Do you want to live a happier, less stressful (有压力的) life?
Try laughing for no reason at all. That’s how thousands of people start their day at Laughter Clubs around the world – and many doctors now think that having a good laugh might be one of the best ways to stay healthy.
The first Laughter Club was started in Mumbai, India, in 1995 by Dr Madan Kataria. “Young children laugh about 300 times a day. Adults laugh between 7 and 15 times a day,” says Dr Kataria. “Everyone’s naturally good at laughing – it’s the universal language. We want people to feel happy with their lives.” There are now more than 500 Laughter Clubs in India and over 1,300 worldwide.
Many doctors are also interested in the effects (效果) of laughter on our health. According to a 5 – year study in the body. Laughter improves our health against illness by about 40%.
So, what happens at a Laughter Club? I went along to my nearest club in South London to find out. I was quite nervous at the beginning of the class, to be honest – I wasn’t interested in laughing with a group of strangers, and I was worried about looking stupid. Our laughter teacher told us to clap our hands and say “ho ho ho, ha ha ha,” while looking at each other. However, our bodies can’t tell the difference between fake laughter and real laughter, so they still produce the same healthy effects.
Surprisingly, it works! After ten minutes everybody in the room was laughing for real – and some people just couldn’t stop! At the end of the class I was surprised by how relaxed and comfortable I felt. So if you’re under stress, then start laughing. You might be very pleased with the results!

1. 1.

   In which country was the first Laughter Club started?

   1. A.
      Britain.
   2. B.
      America.
   3. C.
      Australia.
   4. D.
      India.
2. 2.

   How did the writer feel at the beginning of the class?

   1. A.
      Surprised.
   2. B.
      Pleased.
   3. C.
      Nervous.
   4. D.
      Stressful.
3. 3.

   When did the people in the club begin to laugh for real?

   1. A.
      After a few minutes.
   2. B.
      After a few hours.
   3. C.
      After a few seconds.
   4. D.
      After a few days.
4. 4.

   Which of the following is true according to the passage?

   1. A.
      Fake laughter and real laughter are both good for health.
   2. B.
      40% of the people in Laughter Clubs are good friends.
   3. C.
      Adults laugh more often than children in a day.
   4. D.
      Laughing is the best way to prevent illness.

Do you want to live another 100 years or more? Some experts say that scientific advances will one day enable humans to last tens of years beyond what is now seen as the natural limit of the human life span.
"I think we are knocking at the door of immortality(永生)," said Michael Zey, a Montclair State University business professor and author of two books on the future. "I think by 2075 we will see it and that’s a conservative estimate".
At the conference in San Francisco, Donald Louria, a professor at New Jersey Medical School in Newark said advances in using genes as well as nanotechnology（纳米技术）make it likely that humans will live in the future beyond what has been possible in the past. "There is a great push so that people can live from 120 to 180 years," he said. "Some have suggested that there is no limit and that people could live to 200 or 300 or 500 years."
However, many scientists who specialize in ageing are doubtful about it and say the human body is just not designed to last about 120 years. Even with healthier lifestyles and less disease, they say failure of the brain and organs will finally lead all humans to death.
Scientists also differ on what kind of life the super aged might live. "It remains to be seen if you pass 120, you know; could you be healthy enough to have good quality of life?" said Leonard Pooh, director of the University of Georgia Gerontology(老龄学) Center. "At present people who could get to that point are not in good health at all."

1. 1.

   By saying "we are knocking at the door of immortality", Michael Zey means ________

   1. A.
      they believe that there is no limit of living
   2. B.
      they are sure to find the truth about long living
   3. C.
      they have got some ideas about living forever
   4. D.
      they are able to make people live past the present life span
2. 2.

   Donald Louria's attitude towards long living is that ________

   1. A.
      people can live from 120 to 180 years
   2. B.
      it is still doubtful how long humans can live
   3. C.
      the human body is designed to last about 120 years
   4. D.
      it is possible for humans to live longer in the future
3. 3.

   The underlined "it"（paragraph 4）refers to ________

   1. A.
      a great push
   2. B.
      the idea of living beyond the present life span
   3. C.
      the idea of living from 200 to 300 years
   4. D.
      the conservative estimate
4. 4.

   What would be the best title for this text?

   1. A.
      Living Longer or Not
   2. B.
      Science, Technology and Long Living
   3. C.
      No Limit for Human Life
   4. D.
      Healthy Lifestyle and Long Living

Do you want to live another 100 years or more? Some experts say that scientific advances will one day enable humans to last tens of years beyond what is now seen as the natural limit of the human life span.

“ I think we are knocking at the door of immortality (永生),” said Michael Zey, a Montclair State University business professor and author of two books on the future. “ I think by 2075 we will see it and that’s a conservative estimate.”

At the conference in San Francisco, Donald Louria, a professor at New Jersey Medical School in Newark said advances in using genes as well as nanotechnology(纳米技术) make it likely that humans will live in the future beyond what has been possible in the past. “ There is a great push so that people can live from 120 to 180 years,” he said. “ Some have suggested that there is no limit and that people could live to 200 or 300 or 500 years.”

However, many scientists who specialize in aging are doubtful about it and say the human body is just not designed to last about 120 years. Even with healthier lifestyles and less disease, they say failure of the brain and organs will finally lead all humans to death.

Scientists also differ on what kind of life the super aged might live. “ It remains to be seen if you pass 120, you know; could you be healthy enough to have good quality of life?” said Leonard Poon, director of the University of Georgia Gerontology Center. “ At present people who could get to that point are not in good health at all.”

By saying “ we are knocking at the door immortality”, Michael Zey means_____.

   A. they believe that there is no limit of living

   B. they are sure to find the truth about long living

   C. they have got some ideas about living forever

   D. they are able to make people live past the present life span

Donald Louria’s attitude toward long living is that_____.

   A. people can live from 120 to 180

   B. it is still doubtful how long humans can live

   C. the human body is designed to last about 120 years

   D. it is possible for humans to live longer in the future

70. The underlined “ it” (Para. 4) refers to_____.

   A. a great push                                   

B. the idea of living beyond the present life span

   C. the idea of living from 200 to 300                  

D. the conservative estimate

What would be the best title for this text?

   A. Living longer or not

   B. Science, technology and long living

   C. No limit for human life

   D. Healthy lifestyle and long living.

Most people want to know how things are made.They honestly admit,however,that they hardly know a thing when it comes to understanding how a piece of music is made.Where a composer(作曲家) begins,how he manages to keep going—in fact,how and where he learns his trade—all are covered in complete darkness.The composer,in short,is a man of mystery(神秘).

One of the first things the common man wants to know about is the part inspiration(灵感) plays in a composer’s work.He finds it difficult to believe that composers are not much interested in that question.Writing music is as natural for the composer as eating or sleeping for all.Music is something that the composer happens to have been born for.

The composer,therefore,does not say to himself:“Do I feel inspired?”He says to himself:“Do I feel like working today?”And if he feels like working,he does.It is more or less like saying to himself:“Do I feel sleepy?”If you feel sleepy,you go to sleep.If you don’t feel sleepy,you stay up.If the composer doesn’t feel like working,he doesn’t work.It’s as simple as that.

What would be the best title for the text?

A.Composer:a man of mystery

B.Practice makes good music

C.Relation between sleeping and music

D.Music:product of nature

The words “covered in complete darkness” underlined in Paragraph 1 most probably mean _______.

A.difficult to be made                                       B.without any light

C.black in color                                               D.not known

Most people seem to think that a composer _______.

A.finds it difficult to write music

B.considers it important to have a good rest

C.should like to talk about inspiration

D.never asks himself very simple questions

The author will most probably agree that composers _______.

A.are born with a gift for music

B.are people full of mystery

C.work late at night for their music

D.know a lot about eating and sleeping

Most people want to know how things are made. They honestly admit, however, that they hard??ly know a thing when it comes to understanding how a piece of music is made. Where a composer （作曲家） begins, how he manages to keep going - in fact, how and where he leams his trade -all are covered in complete darkness. The composer, in short, is a man of mystery. （神秘）.

One of the first things the common man wants to know about is the part inspiration （灵感） plays in a composer' s work. He finds it difficult to believe that composers are not much interested in that question. Writing music is as natural for the composer as eating or sleeping for all. Music is something that the composer happens to have been born for.

The composer, therefore, does not say to himself: "Do I feel inspired?" He says to himself:

"Do I feel like working today?" And if he feels like working, he does. It is more or less like saying to himself: "Do I feel sleepy?" If you feel sleepy, you go to sleep. If you don't feel sleepy, you stay up. If the composer doesn' t feel like working, he doesn' t work. It' s as simple as that.

What would be the best title for the text?

A. Composer: a man of mystery                     

B. Practice makes good music

C. Relation between sleeping and music             

D. Music: product of nature

The words "covered in complete darkness" underlined in Paragraph I most probably mean

A. difficult to be made     

B. without any light     

C. black in color     

D. not known

Most people seem to think that a composer _______ .

A. finds it difficult to write music       

B. considers it important to have a good rest

C. should like to talk about inspiration 

D. never asks himself very simple questions

The author will most probably agree that composers _______

A. are born with a gift for music                

B. are people full of mystery

C. work late at night for their music           

D. know a lot about eating and sleeping