Rock stars and their money
Around the world young people are spending unbelievable sums of money listening to rock music. Forbes reports that at least fifty rock stars have incomes between two million and six million dollars per year.
"It doesn't make sense," says Johnny Mathis, one of the older music millionaires, who made a million dollars a year when he was popular in 1950s. "Performers aren't worth this kind of money. In fact, nobody is."
But the rock stars' admirers seem to disagree. Those who love rock music spend about two billion dollars a year for records. They pay 150 million to see rock stars in person.
Luck is a key word for explaining the success of many. In 1972 one of the luckiest was Kon Mclean, who wrote and sang "American Pie". Mclean writes his own music, so he earns an additional two cents on every single record of the song.
Neil Young who performs in torn blue jeans, sometimes sings to an audience of 10,000, each of whom has paid five dollars for a ticket. After paying expenses, Young leaves with about $ 18,000 in his blue jeans at the end of an evening.
How do the rock stars use their money? What do they do when the money starts pouring in like water? Most of the young stars simply show the money around. England's Elton John gave someone a $ 38,000 Rolls car and bought himself 5,000 pairs of eyeglasses, then lighted up and spelt ：E-L-T-O-N. He also bought himself two cars, "one for each foot".
Many rock stars live like Grace Slick and Jefferson Airplane. Those performers return from a tour, pay their bills, and buy new toys. Then when they need money again, they do another tour. They save no money and live from hand to mouth.
In the end the rock stars' life is unrewarding. After two or three years riches and fame are gone. Left with his memories and his tax problems, the lonely star spends his remaining years trying to attract strangers. New stars have arrived to take his place. This passage is mainly about .
| A．the success of a rock star | B．the way rock stars live |
| C．rich rock stars | D．the admirers of rock stars |
How much expense does Neil Young pay for a performance?
| A． $10,000 | B．$33,000 | C． $32,000 | D．$38,000 |
According to passage, the underlined phrase "from hand to mouth" means .
| A．they have to earn money by hand |
| B．They know how to spend money in a reasonable way |
| C．they earn money only for their immediate enjoyment |
| D．they steal to feed their mouth when they need money |
Many rural areas in the United States have no doctor. Some medical schools are trying different ways to treat the problem . One idea is to educate doctors in smaller communities and hope they stay. Dr. William Cathcart-Rake heads a new program at the University of Kansas in the Midwest.
“We need more doctors. There’s somewhere like a quarter of all of our physicians in Kansas who are sixty years of age or older. So we need to be replacing physicians, too.”Says Dr. William Cathcart. He also says medical students from rural areas now typically study in Wichita or Kansas City, two of the biggest cities in Kansas. They say, “You know, I really have every intention of coming back to rural Kansas,”but they meet a soul mate, they get married, their soul mate happens to be from a big city and we never see them again. They get captured in the big city. Hopefully, if we train them in smaller communities, they can meet the future spouses here , they can network here, and they have those connections which can hopefully be lifelong.
The program is based in Kansas’ tenth largest city , Salina, home to about fifty thousand people. Salina is about a three-hour drive from Kansas City, past fields of corn, soybeans and cattle.
Student Claire Hinrichsen grew up in a town of about six hundred people. She attended the University of Kansas, or KU, as an undergraduate. One reason why the chose the Salina program is because of the size. There are only eight students—the smallest medical school in the country. Classes are taught by professors in Salina or on a video link from Kansas City or Wichita.
Students who complete the four year program will then do their residency training in a small community in the surrounding area. One place a resident might work is the Clay Center Clinic, where Dr. Kerry Murphy is a family physician.
Rural doctors generally serve older, poorer patients. Going into a specialty in a big city can mean better working hours and more money to pay off student loans.
The Salina program will pay tuition for each year that students practice in a rural area in Kansas.What does the underlined word “spouses”in Paragraph 2 mean?
| A．Wives husbands. | B．Homes. | C．Families. | D．Physicians. |
The reason why the medical students don’t want to go back to rural areas is that.
| A．they don’t like to live in the rural Kansas |
| B．there are not many girls in the rural Kansas |
| C．they found their soul mates in cities |
| D．the life in rural Kansas is so hard |
From the text we learn that.
| A．Salina has a population of 500,000 |
| B．a quarter of all physicians in Kansas are too old for the ideal doctors |
| C．William Cathcart-Rake heads a new program in rural Kansas |
| D．Educating more doctors in cities can settle the problem |
Why did student Claire Hinrichsen choose the Salina program?
| A．Because she found her soul mate in rural Kanas. |
| B．Because she likes to work as a doctor. |
| C．Because she grew up in a town of 6,000 people. |
| D．Because she likes the size of the program. |
What is the purpose of the passage?
| A．To make it known that it lacks doctors very much in rural Kansas. |
| B．To introduce a program handling the lack of doctors in rural Kansas. |
| C．To train students to become doctors for rural Kansas. |
| D．To meet the demands of doctors for many rural towns in Kansas. |
India is traditionally a tea-drinking country. But, it is now gaining a new taste for coffee. This has led international coffee companies to consider opening businesses in the huge market. Local business people are also hoping to profit from the country’s tea-drinking habits. They want to open new stores that offer tea.
It is ten thirty in the morning in India. Two cafes are within meters of each other, near a college in New Delhi. And they are selling a lot of tea. Their main customers are undergraduate students.
“We have a lot of break between classes, so whenever we get time, we just go and we enjoy ourselves. It’s a lot of fun , especially when you are with people you enjoy spending time with.”
In the past ten years , cafes have become increasingly popular in India. The country’s huge young population have quickly taken to the coffee culture.
Coffee stores have spread from major cities like New Delhi and Mumbai to smaller towns. Coffee use has doubled in the last ten years . It is the success of this market that has gained the attention of companies like the American-based coffee chain Starbucks. The company will open its first store in India later this year. Other companies like Lavazza and Costa Coffee are already there.
Yet, the growth of coffee will not reduce the popularity of tea. Indians drink eight times more tea than coffee. They have been drinking tea for more than one hundred and fifty years. India is one of the world’s biggest producers of tea, which is known locally as “chai”. Outside homes and offices, it is mostly sold by small businesses on the street.Why do international coffee companies consider opening businesses in India?
| A．India consumes very little coffee. | B．India has a large population. |
| C．People in India now prefer coffee to tea. | D．Indians come to like the taste of coffee. |
Which one is correct about undergraduate students?
| A．They only have tea in the cafes. |
| B．They are the main customers in the cafes. |
| C．They like enjoying coffee with friends in cafes. |
| D．They like to go to the cafes to escape lessons. |
What can we learn about coffee in India?
| A．Coffee is consumed more than tea in India now. |
| B．Coffee is much more welcomed by young Indians than tea. |
| C．Coffee consumed today doubles that of ten years ago. |
| D．The growth of coffee will reduce the consumption. |
Which statement is wrong according to the passage?
| A．Coffee stores have spread to small towns in India. |
| B．Some foreign coffee companies are trying to open Indian coffee market. |
| C．Local people worry about losing profit on tea. |
| D．Indians drink eight times more tea than coffee. |
What is the text mainly about?
| A．Undergraduate students are main coffee consumers in India. |
| B．Indians mainly consume both tea and coffee. |
| C．India is traditionally a tea-drinking country. |
| D．India is becoming a big new coffee consuming country. |
Modern inventions have speeded up people's lives amazingly．Motor cars cover a hundred miles in lithe more than an hour，aircraft cross the world inside a day，while computers operate at lightning speed．Indeed，this love of speed seems never ending．Every year motor cars are produced which go even faster and each new computer boasts(吹嘘)of saving precious seconds in handling tasks．
All this saves time，but at a price．When we lose or gain half a day in speeding across the world in an airplane，our bodies tell us so．We get the uncomfortable feeling known as j et lag； our bodies feel that they have been left behind in another time zone．Again，spending too long at computers results in painful wrists and fingers．Mobile phones also，according to some scientists；too much use may put harmful radiation into our brains，a consequence we do not like to think about．
However，what do we do with the time we have saved? Certainly not relax，or so it seems．We are so accustomed to constant activity that we find it difficult to sit and do nothing or even just one thing at a time．Perhaps the days are long gone when we might listen quietly to a story on the radio，letting imagination take us into another world．
There was a time when some people's lives were devoted simply to the cultivation(耕耘)of the land or the care of cattle．No multi tasking there；their lives went on at a much gentler pace，and in a familiar pattern．There is much that we might envy about a way of life like this．Yet before we do so，we must think of the hard tasks our ancestors faced：they farmed with bare hands，often lived close to hunger，and had to make tools from wood and stone. Modern machinery has freed people from that primitive existence.What's the passage mainly about?(within 10 words)
List the difficulties our ancestors met according to the text．(within 15 words)
①
②
③Fill in the blank in the 2nd paragraph with proper words or phrases．
Why do we make new products more and more time-saving according to Paragraph 1 of this passage?
Translate the underlined sentence in the 3rd paragraph into Chinese．
How often do you sit still and do absolutely nothing．The usual answer these days is“never”．or“hardly ever”．As the pace of life continues to increase，we are fast losing the art of relaxation．Once you are in the habit of rushing through life，being on the go from morning till night，it is hard to slow down．But relaxation is essential for a healthy mind and body．
Stress is fl natural part of everyday life．There is no way to avoid it, since it takes many and varied forms-driving in traffic，problems with personal relationships are all different forms of stress．Stress，in fact，is not the“baddy”it is often reputed to be．A certain amount of stress is vital to provide motivation and give purpose to life．It is only when the stress gets out of control that it can lead to poor performance and ill health．
The amount of stress a person can withstand depends very much on the individual．Some people are not afraid of stress，and such characters are obviously prime material for managerial responsibilities．Others lose heart at the first sight of unusual difficulties．When exposed to stress，in whatever form，we react both chemically and physically．In fact we make a choice between “fight” or “fright” and in more primitive days the choice made the difference between life and death．The crisis we meet today are unlikely to be so extreme，but however little the stress，it involves the same response．All the energy is shifted to cope with the stress．It is when such a reaction lasts long，through continued exposure to stress，that health becomes endangered．Such serious conditions as high blood pressure and heart disease have established links with stress．
Stress in some people produces stomach disorders，while others experience tension headaches．Since we cannot remove stress from our 1ires，We need to find ways to cope with it．People are finding less and less time for relaxing themselves because.
| A．they are working harder than they used to |
| B．they are often too busy to find the time |
| C．they are not clear of how to relax by themselves |
| D．they are suffering from the effects of stress |
What is implied but not stated in the passage?
| A．The art of relaxation can greatly help people bear stress． |
| B．People in primitive days know certain ways to deal with stress． |
| C．If one gets into the habit of relaxing every day he can overcome stress easily． |
| D．Stress can lead to serious health problem if one is exposed to it for too long． |
The underlined sentence in Paragraph 2 suggests that．
| A．stress is not always a bad thing for people |
| B．stress has a bad reputation of causing ill health |
| C．stress is not so terrible as people often believe it to be |
| D．stress is always harmful to people all the time |
According to this passage，which of the following statements is true?
| A．Relaxation in life only benefits us mentally． |
| B．Different people can stand different amounts of stress. |
| C．All the stress can lead to poor performance． |
| D．Large amounts of stress is important to people's lire． |
What is the writer's attitude to stress according to the passage?
| A．Stress as well as relaxation is essential for a healthy mind and body． |
| B．Stress should not be rid completely from the life． |
| C．Stress produces both positive and negative effects on people． |
| D．People usually work better under stress if they are healthy． |
A baby born in India has been declared the world's seven billionth person by child rights group Plan International．Baby Nargis was born at 07：25 local time(01：55GMT)in Mall village in India's Uttar Pradesh state．Plan International says Nargis has been chosen symbolically as it is not possible to know where exactly the seven billionth baby is born．In addition to baby Nargis in India，Bangladesh，the Philippines and Cambodia have all identified seven billionth babies．The United Nations estimated that on Monday 31 October．the world's population would reach seven billion．
Populations are growing faster than economies in many poor countries in Africa and some in Asia．At the same time，low birth rates in Japan and many European nations have raised concerns about labor shortages．
Population experts at the United Nations estimated that the world reached six billion in October 1999．They predict nine billion by 2050 and ten billion by the end of the century． China's population of one and a third billion is currently the world's largest．India is second at 1．2 billion．But India is expected to pass China and reach one and a half billion people around 2025．
India will also have one of the world's youngest populations．Economists say this is a chance for a so-called．demographic dividend．India could gain from the skills of young people in a growing economy at a time when other countries have aging populations．But economists say current rates of growth，although high，may not create enough jobs．Also，the public education system is failing to meet demand and schooling is often of poor quality．Another concern is health care．Nearly half of India's children under the age of five are malnourished(营养不良).
Michal Rutkowski，the director of human development in South Asia at the World Bank, says reaching seven billion people in the world is a good time for a call to action．He says，“I think the bottom line of the story is that the public policy needs to become really，really serious about sex equality and about access to services—to fight against malnutrition，and to provide for access to health services，water and schooling．”What is true about the world's seven billionth person?
| A．Baby Nargis is not the only child chosen as the seven billionth baby. |
| B．Baby Nargis has been chosen carefully so it is exactly the seven billionth baby． |
| C．Three countries have all declared Baby Nargis as the seven billi011th baby. |
| D．The United Nations declared Baby Nargis as the world's seven billionth person． |
Which of the following problems do many European countries worry about?
| A．Labor shortage． | B．Poor health care． |
| C．Not enough jobs． | D．Schooling of poor quality． |
According to population experts，how long will it take for population to grow from six billion to nine billion?
| A．About 12 years． | B．About 40 years． | C．About 50 years． | D．About 110 years． |
What does the underlined phrase“demographic dividend”in the fourth paragraph refer to?
| A．Possibility of lower birth rate． |
| B．Benefit gained by working young people． |
| C．Chances for more employment． |
| D．Disadvantages caused by aging population． |
Which of the following public policies does Michal Rutkowski call on?
| A．To encourage late marriage． | B．To reduce world's population． |
| C．To gain economic equality． | D．To improve health and education． |