Hoffman，40，a former senior vice president of a financial company，had what she describes as “one of those extreme jobs.” “I loved working,” she says. But her career path reached a crossroad when her second child was born，and she left her job in February 2007. Hoffman is one of many people who have left the work force to take a break，but she has a position as a consultant．She has described this type of career detour(绕路) ----- which is more common for women than for men—as “off- ramping．” Typically it occurs when the balancing act of parenting and work becomes too tough．

A study by the center found that more than 90 percent of women who off-ramp want to on-ramp back into the work force eventually．But making the transition back to work is rarely easy，and it is even harder in this economic climate of layoffs and hiring freezes.

Considering some of the obstacles faced by on- rampers , a three-day program called “Greater Returns：Restarting Your Career” was held at Columbia University. The goal of the three days was to have them walk away with a big shot of confidence.

　According to one school of thought, women looking to make a comeback might even have an advantage in the current economy，especially if they are looking for part-time or consultant positions that do not offer benefits. And a majority of on-rampers are women with extensive working experiences that could give them a slight advantage over less-experienced competition．

　“You absolutely cannot be defensive about why you off-ramped,” Ms Hoffman says, “ defensive” would have put her into a hard situation if the Greater Returns program had had not taught her how to describe the years she spent at home．“I now feel confident talking to an employer and saying，‘ Yes，I have been out of the work force，but here is where I can make significant contributions.’”

1.What is the best title for the passage?

A．Off ramp：it is common　　　　　　　　

B．On ramp：it is easy

C．Off ramp or on ramp：it depends on confidence

D．Off ramp to on ramp：it can be a hard Journey

2.According to the passage，Greater Returns___________．

A．is intended to relieve the pressure of the jobless women

B．has all the jobless women restart their career

C．will build up the confidence of those in search of jobs

D．is to last a11 the year around for the jobless women

3.The main reason for the women’s off-ramping is that_________．

A．they have to suffer the sexual discrimination

B．they have to parent their children

C．they reach a crossroad of career

D．they have great work pressure

4.From what Ms．Hoffman says in the last paragraph，we can conclude________ .

A．she didn’t get advice from the Greater Returns program

B．she was defensive about her off-ramping

C．she didn’t get the job because she lied about her experience

D．she is off ramp partly due to her straightforward manner

5.Which job is easier to get for a woman off-ramper?

A．Regular workers.                        B．Casual workers.

C．Company managers.                     D．Bank clerks.

 

Maybe ten-year-old Elizabeth put it best when she said to her father, "But, Dad, you can't be healthy if you're dead."
　　Dad, in a hurry to get home before dark so he could go for a run, had forgotten to wear his safety belt-- a mistake 75% of US population make every day. The big question is why.
　　There have been many myths (神化,虚构的事) about safety belt ever since their first appearance in cars some forty years ago. The following are three of the most common.
　　Myth the Number One: It's best to be "thrown clear" of a serious accident.
　　Truth: Sorry, but any accident serious enough to "throw you clear" is able going to be serious enough to give you a very bad landing. And chances are you'll have traveled through a windshield (挡风玻璃)or door to do it. Studies show that chances of dying after a car accident are twenty-five times in cases where people are "thrown clear".
　　Myth Number Two: Safety-belts "trap" people in cars that are burning or sinking in water.
Truth: Sorry again, but studies show that people knocked unconscious due to not wearing safety belts have a greater chance of dying in these accidents. People wearing safety belts are usually protected to the point of having a clear head to free themselves from such dangerous situation, not to be trapped in them.
　　Myth Number Three: Safety belts aren't needed at speeds of less than 30 miles per hour (mph).
　　Truth: When two cars traveling at 30 mph hit each other, an unbelted driver would meet the windshield with a force equal to diving headfirst into the ground from a height of 10 metres.
【小题1】Why did Elizabeth say to her father, "But, Dad, you can't be healthy if you're dead"?

A．He didn't have his safety belt on.

B．He was running across the street.

C．He was driving at great speed.

D．He didn't take his medicine on time.

【小题2】he reason father was in a hurry to get home was that he __________.

A．wasn't feeling very well	B．hated to drive in the dark
C．wanted to take some exercise	D．didn't want to be caught by the people

【小题3】According to the text, to be "thrown clear" of a serious accident is very dangerous because you ________.

A．may be knocked down by other cars.

B．may get serious hurt thrown out of the car

C．may find it impossible to get away from the seat

D．may get caught in the car door

【小题4】Some people prefer to drive without wearing a safety belt because they believe _______.

A．they will be unable to think clearly in an accident

B．the belt prevents them from escaping in an accident

C．they will be caught when help comes

D．cars catch fire easily

【小题5】What is the advice given in the test?

A．Never drive faster than 30 miles an hour.

B．Try your best to save yourself in a car accident.

C．Drive slowly while you're not wearing a safety belt.

D．Never forget to wear the safety belt while driving.

　 Maybe ten?year?old Elizabeth put it best when she said to her father，“But，Dad，you can’t be healthy if you’re dead.”

　 Dad，in a hurry to get home before dark so he could go for a run，had forgotten to wear his safety belt—a mistake 75% of US population make every day.The big question is why.

　 There have been many myths about safety belts ever since their first appearance in cars some forty years ago.The following are three of the most common.

　 Myth Number One: It’s best to be “thrown clear” of a serious accident.

　 Truth: Sorry，but any accident serious enough to “throw you clear” is going to be serious enough to give you a very bad landing.And chances are you’ll have traveled through a windshield (挡风玻璃)or door to do it.Studies show that chances of dying after a car accident are twenty?five times in cases where people are “thrown clear”.

　 Myth Number Two: Safety?belts “trap” people in cars that are burning or sinking in water.

　 Truth: Sorry again，but studies show that people knocked unconscious (昏迷) due to not wearing safety belts have a greater chance of dying in these accidents.People wearing safety belts are usually protected to the point of having a clear head to free themselves from such dangerous situation，not to be trapped in them.

　 Myth Number Three: Safety belts aren’t needed at speeds of less than 30 miles per hour (mph).

　 Truth: When two cars traveling at 30 mph hit each other，an unbelted driver would meet the windshield with a force equal to diving head first into the ground from a height of 10 metres.

1.Why did Elizabeth say to her father，“But，Dad，you can’t be healthy if you’re dead”？

　 A.He was driving at great speed.

　 B.He was running across the street.

　 C.He didn’t have his safety belt on.

　 D.He didn’t take his medicine on time.

2.The reason father was in a hurry to get home was that he 　　　　.

　 A.wasn’t feeling very well　　　　　 B.hated to drive in the dark

　 C.wanted to take some exercise　　　　　 D.didn’t want to be caught by the police

3.According to the text，to be “thrown clear” of a serious accident is very dangerous because

　 you 　　　.

　 A.may be knocked down by other cars

　 B.may get serious hurt thrown out of the car

　 C.may find it impossible to get away from the seat

　 D.may get caught in the car door

4.Some people prefer to drive without wearing a safety belt because they believe 　　　　.

　 A.the belt prevents them from escaping in an accident

　 B.they will be unable to think clearly in an accident

　 C.they will be caught when help comes

　 D.cars catch fire easily

5.What is the advice given in the test?

　 A.Never drive faster than 30 miles an hour.

　 B.Try your best to save yourself in a car accident.

　 C.Never forget to wear the safety belt while driving.

　 D.Drive slowly while you’re not wearing a safety belt.

 

Do you know what kind of things the young people are reading? More and more  36  and parents have noticed another kind of pollution, which comes from the printed papers  37  on streets.

　　These printed things 38  newspapers but have hardly anything to do with 39 . You can only find reading materials badly made up there---some are too strange for anyone to 40 ,  others are frightening stories of something  41  .However, many of the young readers are getting interested in such  42  reading, which  43  them what they should pay for their breakfast and brings them nightmares（噩梦）and immoral（邪恶）ideas in  44 .  Homework is left  45 ,  and daily games are lost.

　　These sellers shout on streets selling their papers well. The writers, publishers and printers,  46  they are, we never know,  are  47  their silent money.

The sheep-skinned wolf's story seems to have been forgotten once again .Why not 48  this kind of thing? Yes, both teachers and parents have asked each other for more strict control of the young readers.  49  ,the more you want to forbid it, the more they want to have a look at it.  50  you may even find  several children, driven by the curious natures,  51  one patched paper,  which has travelled from hand to hand.

　　It really does 52  to our society. It has already formed a sort of moral pollution. The  53  teachers and parents need more powerful support in their protection of the young generation. At the same time the young  54  need more interesting books to help them  55  those ugly papers.

A. teachers　　     B. writers　　  C. readers　　　   D. students

A. found　　　     B. sold　　　　C. printed　　　   D. put

A. depend on　     B. work out　　 C. look like　　   D. act as

A. it　　           B. them       C. children　　    D. young people

A. understand　     B. think　　　  C. believe　　    D. know

A. more important    B. still worse　 C. even better     D. very good

A. poisonous　　    B. wonderful　　C. interesting　   D. useful

A. takes　　　　    B. spends　　　 C. pays          D. costs

A. use　　　　      B. sight　　　　C. common　　   D. return

A. undone　　　     B. unknown　　C. much　　　　  D. less

A. who　　　　     B. what　　　　 C. whoever　　　 D. whatever

A. using　　　      B. making　     C. spending　　   D. wasting

A. stop　　　　     B. forbid        C. separate　　　  D. leave

A. Happily　　      B. Luckily       C. Unfortunately   D. Badly

A. Seldom　　　    B. Always       C. Hardly　　　  D. Sometimes

A. take　　　　     B. share         C. get　　       D. hold

A. harm　　　　    B. good         C. favor　　　　 D. wrong

A. worried　　　    B. puzzled       C. surprised　　  D. disappointed

A. writers　　　     B. teachers      C. parents　　　  D. readers

A. get off　　　     B. come into     C. break down　  D. get rid of

June 8th, 2004

　　Tian'anmen. Square. Forbidden City. The Ming Tombs. Summer Palace. The Great Wall Peking Duck. Street of Bars.

　　I feel like I've been run over by a tractor. Beijing has too much history. It's completely overpowering. I think my friend is just as blinded by the pure brightness of China's long past. Oh… the glory of ancient China still exists. I think out of all the places I visited, I like the Great Wall the best. We climbed, and climbed and climbed. Parts of it were basically straight up. We were out of breath all the way up. But it was all worth it. One sight of the length and lasting power of this monument of humankind blew the wind out of me. From our point of vision, the wall was endless; travels as far as the eye could see.

　　On a totally unrelated topic, people here really like to use umbrellas and spit(not in that order). A great majority of the women here hold these little colored umbrellas--in fear of darkening the skin. I feel so out of place. I'm really brown. My mom calls me a black cat. One thing I can't get used to is people smoking in the restaurants and stores. Smoking is forbidden in most buildings in America unless there is a specified area . The food, however, is unbelievable. Salivating（流口水）became common.　　I heard the National Entrance Exam ended today or yesterday. I'm still shocked at the idea of having so many exams crowded into two days. Thankfully, we didn't have to go through with it. Instead, we had to deal with the SATs. I had the chance to talk with a few students of my age. I really admire these students. They get the spirit of“patience and perseverance”.

(1) What reminded the author of his brown skin?

[　　]

A．Umbrellas used on the Great Wall.

B．The women on the Great Wall.

C．The steep part of the Great Wall.

D．The author's mother.

(2) What puzzled the author most according to the passage?

[　　]

A．The ancient Chinese buildings.

B．The Great Wall.

C．Chinese food.

D．The way the National Exam held in China.

(3) Which of the following is an unpleasant experience during the writer's visit in China?

[　　]

A．Climbing the Great Wall.

B．Eating Chinese food.

C．Smoking is not forbidden in some public places.

D．So many students took part in the National Exam.

(4) What's the writer's attitude towards the Chinese students?

[　　]