One of the executives gathered at the Aspen Institute for a day-long leadership workshop using the works of Shakespeare was discussing the role of Brutus in the death of Julius Caesar. “Brutus was not an honorable man,” he said. “He was a traitor(叛徒). And he murdered someone in cold blood.” The agreement was that Brutus had acted with cruelty when other options were available to him. He made a bad decision, they said—at least as it was presented by Shakespeare—to take the lead in murdering Julius Caesar. And though one of the executives acknowledged that Brutus had the good of the republic in mind, Caesar was nevertheless his superior. “You have to endeavor,” the executives said, “our policy is to obey the chain of command.”
During the last few years, business executives and book writers looking for a new way to advise corporate America have been exploiting Shakespeare’s wisdom for profitable ends. None more so than husband and wife team Kenneth and Carol Adelman, well-known advisers to the White House, who started up a training company called “Movers and Shakespeares”. They are amateur Shakespeare scholars and Shakespeare lovers, and they have combined their passion and their high level contacts into a management training business. They conduct between 30 and 40 workshops annually, focusing on half a dozen different plays, mostly for corporations, but also for government agencies.
The workshops all take the same form, focusing on a single play as a kind of case study, and using individual scenes as specific lessons. In Julius Caesar , sly provocation(狡诈的挑唆) of Brutus to take up arms against the what was a basis for a discussion of methods of team building and grass roots organism.
Although neither of the Adelmans is academically trained in literature, the programmes, contain plenty of Shakespeare tradition and background. Their workshop on Henry V, for example, includes a helpful explanation of Henry’s winning strategy at the Battle of Agincourt. But they do come to the text with a few biases (偏向): their reading of Henry V minimizes his misuse of power. Instead, they emphasize the story of the youth who seizes opportunity and becomes a masterful leader. And at the workshop on Caesar, Mr. Adelmans had little good to say about Brutus, saying “the noblest Roman of them all” couldn’t make his mind up about things.
Many of the participants pointed to very specific elements in the play that they felt related Caesar’s pride, which led to his murder, and Brutus’s mistakes in leading the after the murder, they said, raise vital questions for anyone serving as a business when and how do you resist the boss?According to paragraph 1, what did all the executives think of Brutus?
A.Cruel. | B.Superior. |
C.Honorable. | D.Bade |
According to the passage, the Adelmans set up “Movers and Shakespeares” to ________.
A.help executives to understand Shakespeare’s plays better |
B.give advice on leadership by analyzing Shakespeare’s plays |
C.provide case studies of Shakespeare’s plays in literature workshops |
D.guide government agencies to follow the characters in Shakespeare’s plays. |
Why do the Adelmans conduct a workshop on Henry V?
A.To highlight the importance of catching opportunities. |
B.To encourage masterful leaders to plan strategies to win. |
C.To illustrate the harm of prejudices in management. |
D.To warn executives against power misuse. |
It can be inferred from the passage that ____.
A.the Adelmans’ programme proves biased as the roles of characters are maximized. |
B.executives feel bored with too many specific elements of Shakespeare’s plays. |
C.the Adelmans will make more profits if they are professional scholars. |
D.Shakespeare has played an important role in the management field. |
The best title for the passage is _____.
A.Shakespeare’s plays: Executives reconsider corporate culture |
B.Shakespeare’s plays: An essential key to business success |
C.Shakespeare’s plays: a lesson for business motivation |
D.Shakespeare’s plays: Dramatic training brings dramatic results |
![]() Let’s Go Science Show Show Times:Wednesday,November12,2014 at 10:00 am Tickets:$9.00 per person for groups of ten or more;$14.00 for individuals The wacky and talented Professor Smart and Dr. Knowitall join forces for an educational,entertaining,exciting experiment demonstrating the basic principals of science.During the show you and your students will learn about air pressure,figure out flight,and get a handle on the scientific method. Appropriate for Grades l—5 |
![]() The Wizard of OZ Show Times:Tuesday,December 18,2014 at 9:00 am Tickets:$10.00 per person for groups of 10 or more;$14.00 for individuals Follow the yellow brick road.Join in Dorothy’s adventures over the rainbow with the Tin man,Scarecrow,Lion and,of course,the Wizard himself.More excitement is created when a life-size tornado travels from the stage through the audience.Meet old friends and new in this imaginative fun filled musical. Award-winning lighting and special effects. Appropriate for all ages |
![]() Charlotte’s Web Show Times:Thursday,December 4,2014 at ll:00 am & 12 noon Tickets:$12.00 per person for groups of 20 or more;$17.00 for individuals Charlotte’s Web is a beloved and memorable children’s classic that comes to life on stage in this musical story.The story is set in a Midwest country farm in the first half of the twentieth century. Meet Fern Arable,an imaginative eight-year-old farm girl,Wilbur,a small lovable pig,Charlotte,a large intellectual spider.and Templeton,a lazy yet clever rat.You’re sure to fall in love. Appropriate for Grades Pre-Kindergarten—3rd grade |
A father with his son to see Science Show will pay______.
A.$9.00 | B.$18.00 |
C.$14.00 | D.$28.00 |
A boy who likes stories about wizards will watch the musical at______.
A.9:00 am | B.10:00 am |
C.12 noon | D.15:00 pm |
Where does the story of a little girl with several animals take place?
A.On a farm. | B.On a brick road. |
C.In a kindergarten. | D.In a college library. |
A broad smile spreads across the faces of Martyn Sibley and Srin Madipalli when asked where they were when they decided to launch an online lifestyle magazine for disabled people.“On the beach.”they reply.“We’ve both travelled a lot but we wanted a real adventure,”Sibley says of the California road trip during which Disability Horizons was conceived(设想).
Sibley,whose professional background is in marketing,has been writing his own blog since 2009“about what I got up to,everyday stuff about living with disability”,he says.He describes how while“wandering on the beach together”Madipalli suggested branching out beyond a oneperson blog.
Why did they want to create a“lifestyle”magazine for the disabled people?The pair,both in their 20s,say they wanted to produce something“positive and inspiring”that would tell about the lives of disabled people as they actually were.They were especially eager to produce something that showed young disabled people“what it was possible to do with their lives”,says Sibley.
In less than a year,Disability Horizons has had more than 50 regular contributors and attracted a reader base of more than 20,000 people,more than a third of whom are in the US.
Sibley and Madipalli have a genetic disease that causes progressive muscle wasting and loss of movement.They are wheelchair users and have been good friends since growing up in London and Cambridge.Listening to them joke,it makes perfect sense that their shared optimistic outlook has spilled over into the magazine.The site covers topics ranging from books and travel to clubbing and photography.“It’s definitely a mix.”Madipalli says.What has Sibley been writing about in his own blog?
A.His love for travelling. |
B.His attitude toward life. |
C.His suffering from a disease. |
D.His everyday life with disability. |
For what purpose was Disability Horizons created?
A.To collect money for the disabled. |
B.To help the disabled to make friends. |
C.To organize the disabled to travel around. |
D.To let people know the real life of the disabled. |
The fourth paragraph is written to tell us that Disability Horizons__________________.
A.became popular very soon |
B.was complex in marketing |
C.became a failure in the US |
D.was not well received at first |
Which of the following best describes Sibley and Madipalli?
A.Kind and generous. |
B.Creative and humorous. |
C.Disabled but optimistic. |
D.Adventurous but rude. |
Many Christmas customs are based on the birth of Christ, such as giving presents because of the Wise Men, who brought presents to the baby Jesus(耶稣)Singing Christmas carols is based on the scene of the birth with figures of shepherds, the Wise Men and animals surrounding the baby Jesus.
The origin of Santa Claus begins in the 4th century with St. Nicholas, Bishop of Myra, an area in the present-day Turkey. By all accounts St. Nicholas was a generous man, particularly devoted to children. After his death around 340 A. D. he was buried in Myra, but in 1087 Italian sailors were believed to steal his remains and removed them to Italy, greatly increasing St. Nicholas’ popularity throughout Europe.
His kindness and reputation for generosity gave rise to claims that he could perform miracles and devotion to him increased. St. Nicholas became the patron(保护神)saint of Russia, where he was known by his red cap, flowing white beard, and bishop’s mitre. In Greece, he was the patron saint of sailors; in France, he was the patron of lawyers, and in Belgium, the patron of children and travelers. Thousands of churches across Europe were dedicated(供奉的)to him and sometime around the 12th century an official holiday was created in his honor. The Feast of St. Nicholas was celebrated on December 6 and the day was marked by gift-giving and charity.
After the Reformation, European followers of St. Nicholas declined, but the legend was kept alive in Holland where the Dutch spelling of his name Sint Nikolass was eventually transformed to Sinterklaas. Dutch children would leave their wooden shoes by the fireplace, and Sinterklaas would reward good children by placing treats in their shoes. Dutch colonists brought this tradition with them to America in the 17th century and here the English name of Santa Claus appeared.Why, as is believed, is Santa Claus so popular in Europe?
A.Because of his reputation for generosity. |
B.Because he died in Italy. |
C.Because of the deed of the Italian sailors. |
D.Because of his devotion to Italian children. |
What was the Feast of St. Nicholas held for?
A.Celebrating Christ’s birthday. |
B.Giving thanks to churches. |
C.Marking a holiday. |
D.Honoring St. Nicholas. |
What does “Sinterklaas” in the last paragraph refer to?
A.European followers. | B.Santa Claus. |
C.Jesus. | D.The Dutch. |
Which of the following can best describe Santa Claus?
A.Generous, devoted and honored. |
B.Dedicated, kind and alive. |
C.Well-known, traditional and lovely. |
D.Popular, famous and creative. |
When my mother was alive, she used to tell me again and again about the value of just being nice. “Never underestimate(低估)the power of a smile,” she would say. I fear she would be very disappointed looking at the world today. A lot of people don’t smile and when it comes to service today, they’re just not nice. Now don’t give me wrong, not all service workers but a good many.
I was on the phone the other day with a computer help desk. First a man, then later a woman, who couldn’t have been ruder. And this to a customer, who didn’t know his way around a PC. But no matter, I could tell they thought I was a bother, The woman, in fact, seemed to be chewing gum as she unemotionally clicked off a series of commands for me to perform.
The next day I heard from a friend of mine who got a performance review without his boss once looking up at him. Not once.
You see it everywhere. Gone are the days when people cared about you. It’s a sign of the time, I suspect. But that makes me sad — for them and for us all. People who aren’t happy, who don’t smile, who don’t kid, who don’t joke or make light of even bad situations, make for an even worse situation.
And it spreads like a cancer. Someone’s rude to you, you’re rude to them and to the next fellow you meet, and on and on. Smiles are contagious(易感染的)but so annoyances. The boss who can’t be bothered with his workers. The celebrity who can’t be bothered with her annoying fans.
You know, my mom used to judge presidential candidates by how they smiled. I would say, “But mom, you don’t know if that smile is real.”
“Oh, yes I do,” she would tell me. “I can feel it.”
It’s in their eyes, she would say. And it’s in their smile. The rest just kind of falls into place.Why did the writer mention his phone call?
A.To prove his mother is wrong. |
B.To show many people aren’t nice. |
C.To tell us he knows little about computer. |
D.To share his funny experience with us. |
What is the author’s attitude towards the boss of his friend?
A.Opposed. | B.Doubtful. |
C.Respectful. | D.Supportive. |
When someone is rude to you, you’re advised to ________.
A.be rude to the next person |
B.be nice to the people you meet |
C.become one just like him or her |
D.make for a worse situation |
What’s the best title of the passage?
A.The power of a smile |
B.Don’t judge a person by his look |
C.The effect of rudeness |
D.Feel a person in his eyes |
As temperatures go up, bison(北美野牛)get smaller. Joseph Craine, research assistant professor in the Division of Biology at Kansas State University, examined how climate change during the next 50 years will affect grazing(放牧)animals such as bison and cattle in the Great Plains.
“Bison are one of our most important conservation animals and hold a unique role in grasslands in North America,” Craine said. “In addition to their cultural and ecological significance, they’re economically important. There are about half a million bison in the world.” Craine analyzed a data set of 290,000 weights, ages and sexes collected from 22 bison herds(兽群)throughout the U. S. The organizations kept annual records of each animal in the herd and matched the data with the climates of the sites.
Based on differences in sizes of bison across herds, Craine found that during the next 50 years, future generations of bison will be smaller in size and weigh less. Climate is likely to reduce the nutritional quality of grasses, causing the animals to grow more slowly.
“We know that temperatures are going to go up,” Craine said. “We also know that warmer grasslands have grasses with less protein(蛋白质), and we now know that warmer grasslands have smaller grazers. It all lines up to suggest that climate change will cause grasses to have less protein and cause grazers to gain less weight in the future.”
Craine said the results of climate change in coming decades can already be seen by comparing bison in cooler, wetter places with those in warmer, drier places. For example, the average 7-year-old male bison in South Dakota weighed 1, 900 pounds, while an average 7- year-old male bison in Oklahoma — a warmer place — weighed 1, 300 pounds.
“The difference in temperature between those two states is around 20 degrees Fahrenheit, which is about three times the projected increase in temperatures over the next 75 years,” Craine said. “It is a clear indicator that long-term warming will affect bison and is something that will happen across the U.S. over the next 50-75 years.”In the next fifty years, researchers Say, bison will ________.
A.become smaller and lighter |
B.disappear in the Great Plains |
C.play a less important part |
D.adapt to different climate changes |
The underlined word “grazers” probably refers to ________.
A.the researchers | B.the grasses |
C.the bison | D.the protein |
What is the main reason for the bison to become smaller?
A.The deceasing amount of grass. |
B.The rising temperature. |
C.The rising number of bison. |
D.The loss of weight. |
Paragraph 5 is written as an example to show ________.
A.Craine’s prediction will come true in 50 years |
B.bison are smaller than in the past |
C.the nature balance is being destroyed |
D.bison’s size is linked with different climate |