You may not pay much attention to your daily elevator ride. Many of us use a lift several times during a day without really thinking about it. But Lee Gray, PhD, of the University of North Carolina, US, has made it his business to examine this overlooked form of public transport. He is known as the “Elevator Guy”.
“The lift becomes an interesting social space where etiquette (礼仪) is sort of strange,” Gray told the BBC. “They are socially very interesting but often very awkward places.”
We walk in and usually turn around to face the door. If someone else comes in, we may have to move. And here, according to Gray, lift-users unthinkingly go through a set pattern of movements. He told the BBC what he had observed.
He explained that when you are the only one inside a lift, you can do whatever you want — it’s your own little box. If there are two of you, you go into different corners, standing diagonally (对角线地) across from each other to create distance.
Newcomers to the lift will need to size up the situation when the doors slide open and then act quickly. Once in, for most people the rule is simple — look down, or look at your phone.
Why are we so awkward in lifts? “You don’t have enough space,” Professor Babette Renneberg, a clinical psychologist at the Free University of Berlin, told the BBC. “Usually when we meet other people, we have about an arm’s length of distance between us. And that’s not possible in most elevators.”
In such a small, enclosed space it becomes very important to act in a way that cannot be considered to be threatening or strange, “The easiest way do this is avoid eye contact,” she said.
1. What is people’s response to the lift etiquette according to Gray?| A．Thinking much of it. | B．Avoiding it on purpose. |
| C．Researching it continuously. | D．Ignoring it unconsciously. |
| A．It’s funny and quick. | B．It’s strange and dangerous. |
| C．It’s interesting but awkward. | D．It’s convenient but boring. |
| A．Talk loudly to each other. | B．Keep still and silence. |
| C．Use mobile phones. | D．Keep a close distance. |
| A．To show how to ride each elevators. |
| B．To introduce some rules of elevator etiquette. |
| C．To show how to break awkwardness of riding lifts， |
| D．To analyze the reasons for keeping elevator etiquette. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】There are many people out there who want to be “part of the crowd.” If you want to be the leader and stand out from the crowd instead, then this article is for you.
Be yourself and love yourself. In order to be as different as possible, you have to beyou — not a carbon copy of someone else. If you don’t know who you are, that process can seem a bit scary.
Try new things. We are naturally raised as part of a group,
Know the world works in opposites. Nothing is really as it seems. So many people are trying to be different, and it results in them all being the same! Being quiet may mean that when you talk, people hear you louder. When you’re not trying to attract that boy or girl, they become attracted to you.
Know you’ll bump heads. Society isn’t super good at accepting what isn’t trendy. People are praised for being fashionable and pretty—few are praised for expanding our limits and coloring outside the lines.
| A．Color outside the lines. |
| B．Note your environment. |
| C．It’s important to love yourself, too. |
| D．So trying to be different may not get you anywhere. |
| E．but hose people may not welcome you with open arms. |
| F．Criticism is going to happen if you step outside of the box at all. |
| G．so we’re constantly being exposed to things others have already approved. |
Greetings and small talk are an important part of conversation in any language. The way people greet each other and the things they talk about, however, may be different from one language to another. This shows that there is much more to learn when we learn a language than just the vocabulary and the grammar of the language. We also have to learn the social behavior of the people who speak it.
1. Small talk is ________.
| A．a kind of conversation with short words |
| B．a greeting when people meet each other |
| C．to let people disagree about something |
| D．something we talk about to start with a conversation |
| A．learn about the transport system of the country |
| B．only master the grammar and vocabulary |
| C．know the culture about the country |
| D．grasp the importance of the language |
| A．asking a question | B．having a conversation |
| C．greeting each other | D．beginning a small talk |
| A．different language has different grammar |
| B．small talk is an important part in a language |
| C．small talk depends on the purpose of the conversation |
| D．in English speaking countries we should talk about the weather |
【推荐3】So many things can keep you from seeing your loved ones in person, from busy schedules to long distances to a rather unexpected COVID－19 virus. Fortunately, thanks to modern technology, the people we miss are often only a phone call or text message away. But if you’re someone who prefers to type out messages, you may want to reconsider. A new study, published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology, found that communication that included voice, like a phone call or video chat, created stronger social relationships than communication through typing, like text messaging or email.
In the study, researchers used various experiments to measure relationships. In one, they asked 200 people what it would be like to reconnect with an old friend by email or by phone and then asked them to do one or the other. Although people anticipated that a phone call would be more awkward, hearing someone’s voice actually made the experience better.
“People reported they did form a stronger relationship with their old friend on the phone compared with email, and they did not feel more awkward,” said Amit Kumar, an assistant professor of marketing at the McCombs School of Business.
In another experiment, the researchers had strangers connected by either texting, talking over video chat, or talking using only audio. They found that both forms of voice communication—whether video or audio only — made the strangers feel significantly more connected than when they communicated by text.
Sabrina Romanoff, a Harvard psychologist, says, “People tend to text or email instead of calling because of convenience, as they see it as a controlled form of communication where they can communicate information exactly in the way they want without unexpected additions by the other person.”
Romanoff says that in reality, texting can make it hard to determine the true meaning behind a conversation. “A phone call is actually more convenient when considering the net effects of the message,” she explains. “Each party is more present, and therefore, able to understand the meaning behind the content without thinking about the endless possible meanings behind words.”
1. How did the researchers carry out the study?| A．By comparing. | B．By reasoning. | C．By imagining. | D．By discussing. |
| A．Ensured. | B．Refused. | C．Expected. | D．Disagreed. |
| A．texting makes them feel more connected |
| B．they feel awkward when making a phone call |
| C．texting helps communicate their information exactly |
| D．calling helps determine the true meaning behind the conversation |
| A．Texting does harm to social relationships. |
| B．Voice communication brings people closer. |
| C．A phone call does more good than a text message. |
| D．People prefer a text message rather than a phone call. |
【推荐1】Many people have long dreamed of being able to fly around as simply as riding a bicycle.
Yet the safety and strength of a flying bike was always a big problem. Over the past 10 years’ developments in technology have moved the dream of personal flying vehicle closer to reality. Now, two groups of inventors say such vehicles may be available very soon .
Grant Stapleton from Malloy Aeronautics says the Hoverbike, which is able to get in and out of small spaces very quickly, will be a truly personal flying vehicle. " It can be moved across continents very quickly because it can be folded and packed, " he adds.
Mr. Stapleton says safety was the company's main concern when developing the Hoverbike, He says the designers solved the safety issue by using overlapping rotors （折叠旋翼）to power the vehicle. The company is testing both a one-third size model and a full-size prototype （原型)）of the Hoverbike.
Inventors say their Hovebike will most likely be used first by the police and emergency rescue teams.
In New Zealand, the Martin Aircraft Company is also testing a full-size prototype of its personal flying bike, called Jetpack. It can fly for more than 30 minutes, up to 1,000 meters high and reach a speed of 74 kilometers per hour.
Peter Coker is the CEO of Martin Aircraft Company. He said Jetpack " is built around safety from the start ” In his words, reliability is the most important part of it. We have safety built into the actual structure itself very similar to a Formula One racing car."
Jetpack uses a gasoline-powered engine that produces two powerful jet streams. Mr. Coker says it also has a parachute （降落伞）that can be used should there be an emergency.
"It opens at a very low altitude and actually saves both the aircraft and the pilot in an emergency," he adds.
1. Which of the following words can best describe the Hoverbike?| A．Powerful. | B．convenient |
| C．graceful | D．available. |
| A．Modern technology. | B．New safety rules. |
| C．Love of cycling. | D．Public concerns. |
| A．People who dream of flying. | B．People who really love cycling. |
| C．people who design the bike. | D．People who serve public purposes. |
【推荐2】While it may seem like fish will drive cars when pigs fly, in a new experiment scientists put goldfish’s sense of direction to the test.
A scientific team at Ben-Gurion University in Israel taught several goldfish to drive a robotic “car” — a tank of water on wheels-around a room. Researchers’ originally thought teaching goldfish to navigate(航行)such unfamiliar areas may seem like a fish-out-of-water idea, but they took to it like naturals.
The motorized fish tank was equipped with a camera to track the fish’s position. When the goldfish swam towards one of the walls, the fishmobile drove in that direction.
The researchers trained the fish over a dozen 30-minute sessions to drive to the center of a small room towards a pink board by giving the fish a treat whenever it arrived at its destination. In the first session, the goldfish averaged between 2-3 successful trips. By the end of the experiment, the fish were averaging between 17-18 successful trips per session. As with humans, some of the fish behaved smarter and quicker than others-taking faster and more direct paths to their target.
Throughout the experiment, researchers changed up the starting position of the fishmobiles. Even in different locations, the goldfish were still able to reach the pink board. This finding ruled out the possibility that the fish were just memorizing the pattern of movements to get to their reward. These marine animals were actually planning new routes to get to their destination.
“That was pretty conclusive that the fish actually navigate,” said Ohad Ben-Shahar, coauthor of the study. The animals’ sense of direction and orientation isn’t limited to the water.
Maybe next they’ll teach a fish how to ride a bicycle.
1. What does the underlined word “they” in paragraph 2 refer to?| A．Researchers. | B．Goldfish. | C．Areas. | D．Naturals. |
| A．They used a camera to lead their way. | B．They pointed out the paths to their target. |
| C．They provided a reward to encourage them. | D．They fixed the rounds of trips to the target. |
| A．To test fish’s memorizing ability. | B．To avoid fish remembering paths. |
| C．To find out fish’s movement pattern. | D．To help fish determine the direction. |
| A．Serious. | B．Critical. | C．Light. | D．Ironic. |
【推荐3】At any moment, about half the world’s population is wearing denim（牛仔布）clothes. But few realize tiny bits of denim have been adding up to a surprising amount of pollution in water, as a new study shows.
Sam Athey, one of the study’s authors, says, “Even though denim is made of a natural material—cotton, it contains chemicals.” Cotton fibers were treated with many types of chemicals, she notes. Some improve its durability and feel. Others give denim its distinctive blue color.
Athey and her team washed jeans and found that about 50,000 microfibers came off from each pair per wash. Not all of those fibers make their way into the environment. Wastewater treatment plants catch about 83 to 99 percent of them. Catching 99 percent may sound pretty good. But one percent of 50,000 is still 500 fibers per wash. And since every pair of jeans is washed again and again, it still adds up to lots of microfibers entering the water environment.
Denim microfibers showed up in sediment（沉淀物）from the Great Lakes. More of these fibers polluted a series of shallow lakes in southern Ontario. They even turned up in sediment from the Arctic Ocean in northern Canada. The team found denim accounted for 12 to 23 percent of microfibers in the sediment. There were other microfibers too. But the team focused on denim because so many people wear jeans.
“Everyone wears jeans so they could be our largest input of microfibers into our streams and soils,” Athey says. “An easy way to limit that is by washing our jeans less often.” Athey grew up thinking she should wash her jeans after wearing them every couple of times, but most jean companies recommend washing them no more than once a month. “The solution is not that you shouldn’t wear jeans,” she says. “We need to buy fewer denim clothes and only wash them when they truly need it.”
1. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?| A．Chemicals are contained in natural cotton. |
| B．Chemicals can make denim colorful. |
| C．Chemicals prevent fibers from falling. |
| D．Chemicals can make the life of denim longer. |
| A．Denim. | B．Sediment. | C．Microfibers. | D．Chemicals. |
| A．To avoid wearing jeans. | B．To reduce denim consumption. |
| C．To wash jeans more often. | D．To limit input in denim production. |
| A．Science. | B．Entertainment. | C．Tourism. | D．Geography. |
【推荐1】Train travel is becoming more popular. Amtrak, the US. national passenger rail company, reports that rider ship(公共交通工具的客流量) continues to grow each year. The passenger kilometres and numbers of passenger journeys are also increasing. There’s every reason to believe train travel will continue to attract more passengers as fuel prices climb.
As you plan your vacation, you’ll need to consider the advantages and disadvantages of train travel. Here are some things that you need to keep in mind.
Train travel is fast and direct between major cities, especially in countries with high-speed trains. It’s relatively easy to book a train trip. In many countries, you can book your tickets online or go to a train station to buy them. For single or couple travelers, travelling by train can be much less expensive than renting a car, especially when you consider the cost of fuel and tolls (通行费).
However, train schedules may not match your preferred travel times and days, so you might have to change your trip. This is especially true for long-distance train travel in the US. You may have to get off the train at midnight in a small station in an empty town in order to make a train connection.
You need to bring your own food and drink onto the train as the food and drink served on trains can be expensive. Conditions on the train may be crowded, dirty or uncomfortable, especially at busy travel times or in developing countries.
In the end, you’ll need to do some research on train ticket prices, check schedules against your own plan and weigh the advantages and disadvantages of train travel against your personal preferences.
1. What may be one cause of train travel increase from the text?| A．More new railways. |
| B．Growing fuel prices. |
| C．Improved train schedules. |
| D．Convenient food service. |
a. It is the cheapest mode of travel.
b. It is easy to book a train ticket online.
c. It is cheaper for single or couple travellers.
d. It is fast and direct between big cities.
e. It’s easy to bring your own food and drink.
| A．abe | B．abd |
| C．cde | D．bcd |
| A．They might have to change a train midway for a long-distance trip. |
| B．They might have to pay for the fuel and tolls. |
| C．They might have to exchange another train in a crowded town. |
| D．They might have to book train tickets. |
【推荐2】British English may have come first, but around the world, the American way of spelling is now far more popular.
A recent examination of the English language shows that publications now largely use the American version swapping words like “centre” for “center” after the 1880s. To get data, researchers used Google’s Ngram Viewer to analyze the words found in all English-language publications from 1800 to 2000. Entering a word into the viewer will show how frequently it occurs within the massive corpus(语料库)of books around the world.
According to the data, this shift was further strengthened around World War I. Since then, English-language publications have preferred “gray” and “flavor” instead of “grey” and “flavour”. The American spelling has continued to grow over the years, with “liter” passing “liter” around 1900, and “center” becoming the more common choice over “centre” in 1913. “1913 marked a turning point in British spelling, as the American alternative became more frequently used in literature,” the post explains, in regard to “center”. This was just a year before the beginning of World War I, which many views as a key period in America’s rise to superpower status.
Though this switched again between 1920s and the late 1930s, the American, spelling took over for good around 1940, during which time the spelling “airplane” shifted dramatically over “aeroplane”.
Ever since the middle of the 19th century, even the British Isles have slowly rejected the old spelling. The future is gray for British English.
1. Which of the following is true?| A．American spelling takes over all the time. |
| B．British people refuse to use American spelling. |
| C．All the media prefer American spelling. |
| D．The change in spelling is more obvious around World War I. |
| A．The popularity of American spelling. |
| B．The examples of the change in spelling. |
| C．The history of English spelling. |
| D．The reason for the change in English spelling. |
| A．by space | B．by time |
| C．by process | D．by logic |
| A．introduce the change of English spelling |
| B．encourage the change in English spelling |
| C．compare the difference between American spelling and British spelling |
| D．introduce different views on English spelling |
【推荐3】When going on holiday, you normally expect nothing but to relax, enjoy yourselves and above all stay safe. Sometimes, you may sadly have to face certain unexpected problems that would end your sweet holidays without any warning, such as a typhoon or an earthquake. But holidaymakers at the Red Sea resort in Egypt are facing a different problem, which you may have never thought of before.
The resort is famous for its golden beaches, warm sea and nice weather, and it is an excellent place for scuba diving(带水肺潜水). But at the moment, no tourists are willing to take the risk of diving into the water due to the recent shark attacks. These attacks have caused one death and several injuries over the last few weeks.
According to some biologists, these sharks live in the open ocean, and are frequently seen in the ocean of this region. But as they have pointed out, it was not common for swimmers to run into them in shallow waters.
Experts are still not sure what has lured the sharks into these waters and to attack people. However, they all believe that shark attacks are extremely rare and they are definitely not man-eaters as shown in films like Jaws. One thought is that animal carcasses(尸体) were recently thrown into the sea from a ship close to the shore. Some experts believe that it could just be a case of people being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
A shark attack might make you think twice before stepping into the sea, but things may not be as severe as you've thought. According to recent research, there are about 70 to 100 attacks on humans per year, and only a small number of them are fatal.
Mark Williams runs a scuba diving company at the resort, and he is concerned about how the local authorities will deal with these sharks. ''Tens of millions of sharks have been hunted and killed by humans every year!'' Mark points out. ''They are an essential part of the marine(海洋的) ecosystem.''
1. We can learn from the passage that_______.| A．over the last few weeks only one person has been injured in the shark attacks. |
| B．sharks frequently visit this region and swimmers often meet them in shallow waters. |
| C．experts think that sharks rarely attack people as shown in the film Jaws. |
| D．experts know for sure why sharks attack people. |
| A．Drawn | B．Attracted | C．Forced | D．Tempted |
| A．the animals' dead bodies thrown into the sea have lured sharks |
| B．humans do more harm to sharks than sharks do to humans |
| C．sharks attack people completely by accident |
| D．shark attacks are not as dangerous as people have imagined |
【推荐1】Les Brown was adopted by Mamie Brown, a kitchen worker and maid. Due to the learning disability, Les was placed in special education class throughout high school. Upon graduation, he became a city cleaner in Miami Beach. But he had a dream of being a DJ.
At night, he would take a radio to bed, listening to the talking DJs. He created an imaginary radio station in his tiny room with a hairbrush as his microphone, practicing introducing records to his ghost listeners.
One day, Les bravely went to the local radio station during his lunch break and told the manager he wanted to be a DJ. But the manager told him they had no job for him. The station manager assumed that he had seen the last of this young man. But he underestimated the depth of Les’s devotion to his goal. You see, Les had a higher purpose than simply wanting to be a DJ—buying a nicer house for his adoptive mother.
So Les returned to the station every day for a week, asking if there were any job openings. Finally the station manager gave in and took him on as an errand boy—at no pay. Les did whatever was asked of him at the station, and more. While hanging out with the DJs, he taught himself their hand movements on the control panel. Then, back in his bedroom at night, he practiced and prepared himself for the opportunity that he knew would present itself.
One afternoon, a DJ named Rock was drinking while on the air. Les was the only other person in the building. Only minutes after the program was on, the phone rang. It was the station manager Mr. Klein, who asked whether he knew how to work the controls in the studio. That afternoon, he impressed the audience and his general manager. From then on, Les went on to a successful career in broadcasting, politics, public speaking and television.
1. What led to Les’s being put in special education class?| A．His poor family. | B．His difficulty in learning. |
| C．His physical disability. | D．His dream of being a DJ. |
| A．To become a DJ at a radio station. | B．To buy a better house for Mamie Brown. |
| C．To create his own radio station. | D．To realize the dream of his adoptive mother. |
| A．Because he was ready for the job. | B．Because he went there every day. |
| C．Because he loved the job very much. | D．Because his persistence moved the manager. |
| A．No pains, no gains. | B．Practice makes perfect. |
| C．Opportunity favors those prepared. | D．Interest is the key to success. |
【推荐2】Doctors in hospital emergency rooms often see accidental poisonings. A frightened parent arrives with a child who swallowed a cleaning liquid. Or perhaps the harmful substance is a medicine. Or it might be a chemical product meant to kill insects. These are common causes of accidental poisoning.
In cases like this, seek medical help as soon as possible. Save the container of whatever caused the poisoning. And look on the container for information about anything that stops the effects of the poison. Save anything expelled from the mouth of the victim. That way, doctors can examine it.
In the past, some people forced poisoning victims to empty the stomach. They need a liquid syrup of ipecac(催呕剂) to do this. But an organization of children’s doctors no longer advises parents to keep syrup of ipecac. The American Academy of Pediatrics says some poisons can cause additional damage when they come back up the throat.
Millions of people know a way to save a person who is choking on something trapped in the throat. The method is commonly known as the Heimlich Manoeuvre or abdominal thrusts(腹部按压), which you can do by getting directly behind a sitting or standing person. Put your arms around the victim’s waist. Close one hand to form a ball. Place it over the upper part of the stomach below the ribs. Place the other hand on top. Then push forcefully inward and upward. Repeat the abdominal thrusts until the object is expelled from the mouth. For someone who is pregnant or very fat, place your hands a little higher than with normal abdominal thrusts.
Red Cross experts say taking these steps can save many lives. But they also warn that abdominal thrusts are not for people who have almost drowned. They say the use of the method could delay other ways to re-start breathing in the victim. Abdominal thrust should be used only in cases where a near-drowning victim is choking on an object.
To learn more about first aid, ask a hospital or organization like a Red Cross or Red Crescent Society for information. There may be training classes offered in your area. If you know first aid methods, you can be calmer and more helpful in case of emergency.
1. Which of the following is NOT the common cause of accidental poisonings?| A．A harmful medicine. | B．A cleaning liquid. |
| C．Poisonous insects. | D．Dangerous pesticide. |
| A．coming out | B．taking up |
| C．going away | D．getting down |
| A．Abdominal thrusts are very complex to perform. |
| B．The Heimlich Manoeuvre is not suitable for the overweight. |
| C．Syrup of ipecac once had a postive effect on poisoning victims. |
| D．It is more cautious to save a drowning person using abdominal thrusts. |
| A．To warn people to avoid accidental poisonings. |
| B．To provide a short medical guide to first aid. |
| C．To show how to perform abdominal thrusts. |
| D．To help people deal with accidental poisonings. |
【推荐3】If our kids don’t fall, they don’t learn to get up. I still remember the day in high school that my mom forgot to pick me up from school. I’m the oldest of four children, and no doubt she’d had a long day with the other kids and it’d slipped her mind. After waiting at school for an hour, I walked the three miles home, and when I got to my house, I shut our front door with anger, stormed into the kitchen and screamed in my mom’s face that she’d forgotten me.
Later that night, my dad told me I no longer had a ride to school the next day. I figured my mom would still take me, but when the morning came, she refused. It was midterm, and as a straight-A student ready to start college applications, being late wasn’t an option (选择). In my mind, missing these tests would have been the end of my academic career. I begged my mom. I told her she was ruining my future and everything I’d worked for. But she held her ground, and that day, I walked to school. And I missed my tests.
My mom didn’t rescue me from failure. She let me suffer from it. She let me figure it out. She let me learn. Now, as a mom myself, I’ve realized that I want my kids to experience failure because failure is how we grow, learn and think outside of ourselves. It’s how we self-educate to learn what’s right and respectable, and what’s not. It’s how we become responsible and enthusiastic. Falling down makes us better because we learn how to get up.
1. What is one of the reasons that the author got angry that day?| A．She was tired. | B．She failed in a test. |
| C．She was late for school. | D．She had to walk home by herself. |
| A．Terrible. | B．Meaningful. | C．Embarrassing. | D．Colorful. |
| A．gave in to me | B．said yes to me |
| C．stayed in the place | D．kept to her idea |
| A．My Way of Growing | B．The Value of Failure |
| C．My Love for Mother | D．Failure in My Life |
