We like people who look like us, because they tend to have personalities similar to our own. And, a new study suggests, the longer we are with someone, the more similarities in appearance grow.
Researchers set out to study why couples often tend to look like one another. They asked 11 male and 11 female participants to judge the age, attractiveness and personality of 160 real-life married couples. Photographs of husbands and wives were viewed separately, so the participants didn't know who was married to whom.
The test participants rated men and women who were actual couples as looking alike and having similar personalities. Also, the longer the couples had been together, the greater the similarities. The researchers guess that the sharing of experiences might affect how couples look.
The idea that there is a connection between appearance and personality might seem strange at first, but there could be biological reasons for a link, said study member Tony Little from the University of Liverpool in England.
“The face displays our emotions and over time, emotional expressions may become written in the face,” Little told Live Science. For example, someone who smiles a lot may develop lines and muscles that are suggestive of someone who is happy.
Other studies have shown that partners who are genetically similar to each other tend to have happier marriages.
The new study indicates that people have different features when using facial appearance to make decisions about someone’s personality, and that the particular cues(暗示) focused on change from face to face. Vital to the decision, however, are eyes and smiles.
“Smiles are important social cues that may tell us whether or not someone is friendly, and eyes are also a traditional focus of attention,” Little said.
Overall face shape can be important too. For example, the combination of large chins and strong brow ridges(脊)can create an impression of disagreeableness and being unwilling to cooperate, Little said.Why do we like those who look like us?
A.Because they tend to like us. |
B.Because opposites usually attract each other. |
C.Because their personalities are similar to ours. |
D.Because we often marry those who look like us. |
Why do some old lovers look alike according to the researchers?
A.Because they live in the same place for a long time. |
B.Because their similar experiences might affect their appearance. |
C.Because they learn from each other in their daily life. |
D.Because they’re closely connected with each other biologically. |
Which part of a person’s face can help you judge whether he/she is paying attention to you?
A.Eyes. | B.Nose. |
C.Mouth. | D.Eyebrow. |
At least ______ people were involved in the research mentioned in the second paragraph.
A.22 | B.160 | C.182 | D.342 |
The passage is mainly about ______.
A.how to tell who have similar personalities |
B.why some old lovers look like each other |
C.how to tell whether someone is friendly or not |
D.why lovers who look alike have happier marriages |
There is growing concern about food insecurity in the developing world. Rising food prices, weather emergencies and political problems are deepening the struggle for families in many countries.
Three UN agencies have published a report recently, saying high prices are likely to continue. Gregory Barrow, who is with the World Food Program in Rome, says, “If you look at the places where the World Food Program works, particularly in developing countries, you see people who might be spending more than 60 percent of their salary in purchasing food for their families.”
East Africa is suffering its worst drought in years. In Kenya, at least three and a half million people are going hungry, mostly in the north. Yet food is going to waste in central Kenya. Now, farmers there want the government to buy their food and give it to those in need. Farmers say bad roads and lack of transportation make it difficult for them to get their produce to the market.
Mr. Barrow says, “It needs the government to make some arrangements such as providing transport. They can buy it at a good price, then give it to those people instead of asking for food from overseas, which is very bad. When we are throwing away food, they are asking for food from overseas.”
Economists say that imports reduce local food prices, decrease productivity(生产效率) and increase the dependency on other countries. Farmers in Kenya hope the government can pay higher prices for their crops so that they can feed more Kenyans.What is the best title for this passage?
A.Kenya Imports Food from Abroad |
B.A World Food Program in Rome. |
C.The Poor Suffer from High Food Prices. |
D.A Report Published by Three UN Agencies. |
What do we know about Kenya from the passage?
A.The people in central Kenya are suffering from hunger. |
B.At least three and a half million Kenyans lack food. |
C.The Kenyan government wants to improve road conditions. |
D.People in northern Kenya refuse to ask for food from overseas. |
What does “they” in the fourth paragraph refer to?
A.The people of northern Kenya. |
B.Government officials. |
C.The farmers of central Kenya. |
D.Kenyan economists. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE, according to this passage?
A.Gregory Barrow suggests that Kenya make good use of overseas food. |
B.People in northern Kenya are suffering the drought less than the central. |
C.Economists believe importing food from abroad may cause problems. |
D.Kenyan government hopes to buy the native crops at higher prices. |
Modern Foreign Language Teacher
A successful, popular school in central South London has a new vacancy(空职) for an MFL Teacher of Spanish to start immediately after the Christmas holidays.
We required a specialist Spanish teacher; therefore Spanish should be your major language. Besides this, you need to make the lessons interesting and you should also have teaching experience.
Please contact Robert Eagle at 88143425.
General Manager
We are seeking a General Manager for our new workshop facility in Doha, Qatar. The successful individual should possess a Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, along with 19 to 15 years' work experience in the Oil & Gas, Petrochemicals, Fertilizer or Marine industry and CNC machinery tools and equipment. A minimum of five years’; experience in a senior managerial capacity is essential. Candidates (候选人) that have work experience in Gulf countries or in the Middle East are encouraged to apply.
Please contact Brian Gambles at 88146725.
Finance Manager
The successful individual will be able to demonstrate substantial commercial experience working within a corporate, blue-chip environment. You will be able to interact with and present confidently to senior management. The business offers an excellent working culture and genuine opportunities for significant career advancement and development.
Please contact Mr. McMahon at 88147959.
HR Manager
We are looking for an HR Manager to join our project team who will be responsible for a new HR and Payroll project.
A minimum of three years' HR management experience is required for this position.
The successful individual will need to have managed HR teams and supported Payroll.
If you have the relevant experience and are available for a new assignment, contact Matt Ridley at 88146550.Who should you get in touch with if you want to be a Spanish teacher?
A.Robert Eagle | B.Brian Gambles |
C.Mr. McMahon | D.Matt Ridley |
We know from the ads that the position of General Manager requires a person who _______.
A.has five years of work experience in the Marine industry |
B.can support the senior management teams |
C.has a Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering |
D.has teaching experience |
If you want to work in an excellent working culture, you should call _______ for an interview.
A.88143425 | B.88146725 | C.88147959 | D.88146550 |
What is the minimum amount of experience required for the position of HR Manager?
A.Five years | B.Six years |
C.Ten years | D.Three years |
In 1826, a French man named Niepce needed pictures for his business. But he was not a good artist. He invented a very simple camera. He put it in a window of his house and took a picture of his garden. That was the first photo.
The next important date in the history of photography was in 1837. That year, Daguerre, another Frenchman, took a picture of his reading room. He used a new kind of camera in a different way. In his picture you could see everything very clearly, even the smallest thing. This kind of photo was called a Daguerreotype.
Soon, other people began to use Daguerre's way. Travelers brought back wonderful photos from all around the world. People took pictures of famous buildings, cities and mountains.
In about 1840, photography was developed. Then photographers could take pictures of people and moving things. That was not simple. The photographers had to carry a lot of films and other machines. But this did not stop them, for example, some in the United States worked so hard.
Mathew Brady was a famous American photographer. He took many pictures of great people. The pictures were unusual because they were very lifelike.
Photography also became one kind of art by the end of the 19th century. Some photos were not just copies of the real world. They showed our feelings, like other kinds of art.The first photo was a picture of Niepce's _______.
A.business | B.house |
C.garden | D.window |
The Daguerreotype was _______.
A.a Frenchman | B.a kind of picture |
C.a kind of camera | D.a photographer |
This passage tells us_______.
A.how photography was developed |
B.how to show you ideas and feelings in pictures |
C.how to take pictures in the world |
D.how to use different cameras |
What is an Oyster card?
Oyster is the easiest way to pay for journeys on the bus ,Tube ,tram,Docklands light Railway (DLR),London Overground and National Rail journeys in London You can store your travel cards, Bus & Tram Pass,season tickets and credit to pay for journeys as you go.
Where to get an Oyster card?
There are a number of ways for you to get an Oyster card :
• At over 3,900 Oyster Ticket stops
• At Tube and London Overground station ticket offices
• At some National Rail stations
• At London Travel information Centres
• Online at tfl. gov. uk/oyster
How to use an Oyster card?
To pay the correct fare on the Tube ,DLR,London Overground and National Rail services,you must always touch in on the yellow Oyster card reader at the start of your journey,and touch out at the end. if you don’t, a maximum cash Oyster fare will be changed When using the bus or tram, you must only touch in at the start, but not at the end of your journey.
What happens if I don’t visit London very often?
Don’t worry. Any pay as you go credit on your card will not expire (过期),so you can keep it for your next visit or lend it to a friend.
Fares
Traveling by Tube from Central London (Zone l)to Heathrow (Zone 6)
Adult Oyster single fare
£ 4. 20 Monday to Friday 06:30 - 09:30 and 16:00一19:00
£ 2. 70 at all other times including public holidays
Adult single cash fare £ 5.00
For further information,visit tfL.gov. uk /fares.You can get an Oyster card at the following places EXCEPT_____
A.at a post office | B.at an Oyster Ticket stop |
C.on the website | D.at a Tube station |
If a person with an Oyster card takes the 7 o’clock Tube from Central London to Heathrow for a week (no public holiday in between),he should pay_____.
A.£ 18.90 | B.£ 29.40 | C.£ 26.40 | D.£ 21.90 |
The passage is probably taken from a_______
A.journal | B.travel brochure | C.textbook | D.novel |
Alibaba started taking the lead in China by connecting big Chinese manufacturers(制造商) with big buyers across the world. Its business-to-business site, Alibaba.com allowed business to buy almost everything. Alibaba’s advantage wasn’t hard to judge: size. Alibaba is just big, even by Chinese standards. Its market attracts 231 million active buyers, 8 million sellers, 11.3 billion orders a year — and Alibaba is just the middleman. It encourages people to use its markets — not charging small sellers a percentage of the sale.
If you want a quick look into the influence of Alibaba on daily Chinese life, take my experience. I moved to Beijing a year ago and quickly got tired of visiting small stores across the crowded, polluted city of 20 million people in search of new electronics, bathroom furnishings, and anything else my wife wanted. “You’re looking for what exactly? Why not try it? ” my Chinese teacher asked me one day. With that, my wonderful new relationship with Alibaba began.
Alibaba’s original business-to-business model now is second to consumer buying. Chinese retail(零售) buying makes up 80% of Alibaba’s profit, and leading that group is Taobao, with 800 million items for sale and the most unbelievable selection of things you’ll ever find. TMall.com is Alibaba’s other big site, where you can find brand name goods from Nike and Unilever near the lowest prices.
What I have a hard time explaining to friends and family back in the U.S. is how China has gone beyond traditional shopping — big-box retailers especially —in favor of online purchases on Taobao and a few other sites. In smaller towns than Beijing, where big retailers have not yet traveled, shopping online is shopping, and shopping is Taobao.
I have a list of some of my recent purchases on Taobao for a sense of how wide the marketplace is. Almost everything arrived a day or two after ordering with free shipping. I’m not even a big buyer, because I need friends to help me search the Chinese-language site. When I was searching my purchase history on my Chinese teacher’s iPad, which helps me buy goods, I looked through with great difficulty about 10 of her purchases for every one of mine.Alibaba’s advantage mainly lies in .
A.its low price |
B.its big size |
C.its not charging small sellers |
D.its business-to-business service |
We know from the passage that Alibaba .
A.will continue to develop. |
B.charges all the sellers on its site a percentage of the sale. |
C.acts as a bridge between the buyers and sellers. |
D.is of middle size among all the online sites. |
What can be inferred from the passage?
A.Alibaba’s business-to-business service earns more money than retail. |
B.TMall.com provides more profit than Taobao. |
C.Taobao has no obvious advantage over other similar online sites. |
D.The author’s Chinese teacher is also an online purchase lover. |
What is the passage mainly about?
A.Shopping online in China is TaoBao. |
B.How the author purchases online in China. |
C.Shopping online goes beyond traditional shopping. |
D.Alibaba influences people’s daily purchase in China. |