| Though great progress has been made in science these years, there are still many people in p____ conditions in sole parts of the world. They make their l____ by collecting and selling used things. Their children cannot go to school because they have no e____ money to send their children there. Why do you think so many people still ____ from poverty now? The answer lies____ the population explosion. A president of a____ (发展中) country once said, "It was we who are to ___ for the poverty because we used to produce children without limit." Although these few words____ (听起来) simple enough and strange, they have clearly pointed out one of the____ (原因) of the poverty. It"s a good lesson for us to learn in f____. | 1.______ 2.______ 3.______ 4.______ 5.______ 6.______ 7.______ 8.______ 9.______ 10.______ |
| 1. poor 2. living 3. enough 4. suffer 5. in 6. developing 7. blame 8. sound 9. causes 10. future | |
| 阅读理解。 | |
| More than one in ten UK teenagers has been left without a job or college place, despite 11 years of compulsory education, figures show. The number of 16-t0 18-year-olds branded as "Neet"-not in education, employment or training-has risen amid growing fears that school-leavers are bearing the brunt of job shortages in the recession. Some 261,000 young people had no job or training place, according to official data. The figure rose to 1,082,000 among 16-to 24-year-olds. The Conservatives branded the figure "shocking". David Willetts, the shadow skills secretary, said:"It is a damning indictment of the Government"s failure to help young people during the recession." "Despite all Cordon Brown"s guarantees and pledges, the number of young people neither earning nor learning is increasing at a rate of more than 9,000 a week. Ministers must stop making empty gestures that do so little to help young people." The Government has a target to reduce the proportion of young Neets to 7.6 per cent by next year. The latest annual data from the Department for Children, Schools and Families put the figure at 10.3 per cent by the end of 2008. The percentage of 16-t0 18-year-olds who fall into the same bracket remained higher in the past year than in the previous 12 months, it was revealed. "In a further disclosure, figures for the third quarter of this year show almost a fifth of 16 to 24-year- olds were in the category-more than at any point since 2005. Iain Wright, the Schools Minister, said:"We are giving all l6 and 17-year-olds the opportunity to stay in education or training so they can gain the skills they need to succeed in an increasingly competitive labour market." "We must not repeat the mistakes that were made in recessions of the past and abandon a whole generation of young people. We recognize that we need to carry on helping young people through this tough economic climate." He said the Government would offer every Neet 16 and 17-year-old a place on an "Entry to Employment" course in January. | |
| 1. According to what David Willetts said, the number of young people neither earning or learning will increase ____ in a year. | |
| A. 261,000 B. 1,082,000 C. 9,000 D. 432,000 | |
| 2. The author develops the passage mainly by ____. | |
| A. providing typical examples B. telling an interesting story C. comparing opinions from different fields D. presenting a problem and possible solutions | |
| 3. What David Willetts said indicates that ____. | |
| A. the government has tried its best to solve the problem B. the problem is unavoidable during the recession C. what the government has done is far from satisfactory D. he is sure the government can solve the problem | |
| 4. Which of the following is NOT true according to Iain Wright? | |
| A. The government has realized how serious the problem is and will take effective measures. B. Young people are facing a tough economic climate. C. The government responded too late in face of the situation. D. It will be difficult for young people to be employed if they don"t have relevant skills. | |
| 阅读理解。 | |
| A group of students in Japan have created an eerily (怪异的) realistic robot baby to motivate young people to start planning a family and boost the country"s birth rate. The automated doll developed at the University of Tsukuba, called Yotara, giggles (咯咯地笑) and "wakes up" when a rattle is shaken. He can become angry and doze off like a real baby and smiles when his stomach is rubbed. The robot can also sneeze and have a runny nose, thanks to a heated water pump system. The students of the Graduate School of Comprehensive Human Sciences created the robot with touch sensors. A projector beams ( 照射) the facial features onto a warm silicon balloon which makes up Yotara"s face. The robot"s facial expressions and body movements change according to pressure applied to different parts of its body. The information collected through touch sensors under the silicon skin is processed by a special programme. It then changes the baby"s expression projected onto the balloon-face from behind. Its head with a bonnet (童 帽), a colourful blanket covers the robot"s limbs which stimulate wiggling with the help of a geared motor. "We wanted to create a new type of robot that is soft, cuddly and cute," said project leader Hiroki Kunimura. "We"d like people to experience the innocent, joyful expressions typical of small babies. Through this experience, it would be great if some people started feeling that they wanted to have their own baby, if they started feeling that working is not everything." Japan"s birth rate is among the lowest in the developed world at 1.37%, compared to 2.12% in the United States and l.84% in Britain. According to a ministry of labor and welfare report, Japan is facing, serious economic consequences with over a quarter of its citizens expected to be aged over 65 by 2015. The population is expected to shrink by a third within 50 years if the birth rate does not increase. | |
| 1. What is the purpose of creating such a robot baby in Japan according to the text? | |
| A. To help old people who live alone. B. To give small children a great deal of pleasure. C. To comfort the young people who are lonely. D. To increase Japan"s birth rate. | |
| 2. It can be inferred from the text that ____. | |
| A. the robot baby"s head is covered with a bonnet and a colourful blanket B. people would like to experience the innocent, joyful expressions typical of small babies C. some people think working is everything in Japan D. Japan"s birth rate is the lowest in the world | |
| 3. What is Japan"s problem according to the author? | |
| A. Most young people don"t want to have a family. B. Japan will lack workforce by 2015. C. The lifetime of Japanese will decrease in future. D. Japan"s birth rate is increasing at present. | |
| 阅读理解。 | |
| Even with hit shows such as "Desperate Housewives" and "Grey"s Anatomy", ABC is tightening its belt as it weathers the U.S. economic downturn and tries to remain relevant in an industry challenged by digital entertainment. "We are in one of the worst economies in 70 years. We are looking at everything we can possibly do to be more efficient and more effective," ABC Entertainment president Steve McPherson told reporters on Friday. "We have to look at everything across the board from cost cutting to (using) other platforms for smart ways to broker (协调) our efforts. It is an ongoing process. It is not a one time thing." McPherson, attending the networks" semi-annual presentation to critics, said last year"s five month strike by Hollywood screenwriters had "really hurt everybody" in the traditional television industry, and he acknowledged the networks had lost viewers to other forms of entertainment. "The world has changed under these businesses and we need to be incredibly diligent and confident in what we do, otherwise we will be left by the wayside." he said. "Tomorrow is here, now, and we really need to figure it out now and move forward." ABC, a unit of Walt Disney Co., has lost about 9.7 percent of its prime time audience in the 2008-9 season compared with the same stage last year. With the exception of current ratings leader CBS, the other two major U. S, networks Fox and NBC have also lost similar percentages since the 2008-9 season started last September. McPherson said he hoped ABC would continue to "take chances" on shows such as "Lost" and "Dancing with the Stars" that were seen as daring when they were shown for the first time. But recent new entries, such as "Pushing Daisies," "Eli Stone" and "Dirty Sexy Money," failed to resonate with viewers and were canceled. Despite the growing trend of watching television on iPods, on the Internet and on mobile phones, McPherson said ABC"s main focus remained on broadcast. "We are still a broadcast network and that is where our profits come from. The other platforms are important. But people ask if we would do a show that would be successful on the Internet as opposed to on broadcast and those are always secondary thoughts," he added. | |
| 1. The main idea of the passage is about _____. | |
| A. the strike of Hollywood screenwriters B. the decline of ABC"s prime time audience C. ABC"s main focus on broadcast D. ABC"s feeling economic, digital pressure | |
| 2. The 3rd paragraph suggests to us that _____. | |
| A. the economic situation is so serious that it will last long B. cutting cost is the best way to recover from economic downturn C. using other smart way can develop the ongoing process D. sparing no effort can complete the ongoing process | |
| 3. We can infer that the last economic great depression happened _____. | |
| A. in 1970 B. in 1970s C. in 1939 D. in the 2008-9 season | |
| 4. McPherson"s attitude towards ABC"s future is full of _____. | |
| A. doubt B. hope C. worry D. confidence | |
| 阅读理解。 | |
| Employment practices often reflect the needs of employers several decades ago. Times have changed. And so too has the Canadian workforce. Yet many employment practices have not kept pace with this change. For example, some work environments and washrooms designed for able-bodied workers seldom accommodate people who use a wheelchair. Modernizing these practices is what employment equality is about. For example, making sure work benches and washrooms are adapted for disabled people entering the workplace, paving the way for workers who become disabled on the job. By doing so, any given group of people formerly discriminated against-now has access to better employment opportunities. The objective, of course, is to make the workplace reflect Canadian society. However, this does not necessarily mean setting and enforcing quotas (配额). Rather, it means identifying the barriers to employment and designing measures, with achievable goals and clear timetables, to remove them. For example, according to the Canadian Union of Public Employees-Canada"s largest union, it would be unrealistic in the short term to insist that because half of the working age population is women, half of the employees of an engineering firm should be women. At this moment, there would not be enough qualified female engineers. A reasonable numerical goal would be based on the number of women who actually are engineers (8%) and those who are studying to become engineers (25% ). A short term goal of 13% would be appropriate without running the risk of hiring unqualified people. Equally important is to ensure people who have been disadvantaged the chance to become qualified for new opportunities. If aboriginal people (土著居民), for example, can"t qualify for certain jobs because they haven"t had access to appropriate educational opportunities, then an employment equality program would have to address that problem with training programs. Employment laws in this country cannot be considered displeasing if they guarantee all Canadians fair and equal access to the workforce. | |
| 1. The passage is mainly about how to _____. | |
| A. modernize equipment for the disabled at work B. achieve equality of employment opportunities C. protect women"s rights in employment D. complete a job training program | |
| 2. The underlined word "them" in Paragraph 3 refers to _____. | |
| A. barriers B. measures C. goals D. timetables | |
| 3. The example of women shows that _____. | |
| A. only a small percentage of women engineers will get promoted B. 13% of the working age women should be hired as engineers C. policy makers should adopt a practical and flexible approach D. the quota of women for employment should be raised | |
| 4. The underlined word "address" in Paragraph 6 probably means _____. | |
| A. put forward B. run into C. find out D. deal with | |
| 阅读理解。 | |
| Not so long ago almost any student who successfully completed a university degree could find a good career quite easily. Companies. toured the academic institutions, competing with each other to select graduates. However, those days are gone, even in Hong Kong, and nowadays graduates often face strong competition in the search for jobs. Most careers organizations highlight three stages for graduates to follow in the process of securing a suitable career: recognizing abilities, matching these to available jobs and presenting them well to possible employers. Job seekers have to make a careful assessment of their own. abilities. One area of assessment should be of their academic qualifications, which would include special skills within their subject area. Graduates should also consider their own personal values and attitudes. An honest assessment of personal interest and abilities such as creative skills, or skills acquired from work experience, should also be given careful thought. The second stage is to study the "opportunities available for employment and to think about how the general employment situation is likely to develop in the future. To do this, graduates can study job and position information in newspapers, or they can visit a careers office, write to possible employers for information or contact friends or relatives who may already be involved in a particular profession. After studying all the various options, they should be in a position to make informed comparisons between various careers. Good personal presentation is essential in the search for a good career. Job application forms and letters should, of course, be filled in carefully and correctly, without grammar or spelling errors. Where additional information is asked for, job seekers should describe their abilities and work experience in more depth, with examples if possible. They should try to balance their own abilities with the employer"s needs, explain why they are interested in a career with the particular company and try to show that they already know something about the company and its activities. When graduates go to an interview, they should prepare properly by finding out all they can about the possible employer. Dressing suitably and arriving for the interview on time are also important. Interviewees should try to give positive and helpful answers and should not be afraid to ask questions about anything they are unsure about. This is much better than pretending to understand a question and giving an unsuitable answer. | |
| 1. "Those days are gone, even in Hong Kong" in Paragraph I suggests that _____. | |
| A. finding a good career used to be easier in Hong Kong than elsewhere B. now everyone in Hong Kong has an equal chance of finding a good job C. graduates now face stronger competition in Hong Kong than elsewhere D. even in Hong Kong companies tour universities trying to select graduates | |
| 2. It is implied in Paragraph 3 that graduates should _____. | |
| A. aim to give a balanced account of what the employer needs B. consider careers which suit their values, interests and abilities C. stress their personal attitudes and values in job applications D. recognize their own abilities regardless of what the employer looks for | |
| 3. According to Paragraph 4, graduates should _____. | |
| A. find a good position and then compare it with other careers B. ask friends or relatives to secure them a good job C. get information about a number of careers before making comparisons D. study the opportunities and the kinds of training that will be available | |
| 4. In the last paragraph, the writer seems to suggest that _____. | |
| A. interviewees should appear humble if they can"t give an answer B. dressing properly is more important than being able to give an answer C. it is better for interviewees to be honest than to. pretend to understand D. it is a good idea for interviewees to be boastful in their answers |