题目内容
Americans often say that there are only two things a person can be sure of in life: death and taxes. Many people feel that the United States has the worst taxes in the world.
Taxes are the money that people pay to support their government. There are generally three levels of government in the United States; federal(联邦的), state and city; therefore, there are three types of taxes.
Salaried people who earn more than four to five thousand dollars per year must pay a certain part of their salaries to the federal government. The percentage varies depending on their salaries. The federal government has a two-level income tax; that is, 15 or 28 percent. $17,850 is the cut-off. The tax rate is 15 percent below $17,850 and 28 percent above.
The second tax is for the state government: New York, California, or any of the other forty-eight states; Some states have an income tax similar to that of the federal government. Of course, the percentage for the state tax is lower. Other states have a sales tax, which is a percentage charged to any item which people buy in the state. Some states use income tax and sales tax to raise their revenues(税收).
The third tax is for the city. This tax comes in two forms: property tax (residents who own a home have to pay taxes on it) and excise tax(货物税),which is collected on vehicles in a city. The cities use this money for education, police, public works, etc.
Since Americans pay such high taxes, they often feel that they are working one day each week just to pay their taxes. People always complain about taxes. They often say that the government misuses their tax dollars. They all believe that taxes are too high in this country.
1．How much money does an American earning $40,000 per year pay to the federal government as income tax?
A．28% of this income. B．15% of this income.
C．$17,850 D．$5,000.
2．What tax does an American have to pay to the city if he owns a car?
A．Property tax. B．Excise tax. C．Income tax. D．Sales tax.
3．The percentage varies depending on _______________________ .
A．different people B．different states C．different taxes D．different salaries
ABD
通城学典默写能手系列答案Smiling
People smile at times. However, the meaning of a smile in different cultures may be different. Depending on different cultures, smiling can express joy and amusement, but it can also indicate embarrassment（苦恼）. The following examples show this point of view:
In an attempt to be open and friendly, people in the United States smile a lot. Every one smiles at each other, this nonverbal communication shows being friendly in the United States. However，in China, smiling is not only an expression of happiness, but also a way to avoid being embarrassed. Chinese people like smiling when they are embarrassed in order to avoid embarrassment. Smiling is a kind of good will but not sneer（嘲笑）. For example: When a child falls off from a bike, the adults in China may smile, which is a kind of gentle encouragement and may not be a kind of impolite laugh.
When a person from the United States might blush（脸红）with embarrassment or become offensive, a Chinese might blush with smile. To avoid serious misunderstanding, people who engage in intercultural communication should be able to understand the meaning of smiling appropriately. Related to the smile is the laugh. Also, different cultures have different meanings about laugh. For example, Americans can enjoy a very heartfelt belly (腹部) laugh that comes from the deepest emotions. However, most Chinese seldom laugh that way because they are thought to be silly except among close friends.
【小题1】We can use smile to express all of the following feelings except_________,
| A．joy and happiness | B．amusement | C．embarrassment | D．fear |
| A．they are very happy | B．they want to show they are friendly |
| C．they want to hide their true feelings | D．they want to avoid embarrassment |
| A．laugh at him | B．avoid his own embarrassment |
| C．avoid embarrassment and encourage the boy | D．show his politeness |
| A．People smile at times. | B．Smiling can express different feelings depending on different cultures. |
| C．Americans are more open and friendly than Chinese people. | |
| D．The Chinese people often hide their true feelings. |
Making greener choices and encouraging healthy lifestyles can promote your health and benefit the environment．Here are some guidelines to follow:
Choose foods thoughtfully
Americans have never had such a variety or abundance of food to choose from．Besides so many choice
s, we now hear about our "food print", the amount of land needed to supply o
ne person's nutritional needs for a year．Do we buy cherry tomatoes from Mexico or tomatoes grown locally in a hothouse? Do．we get the Granny Smiths from the fanners' market or the supermarket? Is organic produce healthier for us and the planet?
These are very complex issues that require analysis of many criteria, including the energy used in producing and transporting the food, as well as the type of soil and methods of raising the food．
Despite the complexities, there are some general guidelines you can follow．For instance, eat less meat or eat low on the food chain．Your doctor may have recommended you to restrict your consume red meat because of its too much fat content．Beyond that, there are environmental reasons, too. Raise food animals contributes substantially to climate change because a meat-based diet requires more land, energy and water than a plant - based one．
Drinking plenty of fluids is significant during hot weather or when exercising．But is bottled water the way to go? You may not think so when seeing the true costs．Based on a survey, manufacturing the 30 - plus billion plastic water bottles can produce more than 2．5 million tons of carbon dioxide and use here times the amount of water in the bottle．Adding in transportation, the energy used comes to over 50 million barrels of oil equiv
alent （等价物）．Consequently, skip the bottled water and drink tap water, both at home and at restaurants．Additionally, bottled water is not necessarily cleaner than tap.
【小题1】In Paragraph 2 the author puts forward three questions mainly _____．
| A．to prove Americans have less food to choose from |
| B．to show us the shopping habits of most Americans |
| C．to indicate Americans tend to buy food from abroad |
| D．to remind people to reconsider their food purchase |
| A．it contains too much fat | B．it costs a lot in transportation |
| C．it is too low on the food chain | D．it isn't related to climate change |
| A．Americans all prefer to buy cherry tomatoes from Mexico． |
| B．The plant - based diet is responsible for the climate change． |
| C．Americans have a variety of food to choose from． |
| D．Organic produce is the only choice for Americans． |
| A．bottled water is cleaner than tap water |
| B．tap water is economical as well as eco - friendly |
| C．bottled water is more available than tap water |
| D．tap water uses one - third the cost of bottled water |
| A．Skip bottled water, carry tap | B．Drink bottled water |
| C．Produce plastic water bottles | D．Save water resources |
America is a mobile society. Friendships between Americans can be close and real, yet disappear soon if situations change. Neither side feels hurt by this. Both may exchange Christmas greetings for a year or two, perhaps a few letters for a while—then no more. If the same two people meet again by chance, even years later, they pick up the friendship. This can be quite difficult for us Chinese to understand, because friendships between us develop more slowly but then may become lifelong feelings, extending(延伸) sometimes deeply into both families.
Americans are ready to receive us foreigners at their homes, share their holidays, and their home life. They will enjoy welcoming us and be pleased if we accept their hospitality(好客) easily.
Another difficult point for us Chinese to understand Americans is that although they include us warmly in their personal everyday lives, they don’t show their politeness to us if it requires a great deal of time. This is usually the opposite of the practice in our country where we may be generous with our time. Sometimes, we, as hosts, will appear at airports even in the middle of the night to meet a friend. We may take days off to act as guides to our foreign friends. The Americans, however, express their welcome usually at homes, but truly can not manage the time to do a great deal with a visitor outside their daily routine. They will probably expect us to get ourselves from the airport to our own hotel by bus. And they expect that we will phone them from there. Once we arrive at their homes, the welcome will be full, warm and real. We will find ourselves treated hospitably.
For the Americans, it is often considered more friendly to invite a friend to their homes than to go to restaurants, except for purely business matters. So accept their hospitality at home!
【小题1】The writer of this passage must be ________.
| A．an American | B．a Chinese | C．a professor | D．a student |
| A．Friendships between Americans usually extend deeply into their families. |
| B．Friendships between Americans usually last for all their lives. |
| C．Americans always show their warmth even if they are very busy. |
| D．Americans will continue their friendships again even after a long break. |
| A．warmly welcomed at the airport | B．offered a ride to his/her home |
| C．treated hospitably at his/her home | D．treated to dinner in a restaurant |
| A．strict with time | B．willing to spend time |
| C．careful with time | D．serious with time |
| A．Americans’ and Chinese’s views of friendships | B．Americans’ hospitality |
| C．Friendships between Chinese | D．Friendships between Americans |