1 . Benedict Morelli, one of New York’s top-rated lawyers, owns Morelli Law Firm, which has offices, lawyers, cases and experts all over the country. Benedict Morelli and his team of experienced lawyers are expert at handling a wide variety of cases, from auto and truck accidents, to construction injuries, to complex employment discrimination.
One critical reason for their success is that unlike many firms, Morelli Law has the experience, patience, and resources to pursue all difficult cases. Since founding the firm, Mr. Morelli and his team have successfully dealt with an impressive list of outstanding cases in the industry. In fact, they have delivered more than a billion dollars on behalf of their clients. Impressive firm results include a $95 million settlement in a sexual discrimination case involving Aaron’s Inc., as well as a $62 million settlement for Mark Perez, a construction worker who fell from a roof and suffered a brain injury.
When asked whether they would feel afraid when facing difficult opponents in court, “At my core, I’m a trial lawyer,” said Benedict Morelli. “Because of our experience and accomplishments in the courtroom, our opponents know that we’re prepared to pursue the best result possible. Going to trial does not intimidate us.”
The firm is devoted to realizing its clients’ goals both inside and outside of the courtroom. For example, in a drunk driving case, the firm worked with the client to strengthen New York laws that punish drunk drivers. This effort has made it easier for lawyers in New York to charge drunk drivers. Moreover, Mr. Moreli and his team are also committed to helping those who have been wronged achieve the justice they deserve, no matter the difficulty of the circumstances.
Corporations are powerful actors in society and Mr. Morelli and his team feel fortunate to be in a position to provide the highest level of service to their clients.
1. What contributes to Morelli Law Firm’s success?| A．Talents, Strategies and funds. |
| B．Attitude, passion and resolution. |
| C．Experience, patience and resources. |
| D．Management, devotion and knowledge. |
| A．Scare. | B．Threaten. | C．Benefit. | D．Excite. |
| A．It has made more than a billion dollars from their clients. |
| B．It focuses mainly on bringing justice to the wrongful cases. |
| C．It aims to help clients obtain good outcomes in and out of court. |
| D．It works with New York to pass laws on banning drinking alcohol. |
| A．Morelli Law Firm | B．A top-rated lawyer |
| C．Morelli and his cases | D．Corporations in society |
2 . Fish tongues, harvested by children
Cod (鳕鱼) tongue is a famous dish in Norway and beyond. Around 80 tons are cut every year from fish caught in Norway’s northern waters. Softer in taste than the flesh of the fish, cod tongue melts in the mouth with a hint of saltiness. It is nature’s gift, says Jan Erik, vice-president of the Norwegian fishermen’s association.
Liv Eva, a 35yearold who works for a research institute, says that when she was a girl, men and boys dominated the cod-tongue-cutting trade on Lofoten, a Norwegian island. This year, she was happy to see a grandmother and granddaughter selling tongues.
In other ways, however, the art of tungeskjæring has hardly changed over the centuries. The delicate work of removing the tongue from an already beheaded (去头的) fish is reserved mainly for children. The practice serves as a kind of career preparation for would-be fishers, and it pays handsomely. The tongues are valuable, so an hour’s work can pay 1,200 kronor ($143); not bad if you’re six. Modesty guides attitudes in Lofoten and other northern parts, so it wouldn’t be accepted to spend the cash on something wasteful, says Liv Eva. Youngsters tend to save up for a fishing boat, a car or a deposit on a home.
Not everyone gets involved. Those with ambitions keep their distance; tongue-cutting is something of a fisherman’s rough life. And citizens in Norway were upset by a recent documentary showing the children at work in their blood-stained overalls. “Child labor!” they cried. The government looked into the issue, and chose to respect their culture and tradition. A bigger threat to the industry is that stocks are low. From April 27th, 2021 Norwegian cod caught in coastal waters will lose its sustainability rating from the Marine Conservation Council, a global fish watchdog.
1. What is the purpose of the first paragraph?| A．To bring up the topic. | B．To put forward an argument. |
| C．To set off a conflict. | D．To bring forward a suggestion. |
| A．the tasting of cod tongue | B．the cutting of cod tongue |
| C．the cooking of cod tongue | D．the drawing of cod tongue |
| A．The traditions of the cod tongue industry. |
| B．The advantages of the cod tongue industry. |
| C．The problems with the cod tongue industry. |
| D．The changes of the cod tongue industry. |
| A．Supportive. | B．Ignorant. | C．Respectful. | D．Disapproving. |
3 . The three phases of life are increasingly a thing of the past. Where once working lives fitted neatly into the model of education, employment and then retirement, the simplicity of that division is being challenged by changing standards of the workforce.
Increasing numbers of workers, nearing their long-imagined transition into retirement, seem to be actively postponing the moment at which they down tools. Newly released figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) have shown that there are over a million more over 50s in part-time work than a decade ago. And with nine out of 10 employers reporting difficulties hiring workers, there’s likely to be a growing market for their talents as bosses extend their searches to older people, including those who are willing to take on part-time responsibilities.
The ending of the three phases of working life isn’t simply down to people living longer or financial necessity － though those are certainly important factors － but also to an increasing desire to maintain a purposeful life. One survey of British retirees over 50 found that 85 per cent of them felt they’d retired too young – stopping working had left a void that they subsequently regretted.
The 2015 film The Intern conveyed this human need to have value. In it, Robert De Niro plays a 70-year-old widower who finds himself a fish out of water when he joins a trendy internet start-up. In the end, not only does he find the sense of belonging that he craves but his colleagues come to rely on his experience and different perspective. It’s a plot we can increasingly expect to play out in real-life offices over the decades to come as people live ever longer.
Already, we are seeing people in their 50s and 60s looking ahead to a retirement lasting 30 years, choosing instead to build second careers that they can maintain into their 70s or beyond. Freed from the financial burden of young children, they can prioritise flexibility, shorter working hours or more rewarding jobs in areas such as charity work or teaching. Many do it for no money at all, volunteering behind the till in charity shops or showing people round National Trust properties.
However, it’s the next generation where the effect of living longer will really be felt, and the financial necessity will start to bite. In the West, more than half of the children born in 2016 have a life expectancy of more than 100 years. In their book, The 100-Year Life, London Business School professors Lynda Gratton and Andrew Scott suggest that acquiring sufficient funds to see oneself through a 40- or 50-year retirement will likely be beyond all but the highest earners.
Then there’s the often repeated claim that young people today are the first generation to be poorer than their parents. Certainly property prices are changing the way they plan for the future. In the mid-Nineties, the average home cost less than three times the average wage; last year, ONS stats placed that ratio at eight times wages.
The overall effect of these trends is that young people recognize that they will likely have to postpone dreams of retirement and instead strap on(绑住) more debt spread over longer spans. It’s why 44 per cent of under 30s say they expect to be working well into their 70s and why data this year from the Bank of England show that 16 per cent of UK mortgages(按揭贷款) now have terms of 35 years or more – a figure that has tripled in the past decade.
All of these factors look set to contribute to a workforce that has a significantly wider range of ages in the future. In an era of work when we’ve all learned to be more inclusive, only eight per cent of firms with a diversity programme have adapted it to go beyond gender, race and sexuality and into age. Incorporating older employees into the workforce is set to be the next big thing at the office.
If Robert De Niro has anything to teach us, it’s that this can be an enormous force for good for both employees and businesses.
1. What do the underlined words “down tools” in Paragraph 2 mean?| A．stop working | B．undertake part-time jobs |
| C．learn a new skill | D．imagine the future life |
| A．a longer life | B．financial needs |
| C．a meaningful life | D．delayed retirement policy |
| A．tell us Robert De Niro is a helpful retiree |
| B．indicate that retirees can also benefit society |
| C．illustrate that retirees desire to live meaningfully |
| D．share Robert De Niro’s second career with us |
| A．Their life expectancy will be longer. |
| B．They will be richer than their parents. |
| C．They can live within their means. |
| D．They will fail to pay off their mortgage. |
| A．longing for a more purposeful life |
| B．inability to make their ends meet |
| C．a shorter term of mortgages |
| D．eagerness for experience from old employees |
| A．Different attitudes to retirement between the young and old. |
| B．Financial issues facing both old people and young people. |
| C．Age being no bar in the modern world of work. |
| D．The new standards of the workplace. |
| A．A policeman. | B．A gas station clerk. | C．A driving coach. |
