Another problem is that truckers’ families can seldom plan ahead. It is hard to plan a party for a certain date or even to accept invitations. Friends often say to each other, “Come over next Saturday if your husband is back by then.”
In addition, of course, there is always the danger of accidents. Although the accident rate per mile is only about half the rate for passenger cars, a life spent on major highways can never be really safe. All truck drivers fear being forced to make a sudden turn or having to stop unexpectedly on an icy road. When such accidents happen, someone other than a truck driver is usually at fault. Truckers have a low opinion of the driving skills of the general public. When truck drivers meet, much of their conversation deals with careless driving habits—the habits of others on the road. But truck drivers and their wives also point to advantages in their way of life. The chief advantage is money. “How else could an uneducated man earn as much?” one trucker’s wife asked, sitting in the comfortable living room of their new home with its large color television set and expensive furniture. The average salary earned by truck drivers may be $25,000—$30,000 with some drivers earning as much as $40,000 each year.
Driving a truck requires little physical labor. At each end of the journey other workers load and unload the truck. For days at a time the driver’s life consists entirely of sitting, eating, and sleeping. It is not surprising that many truckers worry about gaining weight.
Some of the sleeping is done inside the truck. It is quite common for two men to ride together in a huge truck, one man driving while the other sleeps on a comfortable bed behind the driver. That part of the truck is usually air conditioned, and often it is furnished with all the comforts of home.
When a trucker does not sleep in the truck, he spends the night at a truck stop. Some truck stops have enough parking space for as many as 400 trucks. At the truck stop there are stores that sell clothing, gifts, books, magazines, and many other kinds of goods. There are also comfortable rooms for sleeping, showers, and machines which wash the trucks.
After a shower the driver can enjoy a good meal in the dining room, listening to music. Much of the music is “country” music or “western” music, as most truckers grew up on farms in the southern and western states. There are even special truckers’ songs, like “I’m a Truck”, in which a truck complains about its unsympathetic driver. In another song, “A Truck Driver’s Prayer”, the driver prays for a chance “to pass a Greyhound bus” before he dies.
To the average citizen, who works in the same place from 9:00 to 5:00 each day and then goes home to his family, the truckers live in a different world. It is a world seldom seen by others.
56. The accident rate for trucks is lower.
57. Truck drivers worry about their families when they are away.
58. The average salary earned by 25 truck drivers last year was $24,000. 59. Many truck drivers worry about losing weight because their life is hard.
60. At a truck stop there is usually space for only a few trucks, so the driver must often travel farther in search of a place to spend the night.
56-60TTFFF
Section B: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions. For each question there are 4 choices marked A, B, C, and D. Decide on the one that best answers the question.
Passage3
The second year in Cornell for me was very demanding. This was not because of the study. The pressure mainly came from job-hunting.
In such top-ranking business schools as Cornell, permanent job recruiting starts as soon as the second year starts. There is a special office, the Career Service Office (CSO), which is in charge of posting on-campus interview schedules, collecting students’ resumes and coordinating the company and students in regard to the interview. Usually, during the summer time, companies start to book with the CSO when to make presentations on campus, when to collect resumes and when to conduct interviews. By mid-September, the CSO will start the first round of resume drop. Throughout the whole semester, there are about 12 or more rounds of resume drop and each round is composed of about 20 companies. Over the past two years, the job market has been unprecedentedly good, and lots of companies have come to campus to recruit.
However, for international students, the opportunities are very limited. Almost two-thirds of the American companies will state at the end of their job descriptions that they are not recruiting students without US work authorization. In the States, international students are on F-1 visa status. Once they are employed by the companies upon graduation, they need to change to H-1 status, to get the work authorization, which has to be sponsored by their employers. The legal process is troublesome and time-consuming. Therefore, to avoid the troubles, many companies do not want to recruit international students without work authorization, which means that the international students can apply only when they have a green card. Given the fact that only about one-third of the companies coming to campus to recruit are willing to employ international students and sponsor them to get the necessary work authorization, it is not difficult to imagine how fierce the competitions are among international students on campus. Fortunately, beyond the confines of the campus, there are still more companies out there which have a great need for MBA students and are willing to sponsor the international students having no green cards to get the H-1 work visa. With these companies, what you need to do is to network. I cannot stress enough how important networking is in job-hunting. But networking here is quite different from what we understand by “connections” in Chinese culture. You do not have to send any presents to the person with whom you want to establish a network, and neither do you have to know him beforehand. Our school has a great network of alums working in different fields and those alums’ contact information is provided by the CSO.
So, what do you do with the information? Cold calls. At the beginning, I found the idea of contacting an alum quite ridiculous. Think about it, you’ve never met this person and you are asking him to help you get a job on the phone. However, without any other more solid and effective connection in hand, cold calls may turn out to be the beginning of something more than a mere straw in the water. The success of other people made me believe that it was a very practical way to land a job as long as you persisted and knew what you were after. Of course, not every alum is enthusiastic in helping a stranger. But most of the alums are very helpful, passing on your resume to human resources, arranging interviews, and referring you to other companies they may have contacts with. Of course, whether you can finally get the job or not is up to your interview skills, overall ability and fate. Still, networking can help you get into the door, which is already a blessing to the international students whose on-campus interview chances are limited.
61. The special office, CSO, is in charge of __________. A. posting on-campus interview schedules B. collecting students’ resumes
C. coordinating the company and students in regard to the interview D. all the above
62. Which one of the following statements is true of the “connections” in USA? A. It is different from what we understand in Chinese culture. B. You have to send any presents to the person. C. You have to know him beforehand. D. You must establish a network.
63. According to the last paragraph, which statement is NOT true? A. It isn’t a very practical way to give a phone call. B. Not every alum is enthusiastic in helping a stranger. C. Most of the alums are very helpful.
D. Most of the alums will pass on your resume to human resources. 64. According to the passage, which statement is NOT true?
A. By mid-September, the CSO will start the first round of resume drop.
B. Throughout the whole semester, there are about 12 or more rounds of resume drop. C. For international students, the opportunities are very unlimited. D. I cannot stress enough how important networking is in job-hunting. 65. Throughout the passage, the author wants to depict that _________. A. green cards are the most important thing in finding a job B. networking is necessary to find a job in the States
C. green cards and networking are very important for an international student to find a job in the States
D. the action of the international students’ alums is very important for one to find a good job
Passage 4
Several months ago I decided it would be wise to investigate the possibilities of buying a life insurance policy, if for no other reason than because I understood it might be a good investment. I got the name of an insurance agent from a friend and called the agent to get some information. From the kinds of questions I put to him, the agent could tell that I knew nothing about insurance, so he kindly offered to explore the matter with me in more detail—to help me determine the kind of policy I ought to be considering.
That evening he appeared at my door promptly at 7:30; without wasting time on amenities, he spread his papers out on the kitchen table and launched into a lengthy explanation. I listened attentively as he talked about the difference between various types of policies, and he explained the kind of coverage he felt I ought to have because of my age bracket and financial objectives. Toward the end of the evening (after three or four hours of talking), he kindly helped me fill out an application for a $50,000 policy, and then he asked if I could go to a Dr. Luther’s office on Friday for a physical examination.
I don’t know why, but it was not until the mention of the doctor’s appointment that I realized fully what was happening. I was about to sign lifetime contract, yet I had not really made a decision
about whether I wanted to buy the policy or not. As a matter of fact, the question of a need for a decision from me one way or the other had not even come up. Suddenly I felt sure that I definitely did not want to buy the policy. However, since he had spent so much time with me, I didn’t want to make him feel that he had wasted his time. So I invented an excuse about things I had to do on Friday, and I assured him I would call him in a few days. Actually, I had no intention of going to see Dr. Luther or of calling the agent again. I wanted to forget the whole thing.
It’s been over three months now since our meeting, and my friendly insurance agent still calls at my office faithfully two or three times a week. My secretary knows that I don’t want to talk to him, so when he calls she tells him that I’m in a meeting or that I’m out of the office or that I’m away on a business trip. I realize now that it was a mistake not to tell him that first night that I didn’t want the policy. Since I still can’t bring myself to tell him outright that I’m not interested, and please not to bother me anymore, all I can do is avoid his calls and hope I don’t run into him some place.
66. The writer phoned the insurance agent because __________.
A. he wanted to fill out an application for a life insurance policy B. he had decided to buy a life insurance policy C. he took great interest in the insurance company
D. he was eager to explore the possibilities of buying a life insurance policy 67. After several hours of talking, the writer __________.
A. decided to buy the policy
B. decided to postpone making a decision C. made an appointment with Dr. Luther D. decided not to buy the policy
68. The writer didn’t tell the agent the truth because __________.
A. he was afraid of him
B. he felt embarrassed to do so
C. he thought it none of the agent’s business D. he did not wish to lose the agent’s friendship 69. Which of the following is true?
A. The writer has tried many ways to get rid of the agent. B. The agent is easily put off. C. The agent phones every day.
D. The writer intends to call the agent in a few days. 70. The secretary __________.
A. understands the writer well B. helps the writer C. is clever and experienced D. all of the above
61-65 DAACC 66-70 DDBAD
IV. Translate the following sentences into Chinese. (10%) 71. At last the meeting came to an end. 会议终于结束了。
72. But this time Pete had come here more from habit than from hunger.
但这次彼特来到这里不是由于饥饿，而是由于习惯。
73. Different friends fill different niches in each person’s life. These friendships are not made part of family life.
不同的朋友在每个人的生活中有不同的作用，他们不介入家庭生活。
74. Patel and his team tested the idea using an printer inkjet cartridge that had an array of 512 separate nozzles.
派特及其同事运用有512独立的喷嘴的墨盒检验了这个想法。 75. Visitors are requested not to touch the exhibits. 参观者请勿触摸展品。
V. Translate the following sentences into English. (10%)
76.一些大学白天晚上都授课。（as well as）
Some universities hold classes at night as well as in the daytime. 77.美国人喜欢棒球和橄榄球，这并不足为奇。(not unusual) It’s not unusual that Americans like baseball and football. 78.一百年前，80%的工人生产物品，今天只有20%。(do)
One hundred years ago,80% of workers produced goods, today only 20% do. 79.银行同意给予这个学生低息贷款。（grant） The bank agreed to grant this student low-interest loan. 80.老年人很难改变自己的习惯。(形式主语it) It’s hard to change their habits for the old.. VI. Writing (15%)
Directions: For this section, you are allowed 20 minutes to write a short composition on the topic MY HOBBY: STAMP COLLECTING. You should write about 100 words, and base your composition on the points suggested (given in Chinese) below.
(1) 集邮是怎么成为你的业余爱好的？ (2) 你认为集邮有什么优点？ (3) 你打算如何继续你的集邮？