单项选择题
Marriage Advertisements in India
Every Sunday morning millions of Indians settle down with a cup of tea and special weekend issues of their newspapers, just as Americans do. But here, with the marriage season approaching, many of them quickly to a Sunday feature that is particularly Indian-the-columns of marriage advertisements in which young people look for husbands and wives. This is relatively modern change in the age-old custom of the arranged marriage. The thousands of advertisements published each week increasingly reflect social changes that coming to this traditional society. For example, although women are still described in terms of appearance, or skill in "the wifely arts", information about her earning power is entering more and more of the advertisements. This reflects the arrival in India of the working wife.
Divorce, which used to be almost unheard of in India, is sometimes now mentioned in the advertisements as in the case of a woman whose advertisement in New Delhi newspaper explained that had been "the innocent party" when her marriage broke up.
Because the custom of the dowry (marriage payment) is now illegal, some advertisements say "no dowry" or "simple marriage", which means the same thing. However, the fathers of many bridegrooms still require it. In a land where light skin is often regarded as socially preferable, many also require that a woman have a "wheat-color" complexion or that a man be "tall, fair and handsome". Advertisements are placed and eagerly read by a wide range of people in the upper classes, mostly in cities. Many of them receive dozens of answers."There's nothing embarrassing about it," explained a Calcutta businessman advertising a son-in-law. "It's just another way of broadening the contacts and increasing the possibility of doing the contacts and increasing the possibilities of doing the best one for one's daughter."
Because of high unemployment and a generally poor standard of living here, one of the best attractions a marriage advertisement can offer is a permit to live abroad, especially in Canada or the United States. A person who has one can get what he wants. One recent Sunday in Madras, for example, a Punjabi engineer living in San Francisco advertised for a "beautiful slim bride with lovely features knowing music and dance". And a man whose advertisement said that he held an American immigration permit was able to say, only girls from rich, well-connected families need apply.
单项选择题
Materials and Tools for Language Learning
① The range of materials and tools available to help you with your language studies is huge, from dictionaries to language courses. All of them can help you in different ways, and the appropriate use of these materials and courses will make your language learning much easier and more effective.
② Possibly the most useful tools there are for learning a language are dictionaries. Dictionaries come in a number of formats including bilingual, monolingual, illustrated, electronic and online. Bilingual dictionaries are perhaps the most useful ones for beginners and intermediate learners, while monolingual dictionaries, which are designed for native speakers, are also useful for advanced learners. Pocket dictionaries are good for quick reference and easy to carry around. Larger dictionaries are better if you want more definitions, examples of usage, and information about pronunciation, and grammar. Electronic dictionaries are available as handheld units, or as software. Handheld ones are portable, easy and quick to search, and often provide other functions, such as, text-to-speech, voice recognition and speech synthesis organizers, address books. They tend to be rather expensive though. Software dictionaries offer many of the same functions, and can be used on computers, and mobile phones.
③ The traditional courses tend to consist of textbooks containing dialogues, exercises, notes on grammar, and maybe cultural information. Accompanying cassettes, CDs and/or mp3s are often available. Most such courses are intended for complete beginners or people with only minimal knowledge of the language. Intermediate and advanced-level courses are available for some of the popular languages, such as French, German, Italian and Spanish.
④ Audio courses usually consist solely of cassettes or CDs, though some may also include a limited amount of printed material. All dialogues, exercises, instructions and explanations are recorded and the focus of these courses is teaching you to understand and speak the languages. They are very good at teaching you authentic pronunciation and a manageable amount of vocabulary.
⑤ Various computer-aided courses are available on CD-ROMs and DVDs. Each course is different but they generally include dialogues, audio, exercises and tests. Some also include phrasebooks, dictionaries, videos, games and provide online and/or telephone support.
单项选择题
Marriage Advertisements in India
Every Sunday morning millions of Indians settle down with a cup of tea and special weekend issues of their newspapers, just as Americans do. But here, with the marriage season approaching, many of them quickly to a Sunday feature that is particularly Indian-the-columns of marriage advertisements in which young people look for husbands and wives. This is relatively modern change in the age-old custom of the arranged marriage. The thousands of advertisements published each week increasingly reflect social changes that coming to this traditional society. For example, although women are still described in terms of appearance, or skill in "the wifely arts", information about her earning power is entering more and more of the advertisements. This reflects the arrival in India of the working wife.
Divorce, which used to be almost unheard of in India, is sometimes now mentioned in the advertisements as in the case of a woman whose advertisement in New Delhi newspaper explained that had been "the innocent party" when her marriage broke up.
Because the custom of the dowry (marriage payment) is now illegal, some advertisements say "no dowry" or "simple marriage", which means the same thing. However, the fathers of many bridegrooms still require it. In a land where light skin is often regarded as socially preferable, many also require that a woman have a "wheat-color" complexion or that a man be "tall, fair and handsome". Advertisements are placed and eagerly read by a wide range of people in the upper classes, mostly in cities. Many of them receive dozens of answers."There's nothing embarrassing about it," explained a Calcutta businessman advertising a son-in-law. "It's just another way of broadening the contacts and increasing the possibility of doing the contacts and increasing the possibilities of doing the best one for one's daughter."
Because of high unemployment and a generally poor standard of living here, one of the best attractions a marriage advertisement can offer is a permit to live abroad, especially in Canada or the United States. A person who has one can get what he wants. One recent Sunday in Madras, for example, a Punjabi engineer living in San Francisco advertised for a "beautiful slim bride with lovely features knowing music and dance". And a man whose advertisement said that he held an American immigration permit was able to say, only girls from rich, well-connected families need apply.
单项选择题
As Christmas is coming, there are presents to be bought, cards to be sent, and rooms to be cleaned. Parents are ___1___ with difficult jobs of hiding presents from curious young children. If the gifts are large, this is sometimes a real ___2___. On Christmas Eve, young children find the excitement almost unbearable. They are torn between the wish to go to bed early so that Father Christmas will bring their presents quickly and the wish to stay up late so that they will not miss the fun. The wish for gifts usually proves stronger. But though children go to bed early, they often lie awake for a long time, hoping to get a short ___3___ at Father Christmas.
Last Christmas, my wife and I successfully hid a few large presents in the storeroom. I ___4___ the moment when my son, Jimmy, would ask me where that new bike had come from, but ___5___ he did not see it.
On Christmas Eve, it took the children hours to go to sleep. It must have been nearly ___6___ when my wife and I went quietly into their room and began filling stockings. Then I pushed in the ___7___ I bought for Jimmy and left it beside the Christmas tree. We knew we would not get much sleep that night, for the children were ___8___ to get up early. At about five o’clock the next morning, we were woken by loud sounds coming from the children’s room — they were shouting excitedly! Before I had time to get out of bed, young Jimmy came riding into the room on his new bike, and his sister, Mary, followed close behind pushing her new baby carriage. Even the baby arrived. He moved ___9___ the hands and knees into the room dragging a large balloon behind him. Suddenly it burst. That woke us up ___10___. The day had really begun with a band!
单项选择题
Teaching Children to Spend Pocket Money Wisely
School-going children need pocket money for food, stationery and bus fares. Parents give pocket money to their children in different ways. Some give a lump sum at the beginning of a month or a week. ____1____ The way in which pocket money is given affects how money is spent or saved. On the other hand, the children's spending habits may affect how pocket money is given.
Pocket money given on a daily basis is sometimes termed as "food money". ____2____ They learn how to manage small sums of money. As the money is limited, they have to control their spending. Some parents choose this method of allocating pocket money in order to prevent their children from overspending, hoping that in time they can be trusted with larger sums of money. ____3____.
Giving pocket money on a daily basis places responsibilities of budgeting on the parents, instead of the child. The child may spend every single cent of the daily pocket money by overindulging in junk food, as they know they will get another sum of money the next day. This results in children being short-sighted in their spending. ____4____ They may develop the mentality that money is meant to be spent. Others spend more than they are given. They borrow from their siblings or their classmates when they feel like indulging themselves. Then they may ask for money to pay off their debts. This habit of borrowing causes them to depend on others to solve their problems. ____5____.
单项选择题
Spiritual Bond
Besides, do not forget to appreciate the ''spiritual bond'' between people. I've met numerous people in Japan, the US, and Australia. In the beginning, I was __1__ by the differences in the views and cultures. After studying in the US, I got __2__ to the American way of thinking. So when I first moved to Australia, I had __3__ thoughts about Australians, I thought they were quiet and passive. I felt that I couldn't understand them and that I didn't __4__ in. That is when I met the Happy Science teachings. I learned about how people go through reincarnation （转世） and are born again and again in different races and in different countries.
Therefore, I realized that the people I meet in this lifetime are __5__ connected to me from my past. We have known each other before. When I __6__ this spiritual perspective, I reflected on my narrow-Mindedness.
When I found out that people who I thought I couldn't understand could be spiritually connected to me, I felt __7__ even for people I used to __8__ .I felt a feeling of oneness and I was able to make many friends creating bonds of understanding and respect. Value and __9__ every spiritual bond between you and the people you meet and continue to work hard to develop yourself in order to __10__ others and be a good influence.
单项选择题
Personal Finance
When it comes to our finances, each of us has our own individual approach. Some of us are savers, some are spenders, and others are some-where in between. This continuum is a paradigm that our popular culture uses to frame differences in the way people approach money.
I believe that the way we approach our finances goes beyond that particular behavioral characteristic. In reality, I think our approach to finances can be viewed in more of a multi-dimensional setting, where money has a different role in our lives. For some, money means survival, plain and simple. For others, money is something that is a part of their lives but rarely on their mind, regardless of the role it actually plays. For yet others, money is an obsession, as accumulation indicates achievement. Some people view money as a defensive resource to protect against future setbacks. Some people want money to provide a good home, to contribute to the ability to have certain hobbies, or to provide something to future generations and so on. Sometimes the same person may view money differently in different situations. The bottom line is that we each have our own relationship with money, and our own conscious and subconscious needs for money, rooted in our value systems.
This is an area of personal finance that has interested me for a while. Why do people behave the way they do with respect to their money? What's driving this behavior? Of course, a starting point for anybody is to consider how you personally view things. Taking an introspective approach，I have spent time figuring out my own take on money，and the role it plays in my life. What I have determined is that for me，it fits into a framework that includes the following elements：health, wealth, and relationships. These are linked together as a part of a system. They're all connected, and to the extent one is strengthened, the others will be strengthened as well. If one is weakened, the others will be weakened as well. So to me, money is a part of the wealth aspect of HWR. Beyond basic survival, money gives you the opportunity to live a healthier life, with the time and means to have more positive relationships. One thing I want to make clear is that I am not saying that money buys friends. Well, it could, but those aren't true friends. What I am saying is that the more money you have ,on balance, the less stressed you are about it, and the more time you have to do other things, such as cultivate true, genuine relationships that aren’t based on money. Money is but a component in the system.
单项选择题
Dreams
Dreams do not happen when you're asleep. They happen when you're awake.
Whatever your goals are, always remember you can make it true. Whether it be love, money, a childhood dream, and ultimately happiness, the most important idea is that you must never lose sight of your dream.
Create reminders. Think about your original motivation often. Besides obvious factors that will come along when your dream is realized, think about other reasons. Who are you doing this dream for? Remind yourself often of your plan. Physical symbols always help—posting up pictures of the end result, buying items that symbolize your goals.
Express your dream frequently. Whisper your dream through moonlight. Shout it on a busy highway. Write it on a balloon and set it free. Write it on paper boats and float them in the ocean. Write it as a message on a bottle and float that into the ocean. Explore and try different ways of different cultures of making ishes come true, small or big: paper cranes, and shooting stars. Tell your pet if you have one. Tell it to all the people you care about in your life.
Create deadlines and punishments. For every step along the way, think of a realistic deadline. If too small, eventually you will be crashed with all the work you need and possibly never do it. If too large, you will probably forget about it. Punishments are necessary. They can be keeping yourself away from your favorite activities. Get a friend or family member to enforce this punishment.
Keep your life. Do not forget about friends, family, work, and especially yourself! Keep contact with friends and family: over the internet, visit them, write to them. Try not start skipping work to work on your dream. Keep your brain, body, and soul in good shape at all times. Sleep often, read often, and enjoy life.
Brainstorm ideas for your dream. Mind mapping (essentially creative concept mapping) is the ideal way to brainstorm. Any creative outlet will do just fine to find some creative ideas for your dream, especially writing or drawing. Any sort of art, even singing, playing music, photography, wood-carving can work. Buy a journal or two. Find inspiration.
单项选择题
How to Start Your Own Business
I have recently started a business and have learned some crucial lessons in the process that I feel privileged to share with you.
1. Identify your motivation. __1__ To have more time? To make more money? To be your own boss? To have creative control over what you love to do? Write out all of your motivating factors and prioritize them. When you see them listed, you might see a pattern in that you're just unhappy at your current job and starting your own business isn't the answer.
2. Identify your passion. What do you love to do? What skills and knowledge do you uniquely bring to the table? What gets you excited about your work? __2__ If you keep your passion in plain sight, you will stay focused on the purpose of your business and not solely on the logistics.
3. Identify your market. If you are starting your business locally, research your competitors. Determine if there is room in the market for your business. What will you do differently to draw in customers? What niche market are the other businesses missing? __3__ Your business cannot survive without customers, so do enough research on the front end to determine if there are enough potential clients to keep your business alive.
4. Identify your finances. __4__ You have to buy furniture, trash cans, a garage door opener, light fixtures and landscaping equipment, and before you know it, you've far exceeded your financial boundaries. That can happen just as easily in a business. Do exhaustive financial planning. Meet with a financial advisor or someone at your bank to examine the financial viability of your business and the process of getting it up and running. __5__ Be prepared for financial loss and get advice on how to alleviate that burden in the future.
单项选择题
The easy way out isn’t always easiest. I learned that lesson when I decided to treat Doug, my husband of one month, to a special meal. I glanced through my cook book and chose a menu which included homemade bread. Knowing the bread would take time. I started on it as soon as Doug left for work. As I was not experienced in cooking, I thought if a dozen was good, two dozen would be better, so I doubled everything. As Doug loved oranges, I also opened a can of orange and poured it all into the bowl. Soon there was a sticky dough covered with ugly yellowish marks. Realizing I had been defeated, I put the dough in the rubbish bin outside so I wouldn’t have to face Doug laughing at my work. I went on preparing the rest of the meal, and, when Doug got home, we sat down to Cornish chicken with rice. He tried to enjoy the meal but seemed disturbed. Twice he got up and went outside, saying he thought he heard a noise. The third time he left, I went to the windows to see what he was doing. Looking out, I saw Doug standing about three feet from the rubbish bin, holding the lid up with a stick and looking into the container. When I came out of the house, he dropped the stick and explained that there was something alive in out rubbish bin. Picking up the stick again, he held the lid up enough for me to see. I felt cold. But I stepped closer and looked harder. Without doubt it was my work. The hot sun had caused the dough to double in size and the fermenting yeast made the surface shake and sigh as though it were breathing. I had to admit what the living thing was and why it was there. I don't know who was more embarrassed by the whole thing—Doug or me.
