Most Americans believe that someone isn’t grown-up until the age of 26 and they should complete their education, have a full-time job, have a family to support and be financially independent. They also believe that becoming a real grown-up is a process which begins at about the age of 20 and takes about five years, according to the report from the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center.
The findings are based on a representative sample of 1,398 people over the age of 18 who were surveyed in person. The survey found that people expect the transitions to grown-up status to be completed at the following ages: age 20.9 self-supporting; age 21.1 no longer living with parents; age 21.2 having a full-time job; age 22.3 education completed; age 24.5 being able to support a family financially; age 25.7 getting married; and age 26.2 having a child.
“There is a large degree of agreement across social groups on the relative importance of the seven transitions,” said Tom Smith, director of the survey. The only obvious pattern of differences is on views about supporting a family, having children and getting married. Older adults consider these more important than younger adults do. This probably shows in large part a change in values across generations away from traditional family values. The most valued step toward reaching adulthood, the survey found, is completing education, followed by full-time employment, supporting a family, financial independence, living independently, and marriage.According to the first paragraph, someone is a grown-up when he _______.
| A．has found a full-time job |
| B．has finished his study in university |
| C．can make money and support himself after completing his education |
| D．can support a family and be financially independent after graduation |
A young man of 24 may be busy ________.
| A．finding a job | B．finding a girl friend |
| C．making money | D．preparing for his wedding |
From the passage, we learn that _________.
| A．being grown-up is just a matter of age |
| B．being grown-up is a process which takes some time |
| C．all people think completing education means being grown-up |
| D．the survey found everyone had a different view about being grown-up |
The best title for the passage should be “________”
| A．It takes a long time to grown up. |
| B．Are we grown-up yet? |
| C．Getting married means being grown-up. |
| D．Completing education means being grown-up |
C
BERLIN-A German woman，fearful that a burglar(夜贼)was trying to break into her second storey apartment，called police after she heard someone climbing up to her balcony shortly after midnight，police said Thursday.
Police discovered the “burglar” was a man carrying flowers and a bottle of wine who turned out to be the woman’s boyfriend．But then arrested him on an outstanding reason．
“He was trying to surprise her with the flowers and a bottle of wine but it all went wrong，”said Korbach police spokesman Volker Koenig．He said the man jumped down from the balcony and tried to escape but was quickly caught by police．
“He nevertheless gave the police who were taking him to jail the bottle of wine as a gesture of thanks for the friendly treatment after the arrest．”Koenig said．
LONDON-A smoker who died after battling emphysema(肺气肿)has had his dying wish granted with the placement of a “SMOKING KILLED ME” sign on his hearse and his grave.
Albert Whittamore blamed his youthful smoking habit for the lung disease. He said before he died in February that he wanted the sign to serve as a warning to young people about the dangers of tobacco smoking.
The sign was designed to look like the health warning on a packet of cigarettes. The printed notice at his grave will be left in place for a week. The hearse carrying his body through the town of Dover 100 miles (160 kilometers) southeast of London and several of the printed signs displayed in the windows.
49. The man climbing up_________.
A. was actually a wanted thief
B. was put into prison in the end
C. thanked the police for setting him free
D. was treated badly by the police
50. The best title for the first news item might be “_________”
A. A burglar’s love B. A devoted boyfriend
C. Flowers and wine D. Price for being romantic
51. The public paid more attention to the smoker because .
A．he died after smoking for many years
B．he had the sign put on his hearse and his grave
C．he(tied of a lung disease without any treatment
D．he wanted the sign left on his grave for one day
52．Which of the following is NOT true?
A．The sign will be printed on the packet of cigarettes．
B．The signs were also shown in the windows of the hearse．
C．London is to the northwest of the town of Dover．
D．The smoker regretted forming the habit of smoking．
B
Listen carefully，working people! We would like to tell you something that could save your precious time and money! Best of all, it is free!
It’s“no”．What do you ask? We’ll say it again：“No”,a sweet and simple“no”．Say“no” at your office and see how quickly that pile of work on your desk disappears．
“Saying ‘no’ to others means you are saying ‘yes’ to yourself. Time is precious．People are spending money buying time。And yet we are willing to give up our time because we can’t say ‘no’．”said Leslie Charles，a professional speaker from East Lansing，Michigan．Susie Watson，a famous writer，said people who always say “yes” need to say “no” without guilt(内疚)or fear of punishment．“I would rather have someone give me a loving‘no’ than all obligated(强制的)‘yes’，”she said．She feels “no” need to give an explanation when she says “no” either socially or professionally．Does she feel guilty about it?“Not at all，”said Watson，who is director of advertising and public relations at Timex Corp in Middlebury．Connecticut．“Most people are afraid of saying ‘no’．My advice is to say ‘yes’ only if you don’t mean ‘no’．”Watson said “no” is the most effective weapon against wasting time．“Every year there are more demands on your time．Other people are happy to use up your time．”Watson said．Time saving appears to be “no’s” greatest friend．
“No” can be your new friend．a powerful tool to take back your life．“No” may even take you further in the business world than “yes”．“No” is power and strength．“No” now seems completely correct．
“Saying ‘no’ isn’t easy．But finally it’s greatly liberating，”Charles said．But，he added，a “no” project needs to be worked on every day because it is hard to change long-term
habit．But．he also warns：“Don’t go to extremes．Don’t find yourself saying ‘no’ to everything． In return you should learn to hear ‘no’．”
45．The underlined part “you are saying ‘yes’ to yourself” probably means that .
A．you can have more time to play with others
B．you needn’t mind other’s feeling when happy
C．you are selfish and may treat others rudely
D．you can do with your business as planned
46．When you say “no” to others，you should say it .
A. secretly B．politely C．proudly D．guiltily
47．In Watson’s opinion，people can save much time if they .
A．1earn to refuse B. refuse as much as possible
C．fear to refuse D. refuse without hesitation
48．If you say “no” to everything．you’11 .
A．make a lot of money B．enjoy a more wonderful life
C．face difficulty in life D. forget to say “yes” in the end
第二部分 阅读理解
（共25小题；第一节每小题2分，第二节每小题1分，满分45分）
第一节 阅读下列短文。从每题所给的四个选项A、B、C和D）中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
A
After lunch,I walked back home. I was just to cross the street when I heard the sound of a coin dropping. It wasn’t much but,as I turned, my eyes caught the heads of several other people turning too. A woman had dropped what appeared to be a dime.
The tinkling sound of a coin dropping on pavement is an attention-getter．It Can be nothing more than a penny．Whatever the coin is，no one ignores the sound of it．It got me thinking about sounds again．We are surrounded by so many sounds that attract the most attention．
People in New York City seldom turn to look when a fire engine，a police car or an ambulance comes screaming along the street．When I’m in New York，I’m a New Yorker．I don’t turn either．Like the natives，I hardly hear a siren(警报)there．
However，at home in my little town in Connecticut，it’s different．The distant sound of a police car, all emergency vehicle or a fire siren brings me to my feet if I’m seated and brings me to the window if I’m in bed．It’s the quietest sounds that have most effect on us．not the loudest．In the middle of the night, I can hear a dripping tap a hundred yards away thigh three closed doors．I’ve been hearing little creaking noises and sounds which my imaginnation turns into footsteps in the middle of the night for twenty-five years in our house．How come I never hear those sounds in the daytime?
I’m quite clear in my mind what the good sounds are and what the bad sounds are,I’ve turned against whistling，for instance：I used to think of it as the mark of a happy worker but lately I’ve been associating the whistler with a nervous person making unconscious noises．The tapping，tapping，tapping of my typewriter as the keys hit the paper is a lovely sound to me．I often like the sound of what I write better than the looks of it．
41．The sound of a coin dropping makes people________．
A．think of money B．look at each other
C．pay attention to it D．stop crossing the street
42．The author dislikes whistling because__________．
A．he has got tired of it B．it reminds him of tense people
C．he used to be happier D．he doesn’t like workers
43. What kind of sound does the author find pleasant?
A．Tapping sound of his typewriter． B．Clinking sound of keys．
C．Tinkling sound of a coin dropping． D．Creaking sound of footsteps．
44．How does the author feel about sounds in general?
A．They make him feel al home． B．He thinks they should be ignored．
C．He prefers silence to loud noises． D．He believes they ale part of our life．
In some countries where racial prejudice is acute, violence has so come to be taken for granted as a means of solving differences that it is not even questioned. There are countries where the white man imposes his rule by brute force; there are countries where the black man protests by setting fire to cities. Important people on both sides, who would in other respects appear to be reasonable men, get up and calmly argue in favor of violence--- as if it were a legitimate solution, like any other. What is really frightening, what really fills you with despair, is the realization that when it comes to the crunch（关键时刻）, we have made no actual progress at all. We may wear collars and ties instead of war-paint, but our instinct remain basically unchanged. The whole of the recorded history of the human race, that tedious documentation of violence, has taught us absolutely nothing. We have still not learned that violence never solves a problem but makes it even acute. The sheer horror, the bloodshed（流血）, the suffering mean nothing. No solution ever comes to light the morning after when we dismally contemplate the smoking ruins and wonder what hit us.
The truly reasonable men who know where the solutions lie are finding it harder and harder to get a hearing. They are despised, mistrusted and even persuaded by their own kind because they advocate such apparently outrageous things as law enforcement（执行）. If half the energy that goes into violent acts were put to good use, if our efforts were directed at cleaning up the slums and ghettos, at improving living standards and providing education and employment for all, we would have gone a long way to arriving at a solution. Our strength is sapped by having to mop up the mess that violence leaves in its wake. In a well-directed effort, it would not be impossible to fulfill the ideals of a stable social programme. The benefits that can be derived from constructive solutions are everywhere apparent in the world around us. Genuine and lasting solutions are always possible, providing we work within the framework of the law.
72. What is the best title for this passage?
A. Advocating Violence.
B. Violence Can Do Nothing to Diminish Race Prejudice
C. Violence as a Legitimate Solution
D. Violence: The Instinct of Human Race
73. Recorded history has taught us __________.
A. violence never solves anything B. nothing
C. the bloodshed means nothing D. everything
74. It can be inferred that truly reasonable men ________.
A. can’t get a hearing B. are looked down upon
C. are persecuted D. have difficulty in advocating law enforcement
75. According to the author, the best way to solve race prejudice is ________.
A. law enforcement B. knowledge C. nonviolence D. mopping up the violent mess
Throughout this long, tense election, everyone has focused on the presidential candidates and how they’ll change America. Rightly so. But selfishly, I’m more fascinated by Michelle
Obama and what she might be able to do, not just for this country, but for me as an African-American woman. As the potential First Lady, she would have the world’s attention. And that means that for the first time people will have a chance to get up close and personal with the type of African-American woman they so rarely see.
Usually, the lives of black women go largely unexamined. The prevailing theory seems to be that we’re all hot-tempered single mothers who can’t keep a man. Even in the world of make-believe, black women still can’t escape the stereotype of being neck-swirling, eye-rolling, oversexed females raised by our never-married, alcoholic mothers.
These images have helped define the way all black women are viewed, including Michelle Obama. Before she ever gets the chance to commit to a cause, charity or foundations as First Lady, her most urgent and perhaps most complicated duty may be simply to be herself.
It won’t be easy. Because few mainstream publications have done in-depth features on regular African American women, little is known about who we are, what we think and what we face on a regular basis. For better or worse, Michelle will become a stand-in for us all.
Just as she will have her critics, she will also have millions of adoring fans who usually have little interest in the First Lady. African-American blogs have all written about what they’d like to see Michelle bring to the White House---mainly showing the world that a black woman can support her man and raise a strong black family. Michelle will have to work to please everyone---an impossible task. But for many African-American women like me, just a little of her poise, confidence and intellect will go a long way in changing an image that’s been around for far too long.
69. Why does Michelle Obama hold a strong fascination for the author?
A. She serves as a role model for African-American women.
B. She possesses many admirable qualities becoming a First Lady.
C. She will present to the world a new image of African-American women.
D. She will pay closer attention to the interests of African-American women
70. What is the common stereotype of African-American women according to the author?
A. They are victims of family violence.
B. They are of an inferior social group.
C. They use quite a lot of body language.
D. They live on charity and social welfare.
71. What does the author say about Michelle Obama as a First Lady?
A. However many fans she has, she should remain modest.
B. She shouldn’t disappoint the African-American community.
C. However hard she tries, she can’t expect to please everybody.
D. She will give priority to African-American women’s concern.
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