E

However wealthy we may be, we can never find enough hours in the day to do everything we want. Economics deals with this problem through the concept of opportunity cost, which simply refers to whether someone’s time or money could be better spent on something else.

Every hour of our time has a value. For every hour we work at one job we could quite easily be doing another, or be sleeping or watching a film. Each of these options has a different opportunity cost—namely, what they cost us in missed opportunities.

Say you intend to watch a football match but the tickets are expensive and it will take you a couple of hours to get to and from the stadium. Why not, you might reason, watch the game from home and use the leftover money and time to have dinner with friends? This—the alternative use of your cash and time—is the opportunity cost.

For economists, every decision is made by knowledge of what one must forgo—in terms of money and enjoyment—in order to take it up. By knowing precisely what you are receiving and what you are missing out on, you ought to be able to make better-informed, more reasonable decisions. Consider that most famous economic rule of all: there’s no such thing as a free lunch. Even if someone offers to take you out to lunch for free, the time you will spend in the restaurant still costs you something in terms of forgone opportunities.

Some people find the idea of opportunity cost extremely discouraging: imagine spending your entire life calculating whether your time would be better spent elsewhere doing something more profitable or enjoyable. Yet, in a sense it’s human nature to do precisely that we assess the advantages and disadvantages of decisions all the time.

In the business world, a popular phrase is “value for money.” People want their cash to go as far as possible. However, another is fast obtaining an advantage: “value for time.” The biggest restriction on our resources is the number of hours we can devote to something, so we look to maximize the return we get on our investment of time. By reading this passage you are giving over a bit of your time which could be spent doing other activities, such as sleeping and eating. In return, however, this passage will help you to think like an economist, closely considering the opportunity cost of each of your decisions.

1.According to the passage, the concept of “opportunity cost” is applied to ________.

A. weighing the choice of opportunities

B. reducing missed opportunities

C. making more money

D. taking more opportunities

2.The “leftover ... time” in Paragraph 3 probably refers to the time ________.

A. taken to have dinner with friends

B. spared for watching the match at home

C. saved from not going to watch the match

D. spent on the way to and from the match

3.What are forgone opportunities?

A. Opportunities you make up for.

B. Opportunities you forget in decision-making.

C. Opportunities you give up for better ones.

D. Opportunities you miss accidentally.

4.What is the author’s attitude towards the concept of “opportunity cost”?

A. Indifferent B. Negative

C. Subjective D. Objective

He hasn’t got any hobbies，_______ you call watching TV a hobby.

A. when B. if C. unless D. since

As the dark horse, China’s football team swept into the quarterfinals_______ it lost to host country Australia.

A. as B. what C. that D. where

The frozen waterfall has attracted floods of tourists to_______ the natural beauty.

A. cherish B. admire C. observe D. discover

My voice was so little and the shop owner had to bend down to hear_______ I wanted to buy.

A. what it was B. it was what

C. what it was that D. what was that

Metropolitan North Georgia Water Planning District

2015 High School Video Contest

Here’s the Scoop on Pet Waste!

Submission Deadline March 27, 2015.

1.What does the underlined word “Eligibility” probably mean?

A. Age. B. Qualification.

C. Location. D. Grade.

2.When entering the contest, ________.

A. one must ask his or her teacher to sign the entry form

B. winners can earn at least $750 as a prize

C. one can invite friends from other schools to act in the video

D. participants had better add some humor and fun to the video

_____sufficient historical and legal grounds, China's position on the South China Sea has been consistent and clear.

A. Associated with B. Based on

C. Centered around D. Assessed by

To recognize and respect a country’s own culture does not mean to close the door to the others,_____ to stand upon a principle of being superior.

A. and it means B. but it means

C. so does it mean D. neither does it mean

It seemed an impossible task, but Tom, though physically challenged, carried on until it was completely fulfilled.

A. instead B. yet

C. regardless D. still