Reading comprehension. Mail carriers will be delivering some good news and s

题型：上海高考真题难度：来源：

Reading comprehension.     Mail carriers will be delivering some good news and some bad news this week.
     The bad news: Stamp prices are expected to rise 2 cents in May to 41 cents, the Postal Regulatory
Commission announced yesterday. The good news: With the introduction of a "forever stamp", it may
be the last time Americans have to use annoying 2-or 3-cent stamps to make up postage differences.
    Beginning in May, people would be able to purchase the stamps in booklets of 20 at the regular rate
of a first-class stamp. As the name implies, "forever stamps" will keep their first-class mailing value
forever, even when the postage rate goes up.
     The new "forever stamp" is the United States Postal Service"s (USPS) answer to the complaints about
frequent rate increases. The May increase will be the fifth in a decade. Postal rates have risen because
of inflation (通货膨胀), competition from online bill paying, and the rising costs of employee benefits,
including healthcare, says Mark Saunders, a spokesman for USPS.
     The USPS expects some financial gain from sales of the "forever stamp" and the savings from not
printing as many 2-or 3-cent stamps. "It"s not your grandfather"s stamp," says Mr. Saunders. "It could
be your great-grandchildren"s stamp."
     Other countries, including Canada, England, and Finland use similar stamps.
     Don Schilling, who has collected stamps for 50 years, says he"s interested in the public"s reaction.
"This is an entirely new class of stamps," Mr. Schilling says. He adds that he will buy the stamps because
he will be able to use them for a long period of time, not because they could make him rich-the volume
printed will be too large for collectors. "We won"t be able to send our kids to college on these," he says,
laughing.
     The USPS board of governors has yet to accept the Postal Regulatory Commission"s decision, but
tends to follow its recommendations. No plans have been announced yet for the design of the stamps. 1. The main purpose of introducing a "forever stamp" is _____. A. to reduce the cost of printing 2-or 3-cent stamps
B. to help save the consumers" cost on first-class mailing
C. to respond to the complaints about rising postal rates
D. to compete with online bill paying 2. By saying "It could be your great-grandchildren"s stamp", Mr. Saunders means that forever stamps _____. A. could be collected by one"s great-grandchildren
B. might be very precious in great-grandchildren"s hands
C. might have been inherited from one"s great-grandfathers
D. could be used by one"s great-grandchildren even decades later 3. Which of the following is true according to the passage? A. The investment in forever stamps will bring adequate reward.
B. America will be the first country to issue forever stamps.
C. The design of the "forever stamps" remains to be revealed.
D. 2-or 3-cent stamps will no longer be printed in the future. 4. What can be concluded from the passage? A. With forever stamps, there will be no need to worry about rate changes.
B. Postal workers will benefit most from the sales of forever stamps.
C. The inflation has become a threat to the sales of first-class stamps.
D. New interest will be aroused in collecting forever stamps.

答案

1-4: C D C A

举一反三

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

题型：上海高考真题难度：| 查看答案

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 lifestyle4. 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

题型：0108 模拟题难度：| 查看答案

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

题型：吉林省模拟题难度：| 查看答案

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.

题型：0127 模拟题难度：| 查看答案

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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.