Even when you’re extremely busy, you aren’t using your time with 100% efficiency. There are gaps in everyone’s schedule where they aren’t doing anything important. Even if your schedule has no gaps, there is probably lots of time when you aren’t working as fast or as effectively as you possibly could.
Why aren’t you completely efficient? It’s because time isn’t the limiting factor. If it were the limiting factor, people could work non-stop without breaks or any unproductive distractions (消遣). Instead, people, even those who are highly productive, need to take breaks, occasionally procrastinate (拖延) and slow down on tasks throughout the day.
The real and most important limiting factor for productivity is your energy levels to pay attention. Energy levels limit your productivity because when you’re tired, you can have enough time and still not get everything done. Your attention ability is also limited, because even if there are a million things that need to be done, you can only focus on one or two at a time.
You might not be able to insert another 4-5 hours into your schedule without making some sacrifices. But even extremely busy people can add an hour or two into their schedule without cancelling anything. The reason why it’s hard to “find time” isn’t a lack of time. It’s because you don’t have enough energy left to focus on something else that needs to fit into your day.
I first suspected time wasn’t the real problem during an extremely busy period in my life over a year ago. I was extremely busy, but at that time I still exercised regularly. I had daily to-do lists with over twenty items, and I still found time to exercise. However, after a few weeks off, due to illness, I stopped exercising. I was not busy by any standards, in fact, my schedule was incredibly light. Despite this free time, I found it hard to find time to exercise. It seemed to get pushed later and later into my schedule until it was gone. How can I explain this odd experience? I believe you have known it.
【小題1】If someone can’t work with 100% efficiency, the most important limiting factor is ________.

A．a(chǎn) schedule without gaps	B．breaks and distractions
C．the limited time	D．the limited energy

【小題2】According to Paragraph 4, everyone, including the extremely busy people, can ________.

A．work without any rest

B．focus on many things at a time

C．find some more time in a day

D．do some exercise regularly

【小題3】The writer gives the example of himself in the last paragraph in order to ________.

A．prove what the real limiting factor is

B．show us how busily he needs to work

C．explain how important a healthy body is

D．tell us what an odd experience he has

【小題4】What is the best title of the passage?

A．Do You Really Lack Time?

B．How Can You Work Efficiently?

C．What Makes Your Energy Limited?

D．When Should You Do Exercise?

A woman named Emily renewing her driver’s license at the County Clerk’s office was asked to state her occupation. She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself.
“What I mean is,” explained the recorder, “do you have a job, or are you just a …”
“Of course I have a job,” said Emily. “I’m a mother.”
“We don’t list ‘mother’ as an occupation… ‘housewife’ covers it,” said the recorder.
One day I found myself in the same situation. The clerk was obviously a career woman, confident and possessed of a high sounding title. “What is your occupation?” she asked.
The words simply popped out. “I’m a Research Associate in the field of Child Development and Human Relations.”
The clerk paused, ballpoint pen frozen in midair.
I repeated the title slowly, then I stared with wonder as my statement was written in bold, black ink on the official questionnaire.
“Might I ask,” said the clerk with new interest, “Just what you do in this field?”
Coolly, without any trace of panic in my voice, I heard myself reply, “I have a continuing program of research (what mother doesn’t), in the lab and in the field (normally I would have said indoors and out). Of course, the job is one of the most demanding in the humanities (any mother care to disagree?), and I often work 14 hours a day (24 is more like it). But the job is more challenging than most careers and rewards are more of a satisfaction rather than just money.”
There was an increasing note of respect in the clerk’s voice as she completed the form, stood up, and showed me out.
As I drove into our driveway, buoyed up (受鼓舞) by my glamorous new career, I was greeted by my lab assistants---ages 13, 7, and 3.
Upstairs I could hear our new experimental model (a 6 month old baby), in the child-development program, testing out a new vocal pattern.
I felt proud! I had gone on the official records as someone more distinguished and indispensable (不可缺少的) to mankind than “just another mother.”
Motherhood…What a glorious career! Especially when there’s a title on the door.
【小題1】What can we infer from the conversation between the woman and the recorder at the beginning of the passage?

A．The recorder was impatient and rude.

B．The woman felt ashamed to admit what her job was.

C．The author was upset about the situation that mothers faced.

D．Motherhood was not recognized and respected as a job by society.

【小題2】How did the female clerk feel at first when the author told her occupation?

A．curious

B．indifferent

C．puzzled

D．interested

【小題3】Why did the woman clerk show more respect for the author?

A．Because the author cared little about rewards.

B．Because she thought the author did admirable work.

C．Because she admired the author’s research work in the lab.

D．Because the writer did something she had little knowledge of.

【小題4】What is the author’s purpose of writing the passage?

A．To show how you describe your job affects your feelings toward it.

B．To argue that motherhood is a worthy career and deserves respect.

C．To show that the author had a greater job than Emily.

D．To show that being a mother is hard and boring work.

Attitude is an internal(內(nèi)在的) state that influences the choices of personal action made by the individual(個(gè)人). Some researchers consider that attitudes come from differences between beliefs and ideas; others believe that attitudes come from emotional states. Here, we focus on the effects of attitudes upon behavior, that is, upon the choices of action made by the individual.
The kinds of actions taken by human beings are obviously influenced greatly by attitudes. Whether one listens to classical music or rock, whether one obeys the speed limit while driving, whether one encourages one’s husband or wife to express his or her own ideas-all are influenced by attitudes. These internal states are acquired(獲得) throughout life from situations one is faced with in the home, in the streets, and in the school.
Of course, the course of action chosen by an individual in any situation will be largely determined by the particulars of that situation. An individual who has a strong attitude of obeying laws may drive too fast when he is in a hurry and no police cars in sight. A child who has a strong attitude of honesty may steal a penny when she thinks no one will notice. But the internal state which remains unchanged over a period of time, and which makes the individual behave regularly in a variety of situations, is what is meant by an attitude.
Attitudes are learned in a variety of ways. They can result from single events, as when an attitude toward snakes is acquired by an experience in childhood at the sudden movement of a snake. They can result from the individual’s experiences of success and pleasure, as when someone acquires a positive attitude toward doing crossword puzzles by being able to complete some of them. And frequently, they are learned by copying other people’s behavior, as when a child learns how to behave toward foreigners by observing the actions of his parents. Regardless of these differences, there is something in common in the learning and modification(修正) of attitudes.
【小題1】According to the passage, attitudes        .

A．come from different situations in one’s life

B．a(chǎn)re largely affected by one’s behavior

C．remain unchanged in one’s daily life

D．could be chosen according to one’s will

【小題2】The author uses the examples in Paragraph 3 to show        .

A．people often make mistakes when they are not noticed

B．people with good attitudes may sometimes do bad deeds

C．particulars of a situation may influence an individual’s action

D．a(chǎn)n individual may change his or her attitude fairly easily

【小題3】Which of the following is TRUE about the learning of attitudes?

A．Attitudes are only learned through one’s success.

B．Attitudes learned in danger will last no more.

C．Copying others’ behavior is not a good idea.

D．Attitudes can be learned from one’s parents.

【小題4】What would be the best title for the passage?

A．Differences of Attitudes.	B．Nature(本質(zhì)) of Attitude.
C．Choices of Attitudes.	D．Changes of Attitude.

American is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon if situations change. Neither side feels hurt by this. Both may exchange Christmas greetings for a year or two, perhaps a few letters for a while—then no more. If the same two people meet again by chance, even years later, they pick up the friendship. This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand, because friendships between us flower more slowly but then may become lifelong feelings, extending (延伸) sometimes deeply into both families.
Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. They will enjoy welcoming us and be pleased if we accept their hospitality (好客) easily.
Another difficult point for us Chinese to understand Americans is that although they include us warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to us if it requires a great deal of time. This is usually the opposite of the practice in our country where we may be generous with our time. Sometimes, we, as hosts, will appear at airports even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take days off to act as guides to our foreign friends. The Americans, however, express their welcome usually at homes, but truly can not manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily routine (常規(guī)). They will probably expect us to get ourselves from the airport to our own hotel by bus. And they expect that we will phone them from there. Once we arrive at their homes, the welcome will be full, warm and real. We will find ourselves treated hospitably.
For the Americans, it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to go to restaurants, except for purely business matters. So accept their hospitality at home!
【小題1】The writer of this passage must be ___________.

A．a(chǎn)n American

B．a(chǎn) Chinese

C．a(chǎn) professor

D．a(chǎn) student

【小題2】Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A．Friendships between Americans usually extend deeply into their family.

B．Friendships between Americans usually last for all their lives.

C．Americans always show their warmth even if they are very busy.

D．Americans will continue their friendships again even after a long break.

【小題3】From the last two paragraphs we can learn that when we arrive in America to visit an American friend, we will probably be _________________.

A．warmly welcomed at the airport	B．offered a ride to his home
C．treated hospitably at his home	D．treated to dinner in a restaurant

【小題4】From the underlined sentence, we can know the Chinese people __________.

A．a(chǎn)re strict with time	B．don’t take time seriously
C．don’t know how to use time	D．a(chǎn)re willing to spend time for friends

【小題5】A suitable title for this passage would probably be “________________”.

A．Friendships between Chinese

B．Friendships between Americans

C．Americans’hospitality

D．Americans’and Chinese’s views of friendship

In modern society there is a great deal of argument about competition . Some value it highly , believing that it is responsible for social progress and prosperity . Others say that competition is bad ; that it sets one person against another ; that it leads to unfriendly relationship between people .
I have taught many children who held the belief that their self-worth relied (依賴)on how well they performed at tennis and other skills . For them, playing well and winning are often life-and-death affairs. In their single-minded pursuit ( 追求)of success , the development of many other human qualities is sadly forgotten .
However ，while some seem to be lost in the desire to succeed , others take an opposite attitude .In a culture which values only the winner and pays no attention to the ordinary players , they strongly blame competition . Among the most vocal  are youngsters who have suffered under competitive pressures from their parents or society . Teaching these young people . I often observe in them a desire to fail . They seem to seek failure by not trying to win or achieve success . By not trying , they always have an excuse : “I may have lost . but it doesn’t matter because I really didn’t try . “What is not usually admitted by themselves is the belief that if they had really tried and lost, that would mean a lot . Such a loss would be a measure of their worth . Clearly, this belief is the same as that of the true competitors who try to prove themselves . Both are based on the mistaken belief that one’s self-respect relies on how well one performs in comparison with others . Both are afraid of not being valued . Only as this basic and often troublesome fear begins to dissolve (緩解) can we discover a new meaning in competition .
【小題1】What does this passage mainly talk about ?

A．Competition helps to set up self-respect .

B．Opinions about competition are different among people

C．Competition is harmful to personal quality development .

D．Failures are necessary experiences in competition

【小題2】Why do some people favor competition according to the passage ?

A．It pushes society forward .	B．It builds up a sense of duty .
C．It improves personal abilities .	D．It encourages individual efforts

【小題3】The underlined phrase “the most vocal” in Paragraph 3 means        .

A．those who try their best to win

B．those who value competition most highly

C．those who are against competition most strongly

D．those who rely on others most for success

【小題4】Which point of view may the author agree to ?

A．Every effort should be paid back .

B．Competition should be encouraged .

C．Winning should be a life-and-death matter .

D．Fear of failure should be removed in competition

John, a famous musician, took his priceless antique violin and played it in the crowded subway station. The music from the violin was delicately streaming throughout the whole station. However, during the one-hour play, only six or seven people were truly appreciating the charming music. A three-year-old kid was so fascinated by the music that he forgot everything around. John only got 52 dollars for his work that day.
However, in normal days, when John is about to hold a concert, one ticket can be sold at more than 100 dollars and it is extremely hard to buy a ticket even at such a high price. Therefore, later, many passers-by in the station that day felt deeply regretful for not recognizing the famous musician and missing such a valuable but cheap music feast.
I have a very busy friend who had totally changed after knowing that his wife came down with incurable illness. He cooked by himself for the family and took a walk with his wife every day. Nonetheless, his wife still did not manage to conquer the illness and passed away after three months. After that, he often sighed miserably that due to his past busy life, he had missed a lot of beautiful time with his wife. But now, it is impossible to make up for it.
It is no use crying over spilt milk. We have missed a lot of precious things in our life without knowing to cherish them.
Actually, I also missed something precious before. The reason why we would have missed those precious things is less than simple: we had thought that we could still own them tomorrow.
Nevertheless, tomorrow is actually by no means reliable. There was a famous Buddhist monk saying that in many people’s lives, they have only done two things: waiting and regretting. The result is that they were always too late to cherish what they had before they lost it. We would often claim to do something when we grow up, or when we have money or when we become old, etc. However, when we reach the condition we have expected, we could no longer realize our wish, because we have lost it by then.
【小題1】The reason why people often regret may be that _______.

A．they are too busy to notice the beautiful things

B．they are too careless to cherish precious things

C．they are lazy to observe the surroundings

D．they think that it’s none of their business

【小題2】The idea the author would like to get across to us seems that _______.

A．a(chǎn)ctions speak louder than words

B．a(chǎn) bad beginning makes a bad ending

C．the lost will never come back

D．each day brings its own bread

【小題3】What method does the author employ to support his opinion？

A．By listing data.	B．By comparing the details .
C．By explaining the procedures .	D．By taking examples.

【小題4】How do we understand the underlined parts “waiting and regretting”?

A．Many people will not cherish what they have until they lost them.

B．Many people cannot do well until they get older.

C．Many people know what they are doing.

D．Many people regret for what they don’t possess.

One of our biggest fears nowadays is that our kids might some day get lost in a “sea of technology” rather than experiencing the natural world. Fear-producing TV and computer games are leading to serious disconnect between kids and the great outdoors, which will change the wild places of the world, its creatures and human health for the worse, unless adults get working on child’s play.
Each of us has a place in nature we go sometimes, even if it was torn down. We cannot be the last generation to have that place. At this rate, kids who miss the sense of wonder outdoors will not grow up to be protectors of natural landscapes. “If the decline in park use continues across North America, who will defend parks against encroachment（蠶食）?” asks Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the woods.
Without having a nature experience, kids can turn out just fine, but they are missing out a huge enrichment to their lives. Experts predict modern kids will have poorer health than their parents—and they say a lack of outside play is surely part of it; research suggests that kids do better academically in schools with a nature component and that play in nature fosters（培養(yǎng)）leadership by the smartest, not by the toughest, Even a tiny outdoor experience can create wonder in a child. The three-year-old turning over his first rock realizes be is not alone in the world. A clump of trees on the roadside can be the whole universe in his eyes. We really need to value that more.
Kids are not to blame. They are over-protected and frightened. It is dangerous out there from time to time but repetitive stress from computers is replacing breaking an arm as a childhood rite（儀式）of passage.
Everyone, from developers, to schools and outdoorsy citizens, should help regain for our kids some of the freedom and joy of exploring, taking friendship in fields and woods that strengthen love, respect and need for the landscapes. As parents, we should devote some of our energy to taking our kids into nature. This could yet be our greatest cause.
【小題1】 According to the author, what causes kids’ getting lost in a “sea of technology”?

A．The wild places of the world

B．The kids themselves

C．The outdoor activities

D．TV and computer games

【小題2】The underlined words “that place” in paragraph 2 can most probably refer to _______.                  

A．a(chǎn) hill

B．a(chǎn) library

C．a(chǎn) bar

D．a(chǎn) classroom

【小題3】According to the author, children’s breaking an arm is _______.

A．the fault on the part of their parents

B．the natural experience in their growing up

C．the result of their own carelessness in play

D．the effect of stress from computer

【小題4】What’s the author’s opinion on children’s experiencing the nature world?

A．It leads to children’s escape from school.

B．It’s helpful only in a limited way.

C．It helps develop children from all sides.

D．It increases the chance of getting injured.

I was eight when my neighbors got a TV. It was small and expensive, but that didn’t matter. IT WAS WONDERFUL. Everyone in the building came up to the fifth floor to see this latest wonder of the modern world. That was in 1948.
Soon, a lot of people got a TV, but not us. My parents didn’t think it was good for children. Being a good son, I didn’t argue with them. But I secretly watch TV—at my friends’ homes.
By 1955, televisions weren’t so expensive and were much larger. My parents still thought they were not good for us, but my sisters insisted, saying they were the only people in the neighborhood who didn’t have one. All their friends talked about certain programs and actors, but they couldn’t. Their friends laughed at them, which made them feel very unhappy. My youngest sister cried, saying she was never going back to school and that life without a TV wasn’t worth living. Nothing my parents said made her feel better. The next morning, without telling us, they went out and got a new TV.
When we were young our parents allowed us to watch TV for two hours a night. And we couldn’t watch until our homework was finished. But after a year or two, TV wasn’t exciting or new anymore. It became just another part of our lives like shoes or soap. My parents still had fears about TV. We were going to forget how to read, and TV was going to fill our minds with violence, they said.
Today people still argue about the value of TV. Nobody can deny the power of TV, which has a powerful influence on our lives. On average, Americans spend 30 hours a week watching TV. Is this influence good or bad? This is an unanswerable question indeed: It is hard enough to measure influence; and it is even harder to decide what is good and what isn’t. What is good, I suppose, is that many people are concerned about TV’s influence and that we have the power to change what we don’t like.
The people of Monhegan Island, 18 kilometers away off the coast of Maine, don’t have electricity, and they decided; once again, that they liked that way. Electricity, they think, would make life too easy and spoil their way of life. Maybe the young people wouldn’t want to go to town dances anymore. Maybe they would be more interested in staying at home and watching TV.
【小題1】How old was the author, when their family got a TV?

A．About 15.

B．8.

C．18.

D．About 10.

【小題2】The author’s parents finally decided to buy a TV because _______.

A．they wanted to meet their daughters’ needs .

B．the children couldn’t go to school without a TV

C．the sisters would like to be like their friends

D．they had to do as the youngest daughter told them to

【小題3】The author thinks “to judge whether a TV’s influence is good or bad” is ________.

A．concerning

B．hard

C．meaningless

D．important

【小題4】The last paragraph is written to show ________.

A．the disadvantage of TV

B．TV influences people a great deal

C．the advantage of TV

D．we can change what we don’t like

There are two dangers to be guarded against in old age. One of these is undue absorption in the past. It does not do to live in memories, in regrets for the good old days, or in sadness about friends who are dead. One’s thoughts must be directed to the future and to things about which there is something to be done.
It is unwise to be too attached to the youth in the hope of sucking vigor from its vitality. When your children are grown up they want to live their own lives, and if you continue to be as interested in them as you were when they were young, you are likely to become a burden to them, unless they are cold to you.
I think that a successful old age is easiest for those who have strong impersonal interests involving appropriate activities. It is in this sphere that long experience is really fruitful, and it is in this sphere that the wisdom born of experience can be exercised without being oppressive. It is no use telling grown-up children not to make mistakes, both because they will not believe you, and because mistakes are an essential part of education. But if you are one of those who are incapable of impersonal interests, you may find that your life will be empty unless you concern yourself with you children and grandchildren. In that case you must realize that while you can still render them material services, such as making them an allowance or knitting them jumpers, you must not expect that they will enjoy your company.
Some old people are afraid of death. But in fact the best way is to make your interests gradually wider and ore impersonal. An individual human existence should be like a river-small at fist, rushing passionately past rocks and over waterfalls. Gradually the river grows wider and the banks move back and in the end they become mixed in the sea without any visible break.
The old man who can see life in this way will not suffer from the fear of growing old and death.
【小題1】The author suggests that old people should_______.

A．develop impersonal interests with proper activities.

B．tell their children not to make mistakes

C．concern themselves with their children

D．not give their children an allowance

【小題2】The underlined word “render” in Paragraph 3 is close to the meaning of  “_____”.

A．return

B．reward

C．offer

D．demand

【小題3】The author compares an individual human existence to a river because _____.

A．Life is like a river, first small, and then it becomes wide

B．life is like a river finally flowing into the sea

C．old age and death are both natural just like a river

D．old people will be mixed in the crowd like a river mixed in the sea

【小題4】What’s the best title of this passage?

A．Setting Sun Is Beautiful	B．Growing Old Successfully
C．Why Fear Getting Old	D．Caring for Olds More