“Mind your own business．” we’re told．“Don’t talk about others behind their backs．”The problem with this advice is that，not only is it unrealistic，it’s also counterproductive(起反作用的)．

??? Common sense holds that gossip(流言蜚語)hurts people’s feelings and damages relationships．But recent research shows the opposite—that strong communities and relationships between people would be impossible without gossip．

??? Gossip is a way for people to let you know the limits of social behavior．“If you move into a community and your neighbor tells you how the former homeowner never dealt with his rubbish properly，his gossip is letting you in on something，”says Dr．Ralph Rosnow of Temple University．“Gossip says：these are the boundaries and you are crossing them．You’re not abiding by the rules and you’d better get back in line．” Seen this way，gossip is a way to communicate criticism(批評)without conflict(沖突)，giving you a chance to change your behavior without losing face．

??? On the other hand，what about ill-willed gossip，the kind that puts other people down? Gossip is hearing something we like about someone we don’t and，in nearly every country in the world，gossip magazines have huge numbers of readers．According to researchers，however，this kind of gossip also has a good side because it helps us put our own problems in perspective(正確地)．“If we read bad news about well-known people，or get the frightful details of our neighbors’ bad situation over a cup of coffee，our own problems begin to pale in comparison(對比)，”says Dr．Jack Levin of Northeastern University．

??? However，that doesn’t mean that gossip is necessarily a good thing，either．Researchers found that people who gossip a lot tend to feel like they’re under a lot of stress．This might be because while they’re busy talking about other people，they’re also busy thinking what other people are saying about them．
1.What is the purpose of the text?

A．To encourage us to spread gossip about others．

B．To prevent us from spreading gossip about others。

C．To make a comparison between good gossip and bad gossip．

D．To recognize certain positive functions of gossip．

2.According to the passage，people in general think that__________．

A．it’s a bad habit to gossip

B．nobody pays attention to gossip

C．not all the gossip you hear is worth believing

D．it’s necessary to have a nice gossip with a friend or neighbor

3.The underlined phrase “abiding by” in Paragraph 3 most probably means“________”．

A．making??? ????????????? ????????????? B．breaking??? ????????????? ????????????? C．obeying??? ????????????? D．changing

4.It could be learned from the passage that__________.

A. people under much stress enjoy gossiping about others.

B. in a way gossip helps us deal with our own problems.

C. in fact most people tend to believe gossip.

D. the more there is gossip, the stronger relationships become between people.

Sometimes people call ours a “throwaway society”. That means that we’re always throwing away old things and buying new ones. Many times, you no longer need something, but someone else may just need to buy one. For example, if your baby doesn’t like his toy car any longer, why not give it to a nearly family who has a little kid? That’s one less plastic toy car that they need to buy. It’s also one less plastic toy that needs to be produced, packaged and shipped to the toy store.

Here are some other ways to help save resources (資源)for the society:

★Use the other side of the paper.

★Use rechargeable (可再充電的) batteries for your electric toys, MP3 players, cell phones, and cameras.

★ Choose reusable travel cups instead of disposable (一次性的) paper or plastic cups.

★Take your own cloth shopping bags when you go shopping.

★ Drink tap water instead of buying bottled water.

And there are some things you can exchange with your friends, for example, books, toys, even clothes. It's a way for everyone to get something new without spending any money and without throwing many things away.

1．The underlined word "ours" in the passage refers to (指代) _______.

A. our society                      B. our old things

C. our life                         D. our throwaway things

2．According to the writer, if we give a second - hand toy car to a neighbor kid, we can____.

A. buy another new one              B. help toy business develop

C. make the family very thankful to us  D. help save resources for the society

3． Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?

A. We should buy things that can be reused in our daily life.

B. We can exchange some things with others for further use.

C. It's good for us to throw away old things and buy new ones.

D. We are supposed to give the things we no longer need to our neighbors.

4．What should we do in our daily life after reading the passage?

A. Try to throw as few old things as we can.

B. Use as many disposable things as possible.

C. Drink bottled water even though there is tap water around.

D. Buy everything we need instead of exchanging them with others.

Are Sports Important?

Sports are all around us．We watch and read sports news．There are also sports clubs，and even sports—only channels（頻道）on TV．In many countries，players make millions of dollars every year．

But why are sports so important? They're only games，right?

Our readers answer：

Vlad（Ukraine烏克蘭）

Sports bring people together．In 2006，our team was able to play in the 2006 World Cup for the first time．Everyone was happy．Rich and poor，old and young，men and women—everyone was in the streets together!

Mike（USA）

Sports bring people together，but they divide them，too．Fans of different teams fight all the time—they shout and hit each other．And here's another example：My brother plays high school baseball．Last week，his team played an important game．At the game，two parents fought about a call．Come on… baseball is only a game! Sports are so competitive（有競爭力的）these days．It's all about winning．Then the game isn't fun．

Oba（South Africa）

Right now，some of the world's best soccer players are from African countries，and the 2010 World Cup games will be in South Africa．Yes，some players make a lot of money—may be too much．But sporting events（like the World Cup）bring tourists and money to countries and people．And that is good for Africa．

1．What does Mike think of a game when players and fans only think about winning?

A．It's important．                                        B．It's exciting．

C．It's not fun．                                             D．It's not necessary．

2．Why are sports important for Oba?

A．Because sports are competitive these days．

B．Because sports can make money for a country．

C．Because sports can make players rich every year．

D．Because sports can make people happy．

3．What does the underlined word “call” mean?

A．Decision．           B．Telephone．            C．Suggestion．          D．Seat．

4．What is the main idea of this passage?

A．Sports are popular all over the world．

B．Sports divide people from different countries．

C．People have different opinions about sports．

D．Sports bring tourists and money to Africa．