55. The underlined sentence “Our days on Earth are numbered” implies _____.
A. We are particular creatures living on earth. B. We can?t live on earth for much longer. C. There are too many days for human existence. D. Each day has its particular meaning.
56. The paragraphs following this passage would probably talk about _____.
A. how to extend human life span B. more threats the human race faces C. the risk of artificial intelligence D. Space X?s plan to colonize Mars
C
Bonding with other guys may relieve stress in men, according to media reports of research published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology last week. Men who are close with each other have higher levels of oxytocin, a kind of hormone which makes them better at handling stress.
The research, however, comes from a rat study, and – while rats are often used as stand-ins for humans, because they similar biological and genetic characteristics – you?d have to assume there are differences. The researchers put pairs of rats in cages together for a week and then put each one in a small space for three hours. When they were reunited, the rats were even friendlier to each other than before.
Elizabeth Kirby, a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University, says: “We can?t speak rat, but we think the rats can?t wait to tell their friend that some weird people shut them in a room.” They even touched each other more. But before they could have too much fun, the researchers measured the oxytocin levels in their brains. They found that the levels of oxytocin among rats with mates were higher.
Kirby maintains that there is a takehome message for men who aren?t rats. Being social increases levels of oxytocin and protects you from being stressed. Men, she says, are sometimes accused of having superficial friendship, but her research suggests that a bromance(兄弟情) doesn?t have to be deep to have health benefits. “Any sort of social bonding increases oxytocin
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levels – it doesn?t have to be a deep discussion,” she says. So is this the excuse you needed to have a pint with your mates?
In the world of human-friend research, men are said to have “shoulder to shoulder” friendships while women have “face to face” ones. What this means, says Geoffrey L Greif, who has interviewed 400 men and 120 women about their friendships, is that men like to do things and women like to sit down and chat. “Women will say: ?My boyfriend went out for dinner and didn?t find out his friend was getting divorced,?” says Grief. “Men don?t need to express themselves as much as women in friendships.”
Many studies show that friendships not only relieve stress but also reduce death from many causes, including heart disease. Also, men with friends are less likely to drink and smoke too much. Another good reason for encouraging bromances. 57. It can be learnt from the rat study that _____.
A. some rats are put together in cages and others in separate cages B. rats are used for study because they have the same gene as humans. C. a short separation will make people friendlier than before D. Being together with friends will help stress reduction.
58. Which of the following is a necessity to increase oxytocin levels?
A. Deep bromance C. Social interaction
B. Deep discussion
D. Close friendship
59. What does the writer try to express in Paragraph 5?
A. Men like to walk side by side with their friends.
B. Women prefer to sit face to face to have a chat with friends. C. Men don?t care about their friends? marriage as much as women. D. Men have less desire to communicate their emotions with friends.
60. Bromances have the following benefits except _____.
A. avoiding getting divorced C. preventing heart disease
B. reducing stress levels D. smoking or drinking less
D
From where I live on the coast of California?s Monterey Peninsula, there is no easy way to
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go anywhere. We have roads with views that will take your breath away, but few fast lanes. To go north to San Francisco, you take the Old Coast Highway, and then go ahead to 101, a multilane freeway, which, depending on weather and traffic, will eventually get you where you?re going or drive you crazy. But the part I feared most was a narrow two-lane stretch of a road that connected the two. In the south, where I grew up, such roads are called cow trails. Roads are like people; they have personalities --- colored by how we see and feel about them at particular times. My husband taught me this about roads. Randy was an athlete, body and soul. A high school basketball coach, he loved and worked out with his teams. He was a marathoner who could run miles and not be tired. In 25 years of teaching he rarely had a sick day. And then he had cancer.
So we began another race down another road: a four-year-long marathon to Stanford University Medical Center for surgeries, radiation, chemo and more than a few emergencies. And to get to the hospital we had to travel those impossible roads --- 91 miles, two hours. I hated every minute and inch. I especially hated that traffic-crowded two-lane bottleneck. Then they started construction. Randy never complained. But as he grew weaker, I tried to avoid that cow trail to shorten our drive. I spent hours with maps but found that there was no getting around it. I had no choice but to drive it. Once, when we were running late for an appointment, I muttered, “I hate this stupid road.” “Four miles,” he said.
I looked over. His eyes were closed. “What did you say?” I asked.
“This part of the road,” he said in his calm voice. “It?s only four miles long. That?s easy. You can do anything for four miles.”
I checked the odometer(里程表). He was right. Four miles exactly. I could have sworn it was 20. Suddenly the drive got easier. Four miles was doable and comprehensible. It was the distance we walked in the evening from our house to the beach and back. It was half the length of a mountain trail he loved to hike in Yosemite, with a baby on his back. Four short trips to our local park to play catch with our kids. A part of the 26 miles he once ran in the Big Sur International Marathon. Four miles was nothing --- certainly not a space or time worth wasting in anger when
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he had only months to live. So I stopped complaining. I started really looking. And there appeared green acres of fields that shined in the sun. Strawberries and roses stand at the roadside. And there was an old white horse watching cars running down the open road.
Those things had always been there, but I had never noticed. Randy taught me how to see them. Now when the road is long and hard, I break it into pieces in my soul. I divide it into four-mile stretches. You can endure anything for four miles --- even find beauty and acceptance along the way.
61. It can be leant from Paragraph 1 that ______.
A. you can drive crazily on 101 in a fine day
B. the roads are very dangerous and breathtaking C. the cow trail joined the Old Coast Highway and 101 D. the roads to go north are narrow and rough 62. Which of the following about Randy is NOT right?
A. He had a strong love for playing sports. B. His poor health was due to 25 years? overwork. C. He was very ill and could only live for months. D. He had fought with cancer for about four years.
63. It can be inferred from the last but one paragraph that _____.
A. Four miles was nothing worth wasting in anger. B. The author didn?t see the beautiful views on roads. C. Anything is acceptable if you see it differently. D. The author misread the odometer as 20 miles.
64. What is the message conveyed in the passage?
A. Complains makes no sense. C. A merry heart makes a long life.
B. Life is short and time is swift. D. Situations are affected by our attitude.
65. The best title for the passage would be _____
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A. Last four miles of roads C. Personalities of roads
B. A stretch of hard road D. Beauty along the way
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