Question

We all need friends and we always have．Our ancestors found that gaining the basic necessities of life was easier in a group．It’s estimated that the maximum number of people who lived in early communities of hunter-gatherers was 150．

Friends aren’t bound（受……限制）by blood or family bonds, employment contracts or legal obligations．Our circle of associates includes work colleagues and people we meet at parties, in the pub or on the train to work．Some associates are much more important than our family．We are capable of exchanging an email with these associates, and may have mutual acquaintances with a good number of them, providing common ground．We do things for one another because we want to．Whether writing an answer to a photo put on Facebook, sending a birthday card by post, or making a hospital visit, the efforts we have made for our friends are out of kindness．It is this nature of friendship which requires nothing in return that makes it beneficial and valuable．

Friendships take work, and they need to be nurtured, nourished and maintained．We feel good about helping our friends because we are friends．However, we often lose touch with our friends because of a lack of time and energy．When we are carrying a heavy load at work, involved in a serious relationship or raising children, it’s hard to spare time for friends．In these situations, we need to remind ourselves of what friends are for and why they can be so important in our lives．

In a survey of more than 2,000 married couples aged 55 or older, for both men and women, having friends was the best predictor of being satisfied in marriage — possibly because they were more satisfied with their lives as a result of having friends．

Researchers suggest social relationships are the reason why women live longer than men, Social bonds reduce the risk of disease by reducing blood pressure, cholesterol（膽固醇）and heart rate．A lack of good friends is as harmful to your health as smoking or being overweight．Indeed, people without friends are more likely to die younger．Not only do friendships prolong（延長）our lives, they make us happier too．People who are socially active don’t feel so stressed or feel they can not enjoy anything easily — they also tend to feel better about their lives and who they are．

1.What makes friendship beneficial and valuable?

A．Its being not bound by blood or family bonds．

B．Its being easy to maintain．

C．The good we have done to our friends．

D．That we make efforts for friends out of kindness．

2.What should we do when we have no time for friends?

A．Quit our jobs．

B．Give our friends calls．

C．Remind ourselves of what friends are for．

D．Turn to our friends for help．

3.What can we infer from the survey in the fourth paragraph?

A．Having friends makes people satisfied in marriage．

B．The older people are, the more satisfied they are in marriage．

C．Married couples are more satisfied with their lives．

D．Married couples are easier to have friends．

4.What is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．Friendships prolong our lives and make us happy．

B．Men should learn to be socially active．

C．Women live longer than men．

D．Women tend to be less stressed．

Answer 1

1.D

2.C

3.A

4.A

【解析】

試題分析:本文講了我們需要朋友，怎樣對待朋友以及友誼對我們的重要性。

1.1】D細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第二段：the efforts we have made for our friends are out of kindness．It is this nature of friendship which requires nothing in return that makes it beneficial and valuable．句意：我們?yōu)榕笥阉�做的一切努力都是出于善意。這是友誼的本質(zhì)屬性——我們不需要回報(bào)。這將使友誼更加的有益和難能可貴。故選D.

2.C細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第三段：When we are carrying a heavy load at work, involved in a serious relationship or raising children, it’s hard to spare time for friends．In these situations, we need to remind ourselves of what friends are for and why they can be so important in our lives．句意：當(dāng)我們忙于處理繁重的工作、處于一段關(guān)系危機(jī)或者養(yǎng)育孩子而沒有時(shí)間顧及朋友的時(shí)候。在這種情況下，我們需要自我提醒：朋友意味著什么，為什么他們在我們的生活中如此重要。故選C.

3.3】A細(xì)節(jié)理解題。第四段段意：在調(diào)查的2000多年齡在55歲或者更老的已婚夫婦中，不管是男人還是女人，擁有朋友是對婚姻滿意度的最好的預(yù)測器。因?yàn)榭赡芤驗(yàn)閾碛信笥咽顾麄儗ι�活更加的滿意。可知擁有朋友的人對生活，婚姻生活更加的滿意，故選A.

4.4】A細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)最后一段：Not only do friendships prolong（延長）our lives, they make us happier too．句意：友誼不但延長我們的生命更使我們活得開心。故選A.

考點(diǎn)：考查說明文閱讀