She glanced at my legs. ‘Although you mi...

‘Three months!’ Dad ____________, as my mother thrust a cup of sweet tea into my hands. ‘Well, that’s big of him, given she’s worked like a ruddy Trojan in that place for the last six years.’

A.betrayed B.exploded

C.swallowed D.assessed

There are 158 footsteps between the bus stop and home, but it can ____________ to 180 if you aren’t in a hurry, like maybe if you’re wearing platform shoes.

A.signal B.adjust C.stretch D.attend

Develop Note-Taking Skills

Speech students are often amazed at how easily their teacher can pick out a speaker’s main points, evidence, and techniques. Of course, the teacher knows what to listen for and has had plenty of practice. But the next time you get an opportunity, watch your teacher during a speech. Chances are she or he will be listening with pen and paper. 1.

Unfortunately, many people don’t take notes effectively. Some try to write down everything a speaker says. They view note taking as a race, pitting their handwriting agility(敏捷) against the speaker’s rate of speech. 2. But soon the speaker is winning the race. The speaker pulls so far ahead that the note taker can never catch up. Finally, the note taker admits defeat and spends the rest of the speech grumbling in frustration.

3. They arrive armed with pen, notebook, and the best of intentions. They know they can’t write down everything, so they settle comfortably in their seats and wait for the speaker to say something that grabs their attention. Every once in a while the speaker rewards them with a joke, a dramatic story, or a startling fact. Then the note taker seizes pen, jots down a few words, and leans back dreamily to await the next fascinating tidbit(趣闻). By the end of the lecture the note taker has a set of tidbits—and little or no record of the speaker’s important ideas.

As these examples illustrate, they don’t know what to listen for, and they don’t know how to record what they do listen for. 4. But once you know what to listen for, you still need a sound method of note taking.

Although there are a number of systems, most students find the key-word outline best for listening to speeches. As its name suggests, this method briefly notes a speaker’s main points and supporting evidence in rough outline form. By separating main points from sub-points and evidence, the outline format shows the relationships among the speaker’s ideas. 5. But with a little effort you will become a better note taker.

A. Perfecting this taking requires practice.

B. Some people go to the opposite extreme.

C. As the speaker starts to talk, the note taker starts to write.

D. Taking effective notes usually helps you receive higher grades.

E. Most inefficient note takers suffer from one or both of two problems.

F. When note taking is done properly, it is sure to keep track of a speaker’s ideas.

G. The solution to the first problem is to focus on a speaker’s main points and evidence.

The word proactivity is fairly common in management literature, but you won't find it in the dictionary. It means that as a human being you take responsibility for your own life．

Look at the word responsibility: ability to choose your response, response-ability. Effective people are proactive because they take responsibility. Their behavior is a product of their own decisions, based on values, rather than being a product of their own conditions, based on feelings．For instance, you are planning a picnic with your family．You're excited．You have all the preparations．You've decided where to go, and then it becomes stormy, killing your plan．Proactive people carry weather within them. They realize what their purpose really was, and they creatively have a picnic elsewhere even if it's in their own basement with some special games, and make the best of that situation．The opposite of being proactive is to be reactive．Reactive people would say, "What's the use?" "We can't do anything．" "Oh this is so upsetting after all of our preparations and arrangements." They try to persuade the people around them and usually the picnic will be cancelled．

Being proactive is really just being true to your human nature. Your basic nature is to act, and not to be acted upon．That's true, despite widely accepted theories of determinism used to explain human nature. Determinism says that you don't really choose anything and that what you call choices are nothing more than automatic responses to outside conditions．

The language of reactive people is like: " I can't．" " Don't have time．" " I have to．" " I must．" The whole spirit of that language is the transfer of responsibility．They think things are determined by their environment, or by their conditions, or by their conditioning or their genetic makeup．Psychologically, people who believe they are determined will produce the evidence to support the belief, and they increasingly feel victimized and out of control．They're not in charge of their life at all．

On the contrary, a proactive person exercises free will, the freedom to choose the response that best applies to his values．In that way, he gains control over the circumstances, rather than being controlled by them．

1.According to the passage, a proactive person's behavior can result from ______．

A.the environment B.an inner belief

C.the genetic makeup D.a temporary feeling

2.When a picnic plan is threatened by a sudden storm, reactive people will probably ____．

A.have the picnic as planned

B.make the best of the picnic

C.complain and give up the picnic

D.find somewhere else for the picnic

3.What does "carry weather within them" in the second paragraph probably mean?

A.Manage to improve the weather．

B.Give in to the weather passively．

C.Stress the influence of the weather．

D.Find a solution to the weather problems．

4.It can be concluded from the passage that determinists (宿命论者) ______．

A.accept things passively

B.are in charge of themselves

C.are similar to proactive people

D.respond to outside conditions actively

If you’re a male and you’re reading this, congratulations! You’re a survivor. According to statistics，you’re more than twice as likely to die of skin cancer than a woman，and nine times more likely to die of AIDS. Assuming you make it to the end of your natural term，about 78 years for men in Australia，you’ll die on average five years before a woman.

There're many reasons for this--typically，men take more risks than women and are more likely to drink and smoke but perhaps more importantly, men don’t go to the doctor.

“Men aren't seeing doctors as often as they should，” says Dr. Gullotta.“This is particularly so

for the over-40s, when diseases tend to strike. According to a recent survey, 95％of women aged between 15 and early 49s see a doctor once a year, compared to 70％of men in the same age group.

“A lot of men think they’re unbeatable，”Gullotta says．“They only come in when a friend drops dead on the golf course and they think, Geez, if it could happen to him …”

Then there’s the ostrich（鸵鸟）approach．“Some men are scared of what might be there and would rather not know,” says Dr. Ross Cartmill.

“Most men get their cars serviced more regularly than they service their bodies,” Cartmill says. He believes most diseases that commonly affect men could be addressed by preventive check-ups.

“Prevention is cheaper in the long run than having to treat the diseases．Besides, the final cost is far greater，it’s called premature death.”

1.Why does the author congratulate male readers at the beginning of the passage?

A.They can live longer than they expected．

B.They are sure to enjoy a longer and happier life.

C.They have lived long enough to read this article.

D.They are more likely to survive serious diseases now．

2.Which of the author’s statements is the most important reason that men die five years earlier on average than women according to the passage?

A.Men drink and smoke much more than women.

B.Men don’t seek medical care as often as women.

C.Men are more likely to suffer from deadly diseases.

D.Men aren’t as cautious as women in face of danger.

3.Which of the following best completes the underlined sentence “Geez, if it could happen to him…” （in Para 4） ?

A.it could happen to me，too.

B.it would be a big misfortune.

C.I should avoid playing golf.

D.I should consider myself lucky.

4.What does Dr．Ross Cartmill mean by“the ostrich approach”（in Para 5）?

A.A casual attitude towards one’s health conditions.

B.A new treatment for certain psychological problems．

C.Refusal to get medical treatment for fear of the pain involved.

D.Unwillingness to find out about one’s disease because of fear.