WASHINGTON, March 14 (Xinhua) —U.S. President Barack Obama confirmed on Saturday at the White House that China can have confidence in the American economy.
“Not just the Chinese government, but every investor can have absolute confidence in the soundness of investments in the United States,” Obama said.
“There is a reason why even in the midst of this economic downfall you have seen actual increases in investment flows here in the U. S.,”he said.
Obama also noted the U. S. will push for stricter regulation of the financial industry “front and center” at the upcoming Group of 20 Summit (峰会) in London ,ending an argument between the Europe and the United States over whether more focus should be placed on financial regulatory reform.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said earlier Friady he is “a little bit worried ”about the safety of Chinese assets (财产) in the United States ,urging the U. S. government to ensure the security of those assets.
China has invested its huge foreign exchangereserves (外汇储备) in low-risk but low-yield assets ,such as U. S.government bonds (政府债券) ,to play it safe . According to the U.S. Treasury, China held 681.9 billion U.S. dollars worth of U.S. government bonds as of November.
“China is indeed the largest creditor of the United States, which is the world’ s biggest economy .We are extremely interested in developments in the U. S. economy.”said Wen, adding that he is expecting the effect of the measures taken by the U.S.government to counter the global financial crisis.
Asked to react to Wen’ s concern, Lawrence Summers, director of the U.S. National Economic Council, noted on Friday that the U.S. will be sound steward (管家)of the money it invests.
“This is a commitment that the president has made very clear—we need to be sound stewards of the money we invest.”said Summers in a speech at the Brookings Institution, a leading think tank in the united states.Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A.Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao expressed his worry about the huge fund to the United States. |
| B.Obama claimed that China can have confidence in the American economy. |
| C.Obama said that the U. S. would be “sound stewards of the money we invest.” |
| D.The U. S. will push for stricter regulation of the financial industry. |
It can most likely be inferred from the passage that .
| A.the U. S. is now having great difficulty improving the economy. |
| B.China will have confidence in Obama forever according to Wen’s speech |
| C.China held 681.9 billion U.S. dollars worth of U.S.government bonds as of November |
| D.China will do its best to help the U.S. overcome the global financial crisis. |
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said earlier Friday he is “a little bit worried”, because .
| A.he doesn’t have confidence in America’ s economy at all |
| B.China lent a huge fund to the United States |
| C.he is concerned about the security of China’s assets in the U. S. |
| D.the U.S. refused to ensure the security of China’s assets |
The underlined word “soundness” in the second paragraph can be replaced by “ ”
| A.loudness | B.safety | C.richness | D.friendship |
Maybe you know some well-known buildings, such as the Great Wall, the Great Hall of the People, the Leaning Tower of Pisa. But do you know the Royal Academy of Arts (皇家艺术学院)?
Lying in the heart of London, the Royal Academy of Arts is an independent fine arts institution (机构) which supports modem artists and promotes interest in the arts through all kinds of exhibition programs. The Academy is completely independent. It is a self-funded (自筹资金的), organization which is governed by the Royal Academicians—eminent practicing, painters, printmakers, sculptors and architects who are elected to the position. The Academy has a long history and was founded in 1768 with Sir Joshua Reynolds as its first President. The Academy lies in Burlington House which itself has a long colorful history with parts of the original structure dating back to1664. Today, the Academy attracts over one million visitors each year, making it one of London’s top 10 attractions for paying visitors.
Air: London’s City Airport. Gatwick Airport, Heathrow Airport, Luton Airport and Stansted Airport.
Rail: Underground: Piccadilly and Green Park or a short walk from Oxford Circus and Bond Street.
Road: Bus: Public services.
Contact Addresses:
Royal Academy of Arts, Burlington House, Piccadilly, London WIJ OBD
Telephone: 020 7300 8000
Website: www.royalacademy.org.ukWhich of the following is TRUE about the Academy of Art?
| A.It dates back to 1664. |
| B.You can’t get there by underground. |
| C.It is one of London’s top 10 attractions. |
| D.It is much older than Burlington House. |
You can contact the Academy of Arts by all the following EXCEPT________________.
| A. writing a letter | B.sending an e-mail |
| C.visiting the website | D.making a call |
The main purpose of this passage is to_______________________.
| A.attract more visitors to the Royal Academy of Arts |
| B.introduce the well-known building of England |
| C.show the long history of England |
| D.introduce the arts of England |
Young people can have problems with their minds. Some students become worried because they have to study very hard. Others have trouble getting on well with people like their parents and classmates.
Liu Wei, a Junior 2 student from Hefei, could not understand his teacher and was doing badly in his lessons. He became so worried about it that he started to cut his finger with a knife. Another student, 14-year-old Yan Fang from Guangzhou, was afraid of exams. She got very worried in the test, and when she looked at the exam papers, she couldn’t think of anything to write.
A recent report from Jiefang Daily says about 18% of Shanghai teenagers have mental problems. Their troubles include being worried and very unhappy, and having problems in learning and getting on well with people. Many students who have problems won’t go for advice or help. Some think they will look stupid if they go to see a doctor. Others don’t want to talk about their secret.
Liang Yuezhu, an expert on teenagers from Beijing Anding Hospital has the following advice for teenagers.
1). Talk to your parents or teachers often.
2). Take part in group activities and play sports.
3). Go to see a doctor if you feel unhappy or unwell.The students who often become worried or have trouble getting on well with others may have___________.
| A.a headache | B.mental problems |
| C.knives with them | D.no parents |
Liu Wei cut his finger with a knife because____________.
| A.he was afraid of his teacher | B.he wanted to frighten his parents |
| C.his finger was badly hurt | D.he was so worried about his study |
Yan Fang’s problems happened whenever ______________.
| A.she studied very hard | B.she talked with her parents |
| C.she had exams | D.she thought of something |
Students who have problems won’t ask others for help because _____________.
| A.they won’t let others think they are stupid |
| B.they don’t think doctors can help them |
| C.they don’t want to tell their secret to others |
| D.both A and C |
Liang Yuezhu’s advice tells us that_________________.
| A.it’s unnecessary for them to be with others |
| B.it’s better for the students who have mental problems to join others |
| C.only group activities and sports can help them |
| D.teachers and parents can’t do anything about mental problems |
Dolphins and sharks are showing up in surprisingly shallow water just off the Florida coast. Mullets, crabs, rays and small fish gather by the thousands off an Alabama pirer. Birds covered in oil are crawling deep into marshes(沼泽), never to be seen again.
Marine scientists studying the effects of the BP disaster(英国石油公司漏油事件)are seeing some strange phenomena. Fish and other wildlife seem to be fleeing the oil out in the Gulf and clustering in cleaner waters along the coast in a trend that some researchers see as a potentially troubling sign. The animals’ presence close to shore means their usual habitat is badly polluted, and the crowding could result in mass die-offs as fish run out of oxygen. Also, the animals could easily be captured by their enemies.
The nearly two-month-old spill(漏油)has created an environmental disaster in US history as tens of millions of gallons have flown into the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. Scientists are seeing some unusual things as they try to understand the effects on thousands of species of marine life.
For nearly four hours Monday, a three-person crew with Greenpeace cruised past delicate islands and mangrove-dotted inlets in Barataria Bay off southern Louisiana. They saw dolphins by the dozen frolicking(嬉戏)in the oily sheen(光泽)and oil-tinged pelicans feeding their young. But they spotted no dead animals.
"I think part of the reason why we’re not seeing more yet is that the impacts of this crisis are really just beginning," Greenpeace marine biologist John Hocevar said.
The counting of dead wildlife in the Gulf is more than an academic exercise; the deaths will help determine how much BP pays in damages.What do the marine life react to the BP disaster?
| A.Birds crawl deep into caves. |
| B.Dolphins and sharks show up in deep water. |
| C.Tens of thousands of marine animals are found dead. |
| D.Sea creatures flee from oil spill, gathering near seashore. |
The environmental disaster was caused by .
| A.the damage of the Mexico Gulf ecosystem |
| B.the lack of environmental sense of BP |
| C.the nearly two-month-old oil spill |
| D.the crowding marine life |
What is John Hocevar’s attitude towards the disaster?
| A.Worried. | B.Disappointed. | C.Depressed. | D.Neutral. |
From the passage, we can infer that .
| A.BP will pay much money according to the number of dead wildlife there |
| B.marine scientists have seen some strange phenomena |
| C.the disaster has little influence on dolphins |
| D.a three-person crew reached no conclusion |
The test is most probably a ______.
| A.newspaper ad | B.book review |
| C.science news report | D.science fiction story |
There are many older people in the world and there will be many more. A little-known fact is that over 60 percent of the older people live in developing countries. According to the World Health Organization, by 2020 there will be 1 billion, with over 700 million living in developing countries.
It is a surprising fact that the population aging is particularly rapid in developing countries. For example, it took France 115 years for the rate of older people to double from 7 percent to 14 percent. It is estimated to take China a mere 27 years to achieve this same increase.
What are the implications of these increased numbers of older folk? One of the biggest worries for governments is that the longer people live, the more likelihood there is for diseases and for disability. Attention is being paid to the need to keep people as healthy as possible, including during old age, to lessen the financial burden on the state.
Another significant problem is the need for the younger generations to understand and value the older people in their society. In some African countries, certainly in Asia, older people are respected and regarded as the ones with special knowledge. Yet traditions are fading away daily, which does not make sure the continued high regard of older people. As society changes, attitudes will change.
Much needs to be done to get rid of age discrimination in employment. Life-long learning programs need to be provided to enable older people to be active members in a country’s development.
Social security policies need to be established to provide adequate income protection for older people. Both public and private schemes are vital in order to build a suitable safety net.The rate of older people________.
A. is bigger in developed countries than in developing countries
B. B. is one-seventh of the population in developing countries
C. C. will increase much faster in China than in France
D. D. will be sixty percent in developing countries by 2020
2.According topassage,whichofthefollowingaregovernmentsmostworried
About______.
A.Thediseasesanddisabilityofolderpeople.
B.Thelongerlifeandgoodhealthofpeople.
C.Thelossoftaxesonolderpeople.
D.Theincreasingrespectforolderpeople. It is stated directly in the passage that older people should ________.
| A.be treated differently in different cultures |
| B.enjoy a similar lifestyle |
| C.be ignored as society changes |
| D.be valued by the younger generations |
Which of the following measure is NOT mentioned to solve the population aging problem?
| A.Getting rid of age discrimination in employment. |
| B.Supplying life-long learning programs to older people. |
| C.Making sure adequate income protection for older people. |
| D.Providing free health care for sick older people. |
The author concludes in the last paragraph that ________.
| A.governments have spent lots of time in solving the aging problem |
| B.population aging is a hard problem, but it needs to be solved urgently |
| C.people are too busy to solve the population aging problem |
| D.much time and effort will be lost in solving the aging problem |
Engineering students are supposed to be examples of practicality and rationality (理性), but when it comes to my college education I am an idealist and a fool. In high school I wanted to be an electrical engineer and, of course, any reasonable student with my aims would have chosen a college with a large engineering department, many famous professors and lots of good labs and research equipment. But that’s not what I did.
I chose to study engineering at a small liberal-arts (文科) university that doesn’t even offer a major in electrical engineering. Obviously, this was not a practical choice; I came here for more noble reasons. I wanted a broad education that would provide me with flexibility and a value system to guide me in my job. I wanted to open my eyes and expand my vision by communicating with people who weren’t studying science or engineering. My parents, teachers and other adults praised me for such a wise choice. They told me I was wise and grown-up beyond my 18 years, and I believed them.
I headed off to the college and sure I was going to have an advantage over those students who went to big engineering "factories" where they didn’t care if you had values or were flexible. I was going to be a complete engineer: technical expert and excellent humanist all in one.
Now I’m not so sure. Somewhere along the way my noble ideas crashed into reality, as all noble ideas finally do. After three years of struggling to balance math, physics and engineering courses with liberal-arts courses, I have learned there are reasons why few engineering students try to reconcile engineering with liberal-arts courses in college.
The reality that has blocked my path to become the typical successful student is that engineering and the liberal arts simply don’t mix as easily as I supposed in high school. Individually they shape a person in very different ways. The struggle to reconcile the two fields of study is difficult. Why did the author choose to study engineering at a small liberal-arts university?
| A.He intended to become an engineer and humanist. |
| B.He intended to be a reasonable student with noble ideals. |
| C.He wanted to be an example of practicality and rationality. |
| D.He wanted to communicate with liberal-arts students. |
According to the author, by communicating with people who study liberal arts, engineering students can ___________.
| A.become noble idealists |
| B.broaden their knowledge |
| C.find a better job in the future |
| D.balance engineering and liberal arts |
Which word below can replace the underlined word “reconcile”?
| A.confuse | B.compare | C.combine | D.compete |
The underlined sentence in 1st paragraph means ___________.
| A.he has failed to achieve his ideal aims |
| B.he is not a practical and rational student |
| C.his choice of attending to a small liberal-arts university is reasonable |
| D.his idea of combining engineering with liberal - arts is noble and wise |
The author suggests in this passage that ___________.
| A.liberal-arts students are supported to take engineering courses |
| B.technical experts with a wide vision are expected in the society |
| C.successful engineering students are more welcomed in the society |
| D.engineering universities with liberal-arts courses are needed |