More than one in four children alive in Britain today will celebrate their 100thbirthday, official figures showed. The special figure shows a huge social change, with today's children likely to survive far longer than their parents or grandparents. Of the 12.4 million children aged 16 and under, 3.3 million(27%)will become someone who is a hundred years old or more. In a class of 30 children, eight can live to be 100. And the rest of the children are likely to get to an old age, even though they will not make it to three figures. Experts warned that children may live to 100, but that they will not get their State pension until they are 70 or beyond. The State pension age is rising to 66 for both men and women by 2020, and the Government has warned it will continue to rise. Laith Khalaf, a pension expert, said, "Living to an old age is lucky if you can afford it, but a _ if you can't. Those without enough savings will be depending on the State pension which will be changed." It also increases the possibility of millions of people surviving until their 100thbirthday with a poor quality of life because of poor health and little money. Millions of older people have no pensions, no savings and no plans about how they are going to pay for their retirement other than to carry on working. If the older population demands more resources ,then it has to come from their own wealth or the government. Laith said, "Millions of people will be spending over a third of their lives in retirement. It is high time that we reformed the State pension system. We want to make it fair for future generation." Why should the government at present reform the State pension system? A) The present pension system isn't quite useful. B) People nowadays don't need the pension at all. C) More and more people ask the government to do so. D) The present pension system is unfair for future generation.
D
Never Talk to Strangers? "Never talk to strangers." Many children are taught this simple rule as a precaution against abduction . In June, 2005, an 11-year-old boy was lost in the Utah wilderness for four days. During that time, he stayed on the path. He saw people searching for him but deliberately hid from them, afraid someone might "steal" him. Eventually, the unfortunate game of hide-and-seek ended and he was found. According to the Canada Safety Council, this alarming incident shows how unwise it is to instill a fear of strangers in children. The "stranger danger" message can prevent children from developing the social skills and judgment needed to deal effectively with real-life situations. In a difficult situation, a stranger could be their lifeline to safety. To have a child go missing is a parent's worst nightmare. The threat of abduction by a stranger is minimal when compared with other possible reasons for a disappearance. In 2004, there were 67,266 missing-children cases in Canada. Only 31 involved abduction; in most of those cases the abductor was a relative, friend, or person known to the family. There were 671 cases of children wandering off, and 332 cases of abductions by a parent. Almost 80 percent of all cases were runaways. These statistics cast doubt on the idea that children should never talk to strangers. Wandering off is more common--but a lost children may have to call upon a stranger for help, and must develop the ability to judge what kind of people to approach. The "never talk to strangers" rule does not protect children in the situations they are most likely to face. On top of this, it can be confusing. Adults do not model the behaviour; they often talk to strangers. A child may not know how to tell who is a stranger, and who is not. For young children, nothing replaces close supervision . Pre-schoolers do not understand risk and tend to act without thinking. Children need to develop habits and sttitudes that will protect them from the real threats and dangers they may face. The... Which would the author agree with about the "never talk to strangers" rule? A) It is not well recognized by parents. B) It is not effective in keeping kids safe. C) It is easy enough for children to follow. D) It is practical as a safety tip in daily life.
B
*Question*
I revisited Beichuan of Mid-Autumn Festival. As the car drove into the ruined city, tears streamed down my cheeks. Giant rocks from the mountain destroyed the road and houses fell, breaking into bricks and pieces of cement . Beichuan Middle School, which was once filled with energy and laughter, now so unrecognizable ,so empery, so quiet, so still, was a death valley. I couldn't really imagine at that moment, how much pain they had suffered or how hopeless they felt as they waited to be rescued. Those unfortunate ones watched the devil of death march over them, taking them away. I can't really imagine how heartbroken their parents or beloved ones were. As I wandered in the ruins, I was lost in deep thoughts. The day before, we were sitting in the brightly lit classroom, heatedly arguing the importance of shapes, color1s and styles in architecture , comparing ancient time housing with the modern ones. Their similarities, their differences, their pros and cons... Now , facing the terrible scene, I realized how childlike we were and how easily we forget the most important element of architect is SAFETY, it is how housing is supposed to be: to _ us from burning sun and pouring rain, to provide us with a comfortable warm place to sleep and relax. Obviously, the style and shape do play important roles in architecture. But when a natural disaster such as this earthquake came upon us without warning, will beauty stay over anybody's life? From this trip, we can no doubt give the clear loud answer; NO!!! Words after such a great disaster could appear nothing but empty and pointless. So many people's lives were taken, so much damage was done and a whole city was wiped out. Beichuan has become a history. Nevertheless, I still keep on dreaming and still long for a better future: to make our homes prettier yet safer. What is the best title of this passage? A) Safety Stands out from Anything B) Scenes of Post-disaster C) Importance of Architecture D) Relations between Architecture and Earthquake
**Answer**
A