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Passage FiveOne of Dara Torres’ trainers is walking all over me. Literally. I’m lying on my stomach as Steve Sierra concentrates his entire 160 lb. on my glutei and hamstrings. It hurts, but in a good way. It’s all part of the flexibility--and strength-building regimen that Torres, who is making history, as the oldest swimmer to compete in the Olympics, credits with getting her 41-year-old body in good-enough shape to race athletes half her age. But resistance stretching, as it is called, is not just for the Olympians among us. Its focus on maximizing muscle flexibility has been useful for everyone from injured NBA players to children with cerebral palsy. The exercises may not look like much--they generally require no equipment other than a mat and maybe a towel and some straps--and they may not feel that strenuous, but you know the next day that you’ve had a workout. Resistance stretching centers on flexing your muscles even as you stretch them; for example, instead of simply releasing a leg lift, resist the urge to let your quad muscles relax on the way down. Unlike holding a muscle in a passively stretched position, the resistance route actively lengthens muscles through constant movement. "Resistance stretching goes deep into the joints and grabs more muscle fibers to increase strength and flexibility," says Tierney, Sierra’s partner. "It takes twice as much force to stretch a muscle as it does to contract it." I’m not convinced yet, but after they guide me through a few exercises my muscles do start to feel more energized I can see why Torres likes to be worked on half an hour before she swims. Although Tierney and Sierra have certified 250 trainers through weekend workshops, you might be hard-pressed to find a class at your local gym. That may have something to do with the fact that stretching has always been deemed the most disposable part of any exercise regimen. "People usually only think about flexibility and stretching when they are older and getting stiff or when they are injured," says Tiernjcy. "It’s just not considered sexy." That could change. As doctors urge even us non-Olympians to remain physically active throughout our lives, maybe we’ll start to pay more attention to stretching. After all, look what it does for Tortes. During the resistance stretching, one needs to（）
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Passage ThreeEver since the 1750s, when the writer, satirist, statesman and inventor Benjamin Franklin put political cartooning on the map by publishing the first cartoon of the genre in America, artists have combined their talent, wit and political beliefs to create cartoons that enrage, enlighten or simply engage the viewer. A picture may paint a thousand words, but a cartoon provokes, protests and entertains all at once. It is this that makes cartoonists so valuable and influential in times of crisis. Today, that crisis is climate change, and clever imagery can give new impetus to our struggle to combat global warming. The organizers of Earthworks 2008, a global cartoon competition, believe that art and humor are simple ways to get the environmental message across. "We set up the competition to give cartoonists around the world a platform on which to express themselves," says John Renard, one of the Earthworks organizers. "We hoped the competition would stimulate cartoonists to use their pens and wit to help combat environmental devastation and give new impetus to our desperate fight to stop global warming," he says. "After all, humor is often a valuable key in the struggle to win hearts and minds." But despite the sharp wit that pervades the cartoons, climate change is no laughing matter for their creators. The 50 or so countries from which the 600 competition entries were sent are all suffering the effects of global warming, some more dramatically than others. Two cartoons were sent from Burma, where in May this year a tropical storm tore through five regions along the western coast, killing at least 100,000 people, and leaving millions more without shelter, food, or clean water. Although governments around the world are reluctant to suggest, officially, that the disaster in Burma is a direct result of global warming, there’s little doubt that it will have added to the tropical storm’s destructive power. Studies published in the journals Nature and Science have demonstrated a link between rising sea temperatures and increased wind-speed of tropical storms and hurricanes, and even US-government-funded organizations such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration admit that a warming of the global climate will affect the severity of storms. "Experiencing first-hand the catastrophic effects of climate change allowed these artists to give their cartoons a special sharpness," says Revent. What does the passage say about the Burma disaster（）
Time for another global-competitiveness alert. In the Third International Mathematics and Science Study--which last year tested a half-million students in 41 countries- American eighth graders 21 below the world average in math. And that’s not even 22 part. Consider this as you try to 23 which countries will dominate the technology markets of the 21st century: the top 10 percent of America’s math students scored about the same as the average kid in the global 24 , Singapore. It isn’t exactly a news flash these days 25 Americans score behind the curve on international tests. But educators say this study is 26 because it monitored variables both inside and outside the classroom. Laziness- the factor often 27 for Americans’ poor performance--is not the culprit here. American students 28 spend more time in class than pupils in Japan and Germany. 29 , they get more homework and watch the same amount of TV. The problem, educators say, is not the kids but a curriculum that is too 30 . The study found that lessons for U.S. eighth graders contained topics mastered by seventh graders in other countries. Teachers actually agree that Americans need to 31 their kids to more sophisticated math earlier. Unfortunately, experts say, the teachers don’t recognize that 32 these concepts are taught is as important as the concepts themselves. Most educators rely 33 on textbooks and rote learning (死记硬背) . While many textbooks cover 34 ideas, most do so superficially, 35 students with the techniques but not the mastery of the broader principles. 26（）
Time for another global-competitiveness alert. In the Third International Mathematics and Science Study--which last year tested a half-million students in 41 countries- American eighth graders 21 below the world average in math. And that’s not even 22 part. Consider this as you try to 23 which countries will dominate the technology markets of the 21st century: the top 10 percent of America’s math students scored about the same as the average kid in the global 24 , Singapore. It isn’t exactly a news flash these days 25 Americans score behind the curve on international tests. But educators say this study is 26 because it monitored variables both inside and outside the classroom. Laziness- the factor often 27 for Americans’ poor performance--is not the culprit here. American students 28 spend more time in class than pupils in Japan and Germany. 29 , they get more homework and watch the same amount of TV. The problem, educators say, is not the kids but a curriculum that is too 30 . The study found that lessons for U.S. eighth graders contained topics mastered by seventh graders in other countries. Teachers actually agree that Americans need to 31 their kids to more sophisticated math earlier. Unfortunately, experts say, the teachers don’t recognize that 32 these concepts are taught is as important as the concepts themselves. Most educators rely 33 on textbooks and rote learning (死记硬背) . While many textbooks cover 34 ideas, most do so superficially, 35 students with the techniques but not the mastery of the broader principles. 32（）
Time for another global-competitiveness alert. In the Third International Mathematics and Science Study--which last year tested a half-million students in 41 countries- American eighth graders 21 below the world average in math. And that’s not even 22 part. Consider this as you try to 23 which countries will dominate the technology markets of the 21st century: the top 10 percent of America’s math students scored about the same as the average kid in the global 24 , Singapore. It isn’t exactly a news flash these days 25 Americans score behind the curve on international tests. But educators say this study is 26 because it monitored variables both inside and outside the classroom. Laziness- the factor often 27 for Americans’ poor performance--is not the culprit here. American students 28 spend more time in class than pupils in Japan and Germany. 29 , they get more homework and watch the same amount of TV. The problem, educators say, is not the kids but a curriculum that is too 30 . The study found that lessons for U.S. eighth graders contained topics mastered by seventh graders in other countries. Teachers actually agree that Americans need to 31 their kids to more sophisticated math earlier. Unfortunately, experts say, the teachers don’t recognize that 32 these concepts are taught is as important as the concepts themselves. Most educators rely 33 on textbooks and rote learning (死记硬背) . While many textbooks cover 34 ideas, most do so superficially, 35 students with the techniques but not the mastery of the broader principles. 30（）
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