Reading comprehension. Holiday Inns and McDonald"s, both saw unmatched growt
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Reading comprehension. |
Holiday Inns and McDonald"s, both saw unmatched growth in the 1960s. Their growth opened another direct business operation-franchising (特许经营). These operations have the same general pattern. The franchisor, the parent company, first establishes a successful retail (零售) business. At it expands, it sees a profit potential in offering others the right to open similar business under its name. The parent company"s methods and means of identification with consumers are included in this right. The parent company supplies skill, and may build and rent stores to franchisees. For these advantages the franchisee pays the franchisor a considerable fee. However, some of the advantages and disadvantages are different. By extending a "proven" marketing method, a parent can profit in several ways. First, the franchisee"s purchase price gives the parent an immediate return on the plan. Then the sale of supplies to the franchisee provides a continuing source of profits. As new businesses are added and the company"s reputation spreads, the value of the franchise increases and sales of franchises become easier. The snowballing effect can be dramatic. Such growth, too, brings into play the economies of scale (规模经济). Regional or national advertising that might be financially impossible for a franchisor with 20 franchises could be profitable for one with 40. The parent, then, finds immediate gains from the opportunity to expand markets on the basis of reputation alone, without having to put up capital or take the risk of owning retail stores. Added to this advantage is a less obvious but material one. Skilled, responsible retail managers are rare. People who invest their capital in franchises, through, probably come closer to the ideal than do paid managers. In fact, the franchisee is an independent store operator working for the franchisor, but without an independent"s freedom to drop supplies at will. Of course the factory"s costs of selling supplies are less. But also certainly the franchisee buying goods that have had broad consumer acceptance will not casually change supplies, even when the contract permits. If the hamburger is not what the customer expected, they may not return. Having paid for the goodwill, the franchisee won"t thoughtlessly destroy it. Franchising may give you the idea that as a franchisor, you need only relax in the rocking chair. Franchising, however, has problems to be solved. |
1. Franchising refers to a business operation in which a successful parent company _____. |
A. sells name-brand goods to a private investor B. rents proven ideas and techniques for investment C. sells the right, the guidance to a business under its name D. takes no advertising responsibility for individual investors |
2. The advantages of franchising to the parent company are all the following EXCEPT _____. |
A. an immediate investment return B. the ownership of additional retail stores C. the profit from the sale of supplies D. the possibility of profitable advertising |
3. The passage mainly tells the reader _____. |
A. the advantages and disadvantages of franchising B. the benefits of franchising to the franchisor C. the unmatched economic growth in the 1960"s D. some regional and national business operation |
4. What will the author probably discuss after the last paragraph? |
A. More advantages of franchising. B. Risks of investment besides franchising. C. The standard of consumer acceptance. D. Negative aspects related to franchising |
答案
1-4: CBBD |
举一反三
阅读理解。 |
A simple flower made headlines in the British press last week. How could that be? British Prime Minister David Cameron and his ministers were attending a reception hosted by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. They insisted on wearing poppies (罂粟花) in their buttonholes. What"s wrong with that? According to the Global Times, Chinese officials apparently had asked the UK delegation not to wear poppies. The British said that their poppies meant a great deal to them and they would wear them all the time. So what"s the significance of the poppy? It"s a flower which has different cultural and symbolic meanings for British and Chinese people. From the Chinese point of view, the poppy is a symbol of China"s humiliation (dishonor) at the hands of European powers in the Opium Wars of the 19th century. Britain forced China to open its borders to trade-including in the narcotic opium (a drug that affects your mind in a harmful way)-which was made from poppies grown in India. Yet from the British viewpoint the poppy is a reminder of the killing during World War I. Blood-red poppies grew on the battlefields of Flanders in Belgium where many thousands of British, Belgian and French soldiers died or were buried.Since then, Poppy Day or Remembrance Day (November 11) has become a time in the UK to remember the sacrifices of British soldiers and civilians in times of war. So you can see that the poppy set off strong feelings in the hearts of Chinese and British people for different reasons. And it makes sense for us to try to understand each other"s standpoint. Of course cultural differences can also be interesting and funny. And what one nation or nation"s leader thinks is an acceptable gift may be viewed very differently by their guest from overseas. US President Barack Obama famously gave a gift of an iPod to Britain"s queen-a dull person with no interest in music. Obama also presented Gordon Brown(when Brown was British prime minister) with a fine selection of American movies. But they were in US format and impossible to play on British DVD players. Many countries have diplomats stationed overseas. Diplomats provide information and advice to their governments back home. However, sometimes it would seem that even diplomats can overlook the cultural significance of a small flower. |
1. British Prime Minister David Cameron probably attended a reception in Beijing on _____. |
A. October 1 B. November 11 C. December 31 D. January 1 |
2. The poppy reminds the Chinese of _____. |
A. the shame caused by European countries in the 19th century B. the British soldiers killed and buried during world War C. the Chinese soldiers killed during World War D. the suffering cause by British during World War |
3. The diplomatic problem in Beijing is mainly caused by ____. |
A. the translation mistake B. the language difference C. the cultural difference D. the different lifestyle |
4. We can infer that ____. |
A. Britain"s Queen is not interested in art B. Gordon Brown was fond of American movies US President Barack Obama sent him C. US President Barack Obama received a gift for music D. Britain"s Queen may not like the iPod US President Barack Obama presented her |
阅读理解。 |
You"re in a department store and you see a couple of attractive young women looking at a sweater. You listen to their conversation: "I can"t believe it-Lorenzo Bertolla! They are almost impossible to find. Isn"t it beautiful? And it"s a lot cheaper than the one Sara bought in Rome." They leave and you go over to see this incredible sweater. It"s nice and the price is right. You"ve never heard of Lorenzo Bertolla, but those girls looked really stylish. They must know. So, you buy it. You never realize that those young women are employees of an advertising agency. They are actually paid to go from store to store, talking loudly about Lorenzo Bertolla clothes. Every day we notice what people are wearing, driving and eating. If the person looks cool, the product seems cool, too. This is the secret of undercover marketing. Companies from Ford to Nike are starting to use it. Undercover marketing is important because it reaches people that don"t pay attention to traditional advertising. This is particularly true of the MTV generation-consumers between the age of 18 and 34. It"s a golden group. They have a lot of money to spend, but they don"t trust ads. So advertising agencies hire young actors to "perform" in bars and other places where young adults go. Some people might call this practice misleading, but marketing executive Jonathan Ressler calls it creative. "Look at traditional advertising. Its effectiveness is decreasing." It is true, because everyone knows an ad is trying to persuade you to buy something. However, you don"t know when a conversation you overhear is just a performance. |
1. The two attractive young women were talking so as to _____. |
A. get the sweater at a lower price B. be heard by people around C. be admired by other shoppers D. decide on buying the sweater |
2. Lorenzo Bertolla is _____. |
A. a very popular male singer B. an advertising agency C. a clothing company in Rome D. the brand name of clothes |
3. What can we infer from the passage? |
A. Traditional advertising will soon disappear in the market. B. The MTV generation tends to be more easily influenced by all kinds of ads. C. That traditional advertising is too direct may lead to its decreasing effectiveness. D. Undercover marketing will surely be banned soon by the government. |
4. Which of the following would be the best title for the passage? |
A. Two Attractive Shoppers B. Lorenzo Bertolla Sweaters C. Ways of Advertising D. Undercover Marketing |
完形填空。 |
The Conservative Party leader David Cameron has been elected British Prime Minister. Labor Party"s Gordon Brown, the 1 Prime Minister, had to 2 the tears as he said his goodbyes outside of 10 Downing St. And Cameron is the youngest UK prime minister in almost 200 years. According to electoral rules, the leader of the party that wins a majority in Parliament becomes the new prime minister and forms the new government. If no party wins a majority, a coalition (联合) government 3 several parties may be formed. The head of the coalition party that 4 most seats in Parliament probably becomes the new prime minister. In Britain"s May 6 parliamentary 5 , Cameron"s Conservative Party won the most seats, but did not get a majority. After negotiations, with an agreement 6 between the Conservatives and the third-placed Liberal Democrats, a governing coalition was formed. Cameron has grown 7 a shy primary school student with 8 school reports into a famous political 9 . He is reportedly a 10 of King William IV (1765-1837). Cameron studied at the elite Eton College, for centuries the school 11 the choice for the nation"s wealthiest people to send their male children to. He went 12 to Oxford University, where he graduated with a degree in philosophy, politics and economics. Once at primary school, Cameron had the poorest school report in the class. At Eton, Cameron was a problem boy. In 1983, he was suspected of taking drugs. He was punished, and 13 ordered to copy 500 lines of Latin text. He 14 the incident and worked harder. Cameron was very 15 at Oxford. He captained the tennis team there. He was a member of a dining society. After graduation, he 16 1 politics. In 2001 Cameron became a member of Parliament and in 2005, at the age of 38, was elected the leader of the Conservative Party. Now he has been elected the head of a country 17 deep economic troubles. At least 1.3 million people have been 18 in the serious financial crisis. British voters will be looking to see 19 the program his party has proposed to deal with the problem 20 do anything to help. |
( )1. A. latest ( )2. A. hold back ( )3. A. making up of ( )4. A. holds ( )5. A. selection ( )6. A. reached ( )7. A. with ( )8. A. excellent ( )9. A. people ( )10. A. son ( )11. A. is ( )12. A. on ( )13. A. otherwise ( )14. A. survived from ( )15. A. silent ( )16. A. took to ( )17. A. faced ( )18. A. laid off ( )19. A. that ( )20. A. can | B. current B. hold off B. consisting of B. takes B. election B. arriving at B. of B. poor B. character B. grandson B. has been B. up B. therefore B. recovered B. positive B. took after B. facing with B. laid down B. what B. should | C. former C. hold on C. is composed of C. includes C. conference C. coming to C. from C. average C. image C. relative C. had been C. down C. nevertheless C. benefited fromfrom C. active C. took off C. faced with C. laid aside C. if C. must | D. latter D. hold out D. makes up of D. contains D. negotiation D. establishing D. for D. outstanding D. figure D. descendent D. being D. out D. however D. changing from D. enthusiastic D. took over D. faces D. laid out D. how D. need | 阅读理解。 | Every day, putting food on the table is a challenge for many Americans. They worry that they won"t be able to feed their families. The slowing economy, increasing unemployment and rising food prices are contributing to the growing number of people who need help. The nation"s food banks are rising to the challenge. It is estimated that they are currently serving 38% more people than they were a year ago. "In Minnesota, the jobless rate is the highest it"s been in many years," says Tricia Theurer of Second Harvest Heartland, a hunger-relief organization in Minnesota."More and more people are needing to ask for help for emergency food, many for the first time, due to economic situations." Second Harvest Heartland provides about 41.5 million pounds of food annually to 170,000 people in 59 counties in Minnesota and Western Wisconsin. The group is part of Feeding America, the nation"s food-bank network. Its members include 205 food banks serving every county in the United States. Hunger affects children, adults and seniors. It affects those who live in the city, in the suburbs and in rural areas. It affects those who do not have jobs and the working poor. The working poor are the fastest growing group of food-bank clients. They are employed, but simply do not have enough income to buy enough food to feed their families. Kids and adults can participate together in the fight to end hunger. The money you donate to the food bank may seem like too small an amount to make a difference, but a simple $1 donation can be used to distribute more than $9 worth of food. "Kids can be very creative in coming up with ideas of how to help others," says Theurer."Some kids run lemonade stands, others have asked guests to contribute food or money to Second Harvest instead of presents." | 1. Why more and more people need to be helped in the USA? | A. Because putting food on the table is a challenge for many Americans. B. Because of more people out of work and food prices rising with economy slowing. C. Because more and more farmers give up planting in the economy crisis. D. Because the clerks in nation"s food banks were out of work at present. | 2. What caused many people demand urgent food help for the first time? | A. The challenge of the nation"s food banks. B. The development of the internet. C. The development of Second Harvest Heartland. D. The worsening economic states. | 3. What population are more in need in food-bank lists? | A. Seniors in cities. B. People in rural areas. C. The poor employees. D. Children in schools. | 阅读理解。 请认真阅读下列短文,并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入最恰当的单词。注意:每空1 个单词。 | The farm economy of the United States has changed a lot in the last seventy years. In the 1930s, twenty-five percent of the nation"s population lived on farms. Today less than one percent of Americans do. Farm incomes have changed over the years too. For example, in 1933, people living and working on farms had much less money to spend than other Americans. At that time, farm families had about one-third the income of non-farmers after all necessary expenses had been paid. By the late 1970s, however, that difference had almost disappeared. In 2004,farmers had their best year ever. The average farm family earned about eighty-one thousand dollars. That is more than the average American family, which earned about sixty thousand dollars. The Department of Labor measures the pay of industrial workers differently. It measures the average hourly and weekly pay for industrial workers. This is because factory workers are generally paid by the hour unlike farmers who earn income from their farm businesses. Generally, the average hourly pay for all industrial workers is about sixteen dollars. And the average weekly pay, about five hundred fifty dollars. Industrial and other services employ about eighty-six percent of the labor force. | |
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