Motherhood is a career to respect

　　A WOMAN renewing her driver’s license at the CountyClerk’s office was asked to state her occupation. She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself.

　　“What I mean is,” explained the recorder, “do you have a job, or are you just a...”

　　“Of course I have a job,” said Emily. “I’m a mother.”

　　“We don’t list ‘mother’ as an occupation... ‘housewife’ covers it,” said the recorder.

　　One day I found myself in the same situation. The Clerk was obviously a career woman, confident and possessed of a high sounding title. “What is your occupation?” she asked.

　　The words simply popped out. “I’m a Research Associate (研究員) in the field of Child Development and Human Relations.”

　　The clerk paused, ballpoint pen frozen in midair.

　　I repeated the title slowly, then I stared with wonder as my pronouncement (聲明) was written in bold, black ink on the official questionnaire.

　　“Might I ask,” said the clerk with interest, “just what you do in your field?”

　　Coolly, without any trace of panic in my voice, I heard myself reply, “I have a continuing program of research (what mother doesn’t), in the laboratory and in the field (normally I would have said indoors and out). Of course, the job is one of the most demanding in the humanities (any mother care to disagree?), and I often work 14 hours a day (24 is more like it). But the job is more challenging than most careers and the rewards are more of a satisfaction rather than just money.”

　　There was an increasing note of respect in the clerk’s voice as she completed the form, stood up, and showed me out.

　　As I drove into our driveway, buoyed up (激勵(lì)) by my glamorous new career, I was greeted by my lab assistants – ages 13, 7, and 3.

　　Upstairs I could hear our new experimental model (a 6-month-old baby), in the child-development program, testing out a new vocal pattern.

　　I felt proud! I had gone on the official records as someone more distinguished and indispensable (不可缺少的) to mankind than “just another mother.”

　　Motherhood... What a glorious career! Especially when there’s a title on the door.

How did the female clerk feel at first when the writer told her occupation?

　　A. Cold-hearted.　　　　B. Open-minded.

　　C. Puzzled. 　　　　　　D. Interested.

How many children does the writer have?

　　A. 3　　　 B. 4 　　　C. 7　　　 D. 13

Why did the woman clerk show more respect to the writer?

　　A. Because she thought the writer did admirable work.

　　B. Because the writer cared little about rewards.

　　C. Because the writer did something that she had little knowledge of.

　　D. Because she admired the writer's research work.

What is the point of the article?

　　A. To show that how you describe your job affects your feelings toward it.

　　B. To show that the writer had a grander job than Emily.

　　C. To argue that motherhood is a worthy career.

　　D. To show that being a mother is hard and boring work.

If you still know little about the “IMF”, it’s time you started to read about it, for it has been a hot issue of the whole world．

The International Monetary Fund （IMF） is one of the international financial（金融的） institutions, which works for global growth and economic stability．It provides policy advice and financing to members in economic difficulties and also works with developing nations to help them achieve economic stability and reduce poverty．The“ IMF” currently has a near-global membership of 185 countries．

To become a member, a country must apply for it and then be accepted by a majority of the existing members．On joining, each member of the IMF is assigned a quota（配額）, based broadly on its relative size in the world economy．The IMF’s membership agreed in May 2008 on a rebalancing of its quota system to reflect the changing global economic realities, especially the increased weight of major emerging markets （新興市場(chǎng)） in the global economy, such as China, India and Russia．

The following diagram gives more information about major international financial institutions．

The main cause of the IMF’s decision to make changes in its quota system is ______．

       A．the shortage of resources              B．global growth and economic stability

       C．the changing economic situations        D．the need to accept new members

The main purpose of the IMF is to ______．

       A．prevent the member countries from getting into wars

       B．collect money from rich countries to help poor ones

       C．provide assistance to its member countries when necessary

       D．make sure the world economy develops in a healthy way

Which of the following is true according to the passage?

       A．The quota an IMF member country gets depends on the size of the country．

       B．India together with China is proposing an increase in emergency funds．

       C．The more money a member contributes to the IMF, the more say it has in it．

       D．The International Development Association is meant to support developed countries．

From the diagram we can see the present IMF is most probably under the control of _______．

       A．the US     B．Russia      C．Japan       D．a(chǎn)ny EU member state

It’s necessary to be prepared for a job interview．___ the answers ready will be of great help．    

       A．To have had    B．Having had     C．Have    D．Having 

John has got a bad fever these days, and he says he doesn’t want to see a doctor, but I’m afraid he has no _____.

A. extra                        B. alternative                C. treatment                  D. possibility

We saw _____farms which were built more than a hundred years ago.

A. abandoned           B. abandon          C. abandoning       D. to abandon

Zhengzhou University has move to a new site in the western suburbs,      its original one.

   A. large than ten times          B. more than ten times the size of

C. almost as large as ten times          D. ten times the size of

During the scientific experiment, Mr. Chen carefully poured the water into the tube, with my classmates ____ beside to see what would happen.

A. were standing    B. stood                C. standing                  D. to stand

閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的A、B、C和D項(xiàng)中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在答題卡上將該項(xiàng)涂黑。

Michael, a typical American, stays home on workdays. He plugs into his personal computer terminal in order to connect with the office. After work, he puts on his headphones, watches a movie on his home video recorder, or plays baseball on the computer. On many days, Michael doesn’t talk to any other human beings, and he doesn’t see any people except the ones on television. Michael is imaginary, but his life style is very possible. The inventions of modern technology seem to be cutting us off from contact with our fellow human beings.

The world of business is one area in which technology is isolating us. Experts say, for example, that many people will soon be able to work at home. With access to a large central computer, employees such as office clerks, insurance agents, and accountants could do their jobs at display terminals in their own homes. They would never have to actually see the people they’re dealing with. In addition, the way employees are paid will change. Workers’ salaries will be automatically paid into their

bank accounts, making paper checks unnecessary. No workers will stand in line to receive their pay or cash their check. Personal banking will change, too. Customers will deal with machines to put in or take out money from their accounts. Another area that technology is changing is entertainment. Music, for instance, was once a group experience. People listened to music at concert halls or in small social gatherings. For many people now, however, music is an individual experience. Walking along the street or sitting in their living rooms, they wear headphones to build a wall of music around them. Movie entertainment is changing, too. Movies used to be social events. Now fewer people are going out to see a movie. Many more are choosing to wait for a film to appear on television or are borrowing videotapes to watch at home. Instead of laughing with others, viewers watch movies in their own living rooms.

After work, Michael likes to ________.

   A. listen to music at the concert hall    

B. watch a movie in his living room

   C. run a program on his computer in his office

   D. play baseball with his workmates

Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

   A. Clerks will be able to work at home.   

   B. One can play baseball on the computer.

   C. One can listen to music without disturbing others.

   D. One can borrow books from libraries at home.

The sentence “Michael is imaginary, but his lifestyle is very possible” means ________.

   A. Michael is a person full of imagination and he can make his dreams come true

   B. Michael is not a real person but the lifestyle does exist

   C. Michael has ambitions but he can’t make his dreams come true

   D. Michael is a person full of imagination and his lifestyle is common nowadays

What will the author most probably discuss after the last paragraph?

   A. Games and sports.                     B. Personal banking.

   C. Music and films.                      D. International business.

People do not analyze every problem they meet. Sometimes they try to remember a solution, from the last time they had a    36   problem. They often accept the opinions or ideas of other people. Other times they begin to act without   37  , they try to find a solution by trial or error.   38   , when all of these methods    39  , the person with a problem has to start analyzing. There are six   40   in analyzing a problem.

   41   the person must recognize that this is a problem. For example, Sam's bicycle is broken, and he cannot ride it to class as he usually does. Sam must    42   that there is a problem with the bicycle.

Next, the person must find the problem.  Before Sam can repair his bicycle, he must know why it does not work.  For example, he must   43   the parts that are wrong.

Now the person must look for    44    that will make the problem clearer and lead to   45   solutions.  For example, suppose Sam decides that his bicycle does not work because there is something wrong with the brakes.   46   , he can look in his bicycle repair book and read about brakes, talk to his friends at the bike shop, or look at his brakes carefully.

After   47   the problem, the person should have   48   suggestions for a possible solution.  Take Sam as an example    49   , his suggestions might be: tighten or loosen the brakes ; buy new brakes and change old ones.

In the end, one    50    seems to be the solution to the problem. Sometimes the   51   idea comes quite   52   because the thinker suddenly sees something new or sees something in a different way. Sam, for example, suddenly sees there is a piece of chewing gum (口香糖) stuck to a brake. He    53    hits on the solution to his problem: he must  

  54   the brake.

Finally the solution is   55    Sam does it and finds his bicycle work perfectly. In short, he has solved the problem.

A. serious              B. usual                  C. similar          D. common

A. considering          B. thinking                C. supposing        D. reflecting

A. Besides             B. Instead                 C. Otherwise        D. However

A. fail                B. work                  C. change          D. develop

A. ways               B. conditions               C. stages           D. orders

A. First               B. Usually                C. In general     D. Most importantly

A. explain                    B. prove                  C. show           D. see

A. check              B. determine               C. correct          D. recover

A. answers             B. skills                  C. explanation       D. information

A. possible              B. exact                  C. real            D. special

A. In other words                                        B. Once in a while      

C. First of all                                     D. At this time

A. discussing            B. settling down          C. comparing with        D. studying

A. extra                B. enough                 C. several          D. countless

A. secondly             B. again                  C. also            D. alone

A. suggestion            B. conclusion                   C. decision         D. discovery

A. next                 B. clear                   C. final           D. new

A. unexpectedly        B. late                  C. clearly          D. often

A. fortunately            B. easily                  C. clearly          D. immediately

A. clean                B. separate                 C. loosen          D. remove

A. recorded             B. completed               C. tested           D. accepted

Many businesses today use conferences as a means of discussing new plans for company. As people are paying more attention to the environment and green problems, more businesses are looking for ways to reduce their negative effect on the environment. Many businesses do this by using web conferencing.

     Web conferencing is a technology that allows people to communicate more effectively over the Internet. It is an easy way of hosting and attending conferences without having to leave the office. Each of the people involved in a web conference will be posted an invitation to the conference with the time and date of the web conference on it. When the conference is ready to begin, all participants (參與者) must sit at their computer and they will be connected over the Internet.

Obviously, in doing this no fuel is used in traveling to and from a conference, and less work time is taken up in attending a conference.

Any material to be used during the web conference is simply e-mailed to all the participants before the conference. This not only saves paper but also greatly reduces mailing cost for the business.

As a conference hall or business center isn’t being used, it means that the only power that is used is the power used by the participants’ personal computers. Similarly conference organizers don’t have to arrange for food or overnight accommodation (住宿) for participants. All this means that less energy is used.

Many companies actively do many things to reduce their negative impact (影響) on the environment. So web conferencing is much cheaper and greener and more people are willing to host and attend a web conference.

What is the passage mainly about?

A. Ways of protecting the environment.

B. Green benefits of web conference.

C. Ways of hosting a web conference.

D. Impacts of web conferencing on costs.

According to paragraph 1, many companies use web conferencing because they________.

A. are interested in using any new technology

B. believe that web conferencing is more convenient

C. want to do something to protect the environment

D. haven’t enough money to hold a traditional conference

Web conferencing has all of the following advantages EXCEPT _________.

A. saving time                B. promoting understanding

C. saving energy              D. saving paper

The participants of a web conference_________.

A. will be e-mailed an invitation before the conference

B. are required to sit in the office together

C. will receive many paper materials

D. must have access to the Internet