Scholars and researchers have tried to discover what personality characteristics go along with success in intercultural experiences. Their findings have often been unclear or incomplete. But three characteristics stand out in their reports: patience, a sense of humor, and the awareness of being unclear.
Patience, of course, is the ability to keep calm even when things do not go as one wants them to, or hopes they will, or has even been sure they will. Impatience sometimes brings improvements in relations with other people, but usually it does not.
A person with a sense of humor is less likely to take things too seriously and more ready to see the humor in his own reactions than a humorless person. The value of a sense of humor really needs to be paid more attention to.
The awareness of being unclear is a more difficult concept than patience or a sense of humor. Foreigners often find themselves in situations that are unclear to the newcomers. That is, they do not know what is happening in the situation. Perhaps they do not understand the local language well enough, or they do not know how some system or organization works, or they can’t be sure of different people’s roles in what is going on. “It’s like I just got here from the moon,” a Chinese graduate student who newly arrived in the United States said, “things are just so different here.”
1.The passage mainly tells us .
A. that it’s not easy to travel abroad
B. that humor is very important in communication
C. of some characteristics in dealing with foreigners
D. of three main ways useful for communicating with foreigners
2.According to the passage, what characteristic should be most focused on?
A. Patience. B. The awareness of being unclear.
C. The sense of humor. D. Understanding each other.
3.“The awareness of being unclear” refers to .
A. knowing the meaning of an exact situation
B. not stating clearly what happens
C. realizing the possible misunderstanding in a situation
D. being aware of the unclear situation
4.According to the writer, the Chinese students is .
A. a hard-working student B. recently back from the moon
C. interested in the study of moon D. not used to the culture in America
5.Which of the following can best sum up the passage?
A. It is necessary to learn the language before you go to the country.
B. Americans are used to the culture of other countries.
C. One needs many characteristics to live in a foreign country.
D. To live in a foreign land one should get fully prepared.[
Computer programmer David Jones makes 35,000 pounds a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank prepared to let him have a credit card (信用卡). Instead, he has been told to wait another two years, until he is 18.
The 16-year-old boy works for a small firm in Liverpool, where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job. David’s firm puts two new games on the home market each month.
But David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. In spite of his salary, made by inventing new programs within a quite short period of time, the bonus payments and profit-sharing (奖金和分红), he cannot drive a car, get some money from a bank to buy a house, or get credit cards.
He lives with his parents in their house in Liverpool, where his father is a bus driver. His firm has to pay £150 a month in taxi fares to get him the five miles to work and back every day because David cannot drive.
David got his job with the firm a year after leaving school with six 0-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,” he said.
“I suppose 35,000 pounds sounds a lot but actually that’s not good enough. I hope it will come to more than that this year.” He spends some of his money on records and clothes, and gives his mother 20 pounds a week. But most of his spare time is spent working.
“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school,” he said. “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I know what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway.”
David added, “I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement (退休) is a possibility. You never know when the market might disappear.”
1.Why is David different from other young people of his age?
A. He earns a very high salary. B. He has not a job.
C. He does not go out much. D. He lives at home with his parents.
2.David’s greatest problem is ____________.
A. making the banks treat him as a grown-up B. inventing computer games
C. spending his salary D. learning to drive
3.He was hired by the firm because ____________.
A. he had worked in a computer shop B. he had written some computer programs
C. he worked very hard D. he had learned to use computers at school
4.He left school after taking six 0-levels because ____________.
A. he did not enjoy school
B. he wanted to work with computers and staying at school did not help him
C. he was afraid of getting too old to start computing
D. he wanted to earn a lot of money
5.Why does David think he might retire early?
A. One has to be young to write computer programs.
B. He wants to stop working when he is a millionaire.
C. He thinks computer games might not always sell so well.
D. He thinks his firm might go bad.
Where did all the tigers go? That’s what Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh wants to know. India’s Sariska Project Tiger Reserve, once home to 26 tigers, is now home to none. Singh has ordered a police investigation into the 39 ,and created a new taskforce to save the 40 animals.
Tigers are an endangered species(物种). Half of the world’s tiger 41 live in India. For years, tigers have been disappearing from India’s national parks, but Sariska may be the last straw. And the government has to react.
On Thursday, Singh held the first meeting of 42 officials, wildlife experts, and related leaders, aiming to count the nation’s remaining tigers, and to come up with a plan to keep them safe.
It is not hard to guess why the tigers are disappearing. Poachers (偷猎者) can 43 the big cats for $50,000 each. Tiger skin and bones are popular in Chinese 44 . A single tiger tooth can fetch $120. Recently, a group of poachers admitted killing ten tigers in Sariska and were 45 .
“Indian tiger poaching is probably the biggest conservation problem in modern times.” said Belinda Wright, the head of the Wildlife Protection Society of India.
However, poaching isn’t the only 46 . Many poachers use advanced technologies, like night glasses and long–range binoculars. Forest security officers are paid so 47 that few of them bother to track down the poachers. Even if a security guard were to find a poacher, many carry only a stick to make him obey the law.
Tiger fans hope that Singh’s plans mean end for the poachers and 48 for the endangered species.
1.A. project B. disappearance C. reserve D. home
2. A. dangerous B. huge C. rare D. fierce
3.A. population B. percentage C. generation D. group
4. A. business B. trade C. army D. forest
5.A. raise B. hunt C. sell D. shoot
6. A. food B. tradition C. culture D. medicine
7.A. found B. arrested C. prohibited D. controlled
8. A. problem B. worry C. crime D. factor
9.A. commonly B. poorly C. slightly D. highly
10.A. success B. lamp C. hope D. achievement
Though she has achieved great success, she has never felt with it.
A. proud B. content C. learned D. disappointed
Father never lets us when talking to us.
A. cut in B. cut down C. cut off D. cut up
Americans eat vegetables per person today as they did in 1970.
A. more than twice B. as twice as many
C. twice as many as D. more than twice as many