Part II Reading Comprehension (35 minutes)

　　Directions: There are 4 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on the Answer Sheet.

　　Passage One

　　Questions 11 to 15 are based on the following passage.

　　It is true that some couples spend every waking minute together. Others fill their hours with personal hobbies, outside interests and even part-time jobs, just to keep their distance from each other! "There should be private time and couple time," suggests Dr. Stephen, "You don't want your latter years to turn into a process where two people unite as one. If you hold too tightly to your partner, it's going to cause resentment and anger. If you're completely separate, you'll both be lonely and disconnected. You need balance. So you have to talk about how you'll achieve that."

　　The right balance? It's different for every couple. "Having a conversation about time can be difficult, but it's important for both partners to process those feelings out loud," Dr. Stephen says. "You should not be accusing and act as a judge—ask the difficult questions, but do it in a loving way. You could say something like, 'How are we going to be as individuals and how are we going to be as a couple?' "

　　Barbara and Chris Christensen have achieved the balance that works for them. In addition to daily routines that keep them close—including about 10 minutes for a daily check-in and about a half hour of relaxation time—they each maintain separate interests and friendships.

　　"We have found that we need time apart," Barbara says. "I have a group of women friends that I have known for the last 30 years. We have dinner out once a month. We women also have parties and weekend or weeklong vacations as a group at a beach or somewhere. Chris, a former fighter pilot, has many aviation-oriented (航空的) groups and friends and also a poker-playing group. We have found it important to have separate time as well as together time."

　　11. The author writes the passage to ______.

　　A) offer some suggestions on how to spend the time after retirement

　　B) advise couples to develop their separate hobbies

　　C) warn couples not to be accusing each other

　　D) give people some advice on how to entertain themselves after retirement

　　12. The second paragraph is mainly intended to_______.

　　A) warn the husband not to act as a judge

　　B) suggest couples have discussions about difficulties

　　C) suggest how to keep the correct balance

　　D) require couples to be considerate

　　13. Dr. Stephen suggests that _________after retirement.

A) couples s tay together all the time

　　B) couples express their feelings in a loving way

　　C) couples be separate

　　D) wives make many friends

　　14. It can be inferred that________.

　　A) many couples are faced with problems after retirement

　　B) America has a large population of retired people

　　C) most people join various social groups after retirement

　　D) playing poker is a popular activity among retired people

　　15. Barbara and her friends do the following EXCEPT_______.

　　A) having dinner regularly

　　B) holding parties

　　C) having weekly vacations at the beach

　　D) having fun playing poker

　　Passage Two

　　Questions 16 to 20 are based on the following passage.

　　Elderly people respond best to a calm and unhurried environment. This is not always easy to provide as their behavior can sometimes be irritating. If they get excited or upset then they may become more difficult to look after. Although sometimes it can be extremely difficult, it is best to be patient and not to get upset yourself. You should always encourage old people to do as much as possible for themselves but be ready to lend a helping hand when necessary.

　　Failing memory makes it difficult for the person to recall all the basic kinds of information we take for granted. The obvious way to help in this situation is to supply the information that is missing and help them make sense of what is going on. You must use every opportunity to provide information but remember to keep it simple and straightforward.

　　“Good morning, Mum. This is Fiona, your daughter. It is eight o’clock, so if you get up now, we can have breakfast downstairs.”

　　When the elderly makes confused statements e.g. about going out to his or her old employment or visiting a dead relative, correct in a calm matter-of-fact fashion: “You don’t work in the office any more. You are retired now. Will you come and help me with the dishes?”

　　We rely heavily on the information provided by signposts, clocks, calendars and newspapers. These assist us to organize and direct our behavior. Confused old people need these aids all the time to compensate for their poor memory. Encourage them to use reminder boards or diaries for important coming events and label the contents of different cupboards and drawers. Many other aids such as information cards, old photos, scrap books, and addresses or shopping list could help in individual case.

　　16. Why can’t we sometimes keep calm in front of old people?

　　A) Because old people sometimes annoy us.

　　B) Because old people sometimes don’t understand us.

　　C) Because we are sometimes in a bad mood.

　　D) Because we are sometimes in a hurry.

　　17. What does the author encourage us when we talk with old people?

　　A) To do as little as possible.

　　B) To do as much as they can.

　　C) To help others when needed.

　　D) To be patient and not get upset.

　　18. How should we provide information to old people with failing memories?

　　A) By being helpful.

　　B) By being direct.

　　C) By being sensitive.

　　D) By being obvious.

　　19. What is the purpose of information provided on such things as signposts?

　　A) To help us organize and direct our behavior.

　　B) To help us make use of newspapers.

　　C) To help us correct other people.

　　D) To help us understand statements.

　　20. What is the main idea of the passage?

　　A) What happens to old people with failing memory.

　　B) How to help old people with failing memory.

　　C) Why old people have poor memory.

　　D) How to improve bad memory.