1 .

I grew up hearing that it is better to give than to receive, and the older I get, the more I aim to take this message to heart. Nevertheless, here I am, in the midst of the holiday season stressed out about gifts I have not yet purchased.

How did gift buying become an emotionally fraught chore (苦差事)? For a moment, it’s easy to question if it’s worth it. But science tells me that giving makes us feel good.

“The act of giving actually does improve your happiness,” says Michael Norton, a psychologist at Harvard Business School. He has published several studies on the effects of giving.

In one experiment that included about 700 people, the researchers randomly assigned participants to make either a purchase for themselves, or for a stranger. Afterwards, the participants reported how happy they felt. Turns out, giving to others led to a significant happiness boost, whereas spending on oneself didn’t move the needle.

“If you take $5 out of your pocket today, the science really does show that spending $5 on yourself doesn’t do much for you,” Norton says. “But spending that $5 on somebody else is more likely to increase your happiness.”

Take a scarf. If you buy one for yourself, it’s just another thing you don’t necessarily need. But if you buy a scarf for someone else, “you’ve shown them that they’re important to you,” Norton says. Either way, it’s just a scarf. “But it can either be a throwaway object or something that enhances a relationship between two people,” he says.

So, there’s evidence that generosity promotes happiness, but the process of shopping, wrapping and schlepping (搬) gifts can be tiresome — or even extremely annoying considering all of our day-­to­-day demands and other holiday stressors.

Studies also show when people are given something they are more likely to give back. Reciprocity (互惠) is a foundation of good relationships and when we surround ourselves with generous people, we tend to feel the same. Feeling that spirit of giving and the connection it can bring is what the holidays are all about.

1. Why does the author mention his own experience in paragraph 1?

A．To make a prediction.	B．To introduce the topic.
C．To present a reason.	D．To clarify a concept.

2. How does Norton illustrate his opinion in paragraphs 5 and 6?

A．By listing data.	B．By giving examples.
C．By making comments.	D．By telling personal experiences.

3. Why is preparing a gift sometimes an emotionally fraught chore?

A．It’s difficult and expensive.	B．It happens frequently.
C．It’s not valued by others.	D．It requires much effort.

4. What can we learn about giving gifts from the text?

A．It is not worth the effort.

B．It is a must to enhance a relationship.

C．It brings about emotional benefits.

D．It gains popularity during holidays.

2 . A happy-sad state can be as confusing to people as to psychologists. This is not about “smiling depression” where someone feels emotional pain, but_________those feelings with a happy face. Rather, it’s _________ experiencing those two _________ emotions at once.

When Jeff Larsen, a psychology professor, simply asks people if it’s_________to feel such mixed emotions, most people immediately say “yes” showing how_________the experience is. But Larsen takes a more_________approach.In his experiments, he asked people to watch a clip (电影片段) from a bittersweet movie and press one button if they felt_________another if they felt happy,or_________at the same time if they felt both emotions at once.It_________about half pressed both happy and sad buttons at once, __________not for very long.Larsen__________the experience is rare, but possible.

Yale University psychology professor Laurie Santos__________it’s possible for people to feel both positive and negative emotions at once. Situations that often__________a happy-sad state include bittersweet events like__________or a move to a new city for a job--situations when you’re sad about__________, but happy about new opportunities, she noted. Endings that are also beginnings make these emotionally-rich events, Larsen added.

1.

A．bottles up

B．talks about

C．gets over

D．cares about

2.

A．hardly

B．occasionally

C．suddenly

D．truly

3.

A．disturbing

B．conflicting

C．positive

D．powerful

4.

A．possible

B．strange

C．necessary

D．acceptable

5.

A．valuable

B．abstract

C．universal

D．interesting

6.

A．traditional

B．theoretical

C．scientific

D．creative

7.

A．awkward

B．worried

C．angry

D．sad

8.

A．both

B．neither

C．either

D．each

9.

A．stood out

B．let out

C．pointed out

D．turned out

10.

A．until

B．though

C．if

D．once

11.

A．believes

B．predicts

C．remembers

D．doubts

12.

A．expects

B．agrees

C．wonders

D．imagines

13.

A．change

B．cause

C．determine

D．reflect

14.

A．accidents

B．adventures

C．celebrations

D．graduations

15.

A．leaving

B．forgetting

C．failing

D．losing

3 . “Anxiety.” The very word invites discomfort. Its effects—shortness of breath, pounding heart, muscle tension—are outright upsetting. But, as a clinician, I find that we tend to miss out on many valuable opportunities presented by this human emotion. In and of itself, anxiety is not deadly, nor is it a disease. Quite the contrary: it is an indicator of brain and sensory health. Once we accept that it is a normal, though uncomfortable, part of life, we can use it to help us.

We all know working out at the gym is hard. By nature, a “good workout” is uncomfortable, since it involves pushing our physical strength past what we can easily do. The sweet spot of exercise is always a somewhat challenging experience. Similarly, if you want to be emotionally stronger, you need to face some tension. For example, one effective treatment for fear is exposure therapy (疗法), which involves gradually encountering things that make one anxious, reducing fear over time.

Humans are social creatures. When my patients learn to open up to their partners about their anxieties, they almost always report a greater sense of emotional closeness. Also, as international relationship expert Sue Johnson teaches, when we express our need for connection during challenging moments (e.g., “I’m having a hard time right now and could really use your support”), it creates greater connection and turns our anxiety into love.

From time to time, we find ourselves at the end of our rope. Our responsibilities pile up, our resources break down, and we feel uncomfortably anxious—what we’re experiencing is called stress. Simply put, the demands placed upon us outweigh our available resources, just like a set of scales (天平) going out of balance. Focusing on work and pretending everything is OK only leads to disastrous results. Medical treatment for stress may function for a while, but it tends to make things worse in the long run. The only solution to deal with stress is to do the mathematics to balance the scales.

1. What does the author say about anxiety?

A．It is an invitation to diseases.

B．It indicates stable mental health.

C．It costs us many valuable chances.

D．It is a natural emotional expression.

2. Why does the author mention “good workout” in paragraph 2?

A．To prove how exercise influences emotions.

B．To suggest an effective way to challenge limits.

C．To explain how anxiety builds emotional strength.

D．To show a positive connection between mind and body.

3. What is paragraph 3 mainly about?

A．The key to closeness is partners’ support.

B．Sharing anxieties improves relationships.

C．Humans are defined by their social nature.

D．Expressing feelings keeps us off anxieties.

4. According to the last paragraph, how can we deal with stress?

A．Devote more energy to our work.

B．Increase resources available to us.

C．Seek professional medical treatment.

D．Master advanced mathematical skills.

4 . 听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1. Why did the brothers grow apart?

A．They had different hobbies.

B．They stopped living in the same house.

C．They no longer spent much time together.

2. How does the man feel now?

A．Regretful.

B．Hurt.

C．Angry.

3. What does the woman suggest the man do about the problem?

A．Leave his brother alone.

B．Try talking to his brother.

C．Invite his brother to hang out.

5 . Most of us look forward to the weekend as a time to relax, connect with friends and family, and tackle items from a to do list that gets neglected during the work week. But as the weekend comes to an end, many of us are missing out on Sunday Funday and instead experiencing a sense of anxiety and even worry about the upcoming week.     1     Here is how experts say you can ease your end of week anxiety.

Identify your anxiety source

Anxiety is a normal human experience and one of the main ways to manage it is to identify your personal causes.     2     Create multiple to do lists. One list for tasks that need to be completed immediately, another for tasks that are less urgent, and a final list for tasks that you’d like to complete at some point.

Don’t forget to relax

When structuring your Sunday, try not to put in too many routine tasks.     3     Maybe a body scan meditation(冥想), maybe a mid-afternoon shower or bath, maybe an engaging movie or show, whatever feels like a helpful distraction(分心的事)to recover from the scaries.

Create some excitement for the week ahead

Having something to look forward to gives you something to think about what is pleasing rather than only focusing on the fright you feel. Instead of focusing on awful things you expect from the week, build excitement over a coffee or lunch date with a friend you have been meaning to catch up with.     4    

Structure your day

    5     Maybe that means planning some favourite foo ds to enjoy while watching football. Or maybe you go all in for some self-care. Do you best to honor this time and make Sunday night all about you leave the work emails for Monday morning.

A．End your Sunday with the right energy.

B．Even though the Sunday scaries are common, they are manageable.

C．Try to find out what is really causing you to feel frightened this week.

D．Make Sunday nights about doing something for yourself to reduce the anxiety.

E．When you’re engaging in what makes you feel good, that feeling is hard to hold on to.

F．If you’re feeling more stress in general, it’s important to make space for relaxing activities.

G．This gives you the opportunity to shift your thought s to something fun and will help improve your mood.

6 . 阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文。

One of my favorite possessions is a little red can. It sits among my collections, looking somewhat old and out of place. But this can is special. It has a history. It was dear to me when I was younger, but mean even more to me now.

I’ve always loved to visit my grandparents in Cleburne, Texas, and as anyone in the family can tell you, there is always a gathering around the dining room table for meals and conversations so that we can keep in touch closely. It is important to keep in touch with the family members since we are busy with our own business, so my family members keep the tradition to have the gathering every month. We enjoy the moment when all of us meet in a place and communication helps us to solve the problem of isolation. As the first grandbaby, though, I was at a slight disadvantage. When I sat in the dining chair, only my nose could reach the table. Cleburne is a small town with a small population, and the phone book could only lift me an inch. So, Grandma and Grandpa came up with the idea of the little red can.

It was about ten inches high, made of tin, and painted a glorious shiny red. It worked perfectly, enabling me to bang away on the table with my little spoon and cup as I tried to keep up with the joyful talks around the table. After I finished a meal, I was placed on the floor, and the can was opened, and all sorts of surprises kept me busy while the adults visited. The can was full of lovely dolls which attracted little girls like me greatly. Besides, there were fresh and novel items that were mysterious to me and left me to explore.

注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。

Pretty soon, other grandbabies started to arrive, and each of them had their own turn on the little red can. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Decades later, Grandma proudly pulled out the little red can again when I traveled to Cleburne with my daughter. ____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

7 . Emotions are like our best friend. They have always been a part of our lives and have been influencing our personalities from the very beginning. However, this begs the question — where do emotions come from?

Evolutionary (进化论的) psychologists believe that emotions are adaptations that have evolved in response to the challenges faced by our ancestors. They believe that emotions are innate (先天的), meaning that we are born with them wired into our brains.

Some psychologists restrict their claims to a small set of “basic” emotions, which are called the Big Six — happiness, sadness, fear, surprise, anger and disgust.

Critics of evolutionary psychology argue that emotions are socially constructed. They reject the evolutionary theory of emotions being involuntary; instead, they believe that emotions are voluntary choices we trick ourselves into treating as involuntary.

Defendants of this view believe that our culture influences how we should feel and what we should do in a given situation. When we feel an emotion and act on it, we engage in a behavior that is prescribed by our culture.

People argue that our presumption that emotions are involuntary, such as anger, may just be a convenient illusion (幻觉). To be angry, we need to understand something as offensive (冒犯的), which is likely based on culturally informed moral judgments. In that case, how can anger be an animal reflex (本能反应)?

Moreover, anger is not seen in all cultures. In Inuit culture, people rarely show any signs of anger, probably since threatening responses would be too risky in a small culture surviving in harsh conditions. The Malay language of Malaysia doesn’t even have a word meaning “anger”!

The fact that culture can affect the incidence and intensity of our emotions makes them look less like biological truths and more like the product of social constructs.

From my perspective, evolutionary psychologists underestimate the contributions of culture and learning, whereas social constructionists over-emphasize the same. Basically, we need an explanation that can steer between both these extremes.

The next time you feel a complex emotion bubbling up (冒出), the key is to determine the underlying basic emotions so you can take action that is the most helpful in keeping you balanced and emotionally under control!

1. What do evolutionary psychologists believe?

A．We are born with emotions.

B．Personalities influence emotions.

C．Emotions are learned.

D．Humans have six different emotions.

2. What does the underlined word “prescribed” in paragraph 5 mean?

A．Copied.

B．Remembered.

C．Translated.

D．Required.

3. What do the two examples in paragraph 7 mainly explain?

A．Emotions play a major role in survival.

B．People in poor circumstances have emotions.

C．People solve problems with the help of emotions.

D．Emotions are socially constructed.

4. What is essential when facing the occurrence of a complex emotion?

A．Finding out the real core emotions.

B．Taking action to ignore basic emotions.

C．Striking a balance between life and work.

D．Making efforts to build confidence.

8 . Have you ever felt nervous or afraid to take time off from work to look after your mental health?

Marisa Kabas, a writer and political strategist, recently posed a similar question on Twitter (推特网), inspired by Simone Biles, who stopped taking part in Olympic events this week to protect her mental health.

“It was so shocking to so many people,” Ms. Kabas said on Wednesday in an interview. “Because the whole mentality (心态， 思维方式) is to be strong, and push through the pain.”

If you’re unlikely to use sick days for mental health reasons or are scared of being punished for doing so, I experts say it’s time to start thinking about how to protect your mental well-being. You should take a “sad day”.

There’s no official definition for a “sad day,” also known as a mental health day. Typically, it is paid time off drawn from sick days(or personal days) to help employees who aren’t feeling like their usual selves, offering an opportunity to refresh their minds, do something meaningful; or simply take a break from daily stressors. The “sad day” is only a temporary (暂时的) fix, and not meant to address deeper problems, but sometimes a little time away can make a big difference.

In most situations, just say that you need to take a sick day, and leave it at that, the experts advised. “I think the safe advice is not to be honest and frank,” said Andrew Kuller, a clinical psychologist. Not everybody values mental health, he added, and “unless you’re close with your boss, it is a risk. But say you work at the type of organization where you can tell the truth without fear of being punished. In that case, you still don’t need to reveal why you want to take a sick day.”

Whatever you do, don t spend the mental health day feeling guilty. So instead of thinking, “I should be at work right now, try to reframe your thinking in a more positive way. For example, try saying: “It would be great; if I could be at work right now. But today is a day that I need to take care of myself, so that’s what I’m going to do.”

1. Why were so many people shocked in the eyes of Ms. Kabas?

A．Simone Biles posed questions on Twitter.

B．Simone Biles was interviewed by Ms. Kabas.

C．Simone Biles inspired sports fans greatly in the Olympics.

D．Simone Biles pulled out of Olympic events due to mental health.

2. What can we know about a “sad day”?

A．It is only short-term relief.

B．It has an official definition.

C．It is of no value in reducing stress.

D．It is a perfect solution to big problems.

3. What are you advised to do in Paragraph 6?

A．Face punishment bravely.

B．Try your best to please your boss.

C．Ask for a sick day without much explanation.

D．Tell your boss about the importance of mental health.

4. Which of the following is the best title for the text?

A．Don’t be too serious about a “sad day”

B．When work weighs you down, take a “sad day”

C．Don’t be afraid to talk about your mental health

D．When you feel burnt out, tell your manager openly

9 . The Power of Insensitivity

Highly sensitive(敏感的)person, or HSP, is a term invented by psychologist Elaine Aron. HSPs can come with many challenges. They may find it hard to adapt to new surroundings, and easily become uncomfortable in response to certain feelings or others’ opinions.     1    

The power of insensitivity can be explained as “slow power”. Usually, people connect “insensitivity” with something bad, but indeed, it stresses the ability to keep doing something difficult without complaining.     2     It is not a weakness but an approach to winning a better life.

    3     Knowing yourself is difficult, and knowing yourself correctly is undoubtedly an excellent ability. The successful people clearly know where their strengths are, what they can do and what direction to go.

There are some ways to practice “insensitivity”: Don’t pay too much attention to the ups and downs of life at the moment.     4     Don’t get involved in other people’s lives and don’t let others affect yours. Regarding relationships, learn to view problems as two parts: One part is what you need to face and solve. The other part is the responsibility of others, which is not your business.

Everyone can gain the ability to be insensitive.     5     And the world will also be a better one if we focus on major goals and stay insensitive to something else.

A．Insensitivity plays a significant role.

B．Rather, you should be looking forward.

C．That’s where the need to be insensitive comes from.

D．Once you slow down the pace, you will feel more comfortable.

E．Those not easily affected are the people who care less about others.

F．That is, calmly facing the downtime in life and moving towards one’s own direction.

G．One reason why insensitivity allows people to better survive is the strong self-awareness.

10 . 假设你是市长秘书，你即将去抗疫前线慰问抗击在第一线的志愿者，请以市长名义写一封感谢信，感谢志愿者们的辛勤付出，并表达对他们诚挚的慰问和抗议胜利的信心。
注意：1.词数80左右；
2.可适当增加细节，使行文连贯。
Dear volunteers and community workers,
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Thank you!