In recent years, especially during the l960s, there was much discussion about “the brain drain (排干, 流失),” which dealt with the problem of students and learned people who left their own countries for other countries that offered better chances for study, research, and employment.For example, according to a report from U.N., between 1962 and l966 more than 50 percent of all engineering graduates of Iran and 14 percent of Iranian scientists left their country for work abroad.Over 30 percent of Chilean engineers and 15 percent of Turkish physicians also went to work in other countries.Probably the greatest brain drain occurred among young scientists who had gone abroad to study.Many of them had planned to return to their countries to teach but chose to remain in more industrialized nations where they were able to continue their work and their research in fields in which there were no job possibilities at home.The countries that attracted most of these scientists were the United States, Great Britain, Germany, France, Canada, and Australia.

  Recent studies show that the brain drain to the United States may be decreasing.Many foreign scientists are going home again, and in some cases American scientists are leaving the United States for employment in other countries.The main reasons are that good jobs are becoming fewer here, money for national research has been sharply cut, and university fellowships reduced too.However, in the field of medicine the drain to the United States still goes on.Today more than one of every five American doctors is foreign - born, and several thousand foreign doctors immigrate to the United States each year.Over eighty countries have asked the State Department to send students who are skilled in important fields such as medicine back home when their study programs are over.

Which of the following is not the reason for “the brain drain”?

A.Good housing.             B.Better research condition.

C.Good job possibility        D.Better chances of study..

The brain drain to the United States may be decreasing mainly because __________.

A.many foreign scientists are ordered to return to their motherlands

B.they don't need any foreign scientists now

C.there are fewer and fewer good jobs in the USA

D.the universities refuse to provide money for the foreign scientists

How many American doctors are foreign - born?

A.About half of them.    B More than 20 percent 

C.Several thousand.      D.About 15 percent.

Which is the best title for this passage?

A.How to seek a job in the USA.    B.Doctors' immigration to the USA.

C.A strange case.                  D.The brain drain. 

   One of our biggest fears nowadays is that our kids might some day get lost in a “sea of technology” rather than experiencing the natural world. Fear-producing TV and computer games are leading to a serious disconnect between kids and the great outdoors, which will changes the wild places of the world, its creatures and human health for the worse, unless adults get working on child’s play.

   Each of us has a place in nature we go sometimes, even if it was torn down. We cannot be the last generation to have that place. At this rate, kids who miss the sense of wonder outdoors will not grow up to be protectors of natural landscapes. “If the decline in parks use continues across North America, who will defend parks against encroachment (蚕食)?” asks Richard Louv, author of Last Child in the Woods.

   Without having a nature experience, kids, can turn out just fine, but they are missing out a huge enrichment of their lives. That applies to everything from their physical health and mental health, to stress levels, creativity and cognitive (认知的) skills. Experts predict modern kids will have poorer health than their parents―and they say a lack of outside play is surely part of it; research suggests that kids do better academically in schools with a nature component and that play in nature fosters (培养) leadership by the smartest, not by the toughest. Even a tiny outdoor experience can create wonder in a child. The three-year-old turning over his first rock realizes he is not alone in the world. A clump of trees on the roadside can be the whole universe in his eyes. We really need to value that more.

   Kids are not to blame. They are over-protected and frightened. It is dangerous out there from time to time, but repetitive stress from computers is replacing breaking an arm as a childhood rite(仪式)of passage.

   Everyone, from developers, to schools and outdoorsy citizens, should help regain for our kids some of the freedom and joy of exploring, taking friendship in fields and woods that cement (增强) love, respect and need for landscape. As parents, we should devote some of our energies to taking our kids into nature. This could yet be our greatest cause.

69. The main idea of Paragraph 2 is that __________.

   A. kids missing the sense of wonder outdoors       

B. parks are in danger of being gradually encroached

C. Richard Louv is the author of Last Child in the Woods

D. children are expected to develop into protectors of nature

70. According to the passage, children without experiencing nature will _________.

   A. keep a high sense of wonder                 B. be over-protected by their parents

   C. be less healthy both physically and mentally

   D. change wild places and creatures for the better

71. According to the author, children’s breaking an arm is ___________.

   A. the fault on the part of their parents          B. the natural experience in their growing up

   C. the result of their own carelessness in play    D. the effect of their repetitive stress from computers

72. In writing this passage, the author mainly intends to ________.

   A. blame children for getting lost in computer games

   B. encourage children to protect parks from encroachment

   C. show his concern about children’s lack of experience in nature

   D. inspire children to keep the sense of wonder about things around

For many in the United States,Arab-Americans are an invisible part of the population.Though Arab-Americans as a community have made great contributions to American society in fields from literature to politics to medicine,many Americans know very little about Americans of Arab backgrounds.
Arab history in the United States goes back to the late 1800’s when large numbers of Arab immigrants first began making their journey to a land known simply as“Amreeka”.
Historians generally describe Arab immigration to America in two waves.The first wave took place between 1860 and 1924.The first wave consisted of Lebanese and Syrian,and some Egyptian immigrants.These new immigrants,who were mostly Christian,came to America in search of better opportunities.Even the doomed Titanic,which set sail for America in 1912,had close to a hundred Arab passengers aboard.The majority of Arab-Americans today are descendents of the first wave of immigrants;they are the third or more generation Americans.
The second wave of immigrants followed after World War Ⅱ,caused by political unrest in the Middle East.This second wave of immigrants consists of mainly Arab Muslims(穆斯林)and continues to this day.
Arab-Americans make up 3 million of the population in the United States,according to demographers.And quite different from popular belief,64 percent of them are American-born.Eighty-two percent of Arab-Americans are US citizens.
Arab-Americans are beyond the national average in both education and income.Education is important among Arab-Americans;82 percent have high school diplomas,36 percent have bachelor’s degrees or higher,and 15 percent have graduate degrees.The-median(中位数的) average income among Arab-Americans is $39 580,which is higher than the US average.
【小题1】 What would be the best title for the text?

A.Arabs in America.B.The Two Arab Immigration Waves to America.
C.Arab-Americans,Contributions to America.
D.Arab-Americans,Education and Income.
【小题2】The first wave of immigrants took place because______.
A.all Arabs were Christian at that time
B.Arabs wanted to hunt for a better development
C.the Second World War broke out
D.Arabs wanted to gain higher income
【小题3】The writer of this passage mentioned Titanic______.
A.to tell us that taking ship at that time was dangerous
B.because Titanic became a well-known disaster
C.to show us there were many Arabs flocking into America at that time
D.to inform us that Arabs are brave enough
【小题4】From the last paragraph we can infer that______.
A.Arab-Americans are much more clever than native Americans
B.Arab-Americans are hard-working people
C.the higher education you receive,the higher income you will get in America
D.Arab-Americans play the most important role in the American average in both education and income

When times get tough, we all look for ways to cut back. When we’re hungry, we eat at home instead of going out. We take buses instead of taxis. And we wear our old designer jeans just a few months longer. With college expenses at all-time highs, high school students are eager to do anything to cut the cost of a university education.

One cost-cutting proposal is to allow college students to get a bachelor’s degree in three years instead of four. Educational institutions have been actively exploring ways to make the learning process more efficient. But there’s a question: Would the quality of undergraduate(本科生)education suffer? Few US universities have formally approved a “three-year degree” model.

I doubt that mainstream North American colleges will carry out a three-year curriculum(课程) any time soon. For one thing, most universities already allow highly qualified students to graduate early by testing out of certain classes and obtaining a number of college credits(学分). In addition, at famous universities, the committee who determine which courses are required and which courses are electives are unlikely to suddenly “throw out” one quarter of the required credits. Professors will resist “diluting(稀释)” the quality of the education they offer.

In my opinion, a quality four-year education is always superior to a quality three-year education. A college education requires sufficient time for a student to become skilled in their major and do coursework in fields outside their major. It is not a good idea to water down education, any more than it’s not a good idea to water down medicine. If we want to help students find their way through university, we should help them understand early on what knowledge and skills they need to have upon graduation. We should allow students to test out of as many courses as possible. We should give them a chance to earn money as interns(实习生)in meaningful part-time jobs that relate to their university studies, such as the five-year co-op program at Northeastern University.

1.The first paragraph serves as a(n)________.

A. explanation          B. definition      C. introduction         D. comment

2.We can learn from the passage that ________.

A. most American universities are against the “three-year degree” model

B. many famous US universities are considering adopting the “three-year degree” model

C. professors are willing to accept the “three-year degree” model

D. the “three-year degree” model can make college learning more efficient

3.In most US universities,________.

A. college students are offered the co-op program

B. electives’ credits make up one quarter of the required credits

C. all students are required to finish four-year education before graduation

D. some excellent students can graduate ahead of time

4.We can infer that________.

A. the author is a college professor

B. the author thinks the cost of a university education is too high for people to afford

C. the author considers the university education quality very important

D. the author pays special attention to the all-round development of college students

5.Which of the following can be the best title?

A. It’s time to shorten the learning process

B. Best learning takes place over time

C. University education should be watered down

D. College education calls for reform

 

Recently, a survey was done among 288,000 students, which shows that today’s traditional-age college freshmen are “more materialistic and less altruistic (利他主义的)” than at any time in the 19 years of the poll (民意调查).

Not surprisingly, in these hard times, the students’ major purpose “is to be financially well off. Developing a meaningful philosophy of life is less important than ever.” It follows then that today the most popular course is not literature or history but accounting.

Interest in teaching, social service and the “altruistic” fields is at a low. On the other hand, enrollment in business programs, engineering and computer science is way up.

That’s no surprise either. A friend of mine (a sales representative for a chemical company) was making twice the salary of her college instructors in her first year on the job---even before she completed her two-year associate degree.

Though it’s true that we all need a career, it is equally true that our civilization has accumulated an incredible amount of knowledge in fields far beyond our own and that it will be better for our understanding of these other contributions—either scientific or artistic.

Similarly, it is true that, in studying the diverse wisdom of others, we learn how to think. More importantly, perhaps, education teaches us to see the connections between things, as well as to see beyond our immediate needs.

Weekly we read of unions who went on strike for higher wages, only to drive their employer out of business. No company; No job. How shortsighted in the long run!

But the most important argument for a broad education is that in studying the accumulated wisdom of the ages, we improve our moral sense. I saw a cartoon recently which shows a group of businessmen looking puzzled as they sit around a conference table; one of them is talking on the intercom (对讲机) : “Miss Baxter,” he says, “could you please send in someone who can distinguish right from wrong?”

From the long-term point of view, that’s what education really ought to be about.

51. According to the result of the survey, college students _______________.

A. take developing a meaningful philosophy of life more seriously

B. have a wide range of knowledge in many aspects

C. pay more attention to the study of literature

D. have never been so materialistic as today

52. The students’ criteria (标准) for choosing their majors today are largely based on _________.

A. their own understanding of the courses

B. the financial goals they seek in life

C. the influence of their instructors

D. the vast potential for the future educational development

53. What does the fifth paragraph imply?

A. Knowledge in other fields has nothing to do with one’s career.

B. Business management should be included in educational programs

C. The importance of a broad education should not be ignored

D. A good understanding of the civilization will make students rich.

54. The author’s attitude to the effect of studying the diverse wisdom of others is ______________.

A. positive          B. indifferent             C. doubtful            D. negative

55. The writer wrote the passage in order to indicate that ______________.

A. college students today are not a diligent generation

B. people engaged in technical jobs lead a more meaningful life

C. career seekers shouldn’t focus on immediate interests only

D. working experience outside college counts a lot to one’s future career

 

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