Some Things We Know about Language Many things about language are a mystery, and many will always remain so. But some things we do know. First, we know that all human beings have a language of some sort. There is no race of men anywhere on earth so backward that it has no language, no set of speech sounds by which the people communicate with one mother. Furthermore, in historical times, there has never been a race of men without a language. Second, there is no such thing as a primitive language. There are many people whose cultures are undeveloped, who are, as we say, uncivilized, but the languages they speak are not primitive. In all known languages we can see complexities that must have been tens of thousands of years in developing. This has not always been well understood;indeed, the direct contrary has often been stated. Popular ideas of the language of the American Indians will illustrate. Many people have supposed that the Indians communicated in a very primitive system of noises. Study has proved this to be nonsense. There are, or were, hundreds of American Indian languages, and all of them turn out to be very complicated and very old. They are certainly different from the languages that most of us are familiar with, but they are no more primitive five than English and Greek. A third thing we know about language is that all languages are perfectly adequate. That is, each one is a perfect means of expressing the culture of the people who speak the language. Finally, we know that language changes. It is natural and normal for language to change;the only languages which do not change are the dead ones. This is easy to understand if we look backward in time. Change goes on in all aspects of language. Grammatical features change as do speech sounds, and changes in vocabulary are sometimes very extensive and may occur very rapidly. Vocabulary is the least stable part of any language.

The government is debating the education laws. discussing defeating delaying declining

The city has decided to do away with all the old buildings in its center. get rid of set up repair paint

During the past ten years there have been dramatic changes in the international situation. permanent powerful striking practical

Continuing Medical Education There is increasing recognition of the need for health workers to continue their education throughout their careers. Not only do health workers themselves wish to improve their own skills and competence, hut the introduction of new techniques and equipment and the changes taking place in health needs and health care policies necessitate continued training. The phrase “health care“ is intended to mean not just curative treatment for the sick hut the whole range of provision for promoting health and preventing disease. In virtually every situation some response to this need has been made, so continuing education does take place—even though it may in many instances be ineffective or insufficient. Continuing education may be initiated by the health workers themselves, by their supervisors, by the managers of the health system, or by other agencies such as professional associations, publishers, and drug companies. The form of the continuing education may be written materials(journals, books, advertisements), meetings, courses, supervisory visits, or a variety of other methods. With this diversity of approach it is not surprising that the effectiveness of the continuing education should be variable. So it is natural that in many countries there is a concern that more continuing education should be provided and that it should be more effective. The approach suggested that to achieve this aim is to develop a “system“ of continuing education. This term needs some explanation as it is capable of being interpreted in many ways. A system is not the same thing as an organization that provides continuing education. It is much more than that. It is the sum of the educational activities, the organizational structure that supports and manages those activities, the management, and the external agencies involved in the provision of health care. The system should comprise a nationwide coordinated program in which technology and resources are optimally used.

A. the quake itself B. accurate prediction C. damage of property and loss of lives D. a possible earthquake E. the unusual behaviors of some animals F. the strong behaviors of human beings

Some Things We Know about Language Many things about language are a mystery, and many will always remain so. But some things we do know. First, we know that all human beings have a language of some sort. There is no race of men anywhere on earth so backward that it has no language, no set of speech sounds by which the people communicate with one mother. Furthermore, in historical times, there has never been a race of men without a language. Second, there is no such thing as a primitive language. There are many people whose cultures are undeveloped, who are, as we say, uncivilized, but the languages they speak are not primitive. In all known languages we can see complexities that must have been tens of thousands of years in developing. This has not always been well understood;indeed, the direct contrary has often been stated. Popular ideas of the language of the American Indians will illustrate. Many people have supposed that the Indians communicated in a very primitive system of noises. Study has proved this to be nonsense. There are, or were, hundreds of American Indian languages, and all of them turn out to be very complicated and very old. They are certainly different from the languages that most of us are familiar with, but they are no more primitive five than English and Greek. A third thing we know about language is that all languages are perfectly adequate. That is, each one is a perfect means of expressing the culture of the people who speak the language. Finally, we know that language changes. It is natural and normal for language to change;the only languages which do not change are the dead ones. This is easy to understand if we look backward in time. Change goes on in all aspects of language. Grammatical features change as do speech sounds, and changes in vocabulary are sometimes very extensive and may occur very rapidly. Vocabulary is the least stable part of any language.

They had a far better yield than any other farm miles away around this year. goods soil climate harvest

The price of vegetables fluctuates according to the weather. jumps. rises falls. changes

Her mood can be gauged by her reaction to the most trivial of incidents displayed. shown. proved. assessed.

Henry cannot resist the lure of drugs. abuse flavor temptation consumption

Relief workers were shocked by what they saw. moved touched surprised worried

The weather is a constant subject of conversation in Britain. . question problem title topic

This is not typical of English, but is a feature of the Chinese language. particular characteristic remarkable idiomatic

It is virtually impossible to persuade him to apply for the job. simply almost totally completely

Earthquake 1. Every year earthquakes are responsible for a large number of deaths and a vast amount of destruction in various parts of the world. Most of these damaging earthquakes occur either in a narrow belt which surrounds the Pacific Ocean or in a line which extends from Burma to the Alps in Europe. Some of the destruction is directly caused by the quake itself. An example of this is the collapse of buildings as a result of the quake itself. Other damage results from landslides or major fires which are initiated by the quake. 2. These are about a million quakes a year. Fortunately, however, not all of them are destructive. The intensity of an earthquake is measured on the Richter Scale, which goes from upward. The highest scale recorded to date is 8. 9. major damage generally occurs from quakes ranging upward from 6. 0. 3. The actual cause of the quake itself is the breaking of rocks at or below the earth’s surface. This is produced by pressure which scientists believe may be due to a number of reasons, two of which are the expansion and contraction of the earth’s crust and continental drift. 4. In order to limit the damage and to prevent some of the suffering resulting from earthquakes, scientists are working on ways to enable accurate prediction. Special instruments are used to help people record, for example, shaking of the earth. Scientists are trying to find methods that will enable them to indicate the exact time, location and size of an earthquake. 5. Certain phenomena have been observed which are believed to be the signs of imminent earthquakes. These include strange behaviors of some animals, the changes in the content of mineral water, etc. The magnetic properties of rocks may also display special pattern before earthquakes happen. A. Earthquakes forecast B. Historical records of earthquakes C. Intensities of earthquakes D. Cause of earthquakes E. Indications of earthquakes F. Damaging earthquakes

Sleep Lets Brain File Memories To sleep. Perchance to file? Findings published online this week by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences further support the theory that the brain organizes and stows memories formed during the day while the rest of the body is catching zzz’s. Gyorgy Buzsaki of Rutgers University and his colleagues analyzed the brain waves of sleeping rats and mice. Specifically, they examined the electrical activity emanating from the somatosensory neocortex(an area that processes sensory information)and the hippocampus, which is a center for learning and memory. The scientists found that oscillations in brain waves from the two regions appear to be intertwined. So-called sleep spindles(bursts of activity from the neocortex)were followed tens of milliseconds later by beats in the hippocampus known as ripples. The team posits that this interplay between the two brain regions is a key step in memory consolidation. A second study, also published online this week by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, links age-associated memory decline to high glucose levels. Previous research had shown that individuals with diabetes suffer from increased memory problems. In the new work, Antonio Convit of New York University School of Medicine and his collaborators studied 30 people whose average age was 69 to investigate whether sugar levels, which tend to increase with age, affect memory in healthy people as well. The scientists administered recall tests, brain scans and glucose tolerance tests, which measure how quickly sugar is absorbed from the blood by the body’s tissues. Subjects with the poorest memory recollection, the team discovered, also displayed the poorest glucose tolerance. In addition, their brain scans showed more hippocampus shrinkage than those of subjects better able to absorb blood sugar. “Our study suggests that this impairment may contribute to the memory deficits that occur as people age.“ Convit says. “And it raises the intriguing possibility that improving glucose tolerance could reverse some age-associated problems in cognition. “ Exercise and weight control can help keep glucose levels in check, so there may be one more reason to go to the gym.

U. S. to Start $ 3. 2 Billion Child Health Study in January A study that will cost $ 3. 2 billion and last more than two decades to track the health of 100, 000 U. S. children from before birth to age 21 will be launched in January, U. S. health officials said on Friday. Officials from the U. S. government’s National Institutes of Health said they hope the study, to be conducted at 105 locations throughout the United States, can help identify early-life influences that affect later development, with the goal of learning new ways to treat or prevent illness. The study will examine hereditary and environmental factors such as exposure to certain chemicals that affect health. Researchers will collect genetic and biological samples from people in the study as well as samples from the homes of the women and their babies including air, water, dust and materials used to construct their residences, the NIH said. Officials said more than $200 million has been spent already and the study is projected to cost $3.2 billion. “We anticipate that in the long term, what we learn from the study will result in a significant savings in the nation’s health care costs, “ Dr. Duane Alexander, who heads the NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, told reporters. The study will begin in January when the University of North Carolina and the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York start signing up pregnant women whose babies will then be followed to age 21. Some of the early findings will be about factors behind pre-term birth, which has become more common in recent years, according to Dr. Peter Scheidt of the NIH, who heads the study. The people taking part will be from rural, urban and suburban areas, from all income and educational levels and from all racial groups, the NIH said.

The Dangers of Secondhand Smoke Most people know that cigarette smoking is harmful to their health. Scientific research shows that it causes many kinds of diseases. In fact, many people who smoke get lung cancel However, Edward Gilson has lung cancer, and he has never smoked cigarettes. He lives with his wife, Evelyn, who has smoked about a pack of cigarettes a day throughout their marriage.【B1】______ No one knows for sure why Mr. Gilson has lung cancer. Nevertheless, doctors believe that secondhand smoke may cause lung cancer in people who do not smoke because nonsmokers often breathe in the smoke, from other people’s cigarettes.【B2】______The US Environmental Protection Agency reports that about 53, 000 people die in the United States each year as a result of exposure to secondhand smoke. The smoke that comes from a lit cigarette contains many different poisonous chemicals. In the past, scientists did not think that these chemicals could harm a nonsmoker’s health.【B3】______ They discovered that even nonsmokers had unhealthy amounts of these toxic(有毒的)chemicals in their bodies. As a matter of fact, almost all of US breathe tobacco smoke at times, whether we realize it or not. For example, we cannot avoid secondhand smoke in restaurants, hotels and other public places. Even though many public places have nonsmoking areas, smoke flows in from the areas where smoking is permitted. It is even harder for children to avoid secondhand smoke.【B4】______Research shows that children who are exposed to secondhand smoke are sick more often than children who live in homes where no one smokes and that the children of smokers are more than twice as likely to develop lung cancer when they are adults as are children of nonsmokers. The risk is even higher for children who live in homes where both parents smoke People are becoming very aware of the dangers of secondhand smoke.【B5】______ A. Recently, though, scientists changed their opinion after they studied a large group of nonsmokers. B. The Gilsons have been married for 35 years. C. Which smoke is called secondhand smoke. D. However, secondhand smoke is dangerous to all people, old or young. E. As a result, they have passed laws which prohibit people from smoking in many public places. F. In the United States, nine million children under the age of five live in homes with at least one smoker.

15 I expect that she will be able to cater for your particular needs. supply. reach. provide. meet

These programmes are of immense value to old people. natural fatal tiny enormous

In the second paragraph the author thinks that

According to the author, people of undeveloped cultures can have______languages.

The author has used American Indian languages as an example to show that they are

Which of the following statements is INCORRECT?

According to the author, language changes are most likely to occur in