In ancient Egypt,the pharaoh(法老)trented the poor message runner like a prince when he arrived at the palace ,if he broubht good news ,However ,if the exharsted runner had the misrlrtune to buing the pharaoh unhappy news ,his head was cut off
Shades of that lpirit priad ovie today’s cknversntions,Once a friend and Ipack up some peanut butter ane sandwiches for an outing As we walked light-heartedly out the door ,pienie basket in hand ,a smiling neighbor looked up at the sky and saie ,Oh boy ,bad dny for a picnic the weatherman says it’s going tl raim I wanted to strike him on the race with the peanut butter and sandwiches not for his stupid weather report for his wsile
Several months ago Iwas racing to fcatcb angty A’s I breathlessly put my handfrul of cash acrlss the Greyhound ckunths the sales ager said with a brond smile.Oh that bus lsft rive minrtes ago Dreams of head cutting
It’s not the news thst makes ,someone angry It’s the unsympathetic attitrde with which it’s delivered Everyone must give bad mews from time to time ,and winning professilnalas di it ‘swith the prope attitude A doctor advising a paticnt she needs an operation dose it in a caring way Aboss infonning an employee he didn’t get job takes on a sympathetic tone Big winners know ,when delivering ang ban news they should share th feeling of the receiver.
Unfortumately, many peple are not aware of this?you re tired from a long flight, has a hotel clerk cheerfully said that your room isn’t ready ye?When you had your heart set on the toast beef ,has your waiter mimily told you that he just seuved the last piece?It makes you as traveler or diner want to land your fist fight on their unsympathetic faces.
Had my neighbor told me of the upcoming rainstorm with sympathy, I would have appreciated his warning.Had the Greyhound salesclerk sympathetically infored me that my bus had already left, I probably would have said, “Oh ,that ‘s all right.I’ll catch the next one.” Big winners, when they bear bear new ,deliver bombs with the emxtion the bombarded(被轰炸的)person is sure to have.
(1)
In Paragrph 1,the writer tells the story of the pharaoh to ________.
[ ]
A.
make a comparison
B.
warm-hearted
C.
not considerate
D.
not helpful
(2)
From“Dreams of head-cutting!”(Paragraph 3),we learn that the writer ________.
[ ]
A.
was mad at the sales agent.
B.
was reminded of the cruel pharaoh
C.
wished that the sales agent would have had dreams.
D.
dreamed of cutting the sales agent’s head that night.
(3)
What is the main idea of the text?
[ ]
A.
Delivering bad news properly is important in communication.
B.
Helping others sincerely is the key to business success.
C.
Receiving bad news requires great courage.
D.
Learning ancient traditions can be useful.
阅读理解
Judging from recent surveys, most experts in sleep behavior agree that there is virtually an epidemic(流行病)of sleepiness in the nation.“I can’t think of a single study that hasn’t found Americans getting less sleep than they ought to,” says Dr David.Even people who think they are sleeping enough would probably be better off with more rest.
The beginning of our sleep-deficit crisis can be traced back to the invention of the light bulb a century age.From diary entries and our personal accounts from the 18th and 19th centuries, sleep scientists have reached the conclusion that the average person used to sleep about 9.5 hours a night.“The best sleep habits once were forced on us, when we had nothing to do in the evening down on the farm, and it was dark.” By the 1950s and 1960s, the sleep schedule had been reduced dramatically, to between 7.5 and 8 hours, and most people had to wake to an alarm clock.“People cheat in their sleep, and they don’t even realize they’re doing it,” says Dr David.“They think they’re okay because they can get by on 6.5 hours, when they really need 7.5, 8 or even more to feel ideally energetic.”
Perhaps the most merciless robber of sleep, researchers say, is the complexity of the day.Whenever pressures from work, family, friends and community increase, many people consider sleep the least expensive item on their programme.“In our society, you’re considered dynamic if you say you need only 5.5 hours’ sleep.If you’ve got to get 8.5 hours, people think you lack drive and ambition.”
To determine the consequences of sleep-deficit, researchers have put subjects through a set of psychological and performance tests requiring them, for instance, to add columns of numbers or recall a passage read to them only minutes earlier.“We’ve found that if you’re in sleep-deficit, performance suffers,” says Dr David.“Short-term memory is weakened, as are abilities to make decisions and to concentrate.”
(1)
What is the main topic of the passage?
[ ]
A.
Research on the causes and consequences of sleep-deficit.
B.
The epidemic of sleepiness in the modern times.
C.
The history of people’s sleeping patterns.
D.
The minimum of our sleeping hours.
(2)
Which of the following is Di David’s opinion?
[ ]
A.
People who think they are sleeping enough are better off than those who don’t.
B.
Some people can remain energetic with only 6.5 hours’ sleep a night.
C.
If they get 8.5 hours’ sleep, people will be full of drive and ambition.
D.
People’s mental power suffers if they are lacking in sleep.
(3)
People in the 18th and 19th centuries slept about 9.5 hours a night because __________.
[ ]
A.
they were forced by their parents to do so
B.
they knew what was best for their health
C.
they had no electricity
D.
they were not so dynamic and ambitious as modern people are
(4)
The major cause of sleep-deficit of modern people is __________.
[ ]
A.
the endless TV programmes in the evenings and the Internet
B.
the pressures of the day
C.
the sufficient energy modern people usually have
D.
loud noises in modern cities
(5)
What does the word “subjects” in the last paragraph mean?
[ ]
A.
Persons or things being discussed or described.
B.
Branched of knowledge studied in a school.
C.
Persons or things being treated in a certain way or being experimented on.
D.
Any member of a state apart from the supreme ruler.