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
Death is natural, but do you have any idea of the process of dying? Modern scientists divide the process of dying into two phases --- clinical or temporary death and biological death. Clinical death occurs when the vital organs, such as the heart or lungs, have ceased to function, but have not suffered permanent damage. The organism can still be revived(复活). Biological death occurs when changes in the organism lead to the “breaking up” of vital cells and tissues. Death is then unchangeable and final.
Scientists have been seeking a way to prolong the period of clinical death so that the organism can remain alive before biological death occurs. The best method developed so far involves cooling of the organism, combined with narcotic sleep. By slowing down the body’s metabolism(新陈代谢), cooling delays the processes leading to biological death.
To illustrate how this works, scientists performed an experiment on a six-year-old female monkey called Keta. The scientist put Keta to sleep with a narcotic. Then they surrounded her body with ice-bags and began checking her body temperature. When it had dropped to 28 degrees the scientists began draining blood from an artery. The monkey’s blood pressure decreased and an hour later both the heart and breathing stopped: clinical death set in. For twenty minutes Keta remained in this state. Her temperature dropped to 22 degrees. At this point the scientists pumped blood into an artery in the direction of the heart and started artificial breathing. After two minutes Keta’s heart became active once more. After fifteen minutes, spontaneous(自发的)breathing began, and after four hours Keta opened her eyes and lifted her head. After six hours, when the scientists tried to give her a penicillin injection, Keta seized the syringe and ran with it around the room. Her behavior differed little from that of a healthy animal.For a person who suffers from the clinical death, _________.
| A．his most important organs are damaged. |
| B．he still has the possibility of getting back to life. |
| C．he cannot avoid final death. |
| D．he is still very much alive |
Scientists try to make the time of clinical death longer in order to __________.
| A．slow down the body’s metabolism. |
| B．bring vital cells and tissues back to active life. |
| C．cool the organism. |
| D．delay the coming of biological death. |
How did the scientists put Keta into clinical death?
| A．By putting her to sleep, lowering her temperature and draining her blood. |
| B．By surrounding her body with ice-bags and draining her blood. |
| C．By lowing her blood pressure and stopping her heart from beating. |
| D．By draining her blood, lowering her blood pressure and stopping her breathing. |
All of the following indicate that the monkey has almost restored to her original physical state except the fact that__________.
| A．her heart beat again. |
| B．she regained her normal breath. |
| C．she rejected a penicillin injection. |
| D．she acted as lively as a healthy monkey. |
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的四个选项（A,B,C,D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂上.
When Charles Stratton was five, he stopped growing. His mother took him to see the famous showman, P. T. Barnum. Mr. Barnum thought a small person would be the perfect addition to his show. He hired Charles' parents along with him, and they traveled the world together.
He gave the two-foot-tall Charles a name, General Tom Thumb. He taught Tom how to sing, dance, act and tell jokes. When he felt Tom was ready to perform on stage, he made up ads. To stir up great interest, he said that Tom was eleven years old and had come from England.
During the show, Tom fought battles pretendedly with tall people. He also danced upon a wooden plate held by a person who was eight feet tall. Tom's act was very popular and brought in a lot of money. By the time Tom was an adult, he had grown very rich. He had become a billionaire at the age of twenty five.
Fortunately for Tom, Mr. Barnum added more little people to his show, and Tom became lucky in love as well. One of the little people was Lavinia Warren, a schoolteacher. Tom was able to win her love, and they married.
The ceremony and reception were the talk of the town. They were attended by many rich and famous people and by about 2000 guests. Crowds filled the streets of New York to have a look at their tiny wedding marriage. The couple even met with President Abraham Lincoln on their honeymoon just before going to live in Tom's house in Connecticut.
Their wedding, which took place during the Civil War, provided a welcome escape from the sad problems of war. Not willing to let this bit of sunshine fade, communities throughout the country sponsored "Tom Thumb" weddings. In these weddings, small boys and girls, all dressed up, went through marriage ceremony for fun.The underlined words "talk of the town" means________.
| A．it was in the newspaper |
| B．it was the most popular topic |
| C．people spread bad rumors about it |
| D．it was discussed in a city meeting |
Which one of the following statements is true according to the text?
| A．Charles mother took him to see the famous showman because he stopped growing. |
| B．Tom had to fight with others during the show. |
| C．Tom’s wedding ceremony helped people cheer up in a dark time. |
| D．Tom and his mother came from England. |
What is the main idea of the last paragraph?
| A．Weddings always make people feel full of sunshine. |
| B．People are always disappointed during war time. |
| C．Entertainment can serve an important purpose. |
| D．People should be married when they are small children. |
When we hear of dangerous diseases, cancer and heart disease are often what first comes to mind. Recently, a virus (病毒) called Ebola has reappeared in Guinea (a country in West Africa), killing 62 people so far. It leads to viral hemorrhagic fever, which is characterized by high fever and internal bleeding etc, Ebola can kill 90% of those infected, especially in underdeveloped societies like those in Africa.
Ebola is named after the Ebola River, where it was first discovered in 1976. There are five different types of the Ebola virus, each named after where they first happened: Sudan, Ivory Coast, Restoon, Bundibugyo, and Zaire. The deadliest of the five, Zaire, was responsible for the 2012 outbreak, and is believed to be attacking Guinea.
Ebola is naturally found in fruit bats (果蝠), which pass on the virus to other animals by biting or sucking on (吮吸) their blood. Humans who are suffering from the Ebola infection might have touched the bodily fluids (液体) of the infected animals. Once infected, a human becomes a carrier of the deadly virus.
Since we live in an interconnected world, where the situation in one country can affect us all, the influences of Ebola are huge: damaging trade relations, affecting foreign visitors, and weakening entire countries. Already the Guinea virus is spreading fast with a few cases spotted in Conakry — the capital of Guinea, far away from the origin of the virus. It is feared that the disease may have already reached neighboring Liberia and Sierra Leone, too.
Unfortunately, there are no disease-specific treatments for Ebola. Healthcare workers only supply the infected people with water to keep them in good condition. Since there have been many cases of nurses catching the disease from patients, they are forced to wear strict protective clothes, and in some cases, not even allowed to get close to the affected. The fact that there is no cure for the Ebola virus is what makes the outbreak a challenging one to control.The news of Ebola in Guinea is mentioned to ________.
| A．make a brief summary |
| B．introduce the topic of the text |
| C．compare Ebola with cancer |
| D．show the latest study of viruses |
What can we learn about Ebola?
| A．It is a newly discovered virus. |
| B．It is the most dangerous virus in the world. |
| C．It was named after where it first happened. |
| D．It could cause immediate death for anyone infected. |
What is mainly described in Paragraph 3?
| A．What the Ebola virus is. |
| B．The influences of Ebola. |
| C．The treatments for Ebola. |
| D．How the Ebola virus spreads. |
Which of the following does the author probably agree with?
| A．Ebola is a highly infectious virus. |
| B．Ebola is now very common in Guinea. |
| C．Those with a fever must be infected by Ebola. |
| D．Females are more easily to be infected by Ebola. |
We need a logo that will be the perfect symbol of our new Wheelsville Skate Park. We would like those of you who are counting the days until the opening of the park to design a proper logo.
LOGO REQUIREMENTS
▪Designs must be original and easy to recognize.
▪They should include no more than two colors in addition to black and white.
▪Artwork should be reproducible at different sizes from business cards to posters.
▪The words “ Wheelsville Skate Park” must appear in the logo.
SUBMISSION (提交) DETAILS
▪Competitors are required to be 18 years old or younger.
▪There is no limit to the number of submissions.
▪The name and address of the designer must appear on the back of the logo design.
▪Competitors need to include a one-page written explanation describing the key features of the design.
▪All submissions sent to Wheelsville Skate Park will not be returned.
▪All works must be sent to skateman4x@comlink.com no later than May 15.
▪Files (文件) should be .jpg, .gif, .png, .pict, or Photoshop files.
▪The winning design will be posted on our website at www.wheelsville.skatepark.com on May 20, one week before the opening celebration.
PRIZES
▪First Prize: Digital camera, one-year pass to Wheelsville Skate Park, and two T-shirts with the prize-winning logo.
▪Second Prize: Six-month pass to Wheelsville Skate Park and a T-shirt with the prize-winning logo.
▪Honorable Mention: One free ticket to Wheelsville Skate Park and a T-shirt with the prize-winning logo to two competitors from grades 6–8, and two from grades 9–12.
JUDGES
▪Among the judges are a professional designer, two technology teachers, four local skaters, and three members of Wheelsville Skate Park Board of Directors.
▪The judges’ decisions are final. In Paragraph 1, the underlined part “ counting the days” suggests a feeling of ________.
| A．nervousness | B．amusement |
| C．excitement | D．uncertainty |
Why does the following logo design show a misunderstanding of the rules?
| A．It does not use the full park name. |
| B．It is not as big as it is expected. |
| C．It does not use three colors. |
| D．It just shows a skateboard. |
As the top winner of the activity, you may ________.
| A．win a camera and a free ticket to the park |
| B．get a T-shirt with your own photo on it |
| C．visit the park free of charge for one year |
| D．receive a half-a-year pass to the park |
The text is probably a(n) ________.
| A．news report | B．advertisement |
| C．lesson plan | D．travel guide |
Harry potter and The Hunger Games haven’t been big hits for nothing. Lots of teens still read quite a lot. But a study shows a clear decrease over time. Nearly half of 17-year-olds say they read for pleasure no more than one or two times a year. That’s way down from ten years ago.
The digital revolution (革命) means there are more platforms (平台) than ever to read on. Jim Steyer has been studying the effect of technology on children. He has four kids and has seen the trend most with his 16-year-old. “I start to see it in our 10-year-old as well, because he is reading less and less, and more and more attracted to some of the digital media platforms that he has access to, and that he didn’t have access to when he was 6 or 7 years old,” he says.
The studies don’t say that kids are reading less because they’re spending more time online. But Steyer is convinced that’s at least part of the answer.
“First of all, most children now have access to e-readers, or other smart electronic devices like phones and tablets (平板电脑),” he says. “ And they’re spending time on that. Many reports show the increasing use of new technology platforms by kids. It just strikes me as extremely logical that that’s a big reason.
Researchers want to know more about how teens are spending their time in the digital age. But Kathryn Zickuhr of the Pew Research Center says it’s tricky. If a kid is looking at a book, you may think he or she is reading. But when it comes to looking at a smartphone or tablet, who knows?
“We’ve heard from middle and high school teachers that sometimes the Internet is wonderful for enthusiastic students to do deep research,” says Zickuhr. “But on the other side, obviously there are many distractions on the Internet.”
However, Jim Steyer says, “Kids with parents who read, who buy or take books out of the library for their kids, and who then set time aside in their kids’ daily schedule for reading, tend to read the most — whether it’s on a book, an e-book or some other devices.”What did Jim Steyer see in his four kids?
| A．They tend to read more on electronic devices. |
| B．They created their own digital media platform. |
| C．They improved their reading on electronic devices. |
| D．They have become more addicted to digital media. |
What statement may Kathryn Zickuhr agree to?
| A．Kids are easily distracted on the Internet. |
| B．Most kids pretend to be doing online reading. |
| C．Most kids like to read on a smartphone or tablet. |
| D．Kids rarely use the Internet to do serious research. |
The last paragraph suggests that ________.
| A．parents need to spare time to read for kids |
| B．parents should make a reading plan for kids |
| C．parents can do a lot to encourage more reading |
| D．parents working in a library tend to read the most |
What is the main idea of the text?
| A．What books do teens like to read the most? |
| B．Why aren’t teens reading like they used to? |
| C．How can teens read on electronic platforms? |
| D．When will teens turn to books for fun again? |