A. celebrated B. ideals C. currently D. enlarged E. formerly F. incomparable G. laid H. referred I. restored J. scale K. seat |
If you only had an afternoon to experience London on a grand
A royal palace was said to have existed at the site under the Danish king of England Canute. The building, however, spoken of by William Fitzstephen as a(n) “
Sir Charles Barry, assisted by A.W.N. Pugin, designed the present buildings in the Gothic Revival style. Construction was begun in 1837, the cornerstone was
The Palace is one of the centers of political life in the United Kingdom; “Westminster” has become a metaphor for the UK Parliament and the British Government. The Elizabeth Tower, in particular, often
A. contribute B. global C. bringing D. originally E. concerned F. seeking G. features H. power I. positions J. engineered K. regularly |
When it comes to innovative countries, we always think of places like the US, the UK and Germany. However, Israel is also a(n)
According to the World Economic Forum’s global Competitiveness Report 2016 - 2017, Israel is the second most innovative nation in the world, just after Switzerland.
Many of us may not be aware, but technologies
So it comes as no surprise that Israel plans to use its innovative strength to
Many Israeli environmental technology companies have already set up facilities in Shandong province,
Founded on very dry land, Israel had been
In fact, such innovations have led to more and more Chinese students
A. public B. inadequate C. lowered D. released E. disappointment F. casting G. possibility H. objective I. desperately J. balance K. compared |
Why Aren’t Women Happier?
Why aren’t women happier these days?
That’s the question raised by a thought-provoking study, The Paradox of Declining Female Happiness,
The research, by University of Pennsylvania economists Stevenson and Wolfers, and made
One theory for the decline in happiness is that expectations for workplace and general advancement were raised too high by the women’s movement and women might feel
The researchers acknowledge that’s a
“If the women’s movement raised women’s expectations faster than society was able to meet them,” the paper says, “they would be more likely to experience
Readers, why do you think women are unhappier than in the past? Do you think that if expectations for “having it all” were
Many procedures are available for obtaining data about a language.
Many factors must be considered when selecting informants—
Today, researchers often tape-record informants. This enables the linguist’s claims about the language
An audio tape recording does not solve all the linguist’s problems, however. Speech is often ambiguous or unclear. Where possible, therefore, the recording has to be supplemented by the observer’s
5 . Female penguins get stranded
Every year, thousands of Magellanic penguins (麦哲伦企鹅) get stranded along the coast of South America, but,
Magellanic penguins finish breeding in Patagonia in February, and, during the
Writing in the journal Current Biology, researchers in Japan and Argentina report how they
Previously it was unknown whether male and female’s took different paths or not. “Although some
The results from the study offer a clearer picture.
The authors offer a number of reasons why males and females may head to different areas— including to avoid
While researchers are still trying to understand why penguins end up stranded, Yamamoto and colleague’s suggest those that end up further north may have used more energy swimming or catching
“
While the findings may not help prevent strandings, Yamamoto said it could help with
A.desperately | B.puzzlingly | C.obviously | D.undoubtedly |
A.combination | B.frustration | C.conflict | D.imbalance |
A.following | B.previous | C.starting | D.finished |
A.dismissed | B.withdrawn | C.airlifted | D.extended |
A.attached | B.equipped | C.lifted | D.injected |
A.evaluations | B.assumptions | C.descriptions | D.conclusions |
A.deep-rooted | B.ice-covered | C.storm-stricken | D.female-biased |
A.Because | B.While | C.After | D.When |
A.legally | B.physically | C.typically | D.simply |
A.searching | B.competing | C.asking | D.defending |
A.widths | B.levels | C.depths | D.rates |
A.lighter | B.heavier | C.rougher | D.smoother |
A.fixed | B.scared | C.deposited | D.scattered |
A.After all | B.In addition | C.However | D.For example |
A.perseverance | B.conversation | C.conservation | D.reservation |
A. suffering B. intensive C. demanding D. adopting E. inactive F. adapting G. available H. guarantee I. distinctive J. discouraging K. distinct |
Health and diet
In recent cars, many Asian countries have noticed a worrying new problem: obesity, which is also very serious in China. More than a third of Chinese adults are overweight. Even more worrying is the level of obesity among Chinese children. It is estimated that the number of children in China
There are many reasons for this situation. The simplest explanation is that food is now
Increasing obesity is worrying for many reasons. The condition can lead to serious health problems, including increased risk of heart disease and even diabetes. Dealing with their health problems seems really costly and
The government in China is taking action to deal with obesity, however. In many primary and middle schools, young students are receiving low calorie lunches with more vegetables and less meat and fat. Also, parents are
It is not
7 . Age has its privileges (特权) in America, and one of the most important of them is the senior citizen discount. Anyone who has reached a certain age — in some cases as low as 55 — is automatically entitled to a dazzling array of price reductions at nearly every level of commercial life. Eligibility (资格) is determined not by one’s need but by the date on one’s birth certificate. Practically unheard of a generation ago, the discounts have become a routine part of many businesses — as common as color televisions in motel rooms and free coffee on airliners.
People with gray hair often are given the discounts without even asking for them; yet, millions of Americans above age 60 are healthy and solvent (有支付能力的). Businesses that would never dare offer discounts to college students or anyone under 30 freely offer them to older Americans. The practice is acceptable because of the widespread belief that “elderly” and “needy” are synonymous. Perhaps that once was true, but today elderly Americans as a group have a lower poverty rate than the rest of the population. To be sure, there is economic diversity within the elderly, and many older Americans are poor. But most of them aren’t.
It is impossible to determine the impact of the discounts on individual companies. For many firms, they are a stimulus to revenue. But in other cases the discounts are given at the expense, directly or indirectly, of younger Americans. Moreover, they are a direct irritant (刺激物) in what some politicians and scholars see as a coming conflict between the generations.
Generational tensions are being fueled by continuing debate over Social Security benefits, which mostly involve a transfer of resources from the young to the old. Employment is another sore point. Supported by laws and court decisions, more and more older Americans are declining the retirement dinner in favor of staying on the job — thereby reducing employment and promotion opportunities for younger workers.
Far from a kind of charity they once were, senior citizen discounts have become an economic privilege to a group with millions of members who don’t need them. It no longer makes sense to treat the elderly as a single group whose economic needs deserve priority over those of others. Senior citizen discounts only enhance the myth that older people can’t take care of themselves and need special treatment; and they threaten the creation of a new myth, that the elderly are ungrateful and taking for themselves at the expense of children and other age groups. Senior citizen discounts are the essence of the very thing older Americans are fighting against — discrimination by age.
1. We learn from the first paragraph that ______.A.offering senior citizens discounts has become routine commercial practice |
B.senior citizen discounts have enabled many old people to live a comfortable life |
C.giving senior citizens discounts has boosted the market for the elderly |
D.senior citizens have to show their birth certificates to get a discount |
A.tax | B.expense | C.profits | D.expansion |
A.Businesses, having made a lot of profits, should do something for society in return. |
B.Old people are entitled to special treatment for the contribution they made to society. |
C.The elderly, being financially underprivileged, need humane help from society. |
D.Senior citizen discounts can make up for the inadequacy of the Social Security system. |
A.Senior citizens should fight hard against age discrimination. |
B.The elderly are selfish and taking senior discounts for granted. |
C.Priority should be given to the economic needs of senior citizens. |
D.Senior citizen discounts may well be it type of age discrimination. |
A. applies B. casually C. considered D. customary E. empty F. fellow G. individual H. literally I. longevity J. regards K. related |
Whether you’re ringing in Chinese New Year with a bottle of champagne, making a toast at a wedding, or
Now that you know what to say, how do you actually give a toast? When giving a toast in Chinese, raise your glass as you give the toast. Depending on where you are, your
The host of the party or meeting will be the first to make the toast. It is
A.opportunity B. set C. devoted D. widely E. fortune F. gained G. lack H. benefit I. rapidly J. put K. impressed |
One of the greatest stories of rags to riches success is that of Andrew Carnegie, who started life in poverty but became the richest man in the world.
Carnegie was born in Scotland in 1837, the son of a weaver. In 1848, the family moved to the United States and at 13 Carnegie began work in a cotton mill, earning $1.5 per week. About three years later, he found a better job as a telegraph messenger boy. At work, his superiors (上级) were
Carnegie now began to save a little money and, with the help of his employer, began to make some successful investments. He invested in the iron industry and eventually
Carnegie had always believed that the pursuit of wealth was never an end in itself. In his view, successful, wealthy people should re-distribute their wealth for the
Carnegie’s
10 . For years, studies have found that first-generation college students — those who do not have a parent with a college degree — lag behind other students on a range of education achievement factors. Their grades are lower and their dropout rates are higher. But since such students are most likely to advance economically if they succeed in higher education, colleges and universities have pushed for decades to recruit more of them. This has created a ‘paradox’ in that recruiting first-generation students, but then watching many of them fail, means that higher education has ‘continued to reproduce and widen, rather than close’ the achievement gap based on social class, according to the depressing beginning of a paper set to be published in the journal Psychological Science.
But the article is actually quite optimistic, as it outlines a potential solution to this problem, suggesting that an approach (which involves a one-hour, next-to-no-cost program) can close 63 percent of the achievement gap (measured by such factors as grades) between first-generation and other students.
The authors of the paper are from different universities, and their findings are based on a study involving 147 students (who completed the project) at an unnamed private university. First generation was defined as not having a parent with a four-year college degree. Most of the first-generation students (59.1 percent) were recipients of Pell Grants, a federal grant for undergraduates with financial needs, while this was true only for 8.6 percent of the students with at least one parent with a four-year degree.
Their thesis — that a relatively modest intervention could have a big impact — was based on the view that first-generation students may be most lacking not in potential but in practical knowledge about how to deal with the issues that face most college students. They cite past research by several authors to show that this is the gap that must be narrowed to close the achievement gap.
Many first-generation students “struggle to navigate the middle-class culture of higher education, learn the rules of the game, and take advantage of college resources,” they write. And this becomes more of a problem when colleges don’t talk about the class advantage and disadvantages of different groups of students. Because U.S. colleges and universities seldom acknowledge how social class can affect students’ educational experience, many first-generation students lack sight about why they are struggling and do not understand how students like them can improve.
1. The authors of the research article are optimistic because _____________.A.the problem is solvable |
B.their approach is costless |
C.the recruiting rate has increased |
D.their findings appeal to students |
A.study at private universities |
B.are from single-parent families |
C.are in need of financial support |
D.have failed their college education |
A.are actually indifferent to the achievement gap |
B.are inexperienced in handling their issues at college |
C.may lack opportunities to apply for research projects |
D.can have a potential influence on other students |
A.universities often reject the culture of the middle-class |
B.students are usually to blame for their lack of resources |
C.social class greatly helps enrich one’s educational experience |
D.colleges are partly responsible for the problem in question |