When we talk about Americans barely into adulthood who are saddled with(担负着) unbearable levels of debt’ the conversation is almost always about student loan debt. But there’s a growing body of evidence suggesting that today’s young adults are also drowning in credit-card debt and that many of them will take this debt to their graves（坟墓）.
More than 20% overspent their income by more than $ 100 every single month. Since they haven’t built up their credit histories yet, it's a safe bet that these young adults are paying relatively high interest rates on the resulting credit card debt.
Although many young people blame "socializing" as a barrier to saving money, most of them aren’t purchasing $ 20 drinks in trendy bars. They’re struggling with much more daily financial demands.
To a disturbingly large extent, the young and the broke are relying on credit cards to make it until their next payday. This obviously isn’t permanent in the long run, and it’s going to put a huge drag on their spending power even after they reach their peak earning years, because they’ll still be paying interest on that bottle of orange juice or box of spaghetti (意式面条）they bought a decade earlier.
A new study out of Ohio State University found that young adults are accumulating credit card debt at a more rapid rate than other age groups, and that they're slower at paying it off. "If what we found continues to hold true, we may have more elderly people with substantial financial problems in the future’" warns Lucia Dunn, professor of economics at Ohio State. "If our findings persist, we may be faced with a financial crisis among elderly people who can’t pay off their credit cards."
Dunn says a lot of these young people are never going to get out from under their credit card debt. "Many people are borrowing on credit cards so heavily that payoff rates at these levels are not plenty to recover their credit card debt by the end of their life which could have loss impacts for the credit card issuing banks,"
1.What is the main idea of the first paragraph?
A. Many young Americans will never be able to pay off their debts.
B. Credit cards play an increasingly important role in college life.
C. Credit cards are doing more harm than student loans.
D. The American credit card system is under criticism.
2.Why do young people have to pay a higher interest on their credit card debt?
A. They tend to forget about the deadlines.
B. They haven't developed a credit history.
C. They are often unable to pay back in time.
D. They are inexperienced in managing money.
3.What is said to be the consequence of young adults relying on credit cards to make ends meet?
A. It will place an unnecessary burden on society.
B. It will give them no motivation to work hard.
C. It will exert psychological pressure on them.
D. It will affect their future spending power.
4.What will happen to young adults if their credit card debt keeps accumulating according to Lucia Dunn?
A. They will have to pay an increasingly higher interest rate.
B. They may experience a financial crisis in their old age.
C. Their quality of life will be affected.
D. Their credit cards may be cancelled.
5.What does Lucia Dunn think might be a risk for the credit card issuing banks?
A. They go bankrupt as a result of over-lending.
B. They lose large numbers of their regular clients.
C. Their clients leave their debts unpaid upon death.
D. Their interest rates have to be reduced now and then.
In recent years, a growing body of research has shown that our appetite and food intake are influenced by a large number of factors besides our biological need for energy, including our eating environment and our perception（感知） of the food in front of us.
Studies have shown, for instance, that eating in front of the TV (or a similar distraction) can increase both hunger and the amount of food consumed. Even simple visual clues, like plate size and lighting, have been shown to affect portion size and consumption.
A new study suggested that our short-term memory also may play a role in appetite. Several hours after a meal, people's hunger levels were predicted not by how much they’d eaten but rather by how much food they'd seen in front of them—in other words, how much they remembered eating.
This disparity (新旧研究的差异）suggests the memory of our previous meal may have a bigger influence on our appetite than the actual size of the meal, says Jeffrey M. Brunstrom, a professor of experimental psychology at the University of Bristol.
"Hunger isn't controlled individually by the physical characteristics of a recent meal. We have identified an independent role for memory for that meal，" Brunstrom says. "This shows that the relationship between hunger and food intake is more complex than we thought."
These findings echo earlier research that suggests our perception of food can sometimes trick our body’s response to the food itself. In a 2011 study, for instance, people who drank the same 380-calorie milkshake on two separate occasions produced different levels of hunger-related hormones （荷尔蒙），depending on whether the shake’s label said it contained 620 or 140 calories. Moreover, the participants reported feeling more full when they thought they'd consumed a higher-calorie shake.
What does this mean for our eating habits? Although it hardly seems practical to trick ourselves into eating less, the new findings do highlight the benefits of focusing on our food and avoiding TV and multitasking while eating.
The so-called mindful-eating strategies can fight distractions and help us control our appetite, Brunstrom says.
1.What is said to be a factor affecting our appetite and food intake?
A. How we feel the food we eat.
B. When we eat our meals.
C. What element the food contains.
D. How fast we eat our meals.
2.What would happen at meal time if you remembered eating a lot in the previous meal?
A. You would probably be more particular about food.
B. You would not feel like eating the same food.
C. You would have a good appetite.
D. You would not feel so hungry.
3.What do we learn from the 2011 study?
A. Food labels may mislead consumers in their purchases.
B. Food labels may influence our body’s response to food.
C. Hunger levels depend on one's consumption of calories.
D. People tend to take in a lot more calories than necessary.
4.What does Brunstrom suggest we do to control our appetite?
A. Trick ourselves into eating less.
B. Choose food with fewer calories.
C. Concentrate on food while eating.
D. Pick dishes of the right size.
5.What is the main idea of the passage?
A. Eating distractions often affect our food digestion.
B. Psychological factors influence our hunger levels.
C. Our food intake is determined by our biological needs.
D. Good eating habits will contribute to our health.
“Mom, what is that?” asked my son. “The Bride of Chucky?”
The old doll I was holding was pretty scary. Her glass eyes were especially horrible, closing when she stood upright and flying open when she lay flat. Once she had been loved, but she had been stored in an attic (阁楼) for decades, where the extremes of heat and cold can be hard on a girl’s looks. Throw her in the waste bin? Maybe. But first, let’s check eBay.
I clicked, supplied the required information about condition, including defects (i.e., “Only a miracle could save this doll”), and uploaded its photos. I sold it for $5.
The buyer was happy: “As described!” he wrote on my feedback page. “Super seller!” The doll found a home and, I hope, a new life. Maybe she was used to repair other dolls. Perhaps those strange eyes got fixed and once again can inspire a child’s love. It’s a win-win, if you ask me.
I also sold lots of other stuff. None of them brought in a lot of money, though I have been surprised at the occasional bidding war, like, for example, the one over an old swimsuit that would have made Brigitte Bardot look bad. And some customers, let’s face it, are strange. Recently I had a hard time convincing an Australian would-be buyer of an Irish souvenir bell that I don’t shop internationally; it’s just too much trouble. He could have flown to Ireland and bought his own bell for the price he was willing to pay. Another time, a buyer complained that the electric wire on an old radio was dirty. Really? Dirty? The wire was black. But I aim to please, so I offered a refund.
So why bother with the dealing and small profits? Because I don’t like abandoning the past. All these treasures once had stories. They meant something. But the people who gave them that meaning are gone, and I simply cannot rescue everything. I can’t even sew. So I find it satisfying that a new owner, discovered via eBay, will continue the story in his or her own way.
1.What was the doll like?
A. It was lovely.
B. It was beautiful.
C. It looked frightening.
D. It was pretty ordinary.
2.Which can best replace the underlined word “defects” in Paragraph 3?
A. Faults.
B. Virtues.
C. Pictures.
D. Requirements.
3.Why did the author refuse to sell the Australian the bell?
A. She thought he was strange.
B. His bid was not high enough.
C. Someone else had already bought it.
D. Delivering it to him was troublesome.
4.After receiving the complaint about the radio, the author ______.
A. felt deeply sorry
B. explained patiently
C. returned the money
D. apologized immediately
5.Why does the author sell used stuff via eBay?
A. She needs money badly.
B. She is an environmentalist.
C. She is interested in marketing.
D. She wants their stories to be continued.
The final results of Best-Ever Teen Fiction vote are in. While it’s no surprise to see Harry Potter and The Hunger Games series on top, this year’s list also highlights some writers we weren’t as familiar with. For example, John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars, appears five times in the top 100.
Summer, like youth, passes quickly. But the books we read when we’re young can stay with us for a lifetime. The following are the top 4 on the list. Enjoy.
1. Harry Potter series
The Harry Potter books make up the popular series written by J. K. Rowing. The series includes seven books. The books concern a wizard (魔法师) called Harry Potter and his journey through Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The stories tell of him over coming dangerous obstacles to defeat the dark wizard Lord Voldemort who killed his parents when Harry was 15 months old.
2. The Hunger Games series
In the ruins of a future North America, a young girl is picked to leave her poor district and travel to Capitol for a battle to the death in the cruel Hunger Games. But for Katniss Everdeen, the main character in this series by Suzanne Collins, winning the Games only puts her deeper in danger as the strict social order of Panem begins to unravel (瓦解).
3. To Kill a Mockingbird
Author Harper Lee explores racial tensions in the fictional “tired old town” of Maycomb, Ala., through the eyes of 6-year-old Scout Finch. As her lawyer father, Atticus, defends a black man accused of a crime, Scout and her friends learn about the unjust treatment of African-Americans – and their mysterious neighbor, Boo Radley.
4. The fault in Our Stars
Hazel Grace, a teenage girl, has got all sorts of cancer inside her body, and her lungs aren’t working very well. She knows she is dying and doesn’t live in hope any more. When a man named Augustus Waters suddenly appears at the Cancer Kid Support Group, Hazel’s story is about to be completely rewritten.
1.What do we know about John Green?
A. One of his novels tops the list.
B. Many of his novels are very popular.
C. He is the favorite writer of many teens.
D. He was a well-known writer long before the vote.
2.Who is the author of The Hunger Games series?
A. Harper Lee.
B. John Green.
C. J.K. Rowling.
D. Suzanne Collins.
3.What is To Kill a Mockingbird mainly about?
A. Lifelong friendships.
B. Racial discrimination.
C. A man working as a lawyer.
D. A little girl’s difficult childhood.
4.Hazel in The Fault in Our Stars ______.
A. is very optimistic
B. writes a great story
C. makes many mistakes
D. is changed by Augustus.
5.In which part of a newspaper can we find the text probably?
A. Sports.
B. News.
C. Literature.
D. Entertainment.
One day, while I was walking to work, I decided to bring some flowers that I had picked from my garden that morning. On the way, I ______ a stranger and presented the bunch to him with a smile card. ______ by the sense of joy, I felt from giving flowers to another person, and may be ______ his day, I wanted to do it again.
When I got to my office, I had the ______ of anonymously(匿名) leaving flowers around the workplace. The impersonal(无人情味的) ______ of the building where I work makes me ______. It just feels a little boring sometimes, ______ it’s a nice building with great light. I ______ lots of people might feel the same way, so why not put a little ______ there, and throw in an inspirational quote while I’m at it? ______, who doesn’t like flowers?
So, for the past month, I’ve been putting flowers in a little cup on the sink in the ______. Each week, I ______ the flowers and the quote. It always feels ______ for me to read quotes like Henry David Thoreau’s “If one advances ______ in the direction of his dreams, he will meet with a ______ unexpected in common hours.” and Gandhi’s “The fragrance(香味) always ______ on the hand that gives the rose.” If anything, I figured, it at least makes me ______ each time I visit the bathroom.
Then today, when I walked in, I ______ new flowers in the cup, and a quote that someone else had written！It said, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”—Gandhi.
The little act ______ that at the end of the day, we’re all just people with hearts, ______ the various roles and different hats we may wear in the workplace.
I did a little dance and I am smiling wide for the rest of the day!
1.A. picked out B. came across C. called up D. pointed at
2.A. Struck B. Informed C. Surprised D. Honored
3.A. calming B. determining C. reflecting D. brightening
4.A. belief B. way C. idea D. aim
5.A. design B. atmosphere C. decoration D. regulation
6.A. uncomfortable B. impolite C. impatient D. unconscious
7.A. when B. unless C. because D. though
8.A. concluded B. considered C. doubted D. expected
9.A. mystery B. adventure C. beauty D. courage
10.A. More or less B. After all C. At most D. In no case
11.A. kitchen B. office C. bathroom D. dinning-hall
12.A. count B. check C. clean D. change
13.A. refreshing B. interesting C. satisfying D. puzzling
14.A. confidently B. surprisingly C. quickly D. effectively
15.A. prize B. truth C. success D. shock
16.A. holds B. attaches C. remains D. focuses
17.A. strong B. happy C. exciting D. shocked
18.A. noticed B. found C. enjoyed D. put
19.A. introduces B. warns C. suggests D. reminds
20.A. regardless of B. in terms of C. in addition to D. instead of
The suggestion came from the chairman ______ the new rule ______.
A. what; was developed B. that; was developed
C. what; be developed D. that; be developed
