How Room Designs Affect Our Work and Feelings
Architects have long had the feeling that the places we live in can affect our thoughts, feelings and behaviors. But now scientists are giving this feeling an empirical（经验的，实证的） basis. They are discovering how to design spaces that promote creativity, keep people focused and lead to relaxation.
Researches show that aspects of the physical environment can influence creativity. In 2007, Joan Meyers-Levy at the University of Minnesota, reported that the height of a room's ceiling affects how people think. Her research indicates that higher ceilings encourage people to think more freely, which may lead them to make more abstract connections. Low ceilings, on the other hand, may inspire a more detailed outlook.
In additions to ceiling height, the view afforded by a building may influence an occupant's ability to concentrate. Nancy Wells and her colleagues at Cornell University found in their study that kids who experienced the greatest increase in greenness as a result of a family move made the most gains on a standard test of attention.
Using nature to improve focus of attention ought to pay off academically, and it seems to, according to a study led by C. Kenneth Tanner, head of the School Design & Planning Laboratory at the University of Georgia. Tanner and his team found that students in classrooms with unblocked views of at least 50 feet outside the window had higher scores on tests of vocabulary, language arts and maths than did students whose classrooms primarily overlooked roads and parking lots.
Recent study on room lighting design suggests than dim（暗淡的） light helps people to loosen up. If that is true generally, keeping the light low during dinner or at parties could increase relaxation. Researchers of Harvard Medical School also discovered that furniture with rounded edges could help visitors relax.
So far scientists have focused mainly on public buildings. "We have a very limited number of studies, so we're almost looking at the problem through a straw（吸管）," architect David Allison says. "How do you take answers to very specific questions and make broad, generalized use of them? That's what we're all struggling with." What does Joan Meyers-Levy focus on in her research?
| A．Light. |
| B．Ceilings. |
| C．Windows. |
| D．Furniture. |
The passage tells us that ______.
| A．the shape of furniture may affect people's feelings |
| B．lower ceilings may help improve students' creativity |
| C．children in a dim classroom may improve their grades |
| D．students in rooms with unblocked views may feel relaxed |
The underlined sentence in the last paragraph probably means that ______.
| A．the problem is not approached step by step |
| B．the researches so far have faults in themselves |
| C．the problem is too difficult for researchers to detect |
| D．research in this area is not enough to make generalized patterns |
Which of the following shows the organization of the passage?
 |
CP: Central Point P: Point
SP: Sub-point（次要点） C: Conclusion
●Ms Tan, you’ve referred to your new novel as your eighth book.
That’s because it took me six or seven attempts at a second novel before I started and completed this one.
●Why do you think you had so many false starts?
I would say that my reasons were wrong. I was trying to prove that I wasn’t just a mother-daughter storyteller, or I was trying to prove that I didn’t just have to write about things that were strictly Chinese or Chinese-American. Those were never the right reasons for writing those early stories. And I could never come up with other better reasons for continuing them.
●What kept you going on this book?
This book was different because it was based on my mother’s real life. The reason for writing it became more personal and emotional. After The Joy Luck Club came out, my mother was always explaining to people that she wasn’t any of the mothers in that book. And at one point she said to me, “Next book tells my true story.” And then she started telling me things I never knew before. She also told me many, many stories, because my mother doesn’t generalize(笼统地表达). The book really grew out of that.
●Have you ever visited China?
Yes. I’ve been there twice: about three years ago and then again last November, both times with my mother and my husband.
●Was it difficult to understand the Chinese-American dialect(方言) without sounding like a parody(拙劣的模仿)?
No, because it’s the language I’ve heard all my life from my mother. She speaks English as it’s direct translation from Chinese. But it’s more than that. Her language also has more imagery than English.
●Can you think of an example?
Somebody might say to me, “Don’t work so hard. You’ll kill yourself.” My mother will say to me，“Why do you press all your brains out on this page for someone else？” So it’s very vivid. That’s the way she talks.
●Have many readers told you that the Chinese mother in your book reminded them of the typical Jewish (有癖好的) mother?
Many people have told me that. I think the mother-daughter relationship is very intense(紧张) in both cases. Culturally there is an acceptance that mothers have the power to tell their children, especially their daughters, how to conduct their lives --- not simply up until the time they are 18, but for the rest of their lives. However, when children grow up in a different culture from their parents’，they tend to keep more secrets from their parents. The children think, “They just wouldn’t understand that I had to do this.” And that can really create a gap, and it can grow as the number of secrets grows.Based on the questions in this interview, what do you think Ms Tan’ s profession is?
| A．A journalist. | B．A story-writer. | C．An interviewer. | D．An interviewee. |
What’ s TRUE about Tan’ s second book?
| A．It’ s about her real life in America. |
| B．The name of the book is The Joy Luck Club. |
| C．It is the result of many times of carefull thought. |
| D．It includes many works of her mother. |
Which question is NOT answered in the interview?
| A．How does she think of her mother’ s language? |
| B．How many books does she plan to write? |
| C．When did she visit China? |
| D．How is generation gap created? |
We can infer that________.
| A．Tan’ s mother is a good storyteller |
| B．Tan plans to write another book about her mother |
| C．Tan plans to return to China |
| D．Tan’ s mother is hard to communicate with because of personality |
The last paragraph mainly talks about________.
| A．how to keep secrets from parents |
| B．how to deal with the mother-daughter relationship |
| C．how to conduct the lives |
| D．how the generation gap comes about |
When first entered, Vanak Restaurant does not look like much of a restaurant, but once the pleasant smells of kabob （烤肉串）hit the senses, you are incapable of calling it anything less.
Owned by a local couple, this Persian restaurant has an inviting, homelike atmosphere that many restaurants lack.
The space is small with only a few dining tables and nearly no decoration, but the environment is truly charming.
Lying in a hardly noticeable street corner, the restaurant still attracts all customer especially those experienced in the delights of Middle Easrern cooking.
A common sight is that of old Persian men sitting in the corner talking loudly about world topics, watching news events on TV, drinking a black tea known as Persian chai, an reading local Persian newspapers all the while trying to finish off their plates piled wit food.
The variety of food at the restaurant is limited, but the amount of each dish is fairly large. Most of the meals can serve two people and are under $10, so not only is it affordably but practical as well.
The food, especially appeals to health-conscious eaters because each dish is very healthy, made with limited fat and oil and served straight off the grill（烤肉架）.
The main dish that the restaurant is popular for is its kabobs, which are different style of grilled meat.
One delicious and extremely healthy dish is the Jooieh Kabob, which is made of grille chicken picccs served with either rice or bread. Another great kabob is the Chelo Kabob, kabob consisting of grilled beef.
Although the restaurant is small, the atmosphere and the food is delicious. It is a plan that should not be overlooked.When first entering the restaurant ,one can find that it .
| A．is splendidly decorated. | B．has pleasant smells of kabobs. |
| C．is crowded with dining table. | D．looks like a common restaurant. |
What activity is also mentioned apart from dining in the restaurant?
| A．Watching news events on TV. | B．Drinking a kind of black coffee. |
| C．Reading local English newspaper. | D．Discussing world topics in loe voices. |
The food of the restaurant .
| A．is served in small amounts. | B．is rather expensive. |
| C．is rich in verity. | D．is very healthy |
What is the dish Joojeh Kabob mainly made of？
| A．Rice | B．Chicken | C．Bread | D．Beef |
It can be inferred from the passage that restaurant .
| A．occupies |
| B．owns a favorable location |
| C．is popular for its special food |
| D．has a quiet environment inside |
I went into Harrods in London (a huge department store I am sure you have heard of) to buy some Minton china plates for a wedding anniversary which was to be a group gift from friends to other friends in Geneva.
Having only 30 minutes between meeting. I whizzed there in a taxi from the office and battled through the milling people on the 2nd day of the sales on the ground floor up to the 5th to the china department. There was a man standing there who was obviously a sales person who I rushed up to and asked if he had this particular china in stock and if it would take long to wrap, etc. He was amazing. He got the plates in seconds, wrapped them up and asked me if I wanted a store card, to which I replied no, because I lived in Switzerland, to which he replied asking if, as I lived abroad, would like a tax rebate form(退税表). After that he showed me what to do, produced a map of the store and told me where I should go for the formalities(程序). That was fabulous! I thanked him and said what wonderful service he had given me. I even asked if he gave this to everyone, to which he answered: “I’m just doing what is required at Harrods”. With that, a tall man in a gray suit approached me and offered his hand to shake mine saying, “Can I introduce myself? I am the Chief Executive of Harrods and what an interesting conversation I have just heard…” He had been wandering through the store (as you should do as a hands-on CEO) and had overheard me thanking this salesman, whose face, I can hardly describe, was frozen in a mixture of delight awe and astonishment!
Can you imagine the salesman going home to his family and friends recounting what the CEO spoke to him after overhearing him being praised by a customer?The writer went to Harrods to __________.
| A．kill time | B．buy some gifts | C．go sightseeing | D．shop for her wedding |
What does the underlined word “whiz” in Paragraph 2 most probably mean?
| A．drive | B．arrive | C．rush | D．leave |
Which of the following sentences can best replace “I’m just doing what is required at Harrods” in the second paragraph?
| A．“I’m an honest man.” |
| B．“I must obey the rules.” |
| C．“Harrods is strict with its employees.” |
| D．“Anybody will receive our good service.” |
As soon as she bought what she wanted, the writer________.
| A．went to a meeting. | B．flew back to Geneva |
| C．visited one of her friends | D．attended a wedding ceremony |
The writer wrote the above passage because she thought what she had experience was so ____.
| A．pleasant | B．strange | C．exciting | D．amusing |
Mary got a little white lamb（羊羔）. She tied it to a tree in her field during the day and went to take it home every evening. One evening, she found the lamb gone. Someone had cut the rope and stolen the lamb. When her husband came home, she told him what had happened. Henry at once set out to look for the thief.
It was easy to find the thief in the small village. Henry heard that his neighbor Alex got a lamb. He went to the neighbors’ house and said angrily, “Return the lamb to me, or I’ll call the police.”
Alex explained that he had bought a lamb, but it was black. Henry looked out of the window. There in the garden was a little black lamb. He felt ashamed. Then he apologized to his neighbour. While they were talking, it began to rain. He stayed in Alex’s house until the rain stopped. When he went outside, he was surprised to see the lamb changed. The lamb, which had been black half an hour before, was now almost white.
“What colour on earth is the lamb,” Henry wondered, “black or white?”
| A．she had got a lamb |
| B．someone had stolen the lamb |
| C．she had tied the lamb to the tree |
| D．her son was gone |
| A．will | B．won’t | C．don’t | D．have to |
| A．until it began to rain |
| B．until it stopped raining |
| C．when it was raining |
| D．before it began to rain |
| A．big | B．black | C．small | D．white |
| A．The lamb was stolen by Alex. |
| B．The lamb was bought by Alex. |
| C．The lamb could change its colour. |
| D．The lamb went to Alex’s house by itself. |
We each have a memory（记忆力）. That’s why we can still remember things after a long time. Some people have very good memories and they can easily learn many things by heart, but some people can only remember things when they say or do them again and again. Many of the great men of the world have got surprising memories.
A good memory is a great help in learning a language. Everybody learns his mother language when he is a small child. He hears the sounds, remembers them and then he learns to speak. Some children are living with their parents in foreign countries. They can learn two languages as easily as one because they hear, remember and speak two languages every day. In school it is not so easy to learn a foreign language because the pupils have so little time for it, and they are busy with other subjects, too.
But your memory will become better and better when you do more and more exercises.
| A．they always sleep very well | B．they often eat good food |
| C．they read a lot of books | D．they have very good memories |
| A．at the age of six | B．when he is a small child |
| C．after he goes to school | D．when he can read and write |
| A．read and write | B．make sentences |
| C．hear and remember the sounds | D．think hard |
| A．they have no good memories | B．they have no recorders |
| C．they have too much time for it | D．they are busy with other subjects |
| A．if you have plenty of good food |
| B．if you do more and more exercises |
| C．if you do morning exercises every day |
| D．if you get up early |