Handwriting is a fine motor skill that none of us is born with; it needs to be taught and practiced. It is also a skill that benefits us by stimulating our brain: We remember information better when we write it down by hand, research shows.
But for many of us, handwriting can feel difficult as we turn to smartphones, other devices and even robots for many of our hand tasks. The problem isn’t only that we’re less likely to use handwriting. Technology has changed the way we use our hands. The more time we spend on our devices, the greater the probability of problems with our hands and wrists, such as pain, weakness and nerve changes.
“The hand-brain connection is stronger when we write something by hand instead of typing it,” said Paula Heinricher, an occupational therapist. “Although we might be able to take more notes on a keyboard than by hand, there’s research that shows when you write by hand, there is a deeper brain connection and a deeper understanding, so you remember that information longer.”
The ability to write quickly and legibly (易辨认地) also has a critical link with academic performance. A 2013 study found that children who had good handwriting skills in preschool performed better in reading and math in second grade. And in a 2019 study of 141 first-graders in four schools in Italy, children who were taught handwriting developed better reading and writing skills compared with a control group.
But devices aren’t the only one to blame. In general, we’re not engaging in as many fine motor activities as in the past. With key less entry, for instance, many of us no longer turn a key to unlock our car or the front door; instead, we push a button or tap out a code. So handwriting, a fine motor activity, is becoming a little less used in daily life. However, even as we continue to use technology and devices, we can enhance our handwriting muscles with a few strategies.
1. What can be learned about handwriting?| A．It is a natural ability. |
| B．It is practiced less often. |
| C．It has lost its appeal. |
| D．It causes nerve changes. |
| A．Short-lived. |
| B．Unpredictable. |
| C．Irresistible. |
| D．Far-reaching. |
| A．It contributes to learning. |
| B．It strengthens students’ speaking ability. |
| C．It improves quickly with training. |
| D．It is popular among researchers. |
| A．Advancements in science and technology. |
| B．Similar research done by scientists. |
| C．Significance of excellent handwriting. |
| D．Measures for improving handwriting. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Americans are now allowed to get a COVID-19 vaccine （疫苗）. But the process in America is not going as smoothly as some had hoped. Many people are still facing a wait for their first shot. Moreover, the vaccines aren't available to kids under 16 yet. That's because scientists have only tested if the vaccine works in adults.
The good news is that there are two companies, Moderna and Pfizer, making COVID-19 vaccines. They are now running clinical trials（临床实验）to test their vaccines in teens and kids. Volunteers are given a treatment plan and then evaluated after.
Clinical trials are designed with safety in mind and usually done in adults first. They work like this: volunteers get placed into one of two groups. One group receives the vaccine. The other group gets a placebo. This is a shot given in the same way as the vaccine but with no effect. Scientists can compare the effects of the real vaccine against the placebo to see if the vaccine works. Researchers want to know everything that a person experiences when they get the shot, so they can detect any harmful effects. If anything did happen, the trial would stop immediately.
Some teens are eager to volunteer because they want to help people. Maybe you're the right age to be part of a clinical trial for the COVID-19 vaccine. Why not volunteer For A Vaccine Trial? Interested kids should read about the trials because every trial has risks. They should talk to their doctor and weigh the benefits and risks. Every vaccine has rare side effects in a few patients.
If you want to participate in a trial, you can try to sign up online by just clicking here, clinicaltrials gov. which lists every clinical trial in the US, including COVID-19 vaccine trials.
1. Why kids under 16 can't get a COVID-19 vaccine?| A．Because the vaccine is too hard to get. |
| B．Because the vaccine is too expensive for them. |
| C．Because they are not at the risk of getting COVID-19. |
| D．Because the effectiveness of the vaccine for kids hasn't been tested . |
| A．A substance to comfort patients | B．A pill to treat patients |
| C．A prize to award patients | D．A way to cure patients |
| A．To tell American adults they can get a COVID-19 vaccine. |
| B．To inform that American children can't get a COVID-19 vaccine. |
| C．To give information about clinical trials of vaccines in teens and kids. |
| D．To provide information for potential volunteers on trials. |
| A．Newspapers. | B．Magazines. | C．Internet. | D．Textbooks. |
【推荐2】The last thing Caitlin Hipp would have expected as she prepared to turn 28 years old was to be living at home with her parents. But through working as a part-time skating instructor and restaurant server, she isn’t able to earn enough to live anywhere other than home.
To some degree, multigenerational households (家庭) have always been a part of American life. However, the number of young adults who have been moving back in with their parents — or never leaving home in the first place — has been growing steadily.
UBS Financial Services released a report that even suggests one reason for the growing number of young adults still living at home could be that their family doesn’t want them to leave.
The report shows that 74 percent of millennials (千禧一代) get some kind of financial support from their parents after college. It finds that millennials have redefined the ties that connect parents and children. Millennials see their parents as peers (同龄人), friends and instructors. Nearly three quarters talked with their parents more than once a week during college. In return, their parents happily provide financial support well into adulthood, helping fund everything for them.
Stuart Hoffman, chief economist for the PNC Financial Group in the US, said the number of young adults striking out on their own fell during the Great Recession. Although job growth for millennials since 2014 has improved, that doesn’t necessarily mean that millennials are starting to fly the nest. He said, "They may like living at home and being able to save money."
"There’s no doubt it has held back household formation and purchases of things people spend money on related to household formation and perhaps related to child-raising," Hoffman explained. "But they are probably traveling more and eating out more if they don’t have a house expense or marriage. I don’t know if it represents a change in moral values. But it’s much more common for adult children to live in their parents’ homes because it’s becoming part of the culture."
1. What can be learned about Caitlin Hipp?| A．She is in her thirties. | B．She is ambitious for her career. |
| C．She can barely make ends meet. | D．She prefers living with her parents. |
| A．The lack of job opportunity. | B．Their parents’ need for them. |
| C．The high pressure from modern life. | D．Their parents’ overprotection of them. |
| A．It will never go out of fashion. | B．It may allow of more travel chances. |
| C．It results from the change in moral values. | D．It goes against America’s cultural development. |
| A．To introduce different types of living arrangements. |
| B．To stress the importance of financial independence. |
| C．To inform people of a social phenomenon in the US. |
| D．To explain why Chinese young adults still live at home. |
【推荐3】Technology has changed almost everything. With the Internet and mobile phones, everyone is now connected. Mobile phones are no longer just a luxury (奢侈品). They have played an important part in people's lives. And today, there is a very long-standing debate about the use of mobile phones in the classroom.
First of all, mobile phones can keep students connected. With mobile phones, parents might be less worried since they can easily check on their children, and students can easily call their parents. Secondly, they encourage shared learning. Students can share notes and reminders faster and easier with mobile phones. Moreover, mobile phones can be used as memory support. Students can record their lessons by taking pictures and / or videos for future use. With smart phones, learning can also be more fun. Additionally, students can use their phones for taking down notes and creating reminders. Last but not least, smart phones are an excellent source of information. Students can search for information on the Internet, or use the dictionary and translation tools on their phones.
However, allowing students to use their mobile phones in the classroom has some big disadvantages. For example, students' attention can easily be drawn away when their phones ring, and the learning process comes to a complete stop when students start to send and read messages or make and receive calls. Moreover, with the appearance of smart phones, it is now easy for students to play on the Internet or shop online. Smart phones can also be used for cheating (作弊). Text messaging is the new note passing. Students can exchange test answers through text messages without the teacher knowing. Finally, mobile phones can cause health problems. Playing with phones for long periods of time can harm students' eyesight, and the radiation (辐射) emitted from mobile phones may be bad for students' health.
1. What is the function of the first paragraph?| A．To give the point of view of the author. |
| B．To introduce the major topic of the passage. |
| C．To illustrate an idea with examples. |
| D．To create a special atmosphere for readers. |
| A．They can post their notes on the Internet. |
| B．They can share their homework with each other. |
| C．They can take pictures of themselves and post them online. |
| D．They can look up new words. |
| A．Phone calls can draw students' attentions away from study. |
| B．Students can play or shop online during class. |
| C．Mobile phones can damage relationships between students and teachers. |
| D．Students can cheat on exams. |
| A．The debate on the use of mobile phones in peoples' lives. |
| B．Things that students can do with their mobile phones. |
| C．Advantages and disadvantages of using mobile phones in the classroom. |
| D．Whether or not students should be allowed to answer phone calls in class. |
【推荐1】Around 1975 books were written about strange occurrences in the Bermuda Triangle, a part of the Atlantic Ocean off the southeast coast of the U.S. They told the stories of planes and ships that disappeared for no understandable reason and were never found again. They told about ships which were found undamaged but with no one on them. According to the books, more than 1,000 people disappeared in the Triangle from 1945 to 1975.
According to some writers, there were no natural explanations for many of the disappearances, so they suggested other explanations. For example, some strange and terrible power exists in the Triangle. According to another writer, people from space are living at the bottom of the Atlantic, and sometimes they need human sailors and airmen for their research. These ideas were not scientific, but they were good advertisements. The books about the Bermuda Triangle were immediate successes.
However, the books give little evidence to support their unusual ideas. In addition, they ignore at least three important facts that suggest natural reasons for many of the occurrences. First, messages from some of the ships and aircraft which later disappeared give us evidence of problems with navigational instruments. Similar stories are told by officers who were on duty on planets and ships which finally managed to come through the Triangle without disaster. Second, the weather in this part of the Atlantic Ocean is very unpredictable. Dangerous storms that can cause problems even for experienced pilots and sailors can begin suddenly and without warning. Finally, the Bermuda Triangle is very large, and many people, both experienced and inexperienced, sail and fly through it. Perhaps the figure of 1,000 deaths in thirty years shocks some people, but, in fact, the figure is not unusual for an area of ocean that is so large and that is crossed by so many ships.
The evidence which exists, therefore, supports one conclusion about Bermuda Triangle: We do not need stories about people from space or strange unnatural powers to explain the disappearances.
1. What was strange about the occurrences in the Bermuda according to Paragraph 1?| A．Ships survived but with no passengers on board. |
| B．Not only ships but planes went missing as well. |
| C．There were as many as 1,000 deaths from 1945 to 1975. |
| D．They happened across none other than the Atlantic waters. |
| A．The books were written by unknown writers. |
| B．Nearly no supporting evidence was given. |
| C．The books were written as advertisements. |
| D．The writers pursued immediate success. |
| A．The sailors and airmen were taken away by strange species. |
| B．People aboard could not stand the weather and died of diseases. |
| C．The sailors and airmen were to blame as they were inexperienced. |
| D．Navigational instruments going wrong caused the sink or the crash. |
| A．Bermuda Triangle Disappearances, Mystery Or Misreading? |
| B．The Deadly Problems With Machines Of Last Century |
| C．One Hundred Lives Lost In Thirty Years! |
| D．New Discoveries In The Bermuda Triangle |
【推荐2】Have you ever wondered what the food you eat every day can tell you about where you come from? Have you ever wondered why people from different parts of the world eat different types of food? Do you ever ask yourself why certain foods or culinary (烹饪的) traditions are so important to your culture? There is more of a connection between food and culture than you may think.
On an individual level, we grow up eating the food of our cultures. It becomes a part of who each of us is. Many of us associate food from our childhood with warm feelings and good memories and it ties us to our families, holding a special and personal value for us.
On a larger scale, food is an important part of culture. Traditional cuisine is passed down from one generation to the next. It also operates as an expression of cultural identity. Immigrants bring the food of their countries with them wherever they go and cooking traditional food is a way of preserving their culture when they move to new places.
In China, harmony is a vital quality in almost every aspect of life. This is reflected in Chinese cuisine, where almost every flavor is used in a balanced way creating delicious dishes with flavors that go well together. The cuisine of the United States also reflects its history. The European colonization of the Americas brought European ingredients and cooking styles to the U.S.
As the world becomes more globalized, it is easier to access cuisines from different cultures. We should embrace our heritage(传统)through our culture's food but we should also become more informed about other cultures by trying their foods. It's important to remember that each dish has a special place in the culture to which it belongs, and is special to those who prepare it.
1. What does the author want to express in Paragraph 1?| A．A link between food and culture. |
| B．Connections between food and the growth of people. |
| C．Different types of food. |
| D．Concerns about food and culture. |
| A．Traditional food. | B．Traditional culture. |
| C．One generation. | D．Childhood. |
| A．It is rich in all kinds of vitamins. |
| B．It balances the dishes of different countries. |
| C．It is extremely crucial to balance people's daily life. |
| D．It contains abundant dishes with various flavors. |
| A．It binds us to the society, holding a special and personal value for us. |
| B．The European colonist in Americas brought the ingredients and cooking styles from their hometown to the USA. |
| C．In Chinese culture, harmony in cuisine is of little significance. |
| D．We should refuse the cuisines in other cultures. |
I know lots of women who skip（跳过）breakfast , and they have a ton of different excuses for doing it . Some say they don’t have time.Others think they’re “saving” calories （卡路里）, still others just don’t like breakfast food .
But the bottom line is that eating in the morning is very important when you’re trying to lose weight.
“Eating just about anything from 300 to 400 calories would be better than nothing at all,” says Katherine Brooking , R , D , who developed the super-easy eating plan for this year’s “SELF CHALLENGE”. And even pizza can be healthy if it’s loaded with vegetables, and you stick to one small piece.
Breakfast is one meal I never miss, and the same goes for most weight loss success stories. Research shows that eating breakfast keeps you from overeating later in the day. Researchers at the University of Southern California found that breakfast skippers have a bigger chance of gaining weight than those who regularly have a morning meal.
So eat something in the morning, anything. I know plenty of friends who end up having no breakfast altogether, and have just coffee or orange juice. I say, try heating up last night’s leftovers-it may sound crazy, but if it works for you, do it! I find if I tell myself, “You can always eat it tomorrow,” I put away the leftovers instead of eating more that night. Try it…you may save yourself some pre-bedtime calories. And watch your body gain the fat-burning effects.
1. The word “leftovers” in Paragraph 1 probably means__________.
| A．food remaining after a meal | B．things left undone |
| C．meals made of vegetables | D．pizza topped with fruit |
| A．Working women usually have breakfast in a hurry. |
| B．Many people have wrong ideas about breakfast. |
| C．There are some easy ways of cooking a meal. |
| D．Eating vegetables helps save energy. |
| A．eat something for breakfast | B．be careful about what you eat |
| C．heat up food before eating it | D．eat calorie-controlled food |
| A．who go to work early | B．who want to lose weight |
| C．who stay up late | D．who eat before sleep |
