3 . Washington D.C. is the capital of the United States. It’s the center of national government. It’s a busy, working city with a large population. But what is more, Washington is also a city of history and culture.
Washington was created in 1790, when the Congress (the highest lawmaking body of the U.S.A.) decided to place the nation’s new capital in the east of the country. It was built half-way between the northern and southern states of America. And of course it was named after George Washington, the first President of the United States.
There are many tourist sights in Washington. Perhaps the most important tourist sight is the Capital Building. This house is where the Congress is.
Another world-famous building in Washington is the White House. This is the home and office of the President of the United States. Most visitors are, however, surprised by how small the White House actually is.
Washington is also a great culture city. The Library of Congress contains one of the largest library collections in the world. The Smithsonian Museum holds the nation’s largest collection of cultural materials. And the John F. Kennedy Center is a famous center of art and culture. It has many great musical. and theatre performances throughout the year.
Now fill in the table with some information about Washington D.C.(注意：每空不要超过3个单词)

Washington D.C.

History and location	Created in     1    when the Congress decided that, and named after     2	Lies halfway between     3    and     4     states of   America
A capital city	Center of the     5     government
A popular tourist attraction	6    the most important tourist sight	Another important tourist sight is     7
A     8    city	9     has the nation’s largest collection of cultural materials	John F. Kennedy Center is a center famous for     10

4 . 认真阅读下面的短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入最恰当的单词。注意：每空一词。

Focusing in class really proves to teachers that you are a capable student but it also shows that you have got a solid level of self-control, which will be very important in your future life.

Get a good night’s sleep. Students should get at least nine hours of sleep each night. However, it’s hard to maintain those good sleep habits. Set a bedtime routine, and go to bed at the same hour each night. Your mind will not be able to concentrate if it’s not rested...it needs a break!

Eat a healthy breakfast. Although this may seem irrelevant to focusing during class, eating a nutritious meal in the morning gives you fresh energy for the day. If you consume a big meal, you’ll feel better throughout the day.

Get involved in class discussions. This is a wonderful way to become a more focused, successful student. When a teacher asks a question, offer to answer it. This shows the teacher that you’re listening carefully during the class.

Do your best. When you walk into that classroom, put a smile on your face and some confidence in your pocket.

Listen to music during your break. It is very refreshing and it can clear your mind between subjects, which could improve your productivity. But don’t get too carried away with the music.

Warnings:

Keep away from your more talkative friends. They can often distract you from your work.

Don’t stare at the teacher for too long. This might not let you work properly. In short, look at the teacher, but don’t overdo it.

    1     to focus more in class

2	Get a good sleep.	Although it’s a     3     to maintain those good sleep habits, you should make it a     4     to go to bed at the same hour each night.
	Eat a healthy breakfast.	Eating a nutritious meal in the morning makes you     5     for the day.
	6     yourself in class discussions.	This is a wonderful way to become a more focused, successful student.
	Do your best.	Enter the classroom with smile and     7    .
	Listen to music.	Music is refreshing and makes you more     8    .
Warnings	9     your more talkative friends.
	Don’t     10     your eyes on the teacher for too long.

5 . A lot of life’s energies are neutral(中性的)，and it is we who interpret them to be positive or negative. However, the human part of us makes us more likely to think negatively of things and be affected by negative things. When the inner or deeper soul fails to maintain positivity around, it only creates more space for us to feel low and negative. Negativity is most commonly created in an individual by himself/herself. Thoughts, feelings, words and even a negative attitude can develop negative energy in and around you.

Negative energy can affect the very essence(本质) of living that one believes in. It slowly grows and conquers your mind and spirit. It’s important that we avoid attracting negative waves, and focus on more positivity around us. A lot of people feel negative and have no idea as to how to get rid of it. Well, it isn’t easy to surface after drowning in negativity, but it sure isn’t impossible.

To bring back and attract positivity in your life, you are supposed to start with analyzing yourself, stop looking at your flaws, and highlight all the good aspects about you. Meanwhile, take the time to look within yourself and assess what can be changed and what is out of reach. It’s important to focus on changing the things that you have control over, because this is where you will see the most self­improvement.

Learn to get along with people. Don’t look down upon people, but treat them with respect and deal with people in the way that you would expect other people to treat you. Also stay away from envy, and stop finding faults and flaws in others, because negative energy survives on envy and hatred. So rid yourself of these devils and you will attract more positive energy.

Believe in your dreams and will power, and work hard to achieve your goals. Write down what you feel. Write down the good things that happened to you and feel appreciation. Thank yourself for a cheerful day. On the other hand, realize that ups and downs are a part of life and that we cannot have pleasant times always. When negativity occurs, don’t panic but face it.

The list is endless as even the smallest things in life can attract positivity. We’ve discussed some of the important aspects. So change yourself for the better, and meanwhile embrace all that life has to give you. Make sure that you have a lot of positive people and positive things around you all the time.

Bring Positive Energy into Your Life
Causes of negative energy	·The nature of energies     1     on the people who interpret them, and we tend to be sensitive to negativity. ·Failing to maintain positivity increases the     2     of feeling negative. ·Many things can develop negative energy in you.
Opinions about negative energy	·Negative energy is harmful to us, so we should     3     it with positive energy. ·    4     negative energy isn’t easy, but it is possible.
Tips	·Shift your     5     from your flaws to good aspects. ·Do analyses about yourself and focus on making changes to what is under your     6    .
	·Be kind and     7     to others. ·Neither envy nor hate others.
	·Be confident and work hard to achieve your goals. ·Record your emotions and be     8     for those good things in your life. ·Don’t be nervous about the ups and downs in your life because they are     9    .
	10     yourself with positive people and things.
Summary

6 . Are You a Procrastinator?

Following a schedule and doing things on time is extremely important in today’s busy world.

Unfortunately, not everyone is good at doing this. Many people are procrastinators; they put off doing things that they need to until it’s too late.

We all put off doing things at times. Statistics show that 90% of university students will often put off studying for a test or writing an important paper the night before. 25% of university students put off almost everything all the time. This more serious form of procrastination can result in a student dropping out of school. Students who put off doing their assignments once in a while get further and further behind in their studies. Before long, they feel completely helpless. For the chronic(长期的) procrastinator, often the only way to solve this problem is to quit school.

According to recent studies, there are three main reasons that students put off doing things. First, many have poor time­management skills and often try to do too much in too little time. In the end, these students often feel helpless and will put off doing many things they need to. Another reason why students put off doing things is that they feel a subject is boring and have difficulty concentrating on an assignment. These students will often avoid doing something because they don’t like it. The third reason why many students put off doing things is that they often worry that their work will never be as good as it should be and fear failure of any kind, which, unfortunately, can often cause these students to put off doing any work at all.

Do you recognize any of these signs in yourself? If so, you may want to do something about your tendency towards procrastination. The following five tips may be helpful.

First, list the things in life that are important to you, and then, list the reasons why you are at school or university. Look at the two lists and see where they match. Is there something you need to do in order to achieve a life goal?

Second, choose realistic goals for yourself; don’t try to do more than you can.

Third, once you have identified your goals, list them and ask yourself “Which should I do first？”. As you become more aware of what you need to do and when you need to do it, you will feel more in control and will be able to complete tasks on time.

Fourth, manage your time wisely. Create a schedule that allows adequate time for accomplishing a goal; for example, your schedule should give you enough time to study for and pass a test, as well as time to relax.

Finally, when you accomplish a goal, do something good for yourself as a reward.

If you believe that you are a chronic procrastinator, you should try to get help before it is too late. Talk to a professional, and discuss the problem. If you are a mild procrastinator, make sure to keep yourself motivated, but don’t worry too much. Remember—we all put off doing things at times.

Are You a Procrastinator？
Frequency of procrastination	·Everyone puts off doing things     1    . ·90% of university students often put off doing things. ·25% of university students     2     doing things all the time.
3     that procrastination will lead to	·At the beginning, they get further and further behind in their studies. ·Before long, they feel completely helpless. ·For the chronic procrastinator, often he or she has no     4     but to quit school.
Main reasons for procrastination	·First, many are not skillful at managing time well. ·Second, they feel     5     of a subject, which makes it difficult for them to concentrate on an assignment. ·Third, they expect to do everything     6     and fear failure of any kind.
7     to avoiding procrastination	·First, identify your life goals. ·Second, choose realistic goals for yourself. ·Third, list your goals in order of priority. ·Fourth, manage your time in a     8     way. ·Finally, reward yourself for accomplishing a goal.
9     to procrastinators	·For a chronic procrastinator,     10     a professional. ·For a mild procrastinator, make sure to keep yourself motivated, but don’t worry.

7 . Friends do your health so many favors.They protect your health as much as quitting smoking and a great deal more than exercising.

“Strong social relationships support mental health，and that ties into better immune function，reduced stress and less cardiovascular(心血管的) activation(活化)，” says Dr.Debra Umberson，a sociologist at the University of Texas，Austin.Umberson says emotional support is just one of a dozen ways friends may safeguard your health and extend your life.

However，unfortunately many of us don’t have enough of them.According to data from the General Social Survey，the number of Americans who say they have no close friends has roughly tripled(三倍) in recent decades.“Zero” is also the most common response when people are asked how many confidants they have.And adult men seem to be especially bad at keeping and cultivating friendships.

That may seem strange in the era of Facebook，Twitter and boundless digital connectivity.But the “friends” orbiting at the farthest reaches of your digital galaxy(星系) aren’t the ones that matter when it comes to your health and happiness.

The vital friendships—the friends you hug and laugh and cry with—are the ones who have the greatest impact on your health and happiness.You need between three and five of them for the best wellbeing，suggests research from Dr.Robin Dunbar，an evolutionary psychologist at the University of Oxford.

Dunbar recognized that the size of a human’s social network might be limited by the size of a certain part of the human brain called the neocortex(新大脑皮层)，a critical site for higher brain functions.After some complicated study，he came up with a figure now known as “Dunbar’s number”，the approximate size of a person’s social circle.Dunbar’s research shows that your brain can’t hold a close connection with more than 150.Within that group，your closest 15 relationships—including family members or relatives—seem to be most crucial when it comes to your mental and physical health.

But that’s not to say a brother or sister offers you the same benefits as a close friend，Dunbar says.While your relatives are more likely to be there for you when you need help，your good friends tend to fire up your nervous system and cause the release of feel­good neuropeptides(神经肽) called endorphins(脑啡呔)．Whether you’re laughing with your friend or feeling him or her touch your shoulder in sympathy，the resulting rush of endorphins seems to “tune” up your immune system，protecting you from disease，Dunbar explains.

So yes，for the sake of your health，you need friends—ideally the really close kind you see face­to­face on a regular basis.

Theme	Friends can provide emotional support，which is     1     to our mental and physical health.
Present situation of friendship	•Although digitally     2     with each other，many of us still don’t have enough of strong social relationships. •American people without close friends have     3     by three times in recent decades. •It is common for people to have     4     confidants. •Adult men in     5     are inferior in keeping and cultivating friendships.
Dr.Robin Dunbar’s related research	•To ensure your wellbeing，you need between three and five friends who can     6     your joy and sorrow. •Human’s social network might     7     on the size of neocortex. •Your brain can hold a close connection with 150 people at     8    ，of which the closest 15 are vital to your health. •Different from relatives，good friends are likely to produce endorphins to make you happy and     9     to disease.
Conclusion	It is much better to have a close friend who you can see face­to­face     10    .