A German study suggests that people who were too optimistic about their future actually faced greater risk of disability or death within 10 years than those pessimists( 悲观者)who expected their future to be worse.
The paper, published this March in Psychology and Aging, examined health and welfare surveys from roughly 40,000 Germans between ages 18 and 96. The surveys were conducted every year from 1993 to 2003.
Survey respondents (受访者) were asked to estimate their present and future life satisfaction on a scale of 0 to 10, among other questions.
The researchers found that young adults (age 18 to 39) routinely overestimated their future life satisfaction, while middle-aged adults (age 40 to 64) more accurately predicted how they would feel in the future. Adults of 65 and older, however, were far more likely to underestimate their future life satisfaction. Not only did they feel more satisfied than they thought they would, the older pessimists seemed to suffer a lower ratio (比率) of disability and death for the study period.
“We observed that being too optimistic in predicting a better future than actually observed was associated with a greater risk of disability and a greater risk of death within the following decade,” wrote Frieder R. Lang, a professor at the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg.
Lang and his colleagues believed that people who were pessimistic about their future may be more careful about their actions than people who expected a rosy future.
“Seeing a dark future may encourage positive evaluations of the actual self and may contribute to taking improved precautions (预防措施),” the authors wrote.
Surprisingly, compared with those in poor health or who had low incomes, respondents who enjoyed good health or income were associated with expecting a greater decline. Also, the researchers said that higher income was related to a greater risk of disability.
The authors of the study noted that there were limitations to their conclusions. Illness, medical treatment and personal loss could also have driven health outcomes. However, the researchers said a pattern was clear. “We found that from early to late adulthood, individuals adapt their expectations of future life satisfaction from optimistic, to accurate, to pessimistic,” the authors concluded.According to the study, who made the most accurate prediction of their future life satisfaction?
| A．Optimistic adults. |
| B．Middle-aged adults. |
| C．Adults in poor health. |
| D．Adults of lower income. |
Pessimism may be positive in some way because it causes people ______.
| A．to fully enjoy their present life |
| B．to estimate their contribution accurately |
| C．to take measures against potential risks |
| D．to value health more highly than wealth |
How do people of higher income see their future?
| A．They will earn less money. |
| B．They will become pessimistic. |
| C．They will suffer mental illness. |
| D．They will have less time to enjoy life. |
What is the clear conclusion of the study?
| A．Pessimism guarantees chances of survival. |
| B．Good financial condition leads to good health. |
| C．Medical treatment determines health outcomes. |
| D．Expectations of future life satisfaction decline with age. |
Roger Federer and Serena Williams have been named as 2009' s world champions by the International Tennis Federation（ITF） after topping the year-end rankings．
Federer, who wins the honour for the fifth time, completed a career Grand Slam（大满贯）at Roland Garros before winning his 15th Grand Slam ride at Wimbledon．
And Williams won the Australian Open and Wimbledon, her llth major success．
The pair will receive their awards at the annual 1TF world champions dinner in Paris in June．
Federer regained the world number one ranking from Rafael Nadal after his Paris victory and his Wimbledon win over Andy Roddick saw him surpass Pete Sampras' haul of Grand Slam titles．
He was also runner - up at the Australian Open and the US Open and helped his country retain its Davis Cup world group status．
" It is an honour for me to be named ITF world champion for a fifth time．It was an incredible （不可思议的） year for me both on and off the court," said the 28 - year - old Swiss star whose wife Mirka gave birth to twin girls in July．
"To win my first Roland, Garros title, break the all - time Grand Slam record and regain the number one ranking is amazing．It means a lot to me to finish the year again at the top．"
Williams takes the award for the first time since 2002．As well as her Grand Slam wins, she won the season - ending WTA Championships in Doha．sealing the top ranking in the last event of die year．
She also took the doubles year award with sister Venus after taking their career total to 10 Grand Slam titles．In doing so, she joins Lindsay Davenport and Martina Hingis as the only players to become singles and doubles world champions in the same year．
American twins Bob and Mike Bryan were named as the men' s doubles world champions for the sixth time in seven years．What's the main idea of the text?
| A．Roger Federer got his fifth world champions． |
| B．Serena Williams was named the ITF world champion． |
| C．Roger Federer won his first Roland Garros title． |
| D．Williams & Federer were named 2009' s world champions． |
What does Federer mean by saying that it was an incredible year for him off the court?
| A．He made a lot of money． |
| B．He regained the world No．One ranking． |
| C．His wife gave birth to twin girls． |
| D．He got a Grand Slam title at Roland Garros． |
In which country might Roland Garros Open take place?
| A．England． | B．Australia | C．The United States | D．France |
The underlined words " the award" in Paragraph 9 possibly refer to ____．
| A．the WTA Campionship | B．the ITF world champion |
| C．the Australian Open title | D．the Wimbledon Open title |
____ has never got both singles and doubles world champions in a year．
| A．Serena Williams | B．Lindsay Davenport |
| C．Venus Williams | D．Martina Hingis |
April 22,2010 will be the 18th celebration of the annual Take Our Daugluers to Work Day （TOD）, a project the National Ms．Foundation for Women of America （NFW） developed to expose girls to expanding opportunities for women in the workplace．
The program offers, millions of girls a first - hand view of the many career opportunities available in their futures．Now that women make up 46 peroent of the U．S．workforce, girls can find role models in every occupational field-from politics to molecular biology to professional athletics, to name just a few．TOD encourages girls to focus on their abilities and opportunities, not just their appearance．
The NFW developed the project more than a decade ago to address the self - esteem problems that many girls experience when they enter adolescence．At school, boys often receive more encouragement in the classroom, especially in math．science and computer science, the academic fields that tend to lead to the highest salaries．Women receive on average only 73 cents for every dollar that men are paid．and remain vastly underrepresented （数量不足） in top executive positions and technology fields．TOD aims to give girls the confidence and inspiration they need to develop successful careers, particularly in non-traditional fields．
Perhaps because the program had become so widespread and successful, TOD had been criticized for excluding boys．and it was expanded in 2003to include boys．The program’s official website states that the program was changed in order to provide both boys and girls with opportunities to explore careers at an age when they are more flexible in tenns of gender stereotyped roles．"We should also show boys that becoming a child care provider is as acceptable a choice as becoming a police officer or CEO," added Sara K．Gould．executive director of the NFW．The purpose for having a Take Our Daughters to Work Day is ____
| A．to encourage girls to get top paying jobs , |
| B．to let girls spend more time with their mothers |
| C．to show girls possibilities for work and careers |
| D．to give girls a chance to visit their mothers' offices |
Why are women underrepresented in some fields such as technology?
| A．They are not interested in these fields． |
| B．They are not encouraged to work in these fields． |
| C．They are not paid the same as men in these fields． |
| D．They are not allowed to be educated in these fields． |
TOD was criticized because some people ____．
| A．thought it was not fair to boys |
| B．did not like having children at work |
| C．did not have daughters to take to work |
| D．would rather have their daughters stay at home |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．Boys are now included on Take Our Daughters to Work Day． |
| B．Women and men have always been treated equally at work． |
| C．Homemaking and raising children are jobs for girls only． |
| D．Girls grow up receiving more attention than boys． |
What can we learn from Sara K．Gould's words?
| A．Boys are sometimes more careful and responsible than girls． |
| B．It is most suitable for women to look after children at home． |
| C．Aboy's life ambition should be to become an officer or CEO． |
| D．It is also acceptable for boys to do what girls are supposed to． |
A businesswoman, a mother of four, an international fashion icon（偶像） , a woman committed to making the world a better place for women and children—Queen Rania of Jordan is truly changing the world．
Rania was bom in Kuwait, in 1970．Shortly after Iraq invaded that country in 1990, her family fled and settled in Jordan．After graduating from a business school, Rania became successful in the business world．
When she was just 22, she went to a dinner party that changed her life forever．It was there that she met Jordan' s Prince Abdullah．Six months later, Rania and Abdullah had a royal wedding and started a family．
After the death of her father – in – law, King Hussein, in 1999, Prince Abdullah was crowned King Abdullah II of Jordan, and Rania became the world' s youngest living queen．
In her role as Queen, Rania has become well known around the world for her charity work and her efforts to improve educational opportunities for girls．She is an outspoken advocate of women' s rights, education reform, and child abuse．She is also well - known for her efforts to remove Western stereotypes （旧观念） about the Muslim world．
Rania explains that there is a direct relationship between increasing education and eliminating poverty．" You can change the course of a nation through education," she says．" One of the most important things you can do for a girl is empower her with her education．Once she has the education she can then have control over her income, she can change her life, she can have choices．"
In the future, Rania says, she hopes for a more open and secure world．"We look at problems happening halfway across the world and we think,' Well, that' s their problem．' But it' s not," she says．" When you solve somebody else' s problem, you are solving a problem for yourself, because our world today is so interconnected．"Rania and her family moved to Jordan because ____．
| A．she was engaged to Jordan' s Prince Abdullah |
| B．she wanted to attend a business school there |
| C．Jordan was a more developed country than Kuwait |
| D．the war broke out between Kuwait and Iraq |
Rania became the world' s youngest living queen when she was ____．
| A．a girl of 22 | B．at the age of 23 |
| C．in her thirties | D．29 years old |
In her role as Queen, Rania is more devoted to ____．
| A．her business work | B．girls' education |
| C．fashion shows | D．her family |
Rania thinks that ____．
| A．women have brought about great changes to the world |
| B．education can help a girl find a wealthy husband |
| C．in the world today, all countries depend on each other |
| D．the Muslim world needs more help from the western countries |
The text mainly describes Rania as ____．
| A．a caring mother | B．a fashion model |
| C．a social activist | D．a smart businesswoman |
You may say it’s just a slip of the tongue. But as a senior official and a well-educated person, a professional who is supposed to be expert at using words shouldn’t have made such a remark like “Why did only two teachers commit suicide?” We use “only” to emphasize（强调） how small an amount is or how unimportant the matter is. When talking about death toll, such a word as “only” should never be appropriate.
Of course, it seems unfair to put all the blame on her, especially about the suicide of any individual. We should never indirectly encourage any self-destructive behaviour by making finger-pointing remarks afterwards. Any sensational accusation may help spread a very wrong message which will lead to even more copycat（模仿他人行为者）cases.
As expected, Professor Li has spoken out in her defence, saying that her remarks concerning the two suicides had been taken out of context, adding that she is a caring and warm-hearted person.
However, a seemingly “caring and warm-hearted person” without enough political sensitivity can hardly make a good government official. Mr. Tung used to be described as kind and selfless, but being kind is not enough. It is misleading to say such characteristics as kindness and devotion make somebody fit or capable.
Last time, her saying that students were the least qualified to criticize the Chief Executive had led to much criticism. Then she apologized. This time, a much more widespread furore（公众的骚动） has been brought. Again, she apologized. How many times is she going to apologize before she is willing to step down?
We need a more diplomatic（外交的） person to calm teachers, students and parents alike.
1. The purpose of the passage is to _____.
A. encourage teachers to commit suicide
B. criticize professor Li
C. put stress on the official’s remarks
D. show her dissatisfaction with the senior official
2. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A. The official used improper words in her remarks.
B. The senior official’s apologies were not sincere.
C. Nobody could comfort the people.
D. The professional tried to mislead the people to continue their suicide.
3. The author thought ________.
A. the official was very fit for her office
B. the official used the word “only” not by mistake
C. it was quite right to blame the official
D. the official won’t make such mistakes any more
4. From the passage we can infer that ______.
A. the officials’ remark led to more suicide committing
B. the official was a sensitive politician
C. the official believed the students had rights to talk about the Chief Executive
D. professor Li showed favor to the official
Television is an important part of modern life, one we can hardly imagine living without it. If I were forced to live without television, I would seek other interests, socialize（参加社交活动） with my friends and family and exercise more often.
Without TV in my home, I would have time to seek other interests. For example, I love to play the piano and without the fun of TV, I would have more time to practice. At other times, I could paint portraits of my family and friends.
Not only that, but also I could find much more time to socialize with my friends and family if my TV disappeared. At my house, the TV is a
lways on during dinner. Without TV we might have time to tell each other about what happened to us that day. In addition, we could more easily find more time to talk with old friends on the telephone. Thus, social time would increase without TV.
Most importantly, lacking a TV would give me a big increase in the available time for exercise in my life. With extra time, I could make the long journey to Bowen Island and go on an enjoyable hike in the mountains. Another exercise would be to go swimming or to an aerobics（有氧运动） class at Bonsor Community Centre. Watching more TV will only develop my bottom muscle.
Seeking other interests, socializing with friends and family, and exercising frequently would be the benefits of having no TV at my home. Just think how much more time I would have if I got rid of my computer, too!
62. According to the passage, we can infer that the author _________ too much.
A. takes exercise B. plays the piano
C. watches TV D. talks with his family
63. The passage mainly tells us ________.
A. we can’t live without TV
B. TV does harm to the author’s life
C. what the author could do without TV
D. why the author dislikes TV
64. The author thinks that he could do the following EXCEPT _____ without TV.
A. playing computers
B. doing outdoor sports
C. make conversations with family and friends
D. doing social activities
65. What’s the most suitable title for the passage?
A. We can’t live without TV. B. TV benefits us a lot.
C. Disadvantages of TV. D. Living without TV.