You’ve seen news reports about people who need assistance after a natural disaster, or TV programs about how lonely and isolated older people can get. Maybe you’ve walked past people who are living on the streets.1.The answer: you can volunteer. Volunteering gives you an opportunity to change people’s lives, including your own. Helping others in need is such an important part of life. So how do you go about it?
Find what’s right for you.
Volunteering isn’t school.2.You can choose what really interests you and who or what is most deserving of your time.
3.
After you’ve discovered what interests you, decide how much time you want to spend and what fits into your schedule.
Expand your mind.
Volunteering is a great way to learn new skills — from working as part of a team to setting and reaching goals.4.And it can help you develop a new understanding of people who are different from you — people with disabilities, people in financial problems, sick kids, or the elderly.
Feel good.
Volunteering helps people feel they make a difference — that they do have the power to change things for the better. When people depend on you, it can change the way you look at yourself.5.Volunteering is also a great way to get a view on your own life.
A. It can give you a chance to discover what kinds of things you’re best at and enjoy most.
B. Instead of having the choices made for you, you’ve got to pick.
C. Doing something for others helps people to change the world.
D. So what can you do about any of those things?
E. You can feel proud of what you’ve achieved.
F. Find what fits your schedule.
G. Change things for the better.
Are some people born clever, and others born stupid? Or is intelligence developed by our environment and our experience? Strangely enough, the answer to these questions is yes. To some degree our intelligence is given to us at birth, and no amount of education can make a genius out of a child born with low intelligence. On the other hand, a child who lives in a boring environment will develop his intelligence less than one who lives in rich and varied surroundings. Thus the limits of person’s intelligence are fixed at birth, whether or not he reaches those limits will depend on his environment. This view, now held by most experts, can be supported in a number of ways.
It is easy to show that intelligence is to some degree something we are born with. The closer the blood relationship between two people, the closer they are likely to be intelligent. Thus if we take two unrelated people at random from population, it is likely that their degree of intelligence will be completely different. If, on the other hand, we take two identical twins, they will very likely be as intelligent as each other. Relations like brothers and sisters, parents and children, usually have similar intelligence, and this clearly suggests that intelligence depends on birth. Imagine now that we take two identical twins and put them in different environments. We might send one, for example, to a university and the other to a factory where the work is boring. We would soon find differences in intelligence developing, and this indicates that environment as well as birth plays a part. This conclusion is also suggested by the fact that people who live in close contact with each other, but who are not related at all are likely to have similar degree of intelligence.
1.The writer is in favor of the view that man’s intelligence is given to him .
A. at birth B. through education
C. both at birth and through education D. through environment of one’s family
2.If a child is born with high intelligence, he can .
A. surely become a genius
B. still become a genius if he isn’t given good education
C. reach his intelligence limits through his own efforts
D. probably reach his intelligence limits in rich and varied surroundings
3.The example of the twins going to a university and to a factory separately shows .
A. the importance of their intelligence B. the role of environment on intelligence
C. the importance of their positions D. the part that birth plays
4.The best title of the passage can be .
A. On Intelligence B. On Genius
C. Dependence on Environment D. Effect of Education on Intelligence
We all know what a brain is. A doctor will tell you that the brain is the organ of the body in the head. It controls our body’s functions, movements, emotions and thoughts. But a brain can mean so much more.
A brain can also simply be a smart person. If a person is called brainy, he is smart and intelligent. If a family has many children but one of them is super smart, you could say, “He’s the brains in the family.” And if you are the brains behind something, you are responsible for developing or organizing something. For example, Bill Gates is the brains behind Microsoft.
Brain trust is a group of experts who give advice. Word experts say the phrase “brain trust” became popular when Franklin D. Roosevelt first ran for president in 1932. Several professors gave him advice on social and political issues（问题）facing the U.S. These professors were called his “brain trust”.
These ways we use the word “brain” all make sense. But other ways we use the word are not so easy to understand. For example, to understand the next brain expression, you first need to know the word “drain”. As a verb, to drain means to remove something by letting it flew away. So a brain drain may sound like a disease where the brain flows out the ears. But, brain drain is when a country’s most educated people leave their countries to live in another. The brains are, sort of, draining out of the country.
However, if people are responsible for a great idea, you could say they brainstormed it. Here, brainstorm is not an act of weather. It is a process of thinking creatively about a complex topic. For example, business leaders may use brainstorming to create new products, and government leaders may brainstorm to solve problems.
If people are brainwashed, it does not mean their brains are nice and clean. To brainwash means to make some accept new beliefs by using repeated pressure in a forceful or tricky way. Keep in mind that brainwash is never used in a positive way.
1.According to the text, if you’re the CEO of Bai Du you can be called .
A. the organ of Bai Du B. the brain drain of Bai Du
C. the brains behind Bai Du D. Bai Du’s brain trust
2.Roosevelt successfully won the election probably because .
A. he got his brain trust B. he got the help of word experts
C. he was smart at giving advice D. he was the brains behind America
3.From the passage, we can infer that .
A. to drain a lake means to fill it with a lot of water
B. brainy and brainwash are never used in a negative way
C. brainstorming is not a good choice for a political leader for lack of creativity
D. a country suffers a “brain drain” when educated people move to other countries
4.The author explains the “brain” expressions by .
A. making comments B. making comparisons
C. using examples D. analyzing origins
The TED speaker series features “ideas worth spreading”. With over 1,400 to choose from, we’ve selected a few that are perfect for students.
1. Larry Smith: Why you will fail to have a great career
We humans may have an unfavorable habit of making excuses for ourselves or being too confident about ourselves. Accordingly, Larry Smith, a professor of economics at the University of Waterloo in Canada, tells us why most of us will fail to have a great career. Luckily, as he puts it, there is a way out—follow your heart, as long as it is good for your career.
2. Andy Puddicombe: All it takes is 10 mindful minutes
Between dance team, volunteering and –oh, right—lectures, your life’s crazy factor（因素）is about to go way up. In this entertaining and informative talk, Mindfulness, expert Andy Puddicombe teaches us how to be “more healthy, more mindful and less distracted” by taking just 10 minutes out of the day to be “more present”.
3. Shane Koyczan: To this day…for the bullied（欺凌）and beautiful
This talk is sure to stay with you. Shane Koyczan’s “To This Day” is an affecting spoken-word poem about bullying and being different that gained over 10 million views on YouTube. In this talk, Koyczan gives a live reading of the poem, along with some stories about his background.
4. Susan Cain: The power of introverts（性格内向者）
Does a cup of tea and a good book sound like a perfect Friday night? In this personal talk, Susan Cain argues that introverts have talents and abilities. Our culture may value being outgoing, but the world needs all kinds.
1.What does Larry Smith advise students to do for a good career?
A. Don’t be too optimistic. B. Learn from others’ lessons.
C. Never make excuses for yourself. D. Match your interests with your career.
2.What is Andy Puddicombe’s talk mainly about?
A. How to concentrate. B. The need for teamwork.
C. How to be a good volunteer. D. The importance of good health.
3.Which TED speaker makes people who are not social feel confident?
A. Andy Puddicombe B. Susan Cain
C. Shane Koyczan D. Larry Smith
It is impossible for all the people to get jobs because ______ of them are not fit for them.
A. none B. all
C. not all D. every one
Our English teacher as well as we students _____ not _____ Chinese in the English Corner.
A. are; allowed to speak B. is; allowed speaking
C. is; allowed to speak D. are; allowed speaking
