Tom was a middle-aged leather trader (皮货商) whose repeated _______ in career made him a depressed man, often complaining that he had been _______ by others. One day he told his wife he was so disappointed with the city that he had to _______.
So his family _______ another city. It was the evening of a weekend. When Tom and his wife were busily tidying up their new home, the light suddenly went out. Tom was _______ to have forgotten to _______ candles and had to _______ helplessly in a low mood. Just then he _______ light, hesitant knocks on his door that were _______ audible (听到) in the quiet night.
"Who's it? " he ____________, since Tom was a ____________ to this city. And this was the moment he especially ____________ to be disturbed, so he went to the door and opened it violently. At the door was a little girl, ____________ asking, "Sir, do you have candles? I'm your ____________." "No," answered Tom in anger and shut the door ____________. "What a nuisance (麻烦事)!" He complained over it with his wife. "No sooner had we ____________ than the neighbor came to borrow things."
After a while, the door was ____________ again by someone. He found the same girl outside. But this time she was holding two candles, saying, "My grandma told me the new neighbor downstairs might need candles. She sent me here to give you these." Tom was very ____________ by what he saw. At that moment he ____________ realized what caused his failure in life. It was his coldness with other people. The person who had cheated him in life was nobody else but himself, for his eyes had been ____________ by his unsympathetic mind.
1.A.failure B.success C.trouble D.difficulty
2.A.annoyed B.cheated C.abandoned D.hurt
3.A.quit B.stop C.leave D.resign
4.A.paid a visit to B.moved to C.came across D.ran into
5.A.careful B.satisfied C.regretful D.mad
6.A.light up B.put out C.sold out D.bring along
7.A.hope B.wait C.listen D.watch
8.A.gathered B.recognized C.counted D.heard
9.A.possibly B.noisily C.rarely D.clearly
10.A.wished B.imagined C.wondered D.commented
11.A.trader B.local C.newcomer D.passer-by
12.A.fancied B.hated C.wanted D.started
13.A.shyly B.proudly C.hopefully D.coldly
14.A.friend B.housekeeper C.messenger D.neighbor
15.A.gently B.kindly C.impatiently D.sadly
16.A.turned up B.stayed up C.came around D.settled down
17.A.opened B.shut C.knocked D.closed
18.A.upset B.amused C.thrilled D.astonished
19.A.suddenly B.gradually C.particularly D.normally
20.A.widened B.removed C.clouded D.narrowed
Stress is a popular cause of major diseases affecting people worldwide. It is so common that people have begun to search for the best and easiest ways to reduce stress. 1.
Exercise for a better life.
Regular runners say that there is no better feeling than the one you get when you finish your daily run. Exercising is an effective way for you to remove stress from your life. 2. And it can also lift your mood. An additional benefit of exercising is that it keeps you fit and healthy!
Organize it.
Keeping your workplace and home organized is also a way for you to avoid stressful situations. Working in a messy area keeps your brain thinking on several different things at the same time. 3.
Manage your time wisely.
4. Sticking to your schedule gives you focus and a goal to work on. It also helps you avoid missing out on deadlines which are a great source of stress. Managing your time wisely means managing your stress.
In a word, we shouldn’t let stress stop us living a normal and healthy life. Stress will naturally appear due to the modern way of life. 5. Don’t let stress get the better of you and make you lead an unhappy life.
A.Avoid stressed people.
B.Identify what causes your stress.
C.Plan your day ahead and stick to it.
D.Here are some ways to say goodbye to stress.
E.Regular exercise gives you time to think things.
F.And it gets hard to concentrate on just one thing.
G.But just like fire, if we control stress it can’t hurt us.
Empathy (同理心)is one of those strange qualities—something almost everyone wants, but few know how to truly give or receive it. In a world where self-satisfaction is emphasized, it is in short supply but high demand. This is all the more reason to teach the next generation what it means to have empathy for those around them.
What Is Empathy?— Many people confuse sympathy and empathy, but they are two distinct values. Empathy is not just the ability to understand someone's feelings; criminals often take advantage of people by appearing to understand their feelings and subsequently gaining their trust. Empathy is more than that. Not only is it the ability to recognize how someone feels, but it also values and respects the feelings of another person. It means treating others with kindness, dignity, and understanding.
Kids Need To See Adults Show Empathy—While some children are gifted with naturally kind hearts, in most cases kids need to see empathy modeled by the adults around them. It begins with the way parents relate to their children. Parents who show an interest in the things that matter to their kids and respond to emotions in a positive and caring way are teaching the skill of empathy.
Meet Emotional Needs—When children have their emotional needs met, two things happen. They learn how to meet the emotional needs of others and they are anchored in what they are receiving, meaning that they are secure enough to give to others when the need arises but first they need to receive. An empty jug cannot fill a cup.
It's a good idea to talk to kids about emotions and how other people experience them. Give their emotions names (for example, jealousy, anger, and love) and teach them that these are normal. Talk to them about how to handle emotions in a positive way and point out situations where other people are experiencing emotions. Teach them about respecting the emotions of others and show them how to act in a situation where a response is required.
1.Why is it that the next generation are taught to have empathy?
A.Because people tend to center themselves. B.Because everyone lacks empathy.
C.Because empathy is a strange quality. D.Because it's better to give than to receive.
2.Which situation can empathy be used in?
A.When a mathematician is calculating the area of a farmland.
B.When a teacher is comforting a student about his failure in exams.
C.When a criminal is cheating a victim.
D.When a dancer is dancing to music.
3.What does the underlined sentence "An empty jug cannot fill a cup" mean?
A.An empty jug is too small to hold a cup.
B.It's a must to talk to kids about emotions.
C.Adults should set an example to kids.
D.Kids give empathy with their emotional needs met first.
4.What is the main topic of the passage?
A.How to train kids to have empathy.
B.How to distinguish sympathy and empathy.
C.How to help kids finish empathy-related tasks.
D.Whether kids can be trained to be more empathetic.
More students than ever before are taking a gap year (间隔年) before going to university. It used to be called the “year off” between school and university. The gap-year phenomenon originated (起源) with the months left over to Oxbridge applicants between entrance exams in November and the start of the next academic year.
This year, 25,310 students who have accepted places in higher education institutions have put off their entry until next year, according to statistics on university entrance provided by the University and College Admissions Service (UCAS).
That is a record 14.7% increase in the number of students taking a gap year. Tony Higgins from UCAS said that the statistics are good news for everyone in higher education. “Students who take a well-planned year out are more likely to be satisfied with, and complete, their chosen course. Students who take a gap year are often more mature and responsible.” he said.
But not everyone is happy. Owain James, the president of the National Union of Students (NUS), argued that the increase is evidence of student hardship—young people are being forced into earning money before finishing their education. “New students are now aware that they are likely to leave university up to £ 15,000 in debt. It is not surprising that more and more students are taking a gap year to earn money to support their study for the degree. NUS statistics show that over 40% of students are forced to work during term time and the figure increases to 90% during vacation periods,” he said.
1.What do we learn about the gap year from the text?
A.It is flexible in length. B.It is a time for relaxation.
C.It is increasingly popular. D.It is required by universities.
2.According to Tony Higgins, students taking a gap year .
A.are better prepared for college studies
B.know a lot more about their future jobs
C.are more likely to leave university in debt
D.have a better chance to enter top universities
3.How does Owain James feel about the gap-year phenomenon?
A.He’s puzzled. B.He’s worried.
C.He’s surprised. D.He’s annoyed.
4.What would most students do on their vacation according to NUS statistics?
A.Attend additional courses. B.Make plans for the new term.
C.Earn money for their education. D.Prepare for their graduate studies.
You can use your smartphone to get pretty much anything delivered directly to your door almost immediately. The hardest part is the process of trying to work out if you should tip and if so, doing the quick math before you get to the door. And, you know well that you should tip about 15-20% at restaurants, but do the same rules apply to delivery drivers?
The co-founder of Grubhub, Matt Maloney, pretty much set the standard for tipping delivery people in a Facebook post. He’s a strong supporter of tipping, and Grubhub’s website suggests a $5 or a 20% tip. Maloney also said this number should go up if you order during, say, a snowstorm.
However, most other delivery services say on their websites that tipping is not required. Some services, like Door Dash, do suggest no tip on their checkout window. Many, like Amazon Prime Now, allow customers to change their tip amount after their delivery has been received to reflect the quality of service. These companies help customers save money but delivery drivers are upset. They deal with bad weather, heavy traffic, extreme tiredness, and more, all for a $1 tip. Many feel that if you’d tip your pizza boy or girl, you should tip your delivery driver.
The Emily Post Institute (EPI)’s official suggestion falls in line with Maloney’s: “10-15% of the bill, or $2-5 for pizza delivery depending on the size of the order and difficulty of delivery.”
Just like servers in a restaurant, delivery drivers almost always rely on your tips for their income. Tipping is a long-standing cultural tradition in America. So, until drones (无人机) can deliver hot dogs straight to your door, it’s best to tip the people riding through the city at all hours to bring you hot fresh food.
1.What do we know about tipping delivery drivers?
A.It is not widely accepted.
B.It upsets many delivery services
C.It can’t reflect the quality of service
D.It is a deeply rooted tradition in America.
2.Which of the following suggests the highest tips in the passage?
A.The EPI. B.DoorDash.
C.Grubhub. D.Amazon Prime Now.
3.What is the author’s attitude to tipping delivery drivers?
A.Doubtful. B.Unconcerned
C.Disapproving. D.Supportive.
Laura Sides was a psychology major at the University of Nottingham in 2004. She first noticed signs of her dad’s developing dementia(痴呆) when she moved to Nottingham. She said, "Dad was a doctor, so he knew exactly what had happened to him, but people try to hide it when they are ill. Then, I came home for my 21st birthday and arranged to meet him, but he never showed up as he’d forgotten. That’s when I knew something serious had happened."
So, aged 21, she decided to leave university and look after him herself. She lived close by, popping in every day to make sure he was eating, and that the house was tidy, before heading off to her work.
Besides challenging moments, there was a time when looking after her dad was a pure joy. "We’d wake up, I’d ask what he wanted to do that day, and however ridiculous the adventure is, off we’d go."
Sadly, in 2009, 5 years later, Laura lost her father. Before he died, Laura went to a hospital appointment with him, where doctors mentioned that his form of Alzheimer’s disease was genetic meaning there was a fifty-fifty chance that she had inherited it. For several years Laura agonised over whether to be tested, finally finding out in August 2017 that she has the APP gene, meaning that, like him, she will develop the condition within a decade.
At first, she struggled, feeling as if her life lacked purpose. Then, during a sleepless night in the summer of 2018, she decided at around 2 a.m. to enter the 2019 London Marathon sponsored by the charities Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s Research UK.
She hoped to start the conversation around early-onset Alzheimer’s disease and to encourage people to talk about it more openly. "I remember when Dad was ill, people wouldn’t know how to react, but I want to be honest and open," she added. "The more information we can get, the less of a taboo(忌讳) we will feel. That said, the support I’ve received so far after going public has been amazing — that’s what is carrying me through."
1.Laura noticed her father’s dementia when .
A.her father told her his condition in person
B.people nearby informed her of his father’s condition
C.her father forgot his own birthday party
D.her father forgot to attend her 21-year-old birthday party
2.The underlined word "agonised" in Paragraph 4 probably means .
A.excited B.struggled
C.shocked D.delighted
3.Laura started the open talk in the hope of .
A.getting people to talk about Alzheimer’s disease openly
B.earning some money to help treat her Alzheimer’s disease
C.making herself stronger to fight against Alzheimer’s disease
D.raising funds for charities Alzheimer’s Society and Alzheimer’s disease Research UK
4.Which words can best describe Laura?
A.Caring and positive. B.Careful and honest.
C.Patient and cautious. D.Devoted and modest.
