Japan's 24-hour convenience stores, already struggling with lagging sales and growth, may soon face yet another threat-moves to limit business hours and close the stores late at night．The district of Saitama, which borders Tokyo, may follow in the footsteps of the western city of Kyoto and urge convenience stores to close during late night hours in an effort to limit carbon dioxide(二氧化碳)emissions, Japanese media reported．
Kyoto, a former capital, wants to persuade convenience and other 24-hour stores to close late at night so as to improve evening views of the city and cut down on energy use．The Nikkei business daily said closures could last from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. The move is strongly opposed by the industry, which fears a bad impact on an already troubled sector also grappling with the specter of a higher tobacco tax, which could hit overall sales．
“Even if we only operate the stores for 16 hours, we can't stop the refrigerators,”said Toshiro Yamaguchi, the president of Seven-Eleven Japan Co, which is owned by Seven & I Holdings Co Ltd, at a news conference in Saitama on Tuesday．He said such cuts in operating hours would reduce each store's profit by 20 percent．“If this happens, our current business model will lose its foundation．”
Analysts said that while it is difficult to estimate the potential impact of the move without a concrete plan, their overall impression was that it was likely to be negative．“This could cut profits and lead to less efficient operations and the increased loss of opportunities,”said Masafumi Shoda, an analyst at Nomura Securities．“But it depends on the store－urban stores do better than others．There are some in the countryside that are inefficient．”
Some have suggested that if governments were sincere about reducing carbon emissions there were much more efficient methods, such as cutting back on the huge number of automatic vending machines(自动售货机)．
(1)
Which of the followings was the first to try to limit convenience store hours?
[ ]
A．
Saitama
B．
Tokyo
C．
Kyoto
D．
Nomura Security
(2)
What's the main goal of the proposal?
[ ]
A．
To give employees more free time．
B．
To limit carbon dioxide emissions．
C．
To sell more tobacco products．
D．
To reduce each store’s profit．
(3)
How's the convenience store sector doing in Japan?
[ ]
A．
It is not mentioned．
B．
It's doing great．Business is booming．
C．
Not very well．
D．
It’s about to close．
(4)
According to the passage, which convenience stores are generally more successful?
[ ]
A．
The ones in big cities．
B．
The ones in the countryside．
C．
The ones in Tokyo．
D．
The ones in Saitama．
(5)
According to the convenience store industry, what impact would closing for the night have on a typical store?
[ ]
A．
It could cause a 10％increase in sales．
B．
Its effect would be maximal．It would close soon．
C．
Its effect would be minimal．People would simply shop earlier．
Many Americans are turning to Japan, they think, a country of high academic achievement and economic success, for possible answers．However, the answers provided by Japanese preschools are not the ones Americans expected to find．In most Japanese preschools, surprisingly little emphasis is put on academic instruction．In one survey, 300 Japanese and 210 American preschool teachers, child development specialists, and parents were asked about various aspects of early childhood education．Only 2 percent of the Japanese respondents(答问卷者)listed“to give children a good start academically”as one of their top three reasons for a society to have preschools．In contrast, over half the American respondents chose this as one of their top three choices．To prepare children for successful careers in first grade and beyond, Japanese schools do not teach reading, writing, and mathematics, but rather skills such as determination, concentration, and the ability to work as a member of a group．The huge majority of young Japanese children are taught to read at home by their parents．
Like in America, there is diversity(多样性)in Japanese early childhood education．Some Japanese kindergartens have specific aims, such as early musical training or potential development．In large cities, some kindergartens are attached to universities that have elementary and secondary schools．Some Japanese parents believe that if their young children attend a university-based program, it will increase the children's chances of eventually being admitted to top-rated schools and universities．Several more progressive programs have introduced free play as a way out for the heavy intellectualizing in some Japanese kindergartens．
(1)
We learn from the first paragraph that many Americans believe ________．
[ ]
A．
Japanese parents are more involved in preschool education than American parents
B．
Japan's economic success is a result of its scientific achievements
C．
Japanese preschool education emphasizes academic instruction
D．
Japan's higher education is superior to theirs
(2)
In Japan's preschool education, the focus is on ________．
[ ]
A．
preparing children academically
B．
developing children's artistic interests
C．
developing children's potential
D．
shaping children's character
(3)
Why do some Japanese parents send their children to university-based kindergartens?
[ ]
A．
They can have better chances of getting a first-rate education．
B．
They can make more group experience grow there．
C．
They can be individually oriented when they grow up．
D．
They can do better in their future studies．
(4)
Free play has been introduced in some Japanese kindergartens in order to ________．
[ ]
A．
broaden children's knowledge
B．
lighten children's study load
C．
train children's creativity
D．
enrich children's experience
(5)
Which of the following statements is true?
[ ]
A．
Most of the Japanese preschools pay much attention to academic instructions．
B．
Very few Japanese respondents don't agree to give children a start academically．
C．
In Japan it is common for parents to teach their children at home．
D．
American respondents don't agree to give children a start academically．
阅读理解：
There is one foreign product the Japanese are buying faster than others, and its popularity has caused an uneasy feeling among many Japanese．
That product is foreign words．
Gairaigo-words that come from outside have been part of the Japanese language for centuries．Mostly borrowed from English and Chinese, these terms are often changed into forms no longer understood by native speakers．
But in the last few years the trickle(涓涓细流)of foreign words has become a flood, and people fear the increasing use of foreign words is making it hard for the Japanese to understand each other and could lead to many people forgetting the good qualities of traditional Japanese．
“ The popularity of foreign words is part of the Japanese interest in anything new, ” says university lecturer and writer Takashi Saito．“ By using a foreign word you can make a subject seem new, which makes it easier for the media to pick up．”
Experts often study abroad and use English terms when they speak with people in their own fields．Those terms are then included in government white papers, said Muturo Kai, president of the National Language Research Institute．“ Foreign words find their way easily into announcements made to the general public, when they should really be explained in Japanese．”
Against the flow of new words, many Japanese are turning back to the study of their own language．Saito’s Japanese to Be Read Aloud is one of many language books that are now flying off booksellers’ shelves．
“We were expecting to sell the books to young people,” said the writer, “ but it turns out they are more popular with the older generation who seem uneasy about the future of Japanese．”
(1)
What advantages do foreign words have over traditional Japanese terms?
[ ]
A．
The idea expressed in foreign words sound new．
B．
Foreign words are best suited for announcements．
C．
Foreign words make a new subject easier to understand．
D．
The use of foreign words makes the media more popular．
(2)
In the opinion of Takashi Saito, Japanese people ________．
[ ]
A．
are good at learning foreign languages
B．
are willing to learn about new things
C．
trust the media
D．
respect experts
(3)
Which of the following plays an important part in the spread of foreign words?
[ ]
A．
The media and government papers．
B．
Best-selling Japanese textbooks．
C．
The interest of young Japanese．
D．
Foreign products and experts．
(4)
The book Japanese to Be Read Aloud ________．
[ ]
A．
sells very well in Japan
B．
is supported by the government
C．
is questioned by the old generation
D．
causes misunderstanding among the readers
阅读理解
Superstitions
There are over one million superstitions(迷信), and most people believe at least one or two of them．Many people are superstitious about numbers．They think that there are lucky numbers and unlucky numbers．The number 13 is often considered unlucky．In some parts of the world, buildings have no 13th floor and streets have no houses with the number 13．In Japan, “4” is considered unlucky because in Japanese the word “four” is pronounced the same as the word “death”．The Japanese never give gifts of four knives, four napkins, or four of anything．
What are the lucky numbers? Seven is a lucky number in many places, and “8” is considered a lucky number in Japan and China．In China, businesses often open on August 8, and many couples register to get married at eight past eight on August 8．Superstitions about numbers are so widespread that some people－called numerologists－make a living by giving advice about numbers．In 1937, when the Toyoda family of Japan wanted to form a car company, they asked a numerologist if “Toyoda” would be a good name for the company．The numerologist said it would not be．He explained that “Toyota” would be a better name for the company．The family took his advice．As a result, millions of people drive “Toyotas” and not “Toyodas”．
There are many other kinds of superstitions．There are superstitions about eating, sleeping, sneezing and itching．There are superstitions about animals and holidays and horseshoes．There are even superstitions about superstitions．Those superstitions tell people how to reverse bad luck．When the Japanese bump heads, they immediately bump heads again．According to a Japanese superstition, the first bump means their parents will die, but the second bump “erases” the first bump．To reverse bad luck in general, people turn around three times, turn their pockets inside out, or put their hats on backwards．
(1)
It can be inferred that superstitions about numbers are ________．
[ ]
A．
popular all over the world
B．
accepted by many people in the world
C．
valuable to businessmen
D．
dangerous to common people
(2)
From this passage we can find that ________．
[ ]
A．
a numerologist is an expert in maths
B．
Japan’s development depends on numerologists
C．
a numerologist is a superman
D．
the Japanese have a strong belief in numerologists
(3)
The word “reverse” in this passage means ________．
[ ]
A．
cause to go in the opposite direction
B．
read carefully
C．
turn over in the mind
D．
make…worse
(4)
If we see a Japanese bumps his head once again, we can know that he is ________．
[ ]
A．
mad
B．
angry
C．
superstitious
D．
foolish
(5)
What’s the writer’s purpose to write this passage?
[ ]
A．
To persuade us to believe superstitions．
B．
To warn us against the danger of superstitions．
C．
To show us some facts of superstitions．
D．
To show us the magic power of superstitions．
阅读理解。
Milk was one of the main foods of people long before history was written．It will probably keep on being one as long as there are animals that give milk．
Even the word “milk”is very old．It comes from Sanskrit(梵文),one of the oldest languages known to man．A very old picture of milking has been found．It was drawn more than five thousand years ago．
In the years long ago, people got their milk from their own animals．But later new inventions made the milk industry a big business．In 1851 Gail Borden found a way to take some of the water out of milk．This made it keep much longer．Four years later, Louis Pasteur introduced a way to kill the bacteria(细菌)in milk．Next, a special milk bottle was made．This was followed by the invention of machines that could fill bottles with milk．
These discoveries had a great effect on the milk industry．They meant that milk could be stored longer．
Some people believe that milk drinking will become less popular than it has been．But remember how long milk has been an important food and think of many ways in which it is useful．It seems safe to say that milk industry will always be important．
(1)
Milk is probably(most possibly)to be a food of ours ________．
[ ]
A．
when there are animals that can give milk
B．
where there are animals that can give milk
C．
if there are animals and people in the world
D．
if we want to eat every day
(2)
The word“milk”comes from ________．
[ ]
A．
China
B．
India
C．
England
D．
Japan
(3)
People got their milk mainly from their own animals ________．
[ ]
A．
a hundred years ago．
B．
fifty years ago
C．
one hundred and forty years ago
D．
before a number of inventions were made
(4)
Milk industry will be always an important one because ________．
[ ]
A．
milk drinking is very popular in the world
B．
milk has been an important food for a long time and is widely used
C．
milk is a food of good taste and there are many cows
D．
milk can be stored(kept)longer and carried to other countries
轻松暑假总复习系列答案
words that come from outside