31. The world’s first workers’ compensation law was introduced by Bismarck .
[A] to make industrial production safer [B] to speed up the pace of industrialization
[C] out of religious and political considerations [D] for fear of losing the support of the socialist labor movement
32. We learn from the passage that the process of industrialization in Europe .
[A] was accompanied by an increased number of workshop accidents
[B] resulted in the development of popular social insurance programs
[C] required workers to be aware of the potential dangers at the workplace
[D] met growing resistance from laborers working at machines
33. One of the problems the American injured workers faced in getting compensation in the early 19th century was that .
[A] they had to have the courage to sue for damages in a court of law
[B] different states in the U.S. had totally different compensation programs
[C] America’s average compensation benefit was much lower than the cost of living
[D] they had to produce evidence that their employers were responsible for the accident
34. After 1972 workers’ compensation insurance in the U.S. became more favorable to workers so that .
[A] the poverty level for a family of four went up drastically
[B] there were fewer legal barriers when they filed for claims
[C] the number of workers suing for damages increased
[D] more money was allocated to their compensation system
35. The author ends the passage with the implication that .
[A] compensation benefits in America are soaring to new heights
[B] the workers are not the only ones to benefit from the compensation system
[C] people from all walks of life can benefit from the compensation system
[D] money floating in the compensation system is a huge drain on the U.S. economy
Passage Four
Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.
Early in the age of affluence(富裕) that followed World War II, an American retailing analyst named Victor Lebow proclaimed,“Our enormously productive economy... demands that we make consumption our way of life, that we convert the buying and use of goods into rituals, that we seek our spiritual satisfaction, our ego satisfaction, in consumption... We need things consumed, burned up, worn out, replaced and discarded at an ever increasing rate.”
Americans have responded to Lebow’s call, and much of the world has followed.
Consumption has become a central pillar of life in industrial lands and is even embedded in social values. Opinion surveys in the world’s two largest economies—Japan and the United States—show consumerist definitions of success becoming ever more prevalent.
Overconsumption by the world’s fortunate is an environmental problem unmatched in severity by anything but perhaps population growth. Their surging exploitation of resources threatens to exhaust or unalterably spoil forests, soils, water, air and climate.
Ironically, high consumption may be a mixed blessing in human terms, too. The time-honored values of integrity of character, good work, friendship, family and community have often been sacrificed in the rush to riches. |
