As I was reading a recent story in Slate on 20-somethings complaining about how the economy was ruining their life plans, I couldn’t help but think the 20-somethings sounded like a bunch of spoiled (宠坏) children who grew up expecting everything to be easy for them. As a 20-something myself, I certainly share their disappointment: my husband and I probably won’t be able to buy a house until we’re in our 40s, and we too are burdened by student loans(贷款). But why should it be any different? Being young persons in America, shouldn’t they take up all of the challenges and opportunities that this country offers?
Consider some of these views shared in the Slate story: Jennifer, 29, owner of a two-bedroom apartment with her husband, worries that she won’t be able to have children for at least a decade because they can’t afford to buy a house yet.
I read that, and I thought, what planet is she living on where you need to own a house in order to have kids? Has she ever visited a developing country, or even downtown areas in this one? Home ownership is a luxury(奢华), not a fertility requirement.
A 26-year-old in the story despairs(绝望) that he can’t afford to get a Ph.D. in literature. Well, that sounds a bit like expressing disappointment that no one will pay you to write poetry on the beach in Thailand for five years.
Yes, it’s sad that these young people feel so lost. But I think the problem is their extremely high expectations, not economic reality. Beth Kobliner, author of Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties, says that she thinks people’s expectations are slowly adjusting, but today’s 20-somethings grew up at a time when everyone’s wealth appeared to be expanding. Their parents probably saw their home values rise along with their investments.(投资) “So you have people who have grown up in an environment where people had great expectations of what living well means,” says Kobliner.
This recession(衰退) will certainly play a role in forcing those expectations into more realistic group. In the meantime, it seems a lot better for our mental health to focus on being grateful－for our one-bedroom apartments, for living in modern cities, or perhaps just for being able to eat three meals a day－than on longing for some kind of luxury life.
64．What makes the author think the 20-somethings sound like a bunch of spoiled children?
A．They expect everything to be easy for them.
B．They complain that the economy is spoiling their life plans.
C．They are reluctant (不愿) to face all of the challenges.
D．They are burdened by student loans.
65．The underlined word “fertility” in Paragraph 3 probably means .
A．baby production B．pleasant
C．baby comfort D．essential
66．What’s the author’s attitude towards the 20-somthings with high expectation in Paragraph 5?
A．Intolerant. B．Negative. C．Unbelieving. D．Understanding.
67．What is the best title for this passage?
A．How Young People Afford to Continue Their Study
B．Why Young People Can’t Afford to Buy a House
C．When Young People’s High Hopes Create Despair
D．What the 20-somethings’ High Expectations Are
In 1826, a Frenchman named Niepce needed pictures for his business, but he was not a good artist. So he invented a very simple camera. He put it in a window of his house and took a picture of his yard. That was the first photograph.
The next important date in the history of photography was 1837. That year, Daguerre, another Frenchman, took a picture of his studio. He used a new kind of camera and a different process. This kind of photograph was called a daguerreotype. Soon, other people began to use Daguerre’s process. In about 1840, the process was improved. Then photographers could take pictures of people and moving things.
Matthew Brady was one well-known American photographer. He took many portraits of famous people. The portraits were unusual because they were very life-like and full of personality.
In the 1880s, new inventions began to change photography. Photographers could buy film ready-made in rolls. And finally, the invention of the small handheld camera made photography less expensive. With the small camera, anyone could be a photographer. People began to use cameras just for fun. They took pictures of their families, friends and favorite places. They called these pictures “snapshots”.
Photography also turned into a form of art by the end the 19th century, some photographs were not just copies of the real world. They showed ideas and feelings, like other art forms.Matthew Brady was well-known for _______.
| A．inventing daguerreotype |
| B．taking pictures of French cities |
| C．taking portraits of famous people |
| D．inventing the first camera |
The new inventions in photography made it possible for ________.
| A．Brady to take pictures of famous people |
| B．anyone to be a photographer |
| C．only rich people to take pictures |
| D．people to use daguerreotype |
Photography can also be an art form because artists can _________.
| A．take pictures to show the real world |
| B．make documentaries |
| C．show ideas and feelings in pictures |
| D．copy old pictures |
Now, we know that if we do not get enough vitamins, we are at risk of developing a number of diseases. As a result, vitamin supplements（补品），though expensive, are popular with people who worry that they are not getting enough vitamins from the foods they eat. But contrary to what many people think, medical experts have found little evidence that most supplements do anything to improve health or protect against disease.
In fact, medical experts warn that taking too many of some vitamins can be harmful. For example, too much vitamin E can cause bleeding. People should discuss what vitamins they take with their doctors, as some vitamins can produce harmful side effects when mixed with medicines.
Experts, however, do say that sometimes vitamins can help prevent disease. People who know they lack a particular vitamin should take vitamin supplements. Some older adults, for example, may not have enough vitamin B-twelve. This is because, as people get older, their body loses its ability to take it from foods. Also, people who spend much time inside may need some extra vitamin D as the skin makes this vitamin from sunlight.
Different vitamins are found in different foods. Vitamin A is found in fish liver oil. It also is in the yellow part of eggs. Sweet potatoes, carrots and other darkly colored fruits and vegetables contain substances that the body can change into vitamin A. Vitamin B-twelve is found in green leafy vegetables and other foods, like fruits. Vitamin K can be found in pork products.
In fact, for most people, a balanced diet can ensure enough of the vitamins our bodies need. So, it is important for us to eat a mixture of foods every day to ensure that we get enough vitamins our bodies need. Vitamin supplements are popular with people because ________.
| A．people mistakenly think that they are good for their health |
| B．they contain more vitamins than the foods people eat |
| C．food does not provide enough vitamins people need |
| D．people fear that a lack of vitamins will lead to disease |
From the passage, we can learn that medical experts advise people _________.
| A．never to take any vitamin supplements |
| B．to depend only on food for their vitamins |
| C．not to take any vitamins together with medicines |
| D．to consult doctors before taking vitamin supplements |
For people who lack Vitamin B-twelve, they can eat more from _______.
A. sweet potatoes B. pork products C. green leafy vegetablesD. eggs
42. What would be the best title of the passage?
A. Getting enough vitamins through a balanced diet.
B. Vitamin supplements do harm to our health.
C. Vitamins are important to our health.
D. Lacking vitamins can cause many diseases.
Animals are natural resources that people have wasted all through our history.
Animals have been killed for their fur and feathers, for food, for sport, and simply because they were in the way. Thousands of kinds of animals have disappeared from the earth forever. Hundreds more are on the danger list today. About 170 kinds in the United States alone are considered in danger.
Why should people care? Because we need animals. And because once they are gone, there will never be any more.
Animals are more than beautiful or interesting or a source of food. Every animal has its place in the balance of nature. Destroying one kind of animal can create many problems.
For example, when farmers killed large numbers of hawks(鹰), the farmers’ stores of corn and grain were destroyed by rats and mice. Why? Because hawks eat rats and mice. With no hawks to keep down their numbers, the rats and mice multiplied(繁殖) quickly.
Luckily, some people are working to help save the animals. Some groups raise money to let people know about the problem. And they try to get the governments to pass laws protecting animals in danger.
Quite a few countries have passed laws. These laws forbid the killing of any animal or plant on the danger list. Slowly, the number of some animals in danger is growing.Why do people kill animals?
| A．They kill animals for something they need. |
| B．They kill animals to raise some money. |
| C．Animals destroy their natural resources. |
| D．Animals create many problems. |
Animals are important to us mainly because ______.
| A．they give us a source of food |
| B．they are beautiful and lovely |
| C．they keep the balance of nature |
| D．they give us a lot of pleasure |
Which of the following is NOT true?
| A．People care much about animals because they need them. |
| B．Once a certain kind of animal is gone forever, there will never be any more. |
| C．Killing all rats and mice may cause some new problems. |
| D．People must not kill any animal or plant. |
It's great fun to explore (探索) new places—it feels like an adventure, even when you know you're not the first to have been there. But make sure not to get lost or waste time going round in circles.
● Do the map reading if you're being driven somewhere. It'll be easier if you keep turning the map so it follows the direction you' re traveling in. Keep looking ahead so that you can give the driver lots of warning before having to make a turn, or you'll have to move to the back seat.
● Get a group of friends together and go exploring. You'll need a good map, a compass (指南针), a raincoat, a cell phone to call for help in case you get lost, and a bit of spare cash for emergencies (应急现金). Tell someone where you're going before you set out and let them know what time you expect to be back. The test is in not getting lost, not in seeing how fast you can go, so always stick together, waiting for slower friends to catch up.
● See if your school or a club organizes orienteering activities, in which you need a map and a compass to find your way. This can be done as a sport, with teams trying to find the way from A to B (and B to C, etc. ) in the fastest time, or simply as a spare-time activity. Either way, it's not only good fun, but a great way to keep fit.Sitting beside the driver, you should ________.
| A．direct the driver when necessary |
| B．look ahead to see where there's a turn |
| C．move to the back seat if feeling uncomfortable |
| D．keep looking at the map to find a place to go to |
Why do you need to tell someone your exploration plan before setting out?
| A．To get information when in danger. |
| B．To be saved in case of an accident. |
| C．To share the fun with him/her in exploration. |
| D．To tell him/her what's going on with the group members. |
Orienteering activities can ________.
| A．make people work fast |
| B．help people stay healthy |
| C．help people organize other activities |
| D．make people get prepared for sports |
His first successful fight was for the equal rights of black people in South Africa. Then, as the first black president, he fought to unite the country and organize the government. Now Nelson Mandela has set his sights on a new enemy, AIDS.
On March 19 the 82-year-old, former president, hosted his second AIDS-awareness concert. He warned that 25 million people in Africa were already infected with the fatal disease.
Mandela was born in a small village in South Africa in 1918. He was adopted by the chief of his tribe and could have been a chief himself and lived a happy country life.
But he refused to be a chief when his people lived under racial discrimination(歧视). He decided to fight for equal rights for all the people in South Africa. Before 1990, under the country’s Racial Segregation Law, colored and white people lived separately. Black people were treated unfairly even when taking a bus. Blacks had to stand at the back of the bus to make room for white people even when there were only a few of them on board.
For his opposition to the system, Mandela was arrested and spent 27 years in prison. He was freed in 1990 and became the president of the country after the first election were held in which everyone could vote.
Mandela was not only a political fighter who attacked with speeches. He was also a trained boxer and fought in the ring when he was young.
“Although I did not enjoy the violence of boxing, I was interested in how one moved one’s body to protect oneself, how one used a strategy both to attack and retreat”, he wrote in his autobiography.
As a skillful fighter, he chose music as his weapon against AIDS. He hopes to win another victory against AIDS.When was Mandela arrested?
| A．In 1963 |
| B．In 1990 |
| C．When he refused to be a chief |
| D．When he became the president |
Nelson Mandela succeeded in doing the following except _______.
| A．winning the equal rights for the black people in South Africa |
| B．Uniting South Africa |
| C．organizing a government in South Africa |
| D．controlling the spread of AIDS |
If Nelson Mandela hadn’t fought against racial discrimination, he_______.
| A．could have been the president of South Africa |
| B．could still have lived a happy life |
| C．could have been in a difficult situation |
| D．would have been an excellent boxer |
Which of the following statements can best describe the life of Nelson Mandela?
| A．struggle is his life |
| B．sports make his fame |
| C．fight for equal rights |
| D．a great fighter against government. |