Wal-Mart is not just the world's largest retailer （零售商）. It's the world's largest company, which sells in three months what number-two retailer Home Depot sells in a year.
Wal-Mart exercises its power for just one purpose: to bring the lowest possible prices to its customers. At Wal-Mart, that goal is never reached. The retailer has a clear policy for suppliers: On basic products that don't change, the price Wal-Mart will pay, and will charge shoppers, must drop year after year. But what almost no one outside the world of Wal-Mart and none of its 21,000 suppliers know is the high cost of those low prices. To survive in the face of its pricing demands, makers of everything from bikes to jeans have had to close US plants in favor of obtaining products from abroad.
Indeed, the real story of Wal-Mart, the story that never gets told, is the story of the pressure the biggest retailer constantly applies to its suppliers in the name of bringing us "every day low prices".
The giant retailer' s low prices often come with a high cost. Wal-Mart' s pressure can crush the companies it does business with and force them to send jobs overseas. Are we shopping our way straight to the unemployment line? Of course, US companies have been moving jobs offshore for decades, long before Wal-Mart was a retailing power. But there is no question that the chain is helping accelerate the loss of American jobs to low-wage countries such as Thailand.
People ask, "How can it be bad for things to come into the US cheaply?" Sure, it's great to have bargains. But you can' t buy anything if you' re not employed.
There is no question that Wal-Mart's drive to squeeze out cost has benefited consumers. By now, it is accepted wisdom that Wal-Mart makes the companies it does business with more efficient and focused. Wal-Mart itself is known for continuous improvement in its ability to handle, move, and track goods. It is legendary （传奇） for forcing its suppliers to redesign everything from their packaging to their computer systems. It is also legendary for quite straightforwardly telling them what it will pay for their goods. How do suppliers meet the requirements of Wal-Mart?
| A．To sell even more goods in three months. |
| B．To cut down the employment rate sharply. |
| C．To charge shoppers at a much higher price. |
| D．To run the business in a well-organized way. |
Wal-Mart's low price policy results in ____.
| A．more high-paying jobs |
| B．better designed packages |
| C．bigger profit of its partners |
| D．more jobless American workers |
What can we infer from the passage?
| A．Still more quality goods will be provided. |
| B．The food you get at Wal-Mart costs least. |
| C．The value of Mal-Mart is over assessed. |
| D．Wal-Mart is a very demanding company. |
What's the best title for the passage?
| A．The Fortune Wal-Mart Makes |
| B．The Wal-Mart you don't Know |
| C．The Biggest Retailer—Wal-Mart |
| D．The Money Saving Tip in Wal-Mart |
Encouragement and praise can come in many forms, and some ways are better for child development than others. Researchers at the University of Chicago who studied mother-child interactions (互相作用) found that the type of praise children receive affects their attitudes towards challenges later in life.
Specifically, praise that focused on their behavior and the choices that kids made helped them deal with difficult experiences better five years later, compared with praise that focused more on the child himself, like “You’re a good boy.” The study, which appears in the journal Child Development, is the first major study of praise and child development done outside of a lab setting.
“It’s exciting to see it play out in the real world,” said Elizabeth Gunderson who led the study. “Praising the efforts, actions and work of kids is going to be more beneficial in their long-term persistence and desire to be challenged and work hard in the future.”
Such “process praise” includes comments such as “You worked really hard”, which emphasize a child’s actions. “Person praise” includes comments like “You’re so smart”, which focus on a child’s personal qualities. These distinctions (差别) aren’t new in the field of psychology, but exactly how they affect children’s development over the years hasn’t always been clear.
As part of the study, the researchers visited the homes of more than 50 kids between the ages of 1 and 3, and filmed their daily interactions with their parents during 90-minute sessions. Five years later, the researchers followed up with the families, measuring the children’s attitudes towards challenges and problem solving. The children who grew up with more process praise were more open to challenges. Though person praise didn’t seem to have any negative effect on the children, the study suggests that process praise teaches children that their talents and abilities can be developed and improved, while person praise sends the message that their abilities are fixed and therefore not easily changed.What can we learn from the first Paragraph?
| A．Researchers encourage more mother-child interactions. |
| B．Different kinds of praise have different effects on children. |
| C．Encouragement and praise have the same effects on children. |
| D．Researchers have different attitudes to children’s development. |
The underlined word "it" in Paragraph 3 refers to _______ .
| A．the journal Child Development |
| B．the study of praise and child development |
| C．the relationship between parents and their children |
| D．the relationship between progress praise and person praise |
Which of the following belongs to "progress praise"?
| A．You did a good job! | B．What an adorable boy! |
| C．You're a real gentleman! | D．We are so proud of you! |
Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
| A．Praise is good for children's development. |
| B．Praise is more beneficial than punishment. |
| C．Person praise is better than process praise. |
| D．Process praise is more beneficial in the long run. |
If you hear the sound of a mobile phone beeping in a bag or pocket, you could think that someone has received a text message. Text messaging, or texting, is the art of sending a short, electronic message between two mobile phones. The users should pay a certain amount to send messages via SMS--- short message service. But in the last few years, with the development of smart phones, messaging in this way has been at a low ebb.
The rise of smart phones has seen an increase in the use of instant messaging apps. The apps offer a cheap alternative to traditional texts. Using wireless internet connections, people can send a number of messages to their friends at a very low cost. Unlike traditional mobile texts, the users usually only have to pay to download the app once, after which each message they send is free.
Instant messaging apps have become popular all over the world. Hundreds of millions of people use the apps to chat with their friends. These apps allow people to send pictures messages for free---something which previously was quite costly. Many of these apps also allow users to have access to a huge range of colourful emotions, which can help people express their emotions.
The research company Informa said that almost 19 billion messages were sent per day using chat apps last year, compared with 17.6 billion SMS texts. And it expects the chat app market to grow to 50 billion per day by 2015. So does this really mean the end of communicating by texting?
Pamela Clark-Dickson from Informa doesn’t think so. She says that there are a large number of people who use normal mobile phones, particularly in developing countries and prefer the SMS messaging tool. For the moment, these users still find that SMS is the best messaging experience for them.The underlined phrase “at a low ebb” can be replaced by “______”
| A．on the increase | B．on the decrease |
| C．in the end | D．at the moment |
What can we learn about instant messaging apps?
| A．Normal mobile phones can be used to download the apps. |
| B．The apps enjoy high popularity in developing countries. |
| C．Only part of the messages sent by the apps are free of charge. |
| D．It will cost the users some money for downloading the apps. |
Instant messaging apps won’t take the place of the SMS messaging tool soon in that_____________________________________
| A．there are a large number of people who enjoy using normal mobile phones. |
| B．many people in developing countries can’t afford to buy smart phones. |
| C．many people in developing countries don’t like instant messaging apps |
| D．instant messaging apps are only known to people in developed countries. |
In which section of an English newspaper will this text probably be found?
| A．Science & Technology | B．Culture |
| C．Entertainment | D．Health & care |
Look and feel better in 30 days, guaranteed!
Our proven workout system helps you reach your goals fast.
Many Americans are overweight for lack of physical activity. Many are struggling to lose weight, but most give up just within days. If you’ve struggled with diets and workout routines, only to feel like you aren’t getting anywhere, our gym is for you! Take a moment to read this page to find out what we can do for you.
Let us help you
Reach your fitness goals quickly and safely
Work out in a comfortable environment
Look and feel great
Get the results you’ve been looking for
Have you tried dieting and working out, only to be let down? Do you have trouble pulling yourself to the gym every day? Our program is designed for the “average Joe or Jane” to be able to lose weight and keep it off, with a combination of nutrition, motivation, and fitness.
Our fitness method
Our workout system will ensure that you lose weight and build muscles quickly and safely. We have developed a workout that targets all the right muscle groups, while at the same time burning unwanted fat. Our experienced trainers can help you with nutrition in between workouts to allow you to reach your goals faster. Nutrition is a big part of getting fit; don’t overlook it!
If working out on your own hasn’t produced the type of results you want, that’s why we’re here. Join today! We charge $500 for each membership, but people who join our gym today can get a 20 percent discount. Those who join in the following week can get a 10 percent discount. For more information, please click here.Many Americans fail to lose weight probably because _______ .
| A．they lack confidence |
| B．they do exercise alone |
| C．they are under great pressure |
| D．they don't get enough exercise |
From the text, we can learn that if you join the gym, _______ .
| A．you'll lose weight safely but slowly |
| B．you'll struggle with workout routines |
| C．you'll be advised to pay attention to nutrition |
| D．you'll be advised to do nothing in between workouts |
How much do a couple have to pay if they join the gym today?
| A．$500. | B．$800. | C．$900. | D．$1,000. |
This text is most probably taken from a ________ .
| A．newspaper | B．magazine |
| C．website | D．textbook |
One day, our teacher talked about the stereotypes (固定看法) of different people. I learned the stereotypes of Mexicans: they are poor and lazy. I was ashamed of who I was because I am a Mexican and thought that it would be hard for me to be successful.
One day in the eleventh grade, we had a discussion in history class. The kid next to me said, "You look like one of those Mexicans who sell food in the street." I told him that he was also a Mexican. He said, "I don't look as Mexican as you. I have light skin." That was the first time that I'd heard someone say, "I don't look as Mexican as you." Could it be that the people who succeed in this country are those who look like an American?
Towards the end of the eleventh grade, I was asked to write a restaurant review. When I went to a restaurant, I saw the waiter talking to the chefs (厨师) and thought they were judging me. I felt nervous but I couldn't leave because I had to write the review. Minutes later, the waiter stopped talking and took my order. He was happy to serve me. I started asking him questions about his restaurant and I guessed that he liked that because he gave me a free dish. After I left the restaurant, I thought, "That's wasn't bad at all." Not all people think of me as a failure.
Now, I am running for the school president in my senior year. I am not sure if I can win, but I tell myself that if I want to be successful, I have to stop despising (鄙视) myself. I want to prove that Latinos can be successful. I do belong to the United States. An American is a person who overcomes struggles to become successful and that is what I'm doing.In Paragraph 2, what the kid said to the author made him doubt whether ______.
| A．he should laugh at the kid |
| B．the kid was a real Mexican |
| C．he should sell food in the street |
| D．the color of one's skin really mattered |
The author's experience of finishing his restaurant review helped him realize that .
| A．he could succeed easily if he tried his best |
| B．the waiters in America were all very friendly |
| C．not everyone in American looked down on Mexicans |
| D．he was actually popular with people around him |
What is the main idea of the text?
| A．Where one was born matters a lot. |
| B．Being a Mexican is hard in America. |
| C．Other people's opinions are very important. |
| D．It is what he does that makes him an American. |
Ask someone what they have done to help the environment recently and they will almost certainly mention recycling. Recycling in the home is very important of course. However, being forced to recycle often means we already have more material than we need. We are dealing with the results of that over-consumption in the greenest way possible, but it would be far better if we did not need to bring so much material home in the first place.
The total amount of packaging increased by 12% between 1999 and 2005. It now makes up a third of a typical household’s waste in the UK. In many supermarkets nowadays food items are packaged twice with plastic and cardboard.
Too much packaging is doing serious damage to the environment. The UK, for example, is running out of it for carrying this unnecessary waste. If such packaging is burnt, it gives off greenhouse gases which go on to cause the greenhouse effect. Recycling helps, but the process itself uses energy. The solution is not to produce such items in the first place. Food waste is a serious problem, too. Too many supermarkets encourage customers to buy more than they need. However, a few of them are coming round to the idea that this cannot continue , encouraging customers to reuse their plastic bags, for example.
But this is not just about supermarkets. It is about all of us. We have learned to associate packaging with quality. We have learned to think that something unpackaged is of poor quality. This is especially true of food. But is also applies to a wide range of consumer products, which often have far more packaging than necessary.
There are signs of hope. As more of us recycle, we are beginning to realise just how much unnecessary material are collecting. We need to face the wastefulness of our consumer culture, but we have a mountain to climb.What does the underlined phrase “over-consumption” refer to?
| A．Using too much packaging. |
| B．Recycling too many wastes. |
| C．Making more products than necessary. |
| D．Having more material than is needed. |
According to the text, recycling ______.
| A．helps control the greenhouse effect |
| B．means burning packaging for energy |
| C．is the solution to gas shortage |
| D．leads to a waste of land |
What can we learn from the last paragraph?
| A．Fighting wastefulness is difficult. |
| B．Needless material is mostly recycled. |
| C．People like collecting recyclable waste. |
| D．The author is proud of their consumer culture. |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号