题目内容

You may not pay much attention to your daily elevator ride. Many of us use a lift several times during the day without really thinking about it. But Lee Gray, PhD, of the University of North Carolina, US, has made it his business to examine this overlooked form of public transport. He is known as the “Elevator Guy”.

“The lift becomes this interesting social space where etiquette (礼仪) is sort of odd (奇怪的),” Gray told the BBC. “They (elevators) are socially very interesting but often very awkward places.”

We walk in and usually turn around to face the door. If someone else comes in, we may have to move. And here, according to Gray, lift users unthinkingly go through a set pattern of movements. He told the BBC what he had observed.

He explained that when you are the only one inside a lift, you can do whatever you want – it’s your own little box.If there are two of you, you go into different corners, standing diagonally (对角线地) across from each other to create distance.When a third person enters, you will unconsciously form a triangle. And when there is a fourth person it becomes a square, with someone in every corner. A fifth person is probably going to have to stand in the middle.

New entrants to the lift will need to size up the situation when the doors slide open and then act decisively. Once in, for most people the rule is simple – look down, or look at your phone.

Why are we so awkward in lifts?

“You don’t have enough space,” Professor Babette Renneberg, a clinical psychologist at the Free University of Berlin, told the BBC. “Usually when we meet other people we have about an arm’s length of distance between us. And that’s not possible in most elevators.”

In such a small, enclosed space it becomes very important to act in a way that cannot be construed (理解) as threatening or odd. “The easiest way to do this is to avoid eye contact,” she said.

1.The main purpose of the article is to _____.

A.remind us to enjoy ourselves in the elevator

B.tell us some unwritten rules of elevator etiquette

C.share an interesting but awkward elevator ride

D.analyze what makes people feel awkward in an elevator

2.According to Gray, when people enter an elevator, they usually _____.

A.turn around and greet one another

B.look around or examine their phone

C.make eye contact with those in the elevator

D.try to keep a distance from other people

3.Which of the following describes how people usually stand when there are at least two people in an elevator?

4.The writer wrote the passage in a tone of ___________.

A.disapproved B.objective

C.negative D.supportive

练习册系列答案
相关题目

My roommate Lily was well organized, while I was not. Each of her objects had its place, but mine always hid somewhere. She even labeled (贴标签) everything. I always looked for everything. Over time, Lily got neater and I got messier. She would push my dirty clothing over, and I would lay my books on her tidy desk. We both got tired of each other.

War broke out one evening. Lily came into the room. Soon, I heard her screaming. “Take your shoes away! Why under my bed!” Deafened, I saw my shoes flying at me. I jumped to my feet and started yelling. She yelled back louder.

The room was filled with anger. We could not have stayed together for a single minute but for a phone call. Lily answered it. From her end of the conversation, I could tell right away her grandma was seriously ill. When she hung up, she quickly crawled (爬) under her covers, sobbing. Obviously, that was something she should not go through alone. All of a sudden, a warm feeling of sympathy rose up in my heart.

Slowly, I collected the pencils, took back the books, made my bed, cleaned the socks and swept the floor, even on her side. I got so into my work that I even didn’t notice Lily had sat up. She was watching, her tears dried and her expression one of disbelief. Then, she reached out her hands to grasp mine. I looked up into her eyes. She smiled at me, “Thanks.”

Lily and I stayed roommates for the rest of the year. We didn’t always agree, but we learned the key to living together: giving in, cleaning up and holding on.

1.What made Lily so angry one evening?

A. She heard the author shouting loud.

B. She saw the author’s shoes beneath her bed.

C. She got the news that her grandma was ill.

D. She couldn’t find her books.

2.How is Paragraph 1 mainly developed?

A. By analyzing causes.

B. By following time order.

C. By showing differences.

D. By describing a process.

3.The author tidied up the room most probably because _______.

A. she wanted to show her care

B. she hated herself for being so messy

C. she was asked by Lily to do so

D. she was scared by Lily’s anger

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

A. Hard Work Pays Off B. Learning to Be Roommates

C. My Friend Lily D. How to Be Organized

Some time ago I discovered that one of my chairs had a broken leg. I didn't think there would be any difficulty in getting it mended, as there are a lot of antique (古董) shops near my home. So I left home one morning carrying the chair with me. I went into the first shop expecting a friendly reception. I was quite wrong. The man wouldn't even look at my chair.

The second shop, though slightly more polite, was just the same, and the third and the fourth - so I decided that my approach must be wrong. I entered the fifth shop with a plan in my mind. I placed the chair on the floor and said to the shopkeeper, "Would you like to buy a chair?" "Twenty pounds," I said. "OK,"he said. "I'll give you twenty pounds." "It's got a slightly broken leg," I said. "Yes, I saw that. It's nothing." Everything was going according to the plan and I was getting excited. "What will you do with it?" I asked. "Oh, it will be easy to sell once the repair is done. " "I'll buy it," I said. "What do you mean? You've just sold it to me," he said. "Yes, I know but I've changed my mind. I am sorry. I'll give you twenty-seven pounds for it." " You must be crazy," he said. Then, suddenly the penny dropped. "I know what you want. You want me to repair your chair." "You're right," I said. "And what would you have done if I had walked in and said, 'Would you mend this chair for me?'" "I wouldn't have agreed to do it," he said. "We don't do repairs, not enough money in it and too much trouble. But l'll mend this for you. Shall we say for five pounds?"

He was a very nice man and was greatly amused by the whole thing.

1.We can learn from the text that in the first shop the writer_____.

A. was rather impolite

B. asked the shopkeeper to repair his chair

C. asked the shopkeeper to buy his chair

D. was warmly received

2.The underlined word "approach" in the second paragraph means_____.

A. plan for dealing with things

B. decision to sell tings

C. way of doing things

D. idea of repairing things

3.The expression "the penny dropped" means the shopkeeper______.

A. changed his mind

B. accepted the offer

C. saw the writer's purpose

D. decided to help the writer

4.From the text, we can learn that the writer was_____.

A. honest B. careful C. funny D. smart

Oldest , Youngest , or in the Middle ?

Were you the first or last child in your family? Or were you a middle or the only child? Some people think it matters where you were born in your family. But there are different ideas about what birth order means.

Some people say that oldest children are smart and strong-willed. They are very likely to be successful. The reason for this is simple. Parents have a lot of time for their first child. They give him or her a lot of attention. So this child is very likely to do well. An only child will succeed for the same reasons.

What happens to the other children in a family? Middle children don’t get so much attention. So they don’t feel that important. If a family has many children, the middle ones sometimes get lost in the crowd. The youngest child, though, often gets special treatment. He or she is the “baby”. Often this child grows up to be funny and charming.

Do you believe these ideas about birth order? A recent study saw things quite differently. This study found that the first children believed in family rules. They didn’t take many chances in their lives. They usually followed their own ideas . They took chances. And they often did better in life.

Which theory about birth order do you believe? Look at your own family or you friends’ families. Decide which idea fits what you see.

1.This passage is about __________.

A. why the oldest children in a family usually succeed

B. why some children refuse to follow orders

C. ways in which birth order may affect how children grow up

D. how people have a lot of trouble agreeing about ideas

2.The statement that middle children “ sometimes get lost in the crowd” means that _________.

A. they have a poor sense of direction

B. they don’t get a lot of attention

C. they have a strong desire to be leaders

D. they can’t get along with others

3.The underlined word “ theory “ means ________.

A. idea B. comparison C. evidence D. surprise

违法和不良信息举报电话:027-86699610 举报邮箱:58377363@163.com

精英家教网