“I have no idea what to do with 1,000 tennis balls!”
My student Nick was discouraged with the assignment. I’d asked the students to imagine they were working at the U.S. Open Tennis Tournament. After the tournament ended, a supervisor offered them the lightly used tennis balls hit during the event by stars like Serena Williams and Roger Federer. Their job was to sell the balls for a profit.
“I had a couple of good ideas at first,” Nick said. “I could sell them as dog toys or to hospitals that could put them on the bottom of walker frames to keep them from slipping.” Then he struggled to think of more options and decided that was the best he could do.
Most people believe that good ideas come quickly or not at all — but it turns out that’s not the case. Researchers call this “the creative cliff illusion (错觉)”, the sense that we’re unlikely to get good ideas if they don’t appear the minute we start thinking.
The truth, though, is that the best ideas often come later. Your first ideas tend to reflect common wisdom, and thinking like everyone else isn’t a recipe for creativity. The solution is to persist, even though persevering feels hard. If you continue working, more interesting and original ideas will emerge.
I explained this to the class, and we spent another 10 minutes thinking together. Nick realized that he could sell the balls using two different strategies: selling a small portion for a lot of money as signed souvenirs to tennis fanatics and the rest at a discount to tennis schools serving under privileged kids.
Finally, I, together with my students drew a conclusion after discussion: don’t assume your first ideas are always your best ones but do keep brainstorming after you think you’re out of new ideas. It’s worth spending 10-15 minutes longer on a task, because the best ideas are likely just around the corner.
1. What was the challenge Nick was facing at first?| A．Thinking of a solution to a problem. |
| B．Working at the tennis tournament. |
| C．Selling dog toys as many as possible. |
| D．Making a profit by selling balls. |
| A．The teacher was satisfied with his idea. |
| B．Nick desired for a better solution. |
| C．It was based on personal experience. |
| D．Nick solved the hospital’s problems. |
| A．Impress. | B．Attract. | C．Gain. | D．Suppose. |
| A．Working in an excellent team. | B．Playing to your strengths. |
| C．Keeping thinking continuously. | D．Learning the latest theories. |
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【推荐1】We all know that studying is boring. Every time you have to read a textbook or review for a test, you may start thinking of a million things you’d rather be doing like watching TV.
Let’s go through them, shall we?
Get interested in the topic. To be able to dive into different aspects of any topic, you can’t jump straight into the details.
Change your environment. Having an environment that’s helpful to focus can make you enjoy your work. One tip is to add in things that you enjoy. For example, I have carefully selected some music that can help me focus. Another thing you can try is to go to your favorite coffee shop or your own secret spot in the library when you need to study.
Get a study partner. Studying with a partner is great for making the act of studying less boring.
| A．Instead, you have to be excited about it first. |
| B．Provide rewards for those who do jobs well. |
| C．Create mini-rewards for studying in advance. |
| D．The key to finding study partners is to get those who focus on learning. |
| E．Personally, I’ve also found that having a good drink next to me helps a lot. |
| F．Today, we’ll be covering some tricks you can use to make studying more fun. |
| G．However, there are two main points of failure that you have to watch out for. |
【推荐2】How to Stop Failing in Keeping Your New Year’s Resolution(决心)
We have an embarrassing confession: Our New Year’s resolutions for 2024 are nearly identical to those we made for 2023.
But a few weeks in, as January’s cold changed into the warmer days of February, we seemed to have largely failed.
Will we suffer the same failure this year? Absolutely not. But how this time?
Look over your notes and determine what items on it are most important to you. Don’t take too long choosing; often it’s the things that come to you straight away that have the most meaning for you personally.
Create “systems”.
Systems are the ways that you carry out a larger goal. You need to break down large goals into smaller actions that can are easier to carry out.
Ask for others’ support on these goals throughout the year.
If possible, team up and visit the gym or shop at the health food store together. Ask them to speak up if you slip and order a Diet Coke instead of a water,
| A．A year ago, we started strong. |
| B．or forget another goal on your list. |
| C．If you make your larger goals too vague, |
| D．Note down what you have done each day. |
| E．Choose one or two attainable larger goals. |
| F．We scrolled the screen late into the evening. |
| G．if you leave out an important goal on the list for no reason, |
【推荐3】Some days, you are just not feeling motivated. You don’t want to do anything.
Get up and shake your body. You may even want to jump around, and really get that blood flowing. When you sit at your desk for too long, you become painful. A quick and easy way to treat this pain is by getting back in your body.
Some people develop well under pressure, while others need loose guidelines. There is no one rule for getting you into action. It always depends on you—your individual needs and personal preferences. If you currently find yourself stuck, think back to a time when you last felt motivated. Then ask yourself:
We rarely suddenly feel motivated to do certain things and then jump into action.
| A．What was different back then? |
| B．Your path to motivation is unique. |
| C．But your responsibility leaves little free room. |
| D．Motivation rarely works like people think it does. |
| E．Instead, it’s more likely to work the other way around. |
| F．Can your values and goals also help to keep you on track? |
| G．You may even want to take a quick walk around the neighborhood. |
【推荐1】High school often serves to prepare students for a college education, or it might be the last stop on the educational journey for some people. No matter which path one may choose, high school life offers students the opportunities to achieve a great deal of learning, get to know themselves, or simply have fun.
In America, high school is a special experience with a culture of its own. Public high schools exist in all communities(社区). Every community in the United States has a public school system, teaching children at primary and secondary levels. These schools are free and supported mainly by taxes, with additional aid from states and governments. Private high schools are a choice for parents who want to give their child a better education. They are often very expensive. Private schools are usually famous for their academic reputation (学术声望). This academic reputation is related to college preparation.
In high school, students study various academic subjects such as English, literature, foreign languages, maths, science, history, geography and so on. Some large high schools have classes that teach job-related subjects like auto mechanics, cooking and others, in order to provide students with skills needed for certain jobs. High school might also offer “honours classes” for particularly smart and sharp students.
Some states give basic skills exams during the last year of the high school process to make sure that certain academic standards are met, but, again, high school curricula (课程) vary greatly among communities.
High school sports, particularly basketball and football, are often organised. Inter-city and cross-town competitions are often held. These competitions are popular, especially in communities that do not have their own professional sports teams. Nearly all high school teams have nicknames: the Knights and the Tigers being some famous examples.
1. Which of the following is not the supporting source of public school?| A．Taxes. | B．States. |
| C．Community. | D．Governments. |
| A．There is a private school system in every community. |
| B．Private schools can usually provide better college preparation. |
| C．All private high schools in the United States are very expensive. |
| D．Private schools are a better choice for parents than public schools. |
| A．Sports competitions are only in the city or town. |
| B．Some states set academic standards in the first year. |
| C．Some schools have special classes for smart students. |
| D．All communities have their own professional sports teams. |
| A．Life in the USA |
| B．Education in the USA |
| C．High Schools in the USA |
| D．Public Schools and Private Schools in the USA |
【推荐2】It’s time for graduation. A good reflection of high school ought to do you good. You’ll be reminded of how you got here, what you learned, and what experiences were most meaningful to you.
High school is what you make it. Growing up, I’ve heard adults say, “High school was the best years of my life!” Because of that, I expected to have a great time when I entered freshman year.
Having like-minded individuals around you is a major part in a great high school experience. This, of course, involves great risk. Finally, it’s all a matter of staying true to what you believe personally and following your moral compass, even in the foggiest conditions.
You are your greatest ally (盟友). No matter how many friends you have, at the end of the day, there’s only one person who really knows the real you: and that’s you.
High school teaches you a lot of things — academically, emotionally, socially and realistically. If you’re graduating soon, take some time to reflect on what you’ve learned.
| A．You are who you hang out with. |
| B．You should learn to befriend who you are. |
| C．High school leaves you with many meaningful memories. |
| D．This isn’t meant to put a bad reputation on doing things with friends. |
| E．You’d be surprised at what lessons you’ll keep coming back to in your future efforts. |
| F．As a graduating senior, here’s what these past three years of high school have taught me. |
| G．However, I didn’t realize high school was the best three years of their lives because they made it the best years of their lives. |
“Where are you going to college?” “I’m going to my local community college.” My answer seemed to be the magic phrase that would wipe the smile right off many people’s faces. It’s clear that people have a lot of misunderstandings about community colleges.
Many people think community colleges are only for people who couldn’t get into a four-year school. But it is not true. In high school, I always got A’s. But when it came to applying to colleges, I didn’t know what I wanted to major in and didn’t want to spend thousands of dollars at a 4-year school until I knew what I wanted to do.
Some people will ask, “Since the community college is cheaper, will you get a good education?” I found that nearly all of my professors taught the same courses at 4-year colleges. My professors were knowledgeable and experienced, and I found many of the courses challenging.
Some people think if I attend the community college, I will miss out on the “college experience”. I must admit that this is something I worried about a great deal the summer before college. But I soon learned that the community college, just like any other college, is what you make of it. I made the most of my time at the community college. I also made tons of friends by joining clubs and attending student government meetings.
I took a lot of different courses. I had an amazing professor who suggested I take her journalism class. Never having written for my high school newspapers, I dared not take it, but since she was so enthusiastic, I eventually decided to have a try. That one course was all it took for me to realize that I wanted to become a journalist.
Community colleges may not be for everyone, but for me it is a life-changing experience that has helped me discover who I am and the person I hope to become.
1. What do people think of community colleges?2. Who influenced the author to become a journalist?
3. Please decide which part is false in the following statement, then underline it and explain why.
I chose the community college because I was a top student in high school.
4. In the author’s situation, would you choose the community college? Why? (In about 40 words)
【推荐1】For as long as there have been gifts, we naturally make choices based on the recipient (接受者). But what if we have been wrong all along and we could turn things around, which not only made gift buying easier, but the recipient happier?
In 2015, psychologists Lauren Human and Lara Aknin conducted an online survey, which suggested that when people buy gifts, they prefer to choose something based on the recipient’s personality and tastes. Most people also said that they preferred receiving gifts bought with them in mind: gifts for them.
But Human and Aknin wondered if this approach to giving failed to take advantage of the way we connect as people. So they sent 78 volunteers into a shopping centre before Mother’s Day. Half were told to buy a card that “reveals (揭示) your knowledge of the recipient” while the others set out to buy a card that “reveals your true self”. After the purchase, the givers who had thought partly of themselves reported feeling emotionally closer to their mothers.
To find out how that approach goes down with recipients, the psychologists did another test, asking more than 100 students to choose a song on iTunes to give to a friend, partner or family member. Each half of the group received the same instructions as the card buyers. Results revealed that recipients of songs that revealed something of the givers felt closer to them than those who received gifts bought only with them in mind.
Human and Aknin suggest it might apply to all gifts. “If building stronger social connections is the underlying (潜在的) goal” of a gift and surely it should be — then we “may well be advised to offer more self-reflective gifts”. In short, for a present to be meaningful, you need to give away a bit of yourself, even if there is a risk that the gift might not so closely suit the recipient’s practical needs or tastes as one acquired purely with that in mind.
Moreover, giving something of oneself can be a safer act, the psychologists added. Because it reduces the risk of revealing poor knowledge of a recipient by attempting to buy something that fits their character — and failing.
But a note of caution here: what the research does not examine is the potential risk in repeated, unsympathetic giver-centered giving, which, according to Human and Aknin “could signal self-obsession”— and nobody wants to reveal that about themselves.
1. From the Mother’s Day card test, we can conclude that _______.| A．gifts chosen with the giver in mind work well on the giver |
| B．most people choose gifts with the recipient in mind |
| C．most people choose gifts based on their personal tastes |
| D．gifts chosen with the giver in mind work well on the recipient |
| A．The recipients; the givers. |
| B．The givers; the recipients. |
| C．The givers; the givers. |
| D．The recipients; the recipients. |
| A．Choose gifts that reflect more of yourself. |
| B．Just focus on your own tastes when choosing gifts. |
| C．Buy something that fits the recipient’s character most. |
| D．Be careful not to signal your true personality. |
| A．The tradition of gift giving. |
| B．The purpose of gift giving. |
| C．The effect of gift giving. |
| D．The psychology of gift giving. |
【推荐2】When I first began running in high school on the track team, it made sense to carefully clock every mile and push myself to race for personal bests. But as I changed from running for sport to running for amusement as an adult, I found that tracking my workouts often just ended with frustration. And it wasn’t until my watch battery died several years ago that I first experienced the sense of calm that came with running for the pure joy of it. I never replaced the watch battery, and that might not be a bad thing for my fitness goals.
This is the idea of unplugged (不插电的) running, which is gaining steam in the fitness community. And recent research has shown that getting rid of your running watch, especially if it’s a smartwatch or fitness tracker, could actually improve your workout — or at least your enjoyment of running.
“People used to have an interest in their sport and get enjoyment out of the sport, but now that’s switching to the data,” said Eoin Whelan, a senior lecturer at the National University of Ireland Galway. “They will compare themselves to people who are better than them, who are running faster or running longer. And in the end we know that makes them feel bad. ”
Whelan also noted that people who are very dependent on smart watches or fitness trackers are more likely to skip their workouts if the batteries on their tracking devices are dead.
In addition, there is evidence that running watch-free is beneficial for more than just the casual jogger. Some professionals also have had success with leaving their watches at home. Welsh runner Steve Jones famously set a world record at the 1984 Chicago Marathon without wearing a watch. More recently, Olympic marathoner Trevor Hofbauer made headlines for winning the 2019 Canadian Marathon Championships without a watch.
“If you have too much information being fed to you in real time, it can kind of get in your head,” Hofbauer said. “For me, the simpler, the better.”
1. What happened to the author when his running watch didn’t work?| A．He lost the desire to keep running every day. |
| B．He experienced running as a really fun activity. |
| C．He was at a loss how to replace the watch battery. |
| D．He had great difficulty achieving his fitness goals. |
| A．They can enrich the wearers’ social life. |
| B．The data provided by them is unreliable. |
| C．The way people use them is proper. |
| D．They can lead to harmful consequences. |
| A．To show the popularity of running watch-free. |
| B．To encourage people to become professional runners. |
| C．To prove the positive effects of running watch-free. |
| D．To present professionals’ views on running watch-free. |
| A．It’s time to take off your running watch. |
| B．Unplugged running actually has two sides. |
| C．Comparing with others should be avoided. |
| D．Racing for personal bests requires simplicity. |
【推荐3】Next time you’re in a public place, take a look around you, and count how many people are using their phones. I can tell you now that it is probably more than half, whether you’re on public transport, in a cafe or simply walking down the street.
I’m not saying that I am not an example of this, but it always amazes me how people can spend so much time on their phones without actually talking to anyone in particular.
For example, I recently visited London and travelled on the tube while I was there. Apart from the people asleep, almost everybody else was on their phones, and because of the nature of the tube, it is difficult not to see exactly what they are all doing. Of course, being underground it is difficult for you to get any signal, which rules out texting or using the Internet, but there is still plenty you can use your phones for. People were playing games, reading articles and listening to music, and I am sure that as soon as they emerged from the train station they would start texting or calling or checking their emails.
Recently, my smartphone broke and had to be sent off to the warehouse for repair for a week or so. In the meantime I had to use a really old, basic phone just to keep me in touch with my family and friends. All I could do on this phone was send text messages, make calls and play one game. And I loved it. I loved being free from the Internet, and I really didn’t mind not having constant updates about what my friends were doing or what the latest celebrity story was. It allowed me to spend more lime taking in my surroundings.
However, I knew that as soon as I got my smartphone hack I would be one of those people once again. Perhaps I should just go back to using the basic phone and forget my smartphone.
1. Why are you asked to look around in Paragraph 1?| A．To ensure your safety. |
| B．To communicate with people. |
| C．To count the people around you. |
| D．To count the number of people using the phones. |
| A．Using mobile apps. |
| B．Talking with each other. |
| C．Reading printed books. |
| D．Checking social network sites. |
| A．He felt great actually. |
| B．He found it very inconvenient. |
| C．He couldn’t see much difference, |
| D．He felt terrible at first but better later. |
| A．People without mobiles. |
| B．People using basic phones. |
| C．People using smartphones reasonably. |
| D．People spending a lot of time on mobiles. |
