单选题According to a paper to be published in Psychological Science this has an interesting psychological effect. A group of researchers, led by Eugene Caruso of the University of Chicago, found that people judge the distance of events 24 , depending on whether they are in the past or future. The paper calls this the 'Temporal Doppler Effect'. In physics, the Doppler effect describes the way that waves change frequency depending on whether their 25 is traveling towards or away from you. Mr. Caruso argues that something similar happens with people's perception of time. Because future events are associated with diminishing distance, while those in the past are thought of as 26 , something happening in one month feels psychologically 27 than something that happened a month ago. This idea was tested in a series of experiments. In one, researchers asked 323 28 and divided them into two groups. A week before Valentine's day, members of the first were asked how they planned to celebrate it. A week after February 14th the second group reported how they had celebrated it. Both groups also had to describe how near the day felt on a 29 of one to seven. Those describing forthcoming plans were more likely to report it as feeling 'a short time from now', while those who had already 30 it tended to cluster at the 'a long time from now' end of the scale. To account for the risk that recalling actual events requires different cognitive functions than imagining ones that have not yet happened, they also asked participants to 31 the distance of hypothetical events a month in the past or future. The asymmetry (不对称) remained. Mr. Caruso speculates that his research has 32 for psychological well-being. He suspects that people who do not show this bias—those who feel the past as being closer—might be more 33 to rumination (沉思) or depression, because they are more likely to dwell on past events. A. advancing B. apparently C. available D. closer E. differently F. evaluate G. experienced H. implications I. prospect J. rate K. receding L. scale M. source N. subject O. volunteers

单选题Researchers from the Shaare Zedek Medical Center and Bar-Ilan University just released a report explaining how a new type of eye drop 27 with 'nanoparticles' could replace the need for glasses or contacts. It's a bit 28 and requires a brief doctor visit, but it apparently works like a charm. The three-step process starts with a 29 of the individual's eye refraction (屈光度), which can be performed with a smartphone. Then, doctors create a very specific laser pattern which is applied to the eye for less than one second. The laser creates tiny 30 in the surface of the cornea. Lastly, special eye drops are applied. 'These nanoparticles go into the shallow ablated patterns generated on the surface of the cornea,' Zeev Zalevsky explained to Digital Trends. 'They change the refraction index inside of those patterns. This corrects the 31 problem the user has. The process of correction can be done at home without the need of a medical doctor.' The procedure is less 32 than traditional laser eye surgery in that it only affects the exterior of the eye and does not require an extensive procedure. However, because the 33 to the eye are so minor, the tiny etchings in the cornea eventually heal themselves and vision 34 degrades. The researchers believe the positive effects of the treatment will last one to two months. Heading to the eye doctor for a reapplication of the laser every two months sounds pretty 35 , but the technology is still in its infancy. Going forward, the researchers are planning additional testing and hope to have something 36 a commercial product available within the next two years. A. alterations B. bacteria C. completely D. complicated E. damaged F. grooves G. inconvenient H. infused I. invasive J. measurement K. resembling L. subsequently M. treat N. visual O. weird

单选题 Shock Treatment A. The objective of America's Affordable Care Act of 2010—commonly known as Obamacare—was to ensure that the 40m-plus Americans who lacked health insurance could get it. Less widely appreciated, but at least as important, are the incentives and penalties the law introduced to make the country's terribly expensive and poorly performing health services safer and more efficient. Economists are debating on how much credit Obamacare should get for a recent moderation in the growth of health costs, and for a fall in the number of patients having to be readmitted to hospital. Whatever the answer is, many companies see the disruption unleashed by the reforms as the business opportunity of a lifetime. B. One of the biggest shifts under way is to phase out the 'fee for service' model, in which hospitals and doctors, surgeries are reimbursed (补偿) for each test or treatment with no regard for the outcome, encouraging them to put patients through unnecessary and expensive procedures. Since Obamacare they are increasingly being paid by results—a flat fee for each successful hip replacement, say. There are also incentives for providers which meet cost or performance targets, and new requirements for hospitals to disclose their prices. C. Millions of people are now looking for health insurance on the new public exchanges set up under the reforms. And Obamacare has come into effect at a time when American employers, who often provide health cover for their workers, are seeking to cut its cost by encouraging them to shop around on private exchanges, and by offering less generous plans. D. The result is that there are growing numbers of consumers seeking better treatment for less money. Existing health-care providers will have to adapt, or lose business. All sorts of other businesses, old and new, are seeking either to take market share from the conventional providers, or to provide the software and other tools that help hospitals, doctors, insurers and patients make the most of this new world. E. Patients are increasingly having to pay higher 'deductibles (免赔额)' out of their own pockets, before the insurance kicks in, to keep the cost of the cover down. So for minor ailments and simple tests, it makes sense for such patients to go to one of the increasing numbers of walk-in clinics, staffed by well-qualified nurses, on the premises of retail pharmacies such as Walgreens. The prices are clear, the care is cheap and the service is quick. Walgreens has a partnership with Theranos, a diagnostics firm, which offers customers a range of tests from a tiny drop of blood. Walmart, a giant supermarket chain with many in-store pharmacies, also intends to become one of the leading sellers of affordable health services, says Alex Hurd, its product-development chief. F. For injuries and illnesses that are more serious but not immediately life-threatening, lots of 'urgent-care centers' are being opened as an alternative to going to a hospital emergency unit. Private-equity firms are pouring money into independent chains of centers. Merchant Medicine, a consulting firm, reckons that between them, these chains now have just over 1,500 urgent-care centers, up from about 1, 300 at the start of 2013. The market is still fragmented but a national brand could emerge from one of the largest chains, such as Concentra or MedExpress. G. Some hospital operators, seeking to cut their costs of care, and choosing to be among the disrupters rather than the disrupted, are also opening urgent-care centers. Aurora Health Care, a Wisconsin-based chain of hospitals and clinics, now has more than 30 of them. H. Hospital operators are now facing a classic 'innovator's dilemma', as described by Clay Christensen, a Harvard business professor. If they persist with their high-cost business model even as their customers discover that cheaper alternatives are good enough, they will be in trouble. According to Strata Decision Technology, an analytics firm, many hospital groups saw what was coming and started to cut their costs well before the provisions of Obamacare started to bite. One of the fastest movers is Advocate Health Care, a hospital operator from Illinois, which says it now earns two-thirds of its revenues from value-based payments. I. The largest chains of for-profit hospitals, such as Tenet Healthcare, HCA and Community Health Systems, are rather profitable. They have trimmed their costs, been conservative with capital and, thanks to Obamacare raising the number of Americans with health insurance, now have more patients and fewer bad debts. However, credit-rating agencies are worried about the prospects for the not-for-profit hospitals, which are 60% of the total. With lower margins, and less capital to make investments, they have become targets for takeover, says Jim Bonnette of the Advisory Board Company, another consulting outfit. J. As a result, further consolidation in the hospital business is likely. This could mean greater efficiency and lower costs. But if antitrust authorities are not vigilant, it may lead to a concentration of market power. If so, the benefits from the efficiencies being wrung out of the hospital system may end up in the pockets of shareholders rather than saving patients and insurers money. K. Obamacare is also encouraging the creation of all sorts of health-related advisory and intermediary companies that help care providers, insurers and patients save money. A company called Vitals approaches employees on behalf of their company's health plan, and offers them cash rewards, and a taxi, if they agree to be treated at a cheaper provider. The sums to be saved can be astonishing: a new cost-comparison tool created by Blue Cross Blue Shield, a big alliance of private health insurers, has found that a colonoscopy (结肠镜检查) with a biopsy costs $ 8,489 at one clinic in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, but just $ 928 at another provider in Greensboro, only 50 miles (80km) or so away. L. Cohealo offers a 'sharing economy' solution for hospitals and clinics wanting to make the best use of expensive equipment, in much the same way as Airbnb helps people with spare rooms fill them with paying guests. Doximity is trying to be a Facebook for doctors, letting them refer patients and discuss treatments securely without the blizzard of faxes they rely on today. Grand Rounds is a sort of medical Match, com: an online matchmaker that pairs patients with specialists. As in other industries, administrators are being tempted to switch to renting software and data storage in the online 'cloud': Athenahealth, a seller of medical back-office software, is trying to get doctors and hospitals to move patients, health records onto its cloud-based service. Preliminary diagnosis M. For supporters of Obamacare, it is clear that the reforms are empowering patients, driving public and private health insurers to achieve better value, forcing existing providers to shape up and providing opportunities for disruptive newcomers. Digital technology is also helping to increase transparency about prices, making it easier to share information and increase efficiency. For some analysts it all adds up to a 'new health economy'—as PwC, a consulting firm, puts it—the most significant reengineering of the American health system, by far the world's costliest, since employers began providing cover for their workers in the 1930s. N. And the revolution has only just begun. The Obama administration recently set a target of making 50% of Medicare payments value-based, rather than fee for service, by the end of 2018. America's largest private payers have a target of 75% by 2020. So hospitals do not have long to shape up. Some will have their profits squeezed, and customers stolen by new rivals. Some may close, or be taken over. But for other businesses, from supermarket and pharmacy chains to digital-health startups, there will be billions to be made.

单选题 Vernon Bowman, a 75-year-old farmer from rural Indiana, did something that got him sued. He planted soybeans (大豆) sold as cattle feed. But Monsanto, the agricultural giant, insists it has a patent on the kind of genetically modified seeds Bowman used—and that the patent continues to all of the progeny (后代) of those seeds. Have we really gotten to the point that planting a seed can lead to a high-stakes Supreme Court patent lawsuit? We have, and that case is Bowman vs. Monsanto, which is being argued on Tuesday. Monsanto's critics have attacked the company for its 'merciless legal battles against small farmers,' and they are hoping this will be the case that puts it in its place. They are also hoping the court's ruling will rein in patent law, which is increasingly being used to claim new life forms as private property. Monsanto and its supporters, not surprisingly, see the case very differently. They argue that when a company like Monsanto goes to great expense to create a valuable new genetically modified seed, it must be able to protect its property interests. If farmers like Bowman are able to use these seeds without paying the designated fee, it will remove the incentives for companies like Monsanto to innovate. Monsanto accused Bowman of patent infringement and won an $ 84 456 damage award. Rather than pay up or work out a settlement, Bowman decided to appeal—all the way to the Supreme Court. He said 'Monsanto should not be able, just because they've got billions of dollars to spend on legal fees, to try to terrify farmers into obeying their agreements by massive force and threats.' The central issue in the case is whether patent rights to living things extend to the progeny of those things. Monsanto argues that its patents extend to later generations. But Bowman's supporters argue that Monsanto is trying to expand the scope of patents in ways that would enrich big corporations and hurt small farmers. They say that if Monsanto wins, the impact will extend far beyond agriculture—locking up property rights in an array of important areas. Knowledge Ecology International contends that the Supreme Court's ruling could have 'profound effects' on other biotech industries. If this were a Hollywood movie, the courageous old Indiana farmer would beat the profit-minded corporation before the credits rolled. But this is a real-life argument before a Supreme Court that has a well-earned reputation for looking out for the interests of large corporations. This case gives the court an opportunity to rein in the growing use of patents to protect genetically engineered crops and other life forms—but the court may well use it to give this trend a powerful new endorsement.

单选题 High-performing and value-creating companies have learned how to tie together the principles of customer preference, produce economics and corporate finance so that they understand where and how 24 operations and increased market share pay off—and don't pay off—for their business. In short, they have learned how to find 25 value and capture it by achieving an effective strategic market position, or SMP. When it comes to operating a successful business, conventional wisdom holds that bigger is better. However, 26 on being No.1 or No.2 in your market—without first having a very clear 27 of what definition of market share really drives profitability (收益性) can take some interesting opportunities off the table. Organisations that 28 to recognise and act on their strategic market position may be at risk because their definition of market share often does not correlate (相关) with company 29 , profitability and strategic growth potential. In addition to defining market share 30 , understanding the impact of different approaches to penetrating and growing market share in chosen segments is 31 . By deploying (利用) investments in carefully-selected segments, where (among other things) they are potentially poorly served by the dominant players, companies can 32 themselves their industries strategically and allocate (分配) more assets in fewer, carefully-selected ways. As a result, these companies can 33 much higher market shares in their chosen segments. A. fail E. successful I. critical M. understanding B. strategic F. criticism J. insisting N. boast C. carefully G. position K. technical O. returns D. achieve H. expanded L. accurately

单选题 The Cure for the Common Cold? There Is None A. Here are the dirty little secrets about the common cold: Nothing cures it. And most popular remedies have little or no real effect on symptoms. 'In a word, there's nothing that works,' says physician Aaron Glatt, a spokesman for the Infectious Diseases Society of America. 'There's a tremendous industry out there, and some people really swear by them. But there really aren't great studies to show any benefit.' Some remedies have been more rigorously tested than others. In a petri dish, many appear promising. When tested in humans, however, cold remedies tend to be ineffective, Glatt says. B. And there's just not enough rigorously performed research to know whether folksy remedies—such as hot tea, garlic or chicken soup—have any effect, say pediatricians Rachel Vreeman and Aaron Carroll. That's partly because big drug companies tend not to invest in studies of common foods or products that people can buy anywhere. Myths C. 'When it comes to over-the-counter therapies, they're pretty cheap, so people will buy them anyway,' Carroll says. 'But if they don't work, you shouldn't be surprised. ' Yet he adds. 'If tea makes you feel better, go ahead. If a warm blanket and a pillow make you feel better, do it.' In some cases, however, even over-the-counter drugs can have serious side effects. In children, cough and cold remedies are not only ineffective, but can be harmful, Vreeman and Carroll say. That's why manufacturers no longer sell these drugs for kids under age 4. D. Since colds go away on their own in about a week, improving a little each day after symptoms peak, it's easy to believe that favorite medicines—rather than time—should get the credit, says James Taylor, a pediatrics professor at the University of Washington whose research has been funded by the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) at the National Institutes of Health. Cold sufferers are so desperate for help that even placebos (安慰剂) can make people feel better about a third of the time, says Glatt. There's no objective way to assess whether something makes someone feel less congested or sneezy, Taylor says. So researchers have to rely on imprecise measurements, such as asking people to rate their symptoms on a scale. And many studies are of such poor quality as to be unreliable, he says. E. USA Today asked experts to summarize the evidence for some of the most commonly used over-the-counter and alternative remedies. Decongestants (减充血剂) F. In the lab, these over-the-counter drugs look like a winner. Decongestants shrink dilated blood vessels in the nose, which should provide relief for that stuffed-up feeling, says Elizabeth Funderbunk, a spokeswoman for the Consumer Healthcare Products Association. In the real world, however, their effects are modest at best. A single dose of a nasal decongestant reduces adults' symptoms by 6%, according to a 2007 Cochrane Systematic Review. Additional doses reduced symptoms by just 4%. While a 1998 study found that antihistamines (抗组胺药) slightly reduce sneezing or a runny nose, another review found they offer little to no relief for overall cold symptoms or coughs. G. To reduce the risk of side effects, it's best to take the lowest dose possible—such as found in nasal sprays, says Sidney Wolfe, director of Public Citizen's Health Research Group. He prefers decongestant nasal sprays because they contain 25 to 50 times less medication than pills. Even then, people shouldn't use nasal sprays for more than a few days, because overuse can actually increase congestion. Wolfe also advises avoiding products that treat multiple symptoms, because they typically provide much more medication than people really need, increasing the risks without adding to their benefits. Vitamin C H. Nobel Prize winner Linus Pauling popularized the idea of taking high doses of vitamin C to prevent colds. A variety of recent studies have shown this is just wishful thinking, however, Vreeman and Carroll say. A review of studies with a total of 11000 people found that taking 200 milligrams or more of vitamin C a day didn't reduce the chance of getting a cold, and it reduced the duration of a cold only by a matter of hours. The only people who got any protection against colds from vitamin C were those whose bodies were under extreme stress, such as soldiers in sub-arctic conditions, according to the NCCAM. Echinacea (紫锥菊) I. Echinacea, an herb, has been used for years as a folk remedy, Taylor says. Scientists have been intrigued by Echinacea because of laboratory studies suggesting that some constituents decrease inflammation (炎症), while others appear to boost the immune system. But improving immunity in a human being is far more complicated than in a petri dish, says Wendy Weber, a program officer at NCCAM. She notes that there are three species of Echinacea that are used medicinally, and concentrations can vary from bottle to bottle. Three studies funded by NCCAM concluded that Echinacea was no better than a placebo for treating or preventing a cold. While doctors continue to research Echinacea, Weber says there isn't yet enough evidence to prescribe it. And although Echinacea is the most commonly used herbal supplement in children, studies also show it can slightly increase kids' risk of rash. Zinc J. Although research has produced mixed results on zinc, a new analysis suggests that these supplements offer some help—if people can stand them. In a research review of 15 studies published today in the Cochrane Library, taking zinc lozenges (糖片) or syrup (糖浆) within 24 hours after the beginning of symptoms cut short people's colds by about one day. Although the review suggests that these zinc products might also make cold symptoms less severe, Vreeman notes that the quality of the studies wasn't very strong—suggesting that future research could come up with a different conclusion. K. 'One of the big challenges with this research is that they have a hard time making a placebo that people actually believe in,' Vreeman says. 'The bad taste of zinc, and the fact that it often makes people feel sick, are common, and tend to make it clear who is getting the zinc and who is getting the placebo.' L. Vreeman notes that many people may decide that the treatment is worse than putting up with a cold for one more day. Some forms of zinc also pose serious risks. The Food and Drug Administration in 2009 warned consumers not to use any intranasal zinc products because of concerns that it can make people lose their sense of smell. Honey M. Generations have turned to hot tea with honey to soothe a sore throat. One study, in which children over age 2 were given up to 2 teaspoons of honey before bedtime, found that honey did help reduce coughing. But Weber notes that additional studies are needed. She says honey should never be given to children under age 1 because of the risk of botulism (肉毒杆菌中毒). And while many people like honey cough drops, Weber notes that they can be a choking hazard to babies and toddlers. Eucalyptus (桉树) oil and vapor rubs N. In a recent study in Pediatrics, children with cough and cold symptoms improved the most when their parents rubbed their chests with Vicks VapoRub, rather than with a placebo ointment (药膏). But those benefits could be due to the placebo effect, says Daniel Frattarelli, a doctor and spokesman for the American Academy of Pediatrics. O. Because of VapoRub's strong fragrance, parents could tell if they were using the real thing or a placebo, even though researchers did their best to 'blind' parents to which treatment they were using, according to the study, funded by manufacturer Procter Gamble. Still, there were no serious side effects, suggesting that the ointment isn't dangerous, says Frattarelli.

单选题 Questions15-18 are based on the passage you have just heard.

单选题 Questions5-8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.

单选题 Questions13-15 are based on the passage you have just heard.

单选题A Dutch review of prior research reveals that the more physically active school-aged children are, the better they fare in the classroom. Most of the studies in the review had been 28 in the United States, while one came out of Canada and the other out of South Africa. The findings are published in the January issue of the Archives of Pediatrics Adolescent Medicine. 'We found strong evidence of a 29 positive relationship between physical activity and academic performance,' the researchers, led by Amika Singh of the Vrije Universiteit University Medical Center at the EMGO Institute for Health and Care Research in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, said in a journal news release. 'The findings of one high-quality intervention study and one high-quality observational study 30 that being more physically active is positively related to improved academic performance in children,' the authors noted. Fourteen studies were analyzed; they 31 in size from about 50 participants to as many as 12000 and 32 children between the ages of 6 and 18. The investigators noted that increases in blood and oxygen flow to the brain that accompanies exercise may play a role in improving classroom performance. The suggestion is that the dynamic prompts an increase in levels of hormones (荷尔蒙) 33 for reducing stress and boosting mood, while at the same time prompting the 34 of new nerve cells and synapse (神经元) flexibility. The Dutch team cautioned, however, that more rigorous work is needed to confirm the connection. ' 35 few studies of high methodological quality have explored the relationship between physical activity and academic performance,' they 36 . 'More high-quality studies are needed on the dose-response relationship between physical activity and academic performance and on the explanatory mechanisms, using 37 and valid measurement instruments to assess this relationship accurately.' A. acknowledged B. conducted C. consideration D. convert E. establishment F. involved G. ranged H. Relatively I. reliable J. responsible K. significant L. suggest M. Tactfully N. temperament O. vulnerably

单选题 For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write a letter to the university president about the canteen service on campus. You should write at least 120 words, and base your composition on the outline given below. 1.对食堂问题进行说明。 2.提出改进建议。 3.期待学校解决这一问题。