Thousands of taxi drivers in Shenyang, Liaoning province, reportedly blocked streets with their vehicles on Sunday in protest against unlicensed vehicles using taxi-hiring apps(打车软件) and apps-based car rental companies providing passenger services, including high-end cars. Although the drivers also complained about the withdrawal of the fuel subsidy by the government, their main complaint was the loss of business because of the rising number of Internet-based car services companies.
On Wednesday, news reports came that Beijing transport authorities will take measures to stop the illegal “taxi business” of private cars through the newly rising Internet apps, following the footsteps of Shenyang and Nanjing.
It is not yet clear how the Shenyang city government will handle the issue and whether it will declare the services offered by market leaders such as Didi Dache, a taxi-hiring app provider backed by Tencent Holdings, and Kuaidi Dache illegal. But Shanghai transport regulators have set a rule, by banning Didi Zhuanche, or car services offered by Didi Dache in December.
Such regulations will cause a setback to the car-hiring companies and investors that are waiting to cash in on the potentially booming business. Just last month, Didi Dache got $700 million in funding from global investors, including Singapore state investment company Temasek Holdings, Russian investment company DST Global and Tencent. Besides, the market is uncertain that Kuaidi Dache is about to finalize its latest round of funding after getting $800 million from global investors.
Regulatory uncertainties, however, could cast a shadow on the future of the Internet-based car-hiring services, which have become popular in most of China’s big cities. To be fair, these companies’ business model is anything but bad. For example, Didi Zhuanche works side by side with established car rental companies to provide high-end car service mainly for businesspeople through the Internet and mobile phone apps.
Every link in this business model chain has legal companies and services. Hence, it is hard to define it as illegal and ban it.Why did taxi drivers in Shenyang block the streets with their vehicles?
| A．Because they wanted the government to increase their driving allowances. |
| B．Because they wanted to be educated how to use the taxi-hiring apps. |
| C．Because they wanted to make their main complaints known to the government. |
| D．Because they wanted to call on passengers not to hire the private cars. |
The author’s attitude to banning internet car-hiring service is______.
| A．positive | B．negative |
| C．neutral | D．unclear |
Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the passage?
| A．The problem mentioned in the passage exists in all cities |
| B．App-based car rental is helpful in some sense |
| C．The government should regulate the app-based car rental market |
| D．Didi Dache is a China-foreign joint company |
From the passage we learn ___________.
| A．Shenyang banned apps-based car rental companies |
| B．Shanghai is the second city banning Didi Zhuanche |
| C．some international investment companies have faith in the future of apps-based car rental companies |
| D．it is easy to describe the apps-based car rental companies illegal |
It was Monday. Mrs. Smith’s dog was hungry, but there was not any meat in the house.
Considering that there was no better way, Mrs. Smith took a piece of paper, and wrote the following words on it: “Give my dog half a pound of meat.” Then she gave the paper to her dog and said gently: “Take this to the butcher. And he’s going to give you your lunch today.”
Holding the piece of paper in its mouth, the dog ran to the butcher’s. It gave the paper to the butcher. The butcher read it carefully, recognized that it was really the lady’s handwriting and soon did it as he was asked to. The dog was very happy, and ate the meat up at once.
At noon, the dog came to the shop again. It gave the butcher a piece of paper again. After reading it, he gave it half a pound of meat once more.
The next day, the dog came again exactly at noon. And as usual, it brought a piece of paper in the mouth. This time, the butcher did not take a look at paper, and gave the dog its meat, for he had regarded the dog as one of his customers.
But the dog came again at four o’clock. And the same thing happened once again. To the butcher’s surprise, it came for a third time at six o’clock, and brought with it a third piece of paper. The butcher felt a bit puzzled. He said to himself, “This is a small dog. Why does Mrs. Smith give it so much meat to eat today?”
Looking at the piece of paper, he found that there were not any words on it!Mrs. Smith treated her little dog quite_________.
| A．cruelly | B．fairly | C．kindly | D．rudely |
It seemed that the dog knew well that the paper Mrs. Smith gave it_______.
| A．might do it much harm | B．could do it much good |
| C．would help the butcher | D．was worth many pounds |
From its experience, the dog found that ________.
| A．only the paper with Mrs. Smith’s words in it could bring it meat |
| B．the butcher would give the meat to it whenever he saw it |
| C．Mrs. Smith would pay for the meat it got from the butcher |
| D．a piece of paper could bring it half a pound of meat |
At the end of the story, you’ll find that _______.
| A．the dog was clever enough to write on the paper |
| B．the dog dared not go to the butcher’s any more |
| C．the butcher was told not to give any meat to the dog |
| D．the butcher found himself cheated by the clever animal |
Why Doesn't Anybody Copy Apple?
Apple’s products are the envy of the world. They have been amazingly successful and are widely imitated, if not copied. The minute Apple launches a product, everyone knows how to compete．This idea that the basis of competition is set by Apple and then the race is on to climb the path of improvement is unquestionable. When Apple releases a product that defines a category or dramatically changes the structure of an industry, it becomes obvious what needs to be built. But what I wonder is why everyone wants to copy Apple's products but nobody wants to copy being Apple?
I can think of two reasons. Firstly, Apple is not worth copying because it's not successful; secondly, Apple's success cannot be copied because it is a magical process.
There is a great deal of evidence for the first assumption. The idea of Apple being successful is not something reflected in its stock price. Being valued lower than the average company in the S&P（标准普尔）500 indicates that to whatever degree Apple was successful in the past, and it's not seen by the vast majority of observers as successful in the future. Why should one bother copying Apple if it results in being punished with a low valuation? If one works really hard at innovation（革新）and then that innovation becomes commoditized（商品化）very quickly, why should one bother?
When innovation practitioners are asked what makes Apple successful, the answers regarding the cause of this success border on the mythical. The fabulous part of this assumption is the " chief-sorcerer" theory of success which places one magician, like Steve Jobs, in charge of casting all the right spells．
What about Apple's own opinion of what makes it tick? Tim Cook refers to a great team and integration（一体）of hardware, software and services as unique Apple advantages. It's a better explanation. Integration is something that can take a long time, but it is possible with great effort. A few companies are starting to make moves in that direction, but efforts are half-hearted. There is no "move the Earth" feeling to become an integrated company from Samsung, Google or Microsoft.
My own suspicion is that Apple is more aware of what makes it special than it lets out. However, as Tim points out, it's not a formula. It's complex, it's subtle, but it's not magic. It's a process that requires a degree of faith and courage.When a new product of Apple comes out, often it _________.
| A．ruins an industry dramatically |
| B．puts itself in an unbeatable position |
| C．starts a revolution of an industry |
| D．is soon overtaken by imitated products |
According to the passage, other companies don't "copy being Apple" because_________.
| A．Apple is not a successful company |
| B．they have no access to relevant resources |
| C．it's hard to find a magician like Steve Jobs |
| D．being Apple takes more than time and efforts |
We can infer from Para. 5 that _________.
| A．other companies are dedicated to integration |
| B．Apple itself is fully aware of its unique advantages |
| C．Apple will hold the leading position in this industry |
| D．other companies don't have an extraordinary team as Apple does |
What does the author think of Tim Cook's statement?
| A．Neutral. | B．Disappointing. | C．Indifferent. | D．Acceptable. |
WASHINGTON—Laura Straub is a very worried woman. Her job is to find families for French teenagers who expect to live with American families in the summer.
It’s not easy, even desperate.
“We have many children left to place: 40 out of 75,” said Straub, who works for a Paris-based foreign exchange programme called LEC. When exchange programmes started 50 years ago, family life was more accommodating. For one thing, more mothers stayed home.
But now, increasing numbers of women work outside the home. Exchange-student programmes have struggled in recent years to sign up host families for the 30,000 teenagers who annually come from abroad to spend their academic year in the United States, as well as the thousands more who participate in summer programmes.
School systems in many parts of the US, unhappy about accepting non-taxpaying students, have also strictly limited the number of exchange students they accept. At the same time, the idea of hosting foreign students is becoming less exotic.
In searching for host families, who usually receive no pay, exchange programmes are increasingly broadening their appeals to include everyone who has the ability to do it.
“We are open to many different types of families,” said Vickie Weiner, eastern regional director for ASSE, a 25- year-old programme that sends about 30,000 teenagers on academic year exchange programmes worldwide.
“For elderly people, exchange students keep us young; they really do!” said Jean Foster, who is hosting 16-year-old Nina Porst from Denmark.Vickie Weiner is the person who ________.
| A．works for a programme called LEC | B．works for a programme called ASSE |
| C．is 25 years old | D．hosts foreign students |
From the passage we can learn that at the beginning of the exchange programmes_______.
| A．all the families could host foreign students |
| B．only young couples could host foreign students |
| C．only those who were retired could host foreign students |
| D．those who were not too old could host foreign students |
Which of the following is the best title of this passage?
| A．US Struggles to Find Host Families |
| B．Idea of Hosting Students Is Different |
| C．Foreign-exchange Program Is Going On |
| D．Exchange Students Keep Old People Young |
All around the world, shoppers flock to Wal-Mart to buy everything. In Texas, they come for another reason: to see the wind turbine（涡轮机）, which supplies 5% of the store’s electricity. It along with other facilities, such as exterior walls coated with heat-reflective paint, makes this Wal-Mart a green giant.
The laws of economics suggest that Wal-Mart, with 5, 200 stores worldwide, influences everything including the price of all kinds of goods. It throws its weight behind environmental responsibility, and the impact could be amazing. “One little change in product packaging could save 1, 500 trees,” says Wal-Mart CEO Lee Scott．“If everybody saves 1, 500 trees or 50 barrels of oil, at the end of the day you have made a huge difference.”
Scott wants Wal-Mart to do its part too. He has promised to cut the existing greenhouse-gas emissions（排放）over the next few years and promised to construct new stores that are more efficient. He wants Wal-Mart’s fleet of more than 7, 000 trucks to get twice as many miles per gallon by 2015. Factories that show Wal-Mart they’re cutting air pollution will get preferential treatment in the supply chain. Wal-Mart says it’s working with consumer-product manufacturers to reduce their packaging and will reward them if they do so.
Some people may doubt it is a bid to attract attention from Wal-Mart’s controversial labor and health-insurance practices. But it’s not just window dressing, because Wal-Mart sees profits in going green. Scott says, “This is a business philosophy, not a social philosophy. We don’t go where we don’t think there’s a great interest in change.”
Like Bill Gates, who started his charitable foundation, Scott happens to be promoting Wal-Mart’s image at a time when his company’s reputation is declining. He acknowledges that he launched the plan partly to shield （保护）Wal-Mart from bad press about its contribution to global warming. “By doing what we’re doing today, we avoid the headline risks that are going to come for people who did not do anything,” he says. “At some point businesses will be held responsible for the action they take.” Meanwhile, should Wal-Mart succeed at shrinking its environmental footprint and lowering prices for green products, both the planet and the company will profit.We can infer from the passage that ______.
| A．Lee Scott is Wal-Mart’s CEO |
| B．there are 5, 200 stores in the world |
| C．Wal-Mart has a great influence on the world market |
| D．Wal-Mart has more than 7, 000 trucks all over the world |
What does the underlined sentence “This is a business philosophy, not a social philosophy.” mean in the fourth paragraph?
| A．Wal-Mart predicts huge profits in its green activity. |
| B．Wal-Mart’s green activity is just window dressing. |
| C．Wal-Mart aims to solve its health-insurance practices. |
| D．Wal-Mart doesn’t have any social responsibility at all. |
What will Wal-Mart probably do in the future?
| A．Reduce air pollution in its present stores. |
| B．Give favorable treatment to its consumers. |
| C．Ask the factories to reduce their packaging. |
| D．Demand the fleet of trucks to use more fuel than before. |
What is the main idea of the last paragraph?
| A．Provide the background of the green plan. |
| B．Stress the purpose of Wal-Mart’s green plan. |
| C．Present the risk that Wal-Mart is facing nowadays. |
| D．Analyze the similarity between Bill Gates and Scott. |
I really hadn’t meant to yell at them. But that grey afternoon saw it just as my son and daughter were making a terrible mess on the floor in the kitchen.
With a tiresome report to write, I felt bothered at my desk. Suddenly, it occurred to me that my kids were at fault. A voice inside me insisted that I do something quickly.
“Ok, you two here, what an awful thing you are attempting!” I was shouting angrily. I made for them, while it became evident that the boy wanted no part of me. “Get away from us!” he shouted back, there being an expression of support from his sister.
All of a sudden, I found the fault in myself. Quickly I shaped my hands into pincers(钳子) and crawled towards them, “Crabby（暴躁的） Daddy is here. Ha, Ha, Ha, he likes to yell at children, and then eat them!” My son continued to keep me away, but now he was laughing and crying at the same time. My mission to repair the damage caused by my yelling seemed to work well. Still, I regretted not having controlled myself first in a right way.
Need I let them know how badly they were acting by blaming? This is a lesson that serves myself. It only shows just how to get rid of something (ill-feelings, responsibility…) by blaming others. It’s not my “best self”.
We have to search for our “best self” when with our children. They don’t need perfect parents, but they do need parents who are always trying to get better. Here, I am reminded of the words of a great thinker. “When a man lives with God, his voice shall be as sweet as the murmur of the brook (stream)…” Then, in our lifetime, couldn’t we always speak to our kids in such a sweet voice since most of us consider them as the most precious in the world? And before we reach this level, what should we do when we come across various difficult cases with our children?Which of the following made the author aware of his fault?
| A．No obvious reason. | B．The boy’s yelling back. |
| C．His self-awareness. | D．The girl’s shouting back. |
According to the passage, the author will _________ in another similar situation.
| A．play a crab again like this time | B．apologize to kids in a sincere way |
| C．avoid blaming kids in a hurry | D．beat them up about such things |
What will the writer go on to write about in the next paragraph(s)?
| A．How to behave ourselves properly when kids are at fault. |
| B．How to play with our children in a more interesting way. |
| C．How to deal with the housework with children around us. |
| D．How to persuade children to do what they are told to. |
What does “the boy wanted no part of me” in the third paragraph mean?
| A．The boy was happy because I loved them. |
| B．The boy was curious because I wanted to help them. |
| C．The boy was very happy for I was angry. |
| D．The boy didn’t want me to join them. |
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