Who Want to Live Forever?
If your doctor could give you a drug that would let you live a healthy life for twice as long ，would you take it?
The good news is that we may be drawing near to that date，Scientists have already extended the lives of flies ，worms and mice in laboratories. Many now think that using genetic treatments we will soon be able to extend human life to at least 140 years. This seems a great idea. Think of how much more time we could spend chasing our dreams，spending time with our loved ones，watching our families grow and have families of their own.
"Longer life would give us a chance to recover from our mistakes and promote long term thinking," says Dr Gregory Stock of the University Of California School Of Public Health. "It would also raise productivity by adding to the year we can work."
Longer lives don't just affect the people who live them. They also affect society as a whole. "We have war，poverty，all sorts of issues around，and I don't think any of them would be at all helped by having people live longer," says US bioethicist Daniel Callahan."The question is 'What will we get as a society? 'I suspect it won't be a better society."
It would certainly be a very different society. People are already finding it more difficult to stay married. Divorce rates are rising. What would happen to marriage in a society where people lived for 140 years? And what would happen to family life if nine or 10 generations of the same family were all alive at the same time?
Research into ageing may enable women to remain fertile for longer. And that raises the prospect of having 100-year-old parents，or brothers and sisters born 50 years apart. We think of an elder sibling as someone who can protect us and offer help and advice. That would be hard to do if that sibling came from a completely different generation.
Working life would also be affected，especially if the retirement age was lifted. More people would stay in work for longer. That would give us the benefits of age-skill，wisdom and good judgment.
On the other hand，more people working for longer would create greater competition for jobs. It would make it more difficult for younger people to find a job. Top posts would be dominated by the same few individuals，making career progress more difficult. And how easily would a 25-year-old employee be able to communicate with a 125-year-old boss?
Young people would be a smaller part of a society in which people lived to 140. It may be that such a society would place less importance on guiding and educating young people，and more on making life comfortable for the old.
And society would feel very different if more of its members were older. There would be more wisdom，but less energy. Young people like to move about. Old people like to sit still. Young people tend to act without thinking. Old people tend to think without acting. Young people are curious and like to experience different things. Old people are less enthusiastic about change. In fact ，they are less enthusiastic about everything.
The effect of anti-ageing technology is deeper than we might think. But as the science advances，we need to think about these changes now. " If this could ever happen，then we'd better ask what kind of society we want to get，" says Daniel Callahan. "We had better not go anywhere near it until we have figure those problems out."
詞匯:
mice / mais / n. 老鼠(復數(shù))
sibling / 'sibli? / n. 兄弟姐妹
bioethicist // n. 生物倫理學家
注釋:
1. brothers and sisters born 50 years apart 出生年份相隔50年的兄弟姐妹
2. We had better not go anywhere near it 我們最好離它遠點，這里的it指代前面講的 anti-ageing technology.
練習:
1. Which of the following is NOT mentioned as one of the things that living longer might enable an individual to do?
A. Spending more time with his family.
B. Having more education.
C. Realizing more dreams.
D. Working longer.
2. Which of the following is implied in the sixth paragraph?
A Marriages in the US today are quite unstable.
B More and more people in the US today want to get married.
C Living longer would make it easier for people to maintain their marital ties.
D If people live longer ，they would stay in marriage longer.
3. All of the following are possible effects living longer might have on working life EXCEPT
A Communication between employers and employees would be more difficult.
B More money would be used by employees in payment of their employees.
C The job market would be more competitive.
D It would be more difficult for young people to be promoted to top positions.
4. An important feature of a society in which people live a long life is that
A.it places more emphasis on educating the young.
B.it is both wise and energetic.
C.it lacks the curiosity to experiment what is new.
D.it welcomes changes.
5. Which of the following best describes Callahan 's attitude to anti-ageing technology ?
A.Optimistic.
B.Pessimistic.
C.Reserved.
D.Negative.
Evidence of Ancient Hunters
Russian and Norwegian scientists have reported finding stone objects and animal bones in the far north of European Russia. The scientists say the objects provide the first evidence that ancient hunters lived in the area more than 30 thousand years ago. They say this is at least 15 thousand years earlier than experts had thought.
The Russian and Norwegian team worked at a camp along the Usa River and the Arctic Circle. The scientists say they found several ancient stone tools. They also found 123 bones from animals such as horses, reindeer(馴鹿)and wolves.
The scientists say their most important discovery was a tusk from an ancient elephant called a mammoth(猛犸). The huge, curved tooth was more than l meter long. The tusk is covered with small cuts. The scientists believe humans made the marks with sharp-edged stone tools.
The scientists used a process known as radiocarbon(放射性碳)dating to measure the age of the tusk. Radiocarbon dating shows the level of a radioactive form of carbon in a substance. The tests showed the tusk is about 36 thousand years old.
The scientists say they are not sure what kind of humans left the stone objects and bones along the river. They said the people were either early humans called Neanderthals(穴居人,尼安德特人) or modern humans. Modern humans spread through Europe and Asia 30 thousand years ago. The scientists say the ancient people needed a high level of social development to survive in the extremely cold environment.
The objects were discovered about 300 kilometers northeast of another area where scientists say humans once lived. That area has objects more closely linked to modern humans. Those objects are believed to be about 28 thousand years old.
Nature magazine also published a report by John Gowlett of the University of Liverpool in England. He said the discovery shows the ability of early humans to do the unexpected. He also said the discovery should renew debate about the effects of the climate on the movements of early human population.
1.Before people found stone objects and animal bones in the north of European Russia, some experts thought human beings lived in that area about
A.30 thousand years ago
B.20 thousand years ago
C.28 thousand years ago
D.15 thousand years ago
2.The following statements are true concerning the significance of the finding EXCEPT that
A.it brings forwards the time in which ancient hunters lived in that area
B.it provides the evidence of a high level of ancient human society
C.it showed the unexpected ability of the early humans
D.it indicates the effect of climate on the movement of early human population
3.Which is the most important discovery among the findings
A.A long elephant tusk.
B.Ancient stone tools.
C.123 bones from animals.
D.mammoth tusk covered with small cuts
4.How old is the tusk? About years old
A.25 thousand
B.28 thousand
C.36 thousand
D.40 thousand
5.What did the ancient people need to survive in the extremely cold environment
A.the ability to do the unexpected
B.a high level of social development
C.thick clothes
D.small animals to feed on
Happiness
A proverb allegedly (據(jù)說) from ancient China was widely spread in the West：“If you want to be happy for a few hours，go to get drunk;if you want the happiness to last three years，get married：if you want a lifetime happiness，take up gardening.”The reason for the last option is this：Gardening is not only useful;it helps you to identify yourself with nature，and thus brings you new joy each day besides improving your health.
A research of a US university that I've read gives a definition of happiness as what makes a person feel comfortably pleased. To put it specifically, happiness is an active state of mind where one thinks one's life is meaningful, satisfactory and comfortable. This should be something lasting rather than transitory.
Lots of people regard it the happiest to be at leisure. But according to the study, it is not a person with plenty of leisure but one at work that feels happy, especially those busy with work having little time for leisure. Happiness does not spell gains one is after but a desire to harvest what one is seeking for. People often do not cherish what they already have but yearn for what they cannot get. That is somewhat like a man indulging in dreams of numerous lovers while reluctant to settle down with the woman beside him.
Happiness is a game balancing between two ends -- what one has and what one wishes for, i.e. one's dream and the possibility to realize it. The study comes to this conclusion: A happy man is one who aims high but never forgets his actual situation; one who meets challenges that tap his ability and potentiality; one who is proud of his achievements and the recognition given to him. He has self-respect and self-confidence; treasures his own identity and loves freedom. He is sociable and enjoys wide-range communication with others; he is helpful and ready to accept assistance. He knows he is able to endure sufferings and frustrations; he is sensible enough to get fun from daily chores. He is a man capable of love and passion.
1.Gardening can bring lifelong happiness because
A.it is a profitable business.
B.it can improve a gardener's ability to remake nature.
C.a gardener can enjoy a very happy relationship in marriage.
D.nature is an unexhausted source of joy
2.The research of the US university found that most people feel happy when they
A.are at leisure.
B.take the job of gardening.
C.are after their goals.
D.own great properties.
3.Why does the writer mention "a man indulging in dreams of numerous lovers" (Lines 5 --6, Para. 3)?
A.To demonstrate the problem in marriage in modern society.
B.To illustrate a radical way to achieve happiness.
C.To criticize those who do not value what they already have.
D.To indicate that happiness covers something besides the desire to gain
4.What kind of person is more likely to be unhappy according to the study?
A.The one who has self-respect and confidence.
B.The one who is ambitious without consideration of his actual situation.
C.The one who can take pleasure in communicating with others.
D.The one who are ready to render help and accept help from others.
5.What is happiness?
A.A transitory state of mind.
B.Getting everything what one desires.
C.An all-working and no-leisure life.
D.A desire based on our actual situation.
