A. Be brave in your requests

B. You get what you tolerate

C. Don’t feel guilty of your requests

D. Don’t think others are mind readers

E. Don’t make a “no” mean more than it does

F. Be specific about what you want and when you want it

Be Bold: Ask for What You Really Want!

Have you ever been in a situation that is causing you to feel annoyed, frustrated, or unappreciated? We all experience them, but often we don’t have the courage to change them or ask for what we really want. Complaining about your problems never solves them. Only when you get clear about what you want, and are willing to ask for it, will you experience not only a lot less stress in your life, but greater success in your relationship, career and life. Here are five tips to help you on your way.

1.________________

We often think our bosses, colleagues and even our friends can understand our thought even without being told. So when they don’t act as we’d like, we feel hurt and upset. For any relationship to develop, both parties have to communicate their needs. Whether it’s how you’d like your colleague to communicate with you about a work project, or how you’d like your boss to assess your work, it’s necessary to convey what you want.

2.________________

When asking for what you really want, you will seldom, if ever, be given more than what you have the courage to ask for. So don’t weaken your requests to avoid being turned down. Think about what your ideal outcome would be and then confidently, courageously, ask for it. While you may not always get as much as you asked for, you will get more than you would have otherwise.

3.________________

In the workplace, the biggest reason for unmet expectations is a lack of understanding of exactly what is expected. A request that holds water needs to make clear not just what you want, but also the time limit within which you want it. That is, both a clear “what” and “when”. For example, “Could you please get the monthly sales report to me by midday Friday?

4.________________

Whether it’s asking your friend to show up on time, or asking your colleague to stop making jokes in your presence, every day, through what you say and do, you teach others how to treat you. Letting others know what you will （and will not）put up with and what you expect from them, is important to your wellbeing and success—at home and work.

5.________________

In reality you won’t always get what you ask for. Your boss won’t always give you the pay raise you’d like and your parents may not agree to mind your three kids every second weekend. When people say no, you can take it really personally and decide never to speak to them again—or you can accept it graciously and move on. At least now you know where you stand and can plan accordingly.

Asking for less than you really want—from yourself, from others and from life—doesn’t serve anyone. Remember that fortune favors the bold. So make bigger, better, bolder requests, and ask for what you really want. Who knows…you might just get it!

A child-like robot, Wakamaru, developed by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan and combining the roles of nurse, companion and security guard, will soon be in the market to look after the growing number of old people with no one to look after them.

  Cameras implanted under the “ eyebrows” of the robot enable it to “see’’ as it moves around in a house. The images can be sent to the latest mobile telephones, which can show the pictures. Wakamaru speaks with either the voice of a boy or a girl. It is also designed to provide companionship, greeting its “ papa”, when he comes home. Based on a vocabulary of around 10 000 words, it is the first household robot which is able to hold simple conversations. It can not only speak, but also understand answers and react accordingly. It will ask“ Are you all right?” if its owner does not move for some time. If the answer is no, or there is no answer, it will telephone preset numbers, send images and work as a speakerphone. It can recognize up to 10 faces. It can be set to remind forgetful people when it is time to take medicine, eat and sleep.

  However, like most robots, it cannot climb stairs. Mitsubishi developed Wakamaru from robots which have already been made to go around nuclear power facilities(设施). “ Looking at the ageing of society and the falling birth rate we decided that this could work as a business. We want to offer it as a product that helps society,’’ said the project chief. The developers plan to sell the robot from April next year at between 5,000 and 6,000 pound.

  The life expectancy of Japanese women has shot up to almost 85, the highest in the world. At the same time, extended families are being replaced by nuclear families. This has left many Japanese anxious about their elderly parents. Therefore, the technology has gained nation-wide publicity in Japan.

Which of the following is TRUE about Wakamaru?

It is used in some nuclear power facilities.

It can speak but cannot understand answers.

It can go up and down the stairs easily.

It can recognize as many as 10 people.

The passage is written with the purpose to ______.

      A. introduce a new product  

B solve the aging problems.

     C. tell people how to use the robot 

     D show the rapid development of technology

What can be inferred from the passage ?

      A. The robot can dial proper numbers for help

      B. The robot is likely to have a promising market.

      C. The robot enables the Japanese to live longer

      D. Many elderly Japanese are anxious about their future

A lonely and sad pug (哈巴狗) was photographed as he waited for his owner by the side of the road has been considered as the world’s saddest dog. Pictures of the pet taken by a passer-by have become an internet foucus after being posted on the photo-sharing  website Flickr. The dog which is nicknamed Mr Newman looks terribly upset as he sits on the pavement tied to a lamp-post with a rope.
The photograph was taken outside a café in the Californian city of San Francisco, which may go some way to explaining why he is dressed in a stylish grey and purple sweater.
"He was hanging around looking for somebody to love him. I tried to cheer him up – he seemed happy to see me," said the photographer Chris Michael.
One of the four photos of the pug on Flickr is titled "Tough day for Mr Newman" and with some other words as follows: "Despite his cool clothes, the girls just aren't interested in him any more."
Dozens of people on the site said they had been touched by the dog's pitiful expressions gaze. "I come back to see this photo every now and then because it's too cute, so does my daughter. In fact, my family all are touched," wrote one of the pedestrians who had seen the photo. Another viewer said that she had been moved as to buy a pug of her own after seeing the photos.
Mr Newman may have won the hearts of internet users but he is unlikely to be more famous than a cat competitor Keyboard Cat, the musical pet who has become a star on YouTube.
1．The little pug waited by the road probably because           .
A．it was abandoned by its owner       B．it was left behind by his owner
C．it was trapped by a passer – by      D．it couldn’t find the way home
2．We can infer from the passage that the photographer Chris Michael          .
A．knew much about the owner of the dog 
B．helped to find the owner of the pug
C．took great interest in its colorful sweater
D．tried to amuse the pug in some ways
3．The writer used the underlined sentence from the website to           .
A．add some humor to the passage
B．describe the pug’s loveliness
C．help the god owner recognize it
D．inform girls to adopt the dog
4．What would be discussed next according to the text?          .
A．Description of another dog
B．The pug’s recent situation
C．Some details about the keyboard cat
D．Pet owners’ responsibility

C
A light emitting diode （发光二极管）, or L．E．D．, is a device that shines when electricity passes through it．But it works differently than traditional kinds of light bulbs．Light emitting diodes use less energy and last much longer than bulbs with a filament （灯丝） inside．L．E．                               D．’s are also cooler to the touch, and shine a lot brighter than they used to．  
Red L．E．D．’s have long been used as signal lights on electronic equipment．But now light emitting diodes also come in blue and other colors．Colored L．E．D．’s are used to show images on everything from wireless phones to huge video signs．And white L．E．D．’s are being used increasingly to replace traditional lighting systems．  
But all these require electricity．In poor countries, people often burn fuel to produce light．But the smoke can make people sick．So an electrical engineering professor from Canada started a project to produce L．E．       D．lighting systems for the developing world．These lights are powered by batteries that can be recharged with energy from the sun．The batteries can also be charged through other ways, such as wind power and water power．
Professor David Irvine-Halliday tells the story of how he got the idea．In 1997, while climbing in the Annapurna mountains in Nepal, he saw a small school．All the children were outside．He looked through a window and saw that inside the school was dark．The school had a sign that read: "We have no teachers．If you want to stay and teach for a few days, we would be very pleased．" Professor Irvine-Halliday says that experience had a big effect on him．Back at the University of Calgary, he was on the Internet one day．He saw a company in Japan selling bright white L．E．                           D．’s．So he built a light with some．This is how he began the Light Up the World Foundation．
48．Compared with traditional kinds of light bulbs, L．E．D．’S________．
A．waste a lot of energy                    B．need shorter time to make
C．shine much brighter                 D．are warmer to touch
49．According to the passage, we know that L．E．D．’s________．
A．will replace all the lights            B．will be more and more popular
C．will be only colored ones               D．will be only used in developing countries
50．According to the passage, we can infer that the purpose of the Light Up the World Foundation is to________．
A．develop L．E．D．lighting system for the developing world                   
B．sell bright white L．E．D．’s
C．collect money for developing countries                                        
D．earn money by selling L．E．D．’s

Have you heard of snake robots? Scientists and doctors are already using tiny snakes that coil through the human body armed with sharp surgical tools to perform operations on hearts, prostate cancer, and other diseased organs. The snake robots that carry tiny cameras, scissors and forceps, and even more advanced sensors are being developed.
The next generation of the robots will be wireless, and will explore inside your body on their own--- not attached to any cables. For now, they are powered by cables that humans control. Experts say the day is coming when some robots will roam around the body on their own. But the experts in robotics say the new creations work best when they are designed for very specific tasks.
Howie Choset has been researching and building robots, particularly snake robots. He believes that his snake robot and others like it can help reduce medical costs by making complex surgery faster and easier. Choset says his new design is smaller and more flexible than earlier models.
The size of surgical robots allows surgeons to operate with far less damage to the body, helping the patient heal faster. Choset has also built larger snake robots designed for search and rescue, or just exploration. They can climb poles and trees and then look around through a camera in the head and slither through places that humans cannot reach.
“ We sent our snake robots into these caves in the Red Sea to look for evidence of ancient Egyptian ships,” he said. “ To me, archeology is like search and rescue, but everyone has been dead for 5,000 years.”
The doctors are very excited about the potential for surgical robots to do things that humans can’t do. The variety of sensors available for surgical robots keeps expanding. As they get smaller, maybe one day they will be able to test chemicals or blood in the body, or even the electrical connections in nerves.
【小题1】What can we learn from the first paragraph?