B

Sun Liping, 6 , lives in a small village in Yunnan. Her biggest wish is to have running water in her home. All 35 families in Sun’s village have a serious problem--- they don’t have enough water. Every day, the villagers have to walk 20 minutes to get water.

Last year, the worst drought since the 1950s hit Yunnan, making more than 2 million people short of drinking water. This year, the drought is even worse.

Not only Yunnan, but many other provinces in China are short of water as well, such as Gansu and Qinghai.

According to a report on February 17, each Chinese person has about 28% of the world’s average（平均的） person’s amount of available(可用的) water. Two thirds of China’s cities are short of water and nearly 300 million people in rural areas don’t have safe water for drinking.

Every drop of water is important. Waste a drop of water a day and you lose a bucket(桶) a year. How can we use water in a smart way? Here are some tips for you to save water in your daily life:

1. Put plastic bottles of water in your toilet to cut down the water waste when you flush (冲洗) your toilet.

2. Don’t keep the water running while you’re brushing your teeth or washing your face and hands.

3. Use low-flow(低流量) shower heads .

4. Use a bucket to collect shower water while you wait for it to warm up.

5. Make your shower time shorter.

6. Set up a rain bucket to collect rainwater for watering plants or flowers.

1. What is the problem in Sun’s village?

2. What does the underlined word drought mean in the second paragraph?

3. According to the report, __________________________________.

A. China has just 28 percent of the world’s available water.

Each Chinese person can use more water than the world’s average person.

There is not enough water in two thirds of China’s cities.

D. There are about 300 million people in China’s cities who don’t have enough water.

4.Which of the following would lead to a waste of water?

B
Sun Liping, 6 , lives in a small village in Yunnan. Her biggest wish is to have running water in her home. All 35 families in Sun’s village have a serious problem--- they don’t have enough water. Every day, the villagers have to walk 20 minutes to get water.
Last year, the worst drought since the 1950s hit Yunnan, making more than 2 million people short of drinking water. This year, the drought is even worse.
Not only Yunnan, but many other provinces in China are short of water as well, such as Gansu and Qinghai.
According to a report on February 17, each Chinese person has about 28% of the world’s average（平均的） person’s amount of available(可用的) water. Two thirds of China’s cities are short of water and nearly 300 million people in rural areas don’t have safe water for drinking.
Every drop of water is important. Waste a drop of water a day and you lose a bucket(桶) a year. How can we use water in a smart way? Here are some tips for you to save water in your daily life:
1. Put plastic bottles of water in your toilet to cut down the water waste when you flush (冲洗) your toilet.
2. Don’t keep the water running while you’re brushing your teeth or washing your face and hands.
3. Use low-flow(低流量) shower heads .
4. Use a bucket to collect shower water while you wait for it to warm up.
5. Make your shower time shorter.
6. Set up a rain bucket to collect rainwater for watering plants or flowers.
【小题1】 What is the problem in Sun’s village?

In the past, people who graduated from college felt proud of their academic(学业的) achievements and felt confident that their degree（学位）would help them to find a good job.

However, in the past four years the job market has changed greatly. This year’s college graduates are facing one of the worst job markets. For example, Ryan Stewart, a graduate of San Jose State University, got a degree in religious（宗教）studies, but no job prospects. He points out that many people already working are getting laid off（解雇） and don’t have jobs, so it’s even harder for new college graduates to find jobs.

Four years ago, the future looked bright for the class of 2006. There were many high-tech job chances. Graduates received many job offers, and they were able to get jobs with high salaries（薪水）and benefits such as insurance(保险) and paid vacations. However, "Times have changed and it's a new market," according to an officer of the San Jose State Career Center.

The officer says students who do find jobs started preparing two years ago. They worked during summer vacations, they have had several short-time jobs, and they’ve majored in one of the few fields that are still hot, like chemical engineering, accounting, or nursing, where average（平均的）starting salaries have actually increased over last year. Other popular fields (like information system management, computer science, and political science) have seen big declines(下降) in starting salaries.

Ryan Stewart (he had hoped to become a teacher) may go back to school in order to become a college teacher. He thinks college teaching could be a good career even in a bad economy.

In conclusion, these days a degree may not be a ticket to instant wealth for some students. For now, they can only hope the value of their degree will increase over time.

51.The underlined word in the second paragraph probably means _____.

A. skills　　　　 B. interests　　　 C. chances　　　　 D. ideas

52. Which of the following majors has the best job offers?

A. teaching　　 B. accounting　　 C. political science　　 D. computer science

53. Ryan Stewart will have to _________.

A. change his major　　　　　　 B. get a job teaching

C. go back to school　　　　　　 D. become a religious leader

54. The underlined sentence in the last paragraph means ____________.

A. the best way to get rich is not to get a college degree

B. most students with degrees will not be able to find jobs

C. having a college degree does not mean that one has money for travelling

D. a college degree does not mean that one will find a well-paid job

55. The main idea of the passage is that _________.

A. a lot of graduates are losing their jobs　

B. Ryan Stewart has been able to find a job

C. salaries in some fields have increased in the past year

D. the job market has changed greatly over the past four years