For many parents , raising a teenager is like fighting a long war ,but years go by without any clear winner . Like a border conflict between neighboring countries ,the parent-teen war is about boundaries: Where is the line between what I control and what you do?

Both sides want peace ,but neither feels it has any power to stop the conflict . In part ,this is because neither is willing to admit .any responsibility for starting it . From the parents’ point of view, the only cause of their fight is their adolescents’ complete unreasonableness. And of course .the  teens see it in exactly the same way , except oppositely . Both feel trapped

In this article. I’ll describe three no-win situations that commonly arise between teens and parents and then suggest some ways out of the trap. The first no-win situation is quarrels over         unimportant things . Examples include the color of the teen’s hair, the cleanliness of the bedroom ,the preferred style of clothing , the child’s failure to eat a good breakfast before school ,or his tendency to sleep until noon on the weekends .Second ,blaming , the goal of a blaming battle is to make the other admit that his bad attitude is the reason why everything goes wrong . Third , needing to be right ,It doesn’t matter what the topic is –politics. The taws of physics ,or the proper way to break an egg –the point of these arguments is to prove that you are right and the other person is wrong .for both wish to be considered an authority --- someone who actually knows something --- and  therefore to command respect. Unfortunately , as long as long as parents and teens continue to assume that they know more than the other ,they’ll continue to fight these battles forever and never make any real progress

55. Why does the author compare the parent—teen war to a border conflict?

A. both can continue for generations .

B. Both are about where to draw the line

C. Neither has any clear winner

D. Neither can be put to an end

56. What does the underlined part in Paragraph 2 mean?

A. The teens blame their parents for starting the conflict.

B. The teens agree with their parents on the cause of the conflict

C. The  teens accuse their parents of misleading them

D. The teens tend to have a full understanding of their parents

57.Parents and teens want to be right because they want to ________.

A. give orders to the other

B. know more than the other

C. gain respect from the other

D .get the other to behave properly

58. What will the author most probably discuss in the paragraph that follows?

A. causes  for the parent –teen conflicts

B. Examples of the parent –teen war.

C. Solutions for the parent –teen problems

D. Future of the parent-teen relationship

A woman renewing her driver’s license at the County Clerk’s office was asked to state her occupation．She hesitated, uncertain how to classify herself．

“What I mean is,” explained the recorder, “do you have a job, or are you just a …”

“Of course I have a job,” said Emily．“I’m a mother.”

“We don’t list ‘mother’ as an occupation… ‘housewife’ covers it,” said the recorder.

       One day I found myself in the same situation．The clerk was obviously a career woman, confident and possessed of a high sounding title．“What is your occupation?” she asked．

       The words simply popped out．“I’m a Research Associate in the field of Child Development and Human Relations.”

       The clerk paused, ballpoint pen frozen in midair.

       I repeated the title slowly, and then I stared with wonder as my statement was written in bold, black ink on the official questionnaire.

       “Might I ask,” said the clerk with new interest, “Just what you do in this field?”

       Coolly, without any trace of panic in my voice, I heard myself reply, “I have a continuing program of research (what mother doesn’t）, in the lab and in the field (normally I would have said indoors and out)．Of course, the job is one of the most demanding in the humanities (any mother care to disagree?), and I often work 14 hours a day (24 is more like it)．But the job is more challenging than most careers and rewards are more of a satisfaction rather than just money.”

       There was an increasing note of respect in the clerk’s voice as she completed the form, stood up, and showed me out．

       As I drove into our driveway, buoyed up (依托) by my glamorous new career, I was greeted by my lab assistants---ages 13, 7, and 3.

       Upstairs I could hear our new experimental model (a 6 month old baby), in the child-development program, testing out a new vocal pattern．

       I felt proud! I had gone on the official records as someone more distinguished and indispensable (不可缺少的) to mankind than “just another mother.”

       Motherhood…What a glorious career! Especially when there’s a title on the door.

What can we infer from the conversation between the woman and the recorder at the beginning of the passage?

       A．The woman felt ashamed to admit what her job was.

       B．The recorder was impatient and rude.

       C．The author was upset about the situation that mothers faced.

       D．Motherhood was not recognized and respected as a job by society.

How did the female clerk feel at first when the author told her occupation?

       A．curious        B．indifferent    C．puzzled             D．interested

How did the author feel when describing her job to the clerk?

     A．calm     B．panic-stricken      C．confident      D．cool

Why did the woman clerk show more respect for the author?

       A．Because the author cared little about rewards.

       B．Because she admired the author’s research work in the lab.

       C．Because she thought the author did admirable work.

       D．Because the writer did something she had little knowledge of.

What is the author’s purpose of writing the passage?

       A．To show how you describe your job affects your feelings toward it.

       B．To argue that motherhood is a worthy career and deserves respect.

       C．To show that the author had a grander job than Emily.

       D．To show that being a mother is hard and boring work．                                   

       A recent study, while showing a generally positive attitude toward science, also suggests a widespread worry that it may be “running out of control”．This idea is dangerous．

       Science can be a force for evil as well as for good．Its applications can be channeled either way, depending on our decisions．The decisions we make, personally or collectively, will determine the outcomes of science．But here is a real danger．Science is advancing so fast is so strongly influenced by businesses that we are likely to believe whatever decisions we come to will make little difference．And, rather than fighting for the best possible policies, we may step back and do nothing．

       Some people go even further．They say that despite the moral and legal objections （反对）, whatever is scientifically possible will be done ——somewhere, sometime．They believe that science will get out of control in the end．This belief is dangerous too, because it a fuels sense of hopelessness and discourages them from making efforts to build a safer world．

       In our interconnected world, the lack of agreement in and of the world of science can lead to the failure to control the use of science．Without a common understanding, the challenges of “controlling” science in this century will be really tough．Take human cloning for example．Despite the general agreement among scientists on its possible huge impact （影响） on traditional moral values, some countries still go ahead with the research and development of its related techniques．The outcomes are hard to predict．

       Therefore, discussions on how science is applied should be extended far beyond scientific societies．Only through the united efforts of people with hope, can we be fully safe against the misuse of science and can science best serve mankind in the future．

What can we conclude from the recent study?

       A．People think highly of science．

       B．People hold mixed opinions about science．

       C．Science is getting dangerously out of control．

       D．Science is used for both good and bad purposes．

According to the passage, what will happen if we hold that science is getting beyond control?

       A．The development of science will hopelessly slow down．

       B．Businesses will have even greater influence on science．

       C．The public will lose faith in bringing about a bright future．

       D．People will work more actively to put science under control．

The discussion should reach beyond scientific societies because __________．

       A．scientists have failed to predict the outcomes

       B．the ties between different areas need strengthening

       C．united efforts are necessary for the development of science

       D．people need to work together to prevent the bad use of science

What is the main idea of the passage?

       A．Science and its applications bring us many dangers．

       B．The development of science mostly lies in people’s attitudes．

       C．Mankind can largely take control of science with their efforts．

       D．The future of science will be influenced by the dangerous ideas．

A

A higher reading rate, with no loss of comprehension, will help you in other subjects as well as in English, and the general principles apply to any language. Naturally, you will not read every book at the same speed. You would expect to read a newspaper, for example, much more rapidly than a physics or economics textbook-but you can raise your average reading speed over the whole range of materials you wish to cover so that the percentage gained will be the same whatever kind of reading you are concerned with.

The reading passages which follow are all of an average level of difficulty for your stage of instruction. They are all about five hundred words long. They are about topics of general interest which do not require a great deal of specialized knowledge. Thus they fall between the kind of reading you might find in your textbooks and the much less demanding kind you will find in a newspaper or light novel. If you read this kind of English, with understanding at four hundred words per minute, you might skim (浏览) through a newspaper at perhaps 650-700, while with a difficult textbook you might drop to two hundred or two hundred and fifty.

Perhaps you would like to know what reading speeds are common among native English-speaking university students and how those speeds can be improved. Tests in Minnesota, USA, for example, have shown that students without special training can read English of average difficulty, for example, Tolstoy's War and Peace in translation, at speeds of between 240 and 250 words per minute with about seventy percent comprehension. Students in Minnesota claim that after twelve half-hour lessons, once a week, the reading speed can be increased, with no loss of comprehension, to around five hundred words per minute.

According to the passage, the purpose of effective reading with higher speed is most likely to help you ________.

A. only in your reading of a physics textbook

B. improve your understanding of an economics textbook

C. not only in your language study but also in other subjects

D. choose the suitable materials to read

Which of the following does not describe the types of reading materials mentioned in the second paragraph?

A. Those beyond one's reading comprehension.

B. Those concerned with common knowledge.

C. Those without much demand for specialized knowledge.

D. Those with the length of about five hundred words.

The average speed of untrained native speakers in the University of Minnesota is ________.

A. about 300 words per minute

B. about 245 words per minute

C. about 650-700 words per minute

D. about 500 words per minute

According to the passage, how fast can you expect to read after you have attended twelve half-hour lessons in the University of Minnesota?

A. You can increase your reading speed by three times.

B. No real increase in reading speed can be achieved.

C. Yon can increase your reading speed by four times.

D. You can double your reading speed.

A new study has found no evidence that sunscreen, commonly used to reduce the risk of skin cancer, actually increases the risk.

Researchers from the University of Iowa based their findings on a review of 18 earlier studies that looked at the association between sunscreen use and melanoma (黑素瘤)．They said that they found faults in studies that had reported associations between sunscreen use and higher risk of melanoma.

Most health experts believe that by protecting the skin from the harmful effects of the sun, sunscreen helps prevent skin cancer, which is increasing in incidence (发生率) faster than any other cancer in the United States.

But questions has been raised about sunscreen and whether it may has opposite effect, perhaps by allowing people to remain exposed to the sun longer without burning.

The researchers said that among the problems with some earlier studies is that they often failed to take into account that those people most at risk for skin cancer--- people with fair skin and freckles (雀斑), for example--- are more likely to use sunscreen．As a result, it may appear that sunscreen users get cancer more often.

The studies, which generally relied on volunteers to recall their sunscreen use, were also unable to prove how well the products had been applied, said the new study.

People with fair skin and freckles          .

       A．seldom use sunscreen             

       B．are more in danger of skin cancer

       C．can be free from the harm of the sun  

       D．often expose themselves to the sun

We can learn from the passage that          .

       A．sunscreen users get skin cancer more often

       B．the volunteers have proved the effect of sunscreen

       C．the new study was based on the experiences of volunteers

       D．the number of skin cancer patients is increasing in America

Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?

       A．Sunscreen to Prevent Skin Cancer   

       B．Sunscreen to Increase Skin Cancer

       C．Skin Cancer Caused by Sunscreen   

       D．Skin Cancer Caused by Freckles