When John was growing up, other kids felt sorry for him. His parents always had him weeding the garden, carrying out the garbage and delivering newspapers. But when John reached adulthood, he was better off than his childhood playmates. He had more job satisfaction, a better marriage and was healthier. Most of all, he was happier. Far happier.
These are the findings of a 40-year study that followed the lives of 456 teenage boys from Boston. The study showed that those who had worked as boys enjoyed happier and more productive lives than those who had not. "Boys who worked in the home or community gained competence(能力) and came to feel they were worthwhile members of society," said George Vaillant, the psychologist(心理学家) who made the discovery. "And because they felt good about themselves, others felt good about them."
Vaillant’s study followed these males in great detail. Interviews were repeated at ages 25,31 and 47. Under Vaillant, the researchers compared the men’s mental-health scores with their boyhood-activity scores. Points were awarded for part-time jobs, housework, effort in school, and ability to deal with problems.
The link between what the men had done as boys and how they turned out as adults was surprisingly sharp. Those who had done the most boyhood activities were twice as likely to have warm relations with a wide variety of people, five times as likely to be well paid and 16 times less likely to have been unemployed. The researchers also found that IQ and family social and economic class made no real difference in how the boys turned out.
Working — at any age — is important. Childhood activities help a child develop responsibility, independence, confidence and competence — the underpinnings(基础) of emotional health. They also help him understand that people must cooperate and work toward common goals. The most competent adults are those who know how to do this. Yet work isn’t everything. As Tolstoy once said, "One can live magnificently in this world if one knows how to work and how to love, to work for the person one loves and to love one’s work."
1. What do we know about John?A.He enjoyed his career and marriage. |
B.He had few childhood playmates. |
C.He received little love from his family. |
D.He was envied by others in his childhood. |
A.a description of personal values and social values |
B.an analysis of how work was related to competence |
C.an example for parents’ expectations of their children |
D.an explanation why some boys grew into happy men |
A.recording the boys’ effort in school |
B.evaluating the men’s mental health |
C.comparing different sets of scores |
D.measuring the men’s problem solving ability |
A.Quick to react. | B.Having a thin edge. |
C.Clear and definite. | D.Sudden and rapid. |
A.Competent adults know more about love than work. |
B.Emotional health is essential to a wonderful adult life. |
C.Love brings more joy to people than work does. |
D.Independence is the key to one’s success. |
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【推荐1】As an eco-minimalist, Su Yige has maintained an environmentally friendly and sustainable lifestyle for the past three years while studying in Canada. She takes her own bag when she goes grocery shopping and uses second-hand items as often as possible. She avoids almost all paper-related products unless she has to use a public toilet while away from home.
Diligence and thrift are time-honored traditional Chinese virtues. Su's family is a good example of this, according to the native of Weihai, Shandong province. Although they have little formal “green” knowledge, her parents lead a very environmentally friendly life.
For example, the family has used the same hair dryer for more than a decade, and Su remembers many of her mother's clothes from as far back as kindergarten. “As long as something can still be used, my mother will not replace it with a new item,” she said.
“I frequently asked my father to bring the plastic bag back home after dumping our waste in the trash bin. He was unhappy, and argued that instead of making that request, I should go downstairs to dump the waste myself” she said. In another move, her father criticized her for doing too much shopping online. Eventually, they both made steps toward becoming better environmentalists. Her father brings the bag back for reuse and she has only bought two pieces of clothing online in the past six months.
Back in Canada, Su is looking forward to finding a job related to sustainable development in China after she graduates as a computer science major in the summer.
1. Which of the following best describes Su Yige?A.Conservative. | B.Nostalgic. | C.Economical. | D.Productive. |
A.She has a lot of formal green knowledge. |
B.She regards using the same items as a lifestyle. |
C.She always wears old clothes due to lack of money. |
D.She will not replace the old items until they are out of style. |
A.Both of them like to criticize each other. |
B.Su's father is particular about her clothes. |
C.The relationship between them is very tense. |
D.They urge each other to become more environmentally friendly. |
A.She will stay there to look for a job. |
B.She will put effort into computer science. |
C.She will devote herself to her motherland's future. |
D.She will come back to China to stay with her parents. |
My husband and I got married in 1965 and for the first ten years of our marriage I was very happy to stay home and raise our three children. Then four years ago, our youngest child went to school and I thought I might go back to work.
My husband was very supportive and helped me to make my decision. He emphasized all of the things I can do around the house, and said he thought I could be a great success in business.
After several weeks of job-hunting, I found my present job, which is working for a small public relations firm. At first, my husband was very proud of me and would tell his friends, “My clever little wife can run that company she’s working for.”
But as his joking remark approached reality, my husband stopped talking to me about my job. I have received several promotions and pay increases, and I am now making more money than he is. I can buy my own clothes and a new car. Because of our combined incomes, my husband and I can do many things that we had always dreamed of, but we don’t do these things because he is very unhappy.
We fight about little things and my husband is very critical of me in front of our friends. For the first time in our marriage, I think there is a possibility that our marriage may come to an end.
I love my husband very much, and I don’t want him to feel inferior, but I also love my job. I think I can be a good wife and a working woman, but I don’t know how. Can you give me some advice? Will I have to choose one or the other or can I keep both my husband and my new career?
Please help.
1. What do you think shows her husband was supportive?A.He took up all the work she used to do. |
B.He made all the decisions for her. |
C.He gave her encouragement. |
D.All of the above. |
A.she found a gap emerged between her and her husband |
B.she bought more clothes and a new house |
C.she did many things she had dreamed for |
D.she felt very proud of herself |
A.husband and children |
B.children and work |
C.career and money |
D.job and marriage |
“Why pick on my family?” Jessica's father said with anger. “Your family history isn't so good, you know. Wasn't your great-great-grandfather a prisoner who was transported to Australia for his crimes?”“Yes, but people these days say that you are not a real Australian unless your ancestors arrived as prisoners.”“Gosh, sorry I asked. I think I understand now,” Jessica cut in before things grew worse.
After dinner, the house was very quiet. Jessica's parents were still quite angry with each other. Her mother was ironing clothes and every now and then she glared at her husband, who hid behind his newspaper pretending to read. When she finished, she gathered the freshly pressed clothes in her arms and walked to Jessica's closet. Just as she opened the door and reached in to hang a skirt, a bony arm stuck out from the dark depths and a bundle of white bones fell to the floor. Jessica's mother sank in a faint (晕倒), waking only when Jessica put a cold, wet cloth on her forehead. She looked up to see the worried faces of her husband and daughter.
“What happened? Where am I?” she asked. “You just destroyed the school's skeleton, Mum,” explained Jessica. “I brought it home to help me with my health project. I meant to tell you, but it seemed that as soon as I mentioned skeletons and closets, it caused a problem between you and Dad.” Jessica looked in amazement as her parents began to laugh madly. “They're both crazy,” she thought.
1. According to Jessica's mother, “a skeleton in the close” means ________.
A.a family honor | B.a family secret | C.a family story | D.a family treasure |
A.They were brought to Australia as prisoners. |
B.They were the earliest people living in Australia. |
C.They were involved in some crimes in Australia. |
D.They were not regarded as criminals in their days. |
A.She was curious about it. | B.She planned to keep it for fun. |
C.She needed it for her school task. | D.She intended to scare her parents. |
A.they were crazy. |
B.they were over excited. |
C.they realized their misunderstanding. |
D.they both thought they had won the quarrel. |
【推荐1】Bee venom (毒液) is a highly sought and expensive ingredient for specialized medical treatments and now Australian scientists have discovered that when the industrious insects become annoyed, their venom becomes even more powerful.
Researchers at Curtin University have noted how behavioral and ecological factors can influence the quality of the venom which is used to treat degenerative and infectious diseases. Their study, published in the scientific journal PLOS, analysed protein found in the venom of western honeybees.
The more proteins found in the venom, the higher the potential quality and effect. To understand the protein diversity of venom and find out what impacted this, the researchers looked at a range of factors including the behavioral patterns of the bees.
“We classify the bees’ anger according to their response to the stimulating devices that collect the venom,” said Dr. Daniela Scaccabarozzi, who led the project.
The bee venom collector has a tiny charge that shocks any bees landing on it and they release information that forces the rest bees of the hive (蜂窝) to sting (螫). “Interestingly, we discovered that the ‘angry bees’ produced a richer, more protein-dense venom. And we found that there was no visible harm to the bees.” Scaccabarozzi said.
The team also confirmed that temperature impacted the venom’s strength. “High temperatures can be detrimental to bees’ activity in and out of the hives,” Scaccabarozzi said. “Of the 25 hives tested, we discovered that the sites with higher temperatures recorded lower venom production.” Further findings also revealed that geographical location had an impact on the composition of bee venom, as well as what stage the flowers were at during harvest when they were consumed by the bees.
Expecting the research to be useful to the medical field and the beekeeping business, Scaccabarozzi says further research will help beekeepers collect a standardized quality of venom to meet growing demand in clinical and therapeutic fields, as well as help design cost-effective strategies for venom harvest to secure its position in the global market.
1. What have researchers at Curtin University found?A.Harvesting bee venom is really a tough task. |
B.Bee venom is a costly and powerful medicine. |
C.Angry bees make medicinally stronger venom. |
D.Bees exhibit apparent differences in behaviour. |
A.By classifying them. | B.By sounding the alarm. |
C.By disturbing their hive. | D.By giving them tiny shocks. |
A.Sensitive. | B.Harmful. | C.Fundamental. | D.Alternative. |
A.It will identify beneficial proteins. |
B.It will develop valuable medicines. |
C.It will standardize the venom market. |
D.It will help produce profitable venom. |
【推荐2】When you were at school, were you ever told to stop daydreaming and concentrate? It was easy for your mind to wander if you weren’t interested in what you were learning or if you had better things to think about.
Scientists have looked at what prevents us from maintaining focused and found a number of ways to help us stay in the zone.
Another possible cure for a short attention span is brain training. An article for BBC Future by Caroline Williams says that “Attention Researcher Nilli Lavie of University College London has found that making a task more visually demanding takes up more processing power and leaves the brain nothing left to process distractions.”
There are more practical tips to keeping your mind focused.
A.These include making a list of the tasks, finding a focused workspace, or chewing some gum! |
B.So, keeping your mind busy might be the answer. |
C.An effective way to improve concentration is to avoid silent environment. |
D.Staying focused can still be a challenge in adult life. |
E.But according to Science Focus magazine, distraction isn’t all bad. |
F.One of the most obvious things is eliminating noise. |
G.Therefore, we should always strive to eliminate distractions. |
【推荐3】The latest data shows the population of wild Asian elephants in southwest China’s Yunnan Province has increased from around 150 to more than 300 from the 1980s to the end of 2021, according to the National Forestry and Grassland Administration.
With the growth in the elephant population, conflicts between humans and elephants have become frequent. In order to fundamentally and peacefully solve the issue and protect the elephant’s habitat at the same time, construction of the Asian elephant National Park is picking up speed. Experts suggest that national parks are not meant to be entirely free of people. Instead, they should offer a method for coexistence.
Asian elephants play an important role as engineers of the rainforest, said the expert. Their migration(迁徙) can speed up the replacement of forest ecosystems along the way. Elephant waste remains not only a delicacy for insects, but also attracts insectivorous birds, allowing plant seeds to spread. Therefore, protecting the elephants and their habitats guarantees the shelter to other wildlife in forest ecosystems.
To cope with human-elephant conflicts, Yunnan took the lead in introducing a commercial insurance model into its compensation(补偿) system: local residents will be paid with the amount of money for the crops destroyed by the elephants by the insurance company. In the past 10 years, Yunnan has paid a total of 173 million yuan for losses caused by Asian elephants.
“The standard of compensation is constantly being adjusted, and the amount of insurance coverage for compensation is also increasing,” said Yang Hua from the Forestry and Grass Bureau of Yunnan Province. “At present, the insured amount in Pu’er City and Xishuangbanna Prefecture alone has already gone beyond 50 million.”
1. Why does the author mention the growing population of wild Asian elephants?A.To promote a better environment. |
B.To introduce a possible crisis. |
C.To applaud the efforts of the government. |
D.To stress the importance of the elephants. |
A.Feeding on insects. | B.Driving away insects. |
C.Letting go of insects. | D.Keeping track of insects. |
A.Construction of undisturbed national parks. |
B.Support of Asian elephants’ migration. |
C.Constant adjustment of insurance policies. |
D.Guarantee of the shelter to other wildlife. |
A.Asian elephants, engineers of the rainforest |
B.Insurance adjusted, compensation increased |
C.Population of wild Asian elephants shoots up in China |
D.China explores solutions to achieve human-elephant harmony |
【推荐1】These days, Earth Day is celebrated every year on April 22 in schools and cities across the United States. There are class projects, programs, tree plantings and many other official events. So, it may be hard to realize that when it first started, Earth Day was considered a radical (激进的) protest.
The modern environmental movement began in the 1960s. It was a time of the generation gap. Young people were acting out against their parents’ way of life. College campuses were rocked by demonstration against the war in Vietnam and other issues. In the middle of this, in 1970, a US senator (参议员) from Wisconsin named Gaylord Nelson camp up with the idea for Earth Day. As he later explained it, the idea was to channel “the student antiwar energy” into the environmental cause.
A lot of young people felt that science was the enemy. This was in spite of the fact that a lot of the people who were warning the public about air and water pollution and animals in danger were scientists. After all, wasn’t it technology- cars, housing developments and factories-that was causing the problem by spreading pollution and destroying nature? Some adults who had thought Earth Day supporters had gone too far made fun of them. They called them “tree huggers”.
Environmentalists were right that technology had to be controlled. Laws and regulations were needed to make sure that both industry and science acted responsibly. Still, science got a bad name. It was as if you had to choose either science or nature. You couldn’t have both.
Lately, though, the situation has changed. We have come to see that science and the environment do not have to be enemies. Technology can be used to protect the environment, not destroy it. Look at all the advances in clean energy that have come from science. Just as Earth Day has evolved, so has our view of science and nature. We know today that we do not have to choose between the two. Instead, we understand that science is one of the main tools we can use to protect the environment. You can be a scientist and a “tree hugger”. That’s big advancement for science and great news for trees.
1. What can people usually do on Earth Day?A.Cut down trees. |
B.Join in a protest. |
C.Launch an investigation. |
D.Complete a class project. |
A.To encourage young students to protect nature. |
B.To direct the public’s attention to environmental changes. |
C.To take students’ attention away from antiwar demonstration. |
D.To narrow the generation gap between young people and their parents. |
A.Too extreme. |
B.Quite rational. |
C.Very knowledgeable. |
D.Really considerate. |
A.People have to choose either science or nature. |
B.Nowadays science can serve to protect the environment. |
C.Science has been playing a positive part the whole time. |
D.The development of science does harm to the environment. |
【推荐2】The success of The Pickwick Papers made Dickens very popular. He suddenly found himself at twenty-four the most famous novelist of his day. Busy as his social life was, he worked on two novels at the same time—Oliver Twist and The Pickwick Papers. He was particularly proud of The Pickwick Papers, which was a huge success and was regarded as a comedy (喜剧) masterpiece (杰作). “If I were to live a hundred years and write novels in each, I should never be so proud of any of them as I am proud of The Pickwick Papers,” he said.
It has been said of Dickens that he grasped (抓住) the imagination of his readers because his imagination grasped himself. The people in his works were so real that they could make him laugh or cry. When writing Oliver Twist he said that he could not rest until Fagin, the wrongdoer (做坏事的人), had been hanged.
Dickens’ marriage to Catherine Hagarth, with whom he had ten children, ended unhappily in 1858. He started to travel about giving readings of his works. His interest in theater gave his novels the qualities that made them suitable for reading aloud on the stage. A tiring travel to the United States affected his health. On June 9, 1870, when he was working on a new novel, he died, as he had wished. He said he wanted to die working.
1. Dickens became a famous novelist .A.because his social work |
B.when he began to give readings of his works |
C.because he was writing two novels at the same time |
D.with the success of The Pickwick Papers |
A.was only interested in writing novels |
B.didn’t like Oliver Twist |
C.didn’t think he could write a better novel than The Pickwick Papers in his life |
D.wished to live one hundred years and write three novels in each |
A.a person in real life |
B.a character in Oliver Twist |
C.a character in The Pickwick Papers |
D.one of Dickens’ works |
A.Dickens had a happy marriage to Catherine Hagarth. |
B.Dickens was a successful actor. |
C.Dickens’ death had little to do with his hard work. |
D.Dickens had wished to die in the course of his work. |
【推荐3】Parts of Africa are covered by a dark cloud. But this is no rain cloud. It is a living cloud made of billions of locusts (蝗虫) that are traveling across the continent eating everything in their path.
And now in the battle to stop this disaster, a radio station in Senegal, West Africa, is offering listeners 50 kilograms of rice if they can catch and kill 50 kilograms of locusts. “We think this idea will get more people to take part in the war on the locusts.” said Abdoulaye Ba, from Sud-Fm, a radio station in one of Senegal's worst affected area.
This is West Africa’s biggest locust disaster in 15 years, and it is moving east, causing huge damage to crops. As they move they produce young and increase their number and will soon threaten (威胁) Sudan in the northeast of Africa. Some say it could reach Asia. Experts say the harmful effect on crops in areas already suffering from food shortage and war could cause many people to go hungry. Governments in the areas are not well equipped to fight the pest.
Although leaders of 12 countries have agreed on a plan, it is not expected to be enough. “We are now treating 6,000 hectares (公顷) per day with pesticide (杀虫剂), but we need to treat 20,000 hectares per day in order to have any hope of controlling this disaster ,”said Mohamed Abdallahi Ould Babah, director of locust control in Mauritania.
Requests are being made for international aid, which is only way to limit the disaster, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization warned.
1. By using "dark cloud" to describe locusts in the first paragraph, author of the article .A.shows the size and speed of the mass of locusts |
B.suggests the great damage that locusts can cause |
C.warns that locusts would sweep the continent like rain clouds |
D.both A and B |
A.West Africa's united effort in fighting a disaster |
B.the difficulty in controlling locusts |
C.how locusts caused great damage to West Africa |
D.a struggle to fight against a disaster brought by locusts in West Africa |
A.would be even more serious in Asia |
B.is out of control |
C.affected only the warning areas |
D.cannot be stopped unless twice as much pesticide is provided for the affected areas |
A.Sud-Fm offers a rewarded for fighting locusts so that more people will join in the effort. |
B.Senegal is to the southwest of Sudan . |
C.The locusts can cause such damage mainly because it has no natural enemy in West Africa . |
D.12 countries affected by locusts have united but still lack pesticide. |
【推荐1】Sydney's Royal Botanic Gardens are to start a war on gray-headed flying foxes. These super bats have invaded one of Australia’s most famous public spaces. Officials have said the animals are destroying trees and have to move on.
These unwanted guests at Sydney’s Royal Botanic Gardens look like tiny foxes with wings. Officials have estimated there are about 11,000 of them living in the picturesque harbor-side park. After inspecting damage to dozens of trees they now believe there are twice as many as previously thought. Branches have been breaking under the weight of these furry invaders and their droppings have been poisoning plants.
Help may well be at hand, however, in the shape of the ordinary garbage bin. The gardens’ director Dr. Tim Entwistle hopes the unpleasant sounds of crashing bin lids will agitate the flying foxes and force them to move on. “The way to disturb them is to use noises, so we’ve used the loud noises made by rubbish bins in the past. You can also use speakers as long as you move the noise around, and what we’ll do is have a series of noises, at the beginning and end of the day. What we’ve found in the past is that the flying foxes leave the gardens and go somewhere else,” said Tim.
The gray-headed flying fox is Australia’s largest bat. It flies around at night using its eyes and a powerful sense of smell to search for fruit and flowers. Officials at the Royal Botanic Gardens in Sydney have said they’re optimistic the unwelcome colony can be uprooted. If and when the bats do move to other parts of the city they will of course then become someone else’s problem.
1. According to the passage, Why do people want to get rid of the flying foxes ?A.Because the garden are important public places. |
B.Because they are polluting the city. |
C.Because many garbage bins have been damaged by them. |
D.Because they’re threatening the survival of trees and other plants. |
A.They are shooting them. |
B.They are using rubbish containers. |
C.They are shaking the trees hard. |
D.They are cutting some trees down. |
A.Excite | B.kill |
C.disturb | D.discourage |
A.The bats will still stay in the gardens. |
B.Some area will have to deal with the bats. |
C.The grey-headed flying fox often eat trees |
D.The damage caused by the bats is serious |
【推荐2】One of the most traditional British holidays is the “seaside holiday”. Typically, families get on a train or into a car and travel to British seaside towns. They sunbathe on the beach, buy ice creams, eat fish and chips, build sandcastles and so on.
In the early 1970s, air travel became affordable for the average family in the UK, and more and more British people started travelling abroad for their summer holidays. After all, the British weather isn’t very good, even in summer, so a lot leave the UK for a vacation. Particularly popular with families on a budget is the “package holiday”, where the cost of flights and accommodation are offered as one discounted price by travel agents.
In the 1980s and 1990s, young people in the UK became more wealthy, or at least had more disposable income. As a result, young people started to go abroad in groups, to places such as Spain and Greece. Once at their destination, they socialized with other groups of young people and had one long party.
British holidaying habits have begun to change, however, climate change means that the UK now has a warmer climate than before, so people don’t always feel they need to go overseas to find good weather. Also, the world seems a less certain place as interconnected economics rise and fall, which means that the cost of foreign holidays is less predictable than it used to be. As a result, more and more Britons are choosing to spend their summer holidays in the UK.
In the UK, the domestic (国内的) tourism industry-- when people go on holiday in their own country--is healthier than it has been in decades. There is now an increased appreciation among Britons for the diversity of the UK. It is not just the geography and the diversity of climate-based activities on offer. It’s also the diversity of the cultures in the UK that is beginning to be of interest to domestic tourists.
The UK has always been famous for its international explorers, but now it is starting to discover itself.
1. What mainly caused Britons travel abroad for holidays in the early 1970s?A.The bad weather in the UK. | B.The lower cost of flights. |
C.The trend of going overseas. | D.The rise of tourism industry. |
A.easy to handle | B.steady in amount |
C.available for use | D.flexible to change |
A.Climate change has an impact on the change of British holidaying habits. |
B.Steady interconnected economics encourage more Britons holiday in the UK. |
C.Package holiday was particularly popular with rich families in the early 1970s. |
D.Both domestic and international tourists are interested in the diversity of the UK. |
A.Uncertain. | B.Pessimistic. | C.Optimistic. | D.Objective. |
【推荐3】For anyone still doubting the belief that our emotions impact our physical health, a new study from New Zealand should be able to settle the matter. It reports that the physical wounds of healthy seniors healed more quickly if they wrote about their most upsetting experiences.
This confirms the results of a 2010 study, and extends those findings to cover older adults — a group that is likely to suffer wounds (such as from surgery), and one with less access to other ways of lowering stress (such as exercise).
Reported in the journal Psychosomatic Medicine, a research team led by the University of Auckland’s Elizabeth Broadbent made a study featuring 50 healthy adults ranging in age from 64 to 97. They were asked to write for 20 minutes per day for three days on end.
Half were asked to write about the most upsetting experience in their life, describing their deepest thoughts, feelings, and emotions about the events, ideally not previously shared with others. The others were asked to write about their daily activities without mentioning emotions, opinions or beliefs.
Two weeks after the third day of writing, all participants received a standard 4mm skin biopsy (皮下活体组织检查) on their inner arm. The very tiny wounds caused by the biopsy were photographed regularly over the following days to determine the rate at which they healed.
On the 11th day after the biopsy, the wounds completely healed on 76.2 percent of those who had done the expressive writing. That was true of only 42.1 percent of those who had written about everyday activities.
“The biological and psychological mechanisms (机体) behind this effect remain unclear,” the researchers wrote, noting that those who had done the expressive writing did not report lower stress levels or fewer depressive symptoms than the others in the control group. Even if they weren’t consciously aware of feeling more relaxed or positive, the expressive writing appeared to have caused some sort of bodily reaction — probably involving their immune (免疫的) systems — that hastened their recovery.
1. What was the difference between the two groups of participants in the study?A.When they wrote. | B.Where they wrote. |
C.What they wrote about. | D.How often they wrote. |
A.about three days | B.about ten days |
C.about two weeks | D.about a month |
A.speeded | B.showed | C.limited | D.ruined |
A.Sharing with others can reduce stress |
B.Skin biopsies are likely to cause wounds |
C.Expressive writing heals physical wounds |
D.Upsetting experiences impact our emotions |