Television will turn 86 years old on September 7, 2013, and it has never looked better. In its youth, television was a piece of furniture with a tiny, round screen showing unclear pictures of  low­budget programs. In spite of its shortcomings, it became well-received. Between 1950 and 1963, the number of American families with a television jumped from 9% to 92% of the population.
As the audience got larger, the technology got better. Television sets became more reliable through the 1960s. Both of the reception and the picture improved. The major networks started broadcasting programs in color.
Even greater improvements were coming according to Sanford Brown, who wrote an article for the Post in 1967. Surprisingly, just about every prediction he made in the article became a reality. For example: All sets in the not­distant future will be color instruments. He also predicted that TV sets would become smaller, simpler, more reliable and less expensive and may forever put the TV repairman out of work. Smaller sets do not, of course, mean smaller screens. TV engineers expect screens to get much bigger. However, today's 3­D TV is even farther away, if it's coming at all.  There is some doubt whether the public would be eager to pay for it, in view of people's cold reception given to 3­D movies.
But the technology with the greatest potential, according to Brown, was cable television (有線電視), which was still in its early stages then. As he predicted, the future of cable television was highly interactive. It wasn't cable television that gave Americans their electronic connection to the world, however. It was the Internet.  He even foresaw the future office: using picture phones, big­screen televisions for conferences, and computers providing information, at the touch of a button.
Brown ever said, “The future of television is no longer a question of what we can invent. It's a question of what we want.”
【小題1】What can we infer about television sets in the 1960s?

A．They were very popular with Americans.

B．Their appearance remained unchangeable.

C．They showed black­and­white pictures.

D．Their pictures were of poor quality.

【小題2】Which of the followings did Sanford Brown fail to predict?

A．Television's good quality.

B．The invention of 3­D TV.

C．The more functions of TV.

D．The potential of cable TV.

【小題3】From the passage we know _________.

A．TV will certainly take the place of computers

B．There won’t be further improvement on TV

C．TV repairmen will be out of work in the future

D．3­D movies don’t appeal to people very much

【小題4】What is the text mainly about?

A．The shortcomings of television.

B．The advantages of television.

C．The development of television.

D．The invention of television.

When first entered, Vanak Restaurant does not look like much of a restaurant, but once the pleasant smells of kabob(烤羊肉串）hit the senses, you are incapable of calling it anything less.
Owned by a local couple, this Persian restaurant has an inviting, homelike atmosphere that many restaurants lack.
The space is small with only a few dining tables and nearly no decoration, but the environment is truly charming.
Lying in a hardly noticeable street corner, the restaurant still attracts all customers especially those experienced in the delights of Middle Easterner cooking.
A common sight is that of old Persian men sitting in the corner talking loudly about world topics, watching news events on TV, drinking a black tea known as Persian chai, and reading local Persian newspapers all the while trying to finish off their plate piled with food.
The variety of food at the restaurant is limited, but the amount of each dish is fairly large. Most of the meals can serve two people and are under $10, so not only is it affordable but practical as well.
The food especially appeals to health-conscious eaters because each dish is very healthy, made with limited fat and oil and served straight off the grill (烤肉架).
The main dish that the restaurant is popular for is its kabobs, which are different styles of grilled meat.
One delicious and extremely healthy dish is the Joojeh Kabob, which is made of grilled chicken pieces served with either rice or bread. Another great kabob is the Chelo Kabob, kabob consisting of grilled beef.
Although the restaurant is small, the atmosphere and the food is delicious. It is a place that should not be overlooked.
【小題1】When first entering the restaurant, one can find that it ________.

A．is splendidly decorated	B．has pleasant smells of kabobs
C．is crowded with dining tables	D．looks like a common restaurant

【小題2】What activity is also mentioned apart from dining in the restaurant?

A．Watching news events on TV.

B．Drinking a kind of black coffee.

C．Reading local English newspapers.

D．Discussing world topics in low voices.

【小題3】The food of the restaurant ________.

A．is served in small amounts	B．is rather expensive
C．is rich in variety	D．is very healthy

【小題4】What is the dish Joojeh Kabob mainly made of?

A．Rice.

B．Chicken

C．Bread

D．Beef

【小題5】It can be inferred from the passage that the restaurant ________.

A．occupies a large space

B．owns a favorable location

C．is popular for its special food

D．has a quiet environment inside

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

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(chǎn) 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

However urban life strikes you, cities worldwide have been growing ever more rapidly. Some of this growth has occurred in the developed world, but the most dramatic increase has been in the Third World. Almost all the world’s population growth over the next 30 years will take place in the cities of developing countries.
By the year 2030, for the first time in history, 60 percent of the world’s people will be living in cities.
This is actually good news in some ways. “Cities are the fundamental building blocks of prosperity（繁榮）,” says Marc Weiss, chairman of the Prague Institute for Global Urban Development, “both for the nation and for families.” Industrial and commercial activities in urban areas account for between 50 and 80 percent of the gross domestic product (GDP) in most countries of the world “there’s the crazy notion that the way to deal with a city’s problems is to keep people out of them,” Weiss continued. “But the problems of the rural life are even more serious than those of the city.” For better or worse, urban-watchers are clear on one point: The quality of life for most people in the future will be determined by the quality of cities. Those cities will be bigger than ever. And yet, population numbers by themselves don’t determine a city’s prospects; after all, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and Hamburg, Germany, have the same population. Nor is explosive growth necessarily the determining factor. “City problems,” one authority points out, “mostly have to do with weak, ineffective, and usually unrepresentative city governments.”
【小題1】According to the passage, in the year of 2030 _______.

A．rural area will be extinct

B．most people will live in cities

C．there will be 21 cities having a population of more than 10 million

D．the third world will keep abreast with the developed world

【小題2】In the author’s opinion, _________.

A．better city, better life

B．both urban and rural areas have a larger population

C．the larger population, the faster a city develops

D．both urban and rural areas have larger gross domestic products

【小題3】Which statement is NOT true according to the passage?

A．Cities contribute more to the GDP than the villagers.

B．Some problems are more easily solved in cities than in country.

C．The developing countries develop faster than the developed countries.

D．It’s impossible to solve urban problems by getting people out of cities.

【小題4】The last paragraph implies that ____________.

A．Public services are ineffective

B．Cities are increasing too fast

C．Population is not linked with development

D．Government should be responsible for the problems in the cities

Spring is coming, and it is time for those about to graduate to look for jobs. Competition is tough, so job seekers must carefully consider their personal choices. Whatever we are wearing, our family and friends may accept us, but the workplace may not.
A high school newspaper editor said it is unfair for companies to discourage visible tattoos (紋身）nose rings, or certain dress styles. It is true you can’t judge a book by its cover, yet people do “cover” themselves in order to convey (傳遞)certain messages．What we wear, including tattoos and nose rings, is an expression of who we are．Just as people convey messages about themselves with their appearances, so do companies．Dress standards exist in the business world for a number of reasons, but the main concern is often about what customers accept.
Others may say how to dress is a matter of personal freedom, but for businesses it is more about whether to make or lose money. Most employers do care about the personal appearances of their employees (雇員), because those people represent the companies to their customers.
As a hiring manager I am paid to choose the people who would make the best impression on our customers. There are plenty of well-qualified candidates, so it is not wrong to reject someone who might disappoint my customers．Even though I am open-minded, I can’t expect all our customers are.
There is nobody to blame but yourself if your set of choices does not match that of your preferred employer. No company should have to change to satisfy a candidate simply because he or she is unwilling to respect its standards, as long as its standards are legal.
【小題1】Which of the following is the newspaper editor’ opinion according to Paragraph 2?

A．People’s appearances carry messages about themselves.

B．Candidates with tattoos or nose rings should be fairly treated.

C．Customers’ choices influence dress standards in companies.

D．Strange dress styles should not be encouraged in the workplace.

【小題2】What can be inferred from the text?

A．Candidates have to wear what companies prefer for an interview.

B．Hiring managers make the best impression on their candidates.

C．Companies sometimes have to change to respect their candidates.

D．What to wear is not a matter of personal choice for companies.

【小題3】Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

A．Appearances Matter	B．Personal Choices Matter
C．Employees Matter	D．Hiring Managers Matter

【小題4】The author’s attitude towards strange dress styles in the workplace may best be described as_____.

A．enthusiastic

B．positive

C．negative

D．sympathetic

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.” zxxk
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.

Prolonging human life has increased the size of the human population. Many people alive today would have died of childhood diseases if they had been born 100 years ago. Because more people live longer, there are more people around at any given time. In fact, it is a decrease in death rates, not an increase in birthrates, that has led to the population explosion.
Prolonging human life has also increased the dependency load. In all societies, people who are disabled or too young or too old to work are dependent on the rest of society to provide for them. In hunting and gathering cultures, old people who could not keep up might be left behind to die. In times of famine (饑荒), infants might be allowed to die because they could not survive if their parents starved, where as if the parents survived they could have another child. In most contemporary societies, people feel a moral obligation (責(zé)任) to keep people alive whether they can work or not. We have a great many people today who live past the age at which they want to work or are able to work; we also have rules which require people to retire at a certain age. Unless these people were able to save money for their retirement, somebody else must support them. In the United States many retired people live on social security checks which are so little that they must live in near poverty. Older people have more illnesses than young or middle-aged people; unless they have wealth or private or government insurance, they must often “go on welfare” if they have a serious illness.
When older people become senile (衰老的) or too weak and ill to care for themselves, they create grave problems for their families. In the past and in some traditional cultures, they would be cared for at home until they died. Today, with most members of a household working or in school, there is often no one at home who can care for a sick or weak person. To meet this need, a great many nursing homes and convalescent (療養(yǎng)的) hospitals have been built. These are often profit making organizations, although some are sponsored by religious and other nonprofit groups. While a few of these institutions are good, most of them are simply “dumping (倒垃圾的) grounds” for the dying in which “care” is given by poorly paid, overworked, and under skilled personnel (員工).
【小題1】The author believes that the increased size of the human population results from _______.

A．a(chǎn)n increase in birthrates	B．the industrial development
C．a(chǎn) decrease in death rates	D．childhood diseases

【小題2】It can be inferred from the passage that in hunting and gathering cultures _______.

A．it was a moral responsibility for the families to keep alive the aged people who could not work

B．the survival of infants was less important than that of their parents in times of starvation

C．old people were given the task of imparting (傳授) the cultural wisdom of the tribe to new generations

D．death was celebrated as a time of rejoicing for an individual freed of (免除) the hardships of life

【小題3】The phrase “this need” in the last paragraph refers to ________.

A．prolonging the dying old people’s lives

B．reducing the problems caused by the retired people

C．making profits through caring for the sick or weak people

D．taking care of the sick or weak people

【小題4】According to the passage, which of the following statements about the old people in the United States is true?

A．Many of them live on social security money which is hardly enough.

B．Minority of them remain in a state of near poverty after their retirement.

C．Many nursing homes are sponsored by religious and nonprofit groups.

D．Older people have wealth or private insurance if they have a serious illness.

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.

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.