1 . Too often young people get themselves employed quite by accident, not knowing what lies in the way of opportunity for promotion, happiness and security. As a result, they are employed in doing jobs that afford them little or no satisfaction. Our school leavers face so much competition that they seldom care what they do as long as they can earn a living. Some stay long at a job and learn to like it; others leave one for another looking for something to suit them. The young graduates who leave the university look for jobs that offer a salary up to their expectation.

Very few go out into the world knowing exactly what they want and realizing their own abilities. The reason behind all this confusion is that there never has been a proper vocational (职业的) guidance in our educational institution. Nearly all feel their way in the dark. Their chief concern when they look for a job is to ask what salary is like. They never bother to think whether they are suited for the job or, even more important, whether the job suits them. Having a job is more than merely providing yourself and your dependants (受赡养者) with daily bread and some money for leisure and entertainment. It sets a pattern of life and, in many ways, determines social status in life, selection of friends, leisure and interest.

In choosing a profession you should first consider the type of work which will suit your interest. Nothing is more pathetic than taking on a job in which you have no interest, for it will not only ruin your talents but also discourage your desire to succeed in life.

1. The difficulty in choosing a suitable job lies mainly in that________.

A．certain fierce competition has to be faced

B．many employee have no working experience

C．the young people only care about how much they can earn.

D．schools fail to offer students appropriate vocational guidance

2. The reason why some people are unlikely to succeed in life is that they________.

A．have ruined their talents

B．have taken on an unsuitable job

C．think of nothing but their salary

D．are not aware of their own potential

3. The word “pathetic” in paragraph 3 most probably means________.

A．unsatisfactory	B．miserable
C．annoying	D．astonishing

2 . Have you ever run into a careless cell phone user on the street? Perhaps they were busy talking, texting or checking updates on WeChat without looking at what was going on around them. As the number of this new “species” of human has kept rising, they have been given a new name — phubbers (低头族)．

Recently, a cartoon created by students from China Central Academy of Fine Arts put this group of people under the spotlight. In the short film, phubbers with various social identities bury themselves in their phones. A doctor plays with his cell phone while letting his patient die, a pretty woman takes selfie (自拍) in front of a car accident site, and a father loses his child without knowing about it while using his mobile phone. A chain of similar events eventually leads to the destruction of the world.

Although the ending sounds overstated, the damage phubbing can bring is real. Your health is the first to bear the effect and result of it. “Constantly bending your head to check your cell phone could damage your neck,” Guangming Daily quoted doctors as saying, “the neck is like a rope that breaks after long­term stretching.” Also, staring at cell phones for long periods of time will damage your eyesight gradually, according to the report.

But that’s not all. Being a phubber could also damage your social skills and drive you away from your friends and family. At reunions with family or friends, many people tend to stick to their cell phones while others are chatting happily with each other and this creates a strange atmosphere, Beijing Evening News reported.

It can also cost you your life. There have been lots of reports on phubbers who fell to their death, suffered accidents，and were robbed of their cell phones in broad daylight.

1. For what purpose does the author give the example of a cartoon in Para.2?

A．To advertise the cartoon made by students.

B．To inform people of the bad effects of phubbing.

C．To indicate the world will finally be destroyed by phubbers.

D．To warn doctors against using cell phones while treating patients.

2. Which of the following is NOT a risk a phubber may have?

A．His social skills could be affected.

B．His neck and eyesight will be gradually harmed.

C．He might get separated from his friends and family.

D．He will cause the destruction of the world.

3. Which of the following may be the author’s attitude towards phubbing?

A．Supportive.

B．Optimistic.

C．Opposed.

D．Objective.

4. What may the passage talk about next?

A．Measures to reduce the risks of phubbing.

B．People addicted to phubbing.

C．Definition of phubbers.

D．Consequences of phubbing.

3 . Across the rich world, well-educated people increasingly work longer than the less-skilled. Some 65% of American men aged 62 - 74 with a professional degree are in the workforce, compared with 32% of men with only a high-school certificate. This gap is part of a deepening divide between the well-educated well-off and the unskilled poor. Rapid technological advance has raised the incomes of the highly skilled while squeezing those of the unskilled. The consequences, for individuals and society, are profound (深刻的).

The world is facing an astonishing rise in the number of old people, and they will live longer than ever before. Over the next 20 years the global population of those aged 65 or more will almost double, from 600 million to 1.1 billion. The experience of the 20th century, when greater longevity translated into more years in retirement rather than more years at work, has persuaded many observers that this shift will lead to slower economic growth, while the swelling (扩大的) ranks of pensioners (领养老金者) will create government budget problems.

But the notion of a sharp division between the working young and the idle (不工作的) old misses a new trend, the growing gap between the skilled and the unskilled. Employment rates are falling among younger unskilled people, whereas older skilled folk are working longer. The divide is most extreme in America, where well-educated baby-boomers are putting off retirement while many less-skilled younger people have dropped out of the workforce.

Policy is partly responsible. Many European governments have abandoned policies that used to encourage people to retire early. Even the better-off must work longer to have a comfortable retirement. But the changing nature of work also plays a big role. Pay has risen sharply for the highly educated. Technological change may well reinforce (加强) that shift: the skills that complement (补充) computers, from management to creativity, do not necessarily decline with age.

1. What is happening in the workforce in rich countries?

A．Younger people are replacing the elderly.	B．Well-educated people tend to work longer.
C．Unemployment rates are rising year after year.	D．People with no college degree do not easily find work.

2. What has helped deepen the divide between the well-off and the poor?

A．Longer life expectancies.	B．Rapid technological advance.
C．Profound changes in the workforce.	D．A growing number of the well-educated.

3. What is the result of policy changes in European countries?

A．Unskilled workers may choose to retire early.

B．More people have to receive in-service training.

C．Even wealthy people must work longer to live comfortably in retirement.

D．People may be able to enjoy generous defined-benefits from pension plans.

4. What is the characteristic of work in the 21st century?

A．Computers will do more complicated work.

B．More responsibility will be taken by the educated young.

C．Most jobs to be done will be the creative ones.

D．Skills are highly valued regardless of age.

4 . Directions: Read the following passage. Fill in each blank with a proper sentence given in the box. Each sentence can be used only once. Note that there are two more sentences than you need.

The search for beauty spans centuries and continents. Paintings of Egyptians dating back over 4, 000 years show both men and women painting their nails and wearing makeup. Today, people continue to devote a lot of time and money to their appearance.

    1     Studies suggest that good-looking people make more money, get called on more often in class, and are regarded as friendlier.

But what exactly is beauty? It's difficult to describe it clearly, and yet we know it when we see it.     2     In one set of studies, six-month-old babies were shown a series of photographs. The faces on the pictures had been rated for attractiveness by a group of college students. In the studies, the babies spent more time looking at the attractive faces than the unattractive ones.

The idea that even babies can judge appearance makes perfect sense to many researchers. In studies by psychologists, men consistently showed a preference for women with larger eyes, fuller lips, and a smaller nose and chin while women prefer men with large shoulders and a narrow waist. According to scientists, the mind unconsciously tells men and women that these traits equal health and genetic well-being.

Not everyone thinks the same way, however. Look at most western fashion magazines: the women on the pages are thin. But is this “perfect” body type for women worldwide? Scientists' answer is no.     3    They found native people in southeast Peru preferred shapes regarded overweight in western cultures.

For better or worse, beauty plays a role in our lives. But it is extremely difficult to describe exactly what makes one person attractive to another. Although there do seem to be certain physical traits considered universally appealing, it is also true that beauty does not always keep to a single, uniform standard.    4    

A．Beauty really is, as the saying goes, in the eye of the beholder.

B．There is no denying that, anyone who keeps the ability to see beauty never grows old.

C．What is considered beautiful is subjective and varies around the world.

D．And our awareness of it may start at a very early age.

E．Even babies enjoy being dressed up and look attractive.

F．There is at least one good reason for the desire to be attractive: beauty is power.