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Part I Reading Comprehension
Passage 1
Questions 1 to 5 are based on the following passage:
In Washington D.C., 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue is a very special address. It is
the address of the White House, the home of the president of the United
States.
Originally the White House was gray and was called the Presidential Palace.
It was built from 1792 to 1800. at this time, the city of Washington itself was
being built; it was to be the nation’s new capital city. George Washington, the
first president, and Pierre Charles L’Enfant, a French engineer, chose the place
for the new city. L’Enfant then planned they city. The president’s home was an
important part of the plan.
A contest was held to pick a design for the president’s home. An architect
named James Hoban won. He designed a large three-story house of gray stone.
President Washington never lived in the President Palace. The first president
to live there was John Adams, the second president of the United States, and his
wife Mrs. Adams did not really like hew new house. In her letters, she often
complained about the cold. Fifty fireplaces were not enough to keep the house
warm!
In 1812 the United States and Britain went to war. In 1814 the British
invaded Washington. Theu burned many buildings, including the Presidential
Palace.
After the war James Hoban, the original architect, partially rebuilt the
president’s homes. To cover the marks of the fire, the building was painted
white. Before long it became known as the White House.
The White House is one of the most popular tourist attractions in the United
States. Every year more than 1.5 million visitors go through the five rooms that
are open to the public.
1. The White House was built in Washington .
A. because a French engineer was invited to design it
B. because President George Washington liked to live in it
C. because the British invaders lived in it in 1812-1814
D. because it was to be the nation’s capital city
2. The Presidential Palace was .
A. painted gray and white B. made of gray stone
C. made of white stone D. made very warm in winter
3. The president’s home and the city of Washington were .
A. built by the American army B. built by the British troops
C. planned by George Washington D. planned by the French
4. The original home of the president needed to be rebuilt .
A. because John Adam’s wife did not like it
B. because it was cold in winter even with 50 fireplaces
C. because it had burned down during the war
D. because George Washington was not willing to live in it
5. The new presidential home was painted white to .
A. cover the marks of fire B. attract tourist from France
C. to please Mrs. John Adams D. keep it warm in winter
Passage 3
Questions 11 to 15 are based on the following passage:
Unlike their American or European counterparts, car salesmen in Japan work hard to get a buyer. Instead of lying lazily around showrooms waiting for customers to drop by, many Japanese car salesmen still go out to get them. They walk wearily along the streets cars door-to-door. New customers are hunted with
fruit and cakes on their birthdays. But life is getting tough, and not just because new-car sales are falling.
With more Japanese women (who often control the household budget) going out to work, the salesmen increasingly find nobody at home when they call. That means another visit in the evening or the weekend. Then they face an extra problem: more people, especially the young, prefer to choose a new car from a
showroom where they can compare different models.
Even as late as the mid-1980s some 90% of new cars were sold door-to-door. In some rural areas most new cars are still sold this way. But in the big cities more than half the new cars are now sold from showrooms.
Although investing in showrooms is expensive because of the high cost of Japanese land, dealers have little choice. A labor shortage and higher among Japan’s workforce are making it difficult to hire
door-to-door salesmen. Most of a Japanese car salesman’s working day is spent doing favors for customers, like arranging insurance or picking up vehicles for servicing, rather than actually selling.
Japan’s doorstep car salesmen are not about to vanish. The personal service they provide is so deep-rooted in Japan that they are likely to operate alongside the glittering new showrooms. The two systems even complement each other. What increasingly happens is that the showroom attracts the interest of a potential buyer, giving the footsore salesmen a firm lead to follow up with a home visit.
11. Japanese car sales usually do not wait at showrooms for customers to drop by; instead, .
A. they sell cars door-to-door
B. they buy presents for their customers
C. they enjoy themselves in recreation centers
D. they go out to do market researches
12. Implied but stated: the competition in car market is .
A. light B. moderate C. fierce D. unfair
13. Young people like to buy a new car .
A. at home B. from a showroom
C. made in the U.S.A. D. made in Japan
14. The squadron of Japanese car salesmen is reducing because of .
A. a labor shortage
B. higher expectations among Japan’s workforce
C. high cost land
D. both A and B
15. Japanese car salesmen to their customers many favors such as .
A. showing them around in an exhibition
B. arranging insurance
C. paying them a visit on weekends
D. selling ole cars for them
The majority of successful senior managers do not closely follow the
classical rational model of first clarifying goals, assessing the problem,
formulating options, estimating likelihoods of success, making a decision, and
only then taking action to implement the decision. Rather, in their day-by-day
tactical maneuvers, these senior executives rely on what is vaguely termed
intuition to manage a network of interrelated problems that require them to deal
with ambiguity, inconsistency, novelty, and surprise ; and to integrate action
into the process of thinking. Generations of writers on management have
recognized that some practicing managers rely heavily on intuition. In general,
however, such writers display a poor grasp of what intuition is. Some see it as
the opposite of rationality; others view it as an excuse for capriciousness.
Isenberg's recent research on the cognitive processes of senior managers reveals
that managers' intuition is neither of these. Rather, senior managers use
intuition in at least five distinct ways. First, they intuitively sense when a
problem exists. Second, managers rely on intuition to perform well-learned
behavior patterns rapidly. This intuition is not arbitrary or irrational, but is
based on years of painstaking practice and hands-on experience that build
skills. A third function of intuition is to synthesize isolated bitsm of data
and practice into an integrated picture, often in an Aha! experience. Fourth,
some managers use intuition as a check on the results of more rational analysis.
Most senior executives are familiar with the formal decision analysis models and
tools, and those who use such systematic methods for reaching decisions are
occasionally leery of solutions suggested by these methods which run counter to
their sense of the correct course of action. Finally, managers can use intuition
to bypass in-depth analysis and move rapidly to engender a plausible solution.
Used in this way, intuition is an almost instantaneous cognitive process in
which a manager recognizes familiar patterns.One of the implications of the
intuitive style of executive management is that thinking is inseparable from
acting. Since managers often know what is right before they can analyze and
explain it, they frequently act first and explain later.Analysis is inextricably
tiedto actionin thinking/actingcycles,in which managers develop thoughtsabout
theircompanies and organizations not by analyzing aproblematic situation and
then acting, butby acting and analyzing in close concert.Given the great
uncertainty of many of the management issues that they face, seniormanagers
often instigatea course of action simply to learn more about an issue. They
thenuse the results of the action to develop a more complete understanding of
the issue. Oneimplicationof thinking/actingcycles is that action is often part
of definingthe problem,not just of implementing the solution.
1. According to the text, senior managers use intuition in all of the
following ways EXCEPT to
[A] Speed up of the creation of a solution to a problem.
[B] Identify a problem.
[C] Bring together disparate facts.
[D] Stipulate clear goals.
2. The text suggests which of the following about the writers on management
mentionedin line 1, paragraph 2
[A] They have criticized managers for not following the classical rational
model ofdecision analysis.
[B] They have not based their analyses on a sufficientlylarge sample of
actual managers.
[C] They have relied in drawing their conclusions on what managers say rather
than onwhat managers do.
[D] They have misunderstood how managers use intuition in making business
decisions.
3. It can be inferred from the text that which of the following would most
probablybe one major differencein behavior between Manager X, who uses
intuitionto reach decisions,and Manager Y, who uses only formal decision
analysis
[A] Manager X analyzes first and then acts; Manager Y does not.
[B] Manager X checks possiblesolutions toa problem by systematicanalysis ;
ManagerY does not.
[C] Manager X takes action in order to arrive at the solution to a problem;
ManagerY does not.
[D] Manager Y draws on years of hands-on experience in creatinga solutionto a
problem ;Manager X does not.
4. The text provides support for which of the following statements
[A] Managers who rely on intuition are more successful than those who rely on
formaldecision analysis.
[B] Managers cannot justify their intuitive decisions.
[C] Managers'' intuition works contrary to their rational and analytical
skills.
[D] Intuitionenables managers to employ theirpracticalexperience more
efficiently.
5. Which of the following best describes the organization of the first
paragraph of the text
[A] An assertion is made and a specific supporting example is given.
[B] A conventional model is dismissed and an alternative introduced.
[C] The results of recent research are introduced and summarized.
[D] Two opposing points of view are presented and evaluated.
