People from East Asia tend to have more difficulty than those from Europe in distinguishing facial expressions---and a new report published online in Current Biology explains why.
Rachael Jack, University of Glasgow researcher, said that rather than scanning evenly across a face as Westerners do, Easterners fix their attention on the eyes.
“We show that Easterners and Westerners look at different face features to read facial expressions,” Jack said. “Westerners look at the eyes and the mouth in equal measure, whereas Easterners favor the eyes and neglect the mouth.”
According to Jack and her colleagues, the discovery shows that human communication of emotion is more complex than previously believed. As a result, facial expressions that had been considered universally recognizable cannot be used reliably to convey emotion in cross-cultural situations.
The researchers studied cultural differences in the recognition of facial expressions by recording the facial movements of 13 Western Caucasian and 13 Eastern Asian people while they observed pictures of expressive faces and put them into categories: happy, sad, surprised, fearful, disgusted, angry, or neutral. They compared how accurately participants read those facial expressions using their particular eye movement strategies.
It turned out that Easterners focused much greater attention on the eyes and made significantly more errors than did Westerners. “The cultural difference in eye movements that they show is probably a reflection of cultural difference in facial expressions,” Jack said. “Our data suggest that whereas Westerners use the whole face to convey emotion, Easterners use the eyes more and mouth less.”
In short, the data show that facial expressions are not universal signals of human emotion. From here on, examining how cultural factors have diversified these basic social skills will help our understanding of human emotion. Otherwise, when it comes to communicating emotions across cultures, Easterners and Westerners will find themselves lost in translation.The discovery shows that Westerners______.
| A．pay equal attention to the eyes and the mouth |
| B．consider facial expressions universally reliable |
| C．observe the eyes and the mouth in different ways |
| D．have more difficulty in recognizing facial expression |
What were the people asked to do in the study?
| A．To make a face at each other |
| B．To get their faces impressive |
| C．To classify some face pictures |
| D．To observe the researchers’ faces |
What does the underlined word “they” in paragraph 6 refer to?
| A．The participants in the study |
| B．The researchers of the study |
| C．The errors made during the study |
| D．The data collected from the study |
In comparison with the Westerners, Easterners are likely to______.
| A．do translation more successfully |
| B．study the mouth frequently |
| C．examine the eyes more attentively |
| D．read facial expressions more correctly |
I once had a friend that was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and the news that he might only live up to six months was a great shock to him, his family, and his friends. However, in spite of the serious illness, he was initially determined to look into all available treatments that might cure or extend his life. I think that when you find yourself in such situations, you tend to look up every possible way for hope of saving your life.
As months went on and his health grew worse, I noticed an unexpected change in attitude that came over him. He had also been a happy person with a cheerful personality, but rather than give in to discouragement and self-pity, he took comfort in God and humanity. His talks focused on others rather than himself, and he spoke of the afterlife as something he was prepared for, believing that his concerned ancestors, including his mother and father, were there waiting for him.
During the last few months, weeks, and days of his life, he was kindly cared for by family, friends, his loving wife, who looked after both his physical and emotional needs, and workers from a local hospice (安养院) came to the home to regulate his medication and provide any other needed support. He didn't complain about his fate, and he willingly allowed others to serve him.
Indeed, one might think why God allows death and suffering in our world, but for me, such experiences taught me to value family more and kindness for others. You often can't learn these important attributes in the lap of luxury, and perhaps, such an experience is the greatest and final gift the illness can give those left behind.What did the man do after he first learned of his illness?
| A．He was operated on immediately. |
| B．He retired from his job. |
| C．He researched cancer treatments. |
| D．He felt sad, doing nothing. |
What was the man's main source of comfort after several months with the disease?
| A．His family and friends. |
| B．His belief in humanity. |
| C．His doctors’ encouragement. |
| D．The care from others. |
What did the author learn from his friend’s story?
| A．Giving more respect to friends. |
| B．Extending life as possible. |
| C．Caring for yourself and enjoying luxury. |
| D．Getting comfort from God. |
What does the author mainly want to tell?
| A．All people will face death, and thus, we must prepare for it spiritually. |
| B．Our characters can be strengthened by such an unpleasant situation. |
| C．Families provide the best support system during such a crisis. |
| D．People should help those who have got serious illness. |
Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.
| A. concerned |
B. estimated |
C. purposes |
D. intentional |
AB. result |
| AC. nationally ABC.Obviously |
AD. assumed |
BC. private |
BD. interest |
CD. Completely |
By now you know that getting your money’s worth is not just a matter of luck. It is more often the of buying skill. Nevertheless, even the smartest consumers are sometimes fooled into thinking they are getting their money’s worth when they are not. At one time or another, almost everyone experiences deception (欺骗）in the market place. The deception may not be . But, whether or not, any kind of deception hurts consumers’ feelings as well as their pocket books. Some kinds of deception even endanger their health and safety as well. , consumers need protection against the marketing of unsafe goods and false or misleading advertising. Fortunately, there are both public and agencies working to meet the need. Government’s job in free enterprise system is to protect the public _. The public is composed entirely of consumers. When it comes to protecting consumers, therefore, government has the most influence. Because most consumer products are sold , the major responsibility for consumer protection is by federal government. That responsibility, however, is shared by many agencies. For example, the US Postal Service works to uncover and stop dishonest schemes operated by mail. The National Highway Safety Bureau is with all aspects of automobile safety. Certain federal agencies, however, have consumer protection as one of their chief . Most federal agencies are known by their initials. FDA stands for the Food and Drug Administration, which probably does more to protect consumers than any other agency. Its major concern is the safety, purity, and labeling of foods, drugs, and cosmetics. These are the products for which consumers spends a(n) 38% of their incomes.
Sometimes people call each other "freaked-cat", but have you ever thought about this expression? When a cat is frightened, its heart starts beating faster, its muscles get tense, and there are changes in the chemicals in its bloodstream．Although the cat doesn't realize this, its body is getting ready for action．If the danger continues, the animal will do one of two things．It will defend itself, or it will run away as fast as it can．
Something like this also happens to people．When we are excited, angry, scared, or aroused by other emotions （feelings）, our bodies go through many physical changes．Our hearts beat faster, and our muscles get tense．All of these changes make us more alert and ready to react．We, too．get ready to defend ourselves or run．
Human beings, however, have a problem that animals never face．If we give way to our feelings and let them take over, we can get into trouble．Have you ever said something in anger —or hit somebody—and regretted it later? Have you ever shouted at a teacher, told somebody you were lonely, or said you were in love, and then wished later you had kept your mouth shut?
It isn't always clever to express your feelings freely．
Does this mean that it's smarter always to hide our feelings? No! If you keep feelings of anger, sadness, and bitterness hidden away or bottled up inside, your body stays tense．Physical illness can develop．It can actually be bad for your health．（It isn't good to keep pleasant feelings inside either; all feelings need to be expressed．）
Feelings that you keep all bottled up inside don't just go away．It's as if you bought some bananas and stuck them in a cupboard．You might not be able to see them．but before long you' d smell them．And if you opened the cupboard, chances are that you'd see little fruit flies flying all over them．They'd be rotten．
You can try to treat emotions as if they were bananas in the cupboard．You can hide them and you can pretend they don't exist, but they'll still be around．And at last you'll have to deal with them．just like those bananas．The best title for this article is_____．
| A．Emotions Affect Our Bodies |
| B．What Happens to A Frightened Cat |
| C．What Happens to An Excited Person |
| D．Feelings That People Have |
What does the word "freaked" mean in the first sentence?
| A．excited | B．scared | C．angry | D．shocked |
According to the passage, we may conclude that we human beings_____．
| A．have fewer problems than animals |
| B．have the same problems as animals |
| C．have more problems than animals |
| D．have cleverer problems than animals |
If you hold in your feelings,_____．
| A．gradually they'll disappear |
| B．they won't exist any more |
| C．they will fly all over |
| D．your body stays tense |
The author wrote this article in order to_____．
| A．tell us that it isn't good to keep feelings inside |
| B．give us some advice on how to express our feelings |
| C．make us face the problem that we have to deal with feelings |
| D．make us know that it isn't always wise to express our feelings freely |
What you have just read is a _____．
| A．note | B．report | C．schedule | D．poster |
According to the passage, teachers would be working with students.
| A．immediately after they are admitted |
| B．in the National City Center across China |
| C．21—25 hours a week even on national holidays |
| D．ranging from kindergarten students to teenagers |
How much can Smith get on July 15 if he promises to teach for a year on January 15?
A．9500 RMB． B．28500 RMB．
C．34200 RMB． D．57000 RMB．Who will be possibly admitted as an English teacher according to the passage?
| A．Bo Savino from American．35, a native Chinese． |
| B．Douglas Carter from Canada, 30．a former doctor． |
| C．Abigale from Australia, 42, an experienced teacher． |
| D．Alexa Joy Nino from India．39, an experienced teacher． |
We can conclude that teachers admitted by this school group are allowed to _____．
| A．get a rise in salary |
| B．live in Hong Kong |
| C．see a doctor for free |
| D．take a part-time job |
"My dream has come true．I have always wanted to be a Grand Slam （大满贯） champion．"These are the words of the Chinese tennis player Li Na after she became the first Asian woman to win the Australian Open final on Jan．25th．2014．
"People were saying I'm getting old．So this is a great success for such an old woman．" the 32-year-old girl joked．
Miss Li has a tattoo （文身）．She has dyed her hair many different colors．And, at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, she told her fans to "shut up" when they got too noisy in their support．
Li Na was born in Wuhan．She started to play tennis at the age of 6．She once recalled: "As a child．I suffered a lot because every day I had to wake up early to practice．After school I had to practice more．I didn't have time to play．"
Luckily, the strong girl didn't give up．thus making history for Chinese tennis time after time．Now the new champion is already thinking about winning another Grand Slam title．"When you have one title, surely you will think about another," she says．not hiding her ambition．
"Chinese people are so lacking in confidence on the tennis court．If there is a person like me who can prove we Chinese can do it, the other young players in China will feel the same," she said．Li Na began to learn playing tennis in the year of _____．
| A．1988 | B．1982 | C．1986 | D．1990 |
We can learn from the passage that _____．
| A．Li Na is always impatient with her fans |
| B．Li Na is an old girl |
| C．Li Na is a fashionable girl |
| D．Li Na is a girl without ambition |
When she began to play tennis, Li Na was _____．
| A．happy | B．sad | C．excited | D．bored |
Which of the following is WRONG about Li Na?
| A．Li Na took part in the 2008 Beijing Olympics． |
| B．Li Na has already won a Grand Slam champion． |
| C．Li Na had to wake up early to practice playing tennis． |
| D．Li Na said she lacked confidence on the tennis court． |
The passage mainly tells us _____．
| A．something about the tennis |
| B．something about how to play tennis |
| C．the Chinese people and the tennis |
| D．the Grand Slam champion—Li Na |