Beauty has always been regarded as something praiseworthy. Almost everyone thinks attractive people are happier and healthier, have better marriages and have more respectable jobs. Personal advisors give them better advice for finding jobs. Even judges are softer on attractive defendants. But in the executive（主管的） circle, beauty can become a liability.

　　While attractiveness is a positive factor for a man on his way up the executive ladder, it is harmful to a woman.

　　Handsome male executives were considered having more honesty than plainer men; effort and ability were thought to lead to their success.

　　Attractive female executives were considered to have less honesty than unattractive ones; their success was connected not with ability but with factors such as luck.

　　All unattractive women executives were thought to have more honesty and to be more capable than the attractive female executives. Interestingly, though, the rise of the unattractive overnight successes was connected more to personal relationships and less to ability than that of the attractive overnight successes.

　　Why are attractive women not thought to be able? An attractive woman is considered to be more feminine has an advantage in traditionally female jobs, but an attractive woman in a traditionally manly position appears to lack the "manly"qualifies required.

　　This is true even in politics, "When the only clue is how he or she looks, people treat men and women differently, " says Anne Bowman, who recently published a study on the effects of attractiveness on political candidates（候选人）. She asked 125 undergraduate students to rank two groups of photographs, one of men and one of women, in order of attractiveness. The students were told the photographs were of candidates for political offices. They were asked to rank them again, in the order they would vote for them.

　　The results showed that attractive males completely defeated unattractive men, but the women who had ranked most attractive unchangeably received the fewest votes.

　　The word "liability" most probably means ________.

　　A. disadvantage　B. advantage　　　C. misfortune　　 D. trouble

　Bowman's experiment shows that when it comes to politics, attractiveness________

　　A. turns out to　be a disadvantage to men

　　B. is more of a disadvantage than an advantage to women

　　C. has as little effect on men as on women

　　D. affects men and women alike

　　It can be inferred from the passage that people's views on beauty are often________.

　　A. practical　　　B. supportive　　 C. old - fashioned　D. one - sided

　　The author writes this passage to ________.

　　A. give advice to job - seekers who are attractive

　　B. discuss the disadvantages of being attractive

　　C. demand equal rights for women

　　D. state the importance of appearance

Today, many people are starving to death. Recently, a man who wanted to understand the conditions of such people conducted an experiment. He only ate one meal a day for a month but continued to work as he normally did.
During the first five days he was hungry at his  1  mealtime, but after he had drunk a glass of water, his hunger went away. In the morning, when he ate his one meal, he ate quickly and had a   2   amount. During the next few days,   3 he was not hungry during the day, he quickly   4  every food stall (a table on which food is put to be sold), and the smell of food caught his    5   . During the third and the fourth weeks, he had hunger pains and    6    physical strength. He    7     his one meal and ate it slowly, enjoying every bite.    8    it, he knew he would have hardly enough energy to work.
　   This   9   changed his attitude about some things. Having a cup of tea was not just a pastime. It also  10   him strength. He more frequently noticed overweight people and people who threw   11  leftover food. He realized the importance of   12   for the very hungry person. He could no longer easily    13    by a hungry beggar on the street. But most   14   , he could now sympathize(同情) in a   15    way with the hungry people of the world.
1．A．after　　     B．formal　　　　   C．regular　　　   D．frequent
2．A．large　　     B．small　　　　    C．ordinary　　    D．common
3．A．if　　　      B．when　　　　　  C．as if　　　　   D．although
4．A．recognized　B．noticed　　      C. glanced　　　    D．digested
5．A．eyes　　      B．imagination　     C．attention　 　 D．interest
6．A．needed　      B．lacked           C．required　　    D．wanted
7．A．looked forward to　　 　　B．devoted himself to
　 C．looked down upon　　 　  D．took pride in
8．A．With　　      B．Without　　　   C．Rather than 　 D．Except for
9．A．action　      B．movement　　　C．experiment　    D．performance
10．A．gained　      B．gave　　　　　 C．took　　　　   D．left
11．A．in　　　      B．up　　　　　　 C．away　　　　  D．about
12．A．food　　      B．meals　　　　   C．money　　　  D．work
13．A．come　　      B．pass　　　　　C．stand　　　 　D．stop
14．A．fortunately　 B．seriously　　   C．necessary　　  D．important
15．A．great　　     B．big　　　　　   C．small　　　 　D．similar

It is a typical case. A young professional has just moved to a new city. She is very active in her new job but wishes to meet people socially outside of work. How does she do this？
　　Signing up for a night class is always a good starting point. Not only is it an ideal way to meet like-minded people，it can also be a great new learning experience. Pubs and clubs can be a good meeting place but can be a bit hard if you are on your own.
　　Join a gym
　　GL-14 health club in Manchester city centre is a gym which also has lots of member activities outside the gym from charity fashion shows to dinner dances giving members a chance to socialize away from the treadmill（繁忙的工作）. Or if you want a gym with a difference，try a“Green Gym”for people who want to exercise but wish to be outdoors and doing something that will benefit the environment at the same time. The“work out”could involve such activities as practical conservation or gardening work. It’s a great way to get people’s heart and muscle working. And many agree that meeting other people and having a matter and a laugh is a big attraction of the scheme.
　　Reading groups
　　In the Reading Groups，Jenny Hartley suggested that there may be as many as 50，000 people in reading groups in the UK. They range from informal groups of friends or colleagues who meet in someone’s home or at the local pub，to discuss a book. If you want something a bit more structured，lots of libraries have reading groups and could have a broader group of members.
　　Statistics
　　The BBC recently conducted a survey called Going solo：single life in the 21st century. You can look at the overall results or search by area. It found that：
　　*69％ of people thought that the gym was a good place to meet new
　　*Pubs or clubs were considered to be good meeting places by 58％ of people in the UK
　　*68％ thought that work was a good place to meet people
　　*72％ thought that internet chat was not an ideal way to meet people
（  ）56．“Green Gym”in Paragraph 3 refers to an activity in which you can________.
A．have night classes with like-minded people
B．do something good for the environment on your own
C．discuss a book with other members at a pub
D．benefit the environment while doing outdoor exercise
（  ）57．Which of the following is a Green Gym activity？
A．Gardening work.         B．Chatting on the Internet.
C．A charity fashion show.    D．A dinner dance away from the treadmill.
（  ）58．What’s the most popular place to meet new people outside of work？
A．Pubs or clubs. 　B．The Internet.  C．The working place. D．The gym.

I believe that families are not only blood relatives, but sometimes people who show up and love you when no one else will.

In May 1977, I was living in a Howard Johnson’s motel off Interstate 10 in Houston. My dad and I 21 a room with two double beds and a bathroom which was too 22 for a 15-year-old girl and her father. Dad’s second marriage was 　23 and my stepmother had 　24 us both out of the house the previous week. Dad had no　 25_ what to do with me. And that’s when my other family 　26 .

Barbara and Roland Beach took me into their home 　27　 their only daughter, Su, my best friend, asked them to. I 　28 with them for the next seven years.

Barb washed my skirts the same as Su’s. She 　29 I had lunch money, doctors’ appointments, help with homework and nightly hugs. Barbara and Roland attended every football game where Su and I were being cheerleaders. 30 I could tell, for the Beaches there was no 31 between Su and me; I was their daughter, too.

When Su and I 32 college they kept my room the same for the entire four years I attended school. Recently, Barb presented me with an insurance policy they bought when I first moved in with them and had continued to pay on for 23 years.

The Beaches knew 33 about me when they took me in – they had heard the whole story from Su. When I was seven, my mother died and from then on my father relied on other people to _34 his kids. Before I went to live with the Beaches I had believed that life was entirely 　35__ and that love was shaky and untrustworthy. I had believed that the only person who would take care of me was me.

36 the Beaches, I would have become a bitter, cynical (愤世嫉俗的) woman. They gave me a(n) 37 that allowed me to grow and change. They kept me from being paralyzed(使瘫痪 ,使麻痹 ,使无能力)by my _38　 , and they gave me the confidence to open my heart.

I 　39 family. For me, it wasn’t the family that was there on the day I was 　40　 , but the one that was there for me when I was living in a Howard Johnson’s on Interstate 10.

16．A. lived　　 B. shared 　　 C. possessed　　　　 D. bought

17．A. cheap　　 B. noisy　　　 C. small　　　　　　 D. limited

18．A. in trouble B. in sight 　　 C. in place 　 D. in parts

19．A. struck　　　　 B. removed　 C. kicked 　　 D. knocked

20．A. plan　　　　 B. choice 　　　 C. chance 　　 D. idea

21．A. looked after　 B. showed up　　 C. turned over 　　 D. came cross

22．A. so　　　　　 B. because　　　 C. until 　　　　 D. while

23．A. worked　　　 B. traveled　　　 C. lived 　　　　 D. learned

24．A. worked out　　 B. called up　　 C. watched out　　　 D. made sure

25．A. As long as B. As far as　　 C. As soon as 　　　 D. As many as

26．A. change 　　 B. problem 　 C. conflict 　 　　D. difference

27．A. set off　　　　　 B. left for　　　　 C. entered into 　　 　　　 D. admitted into

28．A. all 　　 B. little 　 C. something D. nothing

29．A. supply B. teach C. encourage D. raise

30．A. different 　 B. unfair 　　　 C. easy　　 　　　 D. hopeful

31．A. Thanks to B. In spite of C. Except for 　　　 D. But for

32．A. home 　　　 B. house 　　　 C. ability 　　　 　　D. lesson

33．A. choice 　　 B. failure 　　　 C. past　 　　 　　D. present

34．A. doubt about 　　 B. call on 　　 C. center on　　 D. believe in

35．A. born B. accepted 　 C. educated　　 D. deserted