单选题
单选题
Text 2
Across the developed world, health-care spending is rising and will continue to in crease as populations age. As each country feels the financial strain, it is tempting to imagine that there must be a better way of funding medical care elsewhere. In Britain, for example, Bernard Ribeiro, the new president of the Royal College of Surgeons, has called for the National Health Service (NHS) to be financed from social-insurance contributions, as in Germany and France, rather than from general taxation. He worries that a tax-financed system will not deliver enough resources to meet the demand for health-care spending in the longer run.
There are indeed good reasons for concern about the way the NHS is financed, for it has allowed the government to pump in too much money too fast. But there is no ideal sys tem for paying for health care. The European social-insurance model is in even more trouble than Britain’s tax-based model. By loading the burden on to employers and workers and thus raising labour costs, it has contributed to the inflexibility of labour markets and thus to the Euro-sclerosis that continental governments are struggling to recover from. In France, the government has resorted to general taxation to spread the burden. In Germany and elsewhere the model looks increasingly unsustainable, not least because its narrow fiscal base will be exposed to unfavourable demographics when the post-war baby-boomers start leaving the labour force in droves.
Nor does America offer an ideal solution. It has a mixed financing system, in which the government stumps up for the elderly and the poor, and employers pay for private coverage of their workers. Health-care spending has reached a record 15% of GDP, dwarfing Britain’s 8% , yet 45m Americans lack insurance cover. The rising cost of publicly-financed medical care threatens America’ s fiscal health.
Rather than focusing on how the money is raised, reformers should worry about how it is spent. Health-care expenditure is rocketing not just because demand is rising but also because health-care markets work badly. They are dominated by powerful providers-- companies, hospitals and influential doctors--which find it fairly easy to pass on ever-rising costs from new medical technologies to the state or the insurers who pick up most of the tab. Private individuals’ payments generally account for a smallish share of health care spending precisely because medical bills tend to be so high that everybody needs insurance cover of one sort or another. Taxes, social-insurance contributions and payments by employers all boil down to forms of health insurance.
The cure is not to try to raise yet more money in a different way. Instead, the overriding goal must be to spend the money pouring into health care more effectively by getting wasteful medical systems to work better. Two sets of reform are vital and both, as it hap pens, are being undertaken in Britain’s tax-financed NHS.
A:raise. B:dominate. C:call. D:pay.
Soft money is the huge, unlimited contributions from corporations, labor union and wealthy individuals that political parties raise and spend on campaign attack ads and other (1) designed to influence elections. The soft money system undermines campaign finance laws (2) limit contributions and (3) the sources of funds that can be spent on federal campaigns. It provides corporations, labor unions, and wealthy individuals a way to circumvent federal election laws and (4) campaigns with tens of millions of special interest dollars, (5) corporations and unions have been (6) from contributing or spending their treasury finds to influence federal elections since 1907 and 1947, (7) . Individuals can contribute to federal (8) through parties and candidates, but only in (9) amounts.
The Democratic and Republican parties (10) ＄262 million in (11) money for the 1996 elections. The parties raise soft money under the (12) that it will be used for general party building activities. (13) , soft money pays for campaign ads in the way as issue discussion, political research, polling, fund raising, and get out the-vote efforts all of which affect the (14) of federal elections.
Soft money was the source of the 1996 political fund-raising scandals, (15) the selling of the Lincoln bedroom, White House coffees and the influx of foreign money into the (16) campaign.
The McCain-Feingold bill (17) the soft money system by prohibiting candidates and national political parties from raising soft money, and by prohibiting state political parties from (18) soft money on activities which affect federal elections. In other (19) ,the current practice of raising unlimited soft money contributions from corporations, unions and wealthy individuals, and then channeling this money into federal elections would end. The national parties would be (20) to raise all of their funds under the limits and restrictions in the law.
A:rise B:arise C:arouse D:raise
Soft money is the huge, unlimited contributions from corporations, labor union and wealthy individuals that political parties raise and spend on campaign attack ads and other (1) designed to influence elections. The soft money system undermines campaign finance laws (2) limit contributions and (3) the sources of funds that can be spent on federal campaigns. It provides corporations, labor unions, and wealthy individuals a way to circumvent federal election laws and (4) campaigns with tens of millions of special interest dollars, (5) corporations and unions have been (6) from contributing or spending their treasury finds to influence federal elections since 1907 and 1947, (7) . Individuals can contribute to federal (8) through parties and candidates, but only in (9) amounts.
The Democratic and Republican parties (10) ＄262 million in (11) money for the 1996 elections. The parties raise soft money under the (12) that it will be used for general party building activities. (13) , soft money pays for campaign ads in the way as issue discussion, political research, polling, fund raising, and get out the-vote efforts all of which affect the (14) of federal elections.
Soft money was the source of the 1996 political fund-raising scandals, (15) the selling of the Lincoln bedroom, White House coffees and the influx of foreign money into the (16) campaign.
The McCain-Feingold bill (17) the soft money system by prohibiting candidates and national political parties from raising soft money, and by prohibiting state political parties from (18) soft money on activities which affect federal elections. In other (19) ,the current practice of raising unlimited soft money contributions from corporations, unions and wealthy individuals, and then channeling this money into federal elections would end. The national parties would be (20) to raise all of their funds under the limits and restrictions in the law.
A:rise B:arise C:arouse D:raise
Text 2 Across the developed world, health-care spending is rising and will continue to in crease as populations age. As each country feels the financial strain, it is tempting to imagine that there must be a better way of funding medical care elsewhere. In Britain, for example, Bernard Ribeiro, the new president of the Royal College of Surgeons, has called for the National Health Service (NHS) to be financed from social-insurance contributions, as in Germany and France, rather than from general taxation. He worries that a tax-financed system will not deliver enough resources to meet the demand for health-care spending in the longer run. There are indeed good reasons for concern about the way the NHS is financed, for it has allowed the government to pump in too much money too fast. But there is no ideal sys tem for paying for health care. The European social-insurance model is in even more trouble than Britain’s tax-based model. By loading the burden on to employers and workers and thus raising labour costs, it has contributed to the inflexibility of labour markets and thus to the Euro-sclerosis that continental governments are struggling to recover from. In France, the government has resorted to general taxation to spread the burden. In Germany and elsewhere the model looks increasingly unsustainable, not least because its narrow fiscal base will be exposed to unfavourable demographics when the post-war baby-boomers start leaving the labour force in droves. Nor does America offer an ideal solution. It has a mixed financing system, in which the government stumps up for the elderly and the poor, and employers pay for private coverage of their workers. Health-care spending has reached a record 15% of GDP, dwarfing Britain’s 8% , yet 45m Americans lack insurance cover. The rising cost of publicly-financed medical care threatens America’ s fiscal health. Rather than focusing on how the money is raised, reformers should worry about how it is spent. Health-care expenditure is rocketing not just because demand is rising but also because health-care markets work badly. They are dominated by powerful providers-- companies, hospitals and influential doctors--which find it fairly easy to pass on ever-rising costs from new medical technologies to the state or the insurers who pick up most of the tab. Private individuals’ payments generally account for a smallish share of health care spending precisely because medical bills tend to be so high that everybody needs insurance cover of one sort or another. Taxes, social-insurance contributions and payments by employers all boil down to forms of health insurance. The cure is not to try to raise yet more money in a different way. Instead, the overriding goal must be to spend the money pouring into health care more effectively by getting wasteful medical systems to work better. Two sets of reform are vital and both, as it hap pens, are being undertaken in Britain’s tax-financed NHS.
The phrase "stump up" (Line 2, Paragraph 3) probably means（）A:raise. B:dominate. C:call. D:pay.
If the teacher asks a question, you are expected to give an answer. If you do not understand the question, you should raise your hand and ask the teacher to repeat the question. If you do not know the answer, it is all right to tell the teacher that you do not know. Then he or she knows what you need to learn.
There is no excuse for not doing your homework. If you are absent, you should call your teacher or someone who is in your class and ask for the assignment. It is your responsibility to find out what assignments you have missed. It is not the teacher’s responsibility to remind you of missed assignments.
You must not be absent on a test day. If you are seriously ill, call and let the teacher know you will not be there for the test. If your teacher allows make-up tests, you should take the test within one or two days after returning to class. Serious illness is the only reason for missing a test.
Be on time! It is considered rude to be late. Also, it bothers other students. If you must come in late, be sure to do it quietly. Have your books and papers out of your bag before you come into the room. Then go to your seat and sit quietly. In the U.S. it is not necessary to knock before you enter the classroom. Most of the ELC teachers will give you a low grade if you are often late.
Have your book out and be ready to begin when the class starts. Your teacher should not have to ask you every day to take out your book. Be sure you have a paper and a sharp pencil ready.
A:give an answer B:raise your hand C:repeat the question D:ask for another question
Passage One
If the teacher asks a question, you are expected to give an answer. If you do not understand the question, you should raise your hand and ask the teacher to repeat the question. If you do not know the answer, it is all right to tell the teacher that you do not know. Then he or she knows what you need to learn.
There is no excuse for not doing your homework. If you are absent, you should call your teacher or someone who is in your class and ask for the assignment. It is your responsibility to find out what assignments you have missed. It is not the teacher’s responsibility to remind you of missed assignments.
You must not be absent on a test day. If you are seriously ill, call and let the teacher know you will not be there for the test. If your teacher allows make-up tests, you should take the test within one or two days after returning to class. Serious illness is the only reason for missing a test.
Be on time! It is considered rude to be late. Also, it bothers other students. If you must come in late, be sure to do it quietly. Have your books and papers out of. your bag be- fore you come into the room. Then go to your seat and sit quietly. In the U.S. it is not necessary to knock before you enter the classroom. Most of the ELC teachers will give you a low grade if you are often late.
Have your book out and be ready to begin when the class starts. Your teacher should not have to ask you every day to take out your book. Be sure you have a paper and a sharp pencil ready.
A:raise your hand B:give an answer C:repeat the question D:keep silence
Passage Three
Yes, that college tuition bill was bigger this year.
Confirming what students and their parents already knew, an influential education think tank (智囊机构) says that states are passing along their budget woes (困难) to public university students and their families. Tuitions are rising by double digits in some states, while the amount of state-funded student aid is dropping.
The result, says the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education in San Jose, Calif., is "the worst fiscal news for public higher education institutions and their students in at least a decade."
Although incomes are rising by only 1% to 2 % in most states, tuition at four-year public schools leapt by 24% in Massachusetts, 20% in Texas and 7% nationally since the 2001-2002 school year, the center says.
State budget deficits (预算赤字) are the cause. Nationally, states spend about 48% of their revenue on education, or about $235 billion in 2001 for kindergarten through college, says the National Governors Association. Elementary and secondary education budgets are protected in many state constitutions, which means they are generally the last expense that states will cut. But higher education is vulnerable to budget cuts-- and tuition increases: After all, no one has to go to college.
Colleges and universities "have clients they can charge," says the National Center’s president, Patrick M. Callan. Tuition "is the easiest money to get," he adds.
The pressure to raise tuition is particularly intense because states froze or even cut state university tuition during the 1990s. With its eye on the knowledge-driven economic boom, the University of Virginia cut tuition by 20% in 1999. This year, although per-capita income grew by less than 1% in Virginia, the state raised tuition at its four-year colleges by 9% and cut student aid by 8%, or about $10 million.
The rising cost of public education, and the fear that it is financially squeezing some students out of an education, has prompted some state universities to adopt a practice long used by private schools to attract students: tuition discounting. In tuition discounting, colleges turn around a share of the tuition paid by some students, and use it to pay for scholarships for others. Private colleges typically return $35 to $45 in scholarships for every $100 they collect in tuition revenue. But until recently, states have viewed discounting as politically unpopular.
There are a few steps students and their families can take to offset rising tuitions, but not many. Because colleges are always interested in raising academic quality, talented students can pit one college against another in hopes of raising their financial-aid offer. Some colleges now invite students to call and renegotiate their aid packages if they get a better offer from another institution.
A:raise financial aid B:cut tuitions by half C:pay full tuition D:raise academic quality
Will all those ______ the proposal raise their hands
A:in relation to B:in contrast to C:in excess of D:in favor of
Passage Three
Yes, that college tuition bill was bigger this year.
Confirming what students and their parents already knew, an influential education think tank (智囊机构) says that states are passing along their budget woes (困难) to public university students and their families. Tuitions are rising by double digits in some states, while the amount of state-funded student aid is dropping.
The result, says the National Center for Public Policy and Higher Education in San Jose, Calif., is "the worst fiscal news for public higher education institutions and their students in at least a decade."
Although incomes are rising by only 1% to 2 % in most states, tuition at four-year public schools leapt by 24% in Massachusetts, 20% in Texas and 7% nationally since the 2001-2002 school year, the center says.
State budget deficits (预算赤字) are the cause. Nationally, states spend about 48% of their revenue on education, or about $235 billion in 2001 for kindergarten through college, says the National Governors Association. Elementary and secondary education budgets are protected in many state constitutions, which means they are generally the last expense that states will cut. But higher education is vulnerable to budget cuts-- and tuition increases: After all, no one has to go to college.
Colleges and universities "have clients they can charge," says the National Center’s president, Patrick M. Callan. Tuition "is the easiest money to get," he adds.
The pressure to raise tuition is particularly intense because states froze or even cut state university tuition during the 1990s. With its eye on the knowledge-driven economic boom, the University of Virginia cut tuition by 20% in 1999. This year, although per-capita income grew by less than 1% in Virginia, the state raised tuition at its four-year colleges by 9% and cut student aid by 8%, or about $10 million.
The rising cost of public education, and the fear that it is financially squeezing some students out of an education, has prompted some state universities to adopt a practice long used by private schools to attract students: tuition discounting. In tuition discounting, colleges turn around a share of the tuition paid by some students, and use it to pay for scholarships for others. Private colleges typically return $35 to $45 in scholarships for every $100 they collect in tuition revenue. But until recently, states have viewed discounting as politically unpopular.
There are a few steps students and their families can take to offset rising tuitions, but not many. Because colleges are always interested in raising academic quality, talented students can pit one college against another in hopes of raising their financial-aid offer. Some colleges now invite students to call and renegotiate their aid packages if they get a better offer from another institution.
A:raise financial aid B:cut tuitions by half C:pay full tuition D:raise academic quality
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