Gallows humor(黑色幽默) may seem like a mistake, or at least in poor taste. But psychologists say that gallows humor can be an important way to relieve stress.“Humor makes you feel in control and it can give you that feeling that everything is okay even when it’s not,”says James M.Jones, a psychology professor at the University of Delaware.
Psychologists say that just because you’re laughing doesn’t mean you’re wasting time. Occasional tease among colleagues, particularly if it is associated with the job, can inspire creativity, departmental cohesiveness(凝聚力) and performance.
“There are a lot of stresses out there,”says Ed Dunkelblau, a psychologist in Chicago.“Gallows humor is a way of making difficult things a little less difficult.”
This is as long as the humor is used for the right purpose. The main point of it should be inspiring people—not laughing at them. “Anything that would lift morale(士气) in terms of the company would be good humor,”says Thierry Guedj, a professor.
You want to give your employees and co-workers a sense of belonging, so don’t make observations that are aggressive. Most obviously, Dr. Guedj says, don’t make comments about people’s physical appearance or faith. If you have any doubt about its appropriateness, don’t go through with it.
Or you can take aim at the person that you know won’t be offended(冒犯): yourself. “If there’s going to be a joke or story, it should be you,”Mr Dunkelblau says.
“People with the ability to laugh at themselves can give other people permission to laugh at themselves, too,”Mr Jones says.“And if you can laugh at yourself, you feel better about yourself.”According to the passage, gallows humor has the following functions EXCEPT .
| A．leading to a big mistake | B．reducing pressure |
| C．making people more creative | D．improving performance |
What is Ed Dunkelblau’s attitude towards gallows humor?
| A．Negative. | B．Positive. | C．Neutral.(中立的) | D．Uncertain. |
When people use gallows humor, they should .
| A．observe who is aggressive |
| B．show a sense of belonging |
| C．doubt about the result of humor |
| D．try to avoid involving private things |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．People tend to laugh at others rather than themselves. |
| B．Laughing at yourself can make others free from stress. |
| C．People can’t avoid offending others with gallows humor. |
| D．People who laugh at themselves are easy to gain others’ permission. |
England will play Italy, Uruguay and Costa Rica in a tough Group D at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Roy Hodgson's men open their campaign against Italy in the Amazonian city of Manaus on 15 June in the only World Cup game which kicks off at 02:00 BST. England take on Uruguay on 19 June and play Costa Rica five days later.
Hosts Brazil are in Group A with Cameroon, Mexico and Croatia while the World Cup holders Spain open with a repeat of the 2010 final against Netherlands.
England will have to travel 1,777 miles from their chosen base in Rio for their first match in the tropical heat of Manaus.
Earlier this week Hodgson described Manaus as "the place to avoid" because of the climate—temperatures reach 30C and humidity is about 80%—although after the draw the England boss took comfort from the fact his team face a fellow European side.
"The conditions in the north will be tough, so we will both be in same boat," he said. "If we'd had three games up in the north, it would have been difficult."
Following Hodgson's initial comments, the mayor of Manaus, Arthur Virgilio, said England would not be welcome in the city.
England takes on two-time champions Uruguay in Sao Paulo and they play Costa Rica in Belo Horizonte—both cities are within 225 miles of their base.
England have never previously beaten Italy or Uruguay at a major tournament(锦标赛), while they have never faced Costa Rica.
Uruguay, who reached the semi-finals in 2010, and Italy, who knocked Hodgson's men out of Euro 2012, are ranked sixth and seventh respectively in the Fifa rankings while Costa Rica are 31st in the world - 18 places below England.When and where will England play its third group stage match?
| A．On 24 June; in Manaus |
| B．On 24 June; in Belo Horizonte |
| C．On 19 June; in Manaus |
| D．On 19 June; in Sao Paulo |
Which of the following can England take comfort from?
| A．The place where its first match in the group stage is held. |
| B．The distance from its base to where its first match is held. |
| C．The fact that two of its group stage games are not in the north. |
| D．The fact that it is 7 places below Uruguay in the Fifa rankings. |
Which of the following is true according to the news report?
| A．Roy Hodgson is the coach of Brazil national football team. |
| B．Netherlands took the second place in the last World Cup. |
| C．The mayor of Manaus is a fan of the British soccer team. |
| D．England has never played against Uruguay in the history. |
Bad teeth may be painful and it’s getting worse without treatment. They can even ruin your life. Illness of the teeth can find its way into the blood system. This can increase the chances of a heart disease or other illnesses.
Experts say good care for teeth should start at birth. Mothers’ milk is the best food for the healthy development of teeth.
But dentists say a baby’s mouth and early teeth should be cleaned after each feeding. Use a cloth with a little warm water. Do the same if a baby is fed with a bottle. Experts say if you decide to put your baby to sleep with a bottle, give him only water.
When baby’s teeth begin to appear, you can clean them with a wet toothbrush. Dentists say it is important to find soft toothbrushes made especially for babies and to use them very gently. Young children often eat toothpaste (牙膏) when they brush, so they should be carefully watched when they brush their teeth.
Parents often ask what effect thumb sucking (咬手指) might have on their baby’s teeth. Experts generally agree that this is fine early in life. Most children stop sucking their thumbs by the age of four. If it continues, parents should talk to their children’s dentist or doctor.
Dentists say children should have their first dental visit by the time they are one year old. They say babies should be examined when their first teeth appear usually at around six months.Why should people pay attention to teeth problems?
| A．They can cause other illnesses. |
| B．They will bring bad luck. |
| C．They will bring the family much trouble. |
| D．They usually last a long time. |
According to the writer, baby’s teeth should be protected from the day ______.
| A．he begins to speak | B．he has his first tooth |
| C．he was born | D．he is fed with bottle milk |
The underlined word “it” in Paragraph 5 refers to “_____”.
| A．toothache | B．parents’ trouble | C．thumb sucking | D．experts’ advice |
Part-time jobs for 15 and 16 years olds
| Waiter / Waitress A job as a waiter or waitress is a good choice for 16-year-olds. Not only can one earn $9-$12 an hour, but they can also get the tips (小费). Most people that visit a restaurant don’t just have good food. They come here to relax and have a good time. Besides serving food quickly, a young waiter who talks to them politely with a smile on his face will make the diners enjoy their time at the restaurant. |
| Work in a library If one is fond of books, working in a library is another suitable choice. Besides the pay is good, it offers a lot of free time when students can actually sit down and finish their homework. So on returning home, they would have time to hang around with friends or just relax. So working in a library is an excellent part-time job for teens, especially for school students. |
| Internet jobs There are many ways of making money through online jobs like clicking on advertisements, visiting sites and signing up with them. However, such online jobs don’t pay well. A better Internet job for teens is to complete online surveys. These are quite simple surveys that usually ask one about his/ her opinions and ideas. Many companies use these ideas to make products designed for teenagers. |
What does the writer think of the job as a waiter/waitress?
| A．It needs a period of training. |
| B．It pays much more than other jobs. |
| C．It can improve one’s leadership skills. |
| D．Making diners comfortable is part of the job. |
A student who is busy with his research paper will probably choose to work ______.
| A．in a restaurant | B．in a library | C．on the Internet | D．in an IT company |
The writer wrote this text to ______.
| A．tell us the importance of doing part-time jobs |
| B．advise teenagers how to choose a part-time job |
| C．teach young people how to make lots of money |
| D．introduce his/her experience of doing part-time jobs |
Why do some companies ask the teens to do surveys?
| A．The teens have more free time. |
| B．They can pay less to the teens. |
| C．They need advice to make products for teens. |
| D．The teens usually express their true opinions. |
According to Hunan Daily, in Yongxing County of Hunan Province, retired teacher Chen and his wife are living in a natural cave (山洞), and they quite enjoy such life.
Chen’s cave is 20 meters wide and 8 meters deep. Lichens (青苔)can be seen everywhere in it. Chen says that the place is free of pollution.
Because of being poor, they moved into the cave, Chen said. In 1975, the houses of his families and his neighbors were all burned to the ground in the fire. Chen was then already married and badly needed a house to live in. But he had no money to build a house, so he had to live in his relatives’ houses as long as 5 years.
In 1980, he happened to discover this cave, immediately he and his family members decided to live in there. Chen thought the cave could be a temporary（临时的）living place, but it never occurred to him that it could be his home in the next 28 years. Chen recalled that the first couple of days were the most difficult period, “I put up some wooden boards for a gate, but they were all blown away by wind that same night.”
Chen has two sons and a daughter, and they all left the cave after they got married. Now Chen’s old friends once in a while visit him in his cave drinking and playing Chinese chess. For Chen, the most enjoyable thing is to raise bees and grow kinds of plants.From the passage we know what Chen likes to do most is ____.
| A．drinking and playing chess with his friends |
| B．raising bees and growing plants |
| C．doing farm work in the fields |
| D．recalling his past life |
What had happened to his house before he moved into the cave?
| A．His house was blown away by wind. |
| B．His house was washed away by floods. |
| C．His house was destroyed by fire. |
| D．The text doesn’t mention it. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．All of Chen’s children are studying in the university. |
| B．Chen’s friends hardly come to the cave to see him. |
| C．Chen and his children still live together in the cave. |
| D．Chen found the cave quite by accident. |
The purpose of the passage is to ____.
| A．introduce a natural cave to people |
| B．tell us something about a teacher living in the cave for 28 years |
| C．explain how the Chens suffered during the 28 years |
| D．expect more people to visit Chen’s cave |
Eyesight problems are common among all ages and if they are left untreated, they can cause serious headaches or other problems. The good news is that most eyesight problems can easily be sorted out by wearing glasses.
Regular eye tests are important for everyone. Children and teenagers, under the age of 16 and up to the age of 19 for those full-time education, have the right to have eye tests for free in Britain. As the eye test is free, there’s no excuse for not having a regular eye test. Doctors suggest that it’s better to have an eye test about once a year.
Wearing glasses isn’t always regarded as all that cool and teens who suddenly need to wear glasses may find it difficult to accept. If they’ve grown up wearing glasses, then they may be more used to it. However, if your eyes are in poor health, not wearing glasses can put even more pressure on your eyes and could make them even worse.
Thankfully, the days of little choice of glasses frames (框架) for teenagers are gone and there’s now a wide selection of frames. If a teen does need to wear glasses, then it’s good to let him or her choose the type, as he or she will be able to choose something he or she feels comfortable. Don’t forget to be guided by the experts on glasses too. According to the text, teens in the UK ______.
| A．have few eyesight problems |
| B．can design their own glasses |
| C．change their glasses very often |
| D．can check their eyes without paying |
How often do doctors suggest teens to have an eye test?
| A．Once a month. | B．Once every six months. |
| C．Once a year. | D．Twice a year. |
It can be learned from the text that teens ______.
| A．find it difficult to buy comfortable glasses |
| B．prefer to wear cool glasses at an early age |
| C．are advised to wear glasses if their eyesight is poor |
| D．think they are much cooler when wearing glasses |
In the past, teens who wanted to buy glasses ______.
| A．were unable to find the right glasses |
| B．only had a few styles to choose from |
| C．could not find an expert to ask for advice |
| D．were worried about the quality of glasses |
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