Internet use appears to cause a decline in psychological well-being（安康）, according to research at Carnegie Mellon University.
Even people who spent just a few hours a week on the Internet experienced more depression and loneliness than those who logged on less frequently, the two-year study showed. And it wasn’t that people who were already feeling bad spent more time on the Internet, but that using the Net actually appeared to cause the bad feeling.
Researchers are puzzling over the results, which were completely contrary to their expectations. They expected that the net would prove socially healthier than television, since the Net allows users to choose their information and to communicate with others.
The fact that Internet use reduces time available for family and friends may account for the drop in well-being, researchers suggested. Faceless, bodiless “virtual”（虚拟的）communication may be less psychologically satisfying than actual conversation, and the relationship formed through it may be shallower. Another possibility is that exposure to the wider world via the Net makes users less satisfied with their lives.
“But it’s important to remember this is not about the technology  per se; it’s about how it is used,” says psychologist Christine Riley of Intel, one of the study’s sponsors. “It really points to the need for considering social effects in terms of how you design applications and services for technology.”
【小题1】The best title for this passage would be ________.

A．Internet may Cause Depression

B．The Dark Side of Internet

C．How to Use Technology Properly

D．The Importance of Psychological Well-being

【小题2】Internet use may cause a decline in psychological well-being because ________.

A．people who were already feeling bad spend more time on the Internet

B．Internet users thought the world was wider than it really was

C．people were too eager to turn the “virtual” communication into reality

D．people have less time for actual communication with their family and friends

【小题3】What does the underlined Latin word “per se” (in Para. 5) mean?

A．probably	B．absolutely
C．oneself	D．itself

【小题4】What’s the tone of the passage?

A．Optimistic.	B．Critical.
C．Objective.	D．Pessimistic.

   Before I studied psychology，I used to think that people would laugh when funny things occurred. While I was right about that，I discovered there are lots of other psychological reasons that make people laugh other than the funny part of a joke. When someone laughs at a joke，there will usually be more than one reason that makes him laugh-and the more reasons there are，the more powerful the joke will be.

I was attending a stand-up comedy show in Egypt，and when the man started to make fun of pedestrians crossing streets，everyone laughed their head off. The main reason why those people strongly laughed was that almost all of them felt angry with pedestrians who crossed streets carelessly. The joke wasn't only funny，it also made the audience feel that they were right about being angry at those pedestrians. That is，people were laughing because of both the funny joke and the happiness experienced as a result of the psychological support they got.

The better a joke makes a person feel，the more it includes other psychological factors，and the more the person will like it. For example，if you envy one of your friends，and someone tells a joke that is funny and，at the same time，makes your friend seem stupid，then you will probably laugh at it louder than if you weren't jealous（嫉妒的）of him.

In short, we not only laugh when we hear something funny, but also laugh when we experience some kind of happiness that results from the other psychological factors involved in the joke. I strongly discourage making fun of anyone or belittling someone to make someone else laugh. All I want to explain is that if your joke supports a person's emotions, he will certainly like it a lot.

【小题1】What did the author find out after studying psychology?

A．Only good jokes make people laugh.

B．Many reasons lead to people laughing.

C．Funny things can make people laugh.

D．Laughter can make people healthy.

【小题2】Why did the audience laugh at the pedestrians?

A．Because they played a trick on the pedestrians.

B．Because the pedestrians behaved in a funny way.

C．Because they could feel the pedestrians' happiness.

D．Because their emotions were approved of by the show.

【小题3】What does the underlined word "belittling" probably mean？

A．Speaking highly of.	B．Getting close to.
C．Looking down on.	D．Feeling content with.

   In the United States alone,over 100 million cell-phones are thrown away each year.Cell-phones are part of a growing mountain of electronic waste like computers and personal digital assistants.The electronic waste stream is increasing three times taster than traditional garbage as a whole.

Electronic devices contain valuable metals such as gold and silver.A Swiss study reported that while the weight of electronic goods represented by precious metals was relatively small in comparison to total waste,the concentration（含量）of gold and other precious metals was higher in So-called e-waste than in naturally occurring minerals.

Electronic wastes also contain many poisonous metals.Even when the machines are recycled and the harmful metals removed,the recycling process often is carried out in poor countries,in practically uncontrolled ways which allow many poisonous substances to escape into the environment.

Creating products out of raw materials creates much more waste material,up to 100 times more,than the material contained in the finished products.Consider again the cell-phone,and imagine the mines that produced those metals,the factories needed to make the box and packaging（包装）it came in.Many wastes produced in the producing process are harmful as well.

The U.S Environmental Protection Agency notes that most waste is dangerous in that"the production, distribution,and use of products-as well as management of the resulting waste-all result in greenhouse gas release." Individuals can reduce their contribution by creating less waste at the start-for instance,buying reusable products and recycling.

In many countries the concept of extended producer responsibility is being considered or has been put in place as an incentive（动机）for reducing waste.If producers are required to take back packaging they use to sell their products,would they reduce the packaging in the first place?

Governments' incentive to require producers to take responsibility for the packaging they produce is usually based on money.Why,they ask,should cities or towns be responsible for paying to deal with the bubble wrap（气泡垫）that encased your television?

From the governments' point of view,a primary goal of laws requiring extended producer responsibility is to transfer both the costs and the physical responsibility of waste management from the government and tax-payers back to the producers.

【小题1】By mentioning the Swiss study,the author intends to tell us that .

A．the weight of e-goods is rather small

B．natural minerals contain more precious metals

C．E-waste deserves to be made good use of

D．the percentage of precious metals is heavy in e-waste

【小题2】The responsibility of c-waste treatment should be extended .

A．from producers to governments

B．from governments to producers

C．from individuals to distributors

D．from distributors to governments

【小题3】What docs the passage mainly talk about?

A．The increase in e-waste.	B．The creation of e-waste.
C．The seriousness of e-waste.	D．The management of e-waste.

Thinking is something you choose to do as a fish chooses to live in water. To be human is to think. But thinking may come naturally without your knowing how you do it. Thinking about thinking is the key to critical（批判性的）thinking. When you think critically, you take control of your thinking processes（过程）. Otherwise, you might be controlled by the ideas of others. Indeed, critical thinking is at the heart of education.
The word "critical" here has a special meaning. It does not mean taking one view against another view, as when someone criticizes another person for doing something wrong. The nature of critical thinking is thinking beyond the easily seen—beyond the pictures on TV, the untrue reports in the newspapers, and the faulty reasoning (错误的推理).
Critical thinking is an attitude as much as an activity. If you are curious about life and desire to dig deeper into it, you are a critical thinker; if you find pleasure in deep thinking about different ideas, characters, and facts, you are a critical thinker.
Activities of the mind and higher-order reasoning are processes of deep and careful consideration. They take time, and do not go hand in hand with the fast speed in today's world, fast foods, instant coffee, and self-developing film. If you are among the people who believe that speed is a measure of intelligence, you may learn something new from a story about Albert Einstein. The first time Banish Hoffman, a scientist, was to discuss his work with Albert Einstein, Hoffman was too nervous to speak. But Einstein immediately put Hoffman at ease by saying, "Please go slowly, I don't understand things quickly."
【小题1】Critical thinking is important to us because if we do not think critically,__________.

A．it will be hard for us to think naturally and fast

B．we will follow the ideas of others naturally

C．we might be controlled by other people's ideas

D．we might be fooled by other people's ideas

【小题2】If you are a critical thinker, you will________.

A．criticize other people for their mistakes	B．trust the reports in the newspapers
C．take one view against another view	D．think deeply about different ideas

【小题3】In the last paragraph, "something new" suggests that________.

A．the smarter you are, the faster you do things

B．intelligence is not decided by speed

C．speed can improve intelligence

D．the faster you do things, the smarter you become

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

A．Understanding Critical Thinking	B．Thinking and Critical Thinking
C．Thinking Natural and Human	D．Thinking Fast Means Intelligence

   "Creativity is the key to a brighter future, "say education and business experts. Here is how schools and parents can encourage this important skill in children.

If Dick Drew had listened to his boss in 1925, we might not have the product that we now think of as great importance: a new type of tape. Drew worked for the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company. At work he developed a kind of material strong enough to hold things together. But his boss told him not to think more about the idea. Finally, using his own time, Drew improved the tape, which now is used everywhere by many people. And his former company learned from its mistake. Now it encourages people to spend 15 percent of their working time just thinking about and developing new ideas.

Creativity is not something one is just born with, nor is it necessarily a character of high intelligence. The fact that a person is highly intelligent does not mean that he uses it creatively. Creativity is the matter of using the resources one has to produce new ideas that are good for something.

Unfortunately, schools have not tried to encourage creativity. With strong attention to test results and the development of reading, writing and mathematical skills, many educators give up creativity for correct answers. The result is that children can gain information but can't recognize ways to use it in new situations. They may know the rules correctly but they are unable to use them to work out practical problems.

It is important to give children choices. From the earliest age, children should be allowed to make decisions and understand their results. Even if it' choosing between two food items for lunch, decision-making helps thinking skills. As children grow older, parents should try to let them decide how to use their time or spend their money. This is because the most important character of creative people is a very strong desire to find a way out of trouble.

【小题1】What did the company where Drew once worked learn from its mistake?

A．It should encourage people to work a longer time.

B．People should be discouraged to think freely.

C．People will do better if they spend most of their working time developing new ideas.

D．It is necessary for people to spend some of their working time considering and developing new ideas.

【小题2】We can know from the passage that creativity _________.

A．something that most people are born with

B．something that has nothing to do with intelligence at all

C．a way of using what one has learned to work out new problems

D．something that is not important to the life in the future at all

【小题3】Why don't schools try to encourage creativity？

A．They don't attach importance to creativity education.

B．They don't want their students to make mistakes.

C．They pay no attention to examination marks.

D．They think it impossible to develop creativity in class.

【小题4】What should the parents do when their children decide how to spend their money？

A．Allow them to have a try.

B．Try to help them as much as possible.

C．Take no notice of whatever they do.

D．Order them to spend the least money.