As any homemaker who has tried to keep order at the dinner table knows, there is far more to a family meal than food. Sociologist Michael Lewis has been studying 50 families to find out just how much more.

Lewis and his co-workers carried out their study by videotaping (录像) the families while they ate ordinary meals in their own homes. They found that parents with small families talk actively with each other and their children. But as the number of children gets larger, conversation gives way to the parents’ efforts to control the loud noise they make. That can have an important effect on the children. “In general the more question-asking the parents do, the higher the children’s IQ scores,” Lewis says. “And the more children there are, the less question-asking there is.”

The study also provides an explanation for why middle children often seem to have a harder time in life than their siblings (兄弟姐妹). Lewis found that in families with three or four children, dinner conversation is likely to center on the oldest child, who has the most to talk about, and the youngest, who needs the most attention. “Middle children are invisible,” says Lewis. “When you see someone get up from the table and walk around during dinner, chances are it’s the middle child.” There is, however, one thing that stops all conversation and prevents anyone from having attention: “When the TV is on,” Lewis says, “dinner is a non-event.”

1.The writer’s purpose in writing the text is to _________.

A. show the relationship between parents and children

B. teach parents ways to keep order at the dinner table

C. report on the findings of a study.

D. give information about family problems

2. Parents with large families ask fewer questions at dinner because _________.

A. they are busy serving food to their children

B. they are busy keeping order at the dinner table

C. they have to pay more attention to younger children

D. they are tired out having prepared food for the whole family

3. By saying “Middle children are invisible” in paragraph 3, Lewis means that middle children _________.

A. have to help their parents to serve dinner

B. get the least attention from the family

C. are often kept away from the dinner table

D. find it hard to keep up with other children

4. Which of the following statements would the writer agree to?

A. It is important to have the right food for children.

B. It is a good idea to have the TV on during dinner.

C. Parents should talk to each of their children frequently.

D. Elder children should help the younger ones at dinner

Part of the fun of watching sports events is following an exciting rivalry (竞争关系).

But where do all these rivalries come from?

Some rivalries start because athletes spend a lot of time close to opponents (对手).

Other rivalries get personal. Things that one rival says that are thought to be not respectful to the other can cause a rivalry, even if the words are misunderstood. And sometimes, rivalries grow just because the athletes don’t like each other’s personalities.

Some sports may also be more likely than others to cause rivalries. “Some sports only meet a few times, so there is less chance for rivalries to build,” For example, in sports where athletes perform on their own, such as diving, rivalries might also take longer to appear than in sports in which athletes compete at the same time. But in tennis, players often face each other, and rivalries are more likely to happen.

So do the rivalries do good or harm to the athletes?

Some believe that rivalries can be a good thing because they encourage athletes to try harder to win. But rivalries can also become too personal, taking athletes’ attention away from their sports.

Keegan agreed that rivalries often do athletes more harm than good. “They can be a huge distraction (分散注意力的事) and lead to focusing on the opponent more than the game,” he said.

“Top athletes often have physical and mental training that they follow in order to worry less and prepare to compete”, Gould further explained. An important part of that preparation is preventing from distractions, including rivalries.

“The better athletes don’t care too much about a rivalry – they try to treat every competition the same,” Gould told LiveScience.

1.According to the article, which of the following sports is least likely to cause a rivalry?

A. Tennis. B. Swimming. C. Diving. D. Soccer.

2.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the article?

A. Rivalries between athletes may result from misunderstandings.

B. The more often you meet your opponent, the more you dislike him or her.

C. Rivalries mainly come from a dislike for each other’s personalities.

D. Audiences easily get bored if there are few rivalries in a competition.

3.Why does Keegan think rivalries could do more harm than good to athletes?

A. Rivalries could result in physical and mental suffering.

B. Rivalries could cause athletes to worry needlessly.

C. Rivalries could drive athletes to train too hard.

D. Rivalries could distract athletes from their sports.

4.In Gould’s eyes, top athletes ______.

A. care little about their competition

B. focus more on the game than on their opponents

C. treat every competition as daily training

D. take every possible opportunity to become stronger

During my early twenties, to make my parents stop feeling angry, and simply to escape, I decided to live in my birthplace for a period of time, something I'd sworn I would never do. My parents were thrilled. They prayed that I'd come back triumphantly with a picture-perfect bridegroom. That was the furthest thing from my mind as I packed my faded jeans, tank tops, boots, and a photo of my freckle-faced then-boyfriend who was of Scottish descent.

The moment I landed in Seoul, I was aware of how much I felt like a misfit. All my life I had tried to blend into the dominant culture and couldn't. And finally, when I was in a place where everyone looked like me, I still stood out. I took it for granted that I'd feel a sense of freedom. I thought I'd blend into the landscape. This was not the case. People stared at me with curious eyes. I became conscious of my American-girl swaggering body movements and inappropriate dress.

Collecting my courage, I traveled to the demilitarized zone on my own. I touched the high barbed-wire fence that stretched across the belly of the peninsula(半岛), dividing Korea in half. I visited thousand-year-old temples and magnificent palace gates that had survived modernization and centuries of battle. I met with distant cousins who welcomed me with outstretched arms into their homes and related heroic tales about my mother and Halmoni (Grandmother) during the war. How Halmoni had led her young children out of north to the United Nation-backed south. How my mother, at the age of thirteen, saved the life of her baby sister.

I listened with such an overwhelming thirst that when I returned to the States a year and a half later, I began to ask my parents and Halmoni (who had immigrated to the States some time after we did) all about the past. The past was no longer a time gone by, a dead weight. I now saw that it held ancient treasures. And the more I dug and discovered, the more I felt myself being steered toward a future I had never imagined for myself. I began to write. I didn't even know I could write. My family helped me knit stories into a book using Halmoni's voice. As her powerful words moved through me I was able to reflect and meditate on the ridiculous life I had fashioned for myself. I could feel my sense of self rising. This sparked a newfound awareness and excitement. I became a spokeswoman on Korean culture, traveling to various college campuses across the country. “Be proud. Embrace your heritage.” I said to young Korean American students wearing extra-large, trendy sportswear. But the whole time I was lecturing, I had very little understanding of what that self-concept meant. I was merely talking the talk. I hadn't yet fully embraced my own identity.

1.Why did the author leave America for her birthplace?

A. Because she broke up with her boyfriend and wanted to be alone.

B. Because she decided to be separated from her parents for a while.

C. Because she was forced by her parents to get married in Korea.

D. Because she longed for the travel in her birthplace on her own.

2.According to the passage, the author suggests that her original expectations about visiting Korea were ________.

A. unrealistic and na?ve

B. misguided and dangerous

C. ambitious and ridiculous

D. sensible and practical

3.What was the author's attitude toward the ancient monuments she visited in Korea?

A. She was curious about their original functions.

B. She was astonished at their size.

C. She admired their capacity to endure.

D. She was surprised at their beauty.

4.According to the passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. The author's attitude toward her family's earlier experiences changed from indifference to fascination.

B. The author felt extremely free when in Korea because it was the place where she looked like others.

C. The author wrote her family's stories in first person with the help of her grandmother.

D. The author was aware of her own national identity and knew what she was actually doing.

5. Which statement most closely parallels the author's conclusion about knowledge of the past?

A. It is a treasure that should be guarded.

B. It is often most valued during early adulthood.

C. It can enhance appreciation of ancient cultures.

D. It can help individuals attain deeper self-concept.

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