A few things to do during weekends
to improve your life
Weekend at last! Something you’re so looking forward to after a tiring week at work. Here are several tips on how to make the most of your weekends.
Spend time with loved ones. Reconnect with family members or friends you neglected(疏忽) lately. Don’t do it out of guilt or because you have to. Do it because you want to. Reach out to them to see how they are doing. 小题1: Return their calls if you were busy when they last tried to reach you. Talk to them. Listen to them. Be there for them.
 小题2:  Stay away from TV, iPad, iPhone and any other electronic devices. Unplug! Your brain needs to clear up from all the stress you’ve put on yourself during the week. Why not read a book instead? A paper one. Seriously, when was the last time you did that?
Laugh, laugh and laugh again. You can never have enough of it. Laugh is the best medicine ever.小题3: For example, it helps you manage stress, strengthen your immune system and you are 40 percent less likely to suffer a heart attack.
Express appreciation. 小题4: Be grateful for your family, friends, health, the food you put on the table, the clothes you wear and the air that you breathe.
There you are. Doing a few things during weekends will have a positive long-term effect on your life. 小题5:.

A．Apply the “no technology” rule.

B．Pause and pay attention to your thoughts.

C．Friendship is the best source of happiness.

D．Don’t call them only when you need them.

E. Put them into practice and you’ll beat the Monday Blues.
F. It benefits your mental and physical health in so many ways.
G. This is something you should be doing every day, not only on weekends.

Most cars have seat belts as part of their equipment. Seat belts protect drivers and passengers in case of accidents. They also reduce the effect of a crash on the body. 小题1: Worldwide, the devices have protected up to a million people.
America first recognized the invention of an automobile seat belt in 1849. The government gave a patent to an engineer named Edward Claghorn of New York City so that others would not copy his invention of a safety device.  小题2: This early version of safety belt was said to include hooks and other attachments for securing the person to a fixed object.
Other inventors followed with different versions of the seat belt.  小题3: It resulted from the work of a Swedish engineer, Nils Bohlin. His three-point, lap and shoulder seat belt first appeared on cars in Europe 50 years ago.
Nils Bohlin recognized that both the upper and lower body needed to be held securely in place. His invention contained a cloth strap（带子）that was placed across the chest and another strap across his hips.  小题4: 
Volvo was the first company to offer the modern seat belt to its cars. This company also provided use of Nils Bohlin's design to other car-makers.
 小题5: He received a gold medal from the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences in 1995. He died in Sweden in 2002.

A．The Swedish engineer won many honors for his seat belt.

B．Claghorn was a promising young engineer with many honors all his life.

C．The design joined the straps next to the hip.

D．There are many companies adopting Nils Bohlin's invention of the belt.

E. Safety experts say that seat belts save thousands of lives a year in America alone.
F. But more than 100 years passed before the current seat belt was developed.
G. Claghorn called his invention a safety belt.

Tim:  Hi, Susan. I've been wondering when I'd run into you. What are busy with?
Susan: Nice to meet you here, Tim. I'm buying some Christmas gifts for those  小题1:  work with me, but it's really   小题2:  headache?
Tim:  Maybe I could give you some advice. Firstly, you should consider   小题3:  (divide) them into different groups. Who are the people that are your friends as well as your workmates and who are the people you do not know well  小题4:  see pretty much daily.
Susan: OK, then   小题5: should I do?
Tim:  For the friends, you want to buy   小题6:  personal gifts. Chocolate, for example.
Susan: This is what I always give, but I know one of my friends, Mary, is   小题7:  a diet.
Tim:  Does she like fruit or coffee? Anyway, think the gift that you know your friend likes.
Susan: Well, I think fruit is helpful to keep  小题8:(health). What about others?
Tim:  You can send them cards.
Susan: Christmas cards?
Tim:  Yes, you can afford them. More  小题9: (important), it reminds them that you're thinking of them.
Susan: Thank you for your suggestion, Tim. You   小题10: (help) me out.

Flash Mob: The Pop Culture
If you see a group of people dancing and singing on the street or in the railway station, you don’t need to feel surprised. They are a flash mob. Who are they? Are they mobs (暴民)?  小题1: Actually, a flash mob is a group of people who gather suddenly in a public place, do something unusual for a brief period of time, and then quickly separate.
A flash mob is usually organized with the help of the Internet or other digital communications networks. 小题2: At a predetermined time, they gather and perform some tasks such as exchanging books, coming together to look at the sky, waving their hands and yelling something at the top of their lungs for 30 seconds. Then, they quickly disappear before the police can arrive.
Bill Wasik, senior editor of Harper’s Magazine, organized the first flash mob in Manhattan in May 2003 and the first successful flash mob gathered on June 3, 2003  at Macy’s department store. More than one hundred people stepped onto the ninth floor carpet department of Macy’s department store, gathering around an expensive carpet. Following this flash mob, about 200 people flooded the lounge of the Hyatt hotel and applauded for about fifteen seconds.  小题3: 
Flash mob gatherings can sometimes shock people. Such an activity might seem amusing, but it might also frighten people who are not aware of what is taking place. 小题4: They also have enormous economic potential, such as using flash mobs to advertise a product.
小题5: People use it to do many things. For example, in 2009, Michael Jackson’s fans took part in a flash mob to remember him. Hundreds of his fans gathered outside the railway station in Liverpool. They were singing and dancing Michael’s famous song “Beat It” together. And in another example, some people took part in a flash mob to tell more people not to use negative words.
Flash mobs give people from all walks of life an opportunity to come together to create a memory.

A．Don’t be confused by their name.

B．People are attracted by the silly and harmless activities.

C．The flash mob is now becoming more and more popular.

D．Using mobile phones, the flash mob can change their gathering place.

E.A later mob saw hundreds of people in Central Park making bird noises.
F.The messages may be forwarded to friends, who forward to more people.
G.Undoubtedly, flash mobs can serve as good political tools in any direction.

      Have you ever noticed that the more you have the more you want? Let's face it. Thinking our life is good enough doesn't e naturally to many people. When we have high expectations of everything in life, we will run into disappointment. Only when we are aware that needs are different from desires can we live with satisfaction.  小题1:
   小题2:  Most people want things to be better than they are, or when things are going well, we forget to appreciate what we have. Learn to reflect on how much better things are than they could be. Write down 5 things you are grateful for right now.
When we hold onto regrets from decisions we have made, it can really poison our well-being. Many people regret something they can no longer change, which ends up holding them back from moving forward in a more positive manner.  小题3:  so work to stay present and be mindful of the cur- rent moment to find more joy and fulfillment.
When we use other people as the measuring stick for our personal success and quality of life ,we are likely to be less satisfied. Social parisons can provide useful information when we try to learn from others. but they also hold our perspective in a discontented position. 小题4:
When you focus on your big ambitions and future goals, you might neglect the daily pleasures that surround you.  小题5: Stay present and focus on the task you're undertaking at the moment .Don't let the life pass you by because you're always on the go and distracted by ambitions.
Practice looking at life through the lens(镜头)  of contentment and it will bee more natural.

A．Learn to create chances to achieve your goal.

B． What you should do is to put yourself in a good mood.

C． Here are a few ideas to help you be happier with what you have and who you are.

D．Focus on what you are thankful for.

E. What happened in the past is done and gone.
F. Compare yourself less with others so you can be satisfied more.
G. Learn to slow down and absorb the wonder and beauty  around you.

    Two businessmen  小题1:  (fly) to Australia to play in a weekend golf match.  Their team won and they both received green jackets. 小题2: their last night in Australia, they stayed up late drinking beer. They were still drunk in the morning, _小题3:  they drove their rented car to the airport. The road was empty.  Suddenly. something jumped in front of the car. The driver couldn't stop in time and the car hit it，
The men got out of the car and found a large kangaroo 小题4:  (lie) on the road. The drunken men began to laugh and decided to take some photos with the "dead" kangaroo.  One of the men decided to put the jacket on  小题5:  kangaroo. So they dressed the poor kangaroo in a green jacket .Then they posed with it for some photos. Suddenly, something amazing happened. The kangaroo opened   小题6:  eyes. It was not dead. But it was very  小题7:  (anger). The kangaroo hit the two  men and knocked them out. Then it ran 小题8: .In the kangaroo's new green jacket were the car keys ,a passport, and the air tickets.
Later that day, a motorist phoned the police .”You're 小题9:90ing  to  believe  this .”he  said,“but a kangaroo in a green golf jacket小题10: (run)  along the road to the airport ”The police finally found out the whole story,  and they punished the two drunken men.

When I was in junior high school, darkness began filling my mind. I don’t know the reason why it began. All I know is that I started f_小题1:___ hopeless and worthless. I hid in my room, staring out of the window, thinking about all my  ____小题2:(失败). I even questioned whether being 小题3:____(活着) was worthwhile. My dark mood wasn’t constant. It would fade at t____小题4:___, but it always returned.
It was my parents and my friends that helped me get  ___小题5:____ the dark mood. At the beginning when I was depressed, I was (小题6:___(尴尬) to tell anyone. I didn’t want to seem weak or needy. But later I found that when I told my friends my feelings, they never laughed at me. On the 小题7:______, they supported and encouraged me. So remember: no one can face depression a__小题8:___. If you’re depressed, find someone — a friend, parent or teacher — and tell them your feelings. Consider 小题9:__________ a doctor or psychologist, if it is getting worse.
In fact, t__小题10:___ depression affects many people all over the world, treatments are available and can bring hope and joy back into their life.

How to Keep a Relationship Healthy and Strong
Are you new to experiencing relationships? Well, let me give you advice on having a healthy and possibly long-term relationship.
  小题1:   Do not hide things from them, do not lie. Don ' t be afraid to say things that isn't very flattering about yourself. Getting them to trust you is the most important element in any relationship. If there ' s no trust, there ' s nothing there. So please be honest and they'll learn to . open up to you.
Make sure you give them respect. Now respect isn't just simply treating her or him nicely. There' s a lot more to it. You have to learn to adjust to their liking. _小题2:   Don ' t just think about yourself ,think about what your partner needs out of it as well.
  小题3: Always be willing to help them and give them honesty and positivity at the same time. Make them feel you are someone they can really count on and build a future with. This is an important step in a relationship. Your partner has to be able to count on you when needed.     
Make sure you have a good sense of humor with them. Laughter is the key to happiness. Laugh a lot with them ,joke with them. Laughter may seem silly ,but it' s the secret to a lot in life. It will keep the sparks alive.  小题4:
Make sure the communication is good. This goes along with trust, but always communicate how you feel, even if it ' s something that upsets you. Instead of screaming, talk to them. 小题5:It ' s important to communicate this to them , not keep it bottled up.

A．Show them your personality.

B．Be an honest person with them.

C．Make sure you are encouraging to your partner.

D．Laughter keeps the relationship strong and lasting.

E. Don' t start to neglect them and make them feel unwanted.
F. Basically , learn  to  study  your  partners '   moods, wants . and  needs.
G. If they did something that made you unhappy, tell them about it in a respectful manner.

Sarah :What can you refer to if you want to know how tall the tallest person in the world is?小题1:   is only one place ,where you will find the information. And that ' s the GuinnessBook of World Records. This morning we have someone from the Guinness Company that produced that famous book , Tomas  Manning. 小题2:   to the  program, Tomas !
Tomas : Thanks, Sarah. It ' s a pleasure to be here.
Sarah : Perhaps you could start by telling us where the idea for the book came from?
Tomas : Well ,it was first suggested in the early  1950s. Sir Hugh Beaver .the managing director of Guinness, was out shooting birds with some friends. A bird   小题3: ( fly)  away so  quickly that no one was able to shoot it. Sir Hugh wondered whether this bird was the fastest bird in Europe. And it wasn't the fastest. He wondered   小题4:   it was.
Sarah :So I suppose he went to the    小题5:  ( near)  library to look for the information and he couldn't find it.
Tomas : Yeah , that ' s  exactly what  happened. And  this  made  Sir Hugh  think  there   小题6: be other people in the same  situation who wanted this kind of information. He thought that ,  like   小题7:  ,people would be interested in finding facts about the records to satisfy their    小题8:  ( curious) .
Sarah : So  小题9:  idea for a book of records was born. And when did the first book' come out ?Tomas : A few years later, in  1955. S0   小题10:    ( answer)  your question : the  tallest  person  in the  world is 231. 7cm tall.

On keeping a Diary in English
Keeping a diary in English is one of the小题1:__ (effect) ways to improve our English writing ability.
小题2:__ (compare) with other forms of writing, it is shorter and takes小题3:___ time. It can help us to develop the habit of thinking in English.小题4:___ we persist in this practice, gradually we’ll learn how to express ourselves in English. In keeping a diary in English, we certainly run up against many 小题5:__（difficult）. In the first place, 小题6:__ often happens that we have trouble 小题7:__(find) appropriate words and phrases to give expression to our mind. Secondly, there are many idiomatic ways of saying things in Chinese. And it is extremely hard for us to put them into English properly.
As far as I 小题8:_ (concern), my suggestion is that we should always have a notebook and a Chinese-English dictionary within easy reach. Whenever something beats us, we can first put it down in our notebook and then consult our dictionary. We can also turn to our English teacher for help, if necessary. In short, I believe that it is 小题9:__ great use to keep a diary in English for 小题10:__ development of our writing skills.