Question

    How often do you sit still and do absolutely nothing? The usual answer these days is “never” or “hardly ever”. As the pace of life continues to increase, we are fast losing the art of relaxation. Once you are in the habit of rushing through life, being on the go from morning till night, it is hard to slow down. But relaxation is essential for a healthy mind and body.

Stress is a natural part of everyday life. There is no way to avoid it, since it takes many and varied forms-driving in traffic, problems with personal relationships are all different forms of stress. Stress, in fact, is not the “baddy” it is often reputed to be. A certain amount of stress is vital to provide motivation and give purpose to life. It is only when the stress gets out of control that it can lead to poor performance and ill health.

The amount of stress a person can withstand depends very much on the individual. Some people are not afraid of stress, and such characters are obviously prime material for managerial responsibilities. Others lose heart at the first sight of unusual difficulties. When exposed to stress, in whatever form, we react both chemically and physically. In fact we make a choice between “fight” and “fright” and in more primitive days the choice made the difference between life and death. The crisis we meet today are unlikely to be so extreme, but however little the stress, it involves the same response. All the energy is shifted to cope with the stress. It is when such a reaction lasts long, through continued exposure to stress, that health becomes endangered. Such serious conditions as high blood pressure and heart disease have established links with stress.

Stress in some people produces stomach disorders, while others experience tension headaches. Since we cannot remove stress from our lives, we need to find ways to cope with it.

1.People are finding less and less time for relaxing themselves because they are ________.

A.often too busy to find the time B.working harder than they used to

C.suffering from the effects of stress D.not clear of how to relax by themselves

2.What is implied but not stated in the passage?

A.The art of relaxation can greatly help people bear stress.

B.People in primitive days know certain ways to deal with stress.

C.Stress can lead to serious health problem if one is exposed to it for too long.

D.If one gets into the habit of relaxing every day he can overcome stress easily.

3.The underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 suggests that stress ________.

A.is not always a bad thing for people B.is always harmful to people all the time

C.has a bad reputation of causing ill health D.never makes people feel bad

4.What can we learn from the passage?

A.Large amounts of stress is important to people’s life.

B.Different people can stand different amounts of stress.

C.All the stress can lead to poor performance.

D.Relaxation in life only benefits us mentally.

5.What is the writer’s attitude to stress according to the passage?

A.Stress should not be rid completely from the life.

B.People usually work better under stress if they are healthy.

C.Stress produces both positive and negative effects on people.

D.Stress as well as relaxation is essential for a healthy mind and body.

Answer

1.A

2.D

3.A

4.B

5.C

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章讲的是压力。压力是我们生活的一部分，我们不可能完全摆脱压力。适当的压力对人们的健康有益，只有当压力达到极限时，才会导致身体的不适，甚至带来疾病。我们应该养成锻炼身体的习惯，在工作之余学会放松。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段中Once you are in the habit of rushing through life, being on the go from morning till night, it is hard to slow down.可知，一旦你养成了匆忙生活的习惯，从早到晚都在忙碌，就很难放慢脚步。由此可知，人们找到越来越少的时间来放松自己，因为他们经常太忙而找不到时间。故选A。

2.推理判断题。根据第一段可知，一旦养成一天到晩忙碌的习惯，就会很难放缓下来，压力也会随之而来。相反，养成放松的习惯，压力就会得到缓解。由此可推知，如果一个人养成了每天放松的习惯，他就能很容易地克服压力。故选D。

3.词义猜测题。根据后文A certain amount of stress is vital to provide motivation and give purpose to life.可知一定的压力对于提供动力和赋予生活目标是至关重要的。由此可知，第二段划线的句子表明，压力对人来说并不总是坏事。故选A。

4.细节理解题。根据第三段第一句The amount of stress a person can withstand depends very much on the individual.可知一个人能承受的压力在很大程度上取决于个人。由此可知，一个人能承受的压力的量是因人而异的。故选B。

5.推理判断题。根据第二段中A certain amount of stress is vital to provide motivation and give purpose to life. It is only when the stress gets out of control that it can lead to poor performance and ill health.可知一定的压力对于提供动力和赋予生活目标是至关重要的。只有当压力失去控制时，才会导致糟糕的表现和健康问题。由此可推知，作者认为压力对人们产生了积极和消极的影响。故选C。