The rise of multinational corporations (跨国公司), global marketing, new communications technologies, and shrinking cultural differences have led to an unparalleled increase in global public relations or PR.

  Surprisingly, since modern PR was largely an American invention, America’s relations is being threatened by PR efforts in other countries. Ten years ago, for example, the world’s top five public relations agencies were American-owned. In 1991, only one was. The British in particular are becoming more sophisticated and creative. A recent survey found that more than half of all British companies include PR as part of their corporate (公司的) planning activities, compared to about one-third of U.S. companies. It may not be long before London replaces New York as the capital of PR.

  Why is America lagging behind in the global PR race? First, Americans as a whole tend to be fairly provincial and take more of an interest in local affairs. Knowledge of world geography, for example, has never been strong in this country. Secondly, Americans lag behind their European and Asian counterparts (相对应的人) in knowing a second language. Less than 5 percent of Burson—Marshall’s U.S.employees know two languages. Ogilvy and Mather have about the same percentage. Conversely, some European firms have half or more of their employees fluent in a second language. Finally, people involved in PR abroad tend to keep a closer eye on international affairs. In the financial PR area, for instance, most Americans read the Wall Street Journal. Overseas, their counterparts read the Journal as well as the Financial Times of London and The Economist, publications not often read in this country.

Perhaps the PR industry might take a lesson from Ted Turner of CNN (Cable News Network). Turner recently announced that the word “foreign” would no longer be used on CNN news broadcasts. According to Turner, global communications have made the nations of the world so interdependent that there is no longer any such thing as foreign.

1.Compared with the American PR personnel, what is/are an advantage(s) of the non-Americans involved in PR?

         A. They tend to be more internationally minded

         B. They speak more and better foreign languages.

         C. They usually pay more attention to global financial situation.

         D. Both A and B.

2.What is the immediate cause of the downfall of America’s public relations?

         A. The number of US public relations agencies had greatly decreased by 1991.

         B. Other countries have increased their efforts in public relations.

         C. On the global scale, cultural differences have significantly shrunk.

         D. The British companies are becoming especially sophisticated and creative in public relations.

3.It could be inferred that the author of the passage is______.

         A. an American                                                            B. a Briton                                                     

         C. Ted Turner                                                                D. an Asian

4.The underlined word “provincial” in paragraph 3 could possibly mean “      ”.

         A. strict in thinking                B. like people from rural areas

         C. limited in outlook             D. interested in geographical knowledge

 

In a few years, you might be able to speak Chinese, Korean, Japanese, French, and English

— and all at the same time. This sounds incredible, but Alex Waibel, a computer science professor at US's Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and Germany's University of Karlsruhe, announced last week that it may soon be reality. He and his team have invented software and hardware that could make it far easier for people who speak different languages to understand each other.?

One application, called Lecture Translation, can easily translate a speech from one language into another. Current translation technologies typically limit speakers to certain topics or a limited vocabulary. Users also have to be trained how to use the programme.?

Another prototype(雏形机) can send translations of a speech to different listeners depending on what language they speak. “It is like having a simultaneous translator right next to you but without disturbing the person next to you,” Waibel said.?

Prefer to read? So-called Translation Glasses transcribe(转录) the translations on a tiny liquid-crystal(液晶) display(LCD) screen.?

Then there’s the Muscle Translator. Electrodes capture the electrical signals from facial muscle movements made naturally when a person is mouthing words. The signals are then translated into speech. The electrodes could be replaced with wireless chips implanted in a person's face, according to researchers.?

During a demonstration held last Thursday in CMU's Pittsburgh campus, a Chinese student named Stan Jou had 11 tiny electrodes attached to the muscles of his cheeks, neck and throat. Then he mouthed — without speaking aloud — a few words in Mandarin(普通话) to the audience. A few seconds later, the phrase was displayed on a computer screen and spoken out by the computer in English and Spanish: “Let me introduce our new prototype.”?

This particular gadget(器械),when fully developed, might allow anyone to speak in any number of languages or, as Waibel put it, “to switch your mouth to a foreign language”. “The idea behind the university's prototypes is to create ‘good enough’ bridges for cross-cultural exchanges that are becoming more common in the world,” Waibel said.?

With spontaneous(自发的) translators, foreign drivers in Germany could listen to traffic warnings on the radio, tourists in China could read all the signs and talk with local people, and leaders of different countries could have secret talks without any interpreters there.?

1. Which of the following statements is not TRUE?

A. A lecture translation can translate what you said into other languages easily.?

B. There is no Muscle Translator in the world now.?

C. Muscle Translators can translate what you think into speech if you just move your mouth.?

D. The spontaneous translators will help us a lot.

2. What kind of equipment is NOT mentioned in this passage?

A. Lecture Translation.                       

B. Muscle Translator.?

C. Multiple Translator.                       

D. Translation Prototype.

3. What’s the final destination of inventing the language translators??

A. To make cultural exchanges between different countries easier.?

B. To help students learn foreign languages more easily.?

C. To make people live in foreign countries more comfortably.?

D. To help people learn more foreign languages in the future.

4.What can be inferred from the seventh paragraph?

A. The translator is so good that it can translate any language into the very language you need.?

B. The translator is becoming more and more common in the world as a bridge.?

C. With the help of the translator, you only need to open your mouth when you want to say something without saying the exact words at all.?

D. The translator needs to be improved before being put into market.

5. Where can this passage probably be excerpted from?

A. A newspaper.                     

B. A magazine on science.?

C. A fairy tale.                             

D. A scientific fantasy book.

 

   A new generation addiction is quickly spreading all over the world. Weboholism, a twentieth century disease, affects people from different ages. They surf the net, use e-mail and speak in chat rooms. They spend many hours on the computer, and it becomes a compulsive habit. They cannot stop, and it affects their lives.

    Ten years ago, no one thought that using computers could become compulsive behavior that could affect the social and physical life of computer users. This obsessional behavior has affected teenagers and college students. They are likely to log on computers and spend long hours at different websites.

    They become hooked on computers and gradually their social and school life is affected by this situation. They spend all free time surfing and don’t concentrate on homework, so this addiction influences their grades and success at school. Because they can find everything on the websites, they hang out there. Moreover, this addiction to websites influences their social life.

    They spend more time in front of computers than with their friends. The relation with their friends changes. The virtual life becomes more important than their real life. They have a new language that they speak in the chat rooms and it causes cultural changes in society.

    Because of the change in their behavior, they begin to isolate themselves from the society and live with their virtual friends. They share their emotions and feelings with friends who they have never met in their life. Although they feel confident on the computer, they are not confident with real live friends they have known all their life. It is a problem for the future. This addictive behavior is beginning to affect all the world.

1.The author’s attitude towards weboholism is that of being______.

   A. optimistic        B. positive      C. oppositive     D. acceptable、

2.The main idea of the passage is about__________.

   A. the cause of weboholism           B. the advantage of weboholism

   C. the popularity of weboholism      D. the influence of weboholism

3. The underlined word “obsessional” in the second paragraph most probably means “________”.

   A. attractive                        B. addictive

   C. professional                      D. potential

4.We can infer from the passage that_______.

   A. weboholism has the greatest effect on teenagers

   B. students can hardly balance real and virtual life

   C. people are addicted to games on the Internet

   D. virtual life is more vivid and attractive anyway

5. Which of the following is NOT true of weboholism?

   A. It contributes to the development of the web.

   B. The chat room language may change social culture.

   C. The problem will be getting more and more serious later.

   D. People addicted to the web often become inactive in real life.

 

The Channel Islands are a group of British-owned islands lying in the English Channel, 10 to 30 miles off the French coast, and 70 to 90 miles from the English coast. There are ten islands with a total land area of 75 square miles and a total population of 123,000. The three largest islands, Jersey, Guernsey, and Alderney, have long been known for the fine breeds (品种) of cattle that are raised on them and named after them.

  In earliest known history the islands were considered part of Normandy, which was part of France, but the ruler of Normandy became king of England in 1066, and from then on the islands were looked upon as British land. English control was unbroken until World War II, when the Germans held the islands for five years.

  Although people on the islands speak both languages and they are considered English, their customs are more French than English.

1.Which of the following maps gives the right position of the Channel Islands?

  Br = Britain      Fr = France     Ch = Channel Islands

  

2.Jersey, Guernsey, and Alderney breeds of cattle are __________.

  A. considered best in England

  B. named after their birthplaces

  C. brought to the islands by the Germans

  D. raised on well-known farms by the French

3. The Channel Islands have been continuously under British rule since__________.

  A. earliest known history         B. 1066

  C. 1930s                      D. the end of World War II

4.Why do people on the Channel Islands follow French way of living?

  A. Their islands used to be part of France.

  B. Their islands are often visited by the French.

  C. They came from France.

D. They speak French.

 

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