Weighed down by study? Pushed to the limit by the fast pace of life ? Frightened by the possible war ? Well, you’re not alone. Men and women in France are seeking relief using the world’s best medicine-----laughter.
In the past year, more than 15 laughter clubs have been set up across the country. People of all ages go to release their stress with an hour group laughs. “People telephoned me and said they have forgotten what it is to laugh. They want to find a place where they can escape all their problems for a while. So they come,” said 40—year—old Jocelyne Le Moan. She usually takes a class of around 60 people through a series of laughter techniques.
Her pupils range from teenagers to 70 years old, but most are middle---aged white collars seeking 60 minutes of relaxation at the end of a busy day. Le Moan takes them through the “Lion Laugh”and the “Laugh Contest”, where participants “speak”to each other in different ways. And instead of talking, they break into fits of laughter. At the end there are 15 minutes of “meditation”, when they lie on their backs and let the laughs burst out of their mouths.
“I love it. It’s an experience that has changed my life. Through it I rediscovered the child’s laugh inside me,”Said Romain Jouffroy, 24. “US President George W. Bush should give it a try. He has lost his laugh,”she joked . Like Jouffroy, many laughter club members find themselves changed into children again, and why not ? The average preschooler laughs up to 400 times a day.
The average adult only a day seven to 15.
The physical benefits of laughter are already well—recognized. Doctors say the act of laughing releases good chemicals into the blood—stream, while the quick breathing that accompanies it helps massage(按摩)the digestive organs and strengthens the heart.
“A full hour is like having your inside go jogging!One finishes out of breath, but feels revitalized(产生新活力. And on top of that , you’ve had a laugh,”said doctor Alexisd’ Estaing.And many participants in Paris also emphasize the psychological benefits. They believe that laughter is a way of making oneself feel more confident.Which of the following is not included among the benefits of laughing?
| A.It can make people rediscover their children’s laugh. |
| B.It can release good chemical into blood streams. |
| C.It can make you feel self—confident. |
| D.It can cure the illness of people. |
The writer suggested that you should_____________.
| A.take the world’s best medicine. |
| B.talk to each other about what troubles you. |
| C.learn series of laughter techniques. |
| D.have a good laugh after a busy day. |
From the passage , we can conclude the following but___________.
| A.Jocelyne Le Moan is a teacher of the club. |
| B.the members are mostly middle---aged white collars. |
| C.people always need some way to relax in life. |
| D.laugh freely and everything goes well. |
Which of the following is not the reason why so many people join the laughter clubs ?
| A.Those members feel too much pressure on them. |
| B.They want to find a place to relax themselves. |
| C.Laughters help massage the digestive organs. |
| D.The members don’t know how to laugh. |
San Francisco(People's Daily Online)-- Apple Inc. Tuesday introduced its mobile payment service Apple Pay alongside the company's iPhone 6 Plus and Apple Watch at the Flint Center in Cupertino, California.
What apple does is to replace consumers' wallet with its cell phone. Apple said it hopes to speed up the checkout process, make credit-card payments more secure and ultimately, to replace physical wallets.
With the near-field communication technology, Apple's gadgets like iPhone and Apple watch can transmit a radio signal between the device and a receiver when the two are in an inch apart. "To pay, just hold your iPhone near the contactless reader with your finger on Touch ID. You don’t even have to look at the screen to know your payment information was successfully sent," Apple says on its official website.
Apple said that each transaction (交易)would be authorized(授权) with a one-time, unique number, creating a security code that it said is more secure than the one on the back of your credit card because cashiers won’t see your name, card number or security code. The service will work with the three major payment networks — American Express, MasterCard and Visa — and Apple said that there are 220,000 merchant locations that accept these contactless payments.
When some applaud this disrupted service that will compete with Paypal and endanger other online payment companies, some others concern about its safety, especially when another retailer Home Depot confirmed a data opening yesterday and iCloud was reported exposing nude (裸体)pictures of celebrities (名人) a week ago.
Leo Zheng, a technology reporter in Silicon Valley said: "When Apple attracts consumers to put all their cards into one iPhone and promised the security, Jennifer Lawrence should say something."Which can be the best title for the passage?
| A.Apple announces mobile payment service to replace consumers' wallet. |
| B.Consumers can pay in cash through mobile phones. |
| C.Apple Inc. will introduce new models to the market. |
| D.Mobile payment will be popular soon. |
After reading the third paragraph, we know .
| A.Apple’s new products are popular |
| B.Apple can be used as an ID |
| C.Apple's gadgets can receive message easily |
| D.how Apple's gadgets work |
The attitude of the writer towards the mobile payment is .
| A.indifferent (冷漠的) | B.objective |
| C.skeptical | D.positive |
What could have happened to Jennifer Lawrence?
| A.She made great contributions to Apple. |
| B.She put all her cards into her iPhone. |
| C.Her nude pictures were spread online. |
| D.Her iPhone often broke down. |
For centuries, the body’s blood has been linked closely with the emotions. People who show no human emotions or feelings, are said to be cold-blooded killer. For example, the police are searching for a cold-blooded killer. He seems to kill for no reason, and no emotion, as if taking someone’s life as nothing.
Cold can affect other parts of the body. The expression “get cold feet” has nothing to do with cold or your feet. The expression means being afraid to do something you have decided to do. For example, you agree to be president of an organization. But then you learn that all the other officers have resigned, and all the work of the organization will be your responsibility. You are likely to get cold feet about being president when you understand the situation.
The expression “give someone the cold shoulder” probably comes from the physical act of turning your back toward someone, instead of speaking to him face to face. You may give a cold shoulder to a friend who has not kept a promise he made to you. Or, to someone who has lied about you to others.
A cold fish is not a fish. It is a person. But it is a person who is unfriendly, unemotional and shows no love or warmth. A cold fish does not offer much of himself to anyone. Someone who is a cold fish could be cold-hearted. Now a cold-hearted person is someone who has no sympathy. Several popular songs in recent years were about cold-hearted men or cold-hearted women who, without feelings, broke the hearts of their lovers.
Out in the cold means not getting something that everybody else got. A person might say that everybody but him got a pay raise--he was left out in the cold. And it is not a pleasant place to be.There are _____ expressions related to cold that are mentioned in the passage.
| A.3 | B.4 | C.6 | D.7 |
When you refuse to speak to a man and treat him in a distant way, you may express by “_________”.
| A.I give him the cold shoulder |
| B.I think he is a cold-blooded man |
| C.I think he is a cold fish |
| D.I’m likely to get cold feet |
If Sue shows absolutely no reaction to those awful pictures of starving children in Africa, you will say _________.
| A.she is a cold-blooded killer |
| B.she gets cold feet |
| C.she is a cold fish |
| D.she is out in the cold |
We can use the expression “__________” to describe a man who abandons or hurts his lover without mercy.
| A.cold-blooded | B.cold shoulder |
| C.cold feet | D.cold-hearted |
The topic of this passage is about _________.
| A.the relationship between cold and our body |
| B.some expressions about friendship |
| C.some expressions connected with cold |
| D.how cold weather comes into being |
“Have a nice day!” may be a pleasant gesture or a meaningless. When my friend Maxie says “Have a nice day” with a smile, I know she sincerely cares about what happens to me. I feel loved and secure since another person cares about me and wishes me well.
“Have a nice day. Next!” This version of the expression is spoken by a salesgirl at the supermarket who is rushing me and my groceries out the door. The words come out in the same tone (腔调) with a fixed procedure. They are spoken at me, not to me. Obviously, the concern for my day and everyone else’s is the management’s attempt to increase business.
The expression is one of those behaviors that help people get along with each other. Sometimes it indicates the end of a meeting. As soon as you hear it, you know the meeting is at an end. Sometimes the expression saves us when we don’t know what to say “oh, you may have a tooth out? I’m terribly sorry, but have a nice day.”
The expression can be pleasant. If a stranger says “Have a nice day” to you, you may find it heart-warming because someone you don’t know has tried to be nice to you.
Although the use of the expression is an insincere, meaningless social custom at times, there is nothing wrong with the sentence except that it is a little uninteresting. The salesgirl, the waitress, the teacher, and all the countless others who speak it without thinking may not really care about my day. But in a strange and comfortable way, it’s nice to know they care enough to pretend they care when they really don’t care all that much. While the expression may not often be sincere, it is always spoken. The point is that people say it all the time when they like.How does the author understand Maxie’s words?
| A.Maxie shows her anxiety to the author. |
| B.Maxie really wishes the author a good day. |
| C.Maxie encourages the author to stay happy. |
| D.Maxie really worries about the author’s security. |
By saying “Have a nice day,” a stranger may _____.
| A.try to be polite to you |
| B.express respect to you |
| C.give his blessing to you |
| D.share his pleasure with you |
According to the last paragraph, people say “Have a nice day”_______.
| A.sincerely | B.as thanks |
| C.as a habit | D.encouragingly |
What is the best title of the passage?
| A.Have a Nice Day—a Social Custom. |
| B.Have a Nice Day—a Pleasant Gesture. |
| C.Have a Nice Day—a Heart-warming Greeting. |
| D.Have a Nice Day—a Polite Ending of a Conversation. |
I had the meanest mother in the whole world. While other kids ate candy for breakfast, I had to have porridge, eggs or toast. When others had Cokes and candy for lunch, I had to eat a sandwich. But at least I wasn’t alone when I was sad. My sister and two brothers had the same mean(刻薄的) mother as I did.
My mother preferred to know where we were all the time. She had to know who our friends were and where we were going. We had to clean clothes and take a bath every day. The other kids got to wear the same clothes for days. We could not lie in bed “sick” in order to miss school.
The worst is yet to come. We had to be in bed by nine each night and get up at eight the next morning. We couldn’t sleep till noon like our friends. So while they slept, my mother was brave to break the Child Labour Law. She made us work. We had to wash dishes, make beds, and learn to cook and all sorts of things at home. I believe she lay awake thinking up all things for us to do.
My mother was a complete failure as a mother. Two of her children received higher education. None of us have ever been arrested (taken away by the police) or divorced. She forced us to grow up into educated and honest adults. I am trying to raise my three children this way. I am filled with pride when my children call me “mean”. Why? Because now I thank God every day for giving me the meanest mother in the world.How many children does the writer’s mother have?
| A.Four | B.Two | C.Three | D.Six |
What can you infer(推测) from the passage?
| A.My family was rich, so I ate a sandwich for lunch. |
| B.My mother was a great success. We love her. |
| C.If we didn’t want to go to school, the best way was to pretend to be sick. |
| D.We needn’t share the housework at home. |
The best title for this passage may be________.
| A.My childhood | B.The meanest mother |
| C.I do as my mother did | D.Unforgettable memories |
One of my wonderful memories is about a Christmas gift. Unlike other gifts, it came without wrap(包装).
On September 11th. 1958. Mum gave birth to Richard. After she brought him home from hospital, she put him in my lap, saying. "I promised you a gift, and here it is. " What an honor! I turned four a month earlier and none of my friends had such a baby doll of their own. I played with it day and night. I sang to it. I told it stories. 1 told it over and over how much I loved it!
One morning, however, I found its bed empty. My doll was gone! I cried for it. Mum wept and told me that the poor little thing had been sent to a hospital. It had a fever. For several days, I heard Mum and Dad whispering such words as "hopeless", "pitiful", and "dying", which sounded ominous.
Christmas was coming. "Don’t expect any presents this year." Dad said, pointing at the socks I hung in the living room. "If your baby brother lives, that'll be Christmas enough. " As he spoke, his eyes filled with tears. I'd never seen him cry before.
The phone rang early on Christmas morning. Dad jumped out of bed to answer it. From my bedroom I heard him say. "What? He's all right?" He hung up and shouted upstairs. " The hospital said we can bring Richard home!"
"Thank God.'" I heard Mum cry.
From the upstairs window, I watched my parents rush out to the car. I had never seen them happy. And I was also full of joy. What a wonderful day! My baby doll would be home. I downstairs. My sacks still hung there flat. But I knew they were not empty; they were filled with love!what happened to the author on September 11 1958 ?
| A.He got a baby brother |
| B.He got a Christmas gift |
| C.He became four years old |
| D.He received a doll |
What does the underlined word “ominous” in Paragraph 3 probably mean?
| A.Impossible. | B.Boring |
| C.Difficult | D.Fearful |
Which word can best describe the feeling of the father when Christmas was coming?
| A.Excitement. | B.Happiness. |
| C.Sadness. | D.Disappointment. |
What is the passage mainly about ?
| A.A sad Christmas day |
| B.Life with a lovely baby |
| C.A special Christmas gift. |
| D.Memories of a happy family |