Hoffman，40，a former senior vice president of a financial company，had what she describes as “one of those extreme jobs.” “I loved working,” she says. But her career path reached a crossroad when her second child was born，and she left her job in February 2007. Hoffman is one of many people who have left the work force to take a break，but she has a position as a consultant．She has described this type of career detour(绕路) ----- which is more common for women than for men—as “off- ramping．” Typically it occurs when the balancing act of parenting and work becomes too tough．
A study by the center found that more than 90 percent of women who off-ramp want to on-ramp back into the work force eventually．But making the transition back to work is rarely easy，and it is even harder in this economic climate of layoffs and hiring freezes.
Considering some of the obstacles faced by on- rampers , a three-day program called “Greater Returns：Restarting Your Career” was held at Columbia University. The goal of the three days was to have them walk away with a big shot of confidence.
　According to one school of thought, women looking to make a comeback might even have an advantage in the current economy，especially if they are looking for part-time or consultant positions that do not offer benefits. And a majority of on-rampers are women with extensive working experiences that could give them a slight advantage over less-experienced competition．
　“You absolutely cannot be defensive about why you off-ramped,” Ms Hoffman says, “ defensive” would have put her into a hard situation if the Greater Returns program had had not taught her how to describe the years she spent at home．“I now feel confident talking to an employer and saying，‘ Yes，I have been out of the work force，but here is where I can make significant contributions.’”
【小题1】What is the best title for the passage?

A．Off ramp：it is common

B．On ramp：it is easy

C．Off ramp or on ramp：it depends on confidence

D．Off ramp to on ramp：it can be a hard Journey

【小题2】According to the passage，Greater Returns___________．

A．is intended to relieve the pressure of the jobless women

B．has all the jobless women restart their career

C．will build up the confidence of those in search of jobs

D．is to last a11 the year around for the jobless women

【小题3】The main reason for the women’s off-ramping is that_________．

A．they have to suffer the sexual discrimination

B．they have to parent their children

C．they reach a crossroad of career

D．they have great work pressure

【小题4】From what Ms．Hoffman says in the last paragraph，we can conclude________ .

A．she didn’t get advice from the Greater Returns program

B．she was defensive about her off-ramping

C．she didn’t get the job because she lied about her experience

D．she is off ramp partly due to her straightforward manner

【小题5】Which job is easier to get for a woman off-ramper?

A．Regular workers.	B．Casual workers.
C．Company managers.	D．Bank clerks.

When I worked as a waitress in Chicago, US, my coworkers and I would sigh whenever we heard someone with a foreign accent coming into our restaurant. We knew what it meant to serve a non-American: no tip. We would work just as hard as we always did, but we might not get paid.
Americans have an unspoken rule about tipping: they give tips to almost everyone who offers them a service of some kind. Americans tip their waiters, barbers and taxi drivers. An appropriate tip is between 15 and 20 percent of the amount charged for the service (But the charge for the tip doesn’t appear on the bill. The customer is expected to add it himself/herself.) Tipping less than this sends a message to your waiters that you think they’ve done a bad job serving you. And to leave no tip at all is simply unacceptable.
It’s not that American waiters are greedy. In many countries, waiters are paid a salary for their work. They’ll earn money even if no one comes into the restaurant. This system offers much more safety for waiters than the American version. In the US, waiters know that a night without customers means a night without pay.
Some countries include a tip for waiters – a “service charge” – on the bill itself. Since the tip is included with the other charges, waiters don’t need to worry about people forgetting to tip. But in the US, waiters do not receive a salary, and service charges only appear on bills when there are six or more customers at the table.
Since almost all American customers are familiar with the system, they know to add a tip without being told. But visitors to the US may expect waiters to be paid a salary, or think that the tip is included on the bill.
So much as we waiters loved hearing stories about other places from our foreign customers, we were always nervous when they got ready to leave the restaurant. We were never sure what to expect.
【小题1】If you order $200 worth of food, which of the following is a proper total payment?

A．$200

B．$215

C．$220

D．$230

【小题2】Why don’t some foreigners tip a waiter according to the writer?.

A．because they are unfamiliar with the American tip system .

B．because they are too mean to give tips to any waiter.

C．because they have difficulty communicating with waiters.

D．because they are not really easy to become satisfied.

【小题3】What can we learn from the passage?
A. The service charge never appear on the bill in the USA.
B. Customers are usually expected to tip waiters in the USA.
C. Dining out in other countries is much more expensive than in the USA.
D. Waiters in other countries earn much more money than those in the USA.
【小题4】What is the main purpose of the passage?

A．To complain about the difficult life of American waiters.

B．To warn other waiters not to serve any foreign customer.

C．To call on foreign customers to leave tips for American waiters.

D．To tell us something about American waiters’ salary system.

Cara Lang is 13. She lives in Boston, Massachusetts, in me U. S. Last Thursday, she didn't go to school. She went to work with her father instead. Every year, on the fourth Thursday in April, millions of young girls go work. This is Take Our Daughters to Work Day. The girls are between me ages of 9 and 15. They spend the day at work with an adult, usually a mother, father, aunt, or uncle. They go to offices, police stations, laboratories, and other places where their parents or other family members work. Next year, the day will include sons, too.
The Ms. Foundation, an organization for women, started the program about ten years ago. In the U.S., many women work outside the home. The Ms. Foundation wanted girls to find out about many different kinds of jobs. Then, when the girls grow up, they can choose a job they like.
Cara's father is a film director. Cara says, “It was very exciting for me to go to the studio with my dad. I saw a lot of people doing different jobs.” Many businesses have special activities for girls on this day. Last year, Cara went to work with her aunt at the University of Massachusetts. In the engineering department, the girls learned to build a bridge with toothpicks and Candy. In the chemistry department, they learned to use scales. They learned about many other kinds of jobs, too.
Right now, Cara does not know what job she will have when she grows up. But because of Take Our Daughters to Work Day, she knows she h2Ls many choices.
【小题1】What is Cara's father?

A．An engineer.

B．An official.

C．A moviemaker.

D．A professor.

【小题2】According to the passage, Take our Daughters to work Day is ______.

A．on every Thursday in April

B．a holiday for girls of all ages

C．a day for girls to know about jobs

D．a day for girls to get a job easily

【小题3】On this special day, Cara has done all the following EXCEPT that ____.

A．she learned to use scales

B．she worked as an actress

C．she went to work with her aunt

D．she used toothpicks and Candy to build a bridge

【小题4】What is probably the best title for the passage?

A．Cara Lang, a Fortunate Girl

B．Take Our Daughters to Work Day

C．Children's Day and Work Day

D．Ms. Foundation, an Organization for Women

The rise of multinational corporations （跨国公司）, global marketing, new communications technologies, and shrinking cultural differences have led to an unparalleled increase in global public relations or PR．
　　Surprisingly, since modern PR was largely an American invention, America’s relations is being threatened by PR efforts in other countries. Ten years ago, for example, the world’s top five public relations agencies were American-owned． In 1991, only one was． The British in particular are becoming more sophisticated and creative． A recent survey found that more than half of all British companies include PR as part of their corporate （公司的） planning activities, compared to about one-third of U.S. companies．It may not be long before London replaces New York as the capital of PR．
　　Why is America lagging behind in the global PR race? Firstly, Americans as a whole tend to be fairly provincial and take more of an interest in local affairs． Knowledge of world geography, for example, has never been strong in this country． Secondly, Americans lag behind their European and Asian counterparts （相对应的人） in knowing a second language． Less than 5 percent of Burson—Marshall’s U．S．employees know two languages． Ogilvy and Mather have about the same percentage． Conversely, some European firms have half or more of their employees fluent in a second language． Finally, people involved in PR abroad tend to keep a closer eye on international affairs． In the financial PR area, for instance, most Americans read the Wall Street Journal． Overseas, their counterparts read the Journal as well as the Financial Times of London and The Economist, publications not often read in this country．
Perhaps the PR industry might take a lesson from Ted Turner of CNN （Cable News Network）． Turner recently announced that the word “foreign” would no longer be used on CNN news
broadcasts. According to Turner, global communications have made the nations of the world so interdependent that there is no longer any such thing as foreign．
【小题1】Compared with the American PR personnel, what is/are an advantage (s) of the non-Americans involved in PR?
A． They tend to be more internationally minded
B． They speak more and better foreign languages．
C． They usually pay more attention to global financial situation．
D． Both A and B．
【小题2】What is the immediate cause of the downfall of America’s public relations?

A．The number of US public relations agencies had greatly decreased by 1991．

B．Other countries have increased their efforts in public relations．

C．On the global scale, cultural differences have significantly shrunk．

D．The British companies are becoming especially sophisticated and creative in public relations．

【小题3】It could be inferred that the author of the passage is______．

A．an American

B．a Briton

C．Ted Turner

D．an Asian

【小题4】The underlined word “provincial” in paragraph 3 could possibly mean “      ”．

A．strict in thinking	B．like people from rural areas
C．limited in outlook	D．interested in geographical knowledge

Celebrity(名人) has become one of the most important representatives of popular culture. Fans used to be crazy about a specific film, but now the public tends to base its consumption(消费) on the interest of celebrity attached to any given product. Besides, fashion magazines have almost abandoned the practice of putting models on the cover because they don’t sell nearly as well as famous faces. As a result, celebrities have realized their unbelievably powerful market potential, moving from advertising for others’ products to developing their own.
Celebrity clothing lines aren’t a completely new phenomenon, but in the past they were typically aimed at the ordinary consumers, and limited to a few TV actresses. Today  they’re started by first-class stars whose products enjoy equal fame with some world top brands. The most successful start-ups have been those by celebrities with specific personal style. As celebrities become more and more experienced at the market, they expand their production scale rapidly, covering almost all the products of daily life.
However, for every success story, there’s a related warning tale of a celebrity who overvalued his consumer appeal. No matter how famous the product’s origin is, if it fails to impress consumers with its own qualities it begins to resemble an exercise in self-promotional marketing. And once the initial(最初的) attention dies down, consumer interest might fade, loyalty(忠诚) returning to tried-and-true labels.
Today, celebrities face even more severe embarrassment. The pop-cultural circle might be bigger than ever, but its rate of turnover has speeded up as well. Each misstep threatens to reduce a celebrity’s shelf life, and the same newspaper or magazine that once brought him fame has no problem picking him to pieces when the opportunity appears. Still, the ego’s(自我的) potential for expansion is limitless. Having already achieved great wealth and public recognition, many celebrities see fashion as the next frontier to be conquered. As the saying goes, success and failure always go hand in hand. Their success as designers might last only a short time, but fashion—like celebrity—has always been temporary.
【小题1】Fashion magazines today         .

A．seldom put models on the cover

B．no longer put models on the cover

C．need not worry about celebrities’ market potential

D．judge the market potential of every celebrity correctly

【小题2】A change in the consumer market can be found today that         .

A．price rather than brand name is more concerned

B．producers prefer models to celebrities for advertisements

C．producers prefer TV actresses to film stars for advertisements

D．quality rather than the outside of products is more concerned

【小题3】The underlined sentence in Paragraph 4 indicates that any wrong step will possibly         .

A．decrease the popularity of a celebrity and the sales of his products

B．damage the image of a celebrity in the eyes of the general public

C．cut short the artistic career of a celebrity in show business

D．influence the price of a celebrity’s products

【小题4】The passage is mainly about         .

A．celebrity and personal style	B．celebrity and market potential
C．celebrity and fashion design	D．celebrity and clothing industry

Boys’ schools are the perfect place to teach young men to express their emotions and involve them in activities such as art, dance and music.
Far from the traditional image of a culture of aggressive masculinity (男子气概), the absence of girls gives boys the chance to develop without pressure to be consistent to a stereotype, a US study says.Boys at single-sex schools were said to be more likely to get involved in cultural and artistic activities that helped develop their abilities to express their emotions, rather than feeling they had to obey to the “boy code” of hiding their emotions to be a “real man”.
The findings of the study are against the received wisdom that boys do better when taught alongside girls.
Tony Little, headmaster of Eton, warned that boys were being ignored by the British education system because it had become too focused on girls. He criticized teachers for failing to recognize that boys are actually more emotional than girls.
The research argued that boys often perform badly in mixed schools because they become discouraged when their female peers do better earlier in speaking and reading skills.
But in single-sex schools teachers can adjust lessons to boys’learning style, letting them move around the classroom and getting them to compete in teams to prevent boredom, wrote the study’s author, Abigail James of the University of Virginia.
Teachers could encourage boys to enjoy reading and writing with “boy-focused” approaches such as themes and characters that appeal to them. Because boys generally have sharper vision, learn best through touch, and are physically more active, they need to be given “hands-on” lessons where they are allowed to walk around. “Boys in mixed schools view classical music as feminine (女性的) and prefer the modern type in which violence and sexism are major themes,” James wrote.
Single-sex education also made it less likely that boys would feel they had to give in to a stereotype that men should be “masterful and in charge” in relationships. “In mixed schools boys feel pressed to act like men before they understand themselves well enough to know what that means,” the study reported.
【小题1】The author believes that a single-sex school would ____ .

A．force boys to hide their emotions to be “real men”

B．help to form masculine aggressiveness in boys

C．encourage boys to express their emotions more freely

D．naturally place emphasis on the traditional image of a man to boys

【小题2】It is commonly believed that in a mixed school boys _____ .

A．perform relatively better	B．grow up more healthily
C．behave more responsibly	D．receive a better education

【小题3】What does Tony Little say about the British education system?

A．It fails more boys than girls academically.

B．It focuses more on mixed school education.

C．It fails to give boys the attention they need.

D．It places more pressure on boys than on girls.

【小题4】According to Abigail James, one of the advantages of single-sex schools is _____.

A．teaching can be adapted to suit the characteristics of boys

B．boys can focus on their lessons without being absent-minded

C．boys can choose to learn whatever they are interested in

D．teaching can be designed to promote boys’ team spirit

【小题5】Which of the following is the characteristic of boys according to Abigail James’ report?

A．They enjoy being in charge.

B．They act the same to stereotypes.

C．They have sharper vision.

D．They are violent and sexist.

Many teenagers feel that the most important people in their lives are their friends. They believe that their family members don’t know them as well as their friends do. In large families, it is quite often for brothers and sisters to fight with each other and then they can only go to their friends for some ideas．
It is very important for teenagers to have one good friend or a group of friends. Even when they are not with their friends, they usually spend a lot of time talking among themselves on the phone. This communication is very important in children’s growing up, because friends can discuss something. These things are difficult to tell their family members.
However, parents often try to choose their children’s friends for them. Some parents may even stop their children from meeting their good friends. Have you ever thought of the following questions?
Who chooses your friends?
Do you choose your friends or your friends choose you?
Have you got a good friend your parents don’t like?
Your answers are welcome.
【小题1】Many teenagers think that ____ can understand them better.

A．friends

B．brothers

C．sisters

D．parents

【小题2】When teenagers have something difficult to tell their parents, they usually____

A．stay alone at home	B．fight with their parents
C．discuss it with their friends	D．go to their brothers and sisters for help

【小题3】The underlined sentence “Your answers are welcome．” means _______．

A．You are welcome to discuss the questions with us.

B．We have got no idea, so your answers are welcome.

C．Your answers are always right.

D．You can give us all the right answers.

【小题4】Which of the following is the writer’s attitude?

A．Parents should choose friends for their children

B．Children should choose everything they like

C．Parents should understand their children better

D．Teenagers should only go to their friends for help

【小题5】Part of the purpose of this passage is to ___.

A．give information for the parents to make their own judgment.

B．give advice to children who want to choose their friends.

C．help parents to find better friends for their children.

D．get some information from many readers.

The Internet has opened up a whole new online world for us to meet , chat and go where we've never been before.
But just as in face to face communication, there are some rules of  behavior that should be followed when on line . _1____Imagine how you'd feel if you were in the other person's shoes.
For anything you're about to send: ask yourself,"Would I say this to the person's face ? If the answer is no ,rewrite and reread .____2__________
If someone in the chat room is rude to you , your instinct (本能 ) is to fire back in the same manner . But try not to do so ._____3________If it was caused by a disagreement with another member , try to fix the situation by politely discussing it. Remember to respect the beliefs and opinions of others in the chat room.
____4_____offer advice when asked by newcomers, as they may not be sure what to do or how to communicate. When someone makes a mistake, whether it's a stupid question or an unnecessarily long answer, be kind about it. If it is a small mistake, you may not need to say anything. Even if you feel strongly about it, think twice before saying anything. Having good manners yourself doesn't give you license to correct everyone else .___5_______At the same time, if you find you are wrong, be sure to correct yourself and apologize to those you have offended.
It is not polite to ask others personal questions such as their age, sex, and marital statues. unless you know the person very well , and both comfortable with sharing personal information, don't ask such questions.

A．It's natural that there are some people who speak rudely or make online.

B．Repeat the process till you feel sure that you'd feel comfortable saying the words to the person's face.

C．Everyone was new to the network once.

D．The basic rule is simple: treat others in the same way you would want to be treated.

E. When you send short messages to a person online, you must say something beautiful to hear.
F. You should either ignore the person, or use your chat software to block their messages.
G. If you do decide to tell someone about a mistake , point it out politely.

Who owns the large American companies that produce cars, washing machines, and television sets? They are owned by a large group of people called stockholders.
　　A company must have money to build factories and to buy machinery. To get this money, it sells shares of stock（股份）. Each share of stock is a share in the ownership of the company. The person who buys a share of stock becomes a part owner of the company. He is called a stockholder. A company can have thousands of stockholders. Sometimes a very large company is owned by millions of stockholders.
　　Few persons can afford to buy a whole company, but the average individual can become part owner of a business. He can save his dollars and buy a share of stock in a large company. A person does not have to be wealthy to be a stockholder.
　　When a company makes money, each stockholder may receive a dividend(股息) check, which is his share of the profits（利润）. Parts of a company’s profits are not paid out to the stockholders. This money is used by the company so it can grow larger. If the company does well, its shares of stock become more valuable.
　　More than 20 million people own shares of stock in America’s companies. By owning stock, they are helping America’s businesses grow. They are also putting their money to work to earn more money.
【小题1】The story makes you think that _____.

A．a farmer is not allowed to buy the shares of stock

B．if a company does well, its shares of stock have no value

C．a person may own a part of the company that makes TV sets

D．the only people who can buy stocks are those who are wealthy

【小题2】A dividend is the stockholder’s share of the _____.

A．company’s profits

B．company’s savings

C．company’s income

D．products made by the company

【小题3】Why do companies keep part of their profits?

A．They want to buy the shares of stock, too.

B．They cannot find all the names of their stockholders.

C．They use the money to help the company grow larger.

D．They think they have sent their stockholders enough money.

Sometimes you may have a strong desire to do something strange or terrible. However, chances are that you don’t act on your impulse (冲动), but let it pass instead. You know that to take the action is wrong in some way and that other people will not accept your behavior.
Perhaps the most interesting thing about the phenomenon of taboo behavior is how it can change over the years, how certain behavior and attitudes once considered taboo can become perfectly acceptable and natural at another point in time. Topics such as death, for example, were once considered so upsetting that it was a taboo to even talk about them. Now with the publication of important books such as On Death and Dying and Learning to Say Goodbye, people have become more aware of the importance of expressing feelings about death and, as a result, are more willing to talk about this taboo subject.
One of the newest taboos is the topic of fat. Unlike many other taboos, fat is a topic that people talk about constantly. It’s not taboo to talk about fat; it’s taboo to be fat. The “in” look is thin, not fat. In the work world, most companies prefer youthful-looking, slim manager to sell their image as well as their products to the public. The thin look is associated with youth, vigor, and success. The fat person, on the other hand, is thought of as lazy and lacking in energy, self-discipline and self-respect. After all, how can people permit themselves to become fat? In an image-conscious society, thin is ‘‘in”, fat is “out”.
It’ s not surprising that millions of people have become obsessed (着迷) with staying slim and “in shape”. The pursuit of a youthful physical appearance is not, however, the only reason for people’s obsession with diet and exercise. Recent research has shown the importance of diet and exercise for personal health. As in most technologically developed nations, the life-style of people has changed since last century. Modern machines do all the physical labor. Cars and buses transport us quickly from point to point. As a result of inactivity and disuse, people’s bodies can easily become weak. In an effort to avoid such a fate , millions of people are spending more of their time exercising. Parks are filled with joggers and bicyclists, and many companies are providing special exercise equipment for their employees to use during the work day.    
【小题1】What does the word “taboo’’ refer to in the passage?

A．A crime committed on impulse.

B．An unfavorable impression left on other people.

C．A strong desire to do something strange or terrible.

D．Behavior considered unacceptable to the society.

【小题2】What does the underlined phrase “in” look probably mean?

A．The fashionable look.	B．The hidden look.
C．The usual look.	D．The inside look.

【小题3】According to the passage, the common belief is that _________.

A．fat people are full of energy	B．thin people are more successful
C．fat people prefer to have fat bosses	D．thin people are less image-conscious

【小题4】People pay more attention to diet and exercise because of _________.

A．their need to kill time	B．their love for sports
C．their concern for health	D．their belief in hard work