Baby boomers having longer life spans care both about their retirement requirements and ab

Val MacDonald points out that baby boomers ______.

A．are more willing to talk to their parents

B．often take advantage of their parents financially

C．seldom think of sending their parents away

D．are likely to force their parents to accept their views

A、Baby Boomers

B、Gen-X

C、Gen-Y

D、Gen-Z

A．She is having a heart attack.

B．She was hurt in an accident.

C．She is having a baby,

D．She is dying.

king about the role of public education was the effect of the baby boom of the 1950's and 1960's on the schools. In the 1920's, but especially in the Depression conditions of the 1930's, the United States experienced a declining birth rate-- every thousand women aged fifteen to forty-four gave birth to about 118 live children in 1920, 89. 2 in 1930, 75. 8 in 1936, and 80 in 1940.

With the growing prosperity brought on by the Second World War and the economic boom that followed it, young people married and established households earlier and began to raise large families than had their predecessors during the Depression. Birth rate rose to 102 per thousand in 1946, 106.2 in 1950, and 118 in 1955. Although economics was probably the most important factor, it is not the only explanation for the baby boom. The increased value placed on the idea of the family also helps to explain this rise in birth rates. The baby boomers began streaming into the first grade by the mid-1940's and became a flood by 1950. The public school system suddenly found itself overtaxed. While the number of school children rose because of wartime and postwar conditions, these same conditions made the schools even less prepared to cope with the flood. The wartime economy meant that few new schools were built between 1940 and 1945. Moreover, during the war and in the boom times that followed, large numbers of teachers left their profession for better- paying jobs elsewhere in the economy.

Therefore, in the 1950'S and 1960's, the baby boom hit an old- fashioned and inadequate school system. Consequently, it was impossible to keep youths aged sixteen and older in school as in 1930's and early 1940's. Schools were to find space and staff to teach younger children aged from five to sixteen. With the baby boom, the focus of educators and of laymen interested in education inevitably turned toward the lower grade and back to basic academic skills and discipline. The system no longer had much interest in offering nontraditional, new, and extra services to older youths.

What is the passage mainly concerned with？

A．The impact of the baby boom on public education.

B．Birth rates in the United States in the 1930's and 1940's.

C．The teaching profession during the baby boom.

D．The role of the family in the 1950's and 1960's.

bout the role of public education in the 1920’s. In the 1920’s, but especially __1__the Depression of the 1930’s, the United States experienced a__2__birth rate. Then with the prosperity__3__on by the Second World War and the economic boom that followed it, young people married and__4__households earlier and began to__5__larger families than had their__6__during the Depression. Birth rates rose to 102 per thousand in 1946, 106.2 in 1950, and 118 in 1955. __7__economics was probably the most important__8__, it is not the only explanation for the baby boom. The increased value placed__9__the idea of the family also helps to__10__this rise in birth rates. The baby boomers began streaming__11__the first grade by the mid -1940’s and became a __12__by 1950. The public school system suddenly found itself __13__The wartime economy meant that few new schools were built between 1940 and 1945.__14__, large numbers of teachers left their profession during that period for better-paying jobs elsewhere.

__15__, in the 1950’s, the baby boom hit an antiquated and inadequate school system. Consequently, the custodial rhetoric of the 1930’s no longer made__16__; keeping youths ages sixteen and older out of the labor market by keeping them in school could no longer be a high__17__for an institution unable to find space and staff to teach younger children. With the baby boom, the focus of educators__18__turned toward the lower grades and back to basic academic skills and__19__. The system no longer had much__20__in offering nontraditional, new, and extra services to older youths.

1. A.in B.for C.at D.on

2. A.accelerating B.strengthening C.declining D.fluctuating

3. A.took B.produced C.brought D.carried

4. A.adopted B.incorporated C.administered D.established

5. A.increase B.raise C.erect D.generate

6. A.predecessors B.successors C.processors D.oppressors

7. A.Since B.Despite C.Although D.Unless

8. A.tenant B.determinant C.lubricant D.repentant

9. A.at B.on C.for D.with

10. A.demonstrate B.interpret C.exhibit D.explain

11. A.through B.across C.into D.towards

12. A.creek B.flood C. bonus D.pledge

13. A.overtaxed B.overdosed C.overweighed D.overlapped

14. A.Moreover B.However C.Otherwise D.Thus

15. A.Nevertheless B.Therefore C.Furthermore D.Hence fore

16. A.sense B.meaning C.sensible D.meaningful

17. A.notoriety B.compatibility C.proximity D.priority

18. A.refutably B.indispensably C.inevitably D.respectively

19. A.conference B.symposium C.seminar D.discipline

20. A.ability B.advantage C.benefit D.interest

er of students at American universities, Old is suddenly in. The reason is obvious: the graying of America means jobs, coupled with the aging of the baby-boom (生育高峰) generation, a longer life span means that the nation’s elderly population is bound to expand significantly over the next 50 years. By 2050, 25 percent of all Americans will be older than 65, up from 14 percent in 1995. The change poses profound questions for government and society, of course. But it also creates career opportunities in medicine and health professions, and in law and business as well. “In addition to the doctors, we’re going to need more sociologists, biologists, urban planners and specialized lawyers,” says Professor Edward Schneider of the University of Southern California’s (USC) School of Gerontology (老年学).

Lawyers can specialize in “elder law,” which covers everything from trusts and estates to nursing-home abuse and age discrimination (歧视). Businessmen see huge opportunities in the elder market because the baby boomers, 74 million strong, are likely to be the wealthiest group of retirees in human history. “Any student who combines an expert knowledge in gerontology with, say, an MBA or law degree will have a license to print money,” one professor says.

Margarite Santos is a 21-year-old senior at USC. She began college as a biology major but found she was “really bored with bacteria.” So she took a class in gerontology and discovered that she lied it. She says, “I did volunteer work in retirement homes and it was very satisfying.”

第31题：“... Old is suddenly in” (Line 1, Para. 1) most probably means “________”.

A) America has suddenly become a nation of old people

B) gerontology has suddenly become popular

C) more elderly professors are found on American campuses

D) American colleges have realized the need of enrolling older students

r interests，and personal philosophy．(29)One person's lifestyle. may be dominated by work，including few social activities．Another's may involve hobbies，recreational activities，or personal philosophy．

There is little doubt that lifestyle. are changing and that these changes will have an influence on the way business operates in the years ahead．Several factors are causing lifestyle. changes in US society．

First，there is more leisure time than ever before．(30)The workweek is now less than forty hours，as compared to seventy hours a century ago．Some experts believe it wilt be twenty-five hours or less before the year 2000．Several firms have adopted four-day workweeks with more hours per day．Others have cut the number of hours worked each week．Reduced work schedules mean increased leisure time．

Second，families have fewer children than before and young couples are postponing childbirth instead of having their children early in the marriages．(31)This trend has forced many businesses to modify their competitive strategies．Gerber Products Company used to advertise“babies are our business our only business．”Now Gerber products include infant clothing，stuffed animals．and accessories such as bottles，baby's carriages，and baby powder．

Third，people are better educated and more prosperous now than they were earlier．These advantages bring with them the freedom to question current lifestyles and examine new ones．Inquiries of this nature have sometimes led to personal lifestyle. changes．

(30)

A．The changes of life styles have no influence on business.

B．Different people may have completely different life styles.

C．It's doubtful what life styles are changing.

D．Life styles of different people are the same.

s their exploding population offers. Arizona's fast-growing Latino population offers the state tremendous promise and a challenge. Even more than the aging of the baby boomers, the Latino boom is fundamentally reorienting the state's economic and social structure.

Immigration and natural increase have added 600,000 young Latino residents to the state's population in the past decade. Half of the population younger than 18 in both Phoenix and Tucson is now Latino. Within 20 years, Latinos will make up half of the homegrown entry-level labor pool in the state's two largest labor markets.

What is more, Hispanics are becoming key economic players. Most people don't notice it, but Latinos born in Arizona make up much of their immigrant parents' economic and educational deficits. For example, Second-generation Mexican-Americans secure an average of 12 grades of schooling where their parents obtained less than nine. That means they erase 70 percent of their parents' lag behind third-generation non-Hispanic Whites in a single generation.

All of this hands the state a golden opportunity. At a time when many states will struggle with labor shortages because of modest population growth, Arizona has a priceless chance to build a populous, hardworking and skilled workforce on which to base future prosperity. The problem is that Arizona and its Latino residents may not be able to seize this opportunity. Far too many of Arizona's Latinos drop out of high school or fail to obtain the basic education needed for more advanced study. As a result, educational deficits are holding back many Latinos--and the state as well. To be sure, construction and low-end service jobs continue to absorb tens of thousands of Latino immigrants with little formal education. But over the long term, most of Arizona's Latino citizens remain ill-prepared to prosper in an increasingly demanding knowledge economy.

For the reason, the educational uplift of Arizona's huge Latino population must move to the center of the state's agenda. After all, the education deficits of Arizona's Latino population will severely cramp the fortunes of hardworking people if they go unaddressed and could well undercut the state's ability to compete in the new economy. At the entry level, slower growth rates may create more competition for low-skill jobs, displacing Latinos from a significant means of support. At the higher end, shortages of Latinos educationally ready to move up will make it that much harder for knowledge-based companies staff high-skill positions.

The Latino population is changing Arizona's______.

A．aging problem

B．educational system

C．economic structure

D．financial deficits

ther interests, and personal philosophy. (29)One person's lifestyle. may be dominated by work, including few social activities. Another's may involve hobbies, recreational activities, or personal philosophy.

There is little doubt that lifestyle. are changing and that these changes will have an influence on the way business operates in t he years ahead. Several factors are causing lifestyle. changes in US society.

First, there is more leisure time than ever before. (30)The workweek is now less than forty hours, as compared to seventy hours a century ago. Some experts believe it will be twenty-five hours or less before the year 2000. Several firms have adopted four-day workweeks with more hours per day. Others have cut the number of hours worked each week. Reduced work schedules mean increased leisure time.

Second, families have fewer children than before and young couples are postponing childbirth instead of having their children early in the marriages. (31)This trend has forced many businesses to modify their competitive strategies. Gerber Products Company used to advertise "babies are our business-our only business." Now Gerber products include infant clothing, stuffed animals, and accessories such as bottles, baby's carriages, and baby powder.

Third, people are better educated and more prosperous now than they were earlier. These advantages bring with them the freedom to question current lifestyles and examine new ones. Inquiries of this nature have sometimes led to personal lifestyle. changes．

(30)

A．The changes of life styles have no influence on business.

B．Different people may have completely different life styles.

C．It's doubtful what life styles are changing.

D．Life styles of different people are the same.

help their working wives. (29) Few households can pay the bills on just one salary, so the men are glad to see the second paycheck in the family. That paycheck provides money for necessities and maybe some luxuries, and it provides some security in case the husband loses his job. (29) Many men also feel that their working wives are more interesting people. Because both husband and wife have careers, they can discuss more than changing the baby's diapers or what to watch on TV. However, not all men are happy about having a wife who works. Working wives have money on their own and business associates that their husbands don't know. (30) Some husbands don't like the independence of their working wives. In addition, some husbands are unhappy because their working wives can't go out and run all the errands or stay home and cook fancy meals. (31) If a man gets angry because his wife is not his servant, the husband and wife could have marital difficulties.

So it will be very difficult for a woman in the society. On the one part, the companies don't want to hire women, so if they hired, they will reduce the salary, or increase the working time. And it is very unfair to women. On the other part, women play many roles in the family, such as mother, wife, and house-cleaner. So the husband should care more to the wife and share the burden.

(30)

A．Because their wives provide necessities and luxuries.

B．Because they can spend more money in doing so.

C．Because they can enjoy more freedom.

D．Because their wives can earn money to support the family and be interesting.