A new age is coming．Call it what you will: the service economy, the information age, the knowledge society．It all translates to a fundamental change in the way we work．Already we’re partly there, the percentage of people who earn their living by making things has fallen dramatically in the Western World．Today the majority of jobs in America, Europe and Japan are in the service industry, and the number is on the rise．More women are in the work force than ever before．There are more part-time jobs．More people are self-employed．But the range of the economic transformation can’t be measured by numbers alone, because it also is giving rise to important new way of thinking about the nature of work itself．Long-held ideas about jobs and careers, the skills needed to succeed, even the relation between individuals and employers — all these are being challenged．

We have only to look behind us to get some sense of what may lie ahead．No one looking ahead 20 years possibly could have foreseen the ways in which a single invention, the chip, would transform our world thanks to its applications in personal computers, digital communications and factory robots．Tomorrow’s achievements in biotechnology, artificial intelligence or even some still unimagined technology could produce a similar wave of dramatic changes．But one thing is certain: information and knowledge will become even more valid, and the people who possess it, whether they work in manufacturing or services, will have the advantage and produce the wealth．Computer knowledge will become as basic a requirement as the ability to read and write．The ability to solve problems by applying information instead of performing routine tasks will be valued above all else．If you cast your mind ahead 10 years, information service will be superior．It will be the way you do your job．

1．A characteristic of the new age mentioned in the passage is that _______．

      A．the service industry mainly relies on females

      B．manufacturing industries are steadily increasing

      C．more people are in the service industry than before

      D．the work in the service industry is more comfortable than that in manufacturing industry

2．Which of the following is true according to the passage?

      A．People’s traditional concepts about jobs need changing．

      B．The relation between employees and employers is becoming tense．

      C．More women than men are in the work force．

      D．Part-time jobs are more welcome than full-time jobs．

3．By mentioning the invention of “the chip”, the author means to say that_______．

      A．we haven’t paid enough attention to the importance of high technology

      B．the chip is the most important invention today

      C．the power of science and technology is beyond our imagination

      D．it’s a great challenge to apply new inventions to our life

4．We may draw a conclusion from the passage that _______．

      A．information will play a greater role in people’s work and daily life in the future

      B．we can foresee the future if technology develops fast enough

      C．the ability of performing routine tasks gives you an advantage in work

      D．robots will replace people to do all the work both in manufacturing and service industries

5．The author’s attitude to the coming age is _______．

      A．doubtful         B．enthusiastic     C．satisfied              D．uncertain

A new age is coming．Call it what you will: the service economy, the information age, the knowledge society．It all translates to a fundamental change in the way we work．Already we’re partly there, the percentage of people who earn their living by making things has fallen dramatically in the Western World．Today the majority of jobs in America, Europe and Japan are in the service industry, and the number is on the rise．More women are in the work force than ever before．There are more part-time jobs．More people are self-employed．But the range of the economic transformation can’t be measured by numbers alone, because it also is giving rise to important new way of thinking about the nature of work itself．Long-held ideas about jobs and careers, the skills needed to succeed, even the relation between individuals and employers — all these are being challenged．

We have only to look behind us to get some sense of what may lie ahead．No one looking ahead 20 years possibly could have foreseen the ways in which a single invention, the chip, would transform our world thanks to its applications in personal computers, digital communications and factory robots．Tomorrow’s achievements in biotechnology, artificial intelligence or even some still unimagined technology could produce a similar wave of dramatic changes．But one thing is certain: information and knowledge will become even more valid, and the people who possess it, whether they work in manufacturing or services, will have the advantage and produce the wealth．Computer knowledge will become as basic a requirement as the ability to read and write．The ability to solve problems by applying information instead of performing routine tasks will be valued above all else．If you cast your mind ahead 10 years, information service will be superior．It will be the way you do your job．

1．A characteristic of the new age mentioned in the passage is that _______．

      A．the service industry mainly relies on females

      B．manufacturing industries are steadily increasing

      C．more people are in the service industry than before

      D．the work in the service industry is more comfortable than that in manufacturing industry

2．Which of the following is true according to the passage?

      A．People’s traditional concepts about jobs need changing．

      B．The relation between employees and employers is becoming tense．

      C．More women than men are in the work force．

      D．Part-time jobs are more welcome than full-time jobs．

3．By mentioning the invention of “the chip”, the author means to say that_______．

      A．we haven’t paid enough attention to the importance of high technology

      B．the chip is the most important invention today

      C．the power of science and technology is beyond our imagination

      D．it’s a great challenge to apply new inventions to our life

4．We may draw a conclusion from the passage that _______．

      A．information will play a greater role in people’s work and daily life in the future

      B．we can foresee the future if technology develops fast enough

      C．the ability of performing routine tasks gives you an advantage in work

      D．robots will replace people to do all the work both in manufacturing and service industries

5．The author’s attitude to the coming age is _______．

      A．doubtful         B．enthusiastic    C．satisfied               D．uncertain

閱讀理解

閱讀下列短文，從每題所給的A、B、C、D四個選項(xiàng)中，選出最佳選項(xiàng)，并在正確選項(xiàng)上畫勾。

　　A new era is coming. Call it what you will: the service economy, the information age, the knowledge society. It all translates to a fundamental (基礎(chǔ)的，基本的) change in the way we work. Already we're partly there, the percentage of people who earn their living by making things has fallen dramatically in the Western world. Today the majority of jobs in America, Europe and Japan (two thirds or more are in many of these countries) are in the service industry, and the number is on the rise. More women are in the work force than ever before. There are more part-time jobs. More people are self-employed. But the breath of the economic transformation can't be measured by numbers alone, because it is also giving rise to a new way of thinking about the nature of work itself. Long-held opinions about jobs and careers, the skills needed to succeed, even the relation between individuals and employersall these are being challenged.

　　We have only to look behind us to get some sense of what may he ahead. No one looking ahead 20 years possibly could have foreseen the ways in which a single invention, the chip (芯片), would transform our world thanks to its applications in personal computers, digital communications and factory robots. Tomorrow's achievements in biotechnology or even some still unimagined technology could produce a similar wave of dramatic changes. But one thing is certain: information and knowledge will become even more important, and the people who possess it, whether they work in manufacturing or services, will have the advantage and produce the wealth. Computer knowledge will become as basic a requirement as the ability to read and write. The ability to solve problems by applying information instead of performing routine tasks will be valued above all else. If you look ahead 10 years, information service will be leading the way. It will be the way you do your job.

1．Information age means ________.

[　　]

A．the service industry is depending more and more on the female work force

B．manufacturing industries are steadily increasing

C．people find it harder and harder to earn a living by working in factories

D．most of the job opportunities can now be found in the service industry

2．Knowledge society brings about a great change that ________.

[　　]

A．the difference between the employee and employer has become smaller

B．people's traditional concepts about work no longer hold true

C．most people have to take part-time jobs

D．people have to change their jobs from time to time

3．What does the author mean by referring to computers and other inventions?

[　　]

A．People should be able to respond quickly to the advancement of technology.

B．Future achievements in technology will bring about big changes.

C．The importance of high technology has been overlooked.

D．Computer science will play a leading role in the future information services.

4．The future will probably belong to those who ________.

[　　]

A．possess and know how to make use of information

B．give full play to their brain potential

C．involve themselves in service industries

D．look ahead instead of looking back