题目内容
For the past two years, 8-year-old Harli Jordean from Stoke Newington, London, has been selling marbles(弹珠).His successful marble company, Marble King, sells all things marble-related—from affordable tubs of the glass playthings to significantly expensive items like Duke of York solitaire(独粒宝石)tables—sourced, purchased and processed by the mini-CEO himself.
“I like having my own company. I like being the boss,” Harli told The Mirror.
With profits now in the thousands, “the world's youngest CEO” has had to get his mother and older brothers to help him meet the growing demand.
Harli launched Marble King after swapping(交换)marbles at school led to schoolchildren depleting(削减) his marble collection. Yes, he literally(确切地)“lost his marbles.” Harli and his mother, Tina, turned to the Internet to find replacements.
Harli saw an empty space online: the marbles he wanted were hard to find. Within months, Harli had his own marble-selling website and orders started pouring in.
Tina says her son's obsession(迷恋) with marbles started when he was just 6.
“His obsession became so big we started calling him the Marble King, so when he wanted to set up a website it was the natural name for it,” she told The Sun.
“I never thought it would become so popular—we are struggling to cope with the number of orders at times.”
The 8-year-old boy has his sights set on expanding his business and launching his own brand of marbles.
“Sometimes his ideas are so grand we have to scale them back a bit. But his dream is still to own Britain's biggest marble shop and open stores around the world.” Tina told The Daily Mail.
“At the minute he is annoying me by asking about creating his won Marble King marbles, so that could well be the next step for him.”
【小题1】Why did Harli's marble company become popular as soon as he launched it?
A.Because it was run by “the world's youngest CEO”. |
B.Because it filled the gaps of marble business. |
C.Because Harli was fascinated with marble collection. |
D.Because his mother and brothers helped him a lot. |
A.One. | B.Two. | C.Three. | D.Four. |
A.make smaller | B.carry out | C.turn down | D.frighten away |
A.Conflicts often occur between Harli Jordean and his family. |
B.Harli's mother and brothers are worried about Marble King's future. |
C.Marble King marbles will be more popular with marble fans around the world. |
D.The “Marble King” has great ambitions for his Marble King Company. |
【小题1】B
【小题2】C
【小题3】A
【小题4】D
解析
My father is a smart man. He spent many years of his life listening to people’s arguments, first as assistant district lawyer and then as a judge. My dad knows rubbish rhetoric when he hears it.
One of his favorite phrases is: “If you don’t have anything smart to say, then don’t say it at all.” Yet, for all of his legal training and life experience, he can’t help but keep talking about the Mega Millions jackpot.
We all know the odds(几率)of winning the jackpot this evening with one ticket are extraordinarily low ... 1 in 175, 711, 536, to be exact. Still, people go out and buy hundreds of tickets with the hopes of becoming wealthier beyond their dreams. Why? There are two possible explanations for this “irrationality”(不理智).
One idea is that the way we calculate odds in our heads has nothing to do with mathematical odds in the traditional sense. We don’t go to the mathematical odds table and say, “Well, this would be a terrible investment. I think I’m better off putting my money in the bank!” Rather, it has everything with the ability to picture an event happening.
My father, for instance, watches the news every night and sees people winning the lottery(彩票). Therefore, he thinks the chance of him winning the lottery is much higher than they actually are.
The second thought is that the expected effect of playing cannot be represented merely by the odds. My father and, I’m sure, others get a thrill from the mere idea of winning. He loves imagining what it would be like to actually win and losing doesn’t really affect him. Sure, he’s disappointed, but it’s “better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” When you combine the utility of thinking you can win with the utility of actually winning (no matter how small the chance of that occurring), it’s worth it for many people to spend the one dollar on a ticket.
My analysis is that both factors are at play in taking a chance on the lottery. My father and others really do underestimate the odds of winning, but the thrill of participation is not denied by a realistic assessment of the odds. Still, I would probably put my finger on the scale for the first explanation.
All told, a review of the odds of other events happening confirms that there just aren’t many events that occur with less frequency than your winning the Mega Millions jackpot. Look at the graph below, you may understand some:
In many ways, it’s like the lottery, something that features often on television and about which people fantasize, but that rarely happens.
So, when you watch, along with my Pa, to see if your lucky number is drawn this evening, keep in mind three things: that your number almost certainly won’t come up; that you are still going to have fun; and that, finally, a lot of other things are more likely to happen—but getting eaten by a shark isn’t one of them.
【小题1】It can be learned from the article that ________.
A.the Mega Millions jackpot is the last lottery to win in the world |
B.a judge in that country can’t talk about lottery because it is illegal |
C.the writer doesn’t buy lottery, for he never hopes to become rich |
D.In spite of little possibility, a lot of people spend money on lottery |
A.show chances that those things take place are fewer |
B.support the writer’s arguments on the lottery tickets |
C.indicate no one can win the Mega Millions jackpot |
D.say shark attack death will seldom happen this year |
A.If one has mathematical odds, he can win the prize more easily. |
B.Only those who have irrationality buy hundreds of lottery tickets. |
C.The Mega Millions jackpot is very popular in the writer’s country. |
D.Winning lottery is a shortcut to achieve the dream of being rich. |
A.effective | B.ridiculous | C.contradictory | D.astonishing |
A.The Popular Mega Millions Jackpot | B.Lottery is Merely a Trick |
C.Mega Million is Like a Shark Attack | D.Be rich, Buy Lottery Soon |