A mother and a daughter living in my community are two of the most unfriendly people I have ever come across in my life. They are totally separated, mixing with __________. As they drive past ________ they keep their eyes looking away. The only fame they have is making a nuisance (讨厌的人) of themselves to the local police station by __________ music played too loud, dogs barking more than once a day and any other ___________ annoyance.
On moving into this neighborhood, I was _________ of these two but decided I would make up my own mind. This proved quite a ___________ to me as more than once either the mother or the daughter would knock on my door and blast (猛烈抨击) me with some _________ or other.
I _________ answered politely and made sure I __________ as they went past my place and also made the effort now and then to make a kind remark about their garden or pets.
Time passed and in October, as part of the kindness rock give ( 送 爱 心 石 活 动 ), Maureen and I __________ to place a kindness rock in their garden. Their ___________ remained unchanged, however, and I continued to be as friendly as possible. During the Easter give, we decided once again to ___________ these two unhappy ladies to our list and left a packet of cookies on their ________ . Imagine my ________ when two days later they_________ at my gate and jokingly said they were considering hanging their Christmas stocking on their gate, and they ________ me a bunch of flowers!
So, my fellow gifters, do not _______ on your random gifts of kindness. You may never know just what this ___________ to others, nor how many broken or ________ hearts you may just change with a simple act of ________.
1.A.nobody B.someone C.anyone D.nothing
2.A.ladies B.neighbors C.friends D.relatives
3.A.composing B.requesting C.reporting D.explaining
4.A.important B.easy C.interesting D.little
5.A.accused B.warned C.reminded D.convinced
6.A.challenge B.job C.task D.matter
7.A.joke B.advice C.explanation D.complaint
8.A.seldom B.never C.always D.sometimes
9.A.waved B.stared C.noticed D.laughed
10.A.started B.continued C.mentioned D.decided
11.A.manner B.attitude C.decision D.anger
12.A.add B.recommend C.reduce D.drive
13.A.place B.roof C.gate D.fence
14.A.interest B.suspicion C.surprise D.pride
15.A.whispered B.stopped C.shouted D.wandered
16.A.brought B.wished C.threw D.expected
17.A.take in B.take up C.give in D.give up
18.A.refers B.means C.relates D.contributes
19.A.heavy B.light C.hard D.warm
20.A.sorrow B.hope C.imagination D.kindness
“You totally missed out!” This sentence strikes fear in the hearts of teenagers more than almost anything else. In fact, missing out on something bothers most teenagers so much that there is even a special word for that sick feeling: FOMO. 1. FOMO, which was added to the Oxford English Dictionary in 2013, refers to that anxious feeling people get when they realize they are not attending a social event.
2. In fact, one survey found that two-thirds of people in this age group admitted to experiencing FOMO regularly. If you ask teenagers whether they experience social media anxiety, most would answer no. But what they do not realize is that if they are stressed or worried about what they see online, then they are possibly experiencing FOMO, especially if they are online a lot.
Then how to handle the problem of FOMO? Of course, turning off the technology seems like a natural cure for FOMO. 3. Teenagers may still worry that they are missing out, even if they are not on social media at all.
The key is to turn off the technology and do something else like reading a book, giving a friend a makeup, baking cookies—anything that allows them to focus on something other than social media. 4.
It is also important to encourage teenagers to recognize that they cannot possibly be everywhere and do everything. So, naturally, there will be parties or events that they cannot attend. 5. Photos can be deceiving (骗人的). And even though it looks as if their friends are having a good time, this may not be the case. They should never let the fact that they couldn’t be somewhere affect their view of themselves.
A. FOMO has become an even bigger problem.
B. FOMO is especially common to people aged 18 to 33.
C. In simple terms, FOMO stands for “fear of missing out”.
D. It can be extremely helpful in changing their attitudes towards life.
E. But this does not necessarily mean they are missing out on something.
F. By doing this, teenagers are not glued to their screens and are more active.
G. But just switching the phone to “off” doesn’t erase the feelings caused by FOMO.
What inspires kids to be creative and pursue academic excellence? Some teachers use rewards in recognition of students’ effort or achievement, giving them prizes, medals, certificates, or money.
Psychologists take opposite views of how external rewards, from warm praise to cold cash, affect motivation and creativity. Behaviorists, who study the relation between actions and their consequences, argue that rewards can improve performance at work and school. Cognitive researchers, who study various aspects of mental life, believe that rewards often destroy creativity by encouraging dependence on approval and gifts from others.
The latter view has gained many supporters, especially among educators. But the careful use of small monetary(金钱的) rewards sparks creativity in primary school children, suggesting that properly given stimuli(刺激) indeed encourage creativity, according to a study in the June Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
"If kids know they're working for a reward and can focus on a relatively challenging task, they show the most creativity," says Robert Eisenberger of the University of Delaware in Newark. "But it's easy to kill creativity by giving rewards for poor performance or creating too much desire for rewards."
A teacher who continually draws attention to rewards or who hands out high grades for ordinary achievement ends up with students lacking in creativity and motivation, Eisenberger says. As an example of the latter point, he particularly mentions growing efforts to tighten grading standards and adopt failing grades at major universities.
In earlier grades, the use of rewarding system, in which students handle challenging problems and receive performance-based points toward valued rewards, shows promise in raising effort and creativity, Eisenberger claims.
1.Psychologists are divided in their attitudes toward _____.
A.the choice between spiritual encouragement and monetary rewards
B.the amount of monetary rewards for students' creativity
C.the relationship between actions and their consequences
D.the effects of external rewards on students' performance
2.Which of the following does NOT belong to examples of “external rewards”?
A.Tom received a certificate for winning a speech competition.
B.Mary was praised by the teacher for making progress in English.
C.Jacky made great efforts to enter a major university.
D.John was offered a free summer camp due to his hard work.
3.Which of the following can best raise students' creativity according to Robert Eisenberger?
A.Assigning them tasks they have not dealt with before.
B.Assigning them tasks which require creativity.
C.Giving them rewards they really deserve.
D.Giving them rewards they hope for.
4.It can be inferred from the passage that major universities are trying to tighten their grading standards because they think _____.
A.rewarding poor performance may kill the creativity of students
B.punishing students is more effective than rewarding them
C.failing unmotivated students helps improve their academic standards
D.discouraging students’ expectation of easy rewards is important
California has been facing a drought(干旱) for many years now, with certain areas even having to pump freshwater hundreds of miles to their distribution system. Luckily, new research has found deep water reserves under the state which could help solve their drought crisis. Previous drilling of wells could only reach depths of 1,000 feet, but due to new pumping practices, water deeper than this can now be extracted(抽 取). The team at Stanford investigated the aquifers(地下蓄水层) below this depth and found that reserves may be three times what was previously thought.
The aquifers range from 1,000 to 3,000 feet below the ground, which means that pumping will be expensive and there are other concerns. The biggest concern of pumping out water from this deep is the gradual settling down of the land surface. As the water is pumped out, the vacant space left is compacted(压实) by the weight of the earth above.
Even though pumping from these depths is expensive, it is still cheaper than desalinating (脱盐) the ocean water in this coastal state. Some desalination factories exist where possible, but they are costly to run and can need constant repairs. Wells are much more reliable sources of freshwater, and California is hoping that these deep wells may be the answer to their severe water shortage.
One problem with these sources is that the deep water also has a higher level of salt than shallower aquifers. This means that some wells may even need to undergo desalination after extraction, thus increasing the cost. The result of a thorough study of groundwater from over 950 drilling logs has just been published. New estimates of the water reserves in the state now go up to 2,700 billion cubic meters of freshwater.
1.How could California’s drought problem be solved according to some researchers?
A.By building more reserves of groundwater.
B.By drawing water from the depths of the earth.
C.By developing more advanced drilling machines.
D.By improving its water distribution system.
2.What is mentioned as a consequence of pumping water from deep underground?
A.The sinking of land surface. B.The harm to the ecosystem.
C.The damage to aquifers. D.The change of the climate.
3.What does the author say about deep wells?
A.They run without any need for repairs. B.They are the final solution to droughts.
C.They are entirely free from pollution. D.They provide a steady supply of freshwater.
Judy Wright and her husband decided to move closer to their son, Chris, who lived in Georgia. About a month after the move, Judy fell ill, suffering from her ongoing battle against Parkinson’s disease.
Judy’s condition worsened rapidly and she required medical care at home. The family hired a nursing aid who canceled at the last minute. Instead, a woman named TunDe Hector showed up in her place.
One day, TunDe shared a story with Judy and her family. She remembered a particularly difficult day in 2014, when a stranger helped her with a kind gesture. She had run out of gas, and with only $5 in her pocket, was walking to a gas station, gas can in hand. A man saw her walking and turned his car around. He paid for her gas and gave her all the cash left in his wallet. Upon hearing the story, Judy’s son, Chris, took off his hat and said, “That was me!” He was the stranger who had helped TunDe on that difficult day.
During the care of Judy, the Wright family learned about TunDe’s family and her own dream. The nursing aid, TunDe hoped that one day she could become an OB-GYN nurse. Her tuition was past due and she had a family to care for, but she was determined to achieve that goal for herself and her family.
Judy died on July 9, 2017. Instead of flowers, her family asked mourners to donate to TunDe’s education, to assist her in paying for her nursing school. In less than a week, they raised more than $8000 and presented her with the surprise check.
1.Why did Judy’s family choose TunDe in the end?
A.To help her with a kind gesture. B.To look after Judy in the hospital.
C.To replace another nursing aid. D.To ask her to return the money.
2.How might Chris feel when hearing TunDe’s story?
A.Surprised. B.Nervous.
C.Content. D.Puzzled.
3.What does the whole story mainly tell us?
A.Constant dropping wears away the stone. B.Actions speak louder than words.
C.The truth never fears investigation. D.Kindness comes full circle.
假定你是高中生李华，你曾在美国做交换生的学校校报给你写信约稿。“Foreign Culture” 栏目拟刊登介绍中国高中生学习生活及梦想的短文。请根据下列要点完成你的短文。
1. 介绍中国高中生的学习生活，如：学年，学科情况。
2. 介绍中国高中生的假期，课外活动情况。
3. 介绍你周围同学业余爱好和梦想。
注意：1. 词数120字左右。
2. 增加细节，以使行文连贯。
3. 高考：CEE (College Entrance Examination)
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