At the heart of the debate over illegal immigration lies one key question: are immigrants good or bad for the economy? The American public overwhelmingly thinks they’re bad. Yet the agreement among most economists is that immigration, both legal and illegal, provides a small net boost to the economy. Immigrants provide cheap labor, lower the prices of everything from farm produce to new homes, and leave consumers with a little more money in their pockets. So why is there such a discrepancy between the perception of immigrants’ impact on the economy and the reality?

There are a number of familiar theories. Some argue that people are anxious and feel threatened by an inflow of new workers. Others highlight the stress that undocumented immigrants place on public services, like schools, hospitals, and jails. Still others emphasize the role of race, arguing that foreigners add to the nation's fears and insecurities. There’s some truth to all these explanations, but they aren’t quite sufficient.

To get a better understanding of what’s going on, consider the way immigration’s impact is felt. Though its overall effect may be positive, its costs and benefits are distributed unevenly. David Card, an economist at UC Berkeley, notes that the ones who profit most directly from immigrants’ low-cost labor are businesses and employers —meatpacking plants in Nebraska, for instance, these producers’ savings probably translate into lower prices at the grocery store, but how many consumers make that mental connection at the checkout counter? As for the drawbacks of illegal immigration, these, too, are concentrated. Native low-skilled workers suffer most from the competition of foreign labor. According to a study by George Borjas, a Harvard economist, immigration has reduced the wages of American high-school dropouts by 9%. 

Among high-skilled, better-educated employees, however, opposition was strongest in states with both high numbers of immigrants and relatively generous social services. What worried them most, in other words, was the financial burden of immigration. That conclusion was reinforced by another finding: that their opposition appeared to soften when that financial burden decreased, as occurred with welfare reform in the 1990s, which curbed immigrants’ access to certain benefits.

The irony is that for all the overexcited debate, the net effect of immigration is minimal. Even for those most acutely affected — say, low-skilled workers, or California residents — the impact isn’t all that dramatic. “The unpleasant voices have tended to dominate our perceptions,” says Daniel Tichenor, a professor at the University of Oregon. “But when all those factors are put together and the economists calculate the numbers, it ends up being a net positive, but a small one.” Too bad most people don’t realize it. 

1.What can we learn from the first paragraph?

A．Whether immigrants are good or bad for the economy has been puzzling economists.

B．The American economy used to thrive on immigration but now it’s a different story.

C．The agreement among economists is that immigration should not be encouraged.

D．The general public thinks differently from most economists on the impact of immigration.

2.What is the chief concern of native high-skilled, better-educated employees about the inflow of immigrants?

A．It may change the existing social structure.

B．It may pose a threat to their economic status.

C．It may decrease .their financial burden.

D．It may place a great pressure on the state budget.

3.What is the irony about the debate over immigration?

A．Even economists can’t reach an agreement about its impact.

B．Those who are opposed to it turn out to benefit most from it.

C．People are making too big a fuss about something of small impact.

D．There is no essential difference between seemingly opposite opinions.

4.Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?

A．A debate about whether to immigrate.

B．A debate about the impact of illegal immigrants.

C．The great impact of immigrants on the economy.

D．Opposition to illegal immigration.

 

Five years ago, David Smith wore an expensive suit to work every day. “I was a clothes addict,” he jokes. “I used to carry a fresh suit to work with me so I could change if my clothes got wrinkled.” Today David wears casual clothes—khaki pants and sports shirt—to the office. He hardly ever wears a necktie. “I’m working harder than ever,” David says, “and I need to feel comfortable.”

More and more companies are allowing their office workers to wear casual clothes to work. In the United States, the change from formal to casual office wear has been gradual. In the early 1990s, many companies allowed their employees to wear casual clothes on Friday, but only on Friday. This became known as “dress-down Friday” or “casual Friday”. “What started out as an extra one-day-a-week benefit for employees has really become an everyday thing.” said business consultant Maisly Jones.

Why have so many companies started allowing their employees to wear casual clothes? One reason is that it’s easier for a company to attract new employees if it has a casual dress code. “A lot of young people don’t want to dress up for work,” says the owner of a software company, “so it’s hard to hire people if you have a conservative dress code.” Another reason is that people seem happier and more productive when they are wearing comfortable clothes. In a study conducted by Levi Strauss Company, 85 percent of employers said that they believe that casual dress improves employee morale（士气）. Only 4 percent of employers said that casual dress has a negative effect on productivity. Supporters of casual office wear also argue that a casual dress code helps them save money. “Suits are expensive, if you have to wear one every day,” one person said. “For the same amount of money, you can buy a lot more casual clothes.”

1.David Smith refers to himself as having been “a clothes addict,” because __________.  

A．he often wore khaki pants and a sports shirt

B．he couldn’t stand a clean appearance

C．he wanted his clothes to look neat all the time

D．he didn’t want to spend much money on clothes

2.David Smith wears casual clothes now, because __________.  

A．they make him feel at ease when working

B．he cannot afford to buy expensive clothes

C．he looks handsome in casual clothes

D．he no longer works for any company

3.According to this passage, which of the following statements is FALSE? 

A．Many employees don’t like a conservative dress code.

B．Comfortable clothes make employees more productive.

C．A casual clothes code is welcomed by young employees.

D．All the employers in the U.S. are for casual office wear.

4.According to this passage, which of the following statements is TRUE?   

A．Company workers started to dress down about twenty years ago.

B．Dress-down has become an everyday phenomenon since the early 1990s.

C．“Dress-down Friday” was first given as a favor from employers.

D．Many workers want to wear casual clothes to impress people.

5.In this passage, the following advantages of casual office wear are mentioned except __________.    

A．saving employees’ money

B．making employees more attractive

C．improving employees’ motivation

D．making employees happier

 

David’s a terrible dancer; he's too _____ and keeps stepping on his partner’s feet.

A．energetic              B．optional        C．sensitive               D．clumsy

 

阅读下面短文，并根据题目要求用英语回答问题（请注意问题后的字数要求）。

［1］Five years ago, David Smith wore an expensive suit to work every day. “I was a clothes addict”. He jokes. “I used to carry a fresh suit to work with me so I could change if my clothes got wrinkled”. Today David wears casual clothes—khaki pants and sports shirt to the office. He hardly ever wears a necktie. “I’m working harder than ever”. David says, “And I need to feel comfortable”.

[ 2 ]More and more companies are allowing their office workers to         in the United States. The change from formal to casual office wear has been gradual. In the early 1990s, many companies allowed their employees to wear casual clothes on Friday. This became known as “dress-down Friday” or “casual Friday”. “What started out as an extra one-day-a-week benefit for employees has really become an everyday thing.” said business consultant Maisly Jones.

[ 3 ]Why have so many companies started allowing their employees to wear casual clothes? One reason is that it’s easier for a company to attract new employees if it has a casual dress code. “Many young people don’t want to dress up for work”, says the owner of a software company, “So it’s hard to hire people if you have a conservative dress code”. Another reason is that people seem happier and more productive when they are wearing comfortable clothes. In a study 85 percent of employers said that they believe that casual dress improves employees’ motivation. Only 4 percent of employers said that casual dress has a negative influence on productivity. Supporters of casual office wear also argue that a casual dress code helps them save money. “Suits are expensive, if you have to wear one every day”, one person said, “For the same amount of money, you can buy a lot more casual clothes”.

1.Why does David Smith wear casual clothes now? (no more than 8 words)

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­_______________________________________________________________________________

2.List three advantages of casual office wear according to the text? (no more than 10 words)

①______________________________________________________________________________

②______________________________________________________________________________

③______________________________________________________________________________

3.Fill in the blank in Paragraph 2 with proper words. (no more than 6 words)

_______________________________________________________________________________

4.What does it mean by a conservative dress code? (no more than 10 words)

_______________________________________________________________________________

5.What’s the main idea of Paragraph 3? (no more than 18 words)

_______________________________________________________________________________

 

The popular Korean male artist Rain swept through Asia recently, gaining popularity among both male and female fans. 36 his popularity, Pepsi(百事可乐), which did not 37 to offer any Korean artist the opportunity to be one of its ambassadors (大使), has changed their mind. They now have 38  Rain to be its new “blue blood(蓝血家族)” and have offered him a high price.

For the past two years, Pepsi has 39 an enormous amount of money in signing up world popular mega stars to be the company’s ambassadors. They 40 soccer star David Beckham, Taiwan popular Idols F4, Jay Chou, Hong Kong star Edison Chen, Nicholas Tse, Louis Koo etc. Now with the 41  rising of Korean star Rain, Pepsi was quick to put him on its 42.

According to sources, Pepsi has recently sent a(an) 43 to Korea to discuss details with Rain and they are about to 44 a contract. When a reporter called Ms Li to verify this matter, she didn’t deny it, and 45 that “At this point, we can’t reveal anything”. Also according to sources, Pepsi will be the sponsor of Rain’s October 46 in Hong Kong, but Rain’s Hong Kong manager Ms Chan Ka Ying 47 , “At this moment, it’s not 48 to talk about this. There will be an announcement shortly!”

49 the old Chinese saying goes: “One mountain cannot be ruled by two tigers”, Pepsi has somehow created an internal 50  between Rain and Jay Chou. Rain’s popularity is rising and he has the 51 “single eye-lid” feature as Jay, whose status has somehow been 52. There’s a rumour that the skin product brand DHC is intending to 53  their ambassador from Jay to Rain, in order to capture the Korean, Japanese, Chinese 54.

Rain’s recent Beijing concert was a tremendous hit, 55 in “Korean Fever” in Mainland China.

1.	A．Thanks for B．Due to C．According to D．Based on

 

2.	A．target B．point C．aim D．intend

 

3.	A．accepted B．invited C．adopted D．approved

 

4.	A．spent B．depended C．cost D．paid

 

5.	A．contain B．include C．cover D．enclose

 

6.	A．up-to-date B．new C．modern D．recent

 

7.	A．schedule B．record C．list D．program

 

8.	A．manager B．artist C．boss D．representative

 

9.	A．sign B．mark C．get D．keep

 

10.	A．supplied B．increased C．joined D．added

 

11.	A．concert B．show C．display D．exhibition

 

12.	A．recognized B．responded C．reacted D．acknowledged

 

13.	A．comfortable B．pleasant C．convenient D．relaxed

 

14.	A．As B．When C．After D．While

 

15.	A．struggle B．competition C．fight D．conflict

 

16.	A．same B．alike C．different D．similar

 

17.	A．infected B．effected C．affected D．caused

 

18.	A．exchange B．vary C．shift D．switch

 

19.	A．markets B．shops C．malls D．stores

 

20.	A．resulting B．causing C．leading D．directing