Part I Reading Comprehension (30%)
Directions: There are three passages in this part. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A, B, C and D. You should decide on the best choice and blacken the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet.
Passage 1
Questions 1 to 5 are based on the following passage:
The multi-billion-dollar Western pop music industry is under fire. It is being blamed by the United Nations for the dramatic rise in drug abuse worldwide. “The most worrying development is a culture of drug-friendliness,”says the UN's International Narcotics Control Board in a report released last year.
The 74-page study says that pop music, as a global industry, is by far the most influential trend-setter for young people of most cultures.“Some songs encourage people to take drugs. (76) Certain pop stars make statements and set examples as if the use of drugs for non-medicinal purposes were a normal and acceptable part of a person's lifestyle,”the study says.
Surprisingly, says the Board, the effect of drug-friendly pop music seems to survive despite the occasional shock of death by overdose (过量用药). “Such incidents tend to be seen as an occasion to mourn (哀悼) the loss of a role model, and not an opportunity to face the deadly effect of drug use,”it notes. Since the 1970s, several internationally famous singers and movie stars--including Elvis Presley, Janice Joplin, John Belushi, Jimi Hendrix, Jonathan Melvin and Andy Gibbs--have died of eitherdrug abuse or drugrelated illnesses. With the globalization of popular music, messages promoting, drug abuse are now reaching beyond their countries of origin. “In most countries, the names of certain POP stars have become familiar to the members of every household,”the study says.
The UN study also blames the media for its description of certain drug incidents, which encourages rather than prevents drag abuse. “Over the past years, we have seen how drug abuse is increasingly regarded as being acceptable or even attractive,”says Hamid Ghodse, president of the Board. “Powerful pressure groups mn political campaigns aimed at legalizing controlled drugs,”he says. Ghodse also points out that all thee developments have created an environment which is tolerant(容忍的) of or even favorable to drug abuse and spoils international drug prevention effortscurrently under way.
The study focuses on demand reduction and prevention within an environment that has become tolerant of drug abuse. The Board calls on governments to do their legal and moral duties, and to act against the pro-drug (赞成吸毒) messages of the youth culture to which young people increasingly are be'rug exposed.
1. Which of the following statements does ,the author tend to agree with?
A. The use of drags for non-medicinal purposes is, an acceptable part of a person's lifestyle.
B. The spreading ofpop music may cause drag abuse to go beyond country boundaries.
C. No efforts have been made to prevent the spreading of drag abuse.
D. Governments have no ability to act against the pro-drag messages of the youth culture.
2. The expression “under fire”? in the first paragraph means
A. in an urgent situation B. facing some problems C. being criticized D. in trouble
3. From the third paragraph, we learn that the youth
A. tend to mourn the pop stars who died of overdose as role models
B. are shocked to know even pop stars may abuse dmgs
C. try to face the deadly effect of drug use
D. may stop abusing drugs
4. Which of the following is. not mentioned as tolerant of drug abuse?
A. The spreading of pop music.
B. The media.
C. Political campaigns run by powerful pressure groups.
D. The low price of some drags.
5. According to the passage, pop music
A. has a great influence on young people of most cultures
B. attracts a small number of young people
C. is not a profitable industry
D. is alone responsible for drug abuse
Passage 2
Questions 6 to 10 are based on the following passage:
There are many older people in the world and there will be manymore. A liMe-known fact is that over 60 percent of the older people live in developing countries. According to the World Health Organization, by 2020 there will be 1 billion, with over 700 million living in developing countries.
It is a surprising fact that the population ageing is particularly rapid in developing countries. For example, it took France 115 years for the proportion of older people to double from 7 percent to 14 percent. It is estimated to take China a mere 27 years to achieve this same increase.
What arethe implications of these increased numbers of older folk? (77) One of the biggest worries for governments is that the longer people live. the more likelihood there is for diseases and for disability( 残疾). Attention is being paid to the need to keep people as healthy as possible, including during old age, to lessen the financial burden on the state.
(78) Another significant problem is the need for the younger generations to understand and value the older people in their society. In some African couintries, certainly in Asia, older people are respected and regarded as the ones~ with special knowledge. Yet traditions are fading away daily, which does not ensure the continued high regard of older people. As society changes, attitudes will change.
Much needs to be done to get rid of age discrimination (歧视) in employment. Life-long learning programs need to be provided to enable older peopleto be active members in a country's development.
Social security policies need to be established to provide adequate income protection for older people. Both public and private schemes are vital in order to, build a suitable safety net.
To achieve equality in such matters will take considerable time and effort. One thing is sure: there is no time to be lost.
6. The proportion of older people
A. is bigger in developed countries than in developing countries
B. is one-seventh of the population developing countries
C. will increase much faster in China than in France
D. will be sixty percent in developing countries by 2020
7. According to the passage, which of the following are governments most worded about?
A. The diseases and disability of older people.
B. The longer life and good health of people.
C. The loss of taxes on older people.
D. The increasing respect for older people.
8. It is stated directly in the passage that older people should
A. be treated differently in different cultures
B. enjoy a similar lifestyle
C. be ignored as society changes
D. be valued by the younger generations
9. Which of the following measures is NOT mentioned to solve the population ageing problem?
A. Getting rid of age discrimination in employment.
B. Ensuring adequate income protection for older people.
C. Providing free health care for sick older people.
D. Supplying life-long learning programs to older people.
10. The author concludes in the last paragraph that
A. governments have spent lots of time in solving the ageing problem
B. population ageing is a hard problem, but it needs to be solved urgently
C. people are too busy to solve the population ageing problem
D. much time and effort will be lost in solving the ageing problem
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