In Counting Stars, "Take that money, watch it burn, Sink in the river. The lessons are learned". What lessons are learned？

It was not yet eleven o'clock when a boat crossed the river with a single passenger who was lucky to be able to cross the river at that unusual hour by promising to pay some extra money. While the youth stood in the light place searching his pockets for money, the boatman lifted a lamp, with the help of which, together with the newly risen moon, he took a careful look at the stranger. He was a young man of about eighteen years, clearly country brought up, and was, as it seemed, on his first visit to town. He was wearing a rough grey coat, which was in good shape, and which had seen many winters before this one. The jacket under his coat was made of leather(皮), and fitted tightly to a pair of strong legs; his stockings of blue must have been the work of his mother or sister; on his head was a hat, which in its better days had perhaps protected the grayer head of the young man's father, In his left hand was a walking stick, and on his strong shoulders hung a leather bag. Brown hair, well-shaped features(身体匀称), bright, cheerful eyes were nature's gifts. The youth, whose name was Robin, paid the boatman, and then walked forward into the town with a light step, as if he had not already travelled more than thirty miles that day. As he walked, he looked around as eagerly as if he were entering London or New York instead of the little city in New Eng land.

Which of the following statements is true?

A．The boy was rich.

B．The story took place at a cold snowy(下雪的) night in winter.

C．The boatman wouldn't like to send the young man across the river at first.

D．The boatman knew that the young man's name was Robin.

A Country's Standard of Living

The "standard of living" of any country means the average person's share of the goods and services the country produces. A country's standard of living,(51), depends first and(52)on its capacity to produce wealth. "Wealth" in this sense is not money, for we do not live on money(53)on things that money can buy: "goods" such as food and clothing, and "services" such as transport and "entertainment".

A country's capacity to produce wealth depends upon many factors, most of(54)have an effect on one another. Wealth depends(55)a great extent upon a country's natural resources. Some regions of the world are well supplied with coal and minerals, and have fertile soil and a favorable climate; other regions possess none of them.

Next to natural resources(56)the ability to turn them to use. China is perhaps as well-off(57)the USA in natural resources, but suffered for many years from civil and external wars, and(58)this and other reasons was(59)to develop her resources. Sound and stable political conditions, and(60)from foreign invasions, enable a country to develop its natural resources peacefully and steadily, and to produce more wealth than another country equally well favoured by nature but less well ordered.

A country's standard of living does not only depend upon the wealth that is produced and consumed(61)its own borders, but also upon what is directly produced through international trade.(62), Britain's wealth in foodstuffs and other agricultural products would be much less if she had to depend only on(63)grown at home. Trade makes it possible for her surplus manufactured goods to be traded abroad for the agricultural products that would(64)be lacking. A country's wealth is, therefore, much influenced by its manufacturing capacity,(65)that other countries can be found ready to accept its manufactures.

A．however

B．furthermore

C．similarly

D．therefore

The young man was accused of ______ the lady of her money.

A．stealing

B．robbing

C．taking

D．grasping

The young man was accused of______the lady of her money.

A．stealing

B．robbing

C．taking

D．grasping

听力原文： In the 1940s, urban Americans began a mass move to the suburbs in search of fresh air, elbowroom, and privacy. Suburbs began to sprawl out across the countryside. Since most of those making the move were middle-class, they took with them the tax money the cities needed to maintain the neighborhoods in which they had lived. Thus, many cities began to fall into disrepair. Crime began to soar, and public transportation was neglected. Meanwhile, housing construction costs continued to rise higher and higher. Middle-class housing was allowed to decay, and little new housing was constructed.

Eventually, many downtown areas existed for business only. During the day they would be filled with people working in offices, and at night they would be deserted. Given these circumstances, some business executives began asking, "Why bother with going downtown at all? Why not move the offices to the suburbs so that we can live and work in the same area?" Gradually some of the larger companies began moving out of cities, with the result that urban centers declined even further and the suburbs expanded still more.

But it may well be said that this movement to the suburbs has reached its peak. Some people may be tired of spending long hours commuting, and they may have begun to miss the advantages of culture and companionship provided by city life. It begins to look as if suburban sprawl may not have been the answer to man's need to create an ideal environment in which to live and work.

When did a mass move to the suburbs begin in the U.S.?

A．In the 1960s.

B．In the 1940s.

C．In the 1970s.

D．In the 1950s.

1 The "standard of living" of any country means the average person's share of the goods services which the country produces. A country's standard of living, therefore, depends first and foremost on its capacity to produce wealth. "Wealth" in this sense is not money, for we do not live on money but on things that money can buy. "goods" such as food and clothing, and "services" such as transport and entertainment.

2 A country's capacity to produce wealth depends upon many factors, most of which have an effect on one another. Wealth depends to a great extent upon a country's natural resources, such as coal, gold, and other minerals, water supply and so on. Some regions of the world are well supplied with coal and minerals, and have a fertile soil and a favourable climate; other regions possess none of them.

3 Next to natural resources comes the ability to turn them to use. Some countries are perhaps well off in natural resources, but suffered for many years from civil and external wars, and for this and other reasons have been unable to develop their resources. Sound and stable political conditions, and freedom from foreign invasion, enable a country to develop its natural resources peacefully and steadily, and to produce more wealth than another country equally well served by nature but less well ordered. Another important factor is the technical efficiency of a country's people. Industrialized countries that have trained numberous skilled workers and technicians are better placed to produce wealth than countries whose workers are largely unskilled.

4 A country's standard of living does not only depend upon the wealth that is produced and consumed within its own borders, but also upon what is indirectly produced through international trade. For example, Britain's wealth in foodstuffs and other agricultural products would be much less if she had to depend only on those grown at home. Trade makes it possible for her surplus manufactured goods to be traded abroad for the agricultural products that would otherwise be lacking. A country's wealth is, therefore, much influenced by its manufacturing capacity, provided that other countries can be found ready to accept its manufactures.

The standard of living in a country is determined by______.

A．its goods and services.

B．the type of wealth produced.

C．how well it can create wealth.

D．what an ordinary person can share.

1 The "standard of living" of any country means the average person's share of the goods services which the country produces. A country's standard of living, therefore, depends first and foremost on its capacity to produce wealth. "Wealth" in this sense is not money, for we do not live on money but on things that money can buy. "goods" such as food and clothing, and "services" such as transport and entertainment.

2 A country's capacity to produce wealth depends upon many factors, most of which have an effect on one another. Wealth depends to a great extent upon a country's natural resources, such as coal, gold, and other minerals, water supply and so on. Some regions of the world are well supplied with coal and minerals, and have a fertile soil and a favourable climate; other regions possess none of them.

3 Next to natural resources comes the ability to turn them to use. Some countries are perhaps well off in natural resources, but suffered for many years from civil and external wars, and for this and other reasons have been unable to develop their resources. Sound and stable political conditions, and freedom from foreign invasion, enable a country to develop its natural resources peacefully and steadily, and to produce more wealth than another country equally well served by nature but less well ordered. Another important factor is the technical efficiency of a country's people. Industrialized countries that have trained numberous skilled workers and technicians are better placed to produce wealth than countries whose workers are largely unskilled.

4 A country's standard of living does not only depend upon the wealth that is produced and consumed within its own borders, but also upon what is indirectly produced through international trade. For example, Britain's wealth in foodstuffs and other agricultural products would be much less if she had to depend only on those grown at home. Trade makes it possible for her surplus manufactured goods to be traded abroad for the agricultural products that would otherwise be lacking. A country's wealth is, therefore, much influenced by its manufacturing capacity, provided that other countries can be found ready to accept its manufactures.

The standard of living in a country is determined by______.

A．its goods and services.

B．the type of wealth produced.

C．how well it can create wealth.

D．what an ordinary person can share.