1 . How to Overcome Social Anxiety

Do you get nervous when you are tasked to give a speech? Do you get sweaty and uncomfortable during interviews? Many people get nervous or self-conscious on occasion, but social anxiety is more than just shyness or occasional nerves.    1    In fact, it becomes so intense that you may go to great lengths to avoid situations that can trigger it. Here are some self-help strategies to help you overcome social anxiety.

Analyze the negative thoughts contributing to social anxiety. For example, when you are worried about an upcoming social gathering, identify the underlying negative thought like “I’ll seem boring”. Be objective and ask questions like “Do I know for sure that they will get bored with me?”    2    

Stop unhelpful thinking patterns that fuel your anxiety. One typical example is mind reading, which refers to assuming someone is thinking something negative about you.    3    It occurs when you describe yourself with just one word such as “stupid”, or “failure”. These patterns of thought prevent you from seeing things as they really are. By transforming your way of thinking, you can change how you feel for the better.

    4    When you are in a social situation, you tend to get caught up in your anxious thoughts. You are convincing yourself that all the people are looking at you, thus triggering even more anxiety! To overcome it, take time to appreciate what other people are doing. Do your best to engage with them and make a genuine connection.

Gather up your courage to face your fears. Avoidance will only keep your social anxiety disorder going. It prevents you from becoming more comfortable in social situations.    5     Also, avoidance prevents you from doing things you’d like to do. The way out is to start with a situation that you can handle like talking to one office mate. Then you can gradually work your way up to more challenging situations.

A．Focus on other things instead of yourself.

B．To be exact, it is a slight fear of social situations.

C．Avoid thinking about what other people are thinking of you.

D．Labeling is another thinking trap you should avoid falling into.

E．The longer you escape a situation, the more frightening it becomes.

F．Figuring out the reasons for your anxiety helps lessen its negative impact.

G．If you have a social anxiety disorder, the stress of these situations is too much to handle.

3 . Video conferencing has been around for more than 20 years. Until the Covid-19 pandemic, though, you would find that many people needing to attend a meeting remotely would be calling from a real conference room full of their teammates. Today, we're routinely holding video conferences that are 100% virtual (虚拟).And this is creating a problem that technology can't fix.

The problem is us, specifically the fact that we haven't evolved socially to the point where we can bear much separation. So much of our well-being and work productivity is decided on how close we are physically. The removal of that for any period of time can be severely damaging. One surprising victim of social distancing is laughter

Normally people laugh about 18 times per day. And 97% of that time we're laughing with others - we are 30 times more likely to laugh with others than to laugh alone. Think about it: how often when you and your friends laugh at something, is that something actually funny? Research shows that 80% of what people laugh at is really not that funny.

So why do people laugh? They laugh in order to laugh with others. Just as everyone starts yawning (打哈欠) when just one person yawns, most people can't help but laugh when those around them do. This is why TV comedy shows often use prerecorded laugh tracks.

Laughing in response to other people's laughing is not just a behavioral phenomenon. When we laugh, our body produces two key chemicals: endorphin which helps relieve pain and sets off feelings of pleasure, and dopamine which can improve learning, motivation and attention. In fact, studies show that people can stand 15% more pain simply by laughing for a few minutes beforehand. Laughter is also associated with higher motivation and productivity at work.

In today's home-alone, virtual-team world, this is exactly what you as a team leader should be doing: for your team members to stay healthy and productive, you need to get them to laugh more and stress less.

1. What is the problem mentioned at the start of the text?

A．Physical weakness.	B．Lack of technology.
C．Social distancing.	D．Reliance or virtual conference.

2. The underlined word “This” in paragraph 4 refers to the fact that

A．laugh tracks are popular	B．laughing is uncontrollable
C．laughing starts with yawning	D．laughing comes more easily in groups

3. What is paragraph 5 mainly about?

A．Why laughing is important to work.

B．How laughing keeps us physically healthy.

C．Whether laughing is a behavioral phenomenon.

D．What chemicals our body produces when we laugh

4. What would the author most probably discuss next?

A．Concrete steps to produce laughter in a team.

B．Other factors that may influence a team's health.

C．Ways to tell the real world from the virtual world.

D．The importance of maintaining work productivity.

4 . On her first day of school, a six-year-old girl stands outside, fearfully clinging to her mother’s leg.     1     As the girl learns she will be separated from her parents to enter a new building filled with new people, she begins to cry. During the first couple of weeks in her new classroom, the girl does not volunteer to speak when her teacher asks the class questions. At break, she stands by a wall, watching the other children running around the playground.     2     She can be heard laughing and chatting, louder and braver than at school. As the school environment becomes more familiar, her behaviours there will more closely resemble her behaviours at home. This first-grader is shy.

    3     Although definitions vary, shyness is most often characterised by cautiousness or fear in new social situations. In many places, especially in North America, sociability and liveliness are positively valued, and children are encouraged to speak up in different contexts, connect with their peers and trust their teachers.

It’s been estimated however, that as many as 10 to 15 percent of children consistently exhibit shyness, and we know that the tendency to display fear and avoidance in the presence of unfamiliarity is found across species, across cultures and across generations. The ubiquity (无处不在) of shyness suggests that it likely possesses some adaptive functions.     4    

Shy children might be more likely to detect social threats in their environment compared with non-shy children.     5     For example, a shy child might more readily notice an unkind peer or bully. She might not immediately offer personal information about herself and engage in careful decision-making about whether to become friends with the person. These factors might help shield shy children from social conflict and negative social evaluations.

A．They tend to look before they leap.

B．When she gets home, though, her behaviour is different.

C．Childhood shyness is often regarded as a negative quality.

D．Her teacher works with her parents to get the child into the school.

E．She stops crying only when she notices that others are watching her.

F．Shyness is not a sentence for a lonely or difficult life in and of itself.

G．Indeed, there is evidence that shyness is not always a disadvantage or a problem.

6 . Directions: Read the following passage. Summarize the main idea and the main point(s) of the passage in no more than 60 words. Use your own words as far as possible.

Romantic Attraction

Sometimes, it seems we are attracted towards people romantically in a puzzling manner. We see someone and our romantic side bursts out. However, it is not a mystery to science and people who study sociology. There are definite causes as to why people become romantically attracted to each other. These factors are, similarity, communication, and honesty.

Though people often say opposites attract, similarity often connects individuals in a romantic way. In fact, based on research done by the University of Colorado Boulder, we tend to choose partners who have a similar DNA to ours. Of course we cannot examine the DNA of others readily, but we can naturally “feel” if people are a genetic match for us.

Communication is another essential factor in the romantic attraction way. If we feel a deep connection to someone through the ease of talking with them, we are much more likely to be attracted to that person. It is difficult to be romantically involved with someone you can barely communicate with. And as a side note, there are people we are not attracted to each other in appearance, but after communicating with them for some time, we suddenly become romantically interested in them.

Friends often connect through noticing the honesty of others, but this also lends to romantic attraction. According to Kelly Campbell, PhD, “Chemistry occurs most often between people who are down-to-earth and sincere. This is because if a person is comfortable with themselves, they are better able to express their true self to the world, which makes it easier to get to know them, even if perspectives on important matters differed”. This adds to the perspective that easy communication between people contributes to romantic attraction.

8 . Directions: Read the following passage. Summarize the main idea and the main point(s) of the passage in no more than 60 words. Use your own words as far as possible.

Is Small Talk Necessary?

What’s the first thing you do when you enter a crowded room? You probably look around for a familiar face. When you can’t find one, you have two choices: you can stand alone, or you can walk up and speak to someone that you don’t know.

Starting a conversation with a stranger, though, is often uncomfortable and can be a little scary. Yet as you go through life, you’re sure to encounter strangers in many different situations, when a need to connect with others will hopefully outweigh your fears. In order to prepare, it helps to learn the art of small talk.

Small talk is the beginning stage of a casual conversation, which usually takes place between strangers or casual acquaintances. With small talk, two or more people search for common interests and points of connection. If one is discovered, the conversation usually begins to flow more naturally, often resulting in deeper discussion.

Mastering a few techniques will allow you to enter a room full of strangers with confidence.

When you walk up to a group, notice anyone trying to make eye contact with you because this is often a sign that the person is interested in talking. Begin by introducing yourself, and then, you should begin with one of three topics: talk about yourself, the other person or something you can both observe, like the weather.

Another way to begin a conversation is with a compliment. Your praise of someone’s scarf might lead to a discussion about favorite places to shop.

Radio host Terry Gross, who has interviewed thousands of people over the years, says one opening request works for her every time: “Tell me about yourself.” This approach gets the ball rolling because people enjoy talking about themselves.

Though small talk takes practice, it’s worth the effort and it’s the stimulus that can lead to deeper conversations.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

10 . 听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1.

A．To study the effect of isolation on humans.

B．To figure out the conditions of the volcano.

C．To help choose the right persons for a trip to Mars.

D．To learn about human mental and emotional problems.

2.

A．Eating diet food.	B．Enduring isolation.
C．Being cooperative.	D．Coping with pressure.

3.

A．To set up their habitat.	B．To make weather maps.
C．To study the rocky surface.	D．To communicate every 20 minutes.