Remembering names is an important social skill. Here are some ways to master it.
Recite and repeat in conversation.
When you hear a person’s name，repeat it. Immediately say it to yourself several times without moving your lips. You could also repeat the name in a way that does not sound forced or artificial(虚假的).
Ask the other person to recite and repeat.
You can let other people help you remember their names. After you’ve been introduced to someone，ask that person to spell the name and pronounce it correctly for you. Most people will be pleased by the effort you’re making to learn their names.
Admit you don’t know.
Admitting that you can’t remember someone’s name can actually make people relaxed. Most of them will feel sympathy (同情) if you say, “I’m working to remember names better. Yours is right on the tip of my tongue. What is it again?”
Use association (联系).
Connect each person you meet with one thing you find interesting or unusual. For example，you could make a mental note: “Vicki Cheng -- tall, black hair.” To strengthen your associations, write them on a small card as soon as possible.
Limit the number of new names you learn at one time.
When meeting a group of people, concentrate on remembering just two or three names. Free yourself from remembering every one. Few of the people in mass introductions expect you to remember their names. Another way is to limit yourself to learning just first names. Last names can come later.
Go early.
Consider going early to meetings, parties and classes. Sometimes just a few people show up on time. That’s fewer names for you to remember. And as more people arrive, you can hear them being introduced to others — a review for you.
1. How will most people feel when you try hard to remember their names?
A. They will be moved. B. They will be annoyed.
C. They will be delighted. D. They will be discouraged.
2.If you can’t remember someone’s name, you may ______.
A. tell him the truth
B. tell him a white lie
C. ask him for pity
D. ask others to help you
3.When you meet a group of people, it is better to remember ______.
A. all their names B. a couple of names first
C. just their last names D. as many names as possible
4.What does the text mainly tell us?
A. Tips on an important social skill.
B. Importance of attending parties.
C. How to make use of associations.
D. How to recite and repeat names.
I travel a lot in my work, and what I dislike about my job is eating alone. It always makes me feel lonely to see others laughing and talking. So, room service for several nights was a better choice for me.
After having room service three nights at a hotel in Houston, however, I needed to get out of my room. Although the restaurant opened at 6:30, I arrived at 6:25. The waiter at the front desk made a comment (评论) about my “being there really early”. I explained my dislike of eating alone in restaurants. He then seated me at a lovely table and asked me whether I would mind if he sat down with me for a while.
I was glad! He sat and talked with me about his career goals and the difficulty of being at work on nights, weekends and holidays. He said he hadn’t enough time to be with his family. After 15 minutes, he saw some customers at the front desk and excused himself. I noticed that before he went to the front desk, he stopped in the kitchen for a moment.
Then another waiter came out of the kitchen and had a wonderful chat with me. Before I left that night, some other waiters, even the cook, had come out of the kitchen and sat with me!
When I asked for my bill about one hour later, all the people who had sat down with me came over in a big group to my table, and presented me with a red rose. And I cried! What had begun as a lonely night ended as a beautiful experience.
1.The author asked for room service because ______.
A. a lot of money would be saved in this way
B. he didn’t like to eat with other people around
C. he didn’t wanted to be recognized by the waiters
D. seeing people laughing and talking made him feel bad
2.From the third paragraph, we can learn that the waiter at the front desk ______.
A. knew how to attract more customers to his restaurant
B. found it hard to balance his work and his family
C. was getting tired of his present job
D. had never had such a chance to talk about his worries
3.The author wants to tell us that ______.
A. people are actually all lonely in their own way
B. restaurants should put the need of customers first
C. the kindness of strangers can make you less lonely
D. restaurants are full of surprises for lonely people
阅读下面短文，并按照题目要求用英语回答问题。
In college, Spring Break (春假) is usually associated with the beach, parties and sleepless nights, bringing about relaxation, free time and friends. Students who wish to spend their break doing something productive and rewarding, however, may choose to participate in the Alternative Break Program. It places college students in communities both at home and abroad.
The Program allows students to take part in various projects dealing with issues such as literacy （识字）, homelessness and the environment. It includes helping kids with their lessons, raising money for families in need and collecting data for environmental research.
The hope is that, by getting themselves involved in different environments, students will have the opportunity to learn about members of communities and broaden their view. In turn, they will incorporate (融合) their experiences and lessons learned into their own communities. In a word, the Program aims to encourage students to be active citizens and engage themselves in making a difference in society.
In the spring of 2006, about 36,000 students in the USA participated in the Alternative Break Program.
Samantha Giacobozzi, now director of the Program, has been on five alternative break trips herself, including trips to New Orleans, India and Dominican Republic. “I was a student who went on alternative break trips and had my life totally transformed by that experience,” she said. “Every year, we meet many students who have attended the Program. You can see changes in their life that are connected with their alternative break experiences.”
The Program began in 1991.Today, it has become increasingly popular with college students in the United States.
1.Who may choose to participate in the Alternative Break Program?(No mare than 10 words)
2.What is the aim of the Program?(NO more than 15 words)
3.What is the meaning of the underlined word "transformed" in Paragraph 5? (1 word)
4.What is Samantha's attitude toward the Program?(No more than 10 words)
5.If you take part in the Program, which project are you interested in? And why?(No more than 25 words)
Most people I meet want to develop more harmonious and satisfying relationships. But we may not realize that this can only be achieved by partnering with two new and strange allies(盟友): uncertainty and confusion. Most of us aren’t trained to like confusion or to admit we feel hesitant and uncertain. In our schools and organizations, we place value on sounding certain and confident.
As life continues to speed up, I believe our changing world requires less certainty and far more curiosity. I’m not suggesting we let go of our beliefs, but that we become curious about what someone else believes. As we become open to the disturbing differences, sometimes we discover that another’s way of interpreting the world is actually essential to our survival.
For me, the first step in becoming curious is to admit that I’m not succeeding in figuring things out by myself. If my solutions don’t work as well as I’d like, I take these as signs that it’s time to begin asking others what they think. I try to become a conscious listener, actively listening for differences.
There are many ways to listen for differences. Lately, I’ve been listening for what surprises me. This isn’t easy — I’m accustomed to sitting there, nodding my head as someone voices his opinions. But when I notice what surprises me, I’m able to see my own views more clearly, including my assumptions.
If you’re willing to be disturbed and confused, I recommend you begin a conversation with someone who thinks differently from you. Listen for what’s different and what surprises you. Try to stop the voice of judgment or opinion and just listen. At the end, notice whether you’ve learned something new.
We have the opportunity many times a day to be the one who listens to others and the one who is curious rather than certain. When we listen with fewer judgments, we always develop better relationships with each other. It’s not differences that divide us. It’s our judgments that do. Curiosity and good listening bring us back together.
As I consider partnering with confusion and uncertainty, I’m learning that we don’t have to agree with each other in order to think well together. There is no need for us to be joined at the head. We are already joined by our hearts.
1. According to the passage, when communicating with others, most of us try to behave____.
A. hesitantly and confusedly
B. honestly and harmoniously
C. responsibly and actively
D. confidently and convincingly
2.According to the author, in order to cope with our changing world, we should ______.
A. reconsider traditional beliefs before accepting them.
B. learn to interpret other people’s behavior.
C. become more curious about other people’s opinions.
D. try to develop more harmonious relationships with others.
3.What does the passage advise you to do when you hear different ideas?
A. We should let go of our beliefs.
B. We should admit that we are not succeeding in figuring out things.
C. We should be accustomed to sitting there and listening.
D. We should listen and find out the valuable points
4.What do the underlined sentences in the passage imply?
A. We should listen more and judge less.
B. We should make decisions based on sound judgment.
C. Differences among people separate them.
D. It is important to seek common ground and reserve differences.
5.Which of the following best describes the author’s attitude to uncertainty and confusion?
A. Favorable. B. Resistant.
C. Curious. D. Doubtful.
When we’re little, our mother is the center of our attention, and we are the center of hers.
So our mother’ characteristics leave an indelible(持久的)impression, and we are forever after attracted to people with her facial features, body type, personality, even sense of humor. If our mother is warm and giving, as adults we tend to be attracted to people who are warm and giving. If our mother is strong and even-tempered, we are going to be attracted to a fair-minded strength in our mates(伴侣).
The mother has an additional influence on her sons: she not only gives them clues to what they will find attractive in a mate, but also affects how they feel about women in general. So if she is warm and nice, her sons are going to think that’s the way women are. They will probably grow up to be warm and responsive lovers and also be cooperative around the house.
Conversely(相反的), a mother who has a depressive personality, and is sometimes friendly but then suddenly turns cold and rejecting, may raise a man who becomes a “dance-away lover”. Because he’s been so scared about love from his mother, he’s afraid of commitment and may pull away from a girlfriend for this reason.
While the mother determines in large part what qualities attract us in a mate, it’s the father—the first male in our lives—who influences how we relate to the opposite sex. Fathers have an enormous effect on their children’s personalities and chances of marital(婚姻的) happiness.
Just as mothers influence their son’s general feelings toward women, fathers influence their daughter’s general feelings about men. If a father lavishes praise on his daughter and demonstrates that she is a worthwhile person, she’ll feel very good about herself in relation to men. But if the father is cold, critical or absent, the daughter will tend to feel she’s not very lovable or attractive.
In addition, most of us grow up with people of similar social circumstances. We hang around with people in the same town; our friends have about the same educational backgrounds and career goals. We tend to be most comfortable with these people, and therefore we tend to link up with others whose families are often much like our own.
1.Why do our mother’s characteristics leave us an indelible impression?
A. Because we are likely to be attached to people with her characteristics.
B. Because mother and her child are the centers of each other when her child is very young.
C. Because our mother is better than our dad.
D. Because our mother is a woman who is kind to us.
2.What can we know from Paragraphs 2 and 3?
A. The mother only influences her sons.
B. The sons always think women are warm and nice.
C. A mother who has a depressive personality is sure to raise a dance-away lover.
D. The mother has an additional influence on her sons.
3.Which of the following is NOT true?
A. If our mother is warm and giving, we love to be together with warm and generous people.
B. If our mother is strong and even-tempered, we are going to be attracted to a fair-minded strength in our mates.
C. Mother not only gives her children clues to what they will find attractive in a mate, but also affects how they feel about women in general.
D. Fathers influence their daughter’s general feelings about men.
4.What does the underlined word “lavishes” in Paragraph 5 probably mean?
A. Uses much. B. Uses little.
C. Never uses. D. Seldom uses.
5.What does the passage mainly talk about?
A. Mothers’ influence on their sons.
B. Parents’ influence on their children.
C. Parents’ impression on their children.
D. Fathers’ influence on their daughters.
I once had a friend that was diagnosed with terminal cancer, and the news that he might only live up to six months was a great shock to him, his family, and his friends．However, in spite of the serious illness, he was initially determined to look into all available treatments that might cure or extend his life. I think that when you find yourself in such situations, you tend to look up every possible way for hope of saving your life.
As months went on and his health grew worse, I noticed an unexpected change in attitude that came over him．He had also been a happy person with a cheerful personality, but rather than give in to discouragement and self-pity, he took comfort in God and humanity. His talks focused on others rather than himself, and he spoke of the afterlife as something he was prepared for, believing that his concerned ancestors, including his mother and father, were there waiting for him.
During the last few months, weeks, and days of his life, he was kindly cared for by family, friends, his loving wife, who looked after both his physical and emotional needs, and workers from a local hospice （安养院） came to the home to regulate his medication and provide any other needed support. He didn't complain about his fate, and he willingly allowed others to serve him.
Indeed, one might think why God allows death and suffering in our world, but for me, such experiences taught me to value family more and kindness for others. You often can't learn these important attributes(属性) in the lap of luxury(优裕舒适的环境), and perhaps, such an experience is the greatest and final gift the illness can give those left behind.
1.Which word can best describe the man's initial reaction as soon as he was diagnosed with cancer?
A. Satisfied B. Surprised
C. Terrified D. Confused
2.What did the man do after he first learned of his illness?
A. He was operated on immediately
B. He retired from his job
C. He researched cancer treatments
D. He felt sad, doing nothing
3.What was the man's main source of comfort after several months with the disease?
A. His family and friends
B. The care from others
C. His doctors’ encouragement
D. His belief in humanity
4.What did the author learn from his friend’s story?
A. Giving more respect to the family and friends
B. Extending life as possible
C. Caring for yourself and enjoying luxury
D. Getting comfort from God
5.What does the author mainly want to tell?
A. All people will face death, and thus, we must prepare for it spiritually
B. Our characters can be strengthened by such an unpleasant situation
C. Families provide the best support system during such a crisis
D. People should help those who have got serious illness
