Every ten years there is a national census （人口普查）to count the number of people. The Census Office asks every household to answer questions on a census form.
The census counts...
● the number of people in each area
● the numbers of men and women and whether they are single, married, widowed or divorced
● how many children there are, how many teenagers, people in their twenties, thirties, forties... retired people and so on
The census counts people by...
● the kind of housing they live in
● the country in which they were born
● the kind of job they do and how they travel to work
Some uses of the census:
Housing: to work out present and future needs we must know how people are housed now, and the sizes and ages of their families.
Hospitals, schools and other local services: the size of annual grants made by the Government to these services depends largely on the numbers and needs of people in the area. Many of the figures come from the census.
Planning: the census shows how many people have moved from one area to another and how the local workforce is changing. This information is used when factories, offices, shops, public transport and places for leisure are being planned.
In strict confidence
The census is taken in order to provide figures about the nation as a whole; it does not give information about any named person, family or household.
Names and addresses are needed to take the census accurately, but they are not fed into the computer. After the census, the forms are locked away and will not be released to anyone outside the Census Office for 100 years.
The answers you give on your census form will be treated in strict confidence. NO one outside the Census Office will see your completed form. Everyone working on the census is sworn to secrecy and can be charged if he or she improperly reveals information.
小题1:The writer is mainly ________ in this passage.
| A．persuading people to support census |
| B．giving information about the importance and practice of census |
| C．showing the government’s determination in conducting census |
| D．warning people not to provide inaccurate information |
小题2:The census is not interested in ________.
| A．how many houses you have | B．how old you are |
| C．what your job is | D．how much money you have |
小题3:The census shows the changes that have taken place regarding ________.
| A．the size of hospitals in the area |
| B．the types of public transport in the area |
| C．the number of people who work in the area |
| D．the use of power in the area |
小题4:The following statements are true except _________.
| A．the information is not fed into a computer |
| B．the census gives information about the whole country |
| C．the people who don’t work on the census will not see the completed forms |
| D．it is illegal for people to disclose the confidential information on census |