1 . Loss of slow-wave sleep as you age may increase your risk of developing dementia (痴呆), according to a new study.
“We found that aging was associated with a decline in the amount of the deepest stages of sleep, known as slow-wave sleep. We then found that people with greater declines in slow-wave sleep over time had a higher risk of getting dementia over the next 17 years of follow-up,” said Matthew Pase, senior author of the study.
Slow-wave sleep is the third and fourth stages of sleep, which is important for brain health. During this stage, the body removes unwanted or harmful materials from the brain. “For the brain, this deep sleep is thought to be the most restorative,” said Dr Richard Isaacson, who wasn’t involved in the study.
The researchers wanted to know whether chronic (慢性的) reductions in slow-wave sleep over time are linked to dementia risk in humans and whether dementia-related processes in the brain may contribute to getting less of this type of sleep. They studied 346 people with an average age of 69 and completed two overnight sleep studies—one between 1995 and 1998 and the second between 1998 and 2001—during which their sleep was monitored. The researchers also investigated whether any change in the amount of slow-wave sleep that participants got was associated with developing dementia up to 17 years after they completed the sleep studies. By that time, 52 participants had been diagnosed with dementia. Each percentage decrease in slow-wave sleep per year was linked to a 27 percent increased risk of developing dementia. The rate of slow-wave sleep loss accelerated (加速) from age 60, peaked from ages 75 to 80and slowed afterwards.
“This is an important study yet again showing the impact of quality of sleep on a person’s risk of cognitive decline and dementia,” Isaacson said. “It’s important to not only pay attention to the total amount of sleep a person gets each night, but also monitor sleep quality as best as possible.”
1. What can we learn from the new study?| A．The older you are, the less sleep you will have. |
| B．Slow-wave sleep has been linked to the risk of dementia. |
| C．The rate of slow-wave sleep loss keeps going up with age. |
| D．The amount of sleep has an impact on the risk of dementia. |
| A．By making a comparison. | B．By introducing a concept. |
| C．By referring to another study. | D．By making a survey. |
| A．Sleep quality needs more attention. |
| B．We should have enough sleep. |
| C．The elderly should sleep more than the young. |
| D．The amount of sleep is more important than sleep quality. |
| A．Sports. | B．Health. | C．Education. | D．Environment. |
2 . In the northernmost edge of Colombia sits the coastal town of Acandí. Access to the town is only by water or air; there is no road that leads there. The residents there are faced with the struggles of balancing livelihoods while protecting biodiversity.
In the past, traditional community fishing methods, passed down by the elders, focused on the reasonable fishing and management of resources. However, the introduction of large-scale trawling vessels(拖网渔船) decades ago gradually depleted the area’s fishing resources, leading to damage to marine(海洋的) life seriously.
Jesús Antonio Julio Cuestas, who serves in the region’s conservation and management of marine resources, stresses the bad impact of these developments and calls for new fishing techniques. “Fishing and conservation co-exist as long as we have good management practices and reasonable use of our fishing resources,” says Cuestas. He and other officials actively monitor fishing activities in Acandí. Each morning, they visit the fish markets to gather data on fishery resources—including prices and sizes—to monitor the state of the local fishing industry.
Along with Cuestas, the fishers work to reduce their impact on the marine ecosystem. By changing fishing methods and adopting new practices, they aim for a more balanced approach to fishing. “This year the local fishermen have not used the trawl net s that were causing the death of the leatherback sea turtles,” explains Cuestas proudly. Changes include the efforts of boats to protect the seagrass that serves as feeding grounds for marine life and an end to fishers throwing net s where turtles lay their eggs.
This marine reserve in Acandí, Cuestas believes, is their greatest treasure. He attaches great importance to working together with local residents to improve the quality of life while preserving the marine ecosystem. By doing so, he imagines a picture where individuals from the fishing community can pursue various careers, such as engineers or lawyers, proudly stating that they are the products of the fishing tradition in Acandí.
1. What does the underlined word “depleted” in paragraph 2 mean?| A．Reused. | B．Restored. |
| C．Explored. | D．Reduced. |
| A．To cut down on the costs of fishing. |
| B．To improve the income of local residents. |
| C．To promote the well-being of marine wildlife. |
| D．To spread traditional community fishing methods. |
| A．The aim of the changes to fishing methods. |
| B．The efforts to preserve marine ecosystem. |
| C．The results the trawl net s have brought about. |
| D．The impact of fishers on the local environment. |
| A．Confident. | B．Uncaring. |
| C．Concerned. | D．Doubtful. |
要求：
1. 说明写信的目的；
2. 讲述自己的困境及期盼心情；
3. 词数80左右。
Dear John,
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours,
Li Hua
Puppies that mainly eat dog food are more likely to have problems with their gut (下消化道) health in later life compared with those
Anna Hielm-Björkman at
The researchers surveyed each dog owner multiple times in this period and also asked them whether their dog
The team wanted to determine the effect that a dog’s diet at an early age had
The researchers found that 22 per cent of dogs developed CE in adulthood,
Their diet as a puppy, aged between 2 months and 6 months,
5 . A curtain-making couple, Liao Peisheng, 41, and Liu Xiaohui, 39, from Linyi, Shandong province recently caught many viewers’ attention. They
Liu likes the works of Su Shi. Liao,
One of the couple’s longtime dreams was taking part in the Chinese Poetry Competition, a(n)
On stage, Liu introduced herself to the
After earning herself a participation medal, they returned to their
| A．entered | B．competed | C．participated | D．presented |
| A．love | B．pursue | C．stimulate | D．seize |
| A．Although | B．When | C．Whether | D．Because |
| A．awareness | B．problem | C．sense | D．interest |
| A．thus | B．otherwise | C．however | D．therefore |
| A．reflection | B．resolution | C．recognition | D．reputation |
| A．weaved | B．absorbed | C．composed | D．revolved |
| A．assignment | B．detail | C．campaign | D．enterprise |
| A．realistic | B．visual | C．influential | D．annual |
| A．turning | B．guaranteeing | C．making | D．sustaining |
| A．continuously | B．frequently | C．particularly | D．precisely |
| A．amateur | B．level | C．contest | D．round |
| A．candidates | B．participants | C．representatives | D．listeners |
| A．careful | B．sad | C．concerned | D．clear |
| A．formal | B．normal | C．primitive | D．real |
6 . It’s no secret that sleep is important to your overall health, but a lack of sleep could have great effects on your heart, a new study shows. The researchers said people with insomnia(失眠症)are more likely to have a heart attack.
Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder in the US, the researchers wrote in their report, noting that 10% to 15% of people in the US struggle with it. The meta-analysis of previously published research suggests that the potential association between insomnia and heart attack risk is strongest in women.
Dr. Martha Gulati, director of prevention at the Cedars-Sinai Smidt Heart Institute, said that most of her patients are women and that insomnia is a noted risk factor for women who have had any form of ischemic heart disease. “We see it probably in 1 in 10 patients in the United States,” said Gulati, who was not involved in the new research. “It is my impression that almost everyone experiences insomnia at some point in their life. The estimate is that 1 in 2 adults experience it at some point in their life, maybe in the short term because of stressful moments.”
For their analysis, the researchers defined insomnia as a sleep disorder with three main symptoms(症状): Difficulty falling asleep, difficulty staying asleep and waking early and being unable to fall back asleep.
The study also found an association between increased heart attack risk and how long a participant slept each night. Those who slept five hours or less had the highest association with heart attack risk and were 1.56 times more likely to have a heart attack than people who slept seven or eight hours. Longer sleep duration wasn’t always more protective. The study found that people who slept six hours a night had a lower risk of a heart attack than those who slept nine hours or more. “A lot of studies have pointed somewhere between seven and eight hours of sleep being the magic number for us,” another researcher said. “There is obviously variability for everyone, but too much sleep is rarely the issue.”
1. What’s the function of the first paragraph?| A．To list a fact. | B．To warn the readers. |
| C．To introduce the topic. | D．To draw the readers’ interest. |
| A．Insomnia is unavoidable in the short term. |
| B．Insomnia is a common phenomenon in life. |
| C．Heart attack often happens during insomnia. |
| D．Women are less experienced in dealing with insomnia. |
| A．Put quality before quantity. | B．Too much is as bad as too little. |
| C．Bite off more than one can chew. | D．Hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. |
| A．Pessimistic. | B．Indifferent. | C．Objective. | D．Positive. |
7 . A solar tree is a structure like a tree that generates solar energy using photovoltaic panels (太阳能光伏板). It helps solve an urgent global challenge: Replacing greenhouse gas-emitting energy sources like oil and gas with renewable energy. But the power generation potential of solar trees is relatively limited, and their primary purpose is to raise public awareness about renewable energy by getting people to notice and interact with solar energy in new ways.
Solar trees generally have a firm metal, plastic, or stone base that extends up and out into “branches” on which solar panels are mounted. Beyond this basic structure, there is great diversity in the design of solar tree units. The solar tree’s photovoltaic “leaves” absorb sunlight, converting it into electricity that is conducted down through the trunk-like central pillar of the structure to an inside battery. Many designs feature rotating (旋转的) panels that can move throughout the day in order to obtain the greatest amount of sunlight.
Solar trees help power homes, businesses, and public services. They can create shade to help reduce the urban heat island effect and provide shelter in severe weather such as rainstorms and heatwaves, creating greater urban adapting ability in the face of climate change. They also enhance public spaces, providing charging stations, and powering streetlights.
In comparison to other kinds of ground-mounted solar panel devices, solar trees don’t require much land. They make solar energy generation possible in areas with little land that can’t support vast solar arrays, as well as places that lack sufficient rooftop space for panels. However, solar panels are much cheaper than solar trees at present and have far greater energy generation capacity. Therefore, present solar tree designs often serve as a extra source rather than as a primary energy source.
At present, solar trees aren’t designed as large-scale solar projects, which limits their ability to contribute to the low-carbon energy transition. Still, their varied designs are appealing. This makes solar trees effective at displaying and thereby educating people about solar energy, and promoting a business or organization’s commitment to renewable energy.
1. What is the main purpose of building solar trees?| A．To beautify the urban environment. | B．To draw public attention to solar energy. |
| C．To replace non-renewable energy resources. | D．To provide charging services in emergencies. |
| A．It stores energy in its own battery. |
| B．It can adjust its height automatically. |
| C．It is made of environmentally friendly materials. |
| D．It transforms sunlight into electricity by its metal base. |
| A．The design features of solar trees. | B．The ways of saving energy in cities. |
| C．The benefits of solar trees to humans. | D．The difficulties of promoting solar trees. |
| A．They occupy much less land. | B．They are cheaper to manufacture. |
| C．They are more effective in generating energy. | D．They can work in various weather conditions. |
8 . A new form of real estate(不动产)is appearing along the beaches of South Africa and on the dry islands off its coast-tiny white beach huts. With good ventilation and a sea view, they are just big enough to fit a family of African penguins. Their unique selling point: a safe and cool place for penguins to breed.
African penguins, unlike their relatives that live in snow and ice, live well in the cold currents of the South Atlantic Ocean. But when they come to land, their thick black coat absorbs the heat, and they desperately look for cover-both for themselves and their fragile eggs.
Historically, the penguins dug burrows in layers of guano-accumulated seabird and bat feces- that lined Africa’s penguin colonies, but in the 19th century, traders started selling guano(鸟粪)as fertilizer, leaving the penguins and their eggs increasingly exposed to predators and the baking sun. This, combined with other threats such as egg poaching, overfishing and climate change, has caused African penguin populations to plummet. In 2019, they were thought to be less than 20,000 breeding pairs, down from an estimated 1.5 to 3 million birds in 1900.For more than a decade, the species has been listed as endangered by the IUCN.
To date, the African Penguin Nest Project has installed more than 1,500 nests across five of South Africa’s penguin colonies, and plans to expand into Namibia next year, the only other country with breeding populations of the species.
“This is still just a drop in the bucket,” says Graham, who anticipates they will need to deploy at least 4,500 more ceramic homes to protect penguins currently nesting in exposed areas. “The goal is that every penguin that needs a nest will get one.”
1. What is the reason for building the beach huts?| A．To beautify the beach. | B．To conduct research. |
| C．To house the penguins. | D．To balance the ecology. |
| A．Four. | B．Five. | C．Six. | D．Seven. |
| A．Innovate. | B．Increase. | C．Swing. | D．Decline. |
| A．Culture. | B．Environment. | C．Technology. | D．Art. |
9 . It doesn’t take a lot to make someone feel special. However, it not only makes you happy but also helps you win their friendship! So take a step forward and do something for them to make them feel special.
Praise them.
Smile. A warm smile can take away a thousand sorrows, and a loving hug can mend every broken heart. Give someone you care about a hug when they are having a bad day.
Surprise them. Remembering dates that are important to someone shows them that you care about them.
Make time. The best gift that you could give someone is your time.
| A．Make someone feel included. |
| B．Do something that they love. |
| C．This will make them feel warm inside. |
| D．It is necessary to often hang out with someone. |
| E．We promise you that it will be well appreciated. |
| F．If there is something you appreciate about them, say it to them. |
| G．Whether you throw a party or get them something, it really doesn’t matter! |
