Say you meet with difficulty, what’s the first thing you do? Call your best friend and ask for help? It turns out that doing this may be better for you than you think. Researchers find that friendship has a big influence on your health, well-being and business.
One study from scientists recently found that older people with a large circle of friends were 22% less likely to die during a 10-year period than those with fewer friends. Other researchers discovered that having a strong social network could improve brain health as we age.
Even more interesting, feeling close to your friends may give you a different view on things. Researchers gathered 34 college students out side and asked them to estimate the steepness(估计陡峭程度) of a hill after climbing it. Those standing with friends gave lower estimates, and the longer the friends had known each other, the less steep the hill appeared.
What is the reason that friends can make obstacles seem less difficult? “People with stronger friendship networks feel that there is someone they can turn to,” said Karen A. Roberto, director of the center of the hospital at Virginia Tech. “Friendship is a valued resource (宝贵的资源).”
It is truly the fact. Friends make your life better. They provide support in hard times. They inspire you to make changes in your life, encourage you to set goals and cheer you on every step of the way until you reach them.
Want to find out more about the power of friendship? Read “Be a Better Friend”, “Make New Friends” and “Keep the Old”.
1. According to the author, if you’ve lost your job you should .
A. turn to your best friend B. ask for advice from your teacher
C. face it bravely by yourself D. ask your parents for help
2. We can learn from the study in Paragraph 2 that .
A. people with a lot of friends can stay away from illnesses
B. people with many friends may enjoy a longer life
C. 22% of the people who have fewer friends have a short life
D. those who have fewer friends may die 10 years earlier.
3. The underlined word “obstacles” in Paragraph 4 probably refers to some thing___________
A. that you are hoping to achieve by a plan
B. that happens to you when you are working
C. that makes it difficult for us to achieve something
D. that you have been trying to do
4. The fifth paragraph was written to tell us that .
A. we should make many friends B. true friendship lives long
C. friend ship has changed us D. friendship should be valued
Andy rode slowly on his way to school, day-dreaming about the fishing trip that his father had promised him. He was so busy dreaming about all the fish he would catch that he was unaware of everything else around him.
He rode along until a strange sound drew him to the present. He came to a stop and looked curiously up to the sky. What he saw shocked and terrified him. A huge swarm of bees filled the sky like a black cloud and the buzzing mass seemed to be heading angrily towards him.
With no time to waste, Andy sped off in the opposite direction, riding furiously—but without knowing how to escape the swarm. As the bees came closer, his panic increased. Andy knew that he was sensitive to bee stings(蜇). The last sting had landed him in hospital—and that was only one bee sting! Suddenly, his father’s words came to him. “When you are in a tight situation, don’t panic. Use your brain and think your way out of it.”
On a nearby hill, he could see smoke waving slowly skywards from the chimney of the Nelson family home. “Bees don’t like smoke,” he thought. “They couldn’t get into the house.” But Andy knew he could not reach the house in time. He estimated that the bees would catch up with him soon.
Suddenly, out of the corner of his eyes, he spotted a small dam used by Mr. Nelson. Off his bike and into the cool water he dived, disappearing below the surface and away from the savage insects. After holding his breath for as long as he could, Andy came up for air and noticed the bees had gone. Dragging himself out of the dam, he struggled up the hilly slope and rang the doorbell. Mrs. Nelson took him inside and rang his mother.Why did Andy fail to notice the swarm of bees earlier?
| A．He was riding to school. |
| B．He was listening to a strange sound. |
| C．He was going fishing with his father. |
| D．He was lost in the thought of the fishing trip. |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned about the swarm of bees in the passage?
| A．They crowded like a black cloud. |
| B．They shocked and terrified Andy. |
| C．They tried to attack Andy in a mass. |
| D．They made Andy stay in hospital for two days. |
How did Andy avoid the bees in the end?
| A．He asked Mr. Nelson for help. |
| B．He hid himself under the water. |
| C．He rushed into the Nelson house. |
| D．He rode off in the opposite direction. |
Which of the following can best describe Andy’s escape from the bees?
| A．No pains, no gains. |
| B．Once bitten, twice shy. |
| C．Where there is a will, there is a way. |
| D．In time of danger, one’s mind works fast. |
Way of Life for Students
The Internet is way of life for US college students, with research showing them to be one of the most connected groups.
A recent study by Harris Interactive and 360 Youth found that 93 percent of American college students visit the Internet, and this market is expected to grow from 15.2 million in 2003 to 16.4 million in 2007. That is slow but could be the result of the already high number of college Internet users.
About 88 percent of American college students own a computer, and more than half have broadband(宽带)connections. Furthermore, 67 percent own cell phones and 36 percent use their mobile devices to visit the Internet. Study findings are that 42 percent go online mainly to communicate socially, and 72 percent of college students check emails at least once a day, with 66 percent using at least two email addresses.
The most popular online social activity is forwarding messages to friends or family, with 37 percent of college students saying they do so. The study also looked beyond the Internet surfing(冲浪)habits and into the buying habits of this group, and found them responsible for more than US $ 210 billion in sales last year alone.
College students have learned how to spend their money, with 93 percent saying low prices were important when shopping.
The study also showed that 65 percent make loan(贷款)payments; 41 percent of freshmen have a credit card; and 79 percent of seniors have a credit card. A significant number of charges on these credit cards are likely to be for entertainment and leisure expenses.College students in the US, as this passage shows,______.
| A．waste much time visiting the Internet |
| B．lead an exciting life by using the Internet |
| C．don’t have to learn their lessons in their classrooms |
| D．spend too much time, in the opinion of the writer, visiting the Internet |
To communicate with friends, nearly half of the college students use________.
| A．letters | B．telephones |
| C．text messages on mobile phones | D．emails |
I was in a strange city I didn’t know at all, and what’s more, I could not speak a word of the language. On my second day I got on the first bus that passed, rode on it for several stops, then got off and walked on. The first two hours passed pleasantly enough, then I decided to turn back to my hotel for lunch. After walking about for some time, I decided I had better ask the way. The trouble was that the only word I knew of the language was the name of the street in which I lived, and even that I pronounced badly. I stopped to ask a newspaper-seller. He handed me a paper. I shook my head and repeated the name of the street and he put the paper into my hands. I had to give him some money and went on my way. The next person I asked was a policeman. He listened to me carefully, nodded and gently took me by the arm. There was a strange look in his eyes as he pointed left and right and left again. I nodded politely and began walking in the direction he pointed.
About an hour passed and I noticed that the houses were getting fewer and fewer and green fields were appearing on either side of me. I had come all the way into the countryside. The only thing left for me to do was find the nearest railway station.The newspaper-seller______.
| A．didn’t know where the hotel was |
| B．didn’t understand what the writer said |
| C．could understand what the writer said |
| D．didn’t want to take the money from the writer |
From the story we know that the policeman______.
| A．was kind but didn’t understand the writer |
| B．told the writer where to take a train |
| C．knew what the writer really meant |
| D．was cold-hearted and didn’t help the writer |
What can we learn from the last paragraph?
| A．The writer got close to the hotel where he stayed. |
| B．The writer got to the hotel with the policeman’s help. |
| C．The writer found he was much farther away from the hotel. |
| D．The writer found the hotel in the direction the policeman pointed. |
In your opinion, what was the writer’s real trouble?
| A．He didn’t know the city at all. |
| B．He couldn’t speak the language. |
| C．He went too far in the wrong bus. |
| D．He followed the policeman’s direction. |
David Beckham was born on 2nd May, 1975, in the suburbs of London, at a place called Leytonstone. When he was a young boy, his greatest passion was football. He played it whenever he had the chance. Sometimes he would go and watch a game with his friends. When David Beckham was 12 years old, he won the Bobby Charlton Soccer Skill award. This was an important step forward for this young boy, and it led to him going for a visit to a football training camp in Spain. As a boy at secondary school he played for the schools of Essex and also for his county team.
On 8th July, 1991, he became a trainee with Manchester United. This meant that he could practice football as much as he wanted to and play for the highly successful Manchester United Youth Cup team and Under- 21 team. On 2nd April, 1995, he played his first major football league game against Leeds United. During 1995 and 1996, David became a regular member of the team and Manchester United won in both seasons , with David scoring many goals.
His goals made him a household name. In the first game of the 1997/7 season, he scored an amazing goal from beyond the halfway line. Seeing the goalkeeper a little way out of his goal, David sent the ball over the goalkeepers head and into the goal. It was a wonderful goal and Beckham became famous overnight. He continued to score astonishing goals, especially from free-kicks. The speed of one of his shots was timed at 157kph. He also had the ability to make the ball curl from left to right, or right to left, whenever he chose. He could made it glide high through the air, or dive down steeply. Goalkeepers were never sure where the ball was going, and it regularly ended up in the goal.Which word can take the place of the underlined word “passion” in Paragraph 1?
| A．success | B．Interest | C．Prize | D．skill |
The unusually surprising way that he scored goals______.
| A．helped him to gain many prizes for Essex |
| B．kept him playing for Leeds United |
| C．offered him the chance to join the national team |
| D．made him popular in many British homes |
Which of the following shows the right order of what Beckham experienced?
a. Beckham played his first football league game.
b. Beckham won the Bobby Charlton Soccer Skills award.
c. Beckham played for Manchester United Youth Cup team.
d. Beckham went to Spain to join a football training camp.
e. Beckham played for the schools of Essex.
| A．e, d, a, c, b | B．b, e, d, a, c |
| C．e, b, a, d, c | D．b, d, e, c, a |
The passage is mainly talking about______________.
| A．how Beckham became a successful football player |
| B．what abilities Beckham had to score so many goals |
| C．when Beckham became famous all over Britain |
| D．why Beckham could win in football league games |
Good afternoon, and welcome to England. We hope that your visit here will be a pleasant one. Today, I would like to draw your attention to a few of our laws.
The first one is about drinking. Now, you may not buy alcohol (酒) in this country if you are under 18 years of age, nor may your friends buy it for you.
Secondly, noise. Enjoy yourselves by all means, but please don’t make unnecessary noise, particularly at night. We ask you to respect other people who may wish to be quiet.
Thirdly crossing the road. Be careful. The traffic moves on the left side of he road in this country. Use pedestrian crossings (人行横道) and do not take any chances when crossing the road.
My next point is about litter (throwing away waste material in a public place). It is an offence (违法行为) to drop litter in the street. When you have something to throw away, please put it in your pocket and take it home, or put it in a litter bin.
Finally, as regards smoking, it is against the law to buy cigarettes or tobacco (烟草) if you are under 16 years of age.
I’d like to finish by saying that if you require any sort of help or assistance, you should contact your local police station, who will be pleased to help you.
Now, are there any questions?The main purpose of this speech would be to ____ .
| A．declare the laws of different kinds |
| B．give advice to travellers to the country |
| C．prepare people for international travel |
| D．inform people of the punishment for breaking laws |
How many laws are there discussed in the speech?
| A．Three. | B．Four. | C．Five. | D．Six |
From the speech we learn that ____
| A．You may not buy cigarettes or tobacco unless you are above 16 years of age. |
| B．You can’t make noise except at night. |
| C．Because the traffic moves on the left side of he road ,you must use pedestrian crossings when crossing the road. |
| D．In this country, if you are under 18 years of age, you may not buy alcohol, but your friend can buy it for you. |
The underlined word contact in the seventh paragraph means ____ .
| A．keep in touch with | B．report |
| C．get in touch with | D．join |
Who do you think is most likely to make the speech?
| A．A lawmaker | B．A lawyer | C．A teacher | D．A policeman |
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