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—a 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 is 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 deceptive (骗人的), but marketing executive Jonathan Ressler calls it creative. “Look at traditional advertising. Its effectiveness is decreasing.”
However, one might ask what exactly is “real’ about of young women pretending to be enthusiastic about a sweater? Advertising executives would say it’s no less real than ad. The difference is that you know an ad is trying to persuade you to buy something. You don’t know when a conversation you overhear is just a performance.
1. The two attractive young women were talking so that they could_________.
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 a sweater
3. Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?
A. The two girls are in fact employed by the Lorenzo Bertolla Company.
B. The MTV generation tend to be more easily influenced by ads.
C. Traditional advertising is becoming less effective because it’s too direct.
D. Undercover marketing will surely be banned soon by the government.
4. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
A. Two Attractive Shoppers
B. Lorenzo Bertolla Sweaters.
C. Ways of Advertising
D. Undercover Marketing
Medical drugs sometimes cause more damage than they cure. One solution to this problem is to put the drugs inside a capsule, protecting them from the body-and the body from them-until they can be released at just the right spot. There are lots of ways to trigger (引发) this release, including changing temperature, acidity, and so on. But triggers can come with their own risks-burns, for example. Now, researchers in California have designed what could be a harmless trigger to date: shining near-infrared light (NIR, 近红外线) on the drug in the capsule.
The idea of using light to liberate the drug in the capsule isn't new. Researchers around the globe have developed polymers (聚合物) and other materials that begin to break down when they absorb either ultraviolet (UV, 紫外线) or visible light. But tissues also readily absorb UV and visible light, which means the drug release can be triggered only near the skin, where the light can reach the capsule. NIR light largely passes through tissues, so researchers have tried to use it as a trigger. But few compounds (化合物) absorb NIR well and go through chemical changes.
That changed last year when Adah Almutairi, a chemist at the University of California, San Diego, reported that she and her colleagues had designed a polymer that breaks down when it absorbs NIR light. Their polymer used a commercially available NIR-absorbing group called o-nitrobenzyl (ONB). When they catch the light, ONB groups fall off the polymer, leading to its breakdown. But ONB is only a so-so NIR absorber, and it could be poisonous to cells when it separates from the polymer.
So Almutairi and her colleagues reported creating a new material for capsules that's even better.This one consists of a long chain of compounds called cresol groups linked in a polymer. Cresol contains reactive(易反应的) components that make it highly unstable in its polymeric form, a feature Almutairi and her colleagues use to their advantage. After polymerizing the cresols, they cap each reactive component with a light-absorbing compound called Bhc. When the Bhcs absorb NIR light, the reactive groups are exposed and break the long polymer into two short chains. Shining additional light continues this breakdown, potentially releasing any drugs in the capsule. What's more, Almutairi says, Bhc is 10 times better at absorbing NIR than is ONB and is not poisonous to cells.
| 1． |
According to the passage, which of the following could be the best trigger?
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| 2． |
Why is ONB unsatisfactory?
|
| 3． |
Which word can be used to complete the following process of changes?
|
Deputy Agriculture Secretary Kathleen Merrigan sees an epidemic (流行病) sweeping across America’s farmland. It has little to do with the usual challenges, such as flood, rising fuel prices and crop-eating insects. The country’s farmers are getting older, and there are fewer people standing in line to take their place. National agricultural census (普查) figures show that the fastest-growing group of farmers is the part over 65. Merrigan is afraid the average age will be even higher when the 2012 statistics are completed.
Merrigan, a former college professor, is making stops at universities across the country in hopes of encouraging more students to think about careers in agriculture. Aside from trying to stop the graying of America’s farmers, her work is made tougher by a recent blog posting that put agriculture at No. 1 on a list of “useless” college degrees. Top federal agriculture officials are talking about the posting, and it has the attention of agricultural organizations across the country.
“There couldn’t be anything that’s more incorrect,” Merrigan said. “We know that there aren’t enough qualified graduates to fill the jobs that are out there in American agriculture.”
In addition, a growing world population that some experts predict will require 70% more food production by 2050, she said.
“I truly believe we’re at a golden age of agriculture. Global demand is at an all-time record high, and global supplies are at all-time record lows,” said Matt Rush, director of the Texas Farm Bureau. “Production costs are going to be valuable enough that younger people are going to have the opportunity to be involved in agriculture.”
The Department of Agriculture has programs aimed at developing more farmers and at increasing interest in locally grown food. The National Young Farmers’ Coalition has also been pushing for state and federal policy changes to make it easier for new farmers.
Ryan Best, president of Future Farmers of America, has been living out of a suitcase, traveling the country and visiting with high school students about careers in agriculture. The 21-year-old Best hopes his message—that this is a new time in agriculture—will motivate the next generation to turn around the statistics. “Never before have we had the innovations (创新) in technology which have led to agriculture in this country being the most efficient it has ever been,” he said. “There’s really a place for everybody to fit in.”What is the new challenge to American agriculture?
| A．Fewer and older farmers. | B．Higher fuel prices. |
| C．More natural disasters. | D．Lower agricultural output. |
Why is Merrigan visiting universities across the country?
| A．To draw federal agriculture officials’ attention. |
| B．To select qualified agriculture graduates. |
| C．To clarify a recent blog posting. |
| D．To talk more students into farming careers. |
According to Matt Rush, American agriculture will provide opportunities for younger people
because__________..
| A．the government will cover production costs |
| B．global food supplies will be even lower |
| C．investment in agriculture will be profitable |
| D．America will increase its food export |
What do the underlined words “to turn around the statistics” in the last paragraph mean?
| A．To re-analyze the result of the national census. |
| B．To increase agricultural production. |
| C．To bring down the average age of farmers. |
| D．To invest more in agriculture. |
According to the survey, people left alone on a desert island would most want their ________.
| A．MP3 player | B．dog | C．spouse/ partner | D．celebrity |
Which of the following is true about George Clooney?
| A．He has been trained in wilderness survival. |
| B．He may not be able to help you survive. |
| C．He does not think Roseane is beautiful. |
| D．He is the choice of most South African women. |
The survey results are analyzed in terms of the respondents’ __________.
| A．sex, age and nationality | B．race, nationality and sex |
| C．marriage, age and race | D．age, sex and marriage |
Oh, the things that I should see if I had the power of sight for just three days!
The first day would be a busy one. I should call to me all my dear friends and look long into their faces, imprinting(铭记) upon my mind the outward evidences of the beauty that is within them, I should let my eyes rest, too, on the face of a baby, so that I could catch a vision of the eager, innocent beauty which precedes the individual's consciousness of the conflicts which life develops.
And I should like to look into the loyal, trusting eyes of my dogs--the serious, clever little Scottie, Darkie, and the strong, understanding Great Dane, Helga, whose warm, tender, and playful friendships are so comforting to me.
On that busy first day I should also view the small simple things of my home. I want to see the warm colors in the carpets under my feet, the pictures on the walls, the lovely small furniture that transforms a house into home. My eyes would rest respectfully on the books in dot-raised type which I have read, but they would be more eagerly interested in the printed books which seeing people can read, for during the long night of my life the books I have read and those which have been read to me have built themselves into a great shining lighthouse, showing me the deepest channels of human life and the human spirit.
In the afternoon of that first seeing day, I should take a long walk in the woods and intoxicate (使陶醉) my eyes on the beauties of the world of Nature trying desperately to absorb in a few hours the vast brilliance which is presenting itself to those who can see. On the way home from my woodland trip, my path would lie close to a farm so that I might see the patient horses ploughing in the field and the peaceful content of men living close to the soil. And I should pray for the glory of a colorful sunset.
When dusk had fallen, I should experience the double delight of being able to see by artificial light which the genius of man has created to extend the power of his sight when Nature brings darkness.
In the night of that first day of sight, I should not be able to sleep, so full would be my mind of the memories of the day!
(by Helen Keller)
| What Helen Keller would do on the first day (1) _________ given three days to see |
|
| In the morning |
● Look long into the faces of all her dear friends so that she would never (2) _______ the evidences of their beauty. ● Catch a vision of the eager, innocent beauty of a baby by resting her eyes on his face. ● Look into the loyal, trusting eyes of her (3) _________ ● View the small simple things of her home such as warm colors, pictures, trifles. ● Fix her eyes with (4)_____ on the books in raised type she has read and the printed books for seeing people with interest. |
| In the afternoon |
● (5) _________ in the woods; intoxicate her eyes on the beauties of the world of Nature and absorb in a few hours the vast brilliance of the world. ● Walk (6) ________ a farm, see the patient horses ploughing in tile field and the peaceful content of men living close to the soil. ● Pray for the glory of a colorful sunset. |
| In the (7)_______ |
Experience the double delight of being able to see, (8)___________ by man-made light. |
| At night |
(9) _________ to sleep, so full would be her mind of the memories of the day! |
| From the passage we know in spite of her (10)____________ Helen Keller was still full of love for life. |
A good brand agency (代理) can create for you a brand identity (身份) of your products. Having the best agency to help with your business, no matter how small, can be one of the biggest steps you can take in letting the world know and get familiar with your products and brands.
Brand agencies work hand in hand with the company in advertising the brand and its products. The company has to tell the agency how they would like the public to see their products. The agency then talks with the company about the progress of the brand in the market.
Working with brand agencies is a two-way street. When the company is happy and satisfied with how the agency has advertised the brand, the trust the company has in the agency grows. Similarly, when the agency does well in its work, the company’s brand and products get good ideas from buyers and the market.
Regarding the identity of the brand, agencies can help a lot in this aspect. For a brand to have a lasting influence on the buyers, an identity of the brand needs to be formed. If the brand is good, then buyers will feel at ease (轻松自在) buying the products of this brand. We can learn from the text that the best agency is necessary for business EXCEPT for ______.
| A．letting customers know about the products |
| B．earning money directly from the products |
| C．helping create brand identities for the products |
| D．helping the brand have a lasting influence on customers |
The text is mainly written for ______.
| A．customers | B．salesmen | C．researchers | D．managers |
What’s the writer’s purpose of writing this text?
| A．To explain the meaning of teamwork. |
| B．To introduce the importance of a brand agency. |
| C．To tell the roles of the salesmen. |
| D．To describe how to run the company. |
What’s the writer’s attitude towards the brand agency?
| A．Doubtful. | B．Supportive. | C．Worried. | D．Disapproving. |
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