Now many families are trying to do everything they can to save money__________they can fig
A.as long as
B.so that
C.until
D.and therefore
A.as long as
B.so that
C.until
D.and therefore
Why aren't people enjoying better lives when they have jobs?
A.Because many families are divorced.
B.Because government aid is now rare.
C.Because their wages are low.
D.Because the cost of living is rising.
Many American families pride themselves () their cooking, and have deep freezers, () they store foodthey grow in their gardens or buy in the supermarket. Supermarkets are large self service stores () every kind of food--fresh, canned or frozen. So, () the fast-food restaurant, their produce is less expensive andeasier () . There have been supermarkets in the USA since the 1930s, and they have now spread through a large part of the world.
Why isn't dollar worth as much as it used to be? One dollar is always worth the same amount, that is, 100 cents. But the value of a dollar is how much it can buy. The value of money depends on the cost of living. Economists say that the cost of living is the money that a family must pay for the necessities of life such as food, housing or rent, clothes, and medical expenses. For many years now, the cost of living has increased greatly, so the value of the dollar has decreased. When a dollar has a low value, you cannot buy as many things with it.
No one fully understands why the cost of living keeps increasing, but economists believe that workers and producers can make prices go up. As workers earn more money, they have more money to spend, so they demand more goods. If there is a great demand for certain goods, the prices of these goods go up. At the same time, if there's a shortage of goods, the prices also go up. For example, if everyone wants to buy more and more gas, the price of gas goes up. When companies withhold gas from buyers, they can also make the price of gas go up.
Families need to know what happens to their money. They need to make their income meet the cost of living, so many people plan a family budget (预算). A budget is a list of monthly expenses. If your expenses add up to more than your income, you must find ways to save money. Maybe you're spending too much on entertainment. Or if you're spending too much on clothes, you may want to sew your own clothes. Budgeting helps you spend your money wisely as the cost of living increases.
What has troubled many families in the United States?
A.A not-large-enough income.
B.Nothing is left over to put away.
C.The increasing cost of living.
D.A shortage of certain goods.
Passage One
Questions 57 to 61 are based on the following passage.
In times of economic crisis, Americans turn to their families for support. If the Great Depression is any guide, we may see a drop in our skyhigh divorce rate. But this won't necessarily represent an increase in happy marriages. In the long run, the Depression weakened American families, and the current crisis will probably do the same.
We tend to think of the Depression as a time when families pulled together to survive huge job losses. By 1932, when nearly one-quarter of the workforce was unemployed, the divorce rate had declined by around 25% from 1929. But this doesn't mean people were suddenly happier with their marriages. Rather, with incomes decreasing and insecure jobs, unhappy couples often couldn't afford to divorce. They feared neither spouse could manage alone.
Today, given the job losses of the past year, fewer unhappy couples will risk starting separate households. Furthermore, the housing market meltdown will make it more difficult for them to finance their separations by selling their homes.
After financial disasters family members also tend to do whatever they can to help each other and their communities. A 1940 book, The Unemployed Man and His Family, described a family in which the husband initially reacted to losing his job "with tireless search for work." He was always active, looking for odd jobs to do.
The problem is that such an impulse is hard to sustain. Across the country, many similar families were unable to maintain the initial boost in morale (士气) . For some, the hardships of life without steady work eventually overwhelmed their attempts to keep their families together. The divorce rate rose again during the rest of the decade as the recovery took hold.
Millions of American families may now be in the initial stage of their responses to the current crisis, working together and supporting one another through the early months of unemployment.
Today's economic crisis could well generate a similar number of couples whose relationships have been irreparably (无法弥补地) ruined. So it's only when the economy is healthy again that we'll begin to see just how many broken families have been created.
57. In the initial stage, the current economic crisis is likely to______.
A. tear many troubled families apart
B. contribute to enduring family ties
C. bring about a drop in the divorce rate
D. cause a lot of conflicts in the family
Renters and city planners are worried about the high cost of renting apartments. Many cities now have rent control laws to keep the cost of renting low. These laws help low-income families who cannot pay high rents.
Rent controls in the United States began in 1943 when the government imposed rent controls on all American cities to help workers and the families of soldiers during World War Ⅱ. After the war, only one city—New York—continued these World War Ⅱ controls. Recently, more and more cities have returned to rent controls. At the beginning of the 1980s, nearly one fifth of the people in the United States lived in cities with rent-control laws.
Many cities have rent-control laws, but why are rents so high? Builders and landlords blame rent controls for the high rents. Rents are high because there are not enough apartments to rent, and they blame rent controls for the shortage of apartments. Builders want more money to build more apartment buildings, and landlords want more money to repair their old apartment buildings. But they cannot increase rents to get this money because of the rent-control laws. As a result, landlords are not repairing their old apartments, and builders are not building new apartment buildings to replace the old apartment buildings. Builders are building apartments for high-income families, not low income families, so low-income families must live in old apartments that are in disrepair. Builders and landlords claim that rent-control laws really hurt low income families.
Many renters disagree with them. They say that rent control is not the problem. Even without rent controls, builders and landlords will continue to ignore low-income housing because they can make more money from high-income housing. The only answer, they claim, is more rent controls and government help for low-income housing.
Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?
A.The Highest Rent.
B.Rent Controls.
C.Building Apartments for Low-Income Families.
D.Rent-Control Laws.
It's unusual now for father to persue(追求)his trade of other employment at home, and his children rarely, if ever, see him at his place of work. Boys are therefore seldom trained to follow their father's business, and in many towns they have a fairly wide choice of employment and so do girls. The young wage-earner often earns good money, and soon gains a feeling of economic independence (经济上的独立). In textile areas it has been customary for mothers to go out to work, but this practice has become so widespread that the working mother is now not an unusual factor in a child's home life, the number of married women in employment having more than doubled in the last twenty five years. With mother earning and older children drawing wages, father is seldom the most important figure that he still was at the beginning of the century. When mother works, economic advantages increase, but children lose something of great value if mother's employment prevents her from being home to greet them when they return from School.
The writer compares home to a workshop because ______.
A.fathers often persue employment at home
B.many families produce goods at home for sale
C.both fathers and mothers in most families are workers
D.parents have to make food and necessity themselves for their daily life
听力原文: People over the age of 65 in the U.S.A. are called senior citizens. Life for these people is different from that for younger Americans. Most senior citizens retire, or no longer work full time. Also it is unusual for people of this age to live with their children and grandchildren. Grandparents tend to live in their own houses or apartments away from their families.
For many senior citizens, the year after 65 is not enjoyable. They feel unproductive when they no longer work. Their lives lose meaning. In addition, they may feel lonely being away from their families and the contacts they had in their work. Moreover, they become more concerned with their health as they grow olden If they live in big cities, they often worry about their safety.
Other senior citizens enjoy their lives. They feel free to do things they were not able to do when they were working and raising families. They now have time to enjoy hobbies and sports and travel. They associate with their fellow senior citizens who have common interests and equal free time. Many senior citizens move to retirement communities located in warm climates. Some senior citizens continue to work beyond retirement age. Many find new careers and professional opportunities after they retire.
The number of senior citizens in the U.S. is increasing rapidly because people are living longer than before. The average life span for Americans is now more than 74 years. Because of their larger numbers and more active life styles, senior citizens are gaining social influence in the country, both politically and economically. Their concerns are receiving a wider audience than ever before. The time may come when all Americans will look forward to becoming senior citizens.
How old are senior citizens?
A.People of 65 years old.
B.People over 65 years of age.
C.People between 60 and 65 years old.
D.Retired people.
These kids are not old enough for jobs. Nor are they rich enough for camp. They are school children without school. The calendar called the school year ran out on them a few weeks ago. Once supervised by teachers and principals, they now appear to be "self care'.
Passing them is like passing through a time zone. For much of our history, after all, Americans arranged the school year around the needs of work and family. In 19th century cities, schools were open seven or eight hours a day, 11 months a year. In rural America, the year was arranged around the growing season. Now, only S percent of families follow the agricultural model, but nearly all schools are scheduled as if our children went home early to milk the cows and took months off to work the crops. Now, three-quarters of the mothers of school-age children work, but the calendar is written as if they were home waiting for the school bus.
The six-hour day, the 180-day school year is regarded as something holy. But when parents work an eight-hour day and a 240-day year, it means something different. It means that many kids go home to empty houses. It means that, in the summer, they hang out.
"We have a huge mismatch between the school calendar and realities of family life," says Dr. Ernest Boyer, head of the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
Dr. Boyer is one of many who believe that a radical revision of the school calendar is inevitable. "School, whether we like it or not, is educational. It always has been."
His is not a popular idea. Schools are routinely burdened with the job of solving all our social problems. Can they be asked to meet the needs of our work and family lives?
It may be easier to promote a longer school year on its educational merits and, indeed, the educational case is compelling. Despite the complaints and studies about our kids' lack of learning, the United State still has a shorter school year than any industrial nation. In most of Europe, the school year is 220 days. In Japan, it is 240 days long. While classroom time alone doesn't produce a well-educated child, learning takes time and more learning takes more time. The long summers of forgetting take a toll.
The opposition to a longer school year comes from families that want to and can provide other experiences for their children. It comes from teachers. It comes from tradition. And surely from kids. But the most important part of the conflict has been over the money.
Which of the following is an opinion of the author's?
A.The kids are hanging out.
B.They are school children without school.
C.These kids are not old enough for jobs.
D.The calendar called the school year ran out on them a few weeks ago.
Many parents will say no to this demand. But experts say it might be a good idea to let your teens live with a friend or relative.
"It was the break I needed at the time," said Richard Lerner. He is talking about the time he spent living with his grandmother when he was 15.
"It allowed me to be a different person than I was with my parents." Lerner said. He now heads the Institute for Children, Youth and Families at Michigan State University.
Experts say teens living away from their families can test new ways of thinking and getting along with people. They may see new solutions (解答) to problems.
This is different from running away, the experts stress. Runaways are often fleeing serious problems.
Some teens who want some time away from family attend a structured summer program. Others live for a while with a relative or with the family of a friend.
If there is conflict (冲突) at home, having a teen live elsewhere can benefit other family members. It gives everyone space to develop better relationships.
Joseph Kett teaches history at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. He says living at home until the late teen years has become the norm (准则) only in recent times.
"In the 17th century, children were often sent to live in other people's homes when they were about 10 or 11," he said.
Peter Sheras teaches education at the University of Virginia. He said parents should listen when a child wants to move out. They should try to find out why the child wants some time away.
Often, parents can help the child find a safe place to stay during that time. In other cases, they can meet the child's needs at home.
According to this passage, many parents think it ______ for their children to live away from them.
A.right
B.happy
C.unsafe
D.reasonable
A.It is primarily a necessary step to have children.
B.It meets resistance in Western and other rich countries.
C.It has a tremendous impact on the rearing of children.
D.It is the most important institution throughout history.