In order to reduce the risk of suffering from COVID-19, people are supposed to say no to a handshake, give up high fives, refuse kisses on the cheek and absolutely avoid hugging. So people all over the world are changing their daily habits at work and at home to prevent it from spreading.
In France, handshaking is regarded as daily greeting habits. And kissing on the cheek is often seen even between people who have only just met. Philippe Lichtfus, a lifestyle expert notes that handshaking is a relatively recent development in human history that began in the Middle Ages. Now, he says simply looking into a person’s eyes can serve as a greeting.
The Brazilian health ministry has recommended that citizens should not share the metal straws traditionally used to consume the caffeine-rich drink chimarrão. And a kiss—even if it is not on the mouth—is totally advised against.
One of Spain’s most treasured traditions is also affected by the outbreak—the kissing of sculptures of Virgin Mary in the week leading up to Easter. During the holy week, the faithful believers queue up to kiss the hands or feet of sculptures of Mary and the saints, seeking their protection.
Germany’s interior minister (内政部长) Horst Seehofer rebuffed Chancellor（总理）Angela Merkel’s attempt to shake hands with him, smiling and keeping both his hands to himself. They both laughed and Merkel threw her hand up in the air before taking a seat.
In Iran, a video has gone viral (走红) showing three friends meeting, hands in their pockets, two of whom are wearing masks, tapping their feet against each other as a greeting. A similar video in Lebanon shows singer Ragheb Alama and comedian Michel Abou Sleiman tapping their feet against each other while making kissing noises with their mouths.
The UAE (阿拉伯联合酋长国) is advising citizens to stop the traditional “nose to nose” greeting. The UAE also said that people shouldn’t shake hands anymore or kiss. Greet each other “by waving only”.
1. What can we learn from Philippe Lichtfus?| A．Handshaking has a long history. |
| B．People can continue to kiss on the cheek. |
| C．It is recommended that people look into other’s eyes as a greeting. |
| D．It is unusual for two people who have just met to kiss on the cheeks. |
| A．Appreciated. | B．Refused. | C．Accepted. | D．Welcomed. |
| A．Several traditional greeting habits are advised against in the UAE. |
| B．People who believe in Virgin Mary must be disappointed to cancel the ceremony. |
| C．Brazilians are crazy about consuming the caffeine-rich drink chimarrão. |
| D．Tapping feet against each other has already become a daily greeting in Iran. |
| A．Some old greeting styles are out of date. |
| B．Some new greeting styles become popular. |
| C．Different countries have different greeting styles. |
| D．People change their greeting styles to protect themselves. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Too much stuff, too much to do, too much stress.... These are weighing people down and breaking their spirit.
The first step is to sort out your possessions. To live a simple life, you need a simple living space. So take some time to tidy your living area. Focus on keeping things that you value deeply and throw away things that you don’t need any longer.
We should always stay mindful and live with intention. If there is something in your life that you don’t love, change it! Cut out the things that aren’t serving you. You can write down what an ideal day would look like for you in five years’ time. Then outline what things you want more in your life and what things you want less.
Managing your time wisely counts.
| A．Minimalists live intentionally, |
| B．Complete the process in several sweeps. |
| C．Don’t reply “yes” to everything you’re invited to. |
| D．With that in hand, you have a goal to work towards. |
| E．From time to time you need to question about your lifestyle. |
| F．That’s why there is a growing interest in the minimalist lifestyle. |
| G．Having a flexible schedule depends on you taking control of things. |
【推荐2】I remember that it was a hot afternoon. I was asked to have a drug test after I had a quarrel with the airport staff. I missed the flight home later because of bad weather. Now my flight home was full and running late. I felt sorry and unlucky.
At that moment, I noticed a 5-year-old boy standing by his mother watching me. He left his mother and slowly walked towards me. "Great!" I thought sadly, "Now I have to take care of a 5-year-old child. My day is now complete."
As he came closer, I found it was my hat that he was after. I wanted to tell him not to touch my things, but I was curious to know what he would do with my hat. With wide eyes, he gently touched my hat. He looked up at me, smiling, but saying nothing. I asked him if he wanted to wear my hat, he excitedly nodded, still smiling. I placed my hat on his head, but it fell down around his ears. He didn't mind and held it up with both hands. He ran to show his mother, then back to me, still smiling. With much respect, he slowly took off my hat with both hands and gave it to me.
I put my hat on and gave him an airplane card. Holding the card carefully with both hands, he looked up at me and said, "Mister, you sure are lucky." "Yes, I sure am," I said. I admired the wisdom of a 5-year-old boy, as I got the last seat on that flight home.
1. What do we learn about the author from paragraph 1?| A．He was going abroad but his flight was late. |
| B．He had a drug test because he dressed strangely. |
| C．He felt sorry and unlucky because his flight home was full and late. |
| D．He felt unhappy because he quarreled with some other passengers. |
| A．Excited. | B．Unhappy. | C．Surprised. | D．Interested. |
| A．His hat was not expensive at all. |
| B．He was too tired to do anything. |
| C．He thought the little boy was cute. |
| D．He wanted to know what the boy would do with it. |
| A．The author often quarrels with others. |
| B．The little boy didn't like the author's hat. |
| C．The author thought he was very lucky in the end. |
| D．The author later became friends with the boy's mother. |
【推荐3】"If you want to see thing well, reach out and touch it!" That may seem a strange thing to say it. But touching things can help you to see them better. Your eyes can tell you that a glass ball is round. But by holding it in your hands, you can feel how smooth and cool the ball is. You can feel how heavy the glass is. When you feel all these about the ball, you really see it. With your skin, you can feel better. For example, your fingers can tell the difference between two coins in your pocket. You can feel a little drop of water on the back of your hand, too. You can even feel sounds against your skin. Have you ever wanted to know why some people like very loud music? They must like to feel the sounds of music. All children soon learn what "Don't touch!" means. They hear it often. Yet most of us keep on touching things as we grow up. In shops, we touch things we might buy: food, clothes. To see something well, we have to touch it. The bottoms of our feet can feel things, too. You know this when you walk on warm sand cool grass or a hard floor. All feel different under your feet. There are ways of learning to see well by feeling. One way is to close your eyes and try to feel everything that is touching your skin. Feel the shoes on your feet, the clothes on your body, the air on your skin. At first, it is not easy to feel these things. You are too used to feel them! Most museums are just for looking. But today some museums have some things to touch. Their signs say, "Do touch!" There you can feel everything on show. If you want to see better, reach out and touch. Then you will really see!
1. By touching things ________.| A．you will have a strange feeling | B．you will learn how to reach out your hand |
| C．you can learn more about them | D．you can tell what colors they really are |
| A．Touching by Feeling. | B．To See or to Feel. |
| C．To See Better-Feel. | D．Ways of Feeling. |
| A．Your finger. | B．Your eyes. | C．Your skin. | D．Your back. |
| A．Sounds. | B．Darkness. | C．Water. | D．Coins. |
| A．Touching is helping us to see better. |
| B．Our skins may help us enjoy music. |
| C．People don't have to learn to feel. |
| D．Visitors can't feel the things on show in any museums. |
【推荐1】With paper flowers and music hanging around in the air, Lyu Jun was hosting a small farewell ceremony at an industrial zone in Shenzhen, Guangdong province. It was a funeral for a pet dog. Lyu came up with the idea of becoming a pet mortician (殡葬师) four years ago when he was preparing to start a business.
“At that time, there was only one brick-and-mortar(实体的) business that provided funeral services for pets in Shenzhen, but hundreds of pets die every day in this city,” he said. According to Lyu, many pet owners used to bury the remains of their beloved animals near their homes , which had a harmful impact on the environment and created the risk of spreading disease.
He saw a gap in the market for someone able to properly handle the death of pets. “A pet funeral service provides treatment of the bodies that is harm-free, and it is the greatest comfort to pet owners,” Lyu said.
He takes good care of the remains of the pets and tidies up their appearance before the funeral. In addition, he prepares funeral addresses and selects suitable tombs for the pets. He also films funerals for owners who cannot attend the ceremonies, and provides paper and pens for those who want to write down their blessings and hang the notes on the wishing tree.
Over the past four years, Lyu has bid farewell to more than 2,000 dogs, cats and other kinds of animals. He also does volunteer work in his spare time to promote responsible dog raising. “The pet funeral service industry is still in its babyhood, and I hope there will be a set of strict standards for people who take on this job and a belter environment for the industry,” Lyu said.
1. Why did Lyu start the business on pet funeral service?| A．Because he could earn a lot of money from it. |
| B．Because he thought it met the market requirement. |
| C．Because he thought it would be a unique and challenging business. |
| D．Because he could help owners bury their dead pets near their homes. |
| A．He delivers speeches to mourn the pets. |
| B．He gives best wishes to the pets' owners. |
| C．He makes films of the pets for their birth. |
| D．He nurses and cares for the pets carefully. |
| A．Lyu volunteers to raise pets on his own. |
| B．The pet funeral service has got a big success. |
| C．More strict standards should be set for pets' owners. |
| D．There remains a potential in the pet funeral industry. |
| A．A research report. | B．An advertisement. |
| C．A novel. | D．A magazine. |
【推荐2】Is it fair for restaurants to ban little eaters? In Monronroeville, a local restaurant, McDain’s, recently decided to ban young children. Alice Roseman, its manager, says kids have bad manners and make too much noise. Other people, however, say the rule is hard to accept. Since it has become a hot topic in public, we caught several local people talking about it.
YES There is no law stopping restaurants from banning young children. Restaurant owners should be allowed to ban them. Kids often run around and cause problems for waiters and other customers. ----Kate Barker Kids always cause a mess, but the parents refuse to do anything about their kids’ behaviors. Although kids may be at the center of their parents’ universe, they aren’t at the center of everyone else’s. ------Mike Vuick Adults sometimes want to talk and enjoy their dinner, but they can’t if a child is crying and running all over the place. That’s why sometimes parents don’t like eating at home. They wish they could have a good meal in the restaurants without kids’ noise. ------Dale Levitsky | NO Banning kids from restaurants is a bad idea. If kids were banned, many restaurants would lose business. Even if restaurants gave customers the chance to buy take-away meals for their kids, many families would probably still not eat there. --------Nicholas Song Restaurants owners who ban kids think all children are wild and rude. But that’s not true. Most children’s eating behaviors are good enough. Even though some kids do have bad manners, banning is not a right way to teach them. I think how a society treats its children is important. After all, all kids are people, too. -------Elliott Hall |
1. The restaurant in Monronroeville refuses ___________ to eat there.
| A．women |
| B．pets |
| C．men |
| D．kids |
| A．they are too busy |
| B．kids are too noisy |
| C．they dislike doing the dishes |
| D．restaurant food is more delicious |
| A．Mike Vuick |
| B．Kate Barker |
| C．Nicholas Song |
| D．Alice Roseman |
| A．Not all kids have bad behaviors. |
| B．Children waste too much food. |
| C．Boys make more noise than girls. |
| D．Restaurants needn’t help parents. |
【推荐3】Who are these people rushing by you in the street？More than 215million people now call America"home"，but most of them can trace their families back to other parts of the world．If you look at the names on shop windows，you will see that Americans come from many different lands．The idea that these people，who once were strangers to the United States，have lost the customs and cultures of their original countries and have become"American"is really not true．In fact，what exists in America is more often a kind of "side﹣by﹣side" living in which groups of people from other countries often have kept many of their customs and habits．They join the general American society only in certain areas of their lives﹣such as in schools，business，and sports﹣but they keep many of their own native customs and manners socially and at home．This living "side﹣by﹣side" has both advantages and disadvantages．Sometimes it may cause disagreements to develop between groups whose ways of life are very different from one another．However，there are also great advantages that come from the variety of cultures brought by settlers from other lands．There is great freedom of choice among ideas and dress，food，and social customs in America．Everyone can find some part of his or her familiar world in the United States，in churches，music，food，national groups，or newspapers．
1. More than 215 million people call America"home"because ．| A．they have their houses there |
| B．they settle there now |
| C．they want to make their home there |
| D．they like that land very much |
| A．to make friends with native people |
| B．the groups of people who live nearby |
| C．to keep their own customs while sharing American ones in certain areas |
| D．that they get closer to American society |
| A．share American customs and culture |
| B．live in a kind of "side﹣by﹣side" society |
| C．keep their own customs and habits firmly |
| D．make no choice to accept American customs |
| A．They always stick to their own customs and habits． |
| B．"Side﹣by﹣side" living style is not suitable． |
| C．They face the society they are not familiar with． |
| D．The advantages coming from the variety of cultures make life in America colorful． |
| A．Advantages and Disadvantages． |
| B．Different Customs and Habits． |
| C．Home for the People． |
| D．"Side﹣by﹣side" Living Style in America． |
Lewis and his co-workers carried out their study by videotaping (录像) the families while they ate ordinary meals in their own homes. They found that parents with small families talk actively with each other and their children. But as the number of children gets larger, conversation gives way to the parents’ efforts to control the loud noise they make. That can have an important effect on the children. “In general the more question-asking the parents do, the higher the children’s IQ scores,” Lewis says. “And the more children there are, the less question-asking there is.”
The study also provides an explanation for why middle children often seem to have a harder time in life than their siblings (兄弟姐妹). Lewis found that in families with three or four children, dinner conversation is likely to center on the oldest child, who has the most to talk about, and the youngest, who needs the most attention. “Middle children are invisible,” says Lewis. “When you see someone get up from the table and walk around during dinner, chances are it’s the middle child.” There is, however, one thing that stops all conversation and prevents anyone from having attention: “When the TV is on,” Lewis says, “dinner is a non-event.”
1. The writer’s purpose in writing the text is to _________.
| A．show the relationship between parents and children |
| B．teach parents ways to keep order at the dinner table |
| C．report on the findings of a study |
| D．give information about family problems |
| A．they are busy serving food to their children |
| B．they are busy keeping order at the dinner table |
| C．they have to pay more attention to younger children |
| D．they are tired out having prepared food for the whole family |
| A．have to help their parents to serve dinner |
| B．get the least attention from the family |
| C．are often kept away from the dinner table |
| D．find it hard to keep up with other children |
| A．It is important to have the right food for children. |
| B．It is a good idea to have the TV on during dinner. |
| C．Parents should talk to each of their children frequently. |
| D．Elder children should help the younger ones at dinner. |
【推荐2】A young teenager interested in robotics, T. J. Evarts noticed some of his friends became easily distracted from the road by a variety of activities, especially texting, as they learned how to drive. Actually, this phenomenon is quite common among those in their teens and twenties. A 2018 Pew Research Center study shows about a third of teenagers aged 16 and 17 admitted to texting while driving. According to the survey conducted by Federal Communications Commission, more than 3,100 people were killed in vehicles because of distracted driving, more than 37% were under 20 in 2020.
Now 20, Evarts has invented the SMART wheel (SMART for Safe Motorists Alert for Restricting Texting), hoping to change these statistics and how new drivers function on the road. His brainchild began as a mixture of aluminum and coat hangers. Then it was developed into a structured system of sensors that can be attached to the steering wheel of most vehicles.
Evarts said the technology tracks the placement of a driver’s hands on a steering wheel, an indicator of how focused the driver’s attention is on the road. Moving one or both hands off the wheel for more than four seconds will cause a flashing red light to appear on the SMART wheel along with a ringing noise to signal the driver, while the data gathered through the process can be sent to a parent’s app linked by Bluetooth.
The CEO sees his invention as a way to ease parents’ concerns when their children start driving vehicles on their own, and help to limit the number of distractions routinely challenging drivers, a problem that has only grown worse with mobile technology. Evarts said his company is also setting up a reward system into the app that will grade drivers’ performances and identify ways to improve their driving.
1. Why did Evarts invent the SMART wheel?| A．To equip teenagers with driving skills. | B．To draw drivers’ attention to speeding. |
| C．To keep the drivers focused on driving. | D．To increase the number of teenage drivers. |
| A．One of steering wheels’ tasks. | B．A coat hanger for the system. |
| C．The mixture of drivers’ data. | D．Evarts’ initial invention idea. |
| A．Placing both hands on the steering wheel. | B．Holding the steering wheel with one hand. |
| C．Texting the driver while sitting in the back. | D．Calling friends or parents using earphones. |
| A．A habit-adjusting system. | B．A teen-rewarding system. |
| C．A driver-training project. | D．A fault-finding project. |
【推荐3】In Wiltshire, England, volunteers are being searched for to visit a nature protection area to count the butterflies living there and in nearby fields. The project is started by an environmental protection organization, which has been devoted to improving the living environment for wild animals. Recently, the organization has called on volunteers to help it observe environmental changes based on the record of butterflies and protect the environment.
In the area, the local people have planted many special flowers with the help of the organization. They want to see whether these flowers will interest the rare, and beautiful butterflies. The project officer Sarah Marshall says, “It will be a suitable living place for butterflies. They are great ‘indicator species’ (指向性物种) as they are easily affected by climate changes. So they make a brilliant early-warning system for the environment.”
She also points out that volunteers are needed to record the number or species of butterflies, and based on the change happening to the butterflies, the hidden environmental problems in the area can be found out in time.
The organization is searching for volunteers to help monitor (监测) butterflies from April through to September. They will walk the same route and record the different butterflies they meet along the way. Each visit should take no more than two hours, and each volunteer is expected to visit once a month count the wildlife. “Staff will provide backup (后备人员), so if the weather is poor on the day you are visit (butterflies don’t like to fly in the rain, wind or if it’s too cloudy), we can have someone else do your job,” Sarah points out.
No previous experience is necessary as training and support will be provided, but a strong interest is important. If you are interested, please contact Sarah on (01380) 725670, ext 278, or email sarahm@wiltshirewildlife.org.
1. Why are special flowers planted in the nature protection area?| A．To attract visitors. | B．To attract butterflies. |
| C．To improve the environment. | D．To help the local people make money. |
| A．reducing in number in Wiltshire | B．curious about their habitats |
| C．unable to keep up with climate changes | D．sensitive to environmental changes |
| A．will take a different route each time | B．must know a lot about butterflies |
| C．will visit the area 6 times in total | D．must have previous experience |
| A．To persuade people to visit Wiltshire. | B．To advertise for volunteers with a project. |
| C．To encourage people to protect butterflies. | D．To show a way to explore climate change. |
【推荐1】If you stop a random person on the street in China, there’s a pretty good chance that their surname would be either Wang, Li, Zhang, Liu or Chen.That’s because those are the five most common surnamesin China — shared by 30% of the population. And the vast majority of the population share just 100 of those surnames. In comparison, the United States reported 6.3 million surnames in its 2010 census.
There are a few reasons for this: China is less racially diverse than countries such as the US, where a wealth of minority groups increase surname diversity (多样性). It also has to do with language; you can’t just add a random stroke (音节) to a Chinese character and create a new surname.
But there’s also another factor at play: technology. With China roaring into the digital age, nearly everything has moved online — from making appointments to buying train tickets.
The main problem is that not all Chinese characters have been coded into computer systems. That meant a world of trouble if you happened to have a rare character in your name. As of 2017, up to 60 million Chinese citizens faced this problem, according to Xinhua.
People with rare characters in their names, which aren’t compatible(兼容的) with existing computer systems, can get left behind— pushing many to change their names for the sake of convenience, even if it means abandoning centuries of heritage and languages.
To try to address this, experts have increased the database from 32,000 characters to 70,000 characters, according to the government. They’re still working to expand it to include more than 90,000 characters, said Chen Jiawei, an associate professor at Beijing Normal University.
1. What can be learned from the comparison according to Paragraph 1?| A．There are fewer common surnames in China. |
| B．Chinese people like sharing the same surname. |
| C．The United States owns the most surnames in the world. |
| D．6.3 million surnames in China have been shared until now. |
| A．New Chinese surnames are easy to create. |
| B．Surname diversity totally depends on technology. |
| C．Minority groups can increase surname diversity. |
| D．Surnames in computer systems are regularly changed. |
| A．They will lose their heritage. |
| B．They have to change their names. |
| C．They should expand the database. |
| D．They may upgrade computer systems. |
| A．To save heritage and languages. |
| B．To keep Chinese traditional culture. |
| C．To give people more choices when naming. |
| D．To let us know more Chinese characters. |
【推荐2】Most of us spend our lives seeking the natural world. We go fishing, sit in the garden, have a picnic, live in the suburbs or go to the seaside. The most popular leisure activity in Britain is going for a walk. When joggers jog, they don't run the streets. Every one of them tend to go to the park or the river.
But despite this, our children are growing up nature deprived. I spent my boyhood climbing trees. These days, children are robbed of these ancient freedoms, due to problems like crime, traffic, the loss of the open spaces and strange new ideas about what is best for children, that is to say, things that can be bought, rather than things that can be found.
The truth is to be found elsewhere. A study in the US: families had moved to better housing and the children were assessed for ADHD—attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Those whose accommodation had more natural views showed an improvement of 19%; those who had the same improvement in material surroundings but no nice view improved just 4%.
ADHD is one of the great problems of modern childhood. One study after another indicates that contact with nature gives huge benefits to ADHD children. However, we spend money on drugs rather than on green places.
The life of old people is measurably better when they have access to nature. The increasing concern for the growing population of old people is in quality rather than quantity of years. And study after study finds that a garden is the single most important thing in finding that quality. Even problems with crime and aggressive behaviour are reduced when there is contact with the natural world.
We need the wild world. It is essential to our well-being, our health and our happiness.
1. According to the author, people enjoy to seek nature.| A．running in the gym | B．jogging on the street |
| C．shopping in the supermarket | D．sitting in the garden |
| A．climbing trees will certainly do good to the children |
| B．children probably spend less time in nature nowadays |
| C．adults deprive the children of their rights to approach nature |
| D．children tend to be happier as a result of their material satisfaction |
| A．Children with ADHD can be cured. |
| B．Children's performance at school is greatly improved. |
| C．A garden nearby improves the quality of old people's life. |
| D．Problems with crime and violent behavior will easily be solved. |
| A．Getting close to nature improves our life. |
| B．Nature can treat the children with ADHD. |
| C．Playing in nature reduces aggressive behaviour. |
| D．Human beings can not live without natural areas. |
【推荐3】Tobias Weller is nothing short of extraordinary.
At 9-years-old, he’s dealt with things most of us won’t face in our lifetimes. Simple tasks, like standing on his own two feet, are impossible for him and he requires assistance for most activities we consider basic. But Just because he’s someone who needs help, that doesn’t mean he can’t give help.
At first Tobias decided to complete a sponsored one-kilometer walk. But for some reasons, the race was canceled, and Tobias’ plans were destroyed.
The moment young Weller learned about Captain Tom, a 100-year-old British vet who has now raised 41 million dollars for charities by walking in his walker, he decided if a century-year-old man could walk for miles, he could also make it happen.
Forget the one kilometer, Tobias was going to walk a marathon—26.2 miles—in order to raise money for his two favorite charities. He went up and down his street for months. First with 50 meters a day, but as he grew stronger, the distance expanded and eventually he built up to 750 meters a day. It took him 70 days to cross that finish line, but he did it.
His mother, Ruth Garbutt, presented him with a medal as he crossed the finish line.
She said: “I’m so, so proud of Tobias. I’m bursting with pride for all he’s achieved and how hard he’s worked during the marathon…He couldn’t push the walker at the start of the marathon and now he can, he can push it on the flat and he’s proved today he can push it uphill as well.”
Honestly, just wow. The amount of pain and extreme tiredness he must have suffered during his walks is unimaginable. But he never stopped, he just kept pushing, and in the end he raised over $111, 000 for his charities.
“I’m pleased to raise loads of money. Other children who aren’t as lucky as me can benefit from the money that’s been raised.” Tobias said.
1. Tobias decided to walk a marathon mainly to ________.| A．challenge himself |
| B．strengthen his body |
| C．contribute to charities |
| D．compete with Captain Tom |
| A．It was canceled finally. |
| B．It lasted more than two months. |
| C．Tobias finished it without a walker. |
| D．Tobias was awarded the first prize. |
| A．Ambitious and calm. | B．Strong-willed and kind. |
| C．Courageous and honest. | D．Determined and cooperative. |
