Pаssаge 7: Blооd is cаrried frоm the heart to all parts of your body in vessels called arteries. Blood pressure is the force of the blood pushing against the walls of the arteries. Each time the heart beats (about 60–70 times a minute at rest), it pumps out blood into the arteries. Your blood pressure is at its highest when the heart beats, pumping the blood. This is called systolic (sis-TOL-ik) pressure. When the heart is at rest, between beats, your blood pressure falls. This is the diastolic (di-a-STOL-ik) pressure. Blood pressure is always given as these two numbers, the systolic and diastolic pressures. Both are important. Usually they are written one above or before the other, such as 120/80 mmHg (measured in millimeters of mercury, a unit for measuring pressure). When the two measurements are written down, the systolic pressure is the first or top number, and the diastolic pressure is the second or bottom number (for example, 120/80). If your blood pressure is 120/80, you say that it is "120 over 80." Blood pressure changes during the day. It is lowest as you sleep and rises when you get up. It also can rise when you are excited, nervous, or active. Still, for most of your waking hours, your blood pressure stays pretty much the same when you are sitting or standing still. That level should be lower than 120/80 mmHg. When the level stays high, 140/90 mmHg or higher, you have high blood pressure. With high blood pressure, the heart works harder, your arteries take a beating, and your chances of a stroke, heart attack, and kidney problems are greater. 19. The overall pattern of organization of this passage is
Pаssаge 5: Severаl factоrs are linked tо rоad rage, the term used to describe he attitude of extremely angry, hostile, and aggressive drivers. First, road congestion has become worse in the past 10 years due to an increase in both the number of cars and total miles driven, without an expansion in the amount of road space available. Road congestion adds to the amount of time a driver spends on the road and frequently causes delay as well as late of missed appointments. This is an added stressor for people whose schedules are already overloaded due to work and family demands. Thus, poor time management skills may contribute to road rage. Finally a lack of anger control often leads to road rage. Demands on time increase the tendency to overeat to what otherwise might be considered slight inconveniences. Thus, the angry, stressed driver is likely to see the presence of others on the road as “unreasonable” behavior and an excuse to disregard legal and safety rules so that she or he can get past the “morons.” 12. The overall pattern of organization is