单选题If La Hontan's writing did, in fact, reflect his "philosophical bias", it can be interred that as a philosopher he was most likely motivated by a desire to ______.

单选题 {{B}}Questions 6 to 10 are based on the following news.{{/B}}

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单选题One of the many upsetting aspects to being in your forties, is hearing people your own age grumbling about "young people" the way we were grumbled about ourselves. Old friends will complain, "Youngsters today have no respect like we did", and I'll think: "Hang on. I remember the night you set a puma loose in the soft furnishings section of Pricerite' s. " There's also a "radicals" version of this attitude, a strand within the middle-aged who lament how today's youngsters, "Don't demonstrate like we did", because "we were always marching against apartheid or for the miners but students these days don't seem bothered". It would seem natural if they went on: "The bloody youth of today; they've no disrespect for authority. In my day you started chanting and if a copper gave you any lip you gave him a clip round the ear, and he didn' t do it again. We've lost those values somehow. " You feel that even if they did come across a mass student protest they'd sneer. "That isn't a proper rebellion, they've used the internet. "You wouldn't have caught Spartacus rounding up his forces by putting a message on Facebook saying 'Hi Cum 2 Rome 4 gr8 rite 2 liber8 slaves lets kill emprer lol' ". It doesn't help that many of the student leaders from the sixties and seventies ended up as ministers or journalists, who try to deny they've reneged on their principles by making statements such as: "It's true I used to run the Campaign to Abolish the British Army, but my recent speech in favour of invading every country in the world in alphabetical order merely places those ideals in a modern setting. " Also it's become a tougher prospect to rebel as a student, as tuition fees force them to work while they' re studying. But over the last two weeks students have organised occupations in 29 universities, creating the biggest student revolt for 20 years. In Edinburgh, for example, the demands were that free scholarships should be provided for Palestinian students, and the university should immediately cancel its investments with arms companies. So the first question to arise from these demands must be: what are universities doing having links with arms companies in the first place? How does that help education? Do the lecturers make an announcement that, "This year, thanks to British Aerospace, the media studies course has possession of not only the latest digital recording equipment and editing facilities, but also three landmines and a Tornado bomber"? The occupations involve students selecting an area of the university, then staying there, day and night, and organising a series of events and worthwhile discussions while the authorities pay security guards to stand outside and scowl. Warwick University, for example, organised an "Alternative Careers Fair", in which, presumabiy, if someone was brilliant at maths, the careers adviser would say to them, "I suggest you become an accountant for a Peruvian guerilla army. They're looking for people who can reliably file their tax returns before the deadline, as they're in enough trouble as it is. " But the extraordinary part about this wave of student protest is that in most universities the authorities, having spent the first week insisting the demands were impossible to meet, have now backed down. So dozens of Palestinians, who these days seem to be minus a university in Gaza for some reason, will have places here. And several are reviewing their connections to the arms trade. University College London, for example, could be severing its link to the arms company Cobham. Presumably this will spark outrage from predictable sources, who'll yell: "We don't pay our taxes so that students can go round selflessly helping people who've been bombed. "We fund their education so they can get a degree in business studies and cock up the global economy. If these layabouts can't buckle down it's time we cut off the funding we're now giving them and send them out to work in a job that no longer exists!" And there's another impact of a modern student revolt, which makes it even more threatening than similar protests in the sixties. Because most students now have to work to fund their course, so a protest like this will not only infuriate their authorities, it will also bring every pizza delivery company and chicken nuggets shop to its knees at the same time.

单选题If you intend using humor in your talk to make people smile, you must know how to identify shared experiences and problems. Your humor must be relevant to the audience and should help to show them that you are one of them or that you understand their situation and are in sympathy with their point of view. Depending on whom you are addressing, the problems will be different. If you are talking to a group of managers, you may refer to the disorganized methods of their secretaries; alternatively if you are addressing secretaries, you may want to comment on their disorganized bosses. Here is an example, which I heard at a nurses" convention, of a story which works well because the audience ail shared the same view of doctors. A man arrives in heaven and is being shown around by St. Peter. He sees wonderful accommodations, beautiful gardens, sunny weather, and so on. Everyone is very peaceful, polite and friendly until, waiting in a line for lunch, the new arrival is suddenly pushed aside by a man in a white coat, who rushes to the head of the line, grabs his food and stomps over to a table by himself. "Who is that?" the new arrival asked St. Peter. "Oh, that"s God," came the reply, "but sometimes he thinks he"s a doctor." If you are part of the group which you are addressing, you will be in a position to know the experiences and problems which are common to all of you and it"ll be appropriate for you to make a passing remark about the inedible canteen food or the chairman"s notorious bad taste in ties. With other audiences you mustn"t attempt to cut in with humor as they will resent an outsider making disparaging remarks about their canteen or their chairman. You will be on safer ground if you stick to scapegoats like the Post Office or the telephone system. If you feel awkward being humorous, you must practice so that it becomes more natural. Include a few casual and apparently off-the-cuff remarks which you can deliver in a relaxed and unforced manner. Often it"s the delivery which causes the audience to smile, so speak slowly and remember that a raised eyebrow or an unbelieving look may help to show that you are making a light-hearted remark. Look for the humor. It often comes from the unexpected. A twist on a familiar quote "If at first you don"t succeed, give up" or a play on words or on a situation. Search for exaggeration and understatements. Look at your talk and pick out a few words or sentences which you can mm about and inject with humor.

单选题It can be concluded from the essay that the author's attitude toward the training game is that of ______.

单选题The Great Barrier Reef is more than worthy of its name. Coral of all shapes, sizes and colors cover more than 130,000 sq. mi. off the coast of Australia, making it the world"s largest reef system and supporting an astounding variety of marine life. But today the Great Barrier Reef is dying. The temporary warming effect of a major El Nino event—combined with ongoing climate change—has heated the waters around the reef to nearly unprecedented levels. That warming has in turn driven a mass bleaching that has sucked the color—and the life—out of the coral. And the Great Barrier Reef isn"t alone. "This is the longest bleaching event ever recorded," says David Kline, a Scripps Institution of Oceanography scientist. "It"s truly global, and it"s looking very severe." Bleaching occurs when ocean disruptions—warm water, pollution, algae overgrowth-drive away the symbiotic organisms that live on the coral and give it color. Within weeks, the reef could die, leaving behind a forest of lifeless, bone white coral. Scientists believe the bleaching now under way may kill more than 15% of the world"s coral. It"s not just a matter of aquatic aesthetics. Reefs act as natural barriers that protect coastal communities from storms and flooding. Marine life depends on coral reefs as habitats, while coastal towns depend on them as tourist draws. But a bigger worry may be what the bleaching suggests about future climate change. The rapid death of coral reefs demonstrates that climate change is irreversibly affecting the world right now, even as policymakers treat warming as something to be dealt with in the future. "Climate change may be slow-creeping sometimes, but other times it takes great leaps forward," says Steve Palumbi, an ocean scientist at Stanford University. "This is one of those leaps." Local solutions—like reducing fishing and cleaning up pollution-can help slow reef loss, but scientists say a global problem requires a global solution. Nearly 200 countries agreed last year to work to keep global temperatures from rising more than 3.6℉ by 2100, but that goal will be tough to reach. And if governments fail, coral reefs will be only the first victims.

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单选题 {{B}}Questions 15-18{{/B}}

单选题Questions 1 to 5 are based on the following conversation.

单选题 Chinese medicine has a long tradition of natural "ageless ageing", much of which centres on the use of the breath. This is something to which we give little attention in the West. It is strange to think that specific breathing techniques are ignored, given that the body's use of oxygen is the central determinant of the rate at which we age. One of the reasons regular aerobic exercise is so beneficial in slowing the rate at which you age and at warding off degenerative diseases is that it improves your use of oxygen. So can learning to breathe fully. It can also improve your mood, increase your resistance to colds and illness, and improve your sleeping. Full breathing is also an important tool for encouraging waste elimination—a kind of spring-cleaning process that can go on all year round, every day of your life. Few people breathe fully. Most of us, particularly in sedentary jobs, breathe high—that is, we breathe quickly and in a shallow way, concentrating the inhalations in the upper chest area, which is the part of the lungs that holds the smallest quantity of air. Not only does this kind of breathing inhibit oxygen intake, it can also encourage the lungs to atrophy and to lose their elasticity—a common occurrence as people get older. Other people, who allow the air to flow deeper into their lungs, are mid-breathers. But to make the best use of oxygen for ageless ageing, it is important to develop the habit of taking total breaths so that they become a normal way of breathing. In breathing totally, all of your breathing apparatus comes into play. The intercostal muscles expand the ribs outward to create a large space in which your lungs can inflate to their maximum. The diaphragm moves down, pulling the lower ribs outward, which lets even the very bottom of your lungs fill completely with air. Practise it lying down for five minutes a couple of times a day—perhaps on awakening or just before going to sleep—and gradually it will become an automatic way of breathing. Not only will this help with ageless ageing, it will also help to improve your resistance to fatigue and the glow of your skin, It will also have some effect in protecting you from minor illness. Here is the technique: Lying flat on your back with a small pillow beneath your neck, place one hand on your abdomen and rest the other on one side of your ribcage, inhale slowly through your nose, imagining you are sending your breath to a place about two inches below your navel. As the in-breath continues, let it fill your stomach. Then expand your ribcage to the side, as well as the mid-section of your chest. Now let the fresh breath fill the upper part of your chest area. The whole process of inhalation should take about five seconds. Hold your breath for another five seconds to begin with, then gradually increase the time. Now exhale, following the same gradual process: first, contract your lower abdomen gently, then let the lower lungs deflate, followed by the upper chest. This process should also take no more than five seconds to complete. But note, it is important, before beginning the cycle again, to rest for a second or two.

单选题The early retirement of experienced workers is seriously harming the U.S. economy, according to a new report from the Hudson Institute, a public policy research organization. Currently, many older experienced workers retire at an early age. According to the recently issued statistics, 79 percent of qualified workers begin collecting retirement benefits at age 62; if that trend continues, there will be a labor shortage that will hinder the economic growth in the twenty-first century. Older Americans constitute an increasing proportion of the population, according to the US. Census Bureau, and the population of those over age 65 will grow by 60% between 2001 and 2020. During the same period, the group aged 18 to 44 will increase by only 4%. Keeping older skilled workers employed, even part time, would increase U.S. economic output and strengthen the tax base; but without significant policy reforms, massive early retirement among baby boomers seems more likely. Retirement at age 62 is an economically rational decision today. Social Security and Medicaid earnings limits and tax penalties subject our most experienced workers to marginal tax rates as high as 67%. Social Security formulas encourage early retirement. Although incomes usually rise with additional years of work, any pay increases after the 35-year mark result in higher Social Security taxes but only small increases in benefits. Hudson Institute researchers believe that federal tax and benefit policies are at fault and reforms are urgently needed, but they disagree with the popular proposal that much older Americans will have to work because Social Security will not support them and that baby boomers are not saving enough for retirement. According to the increase in 401 (k) and Keogh retirement plans, the ongoing stock market on Wall Street, and the likelihood of large inheritances, them is evidence that baby boomers will reach age 65 with greater financial assets than previous generations. The Hudson institute advocates reforming government policies that now discourage work and savings, especially for older worker. Among the report"s recommendations: tax half of all Social Security benefits, regardless of other income; provide 8% larger benefits for each year beyond 65; and permit workers nearing retirement to negotiate compensation packages that may include a lower salary but with greater healthcare benefits. However, it may take real and fruitful planning to find the right solution to the early retirement of older experienced workers; any measures taken must be allowed to prolong the service ability of older experienced workers.

单选题Questions 11-14

单选题 Questions 6～10 Roger Rosenblatt's book Black Fiction, in attempting to apply literary rather than sociopolitical criteria to its subject, successfully alters the approach taken by most previous studies. As Rosenblatt notes, criticism of Black writing has often served as a pretext for expounding on Black history. Addison Gayle's recent work, for example, judges the value of Black fiction by overtly political standards, rating each work according to the notions of Black identity which it introduces. Although fiction assuredly springs from political circumstances, its authors react to those circumstances in ways other than ideological, and talking about novels and stories primarily as instruments of ideology outwits much of the fictional enterprise. Rosenblatt's literary analysis discloses affinities and connections among works of Black fiction which solely political studies have overlooked or ignored. Writing acceptable criticism of Black fiction, however, presupposes giving satisfactory answers to a number of questions. First of all, is there a sufficient reason, other than the racial identity to the authors, to group together works by Black authors? Second, how does Black fiction make itself distinct from other modem fiction with which it is largely contemporaneous? Rosenblatt shows that Black fiction constitutes a distinct body of writing that has an identifiable, coherent literary tradition. Looking at novels written by Blacks over the last eighty years, he discovers recurring concerns and designs independent of chronology. These structures are related to the themes, and they spring, not surprisingly, from the central fact that the Black characters in these novels exist in a predominantly White culture, whether they try to conform to that culture or rebel against it. Black Fiction does leave some aesthetic questions open. Rosenblatt' s theme-based analysis permits considerable objectivity, he even explicitly states that it is not his intention to judge the merit of the various works, yet his reluctance seems misplaced, especially since an attempt to appraise might have led to interesting results. For instance, some of the novels appear to be structurally diffuse. Is this a defect, or are the authors working out of, or trying to forge, a different kind of aesthetic? In addition, the style of some Black novels, like Jean Tommer's Cane, verges on expressionism or surrealism; does this technique provide a counterpoint to the prevalent theme that portrays the fate against which Black heroes are pitted, a theme usually conveyed by more naturalistic modes of expression? In spite of such omissions, what Rosenblatt does include in his discussion makes for an astute and worthwhile study. {{U}}Black Fiction{{/U}} surveys a wide variety of novels, bringing to our attention in the process some fascinating and little-known works like James Weldon Johnson's {{U}}Autobiography of an Ex-colored Man{{/U}}. Its argument is tightly constructed, and its forthright, lucid style exemplifies levelheaded and penetrating criticism.

单选题Which of the following statements best summarizes the author's attitude towards the souvenir trade ?

单选题 Middle born children will tell you that they usually didn't feel all that special while growing up. The first born had his spot- carrier of the family banner and responsible for everything. The last born had his comfy little role, but the middle born had no distinctive place to call his own.Middle-borns just seem to be easily overlooked, and maybe that's why there are so few pictures of them in the family photo album. There may be hundreds, seemingly thousands, of pictures of the firstborn. For some strange reason, however, which I have confirmed by polling middle-born children around the world, there are seldom many pictures of the middle child, and what photos there are have him included with the others—squeezed again between the older sibling and the younger sibling. Another thing that can be said of many middle-born children is that they typically place great importance on their peer group. The middle child is well known for going outside the home to make friends faster than anybody else in the family. When a child feels like a fifth wheel at home, friends become very important; as a result, many middle children (but not all, of course) tend to be the social lions of the family. While firstborns, typically, have fewer friends, middle children often have many. Middle children have a propensity to leave home first and live farther away from the family than anyone else. I observed a dramatic illustration of this tendency while I was a guest on Oprah Winfrey's show. The subject that day was sibling rivalry. Three charming young women, all sisters, were among the guests, and we quickly learned that the firstborn and the last born were residents of the Eastern state where they had grown up. They had settled down near their parents and other family members. But the middle child had moved to the West Coast. I suppose she could have gotten another two thousand miles farther away by moving to Hawaii, but her point was still well made. Middle children are the ones who will most often physically distance themselves from the rest of the family. It's not necessarily because they're on the outs with everyone else. They simply like to do their own thing, make their own friends, and live their own lives. All of this is not to say that middle children totally ignore their siblings or the rest of the family. One common characteristic of the middle child is that she is a good mediator or negotiator. She comes naturally into this role because she's often right in the middle, between big brother and little sister, whatever the case may be. And because she can't have Mom or Dad all to herself, she learns the fine art of compromise. Obviously, these skills are assets in adult life, and middle children often become the best adjusted adults in the family.

单选题Questions 16～20 Marjorie McMillan, head of radiology at a veterinary hospital, found out by reading a letter to the editor in her local newspaper. Pamela Goodwin, a labor-relations expert at General Motors, happened to see a computer printout. Stephanie Odle, an assistant manager at a Sam's Club store, was slipped a co-worker's tax form Purely by accident, these women learned they were making less than their male or, in Goodwin's case, white colleagues at work. Each sued for pay discrimination under federal law, lucky enough to discover what typically stays a secret. "People don't just stand around the watercooler to talk about how much they make," says McMillan. This, as they say, is the real world, one in which people would rather discuss their sex lives than salaries. And about a third of private employers actually prohibit employees from sharing pay information. It is also a world that the U. S. Supreme Court seems unfamiliar with. The Justices recently decided 5 to 4 that workers are out of luck if they file a complaint under Title Ⅶ—the main federal antidiscrimination law—more than 180 days after their salary is set. That's six measly months to find out what your co-workers are making so that you can tell whether you're getting chiseled because of your sex, race, religion or national origin. How many of the roughly 2,800 such complaints pending before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission will fizzle because of this new rule is hard to say. Less of a mystery, though just as troubling, is how the court reached its decision. Lilly Ledbetter filed the case against Goodyear Tire ＆ Rubber Co. because at the end of a 19-year career, she was making far less than any of 15 men at her level She argued that Goodyear violated Title Ⅶ every time it gave her a smaller paycheck. Her complaint was timely, she said, because she filed it within 180 days of her last check. But the court majority read the statute to mean that only an actual decision to pay Ledbetter less could be illegal, and that happened well outside the 180-day period. A statute's ambiguous wording is fair game, but why read it to frustrate Title Ⅶ's purpose: to ease pay discrimination in a nation where women make only 77￠ on average for every $1 that men earn? And while employers might like this decision, they could end up choking on the torrent of lawsuits that might now come their way. "The real message is that if you have any inkling that you are being paid differently, you need to file now, before the 180 days are up," says Michael Foreman of the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights. All this sounds familiar. In June 1989, the Supreme Court issued three decisions that sharply limited the right to sue over employment discrimination. A day after the most prominent ruling, in Wards Cove v. Atonio, Senator Howard Metzenbaum (D., Ohio) declared that he would introduce a bill to overturn the decisions. It took civil rights advocates and their congressional allies eight months to introduce legislation. President George H. W. Bush vetoed the first version, arguing that it would encourage hiring quotas. Finally, in late 1991, the Democratic Congress and the Republican President reached a compromise fashioned by Senators John Danforth (R., Mo.) and Edward Kennedy (D., Mass.). It became the Civil Rights Act of 1991 and overturned parts of eight high-court decisions. Now, Foreman and others are working on a bill to overturn the Ledbetter case, and Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, among others, have expressed interest. A Democratic Congress may well cooperate, though with a Republican again in the White House, final legislation before next year's elections isn't guaranteed. In any event, we probably won't see the kind of groundswell that shifted the law toward workers in 1991 because civil rights advocates aren't sure these Justices are a threat to workers' rights. Last June, for example, they made it harder for employers to retaliate against employees who complain of discrimination. That left the Ledbetter ruling looking particularly clueless. "I heard the decision and thought, what is wrong with this court?" says McMillan. "It just doesn't live in the real world. /

单选题 {{B}}Questions 19—22{{/B}}

单选题 {{B}}Questions 11 to 15 are based on the following talk.{{/B}}

单选题Questions 19—22