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 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 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 thatwomen 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 influence aging, but they believe that 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 carious body to control various body functions.

    Here's how yo-yo dieting affects your body and your mind

    Yo-yo dieting, also known as weight cycling, occurs when a person experiences periods of weight loss followed by weight gain followed by weight loss and so on and so on. The effects of this weight cycling are significant, even when the weight lost and gained is as little as 10 pounds.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}

    It can make you gain weight

    While dieting may help you lose a few pounds at first, it only works temporarily. Your body responds to the lack of calories by turning to lean muscle mass for energy. Once you have returned to your normal eating habits, the weight comes back on –{#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Yo-yo dieting may increase the risk for heart disease and sudden death in post-menopausal（绝经后期）women. Studies found that when normal-weight women experienced periods of weight cycling, they were 3.5 times more likely to have sudden death than women whose weight remained stable. In the same study, yo-yo dieting increased a woman's risk of death by 66 percent.

It can be damaging to your skin

    Dermatologist (a doctor who studies and treats skin diseases) Robin Evans weighed in on the effect that yo-yo dieting has on the skin. “The up and down weight losses and gains can have harmful effects on the skin especially on the face with stretching and contracting the skin,” said Evans{#blank#}4{#/blank#}.

It plays games with your mind

    Yo-yo dieting is hard on the body,{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Repeatedly gaining and losing weight can leave dieters feeling more depressed about their weight and losing self-belief as a result.

    If you're a yo-yo-dieter, talk to your health care provider about lifestyle changes that can help you maintain a stable and healthy weight for years to come.

A. It only works temporarily

B. It can damage your heart

C. but in the form of fat, not muscle

D. but it's even harder on the mind

E. but with a smaller size, you will make yourself less friendly

F. The result ends up more wrinkles and an overall effect of aging the skin

G. We turned to the experts to find out how yo-yo dieting can affect your body and your mind

    When the kids are out of school, parents are eager to use the holidays for some quality family time.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} While there's great concern among parents about the impact of screens on physical activity and face-to-face communications, parental use of screens is often overlooked. One recent report found that parents spend over nine hours per day with screen media. It's no wonder that families find it hard to have high-quality social interactions.

    Want our kids to put down the phones and tablets?{#blank#}2{#/blank#} It's necessary that we unplug when we ask our kids to do the same. Some family activities we create can help us engage with our kids without the concern of screen time.

    Why not leave the devices at home and go for a tech-free nature walk? It will be an opportunity to make us more connected to the world beyond the screen. Focus on being in the moment and kids may enjoy collecting plant seeds or stones.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    A board game night is ideal for bringing family members together and being engaged. Moreover, playing games together fosters social interaction, cooperation, and the development of Social Emotional Learning (SEL).{#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Some other family activities are wonderfully fun without the use of electronic devices. For example, take the kids swimming, or bring them to an indoor rock climbing gym. Bake a cake for a neighbor or plant a garden.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Your kids will get lost in the activity, forgetting the devices.

    To be clear, technology has many benefits to parents and children. However, creating some tech-free time can help parents and kids feel more connected to each other.

A. We parents must model that behavior.

B. Even so, too much of a good thing can be bad for family time.

C. However, many of us find it hard to compete with electronics.

D. Parents may learn from their kids about science and nature as well.

E. Best of all, family members can enjoy being engaged in a shared experience.

F. The kids are more likely to have buy-in when they feel like they have a say.

G. All these activities require family members to focus their attention on the task at hand.

    When Ava McCarver was in kindergarten, her class visited a nursing home (疗养院). Ava learned that many of the residents (住户) there receive few visitors. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} “I asked my mom if I could visit them,” she says. Soon, Ava and her mom became volunteers at Birchwood Health Care Center.

    That was six years ago. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} She enjoys hanging out with Mary, Shirley and other residents during her twice-monthly visits. “I paint their nails, and I talk to a lot of them,” she says. Sometimes she helps lead craft (手工艺) projects. Other times they play card games. “It's good for the residents to see little kids,” Ava says. “That makes them really happy.”

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} She has raised money for the nursing home by making refrigerator decorations and selling them at a craft fair. She has also collected used puzzles from garage sales and donated them to Birchwood.

    Ava wrote a book called The Squirrel Family. In the book, two squirrels raise a family and eventually move into a place called Birchwood where they live happily. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} Ten stores in her city agreed to display the books, along with a can to collect money. Ava's project raised about $750. Birchwood used that money to buy furniture for the residents.

    Ava says she enjoyed the look of “pure joy” on a resident's face after a hug from her. That's why she started visiting Birchwood — to bring happiness to others. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} “It's really fun,” she says. “They have good stories, and I enjoy my time there.”

A. She decided to take action.

B. But she has gained happiness for herself, too.

C. Since then, Ava has made many friends at Birchwood.

D. Ava used her book to raise money for the nursing home.

E. Birchwood needs more volunteers for its craft project.

F. Ava has found some creative ways to help her friends at Birchwood.

G. Ava's book has achieved a great success and earned a large amount of money for her.

    Air pollution is a killer. The World Health Organization says it kills an estimated seven million people around the world each year.{#blank#}1{#/blank#} , it can make us very sick.

    However, breathing dirty air may do more than hurt your body.{#blank#}2{#/blank#} .A new study shows that air pollution can cause a “huge” reduction in our intelligence. The researchers reposed that long-time exposure to air pollution can affect a person's mental abilities in two areas: language and mathematics.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} .Between 2010 and 2014, these Chinese men, women and children were given language and math tests. Then they compared the test results with measurements of pollution in the air, namely nitrogen dioxide and sulfur dioxide, and found that breathing polluted air can reduce a person's education level by about one year.

    It has found that the effect generally is worse for those over 64 years of age, for men and for those with little or no education.

    “{#blank#}4{#/blank#} .And we find, quite interestingly, males are more affected than females. And people working outdoors are more affected than people working indoors, ”one of researchers said.

    He noted that the youngest people in the study were 10 years old, while the oldest was 90.They came from 25 of China'S 33 provinces.{#blank#}5{#/blank#}.

    The researchers also noted that the effect of pollution on verbal ability is even more serious as people age, especially among men and the less educated.

A. Even if polluted air does not kill us

B. The elderly people are more affected

C. Therefore, some measures should be taken

D. Air pollution is one of the major problems of China

E. It can also affect your brain and your ability to think

F. The researchers studied about 25, 000 people across China

G. This range of ages and locations provided a “good representative sample”

Why Accepting Change Is Important to Your Professional Success?

    Whether you like it or not, change is a necessary part of today's business climate. Those employees who accept change will succeed, while those fearing change may head for the unemployment line. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} So how can we make this normal change as positive and beneficial as possible?

    What's wrong with change?

    Employers want their workers to change when necessary. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} The main reason is fear, though none of us agree that we doubt our ability to accept new ideas, use new technology, or adapt to new organizations.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Employees often view change differently from their supervisors. This is why communication is so vital in many cases. Lack of communication will cause problems in personal relationships. Unfortunately, fear prevents them from expressing their ideas and opinions.

    The positive side of change.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} One of the most positive aspects of change is that it is never boring. If we want passion back in our work, we must be willing to change. We can learn how to work with a team and take on new responsibilities and change not just your attitude to change but some of your ideas and goals.

    Embrace upcoming changes.

    Many people are content to live their present safe lives and want no change. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Comfort and high position? If those are what you desire, then you will probably soon be out of a job. If, instead, you want challenge and welcome change, you will always be successful and popular in your job.