" Vi-Lasata!I can't believe it--a Vi-Lasata!” —You see some attractive young ladies looking at a sweater in a department store and you listen to their conversation:
“ Vi-Lasata is almost impossible to find. Isn't it beautiful? And it's a lot cheaper than the one Terry bought in Rome."
When they leave, you go over to see this unbelievable sweater. It's nice and the price is right.You've never heard of Vi-Lasata, 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 Vi-Lasata 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 （暗中影响的）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 “thumb 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 cheating, but marketing director Jonathan Ressler calls it creativity. "Look at traditional advertising. Its effectiveness is falling."
However, one might ask what exactly is "real" about of young women pretending to be enthusiastic about a sweater? Advertising agent would say it's no less real than an 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.Vi-Lasata is __________.
| A．a very popular department store |
| B．the brand name of a sweater |
| C．a clothing company in Rome |
| D．an advertising agency |
The 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 |
Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?
| A．Traditional advertising is becoming less effective as it's too direct. |
| B．The “ thumb generation” tends to be more easily influenced by ads. |
| C．The two girls are in fact clerks in the Vi-Lasata Company. |
| D．Undercover marketing is surely against the law in that country. |
Which of the following would be the best title for the text?
| A．Performance in Shops | B．Vi-Lasata Sweaters |
| C．Ways of Advertising | D．Undercover Marketing |
Sam Allred suffers from a rare and incurable kidney (肾脏) disease. One day, when his sister was playing a song repeatedly, Sam sang along. His sister thought it was funny so she recorded it and posted the video online. The video — and Sam — became a hit. Only 8 years old at the time, he couldn’t have expected the response.
“(The television show) The Doctors called and wanted me on their show so they paid for me to go to California,” says Sam, now 13, “and we got to stay in a hotel where all the movie stars stayed.”
During that visit to California, Angie Allred, Sam’s mother, had an idea about Sam writing a children’s book. Together, she and Sam wrote Opening Hearts, which tells Sam’s experience of living with a chronic (慢性的) illness.
“I wrote the book to teach people to be kinder to people,” Sam says.
Moreover, Sam wanted to send pillows to sick children staying in hospitals around the country to make their stay more comfortable, an idea that came from a time when he was in the hospital.
“A few kind boys came in with pillows and they gave me one and it meant a lot to me that someone cared about kids in the hospital,” says Sam.
Angie thought of starting a nonprofit organization to provide a way for people to contribute money to realize Sam’s ideas. She named the nonprofit Kindness for Kids.
Since then, Sam has taken pillows to children staying at Providence Hospital in Anchorage.
Sam’s father, Scott Allred, owns a small business that contracts (承包) shipping services with FedEx Ground. He asked the company for help.
“FedEx Ground learned about Sam’s pillow project,” says Erin Truxal, manager of public relations for FedEx Ground. “We thought, ‘What a perfect way for us to get involved.’”
The company provided shipping services for Sam to ship about 5,000 pillows to hospitals.
Sam wants to send more pillows to all of the children’s hospitals in every state. His goal is simple: “Kids in the hospital as happy as they were before they got sick,” he says.We can learn from the text that Sam Allred _____.
| A．was a healthy boy |
| B．was popular at an early age |
| C．sang the song with his sister |
| D．worked in his father’s company |
Opening Hearts is a book that _____.
| A．is a best seller |
| B．is about Sam’s sister |
| C．was published when Sam was 13 |
| D．was written by Sam and his mother |
What is FedEx Ground’s attitude towards Sam’s career?
| A．Doubtful. | B．Surprised. |
| C．Approving. | D．Uninterested. |
Which of the following can best describe Sam Allred?
| A．Optimistic and warm-hearted. |
| B．Honest and responsible. |
| C．Unusual and confident. |
| D．Friendly and brave. |
Hidden in our subconsciousness (潜意识) is a perfect mental picture. We see ourselves on a long trip that goes across the continent. We are traveling by train. Out the windows, we think in the passing scene of cars on nearby highways, of children waving at a crossing, of cattle feeding on a distant hillside, of smoke pouring from a power plant, or row upon row of corn and wheat, of flat lands and valleys, of mountains and rolling hills, of city skylines and village halls.
But uppermost in our minds is the final destination. On a certain day at a certain hour, we will pull into the station. Bands will be playing and flags waving. Once we get there, so many wonderful dreams will come true and the pieces of our lives will fit together like a completed jigsaw（拼图玩具） puzzle. How restlessly we pace the aisles(通道), condemning the minutes for loitering --waiting, waiting, waiting for the station.
“When we reach the station, that will be it!” we cry. “When I’m 38.” “When I buy a new 450SL Mercdes Benz!” “When I put the last kid through college.” “When I have paid off the loan!” “When I get a promotion.” “When I reach the age of retirement, I shall live happily ever after! ”
Sooner or later, we must realize there is no station, no one place to arrive at once and for all. The true joy of life is the trip. The station is only a dream. It constantly outdistances us.
“Relish(appreciate) the moment” is a good motto, actually it isn’t the burdens of today that drive man mad. It is the regret over yesterday and the fear of tomorrow. Regret and fear are twin thieves who rob us of today.
So stop pacing the aisles and counting the miles. Instead, climb more mountains, eat more ice cream, swim more rivers, watch more sunsets, laugh more and cry less. Life must be lived as we go along. Then the station will come soon enough.Why does the author describe the mental picture?
| A．To lead us into a perfect world. |
| B．To let people enjoy the scenery. |
| C．To introduce an actual trip of his. |
| D．To compare it to our life’s journey. |
How do people feel when they’re on their trip?
| A．Puzzled. | B．Happy. | C．Relaxed. | D．Impatient. |
What does the author mean by “Regret and fear are twin thieves who rob us of today” in Line 2 Paragraph 5?
| A．Regret and fear are responsible for the loss of today. |
| B．We must be careful of the two thieves: regret and fear. |
| C．regret and fear stop us from enjoying our present life. |
| D．We’re frequently challenged by the two : regret and fear. |
Why does the author write the passage?
| A．To teach us a good lesson. |
| B．To tell us the right attitude to life. |
| C．To advice us to forget our worries. |
| D．To stop us wandering along the aisles. |
If you are a sleep deprived(被剥夺) teacher, you may not be aware of the term woodpeckering(啄木鸟式点头), but you’ve probably done it. It happens the day following a bad night’s sleep. You’re sitting in a long meeting and you can barely keep your eyes open, so you support your head up with your hand. Next thing you know, you are moving your sleeping head back to its upright position. Do this a few times and you are woodpeckering.
I thought I knew sleep deprivation when I did my medical internship in hospital. That year I frequently went 36 hours with no sleep. When I finished my stay in neurology(神经内科), I welcomed the promise of full nights of sleep ever after. It went pretty well for the next 10 years until I became a school teacher and experienced a whole new level of sleep deprivation.
Teachers’ working hours go far beyond the 8 am to 5 pm schedule of kids in school. There are hours spent at staff meetings, correcting homework, preparing for the next day and then there is the worrying. What I did in a hospital emergency room required no more intensive mental energy than what is need to keep 30 kids attentive enough to learn what I was teacher.
Good teachers are like magicians keeping a dozen balls in the air to come at right time, with alarm set for 6 am to finish grading papers, memories of the day that’s gone- including the students who didn’t understand something, forgot their lunch or were embarrassed by wrong angers. All these will become sleep-resistant barriers. And also with some financial stress, you’ll have a cycle of insomnia(失眠) with unwelcome consequences.
With inadequate sleep comes irritability(易怒), forgetfulness, lower tolerance of even minor annoyances, and less efficient organization and planning. These are the very mental muscles that teachers need to meet the challenges of the next day. In wanting to do a better job the next day, the brain keeps bringing up the worries that deny the rest it needs.After a bad night’s sleep, usually the direct effect for the next day is to ______.
| A．keep one’s eyes open all the time |
| B．move head back and forth |
| C．raise one’s head in upright position |
| D．keep nodding like a woodpecker |
Good teachers’ sleep problems are mainly due to the _____.
| A．common sleep-resistant barriers |
| B．embarrassment for wrong answers |
| C．diligence and devotion to teaching |
| D．misunderstanding of their students |
What does the writer really want to tell us in the last paragraph?
| A．Unfavorable effects of inadequate sleep are various |
| B．Lay down worries and sleep well first for the next day. |
| C．Teachers should often practice mental muscles. |
| D．Better job has nothing to do with inadequate sleep. |
Babysitter(保姆) Wanted
I am seeking a babysitter for my 6-month-old son. A few hours on Saturdays and Sundays to help me and then other times as needed. He or she should be over 18, responsible, loving, warm, and have some experience in caring for babies. This position also suits a college student with experience looking for a part-time job. The pay is $10 an hour.
If this sounds like a good job to you, please reply to rebecharv@aol.com or call 800-4964.
Office Manager Wanted
Our company is looking for a full-time experienced manager to run the business. Strong skills in organization and business management are required for this position. The office manager will be responsible for keeping financial (财务的) records, so he or she should be familiar with computers.
Please reply to jim@californiaaquatics.com or call 800-6978 to apply.
Waiter/ Waitress Wanted
A restaurant is looking for an experienced waiter / waitress. Knowledge of wines and experience in dining are necessary. Must work well under pressure and understand the basics (基本要素) of fine dining and customer service.
If you’re interested, please contact us at job-tkupe-1329358152@craigslist.org to apply.
This is a part-time job.
Office Cleaner Wanted
Looking for a Part-time job? A position in the Mississauga area needs an office cleaner! Part-time 4 hours a day from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm.
Duties include:
●Cleaning the washrooms
●Cleaning the furniture
●Sweeping the floors
●Other general cleaning experience is necessary. Pay: $15 per hour
Reply to:job-p3b7u-1365632206@craigslist.org or call 800-8197.Which of the following position is a full-time job?
| A．Babysitter. | B．Office manager. |
| C．Waiter / waitress. | D．Office cleaner. |
If a college girl with some experience caring for children wants to apply for a job, where should she send an email?
| A．job-p3b7u-1365632206@craigslist.org |
| B．job-tkupe-1329358152@craigslist.org |
| C．jim@californiaaquatics.com |
| D．rebecharv@aol.com |
What can we learn from the passage?
| A．The office cleaner has to work three hours each day. |
| B．One can apply for a waiter or waitress by telephone. |
| C．A babysitter earns $5 more than an office cleaner per hour. |
| D．Experience is necessary for all these four jobs. |
Which of the following is necessary for a waiter / waitress?
| A．Being familiar with computers. |
| B．Having knowledge of wines. |
| C．Knowing more about menus. |
| D．Working well with others. |
Shopping for clothes is not the same experience for a man as it is for a woman. A man goes shopping because he needs something. His purpose is settled and decided in advance. He knows what he wants, and his objective is to find it and buy it; the price is a secondary consideration. All men simply walk into a shop and ask the assistant for what they want. If the shop has it in stock, the salesman promptly produces it, and the business of trying it on goes forward at once. All being well, the deal can be and often is completed in less than five minutes, with hardly any chat and to everyone's satisfaction. For a man, slight problems may begin when the shop does not have what he wants, or does not have exactly what he wants. In that case the salesman, as the name implies, tries to sell the customer something else, he offers the nearest he can to the article required. No good salesman brings out such a substitute without least consideration; he does so with skill and polish（完美）: “I know this jacket is not the style you want, sir, but would you like to try it for size. It happens to be the color you mentioned." Few men have patience with this treatment, and the usual response is: “This is the right color and may be the right size but I should be wasting my time and yours by trying it on.
Now how does a woman go about buying clothes? In almost every respect she does so in the opposite way. Her shopping is not often based on need. She has never fully made up her mind what she wants, and she is only “having a look round". She is always open to persuasion: indeed she sets great store by what the saleswoman tells her, even by what companions tell her. She will try on any number of things. Uppermost in her mind is the thought of finding something that everyone thinks suits her. Contrary to a lot of jokes, most women have an excellent sense of value when they buy clothes. They are always on the lookout for the unexpected bargain. Faced with a roomful of dresses, a woman may easily spend an hour going from one rail to another, to and fro often retracing her steps, before selecting the dresses she wants to try on. It is a tiresome process, but apparently an enjoyable one. Most dress shops provide chairs for the waiting husbands.According to the passage, a man’s shopping is based on _______.
| A．his money | B．his hobbies |
| C．his need | D．his friends |
Why does a lady welcome suggestions from anyone while buying a dress?
| A．Because she wants to buy a dress that every one thinks suits her. |
| B．Because she doesn’t know how to buy a dress. |
| C．Because she doesn’t know whether to buy it or not. |
| D．Because she wants to show herself off in public. |
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
| A．Most men have patience with trying it on while buying a jacket. |
| B．Most women have a poor sense of value when buying a dress. |
| C．A woman’s shopping is based on her need. |
| D．A man doesn’t pay much attention to the price of the clothes he wants to buy. |
The passage mainly talks about the ______ between men shoppers and women shoppers for clothes.
| A．similarities | B．differences |
| C．varieties | D．intentions |