I had an experience once which taught me something about the ways people made a bad situation worse by blaming themselves. One January, I officiated(主持) at two funerals for two elderly women. Both died a natural death. At the first home, the son of the deceased(已故) woman said, “If only I had sent my mother to Florida and gotten her out of this cold and snow, she would be alive today. It’s my fault that she died.” At the second home, the son said, “If only I had not insisted her going to Florida, she would be alive today. That long airplane ride was more than she could take. It is my fault.”
When things don’t turn out as we would like them to, we tend to assume that had we done things differently, the story would have had a happier ending. Any time there is a death, the survivors will feel guilty. Because the course of action they took turned out bad, they believe that the opposite course, for example, keeping mother at home, would have turned out better. After all, how could it have turned out any worse?
There seem to be elements involved in our readiness to feel guilty. The first lies in our belief that the world makes sense——there is a reason for everything that happens.
The second is the thought that we are the cause of what happens, especially the bad things that happen. The roots of this feeling may lie in our childhood. A baby comes to think that the world exists to meet his needs, and that he makes everything happen in it. He wakes up in the morning and calls the rest of the world to its tasks. He cries, and someone comes to attend to him. When he is hungry, people feed him, and when he is wet, people change him. Very often, we do not completely abandon that childish thought that our wishes cause things to happen. What is true about the two deceased elderly women?
A.They died from accidents. |
B.They both died of old age. |
C.They died due to lack of care by family members. |
D.They weren’t accustomed to the change in life. |
People feel guilty for the death of their loved ones because______.
A.they cannot find a better way to express their sorrow |
B.they don’t know that natural course of events |
C.they believe that it is their fault |
D.they don’t know things often turn out in the opposite direction |
People have believed since early childhood that .
A. everybody is at their command |
B. life and death is an unsolved mystery |
C. every story should have a happy ending |
D. their wishes are the cause of everything that happens |
What is the main idea of this passage?
A. Two sons blamed themselves for their mother's death. |
B. Things don't always go well as we expect. |
C. Two factors account for guilty sense. |
D.Baby's wishes lead everything to happen. |
In 2010, 700 million people huddled together in front of their television sets to watch the World Cup final between the Netherlands and Spain. Even more are expected to tune in to this year's contest, which kicks off on June 12th with a match between Brazil and Croatia in Sao Paulo. Brazil are the runaway favourites to win the tournament, with bookmakers offering odds of less than three to one on the home team winning the championship.Many experts agree that the country will benefit from a strong home advantage, as local crowds roar on the Seleqao.How much does playing on home turf fealty affect a team's performance?
Sports scientists have come up with all sorts of theories to explain why playing at home helps. In 2007 a study investigated the influence of crowd noise on referees in the English football Premier League. It showed that some were more likely to flash yellow cards and award penalties against touring players than the hosts, because they relied on the split-second rise in the home crowd's roar as a reminder to determine if a tackle deserved punishment. In the most recent season of the Spanish football Riga, two-thirds of all penalty kicks were awarded to the home team.
In the latest English football season, the top 20 clubs enjoyed a home success rate of 50%, while their victory rate on the road was 32%. In 12 of the past 19 World Cups the host nation has made it to the semi-finals and six times it has gone on to win. The effect can be seen in other sports too. ABefore the start of the London Olympics in 2012, UK Sport, a government agency, studied the results of more than 100 big tournaments across 14 Olympic sports. B As it turned out, Britain bettered its 2008 performance by winning 18 more medals(10 of them gold), an improvement of 38% . C At the Beijing games, China won 59% more medals than it had done at the 2004 Athens games. DRussia topped the medal table in Sochi:in the previous winter Olympics it had come sixth.
Given these numbers, it is not surprising that teams have poured money into maximizing their home advantage. For example, Brazil has spent a considerable fortune on, if somewhat leisurely, a programme of stadium construction and renovation. In all its home advantage is worth the equivalent of a 0.6-goal headstart in every match, according to Goldman Sachs, an investment bank. Like most others, Goldman predicts that Brazil will triumph this year. Other countries' fans will have to hope for a miracle-and perhaps bid to stage the Cup on their own home turf next time.What does "some" in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A.Crowd noises. | B.Referees. |
C.Touring players. | D.Host players. |
Put the following sentence in the most appropriate place marked A, B, C, or D It predicted that the London home advantage would boost Britain's medal haul by as much as 25%.
What can be inferred from the passage?
A.Fans may raise their noise levels to cheer their teams up. |
B.Brazil will win because of its strong ability. |
C.It is a waste of time and effort for countries to hold sports games. |
D.The visiting teams have a good chance of winning. |
CURRENCY
• New Zealand dollars($)
LANGUAGE
• English, Maori and New Zealand Sign Language
MONEY
• ATMs are widely available, especially in larger cities and towns,credit cards accepted in hotels and restaurants
VISAS
• Citizens of Australia, the UK and 56 other countries don't need visas for New Zea
(length-of-stay vary).
MOBILE PHONES
• European phones will work on NZ's network, but not most American or Japanese phones.
• global roaming or a local SIM card and prepaid account.
DRIVING
• Drive on the left; the steering wheel is on the right side of the car(…in case you can't find it).
When to Go
• HIGH SEASON (DEC-FEB)
Summer: busy beaches, outdoor explorations, festivals, sporting events.
Big-city accommodation prices rise.
High season in the ski towns is winter (Jun-Aug).
• SHOULDER (ATAR APR)
Prime travelling time:fine weather, short queues, kids in school,warm(ish) ocean.
Long evenings supping Kiwi wines and craft beers.
Spring (Sep-Nov) is shoulder season too.
• LOW SEASON (MAY-AUG)
Head for the Southern Alps for some brilliant southern hemisphere skiing.
No crowds, good accommodation deals and a seat in any restaurant.
Warm-weather beach towns might be half asleep.
• Auckland International Airport
Airbus Express-24-hour
Shuttle Bus一一24-hour door-to-door services
Taxi一around$70; 45 minutes to the city
• Wellington Airport
Bus——Airport Flyer from 6 am to 9.30 pm
Shuttle Bus-24-hour door-to-door services
Taxi-around$30;20 minutes to the city
• Christchurch Airport
Bus一一City Flyer from 7.15 am to 9.15 pm
Shuttle Bus一一24-hour door-to-door services
Taxi-around $50;25 minutes to the city
Driving Around New Zealand
There are extensive bus networks and a couple of handy train lines crisscrossing New Zealand, but for the best scenery, flexibility and pure freedom it's hard to beat piling into a camper van or rent-a-car and hitting the open road. Scanning the map you might think that driving from A to B won't take long, but remember that many of the roads here are two-lane country byways, traversing hilly landscape in curves, crests and convolutions:always allow plenty of time to get wherever you’re going. And who's in a hurry anyway? Slow down and see more of the country:explore little end-of-the-line towns, stop for a swiinlsurfi beer, and pack a Swiss Army knife for impromptu picnics at roadside produce stalls.What is the last part but one mainly about?
A.Travelling in NZ. | B.Arriving in NZ. |
C.Where to go. | D.When to stop. |
Which of the following is NUT recommended by the author?
A.Using global roaming on American phones. |
B.Using credit cards in large cities and towns. |
C.Heading for the Southern Alps for skiing in February. |
D.Renting a car and drive by yourself. |
In the author's opinion, when you have a chance to visit New Zealand,__________
A.hurry all the time because driving is difficult there |
B.drive quickly enough to enjoy more surfing and picnicking |
C.don't hurry because two-lane country byways will help you save time |
D.find enough time because of too much to enjoy and the difficulty in driving |
Phantom vibrations-the phenomenon where you think your phone is vibrating but it's not-have been around since the mobile age. Today, they’re so common that researchers have devoted studies to them.
For Valerie Kusler, who works on a cattle farm, the feeling is complicated by the cows“The cows’moo is very muffled, it kinda sounds like…errrr,”she says.“So that's very similar to what my phone sounds like when it vibrates on my desk or in my purse.”
Other people may not confuse cows for their phones, but research shows phantom vibration symptom is a near-universal experience for people with smartphones.
Nearly 90 percent of college undergraduates in a 2012 study said they felt phantom vibrations. The number was just as high for a survey of hospital workers, who reported feeling phantom vibrations on either a weekly or monthly basis.
“Something in your brain is being triggered(触发)that's different than what was triggered just a few short years ago,” says Dr Larry Rosen, a research psychologist who studies how technology affects our minds.
“If you'd asked me 10 years ago, or maybe even five years ago if I- felt an itch beneath where my pocket of my jeans was, and asked me what I would do, I'd reach down and scratch it because it was probably a little itch caused by the neurons firing(神经元刺激),”he says. Now, of course, the itch triggers him to reach for his phone. Rosen says it's an example of how our devices are changing how our brains process information.
“we’re seeing a lot of what looks like obsessive behavior. People who are constantly picking up their phone look like they have an obsession. They don't look much different from someone who's constantly washing their hands. I’m not saying that it is an obsession, but I’m saying that it could turn into one, very easily," Rosen says.
While 9 out of 10 participants in the study of college students said the vibration feeling bothered them only a little or not at all, Rosen still recommends backing away from our phones every once in a while to keep our anxiety levels down.
“One of the things I’m really adamant about in spite of being very pro-technology, is just away from the technology for short periods," Rosen says."And by short periods. I mean; maybe just 30 minutes or an hour.”According to the article, phantom vibrations_____.
A.are mainly caused by neurons firing |
B.affect people mostly working on farms |
C.help our brains better process information |
D.started troubling people in recent years |
The underlined word "adamant" in the last paragraph probably means_____.
A.curious | B.determined | C.satisfied | D.cautious |
It can be concluded from Larry Rosen's research that_____.
A.phantom vibrations could probably result in obsessive behavior |
B.the use of smart phones has completely changed the way our minds work |
C.most people feel uncomfortable when they experience phantom vibrations |
D.hospital workers are more likely to suffer from phantom vibrations than students |
According to Larry Rosen, the most effective measure against phantom vibrations is to_____.
A.move to a quieter neighborhood |
B.stop using smartphones in poor condition |
C.take a break from using smartphones occasionally |
D.keep a close watch on your anxiety levels |
Volunteering abroad is great. Not only do you travel to an exotic country, you also meet like-minded people, and at the end of it all you have something to put on your CV to impress employers with. But did you ever stop to think about how great it is for the people on the receiving end?
In this context, Daniela Papi has a point---foreigners rushing heroically to volunteer in a country they’ve never heard of are unlikely to make a difference. But turning volunteering camps into classrooms, as Papi seems to advocate in her article, risks throwing the baby out with the bath water by putting people off of volunteering.
Rather, learning should be a natural part of the experience, and the key to creating such an environment is positioning everyone as equals. In order for that to happen, volunteers need competent leaders who create an environment of equality:
When, a few years ago, I joined a group of international volunteers to help a small farming community in the Swiss Alps, we were all quite ignorant about the local conditions. But thanks to our group leader, it was both a helpful project for the locals and a fun and eye-opening experience for us.Before we had even traveled (at our own expense) to the mountaintop village, our group leader had spent time with the villagers preparing the project to make sure it would be of benefit to them. She arranged for us to help in different areas, ensuring that we always worked alongside locals rather than for them. It was never "us" and "them", but always "we", like a big family. As a result, conversation flowed and we learned a great deal just by casually talking to the locals as we worked.At the end, we left with a deep appreciation for the labor of love that goes into producing the food we eat every day一一an appreciation we could treasure ourselves and share with our peers.
Volunteering isn't about saving someone's life, or even about changing it. It's about touching a different world and reminding ourselves that there is much, much more to life than the daily routines we take for granted.With that knowledge, maybe, just maybe, we can go on to really change the world.
By Lukas ThibautFrom Paragraphs 1 and 2, we can learn that____in international volunteering.
A.foreigners are not welcome in some local communities |
B.blind enthusiasm fails to make the experience rewarding |
C.the author agrees with Daniela Papi's opinions |
D.international volunteering is actually a poor approach to education |
The underlined word "that" in Paragraph 3 refers to___,
A.a natural part of the experience |
B.the learning of volunteering |
C.creating such an environment |
D.positioning everyone as equals |
What contributed to the success of the author's volunteering project in the Alps?
A.The volunteers were quite familiar with Swiss farmers' lives. |
B.The volunteers worked in areas separated from the locals. |
C.The group leader ensured that the project would be beneficial to both sides. |
D.The group leader ensured that the volunteers got to know the local conditions. |
From the author's viewpoint, what should international volunteers avoid?
A.Placing themselves above the locals. |
B.Taking food for granted. |
C.Disrespecting others' labor. |
D.Being proud of volunteering. |
Which best describes the author's attitude toward international volunteering?
A.Objective. | B.Doubtful. |
C.Disapproving. | D.Supportive. |
A mouse happened to look through a hole in the wall to see the farmer and his wife open a package. “What food might this contain?” The mouse wondered. But he was sad to discover it was a mousetrap.
Back to the farmyard, the mouse announced this warning; “There is a mousetrap in the house! There is a mouse trap in the house!”
The hen clucked (咯咯地叫) and scratched, raised her head and said, “Mr. Mouse, I can tell this is a great concern to you, but it is of no consequence to me. I cannot be bothered by it.”
Then the mouse turned to the pig. The pig sympathized, but said, “I am so very sorry, Mr. Mouse, but there is nothing I can do about it but pray. Be assured you are in my prayers.”
Then the mouse turned to the cow and repeated the same words. The cow said, “Moo, Mr. Mouse. I’m sorry for you,but it’s no skin off my nose.”
So, the mouse returned to the house, head down and sadly faced the farmer’s mousetrap alone. That very right a sound was heard throughout the house – the sound of a mousetrap catching its prey (猎物). The farmer’s wife rushed to see what was caught. In the darkness, she did not see it. It was a poisonous snake whose tail was caught in the trap. The snake bit the farmer’s wife. The farmer rushed her to the hospital. When she returned home, she still had a fever.
Everyone knows fresh chicken soup is good to treat a fever. So the farmer took his knife to the farmyard. The hen was killed.
But his wife’s sickness continued. Friends and neighbors came to sit with her around the clock. To feed them, the farmer butchered the pig.
The farmer’s wife did not get well but died. So many people came for her funeral that the farmer had the cow killed to provide enough meat for all of them for the lunch.
The mouse looked upon it all from his hole in the wall with great sadness. What surprised the mouse when looking through the hole?
A.The farmer and his wife. | B.A dangerous mousetrap. |
C.A package with food in. | D.A poisonous snake. |
What did the mouse do when it returned to the farmyard?
A.It had a warn talk with his friends. |
B.It warned its neighbors of the danger. |
C.It argued with its neighbors loudly. |
D.It tried hard to cheer its neighbors. |
Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the story?
A.The hen was sure that it needn’t be bothered by it. |
B.The pig only expressed its sympathy for the mouse. |
C.The farmer’s wife was bitten by the poisonous snake. |
D.The farmer’s neighbors came to his home for meat. |
What does the underlined sentence “but it’s no skin off my nose” in paragraph 5 mean?
A.It is none of my business. |
B.It is out of the question. |
C.It doesn’t affect my smell. |
D.It is not interesting at all. |
Which of the following can best express the moral of the story?
A.Mind works faster in time of danger. |
B.Never put your nose into others’ business. |
C.We should pull together in time of trouble. |
D.Out of sight, out of mind. |