According to the economist, the hiring is a good sign of economic recovery, _ some positions will be temporary.A. only ifB. what ifC. as ifD. even if

Part II Language in UseSection ADirections: Choose the ONE that best completes each sentence from the four choices marked A, B, C) and D.1. Pause and ____ when you get to a certain point in the journey of life. Know your destination and mind the true destiny you shall form upon reaching your final destination.A) proposeB) ponderC) pronounceD) provide2. By opening a novel, I can ____ my burdens and enter into a wonderful and mysterious world where I am now a new character.A) leave behindB) leave offC) pay offD) remain behind3. We spent the night ____ old photographs my grandmother had left behind.A) figuring outB) figure outC) sorting throughD) sort through4. Each time you look up into the night sky, let the stars ____ you that if you have bright enough you can be a glimmer of hope to someone even if they are a million miles away.A) receiveB) reactC) recallD) remind5. Find your favorite ____ and start exploring them deeper and deeper. Let's see how far you can reach the limit in your life.A) scheduleB) shelterC) significanceD) stuff

To win today, companies must be powered by people who have the ______ to see how the world around them is impacting their business and shift quickly to keep up with the times.A. convictionB. momentumC. sentimentD. foresight

Don’t ask whether the proposed 3 billion merger (兼并) of United Airlines and Continental will benefit you. It won’t. Because this isn’t about you. It’s about them. Specifically, it’s about the need for the airlines to raise fares and increase revenues after years of unreasonable discounting that led to billions in losses. “For the airlines, it’s a good thing,” says Matthew Smith, an airline analyst (分析师) at Majestic Research. “By not having as much supply, they can fly fuller planes, charge higher prices and operate more efficiently. For the customers, well, I don’t think they’re going to see planes that are only two-thirds full or bargain – basement prices from airlines desperate to fill seats.” In a joint press release, the new company promised “strong competitive pressure on fares,” but in reality that pressure has been coming from budget carriers such as Southwest and JetBlue. Those of us in the back of the bus may have to worry about employees who have lost some seniority (老资格) in a joined workforce. Labor issues might be a problem, says Perkins, contributing editor of He remembers the strike of 1985 in United Airlines. “If and when they start making money,” says Perkins, “those unions could turn around and say, ‘We gave it up when you needed it. Where’s our share? ’” The potential for a strike worries him, since the new united company will hold 21 percent of the market and finding a replacement seat in the event of a strike could be next to impossible. As for fares, there’s no place to go but up. After Delta merged with Northwest, fares on their combined routes rose at least 10 percent, according to George Hobica, founder of But that’s no reason to panic. “The vast majority of leisure travel is optional,” he says. “When airlines raise fares, people stop flying. So they’ll have to be careful.” Even if this merger prompts a US Airways link-up and even more integration, Hobica doesn’t think we’re going to see wild fare increases. But it definitely means that you have to say goodbye to the past. “I’ve enjoyed the ride,” says Hobica with a sigh. “But the party’s over.”1. What can we learn from the first paragraph?A) The merged airlines will get their revenues increased soon after.B) After the merger, airlines have to try harder to make the planes full.C) The merged airlines will no longer offer discount to attract customers.D) Before the merger, airlines have suffered great loss from discounting. 2. The word “promised” (Para. 1) most closely means ___________.A) predicted in advance B) gave a commitmentC) explained in detailD) looked forward to3. What does Perkins worry about?A) The new airline company doesn’t want to employ senior workers.B) The new airline company holds too much share of the market.C) If a strike happens, the new airline company will face a hard situation. D) If the new airline makes money, its labor unions may share the profit.4. What does Hobica mean by “the party’s over” at the end of the passage?A) Leisure travel will never come back again.B) The days when fares were cheap are gone. C) People may choose other means of travelling.D) The merger of airline companies is common now.5. What does the author think of the merger of the two airline companies?A) It will bring mixed blessings to the two companies. B) It will cause much pressure to other airline companies.C) It will create panic among its employees and customers.D) It will enable the two companies to survive in the market.

This year's pandemic (流行病) spreads around the globe with record-breaking speed. It has taken less than two months for the H1N1 to spread, while previous pandemics took six months or longer. Yet Dr. Keiji Fukuda of the World Health Organization warns this global occurrence is still in the early stages. "We have a very large global population, and it is quite clear that we'll continue to see spread of this virus through countries, and then among countries," he said. Most of the patients have been teenagers, between 12 and 17 years old. But the virus is spreading more deeply into many communities and the WHO says the average age of patients now appears to be getting slightly older. While young people and pregnant women are still at higher risk for contracting the H1N1 virus, health officials also caution that patients with certain diseases are easy to be infected. Some clinical trials of potential vaccines (疫苗) are underway, others will start soon. The European Medicines Agency says large-scale clinical trials will be ignored in order to get vaccines into the general population as soon as possible. Health officials in Britain, Greece, France and Sweden have announced they will begin inoculations (接种) among the public possibly within weeks. The WHO's Dr. Fukuda has not criticized that decision, but expressed concern about rushing vaccine production too soon. "There are certain things which cannot be compromised," he explains. "And one of the things which cannot be compromised is the safety of vaccines. There can't be any questions whether the vaccine is safe or not." Meanwhile, WHO says countries with widespread infections have switched from reporting individual testing of all patients to monitoring and reporting trends in the population. According to the WHO, testing of patients has strained the laboratory capacity of many countries. Dr. Fukuda believes health officials can still accurately predict the pandemic's size. "We know that the total number of laboratory confirmed cases is really only a part of the total number of cases," he asserts. Recently, the international health organization said it would no longer publish global tables reporting the number of new cases for all countries.1. According to the passage, H1N1 is different from other pandemics in that it can ________.A) pose special threat to teenagersB) spread with an alarming speed C) infect people of all racesD) cause much more deaths2. What does Dr. Keiji Fukuda think of the future development of H1N1?A) It will reach its final stage in six months.B) It will stop as vaccines are underway.C) It will spread among more countries. D) It will become milder as winter comes.3. On average, who are most likely to be infected with H1N1?A) Newly born babies.B) People with colds.C) Old people.D) Young people. 4. What does Dr. Fukuda think of the inoculations of vaccines in Europe?A) He is worried about the side-effects of the vaccines.B) He is concerned with the safety of the vaccines. C) He is doubtful of the effectiveness of the vaccines.D) He is critical of the use of vaccines without trials.5. According to the WHO, the current focus of fighting against H1N1 should be on ________.A) predicting the future trend B) researching effective vaccinesC) treating infected patientsD) reporting numbers of cases

Denise has a worsening eye problem that leaves her unable to drive. ________, she recently fell and broke her ankle and now has to use a wheelchair to get around her house.A. Keeping things badB. Making things worseC. Putting bad things togetherD. To make matters worse

_______different life today it is from ______was fifty years ago!A. What a; whatB. How ; whatC. What;  whatD. What a;  how

The Japan-based team collected samples in waters from the U.S., Europe, India, Japan, and elsewhere. All the samples were found to contain compounds that derive from polystyrene (聚苯乙烯) - a common plastic used in disposable cutlery, Styrofoam (聚苯乙烯泡沫塑料), and DVD cases, among other things. These toxic compounds don't occur naturally in the ocean, and the researchers thought plastic was the culprit.The lead researcher of the team said that plastic should be considered a new source of chemical pollution in the ocean. The team later simulated the decomposition of polystyrene in the sea and found that it degraded at temperatures of 86 Fahrenheit (30 degrees Celsius). Left behind in the water were the same compounds detected in the ocean samples, such as bisphenol A (BPA) and styrene trimer. BPA, a chemical used in hard plastics such as reusable water bottles, has been shown to interfere with the reproductive systems of animals, while styrene trimer is a substance suspected of causing cancer.What does the Japanese research team's simulation study suggest?A. Polystyrene is indeed the source of pollutants found in ocean waters.B. It is very difficult for most plastics to break down in cool temperatures.C. The compounds in polystyrene are different from those found in the ocean.D. There are some other sources of chemical pollution in the ocean besides plastic.