I am usually in a bad mood after a long day at work, but on this particular Friday afternoon I was in a high mood. I planned to have a good meal and watch Bridget Jones’s Diary.
My local supermarket is always busy. The first parking space I spotted was convenient, but I’d noticed a woman in an old car circling for a while. I let her have it. On the edge of the car park I backed into the next available spot — it was a tight fit.
In record time I’d made my way through the supermarket and was back in the fresh air. In a rush of good spirits, I emptied my purse change into the hands of a homeless man and helped a struggling woman reverse (倒车) into a parking space.
Just as I spotted my car, I saw the woman I’d let have my car spot earlier. I smiled and wished her a pleasant day.
As I got back into my car, I spotted the same lady looking in at me. “ Hello,” she said, hesitantly (犹豫地). “ This might sound crazy but I was on my way to drop some of my mother’s things off at the charity bins.” I looked quickly at the orange bins in the corner of the parking lot, confused. “ I saw you helping those people, and you seemed so happy. My mom had a dress just like that.”
She looked at me meaningfully. I smiled at her in encouragement, hoping she wouldn’t notice that the dress she was admiring was now full of holes. “ I was going to give these away, but you are just so much like her.” She passed a box in through the window. Shocked, unthinking, I took it automatically (无意识地). “ I think she would like you to have it.” She smiled and walked away.
After a pause, I opened the box. Inside was a beautiful gold necklace. It was the nicest gift I’d ever received, and it was from a complete stranger.
Later, I thought back on the day. I didn’t feel the usual sense of exhaustion. The necklace was around my neck, a warm reminder of human kindness.
This Friday afternoon, the author ________.
| A.watched a new movie |
| B.had trouble parking her car |
| C.was in the mood to help others |
| D.spent a long time in the supermarket |
Which of the following is TRUE about the author?
| A.She was not very wealthy actually. |
| B.She considered her dress beautiful. |
| C.She had met the lady’s mum. |
| D.She was living on charity. |
What does the author mainly intend to tell us?
| A.Success leads to happiness. |
| B.Good is rewarded with good. |
| C.Two heads are better than one. |
| D.A friend in need is a friend indeed. |
Since we are social beings,the quality of our lives depends in a large measure on our interpersonal relationships.One strength of the human condition is our possibility to give and receive support from one another under stressful(有压力的)conditions.Social support makes up of the exchange of resources among people based on their interpersonal ties.Those of us with strong support systems appear better able to deal with major life changes and daily problems.People with strong social ties live longer and have better health than those without such ties.Studies over types of illnesses,from depression to heart disease,show that the presence of social support helps people defend themselves against illness,and the absence of such support makes poor health more likely.
Social support cushions stress in a number of ways.First,friends,relatives and co-workers may let us know that they value us.Our self-respect is stengthened when we feel accepted by others in spite of our faults and difficulties.Second,other people often provide us with informational support.They help us to define and understand our problems and find solutions to them.Third.we typically find social companionship supportive.Taking part in free-time activities with others helps us to meet our social needs while at the same time distracting(转移注意力)us f rom our worries and troubles.Finally,other people may give us instrumental support--money aid,material resources,and needed services--that reduces stress by helping us resolve and deal with our problems.What does the word“cushions”mean?
| A.gets rid of | B.makes up of | C.takes place of | D.lessens the effect of |
The researches show that people’s physical and mental health_____.
| A.depends on their ability to deal with daily werries and troubles |
| B.is related to their courage for dealing with major life changes |
| C.lies in the social medical care systems which support them |
| D.has much to do with the amount of support they get from others |
Helping a sick neighbor with some repair work in spare time is an example of_____.
| A.informational support | B.social companionship |
| C.the strengthening of self-respect | D.instrumental support |
Why are interpersonal relationships important?
| A.They can cure types of illnesses. | B.They can deal with life changes. |
| C.they can smooth away daily problems. | D.They can make people live more easily. |
Perhaps the most astonishing theory to come out of kinetics,the study of body movement,was suggested by Professor Ray Birdwhistell.He believes that physical appearance Is often culturally programmed.In other words,we learn our looks;we are not born with them.
A baby generally unformed facial features.A baby,according to Birdwhistell,learns where to set the eyebrows by looking at those around family and friends.This helps explain why the people of some regions of the United States look so much lilke.New Englanders or Southerners have certain common facial characteristics that cannot be explained by genetics(遗传学).The exact shape of the mouth is not set at birth,it is learned later.In fact,the final mouth shape is not formed until well after permanent(永久的)teeth are set.For many,this can be well into adolescence(青春期).A husband and wife together for a long time often come to look somewhat alike.We learn our looks from those around us. This is perhaps why in a single country there are areas where people smile more than those in other areas.In the United States,for example,the South is the part of the country where the people smile most frequently.In New England they smile less,and in the western part of New York State still less.Many Southerners find cities such as New York cold and unfriendly,partly because people on Madison Avenue smile less than people on Peach Tree Street jn Atlanta,Georgia.People in densely(稠密地)populated urban areas also tend to smile and greet each other in public less than people in rural areas and small towns.The passage might be taken out of a book dealing with______
| A.physics | B.health | C.chemistry | D.body movement |
Ray Birdwhistell believes that physical appearance_______.
| A.has little to do with culture | B.is decided by our parents |
| C.can be infiuenced by culture | D.varies from place to place |
Ray Birdwhistell can tell what region of the United States a person is from by .
| A.the way he or she talks | B.how he or she raises his or her eyebrows |
| C.what he or she likes best | D.how much he or she laughs |
According to the passage,people who live_______are more friendly.
| A.in the north | B.in the country |
| C.in New York City | D.in densely populated areas |
Very old people do raise moral problems for almost everyone who comes into touch with them.Their values---this can not be repeated too often--aren’t necessarily our values.Physical comfort,cleanness and order are not necessarily the most important things.The social services from time to time find themselves faced with a room with rotten food covered by small worms,and an old person lying alone on bed,taking no notice of the worms.But is it interrupting personal freedom to insist that they go to live with some of their relatives so that they might be taken better care of? Some social workers,the ones who clear up the worms,think we’re in danger of carrying this idea of personal freedom to the point where serious risks(冒险)are being taken with the health and safety of the old.
Indeed,the old can be easily hurt or harmed.The old is like a car: it needs more mechanical repair as it gets older.You can carry this comparison right through to provision of spare parts.But never forget that such operations are painful experiences,however good the results are.And at what point should you stop to treat the old body?Is it morally right to try to push off death by continuing the development of medicine to excite the forgetful old mind and to make the old body active,knowing that it is designed to die?You cannot ask doctors or scientists to decide,because so long as they can see the technical chances,they will feel it necessary to give them a try,by the rule that while there’s life,there’s hope.
Talking to the old,however,you’re forced to the conclusion that whether age is happy or unpleasant depends less on money or health than it does on your ability to have fun.After reading Paragraph 1,we learn that____.
| A.very old people are able to keep their living places very clean |
| B.old people enjoy living alone so as to have more personal freedom |
| C.every old people enjoy living with their relatives |
| D.social services have nothing to do with very old people |
Some social workers think that_____.
| A.old people should keep their living places clean |
| B.one should not take risk dealing with old people |
| C.health and safety are more important than personal freedom |
| D.personal freedom is more important than health and safety |
In Paragraph 3,the underlined word“it”refers to____.
| A.one’s memory or health |
| B.the conclusion you have come to |
| C.whether age is happy or unpleasant |
| D.your talk to the old people |
The writer of this passage thinks that_______.
| A.it is always morally right to treat old people and push off death |
| B.the opinion that we should try every means possible to save old people is uncertain |
| C.old people can enjoy a happy life only if they are very rich |
| D.medical decisions for old people should be left to the doctors |
Transportation and communication networks bring people together.Yet sometimes people themselves create barriers(障碍)to transportation and communication.
In some countries,laws stop people from moving freely from place to place.Over the centuries,many groups of people have been denied the freedom to travel because of their race,religion,or nationality.In the Middle Ages,for example,Jews were often forbidden to move about freely within certain cities.South Africa’s government used to require black Africans to carry passes when they travel within the country.Some governments require all citizens to carry identification papers and to report to government officials whenever they move.
Countries set up customs posts at their borders.Foreign travellers must go through a customs inspection before they are allowed to travel in the country.Usually travellers have to carry special papers such as passports and visas(签证).Some countries even limit the number of visitors to their country each year.Others allow tourists to visit only certain areas of the country,or they may require that travellers be with an official guide at all times during their stay.
Many of those barriers to travel also act as barriers to communication.When two governments disagree with each other on important matters,they usually do not want their citizens to exchange news or ideas freely.Countries often try to keep military or lndustrial information secret.
Today,people have the ability to travel,to communicate,and to transport goods more quickly and easily than ever before.Natural barriers that were difficult or dangerous to cross a hundred years ago can now be crossed easily.The barriers that people themselves make are not so easy to overcome.But in spite of all the different kinds of barriers,people continue to enjoy travel and the exchange of goods and ideas.Choose the best title for the passage.
| A.Progress of Human Society |
| B.Restrictions on Transportation |
| C.Functions of Communication |
| D.Barriers Made by People |
The author uses the examples in the second paragraph to tell people that_______.
| A.travellers have to carry special papers such as visas |
| B.customs posts are necessary at the borders of the countries |
| C.people have been allowed to travel freely within the country |
| D.people have not been permitted to travel freely for various reasons |
Why do some governments limit the freedom of communication?Because they______.
| A.intend to keep their national secrets unknown to others |
| B.think such freedom will lead to wars |
| C.often disagree with each other on important matters |
| D.want to show their authority over communication |
We may learn from the passage that_______.
| A.people do not care about the removal of barriers between countries |
| B.people can not remove the obstacles made by themselves |
| C.man-made barriers are sometimes harder to overcome than natural ones |
| D.barriers should be taken for granted as they always exist |
London Thursday July 26(Reuters)--Ian Johnstone missed his girlfriend so much that he flew back to Britain from Australia to propose to her.The problem is that she flew in the opposite direction.
He and Amy Dolby even managed to miss each other when they sat in the same airport waiting-room in Singapore at the same time to wait for connecting flights.
Dolby,heartbroken when she arrived at Johnstone’s Sydney apartment to find he had flown to London,told the Times:“It was as though someone was playing a cruel joke on us.He is the most romantic person I have ever known.I think our problem is that we are both quite impulsive(冲动的)people.We are always trying to surprise each other.”
After an 11,000-mile flight across the globe,she was greeted by Johnstone’s astonished flatmate asking what she was doing there.
“The terrible truth dawned when I found that Lan’s rucksack and most of his clothes were missing.I sat on the end of his bed and cried my eyes out.And that really annoyed me,”she said.
Johnstone,a 27-year-old bricklayer,had taken a year off to travel round Australia.But he was missing Dolby,a 26-year-old secretary,so much he got a job on a Sydney building site and started saving for a surprise.
He then flew home to Britain and went to her apartment armed with an engagement ring,champagne and flowers.
“I really missed Amy and I’d been thinking about her all the time.I thought she was winding me up when she phoned me from Australia.”he said.
Johnstone then asked Dolby to marry him on the phone.“I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry but I accepted,”she said.
Dolby was given a short tour of Sydney by Johnstone’s friends and Johnstone had to stay in Britain for two weeks because he could not change his ticket.According to the text,it seemed that .
| A.Johnstone and Dolby could have seen each other in the same airport waiting-room in Singapore |
| B.the couple pretended not to see each other in the same airport waiting-room in Singapore |
| C.the young lovestruck couple had both intended to propose to each other |
| D.Dolby stayed longer in Sydney than Johnstone stayed in Britain |
We can learn from the text that .
| A.Johnstone was not as impulsive as Dolby |
| B.Johnstone got a job in Sydney in order to start saving money for a surprise to Dolby |
| C.Dolby was heartbroken because someone was playing a cruel joke on her |
| D.Dolby was greeted by Johnstone’s flatmate at the airport |
When Johnstone asked her to marry him on the phone,Dolby didn’t know whether to laugh or cry because she had a mixed feeling of .
| A.excitement,anger and shyness |
| B.sadness,happiness and surprise |
| C.love,hatred and nevousness |
| D.cheer,regret and annoyance |
Which of the following shows the right order of what happened in the story?
a.Johnstone flew back to Britain to propose to his girlfriend,Amy Dolby.
b.Johnstone started working at a Sydney building site.
c.Johnstone went to Amy’s apartment in Britain with an engagement ring.
d.Johnstone proposed to Dolby over the phone.
e.They were waiting for their connecting flight in the airport in Singapore.
f.Dolby called Johnstone from Australia.
| A.b—a—d—e—c—f | B.c—a—b—e—f—d |
| C.b—a—e—c—f—d | D.b—a—f—e—c—d |