Remembering tenses (时态) and grammar is crucial to your studies, but a lot of communication doesn’t even rely on words or sounds. Nonverbal (非语言的) gestures and body language are not just a vital part of communication: they vary in meaning around the world. Let’s take a look at gestures from different cultures.
Shaking one’s head
Most people are used to understanding a nod of the up and down as meaning something is correct. However, in India, moving the head from side to side is the gesture for “yes” – the quicker the movement, the stronger the certainty. These gestures can also be used in conversations with other people to express that you are paying attention. There is a point of confusion that a similar shake of the head can also express “maybe” and a host of other things, with the context of the situation being needed to determine which meaning is trying to be expressed, according to the language website FluentU.
Showing irritation
How can you tell if an Italian person is irritated (恼怒的)? If you understand body language, it’s simple! There’s a common gesture you will see wherever you are in Italy: a closed hand with the palm (手掌) facing up and the fingers held tight together in an upward-pointing cone (圆锥) shape. This hand gesture is used to express disbelief or surprise at somebody’s behavior or remarks, with a shake of the hand used for emphasis, according to the Washington Post. Countries in South America with a large population who originally immigrated (移民) from Italy, such as Argentina and Uruguay, also use this gesture – a sign of how culture can be transported around the world.
Keeping count
Finger counting is also a type of hand gesture that differs between countries and cultures. For example, while in China all numbers up to 10 can be displayed with only one hand, in Western countries both hands are used to represent numbers between six and 10. Still, many other countries also differ in how they go about showing numbers. In Germany, for example, the number one is symbolized by raising the thumb (大拇指); while in the UK and North America, counting starts from the index finger (食指).
1. How can you know the exact meaning of head shaking in India?| A．By paying more attention. |
| B．By considering the context. |
| C．By noticing the speed of the movement. |
| D．By understanding the speakers’ expressions. |
| A．A closed hand. | B．Fingers held tight. |
| C．A shake of the hand. | D．A hand in a cone shape. |
| A．One thumb and one little finger. |
| B．One index finger and a thumb. |
| C．One hand with five fingers up and another thumb. |
| D．One hand with five fingers up and an additional index finger. |
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【推荐1】It’s still there, the Vietnamese school where my brother and I used to go. Even with a new coat of paint and the high wire fence, the school I knew ten years ago remains the same.
Every day at 5 p.m., instead of flying kites with our friends, my brother and I had to go to Vietnamese school. Nothing could stop my determined mother to have us learn the language of our culture. She held us by the collar and walked with us from our home to school, leaving our tearful faces before the front of the school.
Although the school mainly taught language, the lessons always began with an exercise in politeness. With the entrance of the teacher, the best student would tap a bell and everyone would get up, and say in Vietnamese, “How are you, teacher?”
The language always made me embarrassed. More often than not, I hail tried to separate myself from the loud voice that followed me whenever I went to the American supermarket outside our area. The voice belonged to my grandmother, a small old woman whose Vietnamese was quick, loud, but not beautiful. I did not want to be seen speaking Vietnamese with her and thought of as talking stupid.
When I spoke English, people nodded at me, smiled and encouraged me. My brother was even stricter than I about speaking English. He was especially cruel towards my mother, scolding her for her poor English. Bits of Vietnamese were often mixed in her conversation.
After two years of struggle, I finally divorced my culture. I was permitted to stop Vietnamese school. I thought of myself as American. At last, I thought I was one of you; I wasn’t one of them.
Sadly, I am only an American.
1. What can be learned from the passage?| A．The author’s brother liked learning Vietnamese. |
| B．The author’s mother taught him English at home. |
| C．The author didn’t like learning Vietnamese when he was young. |
| D．The author’s mother put her sons in a language school in Vietnam. |
| A．his Vietnamese was not beautiful enough |
| B．he could not fly kites like other kids at school |
| C．his grandma spoke Vietnamese loudly in public |
| D．his mother always treated him rudely in the market |
| A．scared | B．peaceful |
| C．satisfied | D．regretful |
| A．It is important to adapt to a new environment. |
| B．It is important to appreciate your own culture. |
| C．It is important to remember your childhood. |
| D．It is important to learn a foreign language. |
【推荐2】Gaelic had been the major culture in Scotland. But many forces tried to weaken its power. The final straw came in 1609, when some laws required Highland Scottish leaders to send their children to English-speaking schools. Naturally, the culture continued to weaken through the 20th century. Though Gaelic still existed in some rural areas, a lack of jobs meant young people in Gaelic areas were leaving for English-speaking cities.
Iain Noble was a wealthy businessman from Germany. He quickly fell in love with Gaelic culture when he moved to Scotland. So he set up the college of Sabhal Mòr Ostaig in 1973 on the Isle of Skye. Today, it has more than 1,000 students and is officially the National Centre for Gaelic Language and Culture. It is where the revival of Scotland’s Gaelic culture started.
Of course, the college teaches the language and culture. But the secret to making such impressive cultural achievements is giving language learners skills in industries like media and business. The skills allow students to create local jobs and help make the area known to tourists.
Noble’s wife Lady Lucilla said his eagerness to revive the culture was clear. After spending much money setting up the college, Noble had to go to great lengths to find worthwhile teachers. Sometimes he tried hard to find people who had left Skye, “Iain would invite those whose families were from Skye but who were working in Aberdeen, in London and further afield,” said Lucilla.
“Now I’ve seen some cool youngsters who are very proud of their Gaelic, and they are fascinated by the culture,” she said.
One such youngster is 15-year-old Emily Macdonald. She not only speaks Gaelic fluently with her friends, but is excited to do so.
“I feel like we’re even more wanting to speak Gaelic, just to keep it alive, because it is really important to our nation,” she said. “And to have this special language that we can speak to each other in is quite special.”
1. What does the first paragraph mainly talk about?| A．The fall of Gaelic. | B．The future of Gaelic. |
| C．The influence of Gaelic. | D．The advantages of Gaelic. |
| A．Having the best Gaelic teachers. | B．Teaching students professional skills. |
| C．Receiving much government support. | D．Being open to both natives and foreigners. |
| A．He made much money from the college. |
| B．He traveled a lot to spread Gaelic culture. |
| C．He spared no effort to do his cultural work. |
| D．He became world-famous because of his college. |
| A．It is the pride of their nation. | B．It is hard to learn for youngsters. |
| C．It has changed a lot over the years. | D．It attracts fewer local young people. |
1. Which of the following sentences best expresses the main idea?
| A．captain Cook’s guide made a joke. |
| B．Native Australians could not speak English in Cook’s time. |
| C．Some words have rather funny origins (起源). |
| D．Captain Cook was a lover of wild animals. |
| A．Ah, it is a special kind of animal |
| B．I wonder what you have said |
| C．What do you mean by pointing at that animal? |
| D．I have no idea of what you are referring to. |
| A．we should learn many different languages |
| B．Captain Cook made a mistake in understanding |
| C．Captain Cook was a foolish explorer |
| D．the importance of a language in common |
【推荐1】More often than not, we think the taste of food is largely to do with the way it's cooked. However, according to a new study published in the Journal of Consumer Research, sitting and standing also affect the taste.
Lead author Dipayan Biswas, a professor from the University of South Florida in the US, looked specifically at how the vestibular（前庭的）sense, which is responsible for balance, posture（姿势）and location awareness, works with our sense of taste.
He found that standing for even a few minutes causes people to feel physical stress. Gravity pushes blood to the lower parts of the body, causing the heart to work harder. This increases the heart rate and leads to increased stress hormones（荷尔蒙）.All of these reduce sensory sensitivity, which affects taste. Our mouths fail to taste or feel temperature as well when this happens. When people experience discomfort, foods that normally taste good aren't as pleasing, says Science Daily.
Biswas gave 350 participants each a piece of biscuit and had them rate its tastiness. Those who stood while eating gave it a lower rating than those who sat in comfortable chairs. Next, Biswas and his team gave participants bite-sized cookies from a well-known local restaurant. These cookies are widely considered to be very tasty. Those who sat down to eat rated them highly. However, when the baker added extra salt, the results were opposite. Participants who stood up to eat the cookies didn't notice that the cookies tasted saltier, while those who were seated found the cookies weren't so tasty.
So if you really want to enjoy your meal, try to find yourself a comfortable seat. But if you're trying to lose weight, eating while standing could be helpful because people tend to eat less while standing.
1. What's the common belief about the taste of the food in the text?| A．It seems associated with people's preferences. |
| B．It is largely to do with how people sit or stand. |
| C．It has little to do with the way people eat food. |
| D．It is mainly determined by how food is cooked. |
| A．Their mental health declines. | B．Their hearts work more slowly. |
| C．They are less sensitive to taste. | D．They have no sensory sensitivity. |
| A．By classifying examples. | B．By doing experiments. |
| C．By studying previous theories. | D．By analyzing abundant data. |
| A．Sitting Has Various Effects on Eating |
| B．Posture Affects How People Enjoy Food |
| C．Eating While Standing Helps to Lose Weight |
| D．Sitting and Standing Are Common Postures |
【推荐2】Chips, cookies and ice cream… Although these ultra-processed foods (UPFs) are tasty, they may. literally make you an ”addict“. as revealed in a recent report in the British Medical Journal.
Simply put, ultra-processed foods are foods that you can’t re-create in your kitchen, according to the BBC. Produced in factories, they often have long lists of ingredients that you don’t recognize, such as additives, and are ready to eat or simply need to be heated.
The study’s researchers linked UPFs to addiction, which includes behaviors like strong cravings (渴望) and negative experiences when trying to stop consumption. They analyzed 281 studies from 36 different countries and regions. The findings showed that 14 percent of adults and 12 percent of children are addicted to ultra-processed foods. Usually, natural foods are either high in carbohydrates (碳水化合物) or high in fat, but UPFs can be high in both, which contributes to their addictive potential. For example, as written in the report, 100 grams of salmon has 0 kcal from carbohydrates and 73 kcal from fat, while the same amount of a chocolate bar contains 237 kcal from carbohydrates and 266 kcal from fat.
Such foods also deliver carbohydrates and fat to the gut (肠) faster. Although nuts are high in fat, the fat can’t be digested in the early stages. The fat in UPFs, however, is broken down before entering the duodenum (十二指肠), the first part of the small intestine (小肠), which signals the brain to produce more dopamine-the “happy” chemical.
The additives in UPFs also impact the way the gut absorbs calories. To improve the flavor of the food or drink, artificial sweeteners are widely used in UPFs. However, the sweeteners may bind with receptors (受体) in the gut, which makes it more sensitive to sweet food, ultimately increasing the gut’s capacity to absorb sugar.
By acknowledging that certain UPFs are “addictive”, similar to cigarettes or alcohol, “we may be able to help improve global health, ” one of the study’s authors, Ashley Gearhardt, said in a press release. They are also calling for more action to combat such an addiction.
1. What is paragraph 2 mainly about?| A．The definition of UPFs. |
| B．The production process of UPFs. |
| C．Common additives in UPFs. |
| D．Differences between UPFs and natural foods. |
| A．Increased desire for carbohydrates and fat. |
| B．Loss of interest in other types of food. |
| C．Difficulty in resisting the urge to eat them. |
| D．Feelings of guilt when consuming them. |
| A．They are lower in carbohydrates and fat. |
| B．They prevent the gut from burning calories. |
| C．They contain more nutrients than needed. |
| D．They produce more of a chemical that makes you happy. |
| A．By allowing the food to get digested faster. |
| B．By changing the way it takes in sugar. |
| C．By improving its ability to absorb nutrients. |
| D．By reducing its sensitivity to natural foods. |
【推荐3】Nir Eyal was part of a team of Stanford MBAs and also one of the brightest investors in Silicon Valley. He documented his experiences, reading and observations of hundreds of companies to know how mind manipulation(操纵) worked—how products change our actions, and create desires. The result of his research is the Hook Model.
A trigger is the actuator of behavior. Triggers come in two types: external and internal. Habit-forming products start by alerting users with external triggers like an email, a website link, or the app icon. For example, suppose Barbra, a young woman in Pennsylvania, happens to see a photo in her Facebook taken by a family member from a rural part of the state. It’s a lovely picture and since she is planning a trip there, the external trigger’s call-to-action intrigues her and she clicks. By cycling through successive hooks, users begin to form associations with internal triggers, which attach to existing behaviors and emotions.
The simple action takes Barbra to a website called Pinterest, a “pinboard-style photo sharing” site where she is dazzled by other fascinating objects related to what she is generally interested in—namely things to see on her upcoming trip.
Variable rewards are one of the most powerful tools companies implement to hook users. Research shows that levels of the dopamine(多巴胺) rise when the brain is expecting a reward. Wanting rewards creates a focused state, which suppresses the areas of the brain associated with judgment and reason while activating the parts associated with wanting and desire.
When Barbra lands on Pinterest, she’s spending more time hunting for the next wonderful thing. Before she knows it, she enjoys endlessly scrolling Pinterest, and she builds a desire to keep the things that delight her. By collecting items, she’ll be giving the site data about her preferences. Soon she will follow and make other investments, which serve to increase her ties to the site and prepare her for future loops through the hook.
1. What did Eyal’s research focus on?| A．His personal experiences. |
| B．His findings of Hook Model. |
| C．His observations of companies. |
| D．His researches on human brain. |
| A．The website has a unique style. |
| B．A photo in her Facebook attracts her. |
| C．External and internal triggers both work on her. |
| D．There is a lot of information about her upcoming trip. |
| A．How a reward works. |
| B．How the brain works. |
| C．Why the levels of dopamine rise. |
| D．What influences judgment and reason. |
| A．By suggesting on investments. |
| B．By offering appealing discounts. |
| C．By learning about her preferences. |
| D．By making workable plans for her future. |
