The high cost of living in Sydney causes city parents to worry more about their children.
New research by the Financial Services Council (FSC)shows that 75% of metropolitan mums and dads say their ability to earn is important to the well-being of their kids, Tet a greater proportion(比例)of Sydney parents think children suffer emotionally by having two full-time working parents .AS a result 46%of Sydneysiders feel their Kids could be happier , against 38%of both Melbourne and regional New South Wales mums and dads.
The FSC research ,which interviewed 1200 parents across the country ,also shows 66% of Sydneysiders believe the happiness of their children would be greatly affected if they or their partner couldn’t work.
The FSC undertook the survey as part of its Lifewise campaign ,to encourage Australians to protect themselves against financial hardship.
Chairman of the Lifewise campaign John Crosswell said：“The research findings quite clearly highlight that Sydney parents prioritise (优先考虑)their ability to earn money and yet because they are so busy doing so, it seems that their ability to spend time with their family is affected .Sydney parents are dedicated to earning money but as a consequence, perhaps they don’t have the time to enjoy spending it with their family.”
In sydney ,the top factor for creating an ideal childhood is financial security ,at 92%.Fewer parents rate having a tigh-knit family(89%)or living near friends and family (85%)as important.
David and Ari Dearnley ,of North Manly ,said money pressure was hard to avoid in Sydney ,They both work and said family finances would be severely hard if one of them couldn’t
But only Mrs Dearnly has income-protection insurance, “I think that I don’t really need it yet”,Mr Dearnly ,37, said.
“I think he’s mad”,Mrs Dearnly ,also 27 ,said,“If David couldn’t work it would have a huge impact on our lifestyle.”
“Looks like I’ll be getting it tomorrow,”Mr Dearnly responded.What is the main idea of the passage?
| A．The findings of a study on how Sydney people go through financial hardship with their family |
| B．A survey on the factors that may have influences on Sydney children’s happy childhood |
| C．a survey on the relations between children’s happiness and their parents’ability to earn in Sydney |
| D．A comparison between Sydney people and those of other cities on their views about earning money |
From the passage we can infer that
| A．Three quarters of Sydney parents think children may have emotional problems |
| B．less than half of Sydney parents think their children now are not as happy as they expect |
| C．Most Sydney parents think family finances are the only factor that impact children’s childhood |
| D．A bout two thirds of Sydney parents think children would be happier if they could‘t work |
What does Lifewise campaign aim to?
| A．Encouraging Australian people avoid the harm of financial problems |
| B．Helping Sydney parents find a suitable job? |
| C．Making Australian people improve their ability to earn |
| D．A ttracting Sydney people to buy insurance |
According to John Crosswell, we can learn that
| A．Income-protection insurance has an impact on the lifestyle of a Sydney family |
| B．If moe of the parents couldn’t work their family finances will be clearly affected |
| C．Sydney parents are in a dilemma of devoting to work and enjoying family life |
| D．Sydney parents now can make a balance between their work and family life |
What does “it ”underlined in the last paragraph refer to?
| A．Work | B．Insurance | C．Income | D．Pressure |
B
ritain’s oldest man made his first visit to London yesterday at the age of 101. Mr. John Evans had never found the 
time or money to make the trip from his home in Forest Fach, near Swansea. But, when British Rail offered him an all – expenses – paid birthday treat to the capital he just could not refuse.
He arrived at Paddington Station and smartly turned out in his best suit, favorite Panama hat and a red rose in his buttonhole. “It’s very exciting. There’s no doubt about it,” he said.
Until yesterday he had never been far from home, except for one trip to Aberdeen. “But I’ve been on the seas to that faraway land called Ilfracombe 21 miles from home,” he joked.
Mr. Evans, who spent 60 years working as a miner in South Wales, almost made the journey to London once before, at the turn of the century. “There was a trip to the White City but it was ten shillings return from Swansea – too much I thought. All my money went to the family then,” he said.
During the next two days Mr. Evans will be taken on a short tour of London to see the sights. Top of his list is a visit to the House of Parliament organized by his MP, Mr. Gareth Wardell.
The only arrangement he does not care for is the wheelchair provided for him if he gets tired. “I don’t like the chair – people will think I am getting old,” he said. His secret for a long and healthy life has been well publicized – no wine, no tobacco and no anger.
Before setting off from Swansea with his 76 – year – old son, A
mwell, he said jokingly, “I’m glad to see they’ve given me a return ticket.”. The very reason that Mr. Evans didn’t go to see the world is that_______.
| A．he had already been on the seas to Ilfracombe |
| B．he was too busy to go too far away from home |
| C．he couldn’t afford both the time and the money |
| D．he believed “East or west, home is the best” |
. Mr. Evans didn’t like the wheelchair simply because_______.
| A．he was not used to traveling in it |
| B．the wheelchair was of poor quality and not easy to operate |
| C．he actually preferred walking to sitting in it at home |
| D．he thought he was still young enough to manage the trip |
. Which of the following is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．Mr. Evans had to work hard to raise his family when young. |
| B．The trip to London excited Mr. Evans very much. |
C．Mr. Evans could not really enj oy the trip because of his age. |
| D．Humor was one of Mr. Evans’ characters. |
. The probable explanation to Mr. Evans’ long life lies in_______.
| A．his good living habits | B．his hard working for the family |
| C．his sticking to his hometown | D．his living conditions near the Swansea |
Sublet.com is not just for sublets (转租，分租) and
subleases（转租入，转租出）! If you are searching for a place to live or just need temporary rental housing, you will find the rental you need at Sublet.com. Sublet.com is a full service rental website where landlords(房东), tenants(房客) and roommates come together to rent apartments, houses and rooms.
At sublet.com tenants can search and find every type of rental housing. Sublet.com landlords rent and sublet apartments, houses, townhouses, rooms, hotels, Bed and Breakfasts, mobile homes, vacation rentals and dormitory rooms. 
Sublet.com rentals and sublets meet every demand: pet friendly rentals and subleases, furnished or unfurnished rentals, short term or long term rentals, roommates, rentals and sublets for tenants with bad credit and obviously rentals for tenants with good credit. At Sublet.com tenants can search for rentals in many different ways. Search rentals by location neighborhood, by zip code(区号), by specific rental needs like doorman, pets, high speed internet, no smokers and more.
If you are a landlord and you have an apartment, house, townhouse or room to rent, post it for free at Sublet.com. Post your apartment or house for a 1 year lease, for a one week rental or even for a 1 day rental. Whatever your rental goals are, sublet.com will help by sending quality rental leads(线索). Sublet.com also offers landlords a complete tenant screening service. At Sublet.com you can conveniently run credit reports, employment reports, criminal background checks to evaluate the quality of a tenant..
Sublet.com does not share personal information. Even email addresses are not accessible to landlords or tenants. Sublet.com does not save credit card information. Sublet.com posts a TRUSTED logo(专用标识) for landlords that have been screened and checked. And tenant reviews of landlords are posted with each listing to express the quality of a rental or a landlord. Since all landlords with tenant complaints are blocked, the length of time a landlord has been posting is shown to indicate the quality of the landlord. At Sublet.com, _________.
| A．tenants with bad credit can not find their rentals |
B．tenants can not find the rentals which provide Bed and  Breakfasts |
| C．landlords can post a flat or a room to rent without paying any money |
| D．landlords and tenants are informed of each other’s email addresses |
This passage is probably_________.
| A．an ad for a housing rental website | B．a guide for people to rent houses |
| C．a direction of making rental deals | D．a collection of rental information |
People can do all the following at Sublet.com EXCEPT_________.
| A．buy a well-furnished apartment |
| B．find a place to stay with their pets |
| C．evaluate the quality of a tenant |
| D．post their apartment or house for a short term or long term rental |
The purpose of the last paragraph is probably to_________.
A．attract  more tenants |
| B．prove that sublet.com is the best |
| C．refuse people with bad credit |
| D．convince landlords and tenants of their privacy and security |
With fears of a possible nuclear meltdown(核反应堆堆芯的熔毁) in Japan building up, evidence has come to light that the nation received warnings over the stability of its power plants from an international watchdog more than two years ago.
As the Telegraph is reporting, an official from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in Decem
ber 2008 that safety rules were out of date, and strong earthquakes would cause a “serious problem” for the power stations.
A U.S. embassy document, by quoting（引用）an unnamed expert, states: “He (the IAEA official) explained that safety guides for earthquakes have only been updated three times in the last 35 years and that the IAEA is now re-examining them. Also, the presenter noted recent earthquakes in some cases have gone beyond the design basis for some nuclear plants, and that this is a serious problem that is now driving earthquake safety work.”
The Telegraph also reports that the government responded to the warnings by building an emergency response center at the Fukushima Daiichi plant designed to resist magnitude-7.0 earthquakes. Friday's earthquake, originally named a magnitude-8.9 shock, has since been upgraded to magnitude-9.0.
Other nuclear experts state IAEA officials had willingly ignored lessons from the Chernobyl disaster to protect the nuclear industry's expansion, reports Bloomberg. “After Chernobyl, all the force of the nuclear industry was directed to hide this event, for not creating damage to their reputation,”Russian nuclear accident specialist Iouli Andreyev tells Reuters, before noting that radiation from spent fuel rods（棒）stored close to reactors at Fukushima looked like an example of putting profit before safety. “The Japanese were very greedy, and they used every square inch of the space. But when you have a dense(密集的) placing of spent fuel in the basin, you have a high possibility of fire if the water is removed from the basin.” From the passage, we know that ____________.
| A．people fear that the nuclear meltdown will possibly become more and more serious in Japan |
B．people are becoming more and more afraid of a possible nuclear meltdown in Japan |
| C．Japan made no response to the warnings over the safety of its power plants |
| D．Iouli Andreyev warned Japan not to store spent fuel rods close to reactors |
Which of the following is true according to the passage?
| A．Japan was warned of the stability of its power plants when they were built over 2 years ago. |
| B．Safety guides for earthquakes should be updated three times in 35 years. |
| C．The emergency response centre at the Fukushima Daiichi plant can not resist Friday’s earthquake. |
| D．IAEA officials advised Japan to ignore lessons from the Chernobyl disaster. |
IAEA officials were willing to ignore lessons from the Chernobyl disaster because they want ________.
| A．to put profit before safety. | B．the nuclear industry to develop |
| C．to protect the reputation of Japan | D．every inch of land to be made good use of |
The writer develops this passage mainly by__________.
| A．making comments | B．providing facts |
| C．quoting what experts say | D．analysing what happened |
As the world prepares to mark the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day on March 8, a new report details the progress and challenges girls face in getting an education.
The report – from the Education for All Fast Track Initiative – highlights the importance of girls’ education for economic(经济的) and social development. It follows progress in Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Guinea, Mauritania, Mozambique and Niger.
Prema Clarke, author of Fast-tracking Girls’ Education, says, “Progress for girls’ education is that they can leave their homes, leave their families and come to a place to study and to learn. And that’s a big achievement because otherwise these girls have to stay at home, looking after their brothers and sisters, doing the cooking or doing the cleaning.”
She says progress toward the Millennium Development Goals and those of Education for All “is allowing and enabling girls and forcing countries to look at this issue(问题) and to ensure that interventions (干预) help girls attend school.”
Benefits
Improving education for girls brings many benefits, says Clarke. “It means that girls can then enter the workforce. They can look after their own families much more effectively. They can prevent child death rate. They can educate their own girl children when they begin to expand their own families.” Studies show that having an educated female population helps to improve a country’s health and economic well-being.
Warnings
The report says, “In developing countries, too many girls are not in school, and many girls face continuing health risks and danger just walking to class.”
“Especially in the fragile and post-conflict countries and in many of the African countries, this is a real issue,” she says. Till now, the interventions have been so focused on providing schooling and providing teachers, etc. And now I think there is much more expanded focus on looking at specific（特定的）communities of girls within at-risk groups that now need much more specific attention and much more creative solutions(解决方法) to help them attend school.”The underlined word “highlights” in Paragraph 2 probably means ________.
| A．shows | B．stresses | C．remarks | D．improves |
According to Clarke, improving education can pro
vide girls with all the opportunities EXCEPT _______.
| A．to educate their own girl children | B．to prevent child death rate |
| C．to enter the workforce | D．to study abroad |
This passage is intended to _____.
| A．promote the progress in girls’ education |
| B．talk about the benefits of improving girls’ education |
| C．give some information about the education girls are facing |
D．sing high praise for th e girls’ education |
It can be inferred from the passage that _______.
| A．the girls’ educational situation in developing countries is still serious |
| B．girls were free to go wherever they wanted to in the past |
| C．there are enough teachers in most of the African countries |
| D．International Women’s Day was first celebrated on March 8 in 1900 |
TOEFL stands for Test of English as a Foreign Language, which assesses the proficiency (熟练) of English language of a person in an academic setting. Various institutions, scholarship programs require this test as a trusted and effective indicator of a person’s ability to communicate in English.
TOEFL is available in CBT----Computer-based Technology, PBT----Paper-based Technology and IBT----Internet-based Test formats（形式）to assess the proficiency of English Language. IBT TOEFL is a four-hour test comprising sections: Reading, Listening, Speaking and Writing. In areas where internet-based test is not available, a paper-based test (PBT) is given. PBT is a three-hour test comprising four sections: Listening, Structure and Written Expression, Reading Comprehension and Writing.
Taking TOEFL test opens many doors to get admission in foreign u
niversities. More than 7500 colleges, universities and agencies in more than 130 countries rely on TOEFL test scores to check proficiency for English Language. It is very convenient to take this test and it is available in 165 countries world wide.
It measures your academic skills that whether you are ready to study or train at under graduate or post graduate level in foreign universities or not. In the test candidates are provided with a passage from text books and questions based on lectures, and you can be asked to speak or write in response related to that passage.
As the test is made up of 100 % academic questions, so many universities consider it the most effective test, while taking any admission. To take TOEFL test you should:
-----Improve your writing 
skills;
-----Improve your vocabulary;
-----Practice other reading passages on the TOEFL Test;
-----Be familiar with the format of the test;
-----Practice for listening test on the TOEFL test.
To take admission in World’s famous Harvard University, the minimum TOEFL score required is 587 on the paper-based test, 240 on the computer-based test, or 94-95 on the internet-based TOEFL.The underlined word “comprising” in Paragraph 2 probably means ________.
| A．including | B．forming | C．combining | D．explaining |
Which section is Not included in IBT TOEFL?
| A．Reading. | B．Writing. |
| C．Speaking. | D．Structure and Written Expression. |
According to the passage, many students are required to take TOEFL test probably because the test can________.
| A．improve their academic skills |
| B．indicate their proficiency of English language |
| C．provide scholarship programs in many countries |
| D．decide your graduation from foreign universities |
What would be the best title for the passage?
| A．Advantages of TOEFL test | B．Introduction to TOEFL test |
| C．Preparations for TOEFL test | D．Assessment of TOEFL test |