You may know all about vitamin C, but do you know why vitamin D is also important to your body? Experts from the Children's Hospital in Boston, US, have said that some teens don't get enough of this important nutrient.

    Vitamin D can help bones and muscles grow strong and healthy. If a person is short of vitamin D, he or she may have problems like rickets(佝偻病)and osteoporosis． Rickets is mainly found in children. Osteoporosis,the thinning of bone, is a common problem as people get older.

    Studies in these years have found that vitamin D may also have other uses. If someone is short of vitamin D, he may have heart problems or die from some cancers.

The easiest way to get vitamin D is from sunlight. But many people worry about getting skin cancer and skin damage from the sun. Also, even skin color has an influence. Darker skinned people get less vitamin D than lighter skinned people. Older people get less vitamin D than younger people. You can also get it from foods. Some food such as cheese and egg yolks (蛋黄) have some vitamin D． But most of vitamin D in the American diet comes from food like milk with the vitamin added.

    Now more doctors are testing for vitamin D in their patients. But some doctors worry that if people take too much vitamin D, it might be bad for their body. At the same time, skin doctors tell people to be careful with sunlight.

China's National Treasure

    Pandas are in danger of extinction at present, with only 1,900 remaining in the world. The scientific name of the giant panda is actually called the cat bear, the number of which is very scarce. It is one of the most precious animals in the world and belongs to the protected animals at the national level. Its body color is black and white. Giant pandas are unique to China, very cute. The existing major habitats are in the surrounding mountainous areas such as Sichuan and Shanxi in China. The giant panda has a very powerful function: digesting bamboo. We all know that bamboo is mainly cellulose (纤维素), and most animals can't digest it except giant pandas. The giant panda's hometown is in the mountains southwest of China, green bamboos and springs everywhere. Therefore, the giant panda's main food consists of bamboo and spring water.

    Giant pandas are often referred to as living fossils. Hundreds of thousands of years ago, it was the peak period of giant pandas. This is of great scientific value for studying and protecting biodiversity and environmental changes on the earth. Long, long ago, the climate of the earth became colder and colder, many ice cubes formed on the earth; plants could not grow, and many animals were frozen or starved to death. The giant panda alone survived in the deep valleys of the mountains and became a treasure of the animal world. The giant panda still retains the characteristics of ancient animals. Therefore, the giant panda is not only popular with adults and children in terms of appearance, but also becomes a living fossil for biologists to study ancient creatures.

    The status of giant pandas has been politicized. Giant pandas can be seen in almost all the major countries in the world. The giant panda has become a witness of friendship between China and foreign countries. For decades, wherever the giant panda goes, a panda whirlwind will blow. With its charmed figure and natural cuteness, the Chinese giant panda attracts numerous fans around the world, and at the same time plays the role of friendship ambassador in China's foreign exchanges, becoming one of the most famous symbols in China.

    Loneliness Peaks

    For years America has been talking about obesity, but a new study points to a more serious health issue: isolation and loneliness.

Being connected to others socially is widely considered a fundamental human need — crucial to both well-being and survival. Extreme examples show infants who lack human contact in care fail to grow and often die. Indeed, social isolation has been used as a form of punishment. According to Julianne Holt-Lunstad, the lead author of the study, an increasing portion of the U.S. population now population now experiences isolation regularly. Over 42 million adults above age 45 in the U.S. are estimated to be suffering from chronic(长期的)loneliness.

    The study of 340 adults between the ages of 27 and 101 living in San Diego identified three key age ranges when people felt the loneliest. Participants who had the highest levels of loneliness were in their late-20s, mid-50s and late-80s. While it may come as a surprise that people in their late-20s suffered from loneliness, a larger survey shows they actually may suffer the hardest.

    With an increasing number of people working from home, watching television, getting into an addiction to electronic devices, it has become too easy to be alone, even if that's not a person's intention. Modern day conveniences like having anything we want delivered make it possible to never need to leave the house. So, not surprisingly, those with frequent social contact usually feel less lonely than those with few social ties.

    Mounting evidence suggests social isolation and loneliness significantly impact our health, and even shorten our lives, just like obesity. This study isn't the first time loneliness has been flagged as an emerging health issue. Therefore, reducing both isolation and loneliness is important for quality of life and well-being.

    One pleasant New Year morning, Edward got up and dressed himself in a hurry. He wanted to be the first to wish everyone a happy New Year. He went into every room, and shouted the words of welcome. Then he ran into the street to repeat them to those he met. When he came back, his father gave him two bright, new silver dollars. His face lighted up as he took them. He had wished for a long time to buy some nice books that he had seen at the bookstore.

    As he ran down the street with a light heart to the bookshop, he saw a poor German family—the father, mother, and three children shivering(发抖) in the cold wind.

    "I wish you a happy New Year," said Edward, as he was happily passing by. The man shook his head. "You do not belong to this country?" asked Edward. The man again shook his head, for he could not understand or speak English. But he pointed to his mouth, and to the children, as if to say, "These little ones have had nothing to eat for a long time." Edward quickly understood that these people were poor and in a very difficult situation and required some help. He took out his dollars, and gave one to the man, and the other to his wife.

    How their eyes sparkled (闪耀)with gratitude! They said something in their language, which doubtlessly meant, "We thank you a thousand times, and will remember you forever."

    When Edward came home, his father asked what books he had bought. He hung his head a moment, but quickly looked up. "I have bought no books," said he, "I gave my money to some poor people, who seemed to be very hungry."

注意：

1）所续写短文的词数应为150左右；

2）至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语；

3）续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；

4）续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。

Paragraph 1:

    "I think I can wait for my books till next New Year," continued he.

Paragraph 2:

    Hearing what his father said and holding the books his father gave him in his arms, Edward felt he was the happiest boy in the world.

阅读下面短文，根据所给情节进行续写，使之构成一个完整的故事。

    A friend of mine whose name was Martin Brown had a bad memory, which made him really famous. He was so forgetful that he sometimes forgot what he was talking about in the middle of a sentence. His wife had to always remind him about his appointments, his classes or even his meals! Since Martin was a professor at a well-known university, his forgetfulness often caused him a lot of trouble. It wasn't that he was unintelligent, as some critical people tended to say, he was just very, very absent-minded.

    One hot summer day, Professor Brown decided to take his children to the beach. The seaside town he planned to visit was about a three-hour train ride away. To make the trip more interesting for his young children, he decided to keep the name of the town secret. Unfortunately, by the time Martin had arrived at the train station, the poor forgetful man had forgotten the name of the town. Luckily, a friend of his happened to be in the station. He offered to take care of the children while Martin went back home to find out where he was going.

    The professor's wife was surprised to see him back again so soon, but she laughed when she heard what was the matter. She distrusted his memory, so she wrote the name of the town on a piece of paper. Satisfied that she had solved the problem, she sent her husband off again. Ten minutes later, she was astonished to see him outside the house again.

注意：

1）所续写短文的词数应为150左右；

2）至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词语；

3）续写部分分为两段，每段的开头语已为你写好；

4）续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。

Paragraph 1:

    "What was the matter now?" asked his wife. 

Paragraph 2:

    Hearing the cry, out rushed the neighbours, trying to find out what had happened.