Passage Three Health-care services will account for almost one-fifth of all job growth during the 1996~2005 period. Home health-care aids will assist the elderly, disabled, and seriously ill in the patient’s home instead of a health facility. A large number of openings for this field is expected due to very rapid growth and high turnover. In fact, home health-care aids are expected to more than double in number by the end of 2005. Part of the reason for this increase is the growing population of elderly people. The number of people in their 70s and older is projected to rise substantially. This age group is characterized by mounting health problems that require assistance. There will also be an increasing reliance on home care for patients of all ages. This trend reflects several developments: Efforts to contain (抑制,控制) costs by moving patients out of hospitals and nursing facilities as quickly as possible; the realization that treatment can be more effective in familiar surroundings; and the development of portable medical equipment for in-home treatment. Turnover in this field is high, which is a reflection of the relatively low skill requirements, low pay, and high emotional demands of the work. Therefore, people who are interested in this work and properly suited for it should have excellent job opportunities, particularly those with previous experience. Physical therapy, too, is predicted to increase rapidly through 2005. A growing population of elderly people, who are vulnerable to chronic and debilitating (虚弱的) conditions, means that more therapeutic services will be needed. More young people will also need physical therapy as medical advances save the lives of a larger proportion of newborns with severe birth defects. Growth will also result from advances in medical technology that permit the treatment of more disabling conditions. In the past, for example, the development of hip and knee replacements for those with arthritis gave rise to employment for physical therapists to improve flexibility and strengthen weak muscles. The growing interest in health promotion should also increase the demand for physical therapy services. More employers are now evaluating work sites, developing exercise programs, and teaching safe work habits to employees in the hope of reducing injuries. A shortage of physical therapists that once existed has all but disappeared. The number of physical-therapy education programs has increased, and more graduates have moved into the labor force. Most graduates receive multiple job offers, and job prospects are expected to continue to be excellent. Physical therapists who are willing to work in rural areas will experience even better opportunities. The increase in home health care’ aids is partly due to ______ .
A. the declining services in some health facilities
B. the growing population of elderly people
C. the rising costs of staying in hospital
D. the mounting health problems among newborns
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Geography is the study of the relationship between people and the land. Geographers compare and contrast various places on the earth. But they also (51) beyond the individual places and consider the earth as a whole. The English word geography means "to describe the earth. " (52) geography books focus on a small area like a town or city. Others deal with a state, a region, a nation, or an (53) continent. Many geography books deal with the whole earth. Another (54) to divide the study of geography is to distinguish between physical geography and cultural geography. The former focuses on the natural world; the (55) starts with human beings and studies how human beings and their environment act (56) each other. But when geography is considered as a single subject, (57) branch can neglect the other. A geographer might be described as one who observes, records, and explains the (58) between places. If all places (59) alike, there would be little need for geographers. We know, however, that no two places are exactly the same. Geography, (60) is a point of view, a special way of looking at place.
A. second
B. later
C. next
D. latter
Passage Two When an invention is made, the inventor has three possible courses of action open to him: he can give the invention to the world by publishing it, keep the idea secret, or patent it. A granted patent is the result of a bargain made between an inventor and the state, by which the inventor gets a limited period of monopoly (垄断) and publishes full details of his invention to the public after that period terminates (终止). Only in most exceptional circumstances is the life-span of a patent extended to alter this normal process of events. The longest extension ever granted was to Georges Valensi: his 1939 patent for color TV receiver circuitry was extended until 1971 because for most of the patent’s normal life there was no color TV to receive and thus no hope of reward for the invention. Because a patent remains permanently public after it has terminated, the shelves of the library attached to the patent office contain details of literally millions of ideas that are free for anyone to use and, if older than half a century, sometimes even re-patent. Indeed, patent experts often advise anyone wishing to avoid the high cost of conducting a search through live patents that the one sure way of avoiding violation of any other inventor’s right is to plagiarize a dead patent. Likewise, because publication of an idea in any other form permanently invalidates (使无效) further patents on that idea, it is traditionally safe to take ideas from other areas of print. Much modern technological advance is based on these presumptions of legal security. Anyone closely involved in patents and inventions soon learns that most "new" ideas are, in fact, as old as the hills. It is their reduction to commercial practice, either through necessity of dedication, or through the availability of new technology, that makes news and money. The basic patent for the theory magnetic recording dates back to 1886. Many of the original ideas behind television originate from the late 19th and early 20th century. Even the Volkswagen rear engine car was anticipated by a 1904 patent of a cart with the horse at the rear. Georges Valensi’s patent lasted until 1971 because ______ .
A. nobody would offer any reward for his patent prior to that time
B. his patent could not be put to use for an unusually long time
C. there were not enough TV stations to provide color programs
D. the color TV receiver was not available until that time.
This method can save a lot of time; ________ (相比而言), the other one would waste too much.
丽芬是一位普通的农村妇女,丈夫常年在外打工,很少回家,而且经常抽烟喝酒,每年拿不了多少钱回家。丽芬除了种地、养猪、养牛之外,还要照顾上学的女儿以及多病的婆婆,是家庭的经济支柱。婆婆和丈夫都希望丽芬再生一个男孩,可丽芬自己不想再生第二胎,也一直没有怀上。因此,丈夫和婆婆对她总是冷言冷语,丈夫甚至以生不出男孩就离婚来威胁,有时还会打她。丽芬得不到丈夫的关心,觉得自己很没用,在村里抬不起头来。性格内向的丽芬向村里要好的姐妹诉苦,大家都很同情她。村里与她有类似经历的妇女有不少,但大家认为家丑不可外扬,都选择了忍耐和沉默。丽芬曾找过妇联主任和派出所民警,他们都做过丽芬家人的工作,但收效不大。村里人背地里对丽芬将家事告诉外人有些议论,也以“清官难断家务事”为由,没有给丽芬什么帮助。丽芬感觉活得很累,有过离婚的念头。可是,父母都住在弟弟家里,自己如果离婚,带着女儿能去哪里呢她想过自杀,但一想到女儿没了妈妈之后的日子,就打消了这个念头。她感到无助,自叹命不好,不得不认命。不久前,某社会工作服务机构在丽芬所在的村庄开展服务。丽芬经过一段时间的观望和了解,前来该机构求助。 从个人、小组和社区三个层面,提出解决丽芬问题的简要策略。