Among rich countries, people in the Untied States work the longest hours. They work much longer than in Europe. This difference is quite surprising because productivity per hour worked is the same in the Untied States as it is in France, Spain and Germany, and it is growing at a similar speed.
In most countries and at most times in history, as people have become richer they have chosen to work less. In other words they have decided to “spend” a part of their extra income on a fuller personal life. Over the last fifty years Europeans have continued this pattern, and hours of work have fallen sharply. But not in the Untied States. We do not fully know why this is. One reason may be greatly lower taxes in America, which increase the rewards(回报)to work. Another may be more satisfying work, or less satisfying personal lives.
Longer hours do of course increase the GDP(国民生产总值). So the United States has produced more per worker than, say, France. The United States also has more of its people at work, while in France many more mothers and older workers have decided to stay at home. The overall result is that American GDP per head is 40% higher than in France, even though productivity per hour worked is the same.
It is not clear which of the two situation is better. As we have seen, work has to be compared with other values like family life, which often get lost in its interest. It is too early to explain the different trends(趋势)in happiness over time in different countries. But it is a disappointing idea that in the Untied States happiness had made no progress since 1975, while it has risen in Europe. Could this have anything to do with trends in the work-life balance(平衡)?
1.From the text we know that author ________.
A. says nothing certain about which pattern is better
B. prefers shorter working hours to longer ones
C. believes that longer working hours is better
D. thinks neither of the patterns is good
2.Which of the following countries has more of its people at work?
A. Spain B. America C. Germany D. France
3.In the last paragraph , the underlined word “which” refers to _______.
A. family life B. situations C. other values D. trends
4.What message can we get from the text?
A. People all over the world choose to work less when they are richer.
B. Americans are happier than Europeans
C. The GDP of Europe is higher than that of America.
D. Two possible reasons are given for working longer hours in the US.
5.Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. Staying at Home B. Work and Happiness
C. Work and Productivity D. Americans and Europeans
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题
Among rich countries, people in the Untied States work the longest hours. They work much longer than in Europe. This difference is quite surprising because productivity per hour worked is the same in the Untied States as it is in France, Spain and Germany, and it is growing at a similar speed.
In most countries and at most times in history, as people have become richer they have chosen to work less. In other words they have decided to “spend” a part of their extra income on a fuller personal life. Over the last fifty years Europeans have continued this pattern, and hours of work have fallen sharply. But not in the Untied States. We do not fully know why this is. One reason may be greatly lower taxes in America, which increase the rewards(回报)to work. Another may be more satisfying work, or less satisfying personal lives.
Longer hours do of course increase the GDP(国民生产总值). So the United States has produced more per worker than, say, France. The United States also has more of its people at work, while in France many more mothers and older workers have decided to stay at home. The overall result is that American GDP per head is 40% higher than in France, even though productivity per hour worked is the same.
It is not clear which of the two situation is better. As we have seen, work has to be compared with other values like family life, which often get lost in its interest. It is too early to explain the different trends(趋势)in happiness over time in different countries. But it is a disappointing idea that in the Untied States happiness had made no progress since 1975, while it has risen in Europe. Could this have anything to do with trends in the work-life balance(平衡)?
1.From the text we know that author ________.
A. says nothing certain about which pattern is better
B. prefers shorter working hours to longer ones
C. believes that longer working hours is better
D. thinks neither of the patterns is good
2.Which of the following countries has more of its people at work?
A. Spain B. America C. Germany D. France
3.In the last paragraph , the underlined word “which” refers to _______.
A. family life B. situations C. other values D. trends
4.What message can we get from the text?
A. People all over the world choose to work less when they are richer.
B. Americans are happier than Europeans
C. The GDP of Europe is higher than that of America.
D. Two possible reasons are given for working longer hours in the US.
5.Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. Staying at Home B. Work and Happiness
C. Work and Productivity D. Americans and Europeans
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
In the United States, when one becomes rich, he wants people to know it. And even if he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is. That is what "keeping up with the Joneses" is about. It is the story of someone who tried to look as rich as his neighbors.
The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American called Arthur Momand. He told this story about himself. He began earning $ 125 a week at the age of 23. That was a lot of money in those days. He got married and moved with his wife to a very wealthy neighborhood. When he saw that rich people rode horses, Momand went horseback riding every day. When he saw that rich people had servants, Momand and his wife also hired a servant and gave big parties for their new neighbors.
It was like a race, but one could never finish this race because one was always trying to keep up. The race ended for Momand and his wife when they could no longer pay for their new way of life. They had to move back to an apartment in New York City. Momand looked around him and noticed that many people do things just to keep up with rich lifestyle of their neighbors. He saw the funny side of it and started to write a series of short stories. He called it "Keeping up with the Joneses” because "Jones" is a very common name in the United States. "Keeping up with the Joneses" came to mean keeping up with rich lifestyle of the people around you. Momand's series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years.
People never seem to get tired of keeping up with the Joneses. And there are "Joneses" in every city of the world. But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses because no matter what one does, Mr. Jones always seems to be ahead.
1.Some people want to keep up with the Joneses because they ______.
A.want to be as rich as their neighbors
B.want others to know or to think that they are rich
C.don't want others to know they are rich
D.want to be happy
2.It can be inferred from the story that rich people like to ________.
A.live outside New York City
B.live in New York City
C.live in apartments
D.live with many neighbors
3.What's the author's attitude to keeping up with the Joneses?
A.Negative. B.Positive. C.Supportive. D.Objective.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
In the United States, when one becomes rich, he wants people to know it. And even if he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is. That is what ‘keeping up with the Joneses’ is about, It is the story of someone who tried to look as rich as his neighbors.
The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American called Arthur Momand. He told this story about himself. He began earning $ 125 a week at the age of 23. That was a lot of money in those days. He got married and moved with his wife to a very wealthy neighborhood outside New York City. When he saw that rich people rode horses, Momand went horseback riding every day. When he saw that rich people had servants, Momand and his wife also hired a servant and gave big parties for their new neighbors.
It was like a race, but one could never finish this race because one was always trying to keep up. The race ended for Momand and his wife when they could no longer pay for their new way of life. They moved back to an apartment in New York City.
Momand looked around him and noticed that many people do things just to keep up with rich life—style of their neighbors. He saw the funny side of it and started to write a series of short stories, He called it ‘Keeping up with the Joneses’ because ‘Jones’ is a very common name in the United States.’ Keeping up with the Joneses’ came to mean keeping up with rich lifestyle of the people around you. Momand’s series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years.
People never seem to get tired of keeping up with the Joneses. And there are ‘Joneses’ in every city of the world. But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses because no matter what one does, Mr. Jones always seems to be ahead.
1.Some people want to keep up with the Joneses because they ________.
A. want to be as rich as their neighbors
B. want others to know or to think that they are rich
C don’t want others to know they are rich
D. want to be happy
2.It can be inferred (推断) from the story that rich people like to ________.
A. live outside New York City
B. live in New York city
C. live in apartments
D. have many neighbors
3.Arthur Momand used the name “Jones” in his series of short stories because “Jones” is ________.
A. an important name
B. a popular name in the United States
C. his neighbor’s name
D. not a good name
4.If a person who keeps up with the Joneses, he would _________.
A. do as the poor persons around him do
B. do everything he likes to do
C. do as his neighbors do
D. do as the rich people around him do
5. According to the writer, it is ___________ to keep up with the Jonese.
A. Good B. correct C. interesting D. impossible
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
In the United States, when one becomes rich, he wants people to know it. And even if he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is. That is what “keeping up with the Joneses” is about. It is the story of someone who tried to look as rich as his neighbors.
The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American called Arthur Momand. He told this story about himself. He began earning $ 125 a week at the age of 23. That was a lot of money in those days. He got married and moved with his wife to a very wealthy neighborhood outside New York City. When he saw that rich people rode horses, Momand went horseback riding every day. When he saw that rich people had servants, Momand and his wife also hired a servant and gave big parties for their new neighbors.
It was like a race, but one could never finish his race because one was always trying to keep up. The race ended for Momand and his wife when they could no longer pay for their new way of life. They moved back to an apartment in New York City.
Momand looked around him and noticed that many people do things just to keep up with rich lifestyle of their neighbors. He saw the funny side of it and started to write a series of short stories. He called it “Keeping up with the Joneses” because “Jones” is a very common name in the United States. “Keeping up with the Joneses” came to mean keeping up with rich lifestyle of the people around you. Momand’s series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years.
People never seem to get tired of keeping up with the Joneses. And there are “Joneses” in every city of the world. But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses because no matter what one does, Mr. Jones always seems to be ahead.
1.Some people want to keep up with the Joneses because they .
A. want to be as rich as their neighbours
B. want others to know or to think that they are rich
C. don’t want others to know they are rich
D. want to be happy
2.It can be inferred from the story that rich people like to .
A. live outside New York City B. live in New York City
C. live in apartments D. have many neighbours
3.Arthur used the name “Jones” in his series of short stories because it is .
A. an important name B. a popular name in the United States
C. his neighbour’s name D. not a good name
4.According to the writer, it is to keep up with the Joneses.
A. correct B. interesting
C. impossible D. good
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
In the United States, when one becomes rich, he wants people to know it. And even if he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is. That is what “keeping up with the Joneses” is about. It is the story of someone who tried to look as rich as his neighbors.
The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American called Arthur Momand. He told this story about himself. He began earning $ 125 a week at the age of 23. That was a lot of money in those days. He got married and moved with his wife to a very wealthy neighborhood. When he saw that rich people rode horses, Momand went horseback riding every day. When he saw that rich people had servants. Momand and his wife also hired a servant and gave big parties for their new neighbors.
It was like a race, but one could never finish this race because one was always trying to keep up. The race ended for Momand and his wife when they could no longer pay for their new way of life. They had to move back to an apartment in New York City.
Momand looked around him and noticed that many people do things just to keep up with rich lifestyle of their neighbors. He saw the funny side of it and started to write a series of short stories. He called it “Keeping up with the Joneses” because “Jones” is a very common name in the United States. “Keeping up with the Joneses” came to mean keeping up with rich lifestyle of the people around you. Momand’s series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years.
People never seem to get tired of keeping up with the Joneses. And there are “Joneses” in every city of the world. But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses because no matter what one does, Mr. Jones always seems to be ahead.
1.Some people want to keep up with the Joneses because they ______.
A.want to be as rich as their neighbours |
B.want others to know or to think that they are rich |
C.don’t want others to know they are rich |
D.want to be happy |
2.It can be inferred from the story that rich people like to ________.
A.live outside New York City | B.live in New York City |
C.live in apartments | D.live with many neighbours |
3.What’s the author’s attitude to keeping up with the Joneses?
A.Negative. | B.Positive. |
C.Supportive. | D.Objective. |
高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
More and more people, especially in developed countries, arc becoming older. In the United States there are currently over 40 million people aged 65 and over, more than 10 million are over 85. Caring for these senior citizens is becoming a necessity, and a big industry.
Traditionally, care for the elderly has taken place in an extended family, where grandparents live at home and are helped by other family members. However, as more and more young people enter the work force full time they cannot care for their parents or grandparents any more. There are more than 10,000 organizations that provide care for the elderly. More than 1,000 were founded last year alone. Ordinary people quit their jobs and start private care centers, where they offer senior citizens their services.
One of the most difficult aspects of such an organization is finding the right people to do the job. Caring for the elderly is not an easy task. It requires skill and patience. Among daily tasks are preparing meals, washing older people, or simply keeping them company. Many care workers quit because they find it very depressing(令人沮丧的). It is important to help the elderly stay mobile as long as possible. When they cannot walk or climb stairs they need more help: thus costs become higher. Care workers concentrate on exercises to help them stay mobile. In many cases assisted living replaces round-the-clock health care. Elderly people need help with some daily tasks but can mostly live on their own. It also costs less than full nursing care.
While wealthy Americans turn to private care centers, those who are poorer cannot pay for the services because Medicare does not cover it. Not all countries offer health care provided by the state. In Asia and Africa, for example, older people are cared for by family members.
1.Why are more and more private care centers started?
A. Many people can't find other jobs. B. Caring for the elderly is an easy task.
C. Many young people take full time jobs. D. Care workers can get well paid.
2.Who pays for the service in the care center?
A. Medicare. B. The state. C. The family. D. Care centers.
3.What is the third paragraph in the text mainly about?
A. Reasons to start a care center. B. Skills that care workers need.
C. Costs for nursing care. D. Difficulties in running a care centre.
4.How many daily tasks for nursing care are mentioned in the text?
A. Three. B. Four. C. Five. D. Six.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
In the United States, there is always ____ flow of people to areas of ______ country where more jobs can be found.
A. a; the B. the ; a C. the; the D. a; a
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
British people work some of the longest hours in Europe, but are among the least productive. Now some companies are shortening the working week to increase efficiency, health and happiness.
Rich Leigh has introduced a four-day week at his PR company. In fact, his entire company has Friday off, because his firm has adopted a four-day week. It is one of a handful of UK businesses that now operate like this: staff still get paid their previous five-day salary, but they work a day less. The company found that they achieved just as much—and there were even sighs of growth. “The key to the scheme’s success,” Leigh says, “is how happy our employees now are.”
The average British worker takes only a 34 minute lunch break and works 10 hours overtime each week (more often than not this is unpaid). Yet UK productivity falls seriously behind their European neighbors, who tend to work fewer hours.
British working practices have caused loss and damage to the nation’s health and happiness. More than half a million workers in the UK were signed off with work-related stress or anxiety last year. Moreover, the work landscape itself is changing. Automation and AI will have a significant impact on the labor market, where unsteady work becomes more common.
Britain is the only EU member that allows workers to ignore the EU working time limit and work longer hours. For campaigners, now is the time for a change. O’Grady, an advocate, argues that where businesses have increased their profits as a result of automation, success should be shared with workers in the form of reduced hours. “It’s time to share the benefits from new technology, not allowing those at the top to grab them for themselves.” she says.
1.We can learn from the passage that ________.
A. British people are the least productive in the world
B. Most companies in Britain have conducted a four-day week
C. PR company has witnessed a rise in employees’ happiness
D. British people work longer and get more payment than other countries
2.Which is the proper description of British working practices?
A. The working time of British workers is within the EU limit.
B. In terms of productivity, Britain is beaten by the United States.
C. Profits gained from new technology are on the decrease.
D. Automation and AI are likely to cause an instable work market.
3.Which can be inferred from O’Grady’ s words in the last paragraph?
A. It’s time for employers to share the increased profits created by automation.
B. Workers should benefit from automation in the form of less working hours.
C. New technology should belong to both businesses and workers.
D. Businesses can’t make more profits without new technology.
4.What is the author’s purpose of writing the passage?
A. To introduce some British firms’ switch to a four-day working week.
B. To explain the reasons why British workers suffer stress and anxiety.
C. To appeal for more reasonable working conditions.
D. To present the current productivity problem in Britain.
高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
They are among the 250, 000 people under the age of 25 who are out of work in the Netherlands, a group that makes up 40 percent of the nation’s unemployed.A storm of anger boils up at the government-sponsored (政府资助的) youth center, even among those who are continuing their studies.
“We study for jobs that don’t exist,” Nicollets Steggerda, 23, said.
After thirty years of prosperity, unemployment among 10 member nations of the European Community has reached as much as 11 percent, affecting a total of 12.3 million people, and the number is climbing.
The bitter disappointment long expressed by British youths is spreading across the Continent.The title of a rock song “No Future” can now be seen written on the brick walls of closed factories in Belgium and France.
One form of protest(抗议) tends to put the responsibility for a country’s economic troubles on the large numbers of “guest workers” from Third World nations, people welcomed in Western Europe in the years of prosperity.
Young Europeans, brought up in an extended period of economic success and general stability, seem to be similar to Americans more than they do their own parents.Material enjoyment has given them a sense of expectation, even the right to a standard of living that they see around them.
“And so we pass the days at the discos, or meet people at the café, and sit and stare,” said Isabella Cault."There is usually not much conversation.You look for happiness.Sometimes you even find it.”
1.Unemployment in the Netherlands has affected _______
A.about 0.6 million people
B.250,000 people
C.1ess than half of the population
D.one million people
2.What Nicollete Steggerda said (Para.2) means that ________.
A.what the students learn is more than necessary
B.the students cannot get work after graduation
C.the students’ aim in study is not clear
D.school education is not sufficient
3.The underlined word ‘‘it” in the last paragraph most probably refers to ________.
A.material enjoyment B.a sense of expectation
C.a job D.happiness
4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A.British youths have pity on the unemployed on the Continent.
B.British youths care about unemployment in France and Belgium.
C.British youths show their disappointment over joblessness.
D.British youths have confidence to find work on the Continent.
高三英语阅读理解困难题查看答案及解析
They are among the 250, 000 people under the age of 25 who are out of work in the Netherlands, a group that makes up 40 percent of the nation’s unemployed. A storm of anger boils up at the government-sponsored (政府资助的) youth center, even among those who are continuing their studies.
“We study for jobs that don’t exist,” Nicollets Steggerda, 23, said.
After thirty years of prosperity, unemployment among 10 member nations of the European Community has reached as much as 11 percent, affecting a total of 12.3 million people, and the number is climbing.
The bitter disappointment long expressed by British youths is spreading across the Continent. The title of a rock song “No Future” can now be seen written on the brick walls of closed factories in Belgium and France.
One form of protest(抗议) tends to put the responsibility for a country’s economic troubles on the large numbers of “guest workers” from Third World nations, people welcomed in Western Europe in the years of prosperity.
Young Europeans, brought up in an extended period of economic success and general stability, seem to be similar to Americans more than they do their own parents. Material enjoyment has given them a sense of expectation, even the right to a standard of living that they see around them.
“And so we pass the days at the discos, or meet people at the café, and sit and stare,” said Isabella Cault. "There is usually not much conversation. You look for happiness. Sometimes you even find it.”
1.Unemployment in the Netherlands has affected _______
A. about 0.6 million people B. 250,000 people
C. 1ess than half of the population D. one million people
2.What Nicollete Steggerda said (Para.2) means that ________.
A. what the students learn is more than necessary
B. the students cannot get work after graduation
C. the students’ aim in study is not clear
D. school education is not sufficient
3.The underlined word ‘‘it” in the last paragraph most probably refers to ________.
A. material enjoyment B. a sense of expectation
C. a job D. happiness
4.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?
A. British youths have pity on the unemployed on the Continent.
B. British youths care about unemployment in France and Belgium.
C. British youths show their disappointment over joblessness.
D. British youths have confidence to find work on the Continent.
高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析