简单的英语小短文= =暑假英语要录音.半个小时= =不要太短,稍微简单点,有多少发多少.

简单的英语小短文
= =
暑假英语要录音.
半个小时= =
不要太短,稍微简单点,有多少发多少.

Brown-Glass Rose
Once,when his father was alive,Langdon had heard his mom begging his father to “stop and smell the roses.” That year,Langdon bought his father a tiny blown-glass rose for Christmas.It was the most
beautiful thing Langdon had ever seen ...the way the sun caught it,throwing a rainbow of colors on the wall.“It’s lovely,” his father had said when he opened it,kissing Robert on the forehead.“Let’s find a safe spot for it.” Then his father had carefully placed the rose on a high dusty shelf in the darkest corner of the living room.A few days later,Langdon got a stool,retrieved the rose,and took it back to the store.His father never noticed it was gone.
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blood types
Yael:I just read about an exciting technique.Researchers found a way to convert types A and B blood into type O blood--the type that can be transfused into any patient.This advance could help avoid blood shortages in the future.
Don:Wow,that is exciting.But what makes type O blood so special?
Y:Blood types result from different carbohydrates,called antigens,on the surface of human blood cells.Your blood "type" denotes the kinds of antigens you have on the surface of your cells.People with type A blood have A antigens; those with type B have B antigens.If you have both kinds of antigens,you're type AB; if you have neither one,you're type O.
Your immune system recognizes the antigens on your blood as "self",but attack cells with "foreign" antigens.So if you ever need a blood transfusion,it's important that you only receive blood compatible with your own type.
D:I see.So if a type A person receives type B or AB blood,her immune system will see the B-antigens as foreign,and attack the donor blood cells?
Y:Exactly.But type O is called the "universal donor" since it doesn't have any antigens that would set off the body's defense system.
A team of Danish scientists has identified enzymes that remove the A and B antigens from blood cells.The enzymes,which were extracted from a bacteria and a fungus,essentially change any donated blood into type O.
Clinical trials are underway to test whether the treated blood is safe and effective.If so,the technology could help save lives,since type O blood is such a precious commodity.
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The mathematical marriage predictor.
You might not think that mathematicians have anything particularly relevant to say about your love life.But you'd be wrong--if we're talking about James Murray,a mathematician at the University of Washington in Seattle who teamed up with Psychologist John Gottman to explore the rocky road of romance.Here's what the two did.They videotaped hundreds of volunteer couples discussing such things as sex and money.You know--the sorts of things on which everybody always agrees,right?
Then they broke down behavioral responses to these high-pressure discussions into recognizable groups,such as whether partner A can be persuaded by partner B,or whether partner A takes offense when partner B makes a cutting remark.A set of equations was drawn up that represented the interactions of these different factors in mathematical form,leading to...Ding!...a prediction as to whether this marriage would last.
Sound like a stretch?Think you can't possibly tell that much about a couple from a single interview and some calculations?Four years later Murray and Gottman did a follow-up to see whether the equation had made the right prediction.It sure had--their Mathematical Marriage Predictor was right an astonishing ninety-four percent of the time.
Some conspicuous findings included the fact that,in marriages that lasted,laughing occurred five times more frequently than in couples destined for break-up.The team also found that the one behavior that most consistently predicted divorce was the appearance of a contemptuous or mocking facial expression on one partner's face when the other one spoke.According to the Mathematical Marriage Predictor,it's "roll your eyes and say goodbyes."