阅读理解

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阅读理解

　　It's a Friday night．Your girl friends are out at a bar and your boyfriend is playing soccer with his mates．Two text messages later, you're eating pizza and watching action movies with three guy friends．Perfect．

　　"Guy friends" have the potential to enrich your life in ways that female friends and boyfriends just can't．For starters, they provide an insider's perspective on how men think, feel and behave．When dealing with male relatives, coworkers and even boyfriends, another man's point of view can be incredibly useful．Three hours spent analyzing a situation in a cafe with your girlfriends can't compete with a quick chat to a guy friend．

　　Many women find that time spent with male friends can be a liberating and somewhat refreshing break from spending time with the girls．Without the judgmental gaze of other females, there is less pressure to dress up and compete for attention．

　　Traditionally, girl-guy friendships are seen as hard to maintain．Most relationships between males and females that we come across in our day-to-day lives, whether in movies or books, are romantic by nature．These cultural images make girl-guy．friendships seem impossible．

　　Yet in reality, as gender roles loosen and equality becomes a norm in the workplace, it has become much more common for platonic friendships to blossom．

　　"The belief that men and women can't be friends comes from another era in which women were at home and men were in the workplace, and the only way they could get together was for romance," explains psychologist Linda Sapadin to Psychology Today magazine．"Now they work together and share sports interests and socialize together．"

　　"My boyfriend has met all of my guy friends so he's quite accepting of me hanging out with them," says Nellie．"Because we've been dating so long, 'there's a．level of trust where he knows I will make the right decision when choosing who to be friends with．

　　"He understands that the kind of time that I spend differs between guys and girls．When I'm out with the girls, we're gossiping or talking about clothes but when I'm spending time with the guys, it's different I think their carefree and 'whatever goes' attitude can sometimes be exactly what I need．"

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阅读理解

　　In the 19th century the novel came into its own．Thousands upon thousands of novels were published．Of those novels, very few are remembered today．However, there are exceptions; the works of Jane Austen-Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility-for example．They achieved only modest success at first but grew and grew in fame and reputation．

　　How did Jane Austen become so popular?

　　Of course, the novels are romantic．Everyone knows the love story of Mr Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett(in Pride and Prejudice), and how they overcome their own pride and prejudice to live happily ever after．The lovers are almost as famous today as Romeo and Juliet．

　　But there is more to Austen's popularity than the fact that she wrote about love．The books are very witty and ironic, and show a great understanding of society and of people．Pride and Prejudice opens with what must be the most famous sentence in the English novel："It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife．"

　　The truth, of course, is the opposite; wealthy, unmarried young men are extremely attractive to young women．And women-specially penniless or near-penniless ones-are the subjects of Austin's tales．

　　Women nowadays may be more equal to men than they were in Jane Austen's day．However, a sense that women still basically live in a world dominated by men ensures that Austen still has many keen readers．

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阅读理解

　　Any foreigner who has tried to learn Chinese can tell how hard it is to master the tones required to speak and understand．And anyone who has tried to learn to play the violin or other instruments can report similar challenges．

　　Now researchers have found that people with musical training have an easier time learning Chinese．Writing in the online edition of Nature Nenroscieme, researchers from Northwestern University say that both skills draw on the same parts of the brain that help people discover changes in pitch(音调)．

　　One of the study's authors, Nina Kraus, said the findings suggested that studying music "actually tunes our sensory system"．This means that schools that want children to do well in languages should hesitate before cutting music programs．Dr．Kraus said．She said music training might also help children with language problems．

　　Mandarin(普通话)speakers have been shown to have a more complex encoding(编码)of pitch patterns in their brains than English speakers do．This is because in Mandarin and other Asian languages, pitch plays a central role．A single syllable word can have several meanings depending on how it is intoned．

　　For this study, the researchers looked at 20 non Chinese speaking volunteers, half with no musical background and half who have studied an instrument for at least six years．

　　As they were shown a movie, the volunteers also heard an audio tape of the Mandarin word "mi" in three of its meanings：squint, bewilder and rice．The researchers recorded activities in their brain stems to see how well they were processing the sounds．Those with a music background showed much more brain activities in response to the Chinese sounds．

　　The lead author of the study, PatrickC．M．Wong, said it might work both ways．It appear? That native speakers of tonal languages may do better at learning instruments．

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阅读理解

　　English teenagers are to receive compulsory(必修的)cooking lessons in schools．The idea is to encourage healthy eating to fight the country's increasing obesity rate．It's feared that basic cooking and food preparation skills are being lost as parents turn to pre-prepared convenience foods．

　　Cooking was once regarded as an important part of education in England-even if it was mainly aimed at girls．In recent decades cooking has progressively become a minor activity in schools．In many cases the schools, themselves have given up cooking meals in kitchens in the schools．But the rising level of obesity has led to a rethink about the food that children are given and the skills they should be taught．

　　"What I want is to teach young people how to do basic, simple recipes like a tomato sauce, a bolognaise, a simple curry, a stir-fry．Which they can use now at home and then in their later life," said Ed Balls, the minister responsible for schools．

　　The new lessons are due to start in September, but some schools without kitchens will be given longer to adapt．There is also likely to be a shortage of teachers with the right skills, since the trend has been to teach food technology rather than practical cooking．Also the compulsory lesspns for hands on cooking will only be one hour a week for one term．But the well-known cookery writer, Pru Leith, believes it will be worth it．

　　"If we'd done this thirty years ago we might not have the crisis we've got now about obesity and lack of knowledge about food and so on．Every child should know how to cook, not just so that they'll be healthy, but because it's a life skill which is a real pleasure．"

　　The renewed interest in cooking is primarily a response to the level of obesity in Britain which is among the highest in Europe, and according to government figures half of all Britons will be obese in 25 years if current trends are not halted．

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阅读理解

　　Many people would interpret "the American dream" as "living like an American"-a two-story house with a white picket fence; a family with two cars; and two children．

　　However, the current economic situation is affecting the American way of life for 4.4 million people living in the US, according to new census(人口普查)data．"It's going to have a long-term impact and to say it's going to end is optimistic," says Cheryl Russell, former editor-in-chief of American Demographics magazine．"We're just in the middle of a big transition(转变)．"

　　So what is the new normal?

　　*Marrying later．The average age of the first marriage has increased to 28.7 for men and 26.7 for women．

　　*Fewer babies．There were 200,000 fewer births among women aged 20 to 34 in 2010 compared with two years before．

　　*Breaking up is harder．The number of divorces has been falling for 25 years as people wait longer or choose to live together before tying the knot．

　　*Crowded living．Unemployment is forcing more people to live together．The number of households where people lived with "other relatives" climbed from 6.7 percent in 2006 to 7.2 percent in 2010．

　　*Going public．Private school enrollment decreased from 13.6 percent in 2006 to 12.8 percent in 2010．

　　*Few cars．The percentage of households without a car rose again to 9.1 percent against 8.8 percent in 2006．

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阅读下列材料，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　“Christmas won't be Christmas without any presents, ” grumbled Jo, lying on the rug．

　　“It's so dreadful to be poor! ” sighed Meg, looking down at her old dress．

　　“I don't think it's fair for some girls to have plenty of pretty things, and other girls nothing at all, ” added little Amy, with an injured sniff．

　　“We've got father and mother and each other, ” said Beth, contentedly．

　　The four young faces on which the firelight shone brightened at the cheerful words, but darkened again as Jo said sadly：“We haven't got father, and shall not have him for a long time．” She didn't say “perhaps never”, but each silently added it, thinking of father far away, where the fighting was．

　　Nobody spoke for a minute; then Meg said in an altered tone：“You know the reason mother proposed not having any presents this Christmas was because it is going to be a hard winter for everyone; and she thinks we ought not to spend money for pleasure when our men are suffering so in the army．We can't do much, but we can make our little sacrifices, and ought to do it gladly．But I am afraid I don't”; and Meg shook her head, and she thought regretfully of all the pretty things she wanted．

　　“But I don't think the little we should spend would do any good．We've each got a dollar, and the army wouldn't be much helped by our giving that．I agree not to expect anything from mother or you, but I do want to buy UNDINE AND SINTRAM for myself; I've wanted it so long, ” said Jo, who was a bookworm．

　　“I planned to spend mine on new music, ” said Beth, with a little sigh．

　　“I shall get a nice box of Faber's drawing pencils; I really need them, ” said Amy, decidedly．

　　“Mother didn't say anything about our money, and she won't wish us to give up everything．Let's each buy what we want, and have a little fun; I'm sure we work hard enough to earn it, ” cried Jo, examining the heels of her shoes in a gentlemanly manner．

　　“I know I do-teaching those tiresome children nearly all day when I am longing to enjoy myself at home, ” began Meg, in the complaining tone again．

　　“You don't have half such a hard time as I do, ” said Jo．“How would you like to be shut up for hours with a nervous, fussy old lady, who is never satisfied, and worries you till you're ready to fly out of the window or cry? ”

　　“It's naughty to fret; but I do think washing dishes and keeping things tidy is the worst work in the world．It makes me cross; nd my hands get so stiff, I can't practice well at all”; and Beth looked at her rough hands with a sigh that anyone could hear．

　　“I don't believe any of you suffer as I do．” cried Amy, “for you don't have to go to school with impertinent girls, who plague you if you don't know your lessons, and laugh at your dresses, and label your father if he isn't rich．”

　　“If you mean libel, I'd say so, and not talk about labels, as if papa was a pickle-bottle, ” advised Jo, laughing．

　　“I know what I mean, and you needn't be satirical about it．It's proper to use good words, and improve your vocabulary, ” returned Amy, with dignity．

　　“Don't peck at one another, children．Don't you wish we had the money papa lost when we were little, Jo? Dear me! How happy and good we'd be, if we had no worries! ” said Meg, who could remember better times．

　　“You once said you thought we were a deal happier than the King children, for they were fighting and fretting all the time, in spite of their money．”

　　“So I did．I think we are; for, though we do have to work, we make fun for ourselves, and are a pretty jolly set, as Jo would say．” Jo immediately sat up, put her hands in her pockets, and began to whistle．

　　“Don't, Jo; it's so boyish! ”

　　“That's why I do it．”

　　“I detest rude, unladylike girls! ”

　　“I hate affected, niminy-piminy chits! ”

　　“Birds in their little nests agree” sang Beth, the peacemaker, with such a funny face that both sharp voices softened to a laugh, and the `pecking' ended for that time．

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阅读下列材料，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　All parents tell their children little white lies from time to time．“Of course Father Christmas comes down the chimney! ” “Eat your spinach-you'll get as strong as Popeye．”… and so on．However, there's one fib that's bigger than all the others．It's “I don't have a favorite child．”

　　In his fascinating new book, The Sibling Effect：What Bonds Among Brothers and Sisters Reveal About Us, Jeffrey Kluger, a father of two daughters, aged eight and ten, claims that “ 95 percent of parents in the world have a favorite child-and the other 5 percent are lying．”

　　Kluger may be exaggerating the figures for dramatic effect-but despite every parent's vehement(激烈的)denial that they have a favorite child-scientific research shows that he is not far off the truth．

　　According to one recent study by researchers from the University of California-which followed 384 sibling pairs and their parents for three years-65 percent of the mothers and 70 percent of fathers exhibited a preference for one child．As this was among families that knew they were being monitored, there's a strong possibility the true figures could be significantly higher．

　　Favoritism is certainly a controversial topic．When raised as a subject for discussion on parenting websites, it always arouses a stream of angry denials．

　　But interestingly, a lot of personal anecdotes appear from parents who say they were overshadowed by a favored sibling, or were, indeed, their mother or father's favorite．It seems everyone knows favoritism exists-but nobody wants to put their hand up and say they’re guilty of it themselves．

　　Another research, where siblings have been asked to say who their mother and father favor, suggests that mothers do tend to a show a preference for their first-born son, but fathers often dote on their youngest daughters．

　　Parents will often be drawn to the child who is easiest to get along with-or the child that shares similar traits to them．For example, mum will have a special bond with her sensitive, arty son, while dad lavishes attention on his sporty daughter．

　　Professor Scott says being least favored in a family can color our behavior as adults．“Children who feel they are less loved within their family are more likely to develop low self-esteem, anxiety and depression．”

　　But some experts believe being less favored can have positive consequences．Professor Scott agrees that favored children can sometimes find life difficult when they have to rub along in the real world．

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阅读下列材料，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　It was a long process that involved creating a resume, submitting an online application(申请)and attending a round of interviews．Naturally Tan Kaiyin, a 21-year-old student is excited when she was selected, as more than 660, 000 people signed up to volunteer at the 16^th Asian Games in Guangzhou, but only less than 10 percent were finally chosen to work in the venues and wear the white and green sport uniforms．

　　Like in any major sporting event, volunteers play a vital role in assisting with operations and Tan's function here is not any different．She is based at the Garden Hotel and is tasked with helping guests and officials who have issues with their accreditation cards(注册卡)．"I deal with guests from all over the world, I have never met so many international people and it is very, very exciting to have this opportunity to interact with them．They come to the office because they need to make a change in their accreditation card and usually they are in a hurry, so we try our best to get it done quickly．”

　　She admits the first few days involved extremely long hours, however she likes the challenge as it gives her an immense sense of satisfaction especially when an irate guest turns a frown into a smile and says "thank you"．

　　Tan deals with people from different cultures and personalities and feels she has learned so much in the past week, an experience that she would have never gotten if not for the Guangzhou Asian Games, therefore she is very happy and grateful for being a part of this．She also has kind words for her managers and fellow colleagues and says the hard work and positive atmosphere has bonded them into a family．She enjoys her responsibilities so much that she is afraid of feeling lost when the Games finally end on Nov．27．

　　However, she is aware of all the positive effects the Games have had on Guangzhou．From improvements to air and water quality to better transportation and infrastructure in the city, but most importantly to her is the fact that the Asian Games has placed Guangzhou prominently onto the world map．This, she believes, will encourage people from all over the world to continue visiting her city, and this in turn will give the residents of Guangzhou a fantastic opportunity to continue learning about different cultures．The official Asian Games Volunteer Slogan is, "Together, we can make it better! " Indeed it seems they can．

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阅读下列材料，从每题所给的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出最佳选项。

　　Think about the last time you felt a negative emotion-like stress, anger, or frustration．What was going through your mind as you were going through that negativity(消极)? Was your mind cluttered with(充斥)different kinds of thoughts? Or was it paralyzed, unable to think?

　　The next time you find yourself in the middle of a very stressful time, or you feel angry or frustrated, stop．Yes, that's right, stop．Whatever you’re doing, stop and sit for one minute．While you’re sitting there, completely immerse yourself in the negative emotion．

　　Allow that emotion to consume you．Allow yourself one minute to truly feel that emotion．Don't cheat yourself here．Take the entire minute-but only one minute-to do nothing else but feel that emotion．

　　When the minute is over, ask yourself, “Am I willing to keep holding on to this negative emotion as I go through the rest of the day? ”

　　Once you’ve allowed yourself to be totally immersed in the emotion and really feel it, you will be surprised to find that the emotion clears rather quickly．

　　If you feel you need to hold on to the emotion for a little longer, that is OK．Allow yourself another minute to feel the emotion．

　　When you feel you’ve had enough of the emotion, ask yourself if you’re willing to carry that negativity with you for the rest of the day．If not, take a deep breath．As you exhale, release all that negativity with your breath．

　　This exercise seems simple-almost too simple．But, it is very effective．By allowing that negative emotion the space to be truly felt, you are dealing with the emotion rather than stuffing it down and trying not to feel it．You are actually taking away the power of the emotion by giving it the space and attention it needs．When you immerse yourself in the emotion, and realize that it is only emotion, it loses its control．You can clear your head and proceed with your task．

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