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To many visitors to a country the word "city" means the capital city. And that in its turn means what would be taken in by a group of tourists who had set out to see the sights. To many visitors to Britain, London is where it’s all going on. The man who is tired of London is tired of life, Doctor Johnson said in 1750. Or as an updated version has it, London is where the action is. Well, that’s now it’s put down in the guide books anyway. Of course to Londoners the word city means "the City" with a capital C, that square mile eventually marked out and walled in by the Romans after they had set up their original camp by the Thames about 50 AD. Some Londoners still live there, but most Londoners are not Londoners and do not live in the London they work in. Their home is in one of the many large villages that make up London as it began spilling over and pushing out in the late 18th and 19th centuries. They live either in the inner suburbs of the Metropolitan area or the outer suburbs of the Greater London area. It’s all very expensive and overcrowded and yet more and more people are piling in and looking for a nest. For everyone who finds it too expensive and moves out, at least three are waiting to move in. Where does Britain really begin In London Well, does France begin in Paris Only a Parisian or a Londoner would make this claim and Londoners are scarcer than Parisians these days. What! With nine million inhabitants You might ask in astonishment. But what is meant by that is that these days in London if you’re in a roomful of people the chances of coming across a second-generation Londoner are about one in a hundred. And a third-generation Londoner is something to make people’s eyes pop. The old Londoners have died off, or moved out of a London they could no longer put up or identify with. Equally, the new Londoners cannot identify with something that for them has no identity as such. For London is not England, let alone Britain, neither in its inner nor outer suburbs. Any other city stands for its region in a way capital never can. The needs for a centre for commerce, finance and government have conspired to set up these artificial growths, and London like most capitals is a huge, tension-filled, problem-filled, necessary anomaly. For all that, London is still growing though it’s much slower external growth today, not like a tree putting on a new ring each year or a middle-aged waistline suddenly expanding. Outside, beyond the limits where the city runs out and agriculture and nature begin, is still for many people the beginning of reality. For them the real roots still lie in the land they have "got away from" or at heart want to get back to, or if they are true city-dwellers, imagine they want to go to throw off the artificial life. But no one is ever completely satisfied. The trouble about cities is that they can grow on one in true love-hate fashion and while the grass always looks greener in the next village it usually turns out not to be. The author suggests that the middle-aged can suddenly ______.

A. get thin
B. become fatter
C. become thinner
D. fall ill

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An insurance agent called me this morning. This particular agent wanted to discuss my automobile coverage, but the next agent to call might be interested in my life insurance program, my health insurance, or fire protection for my home and furniture. The American consumer often feels constantly disturbed by insurance agents. Many agents selling many different policies call us by phone and sometimes even come to our doors. These insurance agents are always friendly, well-dressed, and eager to be of help. Yet few Americans really enjoy visiting with these eager, helpful men and women. We are not happy when they call us; we are on guard when they visit our homes. They are never really our friends; at best, they are a necessary evil, and insurance, too. Three reasons why we are unwilling to discuss insurance can be suggested. First of all, insurance is expensive. A young father who purchases a fairly small life insurance policy agrees to pay a sum of $200 every year for 40 years—a total of $8,000. Many college students pay $800 to $1,000 per year for car insurance. In effect, they pay as much for the insurance as they do for the car itself. Health insurance that pays for modern medical miracles often costs Americans as much as $2,000 every year. Adequate insurance is expensive; it is a major item for most families. Insurance also reminds us that we live in an unsafe world. We are human and we must face the possibilities of illness, injury, death and financial loss. Our rational minds recognize the many unfortunate events that can occur, but in our hearts we hope that we might be spared. Serious injury or death is not a pleasant subject to discuss or even consider. We are afraid; we would rather talk about football or the weather or what we had for lunch. Finally, insurance is a difficult, complex subject. No one understands it completely and only a few insurance professionals really feel comfortable in a discussion of automobile, life, and major medical coverage. We feel inadequate and try to hide our ignorance by avoiding discussions of insurance. Yet these three reasons for not discussing insurance provide three excellent reasons why we should learn more about it. Insurance is expensive. In a lifetime, many of us spend as much on insurance as we do on the purchase of a home. If we are to spend our money intelligently, we need information about the products and services available. We don’t depend entirely on salespeople when we buy a car, a house, or a suit of clothes. Neither should we depend entirely on the agent when we buy insurance. We need a basic knowledge of insurance coverage if we are to be intelligent consumers. The intelligent consumer looks problems in the face. Although accident, illness, and death are not pleasant subjects, each of us knows we face these possibilities. It is better that we plan for these situations by finding means to deal with them than to just hope that they will somehow go away. Although insurance can be complex, its basic concepts are neither difficult nor impossible to learn. Quite the opposite. Insurance fundamentals can be understood by those willing to study them. Serious study provides knowledge. The study of insurance is an effective, proven method of dealing with the insurance ignorance faced by many American families. The passage tells us that insurance is ______.

A. a service too expensive for people to enjoy
B. a necessary evil we must look in the face
C. an unhappy topic we should avoid talking about
D. a very complex subject we don’t have to understand

Congratulations! You wowed your prospective employers on your first interview and have been called back for an encore. So, how will the second interview be different from the first This time around, expect to spend more time at the company, talk to more people, individually and collectively, and have your skills and personality scrutinized more closely. The Employer’s Point of View From an employer’s perspective, the second interview is a chance to closely evaluate a candidate’s abilities and interpersonal skills. Your prospective employer wants to see that you can do the job and work well with colleagues. Be aware that many employers bring in several candidates on the same clay to streamline the second interview process. Your challenge is to distinguish yourself from the other candidates. To show you’re a good fit with the company, focus on explaining how your abilities and experiences would enable you to do the job. Be specific. Offer concrete examples that highlight your competence and compatibility. Who You’ll Meet On your first interview, you probably met with one or two people. This time, be prepared to meet several more over the course of the day, including potential managers, coworkers and other staff members. You may meet individually with several people, who will most likely ask you similar questions. Keep your answers consistent but mix up your delivery so that your answers don’t sound stale or staged. If possible, before the interview acquire a list of the people you’ll he meeting with and do a little research on each one. Then ask questions that show your knowledge of each person. If you meet with a panel or group, be sure to make eye contact with both the individual asking the question and the group as a whole. Steps for Follow Up It’s rare to receive an offer on the spot, but it does happen occasionally. If the feedback is consistently positive over the course of the day, you may get a job offer at the end of the interview. If that happens, don’t make a hasty decision. Ask for time to think about it. If you don’t get an offer, be sure to immediately send a brief thank you note to every person you spoke with. Some companies make hiring decisions in a matter of days, but many can take weeks to make their final choice. Be patient, be flexible and be ready for an offer or an invitation for yet another interview. What’s the right attitude towards the second interview

A. Impatient and anxious to know the result.
B. Forget it and have another try.
C. Make a call for a claim.
D. Be patient, flexible and ready for it.

An insurance agent called me this morning. This particular agent wanted to discuss my automobile coverage, but the next agent to call might be interested in my life insurance program, my health insurance, or fire protection for my home and furniture. The American consumer often feels constantly disturbed by insurance agents. Many agents selling many different policies call us by phone and sometimes even come to our doors. These insurance agents are always friendly, well-dressed, and eager to be of help. Yet few Americans really enjoy visiting with these eager, helpful men and women. We are not happy when they call us; we are on guard when they visit our homes. They are never really our friends; at best, they are a necessary evil, and insurance, too. Three reasons why we are unwilling to discuss insurance can be suggested. First of all, insurance is expensive. A young father who purchases a fairly small life insurance policy agrees to pay a sum of $200 every year for 40 years—a total of $8,000. Many college students pay $800 to $1,000 per year for car insurance. In effect, they pay as much for the insurance as they do for the car itself. Health insurance that pays for modern medical miracles often costs Americans as much as $2,000 every year. Adequate insurance is expensive; it is a major item for most families. Insurance also reminds us that we live in an unsafe world. We are human and we must face the possibilities of illness, injury, death and financial loss. Our rational minds recognize the many unfortunate events that can occur, but in our hearts we hope that we might be spared. Serious injury or death is not a pleasant subject to discuss or even consider. We are afraid; we would rather talk about football or the weather or what we had for lunch. Finally, insurance is a difficult, complex subject. No one understands it completely and only a few insurance professionals really feel comfortable in a discussion of automobile, life, and major medical coverage. We feel inadequate and try to hide our ignorance by avoiding discussions of insurance. Yet these three reasons for not discussing insurance provide three excellent reasons why we should learn more about it. Insurance is expensive. In a lifetime, many of us spend as much on insurance as we do on the purchase of a home. If we are to spend our money intelligently, we need information about the products and services available. We don’t depend entirely on salespeople when we buy a car, a house, or a suit of clothes. Neither should we depend entirely on the agent when we buy insurance. We need a basic knowledge of insurance coverage if we are to be intelligent consumers. The intelligent consumer looks problems in the face. Although accident, illness, and death are not pleasant subjects, each of us knows we face these possibilities. It is better that we plan for these situations by finding means to deal with them than to just hope that they will somehow go away. Although insurance can be complex, its basic concepts are neither difficult nor impossible to learn. Quite the opposite. Insurance fundamentals can be understood by those willing to study them. Serious study provides knowledge. The study of insurance is an effective, proven method of dealing with the insurance ignorance faced by many American families. What would you do if you are going to buy insurance

A. Depend entirely on an insurance agent.
B. Choose an expensive policy for its good service.
C. Pay as little as possible to save money.
D. Have a basic knowledge of insurance coverage.

Congratulations! You wowed your prospective employers on your first interview and have been called back for an encore. So, how will the second interview be different from the first This time around, expect to spend more time at the company, talk to more people, individually and collectively, and have your skills and personality scrutinized more closely. The Employer’s Point of View From an employer’s perspective, the second interview is a chance to closely evaluate a candidate’s abilities and interpersonal skills. Your prospective employer wants to see that you can do the job and work well with colleagues. Be aware that many employers bring in several candidates on the same clay to streamline the second interview process. Your challenge is to distinguish yourself from the other candidates. To show you’re a good fit with the company, focus on explaining how your abilities and experiences would enable you to do the job. Be specific. Offer concrete examples that highlight your competence and compatibility. Who You’ll Meet On your first interview, you probably met with one or two people. This time, be prepared to meet several more over the course of the day, including potential managers, coworkers and other staff members. You may meet individually with several people, who will most likely ask you similar questions. Keep your answers consistent but mix up your delivery so that your answers don’t sound stale or staged. If possible, before the interview acquire a list of the people you’ll he meeting with and do a little research on each one. Then ask questions that show your knowledge of each person. If you meet with a panel or group, be sure to make eye contact with both the individual asking the question and the group as a whole. Steps for Follow Up It’s rare to receive an offer on the spot, but it does happen occasionally. If the feedback is consistently positive over the course of the day, you may get a job offer at the end of the interview. If that happens, don’t make a hasty decision. Ask for time to think about it. If you don’t get an offer, be sure to immediately send a brief thank you note to every person you spoke with. Some companies make hiring decisions in a matter of days, but many can take weeks to make their final choice. Be patient, be flexible and be ready for an offer or an invitation for yet another interview. Which of the following is NOT the purpose of the second interview according to the passage

A. To discuss the salary.
B. To closely evaluate a candidate’s abilities.
C. To see whether you can do the job and cooperate well with colleagues.
D. To evaluate your interpersonal skills.

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