1 .

A．He paid a high price for his new cellphone.	B．He has just earned a big sum of money.
C．He is pleased with his new purchase.	D．He loves doing shopping.

2 .

A．What the man is reading is too difficult.	B．The man misjudges Mary’s expression.
C．Mary’s habit caused her trouble in work.	D．Mary dislikes reading books after work.

3 .

A．Read the speech to her.	B．Give a different speech.
C．Finish writing the speech.	D．Stop worrying about the speech.

4 . Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use one word that best fits each blank.

Are You Ready to Hug a Robot?

Getting hugged tends to be a powerful positive emotional experience. Hugs have been shown to enhance social bonding and emotional well-being. However, not everyone can get a hug     1     they need one. Some people are lonely and do not have anyone to hug them. Others may be in long-distance relationships     2     it is not easy to get physical affection from their partner. In this case, they     3     receive fewer hugs than they like.

How can this problem be solved?     4     scientists have proposed is to develop hug robots. This could offer lonely people the positive effects of getting hugged without the need     5    (seek) a person who could hug them. Nevertheless, designing a hug robot is not an easy task. For example, if the robot is very large and made mostly of metal, people might be frightened of it,     6     happily hugging it. Therefore, psychological research is needed.

A new study, which     7    (publish) in International Journal recently, focuses on the development of Moffuly-II, a newly developed hug robot, which can move its arms to perform different small gestures during the hug. When two people hug, they often do specific things with their hands, such as clapping the     8    (hug)person on the back to signal sympathy. It is important that a hug robot can perform similar gestures, too. In the study, the scientists wanted to know whether these gestures would make a robot hug     9    (appealing). Volunteers who Moffully-Il hugged generally preferred hugs with gestures to gesture-less hugs. They felt that the robot was more friendly when    10    (perform) gestures.

The findings of the study indicate that it is possible to design a robot that people enjoy to hug. Details matter here, as the intra-hug gestures played a significant role in determining how much the human volunteers enjoyed the hug.

5 . Decoding Your Emotions

Almost all of us can remember a time when we were angry with a friend or anxious about going to a job interview. We experience such a wide range of emotions in everyday life, and these can influence the decisions we make — important decisions, such as whether we should quit a job, to the more trivial like what we’re going to have for dinner.     1     We have to figure out whether they’re feeling happy or sad, fearful or angry, jealous or amused, and determine how to respond while handling our own emotions.

Emotions are controlled by many different chemicals, or neurotransmitters and electrical impulses.     2     Between two nerves is a small gap called synapse, where neurotransmitters carry messages between the gaps. Depending on the neurotransmitters that are released and not released this chemical and electrical surge provides us with the capability of feeling emotions.

Emotions have been studied as far back as the 4 century BC. The Greek philosopher Aristotle attempted to identify the number of core human cmotions. During the 1970s, psychologist Paul Ekman identified six basic emotions — happiness, sadness, anger, fear, surprise and disgust-these provide the basis for more complicated emotional experiences we have.     3     Since then, the number of human emotions has continued to be a subject of debate, with some suggesting that there are only four emotions, while others suggesting 27, and some say there are infinite number as long as you can express them.

    4     For example, in Japanese culture it is considered offensive to display negative emotions in front of another person. Americans, however, are encouraged to express their emotions regardless of the person present. Despite the cultural differences, our emotions play a crucial role in guiding us through life, affecting the decisions we make and the ways we connect with others. Our emotions are what makes us human. By expressing our emotions-and comforting others in their of need — we strengthen our relationships, and provide a source of comfort to one another.

A．Electrical impulses are sent along a nerve, which connect to many more nerves.

B．Emotions also decides the way we interact with our family, friends and colleagues and even ourselves.

C．In fact, the way we express our emotions can vary across cultures.

D．Based on the study, distinct cultural backgrounds’ contributing to different emotions has its reasons.

E．Ekman later expanded his list of basic emotions to include shame, guilt and relief.

F．Additionally, emotions have long-lasting impacts on our interpersonal relationships too

6 . From Marie Tussaud’s Chamber of Horrors to Disneyland’s Haunted Mansion (鬼屋) to horror-themed escape rooms, haunted house attractions have terrified and delighted audiences around the world for more than 200 years.

These attractions turn out to be good places to study fear. They help scientists understand the body’s response to fright and how we perceive some situations as enjoyably thrilling and others as truly terrible. One surprising finding: having friends close at hand in a haunted house might make you more jumpy, not less so.

Psychologist and study co-author Sarah Tashjian, who is now at the University of Melbourne, and her team conducted their research with 156 adults, who each wore a wireless wrist sensor during their visit. The sensor measured skin responses linked to the body’s reactions to stress and other situations. When the sensor picked up, for example, greater skin conductance — that is, the degree to which the skin can transmit an electric current — that was a sign that the body was more aroused and ready for fight or flight. In addition to this measure, people reported their expected fear (on a scale of 1 to 10) before entering the haunted house and their experienced fear (on the same scale) after completing the haunt.

The scientists found that people who reported greater fear also showed heightened skin responses. Being with friends, Tashjian and her colleagues further found, increased physiological arousal during the experience, which was linked to stronger feelings of fright. In fact, the fear response was actually weaker when people went through the house in the presence of strangers.

Other investigators have used haunted houses to understand how fear and enjoyment can coexist. In a 2020 study led by Marc Malmdorf Andersen, a member of the Recreational Fear Lab at Aarhus University in Denmark, scientists joined forces with Dystopia Haunted House. The Danish attraction includes such terrifying experiences as being chased by “Mr. Piggy”, a large, chain-saw-wielding man wearing a bloody butcher’s apron and pig mask. People between the ages of 12 and 57 were video recorded at peak moments during the attraction, wore heart-rate monitors throughout and reported on their experience. People’s fright was tied to large-scale heart-rate fluctuations; their enjoyment was linked to small-scale ones. The results suggest that fear and enjoyment can happen together when physiological arousal is balanced “just right”.

1. Studying haunted house attractions helps scientists to learn about ________.

A．the psychological effects of fear on individuals

B．the history of horror-themed entertainment

C．the body’s response to material rewards

D．the impact of technology on people’s enjoyment

2. How did Sarah Tashjian and her team conduct their research on haunted house experiences?

A．By surveying participants.	B．By analyzing historical records.
C．By employing wireless wrist sensors.	D．By using virtual reality simulations.

3. What did Tashjian and her colleagues discover in their study?

A．Being with friends elevated level of physiological arousal.

B．The fear reaction was stronger in the company of strangers.

C．Psychological effect was unrelated to intensified feelings of fright.

D．Those reporting lightened fear showed increased skin responses.

4. It can be concluded from the 2020 study led by Marc Malmdorf Andersen that ________.

A．fear and enjoyment can not happen at the same time

B．large-scale heart-rate fluctuations were linked to enjoyment

C．the age of the participants was not related to the study’s findings

D．fear and enjoyment can coexist under certain conditions

7 .

A．He desperately needs an explanation.

B．He knows why Sam is in a bad mood.

C．He will make Sam feel better.

D．He will keep his distance from Sam.

8 .

A．He is usually not bad-tempered.	B．He doesn’t like the man.
C．He started the semester in a bad mood.	D．He has few responsibilities.

9 . Armed with a toolkit of techniques and tricks to calm the mind and bring focus back to your body, you can stop stressful situations from sabotaging your day, says Katy Georgiou.

GROUND YOURSELF

Making contact with the ground is your baseline go-to response for stress. This technique can be especially helpful if you find your stress regularly turns into panic. Wherever you are, whatever you’re doing, place your feet flat on the ground so that you feel stable, and then close your eyes. If you’re able to sit on the floor cross-legged or to lie down flat, then even better.

Think of this as earthing: really connect with the ground beneath your body. Some studies suggest that this simple act can help reduce or relieve symptoms of stress such as pain and fatigue, reduce blood pressure, and improve sleep. If you’re feeling disconnected from the world, it can also remind you that you belong to it and are a crucial part of it — the ground will always be there for you.

LOVE THYSELF

Adopting regular, daily or weekly routines for self-care can be very containing, creating consistency amid all sorts of stressful life events happening around you. Looking in the mirror each day can actually remind you that you exist, so feel free to factor some reflective gazing into your daily routine, whether it’s while applying moisturiser, shaving, or brushing your hair. Studies have shown that being confronted with your reflection can have powerful effects, taking us out of our heads and into the immediate present. For added effect, pay attention to the way your products interact with your hair and skin as you apply them.

Playing around with smells, colours and textures in your hands will also engage your senses. Using a scented shampoo or smoothing on body lotion after a warm bath can be easy ways to do this.

CLEAR YOUR MIND

Abandon all your thoughts and try to focus only on your surroundings. What can you see, hear, smell, taste and touch? Identify three things you can hear, one thing you can taste, four things you can see and two things you can feel on your skin. Pick out colours in the room you are sitting in, notice textures and different kinds of light. If somebody is with you, tell them what you are experiencing. The point here is that your senses are your best and easiest route back to feeling calm, by coming out of your head and rooting yourself back in the present. This is incredibly helpful if you’re having a panic attack or flop response.

1. If your friend Jane always feels worn out and suffers from sleep deprivation, which of the following techniques will you especially recommend to her?

A．Connect her body to the ground beneath her.

B．Adopt a daily gaze at her reflection in the mirror.

C．Exchange her scentless shampoo for an aromatic one.

D．Focus on what she can see, hear, smell, taste and touch.

2. Which of the following statements is NOT TRUE according to the passage?

A．Lying down flat can better relieve your stress.

B．Grounding yourself can give you a sense of belonging to the world.

C．Brushing your hair while looking in the mirror can remind you of your existence.

D．Those having a panic attack should shut their senses down.

3. The passage is intended to __________.

A．help people understand themselves better

B．introduce some practical methods for stress management

C．emphasize the significance of exploiting multiple senses

D．promote a mindset of living in the moment

10 . Directions: After reading the passage below, fill in the blanks to make the passage coherent and grammatically correct. For the blanks with a given word, fill in each blank with the proper form of the given word; for the other blanks, use ONE word that best fits each blank.

Coping With the Sunday Scaries

A few years ago, I was in the kitchen of a friend’s house preparing a meal. When we all sat down to eat, my friend’s wife wolfed down her supper and then disappeared into another room to do some work. He smiled and said, “Sunday nights are the new Monday mornings around here.”

I was surprised at the time. Now, I find myself     1    (behave) in exactly the same manner. Every time I open up my calendar on Sunday evening, a subtle sense of dread comes over me. I feel as     2     I am behind before the week has even begun.

Apparently, my Sunday-night anxieties and Monday-morning blues are not unique to me alone. A new study led by Ilke Inceoglu from the University of Exeter found that this phenomenon often takes the form of mental concerns about the week ahead, as well as feelings of nervousness and difficulty with sleeping. “It’s as if your mind moves away from     3     has been experienced over the weekend as the general sense of relaxation or enjoyment, and quickly shifts towards whatever worries you have about everything you’ve got to do in the work week ahead,” said one of Inceoglu’s respondents.

Inceoglu found that these Sunday scaries were particularly pronounced     4     people who frequently checked their emails during the weekend, had tasks left over from the previous week, and had unreasonably high expectations of themselves. These matters seem     5    (make) worse as a result of the pandemic, where the rise of working from home     6    (blur) the boundaries between work and leisure.

What should we do about the “Sunday scaries”? Researchers have offered some useful suggestions that     7     help us make Monday less depressing. One is to change     8     you think about the weekend. One U.S. study found that when participants were asked to treat their weekend as a mini-vacation, they tended to do more cheerful activities and returned to work on Monday satisfied with their jobs.     9     second way is to redesign our Monday so that it has some of the features that make us feel good during the weekend. Introducing simple changes, such as starting the day with something you are good at, setting aside a little unstructured time where you are able to do what you want, or setting up a lunchtime date with     10     you find enjoyable to be around, could make all the difference.