shuijing217
text three
Is There a Way to Keep the Britain's Economy Growing?
In today's knowledge economy, nations survive on the things they do best. Japanese design electronics while Germans export engineering techniques. The French serve the best food and Americans make computers.
Britain specializes in the gift of talking. The nation doesn't manufacture much of anything. But it has lawyers, stylists and business consultants who earn their living from talk, talk and more talk.
The World Foundation think tank says the UK's four iconic jobs today are not scientists, engineers,teachers and nurses. Instead, they're hairdressers, celebrities, management consultants and managers.
But can all this talking keep the British economy going? The British government thinks it can.
Although the country's trade deficit was more than —— 60 billion in 2006, UK's largest in the postwar period, officials say the country has nothing to worry about. In fact, Britain does have a world-class pharmaceutical industry, and it still makes a small sum from selling arms abroad. It also trades services accountancy, insurance, banking and advertising. The government believes Britain is on the cutting edge of the knowledge economy. After all, the country of Shakespeare and Wordsworth has a literary tradition of which to be proud. Rockn' roll is an English language medium, and there are billions to be made by their cutting-edge bands. In other words, the creative economy has plenty of strength to carry the British economy.
However, creative industries account for only about 4 percent of UK's exports of goods and services. The industries are finding it hard to make a profit, according to a report of the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts. The report shows only 38 percent of British companies were engaged in "innovation activities", 3 percentage points below the EU average and well below Germany (61 percent) and Sweden (47 percent).
In fact, it might be better to call Britain a "servant" economy -- there are at least 4 million people "in service". The majority of the population are employed by the rich to cook,clean, and take care of their children. Many graduates are even doing menial jobs for which they do not need a degree. Most employment growth has been, and will continue to be, at the low-skill end of the service sector -- in shops, bars, hotels, domestic service and in nursing and care homes.
36. According to the World Foundation think tank, one of the iconic jobs in Britain today is
A. law makers.
B. business consultants.
C. home servants.
D. school teachers.
37. The phrase "the cutting edge" in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to
A. the most popular.
B. the most political.
C. the most advanced.
D. the proudest.
38. The officials are not worried about the trade deficit in 2006, because they believe
A. Britain is home to the largest pharmaceutical industry in the world.
B. the literary tradition of Britain will help make billions of pounds.
C. Britain is one cutting edge of the knowledge economy.
D. the world economy is strong enough to carry the Britain economy.
39. Which of the following is true about the creative industries in Britain?
A. They contribute a lot to the country's trade deficit.
B. They are not doing as well as those in other European nations. '
C. They can't make a profit out of their innovation activities.
D. They make Britain on the cutting edge of the knowledge economy.
40. It can be inferred from the passage that
A. the gift of talking can keep the British economy growing.
B. the British government is over-confident in its economy.
C. the British economy is the least innovative one in the EU.
D. being a servant to the rich is one of the best jobs in Britain.
text four
What's Killing the Bats
First it was bees. Now it is bats. Biologists in America are working hard to discover the cause of the mysterious deaths of tens of thousands of bats in the northeastern part of the country. Most of the bats affected are the common little brown bats (Myotis lucifugus), but other species, such as the long-eared bat, the small-footed hat, the eastern pipistrelle, and the Indiana bat have also been affected. In some cases, more than 90 percent of the bat populations have died.
One possibility is disease. A white fungus (真菌) known as fusarium has been found on the noses of both living and dead bats. However, scientists don't know if the fungus is the primary cause of death, a secondary cause of death, or not a cause at all, but the result of some other conditions.
Another possible cause is a lack of food. For example, bats typically eat a large number of moths (蛾), and in some states such as New York, the number of moths has been declining in recent years. If bats can't eat enough food, they starve to death.
Still other scientists believe that global warming is to blame. Warmer temperatures in recent years have been waking up hibernating (冬眠) bats earlier than usual. If bats break their hibernation at the wrong time, they might not find their expected food sources. The weather might also turn cold again and weaken or kill the bats.
Scientists might not agree on the causes of the bat die-off, but they do agree on the consequences.
Bats are an important predator of mosquitoes; a single brown bat can eat 1,000 or more insects in an hour. They also eat beetles and other insects that damage plant crops. If there aren't enough bats, damage will be great from the insects theyeat. While bats live a long time for their size -- the little brown bat can live for more than 30 years- a female bat has only one baby per year, so bat populations grow slowly. Many bat species in the United States are already protected or endangered.
How can you help? Do not disturb sleeping or nesting bats. If you discover bate that seem to be sick or that are dead, contact your local Fish & Wildlife Department with the details. However, be careful not to touch the animals.
31. What is the main idea of this passage?
A. All species of bats in North America are dying.
B. Scientists already know the cause of the deaths of bats.
C. The bat deaths are a serious problem.
D. There are many possible causes of the deaths of bats.
32. What does the first sentence in Paragraph 1 mean?
A. Bees have been dying mysteriously.
B. The first article on the website is about bees.
C. Bees usually die before bats.
D. It was bees that caused the deaths of bats.
33. The word "pipistrelle" in Paragraph 1 refers to
A. a kind of fungus.
B. an area in the U.S.
C. a special cave.
D. a kind of bat.
34. The "moths" in Paragraph 3 are taken as an example of
A. diseases that kill bats.
B. Insects that bats eat.
C. animals that have diseases.
D. bat species that are starving to death.
35. What is the purpose of the last paragraph?
A. To get people to stop killing bats.
B. To hire workers for the Fish & Wildlife Department.
C. To ask people not to touch dead bats.
D. To tell the public how to help bats.
兔纸来个兔宝宝
由于经济全球化，越来越多的人由于求学，旅游，工作等各方面原因而必须接触英语，必须有一定的英语基础。那么，适合社会人士的英语考试有哪些，你知道吗?以下是为你搜集整理的相关知识，希望对你英语学习有所帮助。第一.考个商务英语类证书，比如BEC初级、中级和高级，考的都是商务英语，外企公司会看重这个。高级的很有难度的。第二.社会上比较认可的还有翻译证书。这个对语言能力要求比较高。主要有厦门大学口译证书，上海中/高级口译证书，人事部口译证书。这些考试的难度由易到难，翻译资格证书是运用英语水平的一个很好的标志。第三.出国常用的英语凭证，托业，托福，雅思和GRE。除了托业稍微简单，其他的都有一定的难度。第四.职称英语. 全国专业技术人员职称英语等级考试，是由国家人事部组织实施的一项国家级外语考试。考试采取统一大纲、闭卷笔试的形式进行。考试设英语、日语、俄语、德语、法语和西班牙语6个语种，每个语种分为A、B、C三个等级。其中，英语划分为综合、理工、卫生3个专业类别。其他语种不分专业类别。考试主要测试专业技术人员阅读理解外文专业基础文献的能力。报考人员可根据自己所从事的专业工作，任选一个语种及有关类别参加考试。第五.PETS. 这是全国英语等级考试，属于非英语专业，社会人士都可以考，综合性强。其中，自从2006年大学英语四、六级就不再对社会报考了。目前最具权威的是全国英语等级考试(Public English Test System, 简称PETS)是教育部考试中心设计并负责主办的全国性英语水平考试体系。PETS考试又可以分为以下5个级别：PETS 1是初始级通过该级考试的考生，其英语基本符合诸如出租车司机、宾馆行李员、门卫、交通警察等工作，以及同层次其他工作在对外交往中的基本需要。(其中PETS 1下设一个附属级PETS 1B)PETS 2是中下级通过该级考试的考生，其英语水平基本满足进入高等院校继续学习的要求，同时也基本符合诸如宾馆前台服务员、一般银行职员、涉外企业一般员工，以及同层次其他工作在对外交往中的基本需要。PETS 3是中间级通过该级考试的考生，其英语已达到高等教育自学考试非英语专业本科毕业水平或符合普通高校非英语专业本科毕业的要求，基本符合企事业单位行政秘书、经理助理、初级科技术人员、外企职员的工作，以及同层次其他工作在对外交往中的基本需要。PETS 4是中上级通过该级考试的考生，其英语水平基本满足攻读高等院校硕士研究生非英语专业的需要，基本符合一般专业技术人员或研究人员、现代企业经理等工作对英语的基本要求。PETS 5是最高级通过该级考试的考生，其英语水平基本满足在国外攻读硕士研究生非英语专业或从事学术研究工作的需要。该水平的英语也能满足他们在国内外从事专业和管理工作的基本需要。从以上可以看出，通过PETS一级可以从事一些窗口行业，比如出租车司机、宾馆行李员、门卫、交通警察等。通过PETS二级的考生就具备宾馆前台服务员、一般银行职员、涉外企业一般员工的英语要求。通过PETS三级的考生就可以从事企事业单位行政秘书、经理助理、初级科技术人员、外企职员等职位。通过PETS四级的考生就可以满足一般专业技术人员或研究人员、现代企业经理等工作对英语的基本要求。通过PETS五级能满足留学从事研究工作的需要。希望能帮助到你，望采纳！！！
