【推荐1】You may not pay much attention to your daily elevator ride. Many of us use a lift several times during the 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 this interesting social space where etiquette (礼仪) is sort of odd (奇怪的),” Gray told the BBC. “Elevators are socially very interesting but often very awkward (尴尬的) 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.

When a third person enters, you will unconsciously form a triangle（三角形）. And when there is a fourth person it becomes a square, with someone in every corner. A fifth person is probably going to have to stand in the middle.

New entrants to the lift will need to size up the situation when the doors slide open and then act according to their decisions. 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 understood as threatening or odd. “The easiest way to do this is to avoid eye contact(接触) ,” she said.

1. According to Gray, when people enter an elevator, they usually _____.

A．turn around and greet one another

B．look around or examine their phone

C．try to keep a distance from other people

D．make eye contact with those in the elevator

2. Which of the following describes how people usually stand when there are at least two people in an elevator? (The point in the chart refers to one person.)

A．A

B．B

C．C

D．D

3. The underlined phrase “size up” in Paragraph 7 is closest in meaning to _____.

A．ignore

B．judge

C．put up with

D．make the best of

4. According to the article, people feel awkward in lifts because of _____.

A．the lack of space

B．someone’s odd behaviors

C．their unfamiliarity with one another

D．their eye contact with one another

【推荐3】We’ve all been there: in a lift, in line at the bank or on an airplane, surrounded by people who are, like us, deeply focused on their smartphones or, worse, struggling with the uncomfortable silence.

What’s the problem? It’s possible that we all have compromised conversational intelligence. It’s more likely that none of us start a conversation because it’s awkward and challenging, or we think it’s annoying and unnecessary. But the next time you find yourself among strangers, consider that small talk is worth the trouble. Experts say it’s an invaluable social practice that results in big benefits.

Dismissing small talk as unimportant is easy, but we can’t forget that deep relationships wouldn’t even exist if it weren’t for casual conversation. Small talk is the grease(润滑剂) for social communication, says Bernardo Carducci, director of the Shyness Research Institute at Indiana University Southeast. ＂Almost every great love story and each big business deal begins with small talk,＂ he explains. ＂The key to successful small talk is learning how to connect with others, not just communicate with them.＂

In a 2014 study, Elizabeth Dunn, associate professor of psychology at UBC, invited people on their way into a coffee shop. One group was asked to seek out an interaction with its waiter; the other, to speak only when necessary. The results showed that those who chatted with their server reported significantly higher positive feelings and a better coffee shop experience. ＂It’s not that talking to the waiter is better than talking to your husband,＂ says Dunn. ＂But interactions with peripheral(边缘的) members of our social network matter for our well-being also.＂

Dunn believes that people who reach out to strangers feel a significantly greater sense of belonging, a bond with others. Carducci believes developing such a sense of belonging starts with small talk. ＂Small talk is the basis of good manners,＂ he says.

1. What phenomenon is described in the first paragraph?

A．Addiction to smartphones.

B．Inappropriate behaviours in public places.

C．Impatience with slow service.

D．Absence of communication between strangers.

2. What is important for successful small talk according to Carducci?

A．Showing good manners.	B．Focusing on a topic.
C．Relating to other people.	D．Making business deals.

3. What does the coffee-shop study suggest about small talk?

A．It improves family relationships.	B．It makes people feel good.
C．It matters as much as a formal talk.	D．It raises people’s confidence.