Many of us dream of having thousands and thousands of dollar to spend on what we desire We can buy lottery tickets, enter contests or spend hours building a business or invest in the stock market. We are sure that when we have plenty of money, we will be happy.
While having some money does have an impact on our level of happiness, having a lot of money does not. It is reported that Americans whose income goes from $20,000 a year to $50,000 a year are more likely to be happy. But beyond $50,000, happiness does not increase as salaries go up. It is because we are never satisfied. Catherine Sanderson, a psychology professor at Amherst College says, "We always think if we just had a little more money, we’d be happier. But when we get there, we are not."
Daniel Gilbert, a psychology professor at Harvard notes,"The more you make, the more you want. The more you have, the less it brings you joy. We incorrectly assume we’Il get more pleasure from more, and we don’t."
The things money can buy don't make you happy either. A lot of research suggests that you won't find the "good life" buying expensive "toys". You finally buy that BMW you've always wanted and it soon loses its appeal. Then, instead of wondering if a new car is what really makes you happy, you decide you just need a different new car. It is an endless cycle.
To really be happy, you need to understand what makes you happy in the first place. One secret of happiness is people. Surveys have found that people need people. Those who have five or more close friends are 50% more likely to describe themselves as "very happy". Good relationships have a far greater effect on happiness than larger salary. Andrew Oswald, an economist at England's University of Warwick says, "B you are looking for happiness in life, find the right husband or wife rather than trying to double your salary."
So invest your time and energy in people. The reward is much bigger in terms of happiness!In Paragraph 1 the author intends to tell us the "belief" that
| A．we are unhappy because we often lack money |
| B．people can buy what they want if they have enough money |
| C．more money will make one's dreams come true |
| D．happiness will result from more money |
Which of the following statements would the author agree to?
| A．Having some money brings happiness to some degree. |
| B．The more money one earns, the sadder one becomes |
| C．Buying expensive things will surely bring pleasure |
| D．We get nothing from buying expensive things we want. |
Why does happiness not increase with pay rises?
| A．Most of us have a psychological problem. |
| B．People are not content with what they get. |
| C．It is human nature to be unhappy. |
| D．Happiness has nothing to do with money. |
In order to find happiness we should
| A．always make new friends | B．take no notice of our salaries |
| C．focus on good relationships | D．invest our money in our friend |
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。
When milk arrived on the doorstep
When I was a boy growing up in New Jersey in then 1960s, we had a milkman delivering milk to our doorstep. His name was Mr. Basle. He wore a white cap and drove a white truck. As a five-year-old boy, I couldn’t take my eyes off the coin changer fixed to his belt. He noticed this one day during a delivery and gave me a quarter out of his coin changer.
Of course, he delivered more than milk. There was cheese, eggs and so on. If we needed to change our order, my mother would pen a note –“Please add a bottle of buttermilk next delivery.” --and place it in the box along with the empty bottles. And then, the buttermilk would magically appear.
All of this was about more than convenience. There existed a close relationship between families and their milkmen. Mr. Basle even had a key to our house, for those times when it was so cold outside that we put the box indoors, so that the milk wouldn’t freeze. And I remember Mr. Basle from time to time taking a break at our kitchen table, having a cup of tea and telling stories about his delivery.
There is sadly no home milk delivery today. Big companies allowed the production of cheaper milk, thus making it difficult for milkmen to compete. Besides, milk is for sale everywhere, and it may just not have been practical to have a delivery service.
Recently, an old milk box in the countryside I saw brought back my childhood memories. I took it home and planted it on the back porch (门廊). Every so often my son’s friends will ask what it is. So I start telling stories of my boyhood, and of the milkman who brought us friendship along with his milk.Mr. Basle gave the boy a quarter out of his changer .
| A．to show his magical power |
| B．to pay for the delivery |
| C．to satisfy his curiosity |
| D．to please his mother |
What can be inferred from the fact that the milkman had the key to the boy’s house?
| A．He wanted to have tea there. |
| B．He was a respectable person. |
| C．He was treated as a family member. |
| D．He was fully trusted by the family. |
Why does home milk delivery no longer exist?
| A．Nobody wants to be a milkman now. |
| B．It has been driven out of the market. |
| C．Its service is getting poor. |
| D．It is forbidden by law. |
Why did the author bring back home an old milk box?
| A．He missed the good old days. |
| B．He wanted to tell interesting stories. |
| C．He needed it for his milk bottles. |
| D．He planted flowers in it. |
Humans have been keeping animals as pets for tens of thousands of years, but Dr Jean-Loup Rault, an animal scientist at the University of Melbourne in Australia, believes new companions are coming: robot pets.
“Technology is moving very fast,” Rault told ABC News, “The Tamagotchi in the early 1990s was really the first robotic pet, and now Sony and other big companies have improved them a lot.”
This may not sit well with pet lovers. After all, who would choose a plastic toy over a lovely puppy? But Rault argues that the robotic kind has a lot going for it: “You don’t have to feed it, you don’t have to walk it, it won’t make a mess in your house, and you can go on a holiday without feeling guilty.” The technology also benefits those who are allergic to pets, short on space, or fearful of real animals.
It’s not clear whether robot pets can replace real ones. But studies do suggest that we can bond with these smart machines. People give their cars names and kids give their toy animals life stories. It’s the same with robots. When Sony stopped its repair service for its robot dog Aibo in March 2014, owners in Japan held funerals.
As an animal welfare researcher, Rault is concerned about how robotic pets could affect our attitudes towards live animals. “If we become used to a robotic companion that doesn’t need food, water or exercises, perhaps it will change how humans care about other living beings,” he said.
So are dogs and cats a thing of the past, as Rault predicts? For those who grew up with living and breathing pets, the mechanical kind might not do. But for our next generation who are in constant touch with smart technology, a future in which lovely pets needn’t have a heartbeat might not be a far-fetched dream.What does the underlined phrase “sit well with” means?
| A．be refused by | B．be beneficial to |
| C．make a difference to | D．receive support from |
What are the advantages of robot pets?
a. They are plastic and feel smooth.
b. Owners needn’t worry about them when going out.
c. They can help cure allergies（过敏）.
d. They save space and costs.
| A．ab | B．bc | C．bd | D．cd |
We can learn from the passage that___________.
| A．Sony is the first company to produce robot pets Aibo. |
| B．People can develop strong bond（联系、关系） with their robot pets. |
| C．Rault thinks robot pets still have a long way to go. |
| D．Robot toys may help people care more about living beings. |
The passage mainly tells us___________.
| A．the advantages of robot toys |
| B．the popularity of robot pets |
| C．living pets are dying out |
| D．robot pets are coming |
Failing in something isn’t a really nice feeling, but Scotland’s Fettes College in Edinburgh wants to show its students that failure isn’t something to fear and is actually something to accept willingly!
The boarding school held “failure week” to celebrate taking risks and learning from them. Whether in sports or school, children often face lots of pressure to succeed and do well, and the school was becoming concerned.
“Young people from all walks of life live in a high-pressure environment where they are trying very hard to achieve a level of perfection,” said Sue Bruce, head of personal and social education in the school.
“This week at Fettes we have been focusing on one of the most misunderstood parts of success: failure. While we are often scared of failure, it is important to learn that it is only through failing, often many times, that we learn how to succeed. All through the week, we have looked at the experiences of some of the most successful inventors, artists and businessmen, who failed hundreds, if not thousands of times on their journey to success,” read a letter on Fettes College’s website.
To celebrate failure, students were encouraged to try something they’ve never done before, like playing an instrument or dancing in front of audiences. A number of students stepped up and tried things that they finally failed in, but they had fun and enjoyed the experience. “The concert was extremely enjoyable, proving that we should always try not to worry about failure and have a go!” read another note on the website. Students were also taught about famous people like J.K. Rowling and Richard Branson who failed many times before they finished what they set out to do.
“If they let the fear of failure stop them from doing something, they are actually stopping themselves from learning, developing, and potentially succeeding,” said Bruce.What is the purpose of the boarding school to hold “failure week”?
| A．To get the students involved in social activities. |
| B．To help the students accept and learn from failure. |
| C．To make the students study even harder. |
| D．To teach the students how to get relaxed. |
During the “failure week” the students could do the following things EXCEPT ___________.
| A．taking risks |
| B．learning from others’ experiences |
| C．trying something new |
| D．trying to entertain themselves |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Many successful people are lucky and achieve success easily. |
| B．Because we are often scared of failure ,we never succeed. |
| C．The fear of failure can stop the students from learning and succeeding. |
| D．The students who failed in trying new things felt depressed. |
The new high-speed railway line between Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uygur self-governing region，and Lanzhou, capital of Gansu province，has cut train travel time by half to less than 12 hours.
The dramatic improvement will benefit many families planning reunions for Spring Festival.
“For the first time，I feel home is not that far away after all，”said Liang Shaofu as he boarded a high-speed train in Urumqi with six members of his family．
The 35-year-old left Lanzhou to set up a dry fruit business in Xinjiang eight years ago，and he has now settled in Urumqi．
The 1,776-km line, which passes through Qinghai province and is the country’s first high-speed railway to be built in a high-altitude region, came into service on Dec 26.
“We normally drive home for Spring Festival to avoid the difficulties of buying seven train tickets for the whole family during the peak season.” Liang said. “Driving can be very tiring and dangerous sometimes，so one year we even decided not to go back to Lanzhou simply to avoid the trip.”
More than 600,000 passengers traveled on the line during its first month，and the Urumqi Railway Bureau said the introduction of high-speed services will ease transport pressure during the Spring Festival peak season.
The existing usual railway line could no longer support Xinjiang’s development. All passenger trains will gradually shift to the new link，leaving the old one to be used for goods. As a result，Xinjiang’s annual goods ability could reach 200 million metric tons from the current 70 million．
The line passes through areas that experience high winds, and it also crosses parts of the deserted Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and the bone-dry sands of the Gobi Desert．
The project could help China to promote its high-speed railway technology abroad，said Ma Xi zhang, director of the Lanzhou-Xinjiang railway project’s management department in Xinjiang.
How long did it take to go from Urumqi to Lanzhou by the usual train before?
| A．about 12 hours | B．About 6 hours |
| C．About 18 hours | D．About 24 hours |
What’s the main advantage of the new high-speed railway?
| A．It takes more time to go to Urumqi to Lanzhou. |
| B．It will be more convenient for people all over the country to Xinjiang. |
| C．All the people in Lanzhou can return home on festivals. |
| D．It helps to improve Xinjiang’s development. |
From the passage we can learn________.
| A．Xinjiang’s annual goods ability can increase nearly four times |
| B．the new railway technology may help more railway lines to be built abroad |
| C．the high-speed railway lines can’t be built across the bone-dry sands |
| D．the old railway lines can only carry goods now |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．The new high-speed railway line is good for all people to go home. |
| B．The new high-speed railway line benefits businessmen to carry goods. |
| C．Taking the new train is safer than driving home from Urumqi to Lanzhou. |
| D．Businessmen seldom went home for Spring Festival before. |
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项 (A．B．C和D)中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
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If you are young with a university degree and are willing to experience different cultures, apply now. Experience in teaching is an advantage but not specially required. Knowledge of the Japanese language is not necessary but good English skills and practical computer knowledge are basic requirements.
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The manager expects to meet and talk with successful applicants in Paris in June and July.What is the purpose of the text?
| A．To introduce a language school in Japan. |
| B．To hire language teachers to work in Japan. |
| C．To describe working conditions in Japan. |
| D．To make clear the requirements for Japanese teachers. |
We know from the text that those who are going to Japan will _____.
| A．teach English only in Osaka |
| B．receive a degree from a university |
| C．have free accommodation |
| D．get trained for the job |
Before going to Japan, you need _____.
| A．to see the manager of NOVA France |
| B．To take some computer courses |
| C．to write a letter to Japan |
| D．to find a place to live |
If you want to work in Japan, you should _____.
| A．have some working experience |
| B．know how to use computers |
| C．present good teaching plans |
| D．speak several languages |
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