Despite the popularity of school spelling competitions, adults in the US performed poorly in a survey comparing how English speakers on both sides of the Atlantic deal with commonly misspelt words.

        Sixty­two percent of Americans got“embarrassed”wrong, against 54 percent of Britons who struggled with the word in a survey last year. Adults in the US performed less well on most of the ten words tested, including millennium (52 percent wrong, against 43 percent in the UK), liaison (61 percent to 54 percent)and “accommodation”(42 percent to 36 percent)．Only “definitely”and “friend”were spelt correctly by more Americans.

      Jack Bovill of the Spelling Society, which sponsored(发起)the research, said the high inaccuracy rates in both countries showed the need for the English spelling system to be modernized.“When asked, only a quarter of adults thought they had a problem with spelling.The answers in the test prove that this_is_far_from_the_case ， ”he said.“What is holding the UK and the USA back is the irregular spelling system.”

Professor Edward Baranowski, one academic consultant for the project, said, “We have different spellings for the same sound, and a system which reflects how English was spoken in the 13th to 15th centuries, not how it is spoken today.So many sound changes have occurred in the language, which is not reflected in modern spelling, that we are left with a ‘fossilized(僵化的)'system.”

       The study found that 40 percent of the respondents would support updating words that caused problems while 16 percent opposed the idea.And 31 percent said it didn't matter.

        The US survey involving a sample of 1，000 adults was carried out online by Ipsos MORI last month, with the method based on a survey of 1，000 Britons in April last year.

       I prefer Lynne Truss's phraseology: I am a grammar “sticker”. And, like Truss—author of Eats, Shoots & Leaves—I have a “zero tolerance” approach to grammar mistakes that make people look stupid.

       Now, Truss and I disagree on what it means to have “zero tolerance”. She thinks that people who mix up basic grammar “deserve to be struck by lightning, hacked (砍) up on the spot and buried in an unmarked grave”， while I just think they deserve to be passed over for a job—even if they are otherwise qualified for the position.

       Everyone who applies for a position at either of my companies, iFixit or Dozuki, takes a compulsory grammar test. If job hopefuls can't distinguish between “to” and “too”， their applications go into the bin.

       Of course, we write for a living. iFixit. com is the world's largest online repair manual (指南), and Dozuki helps companies write their own technical documentation, like paperless work instructions and step­by­step user manuals. So, it makes sense that we've made a strong strike against grammar errors.

        But grammar is relevant for all companies. Yes, language is constantly changing, but that doesn't make grammar unimportant. Good grammar is credibility, especially on the Internet. And, for better or worse, people judge you if you can't tell the difference between “their” “there” and “they're”．

       Good grammar makes good business sense—and not just when it comes to hiring writers. Writing isn't in the official job description of most people in our office. Still, we give our grammar test to everybody, including our salespeople, our operations staff, and our programmers.

       Grammar signifies more than just a person's ability to remember high school English. I've found that people who make fewer mistakes on a grammar test also make fewer mistakes when they are doing something completely unrelated to writing—like stocking shelves or labeling parts. It is the same with programmers. Applicants who don't think writing is important are likely to think lots of other things also aren't important.

        My daughter Chloe is starting out in college in the fall. With her newfound independence will come the newfound responsibilities of dealing with money.{#blank#}1{#/blank#}Now I have a few lessons I'd like to share with Chloe, and with anyone else starting out in college.

{#blank#}2{#/blank#}OK,this is almost the only lesson you need. The biggest reason you get into money problems is that you spend money you don't really have. Then you end up in the hole, and it's hard to get out of the hole. You work too many hours to keep up with your spending. And you end up with a life that's about nothing but trying to pay for all the spending on something you don't really need.{#blank#}3{#/blank#}

        Make a very simple budget. It's a terrible thing for people who've never done a budget, but it will become very simple and easy if you know how to do it.{#blank#}4{#/blank#}If the bills add up to more than theincome, remove some bills. Pay bills right away. If you have the money, pay thebill as soon as it comes in. You can usually do this online, but if not, it's just a matter of writing a check, putting it in an envelope, and writing out an address—two minutes.{#blank#}5{#/blank#} If you let the bill­ paying get pushed back, it becomes a terrible thing.

      That's all you need to know. If you save when you're in college, avoid debt, and paybills on time, you're golden.

A．Why not enjoy your life in college?

B．Spend less than you earn.

C．So spend less, work less, worry less, be happier.

D．Like many young people, she hates thinking about money.

E．First, list your income, and then list your bills.

F．Find ways to get things done you need to get done.

G．Do this two­minute action at once, so you don't have toworry about it later.