As is often the case, you are trying hard to keep your eyes open in class after a late night doing piles and piles of homework, “
However, this is not correct.
Our body keeps a clock inside. It tells us when to wake up in the morning and when to feel sleepy at night. But the time on our body clock can be changed once we start taking on different sleeping habits.
If we decide to get up only 20 minutes or half an hour later, it won’t matter. This is because our body clock can accommodate(顺应) a delay of up to an hour, which means that a short lie-in at weekends is unlikely to have any big effect, we needn’t worry about it at all.
So, what should we do to balance and make up for all the sleep we’ve missed? Scientists say that simply eight hours of sleep would do the trick, not any longer.
| A．You are not alone. |
| B．I need more sleep! |
| C．Sleep is important for everyone. |
| D．Sleeping is nothing like paying back money. |
| E．However, if we sleep longer our sleep becomes less efficient. |
| F．But delays of up to two hours or more can throw our body out of order. |
| G．This is why staying in bed for longer than usual might confuse our body clock. |
A Sweet Song
"Nothing will ever be the same again," Ally whispered. She sank slowly into her father's favorite chair and stared at the small American flag on his desk. It was the flag which Chief Russell had given to her after the funeral last summer, when he hugged her and told her how proud the Police Department was of her dad's work for them. His tears had warmed Ally's cheeks; her own tears were still frozen inside her heart.
Ally looked at her father's picture on the bookcase. Dad was sitting in the middle of a stream, wet through but grinning proudly. "I miss you, Dad," she said softly. By this time last year she had already taken dozens of pictures. Ever since she could remember, she and Dad had been a team, searching the woods behind the house each weekend for a glimpse of the special wood warbler（林中莺）.
Ally reached for the first photo album she and Dad had put together. On the cover a tiny orange bird with blue-gray wings and sharp black eyes peered out of the photo her father had clipped from a local newspaper. Ally smiled, remembering the excited look on his face when he first showed her the pretty bird. "Ally, I bet if we search real hard, we'll see this little guy together some day."
They'd never spotted the warbler, but her father had an amazing way of making each outing seem special. Staying with Dad, Ally felt comfortable. "If only I could get that good feeling back," she thought, sighing.
Staring at the bird, suddenly, she knew exactly what she had to do. Grabbing the-little flag, she placed her camera around her neck and hurried outside. Ally stuck the flag among the flowers in the garden. "Please let me see the warbler," she murmured to herself. She gave her worried Mom a kiss and then set off into the woods.
Familiar smells of the earth rose up to greet her.
Determined to start out the next morning, she was about to head home when a ringing birdsong floated down to her.
Can a small group of drones (无人机) guarantee the safety and reliability of railways and, at the same time, help railway operators save billions of euros each year? That is the very likely future of applying today’s “eyes in the sky” technology to make sure that the millions of kilometres of rail tracks and infrastructure (基础设施) worldwide are safe for trains on a 24/7 basis.
Drones are already being used to examine high-tension electrical lines. They could do precisely the same thing to inspect railway lines and other vital aspects of rail infrastructure such as the correct position of railway tracks and switching points. The more regularly they can be inspected, the more railway safety, reliability and on-time performance will be improved. Costs would be cut and operations would be more efficient (高效) across the board.
That includes huge savings in maintenance costs and better protection of railway personnel safety. It is calculated that European railways alone spend approximately 20 billion euros a year on maintenance, including sending maintenance staff, often at night, to inspect and repair the rail infrastructure. That can be dangerous work that could be avoided with drones assisting the crews’ efforts.
By using the latest technologies, drones could also start providing higher-value services for railways, detecting faults in the rail or switches, before they can cause any safety problems. To perform these tasks, drones for rail don’t need to be flying overhead. Engineers are now working on a new concept: the rail drones of the future. They will be moving on the track ahead of the train, and programmed to run autonomously. Very small drones with advanced sensors and AI and travelling ahead of the train could guide it like a co-pilot. With their ability to see ahead, they could signal any problem, so that fast-moving trains would be able to react in time.
1．What makes the application of drones to rail lines possible?| A．The use of drones in checking on power lines. | B．Drones’ ability to work at high altitudes. |
| C．The reduction of cost in designing drones. | D．Drones’ reliable performance in remote areas. |
| A．Personnel safety. | B．Assistance from drones. |
| C．Inspection and repair. | D．Construction of infrastructure. |
| A．To provide early warning. | B．To make trains run automatically. |
| C．To earn profits for the crews. | D．To accelerate transportation. |
| A．What Faults Can Be Detected with Drones |
| B．How Production of Drones Can Be Expanded |
| C．What Difficulty Drone Development Will Face |
| D．How Drones Will Change the Future of Railways |
The sun is setting, brightening your kids’ faces as they play in the waves. You reach for your phone for this perfect moment. But before you do, here’s a bit of surprising science: Taking photos is not the perfect way to keep memory as you think.
Taking too many pictures could actually harm the brain’s ability to keep memories, says Elizabeth Loftus, a psychology professor at the University of California, Irvine. So we get the photo but kind of lose the memory.
Photography “outsources” memories. It works in two ways: We either shake off the responsibility of remembering moments when taking pictures, or we’re so distracted (分散注意力的) by the process that we miss the moment altogether.
The first explanation is the loss of memory. People know that their camera is recording that moment, so they don’t try to remember. Similarly, if you write down someone’s phone number, you’re less likely to remember it offhand because your brain tells you there’s just no need. That’s all well and good — until that piece of paper goes missing.
The other is distraction. We’re distracted by the process of taking a photo—how we hold our phone, composing the photo, such as smiling faces, the background to our liking and clear image, all of which uses up our attention that could otherwise help us memorize.
However, taking photos can benefit memory — when done mindfully. While taking a photo may be distracting, the act of preparation by focusing on visual details around has some upsides. When people take the time to zoom in (拉近镜头) on specific things, memories become strengthened.
Another benefit is that we recall moments more accurately with the photos. Memory has been reshaped with the help of new information and new experiences. Thus, photos or videos help us recall moments as if they really happened.
Memories die away without a visual record backing them up. Therefore, a photo is an excellent tool to help remember when done purposefully, which is worth exploring further.
1．What is the purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To call on readers not to take photos. | B．To introduce the topic. |
| C．To show the interest in taking photos. | D．To make us think of similar experience. |
| A．People depend more on photos to remember than their brains. |
| B．Many sources influence people’s memories during photo-taking. |
| C．Photos are more detailed than memories. |
| D．Taking photos is helpful for us to memorize. |
| A．Situations when taking photos is better. |
| B．How to use photo-taking to memorize better. |
| C．When distraction is most likely to happen. |
| D．How to stay focused while taking photos. |
| A．The Fewer Photos We Take, the Better We Will Remember. |
| B．Too Many Photos Taken Results in Poor Memories. |
| C．Photography Does Help to Memories. |
| D．Remember the Moment and Take Photos Properly. |
A few years ago, a child was lost in the woods. He was out with his brothers and sisters gathering berries, and was accidentally separated from them, and lost. The children, after looking in vain (徒劳地) for some time in search of the little wanderer, returned, just in the dusk of the evening, to tell their parents that their brother was lost and could not be found.
The woods, at that time, were full of bears. The darkness of a cloudy night was rapidly coming on, and the alarmed father, gathering a few of his neighbors, hurried to search for the lost child. The mother remained at home almost distracted with suspense (心神不宁).
As the clouds gathered, and the darkness increased, the father and neighbors with highly excited fears went across the woods in all directions and raised loud shouts to attract the attention of the child.
But their search was in vain. They could find no trace of the wanderer and as they stood under the branches of the tall trees and listened, they wished they might hear his weak voice. However, no sound was brought to their ears, except the strong wind as it swept through the thick branches of the forest.
The gathering clouds threatened an approaching storm, and the deep darkness of the night had already enveloped them. It was difficult to imagine what the feelings of that father were. And who could imagine how deep the worry is, which filled the heart of that mother, as she heard the wind and looked at the darkness in which her child wandering?
The search was continued in vain till nine o’clock in the evening. Then , one of the parties was sent back to the village, to collect the villagers for a more extensive (广泛的) search. Every heart sympathized in the sorrows of the anxious parents. Soon groups of the people were seen climbing the hill. Before long, the rain began to fall, but no news came back to the village of the lost child. Hardly an eye was that night closed in sleep, and there was not a mother who did not feel for the parents.
The night passed away, and the morning dawned, and yet no news came.
About seven in the morning, villagers made arrangements for a final search.
Go on a 15-minute Tour
Didn’t someone say that life is about the journey, not the destination?
To commit some time to the journey, take some time to walk around where you work and notice your surroundings.
After your first observation tour, select a different day to tour your workspace for moods. Other people’s moods can provide you with critical clues about how things are going.
Schedule 15 minutes to tour your workplace twice a week for a month and be sure to avoid making too many assumptions or conclusions — just simply observe.
| A．You’ll be amazed at what you see along the way. |
| B．Spare a little time to closely monitor each person’s progress. |
| C．Notice what people may be feeling when you drop by to talk briefly. |
| D．During any workday, take just 15 minutes to observe neglected things. |
| E．You generally love the breathtaking landscape and people’s performances. |
| F．Going on a short tour will help you get in tune with other people and their emotions. |
| G．To become socially aware, remember to enjoy the journey and notice people along the way. |
“Why she let out my secret? why she did that to me?” I vividly remembered that day when I was confused at the knowing looks which everyone gave me. That terrible experience was imprinted (铭刻) on my mind. I couldn’t forgive the person with whom I had shared my secret. She lost all my trust and friendship.
Five years back, Sally was a new addition in our class. I don’t know what but there was something sticky about her that attracted me towards her. She was the most friendly person I knew. We started as classmates but after a few months we were like best friends. We did homework together and dreamed of going to the same university one day. We hung out and went to the movies on weekends. That was a sweet time.
Nevertheless, I couldn’t expect such an enormous betrayal from her. I didn’t know what made me tell Sally about my personal life. I felt much regret to myself. She exaggerated (夸大) the matter, added her own spices to it and made it the hottest topic in school. It was like someone had stabbed a knife in my back. After she revealed my secret, everyone at school started laughing at me and gazing at me wherever I passed. I was like a pond in which someone had thrown a stone and it had been spilled up. It was the most embarrassing time I had gone through. Soon afterwards, I left school and shifted to another one, because I thought no one had the right to laugh at me. Sally called me many times but I didn’t answer. My heart was broken because the person whom I trusted most cheated me.
I made efforts to remove the scar from my heart. I started a new life, leaving all the bad memories behind, because they made me a person who often thought about the past experiences. Five years later, with the life going on, I made new friends and seldom thought about the past.
But one day I met Anna in the market, my former classmate, who told me shocking news.
I immediately called Sally in order to explain the misunderstanding.
| A．measures; will be measured | B．measuring; will be measured |
| C．is measured; will measure | D．measures; will measure |
| A．where; when | B．which; that | C．that; which | D．where; which |
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