Nasr Majid started hunting this fall at Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge (保护区)on the Eastern Shore of Maryland in USA, He’s one of the relatively few new hunters who officials hope will help stop a nearly four-decade decline nationally in what has become a hobby for fewer than 5 percent of Americans.
Natural resources and wildlife, officials in Maryland are encouraging hunting of deer, turkeys and some other wild animals, which is believed to be good for the environment. Without hunting, they say, sika deer will overpopulate the wildlife refuge and they’ll overeat the bushes and other plants that provide important habitat for birds. On the western shore of the Chesapeake Bay, hunting is also important to prevent the spread of diseases such as Lyme.
In many families, the hunting tradition has been handed down for generations^ But as longtime sportsmen age and children lose interest, the number of hunters in the United States fell by 2 million, from 2011 to 2018, to about 11 million.
“Everything is changing. Kids are growing up in front of video games and computers instead of going hunting.” said Chris Markin, a hunting specialist for the state natural resources department. “Adults usually focus on working and providing for their families. Those pressures are preventing many other potential hunters from going out, and from raising the next generation of hunters.”
To avoid such a decline, a new approach is needed. Government agencies and nonprofit groups are now launching mentoring (指导) programs to train more hunters, which not only helps preserve an industry and a culture but also means more protection for wildlife and their habitats through deer population control and investment.
Luckily, there are those still eager to learn, like Majid. He was just looking for an outdoor hobby he could share with his children when he came across the mentors-hip program. Now, he feels capable of hunting on his own, but also has someone he can text with questions that pop up. His new pastime has already paid off for him—on his second hunt with his mentor, in the last minutes of daylight, he bagged his first deer.
1. What can be inferred from Chris Markin’s words?A.No one is interested in hunting any more. |
B.Hunting adds to many adults’ life pressures. |
C.Parents fail to spend enough time with kids. |
D.The hunting tradition is facing challenges. |
A.bravery | B.hope |
C.enthusiasm | D.devotion |
A.Learning to hunt. | B.Raising questions. |
C.Looking for hunters. | D.Sharing a new hobby. |
A.Teach hunters new skills. | B.Preserve a great tradition. |
C.Make hunting more popular. | D.Reduce the pressure of life. |
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【推荐1】Stories and movies often make bats into scary creatures that attack in the dark of night. In real life, however, most bats are harmless. A few are even helpful to humans.
Over 800 species or types of bats feast on troublesome insects that damage crops or spread disease. Another 400 or so bat species eat ripe fruit. These bats are very useful because they pollinate (授粉) flowers and disperse (分散) seeds. There are also a few species of larger bats that hunt small animals like mice, fish, and frogs. A very few even drink blood.
The blood drinkers are the three species of vampire bats. However, the vampire bat doesn’t suck blood. Instead, it makes a wound with its sharp teeth and then laps the blood up like a kitty. The animal victim usually sleeps through the entire process. While attacks on humans have occurred, the bats’ common targets are livestock and other animals. Interestingly, the vampire bat may become useful to humans. You see, a chemical in the bat’s saliva (唾液) thins blood and dissolves blood clots (血栓). Studies indicate this could be a great aid in treating people with strokes. In the future, medicine may be made from vampire bats’ saliva.
Some people think bats are birds, but they’re not. They have fur, not feathers. And their babies do not hatch from eggs; they’re born alive. Also, bats have mouths and noses; birds have beaks. Scientists put them in a special mammal group called Chiroptera.
1. Most species of bats eat ________.A.ripe fruit | B.mice and frogs |
C.insects | D.blood |
A.Vampire bats drink blood directly. |
B.The bats’ uncommon targets are human beings. |
C.A chemical in the bats is of great benefit treating heart disease. |
D.Medicine has been produced from the bats’ saliva |
A.Blood Drinkers | B.Vampire Bats |
C.Amazing Bats | D.Scary Creatures |
【推荐2】How to keep your pets cool this summer
It’s not just humans who struggle with the high temperatures of summer; our pets do, too. Many people worry about how to prevent pets from feeling the heat too badly.
Below are some tips to help you keep your pets cool and safe all summer long.
Leave the air conditioning on
You tend to turn off your air conditioning when you leave the house to save money.
If you’re a dog owner, it’s vital that you walk your dog early in the day before the sun has a chance to get to its full strength. You can also try late night walks, but it usually doesn’t cool down until long after the sun has set, so early morning is generally more convenient.
Put in a pool
Placing a paddling pool in a shady spot in your backyard lets your dog have more outdoor time without overheating.
Make water available at all times
On a hot day, your pet must have access to water at all times to help keep cool and drink water in time because your pet is likely to drink more.
A.Walk your dog early |
B.Luckily, there’s plenty we can do |
C.Try to keep your dog staying in shades |
D.Put out an extra water bowl for your dog |
E.It is important for your dog to drink clean water |
F.However, your pets will need it while you’re out |
G.You should choose a dog pool rather than an inflatable(充气的) pool |
【推荐3】A scientist goes to a forest to study monkeys. He or she wants to study their habits and behavior. But the problem is: how to know who’s who?
In the past, scientists had to make marks on each of the animals to distinguish them. But in the future, they may have a much easier way to tell them apart thanks to facial recognition technology.
A research team from China’s Northwest University is using facial recognition technology to identify thousands of snub-nosed monkeys (金丝猴) that live on Qinling Mountain in Shaanxi province.
Similar to human facial recognition, the technology that is used to identify monkeys uses their facial features to create a database that includes every monkey, Xinhua reported.
“When the system is fully developed, we can connect it with cameras set up in the mountains. The system will automatically recognize the monkeys, name them and analyze their behavior,” said Zhang He, a member of the research team.
“For each snub-nosed monkey, we have 700 to 800 image samples, and the recognition success rate is 94 percent,” Zhang added.
Compared with facial recognition technology for humans, facial recognition technology for monkeys is more complicated because monkeys have hairier faces. The color of their hair causes them to blend into their environment. These factors make it harder for computers to do the job.
“Monkeys do not cooperate with researchers in the same way humans do. It is difficult to take high-quality pictures and videos of them, which are needed to improve the system,” said Li Baoguo, leader of the research team.
Currently, there are about 4,000 snub-nosed monkeys living on Qinling Mountain. The team’s goal is to successfully identify every monkey that lives there.
1. What problem do scientists face while studying monkeys?A.How to mark them. | B.How to tell them apart. |
C.How to understand their behavior. | D.How to use facial recognition technology. |
A.It needs to be connected to cameras to work. |
B.It works better than human facial recognition. |
C.It was developed by a research team in Shanxi province. |
D.It requires a database of about 700 to 800 pictures of monkeys. |
a. image samples b. hairy faces c. hair color d. the environment
A.ab | B.ac | C.bc | D.bd |
A.A scientific study of snub-nosed monkeys on Qinling Mountain. |
B.The use of facial recognition technology for studying monkeys. |
C.The difficulties of using facial recognition technology for monkeys. |
D.Different ways to identify snub-nosed monkeys on Qinling Mountain. |
【推荐1】Special boxes lie at the bottom of my locked filing cabinet. Deposited there are important letters and cards collected throughout my life, from my grandparents, school friends, parents, wife and son. Since the invention of e-mail though, they’ve been few and far between.
Tonight is New York’s Eve 2029 and there’s a very special box of letters I want to look at. But first there’s something I have to do – The Ritual(惯例).
I go to my trusted computer and start. I begin to type: Dear -- . I leave the name blank for now, anticipating the thrill of typing it in. “I hope you are well and I wonder how this will find you. And you still planning to move to that villa in Portugal? Did your son marry Fiona? Is your mother still alive? Questions surge into my mind.
For the next two hours I sit writing. About what I’ve been doing for the last year, my failing health, my increasing wealth and sometime difficult marriage. Then about my goals and ambitions. Will he be interested? Do I climb Mt. Kilimanjaro? Do I get that novel published? the one that’s been rejected more times than I carte to think about.
Finally, it’s finished. 11:30 pm. I fill in the recipient’s name, print my letter, sign and address it and then seal it up with tape. I then delete the document and empty the trash folder – to avoid the possibility of temptation. That completes the ritual!
I walk over to my “special box”. It contains ten long, white, thick envelopes, all with the same handwriting. I place the one I have just written in at the back and take out the one at the front. It’s dated 2019, and labelled “to be opened 31st December 2029”.
The cycle is finally complete! I open it, trembling with anticipation. I begin to read, my eyes tearing up a little as I do so. Throughout the last ten long, eventful years, of life, death, joy and heartbreak, it has been waiting patiently in this box for me, though I now have no memory of ever having written it.
1. Why does the author receive fewer “important letters” these days ?A.He has moved from his original address. |
B.He is rarely in contact with his friends and family. |
C.People communicate with each other less often than before. |
D.Electronic communication has largely replaced physical letters. |
A.The author himself. |
B.The author’s son. |
C.The author’s school friend. |
D.The author’s book publisher. |
A.So that no one else will be able to read it. |
B.So that he won’t read it ahead of schedule. |
C.Because he decides at last not to send it. |
D.Because he wants forget what has happened. |
A.Relieved | B.Moved |
C.Excited | D.Afraid |
【推荐2】The teacher who did the most to encourage me was, as it happened, my aunt. She was Myrtle C.Manigault, the wife of my mother’s brother Bill. She taught in second grade at all-black Summer School in Camden, New Jersey.
During my childhood and youth, Aunt Myrtle encouraged me to develop every aspect of my potential, without regard for what was considered practical or possible for black females. I liked to sing; she listened to my voice and pronounced it good. I couldn’t dance; she taught me the basic dancing steps. She took me to the theatre—not just children’s theatre but adult comedies and dramas—and her faith that I could appreciate adult plays was not disappointed.
My aunt also took down books from her extensive library and shared them with me. I had books at home, but they were all serious classics. Even as a child I had a strong liking for humor, and I’ll never forget the joy of discovering Don Marquis’s Archy & Mehitabel through her.
Most important, perhaps, Aunt Myrtle provided my first opportunity to write for publication. A writer herself for one of the black newspapers, she suggested my name to the editor as a “youth columnist”. My column, begun when I was fourteen, was supposed to cover teenage social activities—and it did—but it also gave me the freedom to write on many other subjects as well as the habit of gathering material, the discipline of meeting deadlines, and, after graduation from college six years later, a solid collection of published material that carried my name and was my passport to a series of writing jobs.
Today Aunt myrtle is still an enthusiastic of the “favorite niece”. Like a diamond, she has reflected a bright, multifaceted (多面的) image of possibilities to every pupil who has crossed her path.
1. Which of the following did Aunt Myrtle do to the author during her childhood and youth?A.She lent her some serious classics. | B.She introduced her to adult plays. |
C.She discovered her talent for dancing. | D.She cultivated her taste for music. |
A.A serious masterpiece. | B.A writer of high fame. |
C.A book of great fun. | D.A heartbreaking play. |
A.develop her capabilities for writing | B.give her a chance to collect material |
C.involve her in teenage social activities | D.offer her a series of writing jobs |
A.trained pupils to be diligent and well-disciplined |
B.helped pupils overcome difficulties in learning |
C.emphasized what was practical or possible for pupils |
D.gave pupils confidence in exploiting their potential |
【推荐3】Wearing high heels, straight-backed, four “chic grandmas” with an average age of more than 68, can still walk the walk with a fashionable international swagger on the T stage. But these are not trained models. They are, in fact, ordinary retirees. They all share a love for fashion, but their backgrounds could hardly be more different.
Sang Xiuzhu,77, used to be an engineer. After retiring at the age of 62, she joined a senior model team in Beijing. Later, she was invited to participate in Beijing International Fashion Week, Paris Fashion Week and her new career just grew. She is so occupied that she really has no time to think about aging. For her, the stage she loves and pours her blood into is her future.
Likewise, Guo Lirong, 62, was a police officer before retirement. When she was at a friend’s house by chance, she was asked to be a model. So she studied modeling for three years, from elementary to advanced classes. In the early days of retirement Guo finished shopping in the morning, made lunch, and started playing mahjong at 1:30pm. Now, her hobbies are walking with attitude down the catwalks and filming short videos.
Cheng Derong is 72. She worked as an accountant before retirement. She has loved literature and art since she was a child. But her job took up all her time. The opportunity to stay on stage seemed to have gone but her love for literature and art has never decreased.
Tang Ai’ai, 62, was a civil servant before retirement. After retirement,she participated in various activities, such as yoga, Latin dance and conquering catwalks.Tang suggested that after retirement, people should deal with the transition period, and they should have their own hobbies and enjoy life. As long as the heart is not old,life is always sweet.
The four “chic grandmas” are full of enthusiasm for new things and digital life, and they live to learn. This kind of enthusiasm that is rooted in their original aspirations fills them with energy.
1. What do the four “chic grandmas” have in common?A.They are professional models. |
B.They were engineers before retirement. |
C.They have a passion for fashion. |
D.They participated in Paris Fashion Week. |
A.She studied modeling for three years. |
B.She happened to be asked to be a model at a friend’s house. |
C.She likes walking down the catwalks and filming short videos. |
D.She has loved literature and art since she was a child. |
A.A period when life is nothing but sweet. |
B.A period when you have lost your job. |
C.A period when you participate in various activities. |
D.A period when you have just retired and have to adapt to the new life. |
A.There is no age limit, and what counts is an enthusiastic attitude to life. |
B.Women should try modeling even if they are old. |
C.Women deserve the same rights as men. |
D.Women have a desire for beauty and fashion no matter how old they are. |
【推荐1】When my father married my mother in 1943, he gave my mother a 1937 crown coin and told her to keep it in the back of her purse and not to spend it. This would mean that she always felt that she was protected and would always have money if she really needed it.
When I was married in 1970 my husband who had heard this story, obtained a 1937 crown coin for me and I have always kept it in my wallet, and I have always had enough for my needs. A friend recently fell on hard times, partly through external(外部的)circumstances and partly through poor planning. Friends and I have loaned her money, paid her bills, given her food, and even tried to teach her budget techniques, but none of them has been a solution. She has just slipped deeper and deeper into financial trouble and depression.
Last week she looked pale and unwell, very depressed and hopeless, very sad for a friend to see and I then thought about how the crown coin, a physical reminder of another's care and love had protected me, so I went to the bank for a 100-dollar bill.
I told my friend the story and asked her to keep the $100 in the back of her wallet. It turned out that she didn't have a wallet, so she put the money in a little pencil case where she kept her coins. She immediately felt better. "I feel rich, and thank you for being a good friend." she said, and we were both a bit teary.
I went home and remembered a little wallet I had that I'd never used, and thought, "I'll give that to my friend." I opened it, and inside, found $100.
1. What did the 1937 crown coin from the author's father mean to her mother?A.His concern for her. | B.His pity and protection for her. |
C.His care and love for her. | D.His pride and respect for her. |
A.In the back of her wallet. | B.In a little pencil case. |
C.In the pocket of her raincoat. | D.In the layer of her suitcase. |
A.The author became rich all of a sudden. |
B.The author felt uncomfortable when receiving the bill. |
C.The author's friend was not touched by her story. |
D.The author's friend would receive a wallet as a gift. |
A.A crown coin | B.The help to a friend | C.A hard life | D.A gift from my father |
【推荐2】If you have a little child, who hates sitting in a car seat, then the FreedomRide is the answer to your problem.
Would you want to be stuck in an unchangeable position every time you're in the car?
No. You wouldn't.
When an adult sits in a car for any length of time, we stretch, we change the position, and we move our legs again and again. We do this without thinking. But kids in a traditional car seat can't do this. They are stuck in one position, and they can't move. We move because the circulation of blood needs to be recovered in our Legs as we sit in the same position for long.
In a traditional car seat, children can't move to reduce the pain so it puts them in anger. The FreedomRide lets them have a little freedom, and still be safe. The 5-point harness gives them additional safety over a traditional child car seat.
I am the webmaster for islandbreeze.com, and when JoeySafe asked us to redo their website I was attracted by this system. That is because I have two small children, both girls aged 3 and 4 and we obviously use car seats, I lived in Southern California, and every couple of months, my wife, the girls and I, go to see Grandma who lives in Nevada. It's a 5-hour drive, so the FreedomRide works well. With the FreedomRide, we don't need child car seats any more and there is more room in the car. Our trips are so much better now.
The FreedomRide really does make it easier to go on trips. The only thing you need when you use the JoeySafe instead of your old child car seat is a pillow. Besides, my kids want to take a pillow anyway! As a dad, 1 feel safe driving with the kids in the FreedomRide. I am a very safety-oriented person.
1. From the text we can infer the FreedomRide is a _____.A.car seat | B.car for children | C.safety belt | D.gams on islandbreeze.com |
A.a person hating sitting in the car for long | B.an adult often driving a traditional car |
C.a child requiring some freedom in the car | D.a driver needing comfortable scats |
A.support the topic of the child car safety |
B.describe the advantages of the FreedomRide |
C.introduce the detail of the author's work and web |
D.explain how the FreedomRide was put onto the market |
A.the way of ordering the FreedomRide | B.the design of a traditional car seat |
C.the information about islandbreeze.com | D.the advantages of the product |
【推荐3】Qomolangma which translates to “Goddess Mother of the World” is the Tibetan name for Mount Everest.
Hundreds of climbers have died trying to reach the summit(山顶) or getting back down from the world’s highest peak. And the 2019 climbing season which ended up in May was the deadliest one in four years. There were 11 deaths on the mountain this spring. In addition to difficult weather, inexperienced climbers, inexperienced companies that brought them in and overcrowding on the mountain were all widely blamed for the deaths. In fact, some climbers criticized Nepal for allowing anyone who paid $11,000 to get a climbing permit.
Nepal is among the poorest countries in the world and tourism is a major industry there. After this year though, an expert group was set up to discuss the deaths on the mountain. It was made up of government officials, expert climbers and climbing agencies and it just recently gave its list of recommendations. Among them are requiring the climbers themselves to have training and experience at high altitudes. They wouldn’t be able to get an Everest permit before that. They also have to send in a certificate that says they’re in good health and good shape and they have to bring a trained Nepali guide with them.
The experts also suggest raising the fee to climb Qomolangma to $35,000. There would be additional rules concerning the tour companies that offer trips to the summit. And a Nepalese tourism official who was interviewed by the Reuters News Agency says the government will make the new rules the law of the land.
1. What feeling did the author convey by using “Goddess Mother of the World”?A.Fright. | B.Worship. |
C.Excitement. | D.Curiosity. |
A.Exhausted climbers. | B.Snow slide. |
C.Earthquake. | D.Too many climbers. |
A.The climbers have to take a trained guide from any country. |
B.The climbers have to be trained at a high altitude in Nepal before climbing. |
C.The climbers have to show a permit showing they’re healthy for climbing. |
D.The climbers have to belong to a tour company and have more than $35,000. |
【推荐1】More than half of the world’s wild tiger population are threatened by roads built dangerously close to their habitats, and giant projects planned across Asia could put tigers at even greater risk.
Tigers’ habitats have reduced by 40% since 2006, leaving fewer than 4000 of the animals in the wild. Those living near roads are particularly attacked because they are at risk of being hit by vehicles, have more difficulties finding food, and are easier to be killed. Using a global dataset, Neil Carter at the University of Michigan and his colleagues calculated that the tiger’s current range, which mostly distributed in south and south-east Asia, contains 134,000 kilometres of roads. They estimated that 57% of tigers live within 5 kilometres of these roads, which is considered dangerously close.
This close to roads could be decreasing the world’s tiger population by more than20%, the researchers’ modelling suggests. Nearly 24,000 kilometres of new roads are planned for construction within the tiger’s range by 2050, which will make it even harder for the animals to avoid these risks.
“New roads could be made more tiger-friendly by building them away from key tiger populations, banning overnight traffic, installing road signs to warn drivers of the presence of tigers, and building tiger-friendly crossings so that wild animals can safely cross forests on both sides of the road,” says Carter. These have been built on roads and highways in Malaysia.
In 2010, all 13 countries with wild tiger populations committed to a plan to double the tiger population by 2022. By 2016, research suggested that the global wild tiger population stopped declining and had increased. “Building tiger-friendly roads will be crucial to reaching this goal,” says Carter.
1. What does paragraph 2 mainly show?A.Tigers are endangered species. |
B.Tigers are too lazy to go around. |
C.Tigers’ habitats have been threatened. |
D.The tigers’ population has decreased a lot. |
A.Building fewer new roads. |
B.Building protection areas for tigers. |
C.Building special roads for tigers to go through. |
D.Improving the living conditions of tigers. |
A.Worried. | B.Optimistic. |
C.Conservative. | D.Critical. |
A.How to protect tigers. |
B.How to build tiger-friendly roads. |
C.Wild tiger population will increase. |
D.Road-building threatens the tigers’ habitats. |
【推荐2】It may be the decoration color of the moment, but painting your bedroom wall grey could actually keep you awake.
Grey isn't the only color you should avoid if you're reaching for a paintbrush. "Reds, browns and purples can all delay a peaceful night's sleep," says Natalie Armstrong, a sleep expert at mattress company Sealy.
She says, "While your room is dark when you go to sleep, many of us spend an hour or more in our bedrooms with the light on before going to sleep , which is the color of your bedroom can be so disruptive.
“Colors that are too bright can put your brain into a state of high alert, which can last long after you've turned the light off and can no longer see the color.”
Grey, white gentle, is also quite suppressive. The absence of any strong color has a depressive effect on the brain because it is a color typically used to represent sadness. While the current trend for grey is trying to change this, the deep rooted associations of grey as a dull color can make it a bad choice for bedroom decoration.
The real color champion when it comes to good sleep is blue, which is easily picked up by ganglion cells in the retinas of your eyes. The cells then send a message direct to your brain that you're in a calm environment.
And while the phrase "tidy house, tidy mind" might be ordinarily used in the daytime, it can be just as relevant at night-time. If you're trying to sleep in a room that' s heavy on clutter, you can carry that unsettled feeling into your subconscious when trying to fall into sleep, says Armstrong.
1. What's the main idea of this text?A.The color of the bedroom walls affects sleep. |
B.Dark colours can delay a peaceful night's sleep. |
C.The decoration of the room plays an important role. |
D.Grey isn't a suitable colour for bedroom decoration. |
A.Grey is a dull colour. | B.Blue represents sadness. |
C.Purple does good to our sleep. | D.Red can make people excited. |
A.Because it upsets people. | B.Because people don't care. |
C.Because it makes people feel stable. | D.Because people are fond of clean environment. |
A.A medical book. | B.A health magazine. |
C.A science report. | D.An advertisement brochure. |
【推荐3】For a lot of people, getting a full night's sleep is nothing more than just a dream. Some of us climb into bed in the early evening, and the next thing we know, it's 2 in the morning and we're still staring at the ceiling. It's common knowledge that sleep problems can be caused by things such as stress, anxiety, or even using a smart phone before bedtime. But recently, a team of researchers discovered that genes could also be a cause of sleepless nights.
The scientists, from The Rockefeller University in New York, US, found that DSPD, delayed sleep phase disorder(睡眠时相延迟综合征), a condition that affects one's sleeping patterns, is passed down by a mutated gene(发生变异的基因). DSPD sufferers wake up later and go to bed later than the average person. To come to their conclusion, the team studied a 46-year-old woman who is only usually able to fall asleep at 2 or 3 in the morning. It was discovered that the woman's body produces the hormone(激素) that helps her sleep at night up to seven hours later than regular sleepers. The scientists found this is caused by a mutation in one of the woman's genes, one that helps regulate the “body clock”.
Some of the woman's family members were also found to share the same mutation — and the same sleeping problems — leading the scientists to believe that sleep troubles are passed down through the generations.
However, having this mutation doesn't mean you automatically have sleep problems. The team also found two people who had the mutation but reported no problems with their sleep.
But while this is an interesting discovery, it offers no help to those who can't fall asleep at night — although there are a few things you could try to help yourself sleep earlier.
BBC journalist Michael Mosley produced a TV documentary in May in which he talked about his battle with insomnia(失眠)and the techniques he used. “I avoid social media for at least an hour before bed, I do mindfulness exercises, and if I wake up in the middle of the night, I read a book for an hour or so,” he wrote in an article for the Radio Times.
1. What have scientists recently discovered about sleep problems?A.Sleep problems can be a result of genetics. |
B.Stress and anxiety can cause sleep problems. |
C.Smart phones are the main cause of sleep problems nowadays. |
D.Sleep problems are affected by sleeping patterns. |
A.It will delay sleep for seven hours. |
B.It doesn’t necessarily cause sleep problems. |
C.It will be passed down to every future generation. |
D.It can be changed to help solve sleep problems. |
A.Listening to light music. |
B.Reading interesting books. |
C.Keeping away from social media. |
D.Doing some outdoor exercise. |
A.To give advice on how to cure insomnia. |
B.To explain different reasons for sleep problems. |
C.To warn readers of the bad influences of sleeping late. |
D.To report the discovery of a genetic cause for sleep problems. |