Although most people believe that laughter is one of the nature’s great treatments for a whole range of mental and physical diseases, it is still a serious scientific subject that researchers are trying to figure out.

“Laughter above all else is a social thing,” says Baltimore neuroscientist(神经科学家), Robert Provine, who has studied laughter for many years. “All laughter groups laugh ‘ha-ha-ha’ basically the same way. Whether you speak Mandarin, French or English, everyone will understand laughter. There is a pattern generator(发生器) in our brain that produces this sound.”

Laughing is our first way of communicating. Babies laugh long before they speak. No one teaches them how to laugh. They just do. People may laugh at a prank(恶作剧) on April Fools’ Day. But surprisingly, only 10 to 15 percent of laughter is the result of someone making a joke. Laughter is mostly about social responses rather to a joke. Deaf people laugh without hearing and people on cell phones laugh without seeing, showing that laughter isn’t dependent on single sense but on social interactions.

And laughter is not just a people thing. Chimps tickle(挠痒) each other and even laugh when another chimp pretends to tickle them.

Jaak Panksepp, a Bowling Green University Psychology professor, studies rats that laugh when he tickles them. It turns out rats love to be tickled — they return again and again to the hands of researchers tickling them.

By studying rats, scientists can figure out what’s going on in the brain during laughter. Northwestern University biomedical engineering professor, Jeffrey Burgdorf has found that laughter in rats produces a chemical that acts as an antidepressant(抗抑郁药). He thinks the same thing probably happens in humans, too. This would give doctors a new chemical target to develop drugs that can fight depression.

Even so, laughter itself has not been proved to be the best medicine, experts said. Margaret Stuber, a professor at University of California, studied whether laugher helped patients. She found that distraction(分心) and mood improvement helped, but she could not find a benefit of laughter alone.

“No study has shown that laughter produces a direct health benefit,” Provine said, mainly because it’s hard to separate laughter from just feeling good. But he thinks it doesn’t really matter: “Isn’t the fact that laughter feels good when you do it enough?”

1.The underlined word “figure out” in Paragraph 6 means “________”.

A. deal with B. work out

C. look out of D. come up with

2.According to the passage, scientists studied rats in order to find ______.

A. how they laugh

B. if they like laughing

C. what laughter in rats produces

D. how rats react while being tickled

3.What can we know from Robert Provine’s research?

A．Laughter makes a person feel good.

B．Laughter produces a direct health benefit.

C．Laughter depends on all kinds of senses.

D．Laughter is a way of communicating.

4.What is probably the best title for this passage?

A. Why Rats Laugh

B. When Laughter Happens

C. How Laughter Works

D. Why Laughter Matters

If Tomb Sweeping Day(清明节) gives you a holiday to go outdoors, Spring break is what teenagers in the US look forward to.

Unlike our semester, which starts in late February or early March this year, 1. . So in late March and April, most American schools, ranging from kindergartens to colleges, give students one to two weeks off school.

What do students do during the time? 2. , but they all beat studying!

Some kids take trips with their parents, visiting a new state or even a new country. There is one place in the US that all kids dream about going on their Spring Break — Disney World in Florida. For some kids that dream will come true. 3. .

For many, Spring break means relaxing or family reunions. They may stay home, read and watch movies, or they may go to visit friends. Others may travel to visit family members who live far away.

4. . On a ten-day trip, for example, students may go on a tour through Spain, France, and Italy. These trips are often expensive, but they give students a great chance to see other parts of the world.

Students in the US don’t have their Spring break at the same time. 5. . So while students from one town are on vacation, their neighbors in the next town may have classes as usual.

Friendship is a very important human relationship and everyone needs good friends. Good friendship has many benefits. It offers companionship, improves self-worth and promotes good health. There are times in our lives such as when we have recently moved into a new town, or changed our jobs or schools. Such changes often leaves us without a friend. Making new friends comes easy for some people. But for many of us the process is difficult and requires courage. Below are some helpful suggestions on how to make and keep friends.

Associate with others

The first step to making friends is associating with other people. You can go to public places to meet new people. Besides, you will need to make yourself known by becoming an active member of such places.

Start a conversation

Starting a conversation is the second most important step in making new friends. Do not wait to be spoken to. You can always start the conversation. Being able to make small talk is a very useful skill in relating with other people.

Do things together

Choosing friends with common interests is important in building friendship as these interests would always bring you and your friend together. Hanging out will always be a pleasant experience.

Let it grow

It is a good thing to stay in touch. However, try not to press your new friend with calls, messages or visits as this would likely wear him or her out and finally you may lose your friend. So you will need to give your friend time to react to you. The best friendships are the ones that grow naturally.

Enjoy your friendship

The best way to enjoy your friendship is to allow your friends to be themselves. Try not to find fault with your friends. Try not to change them from who they are to what you want them to be. Become the kind of friend you will want your friend to be to you.

1.Is friendship very important for everyone?

2.How do you associate with others?

3.Why is choosing friends with common interests important?

4.What will you do to enjoy your friendship according to the passage?

5.What’s the passage mainly about?

文段表达（15分）

根据中文和英文提示，写一封意思连贯、符合逻辑、不少于50词的邮件。所给英文提示词语仅供选用。请不要写出你的校名和姓名。

2015年4月13日，河南一位名叫顾少强的中学女教师向学校领导递交了一封只有10个字的辞职信：“世界那么大，我想去看看。” 她的这封信引起广泛关注。请你就此事给你的英国笔友写一封邮件，向他（她）简单介绍顾少强及她的决定，并谈谈你对此事的看法。

提示词：a letter of resignation, decide, give up, look round, agree,

These are ______ coats. Can you look after ______ for me?

A. my; them B. I; they C. me; them

—Tim, where is your sister?

—She ______ sports on the playground.

A. is doing B. does C. was doing

—How are you feeling now?

—I’m feeling much ______ than before. Take me to the hospital, please.

A. bad B. worse C. worst

In parts of India, people use their fingers to ______ the food.

A. send up B. build up C. pick up

Jack had to stop working though it was ______ his own wishes.

A. on B. for C. against

—I’m sorry to have kept you ______ for such a long time.

—It doesn’t matter.

A. wait B. waiting C. to wait