Today most Chinese teenagers are happy to be favored by two parents and four grandparents in their families. But have you ever thought about how to take care of four to twelve old people when you grow up and get married? This could be a problem for most Chinese youths as China is entering a new stage of an aging society.
An aging society refers to one where 10 percent or more of its population is over 60. By the end of 2007, Chinese over 60 years old have made up 11.7 percent of the nation’s total population. “China is getting old before becoming rich,”said Cai Chuang, a professor at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. The population increase that has powered Chinese growth for three decades will give way over the next ten years to a rapid aging of the society. This will lead to weaker economic growth, because of a lack of labor resources.
As a result of the family planning policy, it is expected that the country’s total working population will decrease after 2015.
China is not the only country getting old. More that 60 countries have become aging societies and one in three people in the European Union is a senior citizen.
However, experts said that China doesn't have a highly developed social security network to support the old. Social security is an insurance program protecting those in need, including the old, the disabled and others.
小題1:An aging society is a society that _________.       

A．less that 10% of its population is over 60

B．10% or more of its population is over 60

C．there are four old people in a family

D．most of its population is over 60

小題2:If China enters an aging society, __________.     

A．there will not be enough labor resources

B．the family planning policy will be ended

C．everyone needs to take care of four to twelve old people

D．China will have a highly developed social security network

小題3:What does Cai Chuang mean by saying“China is getting old before becoming rich.”?

A．China will be an aging society, then be a developed country.

B．China will be a rich country before being an aging society.

C．An aging society will affect Chinese economy development.

D．China will stop developing because of its aging problem.

小題4:The passage mainly talks about         .

A．a(chǎn)n aging society	B．Chinese social problem
C．family panning policy	D．a(chǎn)ging problem in China

Jack London had endured more hardships by the age of twenty-one than most people experience in a lifetime. His struggles developed in him sympathy for the working class and a lasting dislike of hard work and provided inspiration for his career as a writer.
London grew up in San Francisco in extreme poverty. At an early age, he left school and supported himself through a succession of un skilled jobs ----working as a paper boy, in bowling alleys, on ice wagons, and in canneries（罐頭食品廠） and mills. Despite working long hours at these jobs, London was able to read constantly, borrowing travel and adventure books from the library.
The books London read inspired him to travel, and his job experiences led him to become active in fighting for the fights of workers. He sailed to Japan on a journey aiming at catching seals and joined a cross-country protest march with a group of unemployed workers. After being arrested for vagrancy near Buffalo, New York, London decided to educate himself and reshape his life. He quickly completed high school and entered the University of California.
After only one term, however, the appeal of fortune and adventure proved uncontrollable. London gave up his studies and traveled to the Alaskan Yukon in 1897 in search of gold. Jack London was among the first of these miners. He may have searched for more than gold, however. London once commented, “ True, the new region was mostly poor; but its several hundred thousand square miles of coldness at least gave breathing space to those who else would have choked at home.” Although he was unsuccessful as a miner, London’s experiences in Alaska taught him about the human desire for wealth and power and about humankind’s inability to control the forces of nature. While in Alaska, London also absorbed memories and stories that would make him known one hundred years later.
Once back in California, London became determined to earn a living as a writer. He rented a typewriter and worked up to fifteen hours a day, spinning his Alaskan adventures into short stories and novels.
According to legend, London’s piles of rejection slips from publishers grew to five feet in height!
Even so, London preserved. In 1903, he earned national fame when he published the popular novel The Call of the Wild. He soon became the highest paid and most industrious writer in the country. During his career, he produced more than fifty books and earned more than a million dollars. Several of his novels, including The Call of the Wild(1903),the Sea-Wolf(1904),the White Fang(1906),have become American classics. In fact, he was a creative writer whose fiction explored several regions and their cultures: the Yukon, California, Hawaii, and the Solomon Islands. He experimented with many literary forms, from traditional love stories and dystopias（反面烏托邦小說(shuō)）to science fantasy. His noted journalism included war communication, boxing stories, and the life of Molokai lepers（麻風(fēng)病患者）. He was among the most influential figures of his day, who understood how to create a public persona and use the media to market his self-created image of poor-boy-turned-success. London's great passion was agriculture, and he was well on the way of creating a new model for spreading through his Beauty Ranch when he died of kidney disease at age 40. He left over fifty books of novels, stories, journalism, and essays, many of which have been translated and continue to be read around the world. His best works describe a person’s struggle for survival against the powerful forces of nature. “To Build a Fire”, for example, tells the story of a man’s fight to survive the harsh cold of the Alaskan winter.
小題1:_________made Jack London reconsider his life in the future.

A．His job experience	B．The books he read
C．Being arrested	D．Long-hour work

小題2:What is TRUE about Jack London?

A．Jack London was poor all his life.

B．Jack London got enough money while in the search of gold.

C．The books Jack London read inspired him to travel and become active.

D．The experience of gold searching made Jack London determined to write novels about Alaska adventures.

小題3:After the experience in Alaska, Jack London ________________.

A．realized the nature of human beings.

B．knew people could control the nature finally.

C．regretted being there.

D．thought highly of himself.

小題4:In paragraph 4, the sentence “True, the new region was mostly poor; but its several hundred thousand square miles of coldness at least gave breathing space to those who else would have choked at home.”  implies_______________________________.

A．Jack London regarded Alaska a poor place as he never got any gold there.

B．people would have been ill at home if they had never been Alaska.

C．People searching for gold there still have chance to win.

D．Alaska was a poor but large region.

小題5:Which one of following works doesn’t belong to Jack London according to the passage?

A．love stories

B．poetry

C．journalism

D．essays

小題6:What can we learn from Jack London’s final success?

A．Failure is the mother of success.

B．Practice makes perfect.

C．Knowledge is powerful.

D．All of above.

Maybelle said she wouldn't be coming with me to the library. I asked why, and she said she could get all the short stories she wanted off the Internet. Saved walking all the way to the library, and putting up with my long chat on the way there, and on the way back. Maybelle is very direct like that, always has been.
"But, Maybelle, we've been walking to the library every' Monday for the last fifty years!"
She said," Why don't you get Internet'? We can send each other emails."
So I had to get Internet. I called the local high school. They said they'd send me a good student to tell me all about computers and such.
Evil thing, this Internet. Makes you lose old friends, forces you to learn new complex ideas, even if you're too old. But Maybelle said you have to be modern; otherwise, you're dead.
The kid came the next day. Tall skinny black kid, by tile name of Arsenius, said his work would cost me.
I said, "All right. As long as I get Internet."
"You need a computer, then you need to get hooked up," he said.
"Let's buy a computer and get hooked up, then."
"How much you want to spend?"
"Whatever it takes."
"How many rams you want?"
I wasn't going to show him my ignorance, so I said, "Whatever it takes."
"Let's go to the mall. You got a car?"
"In the garage."
When I opened the garage door, he gasped. Daddy's car is still there, a'57 Chevy. I never drive it. Walk everywhere.
I said," Let's walk. It's only a mile or so."
He said," Let's drive, or you will faint on me in this heat."
"Young man, I don't faint, never have. We're walking."
"I get paid by the hour," he said. "Walking will cost you a lot more. Also, you feel like carrying a computer a mile or so?"
小題1:What kind of person is Maybelle?

A．She always says what she means in an honest way.

B．She no longer likes reading in her old age.

C．She doesn't want to be friends with the writer any mort.

D．She doesn't want to keep up with the time.

小題2:Why does the writer want to have Internet at his place?

A．Because the writer believes that one is never too old to learn.

B．Because the writer thinks that it is better late than never.

C．Because of the pressure from people of his age.

D．Because of the convenience the Internet will bring.

小題3:Arsenius gives _________ reasons for driving to the mall.

A．two

B．three

C．four

D．five

Some 80 percent of graduate students in East China’s Zhejiang Province said in a survey they will give up trying to find jobs in Beijing，Shanghai and Guangzhou，first-tier cities in China that have been considered dream places for many，because of the untouchable home prices and high living costs．
The Yangtse Evening Post conducted the survey among 50 job seekers who were attending Sunday’s job fair in Jiangsu for graduate students．The survey showed graduates are becoming more realistic in their job search despite the job market becoming better．
The fair attracted more than 10，000 graduate students with 7，382 positions．
“The pressure of buying a house in Beijing is unbelievable，”said Wang Jian from Nanjiing Normal University，who acknowledged he had thought about finding a job in Beijing，Shanghai or Guangzhou，but in the face of huge pressures，he has no choice but to be “realistic”．
People can have a very comfortable life in Nanjing with a monthly salary of between 3，000 yuan($450)and 4，000 yuan，but in Shanghai，5，000 yuan a month can only help you survive and buying a house will remain a dream．
A student from Nanjing University of Science and Technology said he just turned down an offer from a Shanghai company of 7,000 yuan a month because“l(fā)iving  costs in Shanghai are too high．”
An unnamed male student from Nanjing University said he will try first-tier cities only if he can get a high salary．“I would go to Beijing only if I can earn 200，000 yuan a year，”he said．
“Beijing，Shanghai and Guangzhou once had the advantages that other cities don’t have，but the high housing prices and living costs make young people barely able to breathe，”said Ren Leiming from the job service center of Jiangsu’s colleges and universities．
“First-tier cities have plenty of talents that make it hard for people to be outstanding，and if you go work in smaller cities you can become a dominant player at your position much more easily，”said Ren．
小題1:The majority of graduate students will give up trying to find jobs in the first-tier cities because       .

A．it is not easy to find jobs there．

B．home prices and living costs there are very high．

C．they can’t make full use of their knowledge and skills there．

D．monthly salaries there are low compared with those in other cities．

小題2:Which of the following statements is TRUE about the job market now?

A．There are more job opportunities offered now．

B．The job markets are becoming more and more competitive．

C．Many graduate students aren’t satisfied with the working conditions．

D．Companies and enterprises have stricter rules to take in graduate students．

小題3:We can learn from the news report that       ．

A．in Shanghai，5，000 yuan a month can only help you buy a luxury house

B．the fair attracted more than 10，000 graduate students and laid-off workers with 7，382 positions

C．The Yangtse Evening Post conducted the survey among 50 personnel managers who were attending Sunday’s joh fair in Jiangsu for graduate students

D．a(chǎn) student from Nanjing University of Science and Technology turned down an offer from a Shanghai company of 7，000 yuan a month

小題4:The words Ren said in the last paragraph mean       .

A．people can’t achieve more in first-tier cities

B．people can easily be outstanding in smaller cities

C．he would rather go to first-tier cities than smaller cities

D．talents are more welcome in first-tier cities than smaller ones

When a rather dirty, poorly dressed person kneels at your feet and puts out his hands to beg for a few coins, do you hurry on, not knowing what to do, or do you feel sad and hurriedly hand over some money? What should our attitude to beggars be? There can be no question that the world is full of terribly sad stories. It must be terrible to have no idea where our next meal is going to come from. It seems cruel not to give some money to beggars.
Certainly, most of the world’s great religions order us to be open-hearted and share what we have with those less fortunate than ourselves. But has the world changed? Maybe what was    morally（道德方面）right in the old days, when one knew exactly who in the village had suffered  misfortune and needed help, is no longer the best idea. Quite a few people will not give to beggars.     Let us look at their arguments.
First, some believe that many city beggars dress up on purpose to look pitiable and actually make a good living from begging. Giving to beggars only encourages this sort of evil（惡行）.                           
Secondly, there is the worry that the money you give will be spent on beer, wine or drugs.
Thirdly, there is the opinion that there is no real excuse for begging. One might be poor, but that is no reason for losing one’s sense of pride and self-dependence.
There is an opinion that the problem should be dealt with by the government rather than ordinary people. Some people think the local government department should help the beggars
It is hard to come to any final conclusion: there are various cases and we must deal with them differently. A few coins can save a life in some situations, and even if the money is wasted, that does not take away the moral goodness of the giver. 
小題1:What is mainly discussed in the passage?

A．Moral deeds of people.

B．Arguments on giving to beggars.

C．Moral goodness of the giver.

D．Religious activities of the church.

小題2:What can we infer from the underlined sentence “But has the world changed?” in Para.2 ?

A．People no longer know who suffers misfortune in the village.

B．Some people will not do what was morally right in the past.

C．We don’t meet with those who need help any more.

D．Now it is the government’s duty to help the beggars.

小題3:Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

A．Some people dress up to pretend to be beggars.

B．Some beggars have no excuse for begging.

C．Some beggars use the money to buy drugs.

D．Some beggars need money for their children’s schooling.

小題4:In the last paragraph, the writer thinks that it is hard to come to any final conclusion, because________.

A．there is so much money wasted

B．there are so many beggars

C．the cases can be so different

D．there are so many different arguments

Most American students have to say goodbye to fancy (高檔的) fruits these days. In school restaurants across the country, cheaper fruits like apples and oranges have taken their place.
“People are afraid to spend now.” said Linda Morrow, who owns a shoe and handbag store. “They don’t know what the future will bring”. During the financial crisis (金融危機(jī)), several of the country’s biggest banks have been forced to sell or close. This has made lots of Americans afraid to buy expensive things.
The crisis began last year. Experts (專家) think it was because US banks lend money too easily. Last year a lot of people and companies, who borrowed money, found themselves unable to pay it back. This left the banks, as well as the people who put their money in the banks, without money. Since the banks borrowed money between themselves and even across borders (國(guó)界), the whole world was in trouble.
This month the US government agreed on a $700 billion plan to try to save the financial market. But no one is sure whether it will help or not. Last week presidents from 20 countries promised to work together to find a way out of the money trouble.
小題1:This passage is probably taken from ___________.

A．a(chǎn) story book

B．a(chǎn) novel

C．a(chǎn) newspaper

D．a(chǎn)n advertisement

小題2:Why are people in the US afraid to spend?

A．Because they think it’s unnecessary

B．Because they don’t have the habit of spending money

C．Because they worry about their future

D．Because they don’t have any money

小題3:From the passage, we still don’t know ________.

A．when the financial crisis began

B．when the financial crisis will end

C．why some of the US banks closed

D．whether the crisis has spread to other countries

小題4:The best title for the passage is ___________.

A．Ways to Save Money

B．Financial Crisis facing the World

C．Banks in the USA

D．The USA Becoming Poor

It is hardly surprising that clothing manufacturers(生產(chǎn)商) follow certain uniform standards for various features(特征) of clothes. What seems strange, however, is that the standard adopted for women is the opposite of the one for men. Take a look at the way your clothes button. Men’s clothes tend to button from the right, and women’s from the left. Considering most of the world’s population—men and women—are right-handed, the men’s standard would appear to make more sense for women. So why do women’s clothes button from the left?
History really seems to matter here. Buttons first appeared only on the clothes of the rich in the 17th century, when rich women were dressed by servants. For the mostly right-handed servants, having women’s shirts button from the left would be easier. On the other hand, having men’s shirts button form the right made sense, too. Most men dressed themselves, and a sword drawn from the left with the right hand would be less likely to get caught in the shirt.
Today women are seldom dressed by servants, but buttoning from the left is still the standard for them. Is it interesting? Actually, a standard, once set, resists change. At a time when all women’s shirts buttoned from the left, it would have been risky for any single manufacturer to offer women’s shirts that buttoned from the right. After all, women had grown so used to shirts which buttoned from the left and would have to develop new habits and skills to switch. Besides, some women might have found it socially awkward to appear in public wearing shirts that buttoned from the right, since anyone who noticed that would believe they were wearing men’s shirts.
小題1:What is surprising about the standard of the clothing industry?

A．It has been followed by the industry for over 400 years.

B．It fails to consider right-handed people.

C．It woks better with men than with women.

D．It is different for men’s clothing and women’s.

小題2:What do we know about the rich men in the 17th century?

A．They tended to wear clothes without buttons.

B．They drew their swords from the left.

C．They were mostly dressed by servants.

D．They were interested in the historical matters.

小題3:Women’s clothes still button from the left today because        .

A．a(chǎn)dopting men’s style is improper for women

B．manufacturers should follow standards

C．customs are hard to change

D．modern women dress themselves

小題4:The passage is mainly developed by          .

A．examining differences	B．making comparisons
C．a(chǎn)nalyzing causes	D．following the time order

As the summer time approaches, more and more commercials and advertisements can be seen on the mass media encouraging students to join English study tours abroad. The purpose of these tours is to provide students with an opportunity to learn English in a native speaking environment and use English in real situations. Parents always believe that their children will automatically speak good English after attending these study tours. However, for me, as an English major and former participant of many English study tours, I find these summer tours ineffective.
Parents who send their children abroad for a summer to study English usually believe that the native speaking environment, including the courses, teachers, and host families, can help their children to learn English better. This might be true if the students really study hard and they really get an all-English environment. But the fact is that, most of the time, the tour part is more important than the study part. Although these tours take place in foreign countries, students are rarely exposed in an all-English environment. You will find that, in the morning classes, Taiwanese students would like to stick together and speak Chinese with each other, even though there are some students from other countries. In the afternoon, the students go on a sightseeing excursion with their companions from Taiwan; they speak Chinese of course. In the evening, when students return to the host families, they would stay in their room and share the day with their roommate, another Taiwanese student. People who speak the same language with you is like a log（原木）in the ocean when living in a foreign country where you can not express yourself well, so that you would naturally stick with them. This is especially true with children.
Another unrealistic expectation parents have for these tours is that the experience of living abroad can make their children more independent and mature. However, maturity does not come overnight. It takes time and practice. The most important of all is that they need a good mentor（顧問）. None of these exist in the study tours.
小題1:Which of the following is the most important thing for children who study in an English environment according to the writer?

A．Host families.

B．Hard work.

C．Courses.

D．Teachers.

小題2:The underlined word “mature” in the last paragraph probably means    .

A．a(chǎn)ctive

B．free

C．outgoing

D．grown-up

小題3:What’s the author’s attitude towards the English study tours abroad?

A．Doubtful.

B．Negative.

C．Positive.

D．Neutral.

Carnival(狂歡節(jié)) does not take place only in Louisiana. There are many celebrations around the world.
In Brazil, the celebration is supposed to go on from the Saturday before Mardi Gras (大齋節(jié)前的最后一天)to Mardi Gras Day, but in some Brazilian cities the celebration can last seven or eight days. Just like New Orleans, not many important things are decided in Brazil from New Year's Day to Mardi Gras Day because everyone is preparing for or celebrating carnival. Most Brazilian parades have a subject, which could be political or historical. The parades had to have a subject related to Brazil until 1996. Some cities in Brazil do not have a street carnival, but they might have an indoor party.
Bolivia has carnival parades for children and then more parades for adults. The children dress up in costumes and march in the streets. The adults make traditional dance groups and dance in the streets. But the main part of Bolivia's carnival is getting wet. Almost everyone gets wet from water balloons and water buckets. In Oruru, Bolivia, their carnival is held in the last ten days of the carnival season. People there join in dancing, but their main carnival event is a ceremonial parade that lasts for twenty hours and parades for four kilometers. Over 20,000 dancers are involved as well as 10,000 musicians. This parade attracts at least 400,000 people.
The carnival in Venice, Italy is often regarded as the most carefully prepared carnival and lasts ten days before Lent (大齋節(jié)). Many events are held in the canals including shows, concerts, dances and water processions(隊(duì)列). The official ending to the celebration is the party held in St. Mark's Square.
小題1:What's the best title for the passage?

A．Ways of Carnival

B．Carnival Parades

C．Carnivals around the World

D．History of Carnival

小題2:From the passage we learn that in Brazil ____.

A．not all cities have a street carnival

B．a(chǎn)ll Brazilian cities celebrate carnival for a week

C．the parades should have a subject related to Brazil politics

D．people prepare for or celebrate carnival after Mardi Gras Day

小題3:The most important feature (特征)of the celebration of carnival in Bolivia is that ____.

A．people join in dancing

B．nearly all people are wet

C．children wearing costumes march in the streets

D．a(chǎn)dult dance groups dance in the streets

小題4:Which of the following shows that the author pays special attention to the carnival in Bolivia?

A．The time of celebrating carnival in Bolivia is mentioned.

B．There are details and numbers about carnival celebrations in Bolivia.

C．People in the carnival celebration in Bolivia are mentioned.

D．Events or performances for carnival celebrations in Bolivia are told.

小題5:Which of the following areas or countries prepares the most carefully for their carnival?

A．Louisiana.

B．Bolivia.

C．Venice.

D．Brazil.

Drunken driving—sometimes called America’s socially accepted form of murder—has become a national epidemic（流行�。�. Every hour of every day about three Americans on average are killed by drunken drivers, adding up to an incredible 250,000 over the past ten years. A drunken driver is usually referred to as one with 0.10-blood alcohol content or roughly three beer glasses of wine or shots of whisky drunk within two hours. Heavy drinking used to be an acceptable part of the American manly image and judges were lenient in most courts, but the drunken killing has recently caused so many well-publicized tragedies, especially concerning young children, that public opinion is no longer so tolerant（忍受）.
Twenty states have raised the legal drinking age to 21, reversing a trend（逆轉(zhuǎn)潮流）in the 1960s to reduce it to 18. After New Jersey lowered it to 18, the number of people killed by 18—20-year-old drivers more than doubled, so the state recently upped it back to 21.
Reformers, however, fear raising the drinking age will have little effect unless accompanied by educational programs to help young people to develop “responsible attitudes” about drinking and teach them to resist peer pressure to drink.
Though new laws have led to increased arrests and tests in many areas already, to a marked drop in accidents, some states are also punishing bars for serving customers too many drinks. A bar in Massachusetts was fined for serving six or more double brandies to a customer who was “obviously drunk” and later drove off the road, killing a nine-year-old boy.
As the accidents continue to occur daily in every state, some Americans are even beginning to speak well of the 13 years national prohibition（禁令）of alcohol that began in 1919, which President Hoover called the “noble experiment”. They forgot that legal prohibition didn’t stop drinking, but encouraged political corruption（腐敗）and organized crime. As with the booming drug trade generally, there is no easy solution.
小題1:What can be inferred from the fact of the traffic accidents in New Jersey?

A．Young drivers were usually bad.

B．The legal drinking age should be raised.

C．Some drivers didn’t surprise the legal drinking age.

D．Drivers should not be allowed to drink.

小題2:The underlined word “l(fā)enient” in the first paragraph means          .

A．merciful

B．cruel

C．serious

D．determined

小題3:As regards drunken driving, public opinion has changed because        .

A．judges are no longer lenient

B．new laws are introduced in some states

C．drivers do not appreciate their manly image

D．the problem has attracted public attention

小題4:Which of the following statements best shows the writer’s opinion of drunken driving?

A．It is difficult to solve this problem.

B．It may lead to organized crime.

C．The new laws can stop heavy drinking

D．There should be no bars to serve drinks.