“When we first rescued Ovi, he was bleeding from a cut on his leg and we realized his flight feathers were gone, as well as him being really dirty,” El Oud told The Dodo. “We later discovered he had a fever.” They brought the pelican(鹈鹕) back to shore, and El Oud researched how to care for the bird. With the help of the wildlife rehabilitation group Lebanese Wildlife, they were able to nurse Ovi back to health.
El Oud trained Ovi through positive reinforcement so he could better care for him and Ovi quickly caught on. “When he acted well, I’d give him a fish, and when he didn't I'd just ignore it,” El Oud said. “In less than a day, he became a very friendly bird toward me. [He’s a] very intelligent animal.”
Unfortunately, without his flight feathers, most likely clipped by wildlife traffickers, Ovi could no longer make it long distances. Luckily, he was already in the perfect place to get his strength back.
El Oud’s father, Ali, is the manager at the seaside restaurant Abou Mounir Fishery in Beirut, Lebanon. Ali knew Ovi would be safe at the marina, where the family is friendly with all the locals and fishermen. Soon, protecting and caring for Ovi became a community effort. El Oud fed Ovi around the marina until the pelican learned where the fish were coming from and became the restaurant’s best customer.
Now, Ovi waddles into the bustling café to get a snack multiple times a day. “Essentially, what he does is hang out down from the restaurant and does whatever he wants,” El Oud said. “But sometimes if he's hungry and wants food, he comes up by himself because he realized that's where the food is coming from.”
Ovi has become something of a mascot for the restaurant, but the family hopes he can also become a symbol of how to properly interact with wildlife. “Everyone here takes care of him. He’s become the symbol of this place,” Ali El Oud told The National. “Hopefully, he won’t become domestic and will migrate again. We want him to have a life that a pelican should have.”
1. Which can be defined as positive reinforcement according to the text?| A．Jack passed the English exam and he didn’t need to help do housework. |
| B．Jack passed the English exam and he was rewarded with a bike. |
| C．Jack failed in the English exam and he had to help do housework. |
| D．Jack failed in the English exam and he wouldn’t get a bike. |
| A．Drug traffickers. | B．Wildlife dealers. |
| C．Wildlife activists. | D．Locals and fishermen. |
| A．Negative. | B．Curious. |
| C．Indifferent. | D．Supportive. |
| A．Ovi may end up in the wild. |
| B．Ovi is afraid of people. |
| C．Ali El wants to keep Ovi as a pet. |
| D．Ovi is always hungry. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Have you ever tried to get your desired things at 1 a.m. in the middle of exam season? The ones that convince you to walk to Hillside in the middle of a snowstorm just for a slice of cheesecake?
Well, I have too. But instead of wanting something normal and yummy like ice cream or cookies, I’ve been longing for cauliflower. I know half of you stopped reading just now. It’s okay. Honestly, I get it. For those of you who stuck around, let’s talk vegetables.
Unlike those terrifyingly healthy food bloggers, my recent adventures in vegetables originated from an existential crisis concerning global warming. It turns out food production is one of the highest producers of the greenhouse gases that contribute to the breakdown of Earth’s ozone layer (臭氧层). And one of the simplest ways to make a difference is by eating more vegetables and less meat and cheese. So I’ve been forcing myself to eat more vegetables to convince myself that Earth can exist after 2050. And just like those terrifying food bloggers say, it has become a habit.
Now, I don’t just chow down on raw cauliflower stems for lunch. Instead, I like to dress up the vegetables, and it turns out the real trick to make them taste good is a perfect seasoning blend (调味品).
And let me tell you, I’ve become addicted to one of my own creations: olive oil, garlic salt, white pepper, and dill. The mixture is cooked at 375℉ for 20-30 minutes. This works on just about any vegetable you can roast. Plus, it’s so good it’s been proven to cause longings.
Eating responsibly is about so much more than “eating healthy.” It’s just as important to eat food you enjoy. If you crave cheesecake, eat cheesecake. If you want to opt for the more head of cauliflower, eat cauliflower.
After all, living to 2050 isn’t worth much if you aren’t happy.
1. Why does the author begin to eat vegetables?| A．The author always adores them. |
| B．The author follows the trend. |
| C．The author wants to pass the exams. |
| D．The author thinks it benefits environment. |
| A．The author eats raw vegetables. |
| B．The author toasts vegetables. |
| C．The author boils vegetables. |
| D．The author dresses up to eat vegetables. |
| A．He may be an artist. | B．He may be a cook. |
| C．He may be a student. | D．He may be a clerk. |
| A．Humorous. | B．Critical. |
| C．Confused. | D．Ambiguous. |
【推荐2】A 90-year-old may not be typical for a show's narrator（解说员）,but without the voice of English broadcaster Sir David Attenborough,one of the most successful new shows on television just wouldn't be the same.
BBC's Planet EarthⅡis getting good ratings in the United Kingdom.And Sir David,the man behind the show's voice,describes it as "greatly pleasing".The naturalist is the father of nature documentaries（纪录片）,with a television career that started in 1950.Since then,the London-born broadcaster has traveled the world intent on sharing his discoveries through the television in new ways.
Ever since his first wildlife documentary series,1954's Zoo Quest,Sir David's voice has become synonymous（同义）with environmental protection.Concerned with how humans are harming the planet,he attempts to educate viewers on the threats and dangers that are present today.He's used his profile to raise important issues like global warming,deforestation,climate change and overpopulation.
"We can't go on increasing at the rate human beings are increasing forever,because the Earth is finite（有限）and you can't put infinity into something that is finite,"he told The Independent two years ago."So if we don't do something about it then the world will do something about it."
And after almost 30 years of nature-based programming,Sir David's efforts to protect wildlife and the environment have not gone unnoticed.His work has been significant in reconnecting an increasingly disconnected human population with the environment of the planet that we not only come from but also rely on.
1. What can we learn about Planet EarthⅡ?| A．It was made in 1950. |
| B．It is now very popular. |
| C．It is broadcast all over the world. |
| D．It was filmed in the United Kingdom. |
| A．In 1950. |
| B．In 1954. |
| C．When he is 90 years old. |
| D．After 30 years of hard work. |
| A．We will lose control of the worsening of the Earth. |
| B．He will help to deal with some important issues. |
| C．Measures should be taken to protect the Earth. |
| D．Human population should stop increasing. |
| A．Optimistic. | B．Ambitious. |
| C．Generous. | D．Devoted. |
【推荐3】A new study suggests that crop insurance serves as a disincentive （抑制因素） for farmers to adopt climate change relief measures on their croplands.
The study by researchers at North Carolina State University examined the interactions of warmer temperatures, crop yield （产量） risk and crop insurance participation by farmers. For the study, researchers developed models using historical county-level corn and soybean yield data in the United States, with an eye toward understanding the production impacts of rising temperatures.
The researchers found that variation in crop yield due to higher temperatures rose when more farmers had crop insurance. Interestingly, the results showed greater variability effects for corn yields than for soybean yields.
“This could be an unintended consequence of the government’s providing subsidies for crop insurance, which costs a large sum of money,” said Rod M. Rejesus, professor of agricultural and resource economics at NC State and the author of the research study. “The concept of moral crisis could be present here. If insurance will cover crop losses due to various effects like drought or severe weather, a farmer may not want to pay the extra expense for climate change adaptation efforts such as using cover crops to improve soil health, for example.”
The study models indicate that an increase of daily minimum and maximum temperatures of 1 degree Celsius would increase county-level corn yield variability by 8. 6 bushels （1 bushel equals to 35. 24 L） per acre if 80% of farmers in a county have crop insurance. The same temperature rise in a county with 10％ crop insurance participation would increase corn yield variability by just 6.2 bushels per acre.
The researchers bring up possible solutions to this situation for policymakers. They include providing more subsidies to encourage farmers’ use of climate change relief efforts—like soil health practices—and starting high-level policy conversations about how to possibly adjust rules and guidelines that govern crop insurance contracts in order to reduce the disincentive effects.
1. What does the study find about crop insurance?| A．It ensures crop production. | B．It leads to unexpected side effects. |
| C．It results in worse climate change. | D．It doesn’t bring any benefits to farmers. |
| A．Market support. | B．Verbal support. |
| C．Technical assistance. | D．Financial aid. |
| A．Moral crisis. | B．Law issue. |
| C．Study models. | D．Custom change. |
| A．By doing experiments. | B．By making a comparison. |
| C．By listing figures. | D．By consulting experts. |
【推荐1】NBA commissioner David Stern was in Orlando on Thursday night, getting ready for Sunday’s All-Star Game. Of course, all he could talk about was the only player anyone wants to talk about these days: New York Knicks guard Jeremy Lin.
Hours before Lin took the court against the Heat, a few hundred miles South down I-95 in Miami, Stern told reporters that Lin’s instant popularity hasn’t ever been matched in sports history, not even by Sunday’s biggest names, LeBron James or Kobe Bryant.
The Associated Press had the details.
“I haven’t done a calculation, but it’s fair to say that no player has created the interest and the craze in this short period of time, in any sport, that I’m aware of like Jeremy Lin has,” Stern said Thursday.
Lin, an undrafted(未选秀的)guard from Harvard, has become the NBA’s biggest story since coming off the Knicks’ bench earlier this month to lead them to nine wins in 11 games heading into their matchup with Miami on Thursday night.
With Lin’s popularity in Asia as the league’s first American-born player of Chinese or Taiwanese descent, and with the religious community because of his strong Christian faith, Stern says he’s “never quite seen anything like” the attention on Lin.
“It’s fascinating,” Stern said after the All-Star Jam Session opening ceremonies.
The top five videos on NBA.com since Feb. 4, when Lin joined the circulation, are all Lin or Knicks related. Lin went from 190,000 followers on Sina, China’s version of Twitter, on Feb. 2 to more than 1 million as of Feb. 16.
Indeed, Lin’s popularity is so out of this world that the NBA made a late list switch to ensure his participation in the Rising Stars Challenge on All-Star Saturday, a game that includes the NBA’s best rookies(新秀球员)and sophomores. Lin is in such high demand that all of the game’s other participants will meet with the media following a team practice on Friday while Lin will have his own, separate press conference later in the night.
This is Jeremy’s world, folks. We’re all just living in it. Even David Stern and the rest of the league’s All-Stars, at least for the moment.
1. The following statements about Jeremy Lin’s instant popularity are true EXCEPT that ______.| A．Jeremy Lin led New York Knicks to win all the recent games this month |
| B．David Stern said Lin was the only instant popular player in NBA’s history |
| C．Lin has become the NBA’s greatest story though he was an undrafted guard |
| D．no player has created the interest and the enthusiasm in such a short period of time |
| A．Because Jeremy Lin was born in Taiwan with strong Christian faith. |
| B．Maybe because he is the first player born in America but has Chinese descent. |
| C．Because Sina has a large group of surfing people, maybe more than 10 million. |
| D．Because the top five videos on NBA. com since Feb. 4 are all Lin or Knicks related. |
| A．impossible | B．important | C．exceptional | D．excellent |
| A．Knowledge starts with practice. | B．Failure is the mother of success. |
| C．Every dog has its day. | D．No pains, no gains. |
【推荐2】United States health officials are urging people to stop using electronic cigarettes, known as e-cigarettes. The call to action came after such products were linked to health problems. Five deaths have also been reported. E-cigarettes are a popular substitute for smoking products. The electronic devices heat liquid that includes flavoring, nicotine and other chemicals into vapor—very small particles that users breathe in. Nicotine is found in many plants, including tobacco. E-cigarettes or similar devices also can provide THC or other substances to users. THC is the natural chemical present in marijuana(大麻) plants that gives users the mental state known as a “high”.
E-cigarettes are said to be safer than normal cigarettes because they do not create the cancer-causing byproducts of burning tobacco.Yet health officials say e-cigarette users have reported shortness of breath and other breathing problems, such as coughing and chest pain. Some have been sick to the stomach, felt very tired, suffered weight loss or developed high body temperatures. One report noted that most of the 53 illnesses reported in Illinois and Wisconsin were related to THC vaping(气化) products. But nearly 20 percent of the patients inhaled(吸入)substances like nicotine from e-cigarettes. Most of the reported cases were of young men.
The report found that, “Since no single product or substance has been associated with the illness, persons should consider not using e-cigarettes while this investigation is ongoing.” Last November, The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, reported that “e-cigarette use increased considerably among U.S. middle and high school students during 2017—2018.” Among high school students, it found e-cigarette use rose from 220,000 students in 2011 to 3.05 million in 2018.
On Monday, the Food and Drug Administration, or FDA gave a warning to JUUL Labs, maker of the best-selling e-cigarettes. The FDA accused the company of illegally marketing its products as being “safer than cigarettes” without the agency's approval.In a statement, the FDA's acting commissioner said that, “JUUL has ignored the law, and has made some of these statements in school to our nation's youth.” A JUUL spokesman said the company is studying the FDA's comments and “will fully cooperate”.
1. Which of the following can best describe e-cigarettes?| A．Deadly. | B．Harmless. |
| C．Infectious. | D．Effective. |
| A．They will be healthier. |
| B．They will lose weight. |
| C．They will feel excited. |
| D．They will be peaceful. |
| A．Students became its main marketing targets. |
| B．FDA didn't agree on its way of promoting its products. |
| C．It completely denied what it was accused of. |
| D．E-cigarettes were invented by it. |
| A．Say “No” to cigarettes |
| B．A sharp rise of e-cigarettes use among young people. |
| C．Safer e-cigarettes are needed for health. |
| D．E-cigarettes—a potential killer. |
【推荐3】Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft, which has been transporting all astronauts to and from the International Space Station（ISS）since 2011, typically carries a crew of three. However, the MS-14 capsule launched（发射）from a Russian spaceport in southern Kazakhstan on August 22, 2019, had just one passenger—a human-like robot named Skybot F-850.
The robot is the latest version of Russia’s FEDOR robots, which were initially designed to help with search and rescue efforts. Skybot is good at many human skills, including driving a car, having short conversations, and even telling jokes. But since it lacks some special sills, the spacecraft to the ISS was piloted from the ground by scientists from Russia’s space Agency. Roscosmos.
The six-foot-tall, 350-pound robot had another important task while on board. Without risking the lives of human astronauts, it helped Roscosmos researchers test the safety and flight experience of the new Soyuz-2.1, a carrier rocket, which carried the spacecraft into orbit. The feedback（反馈）will be important in determining if the rocket is safe to transport future human crews to space.
Though the launch into orbit went smoothly, Skybot’s arrival at the ISS was delayed by three days, from August 24 to August 27. The delay didn’t seem to bother the robot, which announced its arrival, “Sorry about the delay. Met with traffic. Ready to work now.”
Skybot’s two-week task is largely a test to measure its ability to work effectively in microgravity, and includes simple tasks like using tools. If all goes well, Russia hopes to send more advanced versions of the FEDOR robots to help astronauts with special tasks.
Earlier this year, the US space agency launched two little robots called Astrobees to help astronauts with daily chores, like finding lost pieces of equipment. Meanwhile, the European Space Agency’s social AI-powered CIMON spent a year assisting astronauts, before returning to Earth on August 27, 2019.
1. What is Skybot F-850 unable to do？| A．Drive a vehicle like humans. | B．Conduct short conversations. |
| C．Say something funny to people. | D．Pilot the spacecraft to the ISS. |
| A．Two days. | B．Three days. |
| C．Five days. | D．Fourteen days. |
| A．is bound to take the place of human crews |
| B．isn’t the first robot to help at the space station |
| C．worked with two other robots to assist astronauts |
| D．was launched to measure its security and flexibility |
| A．A science experiment. | B．A news report. |
| C．A technology guidebook. | D．A research paper. |
【推荐1】Last summer my daughter’s school was blown up. No students were harmed, but the main building was completely destroyed, as well as the nearby dorms.
Before you start trying to ask when this horrible act took place on U. S. soil, I should mention that this attack didn’t happen in reality, rather in my daughter’s carefully constructed Minecraft world. During an online journey with a few friends, a stranger came to her school and bombed the school she had carefully built. In a minute, her school was ruined. Sure, no actual property(财产)was damaged. But the emotional pain she felt was very much real. She thought this was a form of terrorism.
I shared this act of absurd online violence on my Facebook page, and fellow parents with Minecraft-loving children were just as shocked as I was. I had thought this was a unique experience, and my daughter was just unlucky that this happened to her. But, as it turned out, she was far from alone. The acts were performed by computer bullies(暴徒) known as “griefers”. The platform that my daughter was playing was the Minecraft: Pocket Edition(PE)version, which is popular with younger players. While she once only played in creative mode(模式), she began to play in the multi-player mode so that she and a few friends from school could build and create together. That multi-player choice made it possible for a stranger, one of these “griefers”, to do damage.
It was a painful lesson for my daughter that dangers happened suddenly. She understood we have to protect ourselves from bad people in the real world. Still, there was some goodness that came out of the ruins. Many fellow players of hers took the time to help her rebuild her school, which has been set up again. She is moved. Also, this experience opened her eyes.
1. What was the result of the daughter’s school being blown up?| A．All the buildings but the dorms were ruined. |
| B．Many students were seriously injured. |
| C．Money needed to be seriously injured. |
| D．The author’s daughter felt hurt a lot. |
| A．her daughter should be blamed for it |
| B．this attack was just a rare incident |
| C．danger happened all of a sudden on the Internet |
| D．her daughter was too lonely |
| A．They can help players build and create a new world. |
| B．They are performed by computer bullies. |
| C．They are likely to cause damage in the multi-player mode. |
| D．They disturb and cause sadness to game players. |
| A．Quit playing Minecraft. |
| B．Gave up multi-player mode. |
| C．Learned to defend herself against bad people. |
| D．Decided to rebuild her school independently. |
【推荐2】Teenagers need to know their changes in body, mind and emotions that young adults experience. And they also need to give careful thought to how they can best get used to such changes. Growing bodies need movement and exercise, but not just in ways that focus on competition. Because they are adjusting to their new bodies and whole new mental and emotional challenges, teenagers are especially self-conscious (自我意识) and need the confidence that comes from achieving success.
However, the typical teenage lifestyle is already filled with so much competition that it would be unwise to plan activities in which there are winners chosen, for example, publishing newsletters written by students, displaying (展示) student artwork. Small clubs can provide many chances for leadership, as well as for practice in successful group work. Anyway, making friends is important to teenagers. Shy students also need to enter some kind of organization with a supportive adult hardly seen in the background.
In these activities, it is important to remember that young teenagers have long attention time. A variety of activities should be organized so that participants (参与者) can remain active as long as they want and then go on to do something else without letting the other participants alone. This does not mean that adults can allow the students to quit in the middle of the activities. Instead, they can help students win a sense of commitment by playing roles that are within their ability and their attention and by having clear rules.
1. From the first paragraph, we can know that____________.| A．teenagers are weak in body, mind and emotions |
| B．teenagers have to enter a number of competitions |
| C．teenagers are different from either young kids or adults |
| D．teenagers are not able to get used to their changes |
| A．Publishing the newsletters written by students. |
| B．Displaying the winners of student artwork. |
| C．Choosing the best storytellers of a story telling activity. |
| D．Playing games and sharing learning ways at an English corner. |
| A．Responsibility. | B．Achievement. | C．Organization. | D．Credit. |
| A．Teenagers in middle schools. | B．Middle school club organizers. |
| C．Primary school teachers. | D．Parents with small kids. |
Gift No. 1
Offer to be your mother's health friend. Promise to be there for any and all doctor's visits whether a disease or a regular medical check-up. Most mothers always say “no need，” but another set of eyes and ears is always a good idea at a doctor's visit. The best part? This one is free.
Gift No. 2
Help your mother organize all of her medical records, which include the test results and medical information. Put them all in one place. Be sure to make a list of all of her medicines and what times she takes them.“Having all this information in one place could end up saving your mother's life，”Dr Marie Savard said.
Gift No. 3
Enough sleep is connected to general health conditions. “Buy your mother cotton sheets and comfortable pillows to encourage better sleep，” Savard said. “We know that good sleep is very important to our health.”
Gift No. 4
Some gift companies such as Presents for Purpose allow you to pay it forward this Mother's Day by picking gifts in which 10 percent of the price you pay goes to a charity. Gift givers can choose from a wide variety of useful but inexpensive things—many of which are “green”—and then choose a meaningful charity from a list. When your mother gets the gift, she will be told that she has helped the chosen charity.
1. What are you advised to do for your mother at doctor's visits?
| A．Take notes. | B．Be with her. |
| C．Buy medicine. | D．Give her gifts. |
| A．Keeping her medical information together. |
| B．Buying all gifts for her from one company. |
| C．Making a list of her medical check-ups. |
| D．Storing her medicines in a safe place. |
| A．enjoy good sleep | B．be well-organized |
| C．get extra support | D．give others help |
【推荐1】Teenagers need to know their changes in body, mind and emotions that young adults experience. And they also need to give careful thought to how they can best get used to such changes. Growing bodies need movement and exercise, but not just in ways that focus on competition. Because they are adjusting to their new bodies and whole new mental and emotional challenges, teenagers are especially self-conscious (自我意识) and need the confidence that comes from achieving success.
However, the typical teenage lifestyle is already filled with so much competition that it would be unwise to plan activities in which there are winners chosen, for example, publishing newsletters written by students, displaying (展示) student artwork. Small clubs can provide many chances for leadership, as well as for practice in successful group work. Anyway, making friends is important to teenagers. Shy students also need to enter some kind of organization with a supportive adult hardly seen in the background.
In these activities, it is important to remember that young teenagers have long attention time. A variety of activities should be organized so that participants (参与者) can remain active as long as they want and then go on to do something else without letting the other participants alone. This does not mean that adults can allow the students to quit in the middle of the activities. Instead, they can help students win a sense of commitment by playing roles that are within their ability and their attention and by having clear rules.
1. From the first paragraph, we can know that____________.| A．teenagers are weak in body, mind and emotions |
| B．teenagers have to enter a number of competitions |
| C．teenagers are different from either young kids or adults |
| D．teenagers are not able to get used to their changes |
| A．Publishing the newsletters written by students. |
| B．Displaying the winners of student artwork. |
| C．Choosing the best storytellers of a story telling activity. |
| D．Playing games and sharing learning ways at an English corner. |
| A．Responsibility. | B．Achievement. | C．Organization. | D．Credit. |
| A．Teenagers in middle schools. | B．Middle school club organizers. |
| C．Primary school teachers. | D．Parents with small kids. |
【推荐2】For most thinkers since the Greek philosophers, it was self-evident that there is something called human nature, something that constitutes the essence of man. There were various views about what constitutes it, but there was agreement that such an essence exists – that is to say, that there is something by virtue of which man is man. Thus man was defined as a rational being, as a social animal, an animal that can make tools, or a symbol-making animal.
More recently, this traditional view has begun to be questioned. One reason for this change was the increasing emphasis given to the historical approach to man. An examination of the history of humanity suggested that man in our era is so different from man in previous times that it seemed unrealistic to assume that man in every age have had in common something that can be called “human nature”. The historical approach was reinforced, particularly in the United States, by studies in the field of cultural anthropology. The study of primitive peoples has discovered such a diversity of customs, values, feelings, and thoughts that many anthropologists arrived at the concept that man is born as a blank sheet of paper on which each culture writes its text. Another factor contributing to the tendency to deny the assumption of a fixed human nature was that the concept has so often been abused（滥用）as a shield behind which the most inhuman acts are committed. In the name of human nature, for example, Aristotle and most thinkers up to the eighteenth century defended slavery. Or in order to prove the rationality and necessity of the capitalist form of society, scholars have tried to make a case for acquisitiveness（贪婪）, competitiveness, and selfishness as natural human traits. Popularly, one refers cynically to “human nature” in accepting the inevitability（必然）of such undesirable human behavior as greed, murder, lying and cheating.
Another reason for doubts about the concept of human nature probably comes from the influence of evolutionary thinking. Once man came to be seen as developing in the process of evolution, the idea of a substance which is contained in his essence seemed untenable. Yet I believe it is exactly from an evolutionary standpoint that we can expect new insight into the problem of the nature of man.
1. According to the passage, anthropologists believe that human beings _____.| A．have many traits in common | B．are born with diverse cultures |
| C．are born without a fixed nature | D．change their characters as they grow up |
| A．emphasize that he contributed a lot to defining the concept of “human nature” |
| B．show that the concept of “human nature” was used to justify social evils |
| C．prove that he had a profound influence on the concept of “human nature” |
| D．support the idea that some human traits are acquired |
| A．invaluable | B．imaginable |
| C．changeable | D．indefensible |
| A．is the quality distinguishing man from other animals |
| B．consists largely of acquisitiveness, competitiveness and selfishness |
| C．is something partly innate and partly acquired |
| D．changes constantly with the evolution of man |
【推荐3】It is the golden decade,the time in your life when you are carefree and at your happiest.Never again will you enjoy the freedom and thrills of your 20s.A new study has now confirmed the fears of anyone approaching middle-age-people's 20s are their happiest years.
But,while researchers warn of lower life satisfaction for 40 years,there is hope.Their findings show that life does get better at 65,with happiness levels rising.Dr Ioana Ramia,from the University of New South Wales in Australia,said,"Satisfaction over life decreases from the early 20s,plateaus for about 40 years and then increases from about 65 up."
The aim of the research was to help develop policy to target specific age groups.Dr Ramia and her team found that happiness follows a U-curve with the highest levels experienced by those aged 15 to 24 and over 75.
Dr Ramia said,couples reported greatest satisfaction at life just before having their first child and a decrease from the child's first year of life through to when the child reaches six years old and starts school.She said,"It then stays low,but increases slightly,and is the highest around the age of 80.So that's something to look forward to."Her team's research shows a strong connection between the middle-age happiness state and employment opportunities and financial situations,when"money and...jobs matter most".
There was a greater emphasis on the quality of housing itself into middle age and beyond,along with neighborhood and community."At this time happiness is at its lowest and it only starts to increase when people start focusing on other things,like their free time,"said Dr Ramia.Safety was an important aspect of life satisfaction in every age group,while health appeared twice-in the mid-30s with the first awareness of physical fallibility or illness,and again later in life,she said.
Though her research had shed some light onto the drivers of happiness,Dr Ramia said the peak at young and old age remained poorly understood,with question marks around how satisfaction could remain constant across the major parameters described yet manage to increase with age overall. Defining what"satisfaction"was and how it was rated by subjects was also a challenge for future research,she said.
1. The early 20s are thought to be the happiest years possibly because people| A．enjoy their school life very much then |
| B．can enjoy more freedom during that period |
| C．usually have lots of friends in those years. |
| D．are going to have their own family in their life |
| A．keeps a relatively stable level |
| B．keeps changing |
| C．reaches a very low level |
| D．turns more complex |
| A．the factors influencing people's satisfaction at life |
| B．the differences between the young and the old |
| C．the reasons why happiness follows a U-curve |
| D．the matters concerning the middle-aged group |
| A．We still have a poor understanding on the old. |
| B．The drivers of happiness need further research. |
| C．It's still a challenge to remain happy in our life. |
| D．People are hard to be satisfied because of their age. |
