1 . Computer programmer David Jones earns £35,000 a year designing new computer games, yet he cannot find a bank ready to let him have a credit card(信用卡). Instead, he has been told to wait another two years, until he is 18.

The 16-year-old works for a small firm in Liverpool, where the problem of most young people of his age is finding a job. David's firm releases(推出) two new games for the fast throwing computer market each month.

But David's biggest headache is what to do with his money. Even though he earns a lot, he cannot drive a car, take out a mortgage(抵押贷款), or get credit cards. David got his job with the Liverpool-based company four months ago, a year after leaving school with six O-levels and working for a time in a computer shop. "I got the job because the people who run the firm knew I had already written some programs," he said. David spends some of his money on records and clothes, and gives his mother 50 pounds a week. But most of his spare time is spent working.

"Unfortunately, computing was not part of our studies at school," he said. "But I had been studying it in books and magazines for four years in my spare time. I knew what I wanted to do and never considered staying on at school. Most people in this business are fairly young, anyway." David added: "I would like to earn a million and I suppose early retirement(退休) is a possibility. You never know when the market might disappear."

1. In what way is David different from people of his age?

A．He has a handsome income.

B．He lives with his mother.

C．He often goes out with friends.

D．He graduated with six O-levels.

2. What is one of the problems that David is facing now?

A．He has very little spare time.

B．He has no time to learn driving.

C．He is too young to get a credit card.

D．He will soon lose his job.

3. Why was David able to get the job in the company?

A．He had done well in all his exams.

B．He had written some computer programs.

C．He was good at playing computer games.

D．He had learnt to use computers at school.

4. Why did David decide to leave school and start working?

A．He received lots of job offers.

B．He was eager to help his mother.

C．He lost interest in school studies.

D．He wanted to earn his own living.

2 . More than 10 years ago，it was difficult to buy a tasty pineapple (菠萝)．The fruits that made it to the UK were green on the outside and，more often than not，hard with an unpleasant taste within.Then in 1996，the Del Monte Gold pineapple produced in Hawaii first hit our shelves.

The new type of pineapple looked more yellowy­gold than green. It was slightly softer on the outside and had a lot of juice inside.But the most important thing about this new type of pineapple was that it was twice as sweet as the hit­and­miss pineapples we had known.In no time，the Del Monte Gold took the market by storm，rapidly becoming the world’s best­selling pineapple variety，and delivering natural levels of sweetness in the mouth，up until then only found in tinned pineapple.

In nutrition (营养) it was all good news too.This nice­tasting pineapple contained four times more vitamin C (维生素C) than the old green variety.Nutritionists said that it was not only full of vitamins，but also good against some diseases.People were understandably eager to be able to buy this wonderful fruit.The new type of pineapple was selling fast,                           and the Del Monte Gold pineapple rapidly became a_fixture in the shopping basket of the healthy eaters.

Seeing the growing market for its winning pineapple，Del Monte tried to keep the market to itself.But other fruit companies developed similar pineapples.Del Monte turned to law for help，but failed.Those companies argued successfully that Del Monte’s attempts to keep the golden pineapple for itself were just a way to knock them out of the market.

1. We learn from the text that the new type of pineapple is________.

A．green outside and sweet inside

B．good­looking outside and soft inside

C．yellowy­gold outside and hard inside

D．a little soft outside and sweet inside

2. Why was the new type of pineapple selling well?

A．It was rich in nutrition and tasted nice.

B．It was less sweet and good for health.

C．It was developed by Del Monte.

D．It was used as medicine.

3. The underlined word “fixture” in Paragraph 3 probably refers to something________.

A．that people enjoy eating

B．that is always present

C．that is difficult to get

D．that people use as a gift

4. We learn from the last paragraph that Del Monte________.

A．allowed other companies to develop pineapples

B．succeeded in keeping the pineapple for itself

C．tried hard to control the pineapple market

D．planned to help the other companies