1 . Scientific research on yoga has found that yoga practice can help with problems such as back pain, depression and anxiety. Still, yoga studies tend to be of uneven quality, often relying on self-reported survey data. However, a 2019 review paper focused on a more objective measure: brain scans. Though far from definitive, the findings show that the practice may improve brain health, and they indicate a way to bring yoga and science more convincingly together.
The review, led by Neha Gothe, director of the Exercise Psychology Lab, examined 11 papers that used various types of brain scans to assess the impact of yoga practice on the brain. Gothe and her colleagues limited their review to studies in which all three major elements of yoga were included: the physical poses, breathing exercises, and meditation or mindfulness. Three patterns emerged with some consistency: yoga practice could be linked to increased gray matter volume(体积) in the hippocampus, a key structure for memory; increased volume in certain regions of the prefrontal cortex, the seat of higher-order-cognition(认知); and greater connectivity across the default mode network. This network plays a role in processing memories and emotions.
Jessica Damoiseaux, a co-author of the review paper, focuses her research on aging-related changes in the brain, and she notes that the structures that seem to be strengthened by yoga are ones that tend to shrink with aging. The greater volumes linked to yoga are similar to those seen in studies of aerobic (有氧的)exercise. This raises a question: Is there really anything special about yoga or is it just another brain-preserving workout?
At this point it’s hard to say. Clearer answers will come with better studies that build on the smaller experiments. Gothe, for example, recently received government funds for a study that will assign 168 old adults to six months of classes of yoga, aerobic exercise, or stretching and strengthening. “It’s exactly the kind of trial we need,” says Gothe.
1. What do we know about the 2019 review paper on yoga?| A．It is far from objective. | B．It is centered on brain scans. |
| C．It proves to be of low quality. | D．It relies on self-reported data. |
| A．Three major elements of yoga. | B．The key structure for memory. |
| C．The finding of the review by Gothe. | D．The emotion processing network. |
| A．Take aerobic exercise. | B．Apply for government funds. |
| C．Assign old people to jobs. | D．Carry out smaller experiments. |
| A．Yoga back in fashion. | B．Age can affect brain power |
| C．Brain trials on the way | D．Yoga may boost brain health |
2 . The UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) Volunteer Center works with many external partners to provide this list of current volunteer opportunities. Search here for an opportunity in the community that suits your interests or skills. Good luck!
Medical Volunteer Abroad Programs
Volunteering Solutions have been organizing medical volunteer abroad programs in different countries for 12 years. Participants (preferably medical students) joining these programs will work under the guidance of professional doctors and nurses. The medical volunteering opportunities, offered in different areas like Emergency and General Medicine, are available throughout the year with flexible start dates and durations.
Answer Crisis Calls at a Helpline
Community Helpline currently has opportunities for students as a Volunteer Crisis Listener. It provides a nonjudgmental listening ear to the callers while also assisting individuals in coping with mental health issues to prevent serious crises. No previous experience is required but completion of a five-week training program is required. The crisis line is open from 8 am to 8 pm every single day. A "shift" consists of 3 hours and we ask that you sign up for 1 shift a week.
Youth Education Volunteers Needed
Youth Education Volunteers at LINC Cares serve at after school programs and summer camps that provide fun recreational activities support strong educational habits, and promote good health and positive social development for children from low-income families. Volunteers serve at the after-school program one weekday per week from 2:30 pm to 5:30 pm.
1. What do we know about Medical Volunteer Abroad Programs?| A．Volunteers will work domestically. | B．There are various volunteering areas. |
| C．Volunteers will work independently. | D．There is a fixed volunteering time. |
| A．Judge the caller when listening. | B．Be capable of stopping crises. |
| C．Complete a training program. | D．Work twelve hours per day. |
| A．Volunteer programs. | B．Educational courses. |
| C．Recreational activities. | D．Charity work. |
3 . “Human activity has wiped out two-thirds of the world’s wildlife since 1970,” CNN reported on September 10, 2020. Later that month, the Guardian reported that “40 percent of the world’s plant species are at risk of extinction”. Stanford biologist Paul Ehrlich and his colleagues argued that “the ongoing sixth mass extinction may be the most serious environmental threat to the persistence of civilization”. Around the same time, the Daily Mail warned that “human civilization stands a 90 percent chance of collapse within decades due to deforestation”.
These horrible calculations and projections come from authoritative-sounding reports issued by international agencies, conservation groups, and peer-reviewed scientific journals. But is the future of wild nature and human civilization really so poor?
Data from uncontroversial mainstream sources strongly indicate that both humanity and the natural world are likely to be flourishing rather than collapsing at the end of this century. Humanity is becoming an urban species, and that’s good for the environment, since urban dwellers generally use less electricity, produce less globe-warming carbon dioxide, and have smaller land footprints than people living in the countryside. By 2100, it is estimated that 85 percent of people will be city dwellers, which would leave only 1.2 billion still living in the countryside. That means more space for the wildlife and less pollution from the agriculture.
The global tree-covering area increased by 865,000 square miles between 1982 and 2016. The researchers found that gains in forest area in the mild, subtropical and northern climatic zones are offsetting declines in the tropics. The Maryland researchers owe much of that increase to “natural afforestation on abandoned agricultural land”. “Furthermore, forests in mountainous regions are expanding as climate warming enables trees to grow at higher altitudes,” they added.
Humanity does face big environmental challenges in the coming century. But the scientific and economic evidence shows that most of the trends are positive or can be turned in positive direction by human wisdom. Rather than an age of extinction, the 21st century promises to be an era of environmental renewal.
1. Why does the author mention the reports in Paragraph 1?| A．To give examples. | B．To introduce the topic. |
| C．To make a contrast. | D．To support his opinion. |
| A．No one will choose to live in the countryside. |
| B．More space will be available for the wildlife. |
| C．Neither humanity nor the natural world will develop quickly. |
| D．Urban residents will do more walking than those in the countryside. |
| A．The expanding and disappearance in forest area aren’t evenly matched. |
| B．The forest area in the mild, tropic and northern zones is increasing. |
| C．There are more forests in mountainous regions due to the climate warming. |
| D．The plan of “natural afforestation on abandoned agricultural land” is unfavorable. |
| A．The Bright Future of Humanity |
| B．The Challenges in the Coming Century |
| C．Better Environment, Better Future of Human |
| D．21st Century: An Era of Environmental Renewal |
4 . With a quick movement, the little creature vanishes in the air like it never existed and somehow appears dramatically-this is a part of the film Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. But in reality, “disappeared” fantastic creatures can also reappear.
The Global Wildlife Conservation(GWC) announced on Oct 30 they have rediscovered the Voeltzkow's chameleon(变色龙)in Madagascar. The last time that the animal was seen was in 1913.
This discovery excited the researeh team, but the finding was not easy. The GWC organized an expedition as part of its Seareh for Lost Species program, an attempt to rediscover species that have not been observed by scientists for at least a decade. They headed into the forests of northwestern Madagascar in April 2018. But they didn't have much luck for a long time. Just days before the trip was to end. the tour guides spotted one of the chameleons. Ultimately, the team discovered three males and 13 females.
Male Voeltzkow's chameleons are up to 164 millimeters long and are light green with dark stripes, which get darker when they are angry or stressed. Females are smaller than males, growing to about 150 millimeters long. They can change their skin to a pattern of red dots and a stripe of purple against a background of black and white.
“The Voeltzkow's chameleon adds color and beauty to the planet, and reminds us that even when all seems lost, a great adventure can reawaken hope." said Don Church, president of the GWC. "Now we have so much to learn about this extraordinary reptile(爬行动物)・including how we can best save it from extinction.”
This isn't the only time a species thought to be extinct has been rediscovered. In fact, this year scientists discovered a frog that has been missing for more than 50 years in a Brazilian jungle. Another example is the Albany adder snake, which was rediscovered in 2016. The species had disappeared for over a decade and was generally believed to be extinct.
So how are these "lost" species able to make a comeback? If the environment changes in favor of certain species that have been considered extinct, the population size of those species may recover again. As they reach greater numbers, the chance of humans discovering them increases.
1. Why is the part of Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them mentioned?| A．To lead to a discussion about animal extinction. |
| B．To warn of the difference between reality and fiction. |
| C．To demonstrate that magic can be found in real life. |
| D．To further discuss the reappearance of creatures. |
| A．How luck determined the fate of a lost species. |
| B．How the GWC rediscovered the Voeltzkow's chameleon. |
| C．An introduction to the Seareh for Lost Species program. |
| D．The solutions to make “lost" species come back. |
| A．They can change their colors to green and yellow. |
| B．Female chameleons are much longer than male ones. |
| C．The color of the males' skin can reflect their mood. |
| D．Male chameleons outnumber female ones by a lot. |
| A．The rediscoveries may be due to environmental changes. |
| B．The habitats of frogs and snakes are quite similar. |
| C．Human beings are to blame for species extinction. |
| D．Extinct reptiles would be the first group to be rediscovered. |
5 . Happiness is not a warm phone, according to a new study exploring the link between young life satisfaction and screen time. The study was led by professor of psychology Jean M. Twenge at San Diego State University (SDSU).
To research this link, Twenge, along with colleagues Gabrielle Martin at SDSU and W. Keith Campbell at the University of Georgia, dealt with data from the Monitoring the Future (MtF) study, a nationally representative survey of more than a million U. S. 8th-, 10th-, and 12th-graders. The survey asked students questions about how often they spent time on their Phones, tablets and computers, as well as questions about their face-to-face social interactions and their overall happiness.
On average found that teens who spent more time in front of screen devices — playing computer games, using social media, texting and video chatting — were less happy than those who invested more time in non-screen activities like sports, reading newspapers and magazines, and face-to-face social interactions.
"The key to digital media use and happiness is limited use," Twenge said. "Aim to spend no more than two hours a day on digital media, and try to increase the amount of time you spend seeing friends face-to-face and exercising — two activities reliably linked to greater happiness."
Looking at historical trends from the same age groups since the 1990s, it's easy to find that the increase of screen devices over time happened at the same time as a general drop-off in reported happiness in U. S. teens. Specifically, young peopled life satisfaction and happiness declined sharply after 2012. That's the year when the percentage of Americans who owned a smartphone rose above 50 percent. By far the largest change in teens' lives between 2012 and 2016 was the increase in the amount of time they spent on digital media, and the following decline in in-person social activities and sleep.
1. Which method did Twenge's team use for the study?| A．Calculating students' happiness. |
| B．Asking students certain questions. |
| C．Analyzing data from a survey. |
| D．Doing experiments on screen time. |
| A．By making a comparison. |
| B．By giving an example. |
| C．By making an argument. |
| D．By introducing a concept. |
| A．To draw a conclusion from the study. |
| B．To offer some advice to the readers. |
| C．To prove social activities' importance. |
| D．To support the researchers' finding. |
| A．Quitting Phones Equals Happiness |
| B．Screen Time Should Be Banned |
| C．Teens' Lives Have Changed Sharply |
| D．Screen-addicted Teens Are Unhappier |
6 . More than half the world’s population live in cities, and by 2050 the UN expects that proportion to reach 68%. This means more homes, roads and other infrastructure. In India alone, a city the size of Chicago will have to be developed every year to meet demand for housing. Such a construction increase is a bad sign for dealing with climate change, because making steel and concrete, two of the most common building materials, generates around 8% of the world’s CO2 emissions (排放). If cities are to expand and become greener at the same time, they will have to be made from something else.
Wood is one of the most promising sustainable (可持续的) alternatives to steel and concrete. It is not, however, everyday wood that is attracting the interest of architects.
Rather, it is a material called engineered timber. This is a combination of different layers, each designed to meet the requirements of specific parts such as floors, panels and beams (横梁). Designers can use it to provide levels of strength like steel, in a product that is up to 80% lighter. In addition, engineered timber is usually made into large sections in a factory for future use, which reduces the number of deliveries to a construction site.
According to Michael Ramage of the University of Cambridge, a wooden building produces 75% less CO2 than a steel and concrete one of the same size. However, if building with wood takes off, it does raise concern about there being enough trees to go round. But with sustainably managed forests that should not be a problem, says Dr Ramage. A family-sized apartment requires about 30 cubic metres of timber, and he estimates Europe’s sustainable forests alone grow that amount every seven seconds. Nor is fire a risk, for engineered timber does not burn easily. Besides, fireproofing layers can be added to the timber. All in all, then, it looks as if wood as a building material may get a new lease of life.
1. Why is India mentioned in paragraph 1?| A．To point out the severe pollution. |
| B．To predict the population increase. |
| C．To indicate the high degree of urbanization. |
| D．To show the great need for building materials. |
| A．It is produced at a low cost. |
| B．It hardly appeals to architects. |
| C．It helps save energy in transportation. |
| D．It possesses greater strength than steel. |
| A．Becomes cheaper. | B．Gains popularity. |
| C．Requires less work. | D．Proves sustainable. |
| A．Making Future Cities More Attractive |
| B．Living in a World with Less Emission |
| C．Building Sustainable Cities with Woods |
| D．Growing More Trees for Future Building |
