I was brought up in the British, stiff upper lip style. Strong feelings aren’t something you display in public. So, you can imagine that I was unprepared for the outpouring of public grief(悲伤) at a Chinese funeral.
My editorial team leader died recently after a short illness. He was 31. The news was so unexpected that it left us all shocked and upset. A female colleague burst into tears and cried piteously at her desk. Somehow we got through the day's work. The next day was the funeral.
Our big boss stepped forward to deliver a eulogy and was soon in tears. She carried on, in Chinese of course, but at the end said in English: "There will be no more deadlines for you in heaven." Next came a long-term colleague who also dissolved in tears but carried on with her speech despite being almost overcome by emotion. Then a close friend of the dead man paid tribute(哀悼), weeping openly as he spoke. Sorrow is spreading. Me and women were now sobbing uncontrollably. Finally, the man's mother, supported between two women, addressed her son in his coffin. At one point, the mother almost collapsed and had to be held up. We were invited to step forward to each lay a white rose on the casket. Our dead colleague looked as if he was taking a nap. At the end of the service I walked away from the funeral parlor stunned at the outpouring of emotion.
In the UK, families grieve privately and then try to hold it together and not break down at a funeral. Here in China it would seem that grieving is a public affair. It strikes me that it is more cathartic to cry your eyes out than try to keep it bottled up for fear of embarrassment, which is what many of us do in the West.
Afterwards, a Chinese colleague told me that the lamenting at the funeral had been restrained(克制) by Chinese standards. In some rural areas, she said, people used to be paid to mourn noisily. This struck me like something out of novel by Charles Dickens. But we have all seen on TV scenes of grief-stricken people in Gaza and the West Bank, in Afghanistan, Iraq and the relatives of victims of terrorist bombings around the world. Chinese grief is no different. I realized that it's the reserved British way of mourning that is out of step with the rest of the world.
It was our newspaper's production day. We were bussed back to the office to resume work. No more deadlines for our former colleague, but we had to pull together to put the newspaper to print. The boss invited the team to go out for dinner after work. We relaxed, smiled, joked. There was no mention of the funeral or our poor colleague. Enough sorrow had been shed already. We needed a break.
1.The underlined words “stiff upper lip style” mean “ ”.
A．cold-blooded B．warm-hearted
C．self-controlled D．light-hearted
2.At the funeral, .
A．five individuals made speeches
B．the boss’s speech was best thought of
C．everyone was crying out loudly
D．the writer was astonished by the scene
3.According to the writer, people in the West .
A．are not willing to be sad for the dead
B．prefer to control their sadness in public
C．cry their eyes out at the public funeral
D．have better way to express sadness
4.It is implied that .
A．the English might cry noisily for the dead in Dickens’ time
B．Chinese express their sadness quite unlike other peoples
C．victims of terrorist bombings should be greatly honored
D．English funeral culture is more civilized than the others
5.This passage talks mainly about .
A．an editor’s death B．bad funeral customs
C．western ways of grief D．cultural differences
Fourteen – year – old Richie Hawley had spent five years studying violin at the Community School of Performing Arts in Los Angeles when he took part in a violin contest. Ninety two young people were invited to the contest and Hawley came out first．
The contest could have been the perfect setup for fear, worrying about mistakes, and trying to impress the judges．But Hawley says he did pretty well in staying calm. “I couldn’t be thinking about how many mistakes I’d make—it would distract me from playing,” he says．“I didn’t even remember trying to impress people while I played． It’s almost as if they weren’t there． I just wanted to make music．”
Hawley is a winner． But he didn’t become a winner by concentrating on winning． He did it by concentrating on playing well．
“The important thing in the Olympic Games is not to win but to take part,” said the founder of the modern Olympics, Pierre de Coubertin．“The important thing in life is not the triumph but the struggle．The essential thing is not to have conquered but to have fought well．”
A characteristic of high performers is their intense, pleasurable concentration on work, rather than on their competitors or future glory or money, says Dr．Charles Garfield, who has studied 1,500 achievers in business, science, sports, the arts, and professions．“They are interested in winning, but they’re most interested in self-development, testing their limits．”
One of the most surprising things about top performers is how many losses they’ve had and how much they’ve learned from each． “Not one of the 1,500 I studied defined losing as failing,” Garfield says．“They kept calling their losses ‘setbacks’．”
A healthy attitude toward setbacks is essential to winning, experts agree．
“The worst thing you can do if you’ve had a setback is to let yourself get stuck in a prolonged depression． You should analyze carefully what went wrong, identify specific things you did right and give yourself credit for them．” Garfield believes that most people don’t give themselves enough praise． He even suggests keeping a diary of all the positive things you’ve done on the way to a goal．
1.Hawley won the contest because _______．
A．he put all his mind to his performance
B．he cared much about the judges’ feelings
C．he tried his best to avoid making mistakes
D．he paid close attention to the people around
2.High performers is that they tend to give priority to _______．
A．glory B. wealth C. pleasure D. work
3.According to the passage, successful people concentrate on _______．
A．challenging their own limits B．learning from others
C．defeating their opponents D．avoiding setbacks
4. It can be learned from the passage that top performers are not _______．
A．interested in winning B．free of losses
C．accustomed to failures D．concerned about setbacks
5.The passage tells us that “praise” in times of trouble _______．
A．helps people deal with their disappointment
B．makes people forget their setbacks
C．makes people regret about their past
D．helps people realize their goals
Which is safer --- staying at home, traveling to work on public transport, or working at the office? Surprisingly, each of these carries the same risk, which is very low．However, what about flying compared to working in the chemical industry? Unfortunately, the former is 65 times riskier than the latter! In fact the accident rate of workers in the chemical industry is less than that of almost any of human activity, and almost as safe as staying at home．
The trouble with the chemical industry is that when things go wrong they often cause death to those living nearby．It is this that makes chemical accidents so newsworthy．Fortunately, they are extremely rare．The most famous ones happened at Texas City （1947）, Flixborough （1974）, Seveso （1976）, Pemex （1984） and Bhopal （1984）．
Some of these are always in the minds of the people even though the loss of life was small．No one died at Seveso, and only 28 workers at Flixborough．The worst accident of all was Bhopal, where up to 3,000 were killed．The Texas City explosion of fertilizer killed 552．The Pemex fire at a storage plant for natural gas in the suburbs of Mexico City took 542 lives, just a month before the unfortunate event at Bhopal．
Some experts have discussed these accidents and used each accident to illustrate a particular danger．Thus the Texas City was caused by tons of ammonium nitrate, which is safe unless stored in a great quantity．The Flixborough fireball was the fault of management, which took risks to keep production going during essential repairs．The Seveso accident shows what happens if the local authorities lack knowledge of the danger on their doorstep．When the poisonous gas drifted over the town , local leaders were incapable of taking effective action．The Pemex fire was made worse by an overloaded site in an overcrowded suburb．The fire set off a chain reaction of exploding storage tanks．Yet, by a miracle, the two largest tanks did not explode．Had these caught fire, then 3,000 strong rescue team and fire fighters would all have died．
1.Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A．Working at the office is safer than staying at home．
B．Travelling to work on public transport is safer than working at the office．
C．Staying at home is safer than working in the chemical industry．
D．Working in the chemical industry is safer than traveling by air．
2.Chemical accidents are usually important enough to be reported as news because .
A．they are very rare
B．they often cause loss of life
C．they always occur in big cities
D．they arouse the interest of all the readers
3.According to the passage, the chemical accident that caused by the fault of management happened in_________．
A．Texas city B．Flixborough
C．Seveso D．Mexico City
4.From the passage we know that “ammonium nitrate” is a kind of _____．
A．natural gas, which can easily catch fire
B．fertilizer, which can't be stored in a great quantity
C．poisonous substance, which can't be used in overcrowded areas
D．fuel, which is stored in large tanks
5.From the discussion among some experts we may conclude that _____．
A．to avoid any accident we should not repair the facilities in chemical industry
B．the local authorities should not be concerned with the production of the chemical industry
C．all these accidents could have been avoided or controlled if effective measures had been taken
D．natural gas stored in very large tanks is always safe
Many cities have subways and underground public transportation to take locals and tourists alike rapidly around the city．However, there’s something different about riding a London subway．It may not look different, but the historical value of one of England’s most popular forms of transportation is enough to make riding the subway a must when visiting London．With a little under 300 different stations, the subway can take you almost anywhere you need to go．
Riding a London subway, a person from other countries will notice one major difference: in London, people do not look at each other．In fact, eye contact is avoided at all times．That’s not rudeness ―people are just too busy to bother looking．
Busy doing what, you ask? Well, they’re certainly not using the time for a moment of quiet thinking．Nor are they reading a book．New technology has replaced quiet habits．Today the only acceptable form of book on the London underground is an e-book．
Apple must earn a fortune from London commuters（使用月票上下班者）．Since the launch of the iPhone in 2007, over 40,000―yes, that’s 40,000 “apps” have been designed．
Commuters love them because they are the perfect time-fillers．One “app”, called iShoot, is a game that features tanks．Another one, Tube Exits, tells passengers where to sit on the train to be closest to the exit of their destination．iSteam clouds the iPhone screen when you breathe into the microphone．You can then write in the “steam” on your phone screen．
For those without an iPhone, another Apple product, the iPod, may be the distraction（消遣）of choice．It’s not just teenagers who “plug in” to their music－iPods are a popular way to pass the time for all ages．
And if games, e-books and music aren’t enough to keep you occupied, then perhaps you would prefer a film? The development of palm DVD technology means many commuters watch their favorite TV shows or films on the way to work．With all these distractions, it’s amazing that people still remember to get off the train．
1.Those who want to save time to reach where they go can download ______ to their iPhones．
A．iShoot B．Tube Exits C. iSteam D．iPod
2.People in London do not make eye contact on the subway because ______
A.they are going to work and have no time to communicate with each other
B.they love reading books and do not want to be disturbed
C.they feel sleepy because of getting up early
D.they are busy playing games, reading e-books, listening to music or watching films
3.The underlined word “apps” in the fourth paragraph means ______．
A．computers B．programs downloaded for the iPhone
C．computer companies D．fortune from London commuters
4.Which word best describes the writer’s attitude towards commuters’ behaviors?
A．for B．against C．neutral D．hateful
5.The main idea of the passage is that ______．
A．London commuters are unfriendly to strangers
B．Apple has earned a lot of money from selling 40,000 apps
C．technology is changing how London commuters spend their traveling time
D．riding a London subway is a must when visiting London
I believe that families are not only blood relatives, but sometimes people who show up and love you when no one else will.
In May 1977, I was living in a Howard Johnson’s motel off Interstate 10 in Houston. My dad and I 21 a room with two double beds and a bathroom which was too 22 for a 15-year-old girl and her father. Dad’s second marriage was 23 and my stepmother had 24 us both out of the house the previous week. Dad had no 25_ what to do with me. And that’s when my other family 26 .
Barbara and Roland Beach took me into their home 27 their only daughter, Su, my best friend, asked them to. I 28 with them for the next seven years.
Barb washed my skirts the same as Su’s. She 29 I had lunch money, doctors’ appointments, help with homework and nightly hugs. Barbara and Roland attended every football game where Su and I were being cheerleaders. 30 I could tell, for the Beaches there was no 31 between Su and me; I was their daughter, too.
When Su and I 32 college they kept my room the same for the entire four years I attended school. Recently, Barb presented me with an insurance policy they bought when I first moved in with them and had continued to pay on for 23 years.
The Beaches knew 33 about me when they took me in – they had heard the whole story from Su. When I was seven, my mother died and from then on my father relied on other people to _34 his kids. Before I went to live with the Beaches I had believed that life was entirely 35__ and that love was shaky and untrustworthy. I had believed that the only person who would take care of me was me.
36 the Beaches, I would have become a bitter, cynical (愤世嫉俗的) woman. They gave me a(n) 37 that allowed me to grow and change. They kept me from being paralyzed(使瘫痪 ,使麻痹 ,使无能力)by my _38 , and they gave me the confidence to open my heart.
I 39 family. For me, it wasn’t the family that was there on the day I was 40 , but the one that was there for me when I was living in a Howard Johnson’s on Interstate 10.
1.A. lived B. shared C. possessed D. bought
2.A. cheap B. noisy C. small D. limited
3.A. in trouble B. in sight C. in place D. in parts
4.A. struck B. removed C. kicked D. knocked
5.A. plan B. choice C. chance D. idea
6.A. looked after B. showed up C. turned over D. came cross
7.A. so B. because C. until D. while
8.A. worked B. traveled C. lived D. learned
9.A. worked out B. called up C. watched out D. made sure
10.A. As long as B. As far as C. As soon as D. As many as
11.A. change B. problem C. conflict D. difference
12.A. set off B. left for C. entered into D. admitted into
13.A. all B. little C. something D. nothing
14.A. supply B. teach C. encourage D. raise
15.A. different B. unfair C. easy D. hopeful
16.A. Thanks to B. In spite of C. Except for D. But for
17.A. home B. house C. ability D. lesson
18.A. choice B. failure C. past D. present
19.A. doubt about B. call on C. center on D. believe in
20.A. born B. accepted C. educated D. deserted
----- Have you ever heard of Jay Chou's new movie "Kung fu Dunk"?
----- ________ . Does it come out in February?
A. Yes, I see B. No, I never heard
C. Yes, it rings a bell D. No, it comes as no surprise
