Happiness is U-shaped, for we are happier at the start and end of our lives but hit a slump when we are middle-aged, British and US researchers say.

Economists from the University of Warwick, central England, and from Dartmouth College, New Hampshire, looked at data on the mental health of two million people from 80 countries.

In Britain, the probability of depression for men and women peaks at around 44 years of age, Warwick University said in a press release.  

In the United States, though, ________________________between men and women. Among women, unhappiness peaked at around the age of 40, whereas among men, it was about 50.

But the U-shape of happiness is constant around the world, and mid-life depression occurs regardless of marital status(婚姻状况), changes in job or income.

The study appears in Social Science & Medicine, published by the Dutch publishing house Elsevier.  

"It happens to men and women, to single and married people, to rich and poor, and to those with and without children." said co-author Andrew Oswald.

One possibility may be that people realize they won't achieve many of their ambitions at middle age. The researchers said.

Another reason could be that after seeing their fellow middle-aged peers begin to die, people begin to value their own remaining years and embrace life once more.

But the good news is that if people make it to aged 70 and are still physically fit, they are on average as happy and mentally healthy as a 20-year old.

"For the average persons in the modern world, the dip in mental health and happiness comes on slowly, not suddenly in a single year," Oswald said. "Only in their fifties do people emerge from this low period.  

1.Which sentence in the passage is the closest in meaning to the following one?

 There are chances that the middle-aged people will realize their ideal is likely to be unattainable. 

_________________________________________________________________________

2.Fill in the blank in Paragraph 3 with a proper sentence．(within 10 words)

3.How do you understand the sentence that “Happiness is U-shaped”? (within 20 words)

_________________________________________________________________________

4.Is mid-life depression a common Phenomenon in the world ? How do you know?(within 15 words) 

_________________________________________________________________________

5.Translate the underlined sentence in the last paragraph into Chinese

_________________________________________________________________________

单词拼写（共 10 小题；每小题 l 分, 满分 10 分）

1.You must ask for p_________ before taking any photo inside the museum.

2.John’s brother e_________ his living by writing stories for the local newspaper two years ago.

3.If you want to go on a diet, you’d better c________ a doctor.

4. Youth should show r______ for the old.

5. If you m____ red and yellow, you get orange.

6. As a famous singer, he is always s________ by his fans.

7.She is u_________ her mother; she is slim and her mother is fat.

8.Time is l______. We need to be in a hurry.

9. ---- May I have your o____, sir?

---- Yes, please. A cup of coffee.

10.He doesn’t like to be v______. Instead, he prefers to solve the problem peacefully.

The Story of My Life by Helen Keller is the most __31____(influence) book in my life. It is filled with courage, struggle and faith throughout. Helen Keller was once in deep despair in her __32____, but finally she decided to overcome her physical defects and live happily. Furthermore, she showed great patience__33____ her long and hard learning period.

    I have learned, above all, three lessons from her story. First, she taught me that often the road to success is to face hardships __34____(bravety). Maybe you are born under an ill star yet you can stand a better chance _35____ others. It is therefore important that you screw up your courage__36____  courage is needed. Second, the impairment of part of her senses did not stop__37____ learning: on the contrary, she had made continual __38____ to go deeper into the realm of knowledge, and her perseverance had thus helped her overcome many handicaps. __39____, she advised that we should make the most of our sense-organs as if we __40____(lose) them soon because this way we would observe the world more carefully than ever before.

Gary Locke , a Chinese-American, once______ as the governor of Washington for 8 years and now is U．S．Commerce Secretary．

June 27, 2010, is the 130^th anniversary of the birth of Helen Keller, and each year the week in which her birthday falls is recognized as Deaf-Blind Awareness Week (海伦凯勒周). In honor of Helen Keller—and other members of the deaf-blind community, this week is devoted to the deaf-blind.

Every year the last week of June is devoted to one thing – recognition of the deaf-blind people in our midst. While the purpose of Deaf-Blind Awareness Week is to show respect for Helen Keller, the deaf-blind woman who was born that week, the week focuses on increasing public awareness and understanding of deaf-blindness.

According to the Helen Keller National Center (HKNC), about 70,000 people have hearing and vision loss. More than ten years ago, Deaf-Blind Awareness

Week became an event officially recognized by the Federal government.

The story of Helen Keller is well known. Born on June 27, 1880, the healthy baby was developing normally. But at the age of 19 months, an illness left her deaf and blind. When Helen was six, her equally famous teacher, Anne Sullivan, was able to teach her to communicate. Helen Keller went on to do well in all aspects of her life: graduating from college with honors and writing, lecturing, and inspiring people worldwide.

1. Which of the following is NOT the purpose of Deaf-Blind Awareness Week according to the passage?

  A. To show respect for Helen Keller’s teacher, Anne Sullivan.

  B. To show respect for Helen Keller.

C. To increase public awareness of deaf-blindness.

  D. To increase public understanding of deaf-blindness.

2.When is Deaf-Blind Awareness Week?

  A. June 27, 2007.   B. The last week of June ten years ago.

C. June 27, 1880.   D. The last week of June every year.

3.According to the passage, Helen Keller______.

  A. was born deaf and blind    B. did not do very well in college

  C. was taught to communicate at the age of 16

  D. inspired people all over the world with her books and lectures

4. What might be the best title for the passage?

  A. Deaf-Blind Awareness Week        B. Helen Keller 

  C. The Helen Keller National Center    D. Anne Sullivan