The health of millions could be at risk because medicinal plants are being used
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The health of millions could be at risk because medicinal plants are being used up.These plants are used to make traditional medicine，including drugs to fight cancer.“The loss of medicinal plants is a quiet disaster，”says Sara Oldfield，secretary general of the NGO Botanic Gardens Conservation International.
Most people worldwide (including 80 percent of all Africans)rely on herbal medicines(草药)which are got mostly from wild plants.But some 15,000 of the 50,000 medicinal species are under threat of dying out，according to a report from the international conversation group Plantlife.Shortages have been reported in China，India，Kenya，Nepal，Tanzania and Uganda.
Overharvesting does the most harm，though pollution and competition from invasive(侵略性的)species are both responsible.“Businessmen generally harvest medicinal plants，not caring about sustain ability，”the Plantlife report says.“Damage is serious partly because they have no idea of it，but it is mainly because such collection is unorganized.” Medicinal trees at risk include the Himalayan yew and the African cherry，which are used to treat some cancers.
The solution，says the report"s author，Alan Hamilton，is to encourage local people to protect these plants.Ten projects studied by Plantlife in India，Pakistan，China，Nepal，Uganda and Kenya showed this method can succeed.In Uganda the project has kept a sustainable supply of lowcost cancer treatments，and in China a public run medicinal plant project has been created for the first time.
“Improving health，earning an income and keeping cultural traditions are important in encouraging people to protect medicinal plants，”says Hamilton.“You have to pay attention to what people are interested in.” Ghillean Prance，the former director of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew in London，agrees that medicinal plants are in need of protection.
“Not nearly enough is being done，”he told New Scientist.“We are destroying the very plants that are of most use to us.”
小题1:What is the passage mainly about?| A．The function of medicinal plants. | | B．The importance of traditional medicine. | | C．More and more people rely on herbal medicines. | | D．The dangerous situation of medicinal plants and ways of protecting them. |
小题2:Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?| A．About 30% of medicinal species are at risk of dying out. | | B．Medicinal plants are mainly used to treat cancers. | | C．80% of African countries are reported to be short of medicinal plants. | | D．The problem of the loss of medicinal plants appeared suddenly. |
小题3:What contributes most to the loss of medicinal plants?| A．A lack of knowledge of sustainability. | | B．Invasion by other species. | | C．Environmental pollution. | | D．Improper harvesting. |
小题4:What is a useful method of protecting medicinal plants?| A．Improving people"s health. | | B．Letting people earn more. | | C．Working together with the government. | | D．Persuading the locals to protect them. |
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答案
小题1:D
小题2:A
小题3:D
小题4:D |
解析
小题1:答案 D [主旨大意题。根据全文内容文章分为两部分，前三段讲述的是药用植物处于险境，最后三段内容讲述的是保护药用植物的建议，故D项最能概括文章的主要内容。]
小题2:答案 A [推理判断题。根据第二段中的But some 15,000 of the 50,000 medicinal species are under threat of dying out，可知A项正确。]
小题3:答案 D [细节理解题。根据第三段中的Overharvesting does the most harm 和Damage is serious partly because they have no idea of it，but it is mainly because such collection is unorganized.可知导致药用植物数量减少的主要原因是人们不合理的采摘，故选D项。]
小题4:答案 D [细节理解题。根据第四段的前两句可知选D。] |
举一反三
NEW YORK (Reuters Health)—Kids who eat better perform better in school, a new study of Nova Scotia fifthgraders confirms.
Students who ate an adequate amount of fruit，vegetables，protein，fiber and other components of a healthy diet were significantly less likely to fail a literacy test，Dr.Paul J．Veugelers of the University of Alberta in Edmonton and colleagues found.
While a healthy diet is generally assumed to be important for good school performance, there has actually been little research on this topic, Veugelers and his colleagues note.To investigate，they looked at 4, 589 fifthgraders participating in the Children"s Lifestyle and Schoolperformance Study, 875 (19.1 percent) of whom had failed an elementary literacy assessment.
The better a student"s eating habits based on several measures of diet quality，including adequacy and variety, the less likely he or she was to have failed the test, the researchers found，even after they adjusted the data for the effects of parental income and education, school and sex.Eating plenty of fruit and vegetables, and getting fewer calories from fat, was also associated with a lower risk of failing the test.
To date, Veugelers and his team say, most research on diet and school performance has focused on the importance of eating breakfast, as well as the ill effects of hunger and malnutrition(营养不良)．
“This study extends current knowledge in this area by demonstrating the independent importance of overall diet quality to academic performance.We should not only realize the importance of children"s nutrition at breakfast but also that throughout the day，” the researchers conclude.
Another research from the UK is suggesting that children"s diets in the preschool years affects how they perform at school later on.The researchers from the Institute of Education, at the University of London say in fact that what children were eating in those days before primary school has more of an effect than the chicken nuggets(块) they ate at lunchtime.The researchers say they have found that children who ate a diet of “junk food” at the age of three, made less progress in school between the ages of six and ten.They say children"s diet at later ages appears to have less impact on their school attainment.
小题1:．According to Dr.Paul J．Veugelers, students who have a healthy diet________.| A．are more likely to fail in their school performance | | B．definitely can perform better in their school work | | C．usually have more of fat and less of fruit and vegetables | | D．tend to perform better in their school work |
小题2:．It can be implied from the passage that________.| A．little research has been done on the importance of breakfast | | B．most students participating in the research failed the test | | C．the adequacy and variety of foods can mean better school performance | | D．eating more chicken nuggets leads to good school performance |
小题3:．The underlined word “literacy” (in Para.2) probably refers to ________.| A．the ability to read and write | | B．a guessing game | | C．the art of painting | | D．the ability to handle practical task |
小题4:．Which of the following statements is TRUE?| A．Children should have more“junk food”at lunch time. | | B．Preschool diets can have more impact on children"s school work. | | C．A child who often has“junk food”at 3 is bound to fail in school work. | | D．The older a child is，the more impact of what he eats has on school work. |
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When several different people look at the same person，it"s not unusual for each of them to see different things；when you alone observe one behavior or one person at two different times，you may see different things.The following are but some of the factors that lead to these changing perceptions(感知认可)．
(1)Each person"s perceptions of others are formed by his or her own cultural conditioning education，and personal experiences.
(2)Sometimes perceptions differ because of what we choose to observe and how we deal with what we"ve observed.It is not necessarily true that person"s perception is based on observations of a particular person.Your observations may be totally controlled by what others have told you about this person；or you may focus (聚集)primarily on the situation or role relationship.Most people do not use the same yardstick(标准)to measure their parents，their friends and strangers.
(3)Sometimes we see only what we want to see or don"t see what may be obvious to others because of our own needs，desires，or temporary emotional states.This is a process known as selective perception.Selective perception is obviously more difficult when contradictory (矛盾的)information is particularly obvious，but it can be done.We can ignore(忽视)the “stimulus”．He"s basically a good boy so what I saw was not shoplifting.
We can reduce the importance of the contradictory information—All kids(孩子)get into mischief(顽皮)．Taking a book from the bookstore isn"t such a big deal.“We can change the meaning of the contradictory information.” It wasn"t shoplifting because he was going to pay for it later.
小题1:The first factor given by the author that affects our perception is ________.| A．the abilities of one"s auditory (听觉的)and visual (视觉的)sensors | | B．cultural background and personal experiences | | C．experiences one learns from others | | D．critical measures taken by other people |
小题2:While observing a particular person，________.| A．one is likely to take all aspects(方面)to consideration | | B．one pays more attention to his/her advantages | | C．children often differ from grownups in perception | | D．one tends to choose certain cues(提示)to look for |
小题3:Observation of the same person by two people at the same time may differ because ________.| A．their measuring yardsticks are not the same | | B．either of them may be slow to catch information | | C．the time for observation is not long enough | | D．each of them uses different language to express his/her impressions |
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As researchers learn more about how children"s intelligence develops, they are increasingly surprised by the power of parents.The power of the school has been replaced by the home.To begin with, all the factors which are part of intelligence—the child"s understanding of language，learning patterns, curiosity—are established well before the child enters school at the age of six.Study after study has shown that even after school begins, children"s achievements have been far more influenced by parents than by teachers.This is particularly true about learning that is languagerelated.The school rather than the home is given credit for variations in achievement in subjects such as science.
In view of their power, it"s sad to see so many parents not making the most of their child"s intelligence.Until recently parents had been warned by educators who asked them not to educate their children.Many teachers now realize that children cannot be educated only at school and parents are being asked to contribute both before and after the child enters school.
Parents have been particularly afraid to teach reading at home.Of course，children shouldn"t be pushed to read by their parents, but educators have discovered that reading is best taught individually—and the easiest place to do this is at home.Many fourand fiveyearolds who have been shown a few letters and taught their sounds will compose single words of their own with them even before they have been taught to read.
小题1:What have researchers found out about the influence of parents and the school on children"s intelligence?| A．Parents have greater influence than the school. | | B．The school plays a greater role than parents. | | C．Parents and the school have the equal power. | | D．Neither parents nor the school has any influence. |
小题2:Researchers conclude that________.A．it is with the help of the teachers that children have an understanding of
language | | B．curiosity is formed after the children enter school | | C．children"s learning patterns are developed at the early age | | D．only the school can give children the opportunity to make achievements |
小题3:According to the text, in which area may school play a more important role?| A．Moral education. | B．Language education. | | C．Physical education. | D．Science education. |
小题4:Many parents fail to make the most of their children"s intelligence because
________.| A．they usually push the children to read at home | | B．they only teach them after they enter school | | C．they teach them in a wrong way at home | | D．they were told by educators not to teach their children |
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With petroleum reserves (石油储量) decreasing，the search is on to replace gas with a cleaner，greener alternative.Though much eco－talk has centered on biofuels from corn and soybeans，the biofuel that looks more likely to replace petroleum comes from a most unlikely source：algae (藻类)．
Algae，like corn，soybeans，and other crops，grow via photosynthesis (光合作用) and can be processed into fuel oil.However，they yield 30 times more energy than land crops such as soybeans，according to the U．S.Department of Energy.Many algae species also can grow in saltwater and polluted water－while corn and soy require arable land and fresh water that will be in short supply as the world"s population balloons.
“If you replaced all the diesel (柴油) in the U．S.with soy biodiesel，it would take half the land mass of the U．S.to grow those soybeans，”says Matt Caspari，chief executive of Aurora Biofuels，a Berkeley，Calif.－based private firm that specializes in algae oil technology.On the other hand，the Energy Department says that if algae fuel replaced all the petroleum fuel in the United States，it would require 15,000 square miles，which is a few thousand miles larger that Maryland (12,407 square miles)，the 42nd state in land area.
Another bonus：Because algae can be grown just about anywhere in a closed space，they "re being tested at several power plants across the nation as a carbon absorber.Smokestack emissions (烟囱排放物) can be pumped directly into the ponds，feeding the algae while keeping greenhouse gases out of the atmosphere.
Although processing technology for algae fuel—also known as “oilgae” in some environmentalist circles—is improving，it"s still years away from reaching your local gas pump.“It"s just a question of cost，because no large－scale facilities have been built yet，” Caspari says.
小题1:The underlined word “yield” in Paragraph 2 can be replaced by “________”．| A．control | B．require | | C．produce | D．grow |
小题2:Compared with corn and soybeans，algae ________.| A．may pollute water and soil | | B．can grow in poor conditions | | C．provide much less energy | | D．need more special care |
小题3:According to Paragraph 3，one of the advantages of algae fuel is that ________.| A．it can be used more widely | | B．it is more easy to produce | | C．it needs much less land | | D．it costs much less money |
小题4:What do we learn about algae from Paragraph 4?| A．Algae help protect the environment. | | B．People can grow algae anywhere. | | C．Fish can get more oxygen from algae. | | D．Algae produce less waste. |
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Scott Langteau has this message for kids：Spend less time playing video games.
It"s a message that many a mom and dad has tried to impress upon many a youngster(and some notsoyoungsters)who spends perhaps a bit too much time with game controllers in hand.
But the 40yearold Langteau isn"t a parent.He"s experienced at video games－one who played producer on three “Medal of Honor” games and cofounded his own game development company.
Langteau has just published a children"s book called“Sofa Boy”，which tells the story of a kid who spends too much time sitting on the couch with controllers held in hand and the rather dire consequences that follow.
It"s a fairy tale picked straight from Langteau"s own experiences as a lad with a fondness for video games and his painful struggle against game addiction.But first，Langteau would like make one thing clear：I"m not saying that you shouldn"t play video games.I think video games are great.I think they do great things for kids.Instead，Langteau says his book is all about a little something called“moderation(克制)”．
“It"s about being well rounded，”he says.“Just like with anything else，we all need to make sure that there"s a variety in what we do.”
Video gamers can be rather badtempered when it comes to accepting criticism about their favorite entertainment.And understandably so.After all，most people who go around talking about the dangers of playing video games tend to be outsiders－people who don"t play video games and certainly don"t understand that they can be a valuable and healthy form of entertainment.
But Langteau and“Sofa Boy”seem to be in a unique position to deliver a message of gaming moderation that the young game masses might actually listen to.After all，this is a man who understands what it means to be a kid with a passion for games.His early experience has taught him a lesson.
小题1:Scott Langteau published “Sofa Boy” to ________.| A．share his great skills on games | | B．warn kids against game addiction | | C．tell about his fairy tale as a kid | | D．deliver a message for games |
小题2:Which of the following is TRUE of the book“Sofa Boy”？| A．The book tells of the writer"s own story. | | B．The book describes an experienced gamer. | | C．The boy in the book wins a medal for games. | | D．The boy in the book is not an addict on games. |
小题3:．We can learn from the passage that ________.| A．Langteau advises the young to play games within limits | | B．Langteau advises the young not to play games | | C．playing video games ruins the future of kids | | D．playing video games is of no benefit to kids |
小题4:．By saying “It"s about being well rounded” Langteau thinks ________.| A．games do great things for kids | | B．gamers are usually fat and round | | C．games should be viewed from all sides | | D．gamers are to blame for their behaviors |
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