C
In the 1920s demand for American farm products fell, as European countries began to recover from World War I and started austerity （紧缩） programs to reduce their imports．The result was a sharp drop in farm prices．This period was more disastrous for farmers than earlier times had been, because farmers were no longer self-sufficient．They were paying for machinery, seed, and fertilizer, and they were also buying consumer goods．The prices of the items farmers bought remained constant, while prices they received for their products fell．These developments were made worse by the Great Depression, which began in 1929 and extended throughout the 1939s．
In 1929, under President Herbert Hoover, the Federal Farm Board was organized．It established the principle of direct interference （干预） with supply and demand, and it represented the first national commitment to provide greater economic stability for farmers．
President Hoover's successor attached even more importance to this problem．One of the first measures proposed by President FranklinD．Roosevelt when he took office in 1933 was the Agricultural Adjustment Act, which was later passed by Congress．This law gave the Secretary of Agriculture the power to reduce production through voluntary agreements with farmers who were paid to take their land out of use．A deliberate shortage of farm products was planned in an effort to raise prices．This law was declared unconstitutional （违背宪法的） by the Supreme Court on the grounds that general taxes were being collected to pay one special group of people．However, new laws were passed immediately that achieved the same result of resting soil and providing flood-control measures, but which were based on the principle of soil conservation．The Roosevelt Administration believed that rebuilding the nation’s soil was in the national interest and was not simply a plan to help farmers at the expense of other citizens．Later the government guaranteed loans to farmers so that they could buy farm machinery, hybrid （杂交） grain, and fertilizers．
53．What caused the problem in the demand for American farm products?
A．The effect of the Great Depression．
B．The shrinking of overseas markets．
C．The destruction caused by the First World War．
D．The increased exports of European countries．
54．The word “successor” refers to ______．
A．President Hoover           B．US Secretary of State
C．President Franklin          D．US Secretary of Agriculture
55．The Agricultural Adjustment Act encouraged American farmers to ______．
A．reduce their scale of production        B．make full use of their land
C．adjust the prices of their farm products  D．be self-sufficient in agricultural production
56．The Supreme Court rejected the Agricultural Adjustment Act because it believed that the Act ______．
A．might cause greater shortage of farm products
B．didn't give the Secretary of Agriculture enough power
C．would benefit neither the government nor the farmers
D．benefited one group of citizens at the expense of others

All areas of the world face a nurses shortage. But the shortage is most severe in developing countries. Many of their nurses move to the more developed nations for better pay, better working conditions and better chances for career development. For example, nearly 2,000 nurses left the Caribbean between 2002 and 2006.

       The Caribbean nations currently have about 1 nurse for every 1,000 people. The ratio(比例) of nurses to population is about 10 times higher in the United States and countries in the European Union(EU). Now, more than 21,000 nurses who trained in the Caribbean are working in the United States, Canada and Britain.

       Gaetan Lafortune is an official of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development(O.E.C.D) in Paris. He says the nurses shortage also affects industrialized countries. He says, “There is concern in most O.E.C.D.countries that the number of nurses is too small to meet the demand. And what is more worrying is that their concern is sort of growing.” Mr Lafortune says a large number of nurses are expected to retire within the next 10 years. At the same time, the health care needs of aging populations are expected to grow, intensifying the shortage of nurses.

       Gaetan Lafortune said, “In the U.S., for instance, some researchers have found that there may be a shortage of close to a million nurses by 2020.” The United States is 1 of the 21 countries in the O.C.E.D. Gaetan Lafortune says in the recent years many of the countries increased their efforts to hire foreign nurses. As a result of that, O.E.C.D. countries were mainly exporting their shortage problem to countries that may have an even greater need for these nurses.

What will be the main causes of the global nurses shortage in the next 10 years?

       a. The demand for nurses will decrease.                    

b. Many nurses will be too old to work.

       c. Many rich countries will hire more foreign nurses. 

d. Nurses are often looked down upon.

       e. Aging populations will increase rapidly

       A. a and b             B. b and c              C. b and e              D. c and d

The underlined word “intensify” in para. 3 means “________”.

       A. strengthen         B. neglect            C. reduce               D. cause

We know from this text that America and the EU countries ______.

       A. refuse to offer equal pay to foreign nurses

       B. have at least one nurse out of 100 people

       C. don’t like to train nurses of their own countries

       D. have more serious nursing problems than the Caribbean nations

What does the text mainly tell us?

       A. Nursing is no longer a worthwhile profession in most countries.

       B. The different attitudes towards nursing in different countries.

       C. Nurses shortage will result in serious consequences.

       D. The health care industry needs more nurses.

Everyone agrees that it’s necessary to reduce carbon emissions （排放物） around the world. There is less agreement over exactly how nations should go about achieving a more carbon - free planet. Thus, the environmental equivalent: cap – and – trade carbon emissions, or place a carbon tax on all users?

With cap – and – trade programs, governments limit the level of carbon produced by an industry. Companies that hold their emissions below the cap can sell their remaining allowance on a carbon market, while companies that go beyond their limit must purchase credits on that market. Carbon taxes are more straightforward: a set tax rate is placed on the consumption of carbon with the idea that raising the price will encourage industries and individuals to consume less. At the moment, cap – and – trade has the upper hand, but doesn’t defeat the tax just yet.

Supporters of the tax argue that a cap – and – trade system would be too difficult to administer – and too easily gamed by industries looking to sidestep emissions caps. Cap – and – trade advocates contradict that like all other flat taxes, a carbon collection would relatively burden lower – income families, who spend a greater percentage of their income on energy than rich households.

So which system will have a larger effect on carbon consumption? A 10% carbon tax might reduce the demand for carbon about 5 % or less, according to an analysis by the Carbon Tax Center, an environmental advocacy group. That may not be enough. Businesses and governments haven’t figured out how the two competing systems can work together, but in the end, the world may need both.

1. The passage focuses on_________.

      A. programs of collecting taxes

   B. systems of reducing carbon emissions

      C. reasons for reducing carbon emissions

   D. contradictions between the two systems

2. According to the cap – and – trade program, companies_________ .

       A. are forbidden to produce carbon emissions

       B. are allocated the same amount of carbon consumption

       C. can sell their remaining allowance within their limits

       D. can sell the extra amount of carbon at a higher price

3. Carbon taxes work by _________.

       A. burdening well – off families

       B. encouraging industries to consume carbon

       C. raising the price for carbon consumption

       D. limiting the carbon consumption of industries only

4. The underlined word “cap” in the second paragraph most likely refers to_________.

       A. limit                  B. credit                C. level                  D. rate

5. We can learn from the passage_________ .

       A. carbon taxes are difficult to carry out

       B. cap – and – trade plays a greater role at present

       C. cap – and – trade will be preferable in the future

       D. carbon taxes will be preferable in the future

Some experts argue that the reason why the price of houses can’t drop is that the supply is not ______ to the demand.

A．adequate         B．sensitive          C．entire            D．accessible

A gadget which makes water out of air could become the greatest household invention since the microwave. http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

Using the same technology as a dehumidifier（除湿器），the Water Mill is able to create a ready supply of drinking water because it can always get it from an unlimited source—the air．http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

The company behind the machine says not only does it offer an alternative to bottled water inhttp://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

developed countries, but it is a solution for the millions who face a daily water shortage．http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

The machine works by drawing in wet air through a filter（过滤器）and over a cooling instrument which changes it into water droplets．It can produce up to 12 liters a day．The Water Mill will also produce more water when storms pass over, as the amount of water which is contained in the air increases. In keeping with its eco-development, the machine uses the same amount of electricity as three lights.     Inventor Jonathan Ritchey said, “The demand for water is off the chart. So people are looking for freedom from water distribution systems that are shaky and unreliable.”

The machine, which is about 3 feet wide, is likely to cost ￡800 when it goes on sale here in the spring. Its maker, Canadian Firm Element Four, roughly calculates that a liter of water costs around 20 pence to produce.

Environmentalists state that half the world’s population will face water shortage because of climate change by 2080. One in five is said to lack access to safe drinking.

The Water Mill is not effective in areas where the amount of water contained in the air is below about 30 percent, but in Britain that won’t be much of a problem.

What does the underlined word “it” refer to?

A．Drinking water.  B．Invention.    C．Microwave.      D．Water Mill.

What do we learn about the machine?

A．It works in the same way as microwaves.

B．It is very expensive for families to afford.

C．It absorbs wet air and turns it into water.

D．It helps to make the water clean to drink. http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

What does the passage lead us to believe? http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

A．The cost of water will go up.  B．Bottled water will disappear soon.

C．The machine is energy saving. D．The machine will be popular worldwide.

What’s the best title for the passage? http://www..com/gaokao/beijing/

A．A New Way to Solve Water Problem.  B．A Machine to Make Water out of Air.

C．A Dehumidifier to Produce Water.  D．An Absolutely New Invention