A simple life means getting rid of many of the things you do so that you can spend more time with people you love and do the things you love.1. It’s often a journey of two steps forward and one backward.
Evaluate your time.2. What things do you do from the time you wake up to the time you go to sleep? Make a list, and evaluate whether they’re in line with your priorities. If not, remove them and focus on what’s important. Redesign your day.
Limit your communications. Our lives these days are filled with a vast flow of communications: email, cell phones, paper mail, Twitter, forums, and more. 3. Instead, set a limit on your communications: only deal with emails at certain times of the day. Limit phone calls to certain times too. It is the same with other communications. Set a schedule and stick to it.
Try living without a car. OK, this isn’t something I’ve done, but many others have. 4. Walk, bike, or take public transportation. It reduces expenses and gives you time to think. A car is also very complicated, needing not only car payments, but insurance, maintenance, repairs, gas and more.
5. If you rid your home of stuff, you might find you don’t need so much space. I’m not saying you should live on a boat (although I know some people who happily do so), but if you can be comfortable in a smaller home, it will not only be less expensive, but easier to maintain, and greatly simplify your life.
A. Have a place for everything.
B. How do you spend your day?
C. It’s something I would do if I didn’t have kids.
D. They can take up your whole day if you let them be.
E. However, getting to simplicity isn’t always a simple process.
F. Most people don’t know what “enough” is, and thus they keep buying more.
G. Consider a smaller home.
David Cameron is urging today’s youngsters to abandon French to concentrate on the tongue of the future—Mandarin(普通话)。
Cameron said: “I want Britain linked up to the world’s fast-growing economies. And that includes our young people learning the languages to seal tomorrow’s business deals.”
“By the time the children born today leave school, China is to be the world’s largest economy. So it’s time to look beyond the traditional focus on French and German and get many more children learning Mandarin.” To strengthen his message , he quoted Nelson Mandela—the former president of South Africa who said “If you talk to a man in a language he understands that goes to his head; if you talk to him in his own language that goes to his heart.”
Cameron said that a partnership between the British Council (英国文化协会) and Hanban will double the number of Chinese language assistants in the UK by 2016 and provide increased funding to schools of offering Mandarin as a language choice. In a development of the UK—China School Partnership programme , funding will also be provided for 60 headteachers to make study visits to China in 2014.
In recent research the British Council found only 1% of the adult population speaks Mandarin to a level that allows them to conduct a basic conversation. Just 3,000 pupils in England, Wales and Northern Ireland entered for Chinese languages GCSEs in 2013, putting it far behind the traditional choices of French with 177,000, Spanish with 91,000 and German with 62,000 entrants(加入者), as well as Urdu, Polish and Arabic.
Professor Dame Helen Wallace, the British Academy’s foreign secretary, said, “ a lack of qualified teachers could be a barrier to improve its popularity.”
Laura Chan, one of the co—founders of a bilingual Mandarin—English primary school, said the prime minister’s announcement was good news for the status of Mandarin. She said, “It’s a great help. It will increase people’s awareness of Mandarin as a language they can learn.”
1.What is the text mainly talking about?
A. The cooperation is important between the UK and China.
B. David Cameron has visited China for three days.
C. Chinese language is very popular with British people.
D. David Cameron calls for British students to learn Mandarin.
2.Why does David Cameron urge students to learn Chinese?
A. Because Chinese will be a widely—used language in the world.
B. Because he thinks China will become the largest economy.
C. Because there are many Chinese people living in Britain.
D. Because only a few of British people can communicate in Chinese.
3.What is the purpose of David Cameron by quoting Mandela’s words in Paragraph3?
A. To compare different ideas. B. To show his rich knowledge.
C. To persuade people to learn Mandarin. D. To share Mandela’s opinion.
Time Travel
If you could travel in time, where would you go? Perhaps you would watch an original performance of a Shakespeare’s play in Elizabethan England? What about hanging out with Laozi in the Spring and Autumn Period? Or maybe you'd voyage far ahead of the present day to see what the future holds.
The possibility of time travel is indeed appealing. Stories exploring the subject have been around for hundreds of years. Perhaps the best known example is science fiction novel. The Time Machine, which was written by H.G. Wells and published in 1895 for the first time. It was adapted into at least two feature films of the same name, as well as two television versions, and a large number of comic book adaptations. It is generally credited with the popularization of the concept of time travel using a vehicle that allows an operator to travel purposefully and selectively. The term "time machine", coined by Wells, is now universally used to refer to a vehicle transporting people into the far future.
But could time travel actually be possible? Some scientists say yes, in theory. They propose using cracks in time and space called “wormholes”, which could be used as shortcuts to other periods. Einstein’s theory of relativity allows time travel in extreme circumstances. And British physicist Stephen Hawking says you could travel into the future with a really fast spaceship going at nearly the speed of light. Though building such a spaceship would of course be no simple task.
Even if you could travel into the past, there is something called the “grandfather paradox”. It asks what would happen if a time traveler were to go back in time and have his own grandfather killed for some reason, and therefore prevent himself from being born. If the time traveler wasn’t born, how would he travel back in time?
And would you really like to visit the future? In H.G. Wells’ book, the main character travels into distant time where he arrives at a beach and is attacked by giant crabs. He then voyages 30 million years into the future where the only living thing is a black object with tentacles(触角).
If that’s what’s in store, maybe we are better just living in the present day after all.
1.The novel The Time Machine mentioned in Paragraph 2 aims to show ______.
A. the contribution of H.G .Wells B. the story’s different features
C. the long history of time travel D. people’s interest in time machine
2.Einstein’s and Hawking’s theories _____.
A. suggest the possibility to invent the time machine
B. push the invention of the first spaceship
C. have proved wrong by some time travelers
D. have similarities in many way
3.In Paragraph 4, “grandfather paradox” probably refers to the idea that ______.
A. the traveler is prevented from meeting his grandfather
B. the grandfather’s death makes the traveler’s birth impossible
C. the traveler goes back in time to seek for his grandfather
D. the reunion of the traveler and his grandfather brings happiness
4.According to the passage, what is probably the author’s attitude towards time travel?
A. Skeptical. B. Unclear.
C. Supportive. D. Unconcerned.
Confidence Comes From Treating Others As Equals
There's been recent discussion over Chinese attitudes toward foreigners，caused by another quarrel between a foreigner and a taxi driver．According to the studies described in the Oxford Handbook of Chinese Psychology，Chinese have lower self﹣confidence compared to Westerners．Yet does the result still apply to the Chinese people today？
Yes and no．For the moment，different attitudes toward foreigners can still be found in China's society，with some displaying low self﹣confidence like "Foreigners are awesome （令人敬畏的），and Western countries are awesome．We should respect them and be as polite as possible，and shouldn't let them look down on us，" and a few unfriendly opinions such as "Some foreigners are rude and disrespectful，and their level of civility （礼貌） is far behind China."
Chinese used to be lacking in self﹣confidence．It might start from the modern history，after the failure in the Opium wars，and the following humiliation （耻辱） of being bullied （被欺负） and brought to their knees by Western guns．And the dark history is still to some extent affecting our mentality （心态） today．
For some time，the Western world represents the best of everything in some Chinese eyes．But our state of mind is gradually changing．When asked "What makes you feel proud of your country？" in school classes in China，answers vary from the World Expo to the Olympic Games，from athletes to astronauts，from the mushrooming skyscrapers to busy metropolises，which have all filled us with growing self﹣confidence．
While answering the question "Since China is so good today and Chinese people are more confident，why are an increasing number of Chinese emigrating abroad？" Zhang Weiwei，a professor at Fudan University，replied that at least 70 percent of Chinese migrants （移民） become more patriotic （爱国的） after leaving their home country，no matter whether they have become a naturalized citizen of another nation or not．Such result and experiences are much more convincing and have better effect than dozens of "patriotic education" classes．
There is no reason for us not to be self﹣confident．We live in the world's second﹣largest economy．Chinese net financial assets per capita （人均纯金融资产） and the purchasing power of people have seen a sharp rise，with more and more people starting to purchase works of art，instead of only necessities．These all indicate a rising standard of life and self﹣confidence．
Nevertheless，the point of the changing attitudes toward ourselves or other countries is not realizing other nations are better or worse than China，but treating them like how we treat our fellow Chinese．That is what confidence means，not being condescending （屈尊），not worshiping，but looking each other in the eye with trust and respect．
1.According to the text，what are the Chinese attitudes toward foreigners today？
A. They have various attitudes toward foreigners．
B. They think the foreigners are always rude．
C. They always speak highly of the foreigners．
D. They believe foreigners are just common people．
2.Chinese used to lack self﹣confidence because ．
A. They thought the foreigners were mysterious．
B. They used to think themselves less powerful．
C. They were deeply influenced by the dark history．
D. They once believed foreigners were awesome．
3.According to Zhang Weiwei，most Chinese migrants ．
A. desire to be a citizen of another nation
B. develop a stronger love for their home country
C. are unwilling to return to their motherland
D. serve as bad examples in patriotic education
4.What's the main idea of the passage？
A. Chinese should be proud of the great achievement of their country．
B. Chinese have enough confidence to make greater progress．
C. Chinese have a lower self﹣confidence faced with foreigners．
D. Chinese should be confident and take the foreigners as equals．
Two of the saddest words in the English language are “if only”. I live my life with the goal of never having to say those words, because they convey regret, lost opportunities, mistakes, and disappointment.
My father is famous in our family for saying, “Take the extra minute to do it right.” I always try to live by the “extra minute” rule. When my children were young and likely to cause accidents, I always thought about what I could do to avoid an “if only” moment, whether it was something minor like moving a cup full of hot coffee away from the edge of a counter, or something that required a little more work such as taping padding (衬垫) onto the sharp corners of a glass coffee table.
I don’t only avoid those “if only” moments when it comes to safety. It’s equally important to avoid “if only” in our personal relationships. We all know people who lost a loved one and regretted that they had foregone an opportunity to say “I love you” or “I forgive you.” When my father announced he was going to the eye doctor across from my office on Good Friday, I told him that it was a holiday for my company and I wouldn’t be here. But then I thought about the fact that he’s 84 years old and I realized that I shouldn’t give up an opportunity to see him. I called him and told him I had decided to go to work on my day off after all.
I know there will still be occasions when I have to say “if only” about something, but my life is definitely better because of my policy of doing everything possible to avoid that eventuality. And even though it takes an extra minute to do something right, or it occasionally takes an hour or two in my busy schedule to make a personal connection, I know that I’m doing the right thing. I’m buying myself peace of mind and that’s the best kind of insurance for my emotional well-being.
1.Which of the following is an example of the “extra minute” rule?
A. Start the car the moment everyone is seated.
B. Leave the room for a minute with the iron working.
C. Move an object out of the way before it trips someone.
D. Wait for an extra minute so that the steak tastes better.
2.The author decided to go to her office on Good Friday to ______.
A. meet her father who was already an old man
B. keep her appointment with the eye doctor
C. join in the holiday celebration of the company
D. finish her work before the deadline approached
3.The underlined word “foregone” in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to ______.
A. wasted B. lacked
C. avoided D. abandoned
4.What is the best title for the passage?
A. The Two Saddest Words. B. The Emotional Well-being.
C. The Most Useful Rule. D. The Peace of Mind.
假定你是李华。你的留学生朋友Tom以前成绩很优秀。但由于骄傲和懒惰，最近他的成绩一落千丈。就此请你用英语给他写一封电子邮件，内容包括：
1. 进行安慰；
2. 给出劝告（不要骄傲，不忘初心）；
3. 具体建议（努力复习，制定学习计划）
注意：1. 总词数100左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
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