Section II Reading Comprehension

　　Part A

　　Directions:

　　Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. (40 points)

　　Text 1

　　What's a label worth? A lot, it seems. Michael Hiscox and Nicholas Smyth, two Harvard University researchers, conducted an experiment on two sets of towels in an upmarket New York shop. One lot carried a label with the logo “Fair and Square” and the following message: These towels have been made under fair labour conditions, in a safe and healthy working environment which is free of discrimination, and where management has committed to respecting the rights and dignity of workers.

　　The other set had no such label. Over five months, the researchers observed the impact of making various changes such as switching the label to the other set of towels and raising prices. The results were striking: not only did sales of towels increase when they carried the Fair and Square label, they carried on increasing each time the price was raised.

　　No wonder companies are keen to appeal to ethically (i.e. morally)minded consumers, whether on labour standards or green credentials. Timberland, a New Hampshire outdoor-gear company, is introducing detailed "Green Index” labels on its shoes. Tesco, M&S and Wal-Mart have all launched initiatives that bet on the rise of the ethical consumer.

　　M&S estimates that about three-quarters of British consumers are interested in the green theme in some way. But even the keenest ethical consumer faces complicated situations, and sometimes the apparently obvious ethical choice turns out to be the wrong one. Surely it must be greener for Britons to buy roses from the Netherlands than ones air-freighted from Kenya? In fact, a study showed that related green house gas to the Dutch roses to be six times as large because they had to be grown in heated greenhouses.

　　Joel Makower, editor of GreenBiz.com, says that, given a choice, most consumers will choose the greener product—provided it does not cost any more, comes from a trusted maker, requires no special effort to buy or use and is at least as good as the alternative. “That's almost an impossible barrier for any product,” he notes.

　　So shoppers will still flock to shops selling cheap products of decent quality, ignoring how these are made. They will often buy more if a product is attractively presented, never mind that the packaging may be wasteful. And when companies try to do the right thing, consumers will not always go along with them.

　　The lesson for companies is that selling green is hard work. And it is no good getting too far ahead of the customer. Half a step ahead is about right. Much more, and you won't sell. Any less, and you won't lead.

　　21.The experiment on the towels indicated that ______.

　　[A]consumers liked to purchase labeled products

　　[B]consumers would buy goods when prices rose

　　[C]consumption was influenced by green labels

　　[D]ethical concern may influence consumption

　　22.According to the text, consumers’ ethical choice ______.

　　[A]determines the production of commodities

　　[B]forces companies to sell green products only

　　[C]leads companies to modify business activities

　　[D]leads to higher labour and green standards

　　23.We may infer from the fourth paragraph that ______.

　　[A]green buying may be at higher environment cost

　　[B]green production is actually complicated business

　　[C]Dutch rose growth is greener than Kenya ones

　　[D]British consumers actually oppose green farming

　　24.According to Joel Makower, most consumers will ______.

　　[A]buy greener products when given a choice

　　[B]reject greener products for various reasons

　　[C]pay more attention to the price of a product

　　[D]refuse to follow the activities of companies

　　25.Companies may learn the lesson that ______.

　　[A]it is not worthwhile leading the customers

　　[B]the customers are not easily to be misled

　　[C]green policy is not effective for marketing

　　[D]companies need a balanced green policy

　　Text 2

　　There are various ways in which individual economic units can interact with one another. Three basic ways may be described as the market system, the administered system and the traditional system.

　　In a market system individual economic units are free to interact among each other in the marketplace. It is possible to buy commodities from other economic units or sell commodities to them. In a market, transactions may take place via barter or money exchange. In a barter economy, real goods such as automobiles, shorts, and pizzas are traded against each other. Obviously, finding somebody who wants to trade my old car in exchange for a sailboat may not always be an easy task. Hence the introduction of money as a medium of exchange eases transactions considerably. In the modern market economy, goods and services are bought or sold for money.

　　An alternative to the market system is administrative control by some agency over all transactions. This agency will issue edicts or commands as to how much of each good and service should be produced, exchanged, and consumed by each economic unit. Central planning may be one way of administering such an economy. The central plan, drawn up by the government, shows the amounts of each commodity produced by the various firms and allocated to different households for consumption. This is an example of complete planning of production consumption, and exchange for the whole economy.

　　In a traditional society, production and consumption patterns are governed by tradition: every person's place within the economic system is fixed by parentage, religion and custom. Transactions take place on the basis of tradition, too. People belonging to a certain group or caste may have an obligation to care for other persons, provide them with food and shelter, care for their health, and provide their education. Clearly, in a system where every decision made on the basis of tradition alone, progress may be difficult to achieve. A stagnant society may result.

　　26.What is the main purpose of the passage?

　　[A]To outline contrasting types of economic.

　　[B]To explain the science of economic systems.

　　[C]To argue for the superiority of one economic system.

　　[D]To compare barter and money-exchange markets.

　　27.In the second paragraph, the word “real” in “real goods” could best be replaced by which of the following?

　　[A]High quality. [B]Concrete.

　　[C]Utter. [D]Authentic.

　　28.According to the passage, a barter economy can lead to ______.

　　[A]rapid speed of transactions

　　[B]misunderstandings

　　[C]inflation

　　[D]difficulties for the traders

　　29.According to the passage, who has the greatest degree of control in an administered system?

　　[A]Individual households. [B]Small businesses.

　　[C]Major corporations. [D]The government.

　　30.Which of the following is not mentioned by the author as a criterion for determining a person's place in a traditional society?

　　[A]Family background. [B]Age.

　　[C]Religious beliefs. [D]Custom.