Are you an optimist? Do you look at your glass and see it as half full? Do you believe that every cloud has a silver lining and that things generally turn out for the best? Do you believe that if something is meant to be, it will be? If you reply “yes” to all of these questions, then you are an optimist. You probably are enthusiastic, cheerful and outgoing. You may be successful at work and in love.

But you may be misguided because things don’t turn out for the best. You may believe that when one door closes another one opens (for example, you may fail to obtain a new job; another chance will come around soon). Wrong. When one door closes, another door slams (砰然關(guān)上) in your face. That’s bitter reality.

Now a book has been published which confirms what pessimists (悲觀者) have suspected all along. It’s called The Positive Power of Defensive Pessimism. Its author argues that defensive pessimism can lead to positive results. Defensive pessimism is a strategy used to manage fear, anxiety and worry. Defensive pessimists prepare for the things by setting low outcomes for themselves. They carefully consider everything that may go wrong and plan for ways to handle these problems. And this gives them a sense of control. Lawrence Sanno, a psychology professor, says, “What’s interesting about defensive pessimists is that they tend to be very successful people, so their low opinion of the situation’s outcomes is not realistic. They use it to motivate themselves to perform better.”

So far, so good. This is not rocket science. Defensive pessimists prepare carefully and consider what might go wrong, whether at work, on date or even in a sports game. It makes sense to have a back-up plan. There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” And “Don’t count your chickens until they hatch.” To have a confident and optimistic approach to life’s problems is good. But listen to what Woody Alien, the American comedian says, “Confidence is what you have before you understand the problem.”

There are pros and cons to being an optimist and a pessimist. Don’t feel bad if you see the glass half empty. You are a realist. But lighten up and hook up with someone who sees the same glass half full.

1.What’s the passage mainly about?

A. The benefits of defensive pessimism.

B. A book that has recently been published.

C. The dangers of being too optimistic.

D. How to become successful in life.

2.The underlined sentence “This is not rocket science” (Para. 4) means __________.

A. there is no real proof                  B. it is quite simple to understand

C. the cost is not so high                                  D. it’s not a dangerous thing to do         

3.Which of the following English expressions would a defensive pessimist believe?

A. Whatever will be, will be.             B. The glass is half full not half empty.

C. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.    D. Every cloud has a silver lining.

4.The writer would probably describe himself as __________.

A. a realist                     B. an optimist                   C.  a   defeatist                    D. a scientist

 

Are you an optimist? Do you look at your glass and see it as half full? Do you believe that every cloud has a silver lining and that generally things turn out for the best? Do you believe that if something is meant to be, it will be? If you reply “yes” to all of these questions, then you are an optimist. You probably are enthusiastic, cheerful and outgoing. You may well be successful atwork and in love.

But you may be misguided because things don’t turn out for the best. You may believe that when one door closes another one opens (for example，you may fail to obtain a new job，another chance will come around soon), Wrong. When one door closes, another door slams in your face. That's bitter reality.

Now a book has been published which confirms what we pessimists(悲觀者）have suspected all along. It's called The Positive Power of Defensive Pessimism. Its author argues that defensive pessimism can lead to positive results. Defensive pessimism is a strategy used to manage fear, anxiety and worry. Defensive pessimists prepare for things by setting low outcomes for themselves. They carefully consider everything that may go wrong and plan for ways to handle these problems. And this gives them a sense of control. Lawrence Sanno, a psychology professor, says, “What’s interesting about defensive pessimists is that they tend to be very successful people, so their low opinion of the situation’s outcomes is not realistic. They use it to motivate themselves to perform better. ”

So far, so good. This is not rocket science. Defensive pessimists prepare carefully and consider what might go wrong, whether at work, on a date or even in a sports game. It makes sense to have a back-up plan. There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” and “ Don’t count your chickens until they hatch. “ To have a confident and optimistic approach to life’s problems is good. But listen to what Woody Alien，the American comedian says, ”Confidence is what you have before you understand the problem.”

There are pros and cons to being an optimist and a pessimist. Don’t feel bad if you see the glass half empty. You are a realist. But lighten up and hook up with someone who sees the same glass half full.

1.What is the passage mainly about?

A．A book that has recently been published.

B．The dangers of being too optimistic.

C．How to become successful in life.

D．The benefits of defensive pessimism.

2.The underlined sentence “This is not rocket science” in paragraph 4 means     .

A．it is quite simple to understand             B．there is no real proof

C．it’s not a dangerous thing to do            D．the cost is not so high

3.The writer would probably describe himself as          .

A．a(chǎn)n optimist        B．a(chǎn) defeatist         C．a(chǎn) realist           D．a(chǎn) scientist

4.Which of the following English expressions would a defensive pessimist believe?

A．“Every cloud has a silver lining.”           B．“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”

C．“Whatever will be, will be.”              D．“The glass is half full not half empty.”

 

Are you an optimist? Do you look at your glass and see it as half full? Do you believe that every cloud has a silver lining and that generally things turn out for the best? Do you believe that if something is meant to be, it will be? If you reply “yes” to all of these questions, then you are an optimist. You probably are enthusiastic, cheerful and outgoing. You may well be successful atwork and in love.
But you may be misguided because things don’t turn out for the best. You may believe that when one door closes another one opens (for example，you may fail to obtain a new job，another chance will come around soon), Wrong. When one door closes, another door slams in your face. That's bitter reality.
Now a book has been published which confirms what we pessimists(悲觀者）have suspected all along. It's called The Positive Power of Defensive Pessimism. Its author argues that defensive pessimism can lead to positive results. Defensive pessimism is a strategy used to manage fear, anxiety and worry. Defensive pessimists prepare for things by setting low outcomes for themselves. They carefully consider everything that may go wrong and plan for ways to handle these problems. And this gives them a sense of control. Lawrence Sanno, a psychology professor, says, “What’s interesting about defensive pessimists is that they tend to be very successful people, so their low opinion of the situation’s outcomes is not realistic. They use it to motivate themselves to perform better. ”
So far, so good. This is not rocket science. Defensive pessimists prepare carefully and consider what might go wrong, whether at work, on a date or even in a sports game. It makes sense to have a back-up plan. There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket,” and “ Don’t count your chickens until they hatch. “ To have a confident and optimistic approach to life’s problems is good. But listen to what Woody Alien，the American comedian says, ”Confidence is what you have before you understand the problem.”
There are pros and cons to being an optimist and a pessimist. Don’t feel bad if you see the glass half empty. You are a realist. But lighten up and hook up with someone who sees the same glass half full.
【小題1】What is the passage mainly about?

A．A book that has recently been published.

B．The dangers of being too optimistic.

C．The benefits of defensive pessimism.

D．How to become successful in life.

【小題2】The underlined sentence “This is not rocket science” in paragraph 4 means     .

A．he cost is not so high	B．there is no real proof
C．it’s not a dangerous thing to do	D．it is quite simple to understand

【小題3】The writer would probably describe himself as          .

A．a(chǎn)n optimist

B．a(chǎn) realist

C．a(chǎn) defeatist

D．a(chǎn) scientist

【小題4】Which of the following English expressions would a defensive pessimist believe?

A．“Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.”

B．“Every cloud has a silver lining.”

C．“Whatever will be, will be.”

D．“The glass is half full not half empty.”

Are you an optimist? Do you look at your glass and see it as half full? Do you believe that every cloud has a silver lining and that things generally turn out for the best? Do you believe that if something is meant to be, it will be? If you reply “yes” to all of these questions, then you are an optimist. You probably are enthusiastic, cheerful and outgoing. You may be successful at work and in love.

But you may be misguided because things don’t turn out for the best. You may believe that when one door closes another one opens (for example, you may fail to obtain a new job; another chance will come around soon). Wrong. When one door closes, another door slams (砰然關(guān)上) in your face. That’s bitter reality.

Now a book has been published which confirms what pessimists (悲觀者) have suspected all along. It’s called The Positive Power of Defensive Pessimism. Its author argues that defensive pessimism can lead to positive results. Defensive pessimism is a strategy used to manage fear, anxiety and worry. Defensive pessimists prepare for the things by setting low outcomes for themselves. They carefully consider everything that may go wrong and plan for ways to handle these problems. And this gives them a sense of control. Lawrence Sanno, a psychology professor, says, “What’s interesting about defensive pessimists is that they tend to be very successful people, so their low opinion of the situation’s outcomes is not realistic. They use it to motivate themselves to perform better.”

So far, so good. This is not rocket science. Defensive pessimists prepare carefully and consider what might go wrong, whether at work, on date or even in a sports game. It makes sense to have a back-up plan. There are many sayings in English urging caution. For example, “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” And “Don’t count your chickens until they hatch.” To have a confident and optimistic approach to life’s problems is good. But listen to what Woody Alien, the American comedian says, “Confidence is what you have before you understand the problem.”

There are pros and cons to being an optimist and a pessimist. Don’t feel bad if you see the glass half empty. You are a realist. But lighten up and hook up with someone who sees the same glass half full.

1.What’s the passage mainly about?

A. A book that has recently been published.

B. How to become successful in life.

C. The dangers of being too optimistic.

D. The benefits of defensive pessimism.

2.The underlined sentence “This is not rocket science” (Para. 4) means __________.

A. it’s not a dangerous thing to do

B. it is quite simple to understand

C. the cost is not so high   

D. there is no real proof

3.Which of the following English expressions would a defensive pessimist believe?

A. Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.

B. The glass is half full not half empty.

C. Whatever will be, will be.

D. Every cloud has a silver lining.

4.The writer would probably describe himself as __________.

A. an optimist            B. a   defeatist           C. a realist                  D. a scientist

 

I was driving home one evening about 5, stuck in traffic, and the car started to die— I hardly managed to get into a gas station, glad only that I would have a somewhat warm spot to wait for the tow truck(拖車). Before I could make the call, I saw a woman walking out of the “ Quickie Mart” building, then suddenly she slipped(滑倒) on some ice and fell down, so I got out to see if she was okay.

When I got there, it looked like she had been overcome by weep than that she had fallen; she was a young woman who looked exhausted with dark circles under her eyes. She dropped something as I helped her up, and I picked it up and gave it to her. It was a coin.

At that moment, everything came into focus for me: the crying woman, the ancient Suburban packed full of stuff and three kids in the back, and the gas pump(汽油泵) reading $4.95.

I asked her if she was okay and if she needed help, and she just kept saying “I don’t want my kids to see me crying,” so we stood at the other side of the pump from her car. She said she was driving to California for Christmas and that things were very hard for her right now.

I took out my credit card and swiped(刷磁卡) it through the card reader on the pump so that she could fill up her car completely, and I bought 2 big bags of food for her kids in the car who attacked it like wolves. While it was fueling, she asked, “So, are you an angel or something?” I said, “At this time of year, angels are really busy, so sometimes God uses common people.”

It was unbelievable to be part of someone else’s miracle. And of course, you guessed it, when I got in my car it started right away and got me home with no problem. Sometimes, angels fly close enough to you that you can hear the flutter(擺動) of their wings.

1.. Caught in traffic, the author still felt happy because      .

    A. she could fill up her car to get home in time[來源:Z,xx,k.Com]

    B. the woman who needed help was waiting there

    C. she could find a warm place to wait

    D. she could do something for others in the gas station

2.. The young woman cried because      .

    A. her situation was very terrible      B. her kids wouldn’t listen to her

    C. she was too tired                    D. she fell down and got injured

3.. It can be inferred from the passage that     .

    A. the author was driving carelessly on the way home

    B. the young woman was interested in long driving

    C. the young woman didn’t want to see her kids crying

    D. the kids were extremely hungry at that time

4.. According to the passage, we can say that the author     .

    A. was a kind person                    B. liked to deal with others’ business

    C. had no thought for others            D. was a real angel