If you're a male and you're reading this, congratulations: you're a survivor. According to a survey, you're more than twice as likely to die of skin cancer than a woman, than nine times more likely to die of AIDS. Assuming you make it to the end of your natural term, about 78 years for men in Australia, you'll die on average five years before a woman. There're many reasons for this -- typically, men take more risks than women and are more likely to drink and smoke--but perhaps more importantly, men don't go to the doctor. "Men aren't seeing doctors as often as they should," says Dr. Gullotta. "This is particularly so for the over-40s, when diseases tend to strike." Gullotta says a healthy man should visit the doctor every year or two. For those over45, it should be at least once a year. Two months ago Gullotta saw a 50-year-old man who had delayed doing anything about his smoker's cough for a year. "When I finally saw him it had already spread and he finally died from lung cancer," he says. "Earlier detection and treatment may not have cured him, but it would have prolonged his life." According to a recent survey, 95% of women aged between 15 and early 40s see a doctor once a year, compared to 70% of men in the same age group. "A lot of men think they can never defeated," Gullotta says. "They only come in when a friend drops dead on the golf course and they think, 'Geez, if it could happen to him, ...'" Then there's the ostrich approach. "Some men are scared of what might be there and would rather not know," says Dr, Ross Cartmill. "Most men get their cars serviced more regularly than they service their bodies," Cartmill says. He believes most diseases that commonly affect men could be addressed by preventive check-ups. Regular check-ups for men would inevitable place strain on the public purse, Cartmill says. "But prevention is cheaper in the long run than having to treat the diseases. Besides, the ultimate cost far greater; it's called premature death." What does Cartmill say about regular check-ups for men? A) They may increase public expenses. B) They will enable men to live as long as women. C) They may cause psychological strains on men. D) They will save money in the long run.
D
A new pollen study showed that drought was responsible for the extinction of civilizations more than 3,000 years ago during the Bronze Age. The reason behind why the civilizations in and around modern-day Israel suddenly broke down more than 3,000 years ago has remained a mystery up until now. A new pollen study by Tel Aviv University researchers finally solved this Bronze Age mystery. Prof. Israel Finkelstein showed that owing to serious climate changes, the entire world of the Bronze Age _ in a short period of time. The discovery was made on the basis of a high-resolution analysis of pollen grains taken from sediments beneath the Sea of Galilee and the western shore of the Dead Sea. Prof. Finkelstein received support from the European Research Council to conduct research aimed at reconstructing ancient Israel. Researchers of the part of the project that dealt with climate change extracted about 60 feet of samples of gray muddy sediment from the center of the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel. They had to drill through 1,000 feet of water and into 65 feet of the lake bed and were able to recover evidence dating over the past 9,000 years. "Pollen is the most enduring organic material in nature," explained Dr. Dafna Langgut, a pollen researcher who carried out the actual work of sampling. "These grains tell us about the plants that grew near the lake in the past and therefore prove the climatic conditions in the region." Researchers noted a sharp decrease in Mediterranean trees like oaks and pines in the Late Bronze Age. According to study experts, this could be because of repeated periods of drought. The droughts may have resulted in long famines, forcing people to migrate from north to south. Prof. Finkelstein conducted the new pollen study to _ . A) earn some money B) recreate ancient Israel C) learn more about local plants D) discover the ancient civilizations
B
Q: "Little lies" sometimes come to easily to us that we don't even consider them to be lies. Read about these lies of everyday life: 1. Lying about your age or your kid's age to get a cheaper ticket. 2. Telling the host of a dinner party that the terrible food he prepared is wonderful. 3. Lying to your aunt about how much you love the gift she gave you---the one that you really hate. 4. Telling a friend with a terrible haircut that she looks great. 5. Lying to a friend about how much you want to see her again when you really don't 6.Telling the salesperson who calls when you're watching TV that you're very busy. Are these serious lies? Probably not, but if you would lie about your age to a stranger, what's going to stop you from lying about something more serious later? If we tell a lie or act dishonestly and get what we want, that might make us feel good today. But what about tomorrow? The future results of our lies are uncertain. Still, no one is saying that everyone can or should be completely honest all the time. More people lie, often for a good reason. Lies are told all the time and are part of our everyday social life. Many times people lie to protect the feelings of other people, and there's nothing wrong with that. Honesty is usually the best policy, but like any other policy, you have to make exceptions. The author tries to persuade the readers to accept his argument by _ . A) making suggestions. B) explaining reasons and results. C) providing examples and facts. D) discussing questions.
A: C
Have you eaten too much over the holidays? You should try fidgeting for a while. Those around you might not like it, but scratching (moving your nails against a part of your body) and twitching (moving suddenly and quickly when you don't want to) is an important way of burning up calories . American researchers have found that some people's squirming (continuously turn your body when nervous) and wigging (move in small movements, especially from side to side) equals several miles of slow running each day. The scientists, based at the National Institute of Health's laboratory in Phenix, Arizona, are studying why some people get fat and other stay slim. In one study 177 people each spent 24 hours in a room in the institute where the amount of energy is measured by their oxygen and carbon dioxide levels. By the end of the day, some people had burned up 800 calories in toe-tapping, (moving the front part of your foot up and down) finger-drumming (hitting your fingers continuously and lightly against something hard) and other nervous habits. However, others had burned up only 100 calories. The researchers found that slim women fidget more than fat women, but there was no significant difference in men. Heavy people burn up more energy when they fidget than thin people do. Scientists found in the experiment that _ . A) the energy burned up by fat people when they fidget was more than that burned up by thin people when they fidget B) some people's fidgeting burned up more than 800 calories, but some people's fidgeting burned up less than 100 calories C) slim women fidget more than fat women but fat men fidget more than thin men D) thin men fidget more than fat men
A