Sparrow is a fast-food chain with 200 restaurants. Some years ago, the group to which Sparrow belonged was taken over by another company. Although Sparrow showed no sign of declining, the chain was generally in an unhealthy state. With more and more fast-food concepts reaching the market, the Sparrow menu had to struggle for attention. And to make matters worse, its new owner had no plans to give it the funds it required.
Sparrow failed to grow for another two years. Until a new CEO, Carl Pearson, decided to build up its market share. He did a survey, which showed that consumers who already used Sparrow restaurants were extremely positive about the chain, while customers of other fast-food chains were unwilling to turn away from them. Sparrow had to develop a new promotional campaign.
Pearson faced a battle over the future of the Sparrow brand. The chain’s owner now favored rebranding Sparrow as Marcy’s restaurants. Pearson resisted, arguing for an advertising campaign designed to convince customers that visits to Sparrow restaurants were fun. Such an attempt to establish a positive relationship between a company and the general public was unusual for that time. Pearson strongly believed that numbers were the key to success, rather than customers’ spending power. Finally, the owner accepted his idea.
The campaign itself changed the traditional advertising style of the fast-food industry. The TV ads of Sparrow focused on entertainment and featured original songs performed by a variety of stars. Instead of showing the superiority of a specific product, the intention was to put Sparrow in the hearts of potential customers.
Pearson also made other decisions which he believed would contribute to the new Sparrow image. For example, he offered to lower the rent of any restaurants which achieved a certain increase in their turnover (营业额)
These efforts paid off, and Sparrow soon became one of the most successful fast-food chains in the regions where it operated.
1.Which was one of the problems Sparrow faced before Pearson became CEO?
A.The number of its customers was declining.
B.Its customers found the food unhealthy.
C.It was in need of financial support.
D.Most of its restaurants were closed.
2.For what purpose did Pearson start the advertising campaign?
A.To build a good relationship with the public.
B.To stress the unusual tradition of Sparrow.
C.To learn about customers’ spending power.
D.To meet the challenge from Marcy’s restaurants.
3.What do know about the TV ads of Sparrow?
A.They changed people’s views on pop stars.
B.They amused the public with original songs.
C.They focused on the superiority of its products.
D.They influenced the eating habits of the audience.
4.What was Pearson’s achievement as a CEO?
A.He managed to pay off Sparrow’s debts.
B.He made Sparrow much more competitive.
C.He helped Sparrow take over a company.
D.He improved the welfare of Sparrow employees.
It's common knowledge that the woman in Leonardo da Vinci's most famous painting seems to look back at observers, following them with her eyes no matter where they stand in the room. But this common knowledge turns out wrong.
A new study finds that the woman in the painting is actually looking out at an angle that's 15.4 degrees off to the observer's right—well outside of the range that people normally believe when they think someone is looking right at them. In other words, said the study author, Horstmann, ''She's not looking at you. '' This is somewhat ironic, because the entire phenomenon of a person's gaze (凝视) in a photograph or painting seeming to follow the viewer is called the ''Mona Lisa effect''. That effect is absolutely real, Horstmann said. If a person is illustrated or photographed looking straight ahead, even people viewing the portrait from an angle will feel they are being looked at. As long as the angle of the person’s gaze is no more than about 5 degrees off to either side, the Mona Lisa effect occurs.
Horstmann and his co-author were studying this effect for its application in the creation of artificial-intelligence avatars(虚拟头像) when Horstmann took a long look at the ''Mona Lisa'' and realized she wasn't looking at him. To make sure it wasn't just him, the researchers asked 24 people to view images of the ''Mona Lisa'' on a computer screen.
So why do people repeat the belief that her eyes seem to follow the viewer? Horstmann isn't sure. It's possible, he said, that people have the desire to be looked at, so they think the woman is looking straight at them. Or maybe the people who first coined the term ''Mona Lisa effect'' just thought it was a cool name.
1.What is generally believed about the woman in the painting ''Mona Lisa''?
A.She attracts the viewers to look back.
B.She seems mysterious because of her eyes.
C.She fixes her eyes on the back of the viewers.
D.She looks at the viewers wherever they stand.
2.What gaze range in a painting will cause the Mona Lisa effect?
A.
B.
C.
D.
3.Why was the experiment involving 24 people conducted?
A.To confirm Horstmann's belief.
B.To create artificial-intelligence avatars.
C.To calculate the angle of Mona Lisa's gaze.
D.To explain how the Mona Lisa effect can be applied.
4.What can we learn from the text?
A.Horstmann thinks it's cool to coin the term “Mona Lisa effect”.
B.The Mona Lisa effect contributes to the creation of artificial intelligence.
C.Feeling being gazed at by Mona Lisa may be caused by the desire for attention.
D.The position of the ruler in the experiment will influence the viewers' judgment.
Sometimes we may find that every week there are a lot of new stories about how climate change is affecting the planet, or new plans to battle its effects. But the concept itself isn’t new at all — in fact, scientists have been exploring questions about climate change for almost 200 years.
The idea of ''greenhouse gases'' goes back to 1824, when Joseph Fourier wondered what was regulating the earth's temperature. Fourier concluded that the atmosphere must be responsible for containing the heat absorbed from the sun and described it as a box with a glass lid: As light shines through the glass, the inside gets warmer as the lid traps the heat. As Fourier's ideas spread, it came to be called ''the greenhouse effect''.
Scientists continued to study the greenhouse effect. Not until a Swedish chemist named Svante Arrhenius came along, did scientists understand how global warming actually works. After years of work, Arrhenius determined that the level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere did in fact have a direct effect on global temperatures.
Arrhenius found that CO2, and other gases trap radiation, which warms the atmosphere. Arrhenius was the first to suspect that burning coal could contribute to the greenhouse effect. But Arrhenius welcomed the warming effect on the planet. At a lecture later that year, Arrhenius noted that creatures of a warmer earth ''might live under a milder sky and in less barren surroundings''.
While Arrhenius' findings won him the 1903 Nobel Prize in chemistry, scientists kept debating whether the greenhouse effect was increasing until 1950, when researchers finally began to find strong data supporting it. By the end of the 1950s, American scientists had been sounding the alarm on the long-term consequences of climate change. Climate change research has come a long way since Fourier first described the greenhouse effect — still, maybe Arrhenius should have been more careful of what he wished for.
1.What does the underlined word ''it'' in Paragraph 2 refer to?
A.The climate change. B.The greenhouse effect.
C.The atmosphere. D.The heat from the sun.
2.When did the scientists first find evidence for the bad effect of global warming?
A.In 1824. B.In 1903.
C.In 1950. D.200 years ago.
3.What's the author's attitude towards Arrhenius' wish?
A.Optimistic. B.Negative.
C.Neutral. D.Ambiguous.
4.What's the main idea of the text?
A.Causes of climate change. B.Effects of greenhouse gases.
C.Findings about global warming. D.Explorations on climate change.
Drone X Pro is a shining star on the drone(无人机) market. Here's why it's gone viral.
How does Drone X Pro work？
Start by installing the Drone app to your smartphone (Android and iOS). It takes just minutes. After that, just install(安装)the battery in your drone and launch the app. You're now ready to fly your Drone X Pro！
Why is this drone so special？
The drone is about the size of a large screen smartphone. It's so small that it fits in any pocket or handbag！
Here's the best part: flying is extremely easy. There's no experience required to fly this drone. You can easily control and fly this drone，even if you've never flown a drone in your life. Flying the drone is smooth and natural as riding a bike. Our friend's son came over to the office, and he figured out how to fly the drone in just minutes. You can't imagine how stable and smooth his controls are！
Once you own this drone，you can enjoy amazing HD pictures of nature，friends，and families. It's a blast！
How much does it cost？
Now，Drone X Pro sells for ＄150 each online and two at a discount of 80％. It's a great deal！If you're not satisfied, return it and you can get your money back.
Because of the easy use，portability, low price，and small size，it's absolutely worth it！
Just imagine amazing pictures and videos you'll be taking with your new Drone X Pro. If you've never flown a drone before，this is the time to start！
Call now！ 400-800-7832 or order yours from the official website www. dronexpro. com.
1.What makes Drone X Pro different from the other drones？
A.It is easy to carry. B.It is unnecessary to install.
C.It is complex to control. D.It is expensive to afford.
2.How does the advertisement prove flying Drone X Pro easy？
A.By sharing some experience. B.By presenting a vivid picture.
C.By stating its operating steps. D.By giving a specific example.
3.How much should you pay to purchase two such drones online？
A.＄120. B.＄150.
C.$240. D.$ 300.
假如你是李华，想邀请外教Peter一起参加学校组织的春游活动，请你给他写封邮件，内容包括：
1. 活动详情：需徒步约20km，当中设有5个休息点；
2. 时间：4月26日早晨6:40校门口出发，返回时间约为下午2:00；
地点：九龙湖 (Jiu Long Lake)；
注意：1．词数80左右；
2. 可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3．不能使用真实姓名和学校名称。
Dear Peter,
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Yours sincerely，
Li Hua
单词拼写
1.The books are mostly pictures, with a s_____________ version of the story for young children.
2.Canada is a country c_____________ of many different nationalities as well as foreign immigrants who make up the majority of its population.
3.Some students tend to feel a______________ before exams and that may affect their performance.
4.One reason for her preference for city life is that she can have easy a____________ to places like shops and restaurants.
5.Polly was p_____________ as to why the old man didn’t get lost in the heavy fog.
6.He was not a____________ of her presence until she spoke to him.
7.British English differs from American English in many aspects, such as spelling, grammar, v____________ and so on.
8.Pompeii, once a busy and wealthy city, was completely d_____________ in the volcanic eruption.
9.He was extremely f_____________ because he was the only one who had survived the air crash.
10.With the teacher’s patient explanation, the children have g_____________ learnt how to act properly in a drama.
