Unhappy people glue(使粘牢) themselves to the television 30 percent more than happy people.

The finding, announced on Thursday,   1  from a survey of nearly 30,000 American adults conducted between 1975 and 2006 as part of the General Social Survey.

  2  happy people reported watching an   3   of 19 hours of television per week, unhappy people reported 25 hours a week. The results held even after   4  into account education, income, age and marital status.

In addition, happy individuals were more socially   5  , attended more religious services, voted more and    6  a newspaper more often than their less-chipper(没有精神的) counterparts.

The researchers are not sure, though, whether unhappiness   7  more television-watching or more viewing leads to unhappiness.

In fact, people say they like watching television: Past research has shown that when people watch television they   8   it. In these studies, participants reported that on a   9  from 0 (dislike) to 10 (greatly enjoy), TV-watching was nearly an 8.

But perhaps the high from watching television doesn't   10  .

"These conflicting data  11  that TV may provide viewers with short-run   12  , but at the expense of long-term malaise(精神欠爽)," said researcher John Robinson, a sociologist at the University of Maryland, College Park.

In this case, even the happiest campers could turn into Debbie-downers if they continue to   13  at the TV. The researchers suggest that over time, television-viewing  14   push out other activities that do have more lasting   15  . Exercise and sex come to mind, as do parties and other forms of socialization known to have psychological benefits.

Or, maybe television is simply a refuge(慰藉物) for people who are already   16  .

"TV is not judgmental 17  difficult, so people with   18  social skills or resources for other activities can engage in it," Robinson and UM colleague Steven Martin write in the December issue of the journal Social Indicators Research.

They add, "  19  , chronic unhappiness can be socially and personally debilitating(使人衰弱的) and can interfere with work and most social and personal activities, but even the unhappiest people can click a remote and be passively   20  by a TV."

The researchers say follow-up studies are needed to tease out the relationship between television and happiness.

(    ) 1. A. comes              B. arrives              C. differs              D. results

(    ) 2. A. When                      B. As                    C. While               D. Therefore

(    ) 3. A. average            B. amount             C. number            D. effort

(    ) 4. A. speaking           B. talking             C. taking              D. getting

(    ) 5. A. active                      B. positive            C. crazy               D. cozy

(    ) 6. A. look                 B. read                 C. see                   D. take

(    ) 7. A. builds up          B. cuts down        C. leads to            D. tends to

(    ) 8. A. hate                 B. enjoy                      C. adopt                      D. adapt

(    ) 9. A. fashion             B. group                   C. scale               D. rate

(    ) 10. A. last               B. decrease           C. widen               D. disappear

(    ) 11. A. report             B. suggest             C. improve           D. admit

(    ) 12. A. excitement      B. pleasure            C. suffering          D. sadness

(    ) 13. A. glare                     B. look                 C. stare                 D. fix

(    ) 14. A. should            B. must               C. could                      D. need

(    ) 15. A. comforts        B. laughter          C. pressures          D. benefits

(    ) 16. A. tired                      B. lonely              C. bored                      D. unhappy

(    ) 17. A. and               B. neither             C. nor                  D. but

(    ) 18. A. few               B. little                 C. many                      D. quantity

(    ) 19. A. Therefore              B. Furthermore     C. However          D. Yet

(    ) 20. A. controlled              B. transformed      C. persuaded        D. entertained

How Long Can People Live?

    She took up skating at age 85, made her first movie appearance at age 114, and held a concert in the neighborhood on her 121 st birthday.

    When it comes to long life, Jeanne Calment is the world’s record holder. She lived to the ripe old age of 122. So is 122 the upper limit to the human life span(寿命)? If scientists come up with some sort of pill or diet that would slow aging, could we possibly make it to 150-or beyond?

    Researchers don’t entirely agree on the answers. “Calment lived to 122, so it wouldn’t surprise me if someone alive today reaches 130 or 135,” says Jerry Shay at the University of Texas.

    Steve Austad at the University of Texas agrees. “People can live much longer than we think,” he says. “Experts used to say that humans couldn’t live past 110. When Calment blew past that age, they raised the number to 120. So why can’t we go higher?”

    The trouble with guessing how old people can live to be is that it’s all just guessing. “Anyone can make up a number,” says Rich Miller at the University of Michigan. “Usually the scientist who picks the highest number gets his name in Time magazine.”

    Won’t new anti-aging techniques keep us alive for centuries? Any cure, says Miller, for aging would probably keep most of us kicking until about 120. Researchers are working on treatments that lengthen the life span of mice by 50 percent at most. So, if the average human life span is about 80 years, says Miller, “adding another 50 percent would get you to 120.”

    So what can we conclude from this little disagreement among the researchers? That life span is flexible(有弹性的), but there is a limit, says George Martin of the University of Washington. “We can get flies to live 50 percent longer,” he says. “But a fly’s never going to live 150 years.” Of course, if you became a new species (物种), one that ages at a slower speed, that would be a different story, he adds.

    Does Martin really believe that humans could evolve (进化)their way to longer life? “It’s pretty cool to think about,” he says with a smile.

72. What does the story of Jeanne Calment prove to us?

       A. People can live to 122.        B. Old people are creative.

       C. Women are sporty at 85.     D. Women live longer than men.

73. According to Steve Austad at the University of Texas, ______.

       A. the average human life span could be 110

      B. scientists cannot find ways to slow aging

      C. few people can expect to live to over 150

      D. researchers are not sure how long people can live

74. Who would agree that a scientist will become famous if he makes the wildest guess at longevity?

      A. Jerry Shay.           B. Steve Austad     C. Rich Miller     D. George Martin

75. What can we infer from the last three paragraphs?

       A. Most of us could be good at sports even at 120.

      B. The average human life span cannot be doubled

      C. Scientists believe mice are aging at a slower speed than before.

      D. New techniques could be used to change flies into a new species

MONTREAL (Reuters) – Crossing the US-Canada border (边界) to go to church on a Sunday cost a US citizen $ 10,000 for breaking Washington’s strict new security (安全) rules.

     The expensive trip to church was a surprise for Richard Albert, who lives right on the Canadian border. Like the other half-dozen people of Township 15, crossing the border is a daily occurrence for Albert. The nearby Quebec village of St. Pamphile is where they shop, eat and go to church.

There are many such situations in these areas along the largely unguarded 5,530-mile border between Canada and the US – which in some cases actually runs down the middle of streets or through buildings.

     As a result, Albert says he did not expect any p0roblems three weeks ago when he returned home to the US after attending church in Canada, as usual, The US customs (海关) station in this area is closed on Sundays, so he just drove around the locked gate, as he had done every weekend since the pate appeared last May, following a tightening of border security. Two days later, Albert was told to go to the customs office, where an officer told him he had been caught on camera crossing the border illegally (非法).

     Ottawa has given out sp0ecial passes to some 300 US citizens in that area so they can enter the country when Canadian customs stations are closed, but the US stopped a similar program last May. That forces the people to a 200-mile detour along hilly roads to get home through another border checkpoint.

     Albert has requested that the customs office change their decisions on the fine, but he has not attended a Sunday church since. “I feel like I’m living in a p0rison,”he said.

4.We learn from the text that Richard Albert is _______.

    A.an American living in Township 15  

       B.a Canadian living in a Quebec village

    C.a Canadian working in a customs station

    D.an American working in a Canadian church

5..Albert was fined because he ________.

    A.failed to obey traffic rules

       B.broke the American security rules

    C.worked in St. Pamphile without a pass

    D.damaged the gate of the customs office.

6.The underlined word “detour” in Paragraph 5 means _________.

       A.a drive through the town B.a race across the fields    

    C.a roundabout way of traveling D.a journey in the mountain area

7..What would be the best title for the text?     

    A.A Cross-country Trip            B.A Special Border Pass   

    C.An Unguarded Border           D.An Expensive Church Visit

Compassion is a desire within us to help others. With effort, we can translate compassion into actions. An experience last weekend showed me this is true. I work part-time in a supermarket across from a building for the elderly. These old people are out main customers, and it’s not hard to lose patience over their slowness. But last Sunday, one aged gentleman appeared to teach me a valuable lesson. This untidy man walked up to my register(收款机)with a box of biscuits. He said he was out of cash (现金), had just moved into his room, and had nothing in his cupboards. He asked if we could let him have the food on trust. He promised to repay me the next day.

I couldn’t help staring at him. I wondered what kind of person he had been ten or twenty years before, and what he would be like if luck had gone his way. I had a hurt in my heart for this kind of human soul, all alone in the world. I told him that I was sorry, but store rules didn’t allow me to do so. I felt stupid and unkind saying this, but I valued my job.

Just then, another man, standing behind the first, spoke up. If anything, he looked more pitiable. “Change it to me,” was all he said.

What I had been feeling was pity. Pity is soft and safe and easy. Compassion, on the other hand, is caring in action. I thanked the second man but told him that was not allowed either. Then I reached into my pocket and paid for the biscuits myself. I reached into my pocket because these two men had reached into my heart and taught me compassion.

41. The aged gentleman who wanted to buy the biscuits_________.

A.promised to obey the store rules    

B.forgot to take any money with him

C.hoped to have the food first and pay later   

D.could not afford anything more expensive

42. Which of the following best describes the old gentleman?

A.kind and lucky        B.poor and lonely

C.friendly and helpful D.hurt and disappointed

43. The writer acted upon the store rules because_________.

A.he wanted to keep his present job  

B.he felt no pity for the old gentleman

C.he considered the old man dishonest     

D.he expected someone else to pay for the old man

44. What does the writer learn from his experience?

A.Wealth is more important than anything else    

B.Helping others is easier said than done

C.Experience is better gained through practice

D.Obeying the rules means more than compassion.

Giving Back

Fair Way

The Westborough High School golf team had taken the official photos with the state prize. The other teams, disappointed, were on the bus heading home. And then Westborough instructor Greg Rota noticed something wrong x>n one of the score cards. A 9 had been recorded as a 7. They were not the state prize winner; Wobum High had won. "No one would have known," said Wobum's instruc??tor, Bob Doran. For Rota, it wasn't a difficult decision: "The prize wasn't ours to take."

Coin Stars

"College students are lazy, but they also want to help," says University of Pennsylvania graduate Dana Hork. So she made it easy, placing cups in rooms where students could leave their spare coins, and handing out cups to first-year students to keep in their rooms. Her " Change for Change" effort has collected $40,000 for charities 慈善机构), which were decided upon by students.

Never Forgotten

A school in Massachusetts received a $ 9.5 million check from Jacques LeBermuth. But it took offi??cials several days of digging to discover his connection to the school. Records showed the LeBermuth came from Belgium and studied in the school in the 1920s. When his family fell on hard times, he was offered free room and board. LeBermuth became a trader, owned shares of AT&T and lived off the earnings until he died, at age 89.

60. What did Greg Rota probably do in the end?

       A. Took photos of Doran.

       B. Had a meeting with Doran.

       C. Returned the prize to the organizer.

       D. Apologized to Wobum High School.

61. Greg Rota's decision shows that he was _______.

       A. honest               B. polite                C. careful               D. friendly

62. The underlined word "Change" in the second paragraph means _______.

       A. Idea            B. Decision      C. Cups                D. Coins

63. What did the school officials do after receiving the check from Mr. LeBermuth?

       A. They tried to find out why he gave them the money.

       B. They went to Belgium to pay their respects to him.

       C. They dug out the records that were buried underground.

       D. They decided to offer their students free room and board.

64. Jacques LeBermuth gave the money to the school because _______.

       A. the school asked for it                

       B. he had no need for that much money

       C. the school had helped him in the past  

       D. he wanted to be remembered by the students

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