(B)

Stress: Good or Bad?

    Stress used to be an almost unknown word, but now that we are used to talking about it, I have found that people are beginning to get stressed about being stressed.

    In recent years, stress {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (regard) as a cause of a whole range of medical problems, from high blood pressure to mental illness. But like so many other things, it is only too much stress {#blank#}2{#/blank#} does you harm. It is time you considered that if there were no stress in your life, you would achieve a little. If you are stuck at home with no stress, then your level of performance will be low. Up to a certain point, the more stress you are under, the {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (good) your performance will be. Beyond a certain point, though, further stress will only lead to exhaustion, illness and finally a breakdown. You can tell when youare over the top and on the downward slope, by asking yourself {#blank#}4{#/blank#} numberof questions. Do you, for instance, feel that too much is being expected of{#blank#}5{#/blank#}, and yet find it impossible to say no? Do you find yourself getting impatient or {#blank#}6{#/blank#} (annoy) with people over unimportant things? If the answer to all those questions is yes, you had better {#blank#}7{#/blank#} (control) your stress, as you probably are under more stress than is good for you.

    To some extent you can control the amount of stress in your life. Doctors have worked out a chart showing how much stress is involved in various events. Getting married is 50, pregnancy 40, moving house 20, Christmas 12, etc. If the total stress in your life is over 150, you are twice as likely {#blank#}8{#/blank#} (get) ill.

    Many people believe small talk is very{#blank#}1{#/blank#}(bore).Although that is true,there are many places where small talk is very important.In Western culture,strangers talk to other strangers{#blank#}2{#/blank#}(frequent).On the other hand,small talk is not so common in Eastern culture.Strangers are{#blank#}3{#/blank#}(friend)to one another in Western culture,and small talk is very important to English learning.One other place where small talk is important is in{#blank#}4{#/blank#}interview.Besides,the best way to learn small talk is to provide many examples.Here are some{#blank#}5{#/blank#}(suggest)about how to use examples.Small talk{#blank#}6{#/blank#}(involve)many different topics.In other words,students can learn several lessons,{#blank#}7{#/blank#}(cover)other subjects,such as sports,jobs,schools,etc.Once we have started the small talk,{#blank#}8{#/blank#}is your responsibility to keep the conversation{#blank#}9{#/blank#}(focus)on your work and study.In order to do so,you can talk about anything{#blank#}10{#/blank#}is not too personal.

Today, enjoy the highlights of Shanghai, China's most {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(energy) city consisting of people from different parts of the world. Your tour will begin with a tour of Old Shanghai, a {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(mix) of pretty narrow streets, traditional Chinese stores, and restaurants selling delicious dumplings, {#blank#}3{#/blank#} is the original pre-war Shanghai. Dating back to 1911 Shanghai, Old Town, was a walled city made up {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(main)of fishermen, but the walls of the city {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(tear) down to allow free movement and easier trade. Continue through the Old Town, {#blank#}6{#/blank#}you'll find the Yu Garden there, first {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(establish) in the Ming Dynasty by a Mandarin named Pan Yunduan, who used to be the governor of Sichuan. The Yu Garden is considered {#blank#}8{#/blank#}the best garden in Southeast China, and enjoys {#blank#}9{#/blank#}history of over 400 years long. A large-scale restoration of the Yu Garden was conducted {#blank#}10{#/blank#}it opened to the public formally in 1961.

    Voyages of people from England play {#blank#}1{#/blank#} important part in spreading English {#blank#}2{#/blank#} is frequently spoken as an official or common language in many countries. All based on British English, the English {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (speak) in those countries can be well understood by native English speakers. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (actual) these Englishes have been gradually changing in accents, spellings, {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (express) and the usages of vocabulary. Because {#blank#}6{#/blank#} this fact, you can make use of the differences{#blank#}7{#/blank#}(tell) which country the foreigners of your block are from. For example, if a boss fluently {#blank#}8{#/blank#}(command) his driver, "Come up straight to my apartment by elevator and take some gas for my trucks and cabs", instead of {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(request), "Please come to my flat by lift and take some petrol for my lorries and taxis", you can recognize {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(he) American identity, while the latter suggests that he is British.

    Many times we spare no effort at work, {#blank#}1{#/blank#}(offer) hours of overtime by ignoring our family life. We spend time with people who we have nothing in common with, and attend social {#blank#}2{#/blank#}(activity) we have no interest {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. We always find ourselves living our lives in the way that pleases and impresses others instead of being ourselves. In fact, for the majority of people, they only think about {#blank#}4{#/blank#}(they) 99% of the time, and {#blank#}5{#/blank#}(rare) give us a second thought, as a result of {#blank#}6{#/blank#}we often end up unhappy and feeling out of place.

    In view of this, it's time to think about ourselves, our own family, and start creating a future {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(base) on our own likes and dislikes. {#blank#}8{#/blank#}, think it over next time when we are required to work overtime. Trying to be a loving parent or good friend {#blank#}9{#/blank#}(be) very likely to give us far more {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(please) and a feeling of security, connection and belonging.