While reading a story on 20-somethings complaining about how the economy is ruining their life plans, I couldn't help but think the 20-somethings sound like a bunch of spoiled children who grow up expecting everything to be easy for them. As a 20-something myself, I certainly share their disappointment –my husband and I probably won't be able to buy a house until we're in our forties, and we two are burdened by student loans. But why should it be different? Being young people in America, shouldn't they take up all of the challenges and opportunities that this country offers?
Consider some of these views shared in the story: Jennifer, 29, owner of a two-bedroom apartment with her husband, worries that she won't be able to have children for at least a decade because they can't afford to buy a house yet.
I read that, and I thought what planet she is living on where you need to own a house in order to have kids? Has she ever visited a developing country, or even downtown areas in this one? Home ownership is a luxury, not a fertility requirement.
A 26-year-old man in the story is disappointed that he can't afford to get a Ph. D. in literature. Well, that sounds a bit like expressing disappointment that no one will pay you to write poetry on the beach in Thailand for five years.
Yes, it's sad that these young people feel so lost. But I think the problem is their extremely high expectations, not economic reality. Beth Kobliner, author of Get a Financial Life: Personal Finance in Your Twenties and Thirties, says that she thinks people's expectations grow up when their wealth appears to be increasing. Their parents probably see their home values rise along with their investments. "So we have people who have grown up in an environment where people have great expectations of what living well means," says Kobliner.
This recession will certainly play a role in forcing those expectations into more realistic group. In the meantime, it seems much better for our mental health to focus on being grateful—for our one-bedroom apartments, for living in modern cities, or perhaps just for being able to eat three meals a day—than on longing for some kind of luxurious life.
1.What makes the author think the 20-somethings sound like a bunch of spoiled children?
A. They expect everything to be easy for them.
B. They complain that the economy is ruining their life plans.
C. They are unwilling to face all of the challenges.
D. They are burdened by student loans.
2.Which of the following is NOT one of the complaints of the 20-somethings?
A. They can't have children for at least a decade for they can't afford to buy a house.
B. They have only a one-bedroom apartment to live in.
C. They can't buy a house until 40 and are burdened by student loans.
D. They despair of not being able to afford to get a Ph. D. in literature.
3.What's Kobliner's attitude towards the 20-somethings with high expectations ?
A. Unbearable. B. Opposing. C. Doubtful. D. Understanding.
4.What is the best title for this passage?
A. Young people afford to continue their education
B. Young people can't afford to buy a house
C. Young people's high expectations lead to despair
D. The 20-somethings' high expectations
There is a problem each of us faces in following advice on emotional healing: apologizing is difficult. We are trapped in what we think of ourselves by holding onto our pride. We can be selfish and not willing to admit our most obvious mistakes. Pride eats away at us as we argue or ignore the mistake.
It's happened to me. I have had too much pride and selfishness to apologize to a loved one I hurt. When I did want to apologize, I couldn't bring myself to face the other person. This is the pride I'm talking about. Maybe apologies come difficult for men because they're expected to be dominant. It's like the joke that a man never asks for directions when lost. Ladies are more emotionally open than guys and are willing to express it. Still, both genders wonder how to correctly apologize.
In shifting the focus on apologizing away from you, what does not apologizing do to other people? They feel hurt that you are not willing to communicate your mistake. They lose trust in you as you hide behind your mistake avoiding reality. They become angry with you, wondering why you do not tell them the truth. They may begin to counter your lack of apologies by not apologizing themselves and from this the relationship goes downhill as the two of you get caught in a power struggle.
You need to communicate your mistakes. A mistake you made is like a scratch and by not apologizing you are making the scratch a deeper wound and rubbing salt into it. You need to stop hurting the other person and yourself by learning to apologize. There is real power in apologizing and emotional healing.
1.Why are men more unwilling to make apologies?
A. They don't intend to hurt other people.
B. They expect others to forgive them.
C. They don't want to be considered weak.
D. They aren't good at expressing themselves.
2.What bad effect will there be if you refuse to apologize for your mistakes?
A. Other people won't pay attention to you.
B. You will lose confidence in yourself.
C. You won't be forgiven even if you tell the truth.
D. The friendship will get hurt and go worse.
3.From the last paragraph, it can be inferred that .
A. communication can stop you making mistakes
B. mistakes would turn into deeper scratches
C. apologizing is good for you and other people
D. apologizing is the most powerful in emotional healing
London has always been known for its "black fogs". In the winter of 1952, a milky white fog rolled into the city. As the smoke poured into the air, it was so hard to see that people had to walk in front of the buses to guide them. In this way, the most serious air pollution disaster in history began. When it was over, more than 4,000 people had been killed by the thick black smog.
New York City has had several London-type smogs since 1950. Each time, 100 to 400 deaths were caused by the smog. Although these smogs were not as deadly as London's, New York City has the worst air pollution problem in the United States.
In all the killer smogs, factories and homes poured smoke and fumes into the air from the furnaces. The chemical fumes combined with the water droplets in the fog to form harmful substances. These substances caused the illness of those who breathed the polluted air.
Usually, such harmful fumes rise into the upper air and are blown away by the wind. But sometimes there is an unusual weather condition called a temperature inversion. A layer of cold air remains near the ground as smoke and fumes pour into it. This is covered by an upper layer of warm air that acts like a lid. It prevents the polluted cooler air from rising. The harmful fumes pile up and make people ill. The smog may be so thick that airports are closed and chains of collisions occur on the highways.
Another type of smog occurs in Los Angeles. Here the weather may be clear and sunny. But stinging eyes and dry coughs show that harmful chemicals fill the air. The smog is due to invisible gases, mostly from automobile exhaust. Because these chemicals are changed by the sun high up in the air, it is called photochemical smog. It contains automobile exhaust fumes and nitrogen oxides changed by the sun's rays. Added to these are sulfur dioxide and other fumes from factories and oil refineries. Photochemical smog is found in many large cities all over the world.
Killer smogs don't happen very often, fortunately. But in Beijing, a combination of automobile exhaust fumes, home furnace smoke, and factory waste gases pours into the air. This may also happen in the suburbs, or out in the country, where large factories have been built. A number of harmful substances have been found in the air there. When these substances are breathed in day after day, the health of the population is affected.
1.Why do people call this phenomenon "black fog"?
A. It is black and dirty.
B. It can affect the health.
C. It can kill people.
D. It is too thick for people to see something.
2.What can reduce the air pollution according to the passage'?
A. Water. B. Wind. C. The sun. D. Cold air.
3.When photochemical smog happens in the city, .
A. many people will be killed
B. black smoke may pour into the air
C. the weather may be fine
D. people have to walk to work
4.From the passage we know that the most serious black smog disaster took place in .
A. LondonB. New YorkC. Los AngelesD. Beijing
Coin confusion
Rachel looked through troubled eyes at her sister and said, "I wouldn't have thought Eric would be a thief." Her sister Sarah replied, "Whoa, that's a accusation to make against your best friend!"
Rachel remembered two days ago when she had brought out her coin collection for Eric to . At the end of that day, Rachel's mother asked her to do her a favor, so she asked her friend," Is it okay if I leave you for a few minutes?" Eric said, "Go ahead. I’ll clean up here," at the piles of coins on the floor.
When Rachel returned, it never occurred to her to her coins until two days later that she realized some quarters were .
Sarah said, "Why don't you just ask him?"
"Ask him what? Hey, best friend, did you my coin collection?" Rachel thought for a moment, if that would be a good idea. The theft of her collection left her with a feeling of "How could I have misjudged my friend's ?"
The next day Rachel went to Eric's house. Eric was acting funny sort of nervous, like he couldn't be . In fact, Rachel thought Eric acted like someone with a secret. Anger blossomed as Rachel watched Eric pretend to be kind, Eric had obviously stolen from her. Rachel finally could not stand it anymore and stood up. Suddenly, Eric ,"I can't stand it anymore!" Rachel was astonished at hearing her own burst forth from her friend! Instead of sounding , Eric sounded excited. He pulled something from underneath the chair.
"Go to open it! I was going to wait until your birthday, but I can't wait." Slowly, Rachel lifted the top of the . Laid out in front of her were all of the quarters from her coin collection. Each quarter was in its own in a new collection case. Each quarter shone like it was new.
Rachel felt rush over her neck and ears. She said , "Thank you! This means... a great deal to me." She was grateful that Eric had cut her before she said something she would . Eric was exactly the type of person she wanted as a friend!
1.A. repeated B. false C. baseless D. serious
2.A. clean B. store C. choose D. see
3.A. working B. gesturing C. playing D. glaring
4.A. seek B. select C. check D. collect
5.A. destroyed B. messed C. missing D. decreasing
6.A. replace B. steal C. pick D. remove
7.A. deciding B. knowing C. asking D. minding
8.A. stupidity B. abandon C. failure D. betrayal
9.A. favour B. character C. appearance D. method
10.A. still B. confident C. generous D. silent
11.A. when B. so C. after D. if
12.A. expressed B. condemned C. yelled D. argued
13.A. purpose B. choices C. desire D. thoughts
14.A. shocked B. curious C. guilty D. cruel
15.A. jar B. box C. can D. bag
16.A. spot B. form C. condition D. style
17.A. air B. heat C. wind D. sweat
18.A. absently B. unwillingly C. weakly D. fearfully
19.A. off B. down C. in D. up
20.A. suspect B. explode C. tolerate D. regret
--How do you find the food in the restaurant?
--. I have never enjoyed better food.
A．BadB．DisappointingC．NiceD．Just so-so
At a rough estimate, our new library is the old one.
A．three times the size asB．the size three times of
C．three times as the size ofD．three times the size of
