Failure is probably the most exhausting experience a person ever has. There is nothing more tiring than not succeeding.
We experience this tiredness in two ways: as start-up fatigue(疲惫) and performance fatigue. In the former case, we keep putting off a task because it has either too boring or too difficult. And the longer we delay it, the more tired we feel.
Such start-up fatigue is very real, even if not actually physical, not something in our muscles and bones. The solution is obvious though perhaps not easy to apply: always handle the most difficult job first.
Years ago, I was asked to write 102 essays on the great ideas of some famous authors. Applying my own rule, I determined to write them in alphabetical(按字母顺序), never letting myself leave out a tough idea. And I always started the day’s work with the difficult task of essay-writing. Experience proved that the rule works.
Performance fatigue is more difficult to handle. Though willing to get started, we cannot seem to do the job right. Its difficulties appear so great that, however hard we work, we fail again and again. In such a situation, I work as hard as I can-then let the unconscious take over.
When planning Encyclopaedia Britannica (《大英百科全书》), I had to create a table of contents based on the topics of its articles. Nothing like this had ever been done before, and day after day I kept coming up with solutions, but none of them worked. My fatigue became almost unbearable.
One day, mentally exhausted, I wrote down all the reasons why this problem could not be solved. I tried to convince myself that the trouble was with the problem itself, not with me. Relived, I sat back in an easy chair and fell asleep.
An hour later, I woke up suddenly with the solution clearly in mind. In the weeks that followed, the solution which had come up in my unconscious mind provided correct at every step. Though I worked as hard as before, I felt no fatigue. Success was now as exciting as failure had been depressing.
Human beings, I believe must try to succeed. Success, then, means never feeling tired.
1.People with start-up fatigue are most likely to ________.
A.delay tasks B.work hard
C.seek help D.accept failure
2.What does the author recommend doing to prevent start-up fatigue?
A.Writing essays in strict order.
B.Building up physical strength.
C.Leaving out the toughest ideas.
D.Dealing with the hardest task first.
3.On what occasion does a person probably suffer from performance fatigue?
A.Before starting a difficult task.
B.When all the solutions fail.
C.If the job is rather boring.
D.After finding a way out.
4.According to the author, the unconscious mind may help us ________.
A.ignore mental problems B.get some nice sleep
C.gain complete relief D.find the right solution
5.What could be the best title for the passage?
A.Success Is Built upon Failure
B.How to Handle Performance Fatigue
C.Getting over Fatigue: A Way to Success
D.Fatigue: An Early Sign of Health Problems
When John was growing up, other kids felt sorry for him. His parents always had him weeding the garden, carrying out the garbage and delivering newspapers. But when John reached adulthood, he was better off than his childhood playmates. He had more job satisfaction, a better marriage and was healthier. Most of all, he was happier. Far happier.
These are the findings of a 40-year study that followed the lives of 456 teenage boys from Boston. The study showed that those who had worked as boys enjoyed happier and more productive lives than those who had not. ＂Boys who worked in the home or community gained competence(能力) and came to feel they were worthwhile members of society,＂ said George Vaillant, the psychologist(心理学家) who made the discovery. ＂And because they felt good about themselves, others felt good about them.＂
Vaillant’s study followed these males in great detail. Interviews were repeated at ages 25,31 and 47. Under Vaillant, the researchers compared the men’s mental-health scores with their boyhood-activity scores. Points were awarded for part-time jobs, housework, effort in school, and ability to deal with problems.
The link between what the men had done as boys and how they turned out as adults was surprisingly sharp. Those who had done the most boyhood activities were twice as likely to have warm relations with a wide variety of people, five times as likely to be well paid and 16 times less likely to have been unemployed. The researchers also found that IQ and family social and economic class made no real difference in how the boys turned out.
Working — at any age — is important. Childhood activities help a child develop responsibility, independence, confidence and competence — the underpinnings(基础) of emotional health. They also help him understand that people must cooperate and work toward common goals. The most competent adults are those who know how to do this. Yet work isn’t everything. As Tolstoy once said, ＂One can live magnificently in this world if one knows how to work and how to love, to work for the person one loves and to love one’s work.＂
1.What do we know about John?
A.He enjoyed his career and marriage.
B.He had few childhood playmates.
C.He received little love from his family.
D.He was envied by others in his childhood.
2.Vaillant’s words in Paragraph 2 serve as .
A.a description of personal values and social values
B.an analysis of how work was related to competence
C.an example for parents’ expectations of their children
D.an explanation why some boys grew into happy men
3.Vaillant’s team obtained their findings by .
A.recording the boys’ effort in school
B.evaluating the men’s mental health
C.comparing different sets of scores
D.measuring the men’s problem solving ability
4.What does the underlined word ＂sharp＂ probably mean in Paragraph 4?
A.Quick to react. B.Having a thin edge.
C.Clear and definite. D.Sudden and rapid.
5.What can be inferred from the last paragraph?
A.Competent adults know more about love than work.
B.Emotional health is essential to a wonderful adult life.
C.Love brings more joy to people than work does.
D.Independence is the key to one’s success.
Why College Is Not Home
The college years are supposed to be a time for important growth in autonomy(自主性) and the development of adult identity. However, now they are becoming an extended period of adolescence, during which many of today’s students are not shouldered with adult responsibilities.
For previous generations, college was a decisive break from parental control; guidance and support needed to come from people of the same age and from within. In the past two decades, however, continued connection with and dependence on family, thanks to cell phones, email and social media, have increased significantly. Some parents go so far as to help with coursework. Instead of promoting the idea of college as a passage from the shelter of the family to autonomy and adult responsibility, universities have given in to the idea that they should provide the same environment as that of the home.
To prepare for increased autonomy and responsibility, college needs to be a time of exploration and experimentation. This process involves ＂trying on＂ new ways of thinking about oneself both intellectually(在思维方面)and personally. While we should provide ＂safe spaces＂ within colleges, we must also make it safe to express opinions and challenge majority views. Intellectual growth and flexibility are fostered by strict debate and questioning.
Learning to deal with the social world is equally important. Because a college community(群体) differs from the family, many students will struggle to find a sense of belonging. If students rely on administrators to regulate their social behavior and thinking pattern, they are not facing the challenge of finding an identity within a larger and complex community.
Moreover, the tendency for universities to monitor and shape student behavior runs up against another characteristic of young adults: the response to being controlled by their elders. If acceptable social behavior is too strictly defined(规定) and controlled, the insensitive or aggressive behavior that administrators are seeking to minimize may actually be encouraged.
It is not surprising that young people are likely to burst out, particularly when there are reasons to do so. Our generation once joined hands and stood firm at times of national emergency. What is lacking today is the conflict between adolescents’ desire for autonomy and their understanding of an unsafe world. Therefore, there is the desire for their dorms to be replacement homes and not places to experience intellectual growth.
Every college discussion about community values, social climate and behavior should include recognition of the developmental importance of student autonomy and self-regulation, of the necessary tension between safety and self-discovery.
1.What’s the author’s attitude toward continued parental guidance to college students?
A.Sympathetic. B.Disapproving.
C.Supportive. D.Neutral.
2.The underlined word ＂passage＂ in Paragraph 2 means___________.
A.change B.choice
C.text D.extension
3.According to the author, what role should college play?
A.To develop a shared identity among students.
B.To define and regulate students’ social behavior.
C.To provide a safe world without tension for students.
D.To foster students’ intellectual and personal development.
4.Which of the following shows the development of ideas in the passage?
A.
B.
C.
D.
December 15, 2014
Dear Alfred，
I want to tell you how important your help is to my life.
Growing up, I had people telling me I was too slow, though, with an IQ of 150+ at 17, I’m anything but stupid. The fact was that I was found to have ADHD(注意力缺陷多动障碍). Anxious all the time, I was unable to keep focused for more than an hour at a time.
However, when something did interest me, I could become absorbed. In high school, I became curious about the computer, and built my first website. Moreover, I completed the senior course of Computer Basics, plus five relevant pre-college courses.
While I was exploring my curiosity, my disease got worse. I wanted to go to college after high school, but couldn’t . So, I was killing my time at home until June 2012 when I discovered the online computer courses of your training center.
Since then, I have taken courses like Data Science and Advanced Mathematics. Currently, I’m learning your Probability course. I have hundreds of printer paper, covered in self-written notes from your video. This has given me a purpose.
Last year, I spent all my time looking for a job where, without dealing with the public , I could work alone, but still have a team to talk to. Luckily, I discovered the job—Data Analyst—this month and have been going full steam ahead. I want to prove that I can teach myself a respectful profession, without going to college, and be just as good as, if not better than, my competitors.
Thank you. You’ve given me hope that I can follow my heart. For the first time, I feel good about myself because I’m doing something, not because someone told me I was doing good. I feel whole.
This is why you’re saving my life.
Yours,
Tanis
1.why did’t Tanis go to college after high school?
A.She had learned enough about computer science
B.She had more difficulty keeping focused
C.She preferred taking online courses
D.She was too slow to learn
2.As for the working environment, Tains prefers____.
A.working by herself
B.dealing with the public
C.competing against others
D.staying with ADHD students
3.Tanis wrote this letter in order to_____.
A.explain why she was interested in the computer
B.share the ideas she had for her profession
C.show how grateful she was to the center
D.describe the courses she had taken so far
If you are a fruit grower — or would like to become one — take advantage of Apple Day to see what’s around. It’s called Apple Day but in practice it’s more like Apple Month. The day itself is on October 21, but since it has caught on, events now spread out over most of October around Britain.
Visiting an apple event is a good chance to see, and often taste, a wide variety of apples. To people who are used to the limited choice of apples such as Golden Delicious and Royal Gala in supermarkets, it can be quite an eye opener to see the range of classical apples still in existence, such as Decio which was grown by the Romans. Although it doesn’t taste of anything special, it’s still worth a try, as is the knobbly(多疙瘩的) Cat’s Head which is more of a curiosity than anything else.
There are also varieties developed to suit specific local conditions. One of the very best varieties for eating quality is Orleans Reinette, but you’ll need a warm, sheltered place with perfect soil to grow it, so it’s a pipe dream for most apple lovers who fall for it.
At the events, you can meet expert growers and discuss which ones will best suit your conditions, and because these are family affairs, children are well catered for with apple-themed fun and games.
Apple Days are being held at all sorts of places with an interest in fruit, including stately gardens and commercial orchards(果园). If you want to have a real orchard experience, try visiting the National Fruit Collection at Brogdale, near Faversham in Kent.
1.What can people do at the apple events?
A.Attend experts’ lectures.
B.Visit fruit-loving families.
C.Plant fruit trees in an orchard.
D.Taste many kinds of apples.
2.What can we learn about Decio?
A.It is a new variety.
B.It has a strange look.
C.It is rarely seen now.
D.It has a special taste.
3.What does the underlined phrase “a pipe dream” in Paragraph 3 mean?
A.A practical idea.
B.A vain hope.
C.A brilliant plan.
D.A selfish desire.
4.What is the author’s purpose in writing the text?
A.To show how to grow apples.
B.To introduce an apple festival.
C.To help people select apples.
D.To promote apple research.
On one of her trips to New York several years ago, Eudora Welty decided to take a couple of New York friends out to dinner. They settled in at a comfortable East Side cafe and within minutes, another customer was approaching their table.
“Hey, aren’t you from Mississippi?” the elegant, white-haired writer remembered being asked by the stranger. “I’m from Mississippi too.”
Without a second thought, the woman joined the Welty party. When her dinner partner showed up, she also pulled up a chair.
“They began telling me all the news of Mississippi,” Welty said. “I didn’t know what my New York friends were thinking.”
Taxis on a rainy New York night are rarer than sunshine. By the time the group got up to leave, it was pouring outside. Welty’s new friends immediately sent a waiter to find a cab. Heading back downtown toward her hotel, her big-city friends were amazed at the turn of events that had changed their Big Apple dinner into a Mississippi.
“My friends said: ‘Now we believe your stories,’” Welty added. “And I said: ‘Now you know. These are the people that make me write them.’”
Sitting on a sofa in her room, Welty, a slim figure in a simple gray dress, looked pleased with this explanation.
“I don’t make them up,” she said of the characters in her fiction these last 50 or so years. “I don’t have to.”
Beauticians, bartenders, piano players and people with purple hats, Welty’s people come from afternoons spent visiting with old friends, from walks through the streets of her native Jackson, Miss., from conversations overheard on a bus. It annoys Welty that, at 78, her left ear has now given out. Sometimes, sitting on a bus or a train, she hears only a fragment(片段) of a particularly interesting story.
1.What happened when Welty was with her friends at the cafe?
A.Two strangers joined her.
B.Her childhood friends came in.
C.A heavy rain ruined the dinner.
D.Some people held a party there.
2.The underlined word “them” in Paragraph 6 refers to Welty’s ________.
A.readers B.parties
C.friends D.stories
3.What can we learn about the characters in Welty’s fiction?
A.They live in big cities.
B.They are mostly women.
C.They come from real life.
D.They are pleasure seekers.
