C
“Small talk”includes topics，such as sports，weather，jobs，or past experiences.Most people do not talk about religion，politics，or personal feelings with strangers.People do not usually talk about the personal lives of their conversation partners.This emotional distance does not mean people dislike you，but personal lives are discussed only with close friends and family.
There are few“ritualistic”exchanges in English，but you should know that“How are you?”and“How's it going?”are greetings，not questions about your life.“See you later.”or“See you soon.”are ways of saying goodbye，not appointments.
People in the US are curious.They will ask you a lot of questions.Some of their questions may appear ridiculous，uninformed(无知的)and elementary，but try to be patient in answering them.You may be the first person from your country whom they have met，and they will have very little understanding of your life.Most people are sincerely interested in learning about you.
Many people believe in the“scientific method”of understanding the world，so they look for facts and evidence when you tell them something new.This may seem odd to students whose cultures emphasize feelings or emotions，but people are not rude if they say，“Show me”or“Prove it”.
Loud conversations usually mean people are angry.Most conversations are moderate in volume with few gestures.Do not speak too loudly or too quietly，and keep your hands under control.When you have communication difficulties，you may think it is because of spoken or written language.However，many misunderstandings happen because of nonverbal communication，or body language.
【语篇解读】 本文是说明文。文章介绍跟美国人交谈时应该注意的问题，即美国人的交谈习俗。
43.What would be the best title for the passage?
A.Making Conversations in the US
B.What Is“Small talk”?
C.Make Yourself at Home in the US
D.Understanding American Cultures
解析 主旨大意题。通读全文可知，本文介绍跟美国人交谈时应该注意的问题，也就是美国人的交谈习俗。B项仅是文章的细节;C项偏离了文章的中心;D项概念过大。
答案 A
44.Which of the following would be an open topic of American conversations?
A.What one feels about his new colleague.
B.The war in Iraq.
C.Story of a sports star.
D.One's income.
解析 细节理解题。根据常识可排除D项，美国人的谈话一般不涉及个人隐私的问题，如年龄、婚姻、收入等。从第一段可知，人们闲谈的话题其中包括体育方面的内容，而政治、宗教以及个人感情则不是公开谈论的话题。
答案 C
45.What should you do if Americans say，“Show me”or“Prove it”?
A.Explain to them that your cultures emphasize feelings or emotions.
B.Try to give them as many facts as possible.
C.Tell them you don't understand the“scientific method”.
D.Ignore their questions and change to another topic.
解析 推理判断题。从文章倒数第二段可知，美国人注重事实和证据，因此，你应该给他们提供一些例子以便他们更好地理解你的观点。
答案 B
46.From the last paragraph we can learn that________.
A.most communication difficulties are caused by spoken or written language
B.Americans are usually modest during a conversation
C.Americans use a lot of gestures during an conversation
D.you shouldn't use many gestures when talking to an American
解析 推理判断题。从文章最后一段可知，美国人在谈话中很少使用手势，而且作者还建议你也要控制住自己的手，因此推断，在跟美国人交谈时不要过多地使用手势。
答案 D
