The odyssey years originated from “The Odyssey”, described Odysseus’ ______________ and is a special term for an epic journey or great _____________. （）

In Britain, within the lifetime of all the old people alive today, our life expectancy has rapidly shot up from an average of forty years to an average of seventy years. Although, in the last century, it was accepted that the body had been programmed to last for seventy years, until the 1960s it was all too obvious that very few bodies ever did, and for a man to en-joy good health in old age was exceptional.

Many of today's old people had such rough starts, such small scraps of education, such low wages and so few possessions generally, that they feel they are ending their days in luxury, although they may not be doing so in other people's eyes. "Manage" is word they often use, and having "managed" then, they manage now more easily. They will describe their poor and exhausting working lives for you without any feeling of hatred. Some are proud if they never cheated; and some are proud if they did and got away with it. However, many find that now is the deprived time. They are aware of gradual losses and of everything being taken away from them or placed out of reach by degrees. They are no longer considered as individuals. Constantly, as one talks to old people, one feels this struggle to claim their dignity and importance at the present time and not just to recall what they have been in the past.

Perhaps, as the young begin to realize that they are likely to "old" for twenty or more years, they will bring about the radical changes needed if the aged are to have the supportive conditions in their old age that they would really like. At present, both our treatment of "the old" and the way we talk about them sometimes echo the actions and attitudes of our nineteenth-century ancestors, when they were considering" the poor". "The problems of the old are not our problems" is what we are often saying——politely and humanly, of course.

Many old people in Britain today feel they are spending their remaining years in luxury because _______.

A．they had a very hard life in the past

B．they had to manage to get away with cheating in their early years

C．they remain as healthy as ever

D．they take pride in the fact that they never cheated

During McDonald's early years French fries were made from scratch every day. Russet Burbank potatoes were【1】, cut into shoestrings, and fried in its kitchens. 【2】the chain expanded nationwide, in the mid-1960s, it sought to cut labour costs, reduce the number of suppliers, and【3】that its fries tasted the same at every restaurant. McDonald's began【4】to frozen French fries in 1966—and few customers noticed the difference.【5】, the change had a profound effect on the nation's agriculture and diet. A familiar food had been transformed into a highly processed industrial【6】.

McDonald's fries now come from huge manufacturing plants【7】can process two milion pounds of potatoes a day. The expansion【8】McDonald's and the popularity of its ,ow-cost, mass-produced fries changed the way Americans eat.

The taste of McDonald's French fries played a crucial role in the chain's success —fries are much more profitable than hamburgers—and was【9】praised by customers, competitors, and even food critics. Their【10】taste does not stem from the kind of potatoes that McDonald's【11】, the technology that processes them, or the restaurant equipment that fries them: other chains use Russet Burbank. buy their French fries from the【12】large processing companies, and have similar 【13】in their restaurant kitchens. The taste of a French fry is【14】determined by the cooking oil. For decades McDonald's cooked its French, fries in a mixture of about 7 percent cottonseed oil and 93 per cent beef fat. The mixture gave the fries their unique【15】

(1)

A．scaled

B．stripped

C．peeled

D．sliced

During McDonald's early years French fries were made from scratch every day. Russet Burbank potatoes were 【B1】 , cut into shoestrings, and fried in its kitchens. 【B2】 the chain expanded nationwide, in the mid-1960s, it sought to cut labour costs, reduce the number of suppliers, and 【B3】 that its fries tasted the same at every restaurant.McDonald's began 【B4】 to frozen French fries in 1966 — and few customers noticed the difference. 【B5】 the change had a profound effect on the nation's agriculture and diet. A familiar food had been transformed into a highly processed industrial 【B6】 . McDonald's fries now come from huge manufacturing plants 【B7】 can process two million pounds of potatoes a day. The expansion 【B8】 McDonald's and the popularity of its lowcost, massproduced fries changed the way Americans eat.

The taste of McDonald's French fries played a crucial role in the chain's success -- fries are much more profitable than hamburgers and was 【B9】 praised by customers, competitors, and even food critics. Their 【B10】 taste does not stern from the kind of potatoes that Donald's 【B11】 , the technology that processes them, or the restaurant equipment that fries them: other chains use Russet Burbank, buy their French fries from the 【B12】 large processing companies, and have similar 【B13】 in their restaurant kitchens. The taste of a French fry is 【B14】 determined by the cooking oil. For decades McDonald's cooked its French fries in a mixture of about 7 per cent cottonseed oil and 93 per cent beef fat. The mixture gave the fries their unique 【B15】 .

【B1】

A．scaled

B．stripped

C．peeled

D．sliced

During McDonald's early years French fries were made from scratch every day. Russet Burbank potatoes were 【B1】 , cut into shoestrings, and fried in its kitchens. 【B2】 the chain expanded nationwide, in the mid-1960s, it sought to cut labour costs, reduce the number of suppliers, and 【B3】 that its fries tasted the same at every restaurant.McDonald's began 【B4】 to frozen French fries in 1966 — and few customers noticed the difference. 【B5】 the change had a profound effect on the nation's agriculture and diet. A familiar food had been transformed into a highly processed industrial 【B6】 . McDonald's fries now come from huge manufacturing plants 【B7】 can process two million pounds of potatoes a day. The expansion 【B8】 McDonald's and the popularity of its lowcost, massproduced fries changed the way Americans eat.

The taste of McDonald's French fries played a crucial role in the chain's success -- fries are much more profitable than hamburgers and was 【B9】 praised by customers, competitors, and even food critics. Their 【B10】 taste does not stern from the kind of potatoes that Donald's 【B11】 , the technology that processes them, or the restaurant equipment that fries them: other chains use Russet Burbank, buy their French fries from the 【B12】 large processing companies, and have similar 【B13】 in their restaurant kitchens. The taste of a French fry is 【B14】 determined by the cooking oil. For decades McDonald's cooked its French fries in a mixture of about 7 per cent cottonseed oil and 93 per cent beef fat. The mixture gave the fries their unique 【B15】 .

【B1】

A．scaled

B．stripped

C．peeled

D．sliced

听力原文：M: Despite her many years of loyal service, Sue lost both her annual raise as well as her year-end bonus because of the low sales this year although she was able to get promoted.

W: But the product she put her effort into turned out to be a hit even though the overall profits for the company were low.

M: I think that the way the company treated Sue is so unfair. She worked really hard on that project and didn't get rewarded at all.

W: I agree with you. I hope that Manager Thompson reconsiders his decision and treats her with more respect.

What did Sue get this year?

A．A pay raise.

B．A bonus.

C．A promotion.

D．An award.

听力原文：W: I know your company was one of the biggest American corporations to take the idea of customer services seriously...

M: Yes, urn, I think you can say we were among the pioneers.

W: So, with the experience of many years of trying to get it right, what would you define as the most important elements in providing successful customer services?

M: Mm... well, that's quite a difficult question, because so many factors are absolutely vital if you want to succeed, and success with the customer services, I might add, means doing everything you possibly can to please and keep customers.

W: Does that include the old idea that, for a company, the customer is always right?

M: Not exactly. The slogan that the customer is always right is rather simple, and unrealistic. I would say that, instead, the most important aim of a customer services unit is to encourage communication with customers, to actively seek feedback, including complaints, and to acknowledge all comments, good and bad, from customers because people like to be treated with respect.

W: Then what do you think are the most important factors for a company's success?

M: It seems to me that a company's success, in terms of good reputation and high profits, depends more on the relationship the company establishes with the customers. That relationship involves the company in consistently providing high-quality products and top-quality services.

W: So what you're saying is, in fact, very simply--basically, keeping customers happy depends on providing quality and encouraging communication.

M: Yes, but the essential factor is communication. A successful customer dervices unit is one that acts as a link between the company and the customer to ensure that the company can respond to the needs of the customer. After all, a company's success can only come from a satisfied customer.

(20)

A．Providing high-quality products for customers.

B．Providing good services for customers.

C．Doing everything you can to please and keep customers.

D．Establishing dialogues with the customers.

Lead deposits, which accumulated in soil and snow during the 1960's and 70's, were primarily the result of leaded gasoline emissions originating in the United States. In the twenty years that the Clean Air Act has mandated unleaded gas use in the United States, the lead accumulation worldwide has decreased significantly.

A study published recently in the journal Nature shows that air-borne leaded gas emissions from the United States were the leading contributor to the high concentration of lead in the snow in Greenland. The new study is a result of the continued research led by Dr. Charles Boutron, an expert on the impact of heavy metals on the environment at the National Center for Scientific Research in France. A study by Dr. Boutron published in 1991 showed that lead levels in arctic (北极的) snow were declining.

In his new study, Dr. Boutron found the ratios of the different forms of lead in the leaded gasoline used in the United States were different from the ratios of European, Asian and Canadian gasolines and thus enabled scientists to differentiate the lead sources. The dominant lead ratio found in Greenland snow matched that found ingasoline from the United States.

In a study published in the journal Ambio, scientists found that levels in soil in the Northeastern United States had decreased markedly since the introduction of unleaded gasoline.

Many scientists had believed that the lead would stay in soil and snow for a longer period.

The authors of the Ambio study examined samples of the upper layers of soil taken from the same sites of 30 forest floors in New England, New York and Pennsylvania in 1980 and in 1990. The forest environment processed and redistributed the lead faster than the scientists had expected.

Scientists say both studies demonstrate that certain parts of the ecosystem respond rapidly to reductions in atmospheric pollution, but that these findings should not be used as a license to pollute.

The study published in the journal Nature indicates that

A．the Clean Air Act has not produced the desired results.

B．lead deposits in arctic snow on the increase.

C．lead will stay in soil and snow longer than expected.

D．the U.S. is the major source of lead pollution in arctic snow.