Has the volume(音量)in a restaurant ever nude you finish your meal early? If so, you're not alone. Restaurants handle diners in various ways to influence food choices and consumption, from lighting to menu to server presentation. Unfortunately for those headache-prone restaurant goers, some places also choose to turn up the tunes and the background noise.
Chef Mario Batali is often blamed for the phenomenon of ultra-loud or noisy restaurants in the 1990s, when he decided to flood the dining room with the same loud tunes he was playing in his kitchen. And other chefs followed suit. Some restaurateurs felt a "livelier" atmosphere encouraged more customers, but a side "benefit" was quicker table turnover, thus increasing the number of people who could dine in a specific evening.
A 1985 study out of Fairfield University looked at how chewing speed varied according to the type of music being played. Although the volume level was kept the same for both musical situations, it's important to note that fast-tempo(节奏)music often gives the impression of being louder than slower music.
"A significant increase in the number of bites per minute was found, and the effect was largest for fast music," the researchers wrote in the study. So, the faster, louder music gets people to down their food more quickly, relieving the table for future customers.
There're opinions about whether or not this is a sound practice. "A restaurant that places profit above dining experience often plays loud music with a fast tempo that puts diners under pressure to eat more quickly, even if that means they're less able to enjoy their meal," writes Dr. Neel Burton in Psychology Today, adding that loud, fast music reduces appetite.
What's more, some would-be repeat diners will shy away for fear of another ultra-loud meal. The non-profit group Action on Hearing Loss found in a 2016 survey of nearly 1,500 people that 91% of those who view a restaurant as too noisy would choose not to return.
1.Why did some bosses of the restaurants favour loud music?
A.It might help attract more customers.
B.It was the favorite kind of music of them.
C.It made the restaurants softer and sweeter.
D.It could increase the popularity of their restaurants
2.What plays the most important role in the effect of music on diners?
A.Its content. B.Its length.
C.Its speed. D.Its quality.
3.What is Dr. Neel Burton's attitude towards flooding restaurants with noisy music?
A.Doubtful. B.Disapproving.
C.Positive. D.Uncaring
4.What could be a suitable title for the text?
A.What People Think of Loud Restaurants
B.Are Customers Made to Eat Quickly?
C.Why Loud Restaurants Are Popular Today
D.Does Loud Music Really Benefit Restaurants?
As I was leaving the gym last week, I greeted a friend who was coming in. He responded without looking up from his phone. I stood there for a few awkward seconds, hoping for eye contact. He finally looked up briefly, apologetically, before returning to the screen. I walked on, feeling shaken.
It turns out I was phubbed, which is a term for snubbing(冷落)someone in favor of a phone. And research has found that phubbing does have negative (消极的)impacts on personal relationships, reducing the quality of communication and level of satisfaction.
Recently I've noticed that it's impossible to go out with friends and have their attention for the whole time, There're always phones on the table, and they're constantly being checked. When the slightest pause in conversation arises, or if someone gets up from the table briefly, people seize their phones to check in with the rest of the world to see what else is going On.
It used to be that going out together was confidence-boosting solid reassurance(安慰)that another person enjoyed your company, otherwise they wouldn't accept but not now. Now, you're constantly attracting attention，competing with a portable supercomputer. When someone is looking at their phone, you're never sure if they actually want to be with you.
The modern-day equivalent of this is scrolling(滚屏)and texting. Although I didn't realize it at the time, I was trying for connection with the friend, who was attracted by it refusing to put away his phone and made me feel awful.
I don't want to be that person. I don't want my actions to make anyone feel the way I did that day. So from now on I'm going to make a point of not letting digital distractions damage the relationships I hold so dear. It's not worth it. Nothing on that screen is ever more important than the person standing right in front of me.
1.Why does the author describe his greeting with a friend in the gym last week?
A.To introduce what phubbing is. B.To show the misuse of phones.
C.To draw the readers' attention. D.To voice his opinion about phubbing.
2.What is the third paragraph mainly about?
A.Phones are bad for communication. B.Phones are used widely in the world.
C.Phubbing is making people suffer. D.Phubbing is a common phenomenon.
3.What will happen when you're snubbing someone according to the author?
A.People will enjoy your company. B.You will lose the trust of others.
C.You will damage others' confidence. D.People will feel truly connected.
4.What does the word "it" underlined in paragraph 5 refer to?
A.Being companied. B.Scrolling and texting.
C.The table. D.The phone.
Four Citizen-science Projects
Climate change is difficult to handle. but this doesn't mean people are just sitting on the sidelines waiting for the unavoidable. Everyone can join in fighting climate change. Scistarter and Zooniverse are two websites that list citizen-science projects in which you can take part. Here are some of them:
·MeadoWatch
This project, out of the University of Washington, is looking at how climate change is affecting wildflowers on Mount Rainier. Volunteers collect data along hiking tracks about when wildflowers bud. flower, fruit and produce seeds. The project is also collecting photos of wildflowers from across Mount Rainier National Park.
·Great Backyard Bird Count
For four days every February, volunteers around the world count birds in 15 minutes. These observations can be made anywhere, including your own backyard. The counts provide scientists snapshots of data on where birds are found and how many there are. Since the count has been going on for over 20 years, researchers can now answer questions about how these patterns may be changing with time.
·Water Monitoring in Minnesota
Residents(居民)of Minnesota can sign up to be a volunteer water monitor for the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. Volunteers are arranged to a lake or stream. Twice a month during the summer, they take measurements of water clarity. Those data let the government see whether water clarity has been changing over time as well as assess the health of those waterways.
·Redmap
Gretta Peel is a marine(海的)ecologist in Australia at the University of Tasmania in Hobart. She studies where marine species(物种)are moving in response to climate change. She set up a program called Redmap. It asks people to report "uncommon" marine species they've seen in Australian waters. "We wanted to have an early indication of what species were moving where they live,” she explains.
1.Which project should be most appealing to people interested in wildflowers?
A.Redmap. B.Meado Watch.
C.Great Backyard Bird Count. D.Water Monitoring in Minnesota.
2.What are you required to do if you take part in Water Monitoring in Minnesota?
A.Educate local people on bird behavior.
B.Explore causes of your local climate problems.
C.Collect relevant data and even report them.
D.Protect the local water from pollution.
3.What is the similarity among the four projects?
A.They are started by famous universities.
B.They aim to raise environmental awareness.
C.They are mainly open to environmentalists
D.They focus on fighting climate change.
假定你是李华，来自美国的文化交流团将来你所在的社区参观，你负责接待工作。请你用英语写一份欢迎辞，向他们介绍你们的社区生活。
注意：1. 词数100左右；
2. 可适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
参考词汇：社区 community
Dear guests，
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阅读下列短文并回答问题。
Have you had a headache during a test? Have you ever been so worried about something that you have a headache or even can't sleep at night? If so, then you know what stress is. Stress is what you feel when you are worried about something. This worry in your mind can make your body feel bad. You may feel angry, sad, scared, or afraid — all these can give you a stomachache or a headache.
However, there are different kinds of stress. Some kinds of stress are good and others are bad. Good stress might happen when you're called to answer questions in class or when you have to give a speech. This kind of stress can help you to get things better done. For example, you may do a better job on your test if the stress pushes you to prepare better before the test.
On the other hand, bad stress can happen if the stress lasts too long. You may not feel well if your parents are fighting, if a family member is sick, if you're having problems at school, or if anything else makes you unhappy every day. That kind of stress isn't going to help you. And it can actually make you sick.
The best way to fight the stress is to have a balanced life. Make sure you keep yourself in mind: sleep, exercise, leisure (休闲), and food. If you get enough sleep and eat properly, and if you exercise and leave time for fun, you'll probably feel less stressed.
1.What is stress according to the text? (No more than 15 words.)
2.Why are some kinds of stress good? (No more than 15 words.)
3.What’s the main idea of paragraph 3? (No more than 10 words.)
4.List four things that can keep you away from stress according to the text? (No more than 8 words.)
5.How do you solve it when you are very stressed? (No more than 15 words.)
Earlier this month, 6-year-old Isaac went on vacation to Fort Walton, Florida, with his family. While there, his mother Garrett learned about LuLu, a restaurant that offers food to customers with food allergies (过敏症).
At LuLu, Isaac could eat a salad and roast chicken with rice. ''Isaac looked at me as if he was asking me, 'Is this OK? ''' Garrett said. Once his mom gave the OK, Isaac enjoyed for the first time the experience of ordering and eating at a restaurant. ''That look on his face seemed to show that this was the coolest thing he had ever done. '' Garrett said.
Garrett and her family hardly go out to restaurants because of Isaac's food allergies. When they go out, she cooks something for Isaac at home before they leave and brings it with her to the restaurant. ''It's not fun and it feels unfair.'' Isaac said.
Their night at LuLu marked a celebration for Isaac. Isaac felt terribly fulfilled because of eating at the restaurant. Garrett shared the moment on the restaurant's Facebook page to thank them for helping her son. ''Thank you from the bottom of my heart for giving him this experience.'' she wrote in her post.
Barnett, the restaurant's manager said, ''When customers tell the staff that someone in their group has a food allergy, I help with the order by passing it to the kitchen, ensuring it's cooked in a separate station and offering the finished food to the guests. We have been improving this process over the last 10 years since our allergy program was started.''
On Garrett’s Facebook post, LuLu thanked Garrett for sharing her story. ''Thank you for sharing your experience with us. '' the restaurant wrote in a comment. ''We are excited to see your son so happy!''
Garrett is hoping her post's popularity will make other restaurants, especially the places near her family's home about 30 minutes away from Mashville, provide such a service. ''LuLu offers quality services to the guests with food allergies. Nothing would make us happier than that.'' She said.
1.Why do Garrett and her family hardly eat out at restaurants?
A.Because they are on a low income.
B.Because Garrett likes cooking herself.
C.Because Isaac easily suffers from food allergies.
D.Because they consider the food in restaurants unhealthy.
2.What does Garrett usually do when her family go to eat at a restaurant?
A.She leaves her son alone at home.
B.She orders some special food for her son.
C.She lets her son choose his favorite dishes.
D.She prepares some food for her son ahead of time.
3.What does the underlined word ''fulfilled'' in Paragraph 4 most probably mean?
A.Satisfied. B.Disappointed.
C.Moved. D.Embarrassed.
4.What will Barnett do when guests with allergies come to dinner?
A.He will help them order food.
B.He will offer services to them first.
C.He will provide private room for them.
D.He will introduce their allergy program.
5.What moved Garrett deeply?
A.LuLu's response to her post.
B.Her son's experience at LuLu.
C.LuLu's concern for the guests with allergies.
D.More restaurants' following in LuLu's steps.
