Question

【題目】They should be Britain’s gilded (鍍金的) youth, enjoying opportunities to study, travel and start exciting careers in a way older generations could only dream about. But instead they are the “Ipod” generation —“Insecure, Pressured, Over-taxed and Debt-ridden”—according to a study by a group of experts who provide advice and ideas on social issues.

“We thought that each generation would be better off than its predecessors (前輩),” said Professor Nick Bosanquet of Imperial College London, one of its authors. “But young people today have more duties and it is much more difficult for them to raise their incomes and create wealth. This really is a very big issue for the country.”

According to the report, today’s youth don’t have enough confidence and ability to build on the economic foundations created by post-war baby boomers (生育高峰期出生的人) . Because they are in debt, they are also reluctant to take risks. Levels of entrepreneurship (企業(yè)家精神) among Britain’s youth are lower than in America, Australia, New Zealand and Ireland and have fallen over the past decade. Many choose the jobs which offer a good amount of money after they retire. Others have to take any job that is available to try to pay off their debts.

“I borrowed a lot of money from the bank to pay for my education at university, which is the biggest chain around my neck now,” said Phil Grech, 22, from Cumbria, who has a degree in maths from the University of Reading. “I’m only doing a temporary job at the moment to pay the mounting bills. I haven’t really thought about the long term. Many people think that when you leave university you can get a good job, but it’s no longer like that.”

While older generations enjoyed higher education funded by taxpayers, young people today face university tuition fees and a decreasing “return” in the salary advantage they will get from their degrees.

【1】What is the text mainly about?

A. Britain’s gilded youth.

B. The “Ipod” generation in Britain.

C. The challenges faced by the British today.

D. The career choices Britain’s youth have.

【2】What’s the biggest problem in Phil Grech’s life?

A. Low income.

B. The debt.

C. Not having a good college degree.

D. Not having job opportunities.

【3】We can infer from the text that the “Ipod” generation __________.

A. doesn’t have much determination

B. doesn’t want to have a full-time job

C. lives a harder life than the older generations

D. hasn’t realized the importance of saving money

【4】Which of the following words can best take the place of the word “reluctant” in the third paragraph?

A. Unwilling. B. Foolish.

C. Quick. D. Sorry.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】B

【2】B

【3】C

【4】A

【解析】

試題分析：本文講述的是英國這一代的青年人是屬于IPOD世代——經(jīng)濟(jì)狀況不穩(wěn)定(economic insecurity, I)，來自年齡，身份，地位和新移民的沉重壓力(pressured, P)，必須負(fù)擔(dān)政府的各種過重稅負(fù)(over-taxed, O)，以及公共和私人的債務(wù)(debt-ridden, D)四項壓力，所形成所謂的經(jīng)濟(jì)不穩(wěn)定、壓力過大、稅負(fù)過高及債務(wù)纏身的綜合體。

【1】B主旨大意題。通讀文章可知，本文講述的是被稱作IPOD世代的，英國的這一代青年人。故該題正確答案為B.

【2】B細(xì)節(jié)推理題。根據(jù)文章倒數(shù)第二段中“I borrowed a lot of money from the bank to pay for my education at university, which is the biggest chain around my neck now,” said Phil Grech可知，Phil Grech最大的問題就是：債務(wù)。故該題正確答案為B.

【3】C細(xì)節(jié)推理題。根據(jù)文章中提到的關(guān)于這一代的年輕人與父輩的比較today’s youth don’t have enough confidence and ability to build on the economic foundations created by post-war baby boomers.和While older generations enjoyed higher education funded by taxpayers, young people today face university tuition fees and a decreasing “return” in the salary advantage they will get from their degrees.可知，這一代的年輕人生活得比其父輩們要艱辛。故該題正確答案為C.

【4】A詞義猜測題。根據(jù)語境Because they are in debt, 因為他們負(fù)債，所以他們顯然是“不愿意”冒險的。故該題正確答案為A.