阅读理解

　　When I learned that my 71-year-old mother was playing Scrabble－a word game－against herself, I knew I had to do something．My husband suggested we give her a computer to play against．I wasn’t sure my mother was ready for it．After all, it had taken 10 years to persuade her to buy an electric cooker．Even so, we packed up our old computer and delivered it to my parents’ home．And so began my mother’s adventure in the world of computers．

　　It also marked the beginning of an unusual teaching task for me．I’ve taught people of all ages, but I never thought I would be teaching my mother how to do anything．She has been the one teaching me all my life：to cool and sew;to enjoy the good times and put up with the bad．Now it was my turn to give something back．

　　It wasn’t easy at the beginning．There was so much to explain and to introduce．Slowly but surely, my mother caught on, making notes in a little notebook．After a few months of Scrabble and other games, I decided it was time to introduce her to word processing(文字处理)．This proved to be a bigger challenge to her, so I gave her some homework I asked her to write me a letter, using different letter types, colors and spaces．

　　“Are you this demanding with your kindergarten pupils?” she asked．

　　“No, of course not, ” I said．“They already know how to use a computer．”

　　My mother isn’t the only one experiencing a fast personal growth period．Thanks to the computer, my father has finally got over his phone allergy(过敏反应)．For as long as I can remember, any time I called, my mother would answer．Dad and I have had more phone conversations in the last two months than we’ve had in the past 20 years．

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　　Engineering students are supposed to be examples of practicality and rationality, but when it comes to my college education I am an idealist and a fool．In high school I wanted to be an electrical engineer and, of course, any sensible student with my aims would have chosen a college with a large engineering department, famous reputation and lots of good labs and research equipment．But that’s not what I did．

　　I chose to study engineering at a small liberal-arts(文科)university that doesn’t even offer a major in electrical engineering．Obviously, this was not a practical choice;I came here for more noble reasons．I wanted a broad education that would provide me with flexibility and a value system to guide me in my career．I wanted to open my eyes and expand my vision by interacting with people who weren’t studying science or engineering．My parents, teachers and other adults praised me for such a sensible choice．They told me I was wise and mature beyond my 18 years, and I believed them．

　　I headed off to college sure I was going to have an advantage over those students who went to big engineering “factories” where they didn’t care if you had values or were flexible．I was going to be a complete engineer：technical genius and sensitive humanist(人文学者)all in one．

　　Now I’m not so sure．Somewhere along the way my noble ideals crashed into reality, as all noble ideals eventually do．After three years of struggling to balance math, physics and engineering courses with liberal-arts courses, I have learned there are reasons why few engineering students try to reconcile(协调)engineering with liberal-arts courses in college．

　　The reality that has blocked my path to becoming the typical successful student is that engineering and the liberal arts simply don’t mix as easily as I assumed in high school．Individually they shape a person in very different ways;together they threaten to confuse．The struggle to reconcile the two fields of study is difficult．

阅读理解

　　If you know exactly what you want, the best route to a job is to get specialized training．A recent survey shows that companies like graduates in such fields as business and health care who can go to work immediately with very little on-the-job training．

　　That’s especially true of booming fields that are challenging for workers．At Cornell’s School of Hotel Administration, for example, bachelor’s degree graduates get an average of four or five job offers with salaries ranging from the high teens to the low 20s and plenty of chances for rapid advancement．Large companies, especially, like a background of formal education coupled with work experience．

　　But in the long run, too much specialization doesn’t pay off．Business, which has been flooded with MBAs, no longer considers the degree an automatic stamp of approval．The MBA may open doors and command a higher salary initially, but the impact of a degree washes out after five years．

　　As further evidence of the erosion(销蚀)of corporate(公司的)faith in specialized degrees, Michigan State’s Scheetz cites a pattern in corporate hiring practices．Although companies tend to take on specialists as new hires, they often seek out generalists for middle and upper-level management．“They want someone who isn’t constrained(限制)by nuts and bolts to look at the big picture, ” says Scheetz．

　　This sounds suspiciously like a formal statement that you approve of the liberal-arts graduate．Time and again labor-market analysts mention a need for talents that liberal-arts majors are assumed to have：writing and communication skills, organizational skills, open-mindedness and adaptability, and the ability to analyze and solve problems．David Birch claims he does not hire anybody with an MBA or an engineering degree, “I hire only liberal-arts people because they have a less-than-canned way of doing things, ” says Birch．Liberal-arts means an academically thorough and strict program that includes literature, history, mathematics, economics, science, human behavior-plus a computer course or two．With that under your belt, you can feel free to specialize．“A liberal-arts degree coupled with an MBA or some other technical training is a very good combination in the marketplace, ” says Scheetz．

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　　A study of English learning problems was carried out among a total of 106 foreign students．It shows that most students considered understanding spoken English to be their biggest problem on arrival．This was followed by speaking．Writing increased as a problem as students discovered difficulties in writing papers that they were now expected to hand in．Reading remained as a significant problem．

　　The information gained helped us in determining where special attention should be paid in our course．Although many students have chosen to join the course with a reasonable motivation, we considered it important to note what seemed to encourage interest．Nearly all the students have experienced some kind of grammar-based English teaching in their own country．To use the same method would be self-defeating because it might reduce motivation, especially if it has failed in the past．Therefore a different method may help because it is different．

　　Variety of activity was also seen as a way of maintaining or increasing motivation．Several years ago we had one timetable that operated throughout, but we soon found that both the students and the teachers lost interest by about halfway through the ten weeks．This led us to a major re-think, so finally we brought it into line with the expressed language needs of the students．

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　　You are from a middle class family, and live in a normal size home without any showy possessions, but you are surrounded by surprising consumption．This contrast is beginning to bother your 6-year-old son．You are worried that he will want to live as they do, and wonder if you should move．

　　Sometimes big pocket money, joyful birthday parties, special playrooms and super-big houses tell you that your neighbors probably have more money than you do, and that they’re not as careful as you are with money, but you may find that they cook and dig in the garden with their children just as often as you do, talk with them as freely and read to them every night．

　　Or you may find that some of these parents stay in on wing of their big house while children play by himself, way off in a wing of his own．In that unfortunate case, he is basically growing up alone without being looked after properly, but this can happen to a child who lives in a normal-size house, too, if he has a TV．A computer and a few video games in his room．Even the most caring parent doesn’t walk in and out of it to see what show her child is watching, what Internet site he has found and if he’s playing that video game．

　　Too much uncontrolled screen then may lead to a certain loss of innocence(天真), and if it doesn’t, you might decide to move．Don’t judge your neighbor too harshly(严厉地), though．There some things that are right with almost any neighbor and some things that are wrong with the best of them－like those super-big houses．The wealth of their owners－and the way they throw money around－may make your son feel sorry for himself, unless you help him understand that you and his dad save some of the money, give some to people who don’t have enough and use the rest to pay for whatever the family needs．

　　Children want－should be provided with－explanations when their parents don’t give them what they want．

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　　An ichthyologist is a scientist who studies fish．Most people who do this job say they love their work because it is very rewarding and varied．They work not only inside a laboratory, but also out in the field．Fieldwork includes traveling to river, oceans and lakes in order to collect information and specimens．Reading, writing and speaking are also very important to the job, Fish scientists need to read the research of other scientists．They must he able to write up their own research clearly so that others can follow it．They also need to be able to give lectures about their findings, so that they can spread knowledge．

　　Ichthyologists who wish to specialize can choose any one of three areas of study．The first area is aqnaeuhure(水产养殖)．This involves the study and practice of fish farming and management．Because it is a rather new study, there are very few job opportunities available．However, as there is so much to discover, many see it as an exciting area for a new ichthyologist to enter．The second area is fisheries science, which means working with a team of scientists to find out more about different fish species．The third area is about the protection of natural fish populations．This is very important today, given that many fish species are in danger of dying out because of the actions of humans．

　　To become a successful fish scientist, you need to have a curious mind and be able to work on your own．You also need to be able to handle equipment and perform experiments;but most importantly, you must love fish．To become an ichthyologist, you will need to train at a university to pass a Bachelor of Science degree．For this, you will need to be good at mathematics, physical science and biology．Then, you will need to study for another year to complete an doctor’s degree in ichthyology．This doctor’s degree contains enormous work about all aspects of fish．You also need to complete a research paper．

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　　He’s an old cobbler(修鞋匠)with a shop in the Marais, a historic area in Paris．When I took him my shoes, he at first told me：“I haven’t time．Take them to the other fellow on the main street;he’ll fix them for you right away．”

　　But I’d had my eye on his shop for a long time．Just looking at his bench loaded with tools and pieces of leather, I knew he was a skilled craftsman(手艺人)．“No, ” I replied, “the other fellow can’t do it well．”

　　“The other fellow” was one of those shopkeepers who fix shoes and make keys “while-U-wait”－without knowing much about mending shoes or making keys．They work carelessly, and when they have finished sewing back a sandal strap(鞋带)you might as well just throw away the pair．

　　My man saw I wouldn’t give in, and he smiled．He wiped his hands on his blue apron(围裙), looked at my shoes, had me write my name on one shoe with a piece of chalk and said, “Come back in a week．”

　　I was about to leave when he took a pair of soft leather boots off a shelf．

　　“See what I can do?” he said with pride．“Only three of us in Paris can do this kind of work．”

　　When I got back out into the street, the world seemed brand-new to me．He was something out of an ancient legend, this old craftsman with his way of speaking familiarly, his very strange, dusty felt hat, his funny accent from who-knows-where and, above all, his pride in his craft．

　　These are times when nothing is important but the bottom line, when you can do things any old, way as long as it “pays”, when, in short, people look on work as a path to ever-increasing consumption rather than a way to realize their own abilities．In such a period it is a rare comfort to find a cobbler who gets his greatest satisfaction from pride in a job well done．

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　　David Beckham has rejected claims that England players are being greedy over their bonuses(奖金)for the World Cup, insisting the reports suggesting that each player would receive ￡300 000 for winning were wide of the mark．

　　“The truth is that we are earning less for this World Cup than we were for the last game, ” said the England skipper．Squad members stood in line to pocket ￡250 000 each for victory at the 2002 finals．

　　“I know for a fact that every one of the players in our team would play for our country for nothing and so would the other players．We don’t go into a game thinking we can make money for winning．There is too much pride and excitement in our team to even suggest that．”

　　There is money I football and we talk about bonuses every time a big competition comes around－and－there is always criticism of the players when bonuses are agreed．But money isn’t the motivation(动力)－not at all．When you are a 15-year-old watching the World Cup, you don’t dream of playing in it because you can make loads of money．Players don’t think like that;you want to be there to play on that stage．

　　“The FA makes money and the players always get bonuses; that is a fact．And if we do not succeed then the money is not there．”

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　　WASHINGTON－Laura Straub is a very worried woman．Her job is to find families for foreign teenagers who expect to live with American families in the summer．

　　It’s not easy, even desperate．

　　“We have many children left to place：40 out of 75, ” said Straub, who works for a foreign exchange program called LEC．

　　When exchange programs started 50 years ago, more families were accommodating．For one thing, more mothers stayed home．

　　But now, increasing numbers of women work outside the home．Exchange-student programs have struggled in recent years to sign up host families for the 30 000 teenagers who come from abroad every year to spend an academic year in the United States, as well as the thousands more who take part in summer programs．

　　School systems in many parts of the US, unhappy about accepting non-taxpaying students, have also strictly limited the number of exchange students they accept．At the same time, the idea of hosting foreign students is becoming less exotic(异国情调的)．

　　In searching for host families, who usually receive no pay, exchange programs are increasingly broadening their requests to include everyone from young couples to the retired．

　　“We are open to many different types of families, ” said Vickie Weiner, eastern regional director for ASSE, a 25-year-old program that sends about 30 000 teenagers on academic-year exchange programs worldwide．

　　For elderly people, exchange students “keep us young－they really do, ” said Jean Foster, who is hosting 16-year-old Nina Porst from Denmark．

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　　Since my retirement from teaching music in 2001, I have spent a good deal of time painting as an artist．I actually began drawing again in the summer of 1995 when my father died, so perhaps I was trying to recover from the loss of my father, or maybe it was just that it brought back memories of him．In any case, I drew pen and ink animals and landscapes(风景画)much influenced(影响)by Krenkel and St．John for five years．

　　For some strange reason, I had been waiting until my retirement to start doing watercolors again, but as soon as I walked out of the school door for the last time I picked up my brushes and rediscovered Andrew Wyeth, who quickly became my favorite artist．I had looked through all the art books I had on my shelves and found his watercolors to be the closest to how I thought good watercolors should look．So I painted landscapes around Minnesota for three years and tried out many other types of painting．However, watercolors remained my first choice, and I think I did my best work there, showing my paintings at a number of art exhibitions．

　　Art is now together with my piano playing and reading．There is a time for everything in my world, and it is wonderful to have some time doing what I want to do．As Confucius once said, “At seventy I can follow my heart’s desire．”