People who speak or perform before the public sometimes may suffer from “Stage Fright. ” Stage fright makes a person nervous. In the worst case(情况) it can make one's mind go back and forget what one ought to say, or to act. Actors, musicians, dancers, lawyers, even radio show hosts(节目主持人) have suffered from stage fright at one time or another.
Diana Nichols is an expert in helping people free from stage fright at a medical centre in New York City. She helps actors learn to control themselves. Miss Nichols says some people have always been afraid to perform before the audience. Others, she says, develop stage fright after a fearful experience.
She offers them ways to control the fear. One way is to smile before going onto the stage. Taking two deep breaths also helps. Deep breathing helps you get control of your body.
Miss Nichols persuades her patients to tell themselves that their speech or performance does not have to the perfect. It's all right to make a mistake. She tells them they should not be too cautious while they are performing. It is important that they should continue to perform while she is helping them. After each performance, they discuss what happened and find out what advice helped and what did not. As they perform more and more, they will fear less and less as much as 50%. Miss Nichols says the aim is only to reduce stage fright, not to eliminate it completely. This is because a little stage fright makes a person more cautious, and improves the performance.One who is suffering stage fright may _______.
| A．forget one's part before the audience |
| B．smile all the time on the stage |
| C．make a speech faster than ever |
| D．be cautious to improve his performance |
The underlined word “eliminate” in the last paragraph means _______.
| A．keep | B．reduce |
| C．change | D．get rid of |
The wrong way to overcome stage fright is ______.
| A．to smile before going to the stage. |
| B．to take two deep breaths to calm oneself |
| C．to pay less attention to one's mistakes in performance |
| D．to perform less and to watch more |
Different countries and different people have different manners. We must find out their customs, so that they will not think us ill-mannered. Here are some examples of the things that a well-mannered person does or does not do.
If you visit a Chinese family you should knock at the door first. When the door opens, you’ll not move before the host says “Come in, please!”. After you enter the room, you wouldn’t sit down until the host asks you to take a seat. When a cup of tea is put on a tea-table before you or sent to your hand, you’ll say “Thank you” and receive it with your two hands, not one hand, or they’ll think you are ill-mannered.
Before entering a house in Japan, it is good manners to take off your shoes. In European countries, even though shoes sometimes become very dirty, this is not done. In a Malay (马来西亚的) house, a guest never finishes the food on the table. He leaves a little to show that he has had enough. In England, a guest always finishes a drink or the food to show that he has enjoyed it. This will make the host, especially (尤其) the hostess pleased.In China, when the host opens the door, ____ before he says “Come in, please!”
| A．you won’t leave |
| B．you won’t walk |
| C．you won’t stand in front of him |
| D．you won’t get in |
In European countries,____ when you get into a house.
| A．you needn’t take off your shoes | B．you must take off your dirty shoes |
| C．you are not allowed to wear dirty shoes | D．you should put on clean shoes |
In a Malay house, a guest leaves a little food to show that ____.
| A．he has enjoyed it | B．he is quite full |
| C．he is not hungry at all | D．he needs some drink |
A Concussion（脑震荡） happens when the brain is shaken, often in a car crash or a fall or a strike on; the head in sports．Concussions can be mild, but doctors may order a CT scan to look for a more serious injury．But a recent study warned that more children than necessary are being exposed to radiation this way．
A national team led by two doctors at the University of California, Davis, studied hospital records from thousands of children with head injuries. They found that in many cases, the risk of developing cancer from the radiation outweighed the risk of a serious brain injury.
The study found that one in five children over age two had a low risk of serious injury but received CT scans anyway. The same was true of almost one in four children under two years of age.
The researchers have developed rules to predict if a head injury is serious enough for a scan. For children under two, doctors are advised against it if there is:
·Normal mental activity.
·No swelling in the back of the head.
·No feeling of a broken bone in the skull. (头骨)
·And no loss of consciousness for more than five seconds.
Doctors should also consider how the child was injured and whether the parents say the child is acting normally.
For patients from two to eighteen, the guidelines are similar ——except there should be no loss of consciousness, no vomiting（呕吐） and no severe headache.
Earlier this year, the British Journal of Sports Medicine published new guidelines for concussions in children and teens. International experts said they should not return to sports or school until fully recovered. The brain also needs a "cognitive rest," they say, by restricting activities like video games, texting and watching TV.
It often takes young people longer than adults to recover from a concussion. The experts say individual progress and not a set time period should always guide a decision to return to play. More than one million cases of concussion are reported each year in the United States alone. A congressional committee has called a hearing Wednesday to discuss legal issues related to head injuries in football.The researchers at the -University of California found that children who received CT scans
| A．were likely to suffer brain injuries |
| B．wouldn't have normal mental activity |
| C．would lose consciousness now and then |
| D．were likely to develop cancer |
For patients from two to eight, the guidelines are similar to the ones for children under two except___________.
| A．there is normal mental activity. |
| B．there is no swelling in the back of the head. |
| C．there is no feeling of a broken bone in the skull. |
| D．there should be no loss of consciousness |
What can we learn from the last two paragraphs?
| A．Texting is harmful to patients’ recovery from concussions． |
| B．Patients with brain injuries can play many sports． |
| C．Adults need a longer time than teens to recover from concussions． |
| D．It takes at least a year for individuals with brain injuries to fully recover． |
The author of the passage mainly___．
| A．describes the risks of brain injuries |
| B．suggests CT scans are of practical use |
| C．tells us about the risks of brain injury tests |
| D．argues against new guidelines for concussions |
This is the VOA Special English Economics Report.
China has recently been faced with serious issues of product safety. Some cases have brought attention internationally to the increased use of imported ingredients to make food and medicine.
In Panama, medicine made with a poisonous chemical killed or sickened more than one hundred people. A Chinese company had identified it as diethylamide glycol （ [化]乙二醇）, a low – cost substitute commonly used in automobile antifreeze（防冻剂）.
Some countries have banned Chinese-made toothpaste containing diethylamide glycol. China has now told companies to discontinue its use, even though it says the toothpaste is safe. Another industrial chemical, melamine（三聚氰胺）, was found in wheat flour used to make pet food in North America. Thousands of dogs and cats became sick.
The United States has restricted some imports of Chinese seafood because they contained banned substance. And questions have been raised about other products, including children’s toys covered with lead paint.
Chinese officials promised to provide the European Union, the biggest trading partner, with detailed reports on enforcement efforts against unsafe goods.
Meglena Kuneva, commissioner (理事) for consumer protection of the European Union said China should have kept its promise.
China recently closed three companies linked to the Panama and the pet food scare. And itdismissed the former head of its food and drug administration. He was found guilty of corruption (腐败) for approving unsafe drugs. This week, a conference of the State Council approved a proposed special measure on the supervision of food safety. The Xinhua News Agency said it calls for stronger controls over producers, greater responsibilities for government and more serious punishment for illegal activities.
But Chinese officials have accused some foreign media of overstating problems with goods made in China. They say food imports from the United States also fail inspection sometimes. Next Week, American and Chinese food safety officials are planning to hold 5 days of meetings in Beijing to discuss cooperation.
And that’s the VOA Special English Economics Report. I’m Mario Ritter.How many cases with safety problems are mentioned in the passage?
| A．Six | B．Five | C．Four | D．Three |
How was Panama case dealt with afterwards?
A．Three companies linked to it were closed down.
B．The former head of food and drug administration was removed from his position.
C．More serious punishment was conducted for leaders linked to it.
D. Both A and B. It can be inferred but not clearly stated that ________.
| A．Chinese- made toothpaste is safe |
| B．the safety of “made in China” is doubted |
| C．there are safety problems with one more Chinese products. |
| D．stronger control over Chinese products is in need |
The passage is mainly about ________.
| A．China is facing product safety problems |
| B．more controls are taken of Chinese goods |
| C．overstated problems with Chinese goods |
| D．China is losing its trade partners |
There is no doubt that much of the profit of a business—sometimes the whole of its success—depends upon the use of the odds and ends．The odds and ends are various small things，which are left over when the main things are produced．But they possess a real value of their own．
If a business，big or small，looked down upon these odds and ends，it would mean a big difference in the amount of the benefit of the business．Take a meat factory for instance， there are countless odds and ends—bones and hair，which can be made into glue and rope to increase its profit greatly．
Then，if we are college students，what about our odds and ends—the odd moments？ Take time for example．Every one of us has the exact same amount of it．Everyone’s success or failure depends on the use of their time．But everyone uses the time more or less in the same way．However，why many great men in science or art have made huge successes for themselves in the world？Because they have made best use of their odd moments．Take Thomas A．Edison， he never allowed his odd moments to slip by．He thought，planned，and tried his inventions．He always worked twenty hours out of each twenty-four．His inventions made him famous all over the world，and provided valuable wealth for the human beings．
So, remember this axiom：very busy people always find time for everything．However，people with great spare time find time for nothing．Is it very strange？Not at all！The question is how to gather up fragments of time and make full use of them．As many big businesses have found，that the real profit is in using the odds and ends．We also must do in this way to make best use of our odd moments and manage to be successful in something that we do． What are odds and ends？
| A．They are nothing useful． |
| B．They are various small，but valuable things． |
| C．They are the main things that factories produce． |
| D．They are odd moments students deny to gather up． |
Why should the odds and ends be made full use of ？Because ____ ．
| A．lots of factors in success or in failure depend on the best use of odds and ends |
| B．they control to possess a value of their own |
| C．they are various small things people don’t want |
| D．they are useless things left over when the main things are produced |
What does the word “Axiom” in the fourth paragraph mean?
| A．clear and evident without proof |
| B．statement accepted as true without proof of argument |
| C．statement that can be argued |
| D．regulation accepted in scientific usage |
“Fragments of time” equals “____ ”in the above passage．
| A．the odds and ends | B．immense leisure |
| C．the main things | D．the odd moments |
Why does night fall but never break and day break but never fall?
Why are people who ride motorcycles called bikers and people who ride bikes called cyclists?
In what other language do people drive in a parkway and park in a driveway?
In what other language do they call the third hand on the clock the second hand?
Let’s face it: English is a crazy language. There is no egg in an eggplant, neither pine nor apple in a pineapple and no ham in a hamburger. Sweet-meats are candy, while sweetbreads, which aren’t sweet, are meat.
We take English for granted. But when we explore its paradoxes (探讨它的矛盾), we find that quicksand can work slowly, boxing rings are square, public bathrooms have no baths in them.
And why is it that a writer writes, but fingers don’t fing, grocers don’t groce, and hammers don’t ham? If the plural of tooth is teeth, shouldn’t the plural of booth be beeth? One goose, two geese — so one moose, two meese?
How can a slim chance and a fat chance be the same, while a wise man and a wise guy are opposites? How can overlook and oversee be opposites, while quite a lot and quite a few are alike? How can the weather be hot as hell one day and cold as hell the next?
English was invented by people, not computers, and it reflects the creativity of human beings. That’s why, when stars are out, they are visible; but when the lights are out, they are invisible. And why, when I wind up my watch, I start it; but when I wind up this essay, I end it. According to the passage ______.
| A．sweet-meats and sweetbreads are different things |
| B．there should be egg in an eggplant |
| C．pineapples are the apples on the pine tree |
| D．boxing rings should be round |
Which of the following includes two items which have the similar meaning?
| A．A wise man and a wise guy. |
| B．Overlook and oversee. |
| C．Quite a lot and quite a few. |
| D．Hot as hell and cold as hell. |
The underlined words “wind up” in the last paragraph probably mean “______”.
| A．blow | B．roll up | C．get hurt | D．finish |
Through the many paradoxes in the English language, the writer wants to show that human beings are ______.
| A．clever | B．crazy | C．lazy | D．dull |
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