Both men and women are living longer these days in industrialized countries. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} In general, they can expect to live six or seven years more than men. One reason for this is biological.

    One important biological factor(因素) that helps women live longer is the difference in hormones between men and women. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Between the ages of about 12 and 50, women produce hormones that are involved in fertility(生育能力). These hormones also have a positive effect on the heart and the blood flow. In fact, women are less likely to have high blood pressure or to die from heart attacks.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} They help the body defend itself against some kinds of infections. This means that women generally get sick less often and less seriously than men. The common cold is a good example: women, on average, get fewer colds than men.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Scientists are still not exactly sure how genes influence aging, but they believe they do. Some think that a woman's body cells have a tendency(倾向) to age more slowly than a man's. Others think that a man' s body cells have a tendency to age more quickly. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}

A. However, women, on average, live longer.

B. The biological factor plays an important part.

C. Women are also helped by their female genes.

D. The female hormones also protect the body in another way.

E. Recent research seems to support both of these possibilities.

F. Therefore, women are more healthy than men and can live a better life.

G. Hormones are chemicals which are produced by the body to control various body functions.

    Nearly everyone has spent at least one night lying in bed wishing for sleep. But for many, it's a nightly struggle. The key, or secret, is to experiment. What works for some might not work as well for others.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Set a regular bedtime. Go to bed at the same time every night. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}Try not to break this routine on weekends when it may be tempting to stay up late. If you want to change your bedtime, help your body adjust.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} If you're getting enough sleep, you should wake up on time naturally without an alarm. As with your bedtime, try to maintain your regular wake-up time even on weekends.

     Be smart about napping. While taking a nap can be a great way to recharge, especially for older adults, it can make insomnia（失眠）worse. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} If you must nap, do it in the early afternoon, and limit it to thirty minutes.

    Fight after-dinner drowsiness（睡意）. What should you do when getting sleepy before your bedtime? {#blank#}5{#/blank#} For example, washing the dishes, or calling a friend. If you give in to the drowsiness, you may wake up later in the night and have trouble getting back to sleep.

A. Wake up at the same time every day.

B. Spend more time outside in the day time.

C. When it's time to sleep, make sure the room is dark.

D. Get off the couch and do something to avoid falling asleep.

E. If insomnia is a problem for you, consider giving up napping.

F. It's important to find the sleep strategies that work best for you.

G. Choose a time when you normally feel tired so that you can fall asleep easily.

    Depression is a very serious condition that can be caused from broken hearts.You have to develop the right mindset(思维模式) to overcome it.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Reflect on your feelings and don't hide them. If you're emotionally hurt, don't hide these feelings. Don't pretend to feel something or avoid what you're going through. This is the process needed when you've suffered from a broken heart.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}Instead, you need to build yourself back up. You'll have to go through the tough part first. Once you've let it out , then you can take the next step to recover from your broken heart.

    Forgive if you're angry.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}That is life. Take something positive out of the situation and hold onto that .You have to accept what has happened, then take the approach of forgiving and accepting.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#}Never ignore a good friend or family support. Going through a broken heart should bring you closer to those around you. If you've been in a bad relationship, it should let you appreciate the ones who are still there for you.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} If you start to be shut off with others, it develops more bitterness, loneliness, along with possible depression. So reach out to people and don't use past experiences to affect how you treat them in a negative matter.

A. Hold onto the ones close to you .

B. After all, a friend in need is a friend indeed.

C. You can't ignore the difficult parts of it.

D. Comfort yourself that others may be worse.

E. Don't pull away from them, pull toward them.

F. Let your emotions out first, then develop control second.

G. You learn from the past, and move forward with the future.

    Interruptions(打扰) are one of the worst things to deal with while you're trying to get work done. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}, there are several ways to handle things. Let's take a look at them now.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#}. Tell the person you're sorry and explain that you have a million things to do and then ask if the two of you can talk at a different time.

    When people try to interrupt you, have set hours planned and let them know to come back during that time or that you'll find them then. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. It can help to eliminate(消除) future interruptions.

    When you need to talk to someone, don't do it in your own office. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}, it's much easier to excuse yourself to get back to your work than if you try to get someone out of your space even after explaining how busy you are.

    If you have a door to your office, make good use of it. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. If someone knocks and it's not an important matter, excuse yourself and let the person know you're busy so they can get the hint(暗示) than when the door is closed, you're not to be disturbed.

A. If you're busy, don't feel bad about saying no

B. When you want to avoid interruptions at work

C. Set boundaries (界限) for yourself as your time goes

D. If you're in the other person's office or in a public area

E. It's important that you let them know when you'll be available

F. It might seem unkind to cut people short when they interrupt you

G. Leave it open when you're available to talk and close it when you're not

Test-taking tips

    Passing tests is a huge part of succeeding at school. Clearly, if you want to do well on a test,

    you need to prepare by learning the material(资料) {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    Just breathe.

    Even the best prepared student sometimes gets nervous before a test. Nervous feelings can cause people to forget facts that they know. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Breathing deeply is helpful for this. So is moving your body slightly, such as by rolling your shoulders around. Try to arrive for a test a few minutes early, so you can relax before it starts.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    When you are handed a test, look over all the questions before you begin. Read them carefully, noticing details. Also pay attention to how many points each question is worth. Divide your time based on the percentage of your grade each question is worth.

    First answer questions you know and then go back to the difficult ones. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} But try to write an answer for every question on the test, even if you're not sure of the answer. The only exception(例外) is if you will lose points for wrong answers {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. If you're not sure whether you should change an answer, it's best not to. More often than not, your first instinct (本能) will be correct.

    Try your best.

    Above all, study well and try your best. If you do that, you can be proud of whatever score you get.

Ways to Develop Patience

Patience is essential to daily life and might be key to a happy one. Having patience means being able to wait calmly in the face of any difficulty or failure. This is all good news for the naturally patient or for those who have the time and opportunity to take a strict training in patience. But what about the rest of us? {#blank#}1{#/blank#}

Rebuild the situation. Feeling impatient is not just an automatic emotional response; it involves conscious thoughts and beliefs, too. If a colleague is late for a meeting, you can be angry about his lack of respect, or see those extra 15 minutes as an opportunity to get some reading done. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} And consciously trying to regulate our emotions can help us train our self-control muscles.

Practice mindfulness. In one study, kids who did a six-month mindfulness program in school became less impulsive(冲动的) and more willing to wait for a reward. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Taking a deep breath and noticing your feelings of anger or overload can help you respond with more patience to your children.

{#blank#}4{#/blank#} In another study, adults who were feeling grateful were also better at patiently delaying satisfaction. When given the choice between getting an immediate cash reward or waiting a year for more, less grateful people gave in once the immediate payment offer climbed to $

18. Grateful people, however, could hold out until the amount reached $

30. If we're thankful for what we have today, we're not desperate for more stuff or better circumstances immediately.

We can try to shelter ourselves from difficulty or failure. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Practicing patience in everyday situations will not only make life more pleasant at present, but might also help pave the way for a more satisfying and successful future.

A. Practice appreciation.

B. Practice in everyday situations.

C. Patience is related to daily life.

D. Patience is linked to self-control.

E. Mindfulness practice is recommended for parents.

F. But they come along with the life of being human.

G. It seems that there are everyday ways to build patience as well.