Having long been underrated(低估) and ignored, the penny is one of America's most enduring failures. But a recent proposal to ban the penny by some US congress members seeks to put the coin to sleep — permanently.

Representative Jim Kolbe from Arizona is the man who proposed the bill to stamp out penny. He says the coin has outlived its usefulness. With metal prices soaring, Kolbe says it costs 1.23 cents to produce a penny. Producing the coins will amount to a $20 million waste each year.

It is not simply about the cost of production. Centuries of inflation have made the penny—first put into circulation in 1787—close to worthless.

Many Americans don’t even view pennies as currency any more. They take them only reluctantly in change and then put them in jars or desk drawers at home. An estimated $10.5 billion in pennies, or $93.75 per household, sits idle in piggy banks and behind sofas.

Anti-penny advocates argue that 1-cent coins cost US companies more than $300 million a year in lost productivity. This comes mostly from the time and effort spent counting and putting pennies into paper rolls for bank deposits.

Jim Kolbe suggests that all cash transactions be rounded to the nearest nickel. For example, items that cost 11 or 12 cents would be rounded down to 10, 13- and 14-cent items would be rounded up to 15. People paying by credit or bank card, however, would likely continue to pay exact amounts.

But plenty of Americans oppose the ban. Some say eliminating the penny would cause significant hardship to a wide range of people.

US economist Raymond Lombra says that moving to the 5-cent nickel would cost consumers $ 3 billion over five years. The poor suffer more since they tend to buy with cash instead of credit cards.

Penny supporters point out that the penny is the only coin carrying the image of America’s much respected president Abraham Lincoln. Some major charities are also alarmed by talk of a penny ban. They often base fund-raising campaigns on donations of pennies and other coins. One such campaign is called “Pennies for Patients”. They have raised more than $68 million through coin collections since 1994.

A recent US Today poll found that 55 percent of adults want to keep the penny. They may not value pennies as currency like before, but they remain attached to them as an old, familiar friend.

“The penny has been a necessary part of the American experience---whose childhood would be complete without penny candy and other small purchases?” read a post supporting the penny on a forum.

It shapes US superstitions. “Find a penny, pick it up, and all day you will have good luck.” “A penny saved is a penny earned.” And little girls are sometimes called “as pretty as a penny”.

Title: Ban    1   Or Not?

   2  :

They have long been underrated and ignored.

Reasons for the ban:

● The coin has outlived its usefulness.

●    3   to produce coins are rising fast.

● Centuries of inflation have made the penny close to worthless.

● Large amount of    4   is wasted counting and putting pennies into paper rolls for

bank deposits.

   5  :

● All cash transactions are rounded to    6  .

● People paying by credit or bank card would continue to pay exact amounts.

Reasons against the ban:   

● Eliminating the penny would cause significant hardship to a wide range of people.

● Rounding to the 5-cent nickel would cost consumers $3 billion over five years.

● The penny is the only coin carrying the image of America’s much respected president___7  .

●    8   base fund-raising campaigns on donations of pennies and other coins.

● 55 percent of adults regard it as a necessary part of    9  .

● The penny shapes    10  .

At Christmas people _________ us to help the poor.

   A. appeal to       B. aim at          C. get into        D. decide on

 At Christmas people _________ us to help the poor.

   A. appeal to       B. aim at          C. get into        D. decide on

   I travel a lot, and I find out different “styles”(風(fēng)格) of directions every time I ask “How can I get to the post office?”

   Foreign tourists are often confused(困惑) in Japan because most streets there don’t have names; in Japan, people us landmarks(地標(biāo)) in their directions instead of street names. For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner. Turn left at the big hotel and go past a fruit marker. The post office is across from the bus stop.”

   In the countryside of the American Midwest, there are not usually many landmarks. There are not mountains, so the land is very flat; in many places there are no towns or buildings within miles. Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distances. In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles. Turn east, and then go another mile.”

   People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map; they measure distance in time, not miles. “How far away is the post office?” you ask. “Oh,” they answer, “it’s about five minutes from here.” You say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know.

   It’s true that a person doesn’t know the answer to your question sometimes. What happens in such a situations? A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea.” But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers “I don’t know.” People in Yucatan believe that “I don’t know” is impolite. They usually give an answer, often a wrong one. A tourist can get very, very lost in Yucatan!

1. When a tourist asks the Japanese the way to a certain place, they usually         .

   A. describe the place carefully

   B. show him a map of the place

   C. tell him the names of the streets

   D. refer to recognizable buildings and places

2. What is the place where people measure distance in time?

   A. New York    B. Los Angeles              C. Kansas       D. Iowa

3. People in Yucatan may give a tourist a wrong answer            .

   A. in order to save time    B. as a test      C. so as to be polite       D. for fun

4. What can we infer from the text?

   A. It’s important for travelers to understand cultural differences.

   B. It’s useful for travelers to know to ask the way properly.

   C. People have similar understandings of politeness.

   D. New Yorkers are generally friendly to visitors.

________ so many people ________ us, we finished our work ahead of time．

1. A.
   With; helping
2. B.
   When; helping
3. C.
   With; helped
4. D.
   Because; help