Speaker A: What’s the rate for sending a package of books surface mail to Japan Speaker B: ().
A. Do you have any friends in Japan
B. 85 cents per pound, but the limit is 11 pounds per package if you want it to go book rate.
C. I’m afraid it will take about days for these books to reach Japan.
D. The rate for surface mail is cheaper than that for airmail, but surface mail takes longer.
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With the possible exception of equal rights, perhaps the most controversial issue across the United States today is the death penalty. Many argue that it is an effective deterrent (威慑) to murder, while others maintain there is no convincing evidence that the death penalty reduces the number of murders.The principal argument advanced by those opposed to the death penalty. basically, is that Lt is cruel and inhuman punishment, that it is the mark of a brutal society, and finally that it is of questionable effectiveness as a deterrent to crime anyway.In our opinion, the death penalty is a necessary evil. Throughout recorded history there have always been those extreme individuals in every society who were capable of terribly violent crimes such-as murder. But some are more extreme than others.For example, it is one thing to take the life of another in a fit of blind rage, but quite another to coldly plot and carry out the murder of one or more people in the style of a butcher. Thus, murder, like all other crimes, is a matter of relative degree. While it could be argued with some conviction that the criminal in the first instance should be merely isolated from society, such should not be the fate of the latter type murderer.The value of the death penalty as a deterrent to crime may be open to debate. But the over whelming majority of citizens believe that the death penalty protects them. Their belief is reinforced by evidence which shows that the death penalty deters murder. For example, from 1954 to 1963, when the death penalty was consistently imposed in California, the murder rate remained between three and four murders for each 100000 population. Since 1964 the death penalty has been imposed only once, and the murder rate has risen to 10.4 murders for each 100000 population. The sharp climb in the state’s murder rate, which began when executions stopped, is no coincidence (巧合). It is convincing evidence that the death penalty does deter many murderers. If the bill reestablishing the death penalty is vetoed (否决), innocent people will be murdered— some whose lives may have been saved if the death penalty were in effect. This is literally a life or death matter. The lives of thousands of innocent people must be protected. The principal purpose of this passage is to ().
A. criticize the government B. argue for the value of the death penalty
B. speak for the majority
C. initiate a veto
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
All that he had learned only made him feel how little he knew in comparison with () remained to be known.
A. what was
B. what
C. which was
D. that
In considering how the American family is changing, the starting point is the traditional family. a form which has developed over time on the basis of a number of assumptions. It is assumed that the family is heterosexual (异性的) institution, with prescriptions about how a man and a woman ought to be joined together and live together. The proper family form is assumed to be the nuclear family, that is, a family composed of a married man and woman and their children. It is assumed that the husband is the head of the family, with ultimate authority over wife and children, and that in their clearly separated roles the husband is the income-earner and the wife is the homemaker and provider of child care. It is assumed that the family lives by itself in its own house or residence.Observers of family life have suggested that numerous changes are taking place in this traditional American family form. Included are the following general observations about trends:More men and women seem to be living together before getting married.Women and men seem to be marrying at a later age.Married couples are having fewer children.Unmarried women appear to be having more children.Wives, even mothers with small children, are increasingly likely to be employed outside the home.Marriages are more likely to end with divorce.Single-parent families are more prevalent.Remarriage is likely to follow divorce rather than widowhood.Remarriage rates are declining, especially for women.Some trends, viewed in a long-range historical context, appear not to be trends at all. The age at which men and women normally marry is the same now as it was 100 years ago, though it has fluctuated (变动,波动); a short-range increase in the 1940s and 1950s due to widespread postponement of marriage in war time made it appear that a change had occurred. Other trends appear to be following established patterns rather than representing a sharp break with tradition. Divorce rates have been increasing and families have been having fewer children for well over a century. Single-parent families and stepfamilies were very common in the past, although the reason for them was different. Many marriages formerly are dissolved and followed by remarriage because of the death of a parent or partner. Today single parenthood and remarriage are more likely to be a response to divorce.Some social scientists see in these changes the breakdown of the family, to the detriment of the society. We take the position that family institutions and systems, like all human systems, are open, take many forms, and are constantly changing. Which of the following is observed as a trend in the traditional family form().
A. Family tends to get smaller.
B. People seem to get married younger.
C. More men tend to return home.
D. Remarriage rates tend to rise.