The giant Sequoia trees in California grip tightly into the floor,but with shallow root,with little depth.Constantly challenging the natural elements and fighting off destruction,the giant Sequoia is "king of the forest".These trees are so tall and strong that eventually they become their own worst enemy.For you see,the Sequoia can resist lightning, storm,and wind,but eventually their roots cannot support their own weight and strength.After hundreds or thousands of years,they tumble to the ground like giant skyscrapers that have fallen from their bases after powerful explosives are detonated（引爆）.
In many ways,many of us are like those giant Sequoias,so proud,so bit,so strong,withstanding wind and fire,yet not allowing our roots to seek deep into life's meaning.Many people have only shallow roots in soft ground,leaving them constantly on the edge of falling over to their destruction.
The first step we should take is to anchor ourselves with the firm intention of establishing strong roots of life and belief.We must trust the ground we stand on,and allow ourselves to plant the rich seeds of passion into our life's soil,nurturing it with the rain of love and joy,then allowing the fertilizer to soak into the very "veins" of the roots, leading to the trunk's healthy development.We've all seen many men with a strong trunk but no roots.They place the material dimension of wealth and finance above their own roots and foundational beliefs.They become so heavy with possessions,money,and the burden of wealth that they finally fall over as the giant Sequoia uproots itself and self-destructs.
1.The Sequoia is called "king of the forest" because it .
A. grips tightly into the forest floor B. grows to be very tall and strong
C. lives to thousands of years D. looks like a skyscraper
2.What does the underlined word "tumble" mean?
A. Explode. B. Reach.
C. Build up. D. Break down.
3.The writer's purpose in introducing the Sequoia is to .
A. tell a life truth
B. encourage struggling people
C. show the meaning of happiness
D. warn people about the danger of becoming strong
4.What would be the best title for the passage?
A. Life Is Rooted in A Strong Belief. B. Our Biggest Enemy Is Ourselves.
C. The Meaning of Life. D. Build Firm Life Foundation.
China has announced its abolishing its one-child policy.What difference has it made,statistically speaking?
400 million births prevented
The one-child policy,officially in place since 1979,has prevented 400 million births.Parents have faced fines and other punishments for having more children.
The majority of the decrease in China's fertility rate happened in the 1970s.It dropped from 5.8 children per woman in 1970 to 2.7 in 1978.Despite the one-child policy the rate had only fallen to 1.7 by 2013.
21:28-baby deaths rate
Since the one-child policy was introduced,baby girls have become more likely to die than boys.
In the 1970s,according to the United Nations,60 males per 1,000 live births died under the age of one.For girls the figure was 53.In the 1980s,after the one-child policy became official,the rate for both was 36.By the 1990s,26 males per 1,000 live births died before the age of one-and 33 girls.The 2000s saw 21 boys per 1,000 live births dying and 28 girls.
1.16 boys born for every girl
Sexually selective abortions have been considered as a major cause of China's unusual imbalance.
Gietel-Basten,associate professor in social policy at Oxford University,says the births of many girls are not registered if parents have broken the rule by having two children,adding officials often turn a blind eye.It's estimated there are now 33 million more men than women in China.
4:2:1 families
With the ageing of China's population and the continuation of the one-child policy,a "4:2:1" home is the description given to households in which there are four grandparent,cared for by two working age parents,who themselves have one child.
By 2050,it's predicted that a quarter of China's population will be 65 or order.The predicted decline in the number of people of working age is thought to have persuaded the government to drop the one-child policy.
1.When was the baby deaths rate for both boys and girls equal?
A. In the 1970s. B. In the 1980s.
C. In the 1990s. D. In the 2000s.
2.What makes the one-child policy abolished accoring to the passage?
A. The decline of birth rate. B. The rise of baby deaths rate.
C. The change of family structure. D. The decline of working age people.
3.The passage sums up the one child policy by .
A. number B. example
C. contrast D. analysis
为了吸引更多的留学生到你校学习，校学生会决定拍摄一部反映学校生活的小电影，现在招募学生演员。请你以学生会的名义，根据以下提示撰写一个通知。
(1)此次活动的目的；
(2)演员需要具备的条件：沟通能力强，擅长英语……（可以适当发挥)；
(3)小电影的内容简介；
(4)最后报名期限：下周一前到学生会报名。
注意：
(1)词数不少于100；
(2)可适当加入细节，使内容充实、行文连贯；
(3)通知格式己给出，不计入总词数。
NOTICE
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The Students’ Union
Given that motivation is so central to our lives, what do we truly understand about how it operates and about its role in our lives? The assumption is that it’s driven by a positive, external (外部的）reward. Do this, get that. But the story is much more complex.
One of the most striking aspects of motivation is that it often drives us to achievements that are difficult, challenging and even painful. You may think that you would be happy to spend all your time sitting on a white-sand beach drinking and that as long as you get to fill your days this way, you would be happy forever. But while a few days of enjoyment might be fun from time to time, I can’t imagine that you would be satisfied by spending your days, weeks, months, years and even your life this way.
Research that examines the differences between meaning and happiness finds that the things which give us a sense of meaning don’t necessarily make us happy. Moreover, people who report having meaningful lives are often more interested in doing things for others, while those who focus mostly on doing things for themselves report being only superficially happy, in other words, just externally and apparently delighted. The essential quality of “meaning” has to do with having a sense of being involved in something bigger than the self.
We all know people obtain a great sense of meaning even in the most unpleasant of circumstances. Many volunteers spend portions of their lives working in dangerous, war-tom areas, tiding to keep disease and death from innocent civilians or teaching orphans to read. Their pain is real; their sense of doing something truly meaningful is substantial (丰富的).They show how our deep-rooted desire to believe that our lives have purpose beyond our lifespan drives us to work extra hard, even to the point of our own personal suffering, in order to gain more meaning.
The point is that these seemingly unusual and irrational (不合理的）motivations get us to do things that are complex, difficult and unpleasant. But they go beyond helping people in need. They motivate us in every aspect of our lives 一 whether in our personal relationships, in our individual pursuits or in the workplace.
1.What’s the main idea of the passage? (No more than 10 words)
2.Why is motivation so significant to our life? (No more than 15 words)
3.What is the meaning of the underlined word “superficially” in Paragraph 3? (No more than 1 word)
4.What can volunteers obtain working in dangerous, war-tom areas? (No more than 10 words)
5.Do you agree with the opinion that motivation is driven by a positive, external reward? Why or why not? (No more than 20 words)
Conventional wisdom is a major barrier to innovation (创新) that threatens the survival of companies everywhere. It’s based on the assumption that old ideas will always work, so they shouldn't be challenged. While this may be a valid assumption in situations that don't change, it’s unlikely to hold true in a changing situation. In today’s rapid changing global environment, old methods often don’t work, and stubbornly using them can lead to major problems.
Most people seem to agree with conventional wisdom because it gives one a false sense of security. If everyone else believes it, then it must be true. Individuals who use conventional wisdom are certain that they are right, and being right is good. They want to continue using old ideas rather than take risks with changes that might not work. In 1977, Ken Olsen, co-founder and CEO of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), stated “There is no reason for any individual to have a computer in his home.” Despite being a dominant leader in the computer industry, DEC no longer exists. People seem to forget that since innovation is a change, there can be no innovation without change. Unfortunately, conventional wisdom prevents leaders, followers and companies from changing and therefore innovating. If companies don’t innovate, but their competitors do, the future is likely to be problematic. Breaking from conventional wisdom has led to many of the most innovative companies and products in history across many industries, so it has a powerful effect on business success.
Ted Turner (founder of CNN) knew little, if anything, about the news business, but he knew it was inconvenient to watch news only at the dinner hour, as was common before CNN. Turner's solution was to create a cable channel dedicated to news 24 hours a day. The news establishment reflected conventional wisdom at the time, and predicted his idea would fail because no one wanted to watch the news all day. However, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to understand that viewers don’t have to watch the news all day for the CNN to work. Viewers just have to watch when they want to get information. Due to conventional thinking, the critics failed to recognize the opportunity that was clear to Ted. They assumed that only what was familiar to them could work in the future.
Conventional wisdom prevents creativity, flexibility and risk-taking, so unconventional leaders enthusiastically break from it. To survive, thrive and maintain competitive advantage, companies must be flexible when reacting to change.
1.The author's attitude to conventional wisdom is .
A. disapproving B. approving
C. supportive D. indifferent
2.DEC has disappeared probably because .
A. the consumers didn’t like its products
B. the CEO stuck to the conventional ideas
C. the leaders lacked the sense of security.
D. the employees took many risks with changes
3.The founding of CNN is used as an example to prove .
A. missing opportunities could lead to failure
B. changing could contribute to business success
C. watching news at the dinner hour is convenient
D. conventional wisdom influences business success
4.What does the underlined part probably mean in Paragraph 3?
A. Rocket scientists can ensure the CNN works properly.
B. Most of the viewers don’t like to watch the news at work.
C. It’s necessary to understand when people watch the news.
D. It’s easy to know people needn't watch the news all the time.
5.The passage is mainly written to tell us that .
A. old methods are changing with time
B. opportunities lead to business success
C. conventional wisdom limits innovation
D. successful companies need wise leaders
You know the saying “You’re as young as you feel." Well, there may be some truth to that, according to researchers at Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Ellen Langer, a Harvard psychologist who studies how the mind influences the body, and colleagues reviewed the scientific literature for evidence that a person’s perception of their age might influence their health. They published their results in the journal Perspectives on Psychological Science.
In one study that Langer led, 47 women had their hair done. The women who thought their new hairdos made them look younger did look younger to objective observers, who were shown before-and-after pictures. The women who thought they looked younger also showed a drop in blood pressure. Another study involving 4,421 men found that those who became bald (秀顶)at a relatively young age were more likely to get cancer and heart disease than men who did not. Similarly, another study involving 2,017 men found that those who lost their hair early were more likely to develop heart disease. “We believe that the feelings associated with being older than one’s real age account for some of these health outcomes,” the researchers wrote.
The researchers also described studies that found that women who had children later in life were more likely to be healthier and live longer than those who had children early, which they attributed to the fact that these mothers tend to spend more time with younger women. Similarly, people who many younger partners tend to live longer than those who marry older partners, according to other studies.
Taken together, the research “supports the general mind-body hypothesis (假说）that when a younger mind is prepared, a younger body can accompany it.” While the mechanism（机制） remains unclear, the researchers figured that suggestions associated with aging can “make one unconsciously or consciously aware of old age and set in motion a series of physiological processes that can have real effects on short-term and long-term health."
1.The underlined word “perception” in Paragraph 2 means ________.
A. view B. appearance
C. influence D. creation
2.Which of the following statements is true according to Paragraph 3?
A. Blood pressure is highly related to hairdos.
B. Feeling older than real age may be tied to health problems.
C. Getting cancer or heart disease is the cause of hair losing.
D. The women who love hairdos look younger than those don’t.
3.It can be inferred from Paragraph 4 that ________.
A. a younger mother is more likely to live longer
B. the younger one of a couple lives much longer
C. often staying with younger people can benefit people's health
D. people who want to live longer need to many young
4.The passage mainly tells us that ________.
A. Getting bald too early is not good for health
B. Women had better give birth later in their life
C. Feeling younger to a couple is very important to their health
D. People’s feeling of their age may have an effect on their own health
5.From which page of a newspaper may the passage be most likely taken?
A. Entertainment B. Health
C. Economy D. Politics
