THIS is an excerpt（摘录）from therapist Laura Trice’s speech at TED in 2008:
Hi. I'm here to talk to you about the importance of praise, admiration and “thank you”s, and making them specific and genuine.
The way I got interested in this was, I noticed that when I was growing up, and until about a few years ago, I would want to say thank you to someone. I would want to praise them. I would want to take in their praise of me and then I'd just stop myself. I asked myself: why? I felt shy. I felt embarrassed. And then my question became: am I the only one who does this? So I decided to study that question.
I'm fortunate enough to work in a rehab facility, so I get to see people who are facing life and death with addiction. Sometimes it comes down to something as simple as their core wound is how their father died without ever saying he's proud of them. But then, they hear from all the family and friends that the father told everybody else that he was proud, but he never told the son. It's because he didn't know that his son needed to hear it.
I used to take my bike into the bike store and they'd do something called "truing（校正）" the wheels. The guy said: "You know, when you true the wheels, it's going to make the bike so much better." I get the same bike back, and they'd have taken all the little warps out of those same wheels I've had for two and a half years, and my bike would feel like new. So, I'm going to challenge all of you. I want you to true your wheels: be honest about the praise that you need to hear. What do you need to hear? Go home to your wife and ask her: “What do you need?” Go home to your husband and ask him what he needs. Go home and ask those questions and then help the people around you.
It's simple. But why should we care about this? We talk about world peace. How can we have world peace with different cultures, different languages? I think it starts in each of our households. So, let's make things right in our own backyards.Why did Laura mention truing the wheels of her bike in the speech?
To thank the staff of the bike shop.
To show the importance of praise and admiration.
To advise readers to get their bike wheels trued, too.
To remind readers to renew their relationships with the people around them.The purpose of the speech is most likely to ___________.
| A． surprise | B． persuade |
| C． describe | D． entertain |
After we finished thirteen miles of hiking, we were tired and our muscles ached as we made our way back to New England. The car ride to the airport followed by a two-hour flight left our legs more worse condition than they were when we first came off the mountain we just climbed.
When we heard that two seats in first class on our next flight were available for a bit higher price, we jumped at the opportunity. Our spirits lifted immediately. After all, flying first class was a new experience for us, and we would end our adventure in comfort and style.
As we boarded the plane, we noticed that the stewardess(空姐) was working non-stop to ensure the comfort of the first class passengers. She could not walk by a seat without receiving an order. How much she must love her job! She smiled kindly at each one while attending to their needs.
As the stewardess walked by our seats near the end of the flight, I looked at her and said, “Thank you and I hope you have a great night.” She stopped, bent down, looked at me and said, “Excuse me.” I repeated my words and she smiled in a rather funny way, almost as if I had asked her a question that she did not know how to answer.
After a few moments she returned to our seats. “I can tell you work with the public,” she said. “Why do you think so?” I asked. She answered very quietly, “Because you are the only passenger here to say something nice to me tonight and I really appreciate your kindness.”
The sense of belonging to the elite(精英) group of people in first class disappeared as we heard her words. Our first class seats offered us more than a comfortable ride. We were reminded that without kindness, we would be flying in no class.Where did the writer ever go hiking?
| A．In a forest | B．In a mountain | C．Along a river | D．Near an airport |
Why did they choose to take a first class flight?
| A．Because they were extremely tired |
| B．Because they wanted to go back as soon as possible |
| C．Because the tickets were cheaper |
| D．Because they wanted to enjoy the first class service. |
After boarding the plane, the writer felt_______.
| A．proud | B．uncomfortable | C．nervous | D．disappointed |
When the stewardess first heard what the writer said, she_________.
| A．didn’t understand the writer | B．knew what work the writer did |
| C．didn’t believe her ears | D．had a big smile on her face |
Jodie Foster was born on Nobember 19,1962,in Los Angeles, Carlif., US. She is an American film actress who began her career as a mature(成熟的) child actress.
Jodie began her performing career as a very young child in television, appearing first in commercials(商业广告). She starred in her own short-lived series, Paper Moon (1974), based on the 1973 film of the same name. She appeared in a number of Disney films, beginning with Napoleon and Samantha (1972).
Director Martin Scorsese cast Jodie in a bit part in Alice Doesn’t live Here Anymore (1974) before giving her the role of Iris in Taxi Driver (1976). Her mature performance in Taxi Driver earned her an Academy Award nomination(提名) as best supporting actress. Her later films as child actress were less impressive, but her performances were always admired. Jodie graduated from Yale University in 1985.
Perhaps because of her screen image of early maturity, Foster was abler to make a relatively smooth transition to adult roles. In The Accused (1988), she gave a perfect performance as Sarah Tobias. In The Silence of the Lames (1991), she tracks a killer as FBI agent Clarice Starling. Both performances won her Academy Awards as best actress.
In 1990s, Jodie went into other areas of filmmaking. She directed her best film, Little Man Tate, in 1991,in which she also co-starred. In 1994, she co-produced Nell, for which she also received an Oscar nomination for best actress. In 1997, Foster starred in Contact. Her later films included Panic Room (2002), Inside Man (2006), and The Brave One (2007). Which of the following film won Jodie Foster Academy Awards as best actress?
a.Taxi Driver b.The Accused c.Nell d.The Silence of the Lambs
| A．bcd | B．ac | C．bd | D．abcd |
We can learn from the passage that________.
| A．it was in a TV series that Jodie made her first TV appearance. |
| B．some of Jodie’s performances as a child actress were thought to be very bad. |
| C．Jodie became famous at a young age because of her mature performance. |
| D．Jodie played a very important role in Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore. |
In which part of a newspaper would you most probably read this passage?
| A．People | B．Business | C．Fashion | D．Career |
English is a very interesting language. It has borrowed words from many other languages. Immigrants(移民) coming into the United States have contributed many words to the language, which have kept their original pronunciation. “Coolie” and “kowtow” were taken from the Chinese language, “kamikaze from the Japanese, “shampoo” from India, “blitz” from German, “amigo” and “Los Angeles” from Spanish and so on.
Many students have studied English for years, some as many as eight. However, some students still have difficulty in speaking fluent English. Some know many words but are unable to discern them when native speakers use them. In our Oral English classes we will focus on speaking and listening to native English speakers. For this reason, because we are trying to train your ears to hear English and your mouths to speak intelligible (易理解的) English, we will have a rule that ONLY ENGLISH will be spoken in our English classes. Anyone speaking Chinese in class will be required to pay a fine in order to encourage the speaking and understanding of English. If teachers enter a classroom and discover that anyone is speaking Chinese, they will require everyone in the room to pay the fine. It is everyone’s job to enforce the English-Only rule. It is for your benefit. It is because we want to accustom (使习惯于) your ears to hearing English.
Other subjects may be learned solely from books but the only way to learn a foreign language is to SPEAK IT! Students are often nervous about speaking in class at first but we hope to make the classes fun, so you will forget your nervousness and learn to speak out. Enjoy your classes.The first paragraph is mainly about________.
| A．the difficulty of learning English. | B．how interesting and various English is |
| C．different words in different languages | D．the immigrants’ contributions to America |
The underlined word “discern” in Para 2 can be replaced by___________.
| A．understand | B．notice | C．hear | D．speak |
In the author’s opinion , the only way to learn a language well is to__________.
| A．listen to it on the radio | B．learn it from books | C．play games with it | D．speak it often |
The article is probably aimed at________.
| A．Japanese students | B．German students | C．Chinese students | D．Indian students |
A dog can’t speak words, but it can “talk”. It has feelings just as you do. At times it may feel angry or afraid. Watch a dog closely. You can see what it is trying to tell you. When you are afraid, you may look down shyly. A fearful dog looks away from you. It may run away too. When you are angry with people, you stare at them and press your lips together. An angry dog also stares. Sometimes the hair along its back stands up.
Do you feel guilty when you have done something you shouldn’t? Dogs can feel guilty, too. At times when I come home, my dog gives me a guilty look. Then I know he’s done something wrong.
Dogs need love and attention. Some dogs are very unhappy when they are left alone for a long time. Some dogs even snap(撕咬) if they don’t get enough attention.
You may have a dog or you may know a dog. Treat it well if you want to have fun with it. Play with it. Take it on walks. Don’t order it round too much. Try not to punish it one time and not the next for doing the same thing. Always remember, a dog has needs and feelings just as you do. Talk to a dog, it’ll talk to you, too.If a dog snaps at things, it is because it may ______.
| A．feel lonely | B．feel shy |
| C．be fearful | D．be disappointed |
You can tell that a dog has done something bad when _________.
| A．its hair stands up | B．it runs away from you |
| C．it has a guilty expression | D．its lips are pressed together |
Which of the following things does the writer advise you to do towards your dog?
| A．Never punish the dog | B．Never leave the dog alone |
| C．Train the dog to take orders from you | D．Train it the way you want to be treated. |
Suppose you punish your dog for tearing up a shoe, what should you do the next time it does so?
| A．Talk to him | B．Punish it again |
| C．Pay no attention to it | D．Take it out for a walk |
The word “guilty” in the second paragraph most probably means _______.
| A．happy | B．excited | C．frightened | D．sorry |
An old woman went suddenly blind. She promised a doctor a lot of money if he could make her see again. “If you fail”, she said, “ you will get nothing,” The doctor agreed with her.The doctor soon discovered what was wrong with her, but he decided not to cure her right away. Instead, each time he visited, he secretly took some of her things. When he had taken everything that he wanted, he cured her blindness and sent her a large bill. Now when the old woman could see again she noticed that all her things had gone and she refused to pay the bill. So the doctor took her before a judge.
“What the doctor says is true.” she said to the judge. “But I say I’m not cured, because I still
can’t see any of the things in my house.”
The old woman won her case and the doctor went away unhappily without getting his pay.The doctor didn’t cure the old woman right away because __________.
A. He didn’t know how to cure her B. He wanted to get a lot of money
C. He wanted to take the woman’s things D The woman refused to pay him The woman was _______ .
| A．clever | B．greedy | C．cruel | D．dishonest |
The doctor was ________.
| A．honest | B．a cheat | C．a kind man | D．ready to help others |
The word “case” in the last paragraph means ______.
| A．a single example | B．a particular situation |
| C．a question to be decided in a court of law | D．box |
Which sentence is right according to the passage?
| A．The judge didn’t believe the old woman |
| B．The doctor cured the woman’s blindness in a short time. |
| C．The woman got back all her things taken by the doctor. |
| D．The doctor failed to get his pay . |
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