More than half of parents in the United States are helping , or have helped their adult children who have been hit by high unemployment and stagnant（无变化的）wages, according to a new survey. It showed that present economic conditions are discouraging young adults from leaving home and forcing those who have already gone, so - called boomerang children, to return.
“Parents are continuing their financial involvement longer than we expected,” said Ted Beck, the president and CEO of National Endowment for Financial Education (NEFE).
About 60 percent of parents questioned in the survey said they are helping their adult children who are no longer in school financially, providing housing and living expenses.
For an increasing number of adult children, the situation is bad. Two - thirds of adult children, aged 18 to 39, who are not in school said they faced tougher financial pressures than previous generations, according to the survey. And nearly one - third of parents agreed that it was easier for them to earn money than for their children.
Parents are helping their children out of genuine concern, and because they do not want to see them struggle. But Beck said that parents who make sacrifices to help their adult children should be cautious about their own finances.
“If you are taking on extra debt or delaying retirement to help your adult child, you could be making a mistake and putting your own financial future in danger.” Beck warned.
Boomerang children can also cause other problems for their parents. Thirty percent of parents said they had given up privacy since their adult children moved back home, while more than a quarter have taken on added debt, and ten percent have delayed retirement. But the survey also showed that 42 percent of adult children living at home are helping with the cooking and cleaning.The underlined words “boomerang children” in the first paragraph likely means ________.
| A．adult children visiting parents often |
| B．married adult children |
| C．adult children depending on parents for financial support |
| D．adult children independent and successful in life |
What is Ted Beck’s suggestion to the parents?
| A．Asking their children to help with the housework. |
| B．Leaving their children to struggle to live. |
| C．Being careful when helping their children financially. |
| D．Putting off their time of retirement. |
According to the survey, we can know that ________.
| A．about 50% of parents give money to their adult children to cover the daily cost |
| B．two - thirds of adult children are faced with financial problems in school |
| C．one - third of adult children earn money more easily than their parents |
| D．one in ten parents has delayed retirement |
What is the main idea of the whole text?
| A．Adult children are less independent. |
| B．Parents help support adult children. |
| C．Bad conditions affect children a lot. |
| D．Adult children like living with parents. |
Washington D.C.is the capital of the United States. It's the center of the national government. It's a busy，working city with a large population. But what is more，Washington is also a city of history and culture.
Washington was created in 1790，when Congress(国会)decided to place the nation's new capital in the east of the country. It was built halfway between the northern and the southern states of the America. And of course it was named after George Washington，the first President of the United States.
There are many tourist sights in Washington. One of them is the White House. This is the home and office of the President of the United States. Most visitors are，however，surprised by how small the White House actually is.
Washington is also a great culture city. The Library of Congress contains(包括)one of the largest library collections in the world. The Smithsonian Museum holds the nation's largest collection of cultural materials. And John F．Kennedy Center is a famous center of art and culture. It has many great musical and theatre performances throughout the year.The writer mainly talks about________.
| A．Washington |
| B．the history of Washington |
| C．buildings and sights in Washington |
| D．the history and culture of Washington |
From the passage we know that Washington is situated(位于)in________.
| A．the east of the USA |
| B．the center of the USA |
| C．the east，on the middle point from north to south of the country |
| D．the east and halfway away from the north |
The writer introduces Washington in the order(顺序)of ________.
| A．general introduction，sights and history |
| B．general introduction，history，sights and culture |
| C．population，history and culture |
| D．history and culture |
It can be learned from the passage that________.
| A．Washington is the largest city in the USA |
| B．Washington is also the center of economic in the USA |
| C．Washington is a young city |
| D．it is situated in the west of the USA |
In our modern world, when something wears out, we throw it away and buy a new one.
The is that countries around the world have growing mountains of because
People are throwing out more rubbish than ever before.
How did we a throwaway society ? First of all, it is now easier to an object than to spend time and money to repair it. modern manufacturing and technology, companies are able to produce products quickly and inexpensively. Products are plentiful and .
Another cause is our of disposable(一次性)products. As people we are always looking for to save time and make our lives easier. Companies thousands of different kinds of disposable products: paper plates, plastic cups, and cameras, to name a few.
Our appetite for new products also to the problem. We are buying new things.
Advertisements persuade us that is better and that we will be happier with the latest products. The result is that we useful possessions to make room for new ones.
All around the world, we can see the of this throwaway lifestyle. Mountains of rubbish just keep getting bigger. To the amount of rubbish and to protect the , more governments are requiring people to recycle materials. , this is not enough to solve(解决) our problem.
Maybe there is another way out. We need to repair our possession throwing them away.
We also need to rethink our attitudes about . Repairing our possessions and changing our spending habits may be the best way to reduce the amount of rubbish and take care of our environment.
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On May 23,1989, Stefania Follini came out from a cave at Carlsbad , New Mexico．She hadn’t seen the sun for eighteen and a half weeks ．Stefania was in a research program, and the scientists in the program were studying body rhythms （节奏）。In this experiment Stefania had spent 130 days in a cave ,30 feet in depth．
During her time in the cave, Stefania had been completely alone except for two white mice．Her living place had been very comfortable ,but there had been nothing to feel her the time ．She’d had no clock or watches , no television or radio．There had been no natural light and the temperature had always been kept at 21℃
The results were very interesting. Stefania had been in the cave for over four months, but she thought she had been there for only two. Her body clock had changed. She hadn't kept to a 24hour day, she had stayed awake for 20～25 hours and then had slept for 10 hours. She had eaten fewer meals and had lost 171 bs in weight as a result!She had also become rather depressed (抑郁).
How had she spent her time in the cave?As part of the experiment she'd done some physical and mental tests. She'd recorded her daily activities and the results of the tests on a computer. This computer had been specially programmed for the project. Whenever she was free, she'd played cards, read books and listened to music. She'd also learned French from tapes.
The experiment showed that our body clocks are affected by light and temperature. For example, the pattern of day and night makes us wake up and go to sleep. However, people are affected in different ways. Some people wake up naturally at 5:00 am, but others don't start to wake up till 9:00 or 10:00 am. This affects the whole daily rhythm. As a result, the early risers are at their best in the late morning. The late risers, on the other hand, are tired during the day and only come to life in the afternoon or evening!Stefania stayed in the cave for a long time because___________．
| A．she was asked to do research on mice |
| B．she wanted to experience loneliness |
| C．she was the subject of a study |
| D．she needed to record her life |
What is a cause for the change of Stefania’s body clock?
| A．Eating fewer hours |
| B．Having more hours of sleep |
| C．Lacking physical exercise． |
| D．Getting no natural light． |
Where does the text probably come from?
| A．A novel． | B．A news story． |
| C．A pet magazine． | D． A text |
Welcome to the future. It’s year 2050 and Scotland is now powered completely by“clean”energy.
Homes have entire roofs made of solar materials, rooms are kept warm by wallpaper, and people go to and from work in electric and hydrogen( 氢) cars.
Oil is still being found in the North Sea, but it’s not now only used to keep aircraft flying. And a new 500---mile underwater link with Iceland has been built to catch heat from the hot springs. There’s still a role for king coal—but the black diamonds are now environment---friendly.
People will be able to import the electricity they need and export any excess(超过的量) they make through rooftop windmills(风车). New technology will store electricity better and provide it on demand. Heat exchangers will provide heating and hot water.
Harmful carbon dioxide waste is being piped offshore to St Fergus and from there into some of the remaining oil—producing fields to be stored safely without entering the atmosphere. Gas remains the preferred energy source of industry and is now shipped in liquid form. But hydrogen is imported through pipelines from France and from a geothermal (地热的) plant in Iceland.
Hydrogen—fuelled cars have become popular. Electric bikes are common in cities using the new urban two—wheel network. Electric vehicles have become common, and their performances have been improved because of the developments in electrical drive technology like high—temperature super conducting motors. Many people leave their vehicles in a giant park where they can be recharged from the national electrical system . Oilseed rape (油菜) is widely grown to fuel some motors .What does the underlined phrase in paragraph 2 mean ?
| A．The hot springs | B．Oil |
| C．Coal | D．Oil and coal |
Which sources of energy play a more important role in people’s daily life in the future ?
| A．Oil and coal |
| B．Hydrogen and gas |
| C．Electricity and gas |
| D．Solar energy and wind |
The means of transport people use in 2050 do not include__________.
| A．windmills | B．electric bikes |
| C．hydrogen—fuelled cars | D．aircraft |
The passage is written to tell us in the future_____________.
| A．life will be better and better |
| B．the energy will become cleaner and cleaner |
| C．people will use some new sources of energy |
| D．people will pay more attention to the environment |
Recently, a study was carried out to determine who was the greatest American president．Sixty-five presidential historians took part in it, and they judged the past forty-two American leaders based on ten leadership qualities, including public persuasiveness(信服), crisis leadership, management of the economy, moral leadership, and conduct of international relations．The historians also looked at administrative ability (管理能力), relations with Congress, ability to set goals, and the pursuit of equal justice for all．Finally, the experts took into consideration the historical period in which the president lived．
The historians chose Abraham Lincoln as American’s greatest president．He had also been named best president in a similar study in 2000．Abraham Lincoln was the president who led the nation through the Civil War in the 1860s, and was able to unite it in the end．He also took the first steps to abolish slavery in America．
Edna Medford, a professor of history at Howard University in Washington, D.C., was an adviser on this study and the earlier one．She says Abraham Lincoln is seen to represent the values the nation most honors, such as truthfulness, moderation, and respect for human rights．
The historians put American’s first president, George Washington, second on the list, while Franklin D．Roosevelt, Theodore Roosevelt, and Harry Truman follow in that order．John F．Kennedy, the country’s first Roman Catholic president, is sixth on the list．Like Lincoln, Kennedy was murdered while in office．
Among recent presidents, Ronald Reagan was named the tenth best and Bill Clinton rated fifteenth, while the historians put former president George W．Bush at number thirty-six．His father, George H.W．Bush, did much better, being placed at number eighteen．We learn from the text that ___________．
| A．this is the second time that Abraham Lincoln has been chosen as America’s greatest president |
| B．Edna Medford didn’t take part in the study conducted in 2000． |
| C．George H.W．Bush was thought to have done worse in office than George W．Bush |
| D．Harry Truman was rated the fourth-best president by the study |
Which of the following belong to the ten leadership qualities considered?
a．Being able to persuade the public
b．Taking effective measures during a financial crisis．
c．Balancing home life and career．
d．Pursuing equal justice for all．
| A．a,b,c | B．b,c,d | C．a,b,d | D．a,c,d |
Who is rated worst among the following four presidents?
| A．John F．Kennedy | B．George Washington |
| C．Bill Clinton | D．George W．Bush |
The text is mainly about ________．
| A．the ten qualities a great president needs |
| B．a study of American presidents |
| C．the values the American nation honors most |
| D．how Abraham Lincoln improved the country |