莊慶輝

A

The huge thirst for jobs in the civil service has made the national civil servant （公務(wù)員） exam one of China's most competitive tests. The first exam was held in 1995， and since then more and more people have signed up for it， with applications reaching a peak over the last two years.

The latest online survey， carried out by China Youth Daily and www.qq.com， found that more than 73 percent of young people want to work as civil servants. Of the 17，330 respondents， about 83 percent said they were attracted by the job's stability， guaranteed health care and pension. Meanwhile， 55 percent said it could bring “practical profits”. Nearly 1 million people applied to take the exam last year， yet only just over 10，000 were finally employed.

This year the competition continued. The exact number of applicants is not known， with the final day for applications today.? But the flood of applicants has already broken the exam's website once. China Youth Daily reported that the site was forced to close for maintenance （維護(hù)） due to unusually high traffic on the night of October 16， which has never happened in the past.

In a typical year several hundred applicants will apply for many of the jobs listed.? For example， the five job vacancies provided by the secretariat （秘書處） of the Central Committee of the CPC have attracted more than 3，880 applicants this year.? In general， the exam means 50 people competing for one post， the report said. Positions as civil servants are attractive， not only because of the stable income and good health care， but also because of the low risks compared with the power and resources the positions enjoy.

1. Which of the following could not be the reason for the attraction of civil servant？

A. The stable income.

B. Good health care.

C. Practical power and profits.

D. Low work stress level.

2. Which paragraph states the fact that the number of applicants of this year is even larger than last year？

A. Paragraph 1.? ? B. Paragraph 2.

C. Paragraph 3.? D. Paragraph 4.

3. How many people on average will compete for one post provided by the secretariat of the Central Committee of the CPC this year？

A. 5. B. 50.? C. 776.? D. 3，880.

4. What would be the best title for the passage？

A. Civil Servant Exam in China

B. Deadline for Applications

C. Many Applicants for One Position

D. Civil Servant Exam Turns Tougher

B

Playing is serious business for children. In fact， it's what they do best！ Ask them why they do it， and kids will probably say， “Because it's fun！” But it's much more than that. It's also good for them.

____Studies show that from birth babies begin learning through play. They use their five senses to explore their new world. Touching allows them to discover how different things feel. Brightly coloured toys and clothing help develop a baby's sense of sight. Babies learn social skills through games like “peekaboo （躲貓貓）”. Through it， they quickly discover how to make those around them laugh and smile. When toddlers （學(xué)步的小孩） choose which toy to play with， they begin developing confidence in making decisions.

Children love toys that allow them to use their imagination. Sometimes an empty box can become anything a child imagines it to be. Crayons， paints and Play-Doh （培樂多橡皮泥） are also good because they allow children to create. Traditional building blocks teach important pre-math skills like problem-solving.

Playing doesn't become any less important once children start school. Many valuable lessons about life are learned on the school playground. Kids learn how to share， take turns and play by the rules. Also， research in education shows that active children get better grades. Health officials give another good reason for why children should play. The average student spends several hours a day in front of a TV or computer screen. Kids need the exercise， and playing is the most natural way to get it.

Believe it or not， play is important for adults too. More and more companies are realizing the value of playful work environments. Pixar， an American computer animation studio， for example， believes playful employees are more creative ones. The company provides its workers with a game room， a pool and other fun areas. Maybe the idea for Cars （《汽車總動(dòng)員》） started out in the game room.

5. According to the passage， the game “peeka-boo” ______.

A. helps develop children's some senses

B. encourages children to meet others

C. teaches children how to amuse others

D. makes children sure of themselves

6. In Paragraph 3， we are mainly told that ______.

A. imagination-inspiring toys are children's fondness

B. children are good at using their imagina-tions

C. children become creative by playing toys

D. children? ? need? ? important? ? problem-

solving skills

7. In health officials' opinion， ______.

A. children shouldn't watch TV or play computer any more

B. playing is the most natural way for children to take exercise

C. children enjoy playing in nature

D. children? can? improve? their grades by?playing often

8. According to the passage， the writer mentions Pixar to ______.

A. stress Pixar is full of creativeness

B. set a good model for other companies

C. suggest Cars was inspired by play

D. prove play is also good for adults

9. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage？

A. How to Make Kids Play

B. No play， No Work

C. The Art of Play

D. The Nature of Play