Humans were designed to stand upright(直立). And yet in this modern world, too many of us spend our days with our heads lowered for a simple reason: we’re staring at the tiny screen of a smartphone.
People spend an average of 2 to 4 hours each day with their neck bent while shooting off emails or texts. That’s 700 to 1,400 hours a year. The success of social media has led to a rapid development of bad smartphone posture(姿势). That’s 700 to 1,400 hours a year. The success of social media has led to a rapid development of bad smartphone posture.
The average adult head weighs 10 to 12 pounds when it’s in the upright position. However, because of the gravity, bending your head at a mere 15 degree puts 27 pounds of pressure on your spine(脊椎); a 30 degree neck bend could equal 40 pounds of a pressure; a 45 degree bend adds the force of 49 pounds, according to research from Dr. Kenneth Hansraj from New York. These stresses may lead to many problems.
It’s no secret that correct posture is better for your back. According to the researchers, good posture is described as ears aligned(成一条直线) with the shoulders. In proper alignment, spinal stress disappeared. It is the best position for the spine. Standing tall doesn’t just make you look better; it improves your health, too. Other studies have found good posture has even been connected to ways of behaving. People who have poorer posture often have poorer physical and emotional(情绪上的) health.
The researchers describe bad posture as “the head in a forward position and the shoulders dropping forward in a rounded position”. Bad posture has been connected to many medical problems, including headaches and other problems, depression and heart disease. This is why Hansraj said it’s important to be mindful of your smartphone posture. While it is nearly impossible to avoid the technologies that cause these problems, people should make an effort to look at their phones with a correct posture.
1. Through the underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 the author wants to show that _______.| A．the social media have its bad side |
| B．the social media have made a great success |
| C．people have to use social media unavoidably |
| D．more and more people are using smartphone |
| A．It’s healthy to bend your back regularly. |
| B．Your back is getting exercise as you bend it. |
| C．The average weight of an adult head always changes. |
| D．The more you bend your neck, the heavier the head becomes. |
| A．Bend your head within 15 degree. |
| B．Raise and lower your head in turn. |
| C．Drop your head forward in a rounded position. |
| D．Keep the positions of the neck and shoulders in a line. |
| A．cure many diseases | B．make one behave differently |
| C．cause no stress to the spine | D．prevent one from gaining weight |
相似题推荐
Of all the workings of the human body, there is one organ that produces the most intrigue amongst scientists. The brain is the centre of the nervous system and controls most of the body’s activities. Interestingly, it is the back part of the brain that is involved with our vision. The sides of the brain are involved in memory, speech and rhythm. Although the brain amounts to only about 2% of total body weight, it uses up to 20% of the body’s energy—more than any other organ. Scientists have been conducting research in order to seek greater understanding of the brain, especially since the 1950s. Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go before we can completely understand the workings of this complex organ.
1. What functions of the brain are mentioned in the passage?2. What is the current research situation concerning the brain?
3. Do you know any other interesting facts about the brain? Share them with the class.
【推荐2】What do Leonardo da Vincii, Marie Curie, and Albert Einstein have in common? They were all left-handed, along with other famous people including Brad Pitt Prince William, and Barack Obama. In fact, an estimated 13 percent of the world's population may be left-handed and still most people around the world are right-handed.
What makes a person become right-handed rather than left-handed? As yet no one really knows for sure. One simple idea suggests that people normally get right-handedness from their parents. Studies have found that two right-handed parents have only a 9.5 percent chance of having a left-handed child, whereas two left-handed parents have a 26 percent chance of having a left-handed child. Another common theory is that left-handed people suffer mild brain damage during birth, which makes them left-handed. However, if this theory were true, it would not explain why the percentage of left-banded people is so similar in every society, when birth conditions vary so much from society to society.
Whatever the reasons behind it, people's attitudes toward left-handedness have changed a lot over the years. Statistics show that although 13 percent of young people (10-20 years old) are left-handed, only 6 percent of the elderly are left-handed. Left-handed children used to be punished until they began using their right hand like other children, but today people who are left-handed are no longer looked down on nor are they considered abnormal. For most people today, either case is perfectly acceptable.
1. What makes one right-handed?| A．The environment. |
| B．Mild brain damage during birth. |
| C．The reason is uncertain. |
| D．Other people. |
| A．Because the elderly are forced to become right-handed. |
| B．Because left-handed people are considered abnormal. |
| C．Because left-handedness can be cured. |
| D．Because the young are easily damaged. |
| A．Left-handed people are looked down upon. |
| B．General facts about left-handed people. |
| C．Some famous left-handed people. |
| D．The reasons why people are left-handed. |
【推荐3】Have you ever said to a friend “That rose’s smell is really sweet!”, only to find that your friend can’t smell anything at all?
According to a study published in the journal PNAS in May, people have different abilities to recognize certain odors (气味) — and it’s linked to different genes.
For the study, 300 people were placed among 150 jars with different odors. At a given time, they had to smell an odor and then rate the intensity (强度) and pleasantness of the odor on a scale from 1 (extremely weak/unpleasant) to 7 (extremely strong/pleasant). Before they left, the participants needed to leave a blood sample.
After comparing genes of the participants, researchers found all had different smelling abilities and that the differences between these abilities could be traced to certain genes.
According to The New York Times, human beings have nearly 400 genes that directly control receptors (器官) and influence the way these receptors become active.
“Odors ... turn on specific receptors, which then tells us if we’re smelling a flower, how strong we find it, and whether we like it,” said Casey Trimmer, a geneticist and the lead author of the study. “One small change in the gene for the receptor can change its shape and how well the odor fits, thereby changing the awareness of the odor.”
Though genes play a decisive role in our ability to smell, other factors, including attention, past associations and expectations, are important as well. For example, if we love the smell of roses, we are drawn to their smell and pay special attention to it.
But what does our different abilities to sense odors mean?
“Smelling is the most important sense for the rest of the animal kingdom,” said Trimmer. Although, unlike other animals, humans aren’t any longer dependent on their sense of smell to find food or detect danger, smell is still a significant sense. There is also evidence that a reduced sense of smell is an early symptom of Alzheimer’s disease.
1. What did the study find about smelling?| A．Men and women have different smelling abilities. |
| B．Differences between smelling abilities lie in genes. |
| C．People’s abilities to smell change over time. |
| D．Human beings can tell 150 odors apart. |
| A．Our receptors won’t work when we smell an unpleasant smell. |
| B．People’s preferences for smells can affect their health. |
| C．Small changes in genes for smelling make a difference. |
| D．The sense of smell is the most important human sense. |
| A．Past experiences. | B．The environment. |
| C．Other senses. | D．The cultural belief. |
| A．Man has a better sense of smell than animals. |
| B．Man can use their sense of smell to detect danger. |
| C．The loss of smelling causes many health problems. |
| D．Poor smelling ability may be a signal of early disease. |
【推荐1】Bath or shower? How do you prefer to keep yourself clean? Whatever your daily ablutions, we know it’s important to have good personal hygiene. Nobody wants to smell, and nobody wants to catch your odour! A shower can bring you certain other benefits, but how often should we wash ourselves under a watery spray?
Although you might think taking a daily shower should be part of your cleaning ritual, there’s no hard and fast rule, although dermatologists agree that as a society, we shower too often. In fact, too much washing can deplete the vital oils in our skin. It can waste water as well. However, if you have a fitness routine that causes you to sweat, a more regular sprinkle of water is recommended to stop you ponging!
How often you shower is, of course, a personal choice. There’s nothing better than a hot, soapy scrub under the shower, and this doesn’t just have to be to clean yourself. Some people enjoy a shower to help them relax, warm up or to soothe any aches and pains. It’s also a good opportunity to wash your hair at the same time. Again, though, experts say we shouldn’t shower too often because, like your skin, your hair contains essential oils that you don’t want to lose through excessive scrubbing.
If the idea of a hot, steaming shower appeals, how about a freezing cold one instead? This might be a necessity if your boiler has broken, but some people choose this option because it has many health benefits, some experts claim. There is increasing evidence that braving an icy shower in the morning could keep illness at bay and may even help your brain stay sharp. A BBC podcast called Just One Thing with Michael Mosley, found the shock of being doused with cold water could have a positive impact on your body and brain.
1. What does the underlined word “ablutions” mean?| A．smells. | B．benefits. | C．aches. | D．showers. |
| A．Removing the vital oils. | B．Relieving aches and pains. |
| C．Helping your brain stay sharp. | D．Curing you of some deadly diseases. |
| A．Why do We Take a Shower? | B．Why do We Prefer Shower to Bath? |
| C．How do We Take a Shower? | D．How Often Should We Take a Shower? |
| A．Too much washing can waste a lot of water. |
| B．Both a cold and a hot shower are good for us. |
| C．Taking a cold shower is better than taking a hot one. |
| D．Neither a cold shower nor a hot one can keep you away from diseases. |
【推荐2】Fog is a common climate phenomenon in life, and different environments can lend to diverse forms of this low-lying cloud.
Frontal fog
This fog is formed when raindrops change into gas. The rain falls through warmer air into cold stable air and forms a fog layer near the ground. When enough rain has filled the cold layer of air, foggy clouds become visible.
Radiation fog
This type of fog forms during mild weather, when there is little wind and the skies are clear of other clouds. The air near the ground cools and turns into a layer of fog, which grows overnight as the air cools further. When the sun heats the air again the following day,the fog begins to dissipate.
Advection fog
Advection fog forms in a similar way to radiation fog, but is caused by warm air moving horizontally over colder air rather than the vertical loss of surface heat. When the warm air approaches colder ground, it gradually forms fog.
Sea fog
Warm and moist air that forms over a body of water becomes cooler as it’s transported with the wind. This cooling causes sea fog to form. When it reaches the warmer air above land, it may begin to dissipate.
1. When does frontal fog form?| A．In cold days. | B．In rainy days. | C．In mild days. | D．In sunny days. |
| A．Stable air. | B．Moist air. | C．Cold air. | D．Dry air. |
| A．They move horizontally. | B．They cool near the ground. |
| C．They form during mild weather. | D．They dissipate in warmer air. |
【推荐3】The discovery of a dwarfed (矮个的) “human being” who lived in Flores, Indonesia (印度尼西亚), up to 18,000 years ago is changing the way we think about the human family. This “Flores Human” was three feet tall and her brain was smaller than that of the average chimp (黑猩猩), yet she and her relatives apparently lived fully human lives. They seemed to have made tools, worked together to find food and cook it, and perhaps even buried the dead with ceremony.
It was a major surprise to find tools associated with the new human family member. The tools are like those formerly seen only with European fossils (化石) from our own species, Homo sapiens (智人), and the oldest of them were made 94,000 years ago. Homo sapiens is thought to have arrived in the island about 40,000 years ago, much too late to be responsible for the tools. If this_tiny_human made the tools, then the inside structure (结构) of its brain must have been more like our own than a chimp’s, despite being just a third the size of ours.
This “new human” was suspected to be a dwarfed branch of Homo erectus (直立人). When creatures are separated in regions with rare resources but few enemies, being big is a disadvantage, and evolution tends to shrink them, a process known as island dwarfing. Could natural selection make a human smaller while keeping — even improving — mental ability? Quite possibly, believes Christopher Wills of the University of California.
Has the “Flores Human” even shown the ability of language? “I find it difficult to imagine that people could make tools, use fire, and kill large animals without fairly advanced communication.” says Wills. Did “Flores Human” possess the basic components of human culture，such as the burying of the dead with ceremony? Emiliano Bruner of the Institute points out that Indonesia’s hot, wet environment is bad for fossilization. It is reasonable to assume, he says, that the 18,000yearold bones of the most complete Flores woman were well preserved because she was buried with special care.
1. According to the passage, “Flores Human” ________.| A．lived a partly human life |
| B．was a branch of Homo sapiens |
| C．used tools before Homo sapiens arrived |
| D．had a brain as a common chimp’s |
| A．a chimp | B．Flores Human |
| C．Homo sapiens | D．Homo erectus |
| A．the tools made by “Flores Human” |
| B．the language used by “Flores Human” |
| C．the evolution of “Flores Human” |
| D．the major surprising findings about “Flores Human” |
| A．was dwarfed by its enemies |
| B．could use language |
| C．left a lot of fossils in hot and wet environment |
| D．reached Flores 40,000 years ago |
【推荐1】Seal Island is a 200-meter long island off the coast of South Africa, which is surrounded by 55 to 57 degrees Fahrenheit waters and covered with over 60,000 seals and some birds. This island has been home to many birds and seals. You may think this island is a paradise. In fact, the island is not famous for the seals or birds. However, the real stars are the great white sharks that leap out of the water to catch the seals they are hunting.
You may think that there is no way for a 15-foot long, 3000-pound shark to hurl its body out of the water and catch a seal in midair. Actually, these sharks are called “Air Jaws”.
Over the years, the seals have gotten smarter. Now, they go out in groups of seven and eight to feed. They swim down on the sea floor, which gives them extra cover. When they have to swim near the surface of water, they swim in a zigzag pattern(Z字形). But with all these tricks, they can still be cleverly beaten by the sharks. Usually, the sharks will take one seal away from its group and force it to swim on the surface, where it is easy to hunt. Sometimes, the seal is fortunate and gets away, but most of them die in the process of trying to survive.
Every year, tourists go to see these amazing animals leap out of the water, sometimes flinging their whole bodies into the air when they want to catch the seals. This is the reason why this island attracts thousands of tourists from around the world every year.
1. Which of the following statements is true?| A．Seal Island is covered with only 6000 seals. |
| B．Great white sharks always catch seals under the water. |
| C．The way the great white sharks hunt makes Seal Island famous. |
| D．Seal Island is a 200-meter-long island in North Africa. |
| A．To prove they are smart. |
| B．To play in groups. |
| C．To search for food. |
| D．To avoid the white sharks. |
| A．the seals have learned how to escape. |
| B．the seals usually swim near the water surface. |
| C．the sharks are often successful in hunting the seals. |
| D．the sharks are less intelligent than the seals. |
【推荐2】Have you ever got the thought or feeling that you’re being watched? Well, guess what? You might be right.
According to a study published in Nature on June 23, astronomers have found that 1,715 stars have had a direct view of Earth since humans have been here.
In order to do this, scientists used a previous method that looked for life on other planets. But instead, they changed the method so it could try to determine what places could see us.
The team looked at 331,312 stars within 326 light-years of Earth, with each light-year equaling 9.4 trillion kilometers. Out of all those stars, only 1,715 of them could see Earth within the last 5,000 years, with an extra 319 stars that will be able to see us in the next 5,000 years.
“When I look up at the sky, it looks a little bit friendlier because it’s like, maybe somebody is waving,” said Lisa Kaltenegger, director of the Carl Sagan Institute (研究所) at Cornell University, US, and the study’s lead writer.
If a planet circling around one of those 1,715 stars is home to advanced life, they could easily see that there is life here because of the oxygen on Earth. If that didn’t give it away, then the radio waves we have sent out into space would also be an indicator (标志). In fact, human-made radio waves have already traveled through 75 of the closest stars on Kaltenegger’s list.
Why haven’t we heard from anyone yet, then?
It takes a long time for messages to travel between star systems. By the time a message could be received, that advanced civilization (文明) would probably not exist anymore.
Alan Boss, a scientist at the Carnegie Institution for Science in the US who wasn’t part of the study, wrote in an email that this long time would limit the chances for different life to exchange “emails and TikTok videos”.
“So we should not expect aliens to show up anytime soon,” Boss said.
1. Which word can best describe Lisa Kalteneggers’ attitude towards the sky that he looked up at?| A．Objective | B．Indifferent | C．Critical | D．Positive. |
| A．The oxygen on Earth. | B．Human-made radio waves. |
| C．Advanced life in other planets. | D．A planet circling around one of those 1,715 stars. |
| A．Aliens don’t exist. | B．They cannot understand each other. |
| C．It takes a long time for messages to travel. | D．Human-made radio waves cannot travel far. |
| A．To present new findings published in a study. |
| B．To raise readers’ interest in aliens and the universe. |
| C．To discuss if there is advanced life on other stars. |
| D．To explain how messages travel between different star systems. |
【推荐3】An American company has developed a new technique (技术) to make bread stay fresh for 60 days.
Scientists found that a kind of mould (霉菌) caused bread to go bad. The new technique kills the mould and keeps the food for longer time. This means there will be less waste of food in the world in future.
Food waste is a big problem in most developed countries. In the US, an average (普通的) family throws away 40% of the food they buy, which adds up to $165bn every year, about 330 million tons in weight. Bread takes a larger part. In the UK, 32% of the bread they buy is thrown away as waste when they can still be eaten.
The bread usually goes mouldy (发的) in around 10 days, but the American company says the new technique will keep the bread free from mould for two months.
”We treated a piece of bread in a special machine. At 60 days it had the same amount of mould as it was first made,“ says Mr. Stull, the leader of the company.
Although there are a lot of bread makers interested in the new technique, few customers like the idea. They say they don’t think a piece of bread which lasts for 60 days tastes good.
”We’ll have to make our customers accept the idea. But it will take some time,“ says Mr. Stull.
1. What is the key point of the new technique?| A．It can prevent the world from wasting food. |
| B．It kills the mould and keeps bread fresh for longer time. |
| C．It keeps the same amount of mould. |
| D．It makes bread taste good. |
| A．Nearly half. | B．A quarter. | C．More than half. | D．About one-third. |
| A．Food waste can be reduced immediately (立刻) with the new technique. |
| B．We will buy bread that can last longer. |
| C．Few customers are sure about the technique. |
| D．Poor countries are in great need of food. |
| A．A new technique has been invented to keep bread fresh longer. |
| B．There is great waste of food in developed countries. |
| C．There is a kind of mould that causes food to go bad. |
| D．Customers don’t like food that lasts for two months. |
【推荐1】Teacher, Foreign Language (High School)
DoDEA offers teaching opportunities in some of the most amazing and culturally rich places in the world. Come and work for the Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) schools !
Salary: US$ 39,775-US $ 80,930 Per School Year
Open Period: 10/3/2019 to 7/31/2020
Department: Department of Defense
Agency: Department of Defense Education Activity
Position Info: Flexible Schedules, Flexible Appointment Types
Who may apply: US Citizens； prior teaching experience is required
Food Inspector
The Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) is the public health agency in the US Department of Agriculture responsible for ensuring that the nation's commercial supply for meat, poultry and egg products is safe, wholesome and correctly labeled and packaged.
Salary: US $ 31,628-US $ 50,932 Per Year
Open Period: 7/18/2019 to 7/17/2020
Department: Department of Agriculture
Agency: Food Safety and Inspection Service
Position Info: Full-time, Permanent
Who may apply: US Citizens； graduates in Food Quality and Safety are preferred
Supervisory Public Health Veterinarian(兽医)
This is an excellent opportunity to seek a greater leadership role and responsibility in public health. If you are a new, mid-career, or experienced professional interested in a Public Health Veterinarian (PHV) career, this job is for you!
Salary: US$ 57,928-90,344 Per Year
Open Period: 9/30/2019 to 9/30/2020
Department: Department of Agriculture
Agency: Food Safety and Inspection Service
Position Info: Full-time, Permanent
Who may apply: US Citizens and Nationals； no prior Federal experience is required
Veterinary Medical Officer-Veterinarian
The National Animal Health Emergency Response Corps (NAHERC) assists in the federal response to domestic (国内)and international animal disease outbreaks, threats, or natural disasters.
Salary: US $ 27. 78-US $ 36. 12 Per Hour
Open Period: 5/9/2019 to 5/1/2020
Department: Department of Agriculture
Agency: Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
Position Info: Full-time, Permanent
Who may apply: US Citizens and Nationals； no prior Federal experience is required
1. If you apply to be a teacher in DoDEA, you .| A．should have a good command of foreign cultures |
| B．will be able to arrange work time flexibly |
| C．should work for the Department of Agriculture |
| D．can send in your application from July 2019 to July 2020 |
| A．Roger, who expects to get paid US $ 60,000 a year. |
| B．Mary, who is a US national and wants a part-time job. |
| C．Adam, who intends to resign to look for a new job in August 2020. |
| D．Lucy, who is an American and majored in Food Quality and Safety. |
| A．As a Food Inspector, you just need to ensure your food is safe. |
| B．Department of Agriculture recruits professionals passionate for a PHV career. |
| C．DoDEA welcomes US citizens and nationals with no prior teaching experience. |
| D．NAHERC independently researches domestic animal disease outbreaks, threats, or natural disasters. |
【推荐2】One Canada, Two Languages
Canada is one of the few nations in the world to have two official languages: English and French. There are 10 provinces in the country but only one of these—Quebec is known as “French Canada”. This is because it was founded by French explorers while British adventurers discovered the rest.
Canada left the British empire(帝国) in 1867 to become an independent country and English and French have been recognized as the official languages ever since.
Most people speak English as their first language and the two national television networks broadcast in English throughout the country. Apart from in Quebec and a few places on the east coast, French television is very rare.
The same goes for traffic signs and menus, for example, outside of Quebec, there are only a few places where you'll see traffic signs in French. In restaurants, it's almost impossible to find French on the menu unless you are in the heartland (中心地带) of French Canada. However, all products sold in Canada must, by law, have labels (标签) and instructions in both languages.
In Canada's English-speaking provinces, official bilingualism (双语) means that students can choose to complete a special French language course. Under this program, they are taught most of their subjects in French.
If a student begins the course in kindergarten(幼儿园) or Grade One, it is likely that all their lessons will be in French. However, if they start at junior high school, 25 percent of the teaching will continue to be in English.
1. Where can you watch French television programmes?| A．Only in Quebec. |
| B．In Quebec and a few other places. |
| C．From the two national television networks. |
| D．All over Canada. |
| A．In English speaking provinces only English courses are offered. |
| B．If you choose a special French language course, most of the subjects are taught in French. |
| C．The courses in primary school are all taught in English. |
| D．Most of the courses in junior high schools are taught in English. |
| A．Canada has two official languages: English and French. |
| B．English is spoken in Canada. |
| C．French is spoken in Canada. |
| D．All the above. |
【推荐3】
UPS (联合包裹) driver Ryan Arens was making his rounds near a pond in Bozeman, Montana, when he heard an unearthly sound. “Like a cry for help,” he told the Dodo. It was December 2019, and about 15 feet from the frozen banks was the source of that cry — a half-submerged brown-and-white wirehaired hound (猎犬), struggling to hold to a thin layer of ice. How she got there no one knows, but an elderly man was already on the scene. He’d entered the pond in a rowboat and was knocked at the ice with a rock to create a path to the dog. It was slow going, and Arens, 44, thought he stood a better chance.
“Animals are my weakness,” he told the Great Falls Tribune, explaining why he stripped (拆开) down to his boxers and socks, even though the temperature was freezing cold, and commandeered the rowboat.
His heart thumping, Arens slid closer to the dog and used the other man’s rock to smash away at the ice. He gave one strong knock and slipped off the boat, crashing into 16 feet of freezing water.
He resurfaced in time to see the dog going under. Using nervous energy to keep warm, he swam about five feet toward her, grabbed hold of her collar, and pulled her to the ice. He then boosted the dog into the boat and slid it back to the shore, where anxious bystanders carried the dog to the home of the rowboat owner, a retired veterinarian. Once in the house himself, Arens jumped into a warm shower with the dog until they both defrosted (解冻). A few more minutes in the pond, the vet told Arens, the dog would have likely suffered cardiac arrest (心脏骤停).
The next day, Arens was back working the same neighborhood when the dog’s owner came over to thank him for saving Sadie. “Would you like to meet her?” he asked.
He opened the door to his pickup (皮卡), and Sadie rushed out. She made a beeline for Arens, leaping on him and bathing him in wet kisses. That special delivery, says Arens, “was the highlight of my UPS career.”
1. The underlined word “unearthly” most probably means ________.| A．terrifying | B．strange | C．interesting | D．pleasant |
| A．He was skating on the ice. |
| B．He was rowing in the pond. |
| C．He was trying to save the dog. |
| D．He was walking on the path. |
| A．Why Arens fell into the water. |
| B．How Arens rescued the dog. |
| C．How dangerous it was in freezing water. |
| D．Who the dog belonged to. |
| A．She jumped on him. |
| B．She kissed him. |
| C．She ran directly to Arens. |
| D．She remained still. |
