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It was a merry Christmas for Sharper Image and Neiman Marcus, which reported big sales increases over last year’s holiday season. It was considerably less cheery at Wal-Mart and other lowpriced chains. We don’t know the final sales figures yet, but it’s clear that high-end stores did very well, while stores catering to middle- and low-income families achieved only modest gains. Based on these reports, you may be tempted to speculate that the economic recovery is an exclusive party, and most people weren’t invited. You’d be right. Commerce Department figures reveal a startling disconnect between overall economic growth and the incomes of a great majority of Americans. In the third quarter, real G. D. P. rose at an annual rate of 8.2%. But wage and salary income, adjusted for inflation, rose at an annual rate of only 0.8%. Why aren’t workers sharing in the so-called boom Start with jobs. Employment began rising in August, but the pace of job growth remains modest, averaging less than 90 000 per month. But if the number of jobs isn’t rising much, aren’t workers at least earning more You may have thought so. After all, companies have been able to increase output without hiring more workers, thanks to the rapidly rising output per worker. Historically, higher productivity has translated into rising wages. But not this time: thanks to a weak labor market, employers have felt no pressure to share productivity gains. Calculations by the Economic Policy Institute show real wages for most workers flat or falling even as the economy expands. So who’s benefiting from the economy’s expansion The direct gains are going largely to corporate profits. Indirectly, that means that gains are going to the big stockholders, who are the ultimate owners of corporate profits. For most Americans, current economic growth is something interesting, that is, however, happening to other people. This may change if serious job creation ever kicks in, but it hasn’t so far. The big question is whether a recovery that does so little for most Americans can really be sustained. Can an economy thrive on sales of luxury goods alone We may soon find out. According to the author, who has benefited most from the current economic recovery

A. Low-income families.
B. Middle-class families.
C. Upper-class families.
D. Immigration families.

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Musicians are fascinated with the possibility that music may be found in nature; it makes our own desire for art seem all the more essential. Over the past few years no less a bold musical explorer than Peter Gabriel has been getting involved. At the Research Center in Atlanta, Georgia, he has been making music together with Kanzi, one of the bonobo apes (倭黑猩猩) involved in the long-term language acquisition studies of Sue and Duane Savage-Rumbaugh. I have seen the video of Kanzi picking notes out on a piano-like keyboard, with Gabriel and members of his band playing inside the observation booth in the lab. (They did it this way because Kanzi had bitten one of his trainers a few days previously—interspecies communication is not without its dangers. ) The scene is beautiful, the ape trying out the new machine and looking thoughtfully pleased with what comes out. He appears to be listening, playing the right notes. It is tentative but moving, the animal groping for something from the human world but remaining isolated from the rest of the band. It is a touching encounter, and a bold move for a musician whose tune Shock the Monkey many years ago openly condemned the horrors of less sensitive animal experiments than this. What is the scientific value of such a jam session The business of the Research Center is the forging of greater communication between human and animal. Why not try the fertile and mysterious ground of music in addition to the more testable arena of simple language The advantage of hearing music in nature and trying to reach out to nature through music is that, though we don’t fully understand it, we can easily have access to it. We don’t need to explain its workings to be touched by it. Two musicians who don’t speak the same language can play together, and we can appreciate the music from human cultures far from our own. Music needs no explanation, but it clearly expresses something deep and important, something humans cannot live without. Finding music in the sounds of birds, whales and other animals makes the farther frontiers of nature seem that much closer to us. Which of the following words can best describe the advantage of music

A. Controllable.
B. Explainable.
C. Accessible.
D. Testabl

Musicians are fascinated with the possibility that music may be found in nature; it makes our own desire for art seem all the more essential. Over the past few years no less a bold musical explorer than Peter Gabriel has been getting involved. At the Research Center in Atlanta, Georgia, he has been making music together with Kanzi, one of the bonobo apes (倭黑猩猩) involved in the long-term language acquisition studies of Sue and Duane Savage-Rumbaugh. I have seen the video of Kanzi picking notes out on a piano-like keyboard, with Gabriel and members of his band playing inside the observation booth in the lab. (They did it this way because Kanzi had bitten one of his trainers a few days previously—interspecies communication is not without its dangers. ) The scene is beautiful, the ape trying out the new machine and looking thoughtfully pleased with what comes out. He appears to be listening, playing the right notes. It is tentative but moving, the animal groping for something from the human world but remaining isolated from the rest of the band. It is a touching encounter, and a bold move for a musician whose tune Shock the Monkey many years ago openly condemned the horrors of less sensitive animal experiments than this. What is the scientific value of such a jam session The business of the Research Center is the forging of greater communication between human and animal. Why not try the fertile and mysterious ground of music in addition to the more testable arena of simple language The advantage of hearing music in nature and trying to reach out to nature through music is that, though we don’t fully understand it, we can easily have access to it. We don’t need to explain its workings to be touched by it. Two musicians who don’t speak the same language can play together, and we can appreciate the music from human cultures far from our own. Music needs no explanation, but it clearly expresses something deep and important, something humans cannot live without. Finding music in the sounds of birds, whales and other animals makes the farther frontiers of nature seem that much closer to us. The author seems to suggest that ______.

A. music should replace language as the major arena of animal research
B. animal experiments are more often than not cruel and inhuman
C. great progress has been made in the field of interspecies communication
D. the experiment with music may help scientific research on animals

While the college campus may be the perfect forum in which to exhibit your taste for the latest in fashion style, the interview is not the place to do so. With very few unusual exceptions, sandals and sweatshirts are out. Oxfords and business suits are still in. Even though many companies have relaxed the internal company dress code, interviews still follow the conservative standard. Don’t buck the trend. Unfortunately, most college grads are underprepared with proper interview dress. They feel they can " get by" with what is already in their wardrobe. Usually not. Remember that stylish is not conservative. You should be doing the talking, not your clothes. This is not to say that you need to go out and buy a whole new wardrobe. Go for quality over quantity. One or two well-chosen business suits will serve you all the way to the first day on the job and beyond. Then, when you are making some money, you can begin to round out your wardrobe. For now, no one will fault you for wearing the same sharp outfit each time you interview. If you are still not sure how to dress for the interview, call them and ask! But this is one time when you do not want to call the Hiring Manager—instead, ask to be put through to Human Resources. Sure, you run the risk of someone in HR thinking you are a social idiot, but that’s a lot better than having the Hiring Manager distracted by inappropriate interview dress. While many work environments have shifted to business casual as the work standard, business suits are still the interview standard. When in doubt, it is almost always better to err on the side of conservatism. One final note on interview dress: while it goes without saying that your interview elothes should be neat and clean, very few interviewees give the same time and attention to their shoes. Shoes Yes, shoes. I am aware of at least one Corporate Recruiter who forms first impressions based solely on shoes. He subjectively judges that those who pay attention to details like their shoes are also likely to be diligent in their work life. And it is not just that person’s opinion. So it is not enough to be elean, pressed, and ironed. Make sure your shoes are conservative, clean, and polished. For more information on interview dress, it’s better for you to call ______.

A. the reeeptionist
B. human resources
C. the service center
D. the hiring manager

It was 1985, and Rafe Esquith was beginning his third year of teaching in Los Angeles public schools. He faced a class of 40 sixth-graders from low-income homes where English rarely was spoken, and the best reader among them was two years below grade level. So, what the beck, he decided to teach them Shakespeare. Five families agreed to let their children play "Macbeth" for two hours after school. This proved to be so much fun that, within weeks, Esquith had 28 kids happily soaking up the drama of blood and betrayal in medieval Scotland. They were learning many words they had never heard before. But when Esquith asked a school district supervisor for official approval, he received this note: " Mr. Esquith, it is not appropriate that you stay after school to teach Shakespeare. It would be better if you did something with the children that is academic. " It would not be the last time that the narrow thinking of bigcity school administration got in Esquith’s way. Yet the bearded, 6-foot-tall cyclone has proved that a teacher who thinks very big— much harder lessons, larger projects, extra class time—can help disadvantaged children in ways most educators never imagine. This was difficult at first, until he stumbled upon a concept of teaching that is at the core of his success. American children, even those from hardworking immigrant cultures, have in Esquith’s view been wrongly taught that learning should always be fun, by teachers who think hard lessons are bad for kids from low-income homes. When faced with something difficult, such ’students don’t know what to do. The Declaration of Independence says Americans are entitled to the pursuit of happiness, but the emphasis in public schooling has been on the happiness, he believes. "What happened to pursuit" Esquith said. So he has created an entirely new universe in his classroom, cherishing effort and the slogan, "There Are No Shortcuts". As for their own dramatic performances, Esquith got around the original ban on his after-school "Macbeth" rehearsals by switching to Thornton Wilder’s " Our Town. " When that class finally performed the Shakespeare play, a school district supervisor showed up. The high-ranking district administrator came up afterward and shook his hand. "Rare," she said, " I’ve never seen Shakespeare done better. \ It is implied that most educators ______.

A. fail to realize the potential of disadvantaged students
B. fail to introduce fun into the learning of disadvantaged students
C. are unaware of the difficulty faced by disadvantaged students
D. are reluctant to admit that disadvantaged students are unfairly treated

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