It is very common for you to find yourself in an unfamiliar situation. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Yes, everyone tells you to stand on your own two feet and take responsibility for your action, but if you haven't experienced a situation before, how can you know what to do?

    We usually try our best to do everything on our own and not to rely on others, but at certain times calling for help is the best way forward. You can picture the scene of the man-it is usually a man-driving blindly around an unfamiliar town looking for an address he doesn't know. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}And he could get to his appointment on time. It is obvious to everybody in such a case that asking for help is not a sign of weakness, but rather the sensible thing to do.

    {#blank#}3{#/blank#} For example, you are looking for a new job and need to write your resume（简历）. If your pride prevents you from getting help and you just do the writing yourself, it may well cost the opportunity you are seeking. Similarly, when you just started a new job, you often don't want to admit that you haven't got the knowledge to finish a particular task, so you keep going and eventually make things worse than they were. This may lead to a diminishing(贬低) of you in the eyes of the boss. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    Now you can see that asking for help is not a sign of weakness but is the sensible and mature thing to do.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} Making your life easier by asking for and using knowledgeable help is not a sign of weakness, but is actually quite a clever thing to do.

How to Improve Vocabulary Fast

    Your vocabulary refers to the words in a language you are familiar with. We should learn some ways to expand it.

    Read every day. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Choose reading material that is slightly above your level and keep a dictionary with you to look up words you do not know.

    {#blank#}2{#/blank#} If you do not meet with an unfamiliar word in your daily reading, use your dictionary to search for one.

    Learn the correct definition and pronunciation for each new word. Pronunciation is as important as definition because in order to add a word to your active vocabulary, you must be able to use it in speech.

    Elaborate(阐释)on the meaning of the word. Use imagery and personal relevance. If you have just learned that the word “stubborn” , think about the neighbor who will not lend you his car. {#blank#}3{#/blank#}

    Use your new word in speech and in writing. E-mail your sister about how your cat is stubborn about sleeping on your pillow. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} But the more you use it, the more fluent you will become in its use. Soon it will be a regular part of your active vocabulary.

    Tell everyone you are trying to increase your vocabulary. Encourage them to ask you what your latest word is {#blank#}5{#/blank#}.The more you explain the meaning of a word to someone, the more likely you are to remember it.

A. Or let them ask for the definition of a new word you have used.

B. Your vocabulary contains the words you understand.

C. The vocabulary can be increased.

D. Imagine him shaking his head, and think of him as “stubborn in his refusal”.

E. The first time you use a new word in speech it may seem strange.

F. Find a new word every day.

G. The more often you read, the faster your vocabulary can grow.

Is it necessary to learn when we are 50s, 60s or even 70s? Most people consider when they get retired, they are supposed to be completely laidback, do something fun, or hang around. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}It's particularly important to the elderly.

    Through learning, we know how to think, how to memorize, how to ask questions and even how to interact with others. According to a study, while we are learning, the brain creates neural(神经) pathways that make us smarter.{#blank#}2{#/blank#}The more we learn, the more new neural pathways develop in our brains.

When it comes to learning, it doesn't mean we must load ourselves with lots of knowledge. What we need to do is just learn something we like day in and day out.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}Everyone learns from bottom to up. If we have an interest to learn, that desire will naturally push us to move forward.

As we feel worn out from learning, don't be discouraged.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}An old saying goes, “Birds of a feather fly together.” As long as we have partners to learn all together, our learning excitement will come alive again. On the contrary, if we don't learn, and choose to distance ourselves from others, we might be getting dumb, and slow; eventually, we lose energy, and life passion. Instead of being bored, dumb, why don't we keep learning?

    {#blank#}5{#/blank#} More importantly, learning explores our life horizon, helps us build up our confidence; gradually, it leads us to a way of finding a sense of value and achievement in the process of learning journey.

A. It's never too old to learn.

B. Don't worry if we cannot learn well.

C. You should set a high learning target.

D. Learning makes us understand how potential we are.

E. In other words, our brains are active as we learn something new.

F. Look for a partner who has the same common interest as you do.

G. However, the truth is that learning makes us energetic, and self-fulfilled.

    Is “sorry” the hardest word？Not for the British Education Secretary Michael Gove,{#blank#}1{#/blank#}has apologized recently to his former French teacher{#blank#}2{#/blank#}his bad behavior in class. It took him 30 years to express regret. In a letter{#blank#}3{#/blank#}(publish) in a magazine, Mr. Gove says：“It may be too late to say I'm sorry. But, as my mom told me, it's never too late to set the record straight.”

    Researchers argue that people have too high expectations of the power of saying sorry. Some psychologists say in a study that{#blank#}4{#/blank#}(receive) an apology isn't as{#blank#}5{#/blank#}(help) as people think. Nevertheless, apologies might be an important social tool as they reaffirm(再次确定) the{#blank#}6{#/blank#}(exist) of rules that need to be observed.

    The Education Secretary's apology might have been accepted by his old teacher but he might get{#blank#}7{#/blank#}(he) into trouble. According to Daily Mail, Mr. Gove's mother didn't know her son was causing trouble at school and she{#blank#}8{#/blank#}(say)：“He would have been punished{#blank#}9{#/blank#}I had known he was being so naughty.” Later, Gove said：“I can never express my apology to him face to face these days—it just goes through to his answering machine. But when I do{#blank#}10{#/blank#}(eventual) speak to him, I will say sorry.”

Rich and Famous

    Twenty years ago the most common ambition of American children was to be a teacher, followed by working in banking and finance, and then medicine. But today's situation is quite different. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Instead they most commonly say they want to be a sports star, a pop star, or an actor­in other words, they hope to become a celebrity .

    According to experts, young people desire these jobs largely because of the wealth and the fame. {#blank#}2{#/blank#} Let's take athletes and singers as an example. Their careers are short­lived. Many athletes' best time only lasts a few years and singers can have a very limited career. The field that was once the focus of their lives becomes something they have little or no involvement in. As a result, they'll have a feeling of worthlessness and a lack of control. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} The truth is quite simple: they have been so far removed from it for so long.

    In spite of these disadvantages, there is greater ambition than ever among young people to achieve that status. They are not satisfied just making a living­they want to be rich and famous. Globally, more and more TV shows provide talent competitions where winners can achieve their goals in just a few weeks or months. {#blank#}4{#/blank#} They unrealistically believe that this lifestyle is easily obtained and leads to great satisfaction.

    While many people argue that there is nothing wrong with having such ambitions, others feel that this trend will finally lead to dissatisfaction as more and more people are unable to reach their goals. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}That means they ignore the simple fact that great effort is needed before success. As a result, many people won't realize their childhood dreams, which could have a negative effect on their happiness.

A. The younger generation don't favor these professions any more.

B. In many ways this has been brought about by the celebrity culture.

C. Unfortunately, they do not always have a positive effect on people's life.

D. Besides, it can be difficult for them to adapt back to a normal everyday life.

E. People no longer have a sense of satisfaction once their goals have been achieved.

F. This quick way of gaining wealth and fame creates a celebrity culture among people.

G. The reason is that they don't realize it takes talent and hard work to be rich and famous.

Teamwork Doubles the Strength

Admittedly, teamwork is literally important for any class or team to achieve its goals and objectives. Let me give three reasons why it is advantageous.

As individuals, we possess diverse talents, strengths, weaknesses and experiences. A team is just like a tapestry（织锦） that weaves what each of us possesses, resulting in an end product that is diverse yet homogenous（同种类的）. As team members exchange thoughts and experiences, there can be more efficiency and effectiveness at problem-solving. This pooling of talents can also lead to greater innovation and success. {#blank#}1{#/blank#}. It won the Premier League in 2016, to the utter disbelief of many soccer fans. Leicester City, previousl regarded as the underdog of the League, displayed extremely impressive teamwork, which led to its unbelievable victory in soccer history.

Next, teamwork means members share the workload. When work is distributed and each of us in a team specializes in specific tasks, the stress on each of us is reduced and the completion of tasks before deadline is ensured: {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

 {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. Team members learn from more experienced members who may offer deeper insights and perspectives. Newer members may also contribute new ideas. Besides encouraging the sharing of knowledge and experiences, teamwork also develops soft skills like communication and interpersonal skills. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}.

Some may think that working in isolation（单独） is more efficient since more time is taken when cooperating with others. For more talented individuals, working alone means being the star of a project. {#blank#}5{#/blank#}. But, the loss of synergy（协同作用） that only team effort can generate may also prevent the team from reaching its full potential.

A．Take Leicester City for example

B．Thus we can expect greater job satisfaction

C．Team members can also be divided in opinions

D．They don't need to share the success with others

E．Let's not wave away the chance to work in teams

F．And finally working in a team multiplies learning opportunities

G．We learn to respect differences in working styles and opinions, and develop trust