17．It is most difficult for parents to decide whether to have a sencond child or not．
It is often heard that a single child is like to be a lonely child．There are no other children in the family for the child to talk or play with．An only child is not able to get along well with children of his age．Some parents regretted making the decisions to have only one child．
But the number of parents choosing to have only one child is increasing in many parts of the world．In the US，for example，more than 14 percent of women between 18 and 34 plan to have just one child．The same can be seen in the UK．In Japan the average number of children born per family had gone down to 1.42 by 1996．
For some single-child parents，especially who are busy working every day，time and energy seem to be overwhelming．They don't have enough time and energy to share with more children．For other people，money is their first consideration．Many couples in Japan choose not to have large families as the cost of supporting a child up to the age of 18 reaches around US﹩160，000．
66．According to the passage，why is a single child likely to be lonely？C
A．Because his parents don't love him
B．Because he doesn't have holidays
C．Because he doesn't have a brother or a sister to talk or play with．
D．Because there are other children in the family
67．What do people not think about when they choose to have a second child？D．
A．time
B．energy
C．money
D．food
68．What does the underlined word"overwhelming"mean in the last paragraph？A
A．壓倒一切的
B．寬松的
C．流行的
D．充足的
69．Which of the following is true according to the passage？A
A．It is not easy to make a decision to have a second child．
B．Many couples in Japan love to have large families．
C．All parents feel confident（自信的）about having a second child
D．Less than 14% of women in the UK plan to have just one child．
70．Parents choose not to have a second child becauseD．
A．The cost of supporting a child is so high．
B．Parents are too busy working every day to share their time and energy with more children．
C．Some parents regretted making the decisions to have only one child．
D．Both A and B．
分析 該短文講述了當前家庭是否決定生育二胎的情況；常常聽說，一個獨生子女就像是一個孤獨的孩子；他們往往和他的同齡人不能相處好；有些父母后悔當初決定只有一個孩子．但由于教育費用的增加等等因素，選擇獨生子女的家庭越來越多，如美國、英國、日本等．獨生子女的家庭有很多弊端，如沒有足夠的時間與精力與子女分享等等．
解答 66．答案：C；細節(jié)理解題；根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容，It is often heard that a single child is like to be a lonely child．There are no other children in the family for the child to talk or play with．可知，很對孩子沒有兄弟姐妹，所以感到孤獨；故選C；
67．答案：D；細節(jié)理解題；根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容，They don't have enough time and energy to share with more children、money is their first consideration；可知，在二胎問題上，父母考慮的沒有"food"問題，故選D；
68．答案：A；詞義猜測題；根據(jù)所猜詞的上一句who are busy working every day可以推測，時間和精力應(yīng)該是"壓倒一切的因素"；故選A．
69．答案：A；細節(jié)理解題；根據(jù)短文內(nèi)容It is most difficult for parents to decide whether to have a sencond child or not．可知：決定是否要第二個孩子是不容易的；故選A；
70．答案：D；細節(jié)理解題；根據(jù)文章內(nèi)容，They don't have enough time and energy to share with more children和For other people，money is their first consideration．可知，父母不選擇生二胎的原因是：費用高和時間少；故選D．
點評 速讀全文，抓住中心主旨，在速讀的過程中，應(yīng)盡可能多地捕獲信息材料；然后，細讀題材各個題目擊破．
