“Hi，howareya.” some people say when they see a familiar face.The words run together into a mass，all sense and meaning lost. All the same，people do care how you are.After they greet you，it’s likely you will greet them back，with an equally meaningless phrase like，“Can’t complain，can’t complain.”You could probably complain，at length，or share a brilliant thought you were just beginning when a greeting interrupted you.You don’t though，you say，“Great，you？”

You are not giving each other information about your health and well?being.All the same，you are sharing information.You’re acknowledging each other’s positions as acknowledged friends，or at least as accepted acquaintances.And you are reestablishing the ties that may have lapsed(衰退) since yesterday，when you last met at the elevator or the entrance to the train station.

It’s what anthropologist(人类学家) Bronislaw Malinoski called a phatic(交流感情的) communication.Its message is not in the words you use，but in the fact that you speak ritually(仪式上地) accepted words.In Asia，for example，people may ask one another if they have eaten，or if they are busy.They’re not really asking for their lunch menu or their agenda，they are saying hello.A phatic signal merely says, “I see you there.” It says hi.

There’s embarrassment of being near people without acknowledging them.That uncomfortable feeling is one reason why lonely passengers in the subway may behave as if they cannot see anyone around them or may escape their uncomfortable situation with a book.Some people read all the way home，and never turn a page.

Your friend isn’t asking how you are，and you aren’t telling him.However，he is recognizing your existence，and when you answer，you are recognizing his.In addition，the set speech you have shared opens the door to closer communications if both agree.Someday，you may come to real close friendship，and really tell one another how you are.

Meanwhile，people who greet one another this way do care.They care enough to recognize someone’s essential humanity(人性)．They send a signal across the space between，to share，very briefly and lightly，in awareness of one another.

Your greetings prove that neither of you has become a social outcast.How are you？You are still a member of society in good status.You are still the one who knows the rituals and secret passwords necessary to get to work each day.

1.When people greet，they ________.

A．want to show their different educational backgrounds

B．show nothing related with the words themselves

C．want to know other people’s privacy

D．express something special

2. According to Bronislaw Malinoski，a phatic communication ________.

A．is rarely used by Asian people

B．is too complex to be used often

C．helps establish or keep certain relationships

D．often ruins the normal relationships between friends or acquaintances

3.Some people seldom greet strangers because ________.

A．they want to be polite to others

B．they feel uncomfortable to do it

C．they don’t know when to greet them

D．they want to do something meaningful

4.What does the text mainly tell us?

A．Greetings should be given better expressions.

B．Greetings convey different meanings to different people.

C．Greetings help prove an individual’s social independence.

D．Greetings help an individual be connected with the society.

Talk to yourself

It may be obvious, but the best way to get better at a language is to speak it. Even if there is no one around to speak to, talk to yourself. Name things as you pass them – chair, television, cat, tree, school. Learn basic phrases like – ‘it is cold today’ or ‘it is sunny today’ and use whichever is appropriate when you first look out of the window. This simple language learning tip will help this everyday vocabulary sink in and become second nature.

Talk to friends

　　 Even if they don’t speak the language, talk to the people you know in your new language. Warm them in advance that you are practicing your new knowledge and they will know what’s coming. Even a simple ‘good morning ’ or ‘see you later’ in your new language will make those phrases more natural to you. Your friends may even start to pick up a few phrases as well.

Listen to music

　　 Listen to music in your new language. You’ll hear the language used in a real context and this will help you pick out the rhythm and the pronunciation even better. You will also come to further understand and better appreciate the culture behind the language.

Make mistakes

　　 The easiest language learning tip is to try! Go ahead and speak and write! Don’t be afraid to make mistakes, because I guarantee you will! In fact, you will learn as much from your mistake as you will learn from your success. Never let the fear of making any mistakes hold you back. Without making any mistakes, how will you ever to be fluent or even comfortable with the language?

Find a language club

　　 When you are ready, try to find a language club in your area. Speaking with other people who have already gone through or are still going through the process of learning the language can be extremely helpful. They will give you lots of language learning tips and helpful advice.

68. If you want to keep everyday vocabulary in your mind, you’d better _____________.

A. try to find a language club in your area

B. not to be afraid to make mistakes

C. talk to yourself and name things as you pass them

D. listen to music in your new language

69. According to the passage, we know ___________

A. "talking to yourself" is the best way to learn a language

B. the more mistakes we make, the more fluent our English might be

C. If someone doesn’t speak your new language, you should not practice with them.

D. Not all language clubs are helpful.

70. You will master the usage of your new language if you ________ according to the material.

A. talk to yourself　　　　 　　　 B. talk to friends

C. find a language club　　　　　 D. listen to music

71. The main idea of this passage is ___________ .

A. the more practice, the better your English will be

B. practicing speaking English in different ways

C. some advice on English learning

D. language learning tips

When you are talking to somebody at a party, do you focus entirely on the person you are speaking with or does your attention keep jumping around the room to all the other people there? General1y, if the person is someone you really want to talk to, you will focus on him. Most other people will only get about half of your attention.
You may think that this is OK, because if you don’t really want to talk to him, then what does it matter if you don’t give him your full attention? Consider two things. First, you may just not realize the importance of that conversation. If you are at a networking meeting and you hope to meet the CEO of Company X, but you end up talking to someone who has a low-level job at a different company, then you may let your attention wander（走神）as you speak to him. But maybe you don’t realize that this person has already met the CEO and could introduce you. Do you think he will do that if he feels you don’t really care about speaking to him? This doesn’t mean you need to spend the whole time talking to him. Five or ten minutes of real attentive（专心的）conversation can be worth 30 minutes to an hour of partial attention.
Second, whether you want to speak to someone is based on the situation. You can love your wife, but if she tries to talk to you while you are watching something you like on TV, where is your attention going? Make your own decision, but if you want her to feel valued, give her your 100% attention. The nice thing is that in many cases you can give her your attention for a few minutes and then return to what you were doing. You miss very little, she feels valued, and all is good.
【小题1】The author’s opinion is made believable mainly by ________.
A using figures    B. giving examples    C. asking questions     D. description
【小题2】The second paragraph mainly tells you that ________.

When you are talking to somebody at a party, do you focus entirely on the person you are speaking with or does your attention keep jumping around the room to all the other people there? General1y, if the person is someone you really want to talk to, you will focus on him. Most other people will only get about half of your attention.

You may think that this is OK, because if you don’t really want to talk to him, then what does it matter if you don’t give him your full attention? Consider two things. First, you may just not realize the importance of that conversation. If you are at a networking meeting and you hope to meet the CEO of Company X, but you end up talking to someone who has a low-level job at a different company, then you may let your attention wander（走神）as you speak to him. But maybe you don’t realize that this person has already met the CEO and could introduce you. Do you think he will do that if he feels you don’t really care about speaking to him? This doesn’t mean you need to spend the whole time talking to him. Five or ten minutes of real attentive（专心的）conversation can be worth 30 minutes to an hour of partial attention.

Second, whether you want to speak to someone is based on the situation. You can love your wife, but if she tries to talk to you while you are watching something you like on TV, where is your attention going? Make your own decision, but if you want her to feel valued, give her your 100% attention. The nice thing is that in many cases you can give her your attention for a few minutes and then return to what you were doing. You miss very little, she feels valued, and all is good.

1.The author’s opinion is made believable mainly by ________.

 A using figures     B. giving examples     C. asking questions     D. description

2.The second paragraph mainly tells you that ________.

A. you should be interested in everyone at a party

B. you can refuse to talk to someone you don’t like at a party

C. you should focus on whoever you are talking to

D. you should be patient with everyone at a party

3.A person who has a low-level job probably ________.

A. would like to talk to you 

B. is well worth focusing on

C. wants to make friends with you

D. is the one you’re looking for

4.If your wife wants to talk to you when you are busy, you should ________.

A. decide what to do according to the situation

B. go on with what you are doing

C. stop doing anything immediately

D. finish what you are doing with her

5.What is the main idea of this passage?

A. Always be friendly to others at a party.

B. It is important for you to be active at a party.

C. You should respect your wife at any time.   

D. Improve your communication skills by focusing on others