A woman renewing her driver's license at the County Clerk's office was asked to state her occupation. She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself.
"What I mean is," explained the recorder, "do you have a job, or are you just a. . . "
"Of course I have a job," said Emily. "I'm a mother."
"We don't list in mother' as an occupation... in housewife' covers it," said the recorder.
One day I found myself in the same situation. The clerk was obviously a career woman, confident and possessed of a high sounding title. "What is your occupation?" she asked.
The words simply came out. "I'm a Research Associate in the field of Child Development and Human Relations. "
The clerk paused, ballpoint pen frozen in mid-air.
I repeated the title slowly, and then I stared with wonder as my statement was written in bold, black ink on the official questionnaire.
"Might I ask," said the clerk with new interest, "just what you do in this field?"
Coolly, without any trace of panic in my voice, I heard myself reply, "I have a continuing program of research (what mother doesn't), in the lab and in the field (normally I would have said indoors and out). Of course, the job is one of the most demanding in the humanities (any mother disagrees?) , and I often work 14 hours a day (24 is more like it) . But the job is more challenging than most careers and rewards are more of a satisfaction rather than just money. "
There was an increasing note of respect in the clerk's voice as she completed the form, stood up, and showed me out.
As I drove into our driveway, feeling happier by my attractive and exciting new career, I was greeted by my lab assistants-aged 13, 7 and 3.
Upstairs I could hear our new experimental model (a 6-month-old baby), in the child-development program, testing out a new vocal pattern.
I felt proud! I had gone on the official records as someone more distinguished and essential to mankind than "just another mother".
Motherhood... What a glorious career! Especially when there's a title on the door.
1.What can we infer from the conversation between the woman and the recorder at the beginning of the passage?
A. The woman felt ashamed to admit what her job was.
B. The recorder was impatient and rude.
C. Motherhood was not recognized and respected as a job by society.
D. The author was upset about the situation that mothers faced.
2.How did the female clerk feel at first when the author told her occupation?
A. Puzzled. B. Curious.
C. Upset. D. Frightened.
3.How did the author feel when describing her job to the clerk?
A. Angry. B. Calm.
C. Unconfident. D. Annoyed.
4.Why did the woman clerk show more respect for the author?
A. Because the author cared little about rewards.
B. Because she admired the author's research work in the lab.
C. Because the author did something she had little knowledge of.
D. Because she thought the author did admirable work.
5.What is the author's purpose of writing the passage?
A. To show that motherhood is a worthy career and deserves respect.
B. To show how you describe your job affects your feelings toward it.
C. To show that the author had a grander job than Emily.
D. To show that being a mother is hard and boring work.
Over the last 30 years, Bangkok, once a small fishing village, has transformed into a rich, concrete, high-rise city that it is today. The spreading metropolis and its population of 12 million now produces 35 per cent of Thailand's economic wealth.
As a magnet for foreign companies, Bangkok attracts many overseas managers and business people from different fields, including tourism, automobiles and electronics. The city's population of foreigners is in the high hundreds of thousands, with tens of thousands of Japanese, Chinese and western employees working alongside hundreds of thousands of Burmese who mostly do unskilled jobs shunned by Thais.
For those used to the good life, the variety and quality of the city's food is a key attraction, says one US manager, before listing many of his favourite Italian, Mexican and, of course, Thai restaurants. Most offer quality meals for less than the cost of a takeaway sandwich in London.
Great choice and value can be found in Bangkok's other attractions, too. For overseas business people who enjoy shopping in luxury and air-conditioned comfort, the city has hundreds of modern shopping malls. Some foreigners, however, prefer the charms of Chatuchak Market, where anything can be bought at a good price by the skilled bargainer.
When the time comes to talk business many overseas business people prefer to move out of the markets and onto the golf course. Thailand has thousands of courses, which can provide a welcome break from the busy and noisy city life. But most business people go to the golf course because it's the perfect place to discuss the next big deal.
Because of the fast-paced life some foreign business people see Bangkok as a place to stay for the short term, rather than a lifetime. Australian computer software designer Sarah Huang is seven months pregnant but still working full-time in her Bangkok office. She says the city is "definitely a place I want to stay for the next five, ten years". Nannies and home help are affordable, but high fees for quality secondary education have convinced Ms. Huang to return to Australia when her child reaches high school age.
1.According to the first two paragraphs, we know that
A. Bangkok offers many working opportunities for people
B. Bangkok has always been a rich Thai city
C. most foreigners coming to Bangkok are tourists
D. Burmese in Bangkok mostly work for Thais
2.The underlined word "shunned" in Paragraph 2 is closest in meaning to _
A. forgotten B. unwanted
C. appreciated D. rewarded
3.What is the main attraction of golf for business people according to the passage?
A. It is the most convenient way for them to get regular exercise.
B. It is a good place in which to discuss business matters.
C. It is a great way to escape from the noise and pollution of the city.
D. It gives them the opportunity to meet local people in a social setting.
4.Sarah Huang says she'll eventually leave Bangkok because
A. she is going to have a baby
B. her working hours are too long
C. it's not easy to find suitable home help there
D. the cost of a good education there is too high
5.The main purpose of the passage is to
A. explain the reasons for Bangkok's rapid economic growth over the past 30 years
B. promote the many attractions Bangkok has to offer tourists visiting the city
C. describe the attractions of living in Bangkok for foreign business people
D. compare the lifestyles of Burmese workers and foreign business people in Bangkok
Have you ever noticed this phenomenon? Sometimes Chinese English teachers are puzzled by such questions, "Could you please give me some advice how to improve my reading comprehension?"
Actually, many of the teachers can't give their students effective way to deal with reading. Anyway, they often simply say, "Read and practise more, and you will get more experience in reading comprehension. " Frankly, these teachers' good suggestions are only helpful to arouse (激起) students' interest in reading not helpful to deal with the questions in the examinations of reading comprehension. Personally, think the skill for reading comprehension should be based on the knowledge of English writing. the English passages are written under some rules or principles, the science of reading and understanding may have a close relationship with writing. Reading comprehension can't be independent the knowledge of
writing. So to do better in reading comprehension ever, we should learn the knowledge of writing, study how questions are designed and the relationship between questions and the reading materials.
I lost my sight when I was four years old when falling off a train to Atlantic City. But I was . My parents and my teachers saw something in me -a potential to live, you might call it -which I didn't see, and they encouraged me to blindness.
The hardest lesson I had to was to believe in myself. If I hadn't been able to do that, I would have walked with a stick for the rest of my life. When I say belief in myself I am not _ talking about the kind of self-confidence that helps me down an staircase alone. That is part of it. But I mean something bigger than that. Although imperfect in some aspect, I am a real, positive person. There is a special place where I can make myself fit.
It took me years to discover and this self-confidence. It had to start with the most basic things. Once a man gave me an indoor baseball. I thought he was making fun of me and I was .
"I can't use this," I responded.
"Take it with you," he urged me, "and roll it around. "
The words stuck in my head. "Roll it around! " By rolling the ball I could where it went. This gave me an how to achieve a goal I had thought impossible: playing baseball. At Philadelphia's Overbrook School for the Blind I invented a new kind of baseball. We called it ground ball.
All my life I have set ahead of me a series of goals and then tried to them one by one. I also knew my limitations. It was no good trying something that I knew at the start was wildly out of reach because that only the bitterness of failure. I would fail sometimes anyway but on the average I made .
1.A. unfortunate B. disappointed C. lucky D. ashamed
2.A. share with B. play with C. toy with D. fight with
3.A. meet B. learn C. avoid D. prepare
4.A. simply B. slightly C. frequently D. directly
5.A. unusual B. unfair C.unfamiliar D. uncomfortable
6.A. lengthen B. strengthen C. deepen D. widen
7.A. hurt B. amused C. greeted D. praised
8.A. find B. see C. smell D. hear
9.A. event B. offer C. idea D. excuse
10.A. receive B. achieve C. classify D. follow
11.A. refused B. removed C. caused D. replaced
12.A. sense B. mistakes C. friends D. progress
-Where can we get Mo Yan's new novel?
-I'm sorry, it and will come out next week.
A. has been printed B. will be printed
C. is being printed D. is printed
The world today different without the amazing discoveries produced by great scientists.
A. were B. had been
C. would have been D. would be
