两位NBA巨星-奥尼尔和姚明

两位NBA巨星-奥尼尔和姚明 Text 14 Two NBA Stars - O‘Neal and Yao Ming 两位NBA巨星-奥尼尔和姚 明 In the picture, two NBA stars are shaking hands with deep respect to each other, content and proud smiles on both faces. The left one in blue sports wear is black and strong, while the right one in white has yellow skin and tough muscles, seeming to say “Let’s compete” to his counterpart. The black player is usually called Shark O’Neal, and the yellow one is known as “Yao Ming”. Yao Ming, a Shanghai native son, has grown into the most renown NBA super star in recent years who has millions of crazy fans in both China and America. Why is young Yao Ming so popular in the world? First, he is well-educated and sweet-tempered; he is always polite to people and getting along very well with his teammates and friends. As is shown in the picture, he has gained respect and friendship in NBA. Second, he has strong physical build and high proficiency in playing basketball. When watching his playing, people are charmed by his perfect skills. Every time Yao Ming appears on the court, people will cry his name aloud for several minutes, which shows his popularity. I suppose that as the new generation of Chinese youth, we should learn from Yao Ming who has set up a good example for us in both being a man and treating his profession. I believe that in the near future there will be more and more young people like Yao Ming to contribute their knowledge and abilities to our nation! Text 15 No-Smoking in the Office 禁止在办公室吸烟 Today, many government bodies have taken the lead in campaigns to check smoking by banning it in public places. In addition, an ever-increasing number of companies are issuing regulations to forbid smoking in their offices. However, some people say that banning of smoking in offices is an infringement on their freedom. As is shown in the picture, a smoker, when looking at sigh “No Smoking” on the office door, is much surprised: Why? We must keep in mind that smoking is health hazard, which not only affects the smoker himself, but also all the people around him. However, the sad fact in China is that the smoker population keeps on increasing every day. One reason is that cigarettes often play an important role as a social lubricant in our society. Another one is in movies and on TV programs most stars smoke, so fans imitate their coolness. As a result, many people are trying to develop the bad habit. Since we cannot abolish the tobacco industry and persuade all smokers to quit smoking altogether, a possible alternative is to enforce no smoking in public occasions. Smokers may enjoy their cigarettes and hurt themselves somewhere, while nonsmokers can still breathe fresh air and be comfortable. Therefore, the critics of the offices-smoking ban may be right logically, but they are certainly wrong morally. Text 16 Stress and Performance 紧张和现 From the graph, it can be seen that having a clear understanding of the relationship between stress and performance. Dealing with the relationship between them correctly will definitely help us to have a more enjoyable, balanced and productive life. While stress is typically discussed in a negative context, it also has positive value. As can be seen clearly from this graph, the increase of stress can lead to better performance to a certain extent. Increased stress results in increased productivity – up to a point. However, on the other hand, we should bear in mind that too much stress can bring along a series of negative consequences. As is shown here in the graph, when the stress is beyond a certain limit, the performance dips. Too much stress might be responsible not only for the increasing headaches and heart disease people hive physiologically, but also for the increased anxiety and depression people feel psychologically, and eventually for a declined productivity of individuals or organizations. To sum up, stress is not necessarily had in itself. Moderate levels of stress will be functional and lead to higher performance while high levels of stress can result in reduced productivity and other negative consequences as well. Just as the violin string, the right degree can create magnificent tones. Similarly, we all need to find the proper level of stress that promotes optimal performance, and enables us to make melodious music. Learning to manage stress will make our life both colorful and fruitful. Text 17 Changes in Ways of Communications 通讯方式的变化 This graph shows the changes in ways of communication between 1989 and 1999, and the ways of communication under discussion are letter, telephone and e-mail. In 1989, the prevailing means of communication was letter, with the percentage of 85 percent. In contrast, telephone was not widely used, with only 25 percent. Great changes had taken place in the following decade. In 1999, telephone already replaced letter as the dominant means of communication. At the same time, e-mail was also widely used. The changes are significant in that they reflect the changes occurring in China. First, they bear witness to the increase in the living standard of Chinese people over ten years’ time. In 1989, telephone was still regarded as a luxury, so writing letters was the only choice. In 1999, telephone was already an indispensable piece of equipment in every household and people preferred making phone calls to writing letters. Second, this change point to a current trend that people value efficiency. Both telephone and e-mail are superior to letter because they are efficient. Last but not least, the popularity of e-mail also indicates the far-reaching influence of computers. In short, as computers are becoming more and more popular, e-mail will be more widely used, and it is difficult to imagine modern life without it.