2011年职称英语理工类考试教材新增文章汇总.doc

A级完型填空新增文章 教材第十五篇文章Young Adults Who Exercise Get Higher IQ ScoresYoung adults who are fit have a higher IQ and are more likely to go on to university，reveals a major new study carried out at the Sahlgrenska Academy and Sahlgrenska University HospitalThe results were recently published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) The study involved l.2 million Swedish men doing military service who were born between l950 and l976The research group analysed the results of both physical and IQ tests the youngsters took fight after they started serving the army The study shows a clear link between good physical fitness and better results for the IQ testThe strongest links are for logical thinking and verbal comprehensionBut it is only fitness that plays a role in the results for the IQ test，and not strength“Being fit means that you also have good heart and lung capacity and that your brain gets plenty of oxygen，”says Michael Nilsson，professor at the S ahlgrenska Academy and chief physician at the Sahlgrenska University Hospital“This may be one of the reasons why we can see a clear link with fitness，but not with muscular strengthWe are also seeing that there are growth factors that are important”By analysing data for twins，the researchers have been able to determine that it is primarily environmental factors and not genes that explain the link between fitness and a higher IQ “We have also shown that those youngsters who improve their physical fitness between ages of l5 and l8 increase their cognitive performance, says Mafia Aberg，researcher at the Sahlgrenska Academy and physician at Aby health centre“This being the case6，physical during is a subject that has an important place in schools，and is an absolute must if we want to do well in maths and other theoretical subjects.”The researchers have also compared the results from fitness tests service national service with the socio-economic status of the men later in lifeThose who were fit at l8 were more likely to go into higher education，and many secured more qualified jobsB级完型填空新增文章 教材第十二篇文章Smoking Can Increase Depressive Symptoms in TeensWhile some teenagers may puff on cigarettes to self-medicate against the blues，scientists at the University of Toronto and the University of Montreal have found that smoking may actually increase depressive symptoms in some teens.“This observational study is one of the few to examine the perceived emotionalbenefits of smoking among teens,” says lead researcher Michael Chaiton，a research associate at the Ontario Tobacco Research Unit of the University of Toronto“Although cigarettes may appear to have self-medicating effects or to improve mood，in the long term we found that teens who started to smoke reported higher depressive symptoms.”As part of the study，some 662 high school teenagers completed up to 20 questionnaires about their use of cigarettes to affect moodSecondary schools were selected to provide a mix of French and English participants，urban and rural schools，and schools located in high, moderate and low socioeconomic neighbourhoodsParticipants were divided into three groups: never smokers；smokers who did not use cigarettes to self-medicate，improve mood or physical state；smokers who used cigarettes to self-medicateDepressive symptoms were measured using a scale that asked how felt too fired to do things：had trouble going to sleep or staying asleep；felt unhappy，sad，or depressed；felt hopeless about the future；felt vexed，antsy or tense；and worried too much about thingsSmokers who used cigarettes as mood improvers had higher risks of elevated depressive symptoms than teens who had never smoked, says co-researcher Jennifer 0Loughlin，a professor at the University of Montreal Department of Social and Preventive Medicine0ur study found that teen smokers who reported emotional benefits from smoking are at higher risk of developing depressive symptoms.The association between depression and smoking exists principally among teens that usecigarettes to feel betterIts important to emphasize that depressive symptom scores were higher among teenagers who reported emotional benefits from smoking after they began to smoke, says DrChaitonC级完型填空新增文章 教材第三篇文章What Is the Coolest Gas in the Universe?What is the coldest air temperature ever recorded on the Earth? Where was this low temperature recorded? The coldest recorded temperature on Earth was -91 which occurred in Antarctica in 1983We encounter an interesting situation when we discuss temperatures in space. Temperatures in Earth orbit actually range from about +120 to -120The temperature depends upon whether you are in direct sunlight or shadeObviously, -l20 is colder than our body can safely endureThank NASA science for well-designed space suits that protect astronauts from these temperature extremesThe space temperatures just discussed affect only Our area of the solar systemObviously，it is hotter closer to the Sun and colder as we travel away from the SunAstronomers estimate temperatures at Pluto are about -210How cold is the lowest estimated temperature in the entire universe? Again，it depends upon your locationWe are taught it is supposedly impossible to have a temperature below absolute zero，which is-273，at which atoms do not moveTwo scientists，whose names are Cornell and Wieman，have successfully cooled down a gas temperature barely above absolute zeroThey won a Nobel Prize in Physics in 2001 for their worknot a discovery，in this caseWhy is the two scientists work so important to science?In the l920s，Satyendra Nath Bose was studying an interesting theory about particles we now call photonsBose had trouble convincing other scientists to believe so he contacted Albert EinsteinEinsteins calculations helped him theorize would behave as Bose thoughtbut only at very cold temperaturesScientists have also discovered that ultra-cold atoms can help them make the worlds atomic clocks even more accurateThese clocks are so accurate today they would only lose 0ne second every six million years! Such accuracy will help us travel in space because distance is velocity times time (d=vt)With the long distances involved in space travel to know time as accurately as possible to get accurate distanceA级阅读理解新增文章 教材第四十六篇文章Marvelous MetamaterialsInvisibility cloaks would have remained impossible，forever locked in science fictionhad it not been for the development of metamaterials. In Greek, meta means beyond, and metamaterials car do things beyond what we see in the natural worldlike shuffle light waves around an object，and then bring them back togetherIf scientists ever manage to build a fullfledged invisibility cloak，it will probably be made of metamaterialsWe are creating materials that dont exist in nature, and that have a physical phenomenon that doesnt exist in nature, says engineer Dentcho Genov. That is the most exciting thing. Genov designs and builds metamaterials-such as those used in cloaking-at Louisiana Tech University in Ruston, Louisiana.An invisibility cloak will probably not be the first major accomplishment to come from the field of metamaterialsOther applications are just as excitinIn many labs，for example，scientists are working on building a hyperlensA lens is a deviceusually made of glassthat can change the direction of light wavesLenses are used in microscopes and cameras to focus light，thus allowing a researcher to see small things or a photographer to capture image of things that are far awayA hyperlens，however，would be made of metamaterialsAnd since metamaterial s can do things with light that ordinary materials cant，the hyperlens would be a powerful t001A hyperlens would allow researchers to see things at the smallest scale imaginableas small as the wavelength of visible lightGenov points out that the science of metamaterials is driven by the imagination：If someone call think of an idea for a new behavior for fight，then the engineers can find a way to design a device using metamaterialsWe need people who can imagine, he saysSince 2006，many laboratories have been exploring other kinds of metamaterials that dont involve just visible lightIn fact，scientists are finding that almost any kind of wave may respond to metamaterialsAt the Polytechnic University of Valencia in SpainJose Sanchez-Dehesa is working with acoustics, or the science of soundJust as an invisibility cloak shuffles waves of light，an acoustic cloak would shuffle waves of sound in a way thats not found in natureIn an orchestra hall, for examplean acoustic cloak could redirect the sound wavesso someone sitting behind a column would hear the same concert as the rest of the audiencewithout distortionSanchez-Dehesa，an engineer，recently showed that its possible to build such an acoustic cloak，though he doubts we11 see one any time soonIn principle，it is possible, he says，but it might be impossible to make one, he addsOther scientists are looking into ways to use larger metamaterials as shields around islands or oil rigs as protection from tsunamisA tsunami is a giantdestructive waveThe metamaterial would redirect the tsunami around the rig or islandand the wave would resume its ioumey on the other side without causing any harm练习： 1What is true for metamaterials?They are nonexistent in nature2A hyperlens is a more powerful tool than a traditional lensas it can help scientists to see even the wavelengths of visible light 3Scientists at the Polytechnic University of Valencia try to invent an acoustic cloak that can shuffle waves of sound4According to SdnchezDehesa, it is possible to build an acoustic cloak in theory but far fromreality5What ways are some scientists looking into to protect the island and oil；rig from tsunamis? (Read the last paragraph)Surround them with metamaterials as protective shieldsA级阅读理解新增文章 教材第四十五篇文章Some People Do Not Taste Salt Like OthersLowsalt foods may be harder for some people to like than others，according to a study by a Penn State College of Agricultural Sciences food scientistThe research indicates that genetic factors influence some of the difference in the levels of salt we like to eatThose conclusions are important because recent，wellpublicized efforts to reduce the salt content in food have left many people struggling to accept fare that simply does not taste as good to them as it does to others，pointed out John Hayes，assistant professor of food science，who was lead investigator 0n the studyDiets high in salt Can increase the risk of high blood pressure and strokeThat is why public health experts and food companies are working together on ways to help consumers lower salt intake through foods that are enjoyable to eatThis study increases understanding of salt preference and consumptionThe research involved 87 carefully screened participants who sampled salty foods such as soup and chips，on multiple occasions，spread out over weeksTest subjects were 45：men and 42 women, reportedly healthy，ranging in age from 20 t0 40 yearsThe sample was composed of individuals who were not actively modifying their dietary intake and did not smoke cigarettesThey rated the intensity of taste on a commonly used scientific scale，ranging from barely detectable to strongest sensation of any kind “Most of us like the taste of saltHowever，some individuals eat more salt，both because they like the taste of saltiness more，and also because it is needed to block other unpleasant tastes in food,” said Hayes. “Supertasters, people who experience tastes more intensely, consume more salt than nontasters do. Snack foods have saltiness as their primary flavor, and at least for these foods, more is better, so the supertasters seem to like them more.”However, supertasters also need higher levels of salt to block unpleasant bitter tastes in foods such as cheese，Hayes noted“For example，cheese is a wonderful blend of dairy flavors from fermented milk，but also bitter tastes from ripening that are blocked by salt，” he said“A supertaster finds low-salt cheese unpleasant because the bitterness is too pronounced6”Hayes cited research done more than 75 years ago by a chemist named Fox and a geneticist named Blakeslee，showing that individuals differ in their ability to taste certain chemicalsAs a result，Hayes explained，we know that a wide range in taste acuity exists，and this variation is as normal as variations in eye and hair color “Some people，called supertasters，describe bitter compounds as being extremely bitter，while others，called nontasters，find these same bitter compounds to be tasteless or only weakly bitter”he said“Response to bitter compounds is one of many ways to identify biological differences in food preference because supertastin7 is not limited to bitterness(476)1In paragraph 2，John Hayes points out thatmany people accept lowsalt tasteless food reluctantly2The fourth paragraph describes brieflyhow to select subjects and what to do in the research3. The article argues that supertasters1ike snack foods as saltiness is their primary flavor4. Which of the following applies to supertasters in terms of bitter taste?They prefer highsalt cheesewhich tastes less bitter 5. What message do the last two paragraphs carry?Taste acuity is genetically determinedA级阅读理解新增文章 教材第三十四篇文章Batteries Built by VirusesWhat do chicken pox，the common cold, the flu，and AIDS have in common? Theyreal disease caused by viruses，tiny microorganisms that can pass from person to personIts no wonder1 that when most people think about viruses, finding ways t0 steer clear of viruses is whats on peoples mindsNot everyone runs from the tiny disease carders, thoughIn Cambridge, Massachusetts, scientists have discovered that some viruses can be helpful in an unusual wayThey are putting viruses to work, teaching them to build some of the worlds smallest rechargeable batteriesViruses and batteries may seem like an unusual pair，but theyre not so strange for engineer Angela Belcher，who first came up with the ideaAt the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, she and her collaborators bring together different areas of science in new waysIn the case of the virus-built batteries, the scientists combine what they know about biology, technology and production techniquesBelchers team includes Paula Hammond，who helps put together the tiny batteries, and Yet-Ming Chiang， an expert on how to store energy in the form of a battery“Were working on things we traditionally dont associate with nature” says HammondMany batteries are already pretty smallYou can hold AC and D batteries in your handThe coinlike batteries that power watches are often smaller than a pennyHowever。every year，new electronic devices like personal music players or cell phones get smaller than the year beforeAs these devices shrink, ordinary batteries wont be small enough to fit insideThe ideal battery will store a lot of energy in a small packageRight now，Belchers model battery，a metallic disk completely built by viruses，looks like a regular watch batteryBut inside，its components are very smallso tiny you can only see them with a powerful microscopeHow small are these battery parts? To get some idea of the size，pluck one hair from your headPlace your hair on a piece of white paper and try to see how wide your hair ispretty thin，right? Although the width of each persons hair is a bit different，you could probably fit about l o of these virusbuilt battery parts，side to side，across one hairThese microbatteries may change the way we look at viruses练习： 1According to the first paragraph，people try tostay away from viruses because they are causes of various diseases2What is Belchers team doing at present?It is making batteries with viruses3What expression below is opposite in meaning to the word shrink appearing in paragraph 5？Expand：4. Which of the following is true of Belchers battery mentioned in paragraph 6？It is a metallic disk with viruses inside it5. How tiny is one battery part?Its width is one tenth of a hairA级阅读理解新增文章 教材第三十八篇文章Longer Lives for Wild ElephantsMost people think of zoos as safe places for animals，where struggles such as difficulty finding food and avoiding predators dont exist. Without such problems, animals in zoos should live to a ripe old ageBut mat may not be true for the largest land animals on Earth. Scientists have known that elephants in zoos often suffer from poor healthThey develop diseases，joint problems and behavior changesSometimesthey even become infertileor unable to have babiesTo learn more about how captivity affects elephants, a team of international scientists compared the life spans of female elephants born in zoos with female elephants living outdoors in their native landsZoos keep detailed records of all the animals in their care，documenting factors such as birth dates，illnesses，weight and deathThese records made it possible for the researchers to analyze 40 years of data on 800 African and Asian elephants in zoos across EuropeThe scientists compared the life spans of the zooborn elephants with the life spans of thousands of female wild elephants in Africa and Asian elephants that work in logging camps，over approximately the same time periodThe team found that female African elephants born in zoos lived an average of l 6.9 yearsTheir wild counterparts who died of natural causes lived an average of 56 yearsmore than three times as longFemale Asian elephants followed a similar patternIn zoos, they lived l 89 s years, while those in the logging camps lived 41.7 years Scientists dont yet know why wild elephants seem to fare s