The Colonel(上校) asked Ashenden a good many questions and then suggested that he had particular qualifications for the Secret Service. Ashenden knew several European languages and the fact that he was a writer provided excellent cover: on the pretext(借口) that he was writing a book he could, without attracting attention, visit any neutral country.
It was while they were discussing this point that the Colonel said, "You know you might get material that would be very useful to you in your work. I'll tell you an incident that occurred only recently. Very dramatic. A foreign government minister went down to a Mediterranean resort to recover from a cold and he had some very important documents with him that he kept in a dispatch case(公文箱). A day or two after he arrived, he picked up a beautiful blonde at some restaurant or other, and he got very friendly with her. He took her back to his hotel, and when he came to himself in the morning, the lady and the dispatch-case had disappeared. They had one or two drinks up in his room and his theory is that when his back was turned the woman slipped a drug in his glass.
"Do you mean to say that happened the other day?" said Ashenden.
"The week before last."
"Impossible," cried Ashenden. "Why! We've been putting that incident on the stage for sixty years, we've written it in a thousand novels. Do you mean to say that life has only just caught up with us?"
"Well, I can guarantee the truth of the story." said the Colonel, "And believe me, the government has been put to no end of trouble by the loss of the documents."
"Well sir, if you can't do better than that in the Secret Service," sighed Ashenden, " I'm afraid that as a source of inspiration to the writer of fiction, it's washout(失败)."How did the Colonel suggest that Ashenden's being a writer would relate to his work as a spy?
A.It would make traveling abroad more possible. |
B.It would make it easier for him to meet people. |
C.It would enable him to avoid arousing suspicion. |
D.It would enable him to use the languages he knew. |
The reason for the Minister's trip was ________ .
A.to fetch some documents |
B.to get over an illness |
C.to meet a spy |
D.to deliver some papers |
According to the Colonel the incident happened _______.
A.a few days before |
B.a few weeks before |
C.two weeks before |
D.sixty years before |
Ashenden cried 'Impossible' after hearing the Colonel's story because he thought ______ .
A.it was so stupid |
B.it was too close to fiction |
C.it was too embarrassing |
D.it was too recent |
People have been painting pictures for at least 30,000 years.The earliest pictures were painted by people who hunted animals.They used to paint pictures of the animals they wanted to catch and kill.Pictures of this kind have been found on the walls of caves in France and Spain.No one knows why they were painted there.Perhaps the painters thought that their pictures would help them to catch these animals.Or perhaps human beings have always wanted to tell stories in pictures.
About 5,000 years ago, the Egyptians and other people in the Near East began to use pictures as kind of writing.They drew simple pictures or signs to represent things and ideas, and also to represent the sounds of their language.The signs these people used became a kind of alphabet.
The Egyptians used to record information and to tell stories by putting picture-writing and pictures together.When an important person died, scenes and stories from his life were painted and carved on the walls of the place where he was buried.Some of these pictures are like modern comic strip stories.It has been said that Egypt is the home of the comic strip.But, for the Egyptians, pictures still had magic power.So they did not try to make their way of writing simple.The ordinary people could not understand it.
By the year 1,000 BC, people who lived in the area around the Mediterranean Sea had developed a simpler system of writing.The signs they used were very easy to write, and there were fewer of them than in the Egyptian system.This was because each sign, or letter, represented only one sound in their language.The Greeks developed this system and formed the letters of the Greek alphabet.The Romans copied the idea, and the Roman alphabet is now used all over the world.
These days, we can write down a story, or record information, without using pictures.But we still need pictures of all kinds: drawing, photographs, signs and diagrams.We find them everywhere: in books and newspapers, in the street, and on the walls of the places where we live and work.Pictures help us to understand and remember things more easily, and they can make a story much more interesting.
Pictures of animals were painted on the walls of caves in France and Spain because ______.
A.the hunters wanted to see the pictures |
B.the painters were animal lovers |
C.the painters wanted to show imagination |
D.the pictures were thought to be helpful |
The Greek alphabet was simpler than the Egyptian system for all the following reasons EXCEPT that _______.
A.the former was easy to write | B.there were fewer signs in the former |
C.the former was easy to pronounce | D.each sign stood for only one sound |
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
A.The Egyptian signs later became a particular alphabet. |
B.The Egyptians liked to write comic-strip stories. |
C.The Roman alphabet was developed from the Egyptian on![]() |
D.The Greeks copied their writing system from the Egyptians. |
In the last paragraph, the author thinks that pictures ___________.
A.should be made comprehensible | B.should be made interesting |
C.are of much use in our life | D.have disappeared from our life |
To understand the marketing concept, it is only necessary to understand the difference between marketing and selling.Not too many years ago, most industries concentrated primarily on the efficient production of goods, and then relied on "persuasive salesmanship" to move as much of these goods as possible.Such production and selling focuses on the needs of the seller to produce goods and then convert them into money.
Marketing, on the other hand, focuses on the wants of consumers.It begins with first analyzing the preferences and demands of consumers and then producing goods that will satisfy them.This eye - on - the - consumer approach is known as the marketing concept, which simply means that instead of trying to sell whatever is easiest to produce or buy for resale, the makers and dealers first endeavor to find out what the consumer wants to buy and then go about
making it available for purchase.
This concept(理念) does not imply that business is benevolent(慈善的) or that consumer satisfaction is given priority over profit in a company.There are always two sides to every business transaction -- the firm and the customer -- and each must be satisfied before trade occurs.Successful merchants and producers, however, recognize that the surest route to profit is through understanding and meeting to customers.A striking example of the importance of meeting to the consumer presented itself in mid - 1985, when Coca Cola changed the flavor of its drink.The non - acceptance of the new flavor by a significant part of the public brought about a prompt(果断的) restoration(恢复) of the Classic Coke, which was then marketed alongside new.King Customer ruled!The marketing concept discussed in the passage is, in fact, __________.
A.the practice of turning goods into money |
B.making goods available for purchase |
C.the customer- centered approach |
D.a form of persuasive salesmanship |
What was the main concern of industrialists before the marketing concept was widely accepted?
A.The needs of the market. | B.The efficiency of production. |
C.The satisfaction of the user. | D.The preferences of the dealer. |
According to the passage, the underlined part "to move as much of these goods as possible" (Para.1) means _________.
A.to sell the largest possible amount of goods |
B.to transport goods as efficiently as possible |
C.to dispose of these goods in large quantities |
D.to redesign these goods for large - scale production |
What does the restoration of the Classic Coke best illustrate?
A.Traditional goods have a stronger appeal to the majority of people. |
B.It takes time for a new product to be accepted by the public. |
C.Consumers with conservative tastes are often difficult to please. |
D.Products must be designed to suit the taste of the consumer. |
A survey by an international temporary service agency found that U.S.managers believe that people with a sense of humour do better at their jobs, compared with those who have little or no sense of humour.In fact, about 96 percent of those surveyed said people with a sense of humour do better.
The survey went on to point out that the results suggest that a sense of humour may help light-hearted employees keep their jobs during tough times. And, what's more, it may push them up the corporate ladder past their humourless colleagues.Why? It seems that those with a sense of humour are better communicators and better team players.
Studies have shown that happy workers are more productive. In fact, a researcher at California State University found that humour could help the employees to release tension.
Research done by psychologist Dr.Ashton Trice at Mary Baldwin College in Virginia showed that humour helps us think.When people feel stuck on important projects, they tend to feel angry or depressed. According to Dr.Trice's research, taking time out to laugh can help us to get rid of negative feelings and allow us to return to a task or move on to another project unaffected by past defeat.
If humour is really this important, then why don't we use it more often on the job? Most likely, the main reason is that many people are unaware of the positive effects of humour in the workplace.However, it is important to realize that some humour is not suitable for the workplace, and that it is often used at wrong times.Most people think a sense of humour can ________.
A.help you to do your work better | B.make you have a rich life |
C.make you pleased with your work | D.help you to make more friends |
Many people don't use humour more in the workplace because __________.
A.they like keeping silent when working |
B.they don't know the positive effects of humour |
C.they think they should obey the rules |
D.they don't like joking or laughing |
A person without a sense of humour is easier __________.
A.to feel surprised | B.to get along with |
C.to be worried | D.to be successful |
What is probably the best title for the article?
A.People with a Sense of Humour. | B.Humour Is Important in the Workplace. |
C.Humour and Humourless. | D.Everyone Likes Humour. |
A couple had two little boys aged 8 and 10 who were very naughty.They were always getting into trouble and their parents knew that if any trouble occurred in their town their sons were probably involved.
The boys' mother heard that a clergyman(牧师) in the town had been successful in educating children so she asked if he would speak with her boys.The clergyman agreed but asked to see them individually.So the mother sent her 8-year-old first in the morning with the elder boy to see the clergyman in the afternoon.
The clergyman, a huge man with a booming (嗡嗡) voice, sat the younger boy down and asked him strictly, "Where is God?"
The boy's mouth dropped open but he made no answer, sitting there with his mouth hanging open, wide-eyed.So the clergyman repeated the question in an even stricter tone "Where is God?" Again the boy made no attempt to answer.So the clergyman raised his voice even more and shook his finger in the boy's face and shouted" Where is God?"
The boy screamed and escaped from the room, ran directly home and dove into his closet, slamming the door behind him.When his elder brother found him in the closet, he asked "What happened?"
The younger brother replied out of breath, "We are in big trouble this time.God is missing--and they think we did it."What were the two boys like?
A.They always made trouble. | B.They were brave. |
C.They were easygoing. | D.They were honest. |
What did their parents plan to do?
A.They gave up their children. |
B.They liked their children very much. |
C.They wanted the clergyman to persuade their children. |
D.They helped their children to make trouble. |
What do you suppose the boy felt when he was asked by the clergyman?
A.Happy. | B.Sad. | C.Afraid. | D.Surprised. |
What do you think the underlined word "slamming" in Paragraph 5 means?
A.Open. | B.Shut. | C.Knock. | D.Pull. |
The old idea that child prodigies (神童) “burn themselves” or “overtax their brains” in the early years, and therefore are prey to failure and (at worst) mental illness is just a myth. As a matter of fact, the outstanding thing that happens to bright children is that they are very likely to grow into bright adults.
To find this out, 1, 500 gifted persons were followed up to thirty or fifty year with these results:
On adult intelligence tests, they scored as high as they did as children. They were, as a group, in good health, physically and mentally. Eighty-four percent of their group were married and seemed content with their life.
About 70 percent had graduated from colleges, though only 30 percent had graduated with honors. A few had even flunked out(退学), but nearly half of these had returned to graduate.
Of the men, 80 percent were in one of the professions or in business, managers or semi-professional jobs. The women who had remained single had offices, business, or professional occupations.
The group had published 90 books and 1, 500 articles in scientific, scholarly, and literary magazines and had collected more than 100 patents.
In a material way they didn’t do badly, either. Average income was considerably higher among the gifted people, especially the men, than for the country as a whole, despite their comparative youth when last surveyed.
In fact, far from being strange, maladjusted (难以适应) people locked in an ivory tower, most of the gifted were turning their early promises into practical reality.
55. The main idea of the passage is _____.
A. that gifted children were most likely to become bright grown-ups
B. that when the bright children grew up, they would become ordinary
C. that bright children were unlikely to be physically and mentally healthy
D. how many gifted children turned successful when they grew up
56. From the passage, we can conclude that _____.
A. half of the gifted followed up graduated from colleges
B. bright men got higher income than bright women
C. most of the gifted children became white collars when they grew up
D. each of the talented published at least one article
57. Which of the following is mentioned in the passage ?
A. Most of the gifted appeared satisfied with their life .
B. Most of the bright and successful women kept single
C. The gifted could not be fit for their social positions
D. The gifted men got full marks in intelligence tests
58. The explanation of the underlined phrase “turning their early promises into practical reality” is _____.
A. doing practical jobs and facing reality
B. realizing what they were expected
C. earning their living and keeping promises
D. doing what they have promised