Dear Betty,
My roommate’s family wants me to celebrate Thanksgiving Day with them in their home. I accepted the invitation, and I’m excited about going, but I’m a little nervous about it, too. The social customs in my country are different from those here, so I’m a little worried about making mistakes.
Should I bring a gift, such as candy or flowers? Should I arrive on time or a little late? At the dinner table, how can I know which fork or knife to use? How can I let the family know that I’m thankful for their kindness?
Yours,
Knowing Nothing
Dear Knowing Nothing,
It’s a good idea to bring a gift when you go to a dinner party. Flowers are always welcome, or you can bring a bottle of wine if you know the family drink it.
You should arrive on time or five to ten minutes late. Don’t get there early. If you are going to be more than fifteen minutes late, you should call and tell them.
Try to relax at the dinner table. If you don’t know how to use the right fork, knife or spoon, just watch the other guests, and follow them. If you still have no idea of what to do, don’t be shy about asking the person next to you; it’s better to ask them than to be silently uncomfortable and nervous.
If you like the food, say so. Of course, you’ll thank the host and hostess for the meal and for their kindness. It’s also a good idea to send a card to thank them the day after.
Yours,
Betty Knowing Nothing wrote a letter to Betty to _____.
| A．tell Betty some good news | B．ask for some advice |
| C．answer some questions | D．invite her to dinner |
According to Betty, Knowing Nothing ______ when going to a dinner party.
| A．can only bring some flowers |
| B．can’t bring wine |
| C．should arrive on time or five to ten minutes late |
| D．should arrive twenty minutes late |
Betty does NOT advise Knowing Nothing to _____.
| A．relax at the dinner table | B．watch the other guests |
| C．ask the person beside him | D．keep silent at table |
What is the nature of the scientific attitude, the attitude of the man or woman who studies and applies physics, biology, chemistry, geology, engineering, medicine or any other science?
We all know that science plays an important role in our societies. However, many people believe that our progress depends on two different aspects of science. The first aspect is the application of the machines, products and systems of knowledge that scientists and technologists develop.The second is the application of the special methods of thought and actionthat scientists use in their work.
What are these special methods of thinking and acting? First of all, it seems that a successful scientist is curious - he wants to find out how and why the universe works. He usually pays attention to problems which he notices have no satisfying explanation, andlooks for relationships even if the data available seem to be unconnected. Moreover,he thinks he can improve the existing conditions and enjoys trying to solve the problems which this involves.
He is a good observer, accurate, patient and objective and uses the facts he observes to the fullest. For example, trained observers obtain a very large amount of information about a star mainly from the accurate analysis of the simple lines that appear in a spectrum(光谱).
He does not accept statements which are not based on the most complete evidence available. He rejects authority as the only basis for truth. Scientists always check statements and make experiments carefully and objectively.
Furthermore,he does not readily accept his own idea, since he knows that man is the least reliable of scientific instruments and that a number of factors tend to disturb objective investigation.
Lastly,he is full of imaginationsince he often has to look for relationships in data which are not only complex but also frequently incomplete. Furthermore,he needs imaginationif he wants to guess how processes work and how events take place.
These seem to be some of the ways in which a successful scientist or technologist thinks and acts.Many people believe that science helps society to progress through_________
| A．knowledge only. | B．more than one aspect. |
| C．technology only. | D．the use of machines. |
Which of the following statements about a curious scientist is TRUE?
| A．He doesn’t find confidence and pleasure in work. |
| B．He is interested in problems that are explained. |
| C．He makes efforts to investigate potential connections. |
| D．He looks for new ways of acting. |
According to the passage, a successful scientist would NOT_______________.
| A．easily believe in unchecked statements. |
| B．easily criticize others' research work. |
| C．always use his imagination in work. |
| D．always use evidence from observation. |
Which word can be used to describe the data that a good scientist uses?
| A．complete | B．objective | C．complicated | D．accurate |
Zoe Chambers was a successful PR(Public Relations) consultant and life was going well — she had a great job, beautiful flat and a busy social life in London. Then one evening in June last year, she received a text message telling her she was out of work. “The first two weeks were the most difficult to live through.” she said. “After everything I’d done for the company, they dismissed me by text! I was so angry and I just didn’t feel like looking for another job. I hate everything about the city and my life.”
Then, Zoe received an invitation from an old school friend, Kathy, to come and stay. Kathy and her husband, Huw, had just bought a farm in north-west Wales. Zoe jumped at the chance to spend a weekend away from London, and now, ten months later she is still on the farm.
"The moment I arrived at Kathy's farm, I loved it and I knew I wanted to stay." said Zoe. "Everything about my past life suddenly seemed meaningless."
Zoe has been working on the farm since October of last year and says she has no regrets. "It's a hard life, physically very tiring." she says. "In London 1 was stressed and often mentally exhausted. But this is a good, healthy tiredness. Here, all I need to put me in a good mood is a hot bath and one of Kathy's wonderful dinners."
Zoe says she has never felt bored on the farm. Every day brings a new experience. Kathy has been teaching her how to ride a horse and she has learnt to drive a tractor. Since Christmas, she has been helping with the lambing — watching a lamb being born is unbelievable, she says, "It's one of the most moving experiences I've ever had. I could never go back to city life now."When working as a PR consultant in London, Zoe thought she lived a ______life.
| A．satisfying | B．tough | C．meaningless | D．boring |
The most important reason why Zoe went to visit Kathy's farm is that______.
| A．Zoe lost her job as a PR consultant |
| B．Kathy persuaded her to do so |
| C．Zoe got tired of the city life |
| D．Zoe loved Wales more than London |
How docs Zoe feel about the country life according to the passage?
| A．Tiresome and troublesome. |
| B．Romantic and peaceful |
| C．Mentally exhausting but healthy |
| D．Physically tiring but rewarding. |
Which of the following is closest to the main idea of the passage?
| A．A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
| B．Where there is a will, there is a way. |
| C．A misfortune may turn out a blessing. |
| D．Kill two birds with one stone. |
In early 2007 I had bought tickets to a Christian concert for myself and two other family members, but later I decided to 36 my 4-year-old son along.
I couldn't find another ticket in the area we were sitting in, so I started 37 online for four tickets so we could all 38 . Imagine my surprise when the four 39 tickets I needed happened to be on the front row! Thinking it was a 40 , I tried again several times and each time the same tickets came up. I knew it had to be God, so after getting 41 the initial（最初的）shock I decided to 42 the front row tickets, which still left me 43 the three original tickets. Not knowing what to 44 with them, I asked around but did not have any 45 . Then my husband said two of his customers wanted to go to the same 46 but couldn't afford it.
We went to their house and they said they had a friend they wanted to take with them. 47 it turned out, this couple does a prison ministry and had been 48 this concert for quite a while, but even after offering to pay me I 49 and told them to continue working in the prisons teaching those men and women to become 50 people. This couple lost a 51 several years ago and listening to this music could 52 them in their healing process. The 53 of this particular concert was "Give It Away", and I thank God for the 54 to give this to them.
It turned out to be one of the best nights for all of us, and it was all 55 my 4-year-old boy wanted to hear the music as well.
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When next year’s crop of high-school graduates arrive at Oxford University in the fall, they will be joined by a new face: Andrew Hamilton, the 55-year-old provost (教务长) of Yale, who will become Oxford’s vice-chancellor –– a position equal to university president in America.
Hamilton isn’t the only educator crossing the Atlantic. Schools in France, Egypt, Singapore, etc. have also recently made top-level hires from abroad. Yet the talent flow isn’t universal. High-level personnel (人员) tend to head in only one direction: Outward from America.
The chief reason is that American schools don’t tend to seriously consider looking abroad. For example, when the board of the University of Colorado searched for a new president, it wanted a leader familiar with the state government, a major source of the university’s budget. “We didn’t do any global consideration,” says Patricia Hayes, the board’s chair. The board finally picked Bruce Benson, a 69-year-old Colorado businessman and political activist who is likely to do well in the main task of modern university presidents: fund-raising. Fund-raising is a particularly American thing, since U.S. schools rely heavily on donations. The fund-raising ability is largely a product of experience and necessity.
Many European universities, meanwhile, are still mostly dependent on government funding. But government support has failed to keep pace with rising student numbers. The decline in government support has made fund-raising an increasingly necessary ability among administrators (管理人员), and has made hiring committees hungry for Americans.
In the past few years, well-known schools around the world have joined the trend. In 2011, when Cambridge University appointed Alison Richard, another former Yale provost, as its vice-chancellor, the university publicly stressed that in her previous job she had overseen (监督) “ a major strengthening of Yale’s financial position” .
Of course, fund-raising isn’t the only skill outsiders offer. The globalization of education means more universities will be seeking heads with international experience of some kind to promote international programs and attract a global student body. Foreigners can offer a fresh perspective (视角) on established practices.What is the current trend in higher education discussed in the text?
| A．Institutions worldwide are hiring administrators from the U.S. |
| B．More international students are being admitted to American universities. |
| C．University presidents are paying more attention to fund-raising. |
| D．A lot of activists are being hired as administrators. |
What do we learn about European universities from the text?
| A．The tuition they charge has been rising considerably. |
| B．They are strengthening their position by globalization. |
| C．Their operation is under strict government control. |
| D．Most of their money comes from the government. |
In what way do top-level administrators from abroad contribute to university development?
| A．They can improve the university’s image. |
| B．They will bring with them more international personnel. |
| C．They will view a lot of things from a new angle. |
| D．They can set up new academic subjects. |
Which of the following would make the best title of the text?
| A．High Education Globalization |
| B．Global Headhunting in Higher Education |
| C．Global Higher Education Cooperation |
| D．Universal Higher Education Development |
Some students get so nervous before a test, and they do poorly even if they know the material. Sian Beilock has studied these highly anxious test-takers.
Sian Beilock: “They start worrying about the consequences. They might even start worrying about whether this exam is going to prevent them from getting into the college they want. And when we worry, it actually uses up attention and memory resources. I talk about it as your cognitive horsepower that you could otherwise be using to focus on the exam.”
Professor Beilock and another researcher, Gerardo Ramirez, have developed a possible solution. Just before an exam, highly anxious test-takers spend ten minutes writing about their worries about the test.
Sian Beilock: “what we think happens is when students put it down on paper , they think about the worst that could happen and they reassess the situation. They might realize it’s not as hard as they might think it was before and, in essence, it prevents these thoughts from popping up when they’re actually taking a test.”
The researchers tested the idea on a group of twenty anxious college students. They gave them two short math tests. After the first one, they asked the students to either sit quietly or write about their feelings about the upcoming second test.
The researchers added to the pressure. They told the students that those who did well on the second test would get money. They also told them that their performance would affect other students as part of a team effort.
Professor Beilock says those who sat quietly scored an average of twelve percent worse on the second test. But the students who had written about their fears improved their performance by an average of five percent.
Next, the researchers used younger students in a biology class. They told them before final exams either to write about their feelings or to think about things unrelated to the test.Prefessor Beilock says highly anxious students who did the writing got an average grade of B+, compared to a B- for those who did not.
Sian Beilock: “What we showed is that for students who are highly test-anxious, who’d done our writing intervention, all of a sudden there was no relationship between test anxiety and performance. Those students most likely to worry were performing just as well as their classmates who don’t normally get nervous in these testing situations.”
But what if students do not have a chance to write about their fears immediately before an exam or presentation? Professor Beilock says students can try it themselves at home or in the library and still improve their performance.What may happen if students have the problem of test anxiety?
| A．Test anxiety can improve students’ performance to some degree. |
| B．Students’ attention and memory resources run out when worried. |
| C．Students may not be admitted into their favorite college if worried |
| D．Test anxiety is sure to cause students to fail the test. |
Which of the following is TRUE?
| A．The result in the math test agrees with that in the biology test. |
| B．In the first math test, students who sat quietly performed better. |
| C．In the second math test, students who wrote about their feelings did worse. |
| D．Some college students are highly anxious test-takers while others are not.. |
What does the underlined phrase “popping up” mean?
| A．Giving out | B．Fading away |
| C．Becoming clear | D．Appearing suddenly |
What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．It is a common practice for students to get worried before a test. |
| B．Being worried before tests does harm to students’ performance. |
| C．Anxious students overcome test anxiety by writing down fears. |
| D．It is important for students to overcome test anxiety. |