【题目】请认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。

注意：每个空格只填1个单词。

The benefits of being an independent business are truly great. Beyond the rewarding nature of owning something truly unique, small businesses have the edge over their big business counterparts in many areas. Consider the importance of being independent and how that independence can help drive your business.

To some, having fewer customers simply means less cash flow; however, having a smaller base also allows you to focus more on customer satisfaction.

Companies are always searching for ways to improve customer service and have more of their business. Whether through paying special attention to who comes through your door or monitoring your customers through the social network, it’s less of trouble to make sure your customers’ needs are being met when there’s a smaller sample to deal with. In addition, it becomes much easier to create a personal connection with buyers when you have enough time and attention to show them some love.

Small businesses have an inherent advantage over their big box competitors in the sense that they can offer something different. People want to see the independent businesses that offer unique products and flavor to their communities. Your business can be the difference when it comes to what customers want.

Of course, big box companies will almost always beat you down when it comes to price. Consider, however, that if you can offer a truly unique product or experience, price becomes much less of an issue.

People like the idea of supporting local independent businesses versus “the big guys”. So, what businesses are booming due to the rise of independence?

Craft Beer(精酿啤酒) — The craft beer movement in the United States is supported so widely that big breweries have taken to creating their own competing “craft beer” brands in an attempt to follow the trend. While Anheuser Busch represents nearly half of America’s breweries, craft beer has seen a huge jump in sales in recent years.

Video Games — Whether through PCs, traditional consoles or mobile games, independent developers are supported by enthusiastic fans and micro-transactions in an industry that was formerly dominated by bigger developers.

Musicians — The modern web offers immense opportunities to musicians, resulting in more economic and artistic freedom. A surprising number of mainstream artists have seen great success from their independent releases, such as Macklemore’s The Heist, which has sold over one million copies in the United States alone.

Some small businesses don’t want to be small businesses forever. Regardless, consider what independence does for you and your company. If you offer something out of the ordinary, you can build an audience that respects your individuality and supports your cause.

【题目】下表为截至2010年底我国四省区部分运输方式线路长度表。读表回答下列各题。

【1】①②③④四个省区分别为

A．西藏 云南 上海 黑龙江 B．黑龙江 云南 西藏 上海

C．上海 西藏 云南 黑龙江 D．云南 黑龙江 上海 西藏

【3】对②省区河流通航条件分析正确的是

A．冬季有结冰，通航条件差 B．区域面积广，通航条件好

C．地形崎岖，通航条件差 D．水网密布，通航条件好

【题目】 请认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。

注意：每个空格只填1个单词。

Age has its privileges in America, and one of the more prominent of them is the senior citizen discount. Anyone who has reached a certain age — in some cases as low as 55 — is automatically entitled to dazzling array of price reductions at nearly every level of commercial life. Eligibility is determined not by one’s need but by the date on one’s birth certificate. Practically unheard of a generation ago, the discounts have become a routine part of many businesses — as common as color televisions in motel rooms and free coffee on airliners.

People with gray hair often are given the discounts without even asking for them; yet, millions of Americans above age 60 are healthy and solvent(有支付能力的). Businesses that would never dare offer discounts to college students or anyone under 30 freely offer them to older Americans. The practice is acceptable because of the widespread belief that “elderly” and “needy” are synonymous (同义的). Perhaps that once was true, but today elderly Americans as a group have a lower poverty rate than the rest of the population. To be sure, there is economic diversity within the elderly, and many older Americans are poor. But most of them aren’t.

It is impossible to determine the impact of the discounts on individual companies. For many firms, they are a stimulus to revenue. But in other cases the discounts are given at the expense, directly or indirectly, of younger Americans. Moreover, they are a direct irritant in what some politicians and scholars see as a coming conflict between the generations.

Generational tensions are being fueled by continuing debate over Social Security benefits, which mostly involve a transfer of resources from the young to the old. Employment is another sore point. Buoyed (支持) by laws and court decisions, more and more older Americans are declining the retirement dinner in favor of staying on the job — thereby lessening employment and promotion opportunities for younger workers.

Far from a kind of charity they once were, senior citizen discounts have become a formidable economic privilege to a group with millions of members who don’t need them.

It no longer makes sense to treat the elderly as a single group whose economic needs deserve priority over those of others. Senior citizen discounts only enhance the myth that older people can’t take care of themselves and need special treatment; and they threaten the creation of a new myth, that the elderly are ungrateful and taking for themselves at the expense of children and other age groups. Senior citizen discounts are the essence of the very thing older Americans are fighting against — discrimination by age.

【题目】 请认真阅读下列短文，并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。

注意：每个空格只填1个单词。

What is eco-fashion？Eco-fashion is about making clothes that take into account the environment, the health of consumers and the working conditions of people in the fashion industry. It is a complex phenomenon and the common use of the term covers two aspects of fashion — ‘ecological’ and ‘ethical’. Ecological fashion usually refers to textile (织物) and clothing production processes and the environmental issues surrounding them；ethical fashion generally relates to the working conditions involved in the producing processes.

What are the problems with fashion? A closer look at the fashion industry points out many problems that are common practices in the creation of our fashions from the field to the factory. Firstly, the production of textiles pollutes the environment heavily. Cotton-planting uses pesticides；sheep-farming and wool cleaning contribute to global warming；synthetics-making (人造纤维生产) brings about waste which does harm to our environment. Secondly, every stage of clothing production has a significant effect on the environment. They all use a great deal of energy, and some also involve harmful chemicals. In addition to this, there is a lot of waste produced in the process, especially in the form of polluted water. Thirdly, growing consumption levels and our shopping habits further worsen the bad effects. We are now buying clothes in increasing quantities without realizing the scale on which it affects natural environment, and we are also quick to throw away clothes that have been worn only a couple of times.

Then, how to solve the problems? Other industries that design products are ahead of the fashion industry when it comes to choosing sustainable materials, designing for minimum waste, choosing energy efficient manufacturing and creating products for longevity. The fashion industry has been slow to adopt these changes and part of the problem is the very nature of fashion. To a large degree, it is the fashion producers that really have the power and the responsibility to shape our future. There are numerous ways in which these producers can reduce their ecological footprint, from switching to green energy and reducing energy use, through selecting sustainable materials and choosing local suppliers，to recycle and minimize waste. On the other hand，as consumers we can all make contributions by selecting environmentally friendly clothing and reducing clothing consumption.

There is some concern that eco-friendly fashions are just a trend that we will eventually grow tired of but we can make sure that doesn't happen. Now many people are beginning to shop for organic food products because the benefits of eating food free of chemicals are straightforward and immediate. They relate directly to our personal health. In fact, choosing eco-fashion can also contribute to our personal health, though it is mostly done by way of keeping the health of the planet.