CONVERSATION 2  (Questions 5-8)
   Monique has been in London for  (5)   days.
   Monique is taking the English course to improve her  (6)   English and to see  (7)  .
   Monique is living in a  (8)  .

Questions 9-13
   ·You will hearfive people giving reasons why children learn their mother tongue so well.
   ·Before you listen, read the list of statements, five of which are summaries of what they were saying.
   ·Then listen carefully and match the statements (A-F) with the people who said them (9-13) respectively.
   ·There is one extra statement that you don't need to use. You will hear the passage twice.
   9. Maggie: ______        A. The time of their learning the mother tongue is the most
                            favorable of all.
   10. Cherry: ______       B. Children hear their native language spoken always in its
                            genuine form.
   11. Mike: ______         C. Children have private lessons all the time to learn their mother
                            tongue.
   12. Hazel: ______        D. Children hear their native language spoken in all possible
                            situations.
   13. Jody: ______         E. Children have special teachers to teach them.
                            F. Children have flexible organs and sensitive ear.

Questions 14-22
   ·Look at the ten statements for this part.
   ·You will hear apassage about "Credit Cards History ". You will listen to it twice.
   ·Decide whetheryou think each statement is right(R), wrong(W) or not mentioned(NM).
   ·Markyour answers on the Answer Sheet.

Questions 14-23
   ·Look at the ten statements for this part.
   ·You will hear a short interview with George Jones, executive director for Bread for the City a private nonprofit organization.
   ·Decide whetheryou think each statement is right(R), wrong(W) or not mentioned(NM).
   ·Mark your answers on the Answer Sheet.

Questions 24-30
   ·Look at the questions for this part.
   ·You will hear apassage about "A Little House in the Big Woods ". You will listen to it twice.
   ·For Questions 24-30, indicate which of the alternatives A, B, or C is the most appropriate response.
   ·Mark one letter A, B, or C on the Answer Sheet.

A. substantial damage
   B. as different
   C. the terrorist attacks
   D. the city's economy
   E. the rest of the nation
   F. clearly avoidable
   G. easily noticeable

40. 
The nation had already slipped into a recession before ______.

41. 
The pain caused by the terrorist attack is ______.

42. 
The terrorist attacks on the city have brought about ______.

43. 
Economists predict that New York will fare worse than ______.

44. 
Rebuilding won't be of much help in reviving ______.

Facts about Aging

   The overall difference in life expectancy at birth in the United States is about 7 years (i.e.72 for men vs. 79 for women); and at every age women, on average, can expect to live longer than men. Interestingly, older women are more likely to suffer from debilitating illnesses than men. However, this difference seems to reflect the fact that women typically have less wealth and education than men - two factors that are associated with shorter life expectancies for both sexes. When the effects of poverty and education are removed in the relevant statistical analyses, these sex differences in rates of disability disappear.
   The elderly generally show very high interest in associating with friends and close family members. What they show less interest in than younger adults is the expansion of their social networks to make new friends.
   About one-third of problem drinkers develop their alcohol abuse problem late in life, and this problem of alcoholism among the aged is indeed more acute for women than men. Overuse of drugs may result from the tendency of some doctors to automatically prescribe drugs rather than search for underlying physical or psychological causes of symptoms, especially when the patients are elderly women. It may also reflect the fact that women are more likely to be facing the loneliness and stress associated with the loss of a spouse than men, and are generally more likely to seek help from a doctor.
   Alzheimer's disease, the much-dreaded form of dementia associated with profound memory loss and other increasingly devastating symptoms, is a condition that strikes a significant number of elderly people. Nevertheless, most elderly people will never suffer such memory loss. In fact, contemporary estimates suggest that moderate to severe memory loss is found in only 4 to 6 percent of adults over age 65. The most important point to be aware of is that while memory (especially short term memory) does deteriorate somewhat as we get older, profound memory loss is not a "natural" consequence of the aging process. It is a product of disease. Evidence of profound memory loss should prompt a visit to a physician who specializes in such problems.
   after age 80 the ratio of widows to widowers in the U.S. is about 5 to 1. This statistic reflects the fact that women have a longer life expectancy than men, and the fact that women typically marry men older than themselves. Differences in wealth may also make it easier for marriage-minded widowers to find mates than widows, since elderly women are more likely to be living in poverty than elderly men.
   The stereotype of depressed lonely old people is a pervasive one, but it is not supported by the facts. While social isolation is a problem for many older people, it is also a problem for many young people as well. Surveys consistently show that, in the absence of serious illness, older people generally report higher levels of happiness or life satisfaction than young people. One reason for this is that as people age they seem to devote increasing attention to the task of managing their affective states and avoiding sadness or anxiety.
   Although there is considerable variability in the degree of loss, sensory decline is fairly inevitable. These losses, it should be noted, have important implications for environmental design in the care of the elderly. For example, greater use of acoustical tile to absorb background noise, use of non-slippery floor surfaces to provide additional traction, and use of non-glare surfaces and clearly marked boundaries can all increase comfort and safety.

Questions 9-18
   ·Read the following article and answer questions 9-18 on the next page.
   
   0. Apples have been a product of healthy eating for many years, and the often-repeated line of an apple a day keeping the doctor away is far from a myth. Apples really do have a wonderful variety of nutritional benefits, and are a tasty addition to any diet of good health and longevity. Below is a list of the top five benefits of making apples a standard part of your daily diet.
   1. Pectin (果胶) is a source of dietary fiber and a very handy nutrient to have in one's diet. While it is also found in oranges, plums, and other fruits, apples have the highest concentration of them all. Pectin works to increase the stool's volume and resistance of fluids and is therefore helpful in treating constipation, diarrhea, and generally improving the health of the bowels (肠) .
   2. A study on nutrition and heart disease found that eating three apples a day for three months can help you to drop your cholesterol by at least 20 points. How does this happen? Apple pectin, that miraculous source of dietary fiber, helps to draw bad LDL cholesterol out of the system. Not only that, but the antioxidant quercetin(栎皮酮)that is found in apples inhibits the LDL cholesterol from even accumulating in the body's bloodstream.
   3. The high amounts of quercetin, other flavonoids (类黄酮) , and phytochemicals (植物化学 因子) found in this fruit deliver potent antioxidant activity to all who eat an apple, and with that inhibit the actions of free radicals. In addition, the phytochemicals may act against cancer-causing substances, which will likewise help to prevent cancer. This means that apple eating prevents cancer of the prostate (前列腺) and lung, as well as other parts of the body.
   4. There may have been many generations of explorers that sought the fountain of youth, but all they had to do was fight the daily stresses of life with a tasty apple! The phytochemicals that come from the bright colors you find in the skins of your favorite apple variety, along with aiding the apple's ability to lower cholesterol and fight cancer, also inhibits the onset of diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease, and other conditions that lead to potentially weakening situations in old age.
   5. If keeping a full head of hair will help you to age more gracefully, then chow down on some apples. Chinese medicine considers hair loss to be a sign of a reduced kidney essence, and apples are on the list of fruits and vegetables that will help you to restore this essence and nourish the blood that flows to your hair follicles (毛囊) .
   Questions 9-13
   ·For questions 9-13, choose the best title for each paragraph from the box below.
   ·For each numbered paragraph (1-5). mark one letter (A -G) on the Answer Sheet.
   ·Do not mark any letter twice.
   A. Apples lower cholesterol.
   B. Apples benefit young and old.
   C. Apples slow the aging process.
   D. Apples reduce the risk of cancer.
   E. Apples help to prevent hair loss.
   F. Apples enrich people's diet.
   G. Apples improve the bowels.

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Five Painful Facts You Need to Know

   0.  First of all, let's set the record straight: Pain is normal. About 75 million U.S. residents endure chronic or recurrent pain. So what is pain and why do so many suffer so long? Pain is felt when electrical signals are sent from nerve endings to your brain, which in turn can release painkillers called endorphins and generate reactions that range from instant and physical to long-term and emotional. Beyond that, scientific understanding gets painfully fuzzy. Here's what's known:
   1.  When you're in pain, you know it. But if scientists could fully grasp how pain works and why, they might be able to help you more. The American Academy of Pain Medicine defines pain as "an unpleasant sensation and emotional response to that sensation." Some pain is the result of an obvious injury. Other times, it is caused by damaged nerves that are not so easy to pinpoint. "Pain is complex and defies our ability to establish a clear definition," says Kathryn Weiner, director of the American Academy of Pain Management. "Pain is far more than neural transmission and sensory transduction. Pain is a complex mixture of emotions, culture, experience, spirit and sensation."
   2.  If you have chronic pain, you know how demoralizing and debilitating it can be, physically and mentally. It can prevent you from doing things and make you irritable for reasons nobody else understands. But that's only half the story. People with chronic backaches have brains as much as 11 percent smaller than those of non-sufferers, scientists reported in 2004. They don't know why. "It is possible it's just the stress of having to live with the condition," said study leader A. Vania Apkarian of Northwestern University. "The neurons become overactive or tired of the activity."
   3.  It may not eliminate the phrase "Not tonight, honey ..." but a 2006 study found that migraine sufferers had levels of sexual desire 20 percent higher than those suffering from tension headaches. The finding suggests sexual desire and migraines might be influenced by the same brain chemical, and getting a better handle on the link could lead to better treatments, at least for the pain portion of the equation.
   4.  Any man who has watched a woman having a baby without using drugs would swear that women can tolerate anything. But the truth is, it hurts more than you can imagine. Women have more nerve receptors than men. As an example, women have 34 nerve fibers per square centimeter of facial skin, while men average just 17. And in a 2005 study, women were found to report more pain throughout their lifetimes and, compared to men, they feel pain in more areas of their body and for longer durations.
   5.  Animal research could offer clues to eventually relieve human suffering. Take the naked mole rat, a hairless and nearly blind subterranean creature. A study this year found it feels neither the pain of acid nor the sting of chili peppers. If researchers can figure out why, they might be on the road to new sorts of painkilling therapies for humans. In 2006, scientists found a pathway for the transmission of chronic pain in rats that they hope will translate into better understanding of human chronic pain. Lobsters feel no pain, even when boiled, scientists said in a 2005 report that is just one more salvo in a long-running debate.
   A. Women feel more pain
   B. Chronic pain is common
   C. Chronic pain shrinks brains
   D. Migraines and sex go together
   E. Pain brings about more stress
   F. Scientists don't understand pain fully
   G. Animal research may relieve human pain

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