Many of us feel uneasy when someone stands too close to us, talks to us too loudly or makes eye contact(接触) with us for too long. But have you ever wondered why those things make you uncomfortable?

     It’s all about personal peace, which means not only an imaginary space around the body, but also the space around all the senses. People feel that their space is being violated(侵犯) when they meet with an unwelcome sound, smell or look. This is probably why a man on a crowded bus shouting into his mobile phone or a woman next to you putting on strong perfume(香水) makes you feel angry.

     Whether people have had a stronger wish to protect their personal space in recent times is hard to say. Yet studies of airlines show that people have a strong desire(渴望) to have space to themselves. In a survey by TripAdvisor, a travel website, people said that if they had to pay more for some extra service, they would rather have larger seats than extra food.

     Although people may need their personal space, some hardly realize it. For example, people on a bus who hold newspapers in front of their faces to read in fact keep a distance from strangers.

     Go and watch a library table. You will notice that one of the corner seats will usually be taken first, because they are the farthest way. What if someone sits opposite to you? Maybe you will pile up books as if to make a wall.

     Preference(偏好) for personal space are different from culture to culture. Scientists have found that Americans generally prefer more personal space than people from other cultures. In Latin(拉丁人的) cultures, however, people are more comfortable standing close to each other.

1.The writer mainly _________ in this article.

A. tells us how to achieve personal space

B. explains why people need personal space

C. introduces some knowledge about personal space

D. argues for the importance of keeping personal space

2.Who might feel his personal space is safe according to the passage?

A. A person who has to sit next to a lady putting on strong perfume.

B. A person who has been watched by a stranger for a long time.

C. A person who hears strange noises when reading at home.

D. A Latin boy who is chatting with a friend sitting close to him.

3.What can we know from the survey by TripAdvisor?

A. People need a smaller personal space in recent times than before.

B. People have a strong desire for personal space in recent times.

C. There are not enough seats on the plane to meet people’s needs.

D. Food service is better provided than seats on the plane.

4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. The space around the body is more needed than that around all the senses.

B. If you hold newspapers on the bus, your personal space won’t be violated.

C. People usually choose the corner seats first in a library for personal space.

D. Different cultures share the same preferences for personal space.

 

     Many of us feel uneasy when someone stands too close to us, talks to us too loudly or makes eye contact(接触) with us for too long. But have you ever wondered why those things make you uncomfortable?

     It’s all about personal peace, which means not only an imaginary space around the body, but also the space around all the senses. People feel that their space is being violated(侵犯) when they meet with an unwelcome sound, smell or look. This is probably why a man on a crowded bus shouting into his mobile phone or a woman next to you putting on strong perfume(香水) makes you feel angry.

     Whether people have had a stronger wish to protect their personal space in recent times is hard to say. Yet studies of airlines show that people have a strong desire(渴望) to have space to themselves. In a survey by TripAdvisor, a travel website, people said that if they had to pay more for some extra service, they would rather have larger seats than extra food.

     Although people may need their personal space, some hardly realize it. For example, people on a bus who hold newspapers in front of their faces to read in fact keep a distance from strangers.

     Go and watch a library table. You will notice that one of the corner seats will usually be taken first, because they are the farthest way. What if someone sits opposite to you? Maybe you will pile up books as if to make a wall.

     Preference(偏好) for personal space are different from culture to culture. Scientists have found that Americans generally prefer more personal space than people from other cultures. In Latin(拉丁人的) cultures, however, people are more comfortable standing close to each other.

32. The writer mainly _________ in this article.

A. tells us how to achieve personal space

B. explains why people need personal space

C. introduces some knowledge about personal space

D. argues for the importance of keeping personal space

33. Who might feel his personal space is safe according to the passage?

A. A person who has to sit next to a lady putting on strong perfume.

B. A person who has been watched by a stranger for a long time.

C. A person who hears strange noises when reading at home.

D. A Latin boy who is chatting with a friend sitting close to him.

34. What can we know from the survey by TripAdvisor?

A. People need a smaller personal space in recent times than before.

B. People have a strong desire for personal space in recent times.

C. There are not enough seats on the plane to meet people’s needs.

D. Food service is better provided than seats on the plane.

35. Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. The space around the body is more needed than that around all the senses.

B. If you hold newspapers on the bus, your personal space won’t be violated.

C. People usually choose the corner seats first in a library for personal space.

D. Different cultures share the same preferences for personal space.

Are people less happy or more happy the older they get? If you answered more happy, then you were right, based on a study in 2008. It found that people usually become happier and experience less worry after age fifty. In fact, it found that by the age of eighty-five, people are happier with their life than they were at eighteen.

The results came from a Gallup survey of more than three hundred forty thousand adults in the United States in 2008. At that time, the people were between the ages of eighteen and eighty-five.

Arthur Stone in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at Stony Brook University in New York led the study. His team found that levels of stress were highest among adults between the ages of twenty-two and twenty-five. Stress levels dropped suddenly after people reached their fifties.

Happiness was highest among the youngest adults and those in their seventies. But the people least likely to report feeling negative emotions* were those in their seventies and eighties.

The survey also found that men and women have similar emotional changes as they grow older. However, women at all ages reported more stress and worry than men did.

The researchers also considered possible influences like having young children, losing jobs. But they found influences like these did not affect* the levels of happiness related to* age.

So why would happiness increase with age? One reason is that, as people get older, they become more thankful for what they have and have better controlled of their emotions. They also spend less time thinking about bad experiences.

1We can probably read this passage in a ______.

A. story book                 B. guide book           C. sports newspaper      D. science magazine

2The study in 2008 found that ______.

A. people became happier after age fifty

B. men have more worry than women at all ages

   C. levels of stress were highest by the age of seventy

   D. happiness was highest among the adults between 22 and 25

3 People become happier as they get older because they ______.

   A. have more worry and stress

   B. can control their emotions better

   C. are influenced by having children

D. spend more time thinking about bad experiences

4 The passage is mainly about _________________ .

   A. the ideas to keep happy                      

B. the importance of having a happy life

C. the ways to make a survey on happiness

D. the results of a survey on happiness related to age  

Driving a car at a high speed along a highway seems to be fun. You only need to follow the
bright traffic signs beside the highway and it will take you where you wish to go.
But to a London taxi driver, driving is not an easy job. A taxi driver needs to have not only good driving skills but also a good knowledge of the city of London, from the loneliest street to the popular restaurant around. He has to be at the service of all kinds of passengers (乘客) at all times.
A London taxi driver said the following about his job.
During the night it is usual for him to stop two or three times for some food. He said, “I never drink when I’m working, otherwise I’d lose my license (驾驶执照).”
He normally goes home between two and three o’clock in the morning. There are times he has to stay longer and try to make more runs. He said, “That’s the worst thing about working for yourself. If you don’t make money, no one is going to give it to you. ”
London taxi drivers not only “take” but also “give”. Every summer hundreds of poor children from London go for a day at the sea ― by taxi! There rides are paid by the taxi drivers. At the sea, they are met by the mayor (市长) , and a lunch party is also held for the taxi drivers and the children. After a happy day’s running around the beaches and visiting the market there, the children go home again by taxi, free of charge of course!
【小题1】London taxi drivers try to make more runs sometimes mainly because __________.

A．they make a living by driving

B．they prefer to work for themselves

C．they want to help more passengers

D．they are used to working deep into the night

【小题2】 How do London taxi drivers “give”?

A．They give the poor children a lunch party at he sea each summer.

B．They give poor children the chance to meet the maor.

C．They pay for some poor children’s rides for a day’s tour each summer.

D．They play with some poor children at the sea for a day each summer.

【小题3】Which of the following words can be used to describe London taxi drivers?

A．Brave and careful.	B．Rich and generous
C．Modest and easy-going	D．Hard-working and kind.

【小题4】 The passage is most likely to be found from __________.

A．an advertisement of a taxi company

B．an online travel guide

C．a website about the taxi drivers in London

D．a report about living conditions in London

Everyone has a dream job and we all hope our dreams can come true. Mr Black works as a reporter at a TV station. He wants to know what jobs teenagers are going to do when they grow up. He went to the Evergreen School to do a survey last Friday.
Mr Black asked the students to discuss with each other and then fill in the form with a pen. He told them to tell the truth. Mr Black thought most students would be teachers. The teacher is one of the best professions(职业) in the world. Maybe some students would be scientists. Rich knowledge would help them. A few students would be soldiers(士兵) because they could keep our country beautiful and peaceful.
Teachers helped Mr Black before school was over. They gave out one thousand eight hundred papers to the students. When the survey’s result came out, Mr Black and the teachers were surprised. Please look at the results.

profession	Proportion(%)
actor(actress)	30
scientist	25
teacher	20
Sports player	15
soldier	5
farmer	5

 
【小题1】From the first paragraph, we know this passage may talk about__________.

A．teenagers’ dream jobs

B．Mr Black and his job

C．how dreams come true

D．how to make a survey

【小题2】What does Mr Black do?

A．He is a teacher.	B．He is a reporter.
C．He is a soldier.	D．He is an actor.

【小题3】Why did Mr Black do a survey last Friday?

A．Because he wanted to find a job for himself.

B．Because he wanted to know about students’dream jobs.

C．Because he was always interested in doing a survey.

D．Because he wanted to know how much money teenagers got a week.

【小题4】How many teenagers want to be teachers in the future?

A．90.

B．360.

C．900.

D．1800.