In winter Hammerfest is a thirty-hour ride by bus from Oslo, though why anyone would want to go there in winter is a question worth considering. It is on the edge of the world, the northernmost town in Europe, as far from London as London is from Tunis, a place of dark and cruel winters, where the sun sinks into the Arctic Ocean in November and does not rise again for ten weeks.

I wanted to see the Northern Lights. Also, I had long harboured a half-formed urge to

experience what life was like in such a remote and forbidding place. Sitting at home in England with a glass of whisky and a book of maps, this had seemed an excellent idea. But now as I picked my way through the grey, late-December slush(融雪) of Oslo I was beginning to have my doubts.

Things had not started well. I had overslept at the hotel, missing breakfast, and had to leap into my clothes. I couldn't find a cab and had to drag my unreasonably overweighted bag eight blocks through slush to the central bus station. I had had huge difficulty persuading the staff at the Kreditkassen Bank on Karl Johans Gate to cash sufficient traveller's cheques to pay the overcharged 1,200-kroner bus fare-they simply could not be made to grasp that the William McGuire Bryson on my passport and the Bill Bryson on my traveller's cheques were both me-and now here I was arriving at the station two minutes before departure, breathless and steaming from the endless uphill exertion(费力)that is my life, and the girl at the ticket counter was telling me that she had no record of my reservation.

"This isn't happening," I said. "I'm still at home in England enjoying Christmas.Pass me a

drop more port, will you, darling?" Actually, I said, "There must be some mistake. Please look

again."

The girl studied the passenger list. "No, Mr Bryson, your name is not here·”

But I could see it, even upside-down. "There it is, second from the bottom.”

"No," the girl decided, "that says Bemt Bjornson. That's a Norwegian name·”

"It doesn't say Bernt Bjornson. It says Bill Bryson. Look at the loop(圆圈) of the 'y', the two

'I's. Miss, please." But she wouldn't have it. "If I miss this bus when does the next one go?"

"Next week at the same time.,,

Oh, splendid.

"Miss, believe me, it says Bill Bryson."

"No, it doesn't."

"Miss, look, I've come from England. I'm carrying some medicine that could save a child's

life.” She didn't buy this. "I want to see the manager."

"He's in Stavanger.”

"Listen, I made a reservation by telephone.If I don't get on this bus I'm going to write a letter to your manager that will cast a shadow over your career prospects(前景)for the rest of this century." This clearly did not alarm her. Then it occurred to me. "If this Bemt Bjornson doesn't show up, can I have his seat?"

"Sure.”

Why don't I think of these things in the first place and save myself the suffering? "Thank you," I said, and dragged my bag outside.

1.What words can best describe Hammerfest in winter?

A. Grey and dirty.

B. Dark and cold.

C. Unfriendly and expensive.

D. Wild and forbidden.

2.Why did the author mention the Kreditkassen Bank on Karl Johans Gate?

A. To suggest that people there could be ridiculous and stubborn.

B. To introduce the cultural differences in northern Europe and England.

C. To give an example of an interesting story during his journey.

D. To indicate that the bus fare was very expensive.

3.What could be inferred from the passage?

A. The author booked his bus ticket with a Norwegian name.

B. The author paid the bus fare by traveller's cheque.

C. The author would hopefully get on the bus.

D. The girl at the ticket counter cared about the author's complaints.

4.According to the last paragraph, the author probably felt_at that moment.

A. embarrassed B. contented

C. regretful D. grateful

5.We can learn from the passage that_.

A. the author's journey to the north was not worthwhile

B. the Europeans didn't welcome visitors

C. the author wrote a letter to the girl's manager

D. the author's journey to the north was not smooth

Common phrases like “no pains, no gains” give the impression that we ought to be suffering while we study. It’s almost as though the only way to know if we’re putting in enough work is the sense of hardship we bear.

When we haven’t taken the time to come up with another idea, all we know how to do is shut ourselves in a room with a book. It’s no surprise that we find revision boring and difficult. Just as children learn from playing, we can learn from doing, or at least from study techniques that interest us, rather than make us switch off.

Shutting yourself away can make you learn to hate studying. This leads to a situation where instead of being able to concentrate on your work, you are troubled by how unfair it is that you must study.

When you hate your work it’s very difficult to make yourself star, or approach it with any kind of structure or enthusiasm. This can be part of a vicious cycle(恶性循环) that traps you into ineffective revision, your poor progress fuelling further annoyance.

Just being around other people really helps fight against feelings of loneliness and, thankfully, it’s perfectly possible to work in the company of other people. We just need to learn how to deal with distractions(使人分心的事物).

It's not necessary to avoid all company, just idle(懒散的) company. Studying in the same room as someone who is ironing or working out is perfectly possible. People who are bored and looking to be distracted, however, are terrible to work around. They constantly try to keep others in conversation.

It’s also a good idea to avoid the company of people involved in activities that you would rather be doing than studying. Working while sitting next to someone playing video games is much more likely to end with a new high score than a productive few hours of revision.

If being around others means working in a noisy environment, a pair of headphones and some background music can block out even noisy children. They also act as a psychological barrier, so that people think twice before interrupting you.

When you’re studying for a big exam, it seems like your whole life is taken up with study. Friends and family can lessen feelings of isolation(孤立). And connecting with other people makes us happy, so it’s important not to give that up and to make sure that we take the time to socialize.

1.The author might believe that the phrase “no pains, no gains” ______.

A. best describes how to study well

B. makes people treat study as a habit

C. encourages people to learn step by step

D. is not a good inspirational phrase for study

2.Which saying about study might the author prefer?

A. There is no royal road to learning.

B. It’s better to work behind closed door.

C. A positive motivation leads to good study results.

D. He who is ashamed of asking is ashamed of learning.

3. Which might lead to an effective study based on this text?

A. A correct goal. B. A good teacher.

C. A favorable interest. D. A hard task.

4.The underlined sentence in Paragraph 7 implies that ______.

A. playing video games is helpful for an effective study

B. one shouldn’t let a video player to be his / her company

C. one should study from certain activities that he / she is interested in

D. the more time one spends in playing games, the higher marks he / she will get

5.If you are studying in a noisy environment, you’d better ______.

A. give indication of not wanting to be interrupted

B. give up others’ company at one

C. think twice before taking any action

D. force yourself to be accustomed to the environment

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