MySpace, the social networking website, is different from other websites which only provide stories about other people. MySpace is a place that allows you to broadcast your own stories and personal information to as many people as you like. Started two years ago, it is a big source of information for and about American kids.
Teenagers and their parents feel very differently about it. Teens are rushing to join the site, not sharing their parents' worries. It signals yet another generation gap in the digital era.（數(shù)字時代）
For teenagers, it is reliable network to keep in touch with their friends. They will often list their surnames, birthdays, after­school jobs, school clubs, hobbies and other personal information.
“MySpace is an easy way to reach just about everyone. I don't have all the phone numbers of all my acquaintances （熟人）. But if I want to get in touch with one of them, I could just leave them a message on MySpace.” said Abby Van Wassen. She is a sixteen ­year­ old student at Woodland Hills High of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Parents on the other hand are seriously concerned about the security problems of MySpace.
“Every time we hold a parents meeting, the first question is always about MySpace，” said Kent Gates, who travels the country doing Internet safety seminars (研討會)．The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has received at least 288 MySpace­ related complaints, according to Mary Beth Buchanan, a lawyer in Pittsburgh.
“Your profile on MySpace shows all your personal information to anyone on the Web. And MySpace even lists this information by birthplace and age. It's like a free checklist（清單）for troublemakers and it endangers children，” Buchanan said.
小題1:From the passage we can learn that MySpace ________.

A．brings about the generation gap

B．is very careful about people's privacy

C．encourages you to list your personal information

D．lists the telephone numbers of your friends

小題2:Why are some parents against MySpace?

A．Because MySpace has a bad influence on their children.

B．Because they don't want to pay so much money for MySpace.

C．Because it takes up too much of their children's spare time.

D．Because troublemakers can easily approach their children through the site.

小題3:The writer's attitude towards MySpace is ________.

A．negative

B．positive

C．optimistic

D．objective

小題4:Which of the following can be the best title of the passage?

A．Internet safety

B．MySpace

C．Generation gap

D．The digital era

Thirty years ago not many people would have dreamed of doing the repairs and decorations in their own homes. In those days labor was fairly cheap and most people would have thought it worthwhile to employ a professional painter and decorator, unless of course they were either very hand up or were in the trade themselves.
Today, however, it is quite a different story. Men and women in all walks of life turn their hands to all sorts of jobs round the house including painting, papering, putting up shelves and wall units, and tiling walls and floors. Some people with no professional training of any kind have even successfully built their own houses. These jobs have been made easier today by the introduction of prepared materials, which require the minimum amount of skill to use. In every high street throughout Britain nowadays there is at least one “Do-It-Yourself” shop containing a vast range of timber, tiles, paints, wallpapers and floor coverings besides tools of every description including power drills and many accessories. “Do-It-Yourself” is a booming business; all these shops do a roaring trade and look like continuing to do so. Probably the main reason for the craze is the high cost of present-day labor and the shortage of building firms willing to do small jobs.
小題1:Why did people employ professional workers to decorate homes thirty years ago?

A．Because they could not do it themselves.

B．Because professional workers were very cheap.

C．Because they had no time.

D．Because professional workers could do much better.

小題2:Thirty years later what changes took place?

A．People could do everything themselves.

B．Few people chose to be a professional worker.

C．People with no professional training successfully built their own houses.

D．New expensive materials required no skills at all.

小題3:What caused the DIY craze?

A．Young people liked to follow the fashion.

B．“Do-It-Yourself” is a booming business.

C．There were fewer building companies.

D．High cost of professional workers.

小題4:What is the speaker telling us ?

A．How DIY comes into being.	B．Changes in building.
C．Changes in housing.	D．Great changes in these thirty years.

Pets are popular. They’re good listeners, they encourage us to exercise, and they’re always on our side when we argue with others. They can bring people comfort and pleasure.
But it is important to keep in mind that pets can carry diseases that can make you sick. Washing your hands often — especially after you touch, feed, or clean up a pet — is the best way to keep yourself healthy and prevent the spread of disease. Be sure to clean your fingernails carefully every time you wash.
You also can protect your health by wearing gloves while cleaning animal cages or cat litter boxes. Avoid washing your pet in the bathtub(浴缸), but if you do, always disinfect(消毒) the tub immediately afterward.
Be sure to bring your pet to the hospital for examinations every two weeks or month and whenever your pet is sick or injured.
You can do a few other things to keep yourself and your pet healthy. Only give your pet food that has been planned ahead for them. It’s not a good idea to share your food with your pet. Human food (like chocolate) can make animals sick. Never feed your pet raw(生的) meat because it can carry germs(細菌) that cause serious illness.
And funny as it can be to see your dog or cat drinking from the toilet, don’t let pets do this. It’s bad for your pet’s health! Give them clean, fresh water to drink at all times.
Never give milk to cats. The only milk an animal should drink is from its mother. Cow’s milk is not for pets, especially for cats, as it makes them sick.
Finally, some animals aren’t pets. Don’t take in a wild or abandoned(被拋棄的) animal as a pet because it may have diseases that could make you or your family sick. Instead, turn to an animal rescue group that is trained in helping sick or abandoned animals.
小題1:The first paragraph mainly tells us that pets can ______.

A．be great friends	B．bring us pleasure
C．help us keep healthy	D．do harm to us

小題2:To keep healthy, the author may be against ______.

A．washing your fingernails after touching your pet

B．wearing gloves when cleaning your pet’s cage

C．washing your pet in the bathtub

D．bringing your pet for examinations regularly

小題3:The underlined word “it” in Para.7 refers to ______.

A．the cow

B．the mother cat

C．cow’s milk

D．mother cat’s milk

小題4:Which is the RIGHT way to feed your pet?

A．Sharing your chocolate with your dog.

B．Letting your dog drink from the toilet.

C．Feeding your little cat with raw meat.

D．Giving your cat cooked fish.

小題5:According to the text, when you meet an abandoned dog, you should ______.

A．call an animal rescue group	B．bring it back to your home
C．give it first aid（急救）in time	D．help to find its owner

Fun is, in fact, a word heard far more frequently in families today than in the past, when "duty'' and "responsibility" were often the words used.
Parents today are more youthful in appearance and attitudes. Their clothes and hair-styles are more casual, helping to bridge the divide. Those who are athletically inclined also enjoy Rollerblading, snowboarding, and rock-climbing with their children.
For the past three years, Kathy and Phil Dalby have spent at least one evening a week at a climbing gym with their three children. "It's great to be able to work together," Mrs Dalby says. "We discuss various climbs and where the hard parts are. Sometimes that leads to other Conversations. We're definitely closer."
A popular movement of parent effectiveness training in the 1970s has helped to reshape generational roles. The philosophy encourages children to describe their feelings about various situations. As a result, says Robert Billingham, a family-studies professor at Indiana University, "Parents and children began talking to each other in ways they had not before."
On the plus side, he adds, these conversations made parents realize that children may have important thoughts or feelings that adults need to be aware of.
But Professor Billingham also sees a downside: Many parents started making decisions based on what their child wanted. "The power shifted to children. Parents said, 'I have to focus on making my child happy', as opposed to 'I have to act as a parent most appropriately'."
Other changes are occurring as the ranks of working mothers grow.  Time-short parents encourage children's independence, making them more responsible for themselves. "They'll say, 'We trust you to make the right decisions' (whether they're ready to assume the responsibility or not) ,"says Billingham.
The self-esteem movement of the past quarter-century has also affected the family dynamics (原動力). Some parents worry that if they tell their child no, it will hurt the child's self-esteem.
小題1:What's the trend in parent-child relationship mentioned in the passage?

A．Parents are chasing after fashion and ignoring the feelings of their children.

B．More parents and children are sharing the same enthusiasm for a certain sport.

C．Parents are taking more responsibility and setting more limits for their children.

D．The generation gap is narrowing and parents are respecting their children's thoughts more.

小題2:Which of the following has NOT contributed to the change in the parent-child relationship?

A．Younger parents.	B．Parent effectiveness training.
C．More working mothers.	D．The self-esteem movement.

小題3:What's Billingham's attitude towards parents who make children more responsible for themselves?

A．He supports them.	B．He admires them.
C．He disagrees with them.	D．He thinks they're unreasonable.

小題4:What will probably be discussed following the last paragraph?

A．The effect of more working mothers on children' s education.

B．The benefits of the new relationship between parents and children.

C．The importance of self-esteem and ways to develop children's self-esteem.

D．The risks of setting no rules and some suggestions on how to have a balanced attitude.

小題5:What's the best title for the text?

A．Parents and Children as Friends.	B．Parents and Professors as Debaters.
C．Growing Mutual Understanding.	D．Disappearing Responsibility.

A new study of 8,000 young people in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior shows that although love can make adults live healthily and happily, it is a bad thing for young people. Puppy love (早戀) may bring stress for young people and can lead to depression (憂郁癥). The study shows that girls become more depressed than boys, and younger girls are the worst of all.
The possible reason for the connection between love and higher risk of depression for girls is “l(fā)oss of self”. According to the study, even though boys would say “l(fā)ose themselves in a romantic relationship”, this “l(fā)oss of self” is much more likely to lead to depression when it happens to girls. Young girls who have romantic relationships usually like hiding their feelings and opinions. They won’t tell that to their parents.
Dr Marian Kaufman, an expert on young people problems, says 15% to 20% young people will have depression during their growing. Trying romance often causes the depression. She advises kids not to jump into romance too early. During growing up, it is important for young people to build strong friendships and a strong sense of self. She also suggests the parents should encourage their kids to keep close to their friends, attend more interesting school activities and spend enough time with family.
Parents should watch for signs of depression -- eating or mood changes -- and if they see signs from their daughters or sons, they need to give help. The good news is that the connection between romance and depression seems to become weak with age. Love will always make us feel young, but only maturity (成熟) gives us a chance to avoid its bad side effects.
小題1:What’s the main idea of the passage?

A．Puppy love may bring young people depression.

B．Parents should forbid their children’s love.

C．Romance is a two ­ edged sword for adults.

D．Romance is good for young people.

小題2:Which of the following is more likely to have depression?

A．Young people who have a strong sense of selfishness.

B．Young boys whose parents watch for their behavior.

C．Young girls who always hide their feelings and opinions.

D．Careless parents whose children are deep in love.

小題3:What can be inferred from the passage?

A．Lacking love can lead young people to grow up more quickly.

B．Early love makes young people keep close to their friends and parents.

C．Parents should help their children to be aware of the signs of depression.

D．The older a woman is，the less likely she seems to lose herself in romance.

小題4:What’s the author’s attitude towards puppy love?

A．Confused.

B．Disapproving.

C．Disinterested.

D．Scared.

Are you stuck in a rut（車轍）and looking for a change? Fed up of seeing hungry, poor faces on your TV screen and want to do something to help? Perhaps you’ve considered volunteering overseas but ruled it out because you thought you were too old, couldn’t commit enough time, or have a family. If so, think again.
“Over the past five years it has become far safer --- and more professionally acceptable --- to take up a job volunteering overseas,” says David Stitt, managing director of Gap Year for Grown Ups, a company catering for volunteers in their late 20s and upwards. “While 10 years ago intrepid souls took financial and personal risks in volunteering abroad, now several organizations exist to make the experience safe and well-organized.
Nowadays, universities and business encourage overseas volunteering among students and employees. Entire families can volunteer abroad, and agencies are employing more disabled and retired people. A prosperous “humanitarian tourism” industry has sprung up; thousands of UK citizens will do some form of overseas volunteering this year.
“Some volunteering jobs are easier to find than others,” explains Kevin Cusack, from a volunteer advice agency. “If you can speak English, it’s not too hard to land a job teaching English, even without a qualification, and those who enjoy working with children should be able to find child care work.”
Whether your interest is rainforests or women’s rights, you can find a volunteer position to suit you. But be warned: unless you have relevant skills or existing overseas development experience, it’s going to cost. Just how much depends on the location and length of the position, but you should budget for somewhere between £1,500 and £6,000.
“Having to pay to volunteer may sound paradoxical (矛盾的), but it’s the best way to ensure you get a position that benefits the local community while matching your interests and skills,” explains Cusack.  “You can also discuss the time you want to commit to a project --- many positions can fit into a holiday or even a weekend.”
小題1:The underlined words “intrepid souls” in Paragraph 2 most probably refers to ___________.

A．companies

B．volunteers

C．fighters

D．students

小題2:In Kevin Cusack’s opinion, paying to volunteer overseas ___________.

A．must be incredible and unrealistic

B．can help volunteers learn more about another culture

C．may benefit both volunteers and the community they work in

D．needs confidence, courage and determination

小題3:What can we learn from the text?

A．Disabled people can also take up a job volunteering overseas.

B．In the past no one could take up a job volunteering overseas.

C．“Humanitarian tourism” industry is in its beginning stage.

D．Taking up a job volunteering overseas needs at least £1,500.

小題4:Where can we most probably read this article?

A．In a job guidebook.

B．In a celebrity biography.

C．In a guidebook to work overseas.

D．In a report on volunteer work.

小題5:What is the writer’s attitude towards volunteer work?

A．Critical.

B．Unfavorable.

C．Supportive.

D．Disagreeable.

Cars are very popular in America. When the kids are fourteen years old, they dream of having their own ____1___. Many students take a part-time job after school to ___2___ a car. In most places ____3___ people learn to drive in high school. They have to take a ___4____ test to get a license. Learning to drive and getting a driver’s ___5___ may be one of the most exciting things in their lives. For many, that piece of paper is an important symbol(象征)that they are now grown-ups.
Americans seem to love their cars almost more than anything else. People almost never go to see a doctor when they are ____6_____. But they will take ____7____ cars to a “hospital” at the smallest sign of a problem. At weekends, people ___8___ most of the time in washing and waxing(打蠟) their cars. For some families it is not enough to have ___9___ car. They often have two or even three. Husbands need a car to go to work. Housewives need a car to go shopping or to take the children to school or ___10____ activities. 

小題1:	A．cars B．computers C．bikes D．houses

小題2:	A．borrow B．buy C．lend D．sell

小題3:	A．old B．tall C．strong D．young

小題4:	A．language B．listening C．driving D．body

小題5:	A．address B．book C．license D．name

小題6:	A．sick B．healthy C．pleased D．angry

小題7:	A．his B．her C．your D．their

小題8:	A．cost B．take C．spend D．pay

小題9:	A．no B．one C．some D．several

小題10:

A．other B．another C．one D．else

Long bus rides are like television shows. They have a beginning, a middle, and an end with commercials (商業(yè)廣告) thrown in every three or four minutes. The commercials are unavoidable. They happen whether you want them or not. Every couple of minutes a billboard glides by outside the bus window. “Buy Super Clean Toothpaste.” “Drink Good Wet Root Beer.” “Fill up with Pacific Gas. “Only when you have fallen asleep, which is equal to turning the television set off, can you get separated from the unending cry of “You Need It! Buy It Now!”
As for the ride itself, the beginning of it is comfortable and somewhat exciting, even if you’ve traveled that way before. Usually some things are keeping changing out of the windows — various houses, crop fields, attractive bridges, … and sometimes even a small accident. Your bus driver may have a unique style of driving and it’s fun trying experience it the first hour or so. If the driver is particularly reckless (魯莽的) or daring, the ride can be as thrilling (驚心動魄的) as an adventurous story. Will the driver pass the truck in time? Will the driver move into the right or the left hand lane? After a while, of course, the excitement dies down. Sleeping for a while helps pass the middle hours of the ride. Food always makes bus rides more interesting. But you’ve got to be careful of what kind of food you eat. Too much salty food can make you very thirsty between stops.
The end of the ride is somewhat like the beginning. You know the riding will soon be over and there’s a kind of expectation and excitement with that. The seat, of course, has become harder for the hours having passed. By now you may sit with your legs crossed, or with your hands in your lap, or with your hands on the arms, or even with your hands crossed behind your head. That is to say that the end comes just at no more ways to sit.
小題1:According to the passage, what do the passengers usually see when they are on a long bus trip?

A．Buses on the road.	B．Films on television.
C．Advertisements on the billboards.	D．Gas stations.

小題2:What is the purpose of this passage?

A．To give the writer’s opinion about long bus trips.

B．To persuade you to take some long bus riding.

C．To explain how bus trips and television shows differ.

D．To describe the billboards along the road.

小題3:The writer of this passage would probably prefer ______.

A．those reckless bus drivers

B．driving with no one around

C．a television set on the bus

D．no billboards along the road

小題4:The writer feels long bus rides are like TV shows because ______.

A．the commercials both on TV shows and on billboards along the road are fun

B．they both have a beginning, a middle and an end, with commercials in between

C．the drivers are always reckless on TV shows just as they are on buses

D．both traveling by bus itself and watching TV programs on bus are not exciting.

小題5:The writer thinks that the end of the ride is somewhat like the beginning because both are .

A．exciting

B．comfortable

C．tiring

D．boring

The round-the-clock availability that cell phones have brought to people’s lives may be taking a toll on family life, a new study suggests. The study, which followed more than 1300 adults over 2 years, found that those who consistently used a mobile phone through out the study period were more likely to report negative “spillover” between work and home life—and, in turn, less satisfaction with their family life.
Spillover(影響，后果) actually means that the line between work and home began to become unclear. Work life may invade home life—when a parent is taking job-related calls at home, for instance—or family issues may start to take up work time. For example, a child may call Mom at work, telling her “the microwave exploded”, explained Noelle Chesley, an assistant professor of society at the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee and the author of the study. The problem with cell phones seems to be they are allowing for ever more spillover between work and home.
This may be especially true for working women, the study found. Among men, consistent use of mobile phones seemed not to allow more work issues to creep(潛入) into family time. But for women,  the spillover tended to go in both directions—being “connected” means that work cuts into home time, and family issues come into work life.
Cell phones seem to be opening more lines for stressful exchange among family members. But there may be ways to control the spillover, according to Chesley. Employers, she said, should look at their policies on contacting employees after working hours to make sure their expectations are “reasonable”. For their part, employees can decide that cell phones go off during family time,  Chesley said.
小題1:Which of the following can replace the underlined phrase “taking a toll on” in Paragraph l?

A．Explaining

B．Protecting

C．Extending

D．Damaging

小題2:The example “the microwave exploded” in Paragraph 2 is used to              .

A．show the microwave is of poor quality

B．indicate how dependent the child is

C．indicate family issues affect work hours

D．show work time creeps into family life

小題3:What is the main idea of this passage?

A．Cell phones offer 24-hour availability.

B．Cell phones get life and work mixed.

C．Women don’t use cell phones in an effective way.

D．Men are better at dealing with family problems.

小題4:What is the author’s attitude towards round-the-clock availability of the cell phone?

A．Curious

B．Positive

C．Subjective

D．Objective

At the heart of the debate over illegal immigration lies one key question: are immigrants good or bad for the economy? The American public overwhelmingly thinks they’re bad. Yet the agreement among most economists is that immigration, both legal and illegal, provides a small net boost to the economy. Immigrants provide cheap labor, lower the prices of everything from farm produce to new homes, and leave consumers with a little more money in their pockets. So why is there such a discrepancy between the perception of immigrants’ impact on the economy and the reality?
There are a number of familiar theories. Some argue that people are anxious and feel threatened by an inflow of new workers. Others highlight the stress that undocumented immigrants place on public services, like schools, hospitals, and jails. Still others emphasize the role of race, arguing that foreigners add to the nation's fears and insecurities. There’s some truth to all these explanations, but they aren’t quite sufficient.
To get a better understanding of what’s going on, consider the way immigration’s impact is felt. Though its overall effect may be positive, its costs and benefits are distributed unevenly. David Card, an economist at UC Berkeley, notes that the ones who profit most directly from immigrants’ low-cost labor are businesses and employers —meatpacking plants in Nebraska, for instance, these producers’ savings probably translate into lower prices at the grocery store, but how many consumers make that mental connection at the checkout counter? As for the drawbacks of illegal immigration, these, too, are concentrated. Native low-skilled workers suffer most from the competition of foreign labor. According to a study by George Borjas, a Harvard economist, immigration has reduced the wages of American high-school dropouts by 9%. 
Among high-skilled, better-educated employees, however, opposition was strongest in states with both high numbers of immigrants and relatively generous social services. What worried them most, in other words, was the financial burden of immigration. That conclusion was reinforced by another finding: that their opposition appeared to soften when that financial burden decreased, as occurred with welfare reform in the 1990s, which curbed immigrants’ access to certain benefits.
The irony is that for all the overexcited debate, the net effect of immigration is minimal. Even for those most acutely affected — say, low-skilled workers, or California residents — the impact isn’t all that dramatic. “The unpleasant voices have tended to dominate our perceptions,” says Daniel Tichenor, a professor at the University of Oregon. “But when all those factors are put together and the economists calculate the numbers, it ends up being a net positive, but a small one.” Too bad most people don’t realize it. 
小題1:What can we learn from the first paragraph?

A．Whether immigrants are good or bad for the economy has been puzzling economists.

B．The American economy used to thrive on immigration but now it’s a different story.

C．The agreement among economists is that immigration should not be encouraged.

D．The general public thinks differently from most economists on the impact of immigration.

小題2:What is the chief concern of native high-skilled, better-educated employees about the inflow of immigrants?

A．It may change the existing social structure.

B．It may pose a threat to their economic status.

C．It may decrease .their financial burden.

D．It may place a great pressure on the state budget.

小題3:What is the irony about the debate over immigration?

A．Even economists can’t reach an agreement about its impact.

B．Those who are opposed to it turn out to benefit most from it.

C．People are making too big a fuss about something of small impact.

D．There is no essential difference between seemingly opposite opinions.

小題4:Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A．A debate about whether to immigrate.

B．A debate about the impact of illegal immigrants.

C．The great impact of immigrants on the economy.

D．Opposition to illegal immigration.