Below is a selection from a popular science book.If blood is red, why are veins

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Below is a selection from a popular science book.
If blood is red, why are veins (静脉) blue?
Actually, veins are not blue at all. They are more of a clear, yellowish colour. Although blood looks red when it"s outside the body, when it"s sitting in a vein near the surface of the skin, it"s more of a dark reddish purple color. At the right depth, these blood-filled veins reflect less red light than the surrounding skin, making them look blue by comparison.
Which works harder, your heart or your brain?
Which works harder depends on whether you are busy thinking or busy exercising. Your heart works up to three times harder during exercise, and shifts enough blood over a lifetime to fill a supertanker. But, in the long run, your brain probably tips it, because even when you’re sitting still your brain is using twice as much energy as your heart, and it takes four to five times as much blood to feed it.
Why do teeth fall out, and why don"t they grow back in grown-ups?
Baby (or "milk") teeth do not last long; they fall out to make room for bigger, stronger adult teeth later on. Adult teeth fall out when they become damaged, decayed and infected by bacteria. Once this second set of teeth has grown in, you"re done. When they"re gone, they’re gone. This is because nature figures you"re set for life, and what controls regrowth of your teeth switches off.
Do old people shrink as they age?
Yes and no. Many people do get shorter as they age. But, when they do, it isn"t because they"re shrinking all over. They simply lose height as their spine(脊柱) becomes shorter and more curved due to disuse and the effects of gravity. Many (but not all) men and women do lose height as they get older. Men lose an average of 3-4 cm in height as they age, while women may lose 5 cm or more. If you live to be 200 years old, would you keep shrinking till you were, like 60 cm tall, like a little boy again? No, because old people don"t really shrink! It is not that they are growing backwards — their legs, arms and backbones getting shorter. When they do get shorter, it"s because the spine has shortened a little or, more often, become more bent and curved.
Why does spinning（旋转） make you dizzy (眩晕的)?
Because your brain gets confused between what you"re seeing and what you"re feeling. The brain senses that you’re spinning using special gravity-and-motion-sensing organs in your inner ear, which work together with your eyes to keep your vision and balance stable. But when you suddenly stop spinning the system goes out of control, and your brain thinks you"re moving while you"re not!
Where do feelings and emotions come from?
Mostly from an ancient part of the brain called the limbic system. All mammals have this brain area — from mice to dogs, cats, and humans. So all mammals feel basic emotions like fear, pain and pleasure. But since human feelings also involve other newer bits of the brain, we feel more complex emotions than any other animal on the planet.
If exercise wears you out, how can it be good for you?
Because our bodies adapt to everything we do to them. And as far as your body is concerned, it’s "use it, or lose it”! It"s not that exercise makes you healthy; it"s more that a lack of exercise leaves your body weak and easily affected by disease.
小题1:What is the color of blood in a vein near the surface of the skin?

A．Blue.

B．Light yellow.

C．Red.

D．Dark reddish purple.

小题2:Why do some old people look a little shrunken as they age?

A．Because their spine is in active use.

B．Because they are more easily affected by gravity.

C．Because they keep growing backwards.

D．Because their spine becomes more bent.

小题3:Which of the following statements about our brain is true?

A．In the long run, our brain probably works harder than our heart.

B．When our brain senses the spinning, we will fell dizzy.

C．The brains of the other mammals are as complex as those of humans.

D．Our feelings and emotions come from the most developed area in our brain.

小题4:What is the main purpose of the selection?

A．To give advice on how to stay healthy.

B．To provide information about our body.

C．To challenge new findings in medical research.

D．To report the latest discoveries in medical science.

答案

小题1:D
小题2:D
小题3:A
小题4:B

解析

试题分析：你知道我们身体的一些秘密吗？比如血液是红色的，但为什么静脉看起来却是绿色的？等等问题，读完本篇你就会找到答案。
小题1:细节题：根据第一段第二句Although blood looks red when it’s outside the body, when it’s sitting in the vein near the surface of the skin, it’s more of a dark reddish purple color.很容易判断出皮肤表面的静脉是暗红色的，选Ｄ。
小题2:细节题：根据第四段最后一句Or, more often, become more bent and curved.可以判断他们的脊柱是弯曲的，选Ｄ。
小题3:排除题：根据第二段最后一句But in the long run, your brain probably tips it, because even when you’re sitting still your brain is using twice as much energy as your heart, and it takes four to five times as much blood to feed it.可知Ａ项正确。通过第五段最后一句But when you suddenly stop spinning the system goes out of control, and your brain thinks you’removing while you’re not可知当我们突然停止旋转时才会感到眩晕，所以Ｂ项错误；通过第六段最后一句But since human feelings also involve other, newer bits of the brain, we feel more complex emotions than any other animal on this planet.可知Ｃ，Ｄ两项错误。
小题4:写作意图题：本篇的写作意图就是让我们了解我们的身体，为我们提供一些基本的信息，故Ｂ项正确。

举一反三

Unlike traditional commercials, Public Service Advertisements（PSA）are primarily designed to inform and educate rather than sell a product or service. The goal of a PSA is not to make a big sale, but rather to change public opinion and raise awareness for a problem.
Smokey Bear has been a recognized symbol of the protection of America’s forests from fire. It is created to educate the public about the dangers of wildfires. Smokey Bear was started in 1944 with the slogan, “Smokey Bear Says—Care will prevent 9 out of 10 forest fires”. Smokey Bear’s later slogan, “Remember! Only You Can Prevent Forest Fires”, was created in 1947 by the Advertising Council in America. In April 2001, the message was changed to “Only You Can Prevent Wildfires”.
The wildfire prevention campaign with Smokey Bear is one of the longest and most successful campaigns in advertising history. The Advertising Council often was in partnership with other organizations and groups to create various advertising for Smokey Bear since 1944.
The Advertising Council teamed with Walt Disney Company to create a series of PSAs. The ads feature（以···为形象）characters form the classic film Sleeping Beauty and aim to reach parents and children. The lovely Bambi also appeared in the advertisements. Mickey Mouse is much more popular throughout the country.
Those PSAs, which appear on television, on the radio, in the newspaper and on the website continue to remind Americans about the importance of wildfire prevention have helped to reduce the number of acres burned annually by wildfires. According to recent survey, Smokey Bear and his famous words of wisdom “Only You Can Prevent Wildfires” are recalled by 3 out of 4 adults.
In addition to the PSA campaign, Smokey Bear has his own U.S. postage stamp and website for more information about wildfire prevention. From the website, you can also learn all about wildfires and how we can protect our forests.
小题1:PSA are primarily designed to .

A．educate the public	B．change people’s status
C．discuss a problem	D．sell products or services

小题2:Which of the following is true of the Smoky Bear?

A．It is one recognized symbols of Walt Disney cartoons.

B．It firstly appeared in America in 1944 with no slogan.

C．It is created to warn Americans of the dangers of wildfires.

D．Its slogan changes every three years.

小题3:How does the author support his topic in Paragraph 4?

A．By summing up.	B．By giving examples.
C．By comparison.	D．By asking questions.

小题4:According to this text, Smoky Bear .

A．helps a lot to reduce wildfires in America

B．isn’t popular among the American pupils

C．has set up its own website to advertise products

D．becomes the symbol of the Advertising Council

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In an ideal world, people would not test medicines on animals. Such experiments are stressful and sometimes painful for animals, and expensive and time–consuming for people. Yet animal experimentation is still needed to help bridge vast gaps in medical knowledge. That is why there are some 50 to 100 million animals used in research around the world each year.
Europe, on the whole, has the world’s most restrictive laws on animal experiments. Even so, its scientists use some 12 million animals a year, most of them mice and rats, for medical research. Official statistics show that just 1.1 million animals are used in research in America each year. But that is misleading. The American authorities do not think mice and rats are worth counting and, as these are the most common laboratory animals, the true figure is much higher. Japan and China have even less comprehensive data than America.
Now Europe is reforming the rules governing animal experiments by restricting the number of animals used in labs. Alternatives to animal testing, such as using human tissue or computer models, are now strongly recommended. In addition, sharing all research results freely should help to reduce the number of animals for scientific use. At present, scientists often share only the results of successful experiments. If their findings do not fit the hypothesis being tested, the work never sees the light of day. This practice means wasting time, money, and animals’ lives in endlessly repeating the failed experiments.
Animal experimentation has taught humanity a great deal and saved countless lives. It needs to continue, even if that means animals sometimes suffer. Europe’s new measures should eventually both reduce the number of animals used in experiments and improve the way in which scientific research is conducted.
小题1:What is the main idea of this passage?

A．The success of animal experiments should be ensured.

B．A ban on the use of animals in the lab should be enforced.

C．Greater efforts need to be taken to reduce the number of lab animals.

D．Scientists should be required to share their research results with each other.

小题2:Which of the following statements is true about animals used in the lab?

A．America uses only about 1.1 million lab animals per year.

B．Europe does not use mice and rats as lab animals at all.

C．Britain does not use as many lab animals as China does.

D．Japan has less comprehensive data on the number of lab animals used each year.

小题3:Which of the following is mentioned as an alternative to replace animal experiments?

A．Statistical studies.

B．Computer models.

C．DNA planted in animals.

D．Tissue from dead animals.

小题4:What usually happens to unsuccessful animal experiments?

A．They are not revealed to the public.

B．They are made into teaching materials.

C．They are collected for future publication.

D．They are not removed from the research topic list.

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Cutting global warming pollution would not only make the planet healthier, it would make people healthier too, new research suggests.
Cutting carbon dioxide emissions could save millions of lives, mostly by reducing preventable deaths from heart and lung diseases, according to studies released Wednesday and published in a special issue of The Lancet British medical journal.
“Relying on fossil fuels leads to unhealthy lifestyles, increasing our chances for getting sick and in some cases takes years from our lives,” US Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a telecast (电视广播) briefing from her home state of Kansas. “As greenhouse gas emissions go down, so do deaths from cardiovascular (心血管的) and respiratory diseases (呼吸疾病). This is not a small effect.”
Instead of looking at the health ills caused by future global warming, as past studies have done, this research looks at the immediate benefits of doing something about the problem, said Linda Birnbaum, director of the US National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences.
Some possible benefits seemed highly speculative (投机的，推测的), the researchers conceded (承认，给予), based on people driving less and walking and cycling more. Other proposals studied were more concrete and achievable, such as reducing cook stoves that burn dung (粪便), charcoal and other polluting fuels in the developing world.
And cutting carbon dioxide emissions also makes the air cleaner, reducing lung damage for millions of people, doctors said.
“Here are ways you can attack major health problems at the same time as dealing with climate change," said lead author Dr. Paul Wilkinson, an environmental epidemiologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
Wilkinson said the individual studies came up with numbers of premature deaths prevented or extra years of life added for certain places.
For example, switching to low-polluting cars in London and Delhi, India, would save 160 lost years of life in London and nearly 1,700 in Delhi for every million residents, one study found. But if people also drove less and walked or biked more, those extra saved years would soar (高耸，高涨) to more than 7,300 years in London and 12,500 years in Delhi because of less heart disease.
小题1:What does the passage mainly about?

A．How can people live longer.

B．Cutting carbon dioxide emissions saves life.

C．Global warming threatens people’s lives

D．People should stop relying on fossil fuels

小题2:The new research differs from past studies in that ________.

A．it focuses on the immediate benefits of cutting carbon dioxide emissions

B．it studies the bad effects arising from future global warming

C．it is believed by most people

D．it mainly targets at developing countries

小题3:According to Kathleen Sebelius ________.

A．sometimes it takes years to see the bad effects caused by consuming fossil fuels

B．without greenhouse gas emissions, people would not die of cardiovascular and respiratory diseases

C．the main reason why people get sick is that they rely on fossil fuels

D．death from cardiovascular and respiratory diseases are closely related to greenhouse gas emissions

小题4:It can be inferred from the passage that ________.

A．London and Delhi have already benefited from reducing greenhouse gas emissions

B．switching to low-polluting cars would save 160 lives in London every year

C．walking and biking instead of driving will reduce the chance of heart disease

D．attacking health problems and dealing with climate change are contradictory

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Have you dreamed of building your own machine? Do you wish you could invent something new? Here we look at a few British inventions of recent times.
Adaptable glasses
Do you wear glasses? If so, can you imagine life without them? In 1985, Joshua Silver, a professor at Oxford University, asked himself, “Can I invent a pair of glasses that could be changed by the wearer?” He designed two plastic lenses（透镜）that are filled with a special liquid. Using syringes（注射器）you change the liquid between the lenses until you can see clearly. The glasses are not beautiful but they are easy to use and cheap to make.
The wind-up radio
When you switch your TV on tonight, think about all those people without electricity. Thinking about this, Trevor Baylis came up with the idea of designing a radio that could be powered by hand. In common with Joshua Silver he wanted his invention to be cheap and easy to use. He wanted even the poorest people in developing countries, who don’t have electricity and cannot afford batteries, to use it. The radio has a generator (发电机) which is powered by turning a handle. In 1996 it won a BBC Design Award for Best Protect and Best Design.
The Dyson cleaner
In many homes around the world you can see a cleaner that looks like a spaceship. This is the Dyson vacuum (真空) cleaner which uses something called “cyclonic separation” to separate the dirt. You do not need a bag for your cleaner and it does not get blocked so it is very practical. The idea came to Sir James Dyson after he kept having problems with his vacuum cleaner. He decided he could design a better one and in 1993 he opened his own factory. The Dyson is now one of the best-selling cleaners in the UK and Dyson is believed to have earned over a billion pounds.
The Zapata fly-board
Ever dreamed of zooming through the water and leaping in the air like a dolphin? Now you can thanks to a fly-board, built by water sports enthusiast Frank Zapata. With it you can dive back in the water and out again. It’s possible to jump to incredible heights out of the water — over 30 feet. The basic fly-board model comes in at ￡4,200.
So keep dreaming and inventing. One day you might get it right.
小题1:What can we learn about Adaptable glasses?

A．They are very expensive.	B．The inventor is a student.
C．The glasses are fragile.	D．They don’t look very nice.

小题2:Which invention won an award?

A．Adaptable glasses.	B．The wind-up radio.
C．The Dyson cleaner.	D．The Zapata fly-board.

小题3:The Dyson cleaner was invented with the purpose of _________.

A．helping people use cleaners more easily

B．making Dyson a rich businessman

C．keeping the house cleaner than before

D．taking the place of human cleaners

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We all make excuses.
But the successful ones are those who can kill the excuses like the miserable maggots they are.
I’m too tired. I don’t have the time. I don’t feel motivated. I’d rather do nothing. I don’t have the money, equipment, space. I can’t because …
We’ve all made the excuses. Here’s how to kill them.
See the positive. Excuses are usually made because we don’t feel like doing something — we’re accentuating the negative. Instead, see the fun in something, the joy in it. And maintain a positive attitude, or you’ll never beat the excuses.
Take responsibility. Excuses are ways to get out of owning up to something. If we don’t have the time, money, equipment, etc., then it’s not our fault, right? Wrong. Take responsibility, and own the solution.
Find a solution. Just about every problem has a solution. Don’t have time? Start with just 5-10 minutes. Make the time. Wake earlier. Do it during lunch. Don’t have the energy? Do it when you have higher levels of energy. You’re smart. Figure out the solution.
See your goal. This is your motivation — your reason for doing it. Sure, you could just lay on the couch, but if you think about why you really want to pursue a goal, you’ll be motivated. Visualize that goal and just get started.
Be accountable. Have a workout partner, a project partner, a team, someone to report to. If you have to meet a coach or partner, you’re more likely to do something.
Watch this. Then go an do it.
小题1:How many tips mentioned in the text to prevent excuses?

A．Four

B．Three

C．Six

D．Five

小题2:The second paragraph is developed mainly by _______

A．providing common examples.

B．following the order of time.

C．making comparisons of excuses.

D．analyzing common excuses

小题3:The definition of the underlined word” visualize” would most probably be ______

A．to view the outline of something by means of an X-ray.

B．to weaken or spoil the quality or efficiency of something.

C．to form a mental image of something incapable of being viewed.

D．to express the formal image of something capable of being seen.

小题4:Why do you need a partner according to the passage?

A．because you are likely to make a report to someone.

B．because it’ll be more possible for you to do something wih a partner.

C．because you need a coach to help you do something.

D．because you like to do something with a partner or a coach.

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