A new report says African governments are ill prepared to handle the growing number of people over age 65. The population in Africa as in other parts of the world, is getting older. Currently, there are 36 million people on the continent 65 years and above. which is 3.6 percent of the population. up from 3.3 percent 10 years ago. That could rise to 4.5 percent by 2030 and 10 percent by 2050. The African development Bank is raising concerns over the shortage of health insurance and pensions (养老金).
The African Development Bank says. "Aging is highly linked with long-term physical and mental disability and a number of long-term chronic (慢性的) conditions."
"Africa is not well prepared to care for its aging population right now. And it needs to prepare for this fact." said Professor Mthuli Ncube. the African Development Bank's chief economist. African nations spend far less on healthcare than developed nations do___ about $26per person per year. Not so many countries have well developed medical aid plans for the elderly, whether they are privately provided plans or indeed government plans. If you look at the pension plans, you will find the pension industries are not well developed in some of the countries.
Professor Mthuli Ncube said African governments failed to take action on health insurance
and pensions because they were busy with economic reforms.
Another challenge for Africa is the worsening of informal systems of social protection. That is cash and support from both the extended family and community sources.
. The African Development Bank recommends governments help carry out health insurance and pension plans. Ncube said African governments didn't have to handle the health insurance burden alone. "It is not only a must but also an opportunity for private companies to add their bit in this regard", he said. The report also recommends that African governments consider providing ways of free health services. medications and long-term health care facilities for the elderly.From the first paragraph we know the facts except that ____
| A．the speed of people aging is becoming quicker |
| B．Africa has the largest aging population |
| C．African governments are not well prepared to deal with the aging population |
| D．the shortage of health insurance and pensions adds to African governments' difficulty in dealing With the aging population |
Which is not highly linked with the aging according to the passage?
| A．Long-term physical disability. |
| B．Long-term mental disability. |
| C．Long-term chronic illnesses. |
| D．Long-term shortage of care and love. |
What got in the way of developing health insurance and pensions in Africa?
| A．The economic reforms. |
| B．Too many old people. |
| C．The shortage of land. |
| D．The development of the economy. |
How can the aging problem be solved in Africa according to Ncube?
| A．African governments should spend as much money on healthcare as developed countries |
| B．African people should save enough money to insure their health. |
| C．African governments should combine with private companies to finish health insurance and pension pains. |
| D．Private sources should take the main responsibility to help the elderly. |
The article is most likely to be seen____
| A．in a story book | B．in a newspaper | C．on a TV program | D．in a textbook |
Many adults in the United States can remember crying the nursery rhyme in the street "Hot cross buns!" But only a few people realize this was an early form of advertising.
Written advertisements probably began with hieroglyphics more than three thousand years ago, but only a few people could read these symbols. So merchants made signs with pictures or hung their tools over their doors to identify their businesses.
In the time of the Roman Empire, wall paintings were a popular form of advertisement. An ad for a play, or some other performance was painted on part of a building or on a wall around a city. People often advertised a house for rent or a freshwater bath in this way, too.
Today, large wall signs are still used for outdoor advertising. But outdoor advertising is only a small fraction of the total advertising. About forty per -cent of all ads are printed in daily newspapers. Radio commercials also provide this kind of information. Some people think they are the best form of advertising because radio broadcasts reach almost everyone in a nation.
Advertisements in magazines and on television reach many people, too. However, usually only large companies can advertise on a national network, because TV commercials shown across the country can cost many thousands of dollars.
Then there are ads that are almost part of daily living. If you use public transportation, you will see large printed ads, called ear cards, on buses and taxis and in trains. Ads are painted on the trucks that deliver products people are buying or selling.Which is the passage mainly discussing?
| A．Modern advertising | B．Significance of advertising |
| C．Development of advertising | D．Origin of advertising |
Which of the following is the original form of advertising?
| A．Signs with pictures | B．Wall signs |
| C．Street crying | D．Wall painting |
Which of the following can best replace the underlined word “hieroglyphics” in Paragraph 2?
| A．A signal | B．A signature | C．A symbol | D．A form |
Why did the merchants make signs with pictures or hang their tools over their doors ?
| A．To have their houses decorated. |
| B．To make their business known by public. |
| C．To enable people to learn how to read |
| D．To advertise their houses to rent |
Radio commercials are the best form of advertising because ____________.
| A．they can be heard everywhere in a country |
| B．they are cheap and fast |
| C．they are most recently developed |
| D．they can be understood by those who can neither read nor write |
Surgeons in Spain have successfully carried out the world’s first organ transplant using new stem cell technology. Some people are calling it the greatest medical breakthrough so far this century.
But what are stem cells? As we know, most cells in our bodies are designed to serve specific purposes – for example, a liver cell develops to work in the liver and cannot become a heart cell. But stem cells are different. They are very young, and in the laboratory scientists can grow them into different types of cell.
Claudia Castillo needed a new windpipe after getting a serious disease. Scientists from the University of Bristol in the UK took a donor windpipe, or trachea, from someone who had recently died. They used strong chemicals to remove the donor’s cells, leaving a tissue scaffold(组织支架). This was refilled with cells from Ms Castillo’s windpipe, and stem cells from her bone. After four days the cells had grown sufficiently for the windpipe to be transplanted into Ms Castillo.
Currently, transplant patients have to take drugs for the rest of their lives to prevent their bodies rejecting the new organs. These drugs can have bad side-effects, and do not always prevent rejection. But by using Ms Castillo’s own cells, doctors were able to trick her body into thinking the new windpipe was her own organ. Five months on, Claudia Castillo is in perfect health.
This ground-breaking procedure could be used in other transplant operations in the future. Scientists also believe stem cells might be used to treat Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, stroke, arthritis, diabetes, burns and so on.
However, stem cell research is extremely controversial. The most effective stem cells do not come from adults but from embryos created in laboratories and which are just a few days old. Many people have religious or ethical objections to growing embryos, even if they can be used to cure diseases.This transplant is considered the greatest medical breakthrough because _________.
| A．this is the first organ transplant in the whole world |
| B．the patient is in perfect health after the operation |
| C．it is the first success with new stem cell technology |
| D．the stem cells are from an embryo developed in a lab |
Stem cells are different from the other ceils in the way that __________.
| A．they are grown in the lab only |
| B．they can grow into different types of cell |
| C．they are designed for a specific purpose |
| D．they can work in the liver not in the heart |
What is the main idea of the third paragraph?
| A．How Claudia survived in the operation |
| B．How to remove the cells from the donor’s organ |
| C．Why stem cells are needed in the transplant |
| D．How the windpipe is transplanted |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Human bodies always reject transplanted organs even with their own cells |
| B．The donor’s cells had to be removed because they were unhealthy |
| C．The transplanted organ was refilled with the stem cells only |
| D．Claudia will not have to take drugs to prevent rejection. |
Which word can best describe the scientists’ attitude towards the stem cell technology?
| A．controversial | B．confident |
| C．conservative (保守的) | D．critical |
Hoffman，40，a former senior vice president of a financial company，had what she describes as “one of those extreme jobs.” “I loved working,” she says. But her career path reached a crossroad when her second child was born，and she left her job in February 2007. Hoffman is one of many people who have left the work force to take a break，but she has a position as a consultant．She has described this type of career detour(绕路) ----- which is more common for women than for men—as “off- ramping．” Typically it occurs when the balancing act of parenting and work becomes too tough．
A study by the center found that more than 90 percent of women who off-ramp want to on-ramp back into the work force eventually．But making the transition back to work is rarely easy，and it is even harder in this economic climate of layoffs and hiring freezes.
Considering some of the obstacles faced by on- rampers , a three-day program called “Greater Returns：Restarting Your Career” was held at Columbia University. The goal of the three days was to have them walk away with a big shot of confidence.
According to one school of thought, women looking to make a comeback might even have an advantage in the current economy，especially if they are looking for part-time or consultant positions that do not offer benefits. And a majority of on-rampers are women with extensive working experiences that could give them a slight advantage over less-experienced competition．
“You absolutely cannot be defensive about why you off-ramped,” Ms Hoffman says, “ defensive” would have put her into a hard situation if the Greater Returns program had had not taught her how to describe the years she spent at home．“I now feel confident talking to an employer and saying，‘ Yes，I have been out of the work force，but here is where I can make significant contributions.’”What is the best title for the passage?
| A．Off ramp：it is common |
| B．On ramp：it is easy |
| C．Off ramp or on ramp：it depends on confidence |
| D．Off ramp to on ramp：it can be a hard Journey |
According to the passage，Greater Returns___________．
| A．is intended to relieve the pressure of the jobless women |
| B．has all the jobless women restart their career |
| C．will build up the confidence of those in search of jobs |
| D．is to last a11 the year around for the jobless women |
The main reason for the women’s off-ramping is that_________．
| A．they have to suffer the sexual discrimination |
| B．they have to parent their children |
| C．they reach a crossroad of career |
| D．they have great work pressure |
From what Ms．Hoffman says in the last paragraph，we can conclude________ .
| A．she didn’t get advice from the Greater Returns program |
| B．she was defensive about her off-ramping |
| C．she didn’t get the job because she lied about her experience |
| D．she is off ramp partly due to her straightforward manner |
Which job is easier to get for a woman off-ramper?
| A．Regular workers. | B．Casual workers. |
| C．Company managers. | D．Bank clerks. |
Do you know what your child is going to do when the school bell rings at the end of the day? More than 14 million students leave school every afternoon and have nowhere to go, since they do not have access to affordable after-school opportunities. According to the National Youth Violence Prevention Resource Center (NYVPRC), nine out of ten Americans think all youths should have access to after-school programs, but two-thirds of parents say they have trouble finding programs locally. The bad news is that situation may be getting worse.
After-school hours are the peak time for juvenile crimes and risky behaviors, including alcohol and drug use. The NYVPRC states that children who do not spend any time in after-school activities are 49 percent more likely to use drugs and 37 percent more likely to become a teen parent. Kids are also at the highest risk of becoming a victim of violence after school, particularly between the hours of 2p.m. and 6p.m.. The highest amount of juvenile crime occurs between 3p.m. and 4p.m. , when most children are dismissed from school.
The NYVPRC defines after-school programs as safe and structured activities that offer children opportunities to learn new skills. The skills students learn can range from technology and math to reading and art. Some programs also offer opportunities for internship(实习), community services , or mentoring. These programs have been shown to improve academic achievements, as well as relieve the stresses on working families. A report by the U.S. Department of Education and the U.S. Department of justice shows that students in after –school programs have fewer behavioral problems and more self-confidence , and can handle conflicts better than students who are not involved with these programs. In addition, according to the Harvard Family Research Project, after-school programs help students from low-income families overcome the inequities (不公平) they face in the school system. What is the theme of the passage?
| A．Prevention of juvenile crimes. |
| B．Risks kids face after school. |
| C．A research report on the stresses of students. |
| D．The benefits of after-school programs. |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the first paragraph?
| A．Most parents don’t believe in after-school programs. |
| B．Students are not willing to attend after-school programs. |
| C．It’s difficult for parents to find after-school programs for their children. |
| D．Parents don’t care about where their children go after school. |
We learn from the second paragraph that __________________ .
| A．the teachers should watch over kids after school |
| B．children are dismissed from school too late |
| C．after-school hours are a risky time for children |
| D．children should go home immediately school is over |
The author of the passage probably __________.
| A．fully support after-school programs |
| B．doubts the effects of after-school programs |
| C．believes structured activities are useless for children |
| D．thinks students today are too stressed |
The underlined word “juvenile” in Paragraph 2 has a similar meaning to “_____” .
| A．student | B．teenager | C．adult | D．campus |
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
When we think about happiness, we usually think of something extraordinary, a pinnacle (顶点) of sheer (纯粹的) delight. And those pinnacles seem to get rarer the older we get.
1 I remember playing police and robbers in the woods, getting a speaking part in the school play. Of course, kids also experience lows, but their delight at such peaks of pleasure as winning a race or getting a new bike is unreserved.
For teenagers, or people under 20 the concept of happiness changes. 2 I can still feel the pain of not being invited to a party that almost everyone else was going to. I also remember the great happiness of being invited at another event to dance with a very handsome young man.
In adulthood the things that bring great joy—birth, love, marriage—also bring responsibility and the risk of loss. 3 For adults, happiness is complex.
4 But I think a better definition of happiness is “ the ability to enjoy something”. The more we can enjoy what we have, the happier we are. It's easy to overlook the pleasure we get from loving and being loved, the company of friends, the freedom to live where we please, even good health.
While happiness may be more complex for us, the solution is the same as ever. Happiness isn't about what happens to us; it’s the ability to find a positive for every negative, and view a difficulty as a challenge. 5
| A．Love may not last; loved ones die. |
| B．For a child, happiness has a magic quality. |
| C．Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life. |
| D．Being happy doesn’t mean that everything is perfect. |
E. The dictionary defines “happy” as “lucky” or “ fortunate”.
F. It's not wishing for what we don't have, but enjoying what we do possess.
G. Suddenly it’s conditional on such things as excitement, love, and popularity.