Passage 3

China’s birth rate has been falling since 2016—for example,12 million new births were recorded in 2020,but the number is expected to drop below 10 million in 2021 despite a series of pronatalist policies taken by the government.And although the two-child policy introduced in 2016 caused an uptick in the number of newborns,it failed to reverse the falling birth rate trend.

Can the three-child policy introduced last year succeed where earlier favorable family planning policies failed?

The picture doesn’t look good,though.China’s birth rate in 2020 declined to 1.3 percent,far lower than the replacement rate of 2.1,according to the seventh national census results.Since the population of women of childbearing age in China has reached its peak,it will continue to decline.

From the perspective of economics,having children is essentially an economic decision.The costs and benefits of having a child play a key role in such families decision.

As for benefits,children carry on the family name and can help strengthen the bond between a man and a woman.And having children gives an assurance to parents that they will have someone to take care of them when they get old.

When it comes to costs,women have to endure physical and mental stress to give birth and bring up children.Childbirth is painful and,in extreme cases,could be fatal.Also,new mothers,in general,find it difficult to adjust family and work life.Plus,having children also means additional expenses,and in some cases,cutting costs to provide good education for the children,as well as dedicating huge amounts of time to bring them up.

In East Asia,the low fertility rate is largely attributed to women’s lower position in the family.Many women tired of rushing back and forth between work and housework with men rarely extending a helping hand have decided not to marry,and if marry,not to have children.Thus men have to shoulder their part of the social and familial responsibilities to promote gender equality.This will not only promote domestic harmony but also can help increase the fertility rate.

11.What does the underlined word“uptick”mean?

A.small increase.B.small decrease.C.a great increase.D.a great decrease.

12.According to the passage,which is the direct reason why birth rate will continuously decline?

A.The influence of three-child policy.

B.The terrible economic prospective.

C.The decline of population of women of childbearing age.

D.The pronatalist policies taken by government.

13.Which of following is not the benefit of having a child in a family?

A.Increasing family costs.

B.Carrying on the family name.

C.Strengthening the bond between parents.

D.Looking after parents in the future.

14.What kind of stress will women suffer from when they give birth and bring up a child?

A.Neither physical nor mental.B.Only physical.

C.Only mental.D.Both physical and mental.

15.If men shoulder part of the society and familial responsibilities,which is likely to happen?

A.There will be more problems in a family.

B.The birth rate in China will increase greatly.

C.Women will take more jobs in a company.

D.A lot more things will be decided by women only.

Passage 4

With the coming of the internet,online communities have figured out a way to generate profit from the sharing of those underused assets.Using websites and social media groups that facilitate the buying and selling of second-hand goods,it is now easier than ever for peer-to-peer sharing activities to take place.And this is known as the sharing economy.

These popular online platforms are providing a chance for people to make a quick buck or two.To give an example,busy parents previously might not have bothered with setting up a stall at the local market or car boot sale to sell their children’s old equipment,but with online marketplaces,parents are now able to sell on those hardly worn baby clothes that their children have outgrown and the expensive pushchairs and baby equipment they have invested in,so as to put some cash back into their pockets.

Businesses have also caught on to the profitability of the sharing economy and are seeking to gain from making use of those underutilized resources.A business model that has rapidly risen in popularity sees companies providing an online platform that puts customers in contact with those who can provide a particular product or service.Companies like Airbnb act as a middleman for people to cash in on their unused rooms and houses and let them out as lucrative accommodation.Another example is Uber,which encourages people to use their own personal cars as taxis to make some extra cash in their free time.

This move towards a sharing economy is not without criticisms.Unlike businesses,unregulated individuals do not have to follow certain regulations and this can lead to poorer and inconsistent quality of goods and services and a higher risk of fraud.Nevertheless,in the consumerist society we live in today,the increased opportunities to sell on our unwanted and underused goods can lead to a lesser impact on our environment.

16.The following are the examples of sharing economy except ______.

A.a pushchair sold on the Internet

B.a house renting through Airbnb

C.calling a taxi through Uber

D.borrowing a dictionary in the library

17.Why do people get involved in the sharing economy?

A.Because nowdays people buy more things.

B.Because businesses want to buy the things they don’t use.

C.Because there are now more market stalls.

D.Because there are now online platforms to do business.

18.Which of these is something that we might underutilize?

A.Thick coat in a cold country.

B.Clothes our babies don’t or can’t wear any more.

C.The latest smartphone.

D.The storeroom in our house.

19.According to the passage,which is a problem of the sharing economy?

A.Some people may not be able to find suitable goods.

B.It is likely to cause some bad results like fraud.

C.The environment may be influenced and even polluted.

D.A lot of workers may lose their jobs.

20.What’s the main idea of this passage?

A.The conmuserist society.B.Parents who need money.

C.The rise of the sharing economy.D.Why we buy things we don’t need.