An economist is expert who will know tomorrow why things he predicted yesterday didn't happen.
A. the; \ B. the; the C. an; the D. an; \
科目：高中英语 来源： 题型：阅读理解
Dear Economist，
My newlywedded wife and I are deeply in love. There is, however, one issue that threatens the happiness of our marriage. I absolutely insist on shopping at Walmart. My wife, meanwhile, would rather avoid Walmart at all costs. I have recently tried to convince her that not only does Walmart offer the lowest prices known to man, but that the chain is also a force for good—lower prices mean better standards of living for all consumers, increased global trade means a tighterknit(紧密团结的) international community, and efficient operations translate into higher productivity growth for the economy. My wife complains about poor labour policies, the fact that Walmart squeezes suppliers, and that it puts local shops out of business.
Who is right? Will our marriage survive?
Brian Gee
Dear Brian，
I have to agree with you about Walmart. Jason Furman，then an economist at New York University, now an adviser to President Obama, famously argued in 2005 that Walmart was unwittingly (不知不觉地) a progressive success story.The chain's prices don't much affect me(I prefer Whole Foods)but Furman estimated that they benefited lowandmiddleincome Americans to the sum of around $250 billion a year.
Walmart does not pay much, so it may depress wages.Then again, it may increase wages by offering jobs to the otherwise—unemployed. Either way, the benefits of low prices to Walmart shoppers far outweigh any seemingly reasonable costs to Walmart employees. And while it is true that Walmart employees tend to be poor，the same is true of Walmart shoppers.
Armed with this information you can face your wife with confidence. You are sure to win the conversation. The divorce is likely to be more argued.
Economist
68. What concerned Brian Gee so much that he wrote the letter?
A. His wife refuses to shop at Walmart.
B. They are faced with a divorce.
C. They can't afford the costs of shopping at Walmart.
D. They are in conflict about shopping at Walmart.
69．Brian Gee's wife tends to hold the opinion that________.
A. it is wrong for Walmart to depress its employees' wages
B. consumers' lives have improved thanks to Walmart
C. Walmart's business operation increased productivity in economy
D. Walmart's business increases global trade
70．What can be inferred from the reply letter?
A. Some employees accept the low pay to keep the job.
B. Walmart appeals to only poor consumers and poor employees.
C. Employees suffer from Walmart's low prices more than consumers.
D. Jason Furman, a New York University economist，spoke highly of Walmart.
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科目：高中英语 来源：河北省保定市第二中学2010届高三考前强化训练试题集（五）（英语） 题型：阅读理解
第三部分：阅读理解（共20小题；每小题2分，满分40分）
Before the mid 1860’s, the impact of the railroads in the United States was limited, in the sense that the tracks ended at this Missouri River, approximately the center of the country. At the point the trains turned their freight, mail, and passengers over to steamboats, wagons, and stagecoaches. This meant that wagon freighting, stagecoaching, and steamboating did not come to an end when the first train appeared; rather they became supplements or feeders. Each new “end of track” became a center for animal drawn or waterborne transportation. The major effect of the railroad was to shorten the distance that had to be covered by the older, slower, and more costly means. Wagon freighters continued operating throughout the 1870’s and 1880’s and into the 1890’s. Although over constantly shrinking routes, and coaches and wagons continued to crisscross the West wherever the rails had not yet been laid. The beginning of a major change was foreshadowed in the later 1860’s, when the Union Pacific Railroad at last began to build westward from the Central Plains city of Omaha to meet the Central Pacific Railroad advancing eastward from California through the formidable barrier of the Sierra Nevada. Although President Abraham Lincoln signed the original Pacific Railroad bill in 1862 and a revised, financially much more generous version in 1864, little construction was completed until 1865 on the Central Pacific and 1866 on the Union Pacific. The primary reason was skepticism that a Railroad built through so challenging and thinly settled a stretch of desert, mountain, and semiarid plain could pay a profit. In the words of an economist, this was a case of “premature enterprise”, where not only the cost of construction but also the very high risk deterred private investment. In discussing the Pacific Railroad bill, the chair of the congressional committee bluntly stated that without government subsidy no one would undertake so unpromising a venture; yet it was a national necessity to link East and West together. ?
61. The author refers to the impact of railroads before the late 1860’s as “limited” because
A. the track did not take the direct route from one city to the next?
B. passengers and freight had to transfer to other modes of transportation to reach western destinations C. passengers preferred stagecoaches
D. railroad travel was quite expensive
62. What can be inferred about coaches and wagon freighters as the railroad expanded?
A. They developed competing routes.
B. Their drivers refused to work for the railroads.?
C. They began to specialize in private investment.?
D. There were insufficient numbers of trained people to operate them.
63. Why does the author mention the Sierra Nevada in line 17? ?
A. To argue that a more direct route to the West could have been taken.??
B. To identify a historically significant mountain range in the West.?
C. To point out the location of a serious train accident.?
D. To give an example of an obstacle faced by the central pacific.
64. The word “subsidy” in line 27 is closest in meaning to_____.?
A. persuasion B. financing C. explanation D. penalty ?
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科目：高中英语 来源：2012-2013学年上海市青浦区高考一模（即期末）英语试卷（解析版） 题型：阅读理解
At the heart of the debate over illegal immigration lies one key question: are immigrants good or bad for the economy? The American public overwhelmingly thinks they’re bad. Yet the agreement among most economists is that immigration, both legal and illegal, provides a small net boost to the economy. Immigrants provide cheap labor, lower the prices of everything from farm produce to new homes, and leave consumers with a little more money in their pockets. So why is there such a discrepancy between the perception of immigrants’ impact on the economy and the reality?
There are a number of familiar theories. Some argue that people are anxious and feel threatened by an inflow of new workers. Others highlight the stress that undocumented immigrants place on public services, like schools, hospitals, and jails. Still others emphasize the role of race, arguing that foreigners add to the nation's fears and insecurities. There’s some truth to all these explanations, but they aren’t quite sufficient.
To get a better understanding of what’s going on, consider the way immigration’s impact is felt. Though its overall effect may be positive, its costs and benefits are distributed unevenly. David Card, an economist at UC Berkeley, notes that the ones who profit most directly from immigrants’ low-cost labor are businesses and employers —meatpacking plants in Nebraska, for instance, these producers’ savings probably translate into lower prices at the grocery store, but how many consumers make that mental connection at the checkout counter? As for the drawbacks of illegal immigration, these, too, are concentrated. Native low-skilled workers suffer most from the competition of foreign labor. According to a study by George Borjas, a Harvard economist, immigration has reduced the wages of American high-school dropouts by 9%.
Among high-skilled, better-educated employees, however, opposition was strongest in states with both high numbers of immigrants and relatively generous social services. What worried them most, in other words, was the financial burden of immigration. That conclusion was reinforced by another finding: that their opposition appeared to soften when that financial burden decreased, as occurred with welfare reform in the 1990s, which curbed immigrants’ access to certain benefits.
The irony is that for all the overexcited debate, the net effect of immigration is minimal. Even for those most acutely affected — say, low-skilled workers, or California residents — the impact isn’t all that dramatic. “The unpleasant voices have tended to dominate our perceptions,” says Daniel Tichenor, a professor at the University of Oregon. “But when all those factors are put together and the economists calculate the numbers, it ends up being a net positive, but a small one.” Too bad most people don’t realize it.
1.What can we learn from the first paragraph?
A．Whether immigrants are good or bad for the economy has been puzzling economists.
B．The American economy used to thrive on immigration but now it’s a different story.
C．The agreement among economists is that immigration should not be encouraged.
D．The general public thinks differently from most economists on the impact of immigration.
2.What is the chief concern of native high-skilled, better-educated employees about the inflow of immigrants?
A．It may change the existing social structure.
B．It may pose a threat to their economic status.
C．It may decrease .their financial burden.
D．It may place a great pressure on the state budget.
3.What is the irony about the debate over immigration?
A．Even economists can’t reach an agreement about its impact.
B．Those who are opposed to it turn out to benefit most from it.
C．People are making too big a fuss about something of small impact.
D．There is no essential difference between seemingly opposite opinions.
4.Which of the following might be the best title of the passage?
A．A debate about whether to immigrate.
B．A debate about the impact of illegal immigrants.
C．The great impact of immigrants on the economy.
D．Opposition to illegal immigration.
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科目：高中英语 来源：2013届江苏省高三上学期期中考试英语试卷（解析版） 题型：阅读理解
1
Made in the USA: An Export Boom
In his State of the Union address two years ago, President Obama argued that in order to recover from the economic recession, one of the few things the U．S. needed to do was to export more goods around the world. That night, the president unveiled a new goal: to double U．S. exports over the next five years. It would be an increase that the president said would “support two million jobs in America.”
Most economists dismissed the promise at the time as something unrealistic, but two years later, the U．S. is on pace to meet that goal. American exports are up 34 percent since the president gave that speech, and the number continues to rise.
Competitive In A Global Market
Marlin Steel, a metal working business in Baltimore, makes parts that ship all across the world.“ We export to 36 countries，” owner Drew Greenblatt tells All Things Considered Host Guy Raz. “We're working around the clock, and we're growing.”
It's not just advanced manufacturing exports on the rise, but pork, cattle and all kinds of agricultural exports are up as well. Even American craft beer has found an export market.
Flying Dog CEO Jim Caruso says that increasingly, people all over the world are trying the beer from the Maryland-based brewery. Caruso says，“Even in those top beer-producing countries, a competitive American product is finding a market.”
Services Are Exports, Too
Another place exports are coming from is New York City—in particular, the 30th floor of a Manhattan skyscraper on 5th Avenue and 52nd Street. That's where the consulting firm Kurt Solomon lies. It doesn't actually produce a product for export; it provides management advice and strategy.
“Four out of every five Americans is now employed in the service industry，” the nation's top trade official, Ron Kirk says, “Services are a significant part of our exports, and make up about a quarter of our exported goods.” These services can include everything from legal consulting, finance, information technology and even engineering.
And There Are Other Factors
So why has there been an increase of more than 30 percent for exports in almost everything? Part of the increase, at least for the manufacturing side, is due to better technology, says Tyler Cowen, an economist. “A lot of it is being driven by smart machines，” he tells Raz，“The U．S. has high wage rates, which is a disadvantage, but if machines are doing a lot of the work, that doesn't matter.”
China factors a lot in America's export economy, too. “Wages in China have been going up as the country becomes more productive. Thus China is losing the cheap labor advantage it has held for some time.” Cowen says.
Will Jobs Grow, too?
“Companies have become more productive by dismissing workers and lowering costs.” Cowen says, “So I don't view exporting as a way of creating a very large number of jobs, but it will create more profits.”
So not every business or worker is necessarily benefiting from the export boom in the U．S., and Cowen says that could ultimately lead to a polarization(两极) of economic outcomes.
Made In the USA: An Export Boom
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Outline |
Details |
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The purpose of increasing exports |
*To help America make a (71)______ from the economic recession *To help raise the nation's (72)______ rate |
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The current situation |
*American exports have risen (73)______ thirty-four percent up to now *There has been an increase in exports in everything *The export boom does not necessarily (74)______ every business or worker |
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(75)______ contributing to the export boom |
(76)______products |
Even in those top beer-producing countries, people try craft beer from Flying Dog, a brewery (77)______ in Maryland. |
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Various products |
A variety of products are provided around the world，services (78)______ for 25% |
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Lower costs |
*(79)______ take the place of labor, helping companies reduce wages *China, who used to take (80)______ of cheap labor, has given way to America in exports to some extent because of its increasing production |
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科目：高中英语 来源：20102011年辽宁省高二期末测试英语试题 题型：阅读理解
Dear Economist,
My newly-wedded wife and I are deeply in love．There is, however, one issue that threatens the happiness of our marriage．I absolutely insist on shopping at Walmart．My wife, meanwhile, would rather avoid Walmart at all costs．
I have recently tried to convince her that not only does Walmart offer the lowest prices known to man, but that the chain is also a force for good―lower prices mean better standards of living for all consumers, increased global trade means a tighter-knit(紧密团结的) international community, and efficient operations translate into higher productivity growth for the economy．My wife complains about poor labour policies, the “fact” that Walmart squeezes suppliers, and that it puts local shops out of business．
Who is right? Will our marriage survive?
Brian Gee
Dear Brian,
I have to agree with you about Walmart．Jason Furman, then an economist at New York University, now an adviser to President Obama, famously argued in 2005 that Walmart was unwittingly (不知不觉地) a progressive success story．The chain’s prices don’t much affect me (I prefer Whole Foods) but Furman estimated that they benefited low-and-middle-income Americans to the sum of around $250 billion a year．
Walmart does not pay much, so it may depress wages．Then again, it may increase wages by offering jobs to the otherwise-unemployed．Either way, the benefits of low prices to Walmart shoppers far outweigh any seemingly reasonable costs to Walmart employees．And while it is true that Walmart employees tend to be poor, the same is true of Walmart shoppers．
Armed with this information you can face your wife with confidence．You are sure to win the conversation．The divorce is likely to be more argued．
Economist
1.What concerns Brian Gee so much that he wrote the letter?
|
A．His wife refuses to shop at Walmart． |
|
B．They are faced with a divorce． |
|
C．They can’t afford the costs of shopping at Walmart． |
|
D．They are in conflict about shopping at Walmart． |
2.Brian Gee’s wife tends to hold the opinion that _________．
|
A．it is wrong for Walmart to depress its employees’ wages |
|
B．consumers’ lives have improved thanks to Walmart |
|
C．Walmart’s business operation increases productivity in economy |
|
D．Walmart’s business increases global trade |
3.What can be inferred from the reply letter?
|
A．Some employees accept the low pay to keep the job． |
|
B．Walmart appeals to only poor consumers and poor employees． |
|
C．Employees suffer from Walmart’s low prices more than consumers． |
|
D．Jason Furman, a New York University economist, spoke highly of Walmart． |
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