第一篇
　　 When IBM announced an overhaul of its pension plan for employees in America last week, it joined a parade of employers that are shifting more responsibility for saving for retirement on to workers. For many Americans, of course, this is nothing new: millions of them have been managing their retirement assets in individual accounts for years. Nevertheless, in both America and Britain the closure of paternalistic(家长式作风的，感情主义的) corporate "defined benefit" programmes, in which pensions depend on earnings and years of service, is accelerating—even at healthy companies such as IBM.
　　 To the extent that this creates and encourages individual choice and responsibility, it is something to welcome rather than to fear. Many other countries, facing huge state—pension obligations, would also like to see their citizens assume a bigger role in providing for their own retirement. Even so, the trend raises an important question: how much do people due to take on these new responsibilities know about basic financial concepts?
　　 The answer seems to be; not much, and less than they think they do. Studies show that many people overestimate their knowledge of everything from inflation to risk diversification and compound interest. One survey in Australia found that 37% of people who owned investments did not know that they could fluctuate in value. In America 31% did not know that the finance charge on a credit-card-statement is what they pay to use credit. Britain’s Financial Services Authority will release the results of its own survey on financial literacy in the next month or two.
　　 Even educated professionals may know the basics but see no need to keep up to date—having no idea of the interest rates on their credit cards, the fees on their mutual funds or how their investments are doing. But in both America and Britain low personal saving rates (negative in America, indeed) and record numbers of personal bankruptcies do not bode well. If people are to take charge of their pensions, shouldn’t they know a little more?
　　 In the end, ignorance could rebound on governments: if people save too little for old age, the state may have to provide for them willy-nilly(不管愿意与否). "Governments are taking this very seriously." says Barbara Smith of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, which recently produced a report on global financial literacy.Just this week the British govern- ment launched an online debt calculator for overstretched consumers and a money-management course for teenagers that will be offered in schools across the country later this year. New Zealand is another country trying to catch its people young; one official financial—information website there (www.sorted.org.nz) includes an online game on "Money Island".
　　 词汇：bankruptcy n. 破产，倒闭 overhaul n. 彻底革新
　　 bode vt./vi. 预示，预兆 diversification n. 分散化，多种经营
31. It is informed in the text that__________.
A. IBM cannot help but overhaul its pension plan
B. IBM takes much responsibility for saving for retirement
C. workers will assume more financial responsibility for their old age
D. most Americans have taken on responsibility for saving for retirement

32. Corporate "defined benefit" programmes will come to an end primarily because________.
A. most companies are not so healthy as IBM
B. it can help companies relieve their pension obligations
C. millions of Americans have opened their individual accounts for years
D. more factors should be taken into consideration for a healthy pension plan

33. If one is to assume more financial responsibility, he should have more knowledge about_____.
A. risk diversification
B. basic financial concepts
C. how much he pays to use credit
D. the fluctuation in value of his investment

34. It can be inferred from the text that________.
A. even professionals are short of financial information
B. personal saving rates will no doubt increase remarkably
C. professionals are usually better prepared for their retirement
D. there will be less personal bankruptcies in both America and Britain

35. The main idea of this text is that_________.
A. most people are very ignorant about investment
B. individuals should have more choices and responsibility
C. individuals should be better prepared for their retirement
D. government should provide official financial-information

　　 第二篇
　　 Nursing at Beth Israel Hospital produces the best patient care possible. If we are to solve the nursing shortage,hospital administration and doctors everywhere would do well to follow Beth Israel's example.
　　 At Beth Israel each patient is assigned to a primary nurse who vistits at length with the patient and constructs a full-scale health account that covers everything from his medical history to his emotional state. Then she writes a care plan centered on the patient's illness but which also includes everything else that is necessary.
　　 The primary nurse stays with the patient through his hospitalization, keeping track with his progress and seeking further advice from his doctor. If a patient at Beth Israel is not responding to treatment, it is not uncommon for his nurse to propose another approach to his doctor. What the doctor at Beth Israel has in the primary nurse is a true colleague.
　　 Nursing at Beth Israel also involves a decentralized nursing administration; every floor, every unit is a self-contained organization. There are nurse-managers instead of head nurses; in addition to their medical duties they do all their own hiring and dismissing, employee advising, and they make salary recommendations. Each unit's nurses decide among themselves who will work what shifts and when.
　　 Beth Israel's nurse-in-chief ranks as an equal with other vice president of the hospital. She also is a member of the Medial Executive Committee, which in most hospitals includes only doctors.
36. Which of the following best characterizes the main feature of the nursing system at Beth Israel Hospital? __________.
A. The doctor gets more active professional support from the primary nurse
B. Each patient is taken care of by a primary nurse day and night
C. The primary nurse writes care plans for every patient
D. The primary nurse keeps records of the patient's health conditions-every day

37. It can be inferred from the passage that_________.
A. compared with other hospitals nurses at Beth Israel Hospital are more patient
B. in most hospitals patient care is inadequate from the professional point of view
C. Nursing at Beth Israel Hospital is still not enough
D. As to Beth Israel Hospital, there is a long way to go

38. A primary nurse can propose a different approach of treatment when_______.
A. the present one is refused by the patient
B. the patient complains about the present one
C. the present one proves to be ineffective
D. the patient is found unwilling to cooperate

39. The main difference between a nurse-manager and a head nurse is that the former_________.
A. is a member of the Medical Executive Committee of the hospital
B. has to arrange the work shifts of the unit's nurses
C. can make decisions concerning the medical treatment of a patient
D. has full responsibility in the administration of the unit's nurses

40. The author's attitude towards the nursing system at Beth Israel Hospital in_________.
A. negative
B. neutral
C. critical
D. positive

　　 第三篇
　　 There are desert plants which survive the dry season in the form of inactive seeds. There are also desert insects which survive as inactive larvae (幼虫). In addition, difficult as it is to believe, there are desert fish which can survive through years of drought(干旱) in the form of inactive eggs. These are the shrimps (小虾) that lie in the Mojave Desert, an intensely dry region in the south-west of the United States where shade temperatures of over 50℃ are often recorded.
　　 The eggs of the Mojave shrimps are the size and have the appearance of grains of sand. When sufficient spring rain falls to form a lake, once every two to five years, these eggs hatch(孵化). Then the water is soon filled with millions of tiny shrimps about a millimetre long which feed on tiny plant and animal organisms which also grow in the temporary desert lake. Within a week, the shrimps grow from their original 1 millimetre to a length of about 1.5 centimetres.
　　 Throughout the time that the shrimps are rapidly maturing, the water in the lake equally rapidly evaporates. Therefore, for the shrimps it is a race against time. By the twelfth day, however, when they are about 3 centimetre long, hundreds of tiny eggs form on the underbodies of the females. Usually by this time, all that remains of the lake is a large, muddy patch of wet soil. On the thirteenth day and the next, during the final hours of their brief lives, the shrimps lay their eggs in the mud. Then, having ensured that their species will survive the shrimps die as the last of the water evaporates.
　　 If sufficient rain falls the next year to form another lake, the eggs hatch, and once again the shrimps pass rapidly through their cycle of growth, adulthood, egg-laying, and death. Some years there is insufficient rain to form a lake: in this case, the eggs will remain dormant for another year, or even longer if necessary. Very, very occasionally, perhaps twice in a hundred years, sufficient rain falls to form a deep lake that lasts a month or more. In this case, the species passes through two cycles of growth, egg-laying, and death. Thus, on such occasion, the species multiplies considerably, which further ensures its survival.
41. Which of the following is the MOST distinctive feature of Mojave shrimps?
A. Their lives are brief
B. They feed on plant and animal organisms
C. Their eggs can survive years of drought
D. They lay their eggs in the mud

42. By saying "for the shrimps it is a race against time" (Sentence 2, Para. 3) the author means_______.
A. they have to swim fast to avoid danger in the rapidly evaporating lake
B. they have to swim fast to catch the animal organisms on which they survive
C. they have to multiply as many as possible within thirteen days
D. they have to complete their life cycle within a short Span of time permitted by the environment

43. The Passage mainly deals with________.
A. the life span of the Mojave shrimps
B. the survival of desert shrimps
C. the importance of water to life
D. life in the Mojave Desert

44. The word “dormant" (Sentence 2, Para.4) most probably means_________.
A. inactive
B. strong
C. alert
D. soft

45. It may be inferred from the Passage that
A. appearance and size are most important for life to survive in the desert
B. a specie must he able to multiply quickly in order to survive
C. for some species on life cycle in a year is enough to survive the desert drought
D. some species develop a unique life pattern to survive in extremely harsh conditions

参考答案
第一篇
31. C    32. B    33. B    34. A    35. C
第二篇
36. A    37. B    38. C    39. D    40. D
第三篇
41. C    42. D    43. B    44. A    45. D