The evidence for harmony may not be obvious in some families. But it seems that four out of five young people now get on well with their parents, which is the opposite of the popularly-held image of unhappy teenagers locked in their room after endless family quarrels.
An important new study into teenage attitudes surprisingly shows that their family life is more harmonious than it had ever been in the past. “We were surprised by just how positive today’s young people seem to be about their families,” said one number of the research team. “They’re expected to be rebellious and selfish but actually they have other things on their minds: they want a car and material goods, and they worry about whether school is serving them well. There’s more negotiation and discussion between parents and children, and children expect to take part in the family decision-making process. They don’t want to rock the boat.”
So it seems that this generation of parents is much more likely than parents of 30 years ago to treat their children as friends. “My parents are happy to discuss things with me and willing to listen to me,” says 17-year-old Daniel Lazall. “I always tell them when I’m going out clubbing. As long as they know what I’m doing, they’re fine with me.” Susan Crome, who is now 21, agrees. “Looking back on the last 10 years, there was a lot of what you could call negotiation. For example, as long as I’d done all my homework, I could go out on a Saturday night. But I think my grandparents were a lot stricter with my parents than that.”
Maybe this positive view of family life should not be unexpected. It is possible that the idea of teenage rebellion is not rooted in real facts. A researcher comments, “Our surprise that teenagers say they get along well with their parents comes because of a brief period in our social history when teenagers were regarded as different beings. But that idea of rebelling and breaking away from their parents really happened during that one time in the 1960s when everyone rebelled. The normal situation throughout history has been a smooth change. ”What is the popular image of the teenagers today?
| A．They worry about school. |
| B．They quarrel a lot with other family members. |
| C．They have to be locked in to avoid troubles. |
| D．They dislike living with their parents. |
Compared with parents of 30 years ago, today’s parents ____________.
| A．go to clubs more often with their children |
| B．are much stricter with their children |
| C．give their children more freedom |
| D．care less about their children’s life |
According to the writer, teenage rebellion __________.
| A．may be a false belief |
| B．is common nowadays |
| C．existed only in the 1960s |
| D．resulted from changes in families |
What is the passage mainly about?
| A．Negotiation in family. |
| B．Education in family. |
| C．Harmony in family. |
| D．Teenage trouble in family. |
Many people turn to doctors or self-help books, but they ignore a powerful thing that could help them fight illness: their friends.
Researchers are only now starting to pay attention to the importance of friendship in health. A 10-year Australian study found that old People with a large circle of friends. A large 2007 study showed an increase of nearly 60 percent in the risk （危险） for obesity （肥胖） among people whose friends gained weight. And last year, Harvard researchers reported that strong social ties could improve brain health as we age.
“In general, the role of friendship in our lives isn’t well realized,” said Rebecca, a professor at the University of North Carolina. “Friendship has a bigger effect on our psychological （心理的） health than family relationships. ”
While many friendship studies are about the close relationships of women, some research shows that it can do good to men too. In a six-year study of 736 middle-aged men, having friendships reduces the risk of heart attack. Only smoking was as important a risk factor （因素） as having little social support.
Exactly why friendship has such a big effect isn’t entirely clear. While friends can send a sick person to the hospital or pick up medicine, the advantages go well beyond physical help. Friendship clearly has a big psychological effect. “People with stronger friendships feel like there is someone they can turn to,” said Karen, a doctor. “The message of these studies is that friends make your life better. ”The three studies in paragraph2 show that .
| A．old people need friends the most. |
| B．friends can help us lose weight. |
| C．social ties （关系） are connected to health |
| D．more friends make us healthier. |
What do underlined sentences in paragraph3 mean?
| A．Friendship is more important to women than to men. |
| B．What people need most is a friend’s care. |
| C．Friendship is more important than family relationship |
| D．The value of friendship hasn’t been fully understood. |
The author mentioned smoking in the text to discuss .
| A．the cause of heart attack. |
| B．the risk of having no friends. |
| C．smoking is bad for men. |
| D．friends’ influence on habits. |
Some people will do just about anything to save money. And I am one of them. Take my family's last vacation. It was my six-year-old son's winter break form school, and we were heading home from Fort Lauderdale after a weeklong trip. The flight was overbooked, and Delta, the airline, offered us $400 per person in credits to give up our seats and leave the next day. I had meeting in New York，So I had to get back . But that didn't mean my husband and my son couldn't stay. I took my nine-month-old and took off for home.
The next day my husband and son were offered more credits to take an even later flight. Yes, I encouraged一okay, ordered-them to wait it out at the airport, to "earn" more Delta Dollars. Our total take: $1,600. Not bad, huh?
Now some people may think I'm a bad mother and not such a great wife either. But as a big-time bargain hunter, I know the value of a dollar. And these days, a good deal is something few of us can afford to pass up.
I've made living looking for the best deals and exposing (揭露) the worst tricks . I have been the consumer reporter of NBC's Today show for over a decade. I have written a couple of books including one titled Tricks of the Trade: A Consumer Survival Guide. And I really do what I believe in. I tell you this because there is no shame in getting your money's worth. I'm also tightfisted when it comes to shoes, clothes for my children, and expensive restaurants. But I wouldn't hesitate to spend on a good haircut. It keeps its longer, and it's the first thing people notice. And I will also spend on a classic piece of furniture. Quality lasts.
| 1． |
Why did Delta give the author's family credits?（）
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| 2． |
What can we learn about the author?（）
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| 3． |
What does the author do?（）
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| 4． |
What does the author want to tell us?（）
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Spring is here and so is the cycling season. Here are some tips on how to do it safely and comfortably.
Watch your feet—Pushing with the wrong part of the foot can raise your risk of developing a painful injury of the heel and arch（脚心）, says Rob Werstine, a sports physiotherapist（理疗师）and board member of the Canadian Physiotherapy Association. You should push with the ball of your foot, he says.
Layer up—While it’s still cool, wear layers of clothing, with clothing close to the body that breathes and outer layers that do not absorb water. Go for bright colors that increase your visibility（可见度）.
Be reasonable—If you are just starting out and aren’t in good shape, don’t sign up for a 50-kilometre ride. And while cycling is great exercise for people who want to get into shape, if your doctor advises you not to do tiring exercise, cycling shouldn't be your starting position, Werstine says. Walk to begin getting into shape and then graduate to cycling.
Fix the fit—If you develop lower back pain or numbness in your hands and fingers from cycling, it could be your bike isn’t adjusted properly for your height. A good cycle shop can help you find the right height for the seat and handlebars, but if you have continuing problems, consider consulting a bike fit physiotherapist, Werstine says.
Be mindful—You have to pay attention on the roads to vehicles, other cyclists and pedestrians（行人）.Consider taking a cycling safety course to practise your skills. Or do some reading about how to avoid dangerous cycling situations. bicyclesafe.com, for instance, lists 10 types of car-bike accidents and how to avoid them.Which part of the foot should one use when cycling?
| A．The heel. | B．The arch. | C．The ball. | D．The toes. |
From Paragraph 4 we can conclude______.
| A．not everyone can exercise by cycling | B．walking is better than cycling |
| C．cycling is popular with people | D．cycling is helpful to everyone |
According to the last paragraph, if you want to avoid danger when cycling, you should ______.
a. consider taking a cycling safety course
b. search for information on bicyclesafe.com
c. consider consulting a bike fit physiotherapist
d. adjust the bike properly for your height
| A．a. c | B．c. d | C．a. b | D．b. d |
I don’t ever want to talk about being a woman scientist again. There was a time in my life when people asked constantly for stories about what it’s like to work in a field dominated by men. I was never very good at telling those stories because truthfully I never found them interesting. What I do find interesting is the origin of the universe, the shape of space-time and the nature of black holes.
At 19, when I began studying astrophysics, it did not bother me in the least to be the only woman in the classroom. But while earning my Ph.D. at MIT and then as a post-doctor doing space research, the issue started to bother me. My every achievement—jobs, research papers, awards—was viewed through the lens of gender (性别) politics. So were my failures. Sometimes, when I was pushed into an argument on left brain versus (相对于) right brain, or nature versus nurture (培育), I would instantly fight fiercely on my behalf and all womankind.
Then one day a few years ago, out of my mouth came a sentence that would eventually become my reply to any and all provocations: I don’t talk about that anymore. It took me 10 years to get back the confidence I had at 19 and to realize that I didn’t want to deal with gender issues. Why should curing sexism be yet another terrible burden on every female scientist? After all, I don’t study sociology or political theory.
Today I research and teach at Barnard, a women’s college in New York City. Recently, someone asked me how many of the 45 students in my class were women. You cannot imagine my satisfaction at being able to answer, 45. I know some of my students worry how they will manage their scientific research and a desire for children. And I don’t dismiss those concerns. Still, I don’t tell them “war” stories. Instead, I have given them this: the visual of their physics professor heavily pregnant doing physics experiments. And in turn they have given me the image of 45 women driven by a love of science. And that’s a sight worth talking about.Why doesn’t the author want to talk about being a woman scientist again?
| A．She feels unhappy working in male-dominated fields. |
| B．She is fed up with the issue of gender discrimination. |
| C．She is not good at telling stories of the kind. |
| D．She finds space research more important |
From Paragraph 2, we can infer that people would owe the author’s failures to _____.
| A．the very fact that she is a woman |
| B．her involvement in gender politics |
| C．her over-confidence as a female astrophysicist |
| D．the burden she bears in a male-dominated society |
Why does the author feel great satisfaction when talking about her class?
| A．Female students no longer have to bother about gender issues. |
| B．Her students’ performance has brought back her confidence. |
| C．Her female students can do just as well as male students. |
| D．More female students are pursuing science than before. |
What does the image the author presents to her students suggest?
| A．Women students needn’t have the concerns of her generation. |
| B．Women have more barriers on their way to academic success. |
| C．Women can balance a career in science and having a family. |
| D．Women now have fewer problems pursuing a science career. |
The other day at lunch I was part of a whole group of colleagues and we were talking behind our boss’s back. She’s the new principal (校长)of our middle school.
We talked about how kind she is to us. She writes notes to wish us happy holidays, or to thank us for jobs well done. She checks on us when she knows we’re facing difficulties outside of school with our health or with our families.
All too often, When we talk NICE behind someone’s back, they never know about it！I sent her a quick email to report the conversation. She replied saying how much she appreciated hearing about it!
I like to do the same for my students. Of course I give them my own compliments(恭维),but I love to let them know when others adults have noticed their good behavior and attitudes. Then it’s absolutely necessary to let THEM know it too! It matters when what they notice is good.
I’ve known from the other side how much this can mean. I often lack confidence in my own abilities as a teacher, so it gave me quite a lift when a friend who works with families in the community mentioned that he has heard several times from parents how glad they are to have their kids in my class. It just feels more important somehow to have the words said by people who don’t know I’ll ever hear them.
Sure, it’s pleasant when we can say nice things about other people. Watch for your next opportunity to be the reporter! Make sure to tell them about the nice things being said behind their backs!Why did these colleagues talk behind their boss’s back?
| A．They were afraid of her. |
| B．She treated them badly. |
| C．She was kind to them. |
| D．It was their daily practice. |
Why did the author report their conversation to her principals?
| A．They were good friends. |
| B．The principals hated them. |
| C．She guessed her principals might be glad to hear it. |
| D．She wanted to be praised. |
What encouraged the author to be a good teacher?
| A．Others’ nice talk behind her back. |
| B．Her good knowledge in teaching. |
| C．Her rich experience in teaching. |
| D．Her principal’s help. |
Violent winds swept the ocean, and waves thundered to shore, shaking the lookout tower at Pea Island Rescue Station. Surfman Theodore Meekins was on watch that evening of 11 October 1896. A hurricane had struck the Outer Banks of North Carolina, and the tide was so strong that beach patrols(巡逻)had been canceled. Still, Meekins paid close attention to the horizon. This was the type of weather that could blow ships hundreds of miles off course.
Offshore, the ship E.S. Newman was caught in the storm. The captain, whose wife and child were on the ship, feared the Newman would soon break up. He made the decision to beach his ship, then fired a signal, praying that someone onshore would see it.
Meekins, whose eyes were trained to cut through rain and surf mists, thought he saw the signal, but so much spray (水雾) covered the lookout windows that he could hardly make sure. Still, he took no chances. After summoning (召集) the station keeper, Captain Richard Etheridge, Meekins set off a coston signal, a signal made by using lamps of different colors. Together, the two men searched the darkness for a reply. A few moments later, they saw a flash of light to the south and knew a shop was in distress (遇险). Even before the return signal burned out, Etheridge had summoned his men and begun rescue operations.
For the lifesavers, the rescue of the Newman was nothing unusual. Over the years, so many ships had foundered off the Outer Banks that sailors called the region the Graveyard of the Atlantic. Noting the dangerous surf and wind conditions, Captain Etheridge quickly decided the surf boats would be impossible to control. Instead, he decided to use another way to help the survivors.
The crew set off on the long journey down the beach to the scene of the wreck (海滩). Captain Etheridge hoped to fire a line from a gun to the ship’s mast (船桅). After the ship’s crew dragged the line onboard, the surfmen would fire a second line and carry survivors safely to shore.
The surfmen crossed three miles of sand to reach the ship Newman. The water was freezing, and the men often sank up to their knees in sand. Captain Etheridge noted in his diary that “the voice of gladdened hearts greeted the arrival of the station crew,” but that “it seemed impossible for them to do anything under such circumstances. The work was often stopped by the sweeping current.”
Even when the rescue equipment proved useless, Etheridge refused to give up. Choosing two of his strongest surfmen, he tied rope lines around their waists and sent them into the water. The two men, holding a line from shore, walked with huge effort as far as they could before diving through the waves. Nearly worn out while swimming against the tide, they finally made it to the shore.
The first to be rescued were the captain’s wife and child. With the two passengers tied to their backs, the surfmen fought their way back to shore. Taking turns, Etheridge and his crew made ten trips to the Newman, saving every person onboard. It was 1:00 a.m. when the crew and survivors finally made it back to the station.
That night, as the exhausted survivors lay sleeping and his lifesaving crew rested, Captain Etheridge picked up his pen, and in the light of an oil lantern, wrote with satisfaction that all the people onboard had been saved and were “sheltered in this station”—words he would remember for many years to come.The beach patrols were canceled because ________.
| A．Meekins paid enough attention to the horizon |
| B．there was too much spray on the windows |
| C．the winds and tide were too strong |
| D．there was no ship near the station |
The underlined word “foundered” in Paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to “___________”.
| A．stopped | B．sank | C．sailed | D．arrived |
What was the author’s main purpose in writing the passage?
| A．To warn sailors of the dangers of hurricanes. |
| B．To create a story describing a rescue at sea. |
| C．To inform people about Richard Etheridge. |
| D．To record the details about the Newman. |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．The newman was very dangerous before Richard Etheridge and his team members saw the signal. |
| B．A terrible hurricane took place off the coast of North Carolina and threatened the lives of many sailors. |
| C．At no other time in American history have so many shipwrecked passengers survived such a violent storm. |
| D．All the passengers of a shipwreck were rescued because of heroic the efforts of a special leader and his crew. |
Decision-making under Stress
A new review based on a research shows that acute stress affects the way the brain considers the advantages and disadvantages, causing it to focus on pleasure and ignore the possible negative (负面的) consequences of a decision.
The research suggests that stress may change the way people make choices in predictable ways.
“Stress affects how people learn,” says Professor Mara Mather. “People learn better about positive than negative outcomes under stress.”
For example, two recent studies looked at how people learned to connect images(影像) with either rewards or punishments. In one experiment, some of the participants were first stressed by having to give a speech and do difficult math problems in front of an audience; in the other, some were stressed by having to keep their hands in ice water. In both cases, the stressed participants remembered the rewarded material more accurately and the punished material less accurately than those who hadn’t gone through the stress.
This phenomenon is likely not surprising to anyone who has tried to resist eating cookies or smoking a cigarette while under stress –at those moments, only the pleasure associated with such activities comes to mind. But the findings further suggest that stress may bring about a double effect. Not only are rewarding experiences remembered better, but negative consequences are also easily recalled.
The research also found that stress appears to affect decision-making differently in men and women. While both men and women tend to focus on rewards and less on consequences under stress, their responses to risk turn out to be different.
Men who had been stressed by the cold-water task tended to take more risks in the experiment while women responded in the opposite way. In stressful situations in which risk-taking can pay off big, men may tend to do better, when caution weighs more, however, women will win.
This tendency to slow down and become more cautious when decisions are risky might also help explain why women are less likely to become addicted than men: they may more often avoid making the risky choices that eventually harden into addiction.We can learn from the passage that people under pressure tend to ______.
| A．keep rewards better in their memory |
| B．recall consequences more effortlessly |
| C．make risky decisions more frequently |
| D．learn a subject more effectively |
According to the research, stress affects people most probably in their ______.
| A．ways of making choices | B．preference for pleasure |
| C．tolerance of punishments | D．responses to suggestions |
The research has proved that in a stressful situation, ______.
| A．women find it easier to fall into certain habits |
| B．men have a greater tendency to slow down |
| C．women focus more on outcomes |
| D．men are more likely to take risks |
Some children are natural-born bosses. They have a strong need to make decisions，manage their environment，and lead rather than follow. Stephen Jackson，a Year One student，“operates under the theory of what's mine is mine and what's yours is mine，” says his mother. “The other day I bought two new Star Wars light sabers (剑). Later，I saw Stephen with the two new ones while his brother was using the beat-up ones.”
“Examine the extended family，and you'll probably find a bossy grandparent，aunt，uncle or cousin in every generation. It's an inheritable trait，” says Russell Barkley，a professor at the Medical University of South Carolina. Other children who may not be particularly bossy can gradually gain dominance (支配地位) when they sense their parents are weak，hesitant，or in disagreement with each other.
Whether it's inborn nature or developed character at work，too much control in the hands of the young isn't healthy for children or the family. Fear is at the root of a lot of bossy behavior，says family psychologist John Taylor. Children，he says in his book From Defiance to Cooperation，“have secret feelings of weakness” and “a desire to feel safe.” It's the parents' role to provide that protection.
When a “boss child” doesn't learn limits at home，the stage is set for a host of troubles outside the family. The overly willful and unbending child may have trouble obeying teachers or coaches，for example，or trouble keeping friends. It can be pretty lonely as the top dog if no one likes your bossy ways.
“I see more and more parents giving up their power，” says Barkley，who has studied bossy behavior for more than 30 years. “They bend too far because they don't want to be as strict as their own parents were. But they also feel less confident about their parenting skills. Their kids，in turn，feel more anxious.”Bossy children like Stephen Jackson_________.
| A．make good decisions | B．show self-centeredness |
| C．lack care from others | D．have little sense of fear |
The underlined phrase “inheritable trait” in Paragraph 2 means ___________.
| A．inborn nature | B．developed character |
| C．accepted theory | D．particular environment |
The study on bossy behavior implies that parents_________.
| A．should give more power to their children |
| B．should be strict with their children |
| C．should not be so anxious about their children |
| D．should not set limits for their children |
What is the passage mainly about？
| A．How bossy behavior can be controlled. |
| B．How we can get along with bossy children. |
| C．What leads to children's bossy behavior. |
| D．What effect bossy behavior brings about. |
China has become Volvo's third largest market, with more of its car models to go on sale in the world's largest auto（汽车） market this year, Chief Executive Office (CEO) of Volvo Cars China said in Tianjin.
Alexander Klose, CEO of Volvo Cars China, told Xinhua at the Ninth Tianjin International Automobile Trade Show, being held from Friday to Wednesday.
Klose said Volvo Cars had entered a new time of fast development, adding that its sales volume in China roared in 2010.
Up to the end of September, Volvo's global sales volume was up 12.5 percent year on year（同年比）, compared with 52 percent year-on-year rise in China, he said.
Two new Volvo sales centers opened in Beijing within merely one week in early October, about two months after east China's ZhejiangGeely Holding Group Co acquired（购得）the Swedish brand from the US auto giant Ford for $1.5 billion in early August.
Klose said he was confident of seeing tremendous(巨大的) growth in China's auto market in the next five years. "As the Chinese government has increased the tax rate for large displacement （排量）cars already, we now have a lot of cars below three liters（升）, and I think we'll stick to that strategy, as you can see now the XC60 which was introduced today is just two liters," he said.
"As the technology advances, we'll probably even see 1.6 liter engines or 1.5 liter engines in the future," he added.
Volvo Cars is not the only automaker hoping to take advantage of China's rapidly growing auto market.
Bentley, the famous British luxury（豪华） carmaker, will open a new sales center in China at Tianjin Thursday, which is the 11th one in China, according to a press release（新闻发布） by Shanghai-based Zenith Integrated Communications Corp (Zenith) Saturday at the auto show.
Zenth is the public relations agent of Bentley in China. The automaker has sold 421 limousines（大型豪华轿车） to China in 2009, and the goal for 2010 is 777, the release said.The word underlined in the third paragraph would probably be___.
| A．shouted loudly | B．increased in large numbers |
| C．reduced rapidly | D．burned brightly |
From this passage we can infer that ___.
| A．The Ninth Tianjin International Automobile Trade Show was held from Friday to Wednesday. |
| B．Volvo Cars is a world-famous carmaker in Britain. |
| C．Of all the auto sales volume Volvo sales volume is only number one in China |
| D．Volvo sales centers are developing very fast in China recently |
The text is mainly about____.
| A．China Becomes Volvo's 3rd largest market |
| B．Volvo Cars in China |
| C．Volvo Sales Volume in China |
| D．Carmakers in China |
How many carmakers are mentioned in this passage which opened and will open new sales centers in China recently?
| A．One | B．Two | C．Three | D．Four |
If you exhibit positive characteristics such as honesty and helpfulness, the chances are that you will be thought as a good-looking person, for a new study has found that the perception （认知） of physical attractiveness is influenced by a person's personality．
The study, which was led by Gary W．Lewandowski, has found that people who exhibit negative characteristics, such as unfairness and rudeness, appear to be less physically attractive to observers．In the study, the participants viewed photographs of opposite-sex individuals and rated them for attractiveness before and after being provided with information about their personalities．
After personality information was received, participants also rated the probability of each individual' s becoming a friend and a dating partner．Information on personality was found to significantly change the probability, showing that cognitive （认知的） processes modify （修改） judgments of attractiveness．
"Thinking a person as having a desirable personality makes the person more suitable in general as a close relationship partner of any kind," said Lewandowski．
The findings show that a positive personality leads to greater expectation of becoming friends, which leads to greater expectation of becoming romantic partners and, finally, to being viewed as more physically attractive．The findings remained consistent regardless of how "attractive" the individual was formerly thought to be or of the participants' current relationship status．
"This research provides a positive outcome by reminding people that personality goes a long way toward determining your attractiveness; it can even change people's impressions of how good-looking you are," said Lewandowski．In the study the participants were required to _____．
| A．try to make friends with each other |
| B．try to prove positive characters make people more attractive |
| C．exhibit negative characters such as unfairness and rudeness |
| D．rate one's attractiveness by photos before and after knowing her or his personality |
What's the CORRECT order of how cognitive processes modify judgments of attractiveness?
a．find a person with a positive personality
b．view the person more physically attractive
c．want to make friends with the person
d．want to be his/ her romantic partner
| A．a→c→d→b | B．d→c→b→a | C．c→b→a→d | D．a→d→c→b |
Which of the following is WRONG according to the passage?
| A．The research reminds people to pay more attention to the personality． |
| B．Personality can change people's impressions of one's appearance． |
| C．The judgment of one's attractiveness always stays unchanged． |
| D．Positive personality may lead to more friends． |
The passage is written in a（n） _____ tone．
| A．subjective | B．objective | C．sceptical | D．negative |
Who are the intended readers of this passage?
| A．People with positive characteristics． |
| B．Good-looking people． |
| C．People with negative characteristics． |
| D．General people． |
Zhu Haoyu, 18, a history major, wears his iPod everywhere on campus. The freshman has it going out for a walk, visiting the library or lying in bed. However, he found that his habit is like displaying a big “Do not disturb ”sign for himself.
As time slips away, he has begun to regret not having conversed much with his peers around . “As I put the little buds (耳机) into my ears, I’m immersed in a universe of my own, forgetting all troubles in the real world,” said Li.
The MP3 player is one of a number of gadgets (小玩意)—starting with the Sony Walkman, which led to the iPod, iPhone and iPad —that give people the ability to shut themselves off from world around them.
Youngsters delight in handset (手持的) technology. In public, students chat on their cell phones, stopping only to talk briefly to friends. On buses or trains it’s common to see youngsters with PlayStations instead of playing poker or sharing jokes or games. And during airline flights, people watch episodes (连续剧) of US TV dramas on their iPads, rather than talking.
The BBC News magazine recently published an article saying that headphone wearing culture is making us anti-social. “Half of humankind is wired to a parallel universe that leaves them ignoring their surroundings and fellows,” wrote Tom de Castella.
Actually, it’s a decade since Apple unveiled the iPod, which promised “1,000 songs in your pocket”. In 2007 more than half of Western residents were using an iPod or MP3 player.
Entertainment is on offer in all surroundings, not just at home. But in the meantime, it has created barriers between us. Many people subscribe to the view that the headphone culture is creating a “spoilt, selfish generation that lacks civic（公民的）culture”.
However, many users of portable MP3 players argue that the device, as a mind drug, helps them relieve stress by escaping for a while. It is also said to be able to help some students concentrate on work or study. “If you want to get away from the hucksters (小贩) on the way, just start listening to your player,” said Liu, a freshman. “They do not approach people with headphones on.” This might also mean he’s blocking those who want to ask him for the directions.
Experts, however, say that short contacts or mini conversations with strangers are helpful to our mind. Many experts warn that it is dangerous to lose touch with people in our lives.Zhu Haoyu found that his wearing the iPod .
| A．disturbed others |
| B．made it easy for him to keep in touch with others |
| C．made it easy for him to visit the library |
| D．made others unwilling to talk to him |
The underlined word “immersed” can be replaced by .
| A．lost | B．involved | C．engaged | D．interested |
What is the main idea of the fourth paragraph?
| A．Students are always busy chatting on their cell phones in public. |
| B．Young people are fond of portable listening or visual devices. |
| C．Young people like to watch US TV dramas on their iPads. |
| D．People like to enjoy the networking. |
Which of the following is not true?
| A．Headphone wearing culture makes people ignore their surroundings and fellows. |
| B．Apple released the iPod ten years ago. |
| C．There are still many people support the headphone culture. |
| D．It’s dangerous to have conversations with strangers. |
What is the writer’s attitude towards the headphone culture ?
| A．Agreeable. | B．Critical. | C．Doubtful. | D．Neutral. |
As a senior, my future is always on my mind. To be exact, thoughts of the future have kept me up countless nights and made me worry enough to do poorly on more than one test. Because of this, words of wisdom are a source of comfort. Steve Jobs gave a speech to Stanford’s graduating class in 2005 and his words resound repeatedly in my mind whenever I think about my future.
It wasn’t always like that, though. It started when I became a junior, when college came into view. It’s the first big step to making your life your own. So when Jobs discussed his life as a student, some fears were eased. He, too, felt the need to attend college to make something of himself. He faced what many are extremely afraid of: uncertainty. His lack of understanding caused him to stop attending college and focus on what he felt was important. His story had a happy ending, of course, since he certainly turned out well.
This doesn’t mean that students shouldn’t attend college, but rather that they shouldn’t worry so much. You’ll get where you need to go, even if your path is a bit more winding（蜿蜒的）than you’d like.
Jobs talked about the hardships in his work. His love of his work helped him carry on and he got where he was meant to be, which restates the point: don’t panic.
One particular part of his speech stayed with me. Steve Jobs quoted（引用）the saying “Stay hungry, stay foolish” and it has become my motto. Staying foolish is realizing that you are still a fool, no matter how much you’ve learned or experienced. There is always more to explore. Staying hungry is wanting to find those things about which you are still uneducated.
Steve Jobs’s level of success is attainable, and I aim to prove that. With the will power to go into the world living every day like it’s my last and allowing the future to take care of itself, I will do great things. In the last moments of my life, I’ll be proud of what I have done and hope to have all the wisdom a person could wish for.The author felt worried when _________.
| A．he had to take tests at school |
| B．he thought about his future |
| C．he had lots of sleepless nights |
| D．he searched for words of wisdom |
It is suggested in Paragraphs 1 and 2 that _________.
| A．Steve Jobs didn’t attend college |
| B．Steve Jobs failed because of his decision |
| C．the author is a college student |
| D．the author cares much about his future |
What did the author gain from Jobs’s speech?
| A．Courage to drop out of school. |
| B．Confidence in defeating Jobs. |
| C．Interest in computer industry. |
| D．Bravery to face uncertainties. |
What did NOT Steve Jobs encourage students to do in his speech?
| A．Have the desire to learn more. |
| B．Be content with what they know. |
| C．Stay calm in the face of hardships. |
| D．Be modest so as to learn more. |
The passage is mainly about _________.
| A．the wisdom drawn from a speech |
| B．the most impressive quote in life |
| C．a memorable meeting with Jobs |
| D．an experience of a speech |
If women are mercilessly exploited year after year, they have only themselves to blame. Because they tremble at the thought of being seen in public in clothes that are out of fashion, they are always taken advantage of by the designers and the big stores. Clothes which have been worn only a few times have to be put aside because of the change of fashion. When you come to think of it, only a woman is capable of standing in front of a wardrobe packed full of clothes and announcing sadly that she has nothing to wear.
Changing fashions are nothing more than the intentional creation of waste. Many women spend vast sums of money each year to replace clothes that have hardly been worn. Women who cannot afford to throw away clothing in this way, waste hours of their time altering the dresses they have. Skirts are lengthened or shortened; neck－lines are lowered or raised, and soon.
No one can claim that the fashion industry contributes anything really important to society. Fashion designers are rarely concerned with vital things like warmth, comfort and durability. They are only interested in outward appearance and they take advantage of the fact that women will put up with any amount of discomfort, as long as they look right. There can hardly be a man who hasn’t at some time in his life smiled at the sight of a woman shaking in a thin dress on a winter day, or delicately picking her way through deep snow in high－heeled shoes.
When comparing men and women in the matter of fashion, the conclusions to be drawn are obvious. Does the constantly changing fashion of women's clothes, one wonders, reflect basic qualities of instability? Men are too clever to let themselves be cheated by fashion designers. Do their unchanged styles of dress reflect basic qualities of stability and reliability? That is for you to decide. The writer would be less critical if fashion designers placed more stress on the of clothing
___ .
| A．comfort | B．appearance | C．cost | D．suitability |
According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE？
| A．Fashion designs should not be encouraged since they are only welcomed by women. |
| B．The constant changes in women's clothing reflect their strength of character. |
| C．The fashion industry makes an important contribution to society. |
| D．New fashions in clothing are created for the commercial exploitation of women. |
By saying “the conclusions to be drawn are obvious”, the writer means that _____.
| A．women’s inconstancy in their choice of clothing is often laughed at |
| B．women are better able to put up with discomfort |
| C．men are also exploited greatly by fashion designers |
| D．men are more reasonable in the matter of fashion |
As soon as you meet, or even see, a person, you form an impression of him based on his posture, gesture and facial expressions. This is why it is important to make a good first impression on the person who will be interviewing you. Within the first 60 seconds of meeting you, the interviewer will have formed an impression about what type of person you are and what kind of employee you would become, and 55% of this will be based only on your body language. Here are some tips to make you that impression a good one.
First of all, relax. Think positive thoughts and you are more likely to come across as a positive, confident person during the interview. Dress smartly, as your appearance is one of the first things an interviewer will notice you. Stand up straight, and walk in with your shoulders back and your head up. Try to avoid slowing down as you walk into the room because this suggests fear and uncertainty. Shake hands with the interviewer firmly. You should have a positive handshake and a warm smile. Open your coat or jacket as you sit down shows that you, too, are open.
Posture is important. You should be sitting well back in your seat. Sit up straight and lean forward slightly, but not too much. Sitting at too much of an angel expresses discomfort and distrust. Two of the most common defensive(防卫的) signals are crossing your arms and legs, so try to avoid them.
Another important issue is eye contact. Looking someone in the eye shows confidence in yourself and trust in the other person. However, don’t overdo it, as too much eye contact or starring will make the other person uncomfortable. Use more eye contact when listening than when talking, and when you look away, look down. Looking up at the ceiling will make you seem bored and rude.The purpose of the first impression is to tell readers __________.
| A．what a good first impression is |
| B．how to make a good first impression |
| C．how long it takes to make a first impression |
| D．the importance of making a good first impression |
Which of the following does the author advise you to do when you are being interviewed?
| A．Cross your arms or legs |
| B．Open your coat or jacket when sitting down |
| C．Go into the room more slowly than usual |
| D．Avoid looking at the eyes of the interviewer directly |
If you lean forward too much, it means __________.
| A．you are very bored |
| B．you are too nervous |
| C．you don’t have confidence |
| D．you don’t trust others |
What is the best title for the passage?
| A．How to use body language to win an interview |
| B．How to answer questions in an interview |
| C．How to understand body language |
| D．How to deal with an interviewer |
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