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Passage Three
Questions 31 to 35 are based on the following passage:
Cars account for half the oil consumed in the U.S., about half the urban pollution and one fourth the greenhouse (温室) gases. They take a similar toll of (损耗) resources in other industrial nations and in the cities of the developing world. As vehicle use continues to increase in the coming decade, the U.S. and other countries will have to deal with these issues or else face unacceptable economic, health-related and political costs. It is unlikely that oil prices will remain at their current low level or that other nations will accept a large and growing U.S. contribution to global climatic change.
Policymakers and industry have four options: reduce vehicle use, increase the efficiency and reduce the emissions of conventional gasoline-powered vehicles, switch to less harmful fuels, or find less polluting driving systems. The last of these—in particular the introduction of vehicles powered by electricity—is ultimately the only sustainable option. The other alternatives are attractive in theory but in practice are either impractical or offer only marginal improvements. For example, reduced vehicle use could solve traffic problems and a host of social and environmental problems, but evidence from around the world suggests that it is very difficult to make people give up their cars to any significant extent. In the U.S., mass-transit ridership and carpooling (合伙用车) have declined since World War II. Even in Western Europe, with fuel prices averaging more than $1 a liter (about $4 a gallon) and with easily accessible mass transit and dense populations, cars still account for 80 percent of all passenger travel.
Improved energy efficiency is also appealing, but automotive fuel economy has barely made any progress in 10 years. Alternative fuels such as natural gas, burned in internal-combustion engines, could be introduced at relatively low cost, but they would lead to only marginal reductions in pollution and greenhouse emissions (especially because oil companies are already spending billions of dollars every year to develop less polluting types of gasoline).
31. From the passage we know that the increased use of cars will ________.
A) consume half of the oil produced in the world
B) have serious consequences for the well-being of all nations
C) widen the gap between the developed and developing countries
D) impose an intolerable economic burden on residents of large cities
32. The U.S. has to deal with the problems arising from vehicle use because ________.
A) most Americans are reluctant to switch to public transportation systems
B) the present level of oil prices is considered unacceptable
C) other countries will protest its increasing greenhouse emissions
D) it should take a lead in conserving natural resources
33. Which of the following is the best solution to the problems mentioned in the passage?
A) The designing of highly efficient car engines.
B) A reduction of vehicle use in cities.
C) The development of electric cars.
D) The use of less polluting fuels.
34. Which of the following is practical but only makes a marginal contribution to solving the problem of greenhouse emissions?
A) The use of fuels other than gasoline.
B) Improved energy efficiency.
C) The introduction of less polluting driving systems.
D) Reducing car use by carpooling.
35. Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A) The decline of public transportation accounts for increased car use in Western Europe.
B) Cars are popular in Western Europe even though fuel prices are fairly high.
C) The reduction of vehicle use is the only sustainable option in densely populated Western Europe.
D) Western European oil companies cannot sustain the cost of developing new-type fuels.
Passage Four
Questions 36 to 40 are based on the following passage.
Reebok executives do not like to hear their stylish athletic shoes called “footwear for yuppies (雅皮士,少壮高薪职业人士)”. They contend that Reebok shoes appeal to diverse market segments, especially now that the company offers basketball and children’s shoes for the under-18 set and walking shoes for older customers not interested in aerobics (健身操) or running. The executives also point out that through recent acquisitions they have added hiking boots, dress and casual shoes, and high-performance athletic footwear to their product lines, all of which should attract new and varied groups of customers.
Still, despite its emphasis on new markets, Reebok plans few changes in the upmarket (高档消费人群的) retailing network that helped push sales to $1 billion annually, ahead of all other sports shoe marketers. Reebok shoes, which are priced from $27 to $85, will continue to be sold only in better specialty, sporting goods, and department stores, in accordance with the company’s view that consumers judge the quality of the brand by the quality of its distribution.
In the past few years, the Massachusetts-based company has imposed limits on the number of its distributors (and the number of shoes supplied to stores), partly out of necessity. At times the unexpected demand for Reebok’s exceeded supply, and the company could barely keep up with orders from the dealers it already had. These fulfillment problems seem to be under control now, but the company is still selective about its distributors. At present, Reebok shoes are available in about five thousand retail stores in the United States.
Reebok has already anticipated that walking shoes will be the next fitness-related craze, replacing aerobics shoes the same way its brightly colored, soft leather exercise footwear replaced conventional running shoes. Through product diversification and careful market research, Reebok hopes to avoid the distribution problems Nike came across several years ago, when Nike misjudged the strength of the aerobics shoe craze and was forced to unload huge inventories of running shoes through discount stores.
36. One reason why Reebok’s managerial personnel don’t like their shoes to be called “footwear for yuppies” is that ________.
A) they believe that their shoes are popular with people of different age groups
B) new production lines have been added to produce inexpensive shoes
C) “yuppies” usually evokes a negative image
D) the term makes people think of prohibitive prices
37. Reebok’s view that “consumers judge the quality of the brand by the quality of its distribution” (Line 5, Para. 2) implies that ________.
A) the quality of a brand is measured by the service quality of the store selling it
B) the quality of a product determines the quality of its distributors
C) the popularity of a brand is determined by the stores that sell it
D) consumers believe that first-rate products are only sold by high-quality stores
38. Reebok once had to limit the number of its distributors because ________.
A) its supply of products fell short of demand
B) too many distributors would cut into its profits
C) the reduction of distributors could increase its share of the market
D) it wanted to enhance consumer confidence in its products
39. Although the Reebok Company has solved the problem of fulfilling its orders, it ________.
A) does not want to further expand its retailing network
B) still limits the number of shoes supplied to stores
C) is still particular about who sells its products
D) still carefully chooses the manufacturers of its products
40. What lesson has Reebok learned from Nike’s distribution problems?
A) A company should not sell its high quality shoes in discount stores.
B) A company should not limit its distribution network.
C) A company should do follow-up surveys of its products.
D) A company should correctly evaluate the impact of a new craze on the market.
