A man and his girlfriend were married. It was a large celebration. All of their friends and family came to see the lovely ceremony. Everyone could tell that the love they had for each other was true.
A few months later, the wife came to the husband with a piece of advice, “I read in a magazine, a while ago, about how we can strengthen our marriage,” she offered. “Each of us will write a list of the things that we find a bit annoying with the other person. Then, we can talk about how we can fix them together and make our lives happier together.”
The husband agreed. So each of them tried to think of the things that annoyed them about the other and wrote down what they came up with. The next morning, at the breakfast table, they decided that they would go over their lists.
“I’ll start,” offered the wife. She took out her list. It had many items on it, enough to fill three pages. In fact, as she started reading the list of the little annoyances, she noticed that tears were starting to appear in her husband’s eyes because he never thought that he had so many shortcomings.
The wife continued to read until she had read all three pages to her husband. “Now, you read your list and then we’ll talk about the things on both of our lists,” she said happily. Quietly the husband stated, “I don’t have anything on my list. I think that you are perfect. I don’t want you to change anything for me. You are lovely and wonderful and I wouldn’t want to try and change anything about you.” The wife, touched by his honesty and the depth of his love for her and his acceptance of her, turned her head and wept.
In life, there are enough times when we are disappointed, depressed and annoyed. We don’t really have to go looking for them. We have a wonderful world that is full of beauty, light and promise. Why waste time in this world looking for the bad, disappointing or annoying when we can look around us and see the wonderful things before us?Why were there tears in the husband’s eyes when the wife read his annoyances?
| A．Because he had no courage to face his shortcomings. |
| B．Because he was sorry that he didn’t find any annoyance about his wife. |
| C．Because he never thought he had so many annoyances in his wife’s eyes. |
| D．Because he didn’t think he deserved to have such a perfect wife. |
After hearing the husband’s words, the wife felt _________.
| A．sad and disappointed | B．moved and ashamed |
| C．satisfied and proud | D．surprised and confused |
The story is intended to tell us that ___________.
| A．disappointment cannot be avoided in our life |
| B．young couples should be more tolerant (宽容的) to each other |
| C．we should turn a blind eye to other people’s blame |
| D．we should try to look for and see the wonderful things around us |
Researchers found that people become happier and experience less worry after they reach the age of fifty．In fact, they say by the age of eighty-five, people are happier with their life than they were when they were eighteen years old．
The findings came from a survey of more than 340,000 adults in the United States．The Gallup（民意调查） Organization questioned them by telephone in 2008．At that time, the people were between the ages of eighteen and eighty-five．
The researchers asked questions about emotions like happiness, sadness and worry．They also asked about mental or emotional stress．
Arthur Stone at Stony Brook University in New York led the study．His team found that levels of stress were highest among adults between the ages of twenty-two and twenty-five．The findings showed that stress levels dropped sharply after people reached their fifties．Happiness was highest among the youngest adults and those in their early seventies．The people least likely to report feeling negative emotions were those in their seventies and eighties．
Researchers say they do not know why happiness increases as people get older．One theory is that, as people grow older, they grow more thankful for what they have and have better control of their emotions．They also spend less time thinking about bad experiences．
Professor Stone says the emotional patterns could be linked to changes in how people see the world, or maybe even changes in brain chemistry．
The researchers also considered possible influences like having young children, being unemployed or being single．But they found that influences like these did not affect the levels of happiness and well-being related to age．
The study also showed that men and women have similar emotional patterns as they grow older．However, women at all ages reported more sadness, stress and worry than men．What can be the best title of the text?
| A．Happiness Varies with Ages | B．Experience More, Worry Less |
| C．The Older, the Wiser | D．Being Young, Being Happy |
We can learn from the research that _________．
| A．only when people get older will they feel happier |
| B．stress levels among the youngest are the highest |
| C．older people tend to be grateful |
| D．older people usually have no worries |
According to the research, when people get older, _________．
| A．they miss the old days | B．they are physically weak |
| C．they have better self-control | D．they are more emotional |
What would the author probably talk about next?
| A．What influences happiness． | B．How to live better． |
| C．How to keep happier． | D．Why women are less happier． |
The author is intended to _________．
| A．advise how to reduce stress | B．introduce a scientific finding |
| C．describe how to do research | D．talk about human emotions |
SHANGHAI - Health experts in Shanghai are calling for more protection for young children as the latest research shows about half of the youngsters are suffering from secondhand smoke．
About 45 percent of children suffer passive smoking in families, 50 percent in public places, and almost 6 percent on public transportation, shows a research released by the Shanghai Children's Medical Center on Tuesday．
"Not only adults but also children and newborn babies are at risk for the adverse effects of passive smoking," said Tang Jingyan, a doctor at the Shanghai Children's Medical Center．
"Actually, those young children whose bodies are still growing and developing are more sensitive to the effects of secondhand smoke．"
Research has shown that children who are exposed to secondhand smoke will suffer from more colds, coughs and sore throats, and they are more likely to suffer from bronchitis, pneumonia and will have a higher risk of developing cancer．
Doctors even suggested that children suffering passive smoking are more likely to have behavioral problems and may not develop mentally as quickly as their peers．
Other research by the Shanghai Children's Medical Center has found that more than 80 percent of child patients in the center live in a smoke-filled household, where one or both parents smoke．
"Though doctors have stressed the harm of passive smoking over and over, it is still hard to reach a totally 'smoke free' home," said a pediatrician named Zhang Yiwen, noting that parents are often tempted to smoke even though they have learned the harmful effects of secondhand smoke．
China has 540 million people suffering from passive smoke, 180 million of them younger than 15．The age of smokers is also getting lower, earlier reports said．
"There are more young smokers than before．You can see young people wearing a school uniform and carrying a schoolbag light a cigarette on the street．Some of them are even female students," said Jing Xingming, a professor of children's developmental behavior at the center．
"Children like to imitate adults, especially their parents．If parents often smoke at home, it is very likely children will develop a smoking habit, which can cause a vicious circle," Jin said．
Reports from the Ministry of Health said China has about 350 million smokers, of whom 15 million are underage smokers．Also, around 40 million of the country's 130 million children aged between 13 and 18 had tried smoking, and 15 million had become addicted to tobacco．What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．About half of the youngsters are suffering from secondhand smoke． |
| B．Experts are calling for more protection for youngsters from smoking． |
| C．More and more youngsters are picking up the habit of smoking． |
| D．Smoking does great harm to the health of the youngsters． |
What kind of the youngsters most possibly develop a habit of smoking?
| A．Children of non-smoking mothers． |
| B．Children of non-smoking fathers． |
| C．Children of heavy smokers． |
| D．Children from some smoking centers． |
Which of the following disease may not be connected with secondhand smoking?
| A．Cancer． | B．Behavioral problems． |
| C．Sore throats． | D．Coughs． |
The underlined word "vicious" in the last paragraph but one most probably means ___________．
| A．complete | B．simple | C．great | D．bad |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．About 80% of the children in the Shanghai Children's Medical Center smoke heavily． |
| B．About 45 percent of children suffer passive smoking in the Shanghai Children's Medical Center． |
| C．About 540 million people are heavy smokers in China． |
| D．Children aged between 13 to 18 are more likely addicted to smoking． |
Most of the 20th century has been a development on the Industrial Revolution taken to an extreme: people now own more products than ever before; there are enough unclear weapons to destroy the earth several times over; there is hardly any forest left and pollution has got to the point where we buy water. Within a few years I predict you will be able to buy air. (There once was a time when you didn’t need to buy food or shelter either.)
Important developments in the last century are the breading down of the class structures left over from the Industrial Revolution stage, bringing with it the empowerment of the “common man ”: the working day is set by law to only 8 hours a day, everyone has the vote, the media has less obvious government control, people have landed on the moon, sent spacecrafts to Mars and so on. Families have also shrunk drastically（强烈地）; the nuclear family came about, and especially in the last half of the 20th century, one-parent families are becoming more common. This shrinking in the size of the family shows the increased independence of people—once upon a time people had to live in large groups to survive.
As humans have “become the gods”, they have realized their individuality and independence and taken their control of the world to an extreme. In many countries the land is almost completely used in the land is almost completely used in the production of food and as living space and they live in small cities which are entirely human constructed, made from materials which are also entirely human constructed(concrete, bricks) with hardly any remains of nature. Weeds are poisoned because they are messy; even parks have trees grown in tidy lines; grass is mowed to keep it short and so on. I think the massive drug “problem” troubling people is a result of too much of this influence, humans needing to escape the stark world they have created by entering fantasy worlds.
Over the last 100 years, the 20th century consciousness has spread throughout the world; most of Asia has been thoroughly “Westernized”, and most of the Third World is being overrun by western ways of doing things and living.What’s the author most concerned about?
| A．The influence of pollution. |
| B．Strong effects of development. |
| C．Changed positions of humans as gods. |
| D．The process of the Industrial Revolution. |
What is the author’s attitude towards the changes of the 20th century?
| A．Objective. | B．Tolerant. | C．Vague. | D．Negative. |
What does the underlined word “stark” in Paragraph 3 mean?
| A．Unfair. | B．Illegal. | C．Dull. | D．Violent. |
What can be inferred from the passage?
| A．Men’s individuality is over controlled. |
| B．People have damaged nature too much. |
| C．Men’s independence is partially limited. |
| D．People show concern for nuclear families. |
Visitors were still paying 20 yuan to hug Lele and have their photos taken yesterday despite a ban that forbids any such sontact with a wild animal. The ban was introduced more than a week ago.
“The city zoo broke the law and should be prohibited,” said an official at the State Forestry Administration.
The administration notice last Monday clearly bans contact with wild or captive animals, the abuse of wild or captive animals for performance purposes and any improper business related to wild animal products.
“Close contact with the chimp is the only bit that breaks the ban and we will end that soon,” said Beijing Zoo spokeswoman Ye Minxia yesterday.
“The chimpanzee performance can’t stopped overnight as we have a contract with a company scheduled to terminate at the end of this year,” she said.
“The zoo is negotiating with the company in the hope of terminating it sooner,” Ye said. She refused to answer directly whether the chimp photo sessions were still ongoing yesterday, instead, saying. “It’s very likely we will cancel it tomorrow.”
Zoo staff confirmed photos were taken yesterday, one employee saying 2-year-old Lele “works” form 10am to 3pm daily, according to the Leagl Mirror.
Such activities not only damage the mental and physical health of the animals, but also risk the safety of visitors, according to the official website of the State Forestry Administration where the notice was released.
“A pet male chimpanzee bit and attacked 55-year-old Chala Nash, causing serious injuries to her face, neck and hands at her friend’s home in Stamfor, Connecticut on February 16th last year,” CNN reported. The friend, Sandra Herold, called the police, who shot 14-year-old Travis many times after he also attacked an officer.”
“Putting a blue T-shirt on a wild animal and training it to bare its teeth and parade for visitors might not enhance that already-troubled image of Chinese animal protection,” the State Forestry official warned. “Some zoos even hit animals and promote themselves with commercials involving animal abuse, ” he said.
“Too much focus on the profits too often results in improper treatment of animals, contributing to their early and unnatural deaths,” the notice stated.Where can people most probably find the article?
| A．In research reports. | B．In newspapers. |
| C．In science fictions. | D．In book reviews. |
What do we learn about Lele?
| A．It’s used to make money. | B．It is hit by the people. |
| C．It attacked its owners. | D．It died unnaturally. |
What would be the best title of the article?
| A．Zoos Disobey National Ban | B．Profit-making Zoos |
| C．Animals in Danger | D．Animal Abuse |
Has anyone noticed how, with the passage of time, one’s relationship with one’s grown-up daughters and sons becomes changed? I’ve been aware of this for some time but I’m not quite sure how to deal with it.
Take the kitchen sink for example.
Following a family get-together at my place, I walked into the kitchen to find Kate, my daughter carefully cleaning the sink.
“Don’t do that; what are you doing that for?” I said, unhappy about the hidden criticism.
“Mum,” she said, “you really ought to put your glasses on when you clean the sink. Behind the tap here was black!”
But it’s not just things like kitchen sinks. Another time Kate arrived to pick me up to lunch. She looked at me and then asked, “Mum, why do you use brown eyebrow pencil when your hair is grey?”
A sudden memory of her, aged 14, going to her first mixed party flooded back. She had come in to say goodbye. For a moment I thought she’d been an accident. Both eyes were black. I remember suggesting that perhaps a little less eye make-up might be more effective.
Now I told her, “My hair used to be brown.”
“It looks absurd.”
“Mrs. Menzies had dark eyebrows with grey hair.”
“Yes, but you’re not Mrs. Menzies, are you?” she said triumphantly, as if that proved her point.
But a recent event made me realize that something really must be done.
She had returned some for a few weeks before getting married. One evening I went out on a dinner date. By the time my companion left me at the front door, it was about 2am. As I stepped in, an angry figure in a white nightgown stopped me.
“Well, what time of night is this to be coming home?” she shouted. “Where have you been? I’ve been worried sick!”
Shades of the past come back to disturb me. But what should I do about all this? Nothing, probably. Maybe, after all, it’s only a stage young people are going through.The daughter thought her mother didn’t clean the kitchen sink well because of her .
| A．laziness | B．carelessness | C．unhappiness | D．poor-quality glasses |
From the passage we know the daughter .
| A．didn’t want to help with the sink |
| B．didn’t like brown eyebrow pencils |
| C．had an accident when she went to her first party |
| D．shouted at her mum because she came home late |
How does the mother feel after all these have happened?
| A．Shocked. | B．Proud. | C．Envious. | D．Confused. |
The author writes the stories to prove that .
| A．their relationship became stronger |
| B．their roles changed as time passed |
| C．her daughter very much cared about her |
| D．her daughter got upset as she grew up |
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