When it comes to friends, I desire those who will share my happiness, who has wings of their own and who will fly with me.
When I was in the eighth grade, I had a friend. We were shy and “too serious” about our studies when it was becoming fashionable with our classmates to learn acceptable social behaviors. We said little at school, but she would come to my house and we would sit down with pencils and paper, and one of us would say, “Let’s start with a train whistle（鸣笛）today.” We would sit quietly together and write separate poems or stories that grew out of a train whistle. Then we would read them aloud. At the end of that school year, we, too, were changing into social persons and the stories and poems stopped.
When I lived for a time in London, I had a friend. He was in despair（失望）and I was in despair, too. But our friendship was based on the idea in each of us that we would be sorry later if we did not travel over this great city because we had felt bad at the time. We met every Sunday for five weeks and found many excellent things. We walked until our despairs disappeared and then we parted. We gave London to each other.
For almost four years I have had a great friend whose imagination brightens mine. We write long letters in which we often discover our strangest selves. Each of us appears, sometimes in a funny way, in the other’s dreams. She and I agree that, at certain times, we seem to be parts of the same mind.
It is such comforting companions（陪伴）I wish to keep. One bright hour with their kind is worth more to me than the lifetime services of a psychologist, who will only fill up the healing silence necessary to those darkest moments in which I would rather be with my own best friend.We can infer from Paragraph 2 that the writer ______ finally.
| A．wasn’t serious about her studies |
| B．didn’t like writing poems or stories |
| C．became popular with her classmates |
| D．developed her proper social behaviors |
The underlined sentence “We gave London to each other” probably means ______.
| A．our tour in London was a memorable gift to both of us |
| B．our unpleasant feeling about London disappeared |
| C．we were unwilling to stay away from London |
| D．we waved goodbye to each other in London |
What is the best title for the passage?
| A．Unforgettable Experiences. |
| B．Unbelievable Imagination. |
| C．Touching Companions. |
| D．Lifelong Friendship. |
Millions of British people have ditched the traditional “thank you” and took the place of it with the less formal(正式的) “cheers”, according to a survey.
Although the common person will say “thank you” nearly 5,000 times a year, one in three are more likely to add a “cheers” or “ta” where it’s needed to show they are fashionable.
One in twenty now say “nice one” instead, while the younger are more likely to offer a “cool” than a “thank you”.
“Merci”, “fab” and even “gracias” were also listed as common expressions to use, as “much appreciated(感激)”.
One in twenty who took part in the survey of 2,000 people by the Food Network UK for Thank You Day, which is marked on November 24, 2011, said a formal “thank you” was now not often needed in everyday conversation. More than one in ten adults said they regularly(有规律地) won’t say thank you if they are in a bad mood. Most people stated(陈述) that saying thank you was something that their parents trained them. A huge 70 percent of those who are questioned will say thank you to a person’s face without even meaning it, while one fifth avoid(避免)saying it when they know they should.
It seems our friends and family get the stress of our bad manners. Half of them admit (承认) they’re not good at thanking those closest to them. Many of them explain that they don’t say thank you because their family “already know I’m thankful”.
When spoken words won’t do, it falls to a nice text to do the job for most people.
One third will still send a handwritten thank-you note---but 45 percent admit it’s been more than six months since they tried to send one.
A quarter of British people say “thank you” with food, with 23 percent cooking a meal to show their appreciation to someone. Another 15 percent make a cake.
It follows that 85 percent of people will be angry because of not getting the gratitude (感激)they feel they should receive.Most of the people who took part in the survey say that they say “thank you” _______.
| A．when they are in good mood |
| B．completely out of habit |
| C．when they feel truly grateful |
| D．purely out of politeness |
The underlined word “ditched” in Paragraph 1 means “________”.
| A．gave up | B．used | C．shared | D．knew |
It can be learned from the passage that _______.
| A．different ways of expressing gratitude are all fashionable |
| B．people should avoid saying “thank you” nowadays |
| C．a thank-you note is still appreciated by most people |
| D．people in a bad mood never say “thank you” |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Most people express their gratitude to others by buying food for them. |
| B．About fifty percent of people try not to say thank you when they should. |
| C．Most people may feel natural when they fail to receive others’ gratitude. |
| D．Many people think it unnecessary to say thanks to their family members. |
It seems that there’s a good reason why dogs are always seen as man’s best friend. Scientists have found that dogs are the only animals that can read emotion(情感)in faces much like humans. The finding suggests that like an understanding friend, dogs can see if we are happy, sad, pleased or angry.
When humans look at a new face, their eyes usually look across the left, falling on the right hand side of the person’s face first. A possible reason for this is that the right side of the human face is better at expressing emotions.
Scientists have now shown that pet dogs also have “left gaze bias(左视偏好)”, but only when looking at human faces. No other animal has been known to do like this before. Dr. Kun Guo with his team showed 17 dogs the pictures of human, dog and monkey faces as well as something else. The dogs’ eyes and heads show a strong left gaze bias when the animals see human faces. But this did not happen when they were shown other pictures, including those of dogs.
Guo suggests that over thousands of years living with humans, dogs may have developed the left gaze bias as a way to guess our emotions.
“Recent studies show that the right side of our faces can express emotions better than the left. If true, then it makes sense for dogs and humans to see the right hand side of a face first.”Why are dogs seen as man’s best friend according to the passage?
| A．Because dogs are the closest animals to humans. |
| B．Because dogs can read the emotions in humans’ faces easily. |
| C．Because dogs can understand us better when we feel sad. |
| D．Because dogs are good at expressing emotions. |
The dogs’ left gaze bias helps them _______.
| A．get along well with humans |
| B．express emotions quickly |
| C．have more understanding friends |
| D．remember more new faces |
The passage mainly wants to tell us that _______.
| A．dogs have been man’s best friends for thousands of years |
| B．humans have a “left gaze bias” |
| C．the “left gaze bias” works on all animals |
| D．dogs can read emotions the same as humans |
Sir Steven Redgrave—Winner of 5 Olympic Gold Medals
“In 1997 I was found to have developed diabetes (糖尿病), believing the profession(职业) trained for the whole of my life ended, I felt very sorry. Then one of my friends said there was no reason why I should stop training. That was it—the encouragement I needed. I could still be a winner if I believed in myself. I am not saying that it isn’t difficult sometimes. But I wanted to prove to myself that I wasn’t finished yet. Nothing is to stand in my way.”
Karen Pickering—Swimming World Champion (冠军)
“I swim 4 hours a day, 6 days a week. I manage that amount（总数） of work by putting it on top of my diary. This is the key to success—you can’t follow a profession in any field without being well-organized. Make a list of what you believe you can achieve. Trust yourself, write down your goals for the day, however small they are, and you’ll be a step closer to achieving them.”
Kristen Stewart—Actress
“When things are getting hard, a voice inside my head tells me that I can’t achieve anything. Then, there are other distractions, such as family or hobbies. The key is to give most of your attention to one thing. When I feel nervous, it helps a lot to repeat words such as ‘calm’, ‘peace’, either out loud or silently in my mind. It makes me feel more in control and improves my confidence. This is a habit and is a powerful psychological(心理学的) tool.”The underlined word “ distractions” probably means ________.
| A．good habits | B．things that make one tired |
| C．words to enjoy | D．things that turn one’s attention away |
The same character of the three people is________.
| A．humour | B．happiness |
| C．self-confidence | D．wisdom |
The best title for the passage is ________.
| A．Health and Food | B．How to Be a Winner |
| C．Difficulties and Habits | D．Be a Sportsman |
Three rich ladies met every day by the river. They sat there and talked the whole day. Once the three ladies quarreled(争吵). One of them said. “Look, how white and beautiful my hands are!” Another one said, “My hands are more beautiful.” The third one said, “Mine are the most beautiful ones.” An old beggar（乞丐） woman came up to them. “Beautiful ladies,” she said, “I’m hungry. Please give me something to eat.”
But the three ladies gave her nothing. They only asked, “Tell me, old woman, which one of us has the most beautiful hands?”
A peasant（农民）woman was also sitting by the river. She was poor and her hands were rough（粗糙的） because of hard work. The old woman came up to her and said, “I’m hungry. Please give me something to eat.” The peasant woman took out her only cake she had and gave her a half.
The old woman ate it and drank some water. Then she took the peasant woman by the hand, brought her before the rich ladies and said, “Now, I shall tell you whose hands are the most beautiful. The hands of the poor peasant woman are rough because of work, but they give us food; they are far more beautiful than your hands which have never done anything.”The three ladies ___________.
| A．had a quarrel every day |
| B．were rich but unkind |
| C．had a talk about their hands every day |
| D．lived by the side of the river |
The old woman asked for something to eat, ___________.
| A．but none of the three rich ladies gave anything to her |
| B．but only one of the three ladies gave her half a cake |
| C．because she wanted to know whose hands were beautiful |
| D．because she wanted to know which lady was the richest |
The peasant woman’s hands were not so white as the three ladies’ ___________.
| A．because of the hard work she had done |
| B．but she was stronger than any of them |
| C．so she didn’t quarrel with the three ladies |
| D．but she was more beautiful than any of them |
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Next to e-mail, the most popular activity on the net is chatting. And if you ask someone what kind of things they do most on the Internet, chances are they will answer that they like to chat. This seems especially true of the younger generation.
Chatting is like any other social interaction. We all know that if we go into a group of people at a party or at school… and start screaming or start asking everyone their age before we even say hello, we aren’t going to make many friends. Chat rooms are different. Below are some tips that will make your chat experience friendly and fun!
Walking into a room and demanding age or sex is the most common mistake a new chatter makes. Most regular chatters will ignore the question and you. In a community such as Youth Tech you will usually find people of all ages and backgrounds. That is the fantastic thing about online chatting. Don’t limit yourself. Talk to everyone in the room equally. You will soon know who shares your interests and who doesn’t. If you prefer a one-on-one type of online friendship, then maybe you’d better look for a pal.
Shy? Lots of people feel shy when they enter a chat room where everyone seems to know everyone else except him. It’s really easy to feel left out. The best way to lose that feeling is to make yourself feel that you are not a stranger. If you enter the room and say “Hello, everyone! My name〈nickname here〉and I’m new.” You will find that there are normally at least a couple of extra friendly people that will be happy to help you become a part of it all.
Basically the best way to have a good chat experience is to be yourself and friendly. Try to join in the conversations going on and don’t be afraid to ask for help. Do remember, however, not everyone is going to be nice and friendly. The same as at school, there are also going to be a few people that are rude and just make you feel rotten. The best thing to do is just ignore them. Arguing with them will just make it worse. Show that you are better than they are by just refusing to let them get to you.