From bankers to factory staff, employees in the West face a cold prospect of losing their jobs as a global recession(衰退) starts to bite. For colleagues in the East, the pain is more likely to come through a pay cut.
Human resource experts say cultural differences explain why Asian companies try harder to preserve jobs in difficult times, which will prevent unemployment and may help Asian economies survive at a time of slowing exports. The East Asian attitude may also make it easier for companies to recover quickly from the economic downturn since they will not need to rehire or train new staff, but build up a more loyal and devoted group.
"In the Confucian mindset(儒家思想), the right thing to do is to share the burden（负担）, which is the sense of collective responsibility. While in the West, it's more about individual survival," said Michael Benoliel, associate professor of organizational behavior at Singapore Management University (SMU).
In contrast, local Western companies from General Motors to Goldman Sachs plan to lay off workers by the thousands, but at the Asian units of Western multinationals or western units of Asian groups, job cuts will probably be less severe.
Japan's jobless rate was 4 percent in September, up from 3.8 percent in January, while Hong Kong's was flat at 3.4 percent. But US unemployment is expected to have jumped to 6.3 percent last month from below 5 percent in January.
Experts say that while there are noticeable differences in labor practices in East and West, the gap will narrow as more firms become more multinational and competition forces firms to adopt the best practices of rivals(对手) from abroad.The underlined word "prospect" in the first paragraph most probably means _________.
| A．future | B．scene |
| C．weather | D．place |
Compared with job cuts, pay cuts can bring the following benefits EXCEPT that _________.
| A．it's helpful to the economy recovery |
| B．it can form a team working harder and more loyally |
| C．it will keep the experienced and skilled workers |
| D．it costs the company less money to survive |
According to Michael Benoliel, the Confucian mindset focuses on _________.
| A．human rights |
| B．personal profits |
| C．sharing responsibility |
| D．individual survival |
The passage mainly tells us ________.
| A．the difficulties all the companies around the world will meet with today |
| B．the different labor solutions of Asian and Western in global recession |
| C．the ways to cut down the cost of the companies in economic downturn |
| D．the cultural differences between Eastern and Western world at present |
Fear is an emotion like others such as happiness, anger, hurt and sadness. We need emotions to process information we receive and decide how to respond. Being afraid of fast cars, for example, is something that might protect us from harm. Being afraid of the consequence of a choice may prevent us getting into trouble.
Fears in young children commonly center on certain animals like snakes or big dogs. Fears are caused often because of experiences or ideas expressed by others, and at times, the media. Many normal fears during the early years, like men with beards, or large dogs, disappear with age. Those relating to personal failure and ridicule (嘲笑) remain through adulthood and may need special help to overcome.
Children’s fears are often trivial, but that doesn’t mean they should be ignored. They need to be recognized and accepted as real for that child. Only when we help children understand their fears can they grow normally in their ability to deal with them.
Research shows that as a child grows up, the center of his fears changes a lot. Things like divorce, a teacher who “shouted at me”, people with guns, bullies, big boys, or “making fun of me” top the list of childhood fears.
We can not always prevent these experiences from happening, but it’s essential that children be allowed to freely express their emotions without judgment. Sympathy and a caring listener will help ease the pain of these fears. Read books and stories to your child about children who have experienced similar fears. This helps children talk about their fears and find ways to cope. With all emotions, fears become less of a problem for children as they gain self-confidence and they find that fear is normal and can be dealt with.The underlined word “trivial” in the third paragraph probably means “_______”.
| A．small | B．serious | C．harmful | D．common |
From the passage we can learn that ________.
| A．some childhood fears may have a lasting influence |
| B．children should avoid the media to reduce their fear |
| C．fears can be judged according to the environment |
| D．children with similar fears can communicate easily |
What’s the best title for this passage?
| A．How to Overcome Children’s Fears |
| B．Children’s Fears |
| C．The kind of Children’s Fears |
| D．The Bad Effects of Fears |
Treetops, the hotel in the trees, are famous in the world. People know little about Kenya, but they know of Treetops. When King George VI died, Princess Elizabeth was staying on the Treetops, and when she came down from there, “She succeeded him as the queen of the country”.
The hotel is in the middle of the forest, and it shows the pleasure of Africa. When you visit it, you will be sent into the heart of the forest by hotel buses, and then a guide, with a gun to protect you against big game, will go with you to the Treetops. Before and after dinner, for the whole night if you wish, you can sit on the corridor(走廊), watching animals come to the water pool. The earliest hotel Treetops was built round a large tree on the opposite side of the water, but that was destroyed by fire and the new hotel Treetops, which is built round several trees, is much bigger.
The dining room at Treetops is small, and the waiters cannot walk round to serve guests, so a clever “railway service” has been invented. Guests take their food as it passes slowly in front of them, along a line in the center of the table.
There are many animals around the Treetops. When you visit them, you can see:
---Animals and their babies are waiting to greet the guests.
---Animals, enjoying the Treetops pool in the daylight.
---A long bodied, long ring tailed very active cat-like animal is a special one coming out at night. He hunts and eats anything he can catch and is very destructive. He lives in the trees at Treetops. He comes for his food every evening. Do not get too near to him, as his teeth and claws（爪）can do you harm. These animals can be trained and become lovely pets.The underlined word “succeeded” in Paragraph 1 probably means “_________”.
| A．did what she was trying to do |
| B．gained her purpose |
| C．replaced someone in an important position |
| D．completed an easy task |
According to the third paragraph, “railway service” actually refers to __________.
| A．the service provided at the railway station |
| B．the supply of food on the train |
| C．the service provided along the railway |
| D．the supply of food along a moving line |
Which of the following statements about “the cat-like animal” is WRONG?
| A．It comes for food only at night. |
| B．It lives in the trees at Treetops. |
| C．Its teeth and claws can do people harm. |
| D．It can catch any other animal in the forest. |
We can learn from the text that the guests _________.
| A．will be protected by a guide in the forest |
| B．can play with the cat-like animals |
| C．can have parties in the dinning room |
| D．could not sit on the corridor at night |
TV LISTING FOR WLS-TV IN CHICAGO（May, 7, 2012）
| 2：30 AM |
Weekend ABC 7 News（Repeat） The top local, regional and national news events are presented by the ABC 7 Weekend News Team, along with weather, sports and travel conditions. |
| 3：00 AM |
Inside Edition（New, TV-PG） Rumors about mass murderer Charles Manson’s secret son. |
| 3：30 AM |
America This Morning（New） Live reports from ABC News headquarters in Washington D. C. Early morning news events and the top headlines of the day are examined and reported. |
| 4：30 AM |
ABC 7 News This Morning（New） The ABC 7 Morning News Team provides a general look at overnight and early morning news events, weather forecasts and traffic updates for early risers. |
| 5：00 AM |
Mirror Mirror Reporter Rebecca Spera provides the latest developments in the beauty, health and fashion industries and answers commonly-asked beauty questions. |
| 5：30 AM |
Home with Lisa Quinn Professional designer Lisa Quinn shows how to refurnish, reorganize and redesign the home in order to maximize convenience and style. |
| 6：00AM |
Everyday Living Quick beauty tips; protect yourself from money problems; the four most commonly parenting mistakes. |
| 7：00AM |
Windy City Live（Repeat） Tile ABC 7 team of hosts provides the latest on things of interest in Chicago including cultural events, lifestyle topics, fashion trends and celebrity news. |
*TV-PG：programs for children with parents’ guidanceWhich of the following statements is NOT true?
A. ABC News headquarters is in Washington D. C.
B. Lisa Quinn is a professor providing the latest information in fashion.
C. Parenting mistakes are discussed in the morning TV programs.
D. ABC 7 News This Morning will give early risers a general look at traffic updates.Which content should be watched with parents’ guidance?
| A．Commonly-asked beauty questions. |
| B．Celebrity news. |
| C．Rumors about Charles Manson’s secret son. |
| D．Lifestyle topics. |
If one would like to deal with money problems, he may refer to __________.
| A．Everyday Living | B．Mirror Mirror |
| C．Windy City Live | D．Home with Lisa Quinn |
If you want to know the latest weather forecast of the day, you should watch at _________.
| A．2：30AM | B．3：30AM |
| C．4：30AM | D．7：00AM |
I really love my job because I enjoy working with small children and like the challenges and awards from the job. I also think my work is important. There was a time when I thought I would never have that sort of career.
I wasn’t an excellent student because I didn’t do much schoolwork. In my final term I started thinking what I might do and found I didn’t have much to offer. I just accepted that I wasn’t the type to have a career.
I then found myself a job, looking after two little girls. It wasn’t too bad at first. But the problems began when I agreed to live in, so that I would be there if my boss had to go out for business in the evening. We agreed that if I had to work extra hours one week, she’d give me time off the next. But unfortunately, it didn’t often work out. I was getting extremely tired and fed up, because I had too many late nights and early mornings with the children.
One Sunday, I was in the park with the children, and met Megan who used to go to school with me. I told her about my situation. She suggested that I should do a course and get a qualification（资格证）if I wanted to work with children. I didn’t think I would be accepted because I didn’t take many exams in school. She persuaded me to phone the local college and they were really helpful. My experience counted for a lot and I got on a part –time course. I had to leave my job with the family, and got work helping out at a kindergarten.
Now I’ve got a full-time job there. I shall always be thankful to Megan. I wish I had known earlier that you could have a career, even if you aren’t top of the class at school.What is the author’s present job?
| A．Working part-time in a college. |
| B．Taking care of children for a family. |
| C．Helping children with their schoolwork. |
| D．Looking after children at a kindergarten. |
When staying with the two girls’ family, the author ___________.
| A．was paid for extra work |
| B．often worked long hours |
| C．got much help form her boss |
| D．took a day off every other week |
Why did the author leave her first job?
| A．She found a full-time job. |
| B．She was fed up with children. |
| C．She decided to attend a part-time course. |
| D．She needed a test after working extra hours. |
What has the author learned from her own experiences?
| A．Less successful students can still have a career. |
| B．Qualifications are necessary for a career. |
| C．Hard work makes an excellent student. |
| D．One must choose the job she likes. |
Tom appeared on the sidewalk with a bucket of whitewash and a longhandled brush. He stopped by the fence in front of the house where he lived with his aunt Polly. He looked at it, and all joy left him. The fence was long and high. He put the brush into the whitewash and moved it along the top of the fence. He repeated the operation. He felt he could not continue and sat down.
He knew that his friends would arrive soon with all kinds of interesting plans for the day. They would walk past him and laugh. They would make jokes about his having to work on a beautiful summer Saturday. The thought burned him like fire.
He put his hand into his pockets and took out all that he owned. Perhaps he could find some ways to pay someone to do the whitewashing for him. But there was nothing of value in his pockets—nothing that could buy even half an hour of freedom. So he put the bits of toys back into his pockets and gave up the idea.
At this dark and hopeless moment, a wonderful idea came to him. It filled his mind with a great, bright light. Calmly he picked up the brush and started again to whitewash.
While Tom was working, Ben Rogers appeared. Ben was eating an apple as he walked along the street. As he walked along it, he was making noises like the sound of a riverboat. First he shouted loudly, like a boat captain. Then he said “Ding－Dong－Dong”， “Ding－Dong－Dong” again and again, like the bell of a riverboat. And he made other strange noises. When he came close to Tom, he stopped.
Tom went on whitewashing. He did not look at Ben. Ben stared a moment and then said: “Hello! I'm going swimming, but you can't go, can you？”
No answer. Tom moved his brush carefully along the fence and looked at the result with the eye of an artist. Ben came nearer. Tom's mouth watered for the apple, but he kept on working.
Ben said, “Hello, old fellow, you've got to work, hey？”
Tom turned suddenly and said, “Why, it's you, Ben! I wasn't noticing.”
“Say—I'm going swimming. Don't you wish you could? But of course you'd rather work—wouldn't you? Of course you would.”
Tom looked at the boy a bit, and said, “What do you call work？”
“Why, isn't that work？”
Tom went back to his whitewashing, and answered carelessly. “Well, maybe it is, and maybe it isn't. All I know is, it suits Tom Sawyer.”
“Oh come, now, you don't mean to say that you like it？”
The brush continued to move.
“Like it? Well, I don't see why I shouldn't like it. Does a boy get a chance to whitewash a fence every day？”
Ben stopped eating his apple. Tom moved his brush back and forth, stepped back to look at the result, added a touch here and there, and stepped back again. Ben watched every move and got more and more interested. Soon he said，“Say, Tom, let me whitewash a little.”
Tom thought for a moment, and was about to agree, but he changed his mind.
“No—no—it won't do, Ben. You see, Aunt Polly wants this fence to be perfect. It has got to be done very carefully. I don't think there is one boy in a thousand, maybe two thousand, that can do it well enough.”
“No—is that so? Oh come, now—let me just try. Only just a little.”
“Ben, I'd like to, but if it isn't done right, I'm afraid Aunt Polly … ”
“Oh, I'll be careful. Now let me try. Say—I'll give you the core of my apple.”
“Well, here—No, Ben, now don't. I'm afraid …”
“I'll give you all of it.”
Tom gave up the brush with unwillingness on his face, but joy in his heart. And while Ben worked at the fence in the hot sun, Tom sat under a tree, eating the apple, and planning how to get more help. There were enough boys. Each one came to laugh, but remained to whitewash. By the time Ben was tired, Tom sold the next chance to Billy for a kite; and when Billy was tired, Johnny bought it for a dead rat—and so on, hour after hour. And when the middle of the afternoon came, Tom had won many treasures.
And he had not worked. He had had a nice idle time all the time, with plenty of company, and the fence had been whitewashed three times. If he hadn't run out of whitewash, Tom would have owned everything belonging to his friends.
He had discovered a great law of human action, namely, that in order to make a man or a boy want a thing, it is only necessary to make the thing difficult to get.How many characters are mentioned in this story?
| A．4. | B．5. | C．6. | D．7 |
Why did Tom take all his bits of toys out of his pockets?
| A．Because he wanted to know if he could buy help with his toys. |
| B．Because he wanted to throw his toys away. |
| C．Because he wanted to give his toys to his friends. |
| D．Because he was tired and wanted to play with his toys. |
Tom was about to agree to let Ben whitewash when he changed his mind because ________.
| A．Tom planned to make Ben give up his apple first |
| B．Tom wanted to do the whitewashing by himself |
| C．Tom was unwilling to let Ben do the whitewashing |
| D．Tom was afraid Ben would do the whitewashing better |
We can learn from the passage that ________.
| A．Tom was interested in whitewashing the fence |
| B．Tom had a lot of friends who are ready to help others |
| C．Tom was unwilling to whitewash the fence, but he managed to let other boys do it for him |
| D．Tom was good at whitewashing the fence, so he looked at the result of his work with the eye of an artist |
What made Ben Rogers eagerly give up his apple and offer to brush the fence for Tom?
| A．His curiosity about Tom's brushing job. |
| B．His warm heart and kindness to friends. |
| C．Tom's threat. |
| D．Aunt Polly's idea. |
Which of the following is the most suitable title for this passage?
| A．The Happy Whitewasher |
| B．Tom And His Fellows |
| C．Whitewashing A Fence |
| D．How To Make The Things Difficult To Get. |
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