Power Napping is Good for the I.Q.Today we hear more and more about the importance of getting enough sleep—about eight hours a night. Sleep can help heal and give energy to both the body and the brain.great effect on the two-thirds that we are awake. Sleep affects our emotions, memory, focus, and behavior.Studies show that people in developed countries spend less time asleep and more time at work or commuting. Dr. Karine Spiegel, at the University of Chicago, has found that the average length of sleep has gone down from nine hours a night in 1910 to seven-and-a-half hours a night today. However, our bodies cannot function well withoutevery hour of lost sleep at night causes us to lose one I.Q. point the next day. For example, when someone gets only five or six hours of sleep each night for a week, the person’s I.Q.Most sleep experts say that humans need at least eight hours of sleep every day, but it should be in two stages: a long sleep at night and a shorter nap in the afternoon. SomeTo study sleep deprivation (not getting enough sleep), scientists use a test called the Multiple Sleep Latency Test (MSLT). During the test, a person stays in a darkened, quiet room during the daytime. Scientists believe that a sleep-deprived person will fall asleep quickly. If it takes ten minutes or longer to fall asleep, the person is probably getting enough sleep.Scientists have also found that the time of year seems to affect how much sleep we need.However, in the summer, people sometimes sleep as little as six hours, without having any problems.Tracking Down HIVIn the summer of 1980, a patient had a strange purplish spot removed from below his ear. It was Kaposi’s sarcoma, a rare form of skin cancer. This patient also had lymph node swelling and exhaustion. In November 1980, a Los Angeles immunologist examined a young man who had diseases linked to immune system malfunctions. The doctor had a T-cell count taken of the patient’s blood. T-cells are a type of white blood cell that plays a key role1 in immune responses. The patient had no helper T-cells.By the end of 1980, 55 Americans were diagnosed with infections related to immune system breakdown; four had died. A year later the death toll was 74. Intravenous drug users had T-cell abnormalities. People who had received blood transfusions showed symptoms of immune system breakdown. By July 1982, 471 cases of the disease, now called Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS), had been reported; 184 people had died.In April 1984, American virologist Dr. Robert Gallo isolated the pathogen, or disease producer, responsible for2 AIDS. He called it HTLV-III. In Paris, Dr. Luc Montagnier identified a virus he called LAV. An international panel of scientists determined that both men had found the same virus. It became known as Human Immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Blood banks began screening for HTV in 1985, but by then about 29,000 people had been infected through blood transfusions. Some 12,000 hemophiliacs had contracted HIV through blood-clotting products. By 1995, 477,900 Americans had AIDS; 295,500 had died.In 1996, researchers announced drugs that reduced HIV in infected people. Today scientists are testing vaccines and believe that if HIV can be suppressed, then perhaps it can be eradicated3, but it is still a race against time.练习：1．This passage is mainly about _A___.A the spreading of the disease known as HIVB the work of Dr. Robert GalloC infectious diseasesD the symptoms of HIV2．A T-cell is a __C__.A patient’s bloodB deadly strain of tuberculosisC white blood cell important in providing immunity to diseaseD red blood cell3．The final paragraph leads the reader to see that scientists _B___.A have no hope in ever finding a cure for HIVB have hope that a cure for HIV will be foundC have run out of time to find a cure for HIVD are in a contest against each other to find a cure for HIV4．The basic pattern used to develop this passage is _A___.A chronological orderB personal narrativeC comparison and contrastD question and answer5．The word u eradicated the last paragraph means __D__.A made extremeB celebratedC remove by rubbingD gotten rid of entirelyThe Hope Children’s HospiceThe Hope Children’s Hospice provides free specialist care for children with life-limiting conditions who are not expected to live into adulthood. It cares for up to eight terminally-ill children at one time, and aims to care for them in the same way their families would careLife-limiting conditions present many long-term medical and emotional problems-not onlyfor the child, but for parents and siblings too. So the hospice offers respite care-short staysothers with similar conditions.Each child at the hospice has their own carer and their own care plan. A normal day mightvideo games, paddling pools, anti space for wheelchair dancing. Children have music therapy and can record their own music, not only as a way to express their feelings, but to leave something for their family and friends to listen to in the years to come.The hospice has a number of quiet moms where we care for children during and afterdoes not end with death. We help not just grieving parents, but also siblings who are experiencing bereavement. We give everyone opportunities to discuss their fears about death and dying.Inquest told of hospital errorA HOSPITAL error left a dying man on the wrong ward for two days as deep vein thrombosis (DVT) ravaged his body, an inquest heard. Stephen Melvin Newbold suffered massive brain damage when a blood clot formed in his veins. Now his families are considering legal action against York Hospital, saying that his death was “untimely and unnecessary”.Mr Newbold, a 52-year-old maintenance worker, went to York Hospital on November 3 complaining of a swollen right foot. He should have been sent to a surgical ward where he would have been treated with1Fragmin, a drug which counters the effects of DVT. However, hospital staff wrongly admitted him to2 an orthopedic ward, where he stayed for two days, before finally being transferred to the care of a consultant vascular surgeon. Twenty-four hours later, on November 6, doctors decided they would have to operate to remove his leg below the knee.The operation went ahead on November 10, but two days later Mr Newbold suffered a cardiac arrest. A scan revealed he had had a pulmonary embolism, a condition related to DVT. Mr Newbold suffered brain damage and died in the hospital on November 16.Giving evidence, the surgeon said he could not explain why Mr Newbold had been admitted to an orthopedic ward where it was not policy to administer Fragmin. He did not know why his medical team had not given Mr Newbold the drug later.York coroner Donald Coverdale said, “From November 3 until the day of the operation, no Fragmin was given to Mr Newbold. If he had been admitted to a consultant vascular surgeon’s care from day one, it is clear that Fragmin would have been prescribed. Fragmin reduces the risk of DVT, but does not eliminate it. It is impossible to say whether Mr Newbold would have suffered this DVT if he had received the Fragmin.” He recorded a verdict of death by misadventure.Kim Daniells, Mr Newbold’s family’s lawyer, said, “The family hope that the hospital will learn from the errors, and that no other families will have to suffer in the future.”A spokeswoman for York Hospital’s NHS Trust said, “We would like to extend our sincere sympathies to the family of Stephen Newbold during this difficult time.”练习：1．The patient was admitted with an injured foot.<A2．The patient was admitted to the surgical ward.<B3．The patient did not get the correct medication.<A4．The patient died before he could be operated on.<B5．The patient died of brain damage.<A6．It was decided that the patient’s death had been an accident.<B7．Mr Newbold’s family’s lawyer was not qualified.<CThe Enemy WithinAllergy has become more and more common over the last 30 years. Now one-third of us are affected by allergy at some point in our lives and half of these sufferers are children. In the UK, three million people suffer from asthma, and five per cent of children suffer from food allergy.Allergy is a reaction that occurs when the immune system has a strange and unnecessaryremembers these dangerous micro-organisms and attacks them if it meets them again. This work is done by antibodies. The immune system in allergy sufferers makes antibodies against harmless substances, because it mistakenly believes them to be dangerous.An allergic reaction may not happen the first time a sufferer meets an allergen (the substance causing the reaction, such as pollen, milk or strawberries). Sometimes people can eat nuts for years and then suddenly become allergic to them. What has happened is that the immune system has now decided the substance is dangerous and has made an allergy antibody. This antibody then attaches itself to cells, which contain histamine. 2_that, the surface of the cells is broken, and histamine is released. The histamine and other chemicals inflame the tissues. This leads to the symptoms of allergy, such as swelling, rashes, sneezing, sore eyes and breathlessness. Anaphylaxis is the most severe allergic reaction of all and is most often triggered by wasp or bee stings or peanuts. This must be treated immediately.antibodies, and they are more likely to develop allergies and allergic disorders such as hay fever and asthma.wide range of additives and colourings; more and more people have central heating and double glazing, making our houses warmer and less draughty-an ideal environment to breed the house dust mite.There may also be a link between allergies and antibiotics. At one time our immunesystems were kept busy fighting off disease and trying to win the battle for health, but antibiotics have reduced the amount of work our immune systems have to do. Now experts think they may direct spare energy to harmless substances such as strawberries.A good deal of research is being devoted to finding a cure for allergies. Sufferers may be given medicine to control symptoms, and they may also be offered tests to find out what substances trigger an allergic reaction so that they can avoid contact with these in future.。
