01-A. How to be a successful language learner?

　　“Learning a language is easy, even a child can do it!”

　　Most adults who are learning a second language would disagree with this statement. For them, learning a language is a very difficult task. They need hundreds of hours of study and practice, and even this will not guarantee success for every adult language learner.

　　Language learning is different from other kinds of learning. Some people who are very intelligent and successful in their fields find it difficult to succeed in language learning. Conversely, some people who are successful language learners find it difficult to succeed in other fields.

　　Language teachers often offer advice to language learners: “Read as much as you can in the new language.”“ Practice speaking the language every day. ”“Live with people who speak the language.”“Don’t translate-try to think in the new language.”“ Learn as a child would learn; play with the language.”

　　But what does a successful language learner do? Language learning research shows that successful language learners are similar in many ways.

　　First of all, successful language learners are independent learners. They do not depend on the book or the teacher; they discover their own way to learn the language. Instead of waiting for the teacher to explain, they try to find the patterns and the rules for themselves. They are good guessers who look for clues and form their own conclusions. When they guess wrong, they guess again. They try to learn from their mistakes.

　　Successful language learning is active learning. Therefore, successful learners do not wait for a chance to use the language; they look for such a chance. They find people who speak the language and they ask these people to correct them when they make a mistake. They will try anything to communicate. They are not afraid to repeat what they hear or to say strange things; they are willing to make mistakes and try again. When communication is difficult, they can accept information that is inexact or incomplete. It is more important for them to learn to think in the language than to know the meaning of every word.

　　Finally, successful language learners are learners with a purpose. They want to learn the language because they are interested in the language and the people who speak it. It is necessary for them to learn the language in order to communicate with these people and to learn from them. They find it easy to practice using the language regularly because they want to learn with it.

　　What kind of language learner are you? If you are a successful language learner, you have probably been learning independently, actively, and purposefully. On the other hand, if your language learning has been less than successful, you might do well to try some of the techniques outlined above.

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怎样成为一名成功的语言学习者

　　“学习一门语言很容易，即使小孩也能做得到。”

　　大多数正在学习第二语言的成年人会不同意这种说法。对他们来说，学习一门语言是非常困难的事情。他们需要数百小时的学习与练习，即使这样也不能保证每个成年语言学习者都能学好。

　　语言学习不同于其他学习。许多人很聪明，在自己的领域很成功，但他们发现很难学好一门语言。相反，一些人学习语言很成功，但却发现很难在其他领域有所成就。

　　语言教师常常向语言学习者提出建议：“要用新的语言尽量多阅读”，“每天练习说这种语言”，“与说这种语言的人住在一起”，“不要翻译——尽量用这种新的语言去思考”，“要像孩子学语言一样去学习新语言”，“放松地去学习语言。”

　　然而，成功的语言学习者是怎样做的呢?语言学习研究表明，成功的语言学习者在许多方面都有相似之处。

　　首先，成功的语言学习者独立学习。他们不依赖书本和老师，而且能找到自己学习语言的方法。他们不是等待老师来解释，而是自己尽力去找到语言的句式和规则。他们寻找线索并由自己得出结论，从而做出正确的猜测。如果猜错，他们就再猜一遍。他们都努力从错误中学习。

　　成功的语言学习是一种主动的学习。因此，成功的语言学习者不是坐等时机而是主动寻找机会来使用语言。他们找到(说)这种语言的人进行练习，出错时请这些人纠正。他们不失时机地进行交流，不怕重复所听到的话，也不怕说出离奇的话，他们不在乎出错，并乐于反复尝试。当交流困难时，他们可以接受不确切或不完整的信息。对他们来说，更重要的是学习用这种语言思考，而不是知道每个词的意思。

　　最后，成功的语言学习者学习目的明确。他们想学习一门语言是因为他们对这门语言以及说这种语言的人感兴趣。他们有必要学习这门语言去和那些人交流并向他们学习。他们发现经常练习使用这种语言很容易，因为他们想利用这种语言来学习。

　　你是什么样的语言学习者?如果你是一位成功的语言学习者，那么你大概一直在独立地、主动地、目的明确地学习。另一方面,如果你的语言学习一直不太成功,你不妨试试上面提到的一些技巧。

　　大学英语自学教程(上册) unit 02 税、税、还是税

02-A. Taxes, Taxes, and More Taxes

　　Americans often say that there are only two things a person can be sure of in life: death and taxes, Americans do not have a corner on the "death" market, but many people feel that the United States leads the world with the worst taxes.

　　Taxes consist of the money which people pay to support their government. There are generally three levels of government in the United States: federal, state, and city; therefore, there are three types of taxes.

　　Salaried people who earn more than a few thousand dollars must pay a certain percentage of their salaries to the federal government. The percentage varies from person to person. It depends on their salaries. The federal government has a graduated income tax, that is, the percentage of the tax (14 to 70 percent) increases as a person's income increases. With the high cost of taxes, people are not very happy on April 15, when the federal taxes are due.

　　The second tax is for the state government: New York, California, North Dakota, or any of the other forty-seven states. Some states have an income tax similar to that of the federal government. Of course, the percentage for the state tax is lower. Other states have a sales tax, which is a percentage charged to any item which you buy in that state. For example, a person might want to buy a packet of cigarettes for twenty-five cents. If there is a sales tax of eight percent in that state, then the cost of the cigarettes is twenty-seven cents. This figure includes the sales tax. Some states use income tax in addition to sales tax to raise their revenues. The state tax laws are diverse and confusing.

　　The third tax is for the city. This tax comes in two forms: property tax (people who own a home have to pay taxes on it) and excise tax, which is charged on cars in a city. The cities use these funds for education, police and fire departments, public works and municipal buildings.

　　Since Americans pay such high taxes, they often feel that they are working one day each week just to pay their taxes. People always complain about taxes. They often protest that the government uses their tax dollars in the wrong way. They say that it spends too much on useless and impractical programs. Although Americans have different views on many issues, they tend to agree on one subject: taxes are too high.

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