Question

【题目】 Weather talk wins for people in US My Chinese friend is going to the US and he is nervous about what to talk about. "Talk about the weather," is my advice.

"How are you?" is often followed by comments(评论) about the weather. "Nice day today."

"Cold/hot enough for you?" "Will it ever stop raining?" "Some winter we're having." "Can't remember a winter/summer so cold/hot." "Whew, it's hot out there."

These statements are often followed by a long conversation entirely about weather conditions. Past, present and the future.

Our fascination with weather might seem silly, but the real purpose behind those endless discussions is small talk. Weather's a safe topic of conversation. As a group, we Americans seem to enjoy chatting with those around us. Whenever we stand in line at the grocery store, we like to take part in this kind of conversation with other people standing in line with us. If I were seated next to another American on any form of public transport, I'd expect both of us to make a harmless comment about the weather as a way of greeting each other. At parties, the weather is a common topic, especially with those you are meeting for the first time.

In contrast (相反),we are taught to avoid certain topics like religion (宗教)and politics. Weather is everywhere, it affects everybody and it's a fairly objective, neutral (中性的)topic； You don't have to have an opinion about it, just make a state of a fact. What is truly interesting is the fact that we can go on and on about it.

My Chinese friend has a hard time understanding why we put so much effort into this topic-and why I warn him about bringing up much more "interesting" subjects like salaries(薪资) or how much something costs.

Sometimes it is tricky (棘手的) to make one's on winding cultural roads, especially those that are never taught in books.

【1】What does the underlined word "fascination" in Paragraph 4mean?

A.AdviceB.Prediction

C.Strong interest.D.Wild imagination.

【2】In the author's opinion, weather is a common conversation topic in America because ______.

A.Americans don't like to talk about other topics except weather

B.Weather affects everyday choices like clothes and changes a lot

C.Weather is quite an objective topic and doesn't cause bad feelings

D.Americans use it as a greeting when they can’t bring up much more interesting subjects

【3】What can we learn from the passage?

A.Weather is a good topic of conversation all over the world.

B.Cultures that are not taught in books should be written about more.

C.Topics for conversation should be well considered in the United States

D.The more topics you are interested in, the better you can be at small talk.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】C

【2】C

【3】B

【解析】

本篇是作者向即将到美国的中国的朋友的建议，在美国人在一起时多天气因为它是一个相当客观、中立的话题，避免谈到政治和宗教等；应该要多写些书本上没有教过的文化以便让人更多地了解本土文化，。

【1】词义猜测题。advice建议；Prediction预言；Strong interest. 强烈的兴趣。Wild imagination. 疯狂的想象。根据下文的陈述，人们在杂货店排队买东西时、在公共交通上、在开会时都会谈论天气，推断“人们对谈论天气有浓厚的兴趣”；故选C。

【2】细节理解题。根据第五段“Weather is everywhere, it affects everybody and it's a fairly objective, neutral topic；”可知人们喜欢谈论天气是因为它是一个相当客观、中立的话题；故选C。

【3】推理判断题。本篇是作者的朋友向他咨询到美国时和人在一起要聊些什么，作者觉得那些从来没有在书本上教过的文化会让人感到棘手，因此作者建议应该要多写些书本上没有教过的文化以便让人更多地了解本土文化。故选B。