Less is more .. good learning

1. Unit 6 Less Is More

2. less is more

3. “少即多”
“大道至简”
简单的东西往往带给人们的
是更多的享受。

4. 这是20世纪30年代著名的建
筑师路德维希·密斯·凡德罗
说过的一句话，意思是“少即
多”这是一种提倡简单，反对
过度装饰的设计理念。
简单的东西往往带给人们的
是更多的享受。类似于我们所
说的“大道至简”。

5. 建筑师米斯·凡德洛

12. 2
Door closer, are you?
Unit 6 Section A
FOREIGH LANGUAGE TEACHING AND RESEARCH PRESS
AIR FORCE ENGINEERING UNIVERSITY

13. 6
UNIT
Section A
2
Objectives
To talk about whether more is better than less
To further understand the text
To apply the phrases and patterns
To master the cause-effect writing skill
Less is more?
Door closer, are you?

14. Contents
6
UNIT
Warming-up Activities
Text Study
Language Application
Summary
Door closer, are you?
Quotation
key to exercise

15. 6
UNIT
Warming-up Activities
Lead-in
Pre-reading Activities
Cultural Background
Door closer, are you?

16. 1. As far as choices in our daily life are concerned, have
you ever been troubled with such dilemma: to keep all or
to give up some?
Just as all people have to make decisions in their
everyday lives, college students are always faced with
the dilemma of making right choices. Faced with an
abundance of options to choose from, they can’t bear
the pain to lose any opportunity and have a strong
desire to keep all the options open. They try to avoid
such an emotional loss, and would rather pay the high
cost to keep all the doors of opportunity open.

17. 2. What is the proper way to deal with this dilemma? Is more
always better than less?
Evidences show that people feel less happy and more
depressed when given an overabundance of choice.
The tendency to keep all our doors of choices open
might have damaged our life, and we can get greater
pleasure and more satisfaction by focusing our energy
and attention on fewer options and things. More is not
necessarily better in life. We should close some doors
in order to allow for the right windows of opportunity and
happiness to open.

18. Task1. Listen to a talk about why people are often
irrational. Based on what you hear, match the
questions with the answers by placing a letter
next to the number. [C1-4]
1 ( ) According to the speaker, how can people
behave in a rational way?
2 ( ) What are the consequences of people’s
irrational behavior?
3 ( ) What has MIT Professor Ariely discovered?
4 ( ) What is the example in the talk regarding
irrational behavior?
5 ( ) What does the speaker say about this irrational
behavior?

19. Task1. Listen to a talk about why people are often
irrational. Based on what you hear, match the
questions with the answers by placing a letter
next to the number.
A People tend to behave irrationally in a predictable
fashion.
B People should act according to logic and reason
required in a situation.
C It causes problems to themselves as well as to
others.
D He doesn’t think this irrational behavior is always
intentional.
E If a person knows someone suffers from a disease,
he will feel he suffers from the same disease.

20. Task1. Listen to a talk about why people are often
irrational. Based on what you hear, match the
questions with the answers by placing a letter
next to the number.
1 ( ) According to the speaker, how can people
behave in a rational way?
2 ( ) What are the consequences of people’s
irrational behavior?
3 ( ) What has MIT Professor Ariely discovered?
4 ( ) What is the example in the talk regarding
irrational behavior?
5 ( ) What does the speaker say about this irrational
behavior?
B
C
A
E
D

21. 1. In your opinion, what is an irrational behavior?
Give some examples.
It is an action or opinion based on inadequate use
of reason and logic:
•Once a price is established in their minds,
they will compare other similar items with this
price
• Buy products they don’t need just because
they get something for free in the transaction.
• Do something just because some other people
are doing the same thing.
Task 2:Listen to the talk again and answer
the two questions

22. 2. What do you think may cause people’s irrational
behavior?
•Ignorance — People can be totally unaware of
a situation before forming their own views and
judgments.
•Emotions — People take offense or get angry
before the situation actually occurs.
•Stress — It creates feeling of anger, irritation
and frustration.
•Blind beliefs —They are too conscious about
society and its reactions to them.
Task 2: Listen to the talk again and answer
the two questions

23. Sometimes two things are to be done at the same time,
both _________ your attention. you can only take up
one of them, the other has to wait or be given up. But
you know the future is _____________—the changed
situation may not allow you to do what is left behind.
Thus you are caught in a fix and feel sad. How come
that nice opportunities and ___________ should
gather around all at once.
Listen to a short passage named “Another Door”
and fill in the missing information.
deserving
unpredictable
brilliant
ideas

24. It may happen that your life changes
___________ on your preference of one
alternative to the other. In fact that is what life is
like: we are often faced with the two opposite
aspects of a thing which are both__________
like newspaper cutting. It often occurs that our
attention is drawn to one thing only after we are
_________ another.
dramatically
desirable
engaged in
Listen to a short passage named “Another door”
and fill in the missing information.

25. The former and the latter give rise to a divided
mind. I still remember a philosopher's _______
"When one door shuts, another opens in life."So
a ______or passive choice may not be a
bad one. Whatever we do in our lifetime,
wherever life' storm ______ us, there must be
something we can achieve,
remarks
casual
tosses
Listen to a short passage named “Another door”
and fill in the missing information.

26. some shore we can land, which opens up
new vistas to us. Don't forget God always
keeps an _____________ open for every
one. While the front door is closed, there
must be another open for you.
alternative door
Listen to a short passage named “Another door”
and fill in the missing information.

27. Questions Previewing
1.What do you know about Dan Ariely?
2. How much do you know about Xiang Yu
and the Battle of Julu?
Tips
Tips

28. Dan Ariely, American economist and psychologist, wrote a
book in 2008 entitled Predictably Irrational(可预见的非
理性): The Hidden Forces That Shape Our
Decisions. In the book he challenges readers’
assumptions about making decisions based on rational
thought. He explains, “My goal, is to help you fundamentally
rethink what makes you and the people around you tick.”
1.What do you know about Dan Ariely?

29. Xiang Yu was a prominent military leader and
political figure during the late Qin Dynasty. In
about 207 BC, Xiang Yu led the Chu rebel forces
to victory at the Battle of Julu (巨鹿之战 ) against
the Qin armies. The battle marked the decline of
Qin’s military power. They finally beat the Qin army.
The Battle of Julu was of crucial importance in
overthrowing the Qin dynasty, and it has been
known as the battle of “Smashing the
Cauldrons and Sinking the Boats” (破釜沉舟).
2. How much do you know about Xiang Yu
and the Battle of Julu?

30. Main Idea & Structure
Language Focus
Critical Thinking
Text Study
6
UNIT
Door closer, are you?
Text Translation

31. rival options
The text starts with a question about what Xiang
Yu, a Chinese imperial general, would do when
facing ___________.(Para.1)
Tips

32. Why did General Xiang Yu order his troops to
crush their cooking pots and burn their sailing
ships when crossing the Zhang River?(Para.3)
Tips
•to impose on his troops a necessary sacrifice
to achieve victory over their opponents.
•to inspire the soldiers be more determined
and concentrated on the battles.

33. Part I introduces a story of closing doors to
open ___________________ about Xiang
Yu. Facing choices of rival options, he
made an unusual decision - ordering his
troops to crush cooking pots and burn their
sailing ships. By doing this, he closed the
door for retreating from the enemy’s
territory but opened the window for
______________.
Part I — (Paras. 1- __)
3
windows of opportunity
winning the battle

34. According to Dr. Ariely’s book, Predictably
Irrational, what might be a weakness of
human beings? (Para.4)
Tips
His experiment shows that people
just couldn’t bear to see their
options vanish though they knew it
would benefit them to let go.

35. Part I serves as a transition from the
ancient story of Xiang Yu to the
__________ of the students at MIT.
Through conducting an experiment on
human’s_____________ , Dr. Ariely
found that people just couldn’t bear to see
their options vanish though they knew it
would benefit them to let go.
Part II — (Para. 4)
modern story
irrational behavior

36. What’s the significance of doing the experiments?
(Para.5)
Tips
The experiment enabled people
to see why it’s always so hard for them to
say “NO” to any opportunity that came to
them. In everyday life, people just give
excuses to keep options open.

37. What’s the winning strategy when playing the
computer game? (Para.6)
Students should quickly check all the
doors and keep clicking on the one with
the highest cash. They should absolutely
ignore the vanishing doors.
Tips

38. How did students lose money because of their
irrational efforts to keep the vanishing doors
open? (Para.7)
In the game, any door left un-clicked for a
short while would vanish. Instead of ignoring
the vanishing doors, the students rushed to
click on them before they vanished, so they
lost money in the end.
Tips

39. Why are the corresponding costs often less obvious
in life than in the experiments?(Paras.8-9)
Because in life the doors are closing slowly,
not like the ones on the computer in the
experiment, so people don’t really see the
opportunities actually vanishing away little by
little.
Tips

40. Part III mainly focuses on the experiment
conducted by Dr. Ariely. He first explains the
___________________ of the experiment,
and the process of the students _________.
Then he points out the real cause of the
students’________________. Finally he
emphasizes that in life the doors are actually
closing slowly and we don’t see the future
_____________.
Part III — (Paras. 5- __)
9
purpose and significance
losing money
irrational behavior
vanishing away

41. In the text, what does Dr. Ariely suggest in
order to balance our life? (Paras.10-12)
Tips
People should:
•prohibit overbooking,
•reduce options,
•delegate tasks to others,
•give away ideas to others to pursue.

42. Part IV— (Paras. 10-12)
Part IV suggests how we can balance
our lives by reducing ________________.
such as prohibition of overbooking , trying to
lessen the load, remembering the lessons of
____________ like Xiang Yu, and keeping
those activities _______________.
unnecessary options
door closers
enriching our lives

43. What is the message the author wants to
send out from this text? (Paras.13-14)
Tips
People can obtain pleasure and
satisfaction by focusing their energy and
attention in a more concentrated fashion.
They will have more with fewer but
carefully chosen options.

44. Part V — (Paras. 13-14)
Part III concludes the essay, and
meanwhile it raises the question if
___________________ . We should close
certain doors in order to allow the right
windows of opportunity and happiness to
open.
more is better than less

45. The story of closing doors to open
windows of opportunity about Xiang Yu
serves as a good example illustrating the
point that when we close doors, we open
windows of opportunity. The experiment
conducted by Dr. Ariely also proves that
in life, we should close certain doors in
order to allow the right windows of
opportunity and happiness to open.
Main Idea of the Text

46. When facing
choices of rival
options, think
about what
Xiang Yu would
do. (Para. 1)
Xiang Yu
ordered his
troops' cooking
pots crushed
and their sailing
ships burned
after taking his
troops across a
river to raid the
enemy. (Para. 2)
Xiang Yu
explained that his
decision was a
necessity to attain
the victory. But his
unusual decision
would be
validated 验证on
his battlefield and
in modern social
science research.
(Para. 3)
Introduction to Xiang Yu’s story of closing
doors to open windows of opportunity

47. This example from ancient times leads to
the experiment at MIT where Dr. Ariely
teaches behavioral economics. The
experiment showed that students
couldn’t bear to see their options vanish,
even though it was clear they would
profit from doing so. (Para. 4)
Transitional paragraph
Introduction to Xiang Yu’s story of closing
doors to open windows of opportunity

48. Introduction to Xiang Yu’s story
Transitional paragraph
Body: the experiment by Dr. Ariely

49. Body: the experiment by Dr. Ariely
It’s an
experiment
about
computer
game which
eliminated
the excuses
for letting
go. (Para. 5)
The rule of
the game
was the
more money
they earned,
the better
player they
were.
(Para. 6)
how they lost
money
because of
the irrational
efforts to
keep the
vanishing
doors open.
(Para. 7)
Dr. Ariely
points out
the real
cause of the
students’
irrational
behavior.
(Paras. 8-9)

50. Introduction to Xiang Yu’s story
Transition
Dr. Ariely’s suggestions
Body: the experiment by Dr. Ariely
Implement more prohibitions on overbooking
and reduce options on our own. (Para. 10)
Reduce the load and remember the lessons
of door closers like Xiang Yu. (Para. 11)
Only keep the choices that actually enrich our
lives. (Para. 12)

51. Introduction to Xiang Yu’s story
Transition
Dr. Ariely’s suggestions
Body: the experiment byDr. Ariely
conclusion
We should close certain doors in order to
allow the right windows of opportunity and
happiness to open. (Paras. 13-14)

52. Door closer, are you?
When faced with ____ options, XiangYu
proved to a wonderful decision-maker.
He took his troops making a _____ into
enemy territory. To his troops’___________,
he ordered their cooking pots crushed and
their sailing ships burned, which gave his
troops only one _______: to win the battle.
The battle turned out to be a great success on
his side.
rival
raid
astonishment
option

53. This story indicates that while closing the
door for doing something, people may open
the _______ for achieving something more
significant. Through conducting an
experiment on human’s ________ behavior,
Dr. Ariely, found that many students in his
experiment just couldn’t bear to see their
options _______ though they knew it would
benefit them to ______. He then
emphasizes that in life the doors are
actually closing slowly and we don’t see the
future vanishing away.
window
irrational
vanish
let go

54. To solve this problem, people can
balance their lives by reducing
___________options on their own and
keeping those activities that will
actually enrich their lives. To conclude,
we should close certain doors in order
to allow the right windows of
_______________________ to open.
opportunity and happiness
unnecessary

55. Door closer, are you?
1. The next time you’re deciding between
rival options, one which is primary and the
other which is secondary, ask yourself this
question: what would Xiang Yu do?
2. Xiang Yu was a Chinese imperial general
in the third century BC who took his troops
across the Zhang River on a raid into enemy
territory. To his troops’ astonishment, he
ordered their cooking pots crushed and their
sailing ships burned.
Chinese

56. Xiang Yu 西楚霸王项羽

57. • 01 立志图秦
• 02 会稽起兵
• 03 横空出世
• 04 破釜沉舟
• 05 鸿门风云
• 06 裂土封侯
• 07痛失双杰
• 08智救彭城
• 09楚河汉界
• 10 霸王之死

59. • Xiang Yu was a prominent military leader and
political figure during the late Qin Dynasty.
• In about 207 BC, Xiang Yu led the Chu rebel
forces to victory at the Battle of Julu (巨鹿之战 )
against the Qin armies. The battle marked the
decline of Qin’s military power. They finally beat
the Qin army. The Battle of Julu was of crucial
importance in overthrowing the Qin dynasty,
and it has been known as the battle of
“Smashing the Cauldrons and Sinking the
Boats” (破釜沉舟).

60. 3. He explained that he was imposing on
them a necessity for attaining victory over their
opponents. What he said was surely motivating,
but it wasn’t really appreciated by many of his
loyal soldiers as they watched their vessels go up
in flames. But the genius of General Xiang Yu’s
conviction would be validated both on the
battlefield and in modern social science research.
General Xiang Yu was a rare exception to the
norm, a veteran leader who was highly respected
for his many conquests and who achieved the
summit of success.
Chinese

61. 4. He is featured in Dan Ariely’s enlightening new
publication, Predictably irrational, a fascinating
investigation of seemingly irrational human behavior,
such as the tendency for keeping multiple options open.
Most people can’t marshal the will for painful choices,
not even students at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology (MIT), where Dr. Ariely teaches behavioural
economics. In an experiment that investigated
decision-making, hundreds of students couldn’t bear to
let their options vanish, even though it was clear they
would profit from doing so.
Chinese

62. Predictably Irrational《可预见的非理性》

63. • 行为经济学的经典著作。
丹·艾瑞里先生的通过一系列
现实例子和实验很好的讲述了
行为经济学的产生与原理，全
书不长，亮点却不少。

64. • “我们的非理性，一次又一次，以
相同的方式发生。”

65. 尽管有目前的“理性经济”即“市场经济”
的说法，但笔者看来，其实无非是非理性
的因素对结果没有产生决定性的影响。
“社会人”的存在以及计算机的“人为操
纵性”决定了所有的“经济原理”中“理
性人”的说法都是理想型的。

66. • 目前的难点是应该是非理性因素的影响力
究竟如何测定或者量化。还有，既然“非
理性是可以预测的”，那么对于“非理性
的人”也一定会有一个基本的模型可以得
以建立。

67. • “锚定”
很有意思的一个理论，“一旦
参与者愿意出某价买某物，他们
此后购买同类产品也会参照他第
一次的出价（锚）来决定的出价
意愿。”特别是在对购买事物完
全没有认识的情况下，任何外界
因素都能成为决定购买价格的关
键要素，哪怕只是你身份证号码
的后三位。

68. • “星巴克咖啡与邓肯甜甜圈的区别”
同样卖咖啡，但他们的不同是如此之
大，甚至让我们不再用邓肯甜甜圈店的
价格作为锚来定位，与此相反，我们会
敞开思想接受星巴克为我们准备的新锚。
• 实际上，每个物品的供给与需求绝对是
相互依存的，“理性人”再次失效。

69. • “我们同时生活在两个不同的世界
里，其中一个世界由社会规范主导，
另一个则由市场规范来制定法制”。
• 岳母的晚饭的例子：岳母准备了一
顿丰厚的晚餐，晚餐结束后，你掏
出400块，想要支付给岳母，市场规
范下的法则却在社会规范下成为了
笑话。

70. • “社会规范反复重建与推倒：迟到罚款，并没有
减少迟到数，再取消罚款后，迟到数反而上升。”
• 一旦社会规范与市场规范发生碰撞，社会规范就
会退出。换言之，社会规范很难重建。一旦社会
规范被市场规范打败，它很难发挥任何效力。

71. • “如果让我从本书中叙述的研究结论里浓
缩出一个重要的教训，那就是，我们都是
棋盘上的小卒子，对棋局里的多种力量认
识不多。我们通常认为自己稳坐在驾驶座
上，对自己的决策，对自己生活的方向具
有至高无上的操控能力；但是，可惜啊，
这只是我们一厢情愿的认识，它反映的是
我们的欲望——我们对自身想当然的认
识——而不是现实。”

72. 5. The experiment revolved around a
game that eliminated the excuses we usually
have for refusing to let go. In the real world,
we can always say, “It’s good to preserve our
options.” Want a good example? A teenager
is exhausted from soccer, ballet, piano, and
Chinese lessons, but her parents won’t stop any
one of them because they might come in handy
some day!
Chinese

73. 6. In the experiment sessions, students played a
computer game that provided cash behind three doors
appearing on the screen. The rule was the more money
you earned, the better player you were, given a total of
100 clicks. Every time the students opened a door by
clicking on it, they would use up one click but wouldn’t
get any money. However, each subsequent click on that
door would earn a fluctuating sum of money, with one
door always revealing more money than the others. The
important part of the rule was each door switch, though
having no cash value, would also use up one of the 100
clicks. Therefore, the winning strategy was to quickly
check all the doors and keep clicking on the one with the
seemingly highest rewards.
Chinese

74. 7. While playing the game, students noticed a
modified visual element: Any door left unclicked for a
short while would shrink in size and vanish. Since they
already understood the game, they should have
ignored the vanishing doors. Nevertheless, they hurried
to click on the lesser doors before they vanished, trying
to keep them open. As a result, they wasted so many
clicks rushing back to the vanishing doors that they lost
money in the end. Why were the students so attached
to the lesser doors? They would probably protest that
they were clinging to the doors to keep future options
open, but, according to Dr. Ariely, that isn’t the true
factor.
Chinese

75. 8. Instead of the excuse to maintain future options
open, underneath it all the students’ desire was to
avoid the immediate, though temporary, pain of
watching options close. “Closing a door on an option
is experienced as a loss, and people are willing to pay a
big price to avoid the emotion of loss,” Dr. Ariely says.
In the experiment, the price was easily measured in lost
cash. In life, the corresponding costs are often less
obvious such as wasted time or missed opportunities.
Chinese

76. 9. “Sometimes these doors are closing too slowly
for us to see them vanishing,” Dr. Ariely writes. “We
may work more hours at our jobs without realizing that
the childhood of our sons and daughters is slipping
away.”
10. So, what can be done to restore balance in our
lives? One answer, Dr. Ariely says, is to implement
more prohibitions on overbooking. We can work to
reduce options on our own, delegating tasks to others
and even giving away ideas for others to pursue. He
points to marriage as an example, “In marriage, we
create a situation where we promise ourselves not to
keep options open. We close doors and announce to
others we’ve closed doors.”
Chinese

77. 11. Since conducting the door experiment, Dr.
Ariely says he has made a conscious effort to lessen his
load. He urges the rest of us to resign form committees,
prune holiday card lists, rethink hobbies and remember
the lessons of door closers like Xiang Yu.
12. In other words, Dr. Ariely is encouraging us to
discard those things that seem to have outward merit
in favor of those things that actually enrich our lives.
We are naturally prejudiced to believe that more is
better, but Dr. Ariely’s research provides a dose of
reality that strongly suggests otherwise.
Chinese

78. 13. What price do we pay for trying to have more
and more in life? What pleasure and satisfaction can
be derived from focusing our energy and attention in a
more concentrated fashion? Surely, we will have our
respective answers.
14. Consider these important questions: Will
we have more by always increasing options or will we
have more with fewer, carefully chosen options? What
doors should we close in order to allow the right
windows of opportunity and happiness to open?
Chinese

79. rival:
• a. (only before noun) used about a person or group that
competes against sb. or sth. else竞争的；对抗的
• Fierce fighting broke out between the rival groups.
• 敌对集团之间爆发了激烈的战斗。
• n. [C] a person, group, or organization that you compete
with in sport, business, a fight, etc. 对手；竞争者
• Having good international contacts gives the company a
competitive advantage over its rivals.
• 良好的国际社会关系使该公司具备了超过其对手的竞争优势。

80. secondary:
• a. not as important as sth. else次要的；从属
的
• 我们父亲的健康是最重要的，治疗费用是次要的。
• Our father’s health is what matters, and
the cost of his treatment is of secondary
importance.

81. raid:
• n. [C] a short attack on a place by soldiers, planes, or ships,
intended to cause damage but not take control
突袭；袭击
• 他们对敌人进行了大胆的袭击。
• They made (staged / carried out) a daring raid on the enemy.
• vt. make a sudden military attack on a place
(军队)突然袭击
• Police raided five houses in southeast London and recovered
stolen goods.
• 警方突击搜查了伦敦东南部的五所房屋，并追回了被盗货物。

82. impose sth. on sb. :
vt. make sb. feel determined to do sth. or
enthusiastic about doing it 激励；激发积极性
该公司的利润分红计划旨在激励员工努力工作。
• The company’s profit-sharing plan is
designed to motivate its staff to work hard.

83. go up in flames: suddenly begin burning in
a way that is difficult to control 突然着火
• The factory went up in flames last night.
• 昨晚工厂突然着火了。

84. conviction:
• n. [C] a very strong belief or opinion 坚定
的信仰（主张）
• 这个小国家的外交部长是一位有坚定政治信
仰的女性。
• The foreign minister of this small country
is a woman of strong political convictions.

85. validate:
vt. (fml.) prove that sth. is true or correct, or
make a document or agreement officially and
legally acceptable证实；使生效；使合法化
• 许多科学家对接受这个研究结果犹豫不决，决定等
该结果被今后的研究证实后再说。
• Many scientists hesitate to accept the
outcome and decide to wait until the results
of the study are validated by future research.

86. exception:
n. [ C, U] sth. or sb. that is different in some way
from other people or things and so cannot be
included in a general statement 例外；除外
I like all kinds of films with the exception of horror
films.
我喜欢各种电影，但恐怖片除外。

87. an exception to:
sth. or sb. that is not included in a general statement,
or does not follow a rule or pattern 对…例外
大多数篮球运动员都非常高大，但他是—个例外，他
比较矮。
Most basketball players are very tall, but he’s an
exception to that rule, he’s relatively short.

88. veteran:
adj. very experienced and skilled in a particular activity
经验丰富的；老练的
这位经验丰富的演员说，他已为他人生中首次导演影片做好了准备。
The veteran actor has said he is ready to direct a film for
the first time in his life.
n. [C] sb. who has been a soldier, sailor, etc. in a war老兵；
退伍军人
The veterans of World War Ⅱ are now old and gradually
dying off.
第二次世界大战的老兵现已年老，并一个个离开了这个世界。

89. summit: n．[C]
1) (fml.) the greatest amount or highest level of sth.
某事物的顶峰；某事物的极点
I am still young, and I certainly haven’t reached the
summit of my career.
我还年轻，我当然还没有达到我事业的巅峰。
2) an important meeting or set of meetings between
the leaders of several governments
首脑会议；最高级会议；峰会
World leaders will meet next week for their annual
economic summit.
世界各国领导人将在下周齐聚年度经济峰会。

90. be featured in: be included or shown as a
special or important part of sth., or be included
as an important part在…中被专题介绍；被特写
• 老师给学生的家庭作业是浏览一些在文章中被专题
介绍的网站。
• The teacher gave his students the homework
assignment to visit some of the websites which
were featured in the article.

91. enlighten: vt. (fml.) give sb. information about
sth. so that they understand more about it
启发；指导；教导
他最新的小说旨在娱乐和启发读者。
• The object of his most recent novel is to amuse
and enlighten the readers.

92. investigate: vt. Try to find out the truth about
sth. Such as a crime, accident, or scientific
problem
查明，调查，侦查（犯罪、事故或科学问题的真相）
• 桥梁倒塌后，工程师们在调查怎么会发生这种灾难。
• After the bridge collapsed, engineers were
investigating how a disaster like this could have
occurred.

93. marshal: vt. Organize thoughts, ideas, etc.
so that they are clear, effective, or easy to
understand 整理（思路、想法等）
你说话前应当理清思路。
You should marshal your thoughts before
speaking.

94. profit from:
get an advantage from a situation 从…中受益
• 我从与她一起工作中获益巨大。
• I profited enormously from working with her.

95. revolve: v. move around like a wheel, or make
sth. Move around like a wheel（使）旋转
• 餐厅慢慢地旋转，为顾客提供这个城市绝妙的景观。
• The restaurant revolves slowly, giving
customers an excellent view of the city.
revolve around: 以…为主题（目的）；围绕…
有些人很自私，似乎认为整个世界都以他们为中心。
Some people are very selfish and seem to think that the
world revolves around them.

96. be exhausted from:
be extremely tired by 因…．而筋疲力尽；
因…而疲惫不堪
如今，很多人都因生活、工作和社会活动的压力
而疲惫不堪。
Today, many people are exhausted from the
stress in their life, their jobs, and their
social activities.

97. • come in handy: be useful in a particular
situation 派得上用场
• 不要把那个纸盒丢掉，以后可能用得着。
• Don’t throw that cardboard box away; it
may come in handy.

98. • fluctuate:
vi．change frequently波动；起伏；涨落
• 蔬菜价格会根据季节上下波动。
• Vegetable prices fluctuate according to
the season.

99. • modify: vt. (fml) change sth. slightly, esp.
in order to improve it or to make it less
extreme 改动；修改；更改
• 该制度鼓励罪犯改过自新，而不是一味地惩
罚他们。
• Instead of simply punishing them, the
system encourages offenders to modify
their behavior.

100. • lesser: adj. (fml.) (only before noun) not
as large, as important, or as much as sth.
else更小的；次要的；更少的
• 我会与家人一起过重要的节日，并请其他人
和我一起过不甚重要的节日。
• I’ll spend important holidays with family
members and ask others to join me for
lesser holidays.

101. • be attached to sth.／sb.: like sb. or
sth. very much喜欢（依恋）某物或某人
• 鸟是如此依恋她，以致它会从她的双唇
间获取食物。
• The bird got so attached to her that
it would take food from between
her lips.

102. protest: v.
(1)state very firmly that sth. is true, when other people
do not believe you 坚持说；力言
被告坚决声称他从没靠近过犯罪现场。
The defendant protested that he had never been near
the scene of the crime.
(2) come together to publicly express disapproval or
opposition to sth 公开反对；抗议
妇女团体走上街头，抗议由于性别而造成的不平等报酬。
Groups of women took to the streets to protest against
unequal pay based on gender.

103. cling: vi. (clung, clung)
1) (- to) continue to believe or do sth. even though it
may not be true or useful any more 坚持，墨守（某事物）
她丈夫一直抱着希望，认为她的癌症会被治愈。
Her husband clung to the hope that she would be cured
of cancer.
2) Hold sb. or sth. tightly, esp. because you do not feel
safe（尤指感觉不安全而）紧紧抓住（抱住）
下沉的游轮上的乘客们拼命抓住救生艇。
Passengers from the sinking cruise liner clung
desperately to the lifeboats.

104. Underneath: a
under or below an object or a surface 在…表象之下
Underneath his rather severe manner, he is
really very kindhearted.
他待人态度相当严厉, 但心地确实十分善良。

105. temporary:
a. continuing for only a limited period of time
暂时的；临时的
Most adolescent problems are temporary.
大多数 的青少年问题是暂时的。

106. • pay a big price to do sth.: pay dearly to do
花很大代价
• He paid a high price for his success.
• 他付出了很大代价才取得了成功。

107. • Be measured in sth.: be judged or assessed
by sth. 用某事物来衡量
• Energy is measured in calories.
• 能量是以卡洛里来计量的。

108. • implement: make sth. start to work and be
used. 实施，贯彻
• We have decided to implement the
committee’s recommendations in full.
• 我们已决定全面实施委员会提出的建议。

109. • overbook: sell more tickets than you have
available 超额预定
• over- 超出，过度.
overfire 过度燃烧 过热
overfish 过度捕捞
overgrade 定级过高
overmature 过熟的
overpay 多付

110. • delegate:
vt give part of your power or work to sb. in a
lower position than you 授权，委托（权限）
（给下级）；下放（权力）
• The job had to be delegated to a capable
assistant.
• 这项工作必须委派给一个能干的助理。
n 代表
a delegate to a conference
赴会的代表

111. prune: cut off，cut out 削减，裁减
Firms are cutting investment and pruning their
product ranges.
公司正在减少投资，缩减产品系列。

112. discard: get rid of扔掉；弃置
Always discard old and expired medications
because using them may damage your health,
要常常丢弃旧的和过期的药物，因为服用它
们可能会损害你的健康。

113. prejudice:
Vt 使有偏见；使有偏见
Her opponent’s comments may have prejudiced the
voters against her candidacy.
她对手的评论可能使选民已经对她的候选资格持有偏见。
n.成见，偏见
Prejudiced：a
Some companies are prejudiced against taking on
employees who are over 40.

114. Practical Phrases Specific Meanings
1. impose sth. on sb. 将…强加于
2. be featured in 被特写；在…中专题介绍
3. be attached to sth. / sb. 喜欢（依恋）某物或某人
4. revolve around 围绕；以…为主题
5. pay a big price 花很大代价
6. come in handy 派上用场
7. be measured in sth. 用某事来衡量

115. 将…强加于
(generation gap / make things worse)
To bridge the generation gap, parents should
never impose their personal views on their
children, which may make things even worse.
impose sth. on sb.
短语逆译
短语应用
为了消除代沟，父母不应该将自己的观点强加
给孩子，这样会使事情更糟。
意群提示

116. 被特写；在…中专题
介绍
(heroic deed / enlighten people)
His heroic deed was featured in the first
page of yesterday’s newspaper, which
enlightened many people.
be featured in
短语逆译
短语应用
他的英雄事迹在昨天的报纸头版专题介绍，让很
多人受到了启发。
意群提示

117. 喜欢（依恋）
某物或某人
(from between her lips)
The bird got so attached to her that it would
take food from between her lips.
be attached to
sth. / sb.
短语逆译
短语应用
鸟是如此依恋她，以致于它会从她的双唇间获
取实物。
意群提示

118. 围绕；以…为主题
(take it for granted that)
Some people are very selfish and take it
for granted that the whole world revolves
around them.
revolve around
短语逆译
短语应用
一些人很自私，想当然地认为整个世界都以他
们为中心。
意群提示

119. 花很大代价
(pay an even bigger price )
Xiang Yu paid a big price when he burned his
ships, but he could have paid an even bigger
price if all of his men had died in the battle.
pay a big price
短语逆译
短语应用
当项羽烧毁他的船只时，他付出了巨大的代价；但
如果他的士兵都死在战斗中，他可能会付出更大的
代价。
意群提示

120. 派上用场
(turn a deaf ear to / start your own business)
Don’t turn a deaf ear to his advice, for what he
said may come in handy someday when you
start your own business.
come in handy
短语逆译
短语应用
对他的建议，不要置若罔闻，将来某一天
当你自己经营时，也许会派上用场。
意群提示

121. 用某事来衡量
(lose your self-confidence/wisdom)
Never lose your self-confidence. The real power
a person is not measured in his size but in his
wisdom.
短语逆译
短语应用
永远不要丧失信心。一个人真正的强大
不是用他的身体而是他的智慧来衡量。
意群提示
be measured in sth.

122. Functional Patterns Functions & Usages
1. The next time sb. is doing sth,
ask oneself the question: …
用于表达“某种情景下某
人应该反思”。
2. Sb. or sth. is a rare exception to
sb.else, who / that…
用于表达“某人或某物与
众不同”。
3. Sb. would probably protest
that…, but according to sb. else,
that isn’t the true factor.
用于表达“对某种观点或
分析的否定”。

123. 下次你要在两个难于取舍的、主要的和次
要的选择之间做决定时，不妨问自己这样
一个问题：项羽会怎么做？
原句译文
逆译练习
The next time you’re deciding between
rival options, one which is primary and the
other which is secondary, ask yourself
this question: What would Xiang Yu do?
（Line 1, Para.1）
句型提炼

124. The next time sb. is doing sth, ask
oneself the question: …
句型提炼
应用提示
用于表达“某种情景下某人应该反思”。
句型应用

125. (complain about / in return)
典型例句
下次你要在抱怨他人，认为他们对你不友好时，
不妨问自己这样一个问题：你平常对他们如何？
群提示
The next time you are complaining about others,
who seem to be unfriendly to you, ask yourself
the question: How do you often treat them in
return?

126. 对墨守陈规的人来说，项羽将军是一个罕见
的异于常人的人，他是一位资深的首领，由
于他征战无数并达到了成功的顶峰，他深受
尊敬。
原句译文
逆译练习
General Xiang Yu was a rare exception to
the norm, a veteran leader who was highly
respected for his so many conquests and
who achieved the summit of success.（Line
5, Para.3） 句型提炼

127. Sb. or sth. is a rare exception to sb. else,
who / that…
句型提炼
应用提示
用于表达 “某人或某物与众不同”。
句型应用

128. (innovative leader / think critically )
典型例句
对很多普通人来说，乔布斯是一个罕见的异于
常人的人，他是一位创新型的领导。他不仅能
够批判性思维，而且努力探索新领域。
意群提示
Jobs was a rare exception to many ordinary
people, an innovative leader who was
thinking critically and who endeavored to
explore new areas.

129. 他们可能会争辩说，他们抓住这些门是为将来多
留一些机会。但是，据阿雷利博士说，这不是真
正的原因。
原句译文
逆译练习
They would probably protest that they were
clinging to the doors to keep future options open,
but, according to Dr. Ariely, that isn’t the true
factor. （Line 6, Para.7）
句型提炼

130. Sb. would probably protest that…, but
according to sb. else, that isn’t the true
factor.
句型提炼
应用提示
用于表达“对某种观点或分析的否定”。
句型应用

131. (corporal punishment / for the sake of)
典型例句
他们可能会争辩说，学校体罚孩子是为他们将来
的成长。但是，据调查组说，这不是真正的原因。
意群提示
They would probably protest that they practiced
corporal punishment at schools for the sake of
the children’s future growth, but, according to
investigation group, that isn’t the true factor.

135. 1.In what way is General Xiang Yu’s order
similar to Dr. Ariely’s experiments?
2. In reality, why are people reluctant to see their
options vanish?
3. How do you understand the English saying
“Less is more”?
Tips
Tips
Tips

136. ●Both consequences are surprising.
●Both have to do with strategies.
●Both focus on human’s mentality.
1.In what way is General Xiang Yu’s order
similar to Dr. Ariely’s experiments?

137. ●Afraid of losing potential opportunities.
●Too greedy and too ambitious.
●Overconfident about their real capacity.
●More choices, better chances.
2. In reality, why are people reluctant to
see their options vanish?

138. ●More options, less focused concentration.
●More choices, worse quality.
●Everything has two sides.
●Too much greed ends up with nothing.
3. How do you understand the English saying
“Less is more”?

139. Q1: What should you do when you have arrived
“there” but still feel dissatisfied ?
Listen to a essay entitled “There” is no
better than “here” and discuss on the
following questions.
Tips
Q2: What message do you get from
this listening ?
Tips

140. You should keep a clear mind and learn to be
thankful for and appreciative of what you have
and where you are on your path right now. By
learning the lessons of gratitude and abundance,
you can bring yourself closer to the enjoyment
of your life right now.
Q1: What should you do when you have arrived
“there” but still feel dissatisfied ?

141. •We should have the consciousness of
appreciating for all that we have right now, so that
we may live more joyously in our present moment.
Q2: What message do you get from this listening?
•True abundance comes not from amassing, but
rather from appreciating.
•A contented mind is the greatest blessing
a man can enjoy in the world.

142. Tell the story “Smashing the Cauldrons and Sinking the
Boats” (破釜沉舟) to your classmates and discuss its
message.
In the late years of the Qin Dynasty (秦朝,
221 - 206BC), Xiang Yu (项羽) launched a rebellion. After
crossing the Zhang River (漳河), Xiang Yu ordered his
soldiers to sink all the boats and break their cooking pots,
leaving only a three-day supply of food for each soldier.
He warned them that there was no way to retreat; the
only thing they could do to survive was to advance and
fight. Xiang Yu’s boat burning strategy gave his men no
choice but to go forward to fight with skill and passion.
After nine furious war, the Qin army was finally defeated.

143. Tell the story “Smashing the Cauldrons and Sinking the
Boats” (破釜沉舟) to your classmates and discuss its
message.
•In the desperate condition, Xiang Yu gave his troops only
one option: to win the battle rather than die in the battle.
•The high level of intelligence in his strong belief would
prove to be correct on the battlefield as well as in modern
social science research.
•We should learn to think logically and make rational
decisions when facing painful choices in our life.

144. The next time you’re deciding between rival options,
one which is primary and the other which is secondary,
ask yourself this question: what would Xiang Yu do?

145. Xiang Yu was a Chinese imperial general in the third
century BC who took his troops across the Zhang River
on a raid into enemy territory.

146. To his troops’ astonishment, he ordered their
cooking pots crushed and their sailing ships
burned.

147. He explained that he was imposing on them a
necessity for attaining victory over their
opponents.

148. What he said was surely motivating, but it wasn’t
really appreciated by many of his loyal soldiers as they
watched their vessels go up in flames.

149. But the genius of General Xiang Yu’s conviction
would be validated both on the battlefield and in
modern social science research.

150. General Xiang Yu was a rare exception to the norm, a
veteran leader who was highly respected for his many
conquests and who achieved the summit of success.

151. He is featured in Dan Ariely’s enlightening new
publication, Predictably Irrational, a fascinating
investigation of seemingly irrational human behavior, such
as the tendency for keeping multiple options open.

152. Most people can’t marshal the will for painful
choices, not even students at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology (MIT), where Dr. Ariely teaches
behavioural economics.

153. In an experiment that investigated decision-making,
hundreds of students couldn’t bear to let their
options vanish, even though it was clear they would
profit from doing so.

154. The experiment revolved around a game that
eliminated the excuses we usually have for refusing to
let go.

155. In the real world, we can always say, “It’s good to
preserve our options.”

156. A teenager is exhausted from soccer, ballet, piano,
and Chinese lessons, but her parents won’t stop any
one of them because they might come in handy some
day!

157. In the experiment sessions, students played a
computer game that provided cash behind three
doors appearing on the screen.

158. The rule was the more money you earned, the better
player you were, given a total of 100 clicks.

159. Every time the students opened a door by clicking on
it, they would use up one click but wouldn’t get any
money. However, each subsequent click on that door
would earn a fluctuating sum of money, with one door
always revealing more money than the others.

160. While playing the game, students noticed a modified
visual element: Any door left unclicked for a short
while would shrink in size and vanish.

161. Since they already understood the game, they should
have ignored the vanishing doors. Nevertheless, they
hurried to click on the lesser doors before they
vanished, trying to keep them open.

162. Closing a door on an option is experienced as a loss,
and people are willing to pay a big price to avoid the
emotion of loss,” Dr. Ariely says.

163. In the experiment, the price was easily measured in
lost cash. In life, the corresponding costs are often less
obvious such as wasted time or missed opportunities.

164. “Sometimes these doors are closing too slowly for us to
see them vanishing,” Dr. Ariely writes. “We may work
more hours at our jobs without realizing that the
childhood of our sons and daughters is slipping away.”

165. One answer, Dr. Ariely says, is to implement more
prohibitions on overbooking.

166. He points to marriage as an example, “In marriage, we
create a situation where we promise ourselves not to
keep options open. We close doors and announce to
others we’ve closed doors.”

167. Consider these important questions: Will we have more
by always increasing options or will we have more with
fewer, carefully chosen options? What doors should we
close in order to allow the right windows of
opportunity and happiness to open?

168. Consider these important questions: Will we have more
by always increasing options or will we have more with
fewer, carefully chosen options? What doors should we
close in order to allow the right windows of
opportunity and happiness to open?

169. • 关门者，你是吗？
• 1 下次你要在两个难于取舍的、主要的和次要的选择之
间做决定时，不妨问自己这样一个问题：项羽会怎么做？
• 2 项羽是公元前三世纪中国古代王朝的—位将军。他带
领他的部队横渡漳河，突袭进入了敌方的领地。他下令
砸锅烧船，令他的部队大为震惊。
• 3 他解释道，他强加给他们的是战胜对手的必要举措。
他所说的无疑十分鼓舞士气，但当他那许多忠诚的士兵
眼睁睁地看着他们的船只在火焰中被焚毁时，他们并不
赞成他的做法。不过项羽将军的这种砸锅焚船的做法所
显示出的天赋，在战场上和现代社会科学研究中都将得
到肯定。项羽将军是一个罕见的不墨守成规的人，他是
一位经验丰富的领袖，由于他征战无数并达到了成功的
顶峰，他深受尊敬。

170. • 4 丹·阿雷利极富启迪性的新书《可预见的非理性》对
项羽作了专题介绍。这本书对看似非理性的人类行为，
譬如人类总想留住多项选择机会的倾向，进行了引人入
胜的调查。大多数人都不能整理自己的思路来做痛苦的
选择，麻省理工学院上阿雷利博士行为经济学这门课的
学生也不例外。在调查作决策的一项实验中，几百名学
生都不能忍受眼睁睁看着他们的选择机会消失，即使他
们很清楚这样做对他们有利。
• 5 实验是围绕着一个游戏展开的，这个游戏排除了我们
通常不肯放手的借口。在现实世界里，我们总会说：“
保留我们的选择机会是对的。”想要一个好的例子吗？
一个十多岁的女孩被足球、芭蕾舞、钢琴弄得筋疲力尽
，但她的父母不会让她停止任何一项活动，理由是它们
有一天可能会派上用场！

171. • 6 在这个个实验里，学生要玩一个电脑游戏：在电脑屏幕上会
显示三扇门，毎扇门后都会提供一些现金。该游找的规则是毎
个人都只能点击100次，你点击获取的钱越多，你就玩得越好。
学生每点击一次打开一扇门，他们会用掉一个点击数，但却不
会得到任何钱。然而，随后在那扇门上的每次点击都会挣得数
额不等的钱。三扇门显示的钱总有一扇比另外两扇多。这个游
戏规则的重点是虽然每次换门没有金钱回报，可还是会用掉一
次点击数。所以，制胜战略是要迅速査看所有的门，然后只点
击那扇似乎是钱最多的门。
• 7 在玩游戏时，学生们注意到了一个视觉上的变化：如果有片
刻没点击某扇门，那扇门就会慢慢缩小并消失。由于他们已了
解了游戏规则，他们本应对要消失的门不予理睬。然而，在它
们消失以前，他们却迫不及待地去点击那些变小的门，试图让
它们开启着结果是，他们在匆忙回去点击那些快消失的门时浪
费了很多点击数以至于最后输了钱。为什么学生对那些变小的
门如此依恋呢？他们可能会争辩说，他们紧抓住这些门是为将
来多留一些机会。但是，据阿雷利博士说，这不是真正的原因。

172. • 8 在他们为将来多留一些机会的借口背后反映出的是所有
的学生都不堪目睹眼前的选择机会被剥夺，尽管这种痛苦
是临时的。阿雷利博士说：“每闭上一扇选择之门就如同
经受了一次损失，人们宁愿付出很大的代价，也要避免情
感的失落。”在实验中，损失很容易用丢失的现金来衡量。
在生活中，相应的损失就往往没那么明显，如浪费时间，
错过机会。
• 9 “有时候，这些门是慢慢关闭的，我们没有看到它们在
悄然消失，”阿雷利博士写道：“我们可能花很多时间在
工作上，却没有意识到我们子女的童年正在悄悄溜走。”
• 10 那么，我们可以做些什么让我们的生活恢复平衡呢？
阿雷利博士说，一个办法是制止更多的超额预约。我们可
以自己减少选择，将任务委派给其他人，甚至放弃一些点
子，让其他去做。他用婚姻作为例子：“在婚姻中，我们
承诺不保留选择机会，我们就创造了获得最佳选择的有利
局面。我们关上可选择的门，并告诉别人我们已作出选
择。”

173. • 11阿雷利博士说，自从进行了这个点击门的实验。他
已经有意识地努力减轻自己的负担。他敦促我们辞去
委员会的工作，删减送节日贺卡的名单，重新思考兴
趣爱好，并记住像项羽那样的关门者给我们的启示。
• 12换言之，他是鼓励我们放弃那些似乎只有表面价值
的东西，去追求那些能真正丰富我们生活的东西,我
们很自然、很偏执地相信选择越多越好，但阿雷利博
士的研究却强有力地告诉我们事实并非如此
• 13 我们想在生活中得到越来越多选择的代价是什么？
我们能从更集中的精力和注意力中获得什么样的喜悦
和满足？当然，我们每个人都会有自己的答案。

174. • 14 试想一下这些重要的问题：怎么做会使
我们获得更多，是不断增加选择，还是只
保持少数精心挑选的选择？我们应关闭什
么门，以便让机会和幸福之窗打开？

175. 6
UNIT
Language Application
Writing Devices
Essay Writing
Paragraph Translation
Door closer, are you?

176. How to write a cause-and-effect essay
When we analyze causes, we are
attempting to understand the relationship of
events that brought about an outcome.
Similarly, when analyzing effects, we consider
the results of something. When a problem
arises, we start to examine the causes for it.
Likewise, we try to analyze results or effects
caused by something.

177. When analyzing a cause-and-effect situation,
students need to ask the following questions:
1. What are the causes? What are the effects?
2 Which should be emphasized: the causes
or the effects?
3. Are there multiple causes or multiple
effects?

178. Tips for writing a cause-and-effect essay
1. State briefly the causes or effects to be
discussed in the thesis statement.
For example:
Causes: Lack of knowledge, over-confidence,
and poor judgment are the main reasons why
people often lose good opportunities.
Effects: To avoid the emotion of loss could
result in the selection of wrong choices,
waste of time, and loss of opportunities.

179. Tips for writing a cause-and-effect essay
2. Plan to use one paragraph to describe
each of the causes or effects. Each
paragraph would have to provide an
explanation of the cause of effect.
3. Use the order of importance to organize
all the supporting details. To make the most
important point (cause or effect) stand out or
impressive, the essay may start with the least
important point and end with the most important
one.

180. Tips for writing a cause-and-effect essay
4. Introduce causes and effects using
appropriate transitions to achieve
coherence. The following ones are very
common:
Causes: because of, as a result of, caused by,
result from, the reason is that…, for, due to,
since
Effects:
cause, result in, thus, therefore, consequently,
as a result

181. Tips for writing a cause-and-effect essay
5.Conclude the essay by summarizing the
causes or effects. Give a brief summary of the
causes or effects in your conclusion, followed
by your final evaluation or comments, whether
positive or negative. They can be an opinion, a
prediction, a warning, a suggestion, or an
appeal.

182. Now, let’s take a look at
such an analysis of
Paragraph 7 in Text A.

183. While playing the game, students noticed a modified
visual element: Any door left un-clicked for a short
while would shrink in size and vanish. Since they
already understood the game, they should have
ignored the vanishing doors, yet they rushed to click on
the lesser doors before they vanished, trying to keep
them open. As a result, they lost money in the end.
cause
Analysis of the text
They would probably protest that they were clinging to
the doors to keep future options open, but, according
to Dr. Ariely, that isn’t the true factor.(Para.7)
comment

184. Read the sample essay
and see how it develops
in the pattern of cause-
and-effect.

185. Topic:
Why people make poor decisions
Introduction:
Thesis statement: There are two major
reasons for making poor decisions: tend to
use bad data and lack good information.
Sample Analysis

186. Body:
•Cause 1: Tend to use bad data
•Cause 2: Lack good information
Conclusion:
Because of these two reasons, humans
are sometimes irrational when they make
decisions.

187. Sample:
We’re confronted with choices every day.
Sometimes we get them wrong, and
sometimes right. Why do we sometimes
decide poorly? There are two major
reasons for making poor decisions: We
tend to use bad data and lack good
information.

188. The first reason for poor decision-making is
that people tend to use bad data. They are not
very rational when making a decision. Consider a
simple example. When people choose cell phone
service, they need to look at objective ratings for
customer service. However, if someone they
know says he or she had a bad experience with a
particular cell phone service provider, they tend to
give that opinion more weight than any of the
thousands of consumer reports. Consequently,
they make a bad choice which may lead to post-
decision regret.

189. Another important reason for people to
make a poor decision is lack of good
information. In the real world, the information
available to people is rarely perfect or complete,
and people can predict very little about the
consequences of their choices. For example,
most people are much more likely to undergo an
operation with a reported 80 percent success rate
than one with a reported 20 percent risk of death,
even though these numbers represent the same
level of risk. People prefer fitting in with the
majority, which results in irrational decisions.

190. To conclude, because of these two
reasons, humans are sometimes irrational
when they make decisions. Therefore,
people need to be more rational and have
a complete knowledge of all possible
outcomes when making decisions.

191. Writing practice
Directions: Write an essay of no
less than 150 words on one of the
following topics. One topic has an
outline that you can follow.

192. Topic:
What caused people’s irrational behavior
Introduction:
Thesis statement: Irrational behavior is caused by various factors
but two stand out.
Body:
Cause 1: Uncontrolled emotions
Cause 2: Stressed feeling
Conclusion:
Uncontrolled emotions and too much stress can result in irrational
behavior.

193. You may adopt the following expressions.
to one’s astonishment…
attain victory over
impose sth. on sb.
have validated conviction that
keep multiple options open
marshal the will for sth.
revolve around
be attached to sth.or sb.
The more…, the more…
instead of doing sth,

194. More topics:
• Why do people jump to conclusions
before investigation?
• The effects of iPhone-addiction

195. Translate a paragraph based
on a summary of the text by
using the expressions from
the text.

196. 大多数人都太依恋过去和他们
所熟悉的事物，因此他们错过
了摆在他们面前的机会。一些
门可能会关闭，但总会有很多
其他的门—— 新的机遇——出
现。如果我们足够明智，我们
就会看到这个世界充满了机遇。
显然，人的一生总难免会有失
去和失败，如暂时失去金钱或
工作，有时不愉快的事情会支
配我们的情感。
be attached to
temporary
loss
stand
an abundance of
be enlightened

197. 我们没有办法总是控制这些
事情的发生，但我们却可以
最大程度地控制我们的注意
力和态度。我们对失去的东
西——关闭的门——抱得越
紧，我们的沮丧和不快就越
多，但如果我们可以将我们
的注意力从紧闭的门移开并
放弃我们的担忧，我们可能
会惊讶地发现一排新敞开的
大门。
have control over
discard worries
retain maximum
control over
tightly cling to

198. Most people are too attached to
the past and to what they are familiar with; so,
they miss opportunities that stand right in front
of them. Doors may close, but there is always
an abundance of other doors – new opportunities.
The world is full of opportunities, if we could be
enlightened to see them. Apparently, when it
comes to one’s life, there are always losses and
failures, such as temporary loss of money or job,
and sometimes unpleasant things dominate our
emotional feelings.

199. We don’t always have control over these
happenings, but we can retain maximum
control over our attention and attitude. The
more tightly we cling to the loss – the closed
door, the more overwhelming frustration and
unhappiness we will have, but if we could
move our attention away from the closed door
and discard our worries, we might be surprised
to discover a row of new doors open.

200. 6
UNIT
Summary
Revision of
the Useful Expressions
Revision of
the Functional Patterns
Door closer, are you?

201. 1 难以取舍的选择
2 突袭敌阵
3 战胜对手
4 突然着火
5 深受敬仰
6 达到成功的顶峰
7 从中受益
8 派上用场
9 制胜方略
10 为未来多留机会
rival options
a raid into enemy territory
attain victory over the opponents
go up in flames
be highly respected for
achieve the summit of success
profit from doing sth.
come in handy
winning strategy
keep future options open

202. 11 紧抓门
12 付出大代价
13 相应的损失
14 错失的机会
15 溜走，逃脱
16 放弃观点
17 减轻负担
18 表面价值
19 获得乐趣
cling to the door
pay a big price
corresponding cost
lessen one’s load
missed opportunity
slip away
give away ideas for
outward merit
derive pleasure from

203. Functions & Usages Sentence Patterns
用于表达“某种情景下某人应
该反思”
用于表达“某人或某物与众不
同”。
用于表达“对某种观点或分析
的否定”。
The next time sb. is doing sth,
ask oneself the question:
Sb. or sth. is a rare exception
to sb.else, who / that…
Sb. would probably protest
that…, but according to sb.
else, that isn’t the true factor .
Revision of
the Functional Patterns Language points —Functional patterns

204. Besides the noble art of getting things done, there
is the noble art of leaving things undone. The
wisdom of life consists in the elimination
of non-essentials.
— Lin Yutang (Chinese writer)
You have succeeded in life when all you really
want is only what you really need.
— Vernon Howard (American writer)
2
6
UNIT Less is more

205. KEY TO EXERCISES
Words in use
3
1 implement 4 discarded 7 restore 10 investigate
2 rival 5 fluctuating 8 enlightening
3 motivating 6 prejudiced 9 profit

206. Word building 4
Words learned New words formed
-ic
strategy strategic
sympathy sympathetic
-ion
confirm confirmation
locate location
reflect reflection
provide provision
install installation
register registration
quotation quote

207. -ize
sympathy sympathize
critic criticize
industrial industrialize
5.
1 sympathize 2 confirmation 3 strategic
4 installation 5 quote 6 sympathetic
7 criticize 8 location 9 reflection
10 industrialize 11 provision 12 registration
Banked cloze
6
1 M 2D 3 H 4 O 5 F
6 L 7 I 8 C 9 J 10 A

208. Expressions in use
7.
1 was attached to 2 be measured in 3
come in handy 4 clinging to
5 pay a big price 6 are exhausted from
7 imposed on 8 revolve around
Structured writing
8
There are a lot of people who behave irrationally causing
problems to themselves as well as to others. It’s hard to
analyze the exact causes behind irrational behavior but
we know that it is a manner of behavior that is not based
on logic and reasoning. Irrational behavior is caused by
various factors but two stand out.

209. The first main factor that contributes to irrational behavior
is uncontrolled emotions. Irrational people take offense or
get angry before the actual situation occurs. They become
anxious and express exaggerated emotions such as crying
and shouting. They have unrealistic expectations expecting
everyone to like them and if someone does not they feel
angry and neglected. It is fairly common for people to show
such signs of irrationality.
Too much stress can also lead to irrational behavior.
In fact these days stress is the major cause of physical as
well as mental problems. Stress creates feelings of anger
irritation and frustration. For instance when you spend a
stressful day in the office it makes you anxious. You start
releasing your frustration or stress by screaming at your

210. family members for small reasons like a badly prepared meal.
That day you feel everything is wrong.
In summary uncontrolled emotions and too much stress can
result in irrational behavior. To behave rationally is not an
easy job because the behavior is internalized. However to
discover the source of your irrationality will help you behave
more rationally.
Translation 9
极简主义是指去掉多余的，仅保留需要的部分。用最简
单的话来说，极简的生活方式，就是生活得越简单越好，
直到获得心灵的平静，这种简单既是精神上的，也是身
体上的。这样的生活方式会减轻压力，带来更多自由时
间，并增强幸福感。极简主义者会说，他们生活得更有
意义了，更从容了，极简的生活方式让他们着眼于生话

211. 中更重要的事物：朋友、爱好、旅游和体验。当然，极
简主义并不意味着拥有物质财富从本质上来讲有什么不
对。现在的问题似乎在于，我们往往太重视所拥有的东
西，而常常拋弃了健康、人与人之间的关系、我们的热
情、个人成长，以及帮助他人的愿望。极简主义除了在
我们的日常生活中可以得到应用，还存在于很多创意领
域，包括艺术、建筑、设计、舞蹈、电影、戏剧、音乐、
时尚、摄影和文学等。

212. Translation 10
National Happiness Index (NHI) is an
index that measures how happy people
are. It is also a tool that measures the
levels of economic development and
people’s livelihood and happiness in a
country or region.

213. With the fast growth of Chinese economy, the
Chinese government has been paying more and
more attention to people’s living quality and the
increase of happiness index. The government
stresses improvement of its people’s livelihood,
striving to improve their financial conditions and
meet their growing material and cultural needs.
Currently, the Chinese government advocates the
unleashing of more reform dividends, with the
aim of offering more real benefits to its people.
All these measures will combine to effectively
increase the NHI of our people.

214. 6
UNIT
The end
Door closer, are you?