Once there was a young woman who didn’t like her job. Everyday when she came home from work, she told her husband how terrible her day had been, how tiring the work and how unreasonable her boss. “Leave that job,” her husband told her.

“Oh, I will,” she said. “But not yet. I have too many friends there for me to leave.” And so she remained unhappy at work until the years became decades and her children had children. “Leave that job,” her grandchildren told her. “Oh, I will,” she said. “But not yet. There are only seven more years until I reach thirty years of service and can retire. So I can’t just yet.”

I know this woman. And her story reminds me of an old dog half asleep on the porch of a general store, moaning and groaning in the sun. “Why is your dog acting that way?” a customer asked the store owner. “Oh,” answered the man. “He’s lying on a nail.” “Well, why doesn’t he move?” “Because it’s not hurting him bad enough.”

That’s true for people, too. We convince ourselves the pain is not bad enough to leave the workplace we know. But we’re wrong. Prolonged work pain is continuing. Some work pain damages our self-esteem, kills our passion or destroys our dreams.

Wilbur Wright once commented, “We could hardly wait to get up in the morning. I know that exhilarating feeling of being so passionate about something I was working on that I couldn’t wait to get back to work. And people who are winning at working know that kind of passion, too.”

They get excited about work. They offer their unique gifts and talents eagerly. And when things don’t change as they sometimes will, they refuse to let environment hijack(劫持) their self-esteem, passion or dreams.

1.The woman complained to her husband every day because   .

A．she didn’t have enough money to support her family

B．her boss criticized her for what she had done

C．she was not satisfied with her job at all

D．her work was difficult and her boss was cruel

2.From the second paragraph we can know that the woman   .

A．liked making friends with others

B．loved all of her children very much

C．left her tiring job at last

D．did exactly the same job all along

3.The underlined word “Prolonged” (in Paragraph 4) means   .

A．lasting

B．slight

C．serious

D．hard

4.People who are getting along well with their work     .

A．have to get up early every day

B．are not willing to go to work

C．need more unique gifts and talents

D．are likely to change with the situation

 

Why doesn’t the unemployment rate ever reach zero? Economists, who generally believe that supply tends to meet demand, have long thought about this question. Even in good times, i.e. not now, there are people who can’t find work. And even in bad times, i.e. now, there are job openings. With over 14 million people out of work and looking for a job, you would think every available job would be filled. But that’s not the case. Not now and not ever.

　　On Monday, the Nobel Prize committee awarded the prize for economics to the three scholars who have done the most to explain this phenomenon. Two of the winners are Americans, Peter Diamond of MIT and Dale Mortensen of Northwestern. The third winner is Christopher Pissarides, who teaches at the London School of Economics and was born on Cyprus.

　　Like most of economics, what they have found about why the jobless and ready-employers don’t find each other seems obvious. You have to find out there is job opening you are interested in. Employers need to get resumes （简历）. It takes a while for both employers and employees to make the decision that this is what they want. And these guys came up with a frame-work to study the problem of why people stay unemployed longer than they should and what can be done about it.

　　So what would today’s Nobel Prize winners do to solve the current problem of the unemployed? And does the awarding of the prize contribute to the politicians’ lowering joblessness?

　　Speaking from his north London home, Pissarides told The Associated Press the announcement came as “a complete surprise” though his work had already helped shape thinking on both sides of the Atlantic.

　　For example, the New Deal for Young People, a British government policy aimed at getting 18-24-year-olds back on the job market after long periods of unemployment, “is very much based on our work,” he said.

　　“One of the key things we found is that it is important to make sure that people do not stay unemployed too long so they don’t lose their feel for the labor force,” Pissarides told reporters in London. “The ways of dealing with this need not be expensive training – it could be as simple as providing work experience.”

According to the writer, which is true about finding jobs?

　　A. It is always difficult to find a job.

　　B. Everyone can find a job in good times.

　　C. Contrary to popular belief, it is easier to find a job in bad times.

　　D. It is possible to find a job even in times as bad as now.

What is it that leads to their winning the prize?

　　A. They have found the reason for unemployment.

　　B. They have put forward a set of ideas to deal with unemployment.

　　C. They have found out why people don’t want to be employed.

　　D. They have long studied the problem of unemployment.

Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?

　　A. Pissarides thinks his work surprising.

　　B. The work of Pissarides has influenced many economists.

　　C. Some of the winners’ ideas have been put into practice.

　　D. It is probable that unemployed young people in Britain benefit from Pissarides’ work.

According to Pissarides, _________ is effective in dealing with unemployment.

　　A. spending large sums of money on training

　　B. teaching some knowledge of economics

　　C. providing work experience

　　D. keeping people unemployed for some time

Matt grow the best vegetables in the village．He grows fruit too--big , sweet apples and oranges．And what else ? Well , the biggest and the prettiest flowers．Things grow in Matt' s garden all through the year．He cuts some flowers for his sitting room table ; and of course , he eats some fruit and vegetables．But he sells everything else in the market．Matt is not a poor man．

He knows a few other gardens ; but he does not have any friends．You might ask , " What is that ? Why doesn ' t he have friends ? "

I will tell you．People do not understand him．And they do not understand his garden, " Why not ? " you will ask．" It' s a very good garden , isn' t  it ? "

It is a wonderful garden．Matt plants things in spring , summer and autumn and winter ．After that he does very little work．He sits in the garden with his small radio ．And everything grows ．

People ask , " How does Matt grow these wonderful things ? He waters the plants sometimes , but he doesn' t do anything else ．He just sits under an orange tree  with his radio ．He listens to music nearly all day ! " And that is all quite true , people cannot understand it , and so they don' t like it very much ．

Matt likes music ．But what about the garden ? Who does the work ? I will tell you another true thing : the music does the work ．All plants love music ; and Matt knows that .

Do you want big vegetables and the loveliest flowers ? Well , just give your plants a  lot of  music ,

There are not only vegetables and flowers , but also ______ in Matt' s garden ．

       A．plants     B．fruit trees            C．ants        D．crops

Matt makes a living by _______.

       A．selling his vegetables , fruit and flowers

       B．growing trees in his garden

       C．working in the market

       D．helping other people growing plants

Everything in Matt' s garden grows well because _____

       A．he has a good garden

       B．he is good at growing things and likes listening to the radio

       C．music helps his plants a lot

       D．he is very hardworking

People think that ______ .

       A．Matt' s garden is better than theirs

       B．Matt works harder than they

       C．Matt knows how to grow vegetables well

       D．the radio helps Matt to grow veveything well in his garden

People don' t like Matt because ____.

       A．he doesn' t give thim any vegetables or fruit

       B．he listens to the radio too much

       C．they are jealous（嫉妒的） of him

       D．Matt doesn' t let them listen to his radio

根据对话内容，从对话后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。选项中有两项为多余选项。（共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分）

W: Bobby, turn that TV off and set the table. Dinner is almost ready.

M: OK. I’ll be right down…

W:   1  Your father’s plane was delayed, so he won’t be home until after 10:00.

M: Aw, man! Why does he always have to travel so much?   2 

W: I know. Your sister and I feel the same way, but this is the way it has to be right now.

M:   3 

W: That’s because I work from home.   4  Your father is gone a lot, but he also makes good money.

M: Why doesn’t he work from home?

W:   5  If he stayed at home, how would he ever sell anything?

A. Yes. Father works too hard. B. But you never travel for your job. C. Dear, we’ll have to wait for your father. D. I feel like I never get to see him anymore. E. I guess I’m lucky, but there are disadvantages, too. F. Honey, there are only going to be three of us tonight. G. Well, working in sales means you have to be on the road a lot.

 

 

   I don’t ever want to talk about being a woman scientist again. There was a time in my life when people asked constantly for stories about what it’s like to work in a field dominated by men. I was never very good at telling those stories because truthfully I never found them interesting. What I do find interesting is the origin of the universe, the shape of space-time and the nature of black holes.

   At 19, when I began studying astrophysics, it did not bother me in the least to be the only woman in the classroom. But while earning my Ph.D. at MIT and then as a post-doctor doing space research, the issue started to bother me. My every achievement—jobs, research papers, awards—was viewed through the lens of gender (性别) politics. So were my failures. Sometimes, when I was pushed into an argument on left brain versus (相对于) right brain, or nature versus nurture (培育), I would instantly fight fiercely on my behalf and all womankind.

   Then one day a few years ago, out of my mouth came a sentence that would eventually become my reply to any and all provocations(刺激): I don’t talk about that anymore. It took me 10 years to get back the confidence I had at 19 and to realize that I didn’t want to deal with gender issues. Why should curing sexism be yet another terrible burden on every female scientist? After all, I don’t study sociology or political theory.

   Today I research and teach at Barnard, a women’s college in New York City. Recently, someone asked me how many of the 45 students in my class were women. You cannot imagine my satisfaction at being able to answer, 45. I know some of my students worry how they will manage their scientific research and a desire for children. And I don’t dismiss those concerns. Still, I don’t tell them “war” stories. Instead, I have given them this: the visual of their physics professor heavily pregnant doing physics experiments. And in turn they have given me the image of 45 women driven by a love of science. And that’s a sight worth talking about.

1. Why doesn’t the author want to talk about being a woman scientist again?

A. She feels unhappy working in male-dominated fields.

B. She is fed up with the issue of gender discrimination.

C. She is not good at telling stories of the kind.             

D. She finds space research more important.

2. From Paragraph 2, we can infer that people would attribute the author’s failures to ________.

A. the very fact that she is a woman                       

B. her involvement in gender politics

C. her over-confidence as a female astrophysicist       

D. the burden she bears in a male-dominated society

3. What did the author constantly fight against while doing her Ph.D. and post-doctoral research?

A. Lack of confidence in succeeding in space science.

B. Unfair accusations from both inside and outside her circle.

C. People’s stereotyped attitude toward female scientists.

D. Widespread misconceptions about nature and nurtured.

4. Why does the author feel great satisfaction when talking about her class?

A. Female students no longer have to bother about gender issues.

B. Her students’ performance has brought back her confidence.

C. Her female students can do just as well as male students.

D. More female students are pursuing science than before.

5. What does the image the author presents to her students suggest?

A. Women students needn’t have the concerns of her generation.

B. Women have more barriers on their way to academic success.

C. Women can balance a career in science and having a family.

D. Women now have fewer problems pursuing a science career.