(You may read the questions first.)

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1. In advertisement 2, the Traveller enables us to learn ________.

A．the road conditions from London to Oxford

B．all the garages along the chosen route

C．the time and speed of the journey in Britain

D．the directions from London to Paris

2. In advertisement 3, the Quizmaster ________.

A．contains nothing but 5,400 questions	B．can only answer challenging questions
C．can be purchased in many shops	D．can be used by people of all ages

3. All these advertisements are aimed at those ________.

A．who like to order goods at home	B．who are going to travel abroad
C．who do market researches	D．who are interested in intelligence tests

Holiday Inns and McDonald’s. both saw unmatched growth in the 1960s. Their growth opened another direct business operation—franchising.
These operations have the same general pattern. The franchisor, the parent company, first establishes a successful retail business. As it expands, it sees a profit potential in offering others the right to open similar business under its name. The parent company’s methods and means of identification with consumers are included in this right. The parent company supplies skill, and may build and rent stores to franchisees. For these advantages the franchisee pays the franchisor a considerable fee. However, some of the advantages and disadvantages are different.
By extending a “proven” marketing method, a parent can profit in several ways. First, the franchisee’s purchase price gives the parent an immediate return on the plan. Then the sale of supplies to the franchisee provides a continuing source of profits. As new businesses are added and the company’s reputation spreads, the values of the franchise increases and sales of franchises become easier. The snowballing effect can be dramatic. Such growth, too, bring into play the economies of scale. Regional or national advertising that might be financially impossible for a franchisor with 20 franchises could be profitable for one with 40.
The parent, then, finds immediate gains from the opportunity to expand markets on the basis of reputation alone, without having to put up capital or take the risk of owning retail stores. Added to this advantage is a less obvious but material one, Skilled, responsible retail managers are rare. People who invest their capital in franchises, though, probably come closer to the ideal than do paid managers. In fact, the franchisee is an independent store operator working for the franchisor, but without an independent’s freedom to drop supplies at will. Of course the factory’s costs of selling supplies are less. But also certainly the franchisee buying goods that have had broad consumer acceptance will not casually change supplies, even when the contract permits. If the hamburger is not what the customer expected, they may not return. Having paid for the goodwill, the franchisee won’t thoughtlessly destroy it.
4. Franchising refers to a business operation in which a successful parent company          .

A．sells name-brand goods to a private investor

B．rents proven ideas and techniques for investment

C．sells the right, the guidance to a business under its name

D．takes no advertising responsibility for individual investors

5. . The advantages of franchising to the parent company are all the following EXCEPT      .

A．an immediate investment return

B．the profit from the sale of supplies

C．the ownership of additional retail stores

D．the possibility of profitable advertising

6. The passage mainly tells the reader          .

A．the advantages and disadvantages of franchising

B．the benefits of franchising to the franchisor

C．the unmatched economic growth in the 1960’s

D．some regional and national business operation

7. . What will the author probably discuss after the last paragraph?

A．More advantages of franchising.

B．Negative aspects related to franchising.

C．The standard of consumer acceptance.

D．Risks of investment besides franchising

Martha had been working for Miller Laboratories for two years, but she was not happy there. Nothing significant had happened in the way of promotions or salary increases. Martha felt that her supervisor, a younger and less experienced person than she, did not like her. In fact, the supervisor often said unpleasant things to her.

One day, while talking with her friend Maria, she mentioned how discouraged she gave her the name of a cousin of hers who was director of Human Resources Department for a large chemical company. Martha called him the next day and set up an interview on her lunch hour.

During the interview, Mr. Petri said, “You’re just the kind of person we need here. You’re being wasted in your other job. Give me a call in a day or two. I’m sure we can find a place for you in our organization.” Martha was so happy she almost danced out of the building.

That afternoon, Ruth Kenny, her supervisor, saw that Martha had come in ten minutes late from her lunch hour and she said, “Oh, so you finally decided to come back to work today?”

This was the last straw. She could not take another insult. Besides, Mr. Petri was right: she was being wasted in this job.

“Look,” she said angrily, “if you don’t like the way I work, I don’t need to stay here, I’ll go where I’m appreciated! Good-bye!” She took up her things and stormed out of the office.

That night she called Maria and told her what had happened and then asked Maria, “What do you think?”

“Well,” said Maria carefully, “are you sure about the other job?”

“Well, not exactly, but…”

Maria continued, “Will you be able to get a recommendation from Ms. .Kenny if you need one?”

“A recommendation? .. .from Ms. Kenny?” hesitated Martha, in a worried tone.

“Martha I hope you didn’t burn your bridges，” Maria said. “I think I would have handled it differently.”

8. Martha is unhappy in her job because ________.

A．she has not advanced	B．the work is not significant
C．her supervisor is younger than she	D．there is too much work with little payment

9. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．At her supervisor’s criticism, Martha lost her temper.

B．Mr. Petri felt Martha was not valued in her present job.

C．Martha’s interview with the director was on her lunch hour.

D．Martha got the name of the director through her cousin.

10. What does Maria think of Martha’s decision?

A．Martha has handled the matter properly.

B．Martha shouldn’t have set the bridge on fire.

C．Martha should have found a new job before leaving.

D．Martha shouldn’t have lost her temper with her supervisor.

Speed-reading is a necessary skill in the Internet age. We skim over articles, e-mails and WeChat to try to grasp key words and the essential meaning of a certain text. Surrounded with information from our electronic devices, it would be impossible to cope if we read word by word, line by line.     11    

A recent story from The Wall Street Journal reported on a book club in Wellington, New Zealand, where members meet in a cafe and turn off their smartphones.     12     The point of the slow reading club is to get away from electronic devices and read in a quiet, relaxed environment.

Slow readers, such as the Atlantic’s Maura Kelly, say a regular reading habit sharpens the mind, improves concentration, reduces stress levels and deepens the ability to sympathize.     13     And this is a fundamental skill in building relationships.

    14     Screens have changed our reading patterns from the top-to-bottom, left-to-right reading order we traditionally used, to a wild skimming and skipping pattern as we hunt for important words and information. Because of the Internet, we may have become very good at collecting a wide range of interesting news, but we are also gradually forgetting how to sit back, reflect, and relate all these facts to each other.

Slow reading means a return to an uninterrupted, straight pattern, in a quiet environment free of distractions.     15     “You can squeeze in that half hour pretty easily if only during your free moments, you pick up a meaningful work of literature,” Kelly said. “Reach for your e-reader, if you like. Kindles make books like War and Peace less heavy, not less substantive, and also ensure you’ll never lose your place.”

A．The point is to sit down and exchange ideas about a certain book.

B．Yet technology has made us less attentive readers.

C．Aim for 30 minutes a day, advises Kelly from The Atlantic.

D．But a new trend calls on people to enjoy reading slowly.

E．They sink into comfortable chairs and read in silence for an hour.

F．The Internet provides us with many chances, says Patrick Kingsley from The Guardian.

G．It also helps people understand others’ mental states and beliefs.