Steve Wayne, 16, who worked this summer as a lifeguard and swim teacher in Idaho Falls, was thrilled to see an extra $ 20 in his paycheck when the federal minimum wage increased in July.
“When you’re getting paid minimum wage, anything helps,” Wayne said.
Wayne is one of several hundred thousand American teenagers who earn the minimum wage. The last of three recent increases took the minimum from $5.15 an hour in 2007 to $7.25.
US Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis says the minimum-wage increase will pump an extra $ 5.5 billion into the economy over the next year, which is helpful at a time when the economy is hurting.
“You’re giving people who spend money a raise,” said Kai Filion of the Economic Policy Institute. “Those people will go out and spend that money, and it will circulate through the economy.”
But other economists say raising the wage actually hurts the very people it’s designed to help. A higher hourly minimum, they say, could force businesses to cut workers’ hours, or even lay people off.
“What matters for people earning minimum wage is how much money they take home in total,” explained Rajeev of Georgia State University’s Economic Forecasting Center. “Their hourly rate may go up, but their number of hours may come down, so it’s not an overall increase.”
Business owners also say that raising the minimum wage exerts (施加) upward pressure on other wages. “If the minimum wage is $ 7 and I have to pay $ 8 or $ 9 to hire a dishwasher, then the cooks are going to say they want more,” said Cleveland restaurant owner Rick. “How much can I charge for that hamburger?”
Another argument is that it makes it more expensive for businesses to hire new workers. For many businesses already struggling to make ends meet in these tough times, it will be simply too expensive to keep them or to hire new people.
51. Steve Wayne was excited that ______.
A. his hard work had paid off
B. he had received a big wage increase
C. he has more money due to an increase in minimum wage
D. the wages of American teenage workers have been increased
52. According to the text, the US federal government has increased minimum wage with the aim of ______.
A. decreasing unemployment B. promoting economic recovery
C. increasing American teenagers’ wage D. narrowing the gap between the rich and the poor
53. What matters most to people in need of help is ______.
A. a higher hourly minimum B. more working hours
C. a minimum-wage increase D. an increase in total income
54. Some are against the increase in minimum wage because they say ______.
A. only very few workers will be helped
B. they have to cut down working hours
C. many business owners can’t afford to employ new workers
D. minimum wage workers will expect more pay rises in the future
Computer programmer David Jones makes 35,000 pounds a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank prepared to let him have a credit card (信用卡). Instead, he has been told to wait another two years, until he is 18.
The 16-year-old boy works for a small firm in Liverpool, where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job. David’s firm puts two new games on the home market each month.
But David’s biggest headache is what to do with his money. In spite of his salary, made by inventing new programs within a quite short period of time, the bonus payments and profit-sharing (奖金和分红), he cannot drive a car, get some money from a bank to buy a house, or get credit cards.
He lives with his parents in their house in Liverpool, where his father is a bus driver. His firm has to pay ￡150 a month in taxi fares to get him the five miles to work and back every day because David cannot drive.
David got his job with the firm a year after leaving school with six 0-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. “I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs,” he said.
“I suppose 35,000 pounds sounds a lot but actually that’s not good enough. I hope it will come to more than that this year.” He spends some of his money on records and clothes, and gives his mother 20 pounds a week. But most of his spare time is spent working.
“Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school,” he said. “But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I know what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway.”
David added, “I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement (退休) is a possibility. You never know when the market might disappear.”
36. Why is David different from other young people of his age?
A. He earns a very high salary.
B. He has not a job.
C. He does not go out much.
D. He lives at home with his parents.
37. David’s greatest problem is ____________.
A. making the banks treat him as a grown-up
B. inventing computer games
C. spending his salary
D. learning to drive
38. He was hired by the firm because ____________.
A. he had worked in a computer shop
B. he had written some computer programs
C. he worked very hard
D. he had learned to use computers at school
39. He left school after taking six 0-levels because ____________.
A. he did not enjoy school
B. he wanted to work with computers and staying at school did not help him
C. he was afraid of getting too old to start computing
D. he wanted to earn a lot of money
40. Why does David think he might retire early?
A. One has to be young to write computer programs.
B. He wants to stop working when he is a millionaire.
C. He thinks computer games might not always sell so well.
D. He thinks his firm might go bad.
Many people go to school for a good education . They learn languages ,history ,maths and other lessons . School education is very important and useful . Yet no one can learn everything from school . No matter how much a teacher knows , he cannot teach his students everything they want to know . His work is to show his students how to learn . He teaches them how to read and how to think . So , much more is to be learned outside school by the students themselves .
It is always more important to know how to study by oneself . It is quite easy to learn something in a language or a formula in maths , but it is difficult to use a formula in finding the answer to a maths problem . Great inventors do not get everything from school but they can invent many things and change the world a lot . Though Thomas Edison invented many things he didn’t have much school education . How do they do all these ? Because they know how to study . A lot of things are not taught in the classroom . They get knowledge from books outside school . They work hard all their lives , and the most important thing is that they know how to use their head .
31. What do many people go to school for ?
A. To make friends B. To get everything
C. To get a good education D. To study by themselves
32. What should a student learn to do from school ?
A. Try to remember more knowledge and formulas .
B. Try to learn how to read and how to think .
C. Try to remember what the teachers teach .
D. Try to invent the world .
33. How can an inventor invent things ? The most important thing is how
to .
A. be a great inventor B. study by himself
C. use his head well D. remember what he’s been taught
34. The word formula in this passage means .
A. 数学题 B. 公式 C. 几何图形 D. 数学用表
35. Which of the following shows the most important idea of this passage ?
A. School education is important for a person .
B. A student can not learn everything from school .
C. A student should learn how to remember a formula .
D. Inventors can invent things and change the world a lot .
E
Many children first learn the value of money by receiving an allowance （pocket money）.The purpose is to let children learn from experiences at an age when financial mistakes are not very costly．
The amount of money that parents give to their children to spend as they wish differs from family to family Timing is another consideration .Some children get a weekly allowance Others get a monthly allowance
In any case，parents should make clear what，if anything，the child is expected to pay for with the money．At first, young children may spend all of their allowance soon after they receive it If they do this they will learn the hard way that spending must be done within a budget．Parents are usually advised not to offer more money until the next allowance．
The object is to show young people that a budget demands a choice between spending and saving Older children may be responsible enough to save money for larger costs，like clothing or electronics．Many people who have written on the subject of allowances say it is not a good idea to pay your child for work around the home .These jobs are a normal part of family life.
Paying children to do extra work around the house，however，can be useful．It can even provide an understanding of how a business works.
Allowances give children a chance to experience the three things they can do with money．They can share it in the form of gifts or giving to a good cause．They can spend it by buying things they want．Or they can save it.
Saving helps children understand that costly goals require sacrifice．You have to cut costs and plan for the future. Requiting children to save part of their allowances can also open the door to future saving and investing. Many banks offer services to help children and teenagers learn about personal finance．
A savings account is an excellent way to learn about the power of compound interest．
Compounding works by paying interest on interest．So，for example，one dollar invested at two percent interest for two years will earn two cents in the first year．The second year，the money will earn two percent of one dollar and two cents，and so on. That may not seem like a lot．But over time it adds up.
71．Giving an allowance，parents should consider all the following EXCEPT________．
A．how much the child should get each time
B．whether the child has made a budget
C．where the money really goes
D．how often a child can get it
72．According to the passage，how can a child learn to have a budget?
A．Through their own experiences．
B．Through parents' instruction．
C．By spending allowance．
D．By receiving allowance．
73．The author of the passage holds the opinion that_________．
A．what children learn by handling allowances may be beneficial in the future
B．children can learn to set up their own business with their allowances.
C．keeping allowances in the bank is the best choice for children
D．it is not a good idea to pay children to do housework at home
74．The underlined words “compound interest” in the passage probably means__________．
A．increasing curiosity to learn how to make more money
B．stronger power to hold one's attention to saving money
C．money paid by the bank on your original money and the gain from it
D．the sum of money that you earn from keeping your money in the bank
75．What is the best title for the passage?
A．Be Generous To Pay Your Children
B．Be Wise To Avoid Financial Mistakes
C．Saving Allowances Does Good To Children
D．Allowances Help Children Learn About Money
D
11-year-old Courtney Thompson was so passionate about gymnastics that she would practice five hours a day until her arms were sore and her elbows swollen．She rarely complained about her tough schedule，and for good reason．Courtney was ranked the best gymnast in the State for her age，and she dreamed of going to the Olympics．But on January 12th，2005，while practicing a routine exercise，she felt an unbearable pain in the left elbow．The medical examination then revealed a severe injury，resulting in an immediate surgery and a slow，painful recovery．
What happened to Courtney Thompson is a red flag in America's growing epidemic of youth sports injuries．Across the country，younger and younger athletes are injuring themselves in the pursuit of sports achievement．The U．S．Consumer Product Safety Commission reports that 2.8 million Americans aged 5 through 24 received medical treatment for a sports-related or recreation-related injury in 2003．Severe injuries that used to be limited to professionals are now showing up in high school and even junior high athletes．
There are many reasons behind the outbreak in sports injuries，hut most experts agree on one：the extreme culture of organized youth sports．Gone are the days when children played a variety of games on playgrounds．Child kidnapping and street crime have ended casual neighborhood athletics in many places，leading parents to enroll their children in organized sports under the watchful， though demanding，eyes of adult volunteers and coaches．And movies like Friday Night Lights glorify the thrill of victory for young athletes with single-minded dedication to athletic achievement.
From high school gyms to county hall fields，41 million children younger than 19 participated in organized youth sports in 2005，according to the latest research by the National Council of Youth Sports. The figure represents a 25 percent increase since 1997．
Parental involvement 1”youth sports has also made childhood games less about having fun and more about training and competing for the top spot．1anding a college scholarship or launching a promising career Hoping to nurture the next Michelle Kwan or Apolo Ohno，some parents guide their children into specializing in one sport But the repetitive training required to master a sport places enormous stresses on hones and muscles that are still developing.
67．The passage is mainly about_________
A．children’s participation in organized sports
B．the main causes of the youth sports injuries
C．the way to train children in organized sports
D．the common occurrence of youth sports injuries
68．The underlined part “Fed flag” in the second paragraph most probably means“_______”．
A．warning B．problem C. symbol D．mark
69．Why is the number of sports injuries among children in America growing?
A．Because of their increasing fondness for sports．
B．Because children are not professional enough fur sports
C．Because more children are seeking for sports achievements．
D．Because of the involvement of the parents and more organized sports
70． We can learn from the passage that __________
A．about 10.25 million youngsters participated in organized sports in 1997
B．parents give limited chances for children to choose their sports
C．serious injuries often happened to young students in the past
D．courtney Thompson will never become a famous gymnast
C
Can you imagine a catfish bigger than a boy? There are more than 1，000 kinds of catfish；28 species are found in the United States' lakes and rivers． This huge family has some mighty strange members. Let's meet a few.
Walking catfish．Nature's feisty little catfish，found in southern Florida，has an extra lung for breathing on dry land. When its swimming hole dries up，the walking catfish waddles on stiff forward fins in search of another lake or stream．If an enemy attacks，the fish flares（展开）its top and front fins and leaps at the attacker to scare it off．
Armored catfish．This catfish has heavy，bony plates protecting its body. The shell makes the fish difficult to bone. To cook it，throw the fish whole into a fire. When it is done，break it open for eating．Some armored catfish are found in Florida，but the 100-pounders live in South America．
Rounding out the family of strange catfish are talking catfish，which make growing sound when you pull them from the water；climbing catfish，which move quickly up shore brush in search of food；electric catfish，which can deliver a mild shock；and blind catfish，which settle in the inky blackness of underwater caves．Blind catfish find food through taste buds in their eight whiskers（须）．
Most catfish have four whiskers on the upper jaw and four on the lower jaw. Sensory holes on these whiskers help the fish smell and taste food even in the muddiest of water．The United States does not have catfish anywhere near the size of those in South America．But in some large U.S，rivers，blue and flathead catties do top 100 pounds．
Most of the catfish you are likely to catch will be much smaller，about frying pan size．When you catch one，remember that the top fins and the forward fins have poison glands（腺）at their bases. They can give you painful wounds （…）
63．The purpose of the passage is to___________．
A．encourage readers to go fishing for catfish
B．inform readers of the world's largest catfish
C．describe the unusual characteristics of catfish
D．explain different ways to catch a variety of catfish
64．The author talks about the way of cooking an armored catfish to show that
A．it has heavy and bony plates B．it's hard to cook and eat
C．it has too many bonesD．it's poisonous inside
65．Which is NOT mentioned about catfish in the passage?
A．Its eating habits． B．Its living conditions．
C．Its whiskers． D．Its size
66．What may be continued in the last paragraph?
A．The author's love for catfish．B．Where else to catch a catfish．
C．The origin of the name “catfish” D．The safest way to handle catfish