“Image is everything.” An entire industry has been built upon the precondition that image is everything, but when it comes down to it, an appealing image is not enough. If there is no substance behind the image, the product, service or person will fail at length.

First of all, one should consider how important image is in the selling of products and services. Advertising agencies have raised the art of creating an image to a state of near perfection. Public concept of that product or service is certainly managed by the images created by the advertising agencies. But if the product or service does not live up to the image that was created, the customer will be very dissatisfied and possibly ask for their money back. For example, the Arthur Andersen accounting firm had spent decades building up an image of trustworthiness. But the recent scandal (丑闻) showed that behind that image, it had dishonest business practices. Despite the previous positive image, the firm is being accused of criminal actions and it will probably not survive as a business unit. Although the image had been nearly perfect, the reality behind the image has led to the downfall of the world famous accounting firm.

       Similarly, personal consultants can build up a public image for politicians and movie stars. Putting out positive news releases, making sure that only the best photographs are published, and ensuring that the person is seen in all the right places can build up a very positive image in the view of the general commons. But once again, history is filled with examples of both politicians and movie stars that fell from grace (体面) like the story of the Hollywood actor giving in to the pressures of fame and fortune. With people, just as with products and services, image is certainly important, but without positive substance behind the image, failure is close.

       To summarize, it is clear that an appealing image is extremely important to success, whether that image is related to selling a product or service or to the "selling" of a person. But image is only half of the equation. What lies behind that image is every bit as important as the image itself ― the person or product must deliver on that image or there is little chance for long-term success.

72.The downfall of the Arthur Andersen accounting firm is due to ______.

     A.its bad management                                         B.its previous images

     C.its dishonesty in business                                 D.its poor service

73.Why did some famous people fall from grace?

    A.Their images were not well built up.

    B.They failed to live up to their images.

    C.They felt much pressure from the public.

    D.They paid little attention to fame and fortune.

74. The structure of the passage is             .

 

       A: Argument                 P: Point                 C: Conclusion

75.The author tries to argue that______.

    A.image creates everything

    B.image is the key to success

    C.truth goes hand in hand with image

    D.truth and image are equally important

 

 

     Alone in the wilderness. Nothing but jungle. A world of shadow with the rays of light falling like blonde hair from the crowns of the giant trees. Jungle in the midday sun. Everything motionless. Not a sound from sky or earth. Complete silence. Only some coconuts falling, at long intervals, very far away. The world reduced to the soft touch of cool grass along my naked back, and a sweet smell of rich soil and vegetation. Stretched out with closed eyes beside my heavy burden of fruit and firewood, I enjoyed the feeling of fresh blood streaming through every part of my body and fresh jungle air filling every corner of my lungs.

     Resting motionless, I could see the sun through my closed eyelids, alone in the sky, as lonely as I, and as motionless and silent as everything else. The earth had surely stopped turning and somewhere on this planet there was supposed to be roaring traffic in busy streets. What a crazy, unbelievable thought!

       Another coconut fell, to make the world come to a complete standstill. I had to roll over onto my stomach to feel that at least I could move and make noises. Then I found company. A little brown ant was struggling to find its way with a bit of dry straw through the jungle of leaves and grass below my nose. I wondered if I could give the little fellow a lift with its burden, but it showed not the slightest sign of tiredness and struggled on with all six legs, head first or head last, waving its feelers energetically as if the trip had just started. Who ever saw a tired ant? Tiredness, disagreeable tiredness, is restricted to hunted animals, slaves and modern man. It is as great an effort for an office clerk to walk five blocks with a loaded brief-case as it is for a jungle-dweller to cross a valley with a goat on his back. It is as hard to get up and climb or run when you have been seated for years as it is to get up and walk when you have been in bed for months. The body is strange. Spare it, and you get really tired for almost nothing; use it, and almost nothing makes you really tired.

       I rose to my feet. I had heard a horse neighing down in the valley. Above me, on the open highland plains, there were wild horses. But down in the valley there was never a horse unless there was a man on it. Somebody was making his way up the valley and my wife was alone.

 

68.The author mentions coconuts’ falling to          .

       A.show his loneliness                                                   B.add beauty to the jungle

       C.express his love of nature                                          D.stress the absolute silence

69.How does the author feel about the ant?

       A.He admired its attitude toward work.

       B.He was amazed at its tireless efforts.

       C.He showed sympathy for the little ant.

       D.He was content to have it as a companion.

70.It can be inferred from the last paragraph that the author would probably          .

       A.work harder than before                                     B.talk to the man on the horse

       C.make his way home                                           D.stay in the valley

71.We can learn from the passage that the author          .

       A.enjoyed being alone                                            B.experienced a word of quietness

       C.missed his busy life in the city                             D.had an unforgettable adventure

They have appeared on clothes labels for four decades, each one chosen by international experts for its simplicity and clarity. Yet for most people, washing instructions might as well be written in Martian.

According to a new poll, 9 in 10 people are unable to understand common symbols used on clothes labels. Even those who have mastered the difference between a wool and a synthetics (合成纤维织物) wash admit being puzzled by the boxes, circles and crosses used to give advice about drying and bleaching (漂白).

The findings come from a poll of 2,000 people carried out by YouGov for Morphy Richards. A third of the people surveyed said that they recognized none of the six symbols shown, while the only symbol recognized by more than half of the people was the iron with a single dot. Around 70 per cent knew it meant “iron on a low heat”. Just 10 per cent knew the sign for “do not dry clean”, while only 12 per cent were familiar with “drip dry only”.

Despite the sexual revolution, women are stir more knowledgeable than men. Awareness was highest among 18- to 29-year-old women, for whom taking care of clothes is clearly important.

Chris Lever, from Morphy Richards, said, “Clothes Care symbols are a unique language, clearly a language that few people in the UK have taken the time to learn.”

“Learning the basics such as which icon represents tumble dry (滚动热干) and which represents normal wash would go a long way to getting the best out of clothes.”

The Home Laundering Consultative Council, which promotes symbols, said it was not surprised to learn that people were unfamiliar with them. “It’s disappointing that there is a lack of recognition, but it’s a story that’s repeated time and time again,” said a spokesman, Adam Mansell. “We are a small organization and we don’t have a big budget.”

 

60.Why are these six washing symbols chosen by international experts?

A.Because people in the UK are interested in them.

B.Because they are simple and clear.

C.Because it’s a long way to getting the best out of clothes.

D.Because they are a unique language.

61.Which of the following statements is NOT true according to the text?

A.Clothes care symbols have appeared on clothes labels for forty years.

B.Few people in the UK have taken the time to learn about clothes care symbols.

C.A third of the people surveyed said that they recognized the six symbols shown.

D.Women have a better knowledge of the common symbols used on clothes labels than men.

62.Which symbol did most of people recognize according to the survey?

63.By the underlined part in the first paragraph “for most people, washing instructions might as well be written in Martian”, the author means __________.

A.the washing instructions are written in Martian

B.most people can understand the washing instructions

C.most people can understand the instructions if they are written in Martian

D.most people think it impossible to understand the washing instructions

       For millions of people, the American dream of owning a home seems to be slipping out of reach.

    “Maybe young couples can no longer afford to buy a ready-made house as their parents did,’’ says 40-year-old building instructor Pat Hennin. “But they can still have a home. Like their pioneer ancestors, they can build it themselves, and at less than half the cost of a ready-made house.”

    The owner-builders came from every occupational group, although surprisingly few are professional building workers. Many take the plunge with little or no experience. “I learned how to build my house from reading books,” says John Brown, who built a six-room home for $25, 000 in High Falls, New Jersey. “If you have patience and the carpentry(木匠)skill to make a bookcase, you can build a house.” An astonishing 50 percent of these owner builders hammer every nail, 1ay every pipe, and wire every switch with their own hands. The rest contract(承包)for some parts of the task. But even those who just act as contractors and finish the insides of their homes can save from 30 percent to 45 percent of what a ready-made home would cost.

    One survey revealed that 60 percent of owner-builders also design their homes. Many others buy commercial house plans for less than $100 or use plans available from the U. S. Department of Agriculture.

 

56.What does the passage mainly tell us?

       A.The cost of having a house built.

       B.The American dream of owning a house.

       C.The life of owner-builders in America.

       D.A comparison between young couples and their parents.

57.It can be inferred from the passage that many Americans find it difficult to         .

    A.build a house                                       B.find a ready-made house

    C.have a good job                                   D.buy a house

58.The underlined phrase “take the plunge” in paragraph 3 most probably means “         .”

    A.decide to build a house                             B.decide to pull down a house

    C.decide to buy a house                              D.decide to rent a house

59.From the passage we learn that           .

    A.Many house plans are offered free of charge.

    B.Most of the house plans are offered by building instructors.

    C.Most of the owner-builders design their homes.

    D.Fifty percent of the American young couples build houses.

He lost his arms in an accident that caused the death of his father. Then his   36   became his shadow, never leaving him alone for years.   37   writing with his toes, he was completely unable to do anything in his life.

       As the two brothers grew up together, they had their   38   of problems and they would often quarrel. Then one day, his younger brother decided to   39   separate from him, living his own life as many   40   people do. So he was heart-broken and didn’t know what to do.

       A   41   misfortune happened to a girl, too. One night she tried to   42   meals for her sick mother, only to overturn the kerosene light on the stove, resulting in a fire which took her   43   away.

       Though her elder sister in another city   44   her willingness to take care of her, she was  45   to learn to be completely independent. At school, she   46   studied hard.

       One day, the boy and the girl were both invited to   47   on a television interview program and asked to   48   something on a piece of paper with their toes. The boy wrote; My younger brother’s arms are my arms;   49   the girl wrote: Broken wings, flying heart.

       They had both   50   the same pain, but their different attitudes determined the nature of their lives. It is true that life is unpredictable(难以预料). Disasters can strike at   51   time. If you choose only to complain and   52  , it will always follow you   53   you go. But if you decide to be   54  , the hard moment will   55   to be one when new hopes will arise.

 

36.A.older sister

B.uncle

C.younger brother

D.mother

37.A.Instead of

B.Except for

C.Thanks to

D.In spite of

38.A.share

B.goal

C.agreement

D.enjoyment

39.A.learn

B.tell

C.come

D.live

40.A.rich

B.normal

C.unlucky

D.disabled

41.A.different

B.strange

C.special

D.similar

42.A.prepare

B.offer

C.have

D.order

43.A.ears

B.toes

C.feet

D.hands

44.A.explained

B.showed

C.pointed

D.discussed

45.A.satisfied

B.excited

C.determined

D.disappointed

46.A.hardly

B.seldom

C.always

D.sometimes

47.A.sing

B.dance

C.turn

D.appear

48.A.say

B.draw

C.write

D.copy

49.A.while

B.when

C.since

D.unless

50.A.hidden

B.suffered

C.discovered

D.overcome

51.A.one

B.no

C.any

D.this

52.A.comfort

B.discourage

C.watch

D.escape

53.A.whenever

B.wherever

C.if

D.because

54.A.silent

B.noisy

C.weak

D.strong

55.A.turn out

B.bring about

C.come up

D.give off

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