He thumbed through the rose ______ to see if there was anything he fancied for his south-facing wall.
In the meantime, the question facing business is whether such research is ______ the costs.
An automaker is facing financial difficulties. The vice president of marketing has determined that the root of the company’s problems is low brand loyalty. The vice president proposes, there- fore, that the company begin an aggressive advertising campaign focused on children aged from three to eight years. By securing strong brand recognition with this demographic, he argues, the company will have an advantage when these customers reach an age when they can buy cars. Which of the following, if true, raises the most serious doubts about the vice president’s proposal?
In the meantime, the question facing business is whether such research is ______ the costs.
The German court is facing a legal dilemma because the law hasn’t stipulated the punishment of ______.
1) Italymay be facing economic depression, but for Siggi, a textile firm near Vicenza in the north-east of the country, 2009 offers the promise of unprecedented growth.Siggi is the biggest producer of grembiuli, or school smocks. Once universal in Italian primary schools, they were becoming as outdated as ink-wells. But in July the education minister, Mariastella Gelmini, backed the reintroduction of grembiuli to combat brand- and class-consciousness among schoolchildren. Siggi’s output this year has almost sold out and its chairman, Gino Marta, says that “next year could see an out-and-out boom.”
The decision on whether pupils should wear the grembiule has been left to head teachers. 2) It does not figure in either of the two education bills that have been introduced by Ms Gelmini. But it has become a symbol of her efforts to shake up Italian education. Her critics argue that these are a vain attempt to turn back the clock; her supporters see them as a necessary first step to a more equitable, efficient system.
3) On October 30th the opposition she has aroused will reach its peak by a one-day teachers’ strike. The union’s main complaint is a program of cuts aimed at saving almost £8 billion ($11 billion). It includes the loss by natural wastage of 87,000 teachers’ jobs over the three academic years to 2012 and the return to a system in which just one teacher is allotted to each year of elementary school.
4) If this is all the reforms do, they could prove as disastrous as union and opposition leaders predict (international studies find primary schools are the only part of Italy’s education that does well). But it is also planned that 30% of the money saved will be reinvested in schools. Ms Gelmini’s supporters hope that she will use it to redress the crippling imbalances in education, which is one of Italy’s biggest structural economic weaknesses.
One problem is “lots of badly paid teachers”, says Roger Abravanel, author of a recent book on meritocracy. “The number of teachers per 100 students is one of the highest in the OECD. “Education, particularly in the south, has often been used by politicians for patronage and job creation. 5) This may explain why, despite studying for longer and in smaller classes, Italian secondary pupils do badly in international comparisons.“The north is around the OECD average, but the south is on a par with Uruguay and Thailand,” says Mr Abravanel. Giacomo Vaciago, an economics professor at the Catholic University of Milan, says that “although for the time being the debate is about cuts, the big problem is quality, which is random.”
Presenting the latest reforms alongside Ms Gelmini, Italy’s prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, promised that, by 2012, the best teachers would be getting a 7,000 bonus. But Mr Vaciago is unconvinced by the plans. “The present government is making cuts and hoping that the quality comes through as a result. There is no obvious guarantee it will,” he comments.
(此文选自The Economist 2008年刊)
According to the article, what is the worst problem facing people living in cities?
Passage 1
What are the challenges facing multinationals that want to build their brands in China? --I think the first thing is ignorance. There’s a huge 1 of the complexity in China, which is more complex than Europe. There are different rules of law, which 2 a significant factor. There are different 3 , Cantonese and Mandarin and lots of others in 4 , and dialects like Sichuan versions. You have problems of distribution. 5 Chinese brands have been 6 local because of the size of the market and the transportation system. What’s 7 built up there is a sort of a pride in localness.
How can companies build their brands in China? -China is a place where 8 have to be very patient and you've got to build 9 time. You can’t go in 10 invest short-term and then pull out 11 then try to get back in 12 . It’s about being consistent, steady, building 13 reputation, building confidence and then rewards will 14 . It’s a consistent ability to anticipate need. It’s insightfulness that helps brands to 15 ahead.
How are local Chinese brands doing against the multinationals? -China’s been built 16 local brands and there are a billion of them and they are 17 spending sums of money locally that really dominate the 18 . But the future is Chinese brands moving outside of 19 and marketing globally, because China’s got to move from a commodity economy to a 20 sophisticated economy, which fundamentally means brands. There isn’t a major economy in the world that isn’t based upon producing great brands, because they provide far better margins and more sustainable growth.
1. A. understanding B. ignorance C. recognition D. exaggeration
2. A. are B. becomes C. is D. prove
3. A. languages B. dialects C. vernaculars D. jargons
4. A. this B. between C. among D. that
5. A. Some B. Few C. Most D. Part
6. A. traditionally B. basically C. fundamentally D. differently
7. A. ever B. being C. never D. been
8. A. we B. they C. you D. all
9. A. in B. on C. during D. over
10. A. but B. or C. and D. then
11. A. to B. and C. through D. ever
12. A. afterwards B. again C. backwards D. never
13. A. the B. / C. some D. a
14. A. return B. make C. come D. go
15. A. stay B. go C. move D. push
16. A. in B. on C. through D. into
17. A. themselves B. seldom C. all D. often
18. A. market B. area C. region D. locality
19. A. here B. there C. China D. world
20. A. even B. ever C. most D. more
______Men are facing serious challenges from women.
In the meantime, the question facing business is whether such research is ______ the costs.