题型:任务型阅读 题类:常考题 难易度:困难
江苏省海安县2019届高三上学期英语期末考试试卷(含小段音频)
Robert F. Kennedy once said that a country's GDP measures "everything except that which makes life worthwhile. "With Britain voting to leave the European Union, and GDP already predicted to slow as a result, it is now a timely moment to assess what he was referring to.
The question of GDP and its usefulness has annoyed policymakers for over half a century. Many argue that it is a flawed(有缺陷的) concept. It measures things that do not matter and misses things that do. By most recent measures, the UK's GDP has been the envy of the Western world, with record low unemployment and high growth figures. If everything was going so well, then why did over 17 million people vote for Brexit, despite the warnings about what it could do to their country's economic prospects.
A recent annual study of countries and their ability to convert growth into well-being sheds some light on that question. Across the 163 countries measured, the UK is one of the poorest performers in ensuring that economic growth is translated into meaningful improvements for its citizens. Rather than just focusing on GDP, over 40 different sets of criteria from health, education and civil society engagement have been measured to get a more rounded assessment of how countries are performing.
While all of these countries face their own challenges, there are a number of consistent themes. Yes, there has been a budding economic recovery since the 2008 global crash, but in key indicators in areas such as health and education, major economies have continued to decline. Yet this isn't the case with all countries. Some relatively poor European countries have seen huge improvements across measures including civil society, income equality and the environment.
This is a lesson that rich countries can learn: When GDP is no longer regarded as the sole measure of a country's success, the world looks very different.
So, what Kennedy was referring to was that while GDP has been the most common method for measuring the economic activity of nations, as a measure, it is no longer enough. It does not include important factors such as environmental quality or education outcomes all things that contribute to a person's sense of well-being.
The sharp hit to growth predicted around the world and in the UK could lead to a decline in the everyday services we depend on for our well-being and for growth. But policymakers who refocus efforts on improving well-being instead of simply worrying about GDP figures could avoid the forecasted doom and may even see progress.
Title: High GDP But Well-being, a UK Lesson |
|
Passage outline |
Supporting details |
Different opinions of GDP |
·Robert F. Kennedy believed that everything was measured by a country's GDP except made life worthwhile. ·Many people hold belief that GDP measures what is unimportant andmisses what |
GDP as the measure of is widely defied in the UK. |
·Despite the fact the Westem world has envied the UK's for its high GDP with high and high growth figures, over 17 million people voted to leave the European Union. ·A recent annual study shows that in the 163 countries measured, the UK is one of countries, which have most transformed economic growth into meaningful improvements for its citizens. |
Main assessments of a country's |
·Over 40 of criteria from health, education and civil society engagement. ·Environmental quality or education outcomes-all thingsin a person's sense of happiness. |
Factors considered beyond GDP |
Policymakers, who don't simply worry about GDP figures, instead think of improving happiness, can avoid forecasting doom and may even see progress. |
What news stories do you read? | |
Division of news stories | ● People expect to get{#blank#}1{#/blank#}from reading news. ● News stories are roughly divided into two classes. ● Some news will excite their readers instantly while others won't. |
{#blank#}2{#/blank#}ofthe two classes | ● News of immediate reward will seemingly take their readers to the very frightening scene without actual {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. ● Readers will associate themselves closely with what happens in the news stories and{#blank#}4{#/blank#}similar feelings with those involved. |
● News of delayed reward will make readers suffer, or present a {#blank#}5{#/blank#}to them. ● News of delayed reward will induce the reader to {#blank#}6{#/blank#}for the reality while news of immediate reward will lead the reader to {#blank#}7{#/blank#}from the reality. | |
Unstable boundaries of the two classes | ● What readers expect from news stories are largely shaped by their{#blank#}8{#/blank#}. ● Serious readers will both get excited over what happens in some news stories and{#blank#}9{#/blank#} themselves to the reality. ● Thus, the division, on the whole,{#blank#}10{#/blank#}on the reader. |
Cross-country skiing can be enjoyed by a wide range of students, from the youngest kindergartners to those secondary students. It is really a fun activity, providing students a gentle workout outside in winter. While having fun, students can gain physical and mental benefits.
The physical benefits of cross-country skiing are well-known. If we look at Olympic cross-country skiers, we can see the positive effects on the body that result from training for cross-country skiing.
The average best female cross-country skiers carry 11 percent body fat, and best male skiers carry 5 percent. These percentages are well below the average people who are considered to be athletic—17 percent for females and 10 percent for males. Burning a high number of calories while skiing helps to keep skiers slim in a healthy and attractive way.
Cross-country skiing is also an efficient way to exercise a large number of muscles at once. The upper body gets much more of workout because skiers use ski poles as a means of propulsion (推进), the force that drives skiers forward. Of course, the leg muscles also do their fair share. People who use cross-country skiing as a workout over several weeks will discover that the muscles of their whole body increase in strength.
Cross-country skiing on a regular basis has a tremendous effect on a person's cardiovascular (心血管的) system. In addition to gaining strength in the muscles of the upper and lower body, people who use cross-country skiing as a workout method over several weeks will also discover that their heart is stronger. A strong heart pumps more efficiently, sending out more blood to the muscles with each contraction (收缩). Through weeks of skiing, people often discover that their resting heart rate has decreased. Highly trained Olympic cross-country skiers have resting heart rates between 28 and 40 beats per minute. Compare that to the resting heart rate of the average person, which is 60 to 80 beats per minute!
The benefits of cross-country skiing extend beyond overall general health. A lot of evidence exists showing that regular physical activities increase the release of mood-lifting endorphins (内啡肽) in the body. After fun skiing lessons, students will be full of energy; they will be relaxed and in a better mood than when they started class. Students will leave class with a sense of accomplishment, knowing that they have developed new skills in a fun activity.
Cross-country skiing is a great way to exercise the whole body. Now more and more students are taking part in this exercise outside during the winter months. They are enjoying it and benefiting from it!
{#blank#}1{#/blank#} to cross-country skiing | Cross-country skiing is a winter activity suitable for students of{#blank#}2{#/blank#} ages which benefits them physically and mentally. | |
Benefits of cross-country skiing | Reducing body fat | Training for cross-country skiing{#blank#}3{#/blank#} their body positively, making them slim in a healthy way. |
{#blank#}4{#/blank#} muscles | Muscles can be built up{#blank#}5{#/blank#}if skiers take part in the activity. | |
Improving the cardiovascular system | ● A strong heart is beneficial to blood{#blank#}6{#/blank#}. ●{#blank#}7{#/blank#}with that of the average person, the resting heart rate of highly trained skiers is lower per minute. | |
Lifting mood | ● The release of mood-lifting endorphins can be {#blank#}8{#/blank#}● Students will be{#blank#}9{#/blank#} and relaxed after skiing lessons. | |
Conclusion | Cross-country skiing is such a good way to work out that a {#blank#}10{#/blank#} number of students are enjoying and benefiting from it. |
Why Is Recycling Important?
When you throw things away, you might be very glad to do it. Unfortunately, that's not the end of the story. The things we throw away have to go somewhere-usually they go off to be buried underground in a landfill (垃圾填埋) or burnt in an incinerator (焚化炉). Landfills can be terribly polluting. They look awful, they smell terrible, they take up space that could be used for better things, and they sometimes create harmful soil and water pollution that can kill fish in our rivers and seas.
One of the worst things about landfills is that they're wasting a huge amount of useful material. It takes a lot of energy and a lot of resources to make things, and when we throw those things in a landfill, at the end of their lives, we're also saying goodbye to all the energy and resources instead of burying it in landfills. That certainly has advantages: it reduces the amount of waste that has to be buried and we can get useful energy from it. But it can also produce harmful air pollution, and burning almost anything adds to the problem of global warming and climate change.
The trouble is, we're all in the habit of throwing things away. In the early part of 20th century, people used materials much more wisely-especially in World War Ⅱ, but in recent decades we've become a throwaway society. We tend to buy new things instead of getting old ones repaired. A lot of men use single-use razors (剃须刀), for example, instead of buying reusable ones, while a lot of women wear single-use stockings. Partly this is to do with the great convenience of throwaway items. It's also because they're cheap. But wasteful period in our history is coming to an end.
We're finally starting to realize that our lifestyle is creating problems for future generations. Earth is soon going to be running on empty if we carry on as we are. Americans have a much richer life than almost anyone else on Earth. What happens when people in developing countries such as India and China decide they want to live the same way as us? According to the environmentalists, we'd need two Earths to satisfy all their needs.
Why Is Recycling Important | |
Ways to deal with rubbish | •Bury rubbish underground in a land fill. •{#blank#}1{#/blank#}rubbish in an incinerator. |
Disadvantages of the landfill | •It looks terrible and smells bad. •It {#blank#}2{#/blank#} too much space which could be put to better use. •It pollutes soil and water. •Large amounts of{#blank#}3{#/blank#} materials are wasted. |
The advantages and disadvantages of burning rubbish | •The waste that needs to be buried is {#blank#}4{#/blank#} after burning. •It can{#blank#}5{#/blank#} useful energy. |
•It causes air pollution. •It has a bad {#blank#}6{#/blank#} on global warming and climate change. | |
The problem | •People are used to {#blank#}7{#/blank#} things away. •Both men and women prefer single-use products because they are {#blank#}8{#/blank#} and more convenient. |
The writer's concern | •The lifestyle of Americans now will create a {#blank#}9{#/blank#} for future generation. •If people all over the world {#blank#}10{#/blank#} their lives in the same way as Americans, the Earth will be ruined very quickly. |
试题篮