大学四级阅读SectionA.doc

1Over a hundred years ago, Charles Dickens shocked many of his readers when he described the conditions under which young children worked in British factories. The conditions Dickens described continue almost _1_ today in many parts of the world. The only difference is that today _2_ of children is limited to small industries and family businesses, such as hotels, restaurants and _3_ farms, rather than to large factories. Girls _4_ more from child labor practices than boys. Many of them are forced to start work when they are only ten years old. Although the work they are given to do is often light, it is often _5_ to the health. _6_, children as young as six years were found to be working in Asian factories, and the children were working from eight to fourteen hours a day in overcrowded and unhealthy working _7_. Sometimes a whole family group is employed, with the _8_ going to a parent or older relative. The children not only receive nothing or very little for their long hours of work, but also they are prevented from attending school. Therefore, when they become older they are unable to do any other kind of work. The _9_ to the problem of child labor is clearly better laws to protect young children, greater supervision（监督）of industry and heavier fines for those who break the laws. Only in this way can young boys and girls be allowed to enjoy the most _10_ time of their liveschildren.A. elsewhere B. employment C. dissolved D. lightE. recently F. solution G. unchanged H. sufferI. conditions J. perspective K. impatient L. valuableM. particular N. proceed O. payment2One lunchtime, May Ward was going round the local supermarket in Parkside Road, Liverpool, doing her shopping, when she suddenly slipped and fell. She was badly shaken and hurt but _1_ nothing serious resulted. It turned out that she had slipped on some ice-cream which had been _2_on the floor. Two weeks later she wrote to the firm to _3_ compensation（赔偿）to make up for the pain and _4_ she had suffered. She complained that they had been negligent（忽视的） and careless in not keeping the floor clean. The firm denied that they had been negligent and _5_ that they had a proper system for keeping the floor clean. They had given instructions that when a member of staff found a spillage, he or she was to stand by it, and call someone else to clear up the mess.Since Mrs. Ward felt that she was _6_ to compensation, she sued（起诉）the firm in the Law Court. Here the firm claimed that it did not _7_, just because someone had slipped on the floor, that they must have been negligent carrying out their duties. They said that unless the customer could prove how the ice-cream came to be on the floor, and how long it had been left there before the accident happened, she had not made out a proper _8_ against them. But the judge took a different view. He said that, on the face of it, the accident would not have happened at all if the firm had taken reasonable care. It was something which in the ordinary course of events does not happen if floors are kept clean and spillages are dealt with as soon as they occur. It was up to the firm, he said, to provide _9_ , if they could, that the accident did not _10_ from and negligence on their part. They would obviously be in a better position than the customer to establish how long the ice-cream had been spilt and explain the circumstances to the Court. A. claim B. spilt C. evidence D. caseE. innocent F. inconvenient G. derive H. maintainedI. entitled J. arise K. follow L. unexpectedlyM. determine N. fortunately O. credited3 They call them the new bread earners. They are women, and they are set to take over. Women are beginning to rise _1_ to the top in the workplace all over the developed world. New figures show that in almost a third of American _2_ with a working wife, the woman brings home more money than her husband and that they now occupy half the countrys “high-paying, executive, administrative and _3_ occupations”, compared with 34 per cent 20 years ago. The trend is _4_ by two main factors, experts say a _5_ acceptance of men as househusbands and mass unemployment of male white-collar workers from the technology, finance and media industries in the last three years. The University of Maryland has _6_ a report that shows women to be the chief earner in 11 per cent of all US marriages. Pushing a buggy (婴儿车) on a sunny afternoon in New Yorks Central Park last week, Jonathan Blinderman, 33, said, he was _7_ he had been able to see every moment of his daughter Lindsays first six months of life while his wife, Sage, was out working. It is a sign of these times of _8_ that when he mentions his status at parties he is either praised as a saint or _9_ as a slave-cum-freeloader (爱占便宜的奴隶). For the revolution is nowhere near complete. But Maria Cancian, an economist at the University of Wisconsin, said _10_ women were increasingly looking for househusbands.A) causedB) proudC) carelesslyD) mockedE) producedF) managerialG) greedy H) precautionI) argued J) transition K) ambitious L) tackledM) growing N) steadily O) households4 The French division of McDonalds has run advertisements that included a surprising _1_: Kids shouldnt eat at McDonalds more than once a week. The advertisements, _2_ information from specialists, aim to show that McDonalds meals are part of a balanced weekly diet, said Euro RSCG, the agency that came up with the ads, which appeared this spring, mostly in French womens magazines. Alongside quotes from specialists addressing _3_ and diets for children, the ads described how McDonalds hamburgers are made of 100 percent real beef and cooked on a grill free of _4_ oil. One ad placed in Femme Actuelle in April quoted a nutritionist who said, theres no reason to _5_ fast food, or visit McDonalds more than once a week. The McDonalds Corp., based in Oak Brook, Ill., said in a statement Wednesday that it strongly _6_ with the nutritionist quoted in the French advertisement. The vast majority of nutrition professionals say that McDonalds food can be and is a part of a healthy diet based on the sound nutrition _7_ of balance, variety and moderation（适度）, the statement said. Since opening its first French branch in 1968, McDonalds has expanded _8_ in France. More recently the multinational has come under fire from anti-globalization _9_, farmers groups, and in Paris, striking workers. Last year, sheep farmer-turned-activist Jose Bove became a standard-bearer for the French anti-globalization _10_ when he led a group that ransacked（洗劫） a McDonalds in southern France. A. quoting B. continuously C. overweight D. suggestionE. abuse F. protestors G. occasionally H. additionalI. tame J. movement K. disagreed L. healedM. principles N. conference O. prosperous5 Many people wonder why some men want to live on the moon. It is _1_ not the kind of place where most men would choose to live. But man has always moved to new areas. Some scientists hope that continued work will be done on the moon. Many experiments will be done there more _2_. Some large _3_are very easy to do in a place without air. Matter can be heated to very high temperatures without _4_change when it is in such a place. Air, dust, and clouds cannot _5_mans view of space from the moon. The very high or very low temperatures and low gravity on the moon will be used for many experiments. One very important use of the moon will