MIND YOUR EXPOSURE
Morning light exposure can helpadjust your internal clock and
regulateyour levels of the sleep hormonemelatonin (褪黑激
素)，making you lessout of it when you rise. “Getting morning
light immediatelysends your body a wake-up signal,” says
Vanderkam.
REWARD YOURSELF
Humans do not naturally avoidpunishment, so if your
morningroutine feels like one, it’s time tochange how you start
your day.Instead of warring with the snooze button, motivate
yourselfwith a reward. Vanderkam suggests you treat yourself to
something--a fried egg, a fancy coffee--that will get youmoving.
DO SOMETHING OTHER THAN WORK
Some of the most successful larksVanderkam has interviewed say
they start theday doing something they truly enjoy. Soinstead of
reading the news on your tablet,consider meeting a friend for a jog
or writingin a journal. “It’s a lot easier to get up and do something
youwant to do than something you don’t’ says Vanderkam.
56. According to Laura Vanderkam, morning people____________. A. are healthier than late risers
B. are more efficient than late risers C. have to share others1 responsibilities
D. complete creative tasks on the smartphone
57. Vanderkam advises early risers to____________in the morning. A. draw the curtain aside B. turn to the tablet for news C. cook breakfast on their own D. fall back asleep in minutes
B
The rate of deaths related to Alzheimer’s (阿尔茨海默）disease jumped by 54.5 percent over 15 years, according to a new report from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
The disease currently affects an estimated 5.5 million people in the U.S. but that number is expected to rise dramatically in people over the age of 65 to 13.8 million in 2050. The researchers examined death certificate data from the National Vital Statistics System to reach their findings.
Keith Fargo, director of the scientific program at the Alzheimer's Association, said that the study highlights the need for support and research into treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
“It’s the only cause of death in the top 10 that does not have a way to prevent it or stop it” Fargo told ABC News.
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CDC researchers did not study why there was an increase but reported the result of the phenomenon may be that more people were surviving to old age. They found from 1999 to 2005 the greatest increase in death rate related to Alzheimer's disease was in people over the age of 85.
Fargo said he was discouraged to see in the report that 24.9 percent of people with Alzheimer's disease were dying at home rather than in a medical facility.
“Before you die people become completely bed bound,” said Fargo. “It requires an intense level of caregiving to the end.”
Fargo said the fact that more people were dying at home indicated that people did not have the resources to get appropriate help at long-term care facilities like nursing homes. Fargo said providing that level of care can burden the caregivers both emotionally and physically. The CDC estimates caregivers provided 18.2 billion hours of unpaid care to dementia (痴呆)patients in 2015.
“The caregivers for Alzheimer’s disease have $9 billion more in Medicare claims of their own,” in addition to the claims of their loved ones Fargo said. Caregiving is “so stressful it causes a lot of physical suffering.”
The CDC researchers point out that increasing rates of Alzheimer's disease will mean more people need support to care and treat these patients.
“Until Alzheimer's can be prevented, slowed, or stopped, caregiving for persons with advanced Alzheimer's will remain a demanding task,” the authors wrote. “An increasing number of Alzheimer’s deaths coupled with an increasing number of patients dying at home suggests that there is an increasing number of caregivers of persons with Alzheimer's. It is likely that these caregivers might benefit from interventions such as education, and case management that can reduce the potential burden of caregiving.’’ 58. Which statement is TRUE according to the passage? A. There exist ways to prevent or stop Alzheimer’s disease. B. Alzheimer's disease affects a total of 13.8 million Americans. C. Not all Alzheimer's patients can afford to live in care facilities. D. People under the age of 65 will not develop Alzheimer's disease.
59. What might have caused the increase in the number of Alzheimer’s patients? A. The ineffective treatment. B. The limited medical facilities. C. The growing aging population. D. The lack of health care-
60. Which of the following can best describe the job of the caregivers for Alzheimer’s disease? A. Unskilled but worthwhile. B. Tough and competitive. C. Painstaking but well-paid. D. Stressful and time-consuming.
C
Charles Dickens’A Christmas Carol is an absolute classic. And even if you don’t want to write exactly like Dickens, there's something—a technique, an idea, a theme, etc.—that every writer can pull from Dickens’ writing.
“Make them laugh, make them cry, make them wait,” was Dickens’s motto and his method.Unfortunately, the use of humor escapes many writers today, especially those who seek to write serious fiction. Dickens was a master of high humor-satire, puns, wordplay, and a curious method of characterizing that made fun of his own creations even as he fleshed them out with life.
You can use the same techniques employed to such good effect by Dickens to add humor toyour work. Try to exaggerate your characters a bit. Underline passages that strike you as particularly, funny. Then use a similar tone or approach when describing one of your own characters, especially people you wish to make fun of. This type of humor will not, it is important to stress, detract from the high tone or seriousness of your subject. Instead, it will add a much appreciated human element to otherwise serious writing.
The second element of Dickens' famous motto focuses on his use of strong emotion. As Aristotle pointed out in his Poetics, emotional appeals are one of the chief devices of the lecturer and, by extension, of the
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novelist. Novels weren't invented back in Aristotle's time, but drama was, and he pointed to examples from the ancient Greek dramatists where arousing the audience's pity and fear was planned in advance by the dramatist. In a similar way, a novelist can learn from Dickens how to make readers feel strong emotions. We may find it harder to cry, but Dickens was a master of situations that bring on the sympathy needed to cause reader emotion. The very memorable death of Nell in The Old Curiosity Shop (1841) had greatly moved American readers. In composing that scene, he went back in his mind to the great pain he had suffered when he watched helplessly as seventeen-year-old Mary Hogarth, his sister-in-law, died in his arms some years earlier. The message is clear: to create emotion you must feel emotion.
In a wonderful little book, Charles Dickens as Serial Novelist (1967), Archibald C. Coolidge Jr. says the serial(连载小说)form of publication put certain pressures on Dickens that forced him to solve a typical novelists problems (such as how to maintain readers' interest) in strikingly bold ways. One of his most important techniques and one which is often overlooked by writers who prefer literary fiction is the use of an element of mystery and suspense. Dickens called it his mystery story technique. An example of the mystery that runs through BleakHouse (1853) is the identity of Esther's mother. By the time the truth is revealed, the reader is worked up to great interest.
To provide a mystery in your mainstream novel, you might choose some aspect of the story thatcan be concealed from the reader. Then do not reveal too much ... only tell as much as is needed. You can use the same Dickensian mystery story technique in your own work. You can even lead readers in the wrong direction, provided one of the characters reasonably believes the wrong thing,as Pip does when he suspects that his benefactor (捐助者)is Miss Havisham. Sometimes,the lessyou tell, the more readers love it. So, by all means, make them wait.
61. The underlined phrase “detract from” in Paragraph 3 means “________”. A. make fun of B. lay emphasis on C. reduce the level of D. adopt the technique of 62. Aristotle's idea is mentioned in Paragraph 4 to . A. explain the similarities between novels and dramas
B. show ancient Greek dramatists’ ability to use strong emotion
C. display Charles Dickens' talent to use strong emotion in his works D. emphasize the necessity of using strong emotion in writing novels 63. What is the purpose of using Dickensian mystery story technique? A. To mislead the target readers. B. To portray the main characters. C. To maintain readers’ interest. D. To reveal important information. 64. What is the best title of the passage? A. Write Just Like Charles Dickens
B. Analyze Charles Dickens’ Personalities C. Highlights of Charles Dickens’ Works
D. Introduction to Charles Dickens’ Writing Techniques
D
Kathie, I remember the first day that 1 met you. I remember thelook on your face as you rushed out from your dorm and slammed directly into me. You knocked me over, both metaphorically (比喻地) and physically. You were dressed in a sports bra and tight little shorts and I was suddenly feeling a little bitter that I was picking your roommate up for dinner and not you.
No, it can’t start that way.
Who starts a speech with a memory about what bra someone was wearing? How about this?
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I remember staring at the projector image of stars in Astronomy and thinking only of your eyes.I only signed up for Astronomy because you said were taking it. You hadn't said it to me, of course, but to one of your girlfriends. I was behind you in the sandwich line at the student center and l heard you ask that redhead girl—Jessica Randolph, I think her name was. Well, it’s Johnson, now; she’s married with a baby on the way. I heard you ask Jessica if she thought the professor would talk about the possibility of aliens. That was all it took. I signed up for Astronomy almost immediately.
That sounds like I’m a huge stalker (跟踪狂).I won’t share that story. No one wants to hear about aliens and about the stars in your eyes. No one wants to hear about Jessica Johnson. Jessica and her husband will be there today. She'll cry. I’m certain that she’ll cry. A lot of people will, I’d assume.
Will I?
I can't think about that. I don't want to mess things up in front of everyone. All of our family and friends will be there, watching, and I’ve never been good at public speaking.
I remember sitting next to you on the couch while I waited for your roommate to get ready fordinner. She took so long to do her hair and makeup. It was intentional, I think. She thought it was classy to make me wait. You never did.
Anyway, I was waiting for your roommate to be ready for our date. All I wanted to do was put my hand over yours as you changed the channels. Something funny would happen on the television and you'd laugh so hard you'd snort. I loved you even then, I think.
I can't talk about that. People will think Tm a cheater. I never cheated. I was set up with your roommate on a blind date. It was you, you, always you from the moment I saw you until today. I broke up with her that night, I remember. We never even made it out of the parking lot. I don't know what made me do it, I just knew that whenever I closed my eyes I couldn’t picture anything but your face.
Today is so important, so critical. I can't mess up. Not when you’ll be there, so peaceful and lovely. Another, then.
What about the day I proposed? I had planned it out so carefully and nothing went right. The flower order was wrong. I burned my new shirt with the iron. The sweater I had ordered for your stupid dog--the one that read, “will you marry my daddy?”—arrived in the mail just that morning and was two sizes too small. I squeezed him into it anyway, and it somehow made his already giant head look even bigger. Maybe that’s why you couldn't stop laughing when you saw him. You were laughing—loudly--vour dress half on and your nails half painted. I had come to get you for our date too early. I couldn't help it. I was sweating through my burnt shirt and holding wilted flowers, kneeling like a fool. You didn’t say yes or no, but the stars in your eyes were confirmation enough.
I can share that. I’ve shared it a hundred times before. Everyone wanted to know the engagement story, which led us to the altar (圣坛).
The altar.
I stood up there and stammered (口吃)through the speech I had prepared for you—through the promise I had written for you. It was nowhere near as hard as this. My vows (誓言),then, included that eternal drivel, for better or for worse. Till death do us part.
How was I to know?
How was I to know there was another speech to write, another vow to make?
What story do I share, standing before our friends and family—before you? What goodbye can I give that honors your memory? I am selfish with my memories of you. I don’t want to share them.
You are among the stars, now—scattered among the universe that first led me to you. The universe called you home too soon, and I will let the universe praise you highly.
I don’t need a memory to say goodbye. I only need to remember the vow I made then, and the vow I’ll make now.
I’ll see you again.
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