He confined his activities to educational circles.

His skill in handling ______ situation has earned him much praise in diplomatic circles．

  处理复杂情况的能力为他在外交界赢得诸多赞誉。

Relaxation

During a state of deep relaxation, several physiological changes take place in the body: the body's oxygen consumption is reduced; the heart heat decreases; muscle tension and sweating ease, and there is decreased sympathetic(交感的) nervous system activity. This restful state not only allows the body to repair and restore itself, but it has a calming effect on the consciousness.

How to achieve this state of relaxation, however, is a matter of opinion, and in some medical circles, a matter of controversy(争论). A recent report by Dr. David Holmes of the University of Kansas in the journal "American Psychologist" said that simply sitting in an armchair has just as many beneficial characteristics for the body as meditation(冥想) does. Researchers of other relaxation techniques disagree. These experts believe that more structured techniques, such as meditation, lead to a condition of deep relaxation.

The debate goes on, but one thing appears to be clear that the relaxation response can be reached by a number of methods, and the methods themselves are not as important as getting there. One day, one method may work best; on another day, an alternative method may be more appropriate. Once you are aware of all the methods, you can find the one that works best for you.

Some of the relaxation techniques are meditation, autoanalysis (自我心理分析) and progressive muscle relaxation. Although these techniques may not, in the end, produce more of a relaxation response than just sitting quietly in a chair, they have the added benefit of structure and discipline, and for these reasons appear to be more effective for most individuals.

According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true when a person is in a state of deep relaxation?

A．The body takes in less oxygen.

B．The heart beats less frequently.

C．Muscles become tense and the body sweats easily.

D．The consciousness becomes more or less calmed.

The Mysteries of Nazca

In the desert of Peru, 300 kilometersfrom Lima, one of the most unusual artworks in the world has mystified (迷惑)people for decades.(46) But from high above, these marks are hugeimages of birds, fish, seashells, all beautifully carved into the earth.

TheNazca lines are so difficult to see from the ground that they weren’tdiscovered until the 1930s, when pilots spotted them while flying over thearea. In all, there are about 70 different human and animal figures on theplain, along with 900 triangles, circles, and lines.

Researchershave figured out that the lines are at least 1,500 years old, but their purposeis still a mystery.(47) However, it would probably be very trickyto xxxxx and a spaceship in the middle ofpictures of dogs and monkeys.

Inthe 1940s, an American explorer named Paul Kosok suggested that the drawingsare a chronicle (记录) of the movement ofthe stars and planets.(48) xxxxx anastronomer tested his theory with a computer, but he couldn’t find any relationbetween the lines and movements in space.

Anotherexplanation is that the lines may have been made for religious reasons. xxxxx researcher Tony Morrison investigated thecustoms of people in the Andes xxxxx and learned that they sometimes pray by the sideof the road. It’s possible that xxxxx, the linesof Nazca were created for a similar purpose.(49) But xxxxxpeople have never constructed anything this big.

Recently,two other scientists, David Johnson and Steve Mabee, have speculated xxxxx lines could have been related to water. Nazca isone of the driest places in the xxxxx receivesonly 2cm of rain every year.While Johnson was searching for xxxxx watersources in the area, he noticed that some waterways built ancient xxxxx were connected with the lines. Johnson believesthat the Nazca lines are a giant xxxxxunderground water in the area.(50)

A. Scholars differ in interpretingthe purpose of the designs.

B. The largestpicture may have been the sites for special ceremonies.

C. He calledNazca “the largest astronomy book in the world”

D. A Swisswriter named Erich von Daniken wrote that the Nazca lines were designed as alanding place for UFOs.

E. Otherscientists are now searching for evidence to prove this.

F. Seen from theground, it looks like lines scratched into the earth.

46( )

Who Drew Circles in My Field?

In the summer of 1978 an English farmer was driving his tractor through a field of wheat when he discovered that some of his wheat was lying flat on the ground. The flattened wheat formed a circle about six meters across. Around this circle were four smaller circles of flattened wheat. The five circles were in a formation like five dots (点). During the following years, farmers in England found the strange circles in their fields more and more often.

The circles are called "crop circles" because they appear in the fields of grain--usually wheat or corn. The grain in the circles lies flat on the ground but is never broken; it continues to grow, and farmers can later harvest it. Farmers always discover the crop circles in the morning, so the circles probably form. at night. They appear only in the months from May to September.

At first, people thought that the circles were a hoax. Probably young people were making them as a joke, or farmers were making them to attract tourists. To prove that the circles were a hoax, people tried to make circles exactly like the ones that farmers had found. They couldn't do it. They couldn't enter a field of grain without leaving tracks, and they couldn't flatten the grain without breaking it.

Many people believe that beings from outer space are making the circles to communicate (交流) with us from far away and that the crop circles are messages from them.

Scientists who have studied the crop circles suggested several possibilities. Some scientists say that a downward rush of wind leads to the formation of the circles—the same downward rush of air that sometimes causes the an airplane to crash (坠毁). Other scientists say that forces within the earth cause the circles to appear. There is one problem with all these scientific explanations: crop circles often appear in formations, like the five-dot formation. It is hard to believe that any natural force could form. those.

In the summer of 1978, an English farmer discovered in his field that ______.

A．some of his wheat had been damaged

B．some of his wheat had fallen onto the ground

C．his grain was growing up in circles

D．his grain was moved into several circles