The British last an average of eight minutes and twenty-two seconds before they lose temper, according to new research.
The Internet has increased people’s service demands and it is destroying the classic British characteristic of patience．More than half of the British have admitted they lose their temper quicker than ever before．People have become so used to the speed and convenience of the Internet that more than seven in ten get angry if forced to wait longer than one minute for a web page to download．
Being kept on hold made the British see red more than anything else, with the average person reaching their impatience limit after five minutes and four seconds.
In today’s fast food culture, restaurant rage starts after only eight minutes and thirty-eight seconds, when the average diner will start to wonder whether the meal they have ordered will ever arrive.
People running late to meet a friend should not leave it any longer than ten minutes and one second if they do not want to face their anger.
Finally, when receiving a text or voicemail, be warned that the clock is ticking as the average Englishman expects a response within thirteen minutes and sixteen seconds.
Mark Schmid, of telecom giant TalkTalk, which conducted the research among 2,050 people, said that the speed of the online world is making us less prepared to wait for things to happen in the offline world．“This is causing people to reach the point of impatience earlier than ever before.”
60．Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A．More than half of the British get angry more easily than before.
B．Waiting for an Internet page to download will make half of the British angry.
C．Any Englishman may last 8 minutes and 22 seconds before they lose temper.
D．Waiting for friends to show up within 10 minutes and 1 second will not be acceptable.
61．The underlined word “rage” in the passage can be replaced by ___________.
A．disappointment B．sadness C．annoyance D．worry
62．According to the passage, the following things may make people impatient EXCEPT ___________.
A．the response to a text massage B．the food service in a restaurant
C．the speed of the Internet D．the business trade
63．The passage is mainly about ___________.
A．how long the British can keep their temper
B．when people lose temper easily
C．what makes the British lose temper quicker
D．why the Internet influences people’s life
Interest in pursuing international careers has risen in recent years strengthened by permanent personnel shortages that are causing companies to search beyond their home borders for talent.
Professionals seek career experience outside of their home countries for a variety of reasons. They may feel the need to recharge their batteries with a new challenge. They may want a position with more responsibility that encourages creativity. Or they may wish to expose their children to another culture, and the opportunity to learn a second language.
When applying for a job, one usually has to submit a resume or curriculum vitae (CV). The two terms generally mean the same thing: a one--or two--page document describing one's educational qualifications and professional experience. However, guidelines for preparing a resume are constantly changing. The best advice is to find out what is appropriate regarding the company culture, the country culture, and the culture of the person making the hiring decision. The challenge will be to include two or more cultures in one document. The following list is a good place to start.
"Educational requirements differ from country to country. In almost every case of 'cross--border' job hunting, just stating the title of your degree will not be an adequate description. Provide the reader with details about your studies and any related experience. "
Pay attention to the resume format you use-chronological or reverse-chronological order. Chronological order means listing your 'oldest' work experience first. Reverse-chronological order means listing your current or most recent experience first. Most countries have preferences about which format is most acceptable. If you find no specific guidelines, the general preference is for the reverse-chronological format. "
If you are submitting your resume in English, find out if the receiver uses British English or American English because there are changes between the two versions. For example, university education is often referred to as 'tertiary education' in the United Kingdom, but this term is almost never used in the United States. A reader who is unfamiliar with these changes may assume that your resume contains errors.Companies are hiring more foreign employees because ________.
| A．they find foreign employees are usually more talented |
| B．they need original ideas from employees hired overseas |
| C．they want to expand their business beyond home borders |
| D．they have difficulty finding qualified personnel at home |
The author believes that an individual who applies to work overseas ________.
| A．is usually creative |
| B．aims to improve his foreign language skills |
| C．is dissatisfied with his own life at home |
| D．seeks either his own or his children's development |
When it comes to resume writing, it is best to ________.
| A．take cultural factors into consideration |
| B．learn about the company's hiring process |
| C．follow appropriate guidelines for job hunting |
| D．know the employer's personal likes and dislikes |
When writing about qualifications, applicants are advised to __________.
| A．stress their academic potential to impress the decision maker |
| B．give the title of the university degree they have earned at home |
| C．provide a detailed description of their study and work experiences |
| D．emphasize their interest in pursuing a 'cross-border' career |
According to the author's last piece of advice, the applicants should be aware of ________.
| A．the different educational systems in the US and the UK |
| B．the differences between the changes of English |
| C．the receiver's preference with regard to the format |
| D．the special characteristics of American and British cultures |
There is a common belief among parents that schools are no longer interested in spelling. No school I have taught in has ever considered spelling unimportant as a basic skill. There are, however, quite different ideas about how to teach it, or how much priority (优先) it must be given over general language development and writing ability. The problem is how to encourage a child to express himself freely in writing without holding him back with spelling.
If spelling becomes the only point of his teacher's interest, clearly a bright child will be likely to "play safe". He will write only words within his spelling range. That's why teachers often encourage the early use of dictionaries and pay attention to content rather than technical ability.
I was once shocked to read on the bottom of a sensitive piece of writing about a personal experience: "This work is terrible! There are far too many spelling mistakes." It may have been a sharp criticism of the pupils' technical abilities in writing, but it was also a sad thing for the teacher who had omitted (略过)to read the composition, which contained some beautiful expressions of the child's deep feelings. The teacher was not wrong to draw attention to the mistakes, but if his priority had centered on the child's ideas, an expression of his disappointment with the presentation would have given the pupil more hope to seek improvement.Teachers differ in their opinions about_______.
| A．the difficulties in teaching spelling |
| B．the necessity of teaching spelling |
| C．the importance of the basic writing skills |
| D．the role of spelling in general language development |
The expression "play safe" probably means ______.
| A．to write carefully |
| B．to avoid using words one is not sure of |
| C．to use dictionaries frequently |
| D．to do as teachers say |
Teachers encourage the use of dictionaries so that______.
| A．students will be able to express their ideas more freely. |
| B．teachers will have less trouble in correcting mistakes. |
| C．students will have more trust in writing. |
| D．students will learn to spell words correctly. |
The main idea of the passage is _______.
| A．the importance of developing writing skills |
| B．the importance of spelling |
| C．the correct way of marking composition |
| D．the relationship between spelling and the content of a composition |
The sea has always interested man. From it he can get food, minerals, and treasure. For thousands of years, he could sail on it. But he could not go far beneath its surface.
Man wants to explore deep into the sea. However, he is not a fish. He must breathe air, so he can't stay under the water's surface for any length of time. To explore deep water, man faces even more dangers and problems.
A diver who wants to stay under water for more than a few minutes must breathe air or a special mixture of gases. He can wear a diving suit and have air pumped to him from above. He can carry a tank of air on his back and breathe through a nose and a mouthpiece. Water weighs 800 times as much as air. Tons of water pushes against a diver deep in the sea. His body is under great pressure.
When a diver is under great pressure, his blood takes in some of the gases he breathes. As he rises to surface, the water pressure becomes less. If the diver rises too quickly, the gases in his blood form bubbles. The diver is then suffering from the bends. The bends can cause a diver to double up in pain. They can even kill him.On the whole, this passage is about ________.
| A．special mixtures of gases in deep sea |
| B．the problems man faces in deep sea diving |
| C．air pressure under the surface of sea water |
| D．a kind of illness that man suffers in the sea |
The passage does not say so, but it makes you think that ________.
| A．deep divers should be in good health |
| B．divers explore the deep sea only for treasure |
| C．diving under the water too quickly causes a kind of illness |
| D．there is a special mixture of gases under the sea |
From the passage we can see that ________.
| A．the sea began to interest man a few years ago |
| B．man is not at home deep in the sea |
| C．all divers will get the bends sooner or later |
| D．the air in the sea water will kill a diver if he is not careful |
In the United States you will find yourself being urged from every page of every newspaper and every television station to buy all kinds of goods.
Not only is there a wide range of prices for goods in America, there is also a wide range in the quality of goods offered for sale. Unlike some countries, Americans generally pay the price of a product without question, instead of trying to get a lower price by bargaining. However, there are many “sales” in the United States, during which time stores will lower their normal prices. This may all be very confusing to visitors. How are you going to know how to “get your money’s worth” when you shop? Perhaps the best advice is: Don’t hurry. Visit various stores and determine the quality of goods. Read the advertisements so that you can compare prices.
There is a great variety of shops in the United States, ranging from very large stores called “department stores” to very small shops. There are “discount houses” offering goods at low prices, and “dime stores” specializing in a wide range of inexpensive items.
Most department stores in large cities carry better quality products at higher prices. However, they offer the shoppers great convenience since they contain such a wide variety of products.
If convenience isn’t as important to you as price, you may want to shop in discount houses. These stores have nearly as great a variety of goods as department stores, but offer lower prices. They can do so for several reasons. They don’t offer the same services to buyers that department stores do; there may be fewer sales people; and the store probably doesn’t deliver purchases.
Another popular shop is the “dime store”. No longer selling many things for five or ten cents, these stores got their name in the last century when it was decided that a small profit on a great quantity of goods would be better than a large profit on fewer sales. Dime stores specialize in a wide variety of inexpensive items and today, prices range from a quarter or 50 cents up to several dollars.Where can we most probably read this passage?
| A．In a research paper. | B．In a science report. |
| C．In a geography book. | D．In a travel magazine. |
Why can discount houses offer goods at lower prices compared with department stores?
a. They have fewer employees.
b. They have larger quantities of goods.
c. They offer fewer services.
d. They don’t provide delivery service.
| A．a b c | B．a b d | C．a c d | D．b c d |
What’s special about dime stores?
| A．They sell lots of goods at a small profit. |
| B．They make big profits by selling some goods. |
| C．They provide goods with a price lower than 50 cents. |
| D．They provide goods ranging from bargains to expensive ones. |
Bissel is a small village of the West Sahara. It lies next to a l.5-square-kilometer oasis（绿洲）, from where three days and nights are generally required to go out of the desert. However, before Ken Levin discovered it in 1926, none of the Bissel villagers had ever walked out of the desert. Reportedly, they were not unwilling to leave this barren land. Many had previously tried but failed, always somehow finding themselves back at the oasis after several days of trying to walk out.
When interviewed by Ken Levin, an expert at the British Royal College of Sciences, the villagers explained that no matter which direction they walked it always brought them back to the village.Why couldn’t the Bissel villagers walk out of the desert? Levin was very puzzled. He had, by himself, managed to walk north from the village and reach the nearest town in three and a half days. He decided to carry out an experiment to solve the mystery. He and a Bissel villager called Argutel, would walk out of the desert together. They prepared enough water for a half-a-month journey and two camels. But this time Ken Levin didn't bring his compass. Levin would follow Argutel.
Ten days later, they had walked for about 500 miles but were still in the desert. On the 11th morning, an oasis came into their view. They were back at Bissel. Levin now understood why the Bissel people couldn’t escape the desert. They had no knowledge of the North Star, which had for centuries provided sailors and other travelers with a point of direction. In the desert, if a person goes forward relying only on their senses, they will not be able to travel in a straight line. Rather they will travel in a very large circle and eventually track back to where they began. Levin explained to Argutel the function of the North Star and said, “As long as you rest in the daytime and walk towards the brightest star at night, you would be able to walk out of the desert.” Argutel did as he was told. Three days later, he came to the edge of the desert.
Now in the West Sahara, Bissel has become a bright pearl, where tens of thousands of tourists come every year. Argutel’s bronze statue stands in the center of the town. On its base are the words: __________________________.Ken Levin asked Argutel to walk to the north in order to ________.
| A．prove that people could walk out of the desert see |
| B．how far away Bissel was to the edge of the desert |
| C．tell people not to walk in circles |
| D．show Argutel was a great person |
According to the passage, Ken Levin ________.
| A．knew Argutel before he came to the village |
| B．came to Bissel to do experiments on behalf of his college |
| C．became the first man to walk out of the desert from Bissel Village |
| D．taught Bissel villagers knowledge of the North Star when he first arrived |
It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
| A．Ken Levin didn’t walk south because it would take more days |
| B．the use of a compass was necessary to walk out of the desert |
| C．tourism in Bissel has been greatly developed and improved |
| D．Argutel became the leader of Bissel after his return |
Which of the following can most probably be found at the base of Argutel’s statue?
| A．A new life starts from the fixed direction. |
| B．Where there is a will , there is a way . |
| C．A long journey starts with the first step . |
| D．Two heads are better than one. |