Over the last 70 years, researchers have been studying happy and unhappy people and finally found out ten factors that make a difference. Our feelings of well-being at any moment are determined to a certain degree by genes. However, of all the factors, wealth and age are the top two.
Money can buy a degree of happiness. But once you can afford to feed, clothe and house yourself, each extra dollar makes less and less difference.
Researchers find that, on average, wealthier people are happier. But the link between money and happiness is complex. In the past half-century, average income has sharply increased in developed countries, yet happiness levels have remained almost the same. Once your basic needs are met, money only seems to increase happiness if you have more than your friends, neighbors and colleagues.
“Dollars buy status, and status makes people feel better,” conclude some experts, which helps explain why people who can seek status in other ways－scientists or actors, for example－may happily accept relatively poorly-paid jobs.
In a research, Professor Alex Michalos found that the people whose desire－not just for money, but for friends, family, job, health－rose furthest beyond what they already had, tended to be less happy than those who felt a smaller gap(差距). Indeed, the size of the gap predicted happiness about five times better than income alone. “The gap measures just blow away the only measures of income.” Says Michalos.
Another factor that has to do with happiness is age. Old age may not be so bad. “Given all the problems of aging, how could the elderly be more satisfied?” asks Professor Laura Carstensen.
In one survey, Carstensen interviewed 184 people between the ages of 18 and 94, and asked them to fill out an emotions questionnaire. She found that old people reported positive emotions just as often as young people, but negative emotions much less often.
Why are old people happier? Some scientists suggest older people may expect life to be harder and learn to live with it, or they’re more realistic about their goals, only setting ones that they know they can achieve. But Carstensen thinks that with time running out, older people have learned to focus on things that make them happy and let go of those that don’t.
“People realize not only what they have, but also that what they have cannot last forever,” she says. “A goodbye kiss to a husband or wife at the age of 85, for example, may bring far more complex emotional responses than a similar kiss to a boy or girl friend at the age of 20.”According to the passage, the feeling of happiness __________.
| A．has little to do with wealth | B．increases gradually with age |
| C．is determined partly by genes | D．is measured by desires |
Some actors would like to accept poorly-paid jobs because the jobs ____________.
| A．make them feel much better | B．improve their social position |
| C．provide chances to make friends | D．satisfy their professional interests |
Aged people are more likely to feel happy because they are more _________.
| A．optimistic | B．successful | C．practical | D．emotional |
Professor Alex Michalos found that people feel less happy if __________.
| A．the gap between reality and desire is bigger |
| B．they have a stronger desire for friendship |
| C．their income is below their expectation |
| D．the hope for good health is greater |
In the early hours of March 8, a Boeing 777 took off from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Its destination was Beijing. But for unknown reasons, it never arrived there.
There were 239 people on the Malaysia Airlines flight, including 154 Chinese. As of March 13, 12 different countries, including Malaysia, China, Vietnam and the US, were searching for the plane.
The disappearance is an “aviation (航空) mystery”, Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, the head of Malaysia’s Civil Aviation Authority, said on March 10.There was no clear sign of a crash by March 13.
Between 1-2 hours after takeoff, the plane suddenly lost contact with people on the ground. The weather was clear, and the pilots didn’t make any calls . No evidence was found in the area where the flight last made contact. People are also talking about a possible hijacking (劫机).
International police agency Interpol confirmed on March 9 that at least two passengers on the flight had used stolen passports to get on board. “We are looking at all possibilities,” said Malaysian Transport Minister Hishamuddin Hussein. The incident is now being called simply a “plane disappearance”.
So, what are some possible causes of a plane disappearance? An AP story provided a summary.
1. A failure of the plane’s body or its engines. However, even if both engines stopped working, the plane could still glide (滑翔) for up to 20 minutes, giving pilots time to make an emergency call.
2. Bad weather. Planes are designed to fly through most severe storms. However, in June 2009, an Air France flight from Rio de Janeiro to Paris crashed during a bad storm over the Atlantic Ocean.
3. A bomb. Throughout history, several planes have been brought down by bombs.
4. An accidental shoot-down by some country’s military. In July 1988, the US Navy accidentally shot down an Iran Air flight. In September 1983, a Korean Air Lines flight was shot down by a Russian fighter jet.
No matter how unlikely a situation, it’s too early to determine what really happened to MH370. It could take months, if not years, to rule out any possibilities, say experts.. How many cities are mentioned in this passage?
| A．Four cities. | B．five cities. | C．Six cities. | D．Seven cities. |
What could the underlined phrase “rule out” in the last paragraph mean?
| A．cross out | B．get rid of | C．take out | D．take the place of |
What could be the best title of the passage?
| A．An Air Crash | B．The Causes of the Disappearance |
| C．The Disappearance of MH 370 | D．An Aviation Mystery |
When us teenager Jake Olson isn’t playing football or golf for his high school, he’s often offering inspiration through his new book about his own life.
These activities might be too much for the average 16-year-old to deal with, but Jake is blind. When people ask him how he can possibly play golf without being able to see the ball, he says he is thankful for his father’s guidance.
It seems apparent that his early experience playing sports as a person with sight and muscle memory— repeating behaviors over and over until they become second nature — have also enabled Jake to hit the ball quite well.
Jake was born with a rare kind of eye cancer that took away the vision from his left eye when he was an infant and eventually his right eye, in 2009, when he was 12 years old. Rather than letting the disease hold him back, Jake used his loss of sight and his faith as sources of motivation .
“If I was going to sit on the couch all day feeling sorry for myself, I wasn’t going to do anything. I decided right then and there that I wasn’t going to let it stop me and that I was going to go out and persevere (坚持不懈),” he said.
It was with that mind-set that the student from Orange Lutheran High School in California was able to write his first book, Open Your Eyes: 10 Uncommon Lessons to Discover a Happier Life. “It’s about opening the readers’ eyes to their true potential in life and making sure that they use all the abilities that they have,” Jake said.
Jake’s father, Brian Olson, said the family is impressed with what he has done with his life, including showing people that they can get through hardships. “Your darkest hour can soon become your brightest, and with every setback, there’s a setup,” Jake said. “In every one of us, there’s more potential than we can ever imagine, and it really is a choice.” We can learn from the article that Jake Olson ______.
| A．was born a blind child | B．could have been a golf master |
| C．has great muscle memory | D．is trying to find the cure for his disease |
According to the article, Jake’s family members ______.
| A．pity him deeply | B．once gave up hope on him |
| C．encouraged him to write the book | D．admire his efforts and determination |
The purpose of the book Open Your Eyes: 10 Uncommon Lessons to Discover a Happier Life is to ______.
| A．promote good approaches to getting along with disabled people |
| B．inspire people to discover and use their hidden abilities |
| C．help people come up with better life goals |
| D．explain different definitions of “a happier life” |
The underlined word “setback” is closest in meaning to ______.
| A．fight | B．failure | C．opportunity | D．success |
There's something rotten in Rio and the smell is coming from the huge stacks of rubbish pried up on sidewalks all over the city. Rio's street sweepers chose the carnival holiday to demand better salaries. Their wages start at roughly $400 a month.
There could hardly be a better time for them to prove their importance. The streets were left a mess after hundreds of carnival parades and now, rubbish pries up in both poor and uptown neighbourhoods and in tourist areas like Ipanema or Copacabana beach.
The president of Rio's rubbish collecting company has even appealed to the population to store rubbish at home whenever possible. He says 30% of the city's sweepers have gone on strike. Some of those who have been working have been threatened by the strike movement so now the police has been deployed alongside rubbish collectors to keep them sage as they go about their business.
The strike has divided opinions in Rio. On social media, many support the sweepers' demands for better salaries. Others say they are opportunists and the situation is a big embarrassment to the city.
But Brazil's culture of littering the streets doesn't help. A video that went viral online shows that even authorities have a problem with that. Rio's mayor, Eduardo Paes, is seen throwing what seemed to be the rest of an apple on the sidewalk--and now promised to impose himself a fine for his wrongdoing. His government recently created a programme to keep Rio's residents from littering the streets.Rio's street cleaners go on strike to
| A．prove their importance | B．threaten the government |
| C．ask for higher salaries | D．appeal to the public not to litter |
The reason why the police are involved is that __
| A．the police are called out to put down the riot | B．the police are required to protect some cleaners |
| C．the police are to collect rubbish for the time being | D．the police are sent to arrest people who litter around |
The author's attitude to Brazil's culture of littering is __
| A．hopeless | B．approving | C．critical | D．optimistic |
The purpose of writing the passage is to __
| A．criticize, street sweepers of Rio for misusing their rights |
| B．call attention to the embarrassing situation of Rio |
| C．describe the effect or the strike on people |
| D．inform people of the present situation of Rio |
Do you scream on a roller coaster ride? You slowly climb up a steep slope until an almost vertical(垂直的) drop, and then... Ahhhhhhhh! Thrill-seekers like me are in luck because theme parks are pushing the boundaries of technology to create the fastest, tallest, scariest roller coasters the world has ever known.
Alton Towers in Britain opened the world's first 14-1oop roller coaster a few months ago, called The Smiler. Over in Abu Dhabi, Ferrari World claims to have the world's fastest one. Ferrari World's Formula Rossa ride sends out passengers from 0-240km/h in just 4. 9 seconds. During this rapid acceleration they experience G-forces only fighter pilots usually feel: Up to 4. 8G. The designer of several rides at Alton Towers, said: "While we can stand 6-8Gs for very short periods of time, ff we experience 5G for more than five seconds we're likely to "black out."
On modern roller coasters passengers experience about 3G in tight turns and loops. But while we may have reached the limit in terms of G-forces, there is no technological limit to how fast or how high roller coasters can go---it's all down to money. Alton Towers' The Smiler cost ~18m to build.
Some companies are finding other ways to keep us amused. There's a move towards indoor rides where the experience is improved by audio-visual technologies. For example, a company called Dynamic Structures is currently developing a "coal-mine-themed" ride for a client in Dubai that will combine speed and G-forces with 3D projection effects and robotics, which will trick your brain into thinking you're really falling.
I can't wait to enjoy this one. What about you: Do you like being upside down?The underlined phrase "black out" in the second paragraph probably means .... .
| A．stop breathing | B．lose consciousness for a short time |
| C．lose memory forever | D．bleed to death |
We can learn from the passage that __
| A．all the theme parks are creating the fast roller coasters |
| B．the Smiler sends out passengers from 0-240km/h in just 4.9 seconds |
| C．it is unusual for fighter pilots to feel up to 4.8G |
| D．the more the money is spent, the faster the roller coaster can go |
The feature of the "coal-mine-themed" ride is
| A．3Dtechnologies | B．indoor rides | C．G-forces | D．dynamic structures |
What is the best title for the passage?
| A．The Fastest Roller Coaster | B．The Smiler and G-forces |
| C．Screaming for Fun | D．The New Technology |
One of the most famous basketball players in the New Castle ' s history was paralyzed(瘫痪的) in a wheelchair one day and was walking the next. Citizens of New Castle simply refer to it as " The Miracle" .
Joel Haler woke up in his dorm room at Hope College last October totally paralyzed from the waist down. Four hospitals later, the only way he could walk was through Robotic Walking Treatment.
"This past Tuesday ,I was doing the Robotic walk and lasted ten minutes, " Joel said. After that, he gave up. Joel w-anted to accept the inevitable (不可避免的事) and cancelled his next Robotic Walking Treatment appointment.
Then , the night before his cancelled appointment, he woke up to a terrible pain. An hour and a half later ,the serious pain left him with an unusual feeling in his legs.
" As it continued to move up my legs ,it became more and more painful and it took an hour and a half to reach my hips(臀部) , " Joel recalled.
"I stood up and walked into my parents' room. ' Mom and dad, look! ' ," he said proudly.
" He said something and I was like, ' Joell Joel ! You ' re walking ! You ' re walking ! ' We jumped out of bed , cried and hugged, " Joel ' s mom Karen remembered.
"I burst into tears. It ' s hard seeing your son not be able to walk .but he was standing there , walking , " Joel ' s father Eric said , tearfully.
It was Thursday , January 23 , when he could finally walk. That date made perfect sense to Joel. He had dreamt of a calendar that only said "J 23 " . He didn't know what to make of it until "a little boy at church ,four years old, came up to me and said, ' you will walk on a Thurs-day ' , " Joel recalled.
So the 20-year-old college student, who could only walk with the aid of a robot on Tuesday ,was walking on his own. According to the passage , " The Miracle" is that ________
| A．Joel Haler became the most famous basketball player |
| B．Robotic Walking Treatment could cure paralysis |
| C．Joel Haler could walk again after three months ' paralysis |
| D．a paralyzed boy could play basketball well |
Which part of Joel Haler' s body didn't work?
| A．His whole body. | B．His legs and feet. |
| C．His arms and hands. | D．His arms and legs. |
Before Joel Haler ' s walking again , his attitude to the illness was ______.
| A．positive | B．indifferent | C．optimistic | D．hopeless |
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