participants included politicians, professors and

motivational speakers. The results of the study showed that 77% of the participants reported having parents that encouraged them to ask questions and state their opinions from a young age. Eighty-five percent answered that their parents had repeatedly exposed them to a variety of positive “public speaking” experiences at home. These experiences included practicing speeches, performing dramas and reciting poems.

In another study to determine the causes of fear of public speaking, 70% of the participants said they had not had any public speaking opportunities at home. Eighteen percent of the participants had been given such opportunities, but these had resulted in a loss of confidence.

One of the participants recalled a painful experience from when he was eight years old. His parents had arranged for him to present his school project about earthquakes to his cousins. As an outgoing boy, he was eager to show off all his hard work, until he forgot a sentence and started to stutter (结巴). His cousins began to laugh at him, and instead of his family encouraging him to continue with his presentation, his father told him to call it a day. The stress of this incident and the feeling of being rejected carried over to school, where he

started struggling with his words and went red like a sunset every time he had to speak in front of an audience.

From these studies, we can see that the way parents handle their child’s communication efforts and a child’s future attitude towards public speaking can be linked. Not all people are born afraid of public speaking, but rather they grow to be afraid of it due to awful experiences or outside influences. Yet this does not mean they have no control over their fear—because they do.

41. According to the study of 2008, _____ were important in

making successful public speakers.

A. caring professors B. high motivations C. encouraging parents D. original opinions 42. In the 3rd paragraph, the expression “call it a day” most probably means _____.

A. stop B. respond C. try D. relax

43. Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A. How much exposure to public speaking is proper? B. What kinds of jobs require public speaking skills?

C. Is public speaking important for children? D. Are people born afraid of public speaking?

44. The paragraph following the last might be about _____.

A. more experiences of unsuccessful public speaking B. ways to gain self-confidence in public speaking C. other reasons for failure in public speaking D. features of successful public speaking

(C)

Here is one of the world’s largest indoor ski-slopes. It covers an area of 22,500m2, about the same size as three football fields, and the temperature is a constant -1℃ to -2℃. However, the strangest thing about this place is that it’s in the middle of the desert! It’s called Ski Dubai and the outside temperatures can rise to more than 40℃!

It sounds crazy, but it just shows how serious people are about having fun. We spend huge sums on sports facilities. We pay our sports stars ridiculous amounts of money. And we spend hour after hour playing games! I wonder if all the sports-lovers and game-players in the world aren’t a little crazy. I know I am. I was once driving past a football field where some kids were playing. I turned to watch and crashed my car. I know it’s stupid but I can do nothing about it. As

someone said, “Football isn’t a matter of life and death. It’s much more important than that!”

Of course, it isn’t that important really. No game is. But the problem is that games are addictive (使人上瘾的). From the tennis court to the golf course, you’ll find participants and spectators who can’t live without the drug of their choice. It could be a good thing. After all, despite being addictive, it’s true that sports and games help us to relax. Maybe if it wasn’t for sport, our societies would be more violent. Perhaps sport is a substitute for war? It’s hard to think of a quieter, more peaceful game than chess, and what’s the objective? Capturing your opponent’s king. And surely, it’s better to have wars in athletics stadiums rather than on battlefields.

What’s more, playing is natural. Kittens chase balls of wool and puppies pretend to fight. Games help us perfect our skills and prepare us for the serious contest of survival. But do all games help us relax and stay away from violence? What about computer games? A recent article in New Scientist suggests that playing violent video games (and most of them are extremely violent) makes people more aggressive and more likely to commit violent crimes.