recent years taken an even greater role in our lives. / ⑧The problem, however, is that although many local authorities like the idea of recycling, / they do not fully support it. ( 151 words)
33.Idioms
①An idiom is defined as a group of words / whose meaning must be known as a whole, / because it cannot be learned from the meaning of the same words used separately. /②Obviously, there is a problem / when you cannot look up individual words in a dictionary and find the meaning, / the usual strategy we all employ when we come across a word or words that are unfamiliar. / ③With idioms, however, we must learn the group of words. / ④In everyday English, idioms are in common use. / ⑤In fact, idioms are so common that / most native speakers do not even realize that they are using idioms. / ⑥It is particularly important to recognize idioms / when you hear them or read them. / ⑦When you are able to use them comfortably in your own speech and writing, / and then you have achieved a higher level of mastery / and fluency in the language. ( 147 words)
Passage 34 The Free Hugs Campaign
The Free Hugs Campaign is a social movement/involving individuals who offer hugs to strangers in public places./The campaign in its present form was started in 2004 by an Australian man./Initially, people were suspicious of the strange man on the street/offering to hug anyone who wanted one./Soon, however, suspicion gave way to enthusiastic acceptance./When authorities tried to stop the campaign,/ over 10,000 people signed to ensure its continuance./The campaign became famous internationally in 2006 as the result of a music video uploaded into the Internet./ The response to the video was astounding. Many people joined this newly created movement, and went out offering free hugs to whoever wanted one. This event demonstrates how the Internet can be used to connect humanity above the boundaries of space and time. /The hugs are meant to be random acts of kindness,/reputedly selfless acts performed by a person for the sole reason of making others feel better.
Passage35 Effects of Cell Phones
Cell phones are an unavoidable part of daily life. /Even if you do not own one yourself, /you are exposed to them all the time /whenever you enter the public areas. /Most people think of their cell phones as something that they “just could not live without.” /Make sure you are informed about the potential health hazards associated with cell phone use /that the cell phone companies do not want you to know. /While
studies are not conclusive, /scientists are beginning to suspect that cell phone use could contribute to everything from headache to brain cancer. /This is because cell phones emit electromagnetic waves and small amounts of radiation. /While research done in the 1990’s indicated /that the radiation using a cell phone could expose you to is not really enough to do any damage, /many experts are now abolishing that opinion. /They recommend that, at the very least, /children, teens and young adults avoid using cell phones except in emergencies.
36.Nongovernmental Organization in Denmark
①Danes pursue common interests in leisure, sports, and politics. / ②Associations are essentially nongovernmental, originating in the late nineteenth century, / when farmers and workers formed interest groups. /③Today Denmark has one of the highest proportions of association membership in the world. / ④More than 90 percent of the population belongs to an organization, / and more than 73 percent of the people have multiple memberships in more than three hundred thousand organizations. / ⑤Organizations and associations play three important roles. / ⑥First, they have been able to develop common interests and identities among different groups of people. / ⑦Second, practical improvements in the form of production, increases in salary, / and membership discounts have been achieved. / ⑧Third, organizations participate in the political struggle for the distribution of values and goods in society. / ⑨For example, charities use sophisticated public relations campaigns to raise funds / and employ standard lobbying techniques with governments. / ⑩Interest groups may be of political importance /because of their ability to influence social and political outcomes. (160 words)
37.E-waste: Dark Side of Digital Age
①What happens to those old computers once they've been abandoned for newer models? / ②The refuse from discarded electronics products, also known as e-waste, /often ends up in landfills instead of being recycled. / ③And that means toxic substances like lead and mercury that are commonly used in these products / can contaminate the land, water and air. / ④The United States generates more e-waste than any other nation. / ⑤Some of that waste is recycled. / ⑥For example, steel, aluminum and copper are often stripped from outdated machines and reused in newer models. /⑦But even recycled parts come at a price. /⑧ An estimated 50 to 80 percent of e-waste collected in the United States for recycling / is exported to areas such as China or India or Pakistan, / where workers taking apart the old machines are
handling toxic chemicals / that can pose serious health problems. / ⑨Luckily, some manufacturers are beginning to assume greater responsibility for / what happens to their products after they become out-of-date. (158 words)
38.Children's Health
①It seems we have developed such a fast paced society of convenience / that kids today don't play outside much anymore. / ②But they would rather stay inside and have things done for them. /③They spend too much time inside on the sofa / and neglect any kind of physical activity, / which causes a state of being inactive and unhealthy. /④Inactive kids have a higher risk of becoming obese, / having high blood pressure and a higher risk of heart disease. / ⑤Along with being inactive, / kids today don't get enough personal interaction with other kids, / causing them to have a lack of interpersonal skills. / ⑥Besides, their parents and grandparents allow children to have everything they want. / ⑦Parents' spoiling only makes for an attitude of selfishness. / ⑧To avoid this situation, parents should encourage their kids to spend more time out of the house, / such as playing basketball in a community basketball team. (147 words)
39.Information Age
①The Information Age means something different to everyone. / ②In 1956 in the United States, researchers noticed that / the number of people holding \jobs had just exceeded the number of people holding \collar\jobs. / ③These researchers realized that this was an important change, / as it was clear that the Industrial Age was coming to an end. / ④As the Industrial Age ended, / the newer times adopted the title of \⑤Of course, at that time relatively few jobs had much to do with computers and computer-related technology. / ⑥What was occurring was a steady trend / away from people holding Industrial Age manufacturing jobs. /⑦An increasing number of people held jobs as clerks in stores, office workers, teachers, nurses, etc. / ⑧ The Western world was shifting into a service economy. /⑨Eventually, Information and Communication Technology became a significant part of the economy. / ⑩Microcomputers were developed, / and many business and industries were greatly changed by it. (155 words)
40.Obesity
①At the other end of the malnutrition scale, / obesity is one of today's most visible, yet most neglected, public health problems. / ②Paradoxically, co-existing with under-nutrition, / a global epidemic of overweight and obesity is taking over many parts of the world. / ③If immediate action is not taken, / millions will suffer
from an array of serious health disorders. /④Obesity is a complex condition, one with serious social and psychological dimensions, / that affects virtually all age and threatens to overwhelm both developed and developing countries. / ⑤As of 2000, the number of obese adults is over 300 million. /⑥Contrary to conventional wisdom, the obesity epidemic is not restricted to industrialized societies. / ⑦In developing countries, / it is estimated that over 115 million people suffer from obesity-related problems. / ⑧Generally, although men may have higher rates of overweight, women have higher rates of obesity. / ⑨For both, obesity poses a major risk for serious diet-related non-communicable diseases, / including stroke and certain forms of cancer. ( 156 words)
Passage41 Space Junk
Space junk, also known as space waste,/ is objects in orbit around Earth created by humans that no longer serve any useful purpose./They consist of everything from entire spent satellites/ to explosion fragments, deliberate insertion of small needles, and many other objects./ As orbits often overlap, the space junk is a potential collision risk for spacecraft./ The vast majority of pieces of space junk are small particles./Contact with these particles causes erosive damage./ The majority of the damage can be eased by adding a thin layer of metal/ outside of the main spacecraft body./ However, certain portions of many satellites cannot be protected in this way,/ the solar panels and windows for instance./ If a collision with larger pieces occurs,/ many of the resulting fragments from the damaged spacecraft / will also be in the 1 kilogram mass range./ Consequently, these objects become an additional collision risk.
42.Customer Service
①Good customer service is the lifeblood of any business. / ②You can offer promotions and slash prices to bring in as many new customers as you want. / ③But unless you can get some of those customers to come back, / your business won't be profitable for long. / ④Good customer service is all about bringing customers back. /⑤And about sending them away happy, / happy enough to pass positive feedback about your business along to others, / who may then try the product or service you offer for themselves / and in their turn become repeat customers. /⑥If you're a good salesperson, / you can sell anything to anyone once. / ⑦But it will be your approach to customer service that determines / whether or not you'll ever be able to sell that person anything else. / ⑧The essence of good customer service is forming a relationship with customers, / a relationship that the individual customer feels that he