It is awkward（令人尴尬的）when everyone around you bursts out laughing at a joke that you do not find funny, especially if it's a joke told in a foreign language.

While Chinese students find it easy to adapt to a foreign lifestyle, socializing with locals is much harder, according to a recent study. Researchers looked at how well Chinese students made themselves a part of communities across the world. Of all the activities they struggled with, understanding jokes was considered the toughest.

Most of the time, jokes are funny only for people who share a common cultural background or are aware of humor in the same way.

Being able to understand local jokes can help students feel a sense of belonging. But even without the ability to understand jokes, students should not feel any less confident about themselves.

"It's OK if you don't get the jokes. Don't doubt yourself because in most time, it is not a problem of language ability but a matter of the known and unknown, "said Christine Han, who was once an overseas student and is now an Australian permanent resident.

Australia is ready-made for jokes, thanks to its history as a colony for prisoners, its unusual accent, the inner bush country and its strange food. However, to most Chinese overseas students, understanding jokes about sports is the biggest headache. Sport is an important part of Australian national identity.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 16percent（3. 3 million）of the population aged 15 years and over watched Australian football in 2010. About 9 percent（1. 9 million）attended a rugby league game.

British actor and comedian Simon Pegg discussed the differences between British and American sense of humor in a column of The Guardian. He believes that while Brits use irony（反语）on a daily basis, the Americans do not see the point of using it so frequently . He wrote, "British jokes, on the other hand, tend to be more subtle with a dark or sarcastic（讽刺的）undertone while the American jokes are more obvious and forward, a bit like Americans themselves. "

   How different can other cultures be？Very different！People probably speak different languages and have beliefs and customs very different from yours. They can eat different foods and live in different types of houses. However，they can also be similar in ways of connecting with each other. We sometimes call these means of communication universal（共同的）languages.

Some legends hold that，thousands of years ago，there was a single language spoken by everyone on Earth. Of course，historical evidence does not support this，but it is fun to think about a time when everyone may have been able to communicate in the same language.

Today，there are thousands of languages spoken around the world. Yet，there are some means of communication that go beyond words and allow people of different backgrounds to communicate and share emotions and feelings. For example，some people believe music is a universal language. There may be some scientific support for this idea. Experts have learned that，across cultures，people can recognize three common emotions in music:happiness，sadness and fear.

So what other types of universal languages might there be？Some people believe dance is a universal language. Along with music，dancing seems to be a common interest shared by people all over the world. Do you think you could see a dance from another culture and make some reasonable（合理的）guesses about the ideas and emotions behind it？We bet you could！

Another universal language that you might not have thought of is mathematics! If you think about it now, it just makes sense.  The value of pi is roughly 3. 14159 no matter where you are on Earth. Similarly, figuring out the value of something involves the same mathematical calculations, regardless of whether you' re counting in dollars, pesos or coconuts.

George's family came to Australia from Greece in 【小题1】 1980s. At first, they didn't feel they belonged there, but now they 【小题2】（attach）to the land they live on. In 【小题3】（they）views, Australian culture is a mix of different cultures. The early settlers were mostly the English and Irish, but since 1945, the population has become more and more 【小题4】（mix）with people from Southern Europe and Asia. The vast area of desert in the middle of Australia is a great place for people 【小题5】（camp）but you have to look out for snakes and spiders. Most Australians live on the coast. That's 【小题6】 surfing is such a popular sport. Australians take sport very 【小题7】（serious）. Contrary to popular belief, Australia is not a dull place at all for people 【小题8】（want）culture. There's a really lively cultural scene. In Sydney, you'll find a broad 【小题9】（choose） of operas, drama, classical concerts, rock concerts and so on. Things are more limited in a small town. Besides, most of the roads outside the cities are 【小题10】 pretty poor condition.

   Some years ago, I was hired by an American bank. I received a letter from the head of the Personnel Department that _______. "Dear John, I am quite pleased that you have decided to join us." That "quite" _______ me. I thought he was saying" We're _______ pleased you decided to join us although I _______ we had hired someone else. "Then I discovered that in American English "quite" sometimes means "very", _______ in British English it means "fairly".

So the _______ lesson about working in other countries is to _______ the language and by that I don't just _______ the words people speak. It contains _______ language, dress, manners, ideas and so on. The way people do things ________ many of the differences we see between cultures.

Some of these differences may be only on the surface-dress, food and hours of work-while ________ may be deeper and take longer to deal with. Mostly, it is just a question of getting used to the ________ and accepting them, like the climate, while we're getting on with business.

Some of the differences may be a（n）________. People are ________ polite; the service is better; you ask something to be done and it happens without having to ask again.________, other differences can be ________ punctuality（准时）.If you invite people to a party at 7 o'clock, your guests will consider it polite to ________ exactly on time in Germany, five minutes early in the American Midwest, an hour early in Japan, 15 minutes afterwards in the UK, up to an hour afterwards in Italy and some in the evening in Greece. I ________ not to use the word "late" because there is nothing wrong with the ________ people base their behavior on. It is simply ________ in their own country.