1.To write up his novel， John is looking for an environment free () outside distraction. ( )

1、In China it is relatively usual to ask people their age， but in the West this question is generally regarded as impolite. This is particularly true _11()women， and even more so if the inquirer is a man. However， it is very _12()to ask children their age， and some adults may not mind being asked either. In fact， some elderly people are quite happy to _13()their age， especially if they feel they look young for their age. Nevertheless， it is not very wise to ask a direct question like “How old are you?”.If elderly people want to talk about their age， they may easily14()_the topic themselves， and ask the other person to guess how old they are . They normally expect to be complimented on their youthfulness， though rather than()15() that they look very old. Even tbough Westerners do not usually ask people directly how old they are， this does not _16() that they are not interested to know how old other people are. They may ask _17()for the information， or else they may try to 18() the topic indirectly. Sometimes discussions about educational_19()and the number of years of working experience may provide some clues， but this is not always the 20().20.( )

A. fact

B. truth

C. reality

D. case

15.The book written by the famous writer is worth()【read】.( )

A. reading

B. being read

C. to read

D. to have read

28.She simply () that the check was good and did not ask him any question about it.( )

A. took it easy

B. took it for granted

C. took it up with

D. took advantage of

4、Many people think New York is a noisy city. In fact， scientists who study noise say that the average noise level in New York is 72.5 decibels. This is a little louder than normal conversation， which is 65 decibels. The noise level is the result of so many people and cars in the same area. Now even the insides of taxis are noisy. When you get into a taxi， you hear the voice of a well-known singer sports reporter， or Broadway actress giving instructions. That＇s right. The voice of a famous person tells you what to do.One popular singer gives this message:” Cats have nine lives， but you have only one， to fasten your seat beat!”Other voices say things such as “Don＇t forget to collect all your belongings.”【People often leave hats， umbrella， and bags in taxis. 】 There is a good reason for the messages. There are more than 12， 000 cabs in New York， and every year taxis get into more than 15， 000 accidents. In an accident， people who don＇t wear seat belts hit the partition， the glass wall separating the driver and passengers in the taxi. They can hurt their foreheads or break their noses or chins. Every year， about 11， 000 people are injured in this way. Many people are annoyed by the voices. Cabdrivers in particular dislike the messages.”I play the messages 12 hours a day.I hear the same voices 60 times a day. It makes me crazy， “ says Atnis， a 45-year-old cabdriver.”But if I don＇t play the messages， I get fined 100 dollars.” A lot of passengers complained， too.”It＇s too much noise， “ says a passenger， “l asked the driver to turn off the message， but he said he can＇t.” Other people think the voices are a great idea. One taxi driver says， “ People like to hear the famous voices， and they put on their seat belts more often.” And passengers from out of town really like the idea.”Most of the time， taxi drivers are in a bad mood， “says Melanie Benton， who visits New York often on business， “It＇s nice to hear a cheerful voice when you get into a cab.”3.It can be inferred from the passage that a taxi driver hears the same voices()every day.( )

A. about 5 times an hour

B. about 6 time an hour

C. about 50 times an hour

D. about 60 times an hour

1、In China it is relatively usual to ask people their age， but in the West this question is generally regarded as impolite. This is particularly true _11()women， and even more so if the inquirer is a man. However， it is very _12()to ask children their age， and some adults may not mind being asked either. In fact， some elderly people are quite happy to _13()their age， especially if they feel they look young for their age. Nevertheless， it is not very wise to ask a direct question like “How old are you?”.If elderly people want to talk about their age， they may easily14()_the topic themselves， and ask the other person to guess how old they are . They normally expect to be complimented on their youthfulness， though rather than 15() that they look very old. Even tbough Westerners do not usually ask people directly how old they are， this does not _16() that they are not interested to know how old other people are. They may ask _17()for the information， or else they may try to 18() the topic indirectly. Sometimes discussions about educational_19()and the number of years of working experience may provide some clues， but this is not always the 20().15.( )

A. being told

B. to be told

C. to tell

D. told

2、In a family where the roles of men and women are not sharply separated and where many household tasks are shared to a greater or lesser extent， notions of male superiority are hard to maintain.The pattern of sharing in tasks and in decisions makes for equality， and this in turn leads to further sharing. In such a hcme， the growing boy and girl lean场accept that equality more easily than did their parents and to prepare more fully for participation in a world characterized by cooperation rather than by the “battle of sexes.” If the process goes too far and man＇s role is regarded as less important that has happened in some cases----we are as badly off as before， only in reverse. lt is time to reassess the role of the man in the American family. We are getting a little tired of “Momism”----but we don＇t want to exchange it for a”neo-Popism.” What we need， rather， is the recognition that bringing up children involves a partnership of equals. There are signs that psychiatrists， psychologists， social workers， and specialists on the family are becoming more aware of the part men pkay and that they have decided that women should not receive all the credit----nor all the blame. We have almost given up saying that a woman＇s place is in the home. We are beginning， however， to analyze man＇s place in the home and to insist that he does have a place in it. Nor is that place irrelevant to the healthy development of the child.The family is a co-operative enterprise for which it is difficult to lay down rules. because each family needs to work out its own ways for solving its own problems. Excessive authoritarianism has unhappy consequences， whether it wears skirts or trousers， and the ideal of equal rights and equal responsibilities is pertinent not only to a healthy democracy， but also to a healthy family.2.The danger in the sharing of household tasks by the mother and father is that—.( )

A. the role of the father may become an inferior one

B. the role of the mother may become an inferior one

C. the children will grow up believing that life is a battle of the sexes

D. sharing leads to constant arguing

37.You seem to have the problem nicely worked

A. up

B. out

C. on

D. at

1、In China it is relatively usual to ask people their age， but in the West this question is generally regarded as impolite. This is particularly true _11()women， and even more so if the inquirer is a man. However， it is very _12()to ask children their age， and some adults may not mind being asked either. In fact， some elderly people are quite happy to _13()their age， especially if they feel they look young for their age. Nevertheless， it is not very wise to ask a direct question like “How old are you?”.If elderly people want to talk about their age， they may easily14()_the topic themselves， and ask the other person to guess how old they are . They normally expect to be complimented on their youthfulness， though rather than()15() that they look very old. Even tbough Westerners do not usually ask people directly how old they are， this does not _16() that they are not interested to know how old other people are. They may ask _17()for the information， or else they may try to 18() the topic indirectly. Sometimes discussions about educational_19()and the number of years of working experience may provide some clues， but this is not always the 20().11. ( )

A. of

B. to

C. for

D. with

32.This committee selected the plan that seemed most()

A. feasible

B. permitted

C. evident

D. fair

2、It is often said that politeness costs nothing. In fact， it seems that a little more politeness could save businesses £ 5 billion every year. Frequently hearing the phrase” thank you” or” well done” means the same to staff as modest pay rise. Praise and encouragement also makes employees more likely to work hard and stay in their jobs. In this way the business companies can save the cost of finding new employees. A third of 1， 000 workers surveyed by a consulting firm said they did not get thanked at all when they did well—and a further third said they were not thanked enough. In both cases， staff said they felt undervalued， meaning they were less likely to exert themselves and were more likely to look for employment elsewhere. The result of the survey shows that there would be around f 5.2 billion loss in productivity if the employees felt less appreciated.According to the firm， praising staff has the same positive effect as a 1 per cent pay rise—and works out much cheaper for bosses. Three out of four employees said that regular acknowledgement by their bosses was important to them， but only a quarter said they were actually owen as much praise as they felt they needed. The survey found that those in blue-collar and manual jobs were less likely to be given any recognition for doing well. But it seems that they most need such praise. In regional terms， Scottish staff felt most undervalued.Four out of ten workers said they were never thanked and eight out of ten said they would like more praise. However， workers in the North-East are less impressed by being praised by the boss， as only 69 per cent said they felt the need to be told “well done”regularly.Older employees and women need the most reassurance， according to psychologist Averil Leimon. She said that words of praise did more than creating a pleasant place to work—they could even promote profits.2.Workers doing well but not getting thanks from their bosses will probably ( )

A. leave for jobs elsewhere

B. work harder to get praise from their bosses

C. exert themselves in their work to get pay rise

D. work harder to get encouragement from their bosses