The Doctor in America
Self-employed private physicians who charge a fee for each patient visit have been the norm for American medical practice. Most physicians have a contract relationship with one or more hospitals in their community. They refer their patients as needed to the hospital, which usually charges according to the number of days a patient stays and the facilities - X-rays, operating rooms, tests - he or she uses.
Some medical doctors are on salary. Salaried physicians may work as hospital staff members, or residents, who are often still in training. They may teach in medical schools, be hired by corporations to care for their workers or work for the federal government's Public Health Service.
Physicians are among the best-paid professionals in the United States. In the 1980s, it was not uncommon for medical doctors to earn incomes of more than $100,000 a year. Specialists, particularly surgeons, might earn several times that amount. Physicians list many reasons why they deserve to be so well rewarded for their work. One reason is the long and expensive preparation required to become a physician in the United States. Most would-be physicians first attend college for four years, which can cost nearly $20,000 a year at one of the best private institutions. Prospective physicians then attend medical school for four years. Tuition alone can exceed $10,000 a year. By the time they have obtained their medical degrees, many young physicians are deeply in debt. They still face three to five years of residency (住院医生实习期) in a hospital, the first year as an apprentice physician. The hours are long and the pay is relatively low.
Setting up a medical practice is expensive, too. Sometimes several physicians will decide to establish a group practice, so they can share the expense of maintaining an office and buying equipment. These physicians also take care of each other's patients in emergencies.
Physicians work long hours and must accept a great deal of responsibility. Many
medical procedures, even quite routine ones, involve risk. It is understandable that
physicians want to be well rewarded for making decisions which can mean the difference between life and death.
第 16 题 Many physicians in the US are self-employed private physicians.
A. Right
B. Wrong
C. Not mentioned
第一篇 Is the Tie a Necessity
Ties, or neckties, have been a symbol of politeness and elegance in Britain for centuries. But the casual Prime Minister Tony Blair has problems with them. Reports Suggest that even the civil servants may stop wearing ties. So, are the.. famously formal British really going to abandon the neckties
Maybe. Last week, the UK's Cabinet Secretary Andrew Turnbull openly welcomed a tieless era. He hinted that civil servants would soon be free of the costliest !2 inches of fabric that most men ever buy in their lives.
In fact, Blair showed this attitude when he had his first guests to a cocktail party. Many of them were celebrities (知名人士) without ties, which would have been
unimaginable even in the recent past.
For some more conservative British, the tie is a must for proper appearance. Eadier, Labor leader Jim Callaghan said he would have died rather than have his children seen in public without a tie. For people like Callaghan, the tie was a sign of being complete, of showing respect. Men were supposed to wear a tie when going to church, to work in the office, to a party - almost every social occasion.
But today, people have begun to accept a casual style. even for formal occasions.
The origin of the tie is tricky. It started as something called simply a "band". The term could mean anything around a man's neck. It appeared in finer ways in the 1630s. Frenchmen showed a love of this particular fashion statement. Their neckwear (颈饰) impressed Charles II, the king of England who was exiled (流放) to France at that time. When he returned to England in 1660, he brought this new fashion item along with him.
It wasn't, however, until the late 18th century that fancy young men introduced a more colorful, flowing piece of cloth that eventually became known as the tie. Then, clubs, military institutions and schools began to use colored and patterned ties to indicate the wearer's membership in the late 19th century. After that, the tie became a necessary item of clothing for British gentlemen.
But now, even gentlemen are getting tired of ties. Anyway, the day feels a bit easier when you wake up without having to decide which tie suits you and your mood.
第 30 题 The tie symbolizes all of the following except
A. respect.
B. elegance.
C. politeness.
D. democracy.
Generally speaking,dyslexia is more common in left—handed males than in right—handed females.
A. Right
B. Wrong
C. Not mentioned
Napping to a Healthier Heart?
Researchers say they have developed a simple test that can tell if a person with heart disease is likely to suffer a heart attack.The test measures levels of a protein in the blood .The researchers say people with high levels of this protein are at high risk of heart attack,heart failure or stroke.
Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo of the University of California in San Francisco led the team. For about four years,they studied almost one thousand patients with heart disease.The researchers tested the heart disease patients for a protein called NT-proBNP.Patients with the highest levels were nearly eight times more likely than those with the lowest levels to have a heart attack,heart failure or stroke.
The researchers say the presence of high levels of the protein in the blood shows that the heart muscle is under pressure in some way.The study involved mostly men,so the researchers could not say for sure that the results are also true for women.They say the patients with the highest levels of NT-proBNP were older and had other problems like diabetes or high blood pressure.
Other researchers say more studies are needed to confirm if knowing the protein levels to a heart patient should affect that person’s treatment.They also would like to know if more aggressive treatment6 could reduce the patient’s chance of a heart attack or stroke.The study appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association.
Could a little sleep during the middle of the day reduce the risk of a heart attack ? An unrelated study earlier this month in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that the answer may be yes In countries like the United States,afternoon naps are mostly for children-But they are common for adults in Mediterranean countries.And these countries generally have lower rates of heart disease .So scientists in the United States and Greece wondered if naps could play a part. Twenty-three thousand healthy adults took part in the study by Harvard University and the University of Athens.Those who took thirty-minute naps three times a week had a thirty-seven percent lower risk of death from heart problems than people who did not take naps.
The researchers say napping may improve heart health by reducing stress. They say the research suggests that naps are especially good for working men.But they say not enough female subjects died during the study to judge the benefits for women.
第 9 题 Paragraph 2_______