Age has its privileges in America, and one of the more prominent of them is the senior citizen discount. Anyone who has reached a certain age — in some cases as low as 55 — is automatically entitled to dazzling array of price reductions at nearly every level of commercial life. Eligibility is determined not by one’s need but by the date on one’s birth certificate. Practically unheard of a generation ago, the discounts have become a routine part of many businesses — as common as color televisions in motel rooms and free coffee on airliners.
People with gray hair often are given the discounts without even asking for them; yet, millions of Americans above age 60 are healthy and solvent(有支付能力的). Businesses that would never dare offer discounts to college students or anyone under 30 freely offer them to older Americans. The practice is acceptable because of the widespread belief that “elderly” and “needy” are synonymous (同义的). Perhaps that once was true, but today elderly Americans as a group have a lower poverty rate than the rest of the population. To be sure, there is economic diversity within the elderly, and many older Americans are poor. But most of them aren’t.
It is impossible to determine the impact of the discounts on individual companies. For many firms, they are a stimulus to revenue. But in other cases the discounts are given at the expense, directly or indirectly, of younger Americans. Moreover, they are a direct irritant in what some politicians and scholars see as a coming conflict between the generations.
Generational tensions are being fueled by continuing debate over Social Security benefits, which mostly involve a transfer of resources from the young to the old. Employment is another sore point. Buoyed (支持) by laws and court decisions, more and more older Americans are declining the retirement dinner in favor of staying on the job — thereby lessening employment and promotion opportunities for younger workers.
Far from a kind of charity they once were, senior citizen discounts have become a formidable economic privilege to a group with millions of members who don’t need them.
It no longer makes sense to treat the elderly as a single group whose economic needs deserve priority over those of others. Senior citizen discounts only enhance the myth that older people can’t take care of themselves and need special treatment; and they threaten the creation of a new myth, that the elderly are ungrateful and taking for themselves at the expense of children and other age groups. Senior citizen discounts are the essence of the very thing older Americans are fighting against — discrimination by age.
Outline | Details |
Introduction | Age determines whether an American can be given a discount, which is a common 1.________________in American business life today. |
Origin of senior citizen discount | ●Since the senior citizens are often treated as people who are in 2.____________, they are given such priority. |
3.__________ situation | ●The situation has changed a lot where the majority of the elderly are not poor at all. ●Younger Americans were at a/an 4.__________ directly or indirectly due to the discounts given to the elderly, thus leading to conflicts between generations. ●The number of older Americans 5.___________ to work rather than retire is on the increase, which means 6.__________ opportunities for young workers. ●It is no longer a kind of charity because millions of senior citizens don’t need the priority 7.__________. |
Conclusion | It’s unwise to offer discount priority to the elderly. ●It will mislead people to think they are unable to 8._____________ to themselves. ●People may think that they are ungrateful and they’re hurting the 9._____________ of other age groups. ●Actually senior citizen discounts, to some extent, 10. ___________against their age. |
Shakespeare’s Sister
Let us imagine, since facts are so hard to come by, what would have happened had Shakespeare had a wonderfully gifted sister, called Judith.
Shakespeare himself went, very probably — his mother was an heiress — to the grammar school, where he may have learnt Latin — Ovid, Virgil and Horace — and the elements of grammar and logic. He was, it is well known, a wild boy who poached (偷猎) rabbits, perhaps shot a deer, and had, rather sooner than he should have done, to marry a woman in the neighborhood, who bore him a child rather quicker than was right. That escapade sent him to seek his fortune in London. He had, it seemed, a taste for the theatre; he began by holding horses at the stage door. Very soon he got work in the theatre, became a successful actor, and lived at the centre of the universe, meeting everybody, knowing everybody, practicing his art on the boards, exercising his wits in the streets, and even getting access to the palace of the queen.
Meanwhile his extraordinarily gifted sister remained at home. She was as adventurous, as imaginative, as curious to see the world as he was. But she was not sent to school. She had no chance of learning grammar and logic, let alone of reading Horace and Virgil. She picked up a book now and then, one of her brother’s perhaps, and read a few pages. But then her parents came in and told her to mend the stockings or mind the stew(炖锅) and not moon about with books and papers. They would have spoken sharply but kindly, for they were practical people who knew the conditions of life for a woman. Soon, however, before she was out of her teens, she was to be engaged to the son of a neighboring wool stapler(经销商). She cried out that marriage was hateful to her, and for that she was severely beaten by her father. Then he ceased to scold her. He begged her instead not to hurt him, not to shame him in this matter of her marriage. He would give her a chain of beads or fine dresses, he said; and there were tears in his eyes. How could she disobey him? How could she break his heart?
The force of her own gift alone drove her to it. She made up a small parcel of her belongings, let herself down by a rope one summer’s night and took the road to London. She was not seventeen. The birds that sang in the woods were not more musical than she was. She had the quickest fancy, a gift like her brother’s, for the tune of words. Like him, she had a taste for the theatre. She stood at the stage door; she wanted to act, she said. Men laughed in her face. The manager — a fat, loose-lipped man — howled with laughter. He roared something about puppies dancing and women acting — no woman, he said, could possibly be an actress. She could get no training in her craft. Could she even seek her dinner in a bar or roam (游荡) the streets at midnight? Yet her genius was for fiction and lusted to feed abundantly upon the lives of men and women and the study of their ways. At last — for she was very young, oddly like Shakespeare the poet in her face, with the same grey eyes and rounded brows — at last Nick Greene the actor-manager took pity on her; she found herself with child by that gentleman and so — who shall measure the heat and violence of the poet’s heart when caught and confined in a woman’s body? — killed herself one winter’s night and lies buried at some cross-roads where the omnibuses (公共汽车) now stop outside the Elephant and Castle.
That, more or less, is how the story would run, if a woman in Shakespeare’s day had had Shakespeare’s genius.
1.From Paragraph 2, we can find Shakespeare once did all of the followings but ________.
A. hold horses at the theatreB. perform plays on the stage
C. be the centre of the universeD. go to the palace of the queen
2.What can we infer from Judith’s teen life?
A. She was cared for but was expected to live a girl’s life.
B. She was willing to be engaged to a wool stapler.
C. Her father wanted to make a fortune by her marriage.
D. She got less affection from her parents than her brother.
3.What is the right order of Judith’s life events?
a. She was forced to be engaged.
b. She found herself pregnant by Nick Greene.
c. She had no chance of schooling.
d. She fled away from home to London.
e. She put an end to her life.
A. c-a-b-d-e B. c-a-d-b-e C. a-c-b-d-e D. b-c-a-d-e
4.Why did Judith commit suicide to end her life?
A. The fat manager rejected her and even insulted her.
B. She married the wrong person and couldn’t face it.
C. She couldn’t tolerate the violence of the poet’s heart.
D. She was caught between her ideal and the reality.
5.From the passage, we can safely draw the conclusion that in the age of Shakespeare ________.
A. women couldn’t possibly act on the stage or write plays
B. women could enjoy themselves domestically and socially
C. women couldn’t make their achievements at any level
D. women could make their own decision as to their marriage
Biologists believe that love is fundamentally a biological rather than a cultural construct, because the capacity for love is found in all human cultures and similar behavior is found in some other animals. In humans the purpose of all the desire is to focus attention on the raising of offspring. Children demand an unusual amount of parenting, and two parents are better than one. Love is a signal that both partners are committed, and makes it more likely that this commitment will continue as long as necessary for children to reach independence. But what does science have to say about the notion of love at first sight?
In recent years the ability to watch the brain in action has offered a wealth of insight into the mechanics of love. Researchers have shown that when a person falls in love, a dozen different part of brain work together to release chemicals that trigger feelings of euphoria, bonding and excitement. It has also been shown that the unconditional love between a mother and a child is associated with activity in different regions of the brain from those associated with pair-bonding love.
Passionate love is rooted in the reward circuitry of the brain—the same area that is active when humans feel a rush from cocaine. In fact, the desire, motivations and withdrawals involved in love have a great deal in common with addiction. Its most intense forms tend to be associated with the early stages of a relationship, which then give way to a calmer attachment form of love one feels with a long term partner.
What all this means is that one special person can become chemically rewarding to the brain of another. Love at first sight, then, is only possible if the mechanism for generating long-term attachment can be triggered quickly. There are signs that it can be. One line of evidence is that people are able to decide within a second how attractive they find another person. This decision appears to be related to facial attractiveness, although men may favor women with waist-to-hip ratio of 0.7, no matter what their overall weight is. (This ratio may indicate a woman’s reproductive health.)
Another piece of evidence comes from work by a psychologist at Ben-Gurion University, who found in a survey that a small percentage (11%) of people in long-term relationships said that they began with love at first sight. In other words, in some couples the initial favorable impressions of attractiveness triggered love which sustained a lengthy bond. It is also clear that some couples need to form their bonds over a longer period, and popular culture tells many tales of friends who become lovers.
One might also assume that if a person is looking for a partner with traits that cannot be quantified instantly, such as compassion, intellect or a good sense of humor, then it would be hard to form a relationship on the basis of love at first sight. Those more concerned with visual appearances, though, might find this easier. So it appears that love at first sight exists, but is not a very common basis for long-term relationships.
1.When a person falls in love, ________.
A. he feels as if he were addicted to cocaine
B. he will be committed to the beloved as long as necessary
C. he will experience a calmer attachment form of love before he feels the extreme love
D. he will experience complex feelings brought on by different regions of his brain
2.We can infer from the passage that ________.
A. pair-bonding love comes from a long stable friendship
B. the mechanism for creating long-term attachment ensures love at first sight
C. it is impossible for those ordinary-looking people to fall in love at first sight
D. men may be attracted by a girl whose figure suggests her admirable reproductive capacity
3.The underlined word “traits” in the last paragraph probably means ________.
A. characteristics
B. particular quantities in your personality
C. something typical in your temper
D. attitudes that show your moral standards
4.Which of the following may be the best title of the passage?
A. The science of love at first sight
B. The stages of passionate love
C. The biological construct of pair-bonding
D. The mechanism for generating long-term love
Being less than perfectly well-dressed in a business setting can result in a feeling of great discomfort that may well require treatment to eliminate. And the sad truth is that “clothing mismatches” on the job can ruin the day of the person who is wearing the inappropriate attire(着装)—and the people with whom he or she comes in contact.
Offices vary when it comes to dress codes. Some businesses have very high standards for their employees and set strict guidelines for office attire, while others maintain a more relaxed attitude. However, it is always important to remember that no matter what your company’s attitude is regarding what you wear, you are working in a business environment and you should dress properly. Certain items may be more appropriate for evening wear than for a business meeting, just as shorts and a T-shirt are better suited for the beach than for an office environment. Your attire should reflect both your environment and your position. A senior vice president has a different image to maintain than that of a secretary or sales assistant. Like it or not, you will be judged by your personal appearance.
This is never more apparent than on “dress-down days”, when what you wear can say more about you than any business suit ever could. In fact, people will pay more attention to what you wear on dress-down days than on “business professional ” days. Thus, when dressing in “business casual” clothes, try to put some good taste into your wardrobe choices, recognize that the “real” definition of business casual is to dress just one notch(等级) down from what you would normally wear of business-professional attire days.
Remember, there are borders between your career and our social life. You should dress one way for play and another way when you mean business. Always ask yourself where you are going and how other people will be dressed when you get there. Is the final destination the opera, the beach, or the office? Dress properly and you will discover the truth in the principle that clothes make the man—and the woman. When in doubt, always misjudge on the side of dressing slightly more traditionally than the situation demands.
1.What is the passage mainly about?
A. How to dress properly in a business setting.
B. A president of a company should dress differently from a secretary or sales assistant.
C. The differences between professional and casual dress.
D. Improper dress will make a person feel uncomfortable.
2.Which of the following statements is true?
A. Every company has strict rules regarding office dress.
B. You can wear whatever you like if your company doesn’t have standards for dressing.
C. You should dress according to the business setting even when there are no fixed rules.
D. In companies with relaxed rules on office dress, you can’t spot a manager among others.
3.Which statement best describes “dress-down days”?
A. We can’t judge a person’s taste by his clothes on dress-down days.
B. People’s clothes on dress-down days don’t receive much attention.
C. On dress-down days, you can wear whatever you like.
D. People are usually more careful about what they wear on dress-down days than on other occasions.
4.Which of the following is NOT the rule in the passage with regard to business dress?
A. For a business meeting and a concert, you should dress differently.
B. Remember to ask others for advice when you are not sure about what to dress.
C. Think about how other guests will wear if you are invited to a dinner.
D. Dress a bit traditionally if you are not sure about proper dress for a certain occasion.
1.According to the rules, a TEDx event organizer is supposed to ________.
A. extend the event to one day
B. name the event after locations
C. focus on one TED topic
D. host the event in different cities
2.Who is qualified to host a TEDx event for over 100 guests?
A. A person who has attended an official TED conference.
B. A woman who has attended numerous TEDx events.
C. An individual who has submitted his proposed ticket price.
D. An organization which intends to make some money for charities.
When I look back at my decision to be a working mom, I realize that I didn’t think I had any other choice. Hubby and I had been a two-income family ________ the time we were married. It didn’t occur to me that we would be anything else though it’s hardly news that the choice has its ________.
Hubby traveled a lot when our kids were young, and I often was a weekday single mom. I had an understanding boss，who allowed me to work a(n) ________ schedule for about 12 years. My 32-hour work week provided the chance to ________ in my kids’ kindergarten classrooms.
The woman who cared for the kids in our ________ was truly a gift from God. Nan and I ________ values and parenting styles.
Never underestimate (低估) the value of ________. When Dad was away, the kids knew the drill. Though sports activities and piano lessons ________ interrupted our schedules, generally we got up, fed and out without much commotion (混乱) and back in, fed and ________ with a little time left over for a game or a favorite TV show. Mom got a few minutes of ________ before crashing herself (睡觉).
Looking back on the past, I realize we could have made other ________. We could have been vegetable gardeners. Lots of families ________ on one income. But I think we would have lost something just as important as my ________.
My work at the News Sentinel has been ________ and exciting. I’ve worked with people I never would have met had I been at home. I’ve spent my career ________ sentences and stories and learning and passing along information about our community. My coworkers are my Tennessee family.
My work has been ________ to me in important ways, and I think it has made me a more interesting and satisfied ________ and parent. And our family has learned to ________ the time we do have together.
________, if I had to do it over again, I wouldn’t change my decision to be a working mom. And I wouldn’t change a single thing about the kids who ________ it.
1.A. fromB. beforeC. atD. by
2.A. benefitsB. challengesC. shortcomingsD. privileges
3.A. extendedB. packedC. reducedD. regulated
4.A. interfereB. volunteerC. studyD. compete
5.A. separationB. conflictC. adjustmentD. absence
6.A. influencedB. suspectedC. sharedD. ignored
7.A. routineB. independenceC. cooperationD. schedule
8.A. systematicallyB. effectively
C. occasionallyD. adequately
9.A. entertainedB. bathedC. exercisedD. worked
10.A. peaceB. excitementC. panicD. silence
11.A. mistakesB. fortunesC. achievementsD. choices
12.A. failB. manageC. squeezeD. part
13.A. incomeB. childrenC. passionD. life
14.A. funB. tiringC. dullD. demanding
15.A. readingB. shapingC. recitingD. digesting
16.A. originalB. optionalC. meaningfulD. stressful
17.A. employerB. breadwinnerC. partnerD. learner
18.A. killB. valueC. spendD. save
19.A. ThereforeB. MeanwhileC. HoweverD. Otherwise
20.A. pushed forB. centered around
C. catered toD. lived through
