1 . Everyone complains. Even if you argue that you are the happiest person in the world, you still complain sometimes. Sometimes you complain without even realizing it, but rarely is it ever helpful.
When you find yourself thinking or saying a negative comment about something or someone, stop and force yourself to say something positive instead. Seek the help of a cheerful friend to change you when you complain and help you to see the positive in the situation.
Make a list of things you are grateful for.
You often complain about the things you don’t have without noticing those things you already have. Be grateful for what you have in your life because you are lucky simply for being yourselves.
Learn to adapt to the changes.
There are many things you can’t change.
Allow yourself to vent (发泄) your feelings every once in a while.
Constantly ignoring negative thoughts could add up. If you are really going through a rough time, don’t be afraid to share your feelings with a close friend or family member or see a therapist.
Find what makes you happy.
| A．Sometimes this list can be easy, full of hobbies you enjoy. |
| B．The best and only thing you can do is to accept them. |
| C．Change the way you think. |
| D．Are you constantly complaining about your present job? |
| E．Set down things you are thankful for and you’ll see that you don’t have any reason to complain. |
| F．Make friends with positive people. |
| G．So how can you manage to force yourselves to end complaining? |
2 . Small talk – the likes of “What do you have there? Popcorn?” or “The weather today is beautiful, isn’t it?” – is meaningless and a waste of time, according to some people. But scientists believe that it is actually more useful than it may appear to be.
One example comes when you are on a train or a plane. The thought of talking to the stranger sitting beside you can be scary, because you know the conversation is sure to be awkward. But a study by the University of Chicago in the US found that people who chat to strangers enjoy a better ride than those who sit in silence or occupy themselves with their phones.
In the study, researchers asked people at Chicago train stations to start conversations with fellow travelers. Most of them refused to do so at first because they expected not to get a friendly answer. But the result turned out to be just the opposite – most strangers were not only willing to be talked to, but also pleasant to talk to.
“Human beings are social animals, ” Nicholas Epley, one of the lead researchers, told Live Science. “Other people are people, too. And it turns out that they’d like to get to know you. ”
Apart from making you happier, small talk with strangers can also help you feel connected to your surroundings. Previous studies found that when people a\re frequently smiled at, made eye contact with and spoken to at coffee shops, they tend to have a stronger sense of belonging instead of feeling like they are being ignored and left out.
And if you are already comfortable enough to make small talk with strangers, you should try to develop it into something “bigger”.
A 2010 study proved that having a deep and meaningful conversation gives you even more happiness than small talk. Participants in the study – 79 college students – reported after the four-day experiment that they were much happier when they had a third as much small talk and twice as many in-depth conversations.
But deep conversations can start with small talk, can’t they? So the first step is to start talking, no matter how casual the topic is. And who knows, maybe an opening line as simple as “I like your hat” could lead to a serious conversation in which you learn something new from a stranger.
1. What is the reason for the result of the study by the University of Chicago, according to Nicholas Epley?| A．Most people are nice to strangers. |
| B．People are naturally curious about others. |
| C．People are afraid of loneliness or boredom. |
| D．People try to show their good side to strangers. |
| A．Wasting less time. |
| B．Developing useful contacts. |
| C．Disconnecting from phones for a while. |
| D．Feeling like you are a part of your surroundings. |
| A．Starting with serious topics. |
| B．Starting with casual topics. |
| C．Making it important and deep. |
| D．Choosing pleasant surroundings. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Negative. | C．Doubtful. | D．Objective. |
3 . “How are you?” is a nice question. It's a friendly way that people in the United States greet each other. But “How are you?” is also a very unusual question. It's a question that often doesn't have an answer. The person who asks “How are you?” expects to hear the answer “Fine”, even if the person's friend isn't fine. The reason is that “How are you?” isn't really a question, and “Fine” isn't really an answer. They are simply other ways of saying “Hello” and “Hi”.
People also don't say exactly what they are thinking when they finish conversations with other people. For example, many conversations over the phone end when one person says “I've got to go now”. Often, the person who wants to hang up gives an excuse: “Someone's at the door”; “I’ve got to put the groceries（杂物）away.” “Something is burning on the stove（炉子）.” The excuse might be real, or it might not. Perhaps the person who wants to hang up simply doesn't want to talk any more, but it isn't very polite to say that. The excuse is more polite, and it doesn't hurt the other person's feeling.
Whether they are greeting each other or ending a conversation, people often don't say exactly what they are thinking. It is an important way that people try to be nice to each other, and it's all part of the game of languages.
1. “How are you?” is an unusual question because it is ______.| A．used more often than any other question |
| B．more friendly than any other question |
| C．not treated as a question |
| D．hard to answer |
| A．“Something is burning on the stove.” |
| B．“I've got to put the groceries away.” |
| C．“Someone's at the door.” |
| D．“I want to hang up.” |
| A．is going to call back later |
| B．may not be telling the truth |
| C．is leaving for another place |
| D．hurts the other person's feelings |
| A．try to be nice and polite to each other |
| B．always say what you are thinking |
| C．never disagree with others |
| D．never speaking your mind |
4 . Why You Should Schedule Some “Me Time” Every Day
Most people in our culture feel the need to be going all the time. If we are not working and putting our energy into something, we believe we are wasting time. We feel taking time for ourselves is a waste. And to some extent, it’s true—pushing yourself nonstop may bring some measure of success.
So, the biggest reason to take a little time out for yourself is to avoid these negative consequences of not doing so.
Taking a little time for yourself refreshes and re-energizes you. It allows you to think more clearly and make better decisions.
| A．Taking “me” time benefits those around you as well. |
| B．Actually it is not that difficult to find a little “me” time. |
| C．Taking “me” time also builds your self-worth over time. |
| D．It might seem easy to schedule a little “me” time, but often it isn’t. |
| E．Realize that there are limits to what you can do, and build your life around that. |
| F．But more than that, “me” time can make you a better person both inside and out. |
| G．However, going for long periods without time for yourself may cost you in the end. |
5 . The world is full of distractions. If you work in an office, it might be emails, phone calls or colleagues with questions to ask, which take your attention away from what you are doing or thinking about. If you are at home, it might be the contents of the fridge or a sudden fixation on dust mites (尘螨) under the sofa. Sometimes it takes even less. If you are sitting and doing work and someone near you says something particularly interesting, that can pull your focus. If you are not careful, you will end up your day with nothing accomplished.
So, how can we stay focused in our wandering minds? Switching off email or messaging services helps. And put your smart phone and other irrelevant screens away—they attract your attention even if they are off. If you tend to pop on headphones and use music to shut out distractions, avoid listening to anything familiar. Knowing the words or tune well will distract you even more.
Not all distractions are bad, however. If you are doing something repetitive like stuffing envelopes or laying bricks, being distracted by listening to music or engaging in a conversation with a co-worker can ultimately increase productivity. Creativity can benefit from distraction too. Jihae Shin, now at the university of Wisconsin-Madison, has found that when people played Minesweeper for five minutes before coming up with new business ideas, they were more creative than those who didn’t play.
Switching between tasks can also help. In general, this is the enemy of productivity: it encourages mistakes, stops us from completing things, promotes forgetfulness and lowers the quality of writing. But when we are trying to come up with creative solutions, task-switching distractions can help prevent “cognitive fixation” on ineffective approaches. So if you are a creative type, try lining up two or more tasks and spend your day switching between them.
1. Why does the author mention many examples in Para.1?| A．To reveal the troubles of distractions. |
| B．To present the findings of recent studies. |
| C．To highlight the values of multitasks. |
| D．To emphasize the importance of being focused. |
| A．It will improve the productivity of the repetitive work. |
| B．It may be shut out by listening to the familiar music. |
| C．It may lower the efficiency of multitasks. |
| D．It will help to come up with new ideas. |
| A．Upsides and downsides of distraction. |
| B．Distraction and creativity. |
| C．How to stay focused. |
| D．Causes of distraction. |
6 . Some people succeed, while others do not.
To become successful, you may find it important to read about successful people, to see how they have achieved success.
Practising is just as important if you want to succeed, because practice makes perfect. This will help you feel confident about what you do.
If you own the qualities above, success is yours for the taking!
| A．Where others see a closed door, they see an open window. |
| B．You need to be able to look people in the eye and be honest. |
| C．Having proper motivation is not optional--- it is another key to success. |
| D．This is because some people own certain qualities that others do not have. |
| E．Their stories will encourage and inspire you as you climb the ladder of success. |
| F．Practice every day at whatever career you are in, and you will see yourself begin to grow. |
| G．Another quality that helps people succeed is the ability to do and think about things in new and different ways. |
7 . Deadly Seafood
When someone who is in good health dies suddenly, there is usually an inquest (死因调查) in western countries.
The coroner (验尸官) does this kind of work. His job is to find out exactly how a person died.
If there is nothing wrong with the death, he will decide that the person died from natural causes or an accident. If, however, he is suspicious, he may decide that a person or persons unknown caused the person's death.
At one inquest, the coroner was trying to find out exactly what had caused the death of a businessman, Henry Smith.
The man's wife was giving her evidence (证据).She was very sad and had to stop from time to time.
The coroner did not want to make her more unhappy than necessary, but he had to find out the truth. There were questions he had to ask her.
"Mrs. Smith, I know this is painful for you, "he said, "but I want you to think very carefully and then answer my questions. You and your husband were having dinner at home. Is that correct?"
"Yes."
"Suddenly he fell to the floor?"
"Yes."
"You stood up and hurried to him? You stood beside him? He was in great pain?"
"Yes."
"Did he say anything?"
The wife lowered her head.
"Please, Mrs. Smith, you must answer the question. What were his last words?"
The wife breathed and then spoke. "He said," she whispered, "I'm not surprised you were asked for only 50 cents for that seafood we had for dinner."
1. What needs to be done when a healthy person dies suddenly?| A．The person should be sent to his family at once. |
| B．An inquest is usually needed to find the cause. |
| C．The person should be buried immediately without making any investigations. |
| D．Nothing needs to be done. |
| A．He said he had always loved his wife. |
| B．He said the seafood was the cause of his death. |
| C．He said the wife should have paid more for the seafood. |
| D．He said he was very regretful. |
| A．50 cents was too little to be able to buy fresh and healthy seafood. |
| B．Seafood was expensive. |
| C．People selling deadly seafood should be punished. |
| D．Seafood should be cooked properly before eating. |
8 . Managing your time is a lot like managing your money.
Step No. 1:
Estimate (估计) the amount of time per week you spend on each activity, such as class time, athletics fitness, socializing with friends and other hobby time and so on.
Step No. 2: Assess your use of time.
a) Add together the total time you will use per week.
b) Now subtract (减去) the total time from 168 hours.
If the number you get is negative, you have used more time than there is in a week. You should cut back in certain areas.
If you have time left over, ask yourself what choices can be made.
Step No. 3: Determine a goal and plan of action for better time use.
What would you most like to do to better manage your time? You should consider using a calendar or planner (备忘记事本).
Some tips: Color-code your calendar or planner by the activities listed above, and once you make a schedule, do your best to stick with it.
Step No. 4:
You'll want to take a look at this again at the start of each term, if you get a job, or if you notice any changes in your physical or emotional condition.
Besides, it is advisable to make a long-term goal in the first year and work towards it in the very beginning.
| A．You are in trouble. |
| B．This is a good start. |
| C．Repeat, when necessary. |
| D．Do you have time for more sleep? |
| E．Figure out how you use your time each week. |
| F．Once you spend it, it's gone, so you have to make it all count. |
| G．It can help you keep track of time, projects, tasks and be more efficient. |
9 .
Well, the good news is that kids don’t just have to keep making the same mistakes over and over again.
| A．Everybody gets angry sometimes. |
| B．You don’t want to cause trouble. |
| C．Kids should be allowed to express their feelings,even angry ones. |
| D．You can train you temper. |
| E．In fact,they usually mean that a kid behaves badly when feeling angry. |
| F．Instead of thinking of the person you’re angry with,think of something else. |
| G．Some kids get angry more often or more easily than some other kids. |
10 . The human brain remembers negative experiences more easily than positive ones. Our brains have developed in this way because threats, like dangerous animals, have a more immediate effect on people’s survival compared to positive things like food or shelter. As a result, you clearly know what makes you unhappy, but do you know what makes you happy?
Research suggests that our level of happiness is partly shaped by the choices we make. If you’ve been chasing wealth, fame, power and some material things, you may be looking for happiness in the wrong places. Psychologists suggest that the following habits can make people happier.
People who own close relationships tend to be happier than those who do not. The number of our friends is not important. What matters is the quality of our relationships. Relationships that bring happiness usually consist of the sharing of feelings, acceptance, mutual (双方的) respect and trust.
People who exercise regularly can improve both their physical and mental well-being. Some research has shown that exercise can be as effective as some medicine in treating depression.
If we are so interested in an activity, we may lose track of time, and we can be in a state of flow. The activity could be playing the piano, surfing the Internet or playing a game… People who experience flow in their work or life tend to be happier.
People are more likely to be happy if they know what their strengths are and can use them regularly. People are especially happy when they can set goals and use their strengths to achieve them.
People, who think positively by being grateful, mindful and optimistic, are more likely to be happy. Being grateful means being thankful. Being mindful means considering, focusing on, and enjoying the experiences of the present moment. Being optimistic means being hopeful about the future.
1. Why do Human brains remember negative things more easily?| A．Because negative things tend to affect human survival immediately |
| B．Because negative things are easy to remember |
| C．Because negative things are much more important than other things |
| D．Because negative things can make people live much happier |
| A．making friends | B．doing sports | C．playing the violin | D．chasing power |
| A．We should think more about our future. |
| B．We should be positive in our life and work. |
| C．We should focus on everything in our life. |
| D．We should only enjoy the present moment. |
| A．Why people remember positive things easily. |
| B．Why people remember negative things easily. |
| C．Some habits that make people happy. |
| D．The habits the people form in their life. |
