【原创】“Will I be able to work until I’m 70?” Those were my first words when I learned in 2014, at the age of 50, that I had Parkinson’s disease. I had not planned for that question to pop out of my mouth, but it did. Perhaps I was worried about my money. The size of my retirement account makes early retirement seem impossible. But mainly I think I asked that question because work, for better or worse, has become central to my identity. The idea that my career as a historian would end soon felt truly disturbing.
As professors, we often complain about our jobs: we teach too much, we are paid too little, and the library needs more books. But I can’t imagine a better career. We teach young people, and we find the time to read and write about topics we love. We receive a degree of respect. Even my doctor calls me “Professor”.
And, most importantly, we have relative job security. When I received my diagnosis, my question about keeping my job was not ridiculous. In a market-based social system, the threat of job loss is terrifying. Imagine the pressure faced by a Parkinson’s sufferer with no job security. It could be disastrous for someone who needs manual dexterity at work, such as a construction worker.
In contrast, I am lucky: I have tenure(终身职位), which gives me a feeling of security that even popular entertainers may lack. Tenure does not guarantee me a job as long as I can perform y duties.
Will I be able to work until I’m 70? I think so. I know that my family and I will face new challenges, but I don’t expect a decline in my job performance. My students may find my appearance a bit odd, but if they do, then that will be a “teachable moment”.What did the author worry about first when he learned he was ill?
| A．He didn’t have enough money for an operation. |
| B．The disease would ruin his career. |
| C．He wouldn’t live until the age of 70. |
| D．He would be forced to retire early. |
According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．Professors always complain about their jobs. |
| B．Professors have no time to do anything else but teach. |
| C．The author doesn’t know what he would do if he were not a professor. |
| D．The author thinks he is respected by others because of his work. |
The underlined phrase in the third paragraph, “manual dexterity” probably means _____________.
| A．the ability to use one’s hands |
| B．the ability to see clearly |
| C．the ability to use one’s mind |
| D．the ability to solve problems |
The best title for this passage is _________________________.
| A．Losing My Career to Illness |
| B．The Threat of Job Loss |
| C．Keep Away from Disease |
| D．The Pressure of Parkinson’s |
Linda Evans was my best friend—like the sister I never had. We did everything together: piano lessons, movies, swimming, horseback riding.
When I was 13, my fami1y moved away. Linda and I kept in touch through letters, and we saw each other on special times—like my wedding and Linda’s. Soon we were busy with children and moving to new homes, and we wrote less often. One day a card that I sent came back, stamped“Address Unknown”. I had no idea about how to find Linda.
Over the years, I missed Linda very much. I wanted to share happiness of my children and then grandchildren. And I needed to share my sadness when my brother and then mother died. There was an empty place in my heart that only a friend like Linda could fill.
One day, I was reading a newspaper when I noticed a photo of a young woman who looked very much like Linda and whose last name was Wagman—Linda’s married name.“There must be thousands of Wagmans.”I thought, but I still wrote to her.
She called as soon as she got my letter.“Mrs. Tobin!”she said excitedly,“Linda Evans Wagman is my mother.”
Minutes later I heard a voice that I recognized at once, even after 40 years. We laughed and cried and caught up on each other’s lives. Now the empty place in my heart is fil1ed. And there’s one thing that Linda and I know for sure: We won’t lose each other again!The writer went to piano lessons with Linda Evans.
| A．at the age of 13 |
| B．before she got married |
| C．before the writer’s family moved away |
| D．after they moved to new homes |
They didn’t often write to each other because they.
| A．got married |
| B．had little time to do so |
| C．didn’t like writing letters |
| D．could see each other on special times |
There was an empty place in the writer’s heart because she.
| A．was in trouble |
| B．didn’t know Linda’s address |
| C．received the card that she sent |
| D．didn’t have a friend like Linda |
The writer was happy when she.
| A．read the newspaper |
| B．heard Linda’s voice on the phone |
| C．met a young woman who looked a lot like Linda |
| D．wrote to the woman whose 1ast name was Wagman |
They haven’t kept in touch.
| A．for about 40 years |
| B．for about 27 years |
| C．since they got married |
| D．since the writer’s family moved away |
Each time I see a balloon, my mind flies back to a memory of when I was a six-year-old girl. It was a rainy
Sunday and my father had recently died. I asked my mom if Dad had gone to heaven. "Yes, honey. Of course." she said.
"Can we write him a letter?"
She paused, the longest pause of my short life, and answered, "Yes."
My heart jumped. "How? Does the mailman go there?" I asked.
"No, but I have an idea." Mom drove to a party store and returned with a red balloon. I asked her what it was for.
"Just wait, honey. You'll see." Mom told me to write my letter. Eagerly, I got my favorite pen, and poured out my six-year-old heart in the form of blue ink. I wrote about my day, what I learned at school, how Mom was doing, and even about what happened in a story I had read. For a few minutes it was as if Dad were still alive. I gave the letter to Mom. She read it over, and a smile crossed her face.
She made a hole in the corner of the letter where she looped the balloon string. We went outside and she gave me the balloon. It was still raining.
"Okay, on the count of three, let go. One, two, three."
The balloon, carrying my letter, darted upward against the rain. We watched until it was swallowed by the mass of clouds.
Later I realized, like the balloon, that Dad had never let his sickness get him down. He was strong. No matter what he suffered, he'd persevere, dart up, and finally transcend this cold world and his sick body. He rose into sky and became something beautiful. I watched until the balloon disappeared into the gray and white and I prayed that his strength was hereditary. I prayed to be a balloon.When the girl asked her mother if they could write to her father, her mother _________.
| A．felt it hard to answer | B．thought her a creative girl |
| C．believed it easy to do so | D．found it easy to lie |
When the girl was told that she could send a letter to her father, she _________.
| A．jumped with joy |
| B．became excited |
| C．started writing immediately |
| D．was worried that it couldn't be delivered |
In the eyes of the author, what was the rain like?
| A．An incurable disease. |
| B．An unforgettable memory. |
| C．The hard time her father had. |
| D．The failures her father experienced. |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．An unforgettable experience | B．The strong red balloon |
| C．Fly to paradise | D．A great father |
C
When an ant dies, other ants take it out of the nest, often within an hour after its death. This behavior interests scientists and they wonder how ants know for sure--and so soon--that another ant is dead.
One scientist recently came up with a way to explain this ant behavior. Dong-Hwan Choe is a biologist, a scientist who studies animals and plants. He found that ants have a chemical on the outside of their bodies that signals to other ants, “I’m dead--take me away” when it is dead.
One scientist recently came up with a way to explain this ant behavior. Dong-Hwan Choe is a biologist, a scientist who studies animals and plants. He found that ants have a chemical on the outside of their bodies that signals to other ants, “I’m dead---take me away” when it is dead.
But there's a question to answer: As we know, if an ant is dead, it stops moving. But when an ant is sleeping or knocked unconscious, it is also not moving. However, other ants don't move the living ant out of the nest. How do they know this ant is not dead? Choe found that ants have another chemical on their bodies, which tells nearby ants something like, “Wait—I'm not dead yet” when it is not dead. Choe suspects that when an ant dies, the chemical that says, “Wait— I'm not dead yet” quickly goes away. When other ants detect the “dead” chemical without the “not dead yet” chemical, they move away the body.
To test his theory, Choe and his team put different chemicals on ants. When the scientists used the “I'm dead” chemical, other ants quickly moved the treated ant away. When the scientists used the “Wait—I'm not dead yet” chemical, other ants left the treated ant alone. Choe believes this behavior shows that the “not dead yet” chemical overrides the “dead” chemical when picked up by other ants. And that when an ant dies, the “not dead yet” chemical fades away. Other nearby ants then detect the remaining “dead” chemical and remove the body from the nest.
Understanding this behavior can help scientists figure out how to stop ants from invading new places and causing problems.What is the function of the first paragraph?
| A．Leading the following paragraphs. |
| B．Showing the main idea of the passage. |
| C．Introducing the background of the passage. |
| D．Giving a summary of the passage. |
Which of the following has the closest meaning to the underlined word “overrides” in the fourth paragraph?
| A．is weaker than | B．is stronger than | C．is better than | D．is worse than |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Living ants can also be taken away when they are not moving. |
| B．When an ant dies, it can tell others using a certain chemical. |
| C．A living ant can pretend to be dead using a special chemical. |
| D．Ants often use chemicals to communicate with each other. |
Which of the following descriptions about Dong-Hwan Choe is right?
| A．Choe did this study in order to stop ants from invading new places. |
| B．Choe is a biologist who is only interested in animals, especially in ants. |
| C．Choe first came up with an idea to explain this ant behavior，and then did some tests to prove his theory. |
| D．Choe did the research on this ant behavior on his own. |
New technology links the world as never before. Our planet has shrunk. It’s now a “global village” where countries are only seconds away by fax or phone or satellite link. And, of course, our ability to benefit from this high-tech communications equipment is greatly increased by foreign language skills.
Deeply involved with this new technology is a kind of modern businesspeople who have a growing respect for the economic value of doing business abroad. In modern markets, success overseas often helps support domestic business efforts.
Overseas assignments are becoming increasingly important to advancement within executive ranks. The executive stationed in another country no longer need fear being “out of sight and out of mind.” He or she can be sure that the overseas effort is central to the company’s plan for success, and that promotions often follow or accompany an assignment abroad. If an employee can succeed in a difficult assignment overseas, superiors will have greater confidence in his or her ability to manage back in the United States where cross-cultural considerations and foreign language issues are becoming more and more common.
Thanks to a variety of relatively inexpensive communications devices with business applications, even small businesses in the United States are able to get into international markets.
English is still the international language of business. But there is an ever-growing need for people who can speak another language. A second language isn’t generally required to get a job in business, but having language skills gives a candidate the edge when other qualifications appear to be equal.
The employee posted abroad who speaks the country’s language has an opportunity to fast-forward certain negotiations, and can have the cultural insight to know when it is better to move more slowly. The employee at the home office who can communicate well with foreign customers over the telephone or by fax machine is an obvious asset to the firm. With the increased use of high-tech communications equipment, businesspeople ________.
| A．are eager to work overseas |
| B．have to get familiar with modern technology |
| C．are gaining more economic benefits from domestic operations |
| D．are attaching more importance to their overseas business |
In this passage, “out of sight and out of mind” (Line 3, Para. 3) probably means ________.
| A．leaving all care and worry behind |
| B．being unable to think properly for lack of insight |
| C．being totally out of touch with business at home |
| D．missing opportunities for promotion when abroad |
According to the passage, what is an important consideration of international corporations in employing people today?
| A．Ability to speak the customer’s language. |
| B．Connections with businesses overseas. |
| C．Technical know-how. |
| D．Business experience. |
The advantage of employees having foreign language skills is that they can ________.
| A．fast-forward their proposals to headquarters |
| B．better control the whole negotiation process |
| C．easily make friends with businesspeople abroad |
| D．easily find new approaches to meet market needs |
Pacing and Pausing
Sara tried to befriend her old friend Steve's new wife, but Betty never seemed to have anything to say. While Sara felt Betty didn't hold up her end of the conversation, Betty complained to Steve that Sara never gave her a chance to talk. The problem had to do with expectations about pacing and pausing.
Conversation is a turn-taking game. When our habits are similar, there's no problem. But if our habits are different, you may start to talk before I'm finished or fail to take your turn when I'm finished. That's what was happening with Betty and Sara.
It may not be coincidental that Betty, who expected relatively longer pauses between turns, is British, and Sara, who expected relatively shorter pauses, is American. Betty often felt interrupted by Sara. But Betty herself became an interrupter and found herself doing most of the talking when she met a visitor from Finland. And Sara had a hard time cutting in on some speakers from Latin America or Israel.
The general phenomenon, then, is that the small conversation techniques, like pacing and pausing, lead people to draw conclusions not about conversational style but about personality and abilities. These habitual differences are often the basis for dangerous stereotyping (思维定式). And these social phenomena can have very personal consequences. For example, a woman from the southwestern part of the US went to live in an eastern city to take up a job in personnel. When the Personnel Department got together for meetings, she kept searching for the right time to break in --- and never found it. Although back home she was considered outgoing and confident, in Washington she was viewed as shy and retiring. When she was evaluated at the end of the year, she was told to take a training course because of her inability to speak up.
That's why slight differences in conversational style --- tiny little things like microseconds of pause --- can have a great effect on one's life. The result in this case was a judgment of psychological problems --- even in the mind of the woman herself, who really wondered what was wrong with her and registered for assertiveness training.What did Sara think of Betty when talking with her?
| A．Betty was talkative. | B．Betty was an interrupter. |
| C．Betty did not take her turn. | D．Betty paid no attention to Sara. |
57. According to the passage, who are likely to expect the shortest pauses between turns?
| A．Americans. | B．Israelis. | C．The British. | D．The Finns. |
58. We can learn from the passage that ______.
| A．communication breakdown results from short pauses and fast pacing |
| B．women are unfavorably stereotyped in eastern cities of the US |
| C．one's inability to speak up is culturally determined sometimes |
| D．one should receive training to build up one's confidence |