Read the following passage and choose the correct answer to each of the following questions.
For three decades, China operated the “one-child” policy of population control. This was abandoned in 2016 in favor of a two-child policy to boost the labor force. But average fertility rates keep falling, even restrictions are lifted. In 2016, after the one-child policy was abandoned, there were 17.86 million births. This dropped to 17.2 million in 2017 and 15.2 million In 2018 — the third-lowest rate since the foundation of the People's Republic of China in 1949.
Much of China's astonishing economic growth of the past four decades has been fueled by a young labor force, but this too is in rapid decline, while the elderly population is dramatically increasing. In China in 2017, the ration was six workers in the 20-64 age bracket supporting one senior citizen at least 65 years old. This was decline to 2.0 workers in 2039 and 1,6 in 2050. "No social security net, no family security, and a pension crisis — this will evolve into a humanitarian catastrophe. As women Iive six to seven years longer than men on average [and are usually a few years younger than their husbands], they will be the main victims of population control," said Yi.
Clearly more need to be done to encourage women to have more children. But couples in developed societies have fewer kids, largely because of expensive education costs and pressure on household incomes in the cities. Average fertility rates in Taiwan and Hong Kong from 2001 to 2018 were 1.14 and 1.07 respectively. "The best way to get more women to have more children is to make it easy and cheap for women to get good reliable childcare, and work," said George Magnus, a research associate at Oxford University's China Centre, and at SOAS.
'We live in a grey world. For the first time last year, there were more people on Earth who were 65 and over than children under 5. Because of the sheer pace of aging, China appears doomed to get old before it gets rich. "Measured by the proportion of 65+ and the old-age dependency ratio, China will age as much in the next 22 years as most Western economies have done in the last 60-70 years — and at far Iower levels of income per head, and with a much less developed social security system," Magnus said. By 2040, China's income per head could be anywhere between $20,000 (€18,000), and $40,000 per head depending on what happens to the economy and growth.
is to raise the participation of older workers and women in the workforce. It also needs to look to immigration, currently at negligible levels in China. And key to all of this is productivity. "Higher productivity is the Holy Grail, but how to deliver it? Investment in new technologies should help," said Magnus.
The word "this” in the passage refers to ______.
The word "catastrophe" is closest in meaning to _____
The word "greying” in the passage mostly means _____.
Choose the underlined part that needs correction.
Half of all Americans aged 12 to 30 if ever, rarely, read a newspaper
Choose the underlined part that needs correction.
He refused to comment before he had seen all the relevant informations.
Choose the underlined part that needs correction.
It is in Hanoi, Viet Nam, in the year 2021, where the 31st SEA Games is scheduled to take place.
Choose the sentence that is closest in meaning to the following question.
More and more companies are conducting business online.
Choose the sentence that is closest in meaning to this sentence.
"She seems the most likely candidate for the job." said the secretary.
Choose the sentence that is closest in meaning to the following question.
Hardly had she spoken when she regretted it bitterly.
Choose the sentence that best combines this pair of sentences.
John's car broke down on his way to the airport. He missed the flight.
Choose the sentence that best combines this pair of sentences.
John knew everything about his project. He presented it in an interesting way.
Choose the word(s) which is OPPOSITE in meaning to the underlined word(s).
“I am nuts about computers. I have about seven in my house. Four laptops and three desktop computers.”
Jane and Janet are talking about their graduation ceremony.
Jane: "Where are we going to have our party after the graduation ceremony?”
Janet: " ______"
Mary is talking to her friend about his accident.
Mary: “I'm sorry to hear about your accident. Tough break.”
Mary's friend: “____„
Choose the word whose underlined part differs from the other three in pronunciation.
Choose the word which has the underlined part pronounced differently from the others.
Choose the word that differs from the rest in the position of the main stress.
Choose the word that differs from the rest in the position of the main stress.
Science and advanced technology have made ______ better for millions of people worldwide.
Last night, I couldn't sleep because the music from the party next door ______ through the windows.
Tobacco is currently responsible _____ the death of one adult in ten worldwide.
Cable technology will _____ it possible for people to interchange information on a rapid two-way basis.
David commonly worried about _____ so badly in front of people that everyone would laugh at him.
My mother always used to say, "It's no use ____ over spilled milk.”
Read the following passage and choose the best option for each of the blanks.
What bothers most women about men in the west is that while they expect their wives to work outside, they still call housework “women's work.” And then there is a man who makes his wife feel inferior by reminding her his salary is bigger than hers. In what way is this woman liberated when she is performing so much more than her share her relationship, marriage, and family?
Only a few years ago women cleverly designed legally binding contracts called prenuptial agreements to protect their assets and economic during marriage and in case of divorce. Men accused women who asked for such contracts, manipulative and , simply because she was looking out for herself.
If a woman has property, a high career or other assets, it becomes a partial property of her future husband if she does not state in a prenuptial agreement. This portrays the double standard women in the west face. Whenever a man asserts himself or “beats the system,” he is called intelligent and resourceful, but if a woman asserts herself, she is called manly or aggressive. The system is designed so that men are the only ones allowed to play.
Read the following passage and choose the correct answer to each of the following questions.
Nanotechnology is the creation and use of materials or devices at extremely small scales. These materials or devices fall in the range of I to 100 nanometers (nm). One nm is equal to one-billionth nanometer (0.000000001 m), which is about 50,000 times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. Scientists refer to the dimensional range of 1 to 100 nm as the nanoscale, and materials at this scale are called nanocrystals or nanomaterials.
The nanoscale is unique because nothing solid can be made any smaller. It is also unique because many of the mechanisms of the biological and physical world operate on length scales from 0.1 to 100 nm. At these dimensions materials exhibit different physical properties; thus scientists expect that many novel effects at the nanoscale will be discovered and used for breakthrough technologies.
A number of important breakthroughs have already occurred in nanotechnology. These developments are found in products used throughout the world. Some examples are cataÌytic converters in automobiles that help remove air pollutants, devices in computers that read from and write to the hard disk, certain sunscreens and cosmetics that transparently block harmful radiation from the Sun, and special coatings for sports clothes and gear that help improve the gear and possibly enhance the athlete's performance. Still, many scientists, engineers, and technologists believe they have only scratched the surface of nanotechnology's potential.
Nanotechnology is in its infancy, and no one can predict with accuracy what will result from the full flowering of the field over the next several decades. Many scientists believe it can be said with confidence, however, that nanotechnology will have a major impact on medicine and health care; energy production and conservation; environmental cleanup and protection; electronics, computers, and sensors; and world security and defense.
(Adapted from: Encarta DVD 2009)