2012年12月英语四级阅读备考：全真试题(6)_大学英语阅读

2012年12月英语四级阅读备考：全真试题(6)

　　35.It can be seen from the passage that the expansion of Americas elderly population ________.

　　A) will provide good job opportunities in many areas

　　B) will impose an unbearable burden on society

　　C) may lead to nursing home abuse and age discrimination

　　D) will create new fields of study in universities

　　Passage Four

　　The decline in moral standardswhich has long concerned social analystshas at last captured the attention of average Americans. And Jean Bethke Elshtain, for one, is glad.

　　The fact the ordinary citizens are now starting to think seriously about the nations moral climate, says this ethics (伦理学)professor at the University of Chicago, is reason to hope that new ideas will come forward to improve it.

　　But the challenge is not to be underestimated. Materialism and individualism in American society are the biggest obstacles. The thought that Im in it for mehas become deeply rooted in the national consciousness, Ms. Elshtain says.

　　Some of this can be attributed to the disintegration of traditional communities, in which neighbors looked out for one another, she says. With todays greater mobility and with so many couples working, those bonds have been weakened, replaced by a greater emphasis on self.

　　In a 1996 poll of Americans, loss of morality topped the list of the biggest problems facing the U. S. and Elshtain says the public is correct to sense that:Data show that Americans are struggling with problems unheard of in the 1950s, such as classroom violence and a high rate of births to unmarried mothers.