Successful people in international business understand the cultures of other countries and learn to change their practices in different cultures. They understand the importance of avoiding business decisions based on misconceptions—mistaken ideas.
One cause of misconceptions is ethnocentrism, the belief that one’s own culture’s way of doing things is better than the way of other cultures. It’s ethnocentrism that leads to failure in international business. To avoid ethnocentrism, it’s necessary to study the different elements（组成部分）of culture: language, values and attitudes, and customs and manners.
Language
A. knowledge of the local language can help international business people in four ways. First, people can communicate directly. Second, people are usually more open in their communication with someone who speaks their language. Third, an understanding of the language allows people to infer meanings that are not said directly. Finally, knowing the language helps people to understand the culture better.
Values are people’s basic beliefs about the difference between right and wrong, good and bad . An attitude is a way of thinking or acting. Values and attitudes influence international business. For example, many people in the United States believe that chocolate from Switzerland is better than chocolate from other countries, and they buy a lot of it.
Customs and manners
Customs are common social practices. Manners are ways of acting that the society believes are polite. For example, in the United States, it is the custom to have salad before the main course at dinner, not after. It’s not acceptable to talk with food in mouth at table. Failure to understand the customs and manners of other countries will bring difficulty selling their products. Orange juice as a breakfast drink of an American company in France doesn’t sell well because the French don’t usually drink juice with breakfast.
1.A. knowledge of the local language allows international business people _________.
A. to be more open with their customers
B. to have a better idea of their own culture
C. to express their thoughts indirectly
D. to communicate without outside help
2.The act of many people buying chocolate of Switzerland shows the role of ________.
A．attitudes B．values C．manners D．customs
3.What would be the best title for the text?
A．Misconceptions in Business
B．Basic Beliefs in Business
C．International Business Culture
D．Successful International Business
4.The author’s purpose of writing this article is to tell people ___________
A．how to take a right attitude in business
B．how to avoid misunderstandings in business
C．how to use a local language in business
D．how to act politely and properly in business
Over the years, Americans have become used to salt．Most people have no idea how much salt they consume-on average, about 9 to 12 gram per person per day, according to the American Heart Association．That's twice the amount recommended by the government．
A new study last week showed eating even a little less salt could greatly help the heart．The scientists said the results would be thirteen percent fewer heart attacks, eight percent fewer strokes（中风）, four percent fewer deaths and eleven percent fewer new cases of heart disease．
Researchers also found that the benefits would be greatest for African Americans and women．As a group, African Americans tend to have higher blood pressure than the general population, and "many studies suggest that they may be more sensitive to salt," says Dr.Kirsten Bibbins-Domingo, an epidemiologist（流行病学家）at the University of California, San Francisco．Her analysis found that a reduction of 3 gram of salt per day would reduce heart attacks 8% on average; among African Americans, that rate would drop 10%．A similar result was found in women, whose stroke risk dropped 8% with a 3-g reduction in salt intake; in men, the risk fell 5%．
They and public health professionals in the United States are interested in a national campaign to persuade people to eat less salt．
However, other scientists say such a campaign is an experiment with the health of millions of people．
Michael Alderman, a high blood pressure expert and professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York, says that eating less salt results in lower blood pressure．But he says studies have not clearly shown that lowering salt means fewer heart attacks or strokes．
“Salt has other biological effects． Calling for reductions in the national diet could have good effects, as well as harmful results． There is not enough evidence either way,”said Michael Alderman．
1.Eating too much salt may lead to the following EXCEPT ．
A．stroke B．heart disease C．high blood pressure D．lung cancer
2.What can we learn from the passage?
A．Most Americans take more salt than advised．
B．African women eat more salt than Americans．
C．One's origin determines how much salt he can eat．
D．Good health is just on the basis of having less salt．
3.The author's attitude toward the study is ．
A．cold B．objective C．subjective D．doubtful
4.What's the best title of the passage?
A．The Benefits of Eating Less Salt．
B．A New Study on Salt and Diseases．
C．An Argument Over Salt and Health．
D．The Harm Caused by Too Much Salt．
Part-time Front Desk Position
Kirchoff, Inc．，a book development company，is looking for a part-time
front desk office worker．This position is perfect for a person who is cheerful，dependable，and pleasant to work with．Also，you should be able to welcome guests，redirect phone calls，and take messages．More importantly，you can stay cool under pressure．You are expected to work 5：00—6：00 pm weekdays．You need to fill in some forms if you are interested．
Forms can be collected at
Kirchoff，Inc．
866 United Nations Plaza,#525
New York, NY 10017
Important Points to Remember When Swimming
·Wait at least an hour after meals.
·Follow the advice of lifeguards.
·Don’t dive into unknown waters. Always swim in line with the shore.
·Find out at the seaside when and where it is safe to swim.
·Don’t use floating toys on the water. Wind can easily sweep them out to sea.
·Get out of the water if you feel tired or cold. Cold can kill even strong
swimmers.
Help Telephone:212-543-5902
Atlantic City Beach Office
* Arrive on time.
* Introduce yourself in a polite manner.
* Read company materials while you wait.
* Have a firm handshake.
* Listen.
* Use body language to show interest.
* Smile and nod to the interviewer.
* Ask about the next thing you should do.
* Thank the interviewer.
* Write a thank-you letter to anyone you have spoken to.
For more information, please visit jobweb.com
368 Cooper Square, New York，NY 10008
1.If you want to work in an office, where can you get the forms to fill in?
A．Website：jobweb. com．
B．Atlantic City Beach Office.
C．368 Cooper Square，New York，NY 10008.
D．866 United Nations Plaza，#525，New York, NY 10017．
2.What does a person need most to be fit for the one-hour weekday job?
A．He should be cheerful，dependable, and easy-going.
B．He has to work from Monday to Friday.
C．He can remain calm in a difficult situation.
D．He can welcome guests and deal with phone calls.
3.According to the above information，what is the right thing to do when you swim?
A．To keep close to the beach． B．To dive into unknown waters.
C．To use floating toys on the water. D．To swim soon after lunch．
4.The best title for the last piece of information would be ．
A．Tips on Showing Interest in a Job
B．Steps to a Successful Interview
C．Advice on Introducing Yourself Politely
D．Rules of Body Language in an Interview
See a cell phone cover that you like on Taobao? Forget about placing an order, paying the bill online and waiting for days for it to be delivered to you. In the near future, you'll be able to get it in minutes just by hitting "print" on your computer.
You might find it hard to believe that you could actually "print" an object like you would a picture. But it is not that hard to understand how it would work. Just as a traditional printer sprays (喷) ink onto paper line by line, modern 3-D printers spread material onto a surface layer by layer, from the bottom to the top, gradually building up a shape.
Instead of ink, the materials the 3-D printer uses are mainly plastic, resin (树脂)and certain metals. The thinner each layer is --- from a millimeter to less than the width of a hair --- the smoother and finer the object will be.
This may sound like a completely new technology, but the truth is that 3-D printing has been around since the late 1980s. Back then, it was hardly affordable for most people, so few knew about it.
Last year, though, saw a big change in the 3-D printing industry--- printers became much cheaper. For example, 10 years ago a desktop 3-D printer might have cost £20,000 (200,000 yuan), while now they cost only about £ 1,000, according to the BBC.
Taken out of the factory and introduced to more diverse and common uses, 3-D printing can create just about anything you can think of ---flutes (笛子), bikinis, jewelry, aircraft parts and even human organs. In fact, scientists from Cornell University in New York have just made an artificial ear using a 3-D printer, according to Science Daily. The fake ear looks and acts exactly like a natural one.
However, as 3-D printing becomes more common, it may bring about certain problems --- such as piracy(盗版). "Once you can download a coffee maker, or print out a new set of kitchen utensils (餐具) on your personal 3-D printer, who will visit a retail (零售的) store again?" an expert in 3-D printing told Forbes News. Even more frightening, what if anyone in the world could use a 3-D printer to print out a fully functioning gun?
1.According to the article, in the future, the 3-D printing technology will ___.
A．enable people to make better purchases online
B．be applied as widely in our daily lives as computers
C．change the way we make many products
D．shorten the time it takes for people to get what they buy online
2.What was the big event happening in the 3-D printing industry last year?
A．The 3-D printing technology was taken out ofthe factory.
B．The 3-D printer became more affordable forconsumers.
C．The 3-D printer was used for medical treatmentfor the first time.
D．3-D printing technology began to be used invarious fields.
3.How is the last paragraph developed?
A．By analyzing a cause and an effect. B．By making comparisons.
C．By giving examples. D．By presenting research findings.
4.What is the best title of the passage?
A．Printing out everything B．Technology in the future
C．Online shopping disappearing D．Great demand for 3-D printers
When the Berlin Wall came down in 1989, Leonard Bernstein gave a concert in Berlin, including Beethoven's Ode to Joy, with the word "Joy" changed to "Freedom" in the lyrics sung．The orchestra（管弦乐队）were drawn from both East and West Germany, as well as the United Kingdom, France, the Soviet Union, and the United States．
Freedom was in the air and it was not just for people． The wall between East and West Germany had also kept a large population of wild pigs within the eastern forests of Brandenburg．The wall's falling down made it easier for the big pigs—a very big one can weigh over 300 pounds—to leave the woodlands and walk into the town． Warm winters and easy access to food have helped the population increase． Now about 10,000 wild pigs walk around Berlin．
The nature of the beast has added to the boom（兴旺）．"The pigs are intelligent," says Marc Franusch, a spokesman for the Berlin forestry department． "They learn to use the neighborhoods．They get used to people, dogs, and traffic．"
The wild pigs tend to travel in small groups and have been found searching rubbish and gardens, feeding their piglets（小猪）in the shadow of parked cars, and crossing busy roads．On average, the animals are involved in one traffic accident every day． And despite the fact that it's illegal, some Berliners have been known to give the pigs food．
Though wild pigs are protected under German law, the city's forestry department is permitted to kill 2,000 of the creatures every year, targeting mostly young adult animals in forests surrounding Berlin． Pigs within city limits are only shot if they make an immediate threat．No humans have yet been seriously wounded by them, but local dogs have been the victims of their tusks． "The forestry department is not aiming to get rid of the pigs," explains Franusch, "but we do have to reduce dangerous situations．"
1.The concert in the first paragraph is given to ．
A．celebrate Bernstein's success B．remind people of fighting for rights
C．show the artists' delight of life D．express people's joy for freedom
2.The following factors contribute to the boom of wild pigs EXCEPT ．
A．the Berlin Wall B．adequate food
C．their own nature D．warm winter
3.From the text we can know that ．
A．in Berlin people can never kill any wild pig
B．it is against law to offer food to wild pigs
C．wild pigs each weigh more than three hundred pounds
D．traffic accidents are mainly caused by wild pigs in Berlin
4.The article mainly talks about ．
A．why wild pigs in Berlin enjoy so much freedom
B．when wild pigs were united in Berlin
C．how wild pigs are living in Berlin
D．what damage wild pigs have done to Berliners
Teary Joe was a boy with a special ability: he could cry in less than a second．If he 36 something or things became difficult, Joe would 37 a pitiful face．In this way he got everything he wanted, 38 no one could resist（抗拒） his sad face．
But one day, Joe met Pipo．Pipo was begging in the street for some 39 ．Pipo was very poor, but he always had the biggest_ 40 on his face．
Joe decided to help Pipo make some money．He went over to Pipo, took off his hat, and started crying with the most pitiful_ 41 ．
In a few minutes, Joe's hat was full of coins, but when Joe offered all these to Pipo, Pipo 42 him down．
"I prefer 43 what I receive," answered Pipo with his usual smile．"It's much more fun making a（n）44 to get things．Today I've washed a dog, 45 a blind old lady to the park and helped a stranger to mind his bag．Maybe I haven't gotten what I've wanted, but I've done many 46 things．"
Joe walked 47 away．He had gotten everything he wanted, but he'd done 48 nothing of interest．He hadn't even 49 himself spending almost all his time crying．
That evening, Joe_ 50 a delicious cake for his supper．When his mother 51 , Joe tried to cry, but_ 52 how joyful Pipo was, Joe couldn't do it．Instead, he had an idea．He tried to get the cake in another way． Joe spent the whole evening helping his mother water the Plants and 53 the rooms．
In the end there was no 54 ．But that wasn't so bad, because Joe 55 it had been much more fun doing all those than just crying to get a piece of cake．
1. A．damaged B．ignored C．bought D．disliked
2. A．put on B．put up C．put down D．put off
3. A．though B．until C．because D．unless
4. A．food B．money C．presents D．suggestions
5. A．smile B．doubt C．pity D．dream
6. A．exhibitions B．agreements C．resources D．expressions
7. A．set B．turned C．calmed D．settled
8. A．inspecting B．consulting C．deserving D．asking
9. A．effort B．promise C．excuse D．difference
10. A．accompanied B．accompanying C．companied D．companying
11. A．useless B．difficult C．hopeful D．meaningful
12. A．lightly B．sadly C．carefully D．cheerfully
13. A．secretly B．hardly C．really D．eagerly
14. A．enjoyed B．missed C．noticed D．caught
15. A．cooked B．prepared C．showed D．wanted
16. A．admitted B．allowed C．refused D．decided
17. A．understanding B．suggesting C．commenting D．remembering
18. A．visit B．clean C．check D．leave
19. A．cake B．chance C．luck D．choice
20. A．regretted B．argued C．discovered D．suggested
