Recently, an almost literal case of lifeboat ethics(伦理) occurred. On Aug. 4, Graham and Sheryl Anley, while boating off the coast of South Africa, hit a rock. As the boat threatened to sink the husband got off, but his wife was trapped in the boat. Instead of freeing his wife and getting her to shore, Graham grabbed Rosie, their pet dog. With Rosie safe and sound, Graham returned for Sheryl. All are doing fine.
It's a great story, but it doesn't strike me as especially newsworthy. News is supposed to be about something fairly unique, and recent research suggests that, in the right circumstances, lots of people also would have grabbed their Rosie first.
We have strange relationships with our pets. We lavish our pets with adoration and better health care than billions of people receive. We speak to pets with the same high-pitched voices that we use for babies. As an extreme example of our feelings about pets, the Nazis had strict laws that guaranteed the humane treatment of the pets of Jews being shipped to death camps.
A recent paper by George Regents University demonstrates this human involvement with pets to an astonishing extent. Participants in the study were told a situation in which a bus is out of control, bearing down on a dog and a human. Which do you save? With responses from more than 500 people, the answer was that it depended: What kind of human and what kind of dog?
Everyone would save a brother, grandparent or close friend rather than a strange dog. But when people considered their own dog versus people less connected with them—a distant cousin or a hometown stranger—votes in favor of saving the dog came rolling in. And an astonishing 40% of respondents, including 46% of women, voted to save their dog over a foreign tourist.
What does a finding like this mean? First, that your odds aren't so good if you find yourself in another country with a bus bearing down on you and a cute dog. But it also points to something deeper: our unprecedented(史无前例的) attitude toward animals, which got its start with the birth of humane societies in the 19th century.
We prison people who abuse animals, put ourselves in harm's way in boats between whales and whalers and show sympathy to Bambi and his mother. We can extend empathy to an animal and feel its pain like no other species. But let's not be too proud of ourselves. As this study and too much of our history show, we're pretty selective about how we extend our humaneness to other human beings.
【小题1】What is the function of the first paragraph?

阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
Beware of those who use the truth to cheat. When someone tells you something that is  36   , but leaves out important information that should be     37  , he can create a false impression.
For example, someone might say, “I just    38    a hundred dollars on the lottery. It was great. I took that dollar ticket back to the store and     39   it for one hundred dollars!”
This guy’s a winner,    40  ? Maybe, maybe not. We then discover that he bought two hundred     41    , and only one was a winner. He’s really a big     42   !
He didn’t say anything that was    43   , but he deliberately left out some important  44  . That’s called a half-truth. Half-truths are not technically     45  , but they are just as not   46    .
Untrustworthy candidates in     47    campaigns often use this strategy. Let’s say that during Governor Smith’s last term, her state lost one million jobs and   48   three million jobs. Then she    49    another term. One of her opponents runs an advertisement   50  , “During Governor Smith’s term, the state lost one million jobs!” That’s true.    51   , an honest statement would have been, “During Governor Smith’s term, the state had a net gain of   52   million jobs.”
Advertisers will sometimes use half-truths. It’s    53   the law to make false claims so they try to mislead you with the    54   . An advertisement might boast (吹嘘), “Nine out of ten doctors recommend Yucky Pills to cure nose pimples.” It     55   to mention that they only asked ten doctors and nine of them work for the Yucky Corporation.
This kind of cheat happens too often. It’s a sad fact of life: Lies are lies, and sometimes the truth can lie as well.

Alcohol is often taken as a symbol of a special celebration or as a sign of friendship. So it is       to see people toasting with a large glass of alcohol to the health or fortune. Unfortunately, every year, alcohol also ruins thousands of lives and destroys many happy families.
Some people drink alcohol to     their tension or pain. They mistakenly think that through drinking, they can     from their problems and worries. But it is never a    . During those hours of drinking, alcohol only numbs their senses and makes them forget their worries. However, when they wake up, their problems are still unsolved.
A     alcohol drinker is running the great risks of getting heart diseases and liver failure. Too much alcohol taken into the body system, death will     occur. Alcohol also affects unborn babies disastrously. Those pregnant mothers with     alcohol in their blood system risk causing their unborn babies to suffer from defects (缺陷) at birth.    , babies are innocent victims due to their mothers’ mistakes. Therefore they should be extremely cautious of any alcohol and it is better to     all drinking during pregnancy.
Drunken driving is one of the worst     of alcohol abuse. Every year, many lives are lost due to    driving on roads and highways. A drunk driver cannot see and judge the distance clearly and will find it difficult to control his vision and     on the road, so he fails to control over his reflexes. That is how accidents occur. Not only does he hurt himself but also other innocent road users.

The concept of solitude(独处) in the digital world is almost non-existent. In the world of digital technology, e-mail, social networking and online video games, information is meant to be ______. Solitude can be hard to discover ______it has been given up. In this respect, new technologies have ______our culture.
The desire to be connected has brought solitude to a(n)      as we've known it. People have become so     in the world of networks and connections that one can often be contacted     they'd rather not be. Today we can talk, text, e-mail, chat and blog (写博客), not only from our   , but from our mobile phones as well.
Most developed nations have become     on digital technology simply because they've grown accustomed to it, and at this point not     it would make them an outsider.   , many jobs and careers require people to be    . From this point of view, technology has changed the culture of work. Being reachable might feel like a     to those who may not want to be able to be contacted at all times.
I suppose the positive side is that solitude is still possible for anyone who     wants it. Computers can be shut      and mobile phones can be turned off. The ability to be "connected" and " on" has many   , as well as disadvantages. Travelers have ended up     on mountains, and mobile phones have saved countless lives. They can also make people feel     and forced to answer unwanted calls or   to unwanted texts.
Attitudes towards our connectedness as a society     across generations. Some find today's technology a gift. Others consider it a curse. Regardless of anyone's view on the subject, it's hard to imagine what life would be like     daily advancements in technology.

Could the Internet be totally free and should it be? Should the Internet be regulated? The recent disorder in the Arab world ____ by a disputed (有争议的) video damaging the image of Prophet (先知) Muhammad shows the United States, which is busy ____ global Internet freedom, has paid a huge price ____ the lives of its diplomats.
In an unregulated Internet world, cheating, violence or rumors can ____ serious consequences. Many countries across the world are periodically suffering from “rumors” ____ by the Internet and social media.
The US-led West always promotes Internet freedom and ____ any regulation as investigation, but it should think twice if it calculates the heavy price that has been and has to be paid for “____”. Moreover, ____ the Internet in the West ____ to be free, with no obvious ____ and no limited sites, isn’t the structure of the main pages already hand-controlled, with selected press agencies and ____ occupying clearly dominating (显著的) positions?
The Internet has helped fight injustice, ____ corruption in places so far apart as Indonesia, India and Latin America. But the Internet could be extremely ____ as well. Various racist or separatist organizations are using their Internet sites to fan ____. Those who are spreading hate are frequently using the Internet as their tool. No country can ____ to make the Internet absolutely free.
The question is how to keep free flow of information ____ while protecting children from unhealthy works, common citizens from ____ rumors and countries from unfair and damaging propaganda (宣传) attacks. And who sets the limits?
The ____ is that there will never be a perfect system. Every country will have to ____ its own system, based on its culture, social ____ and the degree of danger it’s facing.

The world would be a better place if we all had children’s eyes. This is not because children’s eyes are too sharp to allow any blot（污点，瑕疵）to pass without being     , but because adults have too many conflicting concerns to keep their eyes open to all wrongdoing.
Not long before, an examination, intended to     some police officers to higher positions, was held in Gansu province. Someone     with a good idea that 18 primary pupils could be invited to act as invigilators (监考人). At that age, students would do as they are told and act fearlessly.      , they caught 25 officers cheating on the spot, which has caused a stir (轰动，搅动) and      the question of whether adult invigilators would      their duties as well.
The implication of this event goes      its impact on the work style of local police officers and the examinations. Most people said what these children have done points to the sad fact of      being less trustworthy. If adults acted as invigilators, they would quite      turn a blind eye to cheating.
We Chinese have been holding the      that human nature was good at birth: as      of blot as a sheet of blank paper, which can be      with content (good or bad) in the process of growing up. Everything should be done on the basis of certain principles(原则).      , nowadays the repeated reports of cheating in examinations, selling ranks and      and embezzling (挪用) public funds paint a      picture of common social morals.    Adults have become too concerned with their own personal gains to      basic sense of principles. When no one      any principle and the only concern is personal interest, everyone will      , not only those who first break the rules.
Besides, cheats are unfair to honest examinees, and when the success of cheats      more people to cheat, the consequences will be disastrous.
In a word, we adults need to have our eyes as      as children’s on matters of principle.

Americans value competition. They believe that competition      out the best in any individual. They claim that it challenges or even      each person to produce the very best that is humanly possible.     , the foreign visitor will see competition encouraged in the American home and in the American classroom,     at the youngest age levels. You may find the    placed on competition confusing, especially if you come from a society that promotes cooperation   competition among individuals. But Americans teaching in the Third World countries find the lack of competition in a classroom situation equally     . They soon learn that what they had thought to be one of the universal human qualities      only a particularly American or Western value.

The new science of spending comes to a surprising conclusion, How we use our money may        as much or more than how much we’ve got it.
Money spent on experiences, rather than material ,goods,        more happiness.
Imagine that you wake up tomorrow morning to    ＄1 million under your bed . What would you do     that cash?
The money will probably make you think about one thing     all else—yourself. A large amount of research reveals that money     our selfish sides. We will     much on what that money can do for us alone, Perhaps you are imagining buying a faster car, or even a new house,
But studies show that     goods often fail to deliver     happiness, Fortunately ,our ongoing research     many ways to get more happiness from every dollar you spend, Changing how you spend money can increase your happiness.
But making these     needs to challenge some of our ideas of spending It’s hard not to    buying a house as a wise investment（投资）, But new research shows it brings very little happiness, A study in the United States found that homeowners, on average , were no happier than     .
So, working hard to save money for a house might not be such a good idea     it means spending less time with your families and friends.
And dozens of studies show that people get more happiness from buying     than material things, Experiential purchases --- such as trips, concerts and special meals--- are more     connected to our sense, of self.
And experiences come with one more     , They tend to bring us     to other people , but more often , material things are enjoyed   . So social contacts are important to     mental and physical health.

A person’s home is as much a reflection of his personality as the clothes he wears, the food he eats and the friends with whom he spends his time. Depending on personality, most have in mind a(n) “______ home”. But in general, and especially for the student or new wage earners, there are practical ______ of cash and location on achieving that idea.
Cash ______, in fact, often means that the only way of ______ when you leave school is to stay at home for a while until things ______ financially. There are obvious ______of living at home—personal laundry is usually ______ done along with the family wash; meals are provided and there will be a well-established circle of friends to ______. And there is ______ the responsibility for paying bills, rates, etc.
On the other hand, ______ depends on how a family gets on. Do your parents like your friends? You may love your family—______do you like them? Are you prepared to be ______ when your parents ask where you are going in the evening and what time you expect to be back? If you find that you cannot strike a(n) ______, and that you finally have the money to leave, how do you ______ finding somewhere else to live?
If you plan to stay in your home area, the possibilities are ______well-known to you already. Friends and the local paper are always ______. If you are going to work in a ______ area, again there are the papers—and the accommodation agencies, ______ these should be approached with ______. Agencies are allowed to charge a fee, usually the ______ of the first week’s rent, if you take accommodation they have found for you.

The new science of spending comes to a surprising conclusion .How we use our money may   as much or more than how much we’ve got it.
Money spent on experiences , rather than material goods,   more happiness.
Imagine that you wake up tomorrow morning to   $1 million under your bed .What would you do   that cash?
The money will probably make you think about one thing    all else---- yourself. A large amount of research reveals that money    our selfish sides. We will     much on what that money can do for us alone. Perhaps you are imagining buying a faster car, or even a new house.
But studies show that goods often fail to deliver      happiness. Fortunately ,our ongoing research     many ways to get more happiness from every dollar you spend .Changing how you spend money can increase your happiness.
But making these      needs to challenge some of our ideas of spending. It’s hard not to     buying a house as a wise investment. But research shows it brings very little happiness. A study in the United States found that homeowners , on average ,were no happier than  .
So, working hard to save money for a house might not be such a good idea      it means spending less time with your families and friends.
And dozens of studies show that people get more happiness from buying      than material things. Experimental purchases—such as trips ,concerts and special meals –are more   connected to our sense of self.
And experiences come with one more   . They tend to bring us     to other people , but more often, material things are enjoyed     .So social contacts are important to      mental and physical health.