阅读理解。
"Hey, little buddy, will you support me when I'm getting old?" Han Wenshan, 35 years old, asked his
new-born baby as he picked him up at home.
The Chinese tradition of raising sons to support parents in their old age has been weakened by the rapidly
growing economy and improved standard of living. As is the case with developed countries, China faces an
aging society. People are living longer and having fewer children. Therefore many Chinese families are falling
into a 4-2-1 family pattern: a couple raises one child and supports four elderly parents. But few realize this
problem.
The aging of the population is a trend that now affects a growing number of countries. Not long ago, the
Information Office of the State Council, China's cabinet, issued a white paper on measures China is taking to
help its elderly population. The paper said China's population entered the aging phase (阶段) at the end of the
20th century as the proportion of people aged 60 and above accounted for over 10 percent of the entire
population. By the end of 2005, China had nearly 144 million people over 60, accounting for 11 percent of the
population, according to the white paper.
An expanding aged population inevitably means that many issues must be settled, as the problem concerns
every aspect of society. It puts more pressure on each family, causing disturbing economic consequences
and serious social problems. It also challenges the labor force supply and the pension system.
"I used to think that it's not an issue for me to provide for the aged," said Han, whose parents and
parents-in-law all enjoy pensions and medical insurance. But last year Han's father suffered a serious illness
and afterward Han began to feel the pressure on his shoulders.
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1. Which of the following is not caused by an aging society?
A. Social problems.
B. The problem of the pension system.
C. More pressure on the family.
D. Unemployment.
55. From the passage we can infer ______.
A. the aging problem is one of the concerns for the Chinese government
B. China will encourage young couples to have more than one child
C. many people haven't realized the problem of an aging society
D. children will not support their parents in an aging society
2. Which of the following can be used to replace the underlined word inevitably?
A. surprisingly
B. naturally
C. hopefully
D. unluckily
3. From the passage we can see that ______.
A. China is the only country to face an aging society
B. most of the developing countries face an aging society
C. countries with a large population face an aging society
D. more and more developed countries face an aging society
