题目内容
The salaries of American judges are rather low ________ the allowance _______ to judicial officers in Europe.
A. compared with; offering B. comparing with; offered
C. in comparison to; offering D. in comparison with; offered
D
Coupons to spend
“How did you spend your coupons?”
On their first day back to school, many students in Hangzhou greeted each other this way.
The coupons referred to the 100 yuan coupons each student received form the city government before the Spring Festival holidays. Over 260,000 primary school and middle school students were given coupons. They could use them in local stores and supermarkets, or to see movies and buy books.
The same coupons have also been given to low income families in Hangzhou. Other cities, including Chengdu and Nanjing, also gave coupons to their citizens. More cities are expected to follow their lead.
Why are local governments doing this?
These programmes are all part of a broader effort in China to increase domestic demand in the face of the global financial crisis.
The crisis has seriously affected China’s exports and investments (投资). Many factories in southern cities have been closed down. Some companies are laying off workers or reducing their pay. The stock market and real estate market have been falling.
In a time of financial crisis, people usually respond by saving money. They are uncertain about the future and are afraid that more difficult times may be ahead. Now many people are choosing not to spend money carelessly. Major chain stores have seen a sharp slowdown in sales, analysts say.
But spending keeps an economy healthy. If people don’t spend, there will be too many products in the market. Then shops will stop buying products from factories. When factories receive no orders, they close down. The workers there accordingly lose their jobs. Also, if people don’t spend, the service industry suffers. The total result is that the whole economy breaks down.
Issuing coupons is a practical and effective way to increase domestic demand in the current situation, said Jiang Zengwei, vice-minister of China’s Ministry of Commerce. Hangzhou reported a rise in customers in local markets during Spring Festival holiday.
However, issuing coupons is only a temporary measure. To increase consumers’ confidence, the government needs to establish a sound secure social system in the long term. When people don’t have to worry about education, health care and their pension, they will be more willing to spend instead of saving.
【小题1】Why are local governments issuing coupons?
| A．To increase domestic demand in the face of the global financial crisis. |
| B．To enable students to use them in local stores and supermarkets, or to see movies and buy books independently. |
| C．To help those low income families in the global financial crisis. |
| D．To show the government’s ability to solve economic problems |
| A．China’s exports and investments have been seriously affected. |
| B．People begin to spend money without a second thought. |
| C．Workers are faced with losing jobs and the reduction of the salaries. |
| D．The active stock market and real estate market have gone. |
| A．Issuing coupons is a practical and effective way to increase domestic demand in a long term. |
| B．The total result of saving money is that the whole economy breaks down. |
| C．The government may carry out new policies to encourage citizens to be willing to spend in the near future. |
| D．After issuing the coupons, the local markets have seen a rise in customers during Spring Festival holiday. |
| A．Spend now, save later. |
| B．Spend money like there’s no tomorrow; come on! |
| C．Spend money like it’s going out of style; let’s do it! |
| D．Big spender, wise spender. |
The British aren’t having as many children as they used to. One reason is that people are having children much older than before, meaning they have fewer years in which they can have them. After years at university, they need a few years of work experience before they can get the job they want. They might then get married, but it’s incredibly expensive to buy a house in the UK.
The above explains why young British people now don’t move out of their parents’ home until they are around 30 years old on average. It is not until they are 30 that they can afford their own home. Increasingly, it is not until that age that they can afford to get married and start a new life in a new home. It’s only after this age that many young people start thinking about having a child.
So a British person manages to get a job, get a home and get married. Why isn’t he or she then having at least two children on average? The main reason is that it is quite expensive to bring up a child in the UK. Why is it expensive? Well, these days, both parents need to work just to pay for their home and living expenses. Because both parents are at work, that means they then need to pay someone to look after their child during the day. Paying for this childcare is nearly always expensive.
The recent financial crisis is making things even harder for families, since unemployment is rising and even fewer people can afford to have children. With so much pressure on families, is it any surprise that the divorce rate is so high?
So what is Britain doing to try and save the British family? The government is trying to make it cheaper to have children. For example, there have been increases in money families can claim from the state each month. Also, there are increasing government subsidies for nursery schools, so that parents do not need to pay so much for child care.
The government is also trying to reduce the number of hours British parents have to work to earn enough money to pay their bills. If parents didn’t have to work so many hours, they’d have more time to spend with their children and wouldn’t need to spend so much on childcare. On average, a Briton works 49 hours a week, which is the most in Europe. The state is now considering introducing laws to encourage companies to improve their employees’ work-life balance. Let’s hope they’re not too late to save the British family. Otherwise, the British will always be too tired, and won’t have enough time and money, to have children.
【小题1】Young British people live in their parents’ home until around 30 because .
| A．They are allowed to get married at 30 |
| B．they can’t find jobs to support themselves |
| C．they can’t afford a house of their own until then |
| D．they enjoy family life with their parents |
| A．they have fewer years to have children |
| B．they live much shorter lives than before |
| C．it is more expensive to bring up a child |
| D．people are losing their jobs because of the recent financial crisis |
| A．bringing down prices |
| B．raising the salaries of parents |
| C．reducing family income tax |
| D．increasing subsidies for families and nursery schools |
| A．with long work hours, it is hard for British parents to balance life and work |
| B．more and more families in Britain are breaking up because they are having fewer children |
| C．among Europeans, British people work hardest and earn the least |
| D．childcare takes up too much energy and time for the British |
| A．food paid by the government |
| B．school buildings for poor students |
| C．free transportation |
| D．money from the government to benefit the public |
Radio, TV, film, and new video technology bring to mind visions of bright, exciting, high-paying careers. Many young people are attracted to wonder: Is there a place for me in the broadcast media field?
People in the business warn that the road to a successful broadcast media career can be very rocky. They point out that getting started in the field is often difficult. To begin with, competition for most broadcast jobs can be fierce. Then, once on the job, the pressure is often big. Many jobs in broadcasting require long working hours, including nights and weekends. In most cases, the salaries are not very high.
What can you do to prepare for a career in broadcast media? Getting some kind of broadcasting experience during high school or college can be extremely important. Because the field is so popular, many employers are in a position to select beginners with developed skills.
You can start by becoming familiar with media while still in high school. If there is a media resource department in your school, volunteer to do anything. If there is no media department, take photos of games and social events. Work on the drama productions or write for the school newspaper.
Many beginners in broadcasting start at small local radio or TV stations. Such stations are usually more willing than the networks to take on people with little or no experience. Here, you have a chance to be involved in many aspects of the broadcast industry and get trained on the job.
1.According to the writer, jobs with the TV networks ________.
|
A．require experience with local stations |
|
B．are harder to find than jobs with local stations |
|
C．are learned through training programs |
|
D．pay high salaries |
2.What is the result of the high demand for jobs in broadcasting?
|
A．Applicants(申请者) with experience are preferred. |
B．There are fewer jobs. |
|
C．Training programs are limited. |
D．Higher pay is being offered. |
3. A student who follows the advice in the article would ________.
|
A．start broadcasting |
B．give up broadcasting |
|
C．gain experience |
D．choose a special skill |