WASHINGTON, Sept. 23 — The House of Representatives, which prides itself on being " the People’s House" has been turning into, a rich men’s club.

The representatives newly elected in 1984 were almost four times as wealthy as the first term lawmakers elected only six years before, according to a new study on the members’ financial reports.

Behind this remarkable swing, the study says, there are two main factors: a court decision that outlawed limits on what candidates could give to their own campaigns, and the enormous growth in the cost of pursuing a seat in Congress. As a result, it is increasingly difficult for candidates of modest means, particularly women to amount successful challenges to entrenched office holders.

One solution, the authors contend, is a system of public financing for campaigns, but Congress seems in no mood to change the political rules any time soon.

"The lower chamber is going upper class," said Mark Green, the President of the Democracy Project, a public policy institute based in New York. ".But this evolution from a House of Representa??tives to a House of Lords denies the diversity of our democracy. It establishes a de facto property qual??ification for office that increasingly says: The people with low and middle income need not apply. "

The Democracy Project produced the study in cooperation with the United States Public Interests Research Group, a similar institute situated in Washington. But their research was not entirely theo??retical. In 1980 Mr. Green was the unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Congress in New York’s 15th District, in Manhattan. The winner was. Bill Green, one of the wealthiest members of Congress.

5. What can we know from the passage?

A. The House of Representatives is poor men’s club.

B. The House of Representatives was made up of people with low and middle income.

C. The House of Representatives, was rich men’s club;

D. The House of Representatives is made up of people with low and middle income.

6. What does "this remarkable swing" in the third paragraph refer to?

A. The House of Representatives prides itself on being" the people’s House".

B. The new study based on the members’ financial reports.

C. A court decision that outlawed limits on what candidates could give to their own campaigns.

D. The representatives elected now are much wealthier than those elected a few years ago.

7. Which of the following is wrong according to the study?

A. Any honest man can become a representative of the House.

B. Women are more difficult than men to be an entrenched office holder.

C. Limits on what a candidate could give to his campaign are outlawed.

D. One must spend much money getting a seat in the Congress.

8. What is the United States Public Interests Research Group like?

A. The House of Representatives.

B. A public policy institute based in New York.

C. A public policy institute based in Washington.

D. The House of Lords.

9. What does the writer think of the study?

A. Doubtful.          B. Believable.            C. Opposed.                D. Normal.

WASHINGTON, Sept. 23—The House of Representatives, which prides itself on being “the People’s House” has been turning into a rich man’s club.

The representatives newly elected in 1984 were almost four times as wealthy as the first term lawmakers elected only six years before, according to a new study on the members’ financial reports.

Behind this remarkable swing, the study says, are two main factors: a court decision that outlawed limits on what candidates could give to their own campaigns, and the enormous growth in the cost of pursuing a seat in congress. As a result, it is increasingly difficult for candidates of modest means, particularly women to amount successful challenge to entrenched office holders.

One solution, the authors contend, is a system of public financing for campaigns, but congress seems in no mood to change the political rules any time soon.

“The lower chamber is going upper class,” said Mark Green, the president of The Democracy Project, a public policy institute based in New York. “But this evolution from a House of Representatives to a House of Lords denies the diversity of our democracy. It establishes a de facto property qualification for office that increasingly says: low and middle income need not apply.

The Democracy Project produced the study in cooperation with the United States Public Interest Research Group, a similar institute situated in Washington. But their research was not entirely theoretical. In 1980 Mr Green was the unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Congress in New York’s 15th District, in Manhattan. The winner was Bill Green, one of the wealthiest members of Congres

What can we know from the passage?

A. The House of Representatives is poor men’s club.

B. The House of Representatives was made up of people with low and middle income.

C. The House of Representatives was rich men’s club.

D. The House of Representatives is made up of people with low and middle income.

What does “this remarkable swing” in the second paragraph refer to?

A. The House of Representatives prides itself on being “the people’s House”.

B. The new study based on the members’ financial reports.

C. A court decision that outlawed limits on what candidates could give to their own campaigns.

D. The representatives elected now are much wealthier than those elected a few years ago.

Which of the following is NOT true according to the study?

A. Any honest man can become a representative of the House.

B. Women are more difficult than men to be an entrenched office holder.

C. Limits on what a candidate could give to his campaign are outlawed.

D. One must spend much money getting a seat in the Congress.

What is the United States Public Interest Research Group like?

A. The House of Representatives.

B. A public policy institute based in New York.

C. A public policy institute based in Washington.

D. The House of lords.

In the 1960s, medical researchers Thomas Holmes and Richard Rahe developed a checklist of stressful events. They found out that any major change can be stressful. Negative events like “serious illness of a family member” were high on the list, but so were some positive life-changing events, like marriage. When you take the Holmes-Rahe test you must remember that the score does not show how you deal with stress—it only shows how much you have to deal with. And we now know that the way you deal with these events has a great effect on your chances of staying healthy.

By the early 1970s, hundreds of similar studies had followed Holmes and Rahe. And millions of Americans who work and live under stress worried over the reports. Somehow, the research got boiled down to a memorable message. Women's magazines ran headlines like “Stress causes illnesses”.If you want to stay physically and mentally healthy, the articles said, avoid stressful events. But such simplistic advice is impossible to follow. even if stressful events are dangerous, many—like the death of a loved one—are impossible to avoid. Moreover, any warning to avoid all stressful events is a prescription(处方) for staying away from opportunities as well as trouble. Since any change can be stressful, a person who wanted to be completely free of stress would never marry, have a child, take a new job or move.?

The idea that all stress makes you sick also takes no notice of what we know about people. It is supposed that we're all weak and passive in the face of difficulty. But many come through periods of stress with more physical and mental strength than they had before. We also know that a long time without change or challenge can lead to boredom, and physical and mental damage.

The result of Holmes-Rahe’s medical research tells us _______.?

A. what should be done to avoid stress?

B. the way of dealing with major events may cause stress?

C. what kind of event would cause stress?

D. how to deal with sudden changes in life?

The studies on stress in the early 1970's led to_______.?

A. great fear about the mental problems it could cause?

B. widespread worry over its harmful effects?

C. a deep research into illnesses connected with stress?

D. popular avoidance of stressful jobs?

According to the passage people who have experienced ups and downs may become___.

A. discouraged when faced with difficulty       

B. physically and mentally weak?

C. more experienced in the face of difficulty    

D. uninterested in what happens to them

What’s the purpose of writing the text? ?

A. To tell people the discoveries about stress.? 

B. To tell people how to keep healthy.?

C. To help people avoid stressful events.?      

D. To help people view stress properly.

The average person learns most of the 30 000～40 000 words whose meanings he or she recognizes by hearing them or getting familiar with them in the context or simply absorbing them without conscious(意识到的) effort. The best way to build a good vocabulary, therefore, is to read a great deal and to participate in a lot of good talks. There are relatively few words that we learn permanently(永久的)by purposefully referring to dictionaries or keeping word lists. However, even those extra few are of value, and no one will make a mistake by working on developing a larger vocabulary. Here are some suggestions of how to do it.

Read plenty of good books. When you come across a new word, or a new meaning of an old word, stop and see if you can understand it from its context. If you can't, and if you can manage without interrupting the thought of the book too much, look it up in a dictionary or ask somebody and then repeat its meaning to yourself a couple of times. If you are really conscientious(认真的), write the word and its meaning in a personal vocabulary list — preferably using it in a sentence, or you can keep a special vocabulary notebook. Go over the list from time to time. Further, try to use a new word in writing or conversation a few times over the next several days.

Listen to good talks and be alert to new words you hear or to new meanings of words you already know. Then treat them just as you treat the new words you read.

Learn and be alert to the parts of words: prefixes, suffixes and roots. Knowing them enables you to make intelligent guesses about the meaning of words.

If you are studying a foreign language, be alert to words in that language which relate to words in English. English has inherited(继承) or borrowed much of its vocabulary of 500 000～600 000 words from Latin, Greek, French, Spanish and German.

1. When you meet a new word in reading, what should you do?

A. Guess its meaning.                       B. Ask somebody.

C. Look it up in a dictionary.                     D. All of the above.

2. According to this passage, the best way to build a good vocabulary is _______.

A. to remember a lot                          B. to read a great deal

C. to take part in a lot of good talks            D. both B and C

3. The phrase “be alert to” in the third paragraph may best be replaced by “_______”.

A. look at                                        B. pay attention to 

C. write down                                  D. learn by heart

4. In the fourth paragraph, the word “them” refers to _______.

A. the parts of words                          B. prefixes

C. suffixes                                         D. roots

After lunch, without permission from parents, the two boys set off to explore the part of the beach which lay beyond the headland(陆岬，伸出海面的尖形高地).They had persuaded their young sister to _1_, saying that the long walk would be too _2_for her. Once they had got in the head land, the beach reached away endlessly before them. It was like _3_a new world. There were damp, dark caves to _4_,there were many_5_ among the rocks, full of sea creatures(生物);and, here and there along the beach were those _6_ objects, washed up and _7_ by the tide.

The afternoon passed _8_The sun was already _9_when the boys reluctantly(恋恋不舍地) _10_ to make their _11_ homewards. But long before they reached the headland, they could see that the tide had come in so sudden that they were now _12_from either end of the beach. Their only chance of _13_ was to find a way up the cliff(悬崖) nearby.

They soon find a narrow path _14_ the cliff top. But half way up their path was_15_by a large rock which they could not climb_16_The two boys had to_17_ at the top of their voices, _18_ that someone might_19_over the top of the rock, and finally came their father with two policemen. _20_of them climbed down a rope which was lowered over the rock. The boys were then pulled to safety, and thus saved from spending a miserable night on the cliff.

1. A. keep quiet    B. stay behind       C. take a rest        D. join them

2. A. tiring        B. exciting          C. uninteresting     D. impossible

3. A. discovering   B. facing           C. enjoying         D. imagining

4. A. look up      B. explore           C. hide in          D. search

5. A. lakes        B. rivers            C. waterfalls        D. pools

6. A. dirty        B .light             C. strange           D. clean

7. A. moved       B .covered          C. beaten           D. left

8. A. quickly      B. unexpectedly      C. finally            D. suddenly

9. A. leaving      B. dropping          C. going            D. setting

10. A. forgot      B. decided           C. succeeded        D. turned

11.A. road        B. way              C. track            D. path

12. A. cut off      B. left behind         C. held back        D. put away

13. A. running off  B. keeping clear       C. getting away      D. turning back

14. A. reaching    B. passing            C. going up         D. leading to

15. A. blocked     B. covered           C. stopped          D. filled

16. A. on         B. over              C. round            D. through

17. A. shout       B. shoot             C. repeat            D .renew

18. A. wanting     B. guessing          C. believing          D. hoping

19. A .turn        B. appear            C. hide              D. climb

20. A. Any        B. None             C. One              D. First