1 . What a comedian can teach you about managing stress
We often accept stress as part of the cost of modern life, but it really doesn’t have to be. We all know that laughter is the best medicine.
You can try to find a different perspective.
When you share stories with your friends, you can choose to share stories of trauma (创伤) and pain, or you can choose to lift their spirits with stories of hope and growth.
| A．Always share a good story. |
| B．Why not do what comedians do? |
| C．You can also look again and laugh. |
| D．But laughter does more than cheer you up. |
| E．Then you are able to make a simple choice. |
| F．In this way. you will say goodbye to stress forever. |
| G．If you have trouble seeing the funny side, you may find the following inspiring. |
2 . I grasped a sandwich as I tried to finish my work during lunch. My company, like many companies, had
The young girl was standing in line with her mom at the supermarket.
“Good day at school?” I asked.
A nod.
“What’s your favorite subject?”
“Lunch.”
I smiled. That had been my
But what happened to lunch time now?
I knew I was entitled to a lunch break at work. So I decided to
At the beginning of my tours during lunch, I received some
I’m still looking for a new position, but with less anxiety than before. If we can’t change our
| A．counted | B．cut | C．paid | D．raised |
| A．trapped | B．fearful | C．shocked | D．hurt |
| A．work | B．way | C．view | D．plan |
| A．decision | B．explanation | C．secret | D．answer |
| A．take | B．make | C．find | D．stop |
| A．explore | B．measure | C．develop | D．identify |
| A．innocent | B．determined | C．sympathetic | D．unpleasant |
| A．carry on | B．take over | C．put aside | D．go through |
| A．Generally | B．Gradually | C．Accidentally | D．Obviously |
| A．strategies | B．circumstances | C．responsibilities | D．principles |
3 . There is a song by the great Jamaican singer Bob Marley called So Much Trouble in The World. Marley understood that part of the reason why there are so many problems in the world is the lack of tolerance between people. The UN understands this too— that is why it made November 16th “International Day for Tolerance”.
But first, what is tolerance? According to French philosopher Voltaire, “Tolerance is the consequence of humanity. We are all formed of frailty (脆弱) and error; let us pardon each other’s fool— that is the first law of nature.”
Very often, people do not realize that they are intolerant. This is because intolerance has a lot to do with ignorance. For example, the UN’s campaign is in part about the treatment of females by males. But often, the behavior of men toward women is intolerant because men do not put themselves in the shoes of women.
It is worth thinking a little about the words “tolerance” and “intolerance”. Are they the best words to describe the evils of which we are speaking here? To agree to be “tolerant” of someone is not necessarily a very respectful thing. When someone is tolerated, it implies that there is something wrong with them.
Still, what Voltaire said stands: We humans are not perfect and this weakness is something that we all share. That is the reason we should be tolerant. It is a little like generosity. We can give things to another person, and we can also give our forgiveness.
1. What is the purpose of the UN “International Day for Tolerance”?| A．To celebrate the founding of the UN. |
| B．To solve the problem of global warming. |
| C．To change people’s opinion towards globalization. |
| D．To arouse the awareness of tolerance among people. |
| A．Because men do not realize the purpose of the UN. |
| B．Because men are physically stronger than women. |
| C．Because men are not willing to understand women. |
| D．Because men do not appreciate the shoes of women. |
| A．Because they cannot be used in a respectful way. |
| B．Because they are hard to pronounce in English. |
| C．Because they cannot be translated into other languages. |
| D．Because they do not express the exact meaning people refer to. |
| A．Humans tend to find faults in others. |
| B．Humans need to give something to others. |
| C．Humans are advised to treat others better. |
| D．Humans change their attitudes towards others. |
4 . We were designing a wheelchair. My classmates felt only steel would be strong enough for the handle. Based on my experience, however, I believed steel would be too heavy and aluminum (铝) would be better. But the student who most strongly advocated steel worked at a bike shop; surely I didn’t know better, having used metal only for crafts (手工). A few days later, the steel arm kept dropping down, proving I had been right—and I wished I had shown more steely determination to defend my position.
I loved crafting. But when I’d chosen engineering in college, I put these pursuits aside. Not only was I stretched for time, but I didn’t think they were relevant to my academic work—and I hesitated to highlight my crafting interests in the male-dominated engineering environment where I already felt like an outsider. I told myself that engineering adequately fed my creative side and I didn’t need the hobby.
The wheelchair project was a sign that my crafting might be important and relevant, but for the next few years I continued to avoid bringing it up in professional spaces. When I was interviewing for engineering jobs and was asked whether I tinkered (修补) in my spare time, for example, I was sure the interviewers wouldn’t care about my crafts, even though they featured moving parts. So I said I did more 3D printing. The company extended an offer, so I felt my assumption was confirmed.
Maybe my crafting was something I shouldn’t conceal. Soon I was seeing more examples of connections between engineering and crafts that I had previously overlooked. I saw how crafting taught me to persevere when my product didn’t match my initial vision and to consider the failed creation a learning, just as an engineer must.
Since then, I’ve built crafting back into my free time. I’ve also stopped hiding it from my colleagues. Their responses were consistently positive and constructive not as I used to fear.
1. Why did the author give up her idea when making a wheelchair?| A．She lacked enough confidence. | B．Aluminum isn’t heavy enough. |
| C．The handle kept dropping down. | D．Her classmate was very stubborn. |
| A．Determined. | B．Creative. | C．Honest. | D．Reliable. |
| A．Like. | B．Hide. | C．Share. | D．Develop. |
| A．Interest Is the Best Teacher | B．Crafting Is Relying on My Career |
| C．My Road to Becoming an Engineer | D．My Crafting Makes Me a Better Engineer |
5 . In some islands north of Scotland, head lice, which live on the hair or skin of people or animals, were a part of life. If the lice left their host, he became sick and feverish. Therefore, sick people had lice put in their hair intentionally. There was a method to their madness: As soon as the lice had settled in again, the patient improved. The story explains the confusion of cause and effect. If the lice leave the sick, it is because he has a fever and they simply get hot feet. When the fever breaks, they return. We may laugh at this story, but false causality misleads us practically every day.
Consider the headline: “Fact: Women Who Use Shampoo XYZ Every Day Have Stronger Hair.” This statement says very little — least of all, that the shampoo makes your hair stronger. It might simply be the other way round: Women with strong hair tend to use Shampoo XYZ-and perhaps that’s because it says “especially for thick hair” on the bottle.
A further example: Scientists found that long periods in the hospital did harm to patients. This was music to health insurers’ ears, who, of course, are keen to make stays as brief as possible. But, clearly, patients who are dismissed immediately are healthier than those who must stay on for treatment.
Recently I read that students get better grades at school if their homes contain a lot of books. This study was surely a shot in the arm for booksellers, but it is also an example of false causality. This simple truth is that educated parents tend to value their children’s education more than uneducated ones do. Plus, educated parents often have more books at home. In short, a dust-covered copy of War and Peace alone isn’t going to influence anyone’s grades; what counts is parents’ education levels, as well as their genes.
Another example of false causality was the supposed relationship between the birth rate and the numbers of stork (鹳) pairs in Germany. Both were in decline, and if you plot them on a graph, the two lines of development from 1965 to 1987 appeared almost the same. Does this mean the stork actually does bring babies? Obviously not, since this was a purely accidental connection. In conclusion: Connection is not causality. Take a closer look at linked events: Sometimes what is presented as the cause turns out to be the effect, or just the other way around. And sometimes there is no link at all — just like with the storks and babies.
1. Which is an example of false causality?| A．The birth rate and stork population in Germany are connected. |
| B．The women with strong hair tend to use a certain shampoo. |
| C．Longer periods in the hospital benefit patients. |
| D．Lice can make a person sick and feverish. |
| A．pain | B．defeat | C．guidance | D．encouragement |
| A．their homes are full of books | B．they have read War and Peace |
| C．their educated parents value education | D．their parents are successful booksellers |
| A．connections are pure accidents | B．cause and effect are interdependent |
| C．connections are mostly cause and effect | D．linked events may turn out to be unrelated |
6 . My hands were shaking uncontrollably. I tried incredibly hard to focus on the words that I spent hours putting down on paper. I tried to conquer my fear of speaking in public on numerous occasions throughout my life. During college and at my first few jobs, I would get ridiculously nervous when I had to give a presentation or lead a meeting. Public speaking had been my nemesis for as long as I could remember.
Then in my mid-thirties, I decided to join the public speaking group Toastmasters. At every meeting, we were rated and forced to compete with other speakers for an award. You would think that I would walk away from these experiences as a polished speaker, but nothing seemed to work.
It wasn’t until recently, when science and scientific institutions were being attacked for unfair reasons during the pandemic, that I decided I must speak out. Science has made this country a place where dreams come true — this is why we all need to protect science. In addition, as a science writer, I try to get readers to understand how science is related to their daily lives.
So I ended up on that frightening stage on that sunny Saturday in April — Earth Day. Despite the body shakes and fear, I persevered. That day, I looked out into the crowd of like-minded science supporters and I felt comfort.
Reaching that milestone goal of getting through a speech truly changed me. At almost forty, I learned that passion can set off a flame in my heart to do things I never dreamed possible. The darkness that led to my speech is sure to lead to new opportunities and adventures.
1. Which of the following can replace the underlined word “nemesis” in Para. 1?| A．Advantage. | B．Annoyance. | C．Preference. | D．Confusion. |
| A．He began to feel less worried. | B．He became a polished speaker. |
| C．He remained a shy speaker. | D．Things became worse for him. |
| A．It was a good chance to learn science. |
| B．He must rise up to defend his profession. |
| C．It was a project organized by Toastmasters. |
| D．He couldn’t have people attacking science. |
| A．Passion can motive us to achieve the unachievable. |
| B．Any difficulty can be overcome with great effort. |
| C．Science can lead us to make wonderful changes. |
| D．Frustration can be stepping stones to success. |
7 . Blind imitation is self-destruction. To those who do not recognize their unique worth, imitation appears attractive; to those who know their strength, imitation is unacceptable.
In the early stages of skill or character development, imitation is helpful. When I first learned to cook, I used recipes and turned out some tasty dishes. But soon I grew bored. Why follow someone else’s way of cooking when I could create my own? Imitating role modelsis like using training wheels on a child’s bicycle; they help you get going, but once you find your own balance, you fly faster and farther without relying on them.
In daily life, imitation can hurt us if we subconsciously (下意识地) hold poor role models. If, as a child, you observed people whose lives were bad, you may have accepted their fear and pain as normal and gone on to follow what they did. If you do not make strong choices for yourself, you will get the results of the weak choices of others.
In the field of entertainment, our culture glorifies celebrities. Those stars look great on screen. But when they step off screen, their personal lives may be disastrous. If you are going to follow someone, focus on their talent, not their bad character or unacceptable behaviors.
Blessed is the person willing to act on their sudden desire to create something unique. Think of the movies, books, teachers, and friends that have affected you most deeply. They touched you because their creations were motivated by inspiration, not desperation. The world is changed not by those who do what has been done before them, but by those who do what has been done inside them. Creative people have an endless resource of ideas. The problem a creator faces is not running out of material; it is what to do with the material knocking at the door of imagination.
Study your role models, accept the gifts they have given, and leave behind what does not serve. Then you can say, “I stand on the shoulders of my ancestors’ tragedies and declare victory, and know that they are cheering on.”
1. Imitation proves useful when you ________.| A．know you are unique |
| B．lose the balance of life |
| C．begin to learn something new |
| D．get tired of routine practice |
| A．desperate to influence others with their knowledge |
| B．ready to turn their original ideas into reality |
| C．eager to discover what their ancestors did |
| D．willing to accept others’ ideas |
| A．the lack of strong motivation |
| B．the absence of practical ideas |
| C．how to search for more materials |
| D．how to use imagination creatively |
| A．To highlight the importance of creativity. |
| B．To criticize the characters of role models. |
| C．To compare imitation with creation. |
| D．To explain the meaning of success. |
8 . First, I thought I was pregnant. Shortly after, I had a shooting pain in my stomach. Finally, I went to the emergency room and they said, “Listen, something is wrong.” Then I was told I might lose my hair for my wedding due to the chemical treatment.
When it came out, I just felt like I wanted to shave it. I didn’t want to sit around and wait for my hair to fall out. I wanted to have control in a situation where I had zero control. This was the one area I could have some sort of control.
I went to a hair salon that day, and it was super emotional. I cried in the chair the whole time. I was terrified to see that my head looked like bald(秃头的). I didn’t know whether it was going to be malformed or not and I couldn’t help worrying whether there was any unnatural part on it. I also have a mole(胎记)on my head that I’ve always been really self-conscious about.
Once I got home, I realized my head is extremely round and the mole wasn’t that noticeable. Over time, I actually enjoyed being bald. I never had to do my hair. Getting ready was quick and easy. I just knew it was something I couldn’t control, and I needed to accept it and learn to love myself in a new way.
Even when I was first diagnosed(诊断), there was no way I was going to sit there and feel sorry for myself. I told myself, “I’m gonna get up. I’m gonna fight this thing. I’m not going to lose. “I always said I would win.
Looking at things in a positive way really helped me, so that’s what I did with my bald head. I would say, “Yeah, this sucks, but at least I don’t have to wash my hair. At least I don’t have to dry it. At least I can get ready in five minutes. ” I always tried to put a positive spin on it.
1. Why did the author shave her head bald?| A．To do chemical treatment. | B．To save her from hairdressing. |
| C．To get ready for her wedding. | D．To avoid feeling uncontrollable. |
| A．Ill-treated. | B．Bright-colored. | C．Badly-shaped. | D．Well-protected. |
| A．Stubborn but brave. | B．Strong and positive. |
| C．Sensitive but friendly. | D．Delicate and negative. |
| A．Life is too precious to lose. | B．God never closes all doors. |
| C．Determination finds a way. | D．Optimism helps win battles. |
9 . Alone in the wilderness. Nothing but jungle. A world of shadow with the rays of light falling like blonde hair from the crowns of the giant trees. Jungle in the midday sun. Everything motionless. Not a sound from sky or earth. Complete silence. Only some coconuts falling, at long intervals, very far away. The world reduced to the soft touch of cool grass along my naked back, and a sweet smell of rich soil and vegetation. Stretched out with closed eyes beside my heavy burden of fruit and firewood, I enjoyed the feeling of fresh blood streaming through every part of my body and fresh jungle air filling every corner of my lungs.
Resting motionless, I could see the sun through my closed eyelids, alone in the sky, as lonely as I, and as motionless and silent as everything else. The earth had surely stopped turning and somewhere on this planet there was supposed to be roaring traffic in busy streets. What a crazy, unbelievable thought!
Another coconut fell, to make the world come to a complete standstill. I had to roll over onto my stomach to feel that at least I could move and make noises. Then I found company. A little brown ant was struggling to find its way with a bit of dry straw through the jungle of leaves and grass below my nose. I wondered if I could give the little fellow a lift with its burden, but it showed not the slightest sign of tiredness and struggled on with all six legs, head first or head last, waving its feelers energetically as if the trip had just started. Who ever saw a tired ant? Tiredness, disagreeable tiredness, is restricted to hunted animals, slaves and modern man. It is as great an effort for an office clerk to walk five blocks with a loaded brief-case as it is for a jungle-dweller to cross a valley with a goat on his back. It is as hard to get up and climb or run when you have been seated for years as it is to get up and walk when you have been in bed for months. The body is strange. Spare it, and you get really tired for almost nothing; use it, and almost nothing makes you really tired.
I rose to my feet. I had heard a horse neighing down in the valley. Above me, on the open highland plains, there were wild horses. But down in the valley there was never a horse unless there was a man on it. Somebody was making his way up the valley and my wife was alone.
1. The author mentions coconuts’ falling to ________ .| A．show his loneliness | B．add beauty to the jungle |
| C．express his love of nature | D．stress the absolute silence |
| A．He admired its attitude toward work. |
| B．He was amazed at its tireless efforts. |
| C．He showed sympathy for the little ant. |
| D．He was content to have it as a companion. |
| A．make his way home | B．stay in the valley |
| C．work harder than before | D．talk to the man on the horse |
The Power of Determination
Your quest for success and happiness begins with right intentions. It culminates (达到顶点) when you reach your chosen goals. What sustains your effort in between is your determination. What carries you towards your goals is your determination. It means the firmness of purpose or intention.
If there is one gift that you can give to yourself in your life to be what you want to be, it is the power of determination. Without it you are a mere passive spectator in the drama of your life. If there is one quality that makes a difference between a winner and a loser or a leader and a follower, it is the power of determination. Without it, you may dream wild dreams, but you will not accomplish much in life. If you have determination, nothing can stop you and deter you from following your course of action to achieve your goals or realize your dreams.
Obstacles may arise and obstruct your progress. They may delay your success, disturb you temporarily, and may even mislead you, but they cannot withstand the power of determination. It is the power that you generate within yourself to remain committed to your path and conviction, and march towards your cherished goals. Before you take up any project or goal, you should know whether you have the determination to stick to your plans and reach your goals. Your determination has to arise from within and derive its reinforcement from your thinking and beliefs rather than circumstances. Only then will you be able to sustain your effort, even when the going gets tough. Determination is your inner strength. Like the hardwood inside a tree, it gives you the power to stand tall and face the winds of turmoil.
With determination, you can crush the mountains of fear and doubts in you. You can find your way through the most difficult situations. Determination does not mean you will be insensitive to the reality of the situation. A determined person is also an adaptable and flexible person. He is not interested in being tough for toughness sake, but to overcome obstacles and reach his goals. Hence, he remains open-minded about possibilities and opportunities, but firm in his commitment and convictions. Discipline and determination go together. If you have them, you become unstoppable.
1. According to the passage, what is determination?2. What would happen if one does not have determination?
3. Please decide which part is false in the following statement, then underline it and explain why.
With determination, you can crush the mountains of fear and doubts in you, and you will not make changes.
4. How does being determined benefit you? (In about 40 words)
