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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怎樣成為一名成功的語言學習者

　　“學習一門語言很容易，即使小孩也能做得到。”

　　大多數正在學習第二語言的成年人會不同意這種說法。對他們來說，學習一門語言是非常困難的事情。他們需要數百小時的學習與練習，即使這樣也不能保證每個成年語言學習者都能學好。

　　語言學習不同于其他學習。許多人很聰明，在自己的領域很成功，但他們發現很難學好一門語言。相反，一些人學習語言很成功，但卻發現很難在其他領域有所成就。

　　語言教師常常向語言學習者提出建議：“要用新的語言盡量多閱讀”，“每天練習說這種語言”，“與說這種語言的人住在一起”，“不要翻譯——盡量用這種新的語言去思考”，“要像孩子學語言一樣去學習新語言”，“放松地去學習語言。”

　　然而，成功的語言學習者是怎樣做的呢?語言學習研究表明，成功的語言學習者在許多方面都有相似之處。

　　首先，成功的語言學習者獨立學習。他們不依賴書本和老師，而且能找到自己學習語言的方法。他們不是等待老師來解釋，而是自己盡力去找到語言的句式和規則。他們尋找線索并由自己得出結論，從而做出正確的猜測。如果猜錯，他們就再猜一遍。他們都努力從錯誤中學習。

　　成功的語言學習是一種主動的學習。因此，成功的語言學習者不是坐等時機而是主動尋找機會來使用語言。他們找到(說)這種語言的人進行練習，出錯時請這些人糾正。他們不失時機地進行交流，不怕重復所聽到的話，也不怕說出離奇的話，他們不在乎出錯，并樂于反復嘗試。當交流困難時，他們可以接受不確切或不完整的信息。對他們來說，更重要的是學習用這種語言思考，而不是知道每個詞的意思。

　　最后，成功的語言學習者學習目的明確。他們想學習一門語言是因為他們對這門語言以及說這種語言的人感興趣。他們有必要學習這門語言去和那些人交流并向他們學習。他們發現經常練習使用這種語言很容易，因為他們想利用這種語言來學習。

　　你是什么樣的語言學習者?如果你是一位成功的語言學習者，那么你大概一直在獨立地、主動地、目的明確地學習。另一方面,如果你的語言學習一直不太成功,你不妨試試上面提到的一些技巧。

　　大學英語自學教程(上冊) unit 02 稅、稅、還是稅

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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