Record fires sweeping across the Amazon this month have been grabbing global headlines as scientists and environmental groups are worried that they will worsen climate change crisis and threaten biodiversity.
As the largest rainforest in the world, the Amazon is often called “the lungs of the world”. It is also home to about 3 million species of plants and animals, and 1 million native people. The vast areas of rainforest play an important role in the world’s ecosystem because they absorb heat instead of it being reflected back into the atmosphere. They also store carbon dioxide and produce oxygen, ensuring that less carbon is released, mitigating the effects of climate change.
“Any forest destroyed is a threat to biodiversity and the people who use that biodiversity,” Thomas Lovejoy, an ecologist at George Mason University told National Geographic. “The overwhelming threat is that a lot of carbon goes into the atmosphere,” he stressed. “In the midst of the global climate crisis, we cannot afford more damage to a major source of oxygen and biodiversity. The Amazon must be protected,” U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said.
Data from the National Institute for Space Research (INPE) show that the number of forest fires in Brazil quickly increased by 82 percent from January to August this year from a year ago. A total of 71,497 forest fires were registered in the country in the first eight months of 2019, up from 39,194 in the same period in 2018, INPE said. “We estimate that the forest areas in the Brazilian Amazon have decreased something between 20 and 30 percent compared to the last 12 months,” Carlos Nobre, a researcher at the University of Sao Paulo, told German broadcaster Deutsche Welle.
Brazil owns about 60 percent of the Amazon rainforest, whose degradation could have severe consequences for global climate and rainfall. The extent of the area ruined by fires has yet to be determined, but the emergency has transcended (超出) Brazil’s borders, reaching Peruvian, Paraguayan and Bolivian regions.
1. What is the second paragraph mainly talking about?| A．The effects of climate change. | B．The role of the Amazon rainforest. |
| C．The results of the Amazon rainforest fires. | D．The causes of the decreasing biodiversity. |
| A．The biodiversity makes the rainforests unique. |
| B．The rainforest fires result in serious consequences. |
| C．The global climate crisis brings more rainforest fires. |
| D．The dry weather leads to the rainforest fires. |
| A．To prove the importance of rainforest. | B．To show the influence of forest fires. |
| C．To explain the process of the research. | D．To present the reduction of rainforest areas. |
| A．The climate change crisis is worsening. | B．The forest areas are on the decline. |
| C．“The lungs of the earth” is burning. | D．The world’s ecosystem is under attack. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】A boy who was crazy about collecting rubbish is only four years old. He has finally fulfilled his dream of being a cleaner. Riley Mccourt has admired the local rubbish collectors for ages, spending his days picking up waste on his street and wheeling bins to the side of the road to help out his neighbors. He loves cleaning and binning waste. His favourite chore is to empty the rubbish from the chip shop his mum runs. Two weeks ago, however, a disaster struck: Riley accidentally knocked over one of the bins and was accused of causing trouble.
Someone posted in the local Facebook group that Riley had put rubbish in the street, clearly unaware of his love for keeping the streets clean. Thankfully his innocence was quickly proven, and his local council decided to make his dreams come true by allowing him to work alongside the cleaners for a day.
Riley joined the waste collection crew on Wednesday, chatting with the team, helping with the recycling, and riding in the waste collection vehicles. He even got his own jacket. Riley’s mum, Toni Mccourt, said, “He loves the bins and trucks.” Riley’s favourite day is definitely bin day. He goes round collecting the rubbish up on the street. The cleaners all know him when they spot him. He goes outside as soon as he sees them come round. He helps his neighbors put their bins out for collection.
Riley clearly made a good impression during his first day on the job, as community services manager Jane Carrol said she was very pleased with his enthusiasm for the role. Jane said, “Riley is clearly a keen recycler and when he is older, I’m sure he’d make an excellent member of the team here. It was a pleasure for the team to show him around the vehicles.”
1. What can we learn about Riley from the first paragraph?| A．Riley likes making trouble. | B．Riley was wronged by someone. |
| C．Riley was knocked over by a bin. | D．Riley looks down upon rubbish collectors. |
| A．To work as a real cleaner. | B．To keep the street clean. |
| C．To prove his innocence. | D．To work with the local council. |
| A．It is meaningless for him to do so. |
| B．It is unnecessary to do so on the street. |
| C．It is challenging for such a little boy to do so. |
| D．It is worthwhile to give Riley very high remarks. |
| A．A newspaper. | B．A diary. | C．A biography. | D．A novel. |
【推荐2】Sports can help you keep fit and get in touch with nature. However, whether you are on the mountains, in the waves, or on the grassland, you should be aware that your choice of sport might have great influence on the environment.
Some sports are resource-hungry. Golf, as you may know, eats up not only large areas of countryside, but also tons of water. Besides, all sorts of chemical and huge amounts of energy are used to keep its courses in good condition. This causes major environmental effects. For example, in the dry regions of Portugal and Spain, golf is often held responsible for serious water shortage in some local areas.
There are many environment-friendly sports. Power walking is one of them that you could take up today. You don’t need any special equipment except a good pair of shoes; and you don’t have to worry about resources and your purse. Simple and free, power walking can also keep you fit. If you walk regularly, it will be good for your heart and bones. Experts say that 20 minutes of power walking daily can make you feel less anxious, sleep well and have better weight control.
Whatever sport you take up, you can make it greener by using environment-friendly equipment and buying products made from recycled materials. But the final goal should be “green gyms”. They are better replacements for traditional health clubs and modern sports centers. Members of green gyms play sports outdoors, in the countryside or other open spaces. There is no special requirement for you to start your membership. And best of all, it’s free.
1. Which of the following does the author most probably like?| A．Doing yoga in a gym. | B．Playing table tennis in a sports center. |
| C．Driving a motorbike on the street. | D．Running around a lake. |
| A．By listing numbers. | B．By comparison. |
| C．By analyzing causes. | D．By quoting experts. |
| A．compare the two types of sports |
| B．teach us how to make sport greener |
| C．call on us to take up green sports |
| D．introduce different types of sports |
【推荐3】Walk through the Amazon rainforest today and you will find it is steamy, warm, damp and thick. But if you had been around 15,000 years ago, during the last ice age, would it have been the same? For more than 30 years, scientists have been arguing about how rainforests like the Amazon might have reacted to the cold, dry climates of the ice ages, but until now, no one has reached a satisfying answer.
Rainforests like the Amazon are important for mopping up CO2 from the atmosphere and helping to slow global warming. Currently the trees in the Amazon take in around 500 million tons of CO2 each year: equal to the total amount of CO2 giving off in the UK each year. But how will the Amazon react to future climate change? If it gets drier, will it still survive and continue to draw down CO2 ?
Scientists hope that they will be able to learn in advance how the rainforest will manage in the future by understanding how rainforests reacted to climate change in the past. Unfortunately, getting into the Amazon rainforest and collecting information are very difficult. To study past climate, scientists need to look at fossilized pollen, kept in lake mud. Going back to the last ice age means drilling deep down into lake sediments (沉淀物) which requires specialized equipment and heavy machinery. There are very few roads and paths, or places to land helicopters and aeroplanes. Rivers tend to be the easiest way to enter the forest, but this still leaves vast areas between the rivers completely unsampled (未取样). So far, only a handful of cores have been drilled that go back to the last ice age and none of them provide enough information to prove how the Amazon rainforest reacts to climate change.
1. How will the Amazon rainforest react to future climate change?| A．It’ll get drier and continue to remove CO2. |
| B．There is no exact answer up to present. |
| C．It’ll get warmer and then colder and drier. |
| D．It’ll remain steamy, warm, damp and thick. |
| A．It’s important to drill deep down into lake sediments to collect information. |
| B．It’s impossible to prove how climate changes in the Amazon rainforest. |
| C．It’s hard to collect information for studies of the past climate in the Amazon rainforest. |
| D．It’s necessary to have specialized equipment and machinery to study the past climate. |
| A．Studies of the Rainforests | B．Climates of the Amazon |
| C．Secrets of the Ice Age | D．Changes of the Rainforests |
【推荐1】In Europe, many people make friends between their countries through town twinning. Town or city twinning means two towns in different countries agree and decide to become “twins” with a sister city relationship.
The people find pen friends in the twin town. They exchange newspapers and stamps. The school teachers discuss teaching methods with the teachers in the twin town.Officials visit the twin town for celebrations.Ordinary people travel to the twin town,too,but not very often if it is far away.
Sometimes,schools even exchange their classes for two or three weeks! For example, German middle school students study for a while at the school in their twin town in Britain, staying with British families. A few months later, their British friends come to study in Germany.
Many British towns are so pleased with the results of the twinning that they set out to find more than one twin town!
Tonbridge, a small town in Kent, for example, has twin towns in both Germany and France. Richmond near London has relationships with Germany, France and even a town in a Balkan country!
Town twinning can help make friends. It helps students improve their language skills,and also helps people to understand the differences between nations.
1. Twin towns develop .| A．between European countries and China | B．in the English-speaking countries only |
| C．in the same country | D．between different countries |
| A．4. | B．5. | C．6. | D．7. |
| A．to earn more money | B．to set up schools |
| C．to improve students’ language skills | D．to develop industry and agriculture |
| A．Town Twinning | B．Friendly Towns |
| C．Exchanging Teachers and Students | D．Peace and Understanding |
【推荐2】Developing new prescription drugs and antidotes(解毒剂) to poison currently relies mostly on animal testing in the early stages. That is not only expensive and time consuming, but it can also give scientists inaccurate data about how humans will respond to such agents(药剂). But what if researchers could predict the impacts of potentially harmful chemicals, viruses, or drugs on human beings without doing experiments on animal or even human test subjects? To help achieve that goal, scientists and engineers at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory are developing a “human-on-a-chip(芯片),”a very small outside copy of the human body, combining biology and engineering.
The team is combining microfluidics (network of tiny tubes and channels) and multi-electrode series (devices that connect neurons(神经元) to electronic circuitry(电路)). The project, known as iGHIP (in-vitro Chip-based Human Investigational Platform), reproduces four major biological systems: the central nervous system (brain), peripheral nervous system, the blood-brain barrier, and the heart.“It’s a testing platform for exposure to agents whose effects are unknown to humans,” said LLNL engineer Dave Soscia, who co-leads development of the “brain-on-a-chip”device used to simulate the central nervous system. “If you have a system that is designed to more closely copy the human environment, you can skip over the really lengthy process of animal testing, which doesn’t necessarily give us information relevant to humans.”
The iCHIP team is focusing its efforts on the brain , where they’re looking to understand how neurons interact with each other and react to chemical stimuli(刺激)such as caffeine and capsaicin, the thing that gives chili peppers their hotness, as well as chemical agents in the Lab’s Forensic Science Center. Unique to the iCHIP platform is combining numerous brain cell types on the same device without barriers between those regions. To study the brain, primary neurons are planted onto a micro-electrode series device, which can contain up to four brain regions. After the cells grow as normal, a chemical (caffeine for example) is introduced, and the electrical activity from the neurons is recorded.
“The idea is that we can look at network-wide effects across different brain regions,”Soscia said. “It adds a level of complexity that has never been done before.” Additionally, early research is being done to copy the heart on a chip. Heart cells have already been shown to successfully “beat”in response to electrical stimulation, with the intent to simultaneously measure the electrophysiology(电生理现象) and movement of the cells at the same time.
The next step, according to iCHIP principal investigator Elizabeth Wheeler, is combining all the systems together to create a complete testing platform to study some fundamental scientific questions. “The final goal is to fully represent the human body,”Wheeler said. “Not only can the iCHIP provide human-relevant data for drugs, but it can also provide valuable information for understanding disease mechanisms(机制). The knowledge gained from these human-on-a-chip systems will someday be used for personalized medicine.”
1. Why do scientists want to develop a “human-on-a-chip”?| A．To save more time to do research on engineering. |
| B．To simplify the researching process and get more accurate data. |
| C．To invent a totally new kind of researching method. |
| D．To combine the subjects of biology and engineering. |
| A．copy | B．control |
| C．change | D．build |
| A．To copy the human environment |
| B．To record the neurons’s reaction to chemical stimuli |
| C．To shorten the lengthy process of animal testing |
| D．To understand the brain’s mechanism |
| A．hearts and lungs | B．brain and eyes |
| C．hearts and brains | D．lungs and eyes |
| A．The iCHIP can provide human-relevant data to cure diseases. |
| B．The iCHIP can replace people’s activities in some day. |
| C．The iCHIP will be able to solve all kinds of scientific questions. |
| D．The iCHIP won’t be able to supply the personalized cause of disease. |
| A．“Human-On-A-Chip” Technology Could Develop New Drugs |
| B．“Human-On-A-Chip” Technology Could Develop New Antidotes |
| C．“Human-On-A-Chip” Technology Could Replace Animal Testing |
| D．“Human-On-A-Chip” Technology Could Cure People’s Addiction |
【推荐3】Having friends is obviously good for countless reasons. And showing the world that you have lots of friends, for example on social media, seems like a winning strategy. If that is the truth, your goal is to expand your social network. Once people see how popular you are, they'll want to join that popular circle, perhaps in the hope that some of your popularity will rub off on them.
Nevertheless, can a person even have too many friends at the same time? It’s always been a misconception that if you have more friends, people will be more likely to want to be friends you.
In fact, a new study published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology shows that having too many friends may work against you. In a series of experiments. the authors prove that people usually prefer to befriend those who have fewer friends than they do, rather than those with more friends. The authors call this phenomenon the “friend-number paradox(悖论)”, which is also the title of their new paper.
Social ties are obviously important. Having more of these connections suggests greater social value, and more potential possibilities. So it seems reasonable to assume that people will focus their social energies on befriending people who have lots of friends already.
But the problem is that these social ties are only valuable if there’s reciprocity(互惠) involved. Friendship goes hand in hand with certain responsibilities and expectations. And people with lots of friends may not be able to fulfill those responsibilities—especially those with too many friends.
In other words, “friendship quality” matters as much, if not more, than only the number of friends you have. Having lots of friends means your precious social resources become dilute (稀释了的), making you less able to be a good friend. And other people take that into account consciously(有意识地)or unconsciously when deciding whether to befriend you. They don’t want to spend their valuable social resources on someone who is unlikely to pay it back.
1. What do the underlined words “rub off on” in paragraph l mean?| A．Look forward to. | B．Take control of. |
| C．Hold on to. | D．Have an effect on. |
| A．The secrets to becoming popular. |
| B．The ways of winning more friends. |
| C．The advantages of having many friends. |
| D．The problems with having many friends. |
| A．They may fail to perform their duties. |
| B．They don’t know about reciprocity. |
| C．They are more likely to be good friends. |
| D．They have more precious social resources. |
| A．How Do People Choose Their Friends? |
| B．More Friends Are Not Necessarily Better |
| C．Why Do People Like Having More Friends? |
| D．People With More Friends Are More Popular |
【推荐1】Disney’s free drawing classes
Resourceful parents, who understand the challenges of working from home, will be pleased to know their little Disney princesses have access to entertainment at their fingertips.
All kids need to do is grab a piece of paper, sharpen a pencil and hop online. The Disney Parks How to Draw Series on YouTube will keep little artists busy all afternoon. These 10 --- 20 minute-long videos will be a relief for moms and dads who not only work and take care of their families, but step in as substitute teachers while their kids are learning remotely.
It can seem challenging, but we’ll help keep your crew busy while spending time in. Be sure to check out the greatest Disney movies and strengthen youngsters’ art appreciation with virtual museum tours and digital classes. Don’t forget to tune in with famed author and illustrator Mo Willems, who hosts a drawing class online every day at 1 pm!
Sign up to receive great Time Out New York Kids deals in your inbox each day.
Six Flags Great Adventured Safari
Six Flags Great Adventure in New Jersey just announced that its Safari adventure will open as a drive- through experience, following Governors order permitting drive-through events where attendees can practice social distancing.
Just book a reservation, jump into the car and 1, 200 animals will be available right before your eyes. What originally operated as a self-drive-through attraction from 1974 through 2012 turned into guided truck tours. Now, the experience is returning to its old ways so that visitors will remain at a distance. Currently, the park is making the final plans on safety for workers, guests and animals.
1. What is required of kids in Disney’s drawing class?| A．Registering online in advance. | B．Getting drawing tools ready. |
| C．Assessing a video of drawing. | D．Teaming up with several kids. |
| A．A sponsor of the free class. | B．A worker at Six Flags Safari. |
| C．A character in Disney movie. | D．A famous writer and artist. |
| A．To provide more adventures. | B．To offer virtual-life entertainment. |
| C．To meet the need of social distancing. | D．To meet the demand for visitors’ safety. |
【推荐2】New Jersey Botanical Garden Membership
It’s easy to join New Jersey Botanical Garden (NJBG) Membership or renew your membership online, by phone or by mail. And it’s so important to the Botanical Garden! Your membership dollars help to improve the Garden, and provide educational and recreational (娱乐的) activities for the general public. Thank you for your support!
To join or renew, please click on the appropriate section and membership category below for safe and convenient online payment processing by PayPal.
If you prefer to join by phone or mail, call the NJBG office at (973) 962-9534 or download and send in our membership brochure (Adobe Acrobat PDF file).
★Join NJBG Today
Membership Category | Individual | Dual (两人共用) | Student |
Annual Dues | $35 | $60 | $25 |
Special: Save $5 with Biennial Dues(两年会费) | $60 | $100 | $40 |
★Renew Your Membership
Membership Category | Individual | Dual | Student |
Annual Dues | $30 | $50 | $25 |
Special: Save $5 with Biennial Dues | $50 | $80 | $40 |
The Botanical Garden started life as Skylands, a large area in the grand manner. It is famous for a 44-room Tudor Revival granite mansion (公馆) designed by John Russell Pope. Skylands has 96 acres of formal and naturalized gardens and is surrounded by over 1,000 acres of meadows (草坪) and woodlands. Purchased by the State in 1966 and officially named as the New Jersey Botanical Garden in 1984, the gardens contain approximately 5,000 species and varieties of trees and flowers.
For you, the NJBG is an exciting and beautiful place to visit where you may enjoy each season’s best. Members enjoy special events, festivals, lectures, and rewarding educational opportunities for both city and country gardeners.
Your NJBG membership offers you discounts at participating nurseries, garden centers and other fine businesses. Simply present your NJBG membership card when beginning your purchase:
· Goffle Brook Farm and Garden Center, (201) 652-7540
10% off your purchase
· Metropolitan Plant Exchange, (973) 638-7613
12% off your purchase
· Rohsler’s Allendale Nursery & Florist, (201) 327-3156
15% off your purchase
1. The NJBG membership dollars can be used to ___________.| A．offer further education | B．update online payment |
| C．provide better service | D．protect the environment |
| A．(201) 327-3156 | B．(201) 652-7540 |
| C．(973) 962-9534 | D．(973) 638-7613 |
| A．$50 | B．$60 |
| C．$80 | D．$100 |
| A．was officially named in 1966 |
| B．was designed by John Russell Pope |
| C．invites members to organize activities |
| D．gives members discounts for their purchase |
【推荐3】When Emanuel received an email from Professor Richard English. Queen’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor at the School of History, Anthropology,Philosophy and Politics, encouraging him to apply for a PhD in Politics in Belfast, it was a pinch-me moment Emanual never thought would be possible. After all, just a few short years ago, he was living on the streets couch-surfing at friends’ houses and weeding gardens to make ends meet. Now, one of the world’s leading political academics was preparing to welcome him to Queen’s University over 4,000 miles away.
Emanuel never knew who his father was and his mom was mentally ill when she gave birth to him, so the hospital took him off her and he was unofficially adopted for the first few years of his life. What followed was a childhood with uncertainty as Emanuel was passed between the adoption system and family members.
Through his high school and community college years, he moved from house to house, living with friends at times and living on the streets at others.
Determined to change all that despite his rocky start in life, Emanuel involved himself in school-doing everything he could to earn extra tuition (学费) money in his spare time. But getting accepted into university was scarcely possible because a person like him couldn’t get a regular student loan.
Fortunately, the government backed him, having created a policy allowing disadvantaged persons to access funding for higher education. He graduated from the University of the West Indies with a 1st Class Honors degree and went on to do his Masters.
Emanuel knows that his story could have been very different.
“I discovered Professor Richard English online and sent him an email honestly, not thinking he would reply and to my surprise, he did. I applied for the highly competitive Commonwealth Shared Scholarship Scheme in order to fund my research at Queen’s. When I was told I was successful, my whole world changed.”
1. What does the underlined word “pinch-me” in Paragraph 1 probably mean?| A．Expected. | B．Unbelievable. | C．Awkward. | D．Anxious. |
| A．His father was mentally ill. |
| B．He was abandoned by his mother. |
| C．He was once adopted by his relatives. |
| D．He lived with his friends now and then. |
| A．By receiving a regular student loan. |
| B．By earning the tuition all by himself. |
| C．By borrowing the money from friends. |
| D．By getting support from the government. |
| A．Well begun is half done. |
| B．It’s never too old to learn. |
| C．You are the master of your life. |
| D．Lost time is never found again. |
【推荐1】Ms. Mota is one of the first teachers, especially art teachers, who have kept her word. A student was disruptive (制造混乱的) for many days. She actually got him out of the class. She’s not one of the teachers who are unfair saying “You’re going to get kicked out of my class if you keep up with this behavior”, and then don’t do anything about it. She makes sure if others want to be here, they are here without students who want to be disruptive.
She helps everyone at any time. I don’t know how she does it, but Ms. Mota will answer a student’s question at any time of the day. She never ignores any of her students. If we need help, Ms. Mota is always there.
We need paper, pencils, paints, clay, etc. in art classes, but the school doesn’t provide us with enough materials. Ms. Mota stands up for us. She wants her students to enjoy art, so she fights for materials. Of course not fighting with hands, but by using strong words. Besides, she brings so many materials for us. Any donations people give her, she brings in for her students. She wants us to know how to use these materials, and grow as artists. She wants us to grow as young adults who have fun with art but not to make art seem like a chore (讨厌的工作).
Ms. Mota is such an inspiration to me. I want to go into the field of teaching little kids art, and she helps bring that into my life more. I feel encouraged that I can learn more, and teach kindergarteners how to draw because Ms. Mota has taught me to this point.
1. How does Ms. Mota deal with badly-behaved students?| A．She abuses them. | B．She ignores them. |
| C．She forgives them. | D．She punishes them. |
| A．She is active and creative. | B．She is strict but kind. |
| C．She is curious but impatient. | D．She is devoted and confident. |
| A．She asks the students to buy themselves. | B．She attracts people’s donations. |
| C．She appeals to the school for materials. | D．She fights against the school with hands. |
| A．A student. | B．An artist | C．A teacher. | D．A researcher. |
| A．To show his great love for art. | B．To express his admiration for Ms. Mota. |
| C．To offer encouragement to Ms. Mota. | D．To tell the stories of Ms. Mota. |
【推荐2】Have you ever found yourself waiting at the stop for your bus to arrive and have a stranger ask a commonplace (普通的) question? Or have you stood in line waiting for a coffee and feel the need to just look over to the person next to you and ask about the weather?
This is small talk, and despite the name, it’s actually a big part of daily life.
“Small talk may seem trivial (微不足道的), but it’s a natural way for people to connect. It may seem like a waste of time. But it serves a vital role in our social interactions (交往). Big relationships are built on small talk,” Lindy Pegler, who has a master’s degree in psychology, wrote on Medium.
In fact, we spend a lot of our time making small talk. Often, we find ourselves making small talk with the same people on a regular basis. Coming up with small conversations is the foundation (基础) of these relationships.
The benefits of such conversations can actually contribute to our happiness and benefit our lives as a whole. In a study cited by The New York Times, researchers found that having a healthy number of acquaintances (相识的人) and maintaining these relationships contribute to one’s sense of belonging to a community.
So how does one start making small talk? It can be as simple as complimenting (称赞) one’s shirt, asking about their day or commenting on the traffic. “First and foremost, small talk is an act of politeness,” Pegler noted. “Our small talk at our first meeting is our chance to show who we are,” she added.
Who knows where this can lead? Nowadays, the small connections we make can lead to big results. You might find someone who has a common interest, or maybe even someone who turns out to be a close friend. There is one thing for sure: making small talk can brighten our day – even if it’s just a nice comment or a thoughtful question.
So the next time you find yourself waiting for the bus or checking your watch while you wait in a line, take the opportunity to look up and talk to someone around you. After all, it takes a small connection to lead to a larger one.
1. What does the writer intend to do by asking questions in paragraph one?| A．To show his confusion on the theme | B．To argue over the seriousness of talking |
| C．To attach importance to talking | D．To lead to the topic of the passage |
| A．It is a pointless conversation. | B．It wastes too much time. |
| C．It is connected with your social status. | D．It contributes to good relationships. |
| A．They help people develop communication skills. |
| B．They bring people happiness and a sense of belonging. |
| C．They allow people to improve their manners. |
| D．They help people find out who they are. |
| A．Start with casual topics | B．Start with serious topics |
| C．Make it important and deep. | D．Choose pleasant surroundings. |
【推荐3】The point of an apology-to express regret and repair relationships-is lost because children may dislike the apologizer even more after the insincere apology than before.
A new study looks at whether children can tell apart willingly given and forced expressions of regret-and they do. The findings suggest that exploring ways to help your child learn to have empathy (同情) for the victim (受害者), thus making sure of a sincere apology, is more helpful than immediately forcing him to say “I’m sorry”。
Smith and co-workers looked at how children aged 4-9 viewed three types of apologies among kids of the same age: unprompted (自发的) apologies, prompted but willingly given apologies, and forced apologies. They found that kids viewed willing apologies the same, whether prompted or unprompted by adults. But the forced apologies weren’t seen as effective, especially by the 7-to 9-year-olds, Smith says.
All children thought the wrongdoers felt worse after the apology than before, but the 7-to 9-year-old children thought the forced apologizers’ bad feelings were rooted in self-interest (concern about punishment, for example),rather than regret. Children of all ages also thought the victims felt better after receiving a wiling apology, but they saw the receivers of the forced apology as feeling worse than the receivers of the willing apologies.
How can parents help their young children respond with empathy after they’ve upset another person, and deliver a willing apology? “When your child is calm, help him/her see how the other person is feeling, and why,” Smith says. “An apology is one way to do it, but there are lots of other ways. Research shows that even preschoolers value it when a wrongdoer makes amends (补偿) with action. Sometimes this is more powerful than words.”
1. What is the study mainly about?| A．What kids usually do to show their regret. |
| B．What is the best way for kids to apologize. |
| C．How kids in different age groups apologize. |
| D．What kids think of different types of apologies. |
| A．It makes both sides feel worse. |
| B．It calms down the victims quickly |
| C．It always brings punishment to wrongdoers. |
| D．It gets wrongdoers into the habit of telling lies. |
| A．To conclude the text. |
| B．To provide more details. |
| C．To offer advice. |
| D．To give evidence. |
| A．Kids are too shy to apologize. |
| B．Forcing kids to apologize doesn’t benefit anybody |
| C．Sincere apologies win kids good relationships |
| D．Kids need help to make a sincere apology |
