America is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon if situations change. Neither side feels hurt by this. Both may exchange Christmas greetings for a year or two, perhaps a few letters for a while — then no more. If the same two people meet again by chance, even years later, they pick up the friendship. This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand, because friendships between us flower more slowly but then may become lifelong feelings, extending (延伸) sometimes deeply into both families.
Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. They will enjoy welcoming us and be pleased if we accept their hospitality (好客) easily.
Another difficult point for us Chinese to understand Americans is that although they include us warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to us if it requires a great deal of time. This is usually the opposite of the practice in our country where we may be generous with our time. Sometimes, we, as hosts, will appear at airports even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take days off to act as guides to our foreign friends. The Americans, however, express their welcome usually at homes, but truly can not manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily routine. They will probably expect us to get ourselves from the airport to our own hotel by bus. And they expect that we will phone them from there. Once we arrive at their homes, the welcome will be full, warm and real. We will find ourselves treated hospitably.
For the Americans, it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to go to restaurants, except for purely business matters. So accept their hospitality at home!The writer of this passage must be ______.
| A．an American | B．a Chinese | C．a professor | D．a student |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Friendships between Americans usually extend deeply into their families. |
| B．Friendships between Americans usually last for all their lives. |
| C．Americans always show their warmth even if they are very busy. |
| D．Americans will continue their friendships again even after a long break. |
From the last two paragraphs we can learn that when we arrive in America to visit an American friend, we will probably be ______.
| A．warmly welcomed at the airport |
| B．offered a ride to his home |
| C．treated hospitably at his home |
| D．treated to dinner in a restaurant |
The underlined words “generous with our time” in Paragraph 3 probably mean ______.
| A．strict with time | B．willing to spend time | C．careful with time | D．serious with time |
A suitable title for this passage would probably be “______”.
| A．Friendships between Chinese |
| B．Friendships between Americans |
| C．Americans’ hospitality |
| D．Americans’ and Chinese’s views of friendship |
I always feel sorry for world leaders busy dealing with fights between nations. When my three children were young, most days it was hard keeping my house from becoming a battlefield.
It got worse as they grew older. Three years ago, Zack, then 16, couldn’t make it through a day without making his sisters, Alex 11 and Taryn 9, angry.
My husband and I tried to be understanding the boy at such an age. We reasoned, punished, and left heartfelt notes on his bed about how he was hurting our family. His answer was “I say it because it’s true.”
I even tried telling the girls to fight back. Bad idea. Now I had three children at war. Whatever I said to them, they paid no attention. When there was no way out, I told everything to my sister, Mary, in an e-mail. She replied, “Don’t e-mail me. E-mail him.”
Our son was online every day, mailing and talking with his friends. Maybe he would actually hear me this way. I didn’t say anything different, but e-mail just took the tension away. There’d be no shouting or door banging. Zack wouldn’t feel under attack.
Zack didn’t reply for days. When he finally did, his entire message was four small words. I smiled when I read them: “You’re right. I’m sorry.”
The children still fought, of course, but Zack changed. Best of all, I now have a better way to talk with not one but three of them. I like it that they don’t tune me out as much as they used to. They like not having to listen to me shouting to them. Or as Alex says, “You’re so much nicer online.”
All I know is that the house is quiet. But we’re talking.
71. What was the trouble before the online talk in the family?
A. The writer failed to understand her daughters.
B. The children couldn’t get along peacefully.
C. The family found it difficult to keep the house clean.
D. The parents were not willing to talk with their children.
72. The writer once tried to deal with her son’s problem by _______.
A. talking with him about his pain
B. telling him about the truth of the family
C. telling her daughters to keep away from him
D. encouraging her daughters to fight against him
73. The writer e-mailed her sister _______.
A. to tell her about the family problem B. hoping she’d e-mail the boy
C. asking about child-raising D. to escape from the problem
74. The underlined phrase “tune me out” in the passage probably means _______.
A. quarrel with me B. get angry with me
C. pay no attention to me D. keep me out of their rooms
In insurance theory, moral hazard is the name given to the increased risk of immoral behavior, and thus a negative outcome (“hazard”), because the person who caused the problem doesn’t suffer the full (or any) consequences, or may actually benefit．Such a concern typically arises in the context of a contract (for example, an insurance policy)．
The most well known examples of moral hazard come from insurance．For example:
Fire insurance increases the motivation to commit arson (纵火), especially if someone is operating a failing business and decides that they’d rather have the cash from the insurance proceeds on the buildings than the buildings themselves．(The value of a business often is based on profitability; after arson, the owner can claim the business was profitable．) In a worst case, the building is over-insured or valuable contents are removed but claims are filed that they were destroyed in the fire．
In finance, low level of effort by the agent (employee) is called the “moral hazard problem” according to agency theory．The more autonomy (自主) the agent enjoys and the greater the information the agent possesses, and the greater the specialized knowledge required to perform the task, the greater the chances for the occurrence of moral hazard．
The problem of moral hazards for insurance can’t be eliminated, but can be minimized．For example:
Getting detailed information to evaluate the value of what is being insured, rather than simply taking the word of the person buying the insurance．
Requiring that there be a deductible(扣除额) (an initial up-front sum which the insured must pay out of his or her own pocket in case of a loss), and/or only paying out a percentage of the loss (say, 80 or 90 percent) via a coinsurance clause．
72．What might be the headache for the insurance company after a fire?
A．Not knowing who set the fire．
B．The owner might over-claim the loss．
C．Where to get the insurance fee paid．
D．How to punish those who cheated the company．
73．What might be the best way not to suffer over-loss in paying back insurance according to the above passage?
A．Investigate carefully after a fire．
B．Try to get as much detail information about the insurance．
C．Try to catch hold of the person who committed arson．
D．Request the buyer of insurance to pay more．
74．The two examples in the above passage are applied to ______．
A．help people to have reasonable insurance
B．present the difficulties the insurance companies have
C．bring up a problem and a solution in insurance business
D．invite people to buy more profitable insurance
75．The above passage is mainly about ______．
A．a new theory in insurance B．a moral challenge in business
C．a common business phenomenon D．moral hazard in insurance
In 1945 there were 17 universities in Britain; by 1967 there were 45．A period of very rapid expansion took place in the middle sixties when ten new institutes were granted university status by Royal Charter．These modern universities do not in many ways resemble their older counterparts．Much more emphasis is placed on advanced studies in science and technology and the newer social science disciplines than on the arts and humanities．For the most part of the buildings the students live and work in are severely functional and there are the hum and bustle of continuous activities．The quiet gardens and enclosed quadrangles of Oxford and Cambridge belong to another world．This will certainly happen, for the universities like everything else must change and adapt themselves to meet the needs and demands of a new age．
In recent years there has been a very rapid increase in the number of young people (especially girls) seeking higher education．Between 1962 and 1975, the number of students in higher education more than doubled from 222,400 to 497,000．Part of this increase is accounted for by the creation of thirty “Polytechnics” which offer a wide range of courses leading to recognized qualifications．
For those who missed the opportunities for higher education at the age of eighteen or so, a major innovation in the academic world now provides a second chance．The Open University was found in 1971; it offers tuition to degree standards to anyone who chooses to entry．The courses are taught through radio, television programs, Internet and by correspondence with Open University tutors．By now there are over 100,000 students enrolled for Open University and there are several thousand people who are the proud holders of a B．A degree from the Open University．
68．The underlined word “counterparts” in the first paragraph has the closest meaning with “______．”
A．enemies B．leaders C．similarities D．strangers
69．Who can go to the Open Universities in Britain?
A．The British young people only．
B．Anyone who missed the chance to go to college．
C．Girls who missed the chance to enter a college．
D．Those who are interested in science and technology．
70．How can a student get taught in the Open University?
A．Study in the open air of Oxford and Cambridge Universities．
B．Through the modern communication methods．
C．By self-study with the help of polytechnics．
D．By attending to the top ten institutes in Britain．
71．Which of the following might serve as the best title of the above passage?
A．Life in the Open Universities． B．Free Degrees in Open Universities．
C．A Way Out, the Open Universities． D．Open University, Past and Future．
Dear Edward,
I have been very busy recently with some really exciting new developments．If you visit my main website you will see various new items there．
The first is a tab called Food for Thought．This is a short daily email which raises a question or makes a statement or provides something foryou to think about．Some regular readers may find these emails quite basic．However, you would agree with me that there are many people who reject anything spiritual simply because it means venturing(冒险进入) into the unknown．
There is also a tab called Please Help Me．I will be hosting tele-discussions soon-yes, and I am really excited about that!
Here I ask you to propose topics for tele-discussions．If you are concerned about missing out, don’t worry．The proceeds will be recorded and made available as MP3 recordings．Please let me know what burning issues you have or what you are curious about．
I am providing a free mystery gift to the value of £9.95 for each successful suggestion．And please don’t think your issue is meaningless-there may be a number of other people who may have the same issue．
You may not be aware that I have also published a number of guided meditations(思考) on-line．Please have a look at this website for a free guided meditation as well as an explanation of what meditation is about．
And watch this space for more exciting things to come in the next month．I am now in a space where my hobby has become my work-how lucky can a girl be!
I also want to thank you for your support and interest over the past years-you have helped me immensely on my own journey．
Love and Light,
Elsabe
64．What does the item “Food for Thought” mainly focus on?
A．How to eat reasonably． B．Ideas for people to think about．
C．Where to have enough food． D．Ways to enjoy adventurous journeys．
65．How can one get a free mysterious gift from Elsabe?
A．By offering acceptable advice． B．By sending as much email as possible．
C．By sending him £9.95． D．By telling him what you are interested in．
66．What does Elsabe ask Edward to do?
A．Offer topics for the tele-discussion．
B．Record the content of the website．
C．Concern and participate about the issues on the website．
D．Help him find more people to help him．
67．What can we infer from the whole passage?
A．Edward doesn’t know Elsabe at all． B．Many people join in Elsabe’s program．
C．People are afraid to surf Elsabe’s website． D．Everything on Elsabe’s website is free．
The Yukon Quest 1,000-mile International Sled Dog Race is a sled dog race run every February
between Fairbanks, Alaska, and Whitehorse, Yukon．Because of the harsh winter conditions, difficult trail, and the limited support that competitors are allowed, it is considered the “toughest race in the world”．
In the competition, first run in 1984, a dog team leader and a team of 6 to 14dogs race for 10 to 20days．The course follows the route of the historic 1890s Klondike Gold Rush, mail delivery, and transportation routes between Fairbanks, Dawson City, and Whitehorse．Players pack up to 250pounds of equipment and provisions for themselves and their dogs to survive between checkpoints．They are permitted to leave dogs at checkpoints and dog drops, but not to replace them．Sleds may not be replaced and players cannot accept help from non-racers except at Dawson City, the halfway mark．Ten checkpoints and four dog drops, some more than 200miles apart, lie along the trail．Dcotors are present at each to ensure the health and welfare of the dogs, give advice, and provide veterinary (兽医)care for dropped dogs．
The route runs on frozen rivers, over four mountain ranges, and through isolated northern villages．Racers cover 1,016miles or more．Temperatures commonly drop as low as −60°F, and winds can reach 50miles per hour at higher elevations．Sonny Lindner won the first race in 1984 from a field of 26teams．The fastest run took place in 2009, when Sebastian Sch nuelle finished after 9days, 23hours, and 20minutes．The 2009 competition also had the closest one-two finish, as Sch nuelle beat second-place Hugh Neff by just four minutes．The longest race time was in 1988, when Ty Halvorson took 20days, 8hours, and 29minutes to finish．To allow participation in both the Yukon Quest and the Iditarod, the 2010 Yukon Quest will begin in Fairbanks one week earlier than usual–on February 6．
60．What is the Yukon Quest particular in?
A．The difficulty the competition has to face．
B．The special team and the special weather．
C．The limitation of time and support in the run．
D．The way the competition is valued．
61．The competitors can do the following except ______．
A．pack less then 250 pounds of equipments and provisions
B．drop any dogs at the checkpoints
C．replace dogs which are worn out
D．get medical care for dogs in any checkpoint
62．Who keeps a new record in the Yukon Quest in terms of speed?
A．Sonny Lindner． B．Sebastian Schnuelle．C．Hugh Neff． D．Ty Halvorson．
63．The underlined word “harsh” in the first paragraph might most probably mean “______”．
A．happy B．important C．difficult D．unforgettable