Five years ago, David Smith wore an expensive suit to work every day. “I was a clothes addict,” he jokes. “I used to carry a fresh suit to work with me so I could change if my clothes got wrinkled.” Today David wears casual clothes—khaki pants and sports shirt—to the office. He hardly ever wears a necktie. “I’m working harder than ever,” David says, “and I need to feel comfortable.”
More and more companies are allowing their office workers to wear casual clothes to work. In the United States, the change from formal to casual office wear has been gradual. In the early 1990s, many companies allowed their employees to wear casual clothes on Friday, but only on Friday. This became known as “dress-down Friday” or “casual Friday”. “What started out as an extra one-day-a-week benefit for employees has really become an everyday thing.” said business consultant Maisly Jones.
Why have so many companies started allowing their employees to wear casual clothes? One reason is that it’s easier for a company to attract new employees if it has a casual dress code. “A lot of young people don’t want to dress up for work,” says the owner of a software company, “so it’s hard to hire people if you have a conservative dress code.” Another reason is that people seem happier and more productive when they are wearing comfortable clothes. In a study conducted by Levi Strauss Company, 85 percent of employers said that they believe that casual dress improves employee morale（士气）. Only 4 percent of employers said that casual dress has a negative effect on productivity. Supporters of casual office wear also argue that a casual dress code helps them save money. “Suits are expensive, if you have to wear one every day,” one person said. “For the same amount of money, you can buy a lot more casual clothes.”David Smith refers to himself as having been “a clothes addict,” because __________.
| A．he often wore khaki pants and a sports shirt |
| B．he couldn’t stand a clean appearance |
| C．he wanted his clothes to look neat all the time |
| D．he didn’t want to spend much money on clothes |
David Smith wears casual clothes now, because __________.
| A．they make him feel at ease when working |
| B．he cannot afford to buy expensive clothes |
| C．he looks handsome in casual clothes |
| D．he no longer works for any company |
According to this passage, which of the following statements is FALSE?
| A．Many employees don’t like a conservative dress code. |
| B．Comfortable clothes make employees more productive. |
| C．A casual clothes code is welcomed by young employees. |
| D．All the employers in the U.S. are for casual office wear. |
According to this passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?
| A．Company workers started to dress down about twenty years ago. |
| B．Dress-down has become an everyday phenomenon since the early 1990s. |
| C．“Dress-down Friday” was first given as a favor from employers. |
| D．Many workers want to wear casual clothes to impress people. |
In this passage, the following advantages of casual office wear are mentioned except __________.
| A．saving employees’ money |
| B．making employees more attractive |
| C．improving employees’ motivation |
| D．making employees happier |
A 16-year-old boy finds himself on a boat in the Pacific Ocean after escaping a shipwreck(海难). Even worse, he is left with a huge tiger for company. But he manages to survive after 227 days of fighting against all the hardships of the sea.
Pi, the lead character in Oscar-winning Ang Lee’s new movie Life of Pi, went through an inspiring journey of growth and self-discovery. So did 19-year-old Suraj Sharma, the Indian actor who plays him.
But it was a lucky chance that opened up the opportunity for the new star. Sharma was a regular student who lived with his mathematician parents in Delhi, India. As the director traveled to Mumbai to find his Pi, the teenager went along with his younger brother, who had acted in a couple of movies, to audition(试镜). But little did Sharma know that he would end up winning the role from 3, 000 hopefuls.
Lee said he saw Pi in Sharma: “Not only does he have a compelling and wise look. He has this rare talent.” The director said that in the final round, Sharma gave one of the “most compelling readings we had. In the end, he was in tears.” Understandably, Sharma didn’t want to let Lee down. “He (Lee) had given me this opportunity. I had to give it my best,” Sharma told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.
Sharma swam for four or five hours a day until he was completely comfortable with the water. He also worked on his body because he had to first gain weight and then quickly lose weight as the story developed. He even had rats run all over him to prepare for his role. Lee was impressed by the teenager, especially his endurance and patience in staying in a water tank for many hours each day. Sharma was only 16 when Lee signed him. After three years of shooting, Sharma said he had matured with Pi’s journey.What is the function of the first paragraph?
| A．To introduce the topic of the passage. |
| B．To appeal to readers to watch a movie. |
| C．To attract readers to continue reading. |
| D．To suggest the theme of this passage. |
We can know from the passage that ________.
| A．Sharma wanted to become a mathematician |
| B．Sharma had acted in a couple of movies |
| C．Sharma was sure to win in the audition |
| D．Many teenagers wanted to act the role Pi |
What does the phrase “to let somebody down” in Paragraph 4 mean?
| A．To make somebody disappointed. |
| B．To seat somebody down. |
| C．To reject somebody’s requirement. |
| D．To take down somebody’s information. |
Which of the following words can be used to describe Sharma?
| A．Confident and passionate. |
| B．Talented and diligent. |
| C．Strong and courageous. |
| D．Endurable and easily-excited. |
The passage is intended to introduce ________.
| A．the thrilling escape from a shipwreck |
| B．how an Oscar-winning movie attracts audience |
| C．a young actor became matured when acting in a movie |
| D．the difficulty in winning a role in a movie |
China's top labor official said the country is planning to push back the age at which workers can retire.
Yin Weimin, minister of human resources and social security, demonstrated that we did not put a timetable on the move when he spoke about it during a forum at the weekend.
"Delaying the retirement age is a very complicated issue and we will study it according to the situations of population and employment and consider different groups of people," Yin said.
He noted that hikes in the retirement age have been brought in by many countries and can be a good way to deal with an aging population and ensure the healthy and stable development of social security.
The life expectancy of Chinese people is now 73 years and is expected to rise to 74 during the next five years, he said.
Nearly three out of 10 Chinese people will be older than 60 by 2040, according to a United Nations forecast.
The retirement age in China currently is 60 for men and 55 for female civil servants and 50 for female workers.
The idea of delaying the retirement age is being widely supported by government officials, while many laborers and non-government employees were less enthusiastic about the prospect of working for longer. Currently, they have to pay into their pension plans for at least 15 years before they can retire.
Chen Xianlian, a female worker at a motorcycle parts manufacturer in Chongqing municipality is among those who would like to see the retirement age left as it is. “I have to do lots of tough and repetitive work every day and I feel very tired after my working day,” the 41-year-old said. “All my colleagues are discussing the government's possible move to lift the retirement age. None of us wants to work any extra years.”
University graduates also fear that any rise in the retirement age could limit their employment opportunities.We can learn from the passage that ________.
| A．China is not planning to push back the age at which workers can retire |
| B．China is discussing the problem of delaying the retirement age now |
| C．China is probably going to delay the retirement age |
| D．China has pushed back the age at which workers can retire |
The underlined word “hikes” in Paragraph 4 means ________.
| A．increasing | B． marching | C． pushing | D． discussing |
According to the current policy, Chen Xianlian has to work ________ more years from now before her retirement
| A．14 | B． 9 | C． 19 | D． 15 |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．All the Chinese people support the new policy. |
| B．The life expectancy of Chinese people is expected to rise to 73 during the next five years. |
| C．The retirement age in China will be 60 for men and 55 for female civil servants and 50 for female workers. |
| D．The government did not set a fixed timetable on the new policy. |
It can be inferred from the text that ________.
| A．Chen Xianlian is a civil servant. |
| B．Delaying the retirement age is a very complicated issue. |
| C．Many countries have begun to delay the retirement age. |
| D．It may be harder for the university graduate to find a job in the future. |
You probably hear it all the time — people telling you to “learn English”. But does this mean children in English-speaking countries don’t need to bother learning a new language? Not at all. In fact, an even larger number of young people will soon be taught foreign languages, thanks to the mental advantages of bilingualism.
Psychologists once thought that growing up bilingual might lead to verbal delays－a late or absent development of talking. But US magazine Scientific American has revealed that this is not true, and reported that children who speak more than one language “show greater mental flexibility, a superior grasp of abstract concepts and a better working memory.” As the New York Times put it, “being bilingual, it turns out, makes you smarter.”
In Europe, learning foreign languages is increasingly popular. A European report shows that from 2005-2010, the percentage of European students learning a foreign language rose from 67.5 percent to 79.2 percent. Most European kids start learning another language at age 6. In Belgium, it starts at 3. New reforms being introduced in the UK will mean all children could be taught a foreign language, such as Mandarin or Greek, from the age of 7. The most popular foreign language for European kids was English, followed by German and French.
In comparison, Americans don’t give a fig for learning foreign languages. Compared to 50 percent of European adults who are bilingual, only 9 percent of adults in the US are fluent in more than one language, according to a 2011 report. American students are often not exposed to a second language until high school.
However, recent statistics show demand is growing in the US for people to become more bilingual. According to a USA Today chart released in July, 21 percent of US children speak another language at home. A number of institutions in the country are also pushing foreign languages in schools. Three school districts in Delaware will launch Chinese and Spanish programs next year. More people are learning Chinese, French and Spanish.Psychologist used to believe that children who grow up bilingual ________.
| A．are more flexible mentally |
| B．are slow in the development of talking |
| C．have a poorer working memory |
| D．are smarter in understanding abstract concept |
It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
| A．Americans are more interested in learning another language than Europeans |
| B．British kids began to learn foreign languages at the earliest age |
| C．21% of US children study a foreign language in the school |
| D．not all schools in America are teaching foreign languages |
What does the underlined phrase “give a fig for” in Paragraph 4 mean?
| A．attach importance to |
| B．have talent for |
| C．invest money in |
| D．have demand for |
Which are the most popular foreign languages in the US?
| A．Mandarin and Greek. |
| B．English, German and French. |
| C．Chinese, French and Spanish. |
| D．Chinese, German and Greek. |
What is the main idea of this passage?
A. Chinese is becoming more popular in western countries.
B. The benefits and advantages of growing up bilingual.
C. Western worlds are paying more attention to learning foreign languages.
D. The differences between bilingual education in Europe and USA.
It was once unheard-of to be a businessman in China. Nowadays, though, it’s quite common to become your own boss. Let’s say you have an idea. Maybe you want to open an English school or sell Japanese comics. First, you need a business plan. It sets out what you’ll sell and how much everything will cost. Most businesses that fail didn’t have this. If you need to borrow money at the start, banks will ask for a detailed plan.
The best starting place for a business plan is the 4Ps: product, place, price and promotion. All these must be strong to be successful.
□Product
Your product must have something unique. What makes it special compared to other similar products? If you want to start a noodle shop that has nothing new, don’t expect people to show much interest. You can research your product. For food, let people try it for free. For toys, let a few children play with them to see if they like them.
□Place
There’s no point having a product that people want to buy if your shop is in an empty mall. Think about which type of person is going to buy what you sell. Where do they usually go shopping? When looking at possible places, spend the day there. See how many people pass by. Also, are there other shops nearby selling similar products? If so, how can you be better than them?
□Price
Work out how much it costs to make or provide your product. As a general rule, your price will be double the cost. After all, you’re also paying for rent, staff and you need to eat too!
□Promotion
How can you attract people to your shop? Advertising in newspapers and on TV is expensive. Perhaps you can get free advertising by getting a newspaper to write about your business.What’s the best title for the passage?
| A．How to start a business. |
| B．Starting a business soon. |
| C．Starting your own business. |
| D．Preparations for starting a business. |
According to the author, the reason why most businesses fail is due to lack of ________.
| A．a business plan | B． a shop | C． money | D．successful businessmen |
If you want to start a noodle shop, you should ________.
| A．expect people to show much interest |
| B．research your noodles |
| C．let people try it at a low price |
| D．let children have a try |
What does “If so” in Paragraph 4 refer to?
| A．There are shops selling the goods like yours. |
| B．Many people pass by. |
| C．You should think about which type of person is going to buy what you sell. |
| D．You should spend the day on possible places. |
You are selling toys to children. It costs 5 yuan to make each one. How much should you charge the children for each toy?
| A．15 yuan. | B． 5 yuan. | C． 10 yuan. | D． 50 yuan. |
Work-Study Program
The Work-Study Program gives you the chance to work part-time on campus. If you need more money to cover all of your education-related costs, you may be qualified for this program.
Advantages
· Work experience: Last year, more than 1,400 positions were available across all departments. The jobs vary from one department to the next, and in most cases, participants find a position in their chosen field.
· Money: During the regular academic year (September to April), you can work part-time and earn $3,200---sometimes more---while you take courses! During the summer time, you work full-time and can earn around $6,000 over 18 weeks.om]
·Easy access: Applying for the program is easy. There is no need for face-to-face interview. All the forms you need are online; just fill in the forms and email us; we accept no letter or phone application!
Did you know?
At the University of Ottawa, it is not essential to receive government assistance to qualify for our Work-Study Program. You simply need to demonstrate（证明）financial need.
You could have one of these great Work-Study jobs:
·Student ambassador
·Computing and network technician
·Marketing assistant
·Sports team manager
·Researcher / translator
·Writer
And more!
The Admission Section receives and evaluates applications to undergraduate programs, in addition to answering applicants’ questions.
Phone: 613-562-5315 Toll-free: 1-877-868-8292 (#5315)
Financial Aid & Awards Service Section:
Phone: 613-562-5734 Toll-free phone: 1-877-868-8292
Regular Office Hours: Monday to Friday
September to May: 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
June to August: 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.To earn most each month, you may choose to work __________.
| A．from April to September | B．during the daytime |
| C．from May to August | D．most of the weekends |
To be admitted by the program, you need to ___________.
| A．get some government assistance first |
| B．have much working experience |
| C．perform well in your studies |
| D．explain your financial need first |
How can students apply for a working position?
| A．Through the internet. | B．By phone. |
| C．By face-to-face interview. | D．By letter. |