Young musicians in African countries are creating a new kind of pop music. The tunes and the rhythms of their music combine African traditions with various forms of music popular today, such as hip-hop, rap, rock, jazz, or reggae. The result is music that may sound familiar to listeners anywhere in the world, but at the same time is distinctly African. It is different also in another way: Many of the songs are very serious and they deal with important social or political issues inAfricatoday.

    Eric Wainaina is one of these African musicians. He grew up inNairobi,Kenya, in a family of musicians. As a teenager, he listened to pop music from theUnited States, and later he moved toBostonto study at the Berklee College of Music. Now he has produced a CD inKenya. Eric"s most popular song, "Land of ‘A Little Something’” is aboutKenya"s problem of bribery, or paying others for illegal favors. He wants people to listen to his songs and think about how to makeKenyaa better place to live.

    Another musician who writes serious songs is Witness Mwaijaga fromTanzania. Her own experiences have helped her understand the suffering of many African women. At the age of fifteen she lost her home, but she was luckier than other homeless young people. She could make a living by writing songs and singing on the street. By the time she was eighteen years old, she had become a star. Her songs are written in rap or hip-hop style about the problems that she sees inTanzania, especially AIDS and the lack of rights for women ¹.

    Baaba Maal, fromSenegal, also feels that pop music must go beyond entertainment. He says that inSenegal, storytellers have always been important people. In the past, they were the ones who kept the history of their people alive. Baaba believes that songwriters now have a similar responsibility. They must write about the world around them and help people understand how it could be better. The words of his songs are important, in fact. They speak of peace and cooperation among Africans, as well as the rights of women, love for one" s family, and saving the environment ².

    One ofSouth Africa"s most popular musicians is Brenda Fassie. She is sometimes compared to Madonna, the American pop star, because she likes to shock people in her shows. But she also likes to make people think. She became famous in the 1980s for her simple pop songs against apartheid. Now that apartheid has ended, her songs are about other issues in South African culture and life. To sing about these, she uses local African languages and a new pop style called kwaito.

    In recent years, people outside ofAfricahave also begun to listen to these young musicians. Through music, the younger generation of Africans are connecting with the rest of the world and, at the same time, influencing the rest of the world. 

词汇： 

reggae /"regei/ n. 瑞格舞（西印度群岛的舞曲）

bribery ["braɪbərɪ] n. 行贿，贿赂

apartheid [əˈpɑ:tˌhaɪt, -ˌheɪt] n. 种族隔离

注释：

1. Her songs are written in rap or hip-hop style about the problems that she sees in Tanzania,especially AIDS and the lack of rights for women.她用嘻哈和说唱的风格写歌，歌曲的内容是坦桑尼亚的各种问题，特别是艾滋和女性权利的缺失。

2. They speak of peace and cooperation among Africans, as well as the rights of women, love forone"s family, and saving the environment.他倡导在非洲要和平与协作，同时也包括妇女权利、热爱家庭和保护环境。

Witness Mwaijaga writes about the problems of women partly because____.

A:she has had a difficult life herself B:there are many problems in Tanzania C:she has had an easy life herself D:there are no other women smgers

The question of where insights come from has become a hot topic in neuroscience, despite the fact that they are not easy to induce experimentally in a laboratory. Dr. Bhattacharya and Dr. Sheth have taken a creative approach. They have selected some brain-teasing but practical problems in the hope that these would get closer to mimicking real insight: To qualify, a puzzle had to be simple, not too widely known and without a methodical solution. The researchers then asked 18 young adults to try to solve these problems while their brainwaves were monitored using an electroencephalograph (EEG).
A typical brain-teaser went like this. There are three light switches on the ground-floor wall of a three-storey house. Two of the switches do nothing, but one of them controls a bulb on the second floor. When you begin, the bulb is off. You can only make one visit to the second floor. How do you work out which switch is the one that controls the light
This problem, or one equivalent to it, was presented on a computer screen to a volunteer when that volunteer pressed a button. The electrical activity of the volunteer’s brain (his brainwave pattern) was recorded by the EEG from the button’s press. Each volunteer was given 30 seconds to read the puzzle and another 60 to 90 seconds to solve it.
Some people worked it out; others did not. The significant point, though, was that the EEG predicted who would fall where. Those volunteers who went on to have an insight (in this case that on their one and only visit to the second floor they could use not just the light hut the heat produced by a bulb as evidence of an active switch) had had different brainwave activity from those who never got it. In the right frontal cortex, a part of the brain associated with shifting mental states, there was an increase in high-frequency gamma waves (those with 47-48 cycles a second). Moreover, the difference was noticeable up to eight seconds before the volunteer realised he had found the solution. Dr. Sheth thinks this may he capturing the “transformational thought” in action, before the brain’s “owner” is consciously aware of it.
This finding poses fascinating questions about how the brain really works. Conscious thought, it seems, does not solve problems. Instead, unconscious processing happens in the background and only delivers the answer to consciousness once it has been arrived at. Food for further thought, indeed.
Which kind of problems can he used in Dr. Bhattacharya and Dr. Sheth’s research

A:Theoretical brain-teasing problems, B:Simple but rarely known problems. C:Puzzling hut realistic problems. D:Simple but theoretical problems.

The question of where insights come from has become a hot topic in neuroscience, despite the fact that they are not easy to induce experimentally in a laboratory. Dr. Bhattacharya and Dr. Sheth have taken a creative approach. They have selected some brain-teasing but practical problems in the hope that these would get closer to mimicking real insight: To qualify, a puzzle had to be simple, not too widely known and without a methodical solution. The researchers then asked 18 young adults to try to solve these problems while their brainwaves were monitored using an electroencephalograph (EEG).
A typical brain-teaser went like this. There are three light switches on the ground-floor wall of a three-storey house. Two of the switches do nothing, but one of them controls a bulb on the second floor. When you begin, the bulb is off. You can only make one visit to the second floor. How do you work out which switch is the one that controls the light
This problem, or one equivalent to it, was presented on a computer screen to a volunteer when that volunteer pressed a button. The electrical activity of the volunteer’s brain (his brainwave pattern) was recorded by the EEG from the button’s press. Each volunteer was given 30 seconds to read the puzzle and another 60 to 90 seconds to solve it.
Some people worked it out; others did not. The significant point, though, was that the EEG predicted who would fall where. Those volunteers who went on to have an insight (in this case that on their one and only visit to the second floor they could use not just the light hut the heat produced by a bulb as evidence of an active switch) had had different brainwave activity from those who never got it. In the right frontal cortex, a part of the brain associated with shifting mental states, there was an increase in high-frequency gamma waves (those with 47-48 cycles a second). Moreover, the difference was noticeable up to eight seconds before the volunteer realised he had found the solution. Dr. Sheth thinks this may he capturing the “transformational thought” in action, before the brain’s “owner” is consciously aware of it.
This finding poses fascinating questions about how the brain really works. Conscious thought, it seems, does not solve problems. Instead, unconscious processing happens in the background and only delivers the answer to consciousness once it has been arrived at. Food for further thought, indeed.

A:Theoretical brain-teasing problems, B:Simple but rarely known problems. C:Puzzling hut realistic problems. D:Simple but theoretical problems.

A number of persons have expressed concern about possible health dangers to workers who use devices called video-display terminals (终端) or VDTs. These are the devices used to show computer information. Some reports link VDTs to health disorders including eye problems and muscle problems. Even the health of the pregnant women and their unborn babies is said to be endangered. Video-display terminals produce low levels of the electromagnetic radiation(电磁辐射). Experts say most modern VDTs have been designed to limit the dangers from such radiation. However, study shows that even low levels of electromagnetic radiations can affect the growth of the cells. As a result, some doctors advise women to stop working with VDTs while they are pregnant. One study found women who work with VDTs in early pregnancy are more likely than others to have their pregnancy end unexpectedly. Researchers said that this does not necessarily mean that VDTs themselves cause problems. Some experts said the findings show working conditions, not the machines, cause the problems. Law makers in m6re than American states have proposed bills to control working conditions for VDT operators.

A:Eye problems. B:Muscle problems. C:Health disorders. D:Heart troubl

Active in Old Age Keeps People Mobile
People over 70 who aren’t active are more likely to develop problems walking or climbing stairs within a few years, according to a new study.
These findings suggest that it’s very important to stay (51) in old age, study author Dr. Marjolein Visser told Reuters Health.
　 　"Physical activity in old age is as important (52) taking your medications(药物), " Visser noted. "You do not need to join an expensive, fancy sports club with high-tech (高科技的) equipment. Your body will already (53) from regular walking."
Visser, a Dutch (荷兰的)scholar, explained that (54) active helps prevent people from becoming breathless during simple activities, increase muscle mass and strength, and maintain the balance people need to walk up stairs, for instance.
To investigate how important exercise is to older adults, Visser’s team interviewed 3,075 men and (55) between the ages of 70 and 79, all of whom said they had no problems walking one-quarter of a mile or climbing (56) . The investigators followed the subjects for 4-1/2 years, noting who developed problems (57) and climbing stairs.
During the study, 34 percent of men and 47 (58) of women said they began to struggle with walking and climbing stairs. People (59) were inactive were twice as likely to report these problems as people who said they got regular exercise.
People who didn’t exercise but had active lifestyles appeared to be at a somewhat higher risk of developing (60) walking and climbing stairs, relative to people who exercised (61) 。 Still, leading an active lifestyle appeared to protect people (62) problems better than being generally inactive, the researchers report in the Journal of the American Geriatrics (老年医学)Society.
Among people who were inactive, (63) who walked even a little bit such as brisk (轻快的)walking for a little over an hour per week - were at a lower (64) of mobility (可动性) problems."If you do not like to exercise or you cannot exercise (65) of serious health problems or functional limitations, do try to be as active as possible, " Visser advised.

A:symptoms B:issues C:problems D:chances

? ?下面的短文有15处空白，请根据短文内容为每处空白确定1个最佳选项。

A:symptoms B:issues C:problems D:chances

Active in Old Age Keeps People Mobile 　　People over 70 who aren’t active are more likely to develop problems walking or climbing stairs within a few years, according to a new study. 　　These findings suggest that it’s very important to stay_______ (51) in old age, study author Dr. Marjolein Visser told Reuters Health. 　　"Physical activity in old age is as important_______（52） taking your medications（药物），" Visser noted. "You do not need to join an expensive， fancy sports club with high-tech （高科技的） equipment. Your body will already_______（53）from regular walking." 　　Visser， a Dutch （荷兰的）scholar，explained that_______（54） active helps prevent people from becoming breathless during simple activities， increase muscle mass and strength， and maintain the balance people need to walk up stairs， for instance. 　　To investigate how important exercise is to older adults, Visser’s team interviewed 3,075 men and_______ (55) between the ages of 70 and 79, all of whom said they had no problems walking one-quarter of a mile or climbing_______ (56). The investigators followed the subjects for 4-1/2 years, noting who developed problems_______ (57) and climbing stairs. 　　During the study, 34 percent of men and 47_______ (58) of women said they began to struggle with walking and climbing stairs. People_______ (59) were inactive were twice as likely to report these problems as people who said they got regular exercise. 　　People who didn’t exercise but had active lifestyles appeared to be at a somewhat higher risk of developing _______（60） walking and climbing stairs， relative to people who exercised _______（61）。 Still，leading an active lifestyle appeared to protect people_______ （62） problems better than being generally inactive， the researchers report in the Journal of the American Geriatrics （老年医学）Society. 　　Among people who were inactive，_______（63）who walked even a little bit such as brisk （轻快的）walking for a little over an hour per week - were at a lower _______（64）of mobility （可动性） problems. 　　"If you do not like to exercise or you cannot exercise_______ (65) of serious health problems or functional limitations, do try to be as active as possible, " Visser advised.

A:symptoms B:issues C:problems D:chances

Active in Old Age Keeps People Mobile People over 70 who aren’t active are more likely to develop problems walking or climbing stairs within a few years, according to a new study. These findings suggest that it’s very important to stay _____(51) in old age, study author Dr. Marjolein Visser told Reuters Health. "Physical activity in old age is as important _____(52) taking your medications(药物)," Visser noted. "You do not need to join an expensive, fancy sports club with high-tech (高科技的) equipment. Your body will already _____(53) from regular walking." Visser, a Dutch (荷兰的) scholar, explained that _____(54) active helps prevent people from becoming breathless during simple activities, increase muscle mass and strength, and maintain the balance people need to walk up stairs, for instance. To investigate how important exercise is to older adults, Visser’s team interviewed 3,075 men and _____(55) between the ages of 70 and 79, all of whom said they had no problems walking one-quarter of a mile or climbing _____(56). The investigators followed the subjects for 4-1/2 years, noting who developed problems _____(57) and climbing stairs. During the study, 34 percent of men and 47 _____(58) of women said they began to struggle with walking and climbing stairs. People _____(59) were inactive were twice as likely to report these problems as people who said they got regular exercise. People who didn’t exercise but had active lifestyles appeared to be at a somewhat higher risk of developing _____(60) walking and climbing stairs, relative to people who exercised _____(61). Still, leading an active lifestyle appeared to protect people _____(62) problems better than being generally inactive, the researchers report in the Journal of the American Geriatrics (老年医学) Society. Among people who were inactive, _____(63) who walked even a little bit such as brisk (轻快的) walking for a little over an hour per week - were at a lower _____(64) of mobility (可动性) problems. "If you do not like to exercise or you cannot exercise _____(65) of serious health problems or functional limitations, do try to be as active as possible, " Visser advised.

A:symptoms B:issues C:problems D:chances