As your teacher passes out the math test, your palms turn sweaty. You notice that your heart has begun to race. Glancing down at the page, you suddenly forget those operations on which you had drilled only a few days earlier. Do you perform all additions first in a complex calculation? 1. Suddenly, you start to doubt a lot of things that you know.
If that sounds familiar, you might suffer from math anxiety. Or maybe not Even researchers who study this condition note that it can be surprisingly hard to define (下定义) math anxiety. 2. After all, it's not an officially recognized mental disorder in the way that depression is.
3. It asks things like “how anxious would you feel about being given a set of division problems to solve on paper”. Those who score high on these surveys about stress over making calculations related to numbers will be labeled math anxious.
In general, people who panic over their math skills tend to do worse in math classes than people who don't mind numbers. 4. “Just because you're math anxious, that doesn't always mean you're bad at math,” notes Rose Vukovic, an educational psychologist at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.
Math anxiety affects people of all ages. It can lead to poor performance in math classes. 5. Throughout life, this type of stress can stand in the way of mastering skills or projects in a host of areas that rely on calculations. But the good news is that the problem is manageable. Researchers are finding ways people can cope with this stress.
A.But that's not always true.
B.It has an unimaginable impact.
C.And its impacts don't end at graduation.
D.Oh, you know it—well you' re pretty sure, right?
E.To diagnose math anxiety, researchers conduct a questionnaire.
F.It's also hard to identify precisely how many people suffer from it.
G.Math anxiety has also been linked to negative emotions from the past.
Imagine that you found a wallet in the street containing a stranger 's contact details but no cash. Would you go out of your way to return it to its owner? Now imagine that the same wallet contained a few banknotes. Would that change your response? Alain Cohn of the University of Michigan and his colleagues have taken such behavioral economics around the world.
In different countries Dr. Cohn's research assistants entered public buildings like banks, museums and police stations. They handed in a fake wallet to an employee in the reception area, saying they had found it on the street outside, before making a hurried exit. Each wallet was a see-through plastic card case containing three identical business cards with a unique email address and a fake native's name, a shopping list and a key. Most importantly, some wallets also included $13.45, while some had no cash. Then, the team simply waited to see who would email the “owner” about returning the wallet.
In 38 of the 40 countries, the wallets with money in them were returned more often than those without: 51% compared with 40% for the cashless. While rates of honesty varied greatly between different countries, the difference within individual countries between the two return rates was quite stable around 11 percentage points. In addition, wallets containing a larger sum of money ($94.15) were even more likely (by about another ten percentage points) to be returned than those with less, although the “big money” experiment was done in only three countries.
With greater temptation (诱惑), then, comes greater honesty - at least when it comes to lost wallets and small cash. Interestingly, though, when Dr. Cohn and his team surveyed a sample of 299 volunteers, most of them predicted that the more money there was in a wallet, the more likely it was that it would be kept.
A certain doubt about the motivation of others is probably good for survival, so the response of the general population may be understandable. But is the warm inner satisfaction coming from “doing the right thing” also a powerful reason? As this study shows, such thought is real and universal
1.What does Dr. Cohn's research team try to find out?
A.How long it usually takes before a lost wallet is returned.
B.How people of different occupations react to lost w alts.
C.How people behave differently at public and private places.
D.How people respond to lost wallets of varying amounts of cash.
2.What is the second paragraph mainly about?
A.Work division in the team. B.Detailed arrangements.
C.Contents inside the wallets. D.Preparations made in advance.
3.What does Dr. Cohn's research find about rates of honesty?
A.They drop with bigger money. B.They vary from country to country.
C.They are quite the same globally. D.They are stable, unrelated to money.
4.From which is the text probably taken?
A.A research paper. B.A travel brochure.
C.A psychology magazine. D.An economy newspaper.
Are you likely to suffer from loss of memory from time to time? Smart cameras can now remind you.
Khai Truong at the University of Toronto in Canada and his colleagues have created a smartphone app that records interactions with household objects. The system involves barcode-like (像条形码的) markers that the user sticks to objects whose use they would like to track.
With the smartphone worn around your neck, the app automatically records a short video clip (片段) when a marked object comes into view. “The user is able to look through the application and see the last time they interacted with it,” says Truong. The app can help people track the state of objects - such as whether they locked a door or switched a light off - as well as routine actions. Ai present, it successfully records about 75 percent of interactions, but only works for fixed objects.
A similar but separate system can solve the problem. E. Akin Sisbot and Jonathan Connell at IBM Research in New York have invented a ceiling-mounted (安装在天花板上的) camera that monitors objects and people. It continuously watches an area, such as a tabletop in your home, tracking the placement of objects in relation to one another. It also remembers who first brought an object into the field of view as well as if anyone moved it afterwards. When asked, “Where is my wallet?” the system might respond, “It is next to the vase, under the magazines.”
The camera could also be used in factories or operating theatres to track vital tools, says Sisbot For now, the camera uses a depth sensor to spot things. It is limited to detecting objects thicker than 3 centimetres, meaning that it has trouble with thin objects such as a closed laptop placed flat on a table.
The accuracy of such smart camera systems may need to improve before they are widely adopted. “You've got to trust the technology for it to be of any comfort or reassurance” says Geoffrey Ward at the University of Essex in the UK.
1.How does the smartphone app mentioned in paragraph 2 work?
A.By recording the movement of marked objects.
B.By informing owners of potential dangers.
C.By switching off electricity automatically.
D.By scanning barcodes of household objects.
2.What is the limitation of the ceiling-mounted camera?
A.It hardly senses objects without barcode-like makers.
B.It fails to find objects thinner than 3 centimetres.
C.It is unlikely to make a sound.
D.It is unable to recognize movable objects.
3.What's Geoffrey Ward's attitude towards the smart camera systems?
A.Supportive. B.Ambiguous.
C.Concerned. D.Sceptical
4.What's the best title for the text?
A.New Smartphones Make Life Easier
B.Smart Cameras Help Increase Home Security
C.New Systems Help People with Memory Problems
D.Camera Designers Face New Challenges
My mum is about to have a spinal (脊柱的) operation. The operation is relatively minor, but does carry a risk of paralysis. Friends and family have reacted to this news by taking in such pessimistic terms that Mum has come to label this kind of talk as “psychological theft”. It occurs when other people increase your anxiety rather than provide comfort.
Last week Mum went to the post office and ran into Geoff who works for the local school. “How are you?” he asked. “Not great,” she replied. “I’ve been having some trouble with my back and I’m going to need an operation.” “Oh, the back is the most dangerous place to operate on!” he responded. “My mum had that and she was in terrible pain. Make sure you get all your affairs in order before you go under the knife—it takes months to get over it!” Geoff’s intention had been benign (美好的). He’d given his own mother’s story to show sympathy. However, Mum only heard pain, danger, knife, and months.
In the past few weeks, Mum’s mates and colleagues have told her stories about how their Auntie Trisha, who had just received an operation, was left speechless after hearing that she required a rapid follow-up operation; and how their neighbour, who had only a minor operation, never walked again.
It’s really not that difficult to think of alternative things they could have said that would be equally true, but more beneficial to bear. “The specialists in our hospitals are among the best in the world. It’s amazing what they can do these days!”—that’s a good one. “You’re going to feel much better afterwards.” —that’s another.
I’m not suggesting patients should be sheltered from the reality of the risks they’re taking. But if the decision to have an operation can’t really be avoided, what’s the purpose of underlining the drawbacks? It’s just common sense to say: “Get well soon, and how can I help?”
1.What does “psychological theft” in paragraph 1 refer to?
A.The negative comments. B.Psychological disorder.
C.The comforting words. D.Physical disability.
2.How might the author’s mum have felt after hearing what Geoff said?
A.Sympathetic. B.Relieved.
C.Grateful D.Worried.
3.How did the author explain his idea in the text?
A.By using examples. B.By analysing causes.
C.By following time order. D.By discussing research findings.
4.What lesson does the author want to teach us?
A.Treat patients with adoration.
B.Communicate more with other patients.
C.Be well-prepared for unavoidable operations.
D.Find an appropriate way to comfort patients.
Cycling Tours in Europe & Asia
Cycling the Balkans
Duration: 15 days
The Balkans offers a mix of beautiful countryside, fast-developing cities and historic towns. Our first ride ends at the UNESCO town of Ohrid on the vast lake of the same name. There are a few stops along the way to visit or see places of interest.
Cycling the Italian and Swiss Lakes
Duration: 8 days
The Italian lakes of Como and Maggiore are famed for both their wonderful scenery and their wealthy residents. This is a fascinating area to discover on two wheels with excellent roads that closely follow the winding shores. The Villa del Balbianello with its beautiful Italian gardens may look familiar, having been seen in international movies such as Bond's Casino Royale.
Self-Guided Cycling in the Douro Valley
Duration: 7 days
This cycling holiday in the Douro Valley will make you familiar with magical surroundings, delicious cuisine and some of the world's finest wines. The ride begins in Castelo Rodrigo, a village close to where Portugal borders Spain, and home to an ancient caste. You'll cycle through vineyards and visit the famous Port wine estates (庄园).
Exploring Sri Lanka by Bike
Duration: 8 days
Being an island, Sri Lanka is incredibly diverse. Exploring on two wheels is the best way to see this rural country and to experience the way of life of its friendly people. We travel from ancient cities to the hill county towns of Kandy and Nuwara Eliya before ending the trip on the beaches of the beautiful south coast.
1.What's special about the Balkans tour?
A.It has fantastic island scenery. B.It is hosted by the Ohrid government.
C.It's a continuous ride with no stops. D.It combines history and the present.
2.What can you do on the Douro Valley tour?
A.Visit Spanish gardens. B.Enjoy the beaches of the south coast.
C.Pick grapes in the vineyards. D.Acquire knowledge of wines.
3.Which route would appeal to a movie fan?
A.Self-Guided Cycling in the Douro Valley. B.Cycling the Italian and Swiss Lakes.
C.Exploring Sri Lanka by Bike. D.Cycling the Balkans.
阅读下面材料，根据其内容和所给段落开头语续写两段，使之构成一篇完整的短文，续写的词数应为150左右。
On the morning of Jan 25, the very day of the Chinese Lunar New Year, I was unpleasantly woken up by a phone call. It was for my father. He picked it up, and I sensed from his shaky voice that something went wrong.
As soon as he hung up, my father turned to my mother and then me, saying, “It was the secretary. He called everyone to meet in the office right now because of the outbreak of the COVID-19.”
“But dad, it’s the Spring Festival!” How I wished my father could change his mind and stay with us. Wasn’t the day meant for families to be together? My father, an official working in another town, seldom came back home. And was the virus serious enough to keep us apart? I was upset. To my great disappointment, father left home without hesitation, comforting me by saying that he would be back soon.
In the following days, news loaded with the fast spread of COVID-19 and the astonishing death toll scared everyone in the country. Father never returned home, only occasionally talking on the WeChat, over which he told us how he went from door to door, checking every family and persuading people to stay at home. I realized that my father was working in dangerous conditions under incredibly great burden. He always looked tired but determined. Every time I told him to take care of himself, he would smile and say, “Don’t worry, son. Your father is as strong as a bull.” At those moments, tears would well up in my eyes, and all my complaints would go away before I could say anything. The talk was brief but meant a lot to me.
I learned from the media that the medical staff, government officials, and almost everyone involved were working in the battle against the COVID-19. It was these guardian angels (守护天使) who, despite the possibility of getting infected themselves, were risking their life so that the rest of us could be safe. Among them was my father. He’s protecting the people, me included.
Para 1: Then came bad news that my father was ill at hospital.
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Para 2: Weeks later, my father came back home healthy .
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