阅读材料

　　Diana Jacobs thought her family had a workable plan to pay for college for her 21-year-old twin sons：a combination of savings, income, scholarships, and a modest amount of borrowing．Then her husband lost his job, and the plan fell apart．

　　“I have two kids in college, and I want to say ‘come home, ’ but at the same time I want to provide them with a good education, ” says Jacobs．

　　The Jacobs family did work out a solution：They asked and received more aid form the schools, and each son increased his borrowing to the maximum amount through the federal loan(贷款)program．They will each graduate with $20, 000 of debt, but at least they will be able to finish school．

　　With unemployment rising, financial aid administrators expect to hear more families like the Jacobs．More students are applying for aid, and more families expect to need student loans．College administrators are concerned that they will not have enough aid money to go around．

　　At the same time, tuition(学费)continues to rise．A report from the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education found that college tuition and fees increased 439％ from 1982 to 2007, while average family income rose just 147％．Student borrowing has more than doubled in the last decade,

　　“If we go on this way for another 25years, we won’t have an affordable system of higher education, ” says Patrick M．Callan, president of the center．“The middle class families have been financing it through debt．They will send kids to college whatever it takes, even if that means a huge amount of debt．”

　　Financial aid administrators have been having a hard time as many companies decide that student loans are not profitable enough and have stopped making them．The good news, however, is that federal loans account for about three quarters of student borrowing, and the government says that money will flow uninterrupted．

阅读理解

　　Dear Ariel,

　　I got a job offer from a high-tech company with a fairly satisfactory payment and benefits．Even the work environment is cool．But I heard that the job requires a lot of overtime and even weekends．I know it's important for newcomers to get their feet planted firmly on the ground to reach their goals, but I'm scared of the idea of having nearly no free time．I still need to find a girlfriend and look after my parents．So, shall I accept the job or give it up for another one with much less pay and more freedom?

Amoretto

　　Dear Amoretto,

　　I have two things to say：First, you're lucky to have such an excellent offer, especially at a time when so many talented people are struggling to find any work at all; and second, you can't figure out your work-life balance until you're actually working☆

　　Take the job．You'll be learning, doing interesting things, working in a cool environment, and making money．If you're given contract, make sure you understand the terms before you sign．Ask your boss how many hours a week you're expected to work．If he tells you a number that's much lower than what you find once you're working, you'll be in a better position to talk to him about it．

　　Give your work 100 percent．Work energetically and efficiently．If you're devoted and focused, you might achieve more than your co-workers in less time．Showing yourself to be a productive and talented worker from the beginning will give you more bargaining power．Finally, remember that taking a job doesn't have to be a life commitment．Try to give it at least a year(two is better)．If you're really miserable after that time, look for another job that will give you more freedom．By then, you'll have workplace experience, bosses and colleagues who can speak positively about your work and some savings as well．

　　Good luck!

Ariel

阅读理解

　　Diana Jacobs thought her family had a workable plan to pay for college for her 21-year-old twin sons：a combination of savings, income, scholarships, and a modest amount of borrowing．Then her husband lost his job, and the plan fell apart．

　　“I have two kids in college, and I want to say ‘come home,’ but at the same time I want to provide them with a good education,” says Jacobs．

　　The Jacobs family did work out a solution：They asked and received more aid form the schools, and each son increased his borrowing to the maximum amount through the federal loan(贷款)program．They will each graduate with ＄20,000 of debt, but at least they will be able to finish school．

　　With unemployment rising, financial aid administrators expect to hear more families like the Jacobs．More students are applying for aid, and more families expect to need student loans．College administrators are concerned that they will not have enough aid money to go around．

　　At the same time, tuition(学费)continues to rise．A report from the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education found that college tuition and fees increased 439％ from 1982 to 2007, while average family income rose just 147％．Student borrowing has more than doubled in the last decade．

　　“If we go on this way for another 25 years, we won’t have an affordable system of higher education,” says Patrick M．Callan, president of the center．“The middle class families have been financing it through debt．They will send kids to college whatever it takes, even if that means a huge amount of debt．”

　　Financial aid administrators have been having a hard time as many companies decide that student loans are not profitable enough and have stopped making them．The good news, however, is that federal loans account for(占)about three quarters of student borrowing, and the government says that money will flow uninterrupted．

阅读理解

　　I have a rule for travel：Never carry a map．I prefer to ask for directions．

　　Foreign visitors are often puzzled in Japan because most streets there don’t have names．In Japan, people use landmarks in their directions instead of street names．For example, the Japanese will say to travelers, “Go straight down to the corner．Turn left at the big hotel and go pass a fruit market．The post office is across from the bus stop．”

　　In the countryside of the American Midwest, usually there are not many landmarks．There are no mountains, so the land is very flat(平坦的)．In many places there are no towns or buildings within miles．Instead of landmarks, people will tell you directions and distance．In Kansas or Iowa, for example, people will say, “Go north two miles．Turn east, and then go another mile．”

　　People in Los Angeles, California, have no idea of distance on the map：They measure distance by means of time, not miles．“How far away is the post office?” you ask．“Oh, ” they answer, “It’s about five minutes from here．” you say, “Yes, but how many miles away is it?” They don’t know．

　　People in Greece sometimes do not even try to give directions because visitors seldom understand the Greek language．Instead of giving you the direction, a Greek will often say, “Follow me．” Then he’ll lead you through the streets of the city to the post office．

　　Sometimes a person doesn’t know the answer to your question．What happens in this situation?A New Yorker might say, “Sorry, I have no idea．”But in Yucatan, Mexico, no one answers, “I don’t know．”People in Yucatan think that “I don’t know” is impolite．They usually give an answer, often a wrong one．A visitor can get very, very lost in Yucatan!

　　One thing will help you everywhere－in Japan, in the United States, in Greece, in Mexico, or in any other place．You might not understand a person’s words, but maybe you can understand his body language．He or she will usually turn and then point in the correct direction．Go in that direction, and you may find the post office!