Ask a group of elderly people what it was about their lives that made them happiest overall, and they’ll probably mention some warm relationships with family and friends. If you’re satisfied with your social life, according to psychologists, you tend to be satisfied with life in general.
From the point of my 50s, I’d say that sounds about right. Some of my happiest moments are the ones I spend with my husband, a few close relatives, and a handful of very good friends who know me well and like me anyway. But the more I read about how social media are interfering with (干扰) good old-fashioned friendship, creating virtual bonds that can’t quite take the place of real ones, the more I wonder just how today’s 20-somethings will look back on their own lives when they’re my age.
After all, much crucial relationship building work is done in the 20s. According to research by the late Bernice Neugarten of the University of Chicago, who helped launch the academic study of human development, people choose most of their adult relationships, both friends and lovers, between the ages of 22 and 28. The friends we make in our 20s are not only best friends forever; they’re also our first truly chosen friends. And choosing how to commit to these friendships is an essential psychological task of the 20s.
But with so much of friendship in this age group now being developed online, an essential question is what the effect of that interaction is. A study, conducted in 2010 by Craig Watkins and Erin Lee of the University of Texas at Austin, investigated the Facebook habits of 776 young people between the ages of 18 and 35. “Whether it is a wall post, a comment, or a photo,” they wrote, “young people’s engagement with Facebook is driven, primarily, by a desire to stay connected to and involved in the lives of friends who live close by, far away, or have just entered into their lives.”
This kind of constant contact can be efficient, but it can also be upsetting. For one thing, it adds a new layer of concern to a young person’s already-heightened awareness of social ranking, giving appearance-conscious young people yet another thing to worry about. “I see other 20-somethings feeling pressured to constantly keep up a public image, especially a public image online,” wrote Ariana Allensworth on the group blog. “Folks are always keeping the world informed one way or another about what they’re up to, where they’re at, what projects they’re working on. It can be a bit much at times.” Not the most fertile ground for real-world friendship.According to the passage, the 20s is an age for people to _____.
| A．have a good public image |
| B．keep themselves informed |
| C．look back on their own lives |
| D．develop critical relationships |
Which of the following is a disadvantage of making friends online?
| A．It makes people pay less attention to social ranking. |
| B．It robs people of the happy moments spent with friends. |
| C．It keeps people away from their family and close relatives. |
| D．It prevents people from keeping in contact with their friends. |
What was the aim of the study conducted by Craig Watkins and Erin Lee?
| A．To know about the 776 young people’s Facebook habits. |
| B．To find out how social media affect real-world social life. |
| C．To help young people stay connected to the lives of friends. |
| D．To investigate what kind of people prefer online interactions. |
The author may agree that _____.
| A．old-fashioned friendship can help create virtual bonds |
| B．there’s no need for young people to make online friends |
| C．real-world friendship is a better choice for young people |
| D．online friendship is an inevitable trend in the modern world |
Homelessness is a huge problem all over the world. It’s said that each day there are about 1 million people living on the streets in the US. It is a serious problem which should be dealt with effectively.
There are two main reasons for people leaving their homes: poverty and less affordable houses due to bad economic conditions. Other reasons include: domestic violence, divorce, and mental illness. Living without a home makes people main targets of violence activities and besides, these homeless people have to face the following difficulties on a daily basis.
They have to move about, carrying their belongings, which makes it difficult for the charity and the government to help them. They have limited access to bathrooms and restrooms and are forced to live in dirty conditions, making them easy to be attacked by diseases. They have limited access to health-care facilities in case of emergency, and almost no access to education as they have no money. They are often ill-treated by society, which makes them unfriendly, often ending up being involved in activities connected with crime like selling drugs or guns.
Homelessness is not something that happened overnight --- it has been in the country for decades. The society usually believes those living on the street to be mentally unstable. This belief is partially true. Most of them are normal people just like you and me.
The federal government is doing all it can to help but it is not enough, so the ordinary citizens have to stand up and try to help whenever it’s possible. There are various organizations, such as charity organizations that are working constantly to make sure that homeless people find a shelter to live in. the united efforts have helped millions of people return to their normal lifestyle. However, there is still a long way to go before a better situation is created for all the homeless.Homeless people suffer from all the following except __________.
| A．violent activities | B．disease attack | C．moving a lot | D．heavy work |
The homeless are usually treated as __________.
| A．having mental problems | B．a danger to society |
| C．physically disabled people | D．being too lazy to do anything |
Which of the following are mentioned to help solve the problem of the homeless?
① the government② homeless people ③ charity organizations ④ the ordinary citizens
| A．①②③ | B．①③④ | C．①②④ | D．②③④ |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．Most homeless people died of hunger and cold. |
| B．The homeless should work hard to change their own situation. |
| C．The homeless problem is a serious problem that need solving effectively. |
| D．The homeless people have nothing to take when they move about. |
Are you an optimist? Do you look at your glass and see it as half full? Do you believe that every cloud has a silver lining and that generally things turn out for the best? Do you believe that if something is meant to be, it will be? If you reply “yes” to all of these questions, then you are an optimist. You probably are enthusiastic, cheerful and outgoing. You may well be successful atwork and in love.
But you may be misguided because things don’t turn out for the best. You may believe that when one door closes another one opens (for example，you may fail to obtain a new job，another chance will come around soon), Wrong. When one door closes, another door slams in your face. That's bitter reality.
Now a book has been published which confirms what we pessimists(悲观者）have suspected all along. It's called The Positive Power of Defensive Pessimism. Its author argues that defensive pessimism can lead to positive results. Defensive pessimism is a strategy used to manage fear, anxiety and worry. Defensive pessimists prepare for things by setting low outcomes for themselves. They carefully consider everything that may go wrong and plan for ways to handle these problems. And this gives them a sense of control. Lawrence Sanno, a psychology professor, says, “What’s interesting about defensive pessimists is that they tend to be very successful people, so their low opinion of the situation’s outcomes is not realistic. They use it to motivate themselves to perform better. ”
So far, so good. This is not rocket science. Defensive pessimists prepare carefully and consider what might go wrong, whether at work, on a date or even in a sports game. It makes sense to have a back-up plan. There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” and “ Don’t count your chickens until they hatch. “ To have a confident and optimistic approach to life’s problems is good. But listen to what Woody Alien，the American comedian says, ”Confidence is what you have before you understand the problem.”
There are pros and cons to being an optimist and a pessimist. Don’t feel bad if you see the glass half empty. You are a realist. But lighten up and hook up with someone who sees the same glass half full.What is the passage mainly about?
| A．A book that has recently been published. |
| B．The dangers of being too optimistic. |
| C．The benefits of defensive pessimism. |
| D．How to become successful in life. |
The underlined sentence “This is not rocket science” in paragraph 4 means.
| A．he cost is not so high | B．there is no real proof |
| C．it’s not a dangerous thing to do | D．it is quite simple to understand |
The writer would probably describe himself as.
| A．an optimist | B．a realist | C．a defeatist | D．a scientist |
Which of the following English expressions would a defensive pessimist believe?
| A．“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” |
| B．“Every cloud has a silver lining.” |
| C．“Whatever will be, will be.” |
| D．“The glass is half full not half empty.” |
An Australian man who has been donating his extremely rare kind of blood for 56 years has saved the lives of more than two million babies.
James Harrison has an antibody in his plasma that stops babies dying from Rhesus disease, a form of severe anaemia. He has enabled countless mothers to give birth to healthy babies, including his own daughter, Tracey, who had a healthy son thanks to her father's blood.
Mr. Harrison has been giving blood every few weeks since he was 18 years old and has now racked up a total of 984 donations. When he started donating, his blood was deemed so special that his life was insured for one million Australian dollars.
He was also nicknamed the “man with the golden arm” or the “man in two million”. He said: “I've never thought about stopping. Never.” He made a pledge to be a donor aged 14 after undergoing major chest surgery in which he needed 13 litres of blood. “I was in hospital for three months,” he said. “The blood I received saved my life so I made a pledge to give blood when I was 18.”
Just after he started donating he was found to have the rare and life-saving antibody in his blood. At the time, thousands of babies in Australia were dying each year of Rhesus disease. Other newborns suffered permanent brain damage because of the condition. The disease creates an incompatibility between the mother's blood and her unborn baby's blood. It stems from one having Rh-positive blood and the other Rh-negative.
His blood has since led to the development of a vaccine called Anti-D. After his blood type was discovered, Mr. Harrison volunteered to undergo a series of tests to help develop the Anti-D vaccine. “They insured me for a million dollars so I knew my wife Barbara would be taken care of,” he said. “I wasn't scared. I was glad to help. I had to sign every form going and basically sign my life away.”
Mr. Harrison is Rh-negative and was given injections of Rh-positive blood. It was found his plasma could treat the condition and since then it has been given to hundreds of thousands of women. It has also been given to babies after they are born to stop them developing the disease.
It is estimated he has helped save 2.2 million babies so far. Mr. Harrison is still donating every few weeks now.How old is James Harrison？
| A．56 | B．70 | C．74 | D．78 |
What does the underlined phrase “two million” refer to?
| A．dollars | B．babies | C．mothers | D．all of the above |
Why did James decide to donate his blood? Because _____.
| A．someone else’s blood saved his life |
| B．he has a golden arm worth a million dollars |
| C．a vaccine called Anti-D is to be developed |
| D．his daughter asked him to help her son |
The sentence “The disease creates an incompatibility between the mother's blood and her unborn baby's blood” (underlined in Paragraph 5) suggests that _____.
| A．all the patients have a rare antibody in their blood |
| B．babies suffer permanent brain damage before born |
| C．Rhesus disease contributes to permanent brain damage |
| D．. the mother and the baby have different types of blood |
What can we infer from the sixth paragraph?
| A．His wife Barbara needed to be taken care of badly then. |
| B．Some of the tests to develop the vaccine are dangerous. |
| C．Mr. Harrison was glad to help develop a new vaccine. |
| D．His blood type was accidentally discovered after tests. |
Win a week in England!
You still don’t know what to do this summer? Well, here’s your chance to win a one-week language course in Kent, England! Free4Fun and ETC (English Travel Connections) are giving away two trips to Rochester. This historic city is less than an hour’s drive from London and close to the sea resort of Herne Bay. It is also the home of one of England’s most famous writers, Charles Dickens. The town of Rochester is in Southeast England. Charles Dickens often wrote about it in his books. His home, Gad’s Hill, is there, too. A popular attraction is Rochester Castle, a large Norman fortress（堡垒）. It was built in the 11th century and rebuilt during the 14th century. Other attractions are Rochester Cathedral, which was built during the 13th century, and Dickens Centre. It has got its name in honour of Dickens himself.
The trip to England includes:
* travel by train (via the Eurotunnel) to and from any railway station in Germany
* room and full board with a guest family for one week
* language course in small groups
* two trips to London
* large choice of sports and entertainment
* German-speaking advisors available 24 hours a day
Interested? All you have to do is to answer the following question:
When was Charles Dickens born?
So, take the chance and send your answer by 1 May to:
Free4Fun "Rochester"
Free4Fun, 24 Elphinstone Road, Hastings, 2FQ6VJ
fax: 089 / 85 763-103
e-mail: free4fun@netlight.com
The two winners will be contacted directly before 5 May. They will also be announced in the June issue of Free4Fun. Good luck!
For further information contact:
phone: (03212) 144 43
fax: (03212) 144 42
e-mail: info@etc. comRochester Cathedral was built in the.
| A．1400s | B．1300s | C．1200s | D．1100s |
What activities can you participate in during the trip?
| A．Enjoying sports and entertainment. |
| B．Learning the German language. |
| C．Traveling by train with a guest family. |
| D．Working as a language advisor. |
If you want to win a prize you have to send your answer to.
| A．the June issue of Free4fun | B．ETC |
| C．info@etc. com | D．free4fun@netlight. com |
This ad was designed to target.
| A．Italians | B．Germans | C．Europeans | D．Americans |
Scientists have not come close to understanding all the different kinds of life on the planet, but US researcher Craig Venter is already working on creating the first artificial life.
Venter and his researchers made a breakthrough this August. They successfully moved the DNA of one type of bacteria(细菌) to a yeast(酵母) cell, changed it, then put it into another bacterial cell.
“Bacteria have systems that protect them from foreign DNA,” Venter explained to the BBC. In the experiment, the team managed to block this system.
The experiment was performed on a simple type of bacteria called Mycoplasma mycoides. The team took the bacteria’s genes and put them into a yeast cell.
Putting the DNA in a yeast cell allowed the team to change the genes----in this case, taking out a gene that was not necessary for the bacteria to live.
They then put the gene into a host bacteria cell. The cell went on to divide normally, producing new healthy bacteria.
In January, the team created artificial genes of a new type of bacteria. Their next goal is to put the artificial DNA into a host cell to create a new species, according to a report in Science magazine.
“If we don’t make any errors, I think it should work and we should have the first artificial species by the end of the year,” Venter said in the report.
The first artificial life from is likely to be a simple man-made bacteria, to prove that the technology can work. But that form will be followed by more complex bacteria that turn coal into cleaner natural gas, or algae that can take in carbon dioxide and change it into fuel.
Many scientists think it’s good news to have this artificial life, but others are worried that the technology to create new organisms might end up in the wrong hands, with dangerous results.Craig Venter and his team are working to ______.
| A．create a new animal |
| B．clone a new species |
| C．produce the first artificial bacteria |
| D．develop a new system |
Which of the following is the right order of the experiment?
a. A gene was removed and put into a host bacteria cell.
b. The genes were put into a yeast cell.
c. The cell produced new healthy bacteria.
d. The genes were changed.
e. Some genes were taken out of Mycoplasma mycoides.
| A．d-e-a-c-b | B．e-b-d-a-c |
| C．a-d-e-c-b | D．b-e-d-c-a |
According to the passage, complex artificial bacteria, which will follow the first simple man-made bacteria, are intended to ______.
| A．cure deadly diseases |
| B．prepare the Earth for natural disasters |
| C．prove that the technology can work |
| D．improve the earth’s environment |
We can learn from the passage that ______.
| A．Venter and his team are the only scientists trying to create artificial life |
| B．The experiment was based on research into different kinds of life on Earth |
| C．A new type of bacteria was created in January |
| D．All scientists are not in favor of the research |