The tradition of birthday parties started in Europe a long time ago. It was feared that evil spirits were particularly attracted to people on their birthdays. Giving gifts brought even more good cheer to keep away from the evil spirits. This is how birthday parties began.
The following are some countries’ birthday traditions:
Canada —Greasing the nose with butter. In Atlantic Canada, the birthday child’s nose is greased for good luck.
China — .The birthday child pays respect to his/her parents and receives a gift of money. Friends and relatives are invited to lunch and noodles are served to wish the birthday child a long life.
England —Fortune telling cakes. Certain symbolic objects are mixed into the birthday cake as it is being prepared.
Italy —Pulling ears. The child’s ears are pulled as many times as how old they are turning.
Japan —New clothes. The birthday child wears entirely new clothes mark the occasion.
New Zealand— .After the birthday cake is lit, the happy birthday song is sung loudly and often out of tune and then the birthday person receives a clap for each year they have been alive and then one for good luck．
The United States —Cake, candles and song.
| A．A cake is made, and candles are put on top based on how old the person is. |
| B．In China, on a child’s second birthday, family members put many things on the floor around the child. |
| C．If your piece of cake has a coin in it, then you will be rich. |
| D．To protect them from harm, friends and family would come to stay with the birthday person and bring good thoughts and wishes. |
E. Noodles for lunch.
F. The tradition of birthday parties started a long time ago.
G. Birthday claps.
根据对话内容，从对话后的选项中选出最佳选项，并将其答案标号填入题后的空白处。选项中有两项为多余选项。
Question: Why is it so hard for some people to apologize after they’ve done something wrong? I have made every effort to persuade my uncle to be nice to people that he knows he’s hurt. How I wish things would be better if he’d just say he’s sorry and ask them to forgive him.
Answer: _It’s just easier for him to pretend nothing happened than to face the embarrassment (尴尬) of admitting he was wrong. You’ve probably done the same thing yourself at some time. In fact, most of us have. Furthermore, what if others won’t forgive him even if he apologizes?
Pride blinds us to our mistakes or faults. Or at least it makes us pay less attention to their seriousness.
Pride also makes us unwilling to admit to others that we were wrong. Perhaps we’re afraid they will look down on us if we admit it.
But others see through our pride. And things would be far better if we admitted our faults and asked for forgiveness.
Now you know why your uncle refuses to apologize, talk to him again. Help him to learn how to apologize and ask for forgiveness from others.
| A．But a deeper reason is pride. |
| B．But he just refuses to do that. |
| C．We may even hope that somehow they will ignore it. |
| D．As a result, you would offend others and hurt their feelings. |
E. There are a variety of reasons for your uncle’s refusal to apologize.
F. Otherwise our pride would only hurt us and cause conflict with others.
G. One reason your uncle finds it hard to apologize could be embarrassment.
A. Learn to Listen and Speak
B. Develop Healthy Relationships
C. Arrange Some Time to Go Out
D. Respect Each Other
E. Agree to Disagree
F. Learn Every Day
Healthy Relationship Tips
Healthy relationships are effortless, if both the people involved take equal effort to maintain it. Here are a few healthy relationship tips to help you build the dream of your life. Communication is an art of putting your thoughts into words, so that they are exactly understood by the opposite person. Communication does not mean going on talking unnecessarily. This is the first mistake that couples make. One person in the relationship assumes the role of talker and the other becomes the listener. Their roles remain so forever. The talker forgets to listen and the listener becomes used to listening and not reacting. If your partner takes time to open up, help them out by asking questions. So hear them out and give proper reactions. You will obtain the benefits of a healthy relationship through increased confidence in both of you to open up and hear things out.
Regular conversations take the form of heated arguments amongst many couples. Understand that not every statement needs a reaction. Maybe a certain reaction may lead to an argument with your partner. Just agree with whatever it is and there will be no harm done. Try and reach a mutual(相互的)agreement. If that’s not possible leave the topic for later. If you give it time, maybe both of you will be able to think about it rationally.
Every single day is a blessing. Each moment with your partner is a moment to learn something new and discover the finer nuances(细微差别)of your relationships. Each one of us keeps changing every day, the circumstances around us change every day and with that our attitude also needs to change. The same applies when you are living with a person. Learning every day and taking every day as a challenge will help you perfect healthy relationship tips.
This tip is especially meant for couples with children on how to maintain healthy relationships. After a certain period, couples complain about romance being lost. To keep your relationship healthy, take some time out from your day-to-day routines to spend some quality time with your partner. This can be done as dinners, indulging in outdoor activities or just hanging out at a coffee shop like old times.
Respect has to be earned. It can be earned only if you learn to respect. Often, one of the partners plays the role of a dictator to give orders, while the other simply follows. Both sides involved are equally responsible for this mistake. Learn to respect each other and understand that both of you are equally responsible for the relationship.
Creating a healthy relationship takes equal effort from both sides. Sharing, caring, being apologetic, forgiving and having realistic expectations are some of the important ingredients to the recipe of a healthy relationship.
A. Airport services
B. Air transport prices
C. Transport by plane
D. Development
E. Fast growth in the US airlines
F. Beginning time
Airplanes are used to carry passengers, cargo and mail. Air transport companies run scheduled airlines and non-scheduled services over local, national, and international routes. The aircraft run by these companies change from small planes to large planes. .
The first air passenger services began in 1910, when dirigibles(飞艇)began working between several German cities. The first scheduled airplane service to carry passengers began in the US in 1914. Several experimental airmail flights took place in India, Europe, and the USA before World War I, but air transport services did not become a true business until after the war.
During World WarⅡintercontinental air transport began to become well set-up. After the war the new long-distance planes with developed equipment were increasingly able to prevent storms and strong wind and make flights cheap. Jumbo Jets began working in 1970.
During the 1970s the number of home passengers on US airlines increased about 78%, and during the 1980s the number was up about 58%. In 1990 there were 41. 8 million international passengers: the number was a 75% increase over 1980.
Major airports provide all kinds of services to make travel easy and pleasant for passengers. These change from such basic services as ticket-sales counters and restaurants to luxury(豪华的)hotels, shopping centers and play areas for children.
(P="Pinky," A= Ann)
P: Hello, Ann! This is Pinky. How was your weekend?
A:
P: Your whole family?
A: Yes, all of us.
P: I didn’t know that was your favorite. It’s mine, too.
A: But we started dinner late. My brother Paul’s car broke down. He and Jennifer got there after nine. We were all feeling very hungry by then.
P: I thought his car was a new one. What was the trouble?
A: Paul says that new cars are not as good as old ones. He says their steering wheels are not so good.
P: By the way, Ann. Can you do me a favor? My computer doesn’t work. Can I use yours for several days?
A: Sorry, Pinky, but I’ve lent it to Nancy. I’m sure she’ll lend you hers.
| A．We went to our favorite restaurant, the Golden Crab. |
| B．Nancy is now busy preparing for the examination next week. |
| C．Why don’t you ask Emily? |
| D．The food was good as usual. |
E. I don’t know.
F. Wonderful. We had a family dinner.
G. We had a wonderful football match with the league from Grade 2.
Tips for a Happier Workplace
You don’t have to be friends with your co-workers, but you do need to be friendly. Read on for fresh ways to make your office a kinder, gentler place.
◆Give a happy “Hello! ”in the morning
Do you walk into the office, eyes down, and immediately start work? If so, you are likely to find that co-workers ignore(忽视)you or avoid you. It’s really amazing how fast this small gesture can change unfriendly workplace relations.
◆Learn the art of small talk
Ask your co-workers about their interests—their favorite music, movies, and books, as well as their hobbies. Once you know what catches their imagination, pick up stories from newspapers or magazines to help start conversations.
◆Ask what they think
People love to be asked for their opinion, so go out of your way to ask, “What do you think of this report? ” or “How do you think I should deal with this situation? ”
◆Avoid gossip(流言飞语)So return the favor. When a co-worker walks towards you bearing a piece of gossip, respond(回应)with, “Really? ”and then change the subject or get back to work. If you don’t respond, the gossiper will move on.
◆
To win friends at work, start with good office etiquette(礼节). There’s nothing more frustrating(令人沮丧的)to busy co-workers than to have their emails and phone messages ignored. Your silence doesn’t just make their jobs harder; it also conveys(传达)an unpleasant message: You are unimportant to me.
| A．Stop complaining. |
| B．Return calls and emails immediately. |
| C．Then give the advice giver a silent thank-you. |
| D．Always work as hard as anyone working for you. |
E. You don’t want anyone talking about you behind your back, right?
F. Showing an interest in them will make them feel comfortable around you.
G. Get into the habit of greeting your co-workers with a smile as you arrive in the morning.