October 15th is Global Handwashing Day.Activities are planned in more than twenty countries to get millions of people in the developing world to wash their hands with soap.
Experts say people around the world wash their hands but very few use soap at so-called critical moments.These include after using the toilet, after cleaning a baby and before touching food.
Global Handwashing Day is the idea of the Public-private Partnership for handwashing with soap.The goal, they say, is to create a culture of handwashing with soap.The organizers say all soaps are equally effective at removing disease-causing germs.They say the correct way to wash is to wet your hands with a small amount of water and cover them with soap.Rub it into all areas, including under the fingernails.Then, wash well under running water.Finally, dry your hands with a clean cloth.
The Partnership says soap is important because it increases the time that people spend washing.Soap also helps to break up the dirt that holds most of the germs.And it usually leaves a pleasant smell, which increases the chances that people will wash again.
It also says that washing hands with soap before eating and after using the toilet could save more lives than any medicine.It could help reduce cases of diarrhea, which is the second leading cause of child deaths, killing more than one and a half million children a year, by almost half.What does the author intend to tell us in the passage?
A.To keep healthy by washing hands. | B.To wash hands with soap. |
C.To take action to wash hands. | D.To wash hands often. |
Which of the following is the right way to wash hands?
a.Washing hands well. b.Covering hands with soap. c.Drying hands.
d.Rubbing hands with soap.e.Wetting hands.
A.a--c--b--e--d | B.e--d--a--b—c |
C.a--c--b--d--e | D.e--b--d--a--c |
.Which fact can NOT explain why soap is important?
A.It gives people a longer handwashing time. |
B.It helps to remove a lot of germs from hands. |
C.It attracts people to do more handwashing. |
D.It gets all people into the habit of washing hands. |
According to the last paragraph, diarrhea is a disease that ________.
A.kills half of the kids in the developing countries a year |
B.causes the greatest number of child deaths |
C.can be prevented to some degree by washing hands with soap |
D.can’t be cured without washing hands |
Thousands of hungry birds left the countryside of Britain in the bitter winter to find food and warmth in urban gardens. The move included species such as the redwing and the fieldfare, almost unknown outside rural areas
The hard situation of farmland birds has been revealed in the latest survey of bird populations from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds released today.
The redwing has an obvious stripe over the eye and a red flash on the flanks (侧翼), while the fieldfare has a grey head, a peach underbelly, and a distinctive dark band on the tail.
Graham Madge, the society's spokesman, says, “For many urban birdwatchers the sight of these striking species is a real treat. Many people have never imagined there being such an amazing chance.”
“Frozen ground prevented them from getting food in the countryside and they have been saved from starvation in towns,” he added.
He says the unusual sight this year somewhat tempered the frustration felt at the suffering of small garden birds such as robins and wrens. These birds are sensitive to cold and must eat almost continuously to stay alive. Data from people who took part in the society's Big Garden Birdwatch recorded sightings in 280,000 gardens during the last weekend of January, with the goldcrest down 75 percent, the longtailed tit down 27 percent, and the coal tit down 20 percent. The study highlighted the need for food to be left out for birds during winter.
The redwing and the fieldfare are relatively unknown outside the eastern part of the country. The research shows, however, that they moved to the other side of the country where the climate is generally mild in winter and that many for the first time have reached Cornwall and Isles of Scilly. The number of redwing sightings was up 185 percent, those of the fieldfare 73, and of the yellowhammer 68.
Another surprise garden “guest” this year was the blackcap. This robinsized, silvergrey bird was rare in Britain 50 years ago, but increasing numbers now arrive each year from Germany and Austria.How did the urban birdwatchers probably feel when seeing the hungry birds?
A.Excited. | B.Worried. |
C.Annoyed. | D.Motivated. |
Which of the following can best replace the underlined word “tempered”?
A.Prevented. | B.Relieved. |
C.Explained. | D.Increased. |
According to the passage, Cornwall is perhaps ________.
A.a village in eastern Britain |
B.a city in western Britain |
C.a village in western Britain |
D.a city in eastern Britain |
What does the passage mainly talk about?
A.The tough living conditions of some British birds. |
B.The various species of Britain's garden birds. |
C.The changes of some bird's population in Britain. |
D.Unusual bird visitors in Britain's urban gardens. |
Perfectionists believe that not only is perfection achievable, but that it should be achieved whenever possible. They always try to make their work better, and often get pleasure from investing time and effort in their projects. They enjoy paying attention to detail and are often hard to please. After all, perfectionists almost always have nearlyimpossible standards for themselves, much higher than what outside parties would generally hope for.
Most perfectionists are also highlyorganized. They've perfected their work process along with everything else in their life. They have processes and patterns for handling almost anything that comes their way, from email to new projects and clients to bookkeeping. It can definitely add up to a more effective workday with less wasted time and effort.
Perfectionists can be thought of as overbearing(霸道的) by those who don't share their attitude. It can also be upsetting to clients who aren't interested in “perfect” and simply want their project done yesterday. When you strive for perfection, everything takes just a bit longer to get right. Even if you have a more efficient design and development process than many other designers, it is likely that you spend more time on each step than a lot of others do.
While most people who call themselves “perfectionists” do so in a lighthearted or positive manner, there are those out there to whom perfection becomes an obsession(痴迷). They consider anything less than perfect completely unacceptable. This can lead to obsessive behavior and can have damaging effects on their overall quality of life. Just feeling good about a job done to the best of your ability is entirely normal for a perfectionists and isn't something to worry about. But it becomes particularly dangerous when perfectionists feel they are never quite able to attain perfection, and so drive themselves crazy trying to always reach this unattainable goal.
These perfectionists often place their entire selfworth on their accomplishments and ability to reach perfection, and since they're never able to reach it, it creates a very negative selfimage and low selfesteem or depression. The good news is that there are trained psychologists who can help those who are nervously obsessed with perfection to overcome their obsession.Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of perfectionists?
A.They enjoy investing time and efforts. |
B.They are not easy to satisfy. |
C.They have special ways of handling emails. |
D.They set high requirements for others. |
Clients who are not satisfied with perfectionists think they need ________.
A.better coworkers | B.bigger achievements |
C.higher efficiency | D.less organization skills |
To perfectionists, their obsession with perfection is an act of ________.
A.showing psychological sickness |
B.realizing their own value |
C.wasting time and energy |
D.improving their selfimage |
Which of the following will the author probably agree?
A.It's very normal to always do one's best in life. |
B.Perfectionists should seek help as soon as possible. |
C.Perfectionists should not be too proud of themselves. |
D.People should not pursue perfection too much. |
My son Gilbert was eight years old and had been in the Cub Scouts (童子军团) only a short time. Once he was handed a sheet of paper, a block of wood and four tires and told to return home and give them all to his father. That was not an easy task for Gilbert to do. The piece of paper was a set of instructions about how to build a wooden racing car. Gilbert's father laughed when he read the instructions. The block of wood remained untouched as the weeks passed.
Finally, I stepped in to see if I could figure it all out. Having no skills, I decided it would be best if I simply read the instructions and let Gilbert do the work. And he did. Within days, his block of wood was turning into a pinewood racing car.
Then the big night came. With his pinewood racing car in his hand and pride in his heart we headed to the big race. As the race was done in elimination fashion (淘汰赛形式), you could keep racing as long as you were the winner.
Finally, it was between Gilbert and the fastestlooking car there. As the race was about to begin, Gilbert asked if they could stop for a minute, because he wanted to pray. Then the race stopped.
Gilbert prayed in earnest for a very long minute. The Master came up to Gilbert and asked the obvious question, “So you prayed to win, Gilbert?”
My young son answered, “Oh, no Sir. It wouldn't be fair to ask God to help you beat someone else. I just asked him to make it so I don't cry when I lose.”
Children seem to have wisdom far beyond us. Perhaps we spend too much of our prayer time asking God to control the race, make us the champion, or remove us from the struggle, when we should be seeking God's strength to get through what lies in our way.Gilbert's father thought the task given by the Cub Scouts could________.
A.be no trouble at all |
B.be too easy for Gilbert |
C.be beyond Gilbert's ability |
D.require no skills |
Who finally made the pinewood racing car?
A.Gilbert. | B.Gilbert's father. |
C.Gilbert's mother. | D.The whole family. |
What can we learn about Gilbert?
A.He made it in the final race. |
B.His performance inspired his mom. |
C.He thought the Master unfair. |
D.He was very afraid of losing the race. |
The author writes this passage to tell us that ________.
A.adults should communicate more with children |
B.we should have faith in our ability to win |
C.victory is the power to overcome difficulties |
D.friendship is more important than winning |
One Test for Graduate and Business School.
Getting an advanced degree can create many opportunities. The GRE revised General Test—the most widely accepted graduate admission test worldwide—can bring you one step closer to achieving your career goals.
There has never been a better time to take the test that gives you more opportunities for your future. The GRE revised General Test features question types that closely reflect the kind of thinking you'll do in graduate or business school.
Who Takes It?
Prospective graduate and business school applicants from all around the world who are interested in pursuing a master's , MBA, specialized master's in business or doctoral degree take the GRE revised General Test. Applicants come from varying educational and cultural backgrounds and the GRE revised General Test provides a common measure for comparing candidates' qualifications.
GRE scores are used by admissions or fellowship panels to supplement(补充) your undergraduate records, recommendation letters and other qualifications for graduatelevel study.
When and Where Do People Take It?
The GRE revised General Test is available at more than 700 test centers in more than 160 countries. In most regions of the world, the computerdelivered test is available on a continuous basis throughout the year. In Mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and Korea, the computerdelivered test is available one to two times per month. In areas of the world where computerdelivered testing is not available, the paperdelivered test is available up to three times a year in October, November and February.
Who Accepts It?
The GRE revised General Test is accepted at thousands of graduate and business schools as well as departments and divisions within these schools.If you want to study for a master's degree in the USA, you'd better________.
A.achieve your career goals |
B.earn as much money as possible |
C.take the GRE revised General Test |
D.vary educational and cultural background |
In a lessdeveloped area with very few computers, testtakers probably can't take the GRE revised General Test in ________.
A.August | B.October | C.November | D.February |
What is the purpose of this passage?
A.To sell test papers. |
B.To introduce a kind of test. |
C.To get new students for schools. |
D.To compare two kinds of tests. |
Thinking is something you choose to do as a fish choose to live in water. To be human is to think. But thinking may come naturally without your knowing how you do it. Thinking about thinking is the key to critical(判断性的) thinking. When you think critically, you take control of your thinking processes(过程). Otherwise, you might be controlled by the ideas of others. Indeed, critical thinking is at the heart of education.
The word “critical” here has a special meaning. It does not mean taking one view against another view, as when someone criticizes another person for doing something wrong. The nature of critical thinking is thinking beyond the easily seen—beyond the pictures on TV, the untrue reports in the newspapers, and the faulty reasoning.
Critical thinking is an attitude as much as an activity. If you are curious about life and desire to dig deeper into it, you are a critical thinker. If you find pleasure in deep thinking about different ideas, characters, and facts, you are a critical thinker.
Activities of the mind and higher-order reasoning are processes of deep and careful consideration. They take time, and do not go hand in hand with the fast speed in today’s world: fast foods, instant coffee, and self-developing film. If you are among the people who believe that speed is a measure of intelligence(智力), you may learn something new from a story about Albert Einstein. The first time Banesh Hoffman, a scientist, was to discuss his work with Albert Einstein, Hoffman was too nervous to speak. But Einstein immediately put Hoffman at ease by saying, “Please go slowly. I don’t understand things quickly.”Critical thinking is important to us because if we do not think critically, ______.
A.it will be hard for us to think naturally and fast |
B.we might be controlled by other people’s ideas |
C.we will follow the ideas of others naturally |
D.we might be fooled by other people’s ideas |
If you are a critical thinker, you will ______.
A.think deeply about different ideas |
B.trust the reports in the newspapers |
C.take one view against another view |
D.criticize other people for their mistakes |
In the last paragraph, “something new” suggests that ______
A.the smarter you are , the faster you do things |
B.the faster you do things, the smarter you become |
C.speed can improve intelligence |
D.intelligence is not decided by speed |
What would be the best title for the passage?
A.Thinking and Critical Thinking |
B.Understanding Critical Thinking |
C.Thinking is Natural and Human |
D.Thinking Fast Means Intelligence |