One of the most difficult questions to answer is how much a job is worth. We naturally expect that a doctor’s salary will be higher than a bus conductor’s wage. But the question becomes much more difficult to answer when we compare, say, a miner with an engineer, or an unskilled man working on an oil-rig(钻油机) in the North Sea with a teacher in a secondary school. What the doctor, the engineer and teacher have is many years of training in order to obtain the necessary qualifications for their professions. We feel instinctively that these skills and these years, when they were studying instead of earning money, should be rewarded. At the same time we recognize that the work of the miner and the oil-rig laborer is both hard and dangerous, and that they must be highly paid for the risks they take.

Another factor we must take into consideration is how socially useful a man’s work is, regardless of the talents he may bring to it. Most people would agree that looking after the sick or teaching children is more important than, say, selling secondhand cars or improving the taste of toothpaste by adding a red stripe to it. Yet it is almost certain that the used car salesman earns more than the nurse, and that research chemist earns more than the school teacher.

Indeed, this whole question of just rewards can be turned on its head. You can argue that a man who does a job which brings him personal satisfaction is already receiving part of his reward in the form of a so-called “psychic(精神的) wage”, and that it is the man with the boring, repetitive job who needs more money to make up for the soul-destroying monotony(单调) of his work. It is significant that that those jobs which are traditionally regarded as “vocations” --- nursing, teaching and the Church, for example --- continue to be poorly paid, while others, such as those in the world of sport or entertainment, carry financial rewards out of all proportion to their social worth.

Although the amount of money that people earn is in reality largely determined by market forces, this should not prevent us from seeking some way to decide what is the right pay for the job. A starting point for such an investigation would be to try to decide the ratio which ought to exist between the highest and the lowest paid. The picture is made more complicate by two factors: firstly by the “social wage”, i.e, the welfare benefits which every citizen receives; and secondly, by the taxation system, which is often used as an instrument of social justice by taxing high incomes at a very high rate indeed. Allowing for these two things, most countries now regard a ratio of 7:1 as socially acceptable. If it is less, the highly-qualified people carrying heavy responsibilities become disillusioned, and might even end up by emigration(移民) (the so-called “brain-drain” is an evidence that this can happen). If it is more, the gap between rich and poor will be so great that it will lead social tensions and ultimately to violence.

1. The professional man, such as the doctor, should be well paid because ______.

A. he has spent several years learning how to do his job

B. his work involves much great intelligence than, say, a bus conductor’s

C. he has to work much harder than most other people

D. he knows more than other people about his subject

2. The “brain-drain” is an evidence that ______.

A. well-educated people are prepared to emigrate whenever they can get a better paid job

B. people with jobs or responsibility expect to be highly paid

C. high taxation is a useful and effective instrument of social justice

D. the poor are generally more patriotic(爱国的) than the rich

3. As far as rewarding people for their work is concerned, the writer, believes that ______.

A. we should pay for socially-useful work, regardless of the person’s talent

B. we should pay people according to their talents

C. market forces will determine how much a person is paid

D. qualified people should be the highest paid

4. The argument of the “psychic wage” is used to explain why ______.

A. people who do socially important work are not always well paid

B. people who do monotonous jobs are highly paid

C. you should not try to compare the pay of different professions

D. some professional people are paid more than others

The computer, ______________ help we human beings have stepped into the information age, should be made full use of to promote the social development.

Education is not an end, but a means to an end. In other words, we do not educate children only for the purpose of educating them. Our purpose is to fit them for life.

In some modern countries it has for some time been fashionable to think that by free education for all — one can solve all the problems of society and build a perfect nation. But we can already see that free education for all is not enough; we find in such countries a far larger number of people with university degree; they refuse to do what they think “low” work; and, in fact, work with hands is thought to be dirty and shameful in such countries. But we have only to think a moment to understand that the work of a completely uneducated farmer is far more important than that of a professor; we can live without education, but we die if we have no food. If no one cleaned our streets and took the rubbish away from our houses, we should get terrible diseases in our towns…

In fact, when we say that all of us must be educated to fit us for life, it means that we must be educated in such a way that, firstly, each of us can do whatever work suited to his brains and ability and, secondly, that we can realize that all jobs are necessary to society, and that is very bad to be ashamed of one’s work. Only such a type of education can be considered valuable to society.

1. The writer of the passage thinks that _______.

A. education can settle most of the world’s problems

B. free education for all probably leads to a perfect world

C. free education won’t help to solve problems

D. all the social problems can’t be solved by education

2. The writer wants to prove that _______.

A. our society needs all kinds of jobs

B. our society needs free education for all

C. a farmer is more important than a professor

D. work with hands is the most important

3.The purpose of education is _______.

A. to choose officials for the country

B. to prepare children mainly for their future work

C. to let everyone receive education fit for him

D. to build a perfect world

4. The passage tells us about _______ of the education.

A. the means            B. the system           C. the value               D. the type

完形填空(共20小题；每小题1.5分，满分30分)

阅读下面短文，从短文后所给各题的四个选项(A、B、C和D)中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项, 并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。

It was no wonder I was not looking forward to entering ninth grade. High school is well-known for being a battleground, where everyone seems to be  36  through physical changes, emotional mood swings, and low self-respect. For me,  37  was my punishment.

I had always felt insecure and out of 38 as one of the  39  members of my class, standing a head above the other girls and bending at the  40  of the line to avoid sticking  41 .

I especially hate being around large groups of people, like during the social hour after services at my church.  42  the prayers were finished, I would leave as quickly as possible so I could  43  other well-meaning congratulations, "Ruthie! Look how tall you' re getting!"

My grandfather would watch me  44  increasingly uncomfortable, but he did not  45  at my self--consciousness or try to comfort me.  46 , he would remind me. "Stand straight and tall," he would say, as I unsuccessfully tried to shrink (使缩小) myself. Moreover, each time, I would embarrassedly obey. Even at age 15, I understood that his advice was about  47  than just feet and inches.

My grandfather grew up in war-torn Europe. When German soldiers  48  his hometown, he wound up joining the Soviet army to fight  49  his country's freedom. "Stand straight, stand tall," meant something else back then.

_50  the war, he boarded a boat for  51  , and on January 27, 1947, he stepped onto the dock in Manhattan. He was hungry and  52  from seasickness. All alone in a new country, he was  53  about his future. Still, he marched head-on into the streets of New York. Soon he met  54  European immigrants, each of them trying to find his or her own way. If they could do it, why couldn't he? "Stand straight, stand tall," he would remind himself. He felt his faith  55 . When he walked into the church that first time, he walked in proudly.

36. A. going                     B. getting            C. looking               D. putting

37. A. age                        B. sex                    C. height               D. face

38. A. place                    B. order              C. control              D. date

39. A. younger                    B. shorter                    C. fatter              D. taller

40. A. head                  B. bottom            C. back                D. side

41. A. to                    B. out                C. with                D. off

42. A. Until                  B. Unless             C. Once               D. Before

43. A. avoid                 B. receive               C. accept             D. refuse

44. A. change                B. grow                C. sense              D. make

45. A. look                   B. stare             C. stay                 D. laugh

46. A. Instead               B. Besides       C. However              D. Therefore

47. A. other                  B. more          C. less               D. rather

48. A. fought                 B. developed    C. occupied                D. marched

49. A. against                          B. for              C. with                D. to

50. A. Before                 B. During               C. Without              D. After

51. A. German                B. Australia             C. America             D. Canada

52. A. coming                B. learning            C. suffering             D. differing

53. A. frightened              B. excited              C. serious              D. sorrowful

54. A. few                   B. more               C. most               D. other

55. A. increasing              B. returning              C. gaining               D. disappearing

Social networking isn’t only for the under 40s. More than 25 percent of Americans 50 years and older stay connected using sites such as Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, according to new research.

   “The latest data tells us that more and more social networking is becoming a part of everyday life for Americans 50 plus,” said Kevin Donnellan, the chief communications officer at AARP, which released the report.

   Nearly a quarter of older Americans are on Facebook and 73 percent said they use it to stay in touch with relatives, but not just their children and grandchildren. “They are using the Internet to keep up with the world and the people who are important to them,” said Jean Koppen, the author of the report. She added that older adults are also on Facebook to stay connected, not only with their family, but with their friends and those in the same age group. Almost 50 percent of older adults were introduced to the social networking sites by a family member, mainly a child or grandchild. “Just under one-fifth of adults aged 50 and older say they do not use the Internet,” according to the report.

   The findings are based on a telephone survey of 1,863 adults. In addition to keeping up on Facebook and Twitter older adults are aware of the latest technology. Eighty-three percent had heard about the Apple iPad and 11 percent intended to buy one.

   Despite the popularity of the Internet among the over 50s, they still mostly go to print newspapers and magazines for news. Only one percent said they followed blogs.

1.What is the main idea of the text?

A. Social networking is becoming popular among older Americans.

B. Social networking isn’t for the under 40s in the U.S.A.

C. American old people’s way of life is quite fashionable.

D. Facebook, MySpace and Twitter are the most popular websites in the US.

2.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?

A. 85% of Americans 50 plus choose the Internet over print media.

B. About 20% of adults aged 50 plus have access to the Internet.

C. About 460 people in the telephone survey often use Facebook.

D. Three quarters of the people surveyed got to know the Internet through their family.

3.From the text, it can be concluded that______.

A. Kevin Donnellan approves of this change among older Americans

B. many older Americans are open-minded about new developments

C. Young people should introduce their elders to new technology

D. In a high tech age it is difficult to avoid social networking

4.Where does the text probably come from?

A. A novel.       B. A student’s research paper   

C. A technology guide.   D. A newspaper.