This month Singapore passed a bill that would give...

第1题

In SIngapore, the Hungry Ghosts festival takes place in the seventh Chinese lunar mont

h, between July and August.()

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第2题

I went on a trip to Singapore last month, ________？[A] So did I[B] So I did[C] So w

I went on a trip to Singapore last month, ________？

[A] So did I

[B] So I did

[C] So went I

[D] So did I, too.

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第3题

听力原文： How do you blow 1 billion？ With that much money, you could buy every jewel in Ti

ffany's, collect a small fleet of 747s...or (24[A]) bankrupt a vulnerable bank. That's what Nicholas Leeson apparently did, The 28-year-old trader for British investment house Barings PLC in Singapore staked more than 1 billion of the company's money last winter on Japanese derivatives, and got tsunamied. For weeks he tried to recoup his mounting losses with double-or-nothing bets and doctored bookkeeping. He was arrested in Frankfurt on his way to London. Germany extradited him to Singapore last month, where he was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison. (25[D])Leeson is appealing.

According to the news, Leeson ______.

A．bankrupted a vulnerable bank

B．was a British investor in Singapore

C．worked as a teller in Singapore

D．took exactly 1 billion from the bank last winter

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第4题

听力原文： How do you blow I billion？ With that much money, you could buy every jewel in Ti

ffany's, collect a small fleet of 747s... or bankrupt a vulnerable bank. That's what Nicholas Leeson apparently did. The 2g-year-old trader for British investment house Barings PLC. in Singapore staked more than 1 billion of the company's money last winter on Japanese derivatives, and got tsunamied. For weeks he tried to recoup his mounting losses with double-or-nothing bets and doctored bookkeeping. He was arrested in Frankfurt on his way to London. Germany extradited him to Singapore last month, where he was sentenced to 6.5 years in prison. Leeson is appealing.

According to the news, Leeson

A．bankrupted a vulnerable bank.

B．was a British investor in Singapore.

C．worked as a teller in Singapore.

D．took exactly 1 billion from the bank last winter.

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第5题

In Guangzhou, capital of South China's Guangdong Province, Guangzhou Baiyun International

Airport resumed its international flights to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations and regions early this month, said an airport official yesterday. And the airport's flow of international passengers for July has reached 80 per cent of the figure for the corresponding month of the previous year. Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport had to cancel some international services to Southeast Asian nations and regions because of the outbreak of SARS beginning in April, the official said. The official predicted his airport's international service would return to normal operation and handle even more international passengers in August. Currently, the Guangzhou airport is operating 22 international flights to 20 foreign metropolises. And nine foreign airlines have resumed their international flights to the airport. In July Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport resumed its international service to ______.A.the whole world B.only four southeastern nationsC.the Southeast Asian nations D.all Asian nations

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第6题

Family Matters1 This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the mora

Family Matters

1 This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obligation to support one's parents. Called the Maintenance of Parents Bill, it received the backing of the Singapore Government.

2 That does not mean it hasn't generated discussion. Several members of the Parliament opposed the measure as un-Asian. Others who acknowledged the problem of the elderly poor believed it a disproportionate response. Still others believe it will subvert relations within the family: cynics dubbed it the "Sue Your Son" law.

3 Those who say that the bill does not promote filial responsibility, of course, are right. It has nothing to do with filial responsibility. It kicks in where filial responsibility fails. The law cannot legislate filial responsibility any more than it can legislate love. All the law can do is to provide a safety net where this morality provide insufficient. Singapore needs this bill not to replace morality, but to provide incentives to shore it up.

4 Like many other developed nations, Singapore faces the problems of an increasing proportion of people over 60 years of age. Demography is inexorable. In 1980, 7.2% of the population was in this bracket. By the turn of the century, that figure will grow to 11%. By 2030, the proportion is projected to be 260%. The problem is not old age per se. It is that the ratio of economically active people to economically inactive people will decline.

5 But no amount of government exhortation or paternalism will completely eliminate the problem of old people who have insufficient means to make ends meet. Some people will fall through the holes in any safety net.

6 Traditionally, a person's insurance against poverty in his old age was his family. This is not a revolutionary concept. Nor is it uniquely Asian. Care and support for one's parents is a universal value shared by all civilized societies.

7 The problem in Singapore is that the moral obligation to look after one's parents is unenforceable. A father can be compelled by law to maintain his children. A husband can be forced to support his wife. But, until now, a son or daughter had no legal obligation to support his or her parents.

8 In 1989, an Advisory Council was set up to look into the problems of the aged. Its report stated with a tinge of complacency that 95% of those who did not have their own income were receiving cash contributions from relations. But what about the 5% who aren't getting relatives' support？ They have several options: (a) get a job and work until they die; (b) apply for public assistance (you have to be destitute to apply); or (c) starve quietly. None of these options is socially acceptable. And what if this 5% figure grows, as it is likely to do, as society ages？

9 The Maintenance of Parents Bill was put forth to encourage the traditional virtues that have so far kept Asian nations from some of the breakdowns encountered in other affluent societies. This legislation will allow a person to apply to the court for maintenance from any or all of his children. The court would have the discretion to refuse to make an order if it is unjust.

10 Those who deride the proposal for opening up the courts to family lawsuits miss the point. Only in extreme cases would any parent take his child to court. If it does indeed become law, the bill's effect would be far more subtle.

11 First, it will reaffirm the notion that it is each individual's — not society's — responsibility to look after his parents. Singapore is still conservative enough that most people will not object to this idea. It reinforces the traditional values and it doesn't hurt a society now and then to remind itself of its core values.

12 Second, and more important, it will make those who are inclined to shirk their responsibilities think twice. Until

A．received unanimous support in the Singapore Parliament.

B．was believed to solve all the problems of the elderly poor.

C．was intended to substitute for traditional values in Singapore.

D．was passed to make the young more responsible to the old.

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第7题

听力原文：Man: Last month a businessman from Singapore ordered a total of $ 310, 000 worth

of livestock and poultry from the company. Since this is the first time we are doing business together I must be careful about every detail. So when he said he'd make the payment by L/C, I pointed out that it should be irrevocable. Otherwise, there is no protection for the exporter.

&8226;You will hear another five recordings.

&8226;For each recording, decide who is speaking.

&8226;Write one letter (A--H) next to the number of the recording.

&8226;Do not use any letter more than once.

&8226;You will hear the five recordings twice.

`

A an official

B a marketing researcher

C a health products exporter

D an agent for textiles

E a trader for livestock and poultry

F a clothing maker

G a company's receptionist

H a board member

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第8题

Family Matters This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral

Family Matters

This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obligation to support one's parents. Called the Maintenance of Parents Bill, it received the backing of the Singapore Government.

That does not mean it hasn't generated discussion. Several members of the Parliament opposed the measure as un-Asian. Others who acknowledged the problem of the elderly poor believed it a disproportionate response. Still others believe it will subvert relations within the family; cynics dubbed it the "Sue Your Son" law.

Those who say that the bill does not promote filial responsibility, of course, are right. It has nothing to do with filial responsibility. It kicks in where filial responsibility fails. The law cannot legislate filial responsibility any more than it can legislate love. All the law can do is to provide a safety net where this morality proves insufficient. Singapore needs this bill not to replace morality, but to provide incentives to shore it up.

Like many other developed nations, Singapore faces the problems of an increasing proportion of people over 60 years of age. Demography is inexorable. In 1980, 7.2% of the population was in this bracket. By the turn of the century, that figure will grow to 11%. By 2030, the proportion is projected to be 26%. The problem is not old age per se. It is that the ratio of economically active people to economically inactive people will decline.

But no amount of government exhortation or paternalism will completely eliminate the problem of old people who have insufficient means to make ends meet. Some people will fall through the holes in any safety net.

Traditionally, a person's insurance against poverty in his old age was his family. This is not a revolutionary concept. Nor is it uniquely Asian. Care and support for one's parents is a universal value shared by all civilized Societies.

The problem in Singapore is that the moral obligation to look after one's parents is unenforceable. A father can be compelled by law to maintain his children. A husband can be forced to support his wife. But, until now, a son or daughter had no legal obligation to support his or her parents.

In 1989, an Advisory Council was set up to look into the problems of the aged. Its report stated with a tinge of complacency that 95% of those who did not have their own income were receiving cash contributions from relations. But what of the 5% who aren't getting relatives' support7 They have several options: (a) get a job and work until they die; (b) apply for public assistance (you have to be destitute to apply); or (c) starve quietly. None of these options is socially acceptable. And what if this 5% figure grows, as it is likely to do, as society ages？

The Maintenance of Parents Bill was put forth to encourage the traditional virtues that have so far kept; Asian nations from some of the breakdowns encountered in other affluent societies. This legislation will allow a person to apply to the court for maintenance from any or all of his children. The court would have the discretion to refuse to make an order if it is unjust.

Those who deride the proposal for opening up the courts to family lawsuits mixes the point. Only in extreme cases would any parent take his child to court. If it does indeed become law, the bill's effect would be far more subtle.

First, it will reaffirm the notion that it is each individual's -- not society's -- responsibility to look after his parents. Singapore is still conservative enough that most people will not object to this idea. It rein-forces the traditional values and it doesn't hurt a society now and then to remind itself of its core values.

Second, and more important, it will make those who are inclined to shirk their responsibilities think twice. Until now, if a person asked family elders, clergymen or the Ministry of Community Development

A．the country will face mounting problems of the old in future.

B．the social welfare system would be under great pressure.

C．young people should be given more moral education.

D．the old should be provided with means of livelihood.

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第9题

Family Matters This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral

Family Matters

This month Singapore passed a bill that would give legal teeth to the moral obligation to support one' s parents. Called the Maintenance of Parents Bill, it received the backing of the Singapore Government.

That does not mean it hash' t generated discussion. Several members of the Parliament Opposed the measure as un - Asian. Others who acknowledged the problem of the elderly poor believed it a disproportionate response. Still others believe it will subvert relations within the family; cynics dubbed it the "Sue Your Son" law.

Those who say that the bill does not promote filial responsibility, of course, are right. It has nothing to do with filial responsibility. It kicks in where filial responsibility fails. The law cannot legislate filial responsibility any more than it can legislate love. All the law can do is to provide a safety net where this morality proves insufficient. Singapore needs this bill not to replace morality, but to provide incentives to shore it up.

Like many other developed nations, Singapore faces the problems of an increasing proportion of people over 60 years of age. Demography is inexorable. In 1980, 7.2% of the population was in this bracket. By the turn of the century, that figure will grow to 11%. By 2030, the proportion is projected to be 26%. The problem is not old age per se. It is that the ratio of economically active people to economically inactive people will decline.

But no amount of government exhortation or paternalism will completely eliminate the problem of old people who have insufficient means to make ends meet. Some people will fall through the holes in any safety net.

Traditionally, a person' s insurance against poverty in his old age was his family. This is not a revolutionary concept. Nor is it uniquely Asian. Care and support for one' s parents is a universal value shared by all civilized societies.

The problem in Singapore is that the moral obligation to look after one' s parents is unenforceable. A father can be compelled by law to maintain his children. A husband can be forced to support his wife. But, until now, a son or daughter had no legal obligation to support his or her parents.

In 1989, an Advisory Council was set up to took into the problems of the aged. Its report stated with a tinge of complacency that 95% of those who did not have their own income were receiving cash contributions from relations. But what of the 5 % who arch' t getting relatives' support？ They have several options: (a) get a job and work until they die; (b) apply for public assistance (you have to be destitute to apply); or (c) starve quietly. None of these options is socially acceptable. And what if this 5% figure grows, as it is likely to do, as society ages？

The Maintenance of Parents Bill was put forth to encourage the traditional virtues that have so far kept Asian nations from some of the breakdowns encountered in other affluent societies. This legislation will allow a person to apply to the court for maintenance from any or all of his children. The court would have the discretion to refuse to make an order if it is unjust.

Those who deride the proposal for opening up the courts to family lawsuits mixes the point. Only in extreme cases would any parent take his child to court, If' it does indeed become law, the bill' s effect would be far more subtle.

First, it will reaffirm the notion that it is each individual' s -- not society' s -- responsibility to look 'after his parents. Singapore is still conservative enough that most people will not object to this idea. It rein- forces the traditional values and it doesn' t hurt a society now and then to remind itself of its core values.

Second, and more important, it will make those who are inclined to shirk their responsibilities think twice. Until now, if a person asked family elders, clergymen or the Ministry of Commun

A．the country will face mounting problems of the old in future.

B．the social welfare system would be under great pressure.

C．young people should be given more moral education.

D．the old should be provided with means of livelihood

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第10题

听力原文： Join the thousands of professionals and international travelers who depend on

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A．Language learners.

B．Magazine collectors.

C．European journalists.

D．Professional travellers.

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