职称英语综合类A级:阅读判断练习Want to Be 100?

2013-2-19 来自于：课评集

　　综合类A级：阅读判断练习Want to Be 100?

　　Five neighbors at a central Missouri retirement community who are all centenarians get asked all the time: "How did you live to be 100?"

　　If you want to live to 100 or more， this rare group of five golden girls says the key to longevity(长寿)is working hard at a job you love and taking care of your body while youre at it.

　　Even though an estimated 70，000 people in the country are currently at the century mark or beyond in age， it is unusual to find five 100-year-olds living in one place.

　　The average life-span(寿命)of Americans is about two or three years short of an 80th birthday party. And most people dont want to cut out coffee， soda， alcohol， cigarettes， and eat healthy food.

　　"People tell me all the time， I dont want to live to be 100，"said Mildred Leaver， who turned 100 in June.

　　"I think thats just sad. Aging is attitude and I dont feel old，" said Leaver， a former educator who still drives her Buick around town.

　　It doesnt take long to see that Leaver and her neighbors Mildred Harris， Grace Wolfson， Gladys Stuart and Viola Semas， have a lot more in common than their longevity and lifelong healthy habits. All are 100 except Stuart， who is 101.

　　Even though their sight and hearing arent what they used to be， theyve all avoided illnesses that many elderly people are stricken with. Its been 50 years since Leaver beat cancer for the first and only time.

　　The common thread that connects these women is the decades of service to jobs each loved as a farmer， designer， school principal， bookkeeper and secretary. In the early years of their lives， gainfully employed women like them were just as rare as 100-year-olds are today.

　　1. Currently about 70，000 people are aged 100 or above in America.