Flexible working hours, homeworking opportunities and cover for emergencies or school holidays are the top concerns for working mothers, according to a British survey on Thursday.
The survey of 1,677 people by specialist employment advice website workingmums.co.uk showed that despite a tougher job climate, in which redundancies(裁员) had risen dramatically during the crisis, mothers demanded for a more flexible schedule.
Flexible hours for full-time jobs came top of the list for 85 percent of respondents who were asked what they thought made for a family-friendly employer. That came just ahead of homeworking opportunities.
“Flexibility is really key and able to help achieve an element of work/life balance,” workingmums.co.uk founder Gillian Nissim told reporters.
She said the crisis had not reduced the urgency of this issue for working mums and that employers who want to be prepared for the eventual upturn would do well to listen to them rather than risk losing them to more forward-thinking rivals.
Many women said they had considered setting up their own business as a way around the flexibility problem and nearly half (45 percent) of respondents said they had looked into it.
Nissim said the workingmums.co.uk database alone showed that on average working mums have more than 15 years of work experience and a range of valuable skills picked up in the workplace and from their parenting experiences.
“So the benefits to employers of being able to accommodate (适应) a degree of flexibility is significant,” she said.
Part-time work, flexibility around emergency cover or school holidays were the next highest concerns with extended maternity （产假） pay as well on the list of concerns.More than half (54 percent) of respondents said they would accept a less well-paid job in return for flexibility, with 40 percent prepared to consider this option.The passage mainly discuss the problem of _______.
| A．working mothers requiring flexible working hours. |
| B．working mothers planning to set up their own businesses. |
| C．well-paid jobs. |
| D．unemployment at the time of financial crisis. |
Flexibility of working hours can help women _______.
| A．to have an extended maternity. |
| B．to have opportunities to operate their own companies. |
| C．to strike a balance between work and life. |
| D．to pick up a range of valuable skills. |
It can be inferred from the last paragraph that _____.
| A．40 percent of the respondents are ready to have less-paid jobs instead of full-time jobs. |
| B．more than half of the respondents would accept a less well-paid job if they were given a job of flexible hours. |
| C．the highest concern of working mums is about part-time work. |
| D．women were more concerned about extended maternity pay than school holidays. |
If you are the editor of a newspaper, which column will you fit this article in?
| A．Advertisements. | B．People. | C．Education. | D．Career. |
Why is pink or purple a color for girls and blue or brown for boys?
The answer depends largely on cultural values as well as personal experiences. To the Egyptians, green was a color that represented the hope and joy of spring. While for Muslims, it means heaven. Red is a symbol of good luck in many cultures. In China, children are given money in a red envelope to bring good fortune in the New Year. For many nations, blue is a symbol of protection and religious beliefs. Greek people often wear a blue necklace hoping to protect themselves against evils（灾祸）.
People’s choice of colors is also influenced by their bodies’reactions （反应）toward them. Green is said to be the most restful color. It has the ability to reduce pain and relax people both mentally and physically. People who work in green environment have been found to have fewer stomach aches.
Red can cause a person’s blood pressure to rise and increase people’s appetites（食欲）. Many decorators will include different shades of red in the restaurant. Similarly, many commercial websites will have a red “Buy Now” button because red is a color that easily catches a person’s eye.
Blue is another calming color. Unlike red, blue can cause people to lose appetite. So if you want to eat less, some suggest that eating from blue plates can help.
The next time you are deciding on what to wear or what color to decorate your room, think about the color carefully.Muslims regard green as a symbol of heaven mainly because of their _______.
| A．cultural values |
| B．commercial purposes |
| C．personal experiences |
| D．physical reactions to the color |
Why will many commercial websites have a red “Buy Now” button?
| A．To relax people physically. |
| B．To increase people’s appetites. |
| C．To encourage people to make a purchase(购买). |
| D．To cause a person’s blood pressure to rise. |
What color might help lose weight according to the text?
| A．Red | B．Green. |
| C．Blue. | D．Purple. |
Which of the following would be the most proper title for the text?
| A．Colors and Human Beings |
| B．The Cultural Meaning of Color |
| C．Colors and Personal Experiences |
| D．The Meaning and Function of Color |
How words came into being is unknown. All we assume (推测) is that some early men invented certain sounds，in one way or another，to express thoughts and feelings，actions and things，so that they could talk with each other. Later they agreed upon certain signs，called letters，which could be put together to show those sounds，and which could be written down. Those sounds，whether spoken or written in letters, are called words.
The power of words，then，lies in their associations—the things they bring up to our minds. Words become filled with meaning for us by experience；and the longer we live，the more certain words bring back to us the happy and sad events of our past；and the more we read and learn，the more the number of words that mean something to us increases.
Great writers are those who not only have great thoughts but also express these thoughts in words which have powerful effects on our minds and feelings. This clever use of words is what we call literary style (文体)．Above all，the real poet is a master of words. He can express his meaning in words which sing like music，and which by their position and association can move men to tears. We should therefore learn to choose our words carefully and use them correctly，or they will make our speech silly and common.We learn from the text that language might have begun with________.
| A．expressions | B．actions |
| C．signs | D．sounds |
What is mainly discussed in Paragraph 2?
| A．The learning of new words. |
| B．The importance of old words. |
| C．The relation of human experience with words. |
| D．The gradual change and development of words. |
In the last paragraph, what does the author suggest that we should do?
| A．Use words skillfully. |
| B．Make musical speeches. |
| C．Learn poems by heart. |
| D．Associate with listeners. |
Many years ago, when I was fresh out of school and worked in Denver, I was driving to my parents’ home in Missouri for Christmas. I stopped at a gas station about 50 miles from Oklahoma City, where I was planning to stop and visit a friend. While I was standing in line at the crash register (收款台), I said hello to an older couple who were also paying for gas.
I took off, but had gone only a few miles when black smoke poured from the back of my car. I stopped and wondered what I should do. A car pulled up behind me. It was the couple I had spoken to at the gas station. They said they would take me to my friend’s. We chatted on the way into the city, and when I got out of the car, the husband gave me his business card.
I wrote him and his wife a thank-you note for helping me. Soon afterward, I received a Christmas present from them. Their note that came with it said that helping me had made their holidays meaningful.
Years later, I drove to a meeting in a nearby town in the morning. In late afternoon I returned to my car and found that I’d left the lights on all day, and the battery (电池) was dead. Then I noticed that the friendly Ford dealership—a shop selling cars—was right next door. I walked over and found two salesmen in the showroom.
“Just how friendly is Friendly Ford?” I asked and explained my trouble. They quickly drove a pickup truck to my car and started it. They would accept no payment, so when I got home, I wrote them a note to say thanks. I received a letter back from one of the salesmen. No one had ever taken the time to write him and say thank you, and it meant a lot, he said.
“Thank you” —two powerful words. They’re easy to say and mean so much.The phrases “take off” underlined in paragraph 2 means ___________.
| A．turned off | B．moved off |
| C．put up | D．set up |
What happened when the author found smoke coming out of his car?
| A．He had it pulled back to the gas station. |
| B．The couple sent him a business card. |
| C．The couple offered to help him. |
| D．He called his friend for help. |
The battery of the author’s car was dead because ___________.
| A．something went wrong with the lights. |
| B．the meeting lasted a whole day. |
| C．he forgot to turn off the lights. |
| D．he drove too long a distance. |
By telling his own experiences, the author tries to show ___________.
| A．how to write a thank-you note. |
| B．how to deal with car problems. |
| C．the kind-heartedness of older people. |
| D．the importance of expressing thanks. |
Why do people travel? Well, many people travel because they want to see other countries and visit places that are famous, interesting or beautiful. People also travel to meet new friends, to try new kind of food, to experience life in other parts of the world or simply to get away from cold weather. Yet there are other reasons why people travel. Many of today’s travelers are looking for an unusual experience and adventure travel is becoming more and more popular. Here is a quick look at two popular activities: hiking and rafting.
HIKING
Hiking is a great way to travel. You will get close to nature and take exercise at the same time. Hiking is easy to do and doesn’t have to be very expensive. You can hike close to home or travel to other places. The basic equipment you need for hiking is simple: good shoes, clothes and a backpack. You can hike in the mountains, in a forest or along a river. You can also go for a hike in the city.
Hiking is fun and exciting, but you shouldn’t forget safety. Here are some basic tips for successful hiking: 1. Don’t hike alone. 2. Tell someone where you are going; 3. Bring water and a good map; 4. Watch out for dangers, such as spiders, snakes, or poisonous plants; 5. Wear a hat to protect yourself from the sun; 6.Bring a mobile phone if you have one.
RAFTING
Another exciting adventure is rafting. A raft is a small boat that you can use to paddle down rivers and streams. Rafting is a good way to experience nature. If you want a normal rafting trip, choose a quiet stream or river that is wide and has few trees and other dangers. The name “whitewater” comes from the fact that the water in these streams and rivers looks white when it moves quickly.
As with hiking, you should always think about your safety and wear good clothes. You also need to learn the basic skills of rafting, such as how to handle the raft, how to paddle and how to get in and out of the raft. You should not go rafting unless you know how to swim, and you should always wear a life jacket.Adventure travelers want to _______.
| A．experience fun and excitement |
| B．meet new friends. |
| C．try new kinds of food |
| D．visit famous sites or beautiful places |
Hiking is a kind of adventure travel because _________.
| A．it is not expensive |
| B．you will often put yourself in danger. |
| C．you need a lot of equipment for it |
| D．it is not only exciting but inexpensive |
While hiking or rafting, it is important to think about________.
| A．cost | B．excitement |
| C．safety | D．fun |
While you go rafting, you have to _________.
| A．have rafting skills | B．know how to swim |
| C．wear leather shoes | D．put on a life jacket. |
The Peales were a famous family of American artists．Charles Willson Peale is best remembered for his portraits of leading figures of the American Revolution．He painted portraits(肖像) of Franklin and Jefferson and over a dozen of George Washington．His life-size portrait of his sons Raphaelle and Titian was so realistic that George Washington reportedly once tipped his hat to the figures in the picture．
Charles Willson Peale gave up painting in his middle age and devoted his life to the Peale museum, which he founded in Philadelphia．The world’s first popular museum of art and natural science mainly covered paintings by Peale and his family as well as displays of animals in their natural settings．Peale found the animals himself and found a method to make the exhibits more lifelike．The museum’s most popular display was the skeleton （骷髅） of a huge, extinct elephant, which Peale unearthed on a New York farm in 1801．
Three of Peale’s seventeen children were also famous artists．Raphaelle Peale often painted still lives of flowers, fruit, and cheese．His brother Rembrandt studied under his father and painted portraits of many noted people, including one of George Washington．Another brother, Rubens Peale, painted mostly landscapes and portraits．
James Peale, the brother of Charles Willson Peale, specialized in miniatures （小画像）．His daughter Sarah Miriam Peale was probably the first professional female portrait painter in America．
| A．Charles Willson Peale’s painting was very lifelike |
| B．Washington respected Charles Willson Peale’s work |
| C．Washington was friendly with Raphaelle and Titian Peale |
| D．the painting of the two brothers was very large |
| A．showed | B．invented |
| C．dug up | D．looked over |
| A．Titian Peale． | B．Rubens Peale． |
| C．Raphaelle Peale． | D．Sarah Miriam Peale． |
| A．puzzled | B．admiring |
| C．excited | D．disappointed |