Gravity has been at the top of the science agenda since the start of Mars missions. In the earlier days of space travel, scientists tried to overcome the force of gravity so that a rocket could shoot __26__ Earth’s pull in order to land humans on the moon. Today, they are more interested in how reduced gravity affects the astronauts’ __27__ condition. Our bodies have evolved to exist within Earth’s gravity, not in the weightlessness of space or the microgravity of Mars. When on Earth, we have more fluids in our lower body because they are pulled down by Earth’s gravity. However, with the absence of gravity in the outer space, our body fluids redistribute, shifting toward the upper body and the head.  __28__ , the astronauts have swollen, puffy faces, very much resembling that of the round-headed Charlie Brown in the famous comic strip. This “Charlie Brown effect” will be more  __29__ when the astronauts go on their Mars missions, which will take about three years to complete, much longer than missions to the moon. Moreover, the effect is often  __30__ space motion sickness, headaches, and nausea. Such a syndrome is considered the top health risk for the astronauts, and scientists are still trying to figure out how it may be prevented.

       Ferris wheels are popular and beloved by everyone from small to big attraction. Children sitting in baskets are lifted  __31__ into the sky by an enormous wheel. The first Ferris wheel, named after its American inventor, Gale Ferris,  __32__ 130 years old in 2023. The Ferris wheel was seen and ridden by people visiting the world’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago. It was 250 feet  __33__ diameter, which was six times taller than any wheel at that time. It took 20 minutes  __34__ that wheel to turn around once. Thrill seekers paid 50 cents to take a ride. Today, Ferris wheels are still the centerpiece of any amusement park. Children and adults alike love the view from the top and the scary sensation of dropping back to earth. To celebrate the Ferris wheel’s 130th birthday, the Illinois State Fair plans to erect another wheel, making  __35__ of 13 wheels being set up in one location.

        A bagel is a ring-shaped bread product made from yeasted wheat dough. It is first boiled for a short time in water and then baked. The result is a chewy and doughy interior with a brown and crispy exterior. It  __36__ a wide variety of flavors. People can add cheese, ham or jam to a bagel and eat it for breakfast or dessert. It is a popular product in North America and Europe, especially in major cities with large Jewish populations. Jewish people have been  __37__ producing the first bagels since the 19th century, which have long been connected with Jewish traditions. During the Sabbath, cooking was prohibited as a rule. Therefore, many Jewish families would make bagels ready beforehand so that  __38__ the Sabbath was over, they could be baked quickly and consumed. The basic roll-with-a-hole design is hundreds of years old and has practical advantages like providing a  __39__ baking of the dough. The hole can be used to thread strings,  __40__ for easier handling and more convenient for vendor displays.

Article 1 

          Multiple Sclerosis (MS) can be a devastating disease. In MS, for reasons still unknown, the body’s immune system attacks the myelin insulation of nerve fibers. This can cause some of nerve fibers to die, while others become ineffective during a prolonged period of regeneration. The effects of this nerve damage can include reduced or spasmodic control of the body, and lowered capacity or disruptions of the senses. For many people, a vision problem is the first symptom of MS.
         Optic neuritis, an inflammation of the optic nerve, is the most common visual disorder associated with MS. Double vision (diplopia) and involuntary movement of the eyes (nystagmus) are the two other problems. Nystagmus and diplopia are both linked to inflammation of brainstem areas that control movement of the eye. The three disorders are not linked to each other and usually occur separately.
        Symptoms of optic neuritis include blurred vision, dimming of colors, eye pain that’s worsened by eye movement, blind spots and loss of contrast sensitivity. These symptoms may worsen over the first few days or two weeks. Then the condition usually starts improving. Some people recover within a month, while others need up to a year to recover. Most people regain normal or close-to-normal sight.
        Temporary flare-ups of optic neuritis symptoms may also occur. Hot showers or baths, exercise or a fever may all trigger dimmed color, blurred vision and other visual problems. These heat-related symptoms resolve when the patient cools off, be it from ice packs, over-the-counter fever reducers, cool drinks, air conditioning or a soak in a cool tub of water.

         Before babies learn to talk and have no idea of dance, they express happiness through simple rhythmic movements or what we later recognize as simple dances. However, humans are not the only species that can dance. There are birds that actually have group dances: circling, bowing, advancing, and retreating in unison. Some species could learn rhythm from birds. For example, bees flirt with dance as part of their mating rituals. 

         Nevertheless, it is only human beings that have adapted dance to therapeutic purposes. Dance as therapy has a long history. Primitive peoples first danced instinctively and, after a while, found that repeated rhythmic movements produced a good feeling. Associations were formed between dance and this positive effect on the mind and emotions. This was the birth of dance therapy.
         Dance has always seemed to have a magic healing power. It was used for a wide variety of purposes and on different occasions: religious ceremonies, war dances, hunting dances, rain dances, planting and harvesting dances, marriage and funeral dances. Sadly, today many “advanced” industrial societies have lost many original functions of dance. Purposeful dances have been replaced, for example, with rave dancing which involves shaking your body at a nightclub. Even so, in these cases, however, the ritualistic and therapeutic effect of dance can still be seen: the low lights, loud insistent rhythms, and group activity, often building up into a kind of mass hysteria or ecstasy.
       But, the “primitive” use of dance as therapy has recently seen a huge revival. Never before has there been such interest in courses offering dance therapy. There are nearly two million websites for dance therapy on the Internet, and dance therapy groups around the world combine pleasure with health and well-being. Dance therapy nowadays, in fact, is taken very seriously by both alternative and conventional medical practitioners. It would seem that the “dance of life” continues to move us all.