C．at our best D．at best

　　解析：选A。句意：我们将不惜一切代价维持世界力量的均衡。at cost"按成本"；at best"至多"；at one's best"在......的最佳状态"。at all costs"不管多大代价；无论如何"，符合句意。

　　9．His carelessness led to ________ the good chance.

　　A．his lose B．his losing

　　C．him lose D．him to be lost

　　解析：选B。句意：他的粗心使他丧失良机。to为介词，其后用动名词作宾语，此处动名词有自己的逻辑主语，用his或him皆可。

　　10．It can rob you ______ your self­confident if you don't learn to forgive yourself.

　　A．of B．with

　　C．on D．for

　　解析：选A。句意：如果你不学会宽容你自己，这可能让你丧失自信。rob sb. of sth."使某人丧失某物"。

　　Ⅳ.阅读理解

　　Getting time off from work is usually considered a good thing - but not when it's unpaid and unexpected.

　　As companies strive to avoid lay­offs, unpaid furloughs have become the cost­cutting strategy du jour (近期流行的). The money­saving method requires workers to take days off without pay, and can last anywhere from a few days to more than a year.

　　Eleven percent of businesses surveyed have already run mandatory (强制性的) furlough programs and another 60% plan to in the next 12 months, according to a recent study by consulting firm Watson Wyatt.

　　Unlike previous downturns in which furloughs were largely restricted to the airline, manufacturing and auto industries, a broader range of white collar industries such as media and government are now using mandatory furloughs as a way to cut back without cutting staff.

　　For businesses, furloughs can solve short­term cost issues, without damaging the long­term health of the company. Employers can reduce payroll immediately, and save on the expense of training new hires when business picks up again.

While taking some time off from work can provide time to pursue other interests, get additional training or spend more time with family, it can be an unwelcome break at a time when money is tight for most households, and temporary work is hard to come by. Tiedemann, a Denver­based pilot for United Airlines, has already been furloughed once a few years ago and is worried it will happen again now. "It was devastating，"he said. "I had been there for five or six years, and was established in Denver with my family." Before being called back after a furlough that lasted a year and a half, Tiedemann says he managed to find a temporary job and finally took