Creative Thinking I. Facts to be known about creative thinkingA. People are creative【T1】______【T1】______B. It isn't developed enough in【T2】______【T2】______C. It's the distinctive【T3】______ of human being【T3】______II. The role of creative thinking in all areas of one's lifeA. Creative thinking will always be【T4】______ whatever you do【T4】______— it gives one the edge that really【T5】______【T5】______himself from other people— it helps generate what repetitive procedure should first be— developing the skill of it helps one to get to【T6】______ of a field【T6】______— it helps one【T7】______ a new set of procedures to follow【T7】______— it helps one to absorb new knowledge and experiencesB. Creative thinking is the key to opportunities— wide application of man's creativity in the Internet, airplane, etc.— a whole new realm of opportunities resulting from【T8】______【T8】______a)a happier home atmosphereb)more【T9】______ brought about by diet and exercise【T9】______c)an additional stream of income brought about by【T10】______【T10】______d)interpersonal relationship brought about by gym and networkC. Creativity promotes initiative and【T11】______【T11】______— people having strong sense of【T12】______ and initiative【T12】______—【T13】______, people becoming more optimistic【T13】______— one of the best ways to cope with the【T14】______【T14】______III. Easiest ways to develop creative thinking, and your gainsA. Taking your ideas seriously and【T15】______【T15】______B. Getting to know the true power of creative thinking
For make adobe bricks, workers mix sand and clay or mud with water and small quantities of straw, grass, or a similar material.
(1) The first intimation, apparently, was when three-year-old Yves told his mother that her shoes did not go with her dress. They were at home in Oran, a dull commercial town in French-ruled Algeria, where Yves's father sold insurance and ran a chain of cinemas, and Mrs. Mathieu-Saint-Laurent cut an elegant figure in colonial society. Oran had once enjoyed some small renown as the westernmost outpost of the Ottoman empire, and was to gain more later as the setting for Albert Camus's "The Plague". But after 1936 it had a genius in the making. (2) So, at any rate, the tribute-payers are saying. "Pure genius", "the world's greatest fashion designer", "the most important designer of the 20th century": such superlatives have been lavished on Yves Saint Laurent for years, and perhaps they are not meant to be taken at face value. The fashion business is, after all, a part of the entertainment industry, where sycophancy, exaggeration and gushing insincerity are not unknown. Mr. Saint Laurent fitted perfectly into it. (3) He was, for a start, quite literally a showman, a shy and stage-frightened one, but what shows he could put on! Dazzling girls strutted down the catwalk, wearing startling creations of gauze, or velvet, or feathers, or not much at all. He was an artist, a delicate, attenuated figure who drew his inspiration from the pages of Marcel Proust', the paintings of Braque, Matisse, Picasso and Van Gogh, and the counsels of his assistant, Loulou de la Falaise. And he was troubled: by drink, by drugs and by physical frailty. He teetered perpetually on the brink of emotional collapse and sometimes fell over it. (4) In 1961, when Mr. Saint Laurent set up shop in Paris under his own name, most couturiers were not quite like this. But the times were propitious for something new. He had by then done a stint at the House of Dior, whose reputation he had restored with some dramatic designs and, in 1958, after the famous founder had died, an iconoclastic collection of his own. The summons to do military service, a ghastly mental degringolade and dismissal from Dior then intervened, and might have cut short a great career had he not gone into partnership with Mr. Berge. As it was, a series of innovations followed, with Mr. Saint Laurent responsible for the designs, Mr. Berge for the business, including the scents, scarves, unguents and over 100 other products marketed with a YSL label. (5) The dress designs now started flying off Mr. Saint Lament's drawing board, though increasingly often with the aid of helpers. Many were short-lived, this being fashion and fashion being, by definition, ephemeral. But two departures were to last. One was that haute couture, hitherto available only to the very rich or vicariously through magazines and newspapers, should be sold worldwide in ready-to-wear shops at a fraction of the posh price. The other was that women should be put into men's clothes—safari outfits, smoking jackets, trench coats and, most enduringly, trouser suits. Women, for some reason, saw this as liberation. (6) He was always imaginative, taking inspiration not just from artists like Mondrian but also from Africa and Russian ballet. He was also capable of creating the absurd, producing, for example, a dress with conical bosoms more likely to impale than to support. But his clothes, however outre, were usually redeemed by wonderful colors and exquisite tailoring. Above all, they were stylish, and the best have certainly stood the test of time. (7) That is no doubt because most were unusually wearable, even comfortable. At a reverential extravaganza in (and outside) the Pompidou Centre in Paris in 2002, soon after Mr. Saint Laurent had announced his retirement, many of the guests wore a lovingly preserved YSL garment. The "anarchist", as Mr. Berge recently called him, had by now become more conservative, seeing the merits of "timeless classics" and lamenting the banishment of "elegance and beauty" in fashion. He believed, he said, in "the silence of clothing". Yet perhaps he must take some of the blame for the new cacophony. The trouser suit prepared the way for the off-track track suit; and lesser designers, believing they share his flair and originality, now think they have a license to make clothes that are merely idiotic. Perhaps it would have happened without him. In an industry largely devoid of any sense of the ridiculous, he was usually an exception. He believed in beauty, recognized it in women and, amid the meretricious, created his share of it.
(1)This fishing village of 1,480 people is a bleak and lonely place. Set on the southwestern edge of Iceland, the volcanic landscape is whipped by the North Atlantic winds, which hush everything around them. A sculpture at the entrance to the village depicts a naked man facing a wall of seawater twice his height. There is no movie theater, and many residents never venture to the capital, a 50-min. drive away. (2)But Sandgerdi might be the perfect place to raise girls who have mathematical talent. Government researchers two years ago tested almost every 15-year-old in Iceland for it and found that boys trailed far behind girls. That fact was unique among the 41 countries that participated in the standardized test for that age group designed by the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development. But while Iceland's girls were alone in the world in their significant lead in math, their national advantage of 15 points was small compared with the one they had over boys in fishing villages like Sandgerdi, where it was closer to 30. (3)The teachers of Sandgerdi's 254 students were only mildly surprised by the results. They say the gender gap is a story not of talent but motivation. Boys think of school as sufferings on the way to a future of finding riches at sea; for girls, it's their ticket out of town. Margret Ingporsdottir and Hanna Maria Heidarsdottir, both 15, students at Sandgerdi's gleaming school—which has a science laboratory, a computer room and a well-stocked library—have no doubt that they are headed for university. "I think I will be a pharmacist," says Heidarsdottir. The teens sat in principal Gudjon Kristjansson's office last week, waiting for a ride to the nearby town of Kevlavik, where they were competing in West Iceland's yearly math contest, one of many throughout Iceland in which girls excel. (4)Meanwhile, by the harbor, Gisli Tor Hauksson, 14, already has big plans that don't require spending his afternoons toiling over geometry. "I'll be a fisherman," he says, just like most of his ancestors. His father recently returned home from 60 days at sea off the coast of Norway. "He came back with 1.1 million krona," about $18,000, says Hauksson. As for school, he says, "it destroys the brain." He intends to quit at 16, the earliest age at which he can do so legally. "A boy sees his older brother who has been at sea for only two years and has a better car and a bigger house than the headmaster," says Kristjansson. (5)But the story of female achievement in Iceland doesn't necessarily have a happy ending. Educators have found that when girls leave their rural enclaves to attend universities in the nation's cities, their science advantage generally shrinks. While 61% of university students are women, they make up only one-third of Iceland's science students. By the time they enter the labor market, many are overtaken by men, who become doctors, engineers and computer technicians. Educators say they watch many bright girls suddenly flinch back in the face of real, head-to-head competition with boys. In a math class at a Reykjavik school, Asgeir Gurdmundsson, 17, says that although girls were consistently brighter than boys at school, "they just seem to leave the technical jobs to us." Says Solrun Gensdottir, the director of education at the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture: "We have to find a way to stop girls from dropping out of sciences." (6)Teachers across the country have begun to experiment with ways to raise boys to the level of girls in elementary and secondary education. The high school in Kevlavik tried an experiment in 2002 and 2003, separating 16-to-20-year-olds by gender for two years. That time the boys slipped even further behind. "The boys said the girls were better anyway," says Kristjan Asmundsson, who taught the 25 boys. "They didn't even try."
Underscoring the importance of Asia to the United States in the new century, Hillary Clinton is breaking with tradition as new Secretaries of State often the first visit Europe or the Middle East.【S1】______ It is no accident Japan is the first stop in Asia. The United States and Japan, which were bitter enemies in World War II, havesince enjoyed decades as critic trading partners and allies on the【S2】______security front. Both governments have confirmed that beside the【S3】______ailing global economy, a number of security issues is on the agenda.【S4】______ Clinton is to meet with his Japanese counterpart and Prime【S5】______Minister Taro Aso, whose popularity has plunged. She is also meeting the leader of the Democratic Party of Japan, Ichiro Ozawa, who could become prime minister if the largest opposition party comes into power in this year's national election.【S6】______ "Japan is eager to see North Korea bring back to the six-way【S7】______talks aimed at ending Pyongyang's nuclear proliferation. " Former spokesman and current advisor Tomohiko Taniguchi at Japan'sForeign Ministry tell VOA News that Tokyo strongly desires a revival【S8】______of the negotiations to end the military threat to Japan posed by North Korea. " " It has to be revitalized. Mrs. Clinton is going to talk with the Japanese government, South Korean government and then Beijing government to consolidate their positions," Taniguchi said. Advisor Taniguchi at Japan's Foreign Ministry says his country hopesClinton's trip results from a closer partnership between Washington【S9】______and Beijing, but not at expense of the special U. S.-Japan【S10】______relationship.
Cross-Cultural Communication Tips for AmericansI. Why Americans need cross-cultural tips?a)Not a "melting pot" but a(n)"【T1】_____"【T1】______b)Different cultural identities in the mixed crowdII. General advice for cross-cultural communication(CCC)a)Do not base actions on【T2】_____【T2】______b)Watch for the other【T3】_____【T3】______c)Expect【T4】_____【T4】______d)Don't feel【T5】_____because of the mistakes【T5】______III. Three key tips for CCCa)Keep the conversation【T6】_____【T6】______— Asking friendly questions can make people【T7】_____【T7】______b)Don't assume where someone is from by his/her【T8】_____【T8】______— Someone with a British accent might come from a dozen of countriesc)Respond to a personal question by avoiding it with【T9】_____【T9】______— If you're pressed for specifics, simply【T10】______ it.【T10】______IV. A(n)【T11】______-Jeffs mistakes【T11】______a)He addressed Lora by her first name without【T12】_____【T12】______b)He forced Lora into an uncomfortable【T13】_____【T13】______c)He assumed Lora was from【T14】_____ or Mexico【T14】______d)He made himself a fool by assuming that— Lora didn't know some people think bullfighting is cruel— Lora had never been to【T15】_____【T15】______
我喜欢两句诗:“山僧不解数甲子,一叶落知天下秋。”
山上的和尚不知道如何计算里子,只观察自然,看到一片叶子落下,就知道已是秋天了。现代都市人正好相反,可以说是“落叶满天不知秋,世人只会数甲子”。对现代人而言,时间就是日历,有时日历犹不足以形容,就只剩下钟表了。若能与落叶飞花同呼吸,能让心保有在自然中的谦卑,就是在最热闹的城市,秋天也不会远去。如果眼里只有手表、金钱、工作,即使在路上被落叶击中,也看不到秋天的美。
“开卷有益”是古人鼓励读书的一句成语。从前读到一册坏书,读后每觉得为古人所欺;现在多了一点智识,反过来又觉得古人的不欺我了。总之,好书读了,原有所得,就是可以知道它的好处在哪里。可是坏书读了,而知道它的坏的原因与地方,岂不也是一得?从前孔子说的“三人行,必有我师”之意,也不一定是从正的一方面着想,反过来在负的一方面,也何尝不可以为鉴戒。
The image was fascinating, as justice John Paul Stevens, a Chicago native, presented it. A gang member and his father arehanging in near Wrigley Field. Are they there " to rob an【S1】______unsuspecting fan or just to get a glimpse of Sammy Sosa leaving the ball park?" A police officer has no idea, but under Chicago's anti-gang law, the cop must order them disperse. With Stevens writing【S2】______for a 6-to-3 majority, the Supreme Court last week struck downChicago's sweeping law, as had sparked 42,000 arrests in its three【S3】______years of enforcement. The decision was a blow to advocates of get-tough crimepolicies. And in a widely noted concurring opinion, Justice Sandra【S4】______Day O'Connor suggested that a less harsh approach—distinguishinggang members and innocent bystanders—might pass constitutional【S5】______muster. New language could target loiterers " with no apparentpurpose rather than to establish control over identifiable areas, to【S6】______intimidate others from entering those areas or to conceal legal【S7】______activities," she wrote. Chicago officials vowed to draft a new measure. "We will go back and correct it and then move forward," said Mayor Richard Daley. Chicago officials, along with the League of Cities and 31 statesthat sided with them in the court, might do well to look at one state【S8】______where anti-gang loitering prosecutions have withstood constitutional challenges; California. The state has two antiloitering laws on thebooks, aiming at people intending to commit specific crimes—【S9】______prostitution and drug dealing. In addition, a number of localprosecutors are waging war for gangs by an innovative use of the【S10】______public-nuisance laws.
雨后,韭菜叶上还往往带着雨时溅起的泥点。青菜摊子上的红红绿绿几乎有诗似的美丽。果子有不少是由西山与北山来的,西山的沙果,海棠,北山的黑枣,柿子,进了城还带着一层白霜儿呀!哼,美国的橘子包着纸;遇到北平的带霜儿的玉李,还不愧杀! 是的,北平是个都城,而能有好多自己产生的花,菜,水果,这就使人更接近了自然。从它里面说,它没有像伦敦的那些成天冒烟的工厂:从外面说,它紧连着园林、菜圃与农村。采菊东篱下,在这里,确是可以悠然见南山的;大概把“南”字变个“西”或“北”,也没有多少了不得的吧。像我这样的一个贫寒的人,或者只有在北平能享受一点清福了。
Whether it is called animal testing, animal experimentation or animal research, it refers to the experimentation carried out on animals. It is used to assess the safety and effectiveness of everything from medication to cosmetics, as well as understanding how the human body works. While supporters believe it is a necessary practice, those opposed to animal testing believe that it involves the torture and suffering of animals. The following are opinions from two sides. Read the excerpts carefully and write your response in about 300 words, in which you should: 1. summarize briefly the opinions from two sides; 2. give your comment. Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks.Doctors Ted (the US) : Animal testing has improved our medicines. Animals live in an ecosystem with us. And in an ecosystem, living things interact to survive. Sometimes there are sacrifices made for another species to live. Just like this one. How many of you have ever had medicine before? Everyone, right? Think about before you had that medicine, were you in pain? Had a fever? Sneezing? Cough or sore throat? Or something even worse? The drugs that you used to cure yourself were tested on animals. Animals will not go extinct because of this. The animals that are used give birth to a big litter of babies and are bred just for this purpose. Everybody says that testing on animals is not accurate, but look at all the medicine that came out of it. Sally (the UK) : It should be tested because we need to stay healthy. If we don't test it on animals we will not be healthy. And it's an important part of medical research. We need to make sure human patients get a safe dose of medication. Patients feel safe if they know that their medications have been tested on animals beforehand. Jessica ( Mongolia) : Suppose there is some virus spreading over a large area, doctors and scientists are trying their best to invent a drug, and they do so, but without animal testing the drug is launched in the market. These drugs may have adverse reactions and about billions of people may die from them. Would this be good? The only answer is no. We can't sacrifice billions of people for just one animal.Zoophilists Susan Borowski (Spain) : Animals should not be tested on drugs and medication because it can harm them badly and they might die! These animals are harmless and we are damaging them by testing our stupid products on them. What if they die one day? It will be the scientists' fault! Animals deserve better care. Laura (the UK) : Animals have feelings. It is just wrong of a person to do this to animals. They have the right to live! Just like us. Why will we take that right away? We are here in this earth to live and not to harm earth creatures. Millions of animals are dying for the cause that they don't have a fault for. The animals are suffering burns, cancer, blind, force-fed chemicals, and more. Austrorus (India) : If people keep doing this, soon animals are going to be extinct. It could affect the world in many ways. And it's so hard for animals. And people love having animals as pets. We should not use drugs on them! TedM (Russia) : Instead of testing it on animals who also have families like us, we can test it on those people who are sentenced to death because they are undeserving to live and why should they die easily. They have given pain, and they should also get that pain back. So, these prisoners are perfect to be tested drugs on. Write your response on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.
Women-centered HistoryIn the past, most people believed that the contributions women have made to US history have been ignored by historians. In recent years, a new view of women's history has emerged. It's called "women-centered history," which is forcing historians to re-interpret traditional pictures of key historical events.I.【T1】_____【T1】______— 1980s: subfield of history established— Recent years: the view "women-centered history" emerged— Now: Look at women's contribution to history "【T2】_____"【T2】______II. Premise— Females played an important part in shaping US history— Women are worth【T3】_____【T3】______— Prior models of history:A. "The【T4】_____ approach"【T4】______1. Theory:a)Men were the【T5】_____ historical leaders【T5】______b)Women played a secondary role at every landmark historical event2. Downside: neglects the【T6】_____ role of women【T6】______in everyday family lifeB. "The victim approach"1. Theory: focusing on women's【T7】_____ throughout history【T7】______2. Downside: women's plight is overly【T8】_____【T8】______III. Balance— Ask the question of "What【T9】_____?"【T9】______— Portray a fairer and more complete picture of US women's past— Best show the balance of【T10】_____ between women's plight【T10】______and women's power— Compelled historians to see certain historical processes in【T11】_____【T11】______IV. More【T12】______【T12】______— Sub-categories of women's history:a)【T13】_____【T13】______b)Social statusc)The history of women in【T14】_____ cultures【T14】______— Class divisions, race divisions, ethnic divisions and religious divisions— Women's【T15】_____ other women【T15】______
Compared with the systems in other industrialized countries, the American unemployment-insurance (UI) scheme pays lower benefits for less time and to a smaller share of the unemployed. In expansions this encourages the jobless to return quickly to work—and unemployed Americans do indeed work harder at finding jobs than their European counterparts (see chart). But in recessions, when there is less work to return to, it causes hardship. Like America's training system, UI is ripe for attention from the incoming Obama administration. Like much of the social safety net, the current UI system was a product of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. States were prodded to provide benefits in accordance with federal guidelines; in return the federal government paid their administrative costs. But the system has not kept up with changes in America's labor force. States often require beneficiaries to have worked or earned an amount that disqualifies many part-time and low-wage workers. They also disqualify people seeking only part-time work—even though many people now work part-time for family reasons. Benefits typically last for only six months, more than enough time to find a new job in normal times but not in recessions. Extended benefits kick in automatically when unemployment reaches certain thresholds, but those thresholds are so high that they are almost never triggered. Congress therefore has to pass special legislation to extend benefits, as it did twice last year, but political wrangling often delays such action. In the week that ended on December 20th, 586,000 workers filed a first claim for unemployment benefits, the largest number for 26 years. Yet such claimants are, in one sense, lucky, typically, 60% of unemployed people don't qualify for the benefits at all. Unemployment insurance is one of the economy's most important automatic stabilisers, helping to maintain household purchasing power when the economy weakens. But that role is impaired by the short duration of benefits and their skimpy level. At just under $300, the average weekly benefit is less than half the average private-sector wage. Mississippi's maximum benefit of $230 is not much more than the federal poverty threshold of $200 for an individual. Benefits are low, in part, because they are financed by payroll taxes that states levy on their employers. States don't like to raise such taxes, even when times are good. But that means they lack the funds to pay benefits when times are bad, forcing them to raise other taxes or borrow from the federal government, as some 30 states are now considering. One of the best features of America's system is "experience rating": employers that frequently lay workers off must pay higher payroll taxes, thereby discouraging such lay-offs. But according to Alan Krueger of Princeton, many states have neutered that feature by charging most employers the lowest tax rate. Several moves are afoot to mend the flaws in the UI system. Under a bill put forward by Jim McDermott, a congressman from Seattle, the government would offer cash incentives to states to expand eligibility to part-time workers and make the benefit formula more generous. A second bill would significantly expand eligibility for the 46-year old Trade Adjustment Assistance programme, for example by including service-sector workers and providing more generous benefits. Both measures passed the House of Representatives but stalled in the Senate. As a senator, Barack Obama backed both. As president, he might make them reality.
没有一个人将小草叫做“大力士”,但是它的力量之大,的确是世界无比。
这种力,是一般人看不见的生命力,只要生命存在,这种力就要显现,上面的石块,丝毫不足以阻挡,因为它是一种“长期抗战”的力,有弹性,能屈能伸的力,有韧性,不达目的不止的力。
种子不落在肥土而落在瓦砾中,有生命力的种子决不会悲观和叹气,因为有了阻力才有磨练。生命开始的一瞬间就带了斗争来的草,才是坚韧的草,也只有这种草,才可以傲然地对那些玻璃棚中养育着的盆花哄笑。
Passage Four
[此试题无题干]
进入21世纪,发达国家所面临的共同问题,不是缺资金,而是缺人才;不是缺最新的资讯,而是缺最新的知识。 “知识”变成了一个国家是否进步的关键因素。把相关的知识系统地运用到经济活动中,现在泛称为“知识经济"。唯有通过外在的教育与学习,浩瀚的资讯才可能变成系统的知识。 “知识”像土地和劳力一样,是个古老的生产因素。但因为现代知识成长迅速,变化巨大,又加以与经济、产业、科技、创新等结合,促成了“知识经济”的独领风骚。
Time sampling means that researchers choose various time intervals for their observation. Intervals may be selected systematically or【T1】 1. Suppose we want to observe students' classroom behaviour. Then in systematic time sampling, our observations might be made during five 20- minute periods,【T2】 2. The first observation period could begin at 9 am, the second at 10 am and so forth. However, in random sampling, these five 20-minute periods may be distributed randomly over the course of the day. That is to say, intervals between observation periods could 【T3】 3—some longer others shorter. One point I'd like to make is systematic and random time sampling are【T4】 4. They are often combined in studies. For example, while observation intervals are scheduled systematically, observations within an interval are made 【T5】 5. That means the researcher might decide to observe only during 【T6】 6that are randomly distributed within each 20-minute period. Time sampling means that researchers choose various time intervals for their observation. Intervals may be selected systematically or【T1】 7. Suppose we want to observe students' classroom behaviour. Then in systematic time sampling, our observations might be made during five 20- minute periods,【T2】 8. The first observation period could begin at 9 am, the second at 10 am and so forth. However, in random sampling, these five 20-minute periods may be distributed randomly over the course of the day. That is to say, intervals between observation periods could 【T3】 9—some longer others shorter. One point I'd like to make is systematic and random time sampling are【T4】 10. They are often combined in studies. For example, while observation intervals are scheduled systematically, observations within an interval are made 【T5】 11. That means the researcher might decide to observe only during 【T6】 12that are randomly distributed within each 20-minute period. 【T1】
The rapidly developing technology disturbs the relationship between parents and their children, which is now rated a social problem that we need to pay attention to and guard against. Read the following article carefully and write your response in about 300 words, in which you should: 1. summarize briefly the research findings; 2. give your comment. Marks will be awarded for content relevance, content sufficiency, organization and language quality. Failure to follow the above instructions may result in a loss of marks. The increased presence of technology in the daily life of modern children has caused the relationship between parents and their children to be affected. Khan, an educator, did a study on the relationship between the duration of adolescents' (14 to 18 years old) technology usage on computer, mobile phone and video games and their relationship with their parents. This research was done in a New York high school on 63 students. These students represent a generation that has been exposed to technology the most throughout their lifetime. It was found that when they spent long time on computers, the closeness towards parents diminished. On the other hand, there was no correlation to be found between the usage of mobile and the closeness with parents as mobile phone is still a way for both parents and their children to communicate. Similarly, another research also has shown that relationship between children and their family members is affected by the amount of time they spend on the Internet. Young ( a psychologist) investigated whether any decline and loss of desire for face-to-face communication with their use was related to Internet surfing. The age range (14 to 18 years old) of this study was controlled because there may be restrictions implied in their use of Internet by parents and also because that generation is being exposed much to technology since birth. Young's research found that students use the Internet more often, which in turn causes them to spend less time with their family. Plus, the desire for face-to-face communication with family members declined when more time was spent on the Internet. Children who spend hours on the Internet will find that there is not much time left for any other types of interaction or bonding time with their family. Consequently, children and their parents as family members will have a poorer relationship instead of being able to maintain a stronger family relationship. On top of that, Lee ( a scholar) reported that the use of computer for recreational and communication purposes among 1,312 adolescents from the United States (age 12 to 18) replaced their time with their parents and Lee's result had showed " an increase of 1 hour in computer-mediated communication results in a decrease of 24 minutes in time with parents". Lee's finding shows a negative correlation between the time spent on computer and on parent-child relationship. However, one drawback that was found in Lee's study was that she did not consider including the specific type of online activity and also the type of social networking sites. Punamaki, Wallenius, Holtto, Nygard, and Rimpela's research had shown similarities in their findings. Their research was conducted on 478 Finnish children and adolescents from seven schools. The result found that using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for entertainment is related to poor peer and parental relations. In addition, engaging in intensive Internet surfing however was found to associate with poor maternal relation which is seen most in daughter-mother communication. As there is only 24 hours in a day, the time used on the computer will reduce the time spent on other activities. Thus, the relationship between parents and children are affected by the usage of ICT causing both parents and children to have poor communication with one another, when communication is essential in building a strong parent-child relationship. Write your response on ANSWER SHEET FOUR.
(1)The Boy Scouts of America(BSA), the largest youth organization in the United States, has policies which prohibit atheists, agnostics, and "known or avowed" homosexuals from membership in its Scouting program; both youths and adults have had their memberships revoked as a result The BSA contends that these policies are essential in its mission to instill in young people the values of the Scout Oath and Law. (2)According to its mission statement, the Boy Scouts of America seeks "to prepare young people to make ethical and moral choices over their lifetimes by instilling in them the values of the Scout Oath and Law". All members are required, as a condition of membership, to promise to uphold and obey both of these pledges. (3)In reciting the Scout Oath, a Scout promises to be morally straight and to do their duty to God; the Scout Law holds that a Scout is clean and reverent. The BSA also prohibits girls from participating in Cub Scouting and Boy Scouting. These policies are controversial and are considered by some to be unfair. (4)The organization's legal right to have these policies has been upheld repeatedly by both state and federal courts. The Supreme Court of the United States has affirmed that as a private organization, the BSA can set its own membership standards. In recent years, the policy disputes have led to litigation over the terms under which the BSA can access governmental resources including public lands. (5)In certain municipalities, the conditions under which the Boy Scouts of America can access public and nonpublic governmental resources have become controversial, sometimes resulting in litigation. (6)When a private organization such as the BSA receives access on terms more favorable than other private organizations, it is known as "special" or "preferential" access. For example, state and local governments may lease property to nonprofit groups on terms that are preferential to or equal to the terms they offer to commercial groups. Special access includes access at a reduced fee or access to places off-limits to other groups. The categorization of access as "special" or "equal" is not always clear-cut. (7)Some cities, counties, and states have ordinances or policies that limit government support for organizations that practice some types of discrimination. When the BSA's membership policies are contrary to these laws, some government organizations have moved to change the terms under which the BSA is allowed to access its resources. Private individuals have filed lawsuits to prevent governmental entities from granting what they see as preferential access. The BSA on the other hand has sued governmental entities for denying what it sees as equal access. (8)In response to these changes and litigation, the federal government passed laws mandating the BSA's equal access to local and state-level governmental resources. However, state and local governments still have flexibility regarding the provision of special access to the BSA. (9)There also has been opposition to BSA's membership policies, both from organizations and individuals. Some within the Scouting movement, as well as long-time Scouting supporters, parents, chartered organizations, and religious organizations have expressed opposition to the policies in ways ranging from protests to forming organizations that advocate inclusiveness. Some push for a voluntary change within the BSA, others seek involuntary change by filing lawsuits, still others choose to disassociate themselves from the BSA or encourage others to do so. (10)The Unitarian Universalist Association's opposition to the BSA's membership exclusions led to a dispute between the organizations. In 2001, the Union for Reform Judaism's Commission on Social Action, citing a commitment to ending discrimination in all forms, issued a memorandum recommending that congregations stop hosting BSA troops and that parents withdraw their children from all of the Boy Scouts of America's programs. Additionally, the General Synod of the United Church of Christ issued a statement urging the BSA to change policy and stated that, "Discrimination against anyone based on sexual orientation is contrary to our understanding of the teachings of Christ." The Secular Coalition for America has urged Congress to revoke the federal charter of the BSA, stating: "Our government must not entangle itself in religious organizations; nor should it establish, with government imprimatur, a private religious club." (11)There have been numerous efforts to change the BSA's membership policies, but most of them have failed. Thus, the fight will go on and there is a long way to go before a satisfactory result is achieved.