Dennis Sinar, 51, a doctor from Washington, N. C., is quick to explain why he took a yearlong break from his job. “I was pretty burned out after practicing medicine for 26 years. I needed a recharge.” So he took a “gap year”, from July 2011 to June 2012, to explore things like ancient buildings, antique restoration, and traditional Eastern medicine, in locations including Alaska, Nepal and Romania.
“Taking a break from work is an excellent way for adults to go into a new career or refresh an old one,” said Holly Bull, president of the Center for Interim（过渡时期）Programs in Princeton, N, J., which sets up gap-year programs. The group works mainly with college-age students, but it has also served older adults since it was formed 28 years ago. “In recent years, mid-career breaks have been gaining more interest,” she said. A report on adult gap years published this year by a market research company also described the potential（潜在的）American market for gap years as a “sleeping giant.”
“A gap year is a challenge for the older individual to step out of a comfort zone and take a risk. I enjoyed that side most.” said Dr. Sinar, who kept a daily blog about his experience. His time studying Eastern medicine “reaffirmed（再次肯定）the reasons I went into health care,” said Dr. Sinar, who returned to practice medicine at his old job, although he works fewer days. “I use those experiences to provide my patients with more care,” he added. “And I listen better than I did before.”
George Garritan, chairman of the Department of Leadership and Human Capital Management at New York University, certainly agrees with Dr. Sinar. He said a gap-year experience could be worthwhile for employees and companies. For employees, investing in themselves and improving skill sets is a move that will benefit throughout their career. He added that returning employees feel refreshed and have given more thought to their career. For companies, offering unpaid leaves makes good sense for attracting and keeping talented employees.
“My hope is that this takes off,” Dr. Garritan said. “We’re all thinking, ‘What’s my next act?’ ”Dr. Sinar took a gap year because he _________.
| A．gave up his old job |
| B．felt exhausted after 26 years’ work |
| C．wanted to travel very much |
| D．became interested in historical research |
After his gap year, Dr. Sinar _________.
| A．became more considerate in his job |
| B．regretted taking a “gap year” |
| C．was eager to explore ancient buildings |
| D．Improved his speaking ability |
What’s George Garritan’s attitude toward the “gap year”?
| A．Unhappy.. | B．Positive | C．Uninterested. | D．Negative. |
What’s the passage mainly about?
| A．Whether a gap year is popular with adults. |
| B．How an adult plans a mid-career gap year. |
| C．Why a gap year is worthwhile for adults. |
| D．Why a gap year is challenging for individuals. |
NOT all memories are sweet. Some people spend all their lives trying to forget bad experiences. Violence and traffic accidents can leave people with terrible physical and emotional scars. Often they relive experiences in nightmares.
Now American researchers think they are close to developing a pill, which will help people forget bad memories. The pill is designed to be taken immediately after a frightening experience. They hope it might reduce, or possibly wipe out the effect of painful memories.
In November, experts tested a drug on people in the US and France. The drug stops the body releasing chemicals that fix memories in the brain, So far the research has suggested that only the emotional effects of memories may be reduced, not that the memories are wiped out. They are not sure to what degree people's memories are affected.
The research has caused a great deal of argument. Some think it is a bad idea, while others support it.
Supporters say it could lead to pills that prevent or treat soldiers' troubling memories after war. They say that there are many people who suffer from terrible memories.
“Some memories can ruin people's lives. They come back to you when you don't want to have them in a daydream or nightmare. They usually come with very painful emotions,” said Roger Pitman, a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.“This could relieve a lot of that suffering.”
But those who are against the research say that maybe the pills can change people's memories and changing memories is very dangerous because memories give us our identity. They also help us all avoid the mistakes of the past.
“All of us can think of bad events in our lives that were terrible at the time but make us who we are. I'm not sure we want to wipe those memories out,” said Rebecca Dresser ,a medical ethicist.The passage is mainly about .
| A．a new medical invention |
| B．a new research on the pill |
| C．a way of wiping out painful memories |
| D．an argument about the research on the pill |
We can infer from the passage that .
| A．experts are not sure about the effects of the pills. |
| B．the pill will certainly stop people's emotional memories |
| C．taking the pill will do harm to people's physical health |
| D．the pill has already been produced and used by the public in America |
Which of the following does Rebecca Dresser agree with in the last paragraph?
| A．some memories can ruin people's lives. |
| B．people want to get rid of bad memories. |
| C．experiencing bad events makes us different from others. |
| D．the pill will reduce people's sufferings from bad memories. |
You may probably read the passage in
| A．a guidebook | B．a textbook |
| C．a medical magazine | D．a science fiction |
“Tomorrow is another day”---- this line has impressed various people at various times. It's now 70 years after it appeared in the film, but it still seems to hold its power especially during an economic downturn.
The phrase comes from a film adaptation of Margaret Mitchell's successful 1936 novel Gone With the Wind. It's set in the American South and tells the story of a strong heroine, Scarlett O' Hara, who struggles to find love during the Civil War and, afterwards, of her strength in surviving the war and its hardships.
Love story
In a moment of despair, Scarlett finally realizes that her love belongs to Rhett Butler. For many audiences, it is the theme of love and struggle that has kept the movie alive. While the burning of Atlanta might seem irrelevant to today's viewers, the timeless theme of love keeps its ability to touch people.
With a promise to her lover still in her mind, Scarlett chooses to stay in the midst of war and take care of Melanie. But her heart is broken when Rhett just walks away, leaving the woman that he once loved with cruel words, "Frankly, dear, I don' t give a damn."
Great epic
The film shows the love-hate relationship of these characters, but also American history, the fall of the Confederacy and the following period of Reconstruction in the South. The background made this film a true classic in the epic genre.
When the film opened after World War II, French viewers loved it, and it reminded them of their fight against the Nazis. In 1940 Shanghai, during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, people stood in line for hours to watch this film, and saw the same suffering they were having as well as the hope and possibility of building a new homeland from the ruins.
Each nationality could identify with the story and see it as a victory. In fact, Gone With the Wind never lost its charm and ability to inspire and amaze.
Biggest of all time
The film had five directors, 15-plus screenwriters, and an unexpected $3.9 million budget. The film brought in $ 200 million, which makes it the biggest selling film of all times in North America. It also won 10 Academy awards in 1940.The underlined "it" in the first paragraph refers to _______.
| A．the novel Gone with the Wind | B．"tomorrow is another day" |
| C．the movie Gone with the Wind | D．the Academy Award |
The text is written mainly to _______.
| A．celebrate the anniversary of Margaret Mitchell |
| B．introduce how the film was directed and filmed |
| C．throw light on the charm of the movie "Gone with the Wind" |
| D．inspire people to struggle the economic downturn |
It can be concluded that Scarlett O' Hara is _______.
| A．optimistic and lucky | B．childish and realistic |
| C．caring and stubborn | D．strong-minded and persistent |
The passage mentions Shanghai in order to _______.
| A．prove that the background of the movie touched viewers |
| B．describe how popular the movie was at that time |
| C．point out that Shanghai was a center of entertainment |
| D．tell us that Chinese were suffering the War then. |
BERLIN — With the crisis in Japan raising fears about nuclear power, Germany and Switzerland said on Monday that they would reassess the safety of their own reactors.
Doris Leuthard, the Swiss energy minister, said Switzerland would put off plans to build nuclear plants. She said no new ones would be permitted until experts had reviewed safety standards.
Germany will put off “the recently decided extension of the running time of German nuclear plants,” Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters. “This moratorium（延缓）will run for three months and it will allow for a thorough examination of the safety standards of the county’s 17 nuclear power plants.
The European Union called for a meeting on Tuesday of nuclear safety authorities to assess Europe’s preparedness.
Germany’s foreign minister, Guido Westerwelle, called for a new risk analysis of the country’s nuclear plants, particularly regarding their cooling systems. He is the leader of the Free Democratic Party, which strongly supports nuclear power.
A previous government, led by the Social Democrats, passed a law in 2001 to close all the country’s nuclear plants by 2021. But Mrs. Merkel’s government changed that decision last year to extend the lives of the plants by an average of 12 years.
In Switzerland, Doris Leuthard said she had already asked to analyze the exact cause of the problems in Japan and draw up new or tougher safety standards “particularly in terms of seismic(地震的) safety and cooling.”
In Russia, the Prime Minister said his government would “draw conclusions from what’s going on in Japan.”Where can you most likely read this passage?
| A．In a newspaper. | B．In a magazine. |
| C．In a science report. | D．In a diary. |
How will Germany react to Japan’s nuclear crisis?
| A．Germany will close all the country’s nuclear plants. |
| B．Germany will hold a meeting of nuclear safety authorities. |
| C．Germany will change the decision made last year. |
| D．Germany will delay the extension of nuclear plants running time. |
The author mentions all the following EXCEPT ______.
| A．The moratorium in Germany will give time to examine the nuclear plants safety standards. |
| B．Switzerland will not build new nuclear plants unless they meet the experts’ safety standards. |
| C．The Social Democrats in Germany shares the same view with the Free Democratic Party. |
| D．Russia will try to learn something from the nuclear power crisis in Japan. |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A．Watch Out for the Danger of Nuclear Power |
| B．Europe Is against Building Nuclear Plants |
| C．Nuclear Plants in Europe Are Delayed |
| D．Opinions on Nuclear Power Are Opposite. |
A woman was in a hurry to go to the airport. She told the cab driver to drive quickly. She was so absorbed in her own thoughts that she was not aware they were going by a different route.
Suddenly, a man got inside the cab. He took her handbag where she had placed her visa, passport, and all her money for the trip.
The driver, who was in cahoots with the robber, left her in the middle of that dark street. She cursed the world for being so mean to her, and thought how unlucky she was in that situation.
That very same night, she heard some shocking news．Tears flowed down her face．Flight 230,which was the plane that she was supposed to have boarded, had crashed．If she had not lost her precious belongings, she could have lost something far more important—her life．
Sometimes bad things really happen．We lose money, fail our exams, or are rejected by others．There are times when nothing seems to go our way．
So what should we do about it? Should we be disappointed? The answer is a resounding “No!" We must get rid of all these frustrations and start all over again in the consistent faith that we will get what we deserve．
Don't waste your time and energy on things that can't be changed．Continuous worrying will only affect your health and you'll be doing much more damage than what was previously done．
What if it was the other way round? What if we never ran out of good luck?
There was a man who won the lottery．He thought he was the luckiest person in the world．He became greedy and wasted all his money on everything he could get his hands on．
One day, he made it to the front page of the newspaper again．But this time, it was a different story．He had been killed because of his riches．
If you attain good luck, you can never be too secure about it．Hope for protection and guidance．Life is so unpredictable．You never know what will happen next．
Live one day at a time．we sometimes subject ourselves to unnecessary emotional trouble．We ask ourselves: "What if I don't get this done in time?" or "What if my family leaves me and I've got no one else to turn to?"
Live for the moment．Do what must be done for the present and the future will turn out just fine． Believe me．And believe in yourself．As Captain Planet always says: "The power is yours!"The underlined phrase "in cahoots with" in Paragraph 3 probably means "____"．
| A．was forced by | B．was fighting bravely with |
| C．had cooperated with | D．was trying to beg |
From the passage, we learn that___．
| A．the woman was lucky to miss her flight |
| B．some people just never run out of good luck |
| C．robbers will get what they deserve |
| D．if you feel yourself lucky, you will continue to be so |
According to the author, which of the following is the right attitude to adopt towards life?
| A．Don't waste your time and energy because time is limited． |
| B．There's no need to worry or get frustrated．Just believe in yourself． |
| C．Even when everything seems to be going well, we should keep fully alert． |
| D．Worrying about what you don't have means you miss out on opportunities for other things． |
The stories are intended to tell us___．
| A．fortune only favors the prepared mind |
| B．gains and losses go hand in hand |
| C．misfortune might be a blessing |
| D．we should save up for a rainy day |
One reason Americans eat so many calories is that we tend to eat large portions(分量). Studies find that hamburgers and fries are generally offered in serving sizes two to five times larger than the appropriate meal size. Researchers find we usually clean our plates no matter how high they're piled, even if we already feel satisfied. See the suggestions below to further master the fine art of sizing up（估量） your snacks and suppers.
Extremely large portions are one possible reason Americans continue getting fatter even as the percentage of our total calories from fat has gone down in recent years. Fortunately, portions are relatively simple to control because it's easier to count cookies than calories or grams of fat.
Pre-picture portions. Use familiar objects to picture how much you should eat of a food before you pick up your fork or spoon. For example, a half cup of low-fat granola is about the size of your fist. A half cup of low-fat ice cream equals half an orange.
Use a smaller dish. This tip might sound ridiculous, but it works. First and most obvious is that you can't put as much food on, say, a salad plate. But psychologically, you're just not as prone to eat as heartily and quickly if your plate will be empty in 45 seconds.
Have raw vegetables at every meal. Raw cucumbers, tomatoes, carrots, and peppers have few calories and lots of nutrients. A plate of them in the middle of the table almost always gets eaten up, cutting down appetite for the more calorie-dense meat.
Start your meal with soup. Studies show that a bowl of soup at the start of the meal reduces overall meal consumption, since they are lowest in calories and highest in nutrients.
Manage your fork. After every bite of food, put your fork down. Don't pick it up until you have thoroughly chewed and swallowed the previous bite. The goal is both to slow down your eating and to eat less. Remember: Your body needs 20 minutes of digestion before it sends signals to your brain that you are no longer hungry.
| Helpful hints on how to get a handle on the how-much factor |
|
| Facts |
Hamburgers and fries served in restaurants are generally two to five times the Americans usually clean their plates |
| Effects |
Americans continue getting fatter even as they have eaten |
| a. Use b. Use a smaller dish and thus eat c. Have raw vegetables at every meal to cut down d. Start your meal with e. Put down your fork at |
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