2018年高考英语真题分类汇编专题14：任务型阅读

    Color is fundamental in home design-something you'll always have in every room. A grasp of how to manage color in your spaces is one of the first steps to creating rooms you'll love to live in. Do you want a room that's full of life? Or are you just looking for a place to relax after a long day?, color is the key to making a room feel the way you want it to feel.

    Over the years, there have been a number of different techniques to help designers approach this important point., they can get a little complex. But good news is that there're really only three kinds of decisions you need to make about color in your home: the small ones, the medium ones, and the large ones.

    .They're the little spots of color like throw pillows, mirrors and baskets that most of us use to add visual interest to our rooms. Less tiring than painting your walls and less expensive than buying a colorful sofa, small color choices bring with them the significant benefit of being easily changeable.

    Medium color choices are generally furniture pieces such as sofas, dinner tables or bookshelves..They require a bigger commitment than smaller ones, and they have a more powerful effect on the feeling of a space.

    The large color decision in your rooms concern the walls, ceilings, and floors. Whether you're looking at wallpaper or paint, the time, effort and relative expense put into it are significant..

A. While all of them are useful

B. Whatever you're looking for

C. If you're experimenting with a color

D. Small color choices are the ones we're most familiar with

E. It's not really a good idea to use too many small color pieces

F. So it pays to be sure, because you want to get it right the first time

G. Color choices in this range are a step up from the small ones in two major ways

    If you are already making the time to exercise, it is good indeed! With such busy lives, it can be hard to try and find the time to work out. Working out in the morning provides additional benefits beyond being physically fit.

    ●Your productivity is improved. Exercising makes you more awake and ready to handle whatever is ahead of you for the day.

    ●Your metabolism(新陈代谢) gets a head start. If you work out in the mornings, then you will be getting the calorie(卡路里)burning benefits for the whole day, not in your sleep.

    ● Studies found that people who woke up early for exercise slept better than those who exercised in evening. Exercise energizes you, so it is more difficult to relax and have a peaceful sleep when you are very excited.

    ● If you work out bright and early in the morning, you will be more likely to stick to healthy food choices throughout the day. Who would want to ruin their good workout by eating junk food? You will want to continue to focus on positive choices.

    There are a lot of benefits to working out, especially in the mornings. Set your alarm clock an hour early and push yourself to work out! You will feel energized all day long.

    Before there was the written word, there was the language of dance. Dance expresses love and hate, joy and sorrow, life and death, and everything else in between.

    We dance from Florida to Alaska, from north to south and sea to sea. We dance at weddings, birthdays, office parties and just to fill the time.

    "I adore dancing," says Lester Bridges, the owner of a dance studio in Iowa. "I can't imagine doing anything else with my life." Bridges runs dance classes for all ages. "Teaching dance is wonderful. It's great to watch them. For many of them, it's a way of meeting people and having a social life."

    "I can tell you about one young couple," says Bridges. "They're learning to do traditional dances. They arrive at the class in low spirits and they leave with a smile. "

    So, do we dance in order to make ourselves feel better, calmer, healthier? Andrea Hillier says, "Dance, like the pattern of a beating heart, is life. Even after all these years, I want to get better and better. I find it hard to stop! Dancing reminds me I'm alive."

Why Do We Get Angry?

    Anger seems simple when we are feeling it, but the causes of anger are various. Knowing these causes can make us examine our behavior, and correct bad habits. The main reasons we get angry are triggering（触发）events, personality traits（特征）, and our assessment of situations.

    Triggering events for anger are so many that to describe them all would take hundreds of pages. However, here are some examples: being cut off in traffic, a deadline approaching, experiencing physical pain, and much more. The reason why someone is triggered by something and others are not is often due to one's personal history and psychological traits.

    Each person, no matter who they are, has psychological imbalances. People who have personality traits that connect with competitiveness and low upset tolerance are much more likely to get angry.  Also, sometimes pre-anger does not have to do with a lasting condition, but rather a temporary state before a triggering event has occurred.

    Sometimes even routine occurrences become sources of pre-anger, or anger itself. Sometimes ignorance and negative (消极的) outlooks on situations can create anger.

    However, anger can easily turn violent, and it is best to know the reasons for anger to appear in order to prevent its presence. With these main reasons in mind, we can evaluate our level of anger throughout the day and prevent cases of outbursts by comprehending the reasons for our feelings.

A. Our attitude and viewpoint on situations can create anger within us as well.

B. But some types of situations can help us to get rid of the occurrence of anger.

C. Anger is rarely looked upon as a beneficial character trait, and is usually advised to reduce it.

D. Anger is a particularly strong feeling and maybe people think that they have reasons to feel angry.

E. Having these personality traits implies the pre-anger state, where anger is in the background of your mind.

F. Understanding these reasons will control our own anger if we are willing to evaluate ourselves with a critical eye.

G. Not everyone acts the same in response to events, and that is why what triggers one person may or may not trigger another.

    Some people live to climb the highest mountains. Some people live only dreaming about it while others live to avoid ever climbing at all. But one thing is certain, all people encounter mountains in their life.

    When I was a little girl, my family moved to a tiny town at the bottom of a big mountain. One day after school, while exploring the green woods of this magnificent mountain, I almost fell on a set of stairs. What could these steps lead to? Curiosity got the best of me as I knew it would be starting to get dark soon. I started climbing up those strangely mysterious steps.

    I climbed and climbed. There was nothing but just green bushes and these steps. I had to reach the top! But it was now getting real dark. If I kept going I might not be able to see my way back. My mom would be worried sick if I didn't come home soon. So I ran back home almost in the dark while trying not to get too scared.

    Anxiously I went to bed dreaming about what I would find at the top of this magical mountain. Could there be a castle up there? Maybe I would find a monster(怪物). Maybe I was taking the risk of never coming back home. Or, maybe all I would find was absolutely nothing! But something inside me was going to climb that mountain at all cost. I could hardly wait to try this adventure again.

    Now we live in a world surrounded by the "can't do" attitudes. We all fall down. We all have doubts and regrets. Still we must climb and dream about what's at the top of our mountain. Monsters may appear or the night will fall. But never ever give up on your dream! Never let anyone tell you, "You can't." Dream big and climb high!

    Moving into a new home in a new neighborhood is an exciting experience. Of course, you want to make sure that you become an accepted and valuable part of your new neighborhood. The easiest way to accomplish this is to make sure you conduct yourself as a good neighbor should.

    Perhaps one of the most important things you can do as a good neighbor is to keep your property(房产) neat, clean, and in good repair. By choosing to keep the outside of the home in great shape, you will help to improve the look and feel of the area.

    Second, take the overall appearance of the neighborhood seriously. When going for a walk. Take along a small garbage bag. This small act will let your neighbors know that you care about the area.

     If a neighbor is going to be out of town, offer to collect mail and newspapers. If a neighbor suffers an illness, offer to do the grocery shopping. Let them know you are there to help in any way this acceptable, while still respecting the privacy of your neighbor.

    By following the basic rules of respecting others, taking care of what belongs to you, and taking pride in the appearance of the neighborhood in general, you will quickly become a good neighbor that everyone appreciates.

How Arts Promote Our Economy

    When most people think of the arts, they imagine the end product, the beautiful painting, a wonderful piece of music, or an award-winning performance in the theater. But arts groups bring broader value to our communities. The economic impact of the arts is often overlooked and badly judged.

    The arts create jobs that help develop the economy. Any given performance takes a tour bus full of artists, technical experts, managers, musicians, or writers to create an appealing piece of art. These people earn a living wage for their professional knowledge and skills.

    Another group of folks is needed to help market the event. "If you build it they will come" is a misleading belief. Painters, digital media experts, photographers, booking agents and promoters are hired to sell tickets and promote the event. According to the Dallas Area Cultural Advocacy Coalition, arts agencies employ more than 10,000 people as full-or part-time employees or independent contractors.

    A successful arts neighborhoods creates a ripple effect（连锁反应）throughout a community. In 2005, when the Bishop Arts Theatre was donated to our town, the location was considered a poor area of town. After investing more than $1 million in reconstructing the building, we began producing a full season of theater performances, jazz concerts, and year-round arts education programs in 2008. Nearly 40 percent of jazz lovers live outside of the Dallas city limits and drive or fly in to enjoy an evening in the Bishop Arts District.

    No doubt the theater has contributed to the area's development and economic growth. Today, there are galleries, studios, restaurants and newly built work spaces where neighbors share experiences, where there is renewed life and energy. In this way, arts and culture also serve as a public good.

    Teco Theatrical Productions Inc. made use of Bloomberg's investment of $35,000 to get nearly $400,000 in public and private sector support during the two-year period. Further, Dallas arts and arts-based businesses produce $298 for every dollar the city spends on arts programming and facilities. In Philadelphia, a metro area smaller than Dallas, the arts have an economic impact of almost $3 million and support 44,000 jobs, 80 percent of which actually lie outside the arts industry, including accountants, marketers, construction workers, hotel managers, printers, and other kinds of art workers.

    The arts are efficient economic drivers and when they are supported, the entire small-business community benefits.

    It is wrong to assume arts groups cannot make a profit. But in order to stay in business, arts groups must produce returns. If you are a student studying the arts, chances are you have been ill-advised to have a plan B. But those who truly understand the economic impact and can work to change the patterns can create a wide range of career possibilities.