Does happiness have a scent? When someone is happy, can you smell it? You can usually tell when someone is happy based on seeing them smile, hearing them laugh or perhaps from receiving a big hug. But can you also smell their happiness?
Surprising new research suggests that happiness does indeed have a scent, and that the experience of happiness can be spread through smell, reports Phys.org.
For the study, 12 young men were shown videos meant to bring about a variety of emotions while researchers gathered sweat samples from them. All of the men were healthy and none of them were drug users or smokers, and all were asked to abstain from drinking or eating smelly foods during the study period.
Those sweat samples were then given to 36 equally healthy young women to smell, while researchers monitored their reactions. Only women were selected to smell the samples, apparently because previous research has shown that women have a better sense of smell than men and are also more sensitive to emotional signaling—though it’s unclear why only men were chosen to produce the scents.
Researchers found that the behavior of the women after smelling the scents—particularly their facial expressions—indicated a relationship between the emotional states of the men who produced the sweat and the women who sniffed them.
“Human sweat produced when a person is happy brings about a state similar to happiness in somebody who breathes this smell,” said study co-author Gun Semin, a professor at Koc University in Turkey.
This is a fascinating finding because it not only means that happiness does have a scent, but that the scent is capable of transmitting the emotion to others. The study also found that other emotions, such as fear, seem to carry a scent too. This ensures previous research suggesting that some negative emotions have a smell, but it is the first time this has proved to be true of positive feelings.
Researchers have yet to isolate exactly what the chemical compound for the happiness smell is, but you might imagine what the potential applications for such a finding could be. Happiness perfumes, for instance, could be invented. Scent therapies(香味疗法) could also be developed to help people through depression or anxiety.
Perhaps the most surprising result of the study, however, is our broadened understanding of how emotions get communicated, and also how our own emotions are potentially managed through our social context and the emotional states of those around us.
1.What is the main finding of the new research?
A. Men produce more sweats.
B. Negative emotions have a smell.
C. Pleasant feelings can be smelt out.
D. Women have a better sense of smell.
2.The underlined part “abstain from” in Paragraph 3 probably means ________.
A. avoidB. practiceC. continueD. try
3.What is the application value of the new research?
A. Perfumes could help people understand each other.
B. Some smells could be developed to better our mood.
C. Perfumes could be produced to cure physical diseases.
D. Some smells could be created to improve our appearance.
4.We can learn from the last paragraph that ________.
A. happiness comes from a scent of sweat
B. positive emotions can deepen understanding
C. people need more emotional communication
D. social surroundings can influence our emotions
Like many new graduates, I left university full of hope for the future but with no real idea of what I wanted to do. My degree, with honors, in English literature had not really prepared me for anything practical. I knew I wanted to make a difference in the world somehow, but I had no idea how to do that. That’s when I learned about the Lighthouse Project.
I started my journey as a Lighthouse Project volunteer by reading as much as I could about the experiences of previous volunteers. I knew it would be a lot of hard work, and that I would be away from my family and friends for a very long time. In short, I did not take my decision to apply for the Lighthouse Project lightly. Neither did my family.
Eventually, however, I won the support of my family, and I sent in all the paperwork needed for the application. After countless interviews and presentations, I managed to stand out among the candidates and survive the test alone. Several months later, I finally received a call asking me to report for the duty. I would be going to a small village near Abuja, Nigeria. Where? What? Nigeria? I had no idea. But I was about to find out.
After completing my training, I was sent to the village that was small and desperately in need of proper accommodation. Though the local villagers were poor, they offered their homes, hearts, and food as if I were their own family. I was asked to lead a small team of local people in building a new schoolhouse. For the next year or so, I taught in that same schoolhouse. But I sometimes think I learned more from my students than they did from me. Sometime during that period, I realized that all those things that had seemed so strange or unusual to me no longer did, though I did not get anywhere with the local language, and returned to the United States a different man. The Lighthouse Project had changed my life forever.
1.What do we know about the author?
A. His university education focused on the theoretical knowledge.
B. His dream at university was to become a volunteer.
C. He took pride in having contributed to the world.
D. He felt honored to study English literature.
2.According to Paragraph 2, it is most likely that the author ________.
A. discussed his decision with his family
B. asked previous volunteers about voluntary work
C. attended special training to perform difficult tasks
D. felt sad about having to leave his family and friends
3.In his application for the volunteer job, the author ________.
A. participated in many discussions
B. went through challenging survival tests
C. wrote quite a few papers on voluntary work
D. faced strong competition from other candidates
4.What can we infer from the author’s experiences in Nigeria?
A. He found some difficulty adapting to the local culture.
B. He had learned to communicate in the local language.
C. He had overcome all his weaknesses before he left for home.
D. He was chosen as the most respectable teacher by his students.
阅读理解
Cleverness is a gift while kindness is a choice. Gifts are easy—they’re given after all. Choice can be hard.
I got the idea to start Amazon 16 years ago. I came across the fact that the Internet usage was growing at 2300 percent per year. I’d never seen or heard of anything that grew that fast, and the idea of building an online bookstore with millions of titles was very exciting to me. I had just turned 30 years old, and I’d been married for a year. I told my wife MacKenzie that I wanted to quit my job and go to do this crazy thing that probably wouldn’t work since most start-ups don’t and I wasn’t sure what to expect. MacKenzie told me I should go for it. As a young boy, I’d been a garage inventor. I’d always wanted to be an inventor, and she wanted me to follow my passion.
I was working at a financial firm in New York City with a bunch of very smart people and I had a brilliant boss that I much admired. I went to my boss and told him I wanted to start a company selling books on the Internet. He took me on a long walk in Central Park, listened carefully to me, and finally said, “That sounds like a really good idea, but it would be an even better idea for someone who didn’t already have a good job. ” That 1ogic made some sense to me，and he convinced me to think about it for 48 hours before making a final decision. Seen in that light, it really was a difficult choice, but finally, I decided I had to give it a shot. I didn’t think I’d regret trying and failing. And I suspected I would always be haunted by a decision to not try at all.
After much consideration, I took the less safe path to follow my passion, and I’m proud of that choice. For all of us, in the end, we are our choice.
1.What inspired the author with the idea of building an online bookstore?
A．His dream of being an inventor.
B．The support of his wife.
C．The greatly increasing usage of the Internet.
D．Millions of exciting titles.
2.Which of the following is closest in meaning to the underlined sentence?
A．The idea of not trying would keep coming to his mind and disturb him.
B．He would be very excited if he tried it out.
C．He would be always having a doubt if he didn’t try.
D．The decision to not try the online bookstore would terrify him.
3.Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A．Cleverness and Kindness
B．The Starting of Amazon
C．Following My Passion
D．We Are What We Choose
假定你是高中学生李华，你的美国朋友Jim即将升入高中，想让你给他一些学习建议。请你给他写一封电子邮件，内容包括：
1. 与老师交流，征求老师意见；
2. 上课积极参与讨论，专心听讲，做好笔记；
3. 课后积极完成作业，巩固知识。
注意：1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号(∧)，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线(\)划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词;
2.只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
The International Volunteer Day approaching, some volunteers of our school are organized to assist the policemen with traffic control in our city. At 8 o’clock on the morning of last Sunday, we gathered at the school gate. One of our teachers was in the charge of this activity but he divided us into four groups. Then we went to different crossings near our school. The police officers told us that we should do and how to protect themselves from danger. We spent the whole morning keep the streams of traffic flowing smooth. With a red banner in our hands, we stopped some road user running the red light. Some citizens praised us our good deeds. Because we were very tired that morning, we were proud to have offered service to our society.
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（不多于3个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
My husband and I were paying a visit 1. my parents in Tucson. We went to a fast-food restaurant for dinner together. My husband went to the counter 2. (order) dishes and I stood with my parents.
My dad is 90 years old. He can hardly see very well and walks with a stick. I was scanning the restaurant, 3. (wait) to sit at the first table that was 4. (convenient) than others. A woman who was sitting with her son made eye contact with me and asked me to come to her. With a 5. (puzzle) look on my face, I pointed to myself and said, “Me?” She 6. (nod) and said , “ Yes, you.” I walked to the table and she said, “Bring your family here. I can finish eating at the counter. My son is in 7. hurry to leave anyway.” My eyes 8. (fill) with tears as she wiped down the table and guided my dad to the seat.
I always believe that there are 9. (nature) kind people in this world. This woman has set a good example to her son, 10. is a really lucky guy.
