece of paper in the sunlight. Stand a pencil in a spool in the middle of the paper. The shadow of the pencil will fall on the paper and move as the day goes on. Use a watch and every hour marks the place where the shadow falls. Now your paper is a sundial（通过太阳辨别时间的日规）and you can tell every sunny day. Just look at your paper sundial and see where the shadow falls.

1. When do shadows change?

A．Shadows change in the evening.	B．Shadows change when it is raining.
C．Shadows change as the day goes on.	D．Shadows change when it is snowing.

2. What happens to one’s shadow as the sun goes down in the afternoon?

A．He can’t see his shadow.	B．His shadow becomes long again.
C．His shadow becomes short.	D．His shadow becomes ugly.

3. What does one need to make a sundial?

A．A pencil, a watch and a spool.

B．A watch, a piece of paper and a pencil.

C．A spool, a piece of paper and a watch.

D．A piece of paper, a pencil and a spool.

【推荐1】When you are reading something in English, you may often meet with a new word. What's the best way to know it?

You may look it up in an English-Chinese dictionary. It will tell you a lot about the word: the pronunciation, the part of speech ( 词性), the Chinese meaning and also how to use the word. But how can you know where the word is in thousands of English words? How to find it in thousands of English words? How to find it in the dictionary quickly and correctly?

All the English words are arranged in the alphabcrical order ( 按照字母表的顺序 ) in a dictionary. In the dictionary you can first see the words beginning with the letter A, B, C, D... That means, if there are two words "general" and "morning", "general” will be certainly before "morning". Then if there are two words both beginning with the same letter, you may look at the second letter. Then the third, the fourth... For example, "before" is before "begin", "foreigner" is before "forest", etc.

The dictionary will be your good friend. I hope you'll use it as often as possible in your English learning.

1. If there are four words "picture" "pistol" "organ"" and "metal", the words order to be looked up in the dictionary should be ________.

A．metal, organ, picture, pistol

B．organ, metal, pistol, picture

C．picture, metal, pistol, organ

D．pistol, picture, organ, metal

2. An English-Chinese dictionary usually tells you a lot about the word EXCEPT ________.

A．the pronunciation

B．the part of speech

C．the Chinese meaning

D．the letter numbers

3. According to the passage, when you are reading something in English with a new word, the best way to know it is ________.

A．to look up in a computer

B．to look up in a dictionary

C．to call your teacher of English

D．to ask your classmate

4. The title of this passage could probably be ________.

A．The Best Way to Sell a Dictionary

B．The Dictionary is Your Best Friend

C．The Best Way to Look Up a Word in a Dictionary

D．An Important Tool for Your English Study

【推荐2】To develop one’s taste in English, the most effective way is to read a wide variety of English books. Yet one may be at a loss to choose the right books, especially as a beginner. As a native Spanish, I would like to share some of my experience.

My first English novel was Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, recommended by many English teachers and professors as an ideal book for English learners. But my experience was somewhat disastrous. I had great difficulty in understanding the novel, let alone enjoying it. It’s not the vocabulary that troubled me, but rather the way Austen makes sentences, and her way of thinking, which seemed too hard for me at that time. My enthusiasm was much recovered after reading Hemingway’s novel A Farewell to Arms. No long and complicated sentences. And I particularly liked his brief and straightforward (简洁的) style. So my first suggestion is, as a beginner, you’d better choose contemporary novels instead of classical ones.

However, if you limit yourself to novels you will miss a lot of treasures. English essays can at once inform you, entertain you, and improve your taste in English. The best example is Bertrand Russell’s work. His simple language enables his philosophy within the reach of ordinary people. Here comes my second suggestion — essays are necessary.

Never follow others’ suggestions and opinions blindly, however famous or influential (有很大影响的) the person might be. We should be open to various ideas, but always think and determine by ourselves. As a saying goes, “One man’s meat is another man’s poison”. With that in mind, we are bound to find out our favorite writers through reading and develop our fine taste in English.

1. What made the first English novel that the author read hard to understand?

A．Complicated conversations.	B．Sentences and Austen’s thinking style.
C．The old-fashioned vocabulary.	D．Not knowing the social background.

2. Which word can best describe the author’s first English novel reading experience?

A．Enjoyable.

B．Unique.

C．Terrible.

D．Inspirational.

3. What advice does the author give in the last paragraph?

A．Don’t be affected by others’ ideas easily.	B．Read books that are instructive.
C．Choose books that challenge us most.	D．Compare books before buying.

4. What is the author’s purpose of writing the passage?

A．Give comments on literature works.

B．Tell beginners how to choose English books.

C．Encourage people to read more English books.

D．Recommend first class books to English learners.

【推荐3】I study English literature at university and have always been proud of Britain’s literary heritage (文学遗产). Some British authors that you may have heard of are Charles Dickens and Jane Austen. These writers are famous all over the world because their books have been translated into many different languages. In the UK, their novels are celebrated as some of the best that have ever been written. We say that these novels are “classic” because they are still read and enjoyed years after their publication.

I read classic novels not only because they are part of my university lessons but also because I enjoy them. They can teach you a lot about how people used to live and what society was like in the past. Novels like Hard Times by Charles Dickens remind us of the poverty in London during the Industrial Revolution while Jane Austen’s fiction shows us what family life was like in the 18th century.

Classic novels usually have memorable stories and interesting characters. One of my favourite books is Charles Dickens Great Expectations. It is about a boy called Pip who suddenly receives a lot of money from a mysterious supporter. As he grows up, his character changes: he becomes quite selfish and mean. Another important character is Miss Havisham. When she was young, her fiance ran away on their wedding day. She lives in a dark house and still wears her wedding dress. She is a fascinating character, both sad and scary.

Reading classic novels enriches my knowledge and life experience. And it has become part of life.

1. Why are some novels called “classic”?

A．They stand the test of time.	B．They are taught at universities.
C．They are written by famous authors.	D．They are translated into many languages.

2. Why is Hard Times mentioned in Paragraph 2?

A．To introduce the university lessons.

B．To remind people of the poverty in London.

C．To let people know about what family life was like.

D．To prove classic novels help people know the past.

3. What can we know about the character Miss Havisham?

A．She is selfish and mean.	B．She lives an unhappy life.
C．She loves wedding dresses most.	D．She becomes rich with others’ support.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．Why I like classic novels	B．Why some novels are classic
C．How to read classic novels	D．How to teach classic novels