Do you know the proverb “no pain, no gain”? It gives the impression that we ought to be suffering while we study. It seems that the only way to know if we’ re putting in enough work is how much hardship we bear. We are totally taken up with study, shutting ourselves away for a big exam. Is that necessarily true?
When we haven’t taken the time to come up with another idea, we just shut ourselves in a room with a book. It’s no surprise that we find revision boring and difficult. Just as children learn from playing, we can learn from doing, or at least from study techniques that interest us, rather than make us switch off. Shutting ourselves away can make us learn to hate studying, leading to a situation where, instead of being able to concentrate on our work, we are troubled by how unfair it is that we must study. This can be part of a vicious cycle (恶性循环) that traps us into ineffective revision, or poor progress fueling further annoyance.
Thankfully, working in the company of other people really helps fight against that. We just need to learn how to deal with distractions(使人分心的事). It’s not necessary to avoid all company, just lazy company. They constantly try to keep others in conversation, while studying in the same room with someone who is ironing or working out is perfectly possible. Of course, it’s also a good idea to avoid the company of people involved in activities where you would rather be playing than studying. Working while sitting next to someone playing video games is most likely to end with a new high score of games rather than productive revision.
If being around others means working in a noisy environment, a pair of headphones and some background music can block out noises. They also act as a psychological barrier, so that people think twice before interrupting you. Besides, we should know friends and family can lessen feelings of isolation. And connecting with other people makes us happy, so it’s important not to give that up and to make sure that we take the time to socialize.
1. What is the author’s purpose of writing the text?| A．To introduce effective studying means. |
| B．To encourage us to work as hard as possible. |
| C．To remind us to balance activities and study. |
| D．To discuss the importance of family company. |
| A．Good ideas are needed in terms of progress. |
| B．Ways that interest us can lead to effective revision. |
| C．Shutting ourselves away can help concentrate on work. |
| D．With study techniques, revision is interesting and easy for certain. |
| A．One should learn from certain activities that interest him. |
| B．Playing video games is helpful for effective study. |
| C．One shouldn’t study with the company of a video game player. |
| D．The more time one spends in playing games, the higher test scores one will get. |
| A．Give up others company at once. |
| B．Think twice before taking any action. |
| C．Give indication of not wanting to be interrupted. |
| D．Force yourself to be accustomed to the environment. |
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【推荐1】In a gray box, I have a thick pile of love letters. I imagine about sharing them with a granddaughter when I’m 90. But my most treasured love letter is from one of my best friends. It’s a handwritten letter years ago when I was having trouble getting over a man. Her letter is the most romantic in my pile. It made no excuses. It simply let me know that I was loved.
Reflecting on her gift, and the dying art of handwritten letters in our age of emails and emoticons, I chose to conduct an experiment this Christmas: replacing presents with heartfelt, handwritten love letters for my family members.
In our digital era, most of us rarely take the time to share deeply considered thoughts and emotions with the people in our lives. Handwriting captures the writer’s emotions, often preserved longer than digital exchanges. However, technology is taking over. First came typewriters and keyboards. Now a new brain-computer lets people type with their minds. What are we losing when we sacrifice the physical labor behind the written word? We tend to value what we struggle for. Have we undervalued the human exchange of ideas?
That day, I came across a letter my mom wrote to her parents when she was young. She seemed so comfortable with her parents. It was a relationship I didn’t have with her. I was inspired by my mother’s letter to her parents when I sat down to write my letter to her. I wanted her to know my love, and to close the crack that technology and culture had created between us. With each sentence, I was discovering new and deeper ways of seeing my mother, and making myself known to her in more thoughtful ways as well.
Eight single-space pages later, my hand was aching but I was done. It was only the first of my love letters, but it was already clear: What had begun as a fun project was in fact one of the most important undertakings of my life.
1. Why does the author mention her love letters in Paragraph 1?| A．To show her grand charm as a young girl. | B．To share them with one of her granddaughters. |
| C．To highlight the value of handwritten letters. | D．To look back upon her romantic relationship. |
| A．Making our interaction less emotional. | B．Encouraging our thoughtful communication. |
| C．Saving our physical labor in conveying emotions. | D．Increasing our effort in handwritten exchanges. |
| A．To give her mother a big surprise. | B．To answer her mother’s handwritten letter. |
| C．To bridge a communication gap. | D．To make her mother feel more comfortable. |
| A．The irreplaceable bond of family members. | B．The tendency of information technology. |
| C．The expression of emotions in the digital age. | D．The power of handwritten correspondence. |
【推荐2】Do this and you’ll be welcome anywhere.
Why read this book to find out how to win friends? Why not study the technique of the greatest winner of friends the world has ever known? Who is he? You may meet him tomorrow coming down the street. When you get within ten feet of him, he will begin to wag his tail. If you stop and pat him, he will almost jump out of his skin to show you how much he likes you. And you know that behind this show of affection on his part, there are no secret motives (动机): he doesn’t want to sell you any real estate (房地产), and he doesn’t want to marry you.
Did you ever stop to think that a dog is the only animal that doesn’t have to work for a living? A hen has to lay eggs; a cow has to give milk; and a canary has to sing. But a dog makes his living by giving you nothing but love.
When I was five years old, my father bought a little yellow-haired young dog for fifty cents. He was the light and joy of my childhood. Every afternoon about four-thirty, he would sit in the front yard with his beautiful eyes staring at the path, and as soon as he heard my voice or saw me swinging my dinner pail (提桶) through the bush, he was off like a shot, racing breathlessly up the hill to greet me with leaps of joy and barks of cheer.
Puppy was my good companion (陪伴) for five years. Then one night — I shall never forget it — he was killed by lightening. Puppy’s death was the terrible event of my boyhood.
You never read a book on psychology, Puppy. You didn’t need to. You knew that one can make more friends in two months by becoming really interested in other people than one can in two years by trying to get other people interested in him. Let me repeat that. You can make more friends in two months by becoming interested in other people than you can in two years by trying to get other people interested in you.
1. What is the writer talking about when he mentions “the greatest winner of friends the world has ever known”?| A．himself | B．Puppy |
| C．a pet dog | D．a psychology book |
| A．to explain how to win love from other people |
| B．to show how he liked the companion |
| C．to tell the readers why they should read this book |
| D．to show us the difference between hens ,dogs and dogs |
| A．show interest and love for others | B．do everything without secret motives |
| C．meet the needs of different people | D．know much about other people’s feelings |
| A．disappointed | B．serious |
| C．sad | D．relaxed |
【推荐3】On March 2, at the meeting held ahead of the yearly session of the CPPCC National Committee(全国政协大会), interpreter(口译员) Yao Mengyao caught the attention of many with her “quick reaction and correct translation, ”Xinhua noted.
Yao began her studies in English in primary school where she would listen to English tapes.
She often spoke to her teacher about English-related topics that were not limited to the ones in her textbooks, “They were always very professional uncommon topics, ”said Yao’s senior school teacher Shen Yingzi.
Like Yao, Zhang Lu is a regular interpreter for China's top leaders, including Premier Li Keqing and former Premier Wen Jiabao. Her effortless but on-point translations of ancient poems mentioned by former Premier Wen won praise.
So how do interpreters reach their top positions?
The reason for their success is largely hard work. Other than when they go out on visits with Chinese leaders, the interpreters follow a very strict schedule. Zhang called this schedule“an unshakable plan”. They listen to foreign media such as BBC, VOA or CNN through TV or radio for their training.
It is reported that a month before the two sessions(两会), the interpreters get notice of the spokesperson they are going to interpret for. They then make full use of this month to prepare themselves. They try to predict the questions that might be asked and consider the sayings the spokesperson might use when they answer the questions.
In truth, there is no secret to their success: It’s all a matter of skill and hard work.
1. What can be inferred from the second paragraph?| A．Yao tried to make a speech in English. | B．The textbooks didn't interest yao at all. |
| C．Yao showed a strong interest in English. | D．The teacher got tired of Yao's endless questions. |
| A．Serious. | B．Ordinary. | C．Organized. | D．Frequent. |
| A．Make a schedule for foreign visits. | B．Predict the questions to be asked. |
| C．Go out on visits with Chinese leaders. | D．Discuss with their teammates. |
| A．By working hard. | B．By travelling abroad. |
| C．By making a strict schedule. | D．By following the leaders. |
【推荐1】Should we focus on our goal, or on the process?
What happened to Brenda Martinez, a US Olympic runner, may provide us with the answer. She lost her balance in the 800-meter run and failed to qualify for the Olympics. Instead of focusing on her failure, she prepared to win in the next race. “I just quickly let go of what happened in the 800m and got back to my routine, to focusing on all the little things I could do that would give me the best chance of running well later in the week,” she told New York Magazine. She said it was this mindset that led to her winning third place in the 1500-meter race about a week later to qualify for the Olympics in Rio. Instead of attaching herself to the goal of making the Olympic team, she concentrated on the process.
There is a problem with setting goals. Researchers from Harvard, the University of Pennsylvania and Northwestern found that overemphasizing goals based on measurable outcomes often leads to risk-taking, unethical (不道德的) behavior and reduced motivation. Their results were published in a Harvard Business School report titled Goals Gone Wild: The Systematic Side Effects of Over-Prescribing Goal Setting.
When you become overly focused on achieving the goal, you may lose sight of your original purpose for accomplishing the goal in the first place. Another danger is actually completing the goal without setting a plan for what’s next. For example, some marathon runners experience what’s called the “post-race blues”. Achieving your goal may cause you to drop the good habits that got you there in the first place. Dieters often experience this in what’s called “yo-yo dieting” when they drop down to a desired weight, but then gain all the weight back when they resume (重新开始) their bad habits.
“After you set a goal, it’s best to shit your focus from the goal itself to the process that gives you the best chance of achieving it and to judge yourself based on how well you complete that process,” columnist Brad Stulberg wrote on the website The Cut.
Ultimately, changing your attention from goals to process will cause you to achieve little victories on your way to accomplishing long-term goals. Amy Cuddy, a Harvard Business School psychology professor, wrote that focusing on this process “leaves you with a sense of satisfaction and accomplishment, regardless of the measurable outcome”.
1. Why is Brenda Martinez’s experience mentioned in Paragraph 2?| A．To show opportunity favors the prepared mind. |
| B．To describe how important it is to set big goals. |
| C．To suggest learning from failure can bring success. |
| D．To show how focusing on the process can lead to success. |
| A．the use of unfair means | B．ignoring the whole picture |
| C．overestimating the setbacks | D．being stressed by the risks involved |
| A．we can’t focus on the goal too much |
| B．we must keep in mind why we set the goal |
| C．we should resume our habits when completing the goal |
| D．we should accept it is normal to feel down after success |
| A．Ways of judging a goal. | B．Ways to set long-term goals. |
| C．The best chance of achieving goals. | D．Benefits of focusing on the process. |
| A．by making a comparison | B．by reasoning with examples |
| C．by giving statistics | D．by doing an experiment |
【推荐2】There are some very good things about open education. This way of teaching allows the students to grow as people, and to develop their own interests in many subjects. Open education allows students to be responsible for their own education, as they are responsible for what they do in life. Some students do badly in a traditional classroom. The open classroom may allow them to enjoy learning. Some students will be happier in an open education school. They will not have to worry about grades or rules. For students who worry about these things a lot, it is a good idea to be in an open classroom.
But many students will not do well in an open classroom. For some students, there are too few rules. These students will do little in school. They will not make good use of open education. Because open education is so different from traditional education, these students may have a problem getting used to making so many choices. For many students it is important to have some rules in the classroom. They worry about the rules even when there are no rules. Even a few rules will help this kind of students. The last point about open education is that some traditional teachers do not like it. Many teachers do not believe in open education. Teachers who want to have an open classroom may have many problems at their schools.
You now know what open education is. Some of its good points and bad points have been explained. You may have your own opinion about open education. The writer thinks that open education is a good idea, but only in theory. In actual fact, it may not work very well in a real class or school. The writer believes that most students, but of course not all students, want some structure in their classes. They want and need to have rules. In some cases, they must be made to study some subjects. Many students are pleased to find subjects they have to study interesting. They would not study those subjects if they did not have to.
1. Open education allows the students to ______ .| A．grow as the educated |
| B．be responsible for their future |
| C．develop their own interests |
| D．discover subjects outside class |
| A．enjoy learning |
| B．do well in a traditional classroom |
| C．worry about grades |
| D．are responsible for what they do in life |
| A．they worry about the rules |
| B．there are too few rules |
| C．they hate activities |
| D．open education is similar to the traditional education |
| A．Some traditional teachers do not like it |
| B．Many teachers do not believe in open education |
| C．The teacher's feelings and attitudes are important to the students |
| D．Teachers may have problems in open classrooms |
【推荐3】You are on your way to a concert.At a crossroad,you see a group of people, all staring at the sky.Without even thinking about it, you stare upward, too. Why? In the middle of the concert,someone begins to clap and suddenly the whole room joins in.You do,too.Why?
Social proof determines that people feel they are behaving correctly when they act the same as other people. In other words, the more people who follow a certain idea, the better or truer we consider the idea to be. An experiment carried out by the psychologist(心理学家）Solomon Asch shows how peer pressure can influence common sense.A subject is showed a line,and next to it three lines - one shorter, one longer and one of the same length as the original one. He must show which of the three lines similar to the original one. If the person is alone, he gives a correct answer. Now, five unknown actors enter the room.One after another, they give wrong answers. And in one third of cases, the subject will answer incorrectly to match the other people's responses.
Why do we act like this? Well, in the past, following others was a survival method. Suppose that one day 5,000 years ago, you were travelling with your hunter friends. Suddenly,they all ran away.What would you have done? Would you have stood still, weighing up whether what you were looking at was a lion or something that just looked like a lion? No,you would have run, too.We are generations of those who copied others' behaviors. This is so deeply rooted in us that we still use it, though it offers few survival advantages today.
Social proof is the evil behind many things. The advertising industry, for example, often makes use of it.Therefore, be doubtful whenever a company says its product is "the most popular". Remember British novelist W.Somerset Maugham's words, "If 50 million people say something foolish,it is still foolish."So should we always follow the crowd?
1. What's the purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To share the story. |
| B．To describe a scene. |
| C．To introduce the topic. |
| D．To settle an argument. |
| A．Wrong answers driven by unknown cases. |
| B．True ideas followed by surrounding actors. |
| C．Social influence that decides people's psychology. |
| D．Peer pressure that corrects people's common sense. |
| A．rooted behaviors to survive |
| B．natural responses to dangers |
| C．lasting advantages of copying ancestors |
| D．traditional ways of travelling with friends |
| A．Supportive. |
| B．Disapproving. |
| C．Doubtful. |
| D．Objective. |
