1 . According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, employees over 50 make up more than one-third of the workforce in the United States. And the labor force aged 75 and older is expected to increase by 96.5% by 2030. As the workforce ages and increasing numbers of grandparents care for their grandchildren, what once was intended for new parents is now applied to grandparents. Some workplaces are offering a new paid leave policy (政策) for older workers—grandternity leave.
As the name suggests, one of the most popular use cases for grandternity leave is employees taking time off when they become grandparents to help care for their grandchildren. It also enables employees to take paid leave to deal with medical treatment, spend time with their families, and take time away from work as needed.
In a competitive labor market with more than 10 million open jobs, employers still struggle to retain senior employees. They fall under the Baby Boomer generation and are characterized by their deep love for work and company responsibility. They are prized for their historical knowledge and old-fashioned work ethic (职业道德). Therefore, employers are seeking new, nontraditional benefits for these employees to prevent them from taking another job. Grandternity leave is just one example of personalized benefits suitable for older workers.
A handful of companies are already starting to offer their own form of grandternity leave. For example, Saga has rolled out a five-day paid grandternity leave to its 2,500 employees. Scott Merry, a 57-year-old IT specialist with Saga took grandternity leave to care for his new-born grandson. “It was just wonderful. It’s nice to work in this type of culture which values family time.” he said. Another company that became an early adopter (使用者) is HireVue. “Attracting and employing a various workforce should be top of mind for any organization,” said one of HireVue’s managers. “Offering a variety of benefits like grandternity leave is key to that.”
1. What does paragraph 1 focus on about the policy?A.Its application. | B.Its influences. | C.Its limitations. | D.Its background. |
A.Cut down. | B.Kick out. | C.Hold onto. | D.Pay for. |
A.It is a win-win practice. | B.It has been adopted widely. |
C.It has a two-sided nature. | D.It is key to business success. |
A.To introduce a new paid leave. | B.To call for better working conditions. |
C.To recommend several leading companies. | D.To warn of the effect of population ageing. |
2 . According to Americans for the Arts, more than two-thirds of U.S. adults say that the arts “lift me up beyond everyday experiences.” Still, only 30 percent attended a concert of any type in 2017; 23 percent visited an art museum; six percent attended a literary event. Fewer than half actively created art of any kind.
What has caused this phenomenon is that we do not have time for art — we are weighed down by our day-to-day responsibilities. Maybe you like to play a little background music while you work but most of us rarely, if ever, went to see a live performance, let alone visited a gallery. And reading poetry? Perhaps not since high school.
Too often, we let the realities of life get in the way of the arts, which can feel insignificant by comparison. But this is a mistake. The arts might be the single most in-depth experience you will ever be given to explore the nature and meaning of life. And if you make time to consume and produce art, you will find your life become fuller and happier.
Some philosophers address the problem of life consumed by work and material pursuits. They argue that art provides relief from this routine, expanding our perspective and bringing us closer to true reality.
Think of a time when you heard a piece of music and wanted to cry. Or recall your fast heartbeats as you stared at a delicate lifelike sculpture. Chances are that it probably stimulated (刺激) a sudden awakening, much like the shock from a lungful of pure oxygen after breathing in smoggy air.
If you are among those who feel that art is “pure pleasure to experience and participate in,” you might see it the same way you see eating out, or skydiving: as a luxury (奢侈品) item in your limited budgets of time and money. As such, it probably gets the same sort of treatment as any minor hobby. Don’t make this error. Treat art more like exercise or sleep: a necessity for a life full of deep satisfaction.
1. What does paragraph 1 focus on?A.The opinion of U.S. adults about art. |
B.The types of art that U.S. adults engage with. |
C.The mismatch between value and behaviour as to art. |
D.The connection between everyday experiences and art. |
A.Art reveals the nature of life. | B.Art gives way to material pursuits. |
C.Life without art is meaningless. | D.Background music is a kind of art. |
A.Art awakes people’s talents. | B.Art improves physical health. |
C.Art brings us closer to nature. | D.Art makes life fuller and happier. |
A.Art: A Habit, Not a Luxury | B.Art: A Bridge, Not a Barrier |
C.Art: A Decoration, Not a Reality | D.Art: A Pleasure, Not a Burden |
1. 出国留学的优缺点;
2. 你的看法。
注意:1. 写作词数应为80左右;
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
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4 . What your dinner photos on Instagram say about you
Posting pictures on Instagram is a modern day version of writing a journal: It’s all about creating a connection between ourselves, our lives, friends, family and the wider public.
If someone posts photos of a meal that they have just cooked, the message they’re trying to convey is that they are a capable person. For example, if someone is on a health kick, they often seek social approval. If they’ve made a really healthy meal, they will typically post it with hashtags “#” like diet or health, which tie into other people’s experiences.
There is also a growing trend of people taking photos of their food when they dine out at a restaurant.
If people are on a diet or trying to eat a bit better, they can use platforms like Instagram to track what they’ve been eating. It’s a way of motivating other people as well as holding themselves responsible, while subconsciously saying “
A.I am willing to take risks in my diet. |
B.There are some reasons to post photos online. |
C.I’m the sort of person who takes care of myself. |
D.It’s the same idea as wanting to feel part of a community. |
E.The types of content we choose to post hold significance. |
F.It generally implies an attempt to associate with luxury and taste. |
G.We have a fundamental need to be part of something bigger than ourselves. |
A recent study found that kindergarten children who are exposed
According to the study
A paper about the research,
The new study was designed
6 . If you had to make one life choice, right now, to set yourself on the path to future happiness, what would it be?
Would you choose to put more money into savings each month? To change careers?
Meanwhile, all day long we are surrounded by messages about what will make us happy, like ads. Other messages are in our daily living. When a friend buys a new car, we might wonder if a newer car would make our own life better. Over time we develop the feeling that our life is here, now, but the things we need for a good life are over there, or in the future.
Looking at life through this lens, it’s easy to believe that the good life doesn’t really exist, or else that it’s only possible for others. However, the truth is: The good life is a complicated life. For everybody, the good life is joyful and challenging.
A.Full of love, but also pain. |
B.Fame was now lower on the list. |
C.Would you decide to travel more? |
D.They are always just out of reach. |
E.What have you achieved in the past years? |
F.It’s only human nature to pursue material comforts. |
G.In a survey, millennials were asked about their most important life goals. |
1.某古迹的现状;
2.解决措施。
注意:
1.写作词数应为80左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Dear fellow students,
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Li Hua
8 . From the day we’re born, curiosity becomes a primary driving force that motivates us to explore unknown ideas and territories in search of answers and stimulations. Human beings have an inborn desire to close the “curiosity gap” every day.
A recent study found that curiosity can be a highly effective way to lead people to make smarter and healthier lifestyle choices. Evan Polman, assistant professor of marketing at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, said, “Our research shows that fueling people’s curiosity can influence their choices by turning them away from inviting desires, like unhealthy foods or taking the elevator, and toward less inviting but healthier options, such as buying more fresh produce or taking the stairs.”
To prove the positive potential of the curiosity gap, Polman and his team conducted a series of experiments designed to test how curiosity affected the choices people made positively. In each study, arousing curiosity resulted in noticeable behavior change. For example, in one of the experiments, Polman increased the number of participants who chose to watch a video of academic nature by promising that they would reveal the secret behind a magic trick at the end of the video.
The results of the field studies on curiosity were particularly convincing to Polman. In one field study, the researchers created a 10 percent increase in the use of stairs in a university building by posting trivial (琐事) questions near the elevators and posting the answers in the stairwell. In another, they increased the purchase of fresh produce by placing a joke on the posters describing the fruit or vegetable.
Polman was surprised by the degree that taking advantage of the curiosity gap could motivate people to automatically make healthier lifestyle choices. He concluded, “Our results suggest that using interventions based on curiosity gaps has the potential to increase participation in desired behaviors for which people often lack motivation. It also provides new evidence that curiosity-based interventions come at an incredibly small cost and could help push people toward a variety of positive actions. ”
1. What did a recent study find about curiosity?A.It fuels people’s desires. | B.It lowers people’s buying. |
C.It benefits people’s health. | D.It determines people’s lives. |
A.Supporting a finding. | B.Raising a research topic. |
C.Arousing scientists’ interest. | D.Displaying negative evidence. |
A.Doubtful. | B.Unclear. | C.Approving. | D.Dismissive. |
A.How to stay curious | B.The magic of curiosity |
C.How to make health choices | D.The two sides of curiosity gap |
9 . Gather together a couple of good friends and take a leisurely stroll through the streets — this is what many youngsters in China enjoy doing when they visit a new city.
To them, Citywalk means “roaming around the city” on foot. Participants can follow a distinctive urban route, soaking up the atmosphere, exploring old buildings, browsing boutique shops, sipping a cup of coffee, or indulging in authentic local snacks.
Citywalk can be a special guided trip for a small group of people, or simply a leisurely stroll for one or two to explore new areas, sticking to the key point: avoiding famous scenic spots and big crowds to gain a more inclusive experience of the places you visit. Besides interacting with a city, Citywalk provides young people with a new social scene, where they who share the same interests and ideas can easily make friends.
In China, the Citywalk trend is spreading from first-tier cities like Beijing and Shanghai to second and third-tier cities, encouraging more participants and event organizers to get involved. Some organizers invite folk culture researchers and enthusiasts to act as tour guides. Xiao Yiyi, a young entrepreneur in Changsha, recently launched six Citywalk routes in different cities on her social media account, with the aim of providing experiences for visitors to “walk in open-air museums”. Her Changsha route features more offbeat sights like historical architecture from the 19th century, artsy old alleys, and even a stop-off to sample the local spicy crayfish specialty.
Even though Citywalk is a relatively new phenomenon, it is offering a positive change to urban travelers as they can better choose the experiences based on their interests and needs. At the same time, Citywalk represents an opportunity for tour guides and travel service providers to offer a more tailored, professional service to meet with ever-changing market demands.
1. Why do young people choose Citywalk?A.To enjoy a guided tour. |
B.To cut down expenses. |
C.To dig deeper into a city. |
D.To make new friends. |
A.Doing sightseeing on foot. | B.Avoiding hot scenic spots. |
C.Taking a local tour guide. | D.Keeping a fixed urban route. |
A.A tour guide | B.A culture researcher. |
C.A Citywalk enthusiast. | D.An event organizer. |
A.Favorable. | B.Dismissive. | C.Doubtful. | D.Unclear. |
10 . A University of Michigan (U-M) study has found that older adults’ regular visits to eateries such as fast food restaurants and coffee shops may be as protective of cognitive (认知的) health as marriage.
Lead researcher Jessica Finlay and her team interviewed 125 older adults aged 55-92 in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and accompanied them on visits to their neighborhood places. Through analysis of her interviews, they found that older adults valued these types of eateries as places of familiarity and comfort, places that were physically and economically accessible, and places to socialize with family, friends, staff and customers.
“Traditionally, fast food has a negative relationship with cognition — we know that diets high in fat and salt are associated with increased risk of cognitive decline,” said Finlay. “But as a geographer, I’m interested in the places themselves and what those spaces mean for the everyday lives of older adults.”
There is one interviewee called Denise. “It was an expensive month with a wedding and two unexpected funerals (葬礼), and these events ate up her budget (预算),” the researchers wrote. “Though she could not afford restaurant meals regularly, Denise still enjoyed inexpensive coffee with her friends as a valued opportunity to socialize.”
Finlay’s research at U-M focuses on how neighborhoods may help reduce or increase risk for Alzheimer’s disease. She assumed that regular socialization and leisure activities that take place in these places might be linked to cognitive health.
Finlay and U-M researcher Michael Esposito tested this idea in a national cohort by drawing on the Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke, or REGARDS, study, which collects information by mail and telephone from more than 30,000 aging individuals. The participants were an average age of 64 in 2003-2007.
REGARDS respondents living in the most limited retail food (零售食品) environments had cognitive scores that were modestly lower — about 0.1 points — than residents living in the highest density (密度) environments. The difference in cognitive well-being between individuals living in high-density and low-density neighborhoods was about a year difference in age, which is strongly linked to age-related cognitive decline in older adults.
“My side of the project was translating what Finlay found in her qualitative results over to the national level, blowing it up to see if some of those associations she inferred from her study in Minnesota held for the nation at large — and they did,” said Esposito.
1. What is the new study concerning seniors mainly about?A.Their great love for fast food. |
B.Their usual choices while eating outside. |
C.The impact of marriage on their cognition. |
D.The link between restaurant visits and their health. |
A.They offer an affordable way to make social interactions. |
B.They provide her with a lot of unexpected surprises. |
C.She enjoys high-fat and salty foods served there. |
D.She takes part in important activities there. |
A.She interviewed its respondents. |
B.She visited the places mentioned in it. |
C.She reached a conclusion based on its data. |
D.She compared it with her research at U-M. |
A.Its results are applicable nationally. |
B.It should be done outside Minnesota. |
C.It offers a treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. |
D.Its respondents should cover other age groups. |