题目内容

Marjorie Baer used to joke about her retirement plans.She wasn't married and had no kids, but she didn't intend to be alone—she and all her single friends would move into a fictional home she called Casa de Biddies.Instead, Baer developed terminal brain cancer when she was 52.But just as she'd hoped, her friends and family provided her with love and care to the end.

Ballance was only the first of Baer's friends who became her unofficial caregivers.With her brother Phil Baer from Los Angeles, they worked out a system to watch over their friend and allow her to keep some of the privacy and independence she cherished.

Baer's good friend Ruth Henrich took Baer to doctors' appointments and helped her deal with all the aspects of life —answering machines, TV controls, and even phone numbers.After Henrich sent out an e-mail request, a group of volunteers signed up to ferry Baer back and forth to radiation therapy(放疗).Others in Baer's circle offered up particular talents: A nurse friend helped Baer figure out how to get what she was due from Social Security and her disability insurance; a lawyer pal helped Baer with her will; a partner who was an accountant took over her bills when she could no longer manage them."There was this odd sense that the right person always showed up," says Ballance.Their arrangement worked remarkably well.

Unmarried women are one of the fastest-growing groups in America; experts are concerned about how care-giving will be managed for them as they age.If the experience of Baer's friends is a guide, the Internet will play a role.It's already making it possible to create communities of caregivers who may have only one thing in common: the person who needs their help.On personal "care pages" set up through services such as Lotsa Helping Hands, friends and family members can post a list of tasks that need to be done, volunteer to do them, and keep updated on the person's condition.As Baer's cancer progressed, for example, her friends set up a page on Yahoo! where people could sign up to deliver meals or do errands(差事).

Catherine Fox, one of the friends who were present when Baer died, was deeply affected."It was so comforting to know that if you're willing to ask for help, the generosity of family and friends can be phenomenal(显著的).It makes me feel secure and hopeful to know that help is there when you need it."

1.The most appropriate title of this passage should be ______.

A.On her own, but not alone

B.A friend in need is a friend indeed

C.A new practice of American government

D.A phenomenal advantage of the Internet

2.Who helped Marjorie Baer get her disability insurance?

A.Ruth Henrich. B.Her brother.

C.A nurse friend. D.Ballance.

3.The underlined part in paragraph four suggests that the Internet will ______.

A.play a role in American future pension system

B.provide online medical care for aged unmarried women

C.help manage care-giving for unmarried women as they age

D.help those aged unmarried women to kill their spare time

4.The writer tells us the story of Marjorie Baer for the purpose of ______.

A.reminding us to be kind and make as many friends as we can

B.informing that there will be a new trend of care-giving for the single elderly

C.persuading us that we can enjoy our retirement even if we don’t have a child

D.introducing the convenience that will be brought by the Internet after we retire

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Bonnie and her husband, Tyrone, were very fond of going on short holidays to new places.

Once, they decided to take a trip in their own car to a nearby which was famous for its historical sites. They started on their journey early in the morning and late evening they had entered the town and checked in at a hotel.

The next morning, they started their new discovery with a road of the town and its suburbs. there were many places to see, it took them the whole day to finish their sightseeing.

By now, they had a suburb with shops selling handmade items. Bonnie was most interested in shopping. Tyrone her to finish before it started getting dark. They were so in their shopping that they forgot about the time until the shops began to .

They took the same route back to their hotel but somehow got on the way and realized they were around in circles. They had to stop the car, their map, and started again but no use. They decided to ask someone for help but no one was out at late hour.

They waited at a street corner for some time, and then decided to try again. Tyrone the car but it wouldn’t move. He got down and but could not find any fault. He sat back , feeling more and more worried about their , while Bonnie was calm saying she was sure they would get help.

They sat , Bonnie praying calmly and Tyrone getting panic. Finally a man walked towards them. It was that he was a car mechanic returning home. With his help, the car was repaired and ready to go. The couple were very grateful and thanked the man . They reached their hotel safely after being directed by the mechanic.

“Trust and Faith”helped create a small wonder.

1.A. cityB. townC. villageD. district

2.A. inB. tillC. byD. after

3.A. remarkB. instructionC. guideD. map

4.A. SinceB. UnlessC. AlthoughD. Once

5.A. visitedB. passedC. reachedD. left

6.A. allowedB. orderedC. persuadedD. warned

7.A. richB. rootedC. interestedD. absorbed

8.A. operateB. closeC. openD. fall

9.A. lostB. hurtC. stuckD. rained

10.A. goingB. lookingC. hangingD. showing

11.A. turned overB. brought upC. referred toD. looked down

12.A. evenB. thatC. quiteD. much

13.A. pulledB.startedC.repairedD. pushed

14.A. fixedB. checkedC. lookedD. tested

15.A. touchedB. shockedC. exhaustedD. depressed

16.A. difficultyB. futureC. wishD. experience

17.A. sadlyB. noisilyC. quietlyD. anxiously

18.A. inferredB. remindedC. learntD. informed

19.A. brieflyB. orallyC. totallyD. extremely

20.A. helpfulB. generousC. honestD. active

Many of the world’s countries have reached or are approaching zero population growth (ZPG) .Nearly all such lands are economically well developed.They include much of Europe(including Russia),the United States,Canada,Japan.and Australia.As the rate of natural increase(RNI)declines,two things happen.First,the population begins to decline if the loss is not balanced by immigration.Second,a country’s population ages because there are fewer births.

Is achieving ZPG good or bad? What happens when a country’s population begins to drop? Many people,after all,believe that population decline is a good thing.But is it good for everyone? Does everyone agree?

An aging population can create many problems.Senior citizens require more health care and medical attention.Rather than paying into retirement programs,they begin to draw from their pensions.In the US,the Social Security program,according to many experts,will be used up by 2018.It will pay out more money than it takes in.Additionally, a great number of jobs go begging in search of people willing or entry。level positions that pay low wages.With an able to do them.Many of these jobs are aging population,who will fill them? At the other extreme,some positions require a large number of training and highly specialized skills.Who will fill these positions as retirees leave the workforce?

The answer to the problem of declining and aging population is simple:increased migration.Today many people,particularly those from less developed countries,are migrating in search of employment.Many are willing to take jobs that cannot(or will not) be filled by the domestic population.Others are well educated and highly skilled.Both groups contribute to a country’s economy progress in many ways.Further, they add to the richness of a country’s culture.Of greatest importance,perhaps,is the fact that they have become absolutely necessary to the economy of many lands.As you can see,for many countries and for most immigrants,migration is a win—win situation.

1.In the writer’s view,which of the following statements is TRUE?

A.Not everyone agrees that achieving ZPG is absolutely good.

B.Achieving ZPG is every country’s aim in spite of its side effects.

C.Achieving ZPG is bad for senior citizens.

D.Achieving ZPG is good for employment.

2. According to the passage,the best way to solve the problem of declining and aging population is .

A.to improve the health care system B.to increase RNI

C.to increase employment D.to increase migration

3.The underlined words “the domestic population’’ can be replaced by .

A.people within the country B.people from developing countries

C.people without a college education D.people living abroad

4.The main idea of the last paragraph is

A.the advantages of increased migration

B.the problem of declining and aging population

C.how to increase migration

D.some ways to enrich a country’s culture

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