Something in chocolate could be used to stop coughs and lead to more effective medicines, say UK researchers.
Their study found that theobromine, found in cocoa, was nearly a third more effective in stopping coughs than codeine, which was considered the best cough medicine at present.
The Imperial College London researchers who published their results online said the discovery could lead to more effective cough treatment. “While coughing is not necessarily harmful(有害的) it can have a major effect on the quality of life, and this discovery could be a huge step forward in treating this problem,” said Professor Peter Barnes.
Ten healthy volunteers(志愿者) were given theobromine, codeine or placebo, a pill that contains no medicine, during the experiment. Neither the volunteers nor the researchers knew who received which pill. The researchers then measured levels of capsaicin, which is used in research to cause coughing and as a sign of how well the medicine are stopping coughs.
The team found that, when the volunteers were given theobromine, the capsaicin needed to produce a cough was around a third higher than in the placebo group. When they were given codeine they needed only slightly higher levels of capsaicin to cause a cough compared with the placebo.
The researchers said that theobromine worked by keeping down a nerve activity(神经活动), which causes coughing. They also found that unlike some standard cough treatments, theobromine caused no side effects such as sleepiness.
1.According to Professor Barnes, theobromine ______.
A. cannot be as effective as codeine
B. can be harmful to people’s health
C. cannot be separated from chocolate
D. can be a more effective cure for coughs
2.What was used in the experiment to cause coughing?
A. Theobromine. B. Codeine.
C. Capsaicin. D. Placebo.
3.We learn from the text that volunteers in the experiment _______.
A. were patients with bad coughs B. were divided into the three groups
C. received standard treatments D. suffered little side effects
4.Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. Codeine: A New Medicine B. Chocolate May Cure Coughs
C. Cough Treatment: A Hard Case D. Theobromine Can Cause Coughs
It was a cold winter day. A woman drove up to the Rainbow Bridge tollbooth (收费站). “I’m paying for myself, and for the six cars behind me,” she said with a smile, handing over seven tickets. One after another, the next six drivers arriving at the tollbooth were informed, “Some lady up ahead already paid your fare.”
It turned out that the woman, Natalie Smith, had read something on a friend’s refrigerator: “Practice random kindness and senseless acts of beauty.” The phrase impressed her so much that she copied it down.
Judy Foreman spotted the same phrase on a warehouse wall far away from home. When it stayed on her mind for days, she gave up and drove all the way back to copy it down. “I thought it was beautiful,” she said, explaining why she’d taken to writing it at the bottom of all her letters, “like a message from above.” Her husband, Frank, liked the phrase so much that he put it up on the classroom wall for his students, one of whom was the daughter of Alice Johnson, a local news reporter. Alice put it in the newspaper, admitting that though she liked it, she didn’t know where it came from or what it really meant.
Two days later, Alice got a call from Anne Herbert, a woman living in Marin. It was in a restaurant that Anne wrote the phrase down on a piece of paper, after turning it around in her mind for days.
“Here’s the idea,” Anne says. “Anything you think there should be more of, do it randomly.” Her fantasies include painting the classrooms of shabby schools, leaving hot meals on kitchen tables in the poor part of town, and giving money secretly to a proud old lady. Anne says, “Kindness can build on itself as much as violence can.”
The acts of random kindness spread. If you were one of those drivers who found your fare paid, who knows what you might have been inspired to do for someone else later. Like all great events, kindness begins slowly, with every single act. Let it be yours!
1.Why did Natalie Smith pay for the six cars behind her?
A. She knew the car drivers well. B. She had seven tickets.
C. She hoped to please others. D. She wanted to show kindness.
2.Judy Foreman copied down the phrase because she .
A. thought it was beautifully written
B. wanted to know what it really meant
C. decided to write it on a warehouse wall
D. wanted her husband to put it up in the classroom
3.Which of the following statements is closest in the meaning to the underlined sentence above?
A. Kindness and violence can change the world.
B. Kindness and violence can affect one’s behavior.
C. Kindness and violence can reproduce themselves.
D. Kindness and violence can shape one’s character.
4.What can we infer from the last paragraph?
A. People should practice random kindness to those in need.
B. People who receive kindness are likely to offer it to others.
C. People should practice random kindness to strangers they meet.
D. People who receive kindness are likely to pay it back to the giver.
Exploit your parking space
An unused parking space or garage can make money. If you live near a city center or an airport, you could make anything up to £200 or £300 a week. Put an advertisement（广告）for free on Letpark or Atmyhousepark.
Rent（出租）a room
Spare room? Not only will a lodger（房客）earn you an income, but also, thanks to the government-backed “rent a room” program, you won’t have to pay any tax on the first £4500 you make per year. Try advertising your room on Roomspare or Roommateeasy.
Make money during special events
Don’t want a full-time lodger? Then rent on a short-term basis. If you live in the capital, renting a room out during the Olympics or other big events could bring in money. Grashpadder can advertise your space.
Live on set
Renting your home out as a “film set” could earn you hundreds of pounds a day, depending on the film production company and how long your home is needed. A quick search on the Internet will bring up dozens of online companies that allow you to register your home for free—but you will be charged if your home gets picked.
Use your roof
You need the right kind of roof, but some energy companies pay the cost of fixing solar equipment(around￡14,000), and let you use the energy produced for nothing. In return, they get paid for unused energy fed back into the National Grid. However, you have to sign a 25-year agreement with the supplier, which could prevent you from changing the roof.
1.If you earn ￡5000 from renting a room in one year, the tax you need to pay will be based on ______.
A. ￡800 B. ￡500
C. ￡4500 D. 5000
2.Where can you put an advertisement to rent out a room during a big event?
A. On Letpark. B. On Roomspare.
C. On Grashpadder. D. On Roommateeasy.
3.For whom the text most probably written?
A. House owners. B. Advertisers.
C. Lodgers. D. Online companies
现在很多学校严禁学生上学带手机，但是仍有许多学生把手机带到学校。请你结合此现象谈谈你的看法，并给校报英语专栏投稿。内容要点如下：
1．简述该现象；
2．谈谈带手机上学的弊端；
3．阐述你的观点。
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假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线(\)画掉。
修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2．只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
This morning, when I was walking on the streets, I saw that two travelers were reading a map, looked puzzled. It seemed that they were lost. I went up and asked what I could help them. They told me they are looking for the Temple of Heaven. I led them to nearest bus stop and advised them to take Bus No. 20, who could take them there directly. They were appreciated my help greatly. Short after that, the bus came and we waved goodbye each other.
Seeing them on the bus, we felt a kind of satisfaction.
阅读下面短文，在空白处填入1个适当的单词或括号内单词的正确形式。
There is much discussion about the necessity of daily homework for students. Some say homework is necessary since only practice 1. (make) perfect, while others disagree. In my opinion, daily homework is necessary for students. However, this might be misleading that one may believe all forms of homework 2.(be) necessary. Actually, only proper amount of homework in proper form is 3. (accept); some homework may not only fail to help the students, but on 4. contrary bore them so much 5. they may lose their interest in studying. “Proper” homework, in my opinion, should vary in its forms, 6. might be some extensive reading, a paper, or even just a game, as well as other ordinary exercise. And it should leave enough 7. (free) to the students so that they could do things they really like to do with selfmotivation, rather than unwillingness. We should always remember that homework is something for us to guide the students, rather than 8. (drive) them. Only if a teacher 9. (keep) this 10. his/her mind, the homework could be of the most help to the students.
