Minimalism (简约主义) is a term that describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is reduced to its most basic features.
As for me, minimalism functions well not in art or design, but in my daily life.
When I was packing for university, I found it extremely difficult to let go of some of the things I owned. I knew I couldn’t take everything with me, but I kept asking myself “how could I possibly throw this away?”, “what if I need it one day?”, and “what about all of the memories?” Now that I’ve moved, and left that stuff behind, I don’t even miss it. Whether or not I got rid of it, it barely makes a bit of difference to me now.
I’ve learned that over time people forget, or their need for a particular object eventually disappears. Either they store it away or they get rid of it.
You might think nostalgically（怀旧的） about the toys you cared about when you were a child, but what is making you smile now is not the thing itself but the memory of it. I’ve heard it a hundred times, “you don’t need things to make you happy.” It takes something life-changing like moving across the country to realize how true this is.
Speaking of which, for a lot of people, minimalism is about able to move. It’s about being able to go almost anywhere at any time because you don’t have many possessions to carry. When you keep things you don’t need they become a burden that ties you to a place. Moving to university was a good time to let go of a lot of stuff. And when I visit for the holidays, I’ll probably get rid of even more, to lighten the burden.
Of course there are exceptions. There are some things that are irreplaceable, very rare or expensive or we simply love and cherish for some reason or another, since we are humans. But after we keep those, how much is left that we don’t really need?
Hence, minimalism. And why does minimalism bring happiness? That was a bit of a roundabout way of saying that, it’s because what really makes me happy is freedom. And the key to freedom is minimalism because minimalism reduces our attachment to things.
Attachment to too many objects creates a great mess and can severely hold back our freedom to do whatever we want, while minimalism helps us start new projects, move, travel, learn new things, work, expand, be debt-free, be healthy – really living life to our full potential.
I left the nest to fly onwards and upwards, I can’t do it with old things weighing me down. And that is why I have adopted minimalism with open arms. In paragraph l, the writer gives the definition of minimalism to
| A．introduce a topic | B．present his own background |
| C．describe a scene | D．offer an argument |
Many people don’t want to let go of some of their belongings because
| A．they haven’t had any life-changing experiences |
| B．they fear their memories will be gone with the thrown-away stuff |
| C．they hope to live life to their full potential by storing things away |
| D．they may have to change their lifestyle because of the loss of them |
Which of the following is NOT the reason why the writer favors “minimalism” in life?
| A．It takes the burden off her while she is moving. |
| B．It reduces her attachment to her personal things. |
| C．It enables her to gain the freedom that she desires. |
| D．It helps her to realize how true life is. |
What’s the main idea of the passage?
| A．Minimalism brings happiness. |
| B．Minimalism is applied in many fields. |
| C．Minimalism makes people think nostalgically. |
| D．Minimalism is about able to move. |
July 27st, 2010 was a typical English summer’s day – it rained for 24 hours! As usual, I rushed home from work at midday to check on the house. Nothing was amiss. By the time I left work at 5pm, however, the road into our village was flooded. Our house had never been flooded but, as I opened the front door, a wave of water greeted me. Thank God the kids weren’t with me, because the house was 5 feet deep in water. We lost everything downstairs.
At first we tried to push on through. We didn’t want to move the children out of home, so we camped upstairs. We put a sheet of plastic across the floor to protect us from the damp. But after three months, we felt very sick, so we moved to a wooden house in a park. The house was small, but at first we were all just delighted to be in a new place. Unfortunately, things took longer than expected and we were there for 10 months. The life there was inconvenient. What surprised me most was how much I missed being part of a community（社区）. We had lived in a friendly village with good neighbours, and I’d never thought how much I’d miss that.
Although our situation was very had, it’s difficult to feel too sorry for yourself when you look at what’s happening elsewhere. I watched a news report about floods in Northern India and thought, “We didn’t have a straw but（茅草房）that who swept away, and our house is still standing. We’re lucky.”
We moved back home in August. With December coming, there’s still reconstruction work to be done, so it’s difficult to prepare for Christmas, But I can’t wait-I’m going to throw a party for our friends in the village to say thanks for their support. This year, I won’t need any gifts-living away from home for months has made me realize how little we actually need or miss all our possessions. Although we are replacing things, there’s really no rush-we have our home back, and that’s the main thing.What does the underlined word “amiss” in the first paragraph mean?
| A．Wrong | B．Missing | C．Right | D．Difficult |
Why does the author say that they were lucky in the third paragraph?
| A．Because they were able to move to a new place. |
| B．Because many other places were flooded. |
| C．Because their straw hut was not swept away. |
| D．Because some others suffered even more. |
It can be inferred from the text that the author .
| A．was sick of staying upstairs |
| B．cared much about her children |
| C．could not stand living in a wooden house |
| D．did not deal well with her family affairs during the flood |
What does the author mainly want to express by telling her story?
| A．She valued human feelings more than before. |
| B．She realized she almost didn’t need possessions. |
| C．She found Christmas gifts no longer badly needed. |
| D．She thought her own home was the most important. |
Writing articles about films for The Front Page was my first proper job．Before then I had done bits of reviewing --- novels for other newspapers, films for a magazine and anything I was asked to do for the radio．That was how I met Tom Seaton, the first arts editor of The Front Page, who had also written for television．He hired me, but Tom was not primarily a journalist, or he would certainly have been more careful in choosing his staff．
At first, his idea was that a team of critics should take care of the art forms that didn’t require specialized knowledge: books, TV, theatre, film and radio．There would be a weekly lunch at which we would make our choices from the artistic material that Tom had decided we should cover, though there would also be guests to make the atmosphere s
ociable．
Tom’s original plan for a team of critics for the arts never took off．It was a good idea, but we didn’t get together as planned and so everything was done by phone．It turned out, too, that the general public out there preferred to associate a reviewer with a single subject area, and so I chose film．Without Tom’s initial push, though, we would hardly have come up with the present arrangement, by which I write an extended weekly piece, usually on one film．
The space I am given allows me to broaden my argument --- or forces me, in an uninteresting week, to make something out of nothing．But what is my role in the public arena（舞台）? I suppose that people choose what films to go to on the basis of the stars, the publicity of the director．So if a film review isn’t really a consumer guide, what is it? I certainly don’t feel I have a responsibility to be ‘right’ about a movie．Nor do I think there should be a certain number of ‘great’ and ‘bad’ films each year．All I have to do is put forward an argument．I’m not a judge, and nor would I want to be．What do we learn about Tom Seaton from the first paragraph?
| A．He encouraged Mark to become a writer． |
| B．He had worked in various areas of the media． |
| C．He met Mark when working for a film company． |
| D．He prefers to employ people that he knows． |
The weekly lunches were planned in order to ______．
| A．help the writers get to know each other |
| B．provide an informal information party |
C．divide the work tha t had to be done |
| D．entertain important visitors from the arts |
What does the author mean when he says that Tom’s plan ‘never took off’ in Paragraph 3?
| A．It was unpopular． | B．It wasted too much time． |
| C．It wasn’t planned properly． | D．It wasn’t put into practice． |
Which of the following best describes what Mark says about his work?
| A．His success varies from year to year． | B．He prefers to write about films he likes． |
| C．He can freely express his opinion． | D．He writes according to accepted rules． |
The summer holidays are upon us again．Here is our guide to summer holiday fun in Peterborough!
Peterborough Museum
The Age of the Dinosaurs is the museum’s main attraction this summer．Get up close to prehistoric creatures via some great hands-on exhibits! Watch out for monsters （怪物） lurking （潜伏）around every corner!The museum is open from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm Monday to Saturday, and from 12:00 pm to 4:00 pm on Sundays in August．
Call 01733 864663 for details
Saxon Youth Club
School holiday fun: Young people aged 13—19 will be able to produce their own music, compete in s
pots activities, or try their hand at cooking at Saxon Youth Club, Saxon Community Centre, Norman Road．Peterborough every Monday and Wednesday from 3:00 pm．PLUS an aero ball match will take place on Thursday 12th August between 3:30 pm and 6:30 pm．
Call 01 353 720274 for details
Houghton Mill
Alice through the Looking Class—a new production of the family favorite on Monday 30th．August．Bring rugs or chairs to sit on and a picnic if you wish to eat during the play．Gates open 5:30 pm, performance 6:30 pm—8:30 pm．Tea room will be open until end of the interval（间隔）．Adult ￡10．Child￡7．Family ￡20．
Booking advisable on 0845 4505157．
Farmland Museum and Denny Abbey
Farmland Gaines: From Wellie Wanging t
o Pretend Ploughing matches, come and join the Farmland Team．Collect your sporting stickers and create a colorful rosette（饰品） that is fit for a winner！No need to book, just turn up between 12:00 pm and 4:00 pm on Thursday 19th August Suitable for children aged four and above, each child should be accompanied by an adult and all activities are included in the normal admission price Tickets Cost￡7 per child．
For further information, call 01223 810080．If you are interested in cooking, you can go to ______．
| A．Peterborough Museum | B．Houghton Mill |
| C．Saxon Youth Club | D．Farmland Museum |
You want to watch the new play with your parents, so it will cost you ______．
| A．￡7 | B．￡17 | C．￡27 | D．￡20 |
Which of the following activities needs parents’ company?
| A．Playing farmland games． | B．Watching a new play． |
| C．Competing in spots activities． | D．Visiting the dinosaur exhibition． |
If Tom comes to Peterborough for amusement on Monday and Wednesday in August, how many activities can he choose from?
| A．One activity． | B．Two activities． |
| C．Three activities． | D．Four activities． |
Shyness is the cause of much unhappiness for a great many people．Shy people are anxious and self-conscious; that is, they are concerned with their own appearance and actions too much．Negative thoughts are constantly occurring in their minds: What kind of impression am I making? Do they like me? Do I sound stupid? Am I wearing unattractive clothes?
It is obvious that such uncomfortable feelings must affect people unfavorably．A person's self-concept is reflected in the way he or she behaves and the way a person behaves affects other people's reactions．In general, the way people think aboutthemselves has a deep effect on all areas of their lives．
Shy people, who have low respect, are likely to be passive and easily influenced by others．They need faith that they are doing "the right thing"．Shy people are very sensitive to criticism．It makes them feel inferior（自卑）．They also find it difficult to be pleased by praises because they believe they are unworthy of praise．A shy person may respond to a praise with a statement like this one: "You're just saying that to make me feel good, I know it's not true．” It is clear that, while self-awareness is a healthy quality, overdoing it is harmful．
Can shyness be completely got rid of, or at least reduced? Fortunately, people can overcome shyness with determination since shyness goes hand in hand with lack of self respect．It is important for people to accepttheir weakness as well as their strengths．Each one of us has his or her own characteristics．We are interested in our own personal ways．The better we understand ourselves, the easier it becomes to live up to our chances for a rich and successful life．The first paragraph is mainly about______．
| A．the cause of shyness | B．the effect of shyness on people |
| C．the feelings of shy people | D．the questions in the minds of shy people |
According to the writer, self-awareness is______．
| A．harmful to people | B．a weak point of shy people |
| C．the cause of unhappiness | D．a good characteristic |
What is the shy people's reaction to praise?
| A．They are pleased by it． |
| B．They feel it is not true． |
| C．They arevery sensitive to it． |
| D．They feel they are worthy of it． |
We can learn from the passage that shyness can ______．
| A．block our chances for a successful life |
| B．help us to live up to our full development |
| C．enable us to understand ourselves better |
| D．have nothing to do with lack of self respect |
You may open your electronic mail and find information about how to buy medicine, cheap airline tickets, and books and, of course, computers and computer products．There may also be offers for investment deals, bank loans and special holidays．However, to many computer users, this use of electronic spam to sell products has become a major problem as it makes computer communication more difficult．
Many companies who want to send a great deal of advertising might use the services of a “spammer．” A spammer is a person or company that uses computers to send out millions of copies of the same sales information．Spammers find e-mail addresses from websites, news groups and “chat rooms” where people send messages to each other．
Most spam is sent by companies who are trying to get you to buy their products．Some of these are honest companies that offer good products or services for fair prices．These companies can offer their products for a cheaper price than you might find in a store．However, much of the spam on the Internet is sent by criminals who are trying to sell products that do not exist or offer services they will not provide．They are only interested in stealing your money．When you answer their spam you find you are expected to send them money and receive a gift．One country in Africa has become famous for the number of criminals who try every known trick to separate people from their money．What does the underlined word “spam” in the first paragraph probably refer to?
| A．Unwanted electronic information that reaches computer users． |
| B．Computer virus that causes computer communication difficulties． |
| C．Advertisements sent out by companies who want to sell their products． |
| D．Companies that send out millions of copies of the same sales information． |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
| A．Spammers are people who receive spam on their computers． |
| B．Spammers are people who collect e-mail addresses from the Internet． |
| C．Companies who want to send a great deal of advertising are so-called spammers． |
| D．Either individuals or organizations can be regarded as spammers if they send out spam． |
Which is the possible
suggestion from the writer concerning spam?
| A．Look out for any spam that reaches your computer． |
| B．Don’t trust any information on the Internet． |
| C．Buy what is cheaper in the spam． |
| D．Don’t buy anything advertised in the spam． |
What is the main purpose of writing this passage?
| A．To explain what spam is． |
| B．To find out who send out spam． |
| C．To warn readers of the possible dangers of spam． |
| D．To show the advantages and disadvantages of spam． |