1 . Running is often tiring and a lot of hard work, but nothing beats the feeling you get after finishing a long workout around the track.
But while it’s long been believed that endorphins (内啡肽) —chemicals in the body that cause happiness—are behind the so-called “runner’s high”, a study suggested that there may be more to this phenomenon than we previously knew.
According to a recent study published by a group of scientists from several German universities, a group of chemicals called endocannabinoids (内源性大麻素) may actually be responsible for this familiar great feeling.
To test this theory, the scientists turned to mice. Both mice and humans release high levels of endorphins and endocannabinoids after exercise. After exercising on running wheels, the mice seemed happy and relaxed and displayed no signs of anxiety. But after being given a drug to block their endorphins, the mice’s behavior didn’t seem to change. However, when their endocannabinoids were blocked with a different drug, their runners’ high symptoms seemed to fade.
“The long-held notion of endorphins being responsible for the runner’s high is false. Endorphins are effective pain relievers, but only when it comes to the pain in your body and muscles you feel after working out,” Patrick Lucas Austin wrote on science blog Lifchacker.
Similar studies are yet to be carried out on humans, but it’s already known that exercise is a highly effective way to get rid of stress or anxiety. The UK’s National Health Service even prescribes (开药 方) exercise to patients who are suffering from depression. “Being depressed can leave you feeling low in energy, which might put you off being more active. Regular exercise can improve your mood if you have depression, and its especially useful for people with mild to moderate (中等的) depression,” it wrote on its website.
It seems like nothing can beat that feeling we get after a good workout, even if we don’t fully understand where it comes from. At least if we’re feeling down, we know that all we have to do is to put on our running shoes.
1. What did scientists from German universities recently discover?A.Working out is a highly effective way to treat depression. |
B.The runner’s high could be caused by endocannabinoids. |
C.Endorphins may contribute to one’s high spirits after running. |
D.The level of endorphins and endocannabinoids could affect one’s mood. |
A.To find what reduces the runner’s high symptoms. |
B.To see the specific symptoms of the runner’s high. |
C.To identify what is responsible for the runner’s high. |
D.To test what influences the level of endocannabinoids released. |
A.Effect. | B.Goal. | C.Opinion. | D.Question |
A.They can help ease depression symptoms. |
B.They are the best way to treat depression. |
C.They only work for those with serious depression. |
D.They can help people completely recover from depression. |
1. What sport does the man like best?
A.Volleyball. | B.Softball. | C.Basketball. |
A.Classical music. | B.Pop music. | C.Jazz. |
A.He hangs out with them. |
B.He plays sports with them. |
C.He shares music with them. |
A.At 2:30 p.m. | B.At 3:30 p.m. | C.At 3:00 p.m. |
1. What do we know about the man?
A.He is surprised by what the woman says. |
B.He trains old people to do physical exercise. |
C.He is interested in reading geography books. |
A.In the field. | B.In the park. | C.In the desert. |
A.They can run for days. |
B.They drink water while running. |
C.They wear special running shoes. |
A.We don’t think we can. | B.We lack determination. | C.We’re born different from them. |
1. Who is the man going to play golf with?
A.His schoolmates. | B.The woman. | C.His workmates. |
A.Learn to drive. |
B.Do sports in a school gym. |
C.Celebrate a special occasion. |
A.He is not good at basketball. |
B.He prefers doing exercise in the gym. |
C.He is in a basketball team. |
A.Boring. | B.Beneficial. | C.Challenging. |
1. Which app does the woman use to count her steps?
A.WeChat. | B.Alipay. | C.Ping An Health. |
A.Normal. | B.Satisfactory. | C.Surprising. |
A.A TV presenter. | B.A salesman. | C.A fitness coach. |
A.By going to the gym. | B.By climbing the stairs. | C.By running. |
1. When did Rob first decide to go surfing?
A.When his father offered to teach him. |
B.When his mom gave him a board. |
C.When he saw some local matches. |
A.He wears warm wetsuit. |
B.The sea is warmer than the land. |
C.It is difficult to stand on the board. |
A.He was afraid of falling off his board. |
B.He was worried at first by the size of the wave. |
C.He was upset he did not have the right board. |
A.Think of surfing as a career. |
B.Study surfing science at university. |
C.Train for the next surfing match. |
7 . Physical education, or PE, isn’t required for all high school students. In some schools, it isn’t offered for some different reasons. But should high school students have physical education? The answer is certainly “yes”.
Today many people don’t do sports. But as is known to all. doing sports is very important for an adult. Teaching teens the importance of a healthy lifestyle and making fitness plans now can help teens put exercise in the first place as an adult.
High school isn’t that easy. Many students are under a lot of stress. Stress can be harmful to a student’s studies and life. Doing sports can help them deal with stress better, helping them live a happier life at school.
The American Heart Association says that 10 million kids and teens suffer from obesity (肥胖). Teens should get 60 minutes of physical activity per day to control their weight and to help their bones get stronger. The increase in activities that don’t get teens to move around, such as computer games, means many teens don’t get their required exercise. PE classes act as a public health measure (措施) to encourage physical activities and help teens have healthy weights.
Not doing sports increases teens’ hazard of developing many diseases. An active lifestyle offers a good way of protection from these health problems. As much as 75 percent of health-care spending goes toward treating medical conditions that can be prevented by lifestyle changes, according to the American College of Sports Medicine.
According to the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports and Nutrition (PCFSN), students who performed five hours of physical activities each week improved their academic (学业的) performance. Students from programs with no physical activity, who used the extra time for classroom study, did not perform better on tests than those who gave up some study time in support of physical education.
1. According to Paragraph 2, what does physical education in high school mean?A.Making teens attach importance to ęxercise later. |
B.Removing the stress faced by teens at school. |
C.Getting teens to encourage adults to exercise. |
D.Helping teens learn to make good plans |
A.Happiness. | B.Risk. | C.Safety. | D.Sadness. |
A.means making students choose between sports and studies |
B.helps students make good use of all their time |
C.means students adjust to their studies better |
D.helps students do better in their studies |
A.Why high school students should receive physical education. |
B.Why some schools consider physical education important. |
C.How schools can help students love doing sports. |
D.How high school students can live a better life. |
8 . In 1997, a group of twenty British women made history. Working in five teams with four women in each team, they walked to the North Pole. Apart from one experienced female guide, the other women were all ordinary people who had never done anything like this in their lives before. They managed to survive in an environment which had defeated several very experienced men during the same period.
Once on the ice, each woman had to ski along while dragging a sledge (雪橇) weighing over 50 kilos. This would not have been too bad on a smooth surface, but for long stretches (一片地域), the Arctic ice is pushed up into huge piles two or three meters high and the sledges had to be pulled up on side and carefully let down the other so that they didn’t crash. The temperature was always below freezing point and sometimes strong winds made walking while pulling so much weight almost impossible. It was also very difficult to put up their tents when they stopped each night.
In such conditions the women were making good progress if they covered fourteen or fifteen kilometers a day. But there was another problem. Part of the journey was across a frozen sea with moving water underneath the ice and at some points the team would drift (漂流) back more than five kilometers during the night. That meant that after walking in these very terrible conditions for ten hours on one day, they had to spend part of the next day covering the same ground again. Furthermore, each day it would take three hours from waking up to setting off and another three hours every evening to set up the camp and prepare the evening meal.
So, how did they manage to succeed? They realized that they were part of a team. If any one of them didn’t pull her sledge or get her job done, she would endanger the success of the whole expedition (远征探险). Any form of selfishness could result in the efforts of everyone else being completely wasted, so personal feelings had to be put to one side. At the end of their journey, the women agreed that it was mental effort far more than physical fitness that got them to the North Pole.
1. What was so extraordinary about the expedition?A.It was a new experience for most of the women. |
B.The women did not have any men with them. |
C.The women had not met one another before. |
D.There was no one leading it. |
A.being left behind | B.damaging the sledges |
C.falling over on the ice | D.breaking the ice |
A.they got too tired | B.they kept getting lost |
C.the ice was moving backwards | D.the temperatures were very low |
A.Strict but caring. | B.Proud but patient. |
C.Honest and devoted. | D.Determined and strong-willed. |
A.Experience must be bought. |
B.Facts speak louder than words. |
C.He who risks nothing gains nothing. |
D.Motivation and teamwork achieve goals. |
9 . When the Chinese government first sent students to America in the late 19th century, it could not decide whether their goal should be to acquire specific technical knowledge or to
Attending an American university is a good career move. It is also
At first sight, the event bears the stamp of
The proposition is: “Countries should give
Unlike America, where debating clubs are
A.absorb | B.apply | C.practice | D.spread |
A.assured | B.disturbed | C.divided | D.suspended |
A.blamed | B.punished | C.scorned | D.warned |
A.idealistic | B.practical | C.realistic | D.variable |
A.access | B.format | C.path | D.recipe |
A.challenge | B.democracy | C.economy | D.privilege |
A.amateurs | B.elites | C.inhabitants | D.migrants |
A.enters | B.exposes | C.issues | D.stages |
A.converted | B.convinced | C.drawn | D.withdrawn |
A.emergency | B.guarantee | C.priority | D.sympathy |
A.in the way | B.its own way | C.the other way | D.under way |
A.advocated | B.dominated | C.monitored | D.presented |
A.exam | B.male | C.money | D.power |
A.illiterate | B.ill-prepared | C.unexpected | D.unpredictable |
A.dreaded | B.fancied | C.ignored | D.tolerated |
10 . Even if you’re a couch potato like me, you’ll know the benefits of running. But if you’re a real fitness fan, the
But just like other
Several cities have
Dr Andrea Collins from Cardiff University told the BBC: "Training for a marathon makes you more sustainable in day-to-day activities. I started walking or running to work every day and
A.basic | B.funny | C.fresh | D.ultimate |
A.courage | B.success | C.practice | D.motivation |
A.waiting | B.companying | C.collapsing | D.struggling |
A.environment | B.charity | C.education | D.health |
A.major | B.historic | C.famous | D.rare |
A.works on | B.gives off | C.results in | D.finds out |
A.mixture | B.waste | C.material | D.content |
A.volunteers | B.journalists | C.audiences | D.coaches |
A.approximately | B.naturally | C.probably | D.gradually |
A.host | B.witness | C.report | D.record |
A.governing | B.ignoring | C.cleaning | D.protecting |
A.expected | B.developed | C.changed | D.considered |
A.promote | B.transform | C.test | D.share |
A.old | B.modern | C.electrical | D.standard |
A.checking | B.doubling | C.arranging | D.reducing |
A.pouring down | B.drinking up | C.taking away | D.giving out |
A.covers | B.belts | C.bodies | D.openers |
A.fill | B.carry | C.pass | D.connect |
A.avoiding | B.providing | C.buying | D.taking |
A.chance | B.reason | C.lifestyle | D.event |