英国《金融时报》
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英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集（一）
英国《金融时报》 出品

©浙江出版集团数字传媒有限公司 2017
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目　录

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.1

《星球大战》首发周末刷新多项记录

颠覆黑色星期五 REI让员工带薪休假

亚马逊纳粹形象广告引争议

看广告才能用邮件？

苹果亚马逊在德被调查

夏普的自救：呼吁员工购买自家产品

百度拟联手中信推出在线银行

亚马逊帮初创企业做销售

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.2

百事取消赞助印度板球联赛

脱口秀女王高调投资轻体公司

获得谷歌近年首投的中企

亚马逊回击《纽约时报》

规则变化带来禧玛诺的春天？

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.3

“泡沫”减少的中国啤酒

电视剧的黄金时代还是过剩时代？

英国BT—电信大玩家？

Instagram每月活跃用户突破4亿大关

Oyster电子书订阅服务即将走入历史

印度的4G服务来了？

苹果商店遭遇恶意软件攻击

上调最低工资让酒吧倒闭？

苹果、谷歌、FB：对泛滥的在线广告说再见？

日元贬值让进口商处于困境

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.4

东芝发布延期财报:净亏378亿日元

P2P贷款的信用评级

麦当劳与汉堡王的“合家套餐”？

深圳高盛骗局

Uber在华“难行”

官方请求加快电子香烟药物许可审核

好莱坞UTA进军音乐领域

人人皆智者？

在中国“瘦身”的奥利奥

“不在办公室”留言指南

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.5

助力抢滩好莱坞

“少林CEO”释永信被传正在接受调查

Uber面对最后一个十亿人的市场？

好莱坞电影公司相对论申请破产保护

女星Jane Birkin要求爱马仕Birkin包改名？

百度财报令人失望，股价遭重挫

中国游客不再热衷东南亚？

苹果手表的未来？

罗森（Lawson）便利店眼中的日本商机

苹果三星与业界协商推出电子SIM卡

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.6

GoPro（户外运动相机）的流行与困境

中国式肥胖

泰勒·斯威夫特的版权费之争

谷歌与苹果：移动大战方兴未艾

全球经济复苏将有失速的风险

亚投行：大国博弈又一仗

中国与印度的“市盈率”

苹果：数字表冠的野心

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.7

被困在城市交通中的Uber

苹果：拦截广告？下架吧！

百胜：未必百胜

谷歌测试即时新闻发布，挑战苹果FB

争议：香港计划改造英殖民时代邮筒

百度拟联手中信推出在线银行

亚马逊帮初创企业做销售

Snapchat发力视频成社交黑马

Facebook联合媒体集团推新闻聚合应用

电商发展推动快递货车市场

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.8

被LED灯吸引的工业巨头

令人上瘾的动感单车健身俱乐部

澳大利亚为同性婚姻破冰？

《复联2》对于迪士尼意味着什么？

谁动了苹果投资者的“奶酪”？

印度穆斯林州的牛肉禁令

苹果公司年度发布大会

滴滴快的：“对手的对手即朋友”？

骑行上班没头盔？请再想想

YouTube为广告商“放大招”

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.9

电商发展推动快递货车市场

Facebook为员工推出“2G星期二”

百事取消赞助印度板球联赛

脱口秀女王高调投资轻体公司

获得谷歌近年首投的中企

假新闻带来的Twitter股价“历险记”

“危险”的生鱼片？

德约科维奇成功卫冕温网

安全气囊存有隐患 本田再召回450万辆车

英国银行税收新政

英国《金融时报》原文阅读精选集Vol.10

保险公司遇难题：无人驾驶汽车怎么破？

巴基斯坦：政府过滤内容YouTube终获解禁

全球海运市场：亚马逊中国来了

电影流媒体新联盟

Apple Music成绩单喜人

小表情 大生意

万达瞄准好莱坞

国产啤酒 “压力山大”

看电视out了？

苹果新规：大股东可提名董事

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.1

《星球大战》首发周末刷新多项记录

迪士尼公司出品的《星球大战：原力觉醒》17日晚7时起在北美4134家影院上映，成为好莱坞史上首部24小时内票房收入过亿的影片。凸显出三年前沃尔特·迪士尼公司(Walt Disney)斥资40亿美元购买该系列版权的原因。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

smash 粉碎[smæʃ]

gross 总收入[grəʊs]

royalty 版税['rɒɪəltɪ]

acquisition 收购[,ækwɪ'zɪʃ(ə)n]

marquee sports rights 室内体育赛事转播权

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分45秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分6秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分30秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分31秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Star Wars smashes US box office record（315 words）

By Matthew Garrahan in New York

Star Wars: The Force Awakens generated more than half a billion dollars in its opening weekend,smashing the box office record in the US and underscoring why Walt Disney paid $4bn for the rights to the series three years ago.

The film grossed $238m in the US,higher than the $208m mark set this year by Universal Studios' Jurassic World,and an additional $279m around the world.

It set records in markets including the UK,Germany,Australia and Russia. Global returns will climb further on January 9 when the film opens in China,the second-largest movie market after the US.

The Force Awakens is the first of six Star Wars films commissioned by Disney,which will use the characters created by George Lucas to drive consumer product sales and visits to its theme parks. Macquarie Securities estimates that The Force Awakens alone could generate $5bn in consumer product sales,with Disney earning $500m-$1bn in royalties.

The Force Awakens could lift total annual US box office returns past $11bn for the first time and power global takings above $40bn,according to Paul Dergarabedian,a senior analyst with Rentrak,which monitors box office performance.

The launch of the first Star Wars film in a decade comes amid concerns about the growth prospects of ESPN,Disney's sports cable network — and the main driver of the company's profits. Rich Greenfield,analyst with BTIG Research,cut his earnings estimates for 2017,warning that ESPN's profitability would “meaningfully underperform investor expectations”.

Disney's media networks division,which includes ESPN,generates more than 50 per cent of group operating income. However,ESPN has high,fixed costs based on its acquisition of marquee sports rights at a time of shifting viewing behaviour: the sports network lost an estimated 3m subscribers in the year to August,according to Nielsen,the research firm.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.When Walt Disney paid $4bn for the rights to the series?

A.2011

B.2013

C.2012

D.2014

答案解释：文章第一段：三年前沃尔特·迪士尼公司(Walt Disney)斥资40亿美元购买该系列版权。2012年10月，迪士尼以40.5亿美元的现金加股票，全资收购了拥有《星球大战》的卢卡斯影业，迪士尼同时获得了其公司名下的真人电影制作（包括《星球大战》《夺宝奇兵》等）、消费品、视频游戏、动画、视觉特效和音效后期。

2.How much did the film grossed in its opening weekend all over the world?

A.$208m

B.$517m

C.$238m

D.$279m

答案解释：该电影在美国共斩获2.38亿美元票房，在全球其他地区还收得2.79亿美元票房，全球约5.17亿美元。

3.How much will Disney get in royalties from The Force Awakens alone by Macquarie Securities' prediction?

A.$5bn

B.$500m-$1bn

C.$40bn

D.$11bn

答案解释：原文给出的是一个范围：麦格理证券(Macquarie Securities)估计，仅《原力觉醒》一部电影就能带来50亿美元的消费类产品销售额，其中迪斯尼赚取的版税将在5亿美元到10亿美元之间。

4.What is the main driver of Disney's profits?

A.ESPN

B.film distribution

C.Disney Park

D.acquisition of marquee sports rights

答案解释：体育电视网ESPN是迪斯尼盈利的主要来源，而对室内体育赛事转播权的收购，为ESPN带来了高昂的固定成本。

颠覆黑色星期五 REI让员工带薪休假

对零售商而言，年末的Black Friday是一年间规模最大、竞争最激烈的营业旺季。但有人质疑“让员工感恩节去上班真是可笑，让员工丢掉家人就为了某人能买一个便宜的电视机？”这不，说好的年底大甩卖，REI却给员工偷偷放了假。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

utter 彻底的

canny 精明的

fatigue 疲劳

follow suit 照做

frenetic 狂热的

margin 利润率

cannibalise 分流

petition 请愿书

almighty 万能的

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分17秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

3分12秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分42秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分18秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

TV ads to be ‘retargeted' on to smartphones（780words）

By Shannon Bond in New York

The idea of shutting up shop on the biggest day of the American retail calendar — Black Friday — is considered by most stores to be utter madness.

But that is exactly what REI,the privately held outdoor sports chain,will do on Friday,when it is giving its staff a paid day off,encouraging them to spend it outside.

The decision has been greeted in part as a canny marketing move. The media coverage generated by REI's novel move has allowed the consumers' co-operative to spread its brand far beyond its core “hardy outdoor” target market.

“The company timed it perfectly — announcing it at the end of October,ahead of anyone else's Thanksgiving/Black Friday news,” says Michelle Grant,head of retail at Euromonitor.

But REI's decision to close has also highlighted signs of consumer fatigue emerging both in the US and UK.

The four-day Thanksgiving weekend generates roughly $50bn in revenues each year,according to the National Retailers Federation,but those sales have been falling for the past two years.

For now,bigger retailers have not dared follow suit. General retailers such as Walmart spend all year preparing for the unofficial start of the holiday season,when aisles are often packed with frenzied shoppers,some of whom have in the past resorted to violence to secure bargains for,say,a high definition television.

Store openings on Thanksgiving Day itself and the increasingly early start to promotions — Walmart and Target started theirs on November 1 — are making consumers question whether it is worth scrapping with fellow bargain hunters to get that TV much cheaper,when it might be possible to buy it for a similar price in a less frenetic environment a few days earlier or later,analysts say. And the shift to online is only intensifying.

“Black Friday should remain a key driver of holiday season sales……That said,in light of the heightened promo environment and deep discounts already seen in stores,the day will continue to decrease in overall significance,as the ever-present discounts cause sales to become more dispersed across the season,” says Randal Konik,an analyst at Jefferies.

A relatively new concept in the UK,Black Friday promotions hurt margins and cannibalised December sales last year,prompting many retailers to slam on the brakes this year.

Chaotic scenes of shoppers competing for bargains last year went viral on social media and has prompted Walmart-owned Asda to say it will not participate in the event this year. The retailer said of its decision that “customers have told us loud and clear that they don't want to be held hostage to a day or two of sales”. Other UK stores have said they too plan to shun or scale back Black Friday promotions.

Still,Visa Europe estimates that Britons will increase spending on Black Friday to £1.9bn this year from £1.75bn,as knowledge of the sales spreads.

In the US,nearly 50,000 people have signed a petition to urge JC Penney to keep its doors closed on Thanksgiving and allow its staff a chance to enjoy the holiday with their family.

Retailers from Walmart to Target to Macy's are all pressing on with another year opening on Thanksgiving Day itself,as well as the traditional Black Friday.

Others,such as Staples,Nordstrom,Costco and TJX,are among stores that will not open on Thanksgiving Day. This decision has garnered much support from consumers. At the bottom of a site displaying a list of companies staying shut on the national holiday,Jackie Bowman-Helton wrote that she refuses to shop at stores that open on Thanksgiving,while Lisa Kahn wrote this day “shouldn't be about the almighty dollar!”

California State Parks and Save the Redwoods are offering free passes in many of its parks in an effort to create a new uncommercial tradition on Black Friday. So many people have signed up for them that 25 of its parks are already at full capacity on November 27.

The small but perceptible shift away from Black Friday mania comes as many retailers have experienced slow third-quarter sales,leaving them with high inventories pushing into the holiday season.

Michael Silverstein,senior partner at the Boston Consulting Group,is pessimistic about the shopping season as a whole this year. The consultancy's annual survey of more than 10,000 consumers suggests it is lower income millennials who will dominate the Black Friday sales. He says that many plan to stick to a shopping list rather than be lured into making impulsive purchases.

Black Friday is a “very bad disease for retail” and he adds: “That big sucking sound you can hear is margins going out the window.”

With additional reporting by Aliya Ram in London

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What does the REI mainly sell?

A.outdoor products

B.school supplies

C.toys

D.furniture

答案解释：REI是做户外用品的。

2.Where is REI's core target market?

A.hardy indoor

B.education market

C.hardy outdoor

D.Millennium generation

答案解释：文章第三段。

3.What did Walmart and Target do for the holiday season?

A.more luxuries

B.extended warranty period

C.recruited part-time staff

D.start earlier

答案解释：塔吉特和沃尔玛在十一月一号便开始了活动。

4.What is California State Parks and Save the Redwoods' plan on Black Friday?

A.free opening part of the parks

B.raise ticket prices

C.organize Carnivals

D.send special gifts

答案解释：这些公园打算开放一些免费通道让这个购物节日显得不那么商业化。

亚马逊纳粹形象广告引争议

反响极差的宣传举措对营销人员和杂志设计者来说是个很大的教训。不过它们也反映了电视产业激烈的眼球争夺战：在线流媒体企业和传统电视台都在寻找风险更高的节目创意，并更激进地推销这些节目。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

Guardian 《卫报》

imagery 意象

distinctive 独特的

inbuilt 嵌入的

featured 精选的

guerrilla 游击队

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分54秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分52秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分45秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分58秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Amazon's Nazi-style advertising gimmick backfires in New York（580words）

By Henry Mance in London and Shannon Bond in New York

It must have seemed like a good idea to somebody.

Amazon has come under fire after plastering Nazi-type imagery over a subway train in New York.

It was the second mis-step in the marketing for The Man in the High Castle,Amazon's big budget drama,which imagines the world if the Axis powers had won the second world war.

A fortnight ago,The Guardian newspaper in the UK had to pulp 300,000 of copies of its listings magazine,The Guide,after senior editors realised too late that a cover image about the show,headlined “The Reich Stuff”,could be offensive.

The badly received publicity moves are a lesson to marketers and magazine designers. But they also illustrate the intense battle for audience eyeballs in the television industry: with streaming companies and traditional broadcasters looking for riskier programming ideas and marketing them more aggressively.

“You have to do more,and be more distinctive,to stand out,” says Dan Brooke,marketing director at Channel 4.In the US,streaming service Hulu has pledged to boost spending by 70 per cent this year to promote its own original shows,such as The Mindy Project.

Amazon and Netflix,which are seeking to define their creative ambition,start at a disadvantage because they do not have traditional TV channels. By contrast,the BBC does little promotion for its programming in the UK,relying instead on cross-promotion from its various outlets,which include the country's most popular TV channel,radio station and news website.

“A good old,linear schedule” allows broadcasters to rely on a certain inbuilt audience,says Tim Westcott,an analyst at IHS. Unlike Netflix,Amazon at least has a retail website,where A Man in the High Castle has been extensively featured,he adds.

Even those companies with existing TV channels are having to work harder to establish their reputation for drama. UK pay-TV broadcaster Sky promoted Fortitude,a £25m Arctic thriller that was its most expensive drama to date,by placing an 8ft model of a polar bear at various London landmarks.

Channel 4's Humans,a drama about artificial intelligence,was preceded by an extended hoax,including an eBay page and a store in Regent Street,London,that both purported to sell robots.

“Fifteen years ago people would just turn up[to watch shows],” says Mr Brooke. “Now you have to go out and reach them more.”

But the shift to more innovative marketing,which cannot be turned off like a TV or YouTube advert,requires a particular duty of care,says Tim Duffy,UK chair of M & C Saatchi,the advertising agency. “There was a duty on[Amazon]to make clear the premise” of the Nazi imagery.

Poor marketing decisions are not unique to the streaming era. In 2007,a would-be guerrilla advertising campaign for a movie based on Cartoon Network's animated series Aqua Teen Hunger Force sparked a terror scare in Boston. LED panels bearing the likeness of two characters were mistakenly identified as bombs,leading to a citywide security response.

The head of Cartoon Network resigned over the incident,and Turner,the channel's parent company,agreed to pay the Boston police and the US Department of Homeland Security $2m to pay for the costs of the incident.

Amazon is removing its campaign from the New York subway,but the publicity is unlikely to have been entirely unwelcome. Next year it launches Jeremy Clarkson's new motoring show; the boundaries of taste may soon be pushed again.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which one was pulped a fortnight ago because of the offensive headline?

A.The Guardian

B.The Guide

C.Netflix

D.Hulu

答案解释：两周前，《卫报》(Guardian)曾被迫将30万份旗下娱乐指南杂志《the Guide》回收。

2.Who has pledged to boost spending by 70 per cent this year to promote its own original shows?

A.Netflix

B.Netflix

C.Hulu

D.Channel 4

答案解释：在美国，流媒体服务网站Hulu已承诺要在今年增加70%的开支，用于推销《明迪烦事多》(The Mindy Project)等原创剧集。

3.What is the weakness of Amazon,comparing with the BBC?

A.lack of traditional TV channels

B.so few viewers

C.over reliance on cross-promotion

D.lack of originality

答案解释：亚马逊和Netflix都试图勾勒其在创意上的宏伟蓝图，两者的劣势都在于它们没有传统电视传播渠道。

4.Which one is the Sky's most expensive drama to date?

A.The Mindy Project

B.Humans

C.Fortitude

D.The Reich Stuff

答案解释：《雪镇疑杀》是一部2500万英镑制作的讲述北极圈内故事的惊悚电视剧，是该台迄今投资最大的电视剧。

看广告才能用邮件？

雅虎旗下的Yahoo Mail似乎对浏览器装有广告阻挡外挂的用户们不怎么友善，国外网站Digiday揭露，有网友至Adblock Plus官方论坛反应，装有屏蔽广告外挂的设备近日却无法正常开启Yahoo Mail，会先跳出建议停用外挂的提示。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

employ 采用

PageFair 帮广告商绕过屏蔽软件的公司

alienate 疏远

blur 使模糊

mitigate 减缓

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分21秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分0秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分8秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Yahoo testing system to lock out users who employ adblockers（450words）

By Hannah Kuchler in San Francisco,Henry Mance in London and Shannon Bond in New York.

Yahoo is testing a way to fight back against people who employ adblockers,denying users access to their email if they refuse to disable a tool that damages the technology company's ability to sell advertising.

The Silicon Valley group is running a small trial with Yahoo Mail users in the US,showing them a notice when they try to log in to their inboxes that reads: “Uh oh……We are unable to display Yahoo Mail. Please disable Ad Blocker to continue using Yahoo Mail.”

There is no technical reason why the email cannot be displayed. The company is trying to protect its advertising revenue by ensuring people who use its free products can be marketed to — something that using an adblocker prevents.

Yahoo said it was “continually developing and testing new product experiences” and would not comment on whether the company was considering a similar approach with its other properties,such as its digital magazines or apps such as Yahoo Weather.

More than 200m people use adblocking software worldwide,double the number two years ago,according to data from PageFair and Adobe. Estimates of how much damage adblocking could inflict on the industry vary. PageFair and Adobe said it could cost $22bn in 2015 alone,while analysts at UBS said it would cost $1bn.

Digital media companies have been searching for ways to protect their ad revenue without completely alienating adblocking audiences.

European broadcaster RTL,which has failed in legal challenges against adblockers,has implemented a system in the Netherlands under which adblocking users can stream television programmes only in black and white.

Axel Springer's Bild,the German tabloid and Europe's best-selling newspaper,has prevented adblocking users from viewing its website unless they pay a €2.99 per month subscription,leading many to switch off the software.

CityAM,a UK business newspaper,is also trialling blurring web pages for Firefox desktop users who have adblockers installed. It said it had seen no rise in the proportion of users leaving the site within one click — suggesting that adblocking users were likely to only visit one webpage anyway.

US media companies are also pushing back against blocking. The Washington Post ran a short experiment in September,asking readers to turn off adblocking software in order to read its articles or encouraging them to subscribe.

Hulu,the streaming video service,disables the ability to watch episodes of some shows when an adblocker is enabled.

On the New York Times's recent third-quarter earnings call,Mark Thompson,chief executive,said the newspaper had yet to see a big impact from blocking,but added: “We are exploring a number of options,including,but not limited to,technical solutions to mitigate the impact of adblockers should the threat increase.”

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What kind of business is damaged by adblockers?

A.lending

B.advertising

C.registering

D.searching

答案解释：插件对于雅虎的广告业务是一种打击。

2.How much is that to use Yahoo Mail?

A.free in the first year

B.5 dollars

C.free

D.depends on regions

答案解释：文章第三段，因为这是雅虎免费的产品所以广告收入尤为重要。

3.Who had estimated the value damaged by adblocking will up to $1bn?

A.UBS

B.PageFair

C.Adobe

D.Eyeo

答案解释：PageFair和Adobe发布的一份报告称，广告拦截软件在今年将造成全广告行业近220亿美元的损失，尽管UBS给出的数据是10亿。

4.Who can stream television programmes only in black and white while employing adblockers?

A.American

B.Netherlander

C.British

D.German

答案解释：文章后6段描述了荷兰、英国、美国等媒体运营商在打击adblockers使用方面的措施。

苹果亚马逊在德被调查

德国反垄断机构“联邦卡特尔局”(Federal Cartel Authority)表示，已经针对苹果公司和亚马逊的有声图书经销协议展开反垄断调查。二者是电子书出版市场最大的两家竞争对手，目前，德国已经成为了全球最大的有声读物市场。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

antitrust 反垄断

exclusive 独家的

subsidiary 子公司

oblige 迫使做

monopoly 垄断

distributor 批发商

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分27秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分29秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分46秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分37秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apple and Amazon in German investigation over audiobooks（374words）

By Henry Mance in London and Tim Bradshaw in San Francisco

German antitrust authorities are investigating Amazon and Apple for an agreement about selling audiobooks,targeting two companies that usually find themselves on opposing sides of competition battles.

Amazon,through its subsidiary Audible,is the exclusive provider of audiobooks to Apple's iTunes store in Germany. Together the two companies account for about 90 per cent of audiobooks sold in the country,according to industry estimates.

“Both companies hold a strong position in the market for digital audiobooks in Germany,” said Andreas Mundt,president of the Federal Cartel Office. “We therefore see ourselves obliged to examine more closely the agreement between these two competitors.”

The Federal Cartel Office opened the investigation after receiving a complaint from the German Publishers and Booksellers Association,which alleged Apple and Amazon were “on the way to establishing a monopoly”.

The complaint,made public in September,has also been sent to the European Commission,which is investigating separate allegations of market abuse by Amazon in the ebooks sector.

The publishing industry has seen several competition investigations,as Amazon,Apple and other companies battle for sales in the digital market.

Apple and Amazon are typically publishing competitors,and have found themselves on opposing sides of investigations.

In the US,Apple lost an appeal this summer against an antitrust verdict that found it conspired with publishers to raise ebook prices in its iBooks store,in a partnership aimed squarely against Amazon's Kindle ebook reader.

Earlier this year,the European Commission began an investigation into Apple's deals with the music industry,as it prepared to launch a new subscription streaming service based on its $3bn acquisition of Beats last year. However,Europe's antitrust investigators have not found evidence of wrongdoing.

German consumers are among the world's biggest buyers of audiobooks,in a global market estimated to be worth around $2.5bn a year. In March,Rakuten,the Japanese ecommerce group whose Kobo ereader competes with Kindle and iBooks,paid $410m to acquire Overdrive,a US-based distributor of ebooks and audiobooks. Amazon bought Audible for $300m in 2008. Audible became the exclusive provider of spoken word content on iTunes in the US in 2003,and subsequently in Germany,France and the UK in 2004.

Apple and Amazon did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who can provide audiobooks for Apple's iTunes store in Germany?

A.Audible

B.Ting85

C.Calico

D.Koolearn

答案解释：苹果与亚马逊子公司Audible.com签署了长期的有声图书经销协议，即在苹果iTunes商店内出售的有声图书要通过Audible.com来销售。

2.Why the FCO opened the investigation?

A.daily routine

B.policy required

C.received a complaint

D.drumbeating method

答案解释：德国反垄断机构联邦卡特尔局是在收到了德国图书出版商和销售协会（German Publishers and Booksellers Association）的投诉后决定对此展开正式调查的。

3.Where is investigated by European Commission in Amazon's business layout?

A.music sector

B.cloud service

C.apps sector

D.ebooks sector

答案解释：欧盟委员会目前还在就亚马逊电子书经销协议的问题展开独立反垄断调查。

4.Where did Apple lose the appeal this summer against an antitrust verdict?

A.Germany

B.America

C.France

D.Britain

答案解释：美国第二上诉巡回法庭在今年夏天刚刚裁定，苹果公司与五家出版商合谋抬高电子书价格的罪名成立。

夏普的自救：呼吁员工购买自家产品

夏普呼吁，自本月20日起至明年1月29日为止，董事与高阶主管每人向公司购买价值20万日圆的液晶电视机、冰箱、洗衣机及其他家电，中阶主管每人负责10万日圆，而一般员工每人5万日圆。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

electronics 数码产品

tactics 战术

epitomises 缩影

subsidy 补贴

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分53秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分44秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分57秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分41秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Sharp tells workers to buy company goods（411words）

By Robin Harding in Tokyo

First it cut wages but Sharp has a new demand for long-suffering employees: the struggling electronics group has set them targets to buy company goods.

By the end of January,executives are to buy Y200,000（$1,622）of Sharp products,middle management Y100,000（$811）and front line staff Y50,000（$405）worth of televisions,washing machines or other gadgets.

The unusual tactics testify to the extent of Sharp's troubles as it tries to restructure fast enough to overcome the losses of its liquid crystal display business and stay afloat.

Other Japanese electronics companies have sometimes resorted to paying staff bonuses in kind,or pushing them to buy company goods,but usually only in the depths of an economic downturn.

The scheme was first reported by the Yomiuri newspaper. Sharp confirmed the purchase goals but insisted they were voluntary and said it often ran internal sales promotions.Yoshisuke Hasegawa,head of the electronics division,wrote a message to staff asking them to help “weather this extreme difficulty” by participating in a special staff sale. After years of struggle,Sharp has fallen into a renewed crisis with a net loss of Y83.6bn in the first half of this year,due to the plunging price of LCD panels for smartphones.

In many ways,Sharp epitomises the fate of Japan's consumer electronics industry. It helped invent LCDs and solar panels but both products have become commodities dominated by low-cost Chinese and Taiwanese rivals.

The company is cutting thousands of jobs. It has pulled out of the North American television market and sold Y225bn of preference shares to its lending banks in June to shore up the balance sheet.

But the losses mean Sharp is still in a fragile position,with just Y181bn of equity supporting a Y1,787bn balance sheet.

Staff are meant to place orders via a special internal website and will get a subsidy of 2 per cent towards the purchase price.

The average pre-tax income for Sharp's 17,500 employees is Y600,000 a month so it is asking them for a large chunk of December's pay. Sharp's union declined to comment.

Sharp sells a wide range of electronics and white goods in Japan,but the purchase targets will still be a tall order for staff whose homes are already full of company products.

Rank and file employees might get away with a new refrigerator but to meet their quotas,executives would need to buy a top-of-the-line 80-inch LCD television and supplement it with a washing machine.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What did Sharp do for workers before as mentioned?

A.cut wages and jobs

B.sell shares

C.excessive overtime

D.canceled the insurance

答案解释：之前为走出困境，公司就采取减薪和裁员措施。

2.What kind of business has very serious losses?

A.solar panels

B.panel computer

C.liquid crystal display

D.3D printing machines

答案解释：夏普正试图尽快重整，好走出液晶面板事业不断亏损的阴霾，并继续在业界存活下去。

3.What material prices plummeted led to a loss in the first half of2015?

A.LCD panels for smartwatches

B.solar panels for smartphones

C.CMOS chip

D.LCD panels for smartphones

答案解释：因智能手机用液晶荧幕价格大跌，导致夏普本会计年度上半年（3-9月）净损836亿日圆。

4.Where has been pulled out of by Sharp about television?

A.South American

B.North American

C.South American

D.Taiwan

答案解释：夏普已退出北美电视机市场，且于6月将2,250亿日圆特别股卖给债权银行，以整顿资产负债表。

百度拟联手中信推出在线银行

BAT金融战在即，各家何去何从？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

conglomerate 集团，大企业

affiliate 使隶属于

pilot 试点

sought 探寻

downplay 淡化

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分55秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分45秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分58秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分41秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Baidu in Citic Bank tie-up despite doubts over online bank model（414words）

By Gabriel Wildau in Shanghai

Chinese internet search group Baidu will partner with Citic Bank to launch an online bank,local media reported,even as banks launched by Alibaba and Tencent have failed to meet expectations.

Internet companies have shaken up China's financial sector in recent years,with mobile payments,wealth management and peer-to-peer lending the biggest growth areas.

China Citic Bank,part of state-owned conglomerate Citic Group,suspended its shares in Shanghai and Hong Kong on Monday pending announcement of a “proposed external investment”. Baidu declined to comment on the report by 21st Century Business Herald,but said it would make an announcement tomorrow.

In January,Tencent launched the country's first online-only bank,WeBank,named for the gaming and social media company's s popular WeChat instant messaging app. The financial affiliate of Alibaba Group,Ant Financial,followed with its own — MyBank — in June.

China's banking regulator granted bank licenses to Tencent and Ant Financial as part of a pilot programme to encourage privately owned banks. In a sign of the government's hope that private banks can help channel finance to small,private companies,Chinese premier Li Keqiang attended WeBank's launch ceremony. China's nine largest banks are all state-owned and favour lending to large,state-owned groups.

But WeBank's maiden year has been rocky. Bank president Cao Tong resigned in September,and vice president Zheng Xinlin,who handled interbank business,also recently resigned,the bank confirmed on Tuesday. WeBank has also sought to downplay expansion expectations.

“We don't think of ourselves as running a traditional bank. WeBank is an internet platform through and through,but one with a banking licence,” Gu Min,chairman,said last month.

WeBank has granted Rmb4bn（$627m）in consumer loans,of which Rmb2bn are currently outstanding,said the bank. MyBank had granted Rmb3bn in loans to 180,000 small companies in its four months,executives said at a press conference in October,without specifying the amount outstanding.

A key issue for online lenders is whether they can accept deposits under Chinese banking rules that require customers to present identification in person at a bank branch in order to open an account. In September,China Merchants Bank,China's sixth-largest lender,ended an arrangement that allowed its clients to open WeBank accounts.

Last March Citic announced plans to issue “virtual” credit cards in partnership with Alibaba and Tencent that would allow users to pay by scanning QR codes,but the central bank halted the initiative days later.

Citic did not reply to requests for comment on Tuesday.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which one is not mentioned as the biggest growth area for China's financial sector?

A.mobile payments

B.wealth management

C.insurance Finance

D.peer-to-peer lending

答案解释：互联网公司近年撼动了中国金融业，移动支付、理财以及个人对个人贷款成为最大的增长领域。

2.What did China Citic Bank do on Monday?

A.announced its Listing Agreement

B.dividend in specie

C.suspended its shares

D.offered for subscription

答案解释：中信银行宣布其在上海和香港上市的股票停牌，等待宣布一项“拟议的外部投资”。

3.Who launched China's first online-only bank?

A.Baidu

B.Alibaba

C.Tencent

D.Google

答案解释：腾讯发起成立了中国首家在线银行微众银行(WeBank)。

4.What is the key issue for online lenders when open an account?

A.line of credit

B.identity verification

C.problem of sign and seal

D.deposit period

答案解释：在线银行面临的一个关键问题是，他们是否能根据中国银行业的规定接收存款，这些规定要求客户开设账户时必须亲自到银行网点出示身份证件。

亚马逊帮初创企业做销售

亚马逊本周将在英国为初创企业启动网售平台，为新兴技术公司扩大客户群提供新的渠道。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

dedicated 专用的

start-up 初创企业

inventory 库存

undeclared 未申报的

run-up 助力

regime 政权

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分47秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分41秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分55秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分40秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Amazon launches online platform to tap into UK start-up scene（403words）

By Murad Ahmed in London

Amazon will this week launch an online platform for British start-ups to sell and market their products,providing a new shop window for small tech companies attempting to reach a wider range of consumers.

The retailer said Launchpad,which it started in the US in July,would partner venture capital groups including Andreessen Horowitz and crowdfunding platforms such as Crowdcube,to discover fledgling tech groups.

The world's largest online retailer said it would promote their products on a dedicated part of the Amazon UK website,providing marketing support,manage inventory and help distribute products through its delivery network — while taking an undeclared cut of the start-ups' sales.

Christopher North,managing director of Amazon.co.uk,said the move was an effort to help small companies in the run-up to Christmas,while displaying products that would otherwise be missed by its millions of consumers.

“We know from talking to start-ups that bringing a new product to market can be just as challenging as building it,” he said. “Amazon Launchpad gives start-ups support……so they can focus on inventing on behalf of customers.”

But the initiative may also be an effort to show that the company is more supportive of the UK business,after it has previously come under fire from British authorities for its low tax regime. In a response to the controversy,the company began paying tax on sales to its UK customers in Britain in May rather than through Luxembourg.

Among the products that will be available on the site are the Kano children's computer kit,the Wileyfox 4G smartphone and iKettle,a WiFi-enabled kettle.

Many of the products chosen for the site will have raised money on crowdfunding websites,such as Kickstarter and Indiegogo. These sites have a dedicated audience,with millions willing to pay for products at a conceptual stage before they are manufactured,helping to provide the early capital to get ideas off the ground. But such sites cannot provide the size of Amazon's customer base,which these groups need to reach as they become mass market.

Amazon is rapidly expanding its operations in the UK. In 2016,it will move to new offices in east London,near the growing cluster of start-ups in the British capital,providing space for more than 5,000 employees. The company already employs about 8,000 staff in the country,though the majority work in its “fulfilment centres” — enormous warehouses where it stores goods and fills orders.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What kind of companies could be Amazon's target customer?

A.small tech companies

B.transnational enterprises

C.quoted tech companies

D.small media companies

答案解释：亚马逊在英国为初创企业启动网售平台，为新兴技术公司扩大客户群提供新的渠道。

2.Where was Launchpad launched in July?

A.Britain

B.America

C.France

D.Canada

答案解释：亚马逊曾于7月份在美国推出的网购平台Launchpad。

3.Which service is not provided now?

A.marketing support

B.manage inventory

C.distribute products

D.after-sale issue

答案解释：亚马逊表示，将在亚马逊英国官方网站开辟专门页面，为他们提供市场推广、库存管理、商品送递服务。

4.Who criticized Amazon for its low tax regime previously?

A.UK customers

B.British authorities

C.Luxembourg

D.British tech companies

答案解释：之前亚马逊曾因税务安排受到英国主管部门的批评。

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.2

百事取消赞助印度板球联赛

据统计，印度12亿人口中有7亿半人一年至少打4次板球，85%的人会关注板球赛事，其中就包括印度最大的联赛——印度超级板球联赛IPL。百事公司近日宣布退出赞助IPL的协议，放弃这个利润丰厚、却为丑闻缠身的年度盛事。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

sponsorship 赞助

cricket 板球

lucrative 合算的

razzmatazz 精力

showbiz 演艺圈

auction 拍卖

franchises 特许经营权

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分12秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分52秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分0秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Pepsi drops sponsorship of scandal-hit Indian cricket league（605words）

By James Crabtree in Mumbai

PepsiCo has pulled out of a Rs4bn（$62m）sponsorship deal with the Indian Premier League cricket tournament,dealing a further blow to the lucrative but scandal-plagued annual event.

The US-based beverage group signed a five-year title sponsorship arrangement in 2012,but formally ended its association with the event on Sunday after just three seasons.

The Board Of Control For Cricket In India,the sport's governing body and the IPL's owners,said Chinese phonemaker Vivo Electronics would become the IPL's title sponsor for the two remaining seasons of Pepsi's contract.

Neither the BCCI nor PepsiCo commented on the reason for the termination. The BCCI also gave no details of the financial deal struck with Vivo,although in a statement it said the Chinese company would provide a bank guarantee for payment in the “next 10 days”.

However,reports earlier this month in the Indian Express newspaper suggested that PepsiCo had sent a termination notice to the BCCI citing issues relating to the governance of the IPL. The US group declined to comment on the document.

“Losing a global company like Pepsi is obviously a blow,” said Ayaz Memon,a Mumbai-based cricket writer and commentator. “They seem to have become fed up with these governance problems,and decided it wasn't worth the reputation problems.”

Since launching in 2009,the IPL has attracted huge audiences with its television-friendly shorter cricket format and showbiz razzmatazz,in turn convincing companies such as PepsiCo and UK-based telecommunications group Vodafone to sign up as sponsors as a means to connect with India's sports-mad public.

But despite its financial successes,the event has also been hit by repeated management bust-ups and corruption allegations. Most seriously a handful of players and administrators were caught up in a betting and match-fixing scandal in 2013.

PepsiCo's pullout is the latest aftershock of that scandal,which ultimately saw two of the tournament's eight teams suspended in July,following an investigation led by a former Indian Supreme Court judge.

On Sunday,the BCCI confirmed that it planned to hold an auction to create temporary teams to replace the banned franchises for the next two years.

In a statement,Vipul Prakash,a vice-president at PepsiCo in India,said that the group's termination decision had been “mutually agreed” with the BCCI. “We will continue to associate with sports and cricket as a platform to connect with our consumers,” he said.

Vivo Electronics,which is relatively minor player in India's fast-growing smartphone market,could not be reached for comment.

However,the Chinese group's decision to become a sponsor makes it the latest in a line of mobile and e-commerce groups to sign up with the IPL as they seek to build brand awareness in India.

Online retailers such as India's Flipkart and US-based Amazon advertised heavily during the most recent season,which ended in May. Indian mobile commerce company Paytm,which is backed by China's Alibaba,has also been exploring potential sponsorship deals with the BCCI.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How long is the contract effective for Pepsi and Indian cricket league originally?

A.3years

B.2years

C.5years

D.1years

答案解释：这家美国饮料公司在2012年签订了5年的有效合同。

2.Who will become the IPL's title sponsor for the next season of Pepsi's contract?

A.Walmart

B.Vivo Electronics

C.AT&T

D.Xiaomi

答案解释：中国手机制作商Vivo将接替百事可乐为之后的两个赛季提供赞助。

3.What is the reason for the termination by PepsiCo?

A.scandal-plagued

B.fund shortage

C.policy changes

D.not disclosed

答案解释：BCCI 和PepsiCo两方面都没有解释终止合同的原因，因没有透露更多的细节。

4.Who has been exploring potential sponsorship deals with the BCCI?

A.Flipkart

B.Amazon

C.Paytm

D.Coca Cola

答案解释：阿里巴巴支持的Paytm也在寻求可能的合作关系。

脱口秀女王高调投资轻体公司

美国脱口秀女王Oprah Winfrey 19日买进全球最大的轻体连锁之一慧俪轻体（Weight Watchers）10% 的股份，同时高调宣布加入该公司董事会。引来公众争相购买该公司的股票，股价由6.79美元升到13.92美元，令奥普拉一日内大赚4500万美元（折合人民币2.8亿元）。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

wholesomeness 健康

ingredients 要素

nourishment 营养

clout 影响力

reinvigorate 振兴

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分12秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分52秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分0秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Weight Watchers shares surge after Oprah Winfrey buys 10% stake（605words）

By Lindsay Whipp in Chicago

Oprah Winfrey has taken a 10 per cent stake in Weight Watchers,more than doubling the dieting service group's market value in a day amid expectations that the former queen of American daytime television will help revive earnings from a 15-year low.

Ms Winfrey,who has been frank about her struggles with weight loss,bought newly issued shares representing 10 per cent of the group's outstanding stock at $6.79 apiece,for $43.2m. The shares closed up $7.13 or 105 per cent at $13.92.

The surge in the shares erased much of their decline over the past year and more than doubled the value of Ms Winfrey's stake. She also received options to acquire an additional 5 per cent.

Weight Watchers has struggled with a fundamental shift in the way people tackle weight loss,with an increasing focus on wholesomeness and natural ingredients,amid a growing perception that diets lack nourishment. It is a change that has pushed Weight Watchers' sales to a five-year low and net income to the lowest in at least 15 years,and has forced companies such as Nestlé to rethink its Lean Cuisine frozen food brand as revenues decline.

“We are expanding our purpose from focusing on weight loss alone to more broadly helping people lead a healthier,happier life,” said chief executive Jim Chambers.

Those interested in health and wellness are also increasingly turning to apps such as Nike's RunKeeper,My Fitness Pal and Lose It to guide them. Weight Watchers also has its own apps,which Ms Winfrey has started using for the first time along with a company personal coach.

“Weight Watchers has given me the tools to begin to make the lasting shift that I and so many of us who are struggling with weight have longed for,” Ms Winfrey said.

Weight Watchers has not been short of celebrity endorsers,which have included Jennifer Hudson,the 2007 Oscar winner,who lost 80 pounds and appeared on Ms Winfrey's eponymous TV show in 2011 to discuss her experience.* The company has also featured singer Jessica Simpson.

But Weight Watchers is betting that the considerable clout that Ms Winfrey,who has an estimated net worth of $3bn,will bring to the company will reinvigorate it. Her daytime TV show would haul in ratings of around 13m at its peak,and although she abdicated her throne in 2011,she is still very much in the public eye,as a media mogul,actress,producer and philanthropist.

She will join Weight Watchers' board and act as an adviser,adding her perspective to the programme and its content. The company also said it planned to feature Ms Winfrey in its marketing.

She described her decades-long battle with weight loss,detailing how she received in 1988 the highest ratings for her show at the time after losing 67lb and wheeling in a wagon of fat on stage. However,her weight continued to fluctuate radically after that and she was diagnosed with hypothyroidism.

“With all the other things that I know how to do and all the other things that I'm so great at and all the other accomplishments,I can't believe I'm still talking about weight,” she said in a 2009 interview in her own magazine.

Weight Watchers was founded in a New York basement in 1963,was acquired by Heinz in 1978 and subsequently bought by Dutch group Artal in a leveraged buyout in 1999. It was listed in 2001.

Additional reporting by Richard Blackden and Mackenzie Weinger

* The article has been amended to correct the name of the celebrity who appeared on Ms Winfrey's show to Jennifer Hudson

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What I the attitude of Oprah about her struggles with weight loss?

A.forthright

B.hidden

C.disgusting

D.unclear

答案解释：文章第二段，她的态度一直是坦诚的。

2.What is the purpose of chief executive Jim Chambers?

A.to help people lose weight

B.to help people grow taller

C.to make people healthier

D.to help people design clothes

答案解释：Jim的目标不仅是帮助人们减重，还有使他们过上更加快乐、健康的生活。

3.What's her position in the Weight Watchers?

A.hostess

B.public relations staff

C.sales manager

D.adviser

答案解释：奥普拉加入董事会并扮演建议者的角色，为公司项目和内容提出建议。不过公司也表示考虑到她的影响力，或许会让她参与市场部分。

4.What is wrong with Winfrey after 1988?

A.suffering from malaria

B.suffering from hypothyroidism

C.suffering from labyrinthitis

D.suffering from anaphylaxis

答案解释：奥普拉曾被确诊为甲状腺功能减退（简称甲减），导致机体代谢降低。

获得谷歌近年首投的中企

自2010年基本退出中国大陆市场后，谷歌在国内的活动越来越少。近日国内一家人工智能初创公司出门问问（Mobvoi）宣布，获得谷歌投资的C轮融资，累计融资7500万美金 。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

empower 授权

disclose 披露

Sequoia Capital 红杉资本

censored 受审查的

vice-president 副总裁

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分17秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分5秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分55秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分1秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Google takes stake in Chinese voice recognition start-up Mobvoi（613words）

By Henny Sender in Singapore

Google has taken a significant minority stake in Mobvoi,a Beijing-based start-up that has developed Chinese-language voice recognition and search technology for mobile devices.

The investment underscores how rapidly Chinese entrepreneurs are developing new technologies for the domestic market and comes as the Silicon Valley group continues to look for ways to rebuild its internet services offering in the country.

“The new funding by Google will enable the company to further enhance its core artificial intelligence technologies,and develop new consumer products empowered by[artificial intelligence],and explore robotics technologies,” Mobvoi said.

Earlier this year,the two companies signed a strategic partnership agreement,with Mobvoi providing search and speech recognition for Android Wear,Google's smartwatches.

The companies did not disclose the value or the size of the investment,but people familiar with the matter said it was between 10 and 20 per cent.

Voice recognition applications are among the hottest areas for tech groups on both sides of the Pacific. In the past,the flow was almost entirely one way from the US to China but the relationship has evolved.

Li Zhifei,Mobvoi's founder and chief executive,received his PhD in speech recognition and natural language processing in the US and worked at Google before returning to China in 2012 to start his own company.

“Without Johns Hopkins University and my two years at Google,I could never have gotten funding so easily,” said Mr Li. “Now,though,a real ecosystem is emerging in China with a market and investors and scale.”

Neil Shen,founder of the Chinese arm of Sequoia Capital,the venture capital firm,said the combination of a potentially vast mainland market for voice recognition apps and Mr Li's background was the key driver behind his decision to invest in Mobvoi on day one.

The tie-up between Google and Mobvoi will inevitably lead to speculation about the US group's wider ambitions in China.

The company has seen a steady decline in the popularity of its search engine in the country since it moved the servers powering it to Hong Kong in 2010,after dropping its censored domestic search service on the mainland.

Chinese internet companies Baidu,Alibaba and Tencent dominate but some observers believe there is an opportunity for a better service to thrive.

“There is still a huge opportunity for search in China”,said the head of one asset management group. “People want Google to come in. Monopoly power means firms have no incentive to improve.”

However,Google is not considering relaunching a domestic Chinese search engine,according to a person familiar with its plans,but is seeking regulatory approval to launch a mobile app store for users of its Android mobile operating system.

Hardware companies in the country are developing a reputation for producing cutting-edge technology. Mobvoi,whose Chinese name is Chumenwenwen,produces its own wearable devices,notably a smart watch that uses its own operating system and has a months-long backlog on orders. Shenzhen-based DJI is the largest maker of consumer drones worldwide and has a valuation of at least $8bn.

Mobvoi's voice search function is mainly directed at enquiries about travel and local services but Mr Li hopes to move on to cars and robots with Google's help.

The new investment financing brings total equity capital raised to $75m in three rounds of financing. In addition to Sequoia and Google,Mr Li has funding from Susquehanna Investment Management and two strategic investors involved in the smart watch operation.

“We were impressed by their innovative approach and the early traction that they've seen,which is why we're pleased to support them with this investment,” said Don Harrison,vice-president of corporate development at Google.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What device did Mobvoi develop the search technology for?

A.computer

B.iPad

C.mobile phone

D.smart watch

答案解释：“出门问问”是一款基于语音识别、语义理解技术，面向移动搜索领域的智能手机应用。

2.As Mobvoi said,what use does not include of the new funding by Google?

A.enhance core technologies

B.open up the US market

C.develop new products

D.explore robotics technologies

答案解释：文章第三段，Mobvoi对投资的使用方向简单说明。

3.Who gave the information about voice recognition to Chinese tech groups in the past?

A.Britain

B.Hongkong

C.Chinese scientists

D.America

答案解释：在过去通常是美国与中国交流语音识别领域的信息，而如今关系已进一步进化。

4.Which area will Mobvoi's voice search function be used for with Google's help?

A.smart watches

B.unmanned aerial vehicle

C.cars and robots

D.products of Google X

答案解释：在谷歌的协助下，Mobvoi想尝试向汽车和机器人领域进军。

亚马逊回击《纽约时报》

今年8月，《纽约时报》曾刊登长文指责亚马逊存在工作气氛差、员工压力大等问题。对于此报道，后者公共关系部门负责人兼公司高级副总裁杰·卡尼（Jay Carney）于周一终正式作出回应，反驳称该报道完全是断章取义。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

rebuttal 反驳

portrait 人物描写

callous 无情的

obsession 妄想

anecdotal 轶事

luminary 名人

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分33秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分6秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分13秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分46秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Amazon rebuts New York Times exposé（467words）

By Leslie Hook in San Francisco and Shannon Bond in New York

Amazon has launched an attack on the New York Times,two months after the media group wrote a negative article about Amazon's workplace culture.

The rebuttal,published on Monday by Jay Carney,the company's spokesman and a former White House press secretary,alleged that the New York Times journalists did not verify the stories of several former employees in their report.

The article sparked an intense debate about workplace practices at the Seattle-based technology company.

Dean Baquet,New York Times executive editor,posted a lengthy response reiterating his support for the paper's story and saying that the voluminous response it received “leaves no doubt that this was an accurate portrait”.

“I should point out that you said to me that you always assumed this was going to be a tough story,so it is hard to accept that Amazon was expecting otherwise,” he added.

Jeff Bezos,Amazon founder and chief executive,responded to the original article with an email to staff,saying he would not tolerate the “shockingly callous practices” it described.The company has been criticised in the past for its treatment of warehouse staff. It has also been embroiled in conflicts with book publishers over pricing.

Last week,Mr Bezos fell down Harvard Business Review's ranking of the world's top chief executives,after the management publication took into account the company's performance on environmental,social and governance measures.

The New York Times story focused on white-collar employees and managers. It described how these staff were also affected by Amazon's obsession with data and said the company fired the lowest performers in each team.

Mr Carney alleged that one of the former employees quoted by the New York Times had left after being accused of wrongdoing.Mr Baquet replied: “If we had known his status was contested,we would have said so.”

He added that Amazon's questions about the credibility of several of the named sources quoted in the story “did not contradict what the former employees said in our story; instead,you mostly asserted that there were no records of what the workers were describing”.

The public editor of the New York Times has previously written that the original article could have used more context. “The evidence against Amazon,while powerful,is largely anecdotal,not data driven,” wrote public editor Margaret Sullivan.

On Monday,Mr Baquet emphasised that the New York Times reporters “spoke to more than a hundred current and former employees,at various levels and divisions,over many months……In addition,we spoke to outsiders who interact with Amazon employees  —  recruiters,people at tech firms,employment lawyers —  and heard their accounts.” Several Silicon Valley tech luminaries backed Amazon after the story was published. Dick Costolo,chief executive of Twitter at the time,tweeted: “This has ‘take out of context' stamped all over it.”

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What was the Amazon spokesman's previous job?

A.New York Times executive editor

B.White House press secretary

C.teacher in LSE

D.Vice President

答案解释：Jay Carney是第29任白宫新闻发言人。

2.What is the executive editor's attitude towards the rebuttal?

A.against

B.agreeable

C.satisfied

D.afraid

答案解释：《纽约时报》执行主编迪恩·巴奎(Dean Baquet)表示，“这篇文章是基于大量的采访。任何读过这些采访内容的人都会确信，这是一种准确的描述。

3.What was Jeff's reaction according to the original article?

A.had a speech in public

B.went to court

C.sent an email to staff

D.published articles on FB

答案解释：亚马逊创始人兼CEO Jeff Bezos曾向全体员工发出公开信，指出其并不认识报道中所描述的那个“没有灵魂、反乌托邦、没有乐趣、没有笑声的工作场所”。

4.Who supported Amazon before after the story was published?

A.CEO of Twitter

B.CPO of Twitter

C.CEO of bilibili

D.Chief public editor of FT

答案解释：文章最后一段，一些硅谷大佬是支持亚马逊的，例如Twitter的CEO。

规则变化带来禧玛诺的春天？

对于热衷骑行的人，禧玛诺（Shimano）的名号绝不陌生。在全世界的高档运动自行车上，禧马诺的零部件以绝对优势保持着全球第一的占有率，而近日UCI对于碟刹禁令的改变是否会帮助禧玛诺迎来更美好的春天？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

fret 烦恼

stubbornly 顽固地

amateur 业余爱好者

roaring 轰鸣

capitalization 市值

pundit 专家

straightforward 简单的

capex 资本支出

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分2秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分23秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分25秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分50秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Pro cycling rule change to propel Japan's Shimano（508words）

By Leo Lewis in Tokyo

Shimano,the Japanese company whose gears and brakes propel and stop more than 30m new bicycles around the world every year,is poised to race ahead thanks to a rule change by professional cycling's governing body.

After years of controversy and lobbying,a ban on disc brakes once stubbornly upheld by the Union Cycliste Internationale has been lifted.

Should various trials of disc brakes succeed,competitors in the Tour de France and other great road races will be free to hurl themselves into downhill corners with even greater abandon,even in wet conditions. The technology,say analysts,is then likely to eventually become standard in the amateur racing bike market — a boon for the handful of high-end disc brake suppliers,Shimano dominant amongst them.

For some analysts,the promise of disc brakes is a roaring “buy” signal for Shimano,even after three years of stellar stock price performance. Shares in the Y1.7tn（$14bn）market capitalisation company,whose sales have historically been swayed by chilly April weather and emerging market currency ructions,are hovering close to all-time highs above Y19,000 first touched in March.

Since early 2012,when global sales of racing bikes began to surge and lifestyle pundits in the US,Europe and Japan decreed cycling the “new golf”,Shimano stock has risen by nearly 500 per cent. Picking a bicycle maker from dozens around the world was difficult,say fund managers,but the broad bet on cycling was made straightforward by Shimano's 70 per cent global market share in brakes and gears.

Bicycle sales in developed countries,says CLSA's Morten Paulsen,are driven by the desire for exercise and are only modestly affected by economic cycles. “Demand is,to a large extent,desynchronised from the capex cycle and general consumption trends,” he says,“Shimano is a defensive investment in a market environment dominated by uncertainty.”

For now,at least,that theory is holding. Japanese exports of bicycle parts surged to record levels over the summer: the Y10.6bn exports logged in July were 33 per cent higher than the same period in 2014.

Sales,especially to the developed markets of the US and Europe,should receive a further boost from the 2016 Rio Olympics,say analysts. As far back as the Atlanta games in 1996,Olympics years have handed Shimano average year-on-year revenue growth rates of 10 per cent,versus just 4 per cent growth in non-Olympics years.

But others fret over whether the impending disc brake windfall — along with the growth of electric gear changers and e-bikes — can offset a more alarming collapse of growth in China,where the economy has been rocked by a slowdown,counterfeiting and,say analysts at Nomura,fallout from President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign.

Growth rates for Shimano's sales in China averaged more than 50 per cent in the years between 2012 and 2014; by the end of the current calendar year,sales growth rates are forecast to have fallen to just 9 per cent.

The focus for investors,say analysts at Goldman Sachs,will be on when double-digit growth can resume.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who stubbornly upheld a ban on disc brakes in past years?

A.Shimano

B.Tour de France

C.the Union Cycliste Internationale

D.CLSA

答案解释：文章第二段，国际自行车联盟一度是这项禁令的支持者。

2.When the shares are hovering close to all-time highs above Y19,000 firstly?

A.April

B.March

C.May

D.July

答案解释：公司市值在3月首次接近历史高点。

3.Which country is not in the case of CLSA's Paulsen Morten' theory?

A.US

B.UK

C.Japan

D.China

答案解释：Paulsen Morten的观点是针对发达国家的。

4.What is the attitude for Shimano's sales in 2016 by the analysts?

A.optimistic

B.pessimistic

C.unclear

D.angry

答案解释：政府将于明年春季发布关于BBC未来的提议。

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.3

“泡沫”减少的中国啤酒

在中国，每年盛夏总能见到中年男子露着肚皮，大口吃肉大口喝酒的场景。然而，中国这个最大的啤酒消费市场开始萎缩，自去年以来，中国啤酒市场连续二十年来的增长戛然而止。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

casualty 事故

brewery 酿酒厂

sophistication 成熟

saturated 饱和

languishing 日益衰落

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分21秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分7秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分56秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分1秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Chinese beer loses its froth（618words）

By Patti Waldmeir in Shanghai

This has been a headline year for China's beer market — but for the wrong reasons. Beer production has fallen for the first time in two decades,a casualty of changing drinking habits.Now Chinese beer is in the headlines again,as Anheuser-Busch InBev ponders one of the biggest brewery deals of all time,a takeover of SABMiller,at a time when both brewers have a leading position in the Chinese market.

Will China prove an obstacle to a potential deal,either because of its slowing economy or because of objections from competition regulators?

Like many consumer markets in China,beer has been hit by the moderating pace of economic growth,and the rising affluence and sophistication of Chinese consumers — only more so. Last year China's beer production by volume,at 49bn litres,fell nearly 3 per cent for the first time in 24 years,according to China's National Bureau of Statistics.

“Chinese beer per capita consumption has reached 34.2 litres,slightly over the world's per capita of 33 litres,” says the US Department of Agriculture in a recent report,which concludes that “the market for domestic mass-production beer is becoming saturated”.

“There isn't much growth in mass-market beers because it's a cheap beverage and as people's disposable income grows they are trying other options,like wine,whisky or craft beers,” says James Roy,retail analyst at China Market Research in Shanghai.

“Certain segments of the middle class are using wine increasingly not just for social occasions but for health purposes,especially women in their 30s and 40s who have a glass of wine each evening; it's in all the popular magazines that it has health benefits. And some consumers are shifting from beer to whisky. People are branching out and experimenting with new drinks,” he adds.

So mass market beers are languishing,with production volumes at Chinese brewers falling 6 per cent in the first half of this year,according to BNP Paribas. But the bank's China beer analyst,Charlie Chen,says “we see a strong trend of product upgrading”,pointing out that Budweiser,leader in the premium segment in China,posted double-digit volume growth in the same period.

“Premiumisation” is the key to future profits in this market,say analysts. China is more than twice the size of the world's second-largest beer market,the US,and is “expected to account for more than 30 per cent of industry volume growth in the next 10 years”,according a research note by Canaccord Genuity.

However,“the US beer market's profit pool is around seven times larger than China's,despite being less than half its size”,write Eddy Hargreaves and Alicia Forry of Canaccord Genuity,adding: “This gap will close significantly over time……[and]whichever way we look at it,achieving as strong a position as possible in China is likely to be a key priority for AInBev”.

China Resources Enterprise is understood to have told analysts recently that competition is assessed regionally by the regulator,and there is less regional overlap than might appear from the national market share figures. And a merged AB InBev/SABMiller could dispose of other smaller holdings in China,to bring its total market share down to 30 per cent,without touching the Snow stake,the Canaccord analysts argue.

Lawyers in China point out that even the 2008 restriction on InBev purchasing a Snow stake would not necessarily be a hurdle to an AB InBev/SABMiller deal,since regulators can easily waive it when considering any potential transaction — if they want to.

But brewers still face the small matter of the slowdown in the Chinese economy — not to mention China's growing taste for drinks other than beer. With additional reporting by Jackie Cai

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which one is not mentioned as the reason to hit many consumer markets in China?

A.slowing economy

B.rising affluence of Chinese consumers

C.sophistication of Chinese consumers

D.a takeover of SABMiller

答案解释：由于经济放缓和中国日益复杂化的消费者，中国的很多消费市场面临打击不得不调整结构。

2.Who are shifting from beer to wine now?

A.certain segments of the low class

B.certain segments of the middle class

C.men in their 30s and 40s

D.vegetarian

答案解释：某些中产阶级为了健康考虑更偏向于红酒，尤其是三四十岁的女性。

3.What is the key to future profits in this market as analysts said?

A.market positioning

B.market supervision

C.more like sports

D.cost minimization

答案解释：文章第九段首句。

4.What is around seven times larger than China's in America beer market?

A.profit pool

B.size

C.production

D.customers

答案解释：美国啤酒市场的利润大约是中国的七倍，尽管不到市场规模不及中国的一半。

电视剧的黄金时代还是过剩时代？

真的有太多好看的剧来不及看吗？在艾美奖吸引了大多剧迷之际，FX电视网的首席执行官表示，这种过量供应令电视节目很难“透过喧嚣，创造真正刺激的东西”。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

serialize 连载

renaissance 文艺复兴

script 剧本

overwhelmed 淹没

sketch 简述

pedigree 血统

edgy 尖锐的

evaporate 蒸发

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分20秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

3分14秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分44秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分18秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Death to the bland as TV viewers seek an escape from reality（785words）

By Matthew Garrahan in New York

Jeff Bezos did not hide his enthusiasm at the Emmy awards on Sunday night,leaping to his feet and cheering when Transparent,the Amazon show about a transgender father,scooped five awards — the first ever won by the online group's streaming video service.

The success of the show,part of a new generation of serialised television programmes that has wowed critics and audiences,has led to talk of a golden age of television. From The Sopranos through to Mad Men ,Breaking Bad and Game of Thrones — another big winner at the Emmys — television is enjoying a critical and artistic renaissance. Such is its ascent that many in Hollywood say it has supplanted films as the medium of choice for the best writers,actors and directors.

But is there too much of it?Across the media industry,concern is growing that there are simply too many quality scripted shows to watch. John Landgraf,chief executive of FX,the cable channel that is part of 21st Century Fox,sounded the warning bell last month when he warned that audiences were “overwhelmed” by the number of available shows. The industry was “choking” on its own abundance,he said.

Mr Landgraf has a point. The network estimates that there were about 280 scripted series on air five years ago,a number that had climbed to more than 370 by 2014.On a series such as Game of Thrones,which just finished its fifth season,each episode is an hour long,so a 50-hour time commitment would be needed by someone starting from scratch. Add in other must-see series,and watching television or video streaming services requires a substantial time investment. For working adults there are not enough hours in the day to watch everything.

This point was illustrated at the Emmys. In a sketch that opened the show,comedian Andy Samberg retreated to a bunker to catch up on all the programming he had missed. He emerged with a long beard a year later.

Some TV executives agree with Mr Landgraf's assessment. After all,investments in original production are fraught with risks. For those broadcast and cable networks that depend on advertising,there are clear implications if shows do not immediately find an audience and generate ratings. At FX,The Comedians,which starred Billy Crystal,was cancelled when it failed to bring in enough viewers — despite favourable reviews from critics.

The warning from Mr Landgraf carries weight but do not expect a slowdown in the number of scripted series being commissioned anytime soon. One reason is a slowdown in reality television. From the mid-1990s onwards into the next decade,this was a reliable cash cow for media companies. Cheap to produce and produced in formats that were eminently exportable — the American Idol format was remade for almost 50 countries — reality TV became the industry's golden goose.

But the format has lost its shine and viewers are seeking something else from their viewing. In the US this summer,companies that relied on reality TV — and did not have a pedigree in scripted drama — were hit by a big share sell-off,when concerns about disappearing audiences and declining advertising revenues spooked investors.

Channel owners are betting that original,quality dramas are the best way to retain audiences. USA,the cable network owned by Comcast's NBCUniversal,used to be best known as the home of reruns and bland,middle-of-the road dramas. However,its edgy new series Mr Robot,about a vigilante cyberhacker,was the most talked about show of the summer. Even Lifetime,which is more commonly associated with pulpy style and reality shows,has changed direction,winning plaudits for Unreal,a dark comedy about a fictional dating programme.

In both cases the channels have bet on original writing,taking a punt that audiences will respond well when challenged by something they may not have expected. The best scripted programming can help networks stand out in a crowded marketplace — consider what House of Cards and Orange is the New Black did for Netflix,for example.

Bland television designed to appeal to everyone has had its day,one senior TV executive told me this week. Instead,programmes that may have once been earmarked for niche audiences are most in demand. There may be too much scripted programming around,but broadcast networks and cable channels have few other choices. With the ratings for the Emmys,TV's starriest night of the year,down 20 per cent on 2014,it is clear that audiences are evaporating. Drastic measures are needed — and brilliant,challenging drama may hold the key.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which one is not mentioned as the big winner at the Emmys in this article?

A.Mad Men

B.Sopranos

C.Sherlock

D.Breaking Bad

答案解释：除了《透明人生》，《广告狂人》《黑道家族》和《绝命毒师》也是这次艾美奖的大赢家。

2.What is too much for audiences by Landgraf 's warning?

A.films

B.series

C.novels

D.screenwriters

答案解释：这位FX电视网的首席执行官说，高管、观众与评论家们都感觉到，如今的电视界存在着令人不安的感觉。而这只有一个原因：电视节目实在太多了。

3.What is the biggest obstacle for working adults to watch TV streaming services?

A.less free time

B.don't have enough money

C.more like sports

D.lack of good books programs

答案解释：文章第四段。

4.What kind of companies was hit by a big share sell-off in the US this summer?

A.relied on scripted drama

B.relied on ad

C.relied on reality TV

D.relied on opera

答案解释：在这个夏天，美国那些依靠真人秀的公司遭受了大规模的股票抛售。

英国BT—电信大玩家？

英国电信集团公司（BT）是世界顶尖的电信运营商，完成了基于网络的综合信息通信服务提供商的重新定位，成为传统固网运营商转型的典范，又率先推出“云中云”服务。

然而今天却面临着来自于同行竞争者的垄断指控，BT究竟是大玩家？还是行业独裁者？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

watchdog 监管者

probe 探查

tinkering 修补

Ofcom 英通信监管机构

escalation 升级

underinvesting 投资不足

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分25秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分10秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

BT rivals call for probe of UK broadband services（456words）

By Daniel Thomas,Telecoms Correspondent

A group of telecom and media companies has joined the Institute of Directors to denounce the quality of UK broadband services and urge the competition watchdog to investigate BT's role in the market.

British Telecom's ownership of the national telecoms network has led to a “substandard experience for millions of customers” according to a letter in Monday's Financial Times,calling for “radical reform” of the market from the chief executives of rival internet service providers including Sky,Vodafone and TalkTalk.

The letter,which has also been signed by the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self Employed,highlights “fundamental problems” that cannot be addressed by “tinkering with the existing regulatory framework……

"It is therefore crucial that Ofcom moves as quickly as possible to ask the Competition and Markets Authority（CMA),with its far reaching powers,to undertake a full market investigation,” the letter said.

“Only the CMA,with the support of Ofcom,can address the structural barriers to competition that will unlock the next wave of investment."

The groups want BT's Openreach division to be split from the rest of the group.

They say this will give them better access to the national broadband network that they need to sell internet packages to their customers.

The letter said there were serious problems with the ownership of the national telecoms network by BT Openreach,including “a conflict of interest in the role of BT,poor quality of customer service and difficulties in enforcing the existing regulatory regime”.

The result,the companies said,is a “diminished opportunity for alternative providers to compete effectively”.

The letter marks an escalation of a war of words between BT and its rivals,which have accused the British telecoms group of providing a poor service to their internet businesses and underinvesting in the network.

BT has rejected both accusations and has set out plans to improve the service provided by Openreach,which provides equal access to the UK's biggest broadband network to its rivals on the same terms as its own retail broadband business.

BT said: “We acknowledge that there is more to do on customer service but Openreach is exceeding all 60 of the service targets set by Ofcom and breaking up BT is not the answer. “It would lead to huge uncertainty and fundamentally undermine the case for future investment,dragging the UK backwards at the very time it needs important investment in its infrastructure.”

Sky,in particular,has been locked in a battle with BT at a regulatory level and the market for customers,competing with BT in broadband as well as pay-TV.

BT,for its part,has asked Ofcom to investigate the pay-TV market as part of a review of the digital communications market in the UK.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who can address the structural barriers to competition?

A.CMA

B.Sky

C.Vodafone

D.TalkTalk

答案解释：CMA：Ofcom支持下的英国反垄断机构竞争与市场署。

2.Which division of BT should be split as the groups thought?

A.BT Retail

B.BT Wholesale

C.BT OpenWorld

D.BT Ignite

答案解释：文章第六段，另外英国电信集团公司主要由5个部门组成：BT Retail，BT Wholesale,BT Ignite,BT OpenWorld,BT eXact。

3.Which problem with the ownership is not mentioned in the letter?

A.a conflict of interest in the role of BT

B.a war of words between BT and its rivals

C.poor quality of customer service

D.difficulties in enforcing the existing regulatory regime

答案解释：这些问题包括在英国电信的角色冲突、客户服务质量差、执行现有制度时的困难，这些问题导致了BT与其他同行之间的“战争”升级。

4.Where did the Sky compete with BT besides in broadband?

A.3G Internet

B.video chat

C.pay-TV

D.paid games

答案解释：文章倒数第二段，Sky在宽带业务和付费电视上与BT竞争。

Instagram每月活跃用户突破4亿大关

快速成长的 Instagram，再次交出一张亮眼成绩单。22 日 Instagram 于官方博客宣布，月活跃用户数突破 4 亿大关，每日上传超过 8,000 万张照片，依然领先 Twitter 的 3.16 亿月活跃用户数。官方更透露，其中有超过 75% 的活跃用户是生活在美国以外的地区，显示了全球喜爱这项服务的“Instagrammers”。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

anticipated 预期

vie 竞争

unveiled 亮相

marquee 选取框

ramping 斜坡

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分12秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分21秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分41秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分35秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Instagram monthly active users hit 400m（354words）

By Leslie Hook in San Francisco

Instagram,the photo-sharing app owned by Facebook,said on Tuesday that its active monthly user base had reached 400m,growing faster than analysts anticipated.

The app has become a tough competitor for Twitter,which has fewer monthly users and vies for many of the same advertising clients.

Instagram's user base added 100m monthly users in the past nine months,thanks to adoption outside the US. International users make up three-quarters of the user base,with Brazil,Japan and Indonesia among countries adding the most users.

The news comes as Instagram prepares to broaden its advertising push at the end of this month by rolling out ad services worldwide. It unveiled a range of new ad products this month,including 30-second video ads and event-targeted “marquee” ads that are similar to Twitter campaigns.

The new figures highlight how much faster Instagram's user base is growing compared to Twitter's,which reported 304m monthly active users in its most recent quarter,up 12 per cent year on year. Twitter is searching for a new chief executive after the departure of Dick Costolo. Its share price has fallen 25 per cent since the beginning of the year.

Instagram,which was acquired by Facebook in 2012,started testing ad products two years ago but has been cautious about ramping up its ad load.

Facebook does not disclose Instagram's revenues. However,before Tuesday's announcement,analysts at eMarketer estimated revenues might be $600m this year.Michael Nathanson of Moffett Nathanson research said he expected Instagram ad sales could reach $1.8bn in the next two to three years. “With Instagram advertising finally going live globally,we can now begin to truly assess[its]revenue potential,” he wrote in a note before the announcement.

Instagram has been a hit with advertisers because of its visual format,its popularity among celebrity users and its high adoption among teenagers. However,it also faces increasing competition for teenagers' attention from chat apps including Snapchat,which has 100m daily users.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who has been threatened by Instagram?

A.Facebook

B.Gmail

C.Twitter

D.Snapchat

答案解释：Twitter正面临Instagram这一强大的对手，他们很多广告商是一样的，但前者的用户增长更少。

2.Which one is not mentioned to add the most international users?

A.Brazil

B.Japan

C.Indonesia

D.Australia

答案解释：主要的增长是来源于美国以外的用户，又以巴西、日本和印度尼西亚贡献最大。

3.What is Instagram going to do to broaden its advertising push this month?

A.form ad companies in US

B.increase ad time

C.roll out ad services worldwide

D.product placement in photos

答案解释：文章第四段

4.Why Instagram has been a hit with advertisers?

A.users' attention

B.its hearing format

C.its visual format

D.industry competition

答案解释：真正的原因是其视觉格式，然而它还要面临青少年越来越多注意的聊天应用的竞争。

Oyster电子书订阅服务即将走入历史

Oyster，作为全球最知名的电子订阅服务商之一，被誉为图书界的Netflix，用户每月只需花费9.95美元即可无限制的阅读。创始人Eric Stromberg周一在博客宣布关闭其电子书订阅的服务。Google把其服务核心人才纳入麾下，是Google的间接收购？还是电子订阅服务无法突破的瓶颈？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

subscription 订阅

reluctant 不情愿的

plateau 停滞期

straightforward 明确的

genres 流派

vigorously 蓬勃地

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分12秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分21秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分41秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分35秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Ebook service Oyster to close after resistance from publishers（354words）

By Henry Mance,Media correspondent

Oyster,one of the best-known ebook subscription services,is to close,highlighting the difficulties facing start-ups in the publishing sector.

Oyster's business model was similar to that of Netflix and Spotify — charging users $9.95 a month for unlimited access to more than 1m ebooks. It raised $17m in venture financing since 2012,and said it wanted to be the “Amazon of the next 10 years”.

However,publishers have been reluctant to make their best-selling titles available on subscription platforms,calculating that the most loyal readers would pay less. Oyster had also faced competition from Amazon,which last July launched its own ebook subscription service,Kindle Unlimited.

Oyster “will be taking steps to sunset the existing Oyster service over the next several months,” the company said in a blogpost. It said it had “made incredible progress” towards the goal of “a better way to read on mobile”. “We believe more than ever that the phone will be the primary reading device globally over the next decade,” the blog said.

Oyster's key staff,including chief executive Eric Stromberg,will join Google,industry website Re/code reported. It is unclear whether that forms part of a bigger publishing push by the search company.

The move comes after the growth in ebooks has begun to plateau in key markets. “This is not a straightforward digital switchover,” wrote analysts at Enders in a recent report on the UK market. “In books what we're seeing is a split in the market,where some genres and behaviours quickly transition to digital while others remain largely unaffected. In both cases the share of sales on ebook have largely stabilised.”

However,Enders added that the publishing sector needed to address the decline in the time that people are spending reading books. “It is impossible to overstate how important it is that the industry innovates vigorously in the next two to three years,” it said.

Remaining ebook subscription platforms include Kindle Unlimited and Scribd. Kindle Unlimited charges $9.99 a month for access to 1m ebooks and thousands of audiobooks. Scribd,which also contains a catalogue of user-uploaded documents,charges $8.99 a month for its service.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which industry is difficult,especially for start-ups?

A.retail

B.publishing

C.print

D.service

答案解释：Oyster的关闭，显示了新创公司在出版业所面临的困难。

2.How can users get books after paying $9.95?

A.borrow 1m books

B.read online

C.share with the author

D.select in local library

答案解释：用户获得的是电子书服务。

3.What will be the primary reading device globally in 2025 by Oyster's prediction?

A.iPad

B.kindle

C.computer

D.phone

答案解释：Oyster在博客上预测，未来十年手机将普遍成为人们主要的阅读工具。

4.What is important for book business by in Enders' view?

A.reduce prices

B.corporate merger

C.industry innovates

D.technical innovation

答案解释：行业分析公司Enders指出，产业大力创新是非常重要的。

印度的4G服务来了？

跨国移动电话营商沃达丰的印度公司（Vodafone India）宣布，将于2015年底之前推出4G服务，在包括孟买、德里、加尔各答、班加罗尔和科钦在内的重要数据市场率先上线。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

supremacy 霸业

rollout 首次展示

spectrum 范围

conglomerate 联合大企业

capex 资本性支出

consolidate 巩固

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分58秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分13秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分35秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分33秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Vodafone India confirms launch of 4G service by end of year（334words）

By David Keohane in Mumbai

The battle for supremacy in India's hotly contested mobile sector has intensified with Vodafone confirming it will launch its 4G mobile service before the end of the year.

The move comes just weeks after Indian rivals Bharti Airtel and Reliance Industries announced their own 4G rollouts.It is also another sign of Vodafone's intention to continue investing in its Indian operation as it looks at a possible initial public offering of the business.

The company said it had successfully started testing its 4G services and had partnered with “leading global technology infrastructure service providers” to enable the rollout.

The company added that “important data markets” where it had acquired spectrum in last year's auctions,“including Mumbai,Delhi,Kolkata,Bengaluru and Kochi” would be part of the first wave of the rollout which would occur before the end of 2015.

Earlier this month,Bharti Airtel,India's largest telecom group by sales headed by Sunil Mittal,became the first company to roll out superfast 4G mobile data packages across India,offering its service in about 300 cities and towns.

Vodafone's launch is set to coincide with plans by Reliance Industries,the conglomerate headed by Mukesh Ambani,to unveil Reliance Jio,its 4G service,by December on the back of a Rs1tn（$16bn）investment.

The heavy funding drive prompted warnings of a new round of price wars in an already fiercely competitive market. JPMorgan said in a recent note that Jio's “scheduled entry and fast maturing 4G ecosystem could adversely impact India telco landscape in more ways than one”,arguing that alongside possible price cuts Jio's entrance had forced rivals to fast-forward capex and rollout plans.

The launch of Jio,which will mark Reliance's re-entry into the Indian telecoms sector after about a decade,has raised some eyebrows.

Analysts have suggested that the venture will face an uphill battle to crack into a market which tends to consolidate around a few top players and some rivals industrialists have voiced doubts that Mr Ambani's massive outlay being recouped.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who is the first one launched 4G data packages across India?

A.Vodafone India

B.Lebara

C.Bharti Airtel

D.Reliance Industries

答案解释：文章第六段

2.What is the warning of the India telecom market?

A.Unsatisfied service

B.Price wars

C.Heavy expenditure

D.Lack of fund

答案解释：大量的资金投入印度电信市场，这可能是新一轮价格战的诱因。

3.What is JPMorgan's comments on Reliance Jio's 4G service?

A.Its fast maturing 4G ecosystem could adversely impact India telecom landscape

B.It is the model for other telecom companies to imitate

C.It depends on heavy fund which implies risks

D.It is not perfect enough to compete with its rivals

答案解释：文章倒数第三段

4.What is the doubt about Reliance Jio from rivals industrialist?

A.Whether its service will satisfy the customer or not

B.Whether profit will match the outlay or not

C.Whether it have enough fund to run the system or not

D.Whether it is affordable for consumers or not

答案解释：他们质疑Mr.Amban的大量经费能否被收回。

苹果商店遭遇恶意软件攻击

美国当地时间9月20日，苹果公司首次确认有黑客对App Store发起大规模攻击，目前正在清理应用商店中的恶意App，漏洞原因则是“开发者基于非信任渠道发布的工具开发的App有可能对用户安全造成威胁。”

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

incursion 入侵

swath 草条

malware 恶意软件

counterfeit 假冒

black eye 耻辱

vulnerabilities 漏洞

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分47秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分40秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分54秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分40秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apple hit by rare malware attack in China（402words）

By Richard Waters in San Francisco

Apple has owned up to a rare incursion of malicious software into its App Store,forcing it to pull some of the most widely used mobile apps in China from the service.

Late on Sunday in California,the iPhone and iPad maker confirmed reports by security researchers who had warned that a swath of popular Chinese apps had been created using developer tools that were infected with the malware,resulting in the compromised apps. “Hundreds of millions” of users of the popular Chinese apps were at risk of having their personal data exposed,including people who use Tencent's WeChat mobile messaging service and ride-hailing app Didi Kuaidi,according to Palo Alto Networks,a US cyber security company.

Apple said it had removed the infected apps,which had been created with what it said was a fake version of its software for app developers,known as Xcode.

It did not explain how developers of a large number of China's most widely used mobile services had all been infected with the same piece of malware,or how the infected apps that resulted had got through its security screening for the App Store.

“To protect our customers,we've removed the apps from the App Store that we know have been created with this counterfeit software and we are working with the developers to make sure they're using the proper version of Xcode to rebuild their apps,” Apple said.

The admission is a black eye for the US company,which has made much of its superior security record in mobile apps compared with that of Google. Tim Cook,Apple's chief executive,last year criticised Google for what he claimed were insecure apps,quoting a report that criticised the search company's Android Play store as a “toxic hellstew of vulnerabilities”.

Palo Alto Networks said in a blog post on Friday that it had found 39 apps in Apple's App Store that had been created with the infected developer software,which has been dubbed XcodeGhost. Along with WeChat and Didi Kuaidi,the compromised apps include ones for games,banking,stock trading,maps,social networks and mobile phone services,it added.

Tencent said in a statement on social networking service Sina Weibo that it had replaced the compromised version of its app. It also said that users had not lost personal information or other property because of the infection.Additional reporting by Gloria Cheung in Hong Kong

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which country's widely used mobile apps were forced to pull?

A.China

B.America

C.Britain

D.Italy

答案解释：由于苹果应用商店遭遇攻击，迫使它撤下了一些在中国被广为使用的移动应用。

2.What risks to users of the popular Chinese apps?

A.photos are deleted

B.fraudulent credit card

C.personal data exposed

D.implant advertising

答案解释：一些热门中国应用的“数亿”用户的个人数据可能被泄露。

3.How the infected apps that resulted had got through its security screening for the App Store?

A.bribing manager

B.exploiting vulnerability

C.not mentioned

D.official permission

答案解释：苹果没有透露被感染的应用是如何通过苹果应用商店的安全审查的。

4.Who criticised Google's insecure apps last year?

A.Apple's COO

B.Apple's CEO

C.Apple's CQO

D.Apple's CTO

答案解释：倒数第三段，COO -chief operation officer首席运营官； CQO-chief quality officer 首席质量官；CTO- chief technology officer首席技术官。

上调最低工资让酒吧倒闭？

在英国,大街上的酒吧比比皆是,并被高雅地冠为“酒吧文化”(Pub Culture)而名扬天下。而近期英国酒吧巨头连锁集团威瑟斯本(JDWetherspoon)表示，政府提出强制加薪低薪工人的措施将使酒吧的人力支出大大增加。在竞争尤其激烈的今天，这个全英拥有近900家酒吧行业老大也有可能面临关门的风险。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

dereliction 渎职

Treasury 财政部

Budget Responsibility 预算责任

offset 抵消

subsidise 补贴

VAT 增值税

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分0秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分55秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分48秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分58秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

JD Wetherspoon warns ‘living wage' risks leading to pub closures（589words）

By Michael Pooler,Nathalie Thomas and Richard Blackden

The owner of Britain's best known chain of drinking establishments has ratcheted up its criticism of the forthcoming rise in the minimum wage,saying it risks putting more financial pressure on pubs,especially those in less prosperous areas.

JD Wetherspoon said that the government's proposed compulsory pay rise for low-paid workers placed pubs at a disadvantage compared with supermarkets,because pub wages represent a higher proportion of sales than for supermarkets and their prices are higher.This was likely to have a particular impact in less well-off neighbourhoods,where the price difference between pubs and supermarkets is more important to customers,the company said.

“It is certain that high streets in less affluent areas,which already suffer from serious problems of empty shops and dereliction,will suffer further if pubs and other labour-intensive businesses close,” said chairman Tim Martin.

Pub wages take up roughly 30 per cent of sales because of the labour-intensive nature of the business,whereas at supermarkets the proportion is only about 10 per cent,said Mr Martin.The comments from the pub group are the latest in a string from businesses about the impact of the “national living wage”.

Announced by Chancellor George Osborne in his post-election summer Budget,the minimum wage will rise to £7.20 in April for workers aged 25 and older,and increase to 60 per cent of median earnings in 2020,or about £9. The minimum wage at present is £6.50 for over-21s.

The Treasury has said that 2.7m people will receive a direct boost from the measure,but the Office for Budget Responsibility,a fiscal watchdog,estimates that the extra costs could mean up to 60,000 job losses.

While economists do not yet see the reform as a significant threat to jobs,employers' organisations warn it will hit profits and is already damping recruitment.

Fashion retailer Next and Whitbread,the owner of Costa Coffee and Premier Inn,this week both said they might have to raise prices to offset a higher wage bill. Wetherspoon said it had no immediate plans to raise prices.

Mr Martin was one of the first business leaders to attack the living wage shortly after it was announced in July.

Wetherspoon detailed how much it has increased staff salaries over the past two years — by 5 per cent last October and 8 per cent in July — to highlight that some employers were already seeking to help those on low wages. About 40 per cent of its profits are paid out as a bonus or free shares to staff,while more than 80 per cent of this year's £30.7m bonus pot will go to employees working in pubs. Basic pay at the company starts at £7 an hour.

The FTSE 250 company also took aim at the different tax treatment for pubs and restaurants,which pay 20 per cent VAT on food sales,whereas supermarkets are “virtually” exempt.“This disparity enables supermarkets to subsidise their alcoholic drinks sales to thedetriment of pubs and restaurants……[this is]the biggest danger to the pub industry,” it said.

The warning came as Wetherspoon posted a 25 per cent drop in annual pre-tax profit to £58.7m,dragged down by a large number of exceptional items,including restructuring costs.Revenue rose 7.4 per cent to £1.5bn,while like-for-like sales during the year were 3.3 per cent higher. The full-year dividend is being maintained at 12p a share. Wetherspoon's shares have dropped 12 per cent this year,underperforming the FTSE 250 index of medium-sized companies,which has climbed 6 per cent.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which bar may feel more financial pressure by JD Wetherspoon's owner?

A.Suburb

B.Downtown

C.Central Business District

D.Bar Street

答案解释：文章第一段，不繁华的地区会感受到更大的压力。

2.Which one would have been more affected by government's proposed compulsory pay rise?

A.Supermarkets

B.Shops

C.Pubs

D.Schools

答案解释：由于价格影响，酒吧会受到更大的影响。

3.How much is the minimum wage now for over-21s?

A.£7.20

B.£6.50

C.£9

D.£2.70

答案解释：文章第七段。

4.What is the purpose of Costa Coffee's price change?

A.to protest the new measures

B.to attract customers

C.to offset a higher wage bill

D.to compete with the supermarket

答案解释：在未来可能会提高咖啡价格以抵消更高的工资账单。

苹果、谷歌、FB：对泛滥的在线广告说再见？

那些习惯于在智能手机和笔记本电脑上发布恼人广告企业的好日子恐怕很快就要到头了。因为如今不仅仅是越来越多的自动广告屏蔽工具越来越受到欢迎，同时还有不少互联网巨头开始下定决心整治这一日益泛滥的在线广告现象。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

flagrant 明目张胆的

wholesale 广泛地

nudges 轻推

browsers 浏览器

itching 渴望的

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分10秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

3分8秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分40秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分17秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apple,Facebook and Google flex mobile ad muscle（771words）

By Richard Waters

Recent announcements highlight how the tech groups aim to set rules for advertisements on devices

Ibet it is starting to feel like open season on mobile advertising. From next week,iPhone users will get the chance to download software from the App Store to block adverts from their Safari web browsers. The move comes soon after Google said it would relegate mobile sites in its search rankings if they are too flagrant in pushing advertising for their own apps.

Is digital advertising under threat as audience attention moves wholesale to smartphones and tablets?Not likely. But the companies that control the main digital platforms are flexing their muscles: advertising is changing,and they aim to set the rules for what comes next.

That is the main message from a round of recent announcements. These include Facebook's Instant Articles,a mobile-first attempt to bring news directly on to its own platform. The site is nudging its users to spend less time with publishers' own services（and the ads that support them）and more time with news hosted on its servers.

This is all being done in the name of giving users a superior experience. Certainly,some advertisers have hurt their own cause. Slow loading times for mobile web pages — the reason that Facebook said it needed to act — are partly caused by advertising. And when users are paying for data,bad mobile experiences cost more than just time.

Who gets to block ads,of course,is just the flip side of what will turn out to be the more important question: who gets to decide which ads get through — and how the money that flows from them is shared?

Relatively few iPhone users are likely to adopt ad blocking. Fewer than one in 10 desktop and laptop users have added it as an extension to their browsers. But Apple devices are a highly profitable platform: about 42 per cent of mobile browsing takes place on its Safari browsers,according to NetMarketShare,and its more affluent customer base makes the iPhone a highly attractive target for advertisers. For an advertising-centric company such as Google,taking even a small slice out of its business on iPhone would be painful.

The latest initiatives by Apple and Facebook in the news business leave both in a strong position to set the terms. Apple may be offering users the chance to go ad-free in their browsers but users will not be able to escape the company's own advertising system. Apple News — the new Flipboard-like app it is also launching next week as part of the iOS9 operating system — will still carry commercial messages from iAd. That mirrors Facebook,which will keep a slice of the advertising sold alongside its Instant Articles advertising for itself.

Google has its own way of organising an unruly universe of ad-supported mobile services to its advantage. Its efforts earlier this year to demote mobile sites were so controversial that they are known in the ad world as “Mobilegeddon”. But they are part of a broader effort to enhance its users' engagement with the mobile web — and,in the process,get its own mobile ad rates up.

For publishers,meanwhile,the deals that Apple and Facebook offer are a bargain that many will feel they cannot refuse. But it is unclear whether this will ultimately leave them in a better or worse position than they are in already. For many,pricing power has already been leaking away as they have come to rely more on the ad networks that sell programmatically,which use automated computer systems to deliver marketing messages across the internet.

Much depends on who ends up in the driving seat when the mobile ad ecosystem settles down. Companies that control the devices — and none more so than Apple — should be in a strong position. Mobile apps with mass audiences that become platforms in their own right,such as Facebook,will also have the power to direct attention.

And then there are the mobile operators. Carriers in Europe have been itching to get a slice of the profits from the advertising that flows through their networks. Some have been emboldened to consider blunt tactics,threatening to block advertising from internet companies such as Google unless they are cut in on the action.

The operators should take a lesson from Apple,Facebook and Google. Rather than resorting to bullying tactics,they would do better to claim to be acting in the name of better user experience. Demonise the advertising delivered by rivals,then use the veiled threat of blocking it to come up with a way to insert themselves into the advertising value chain. It may not be subtle,but it is a hard act to resist.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who want to set the ad rules for what comes next?

A.Companies

B.Viewers

C.Advertising

D.Network engineers

答案解释：广告行业正在改变，他们想更多的影响未来的行业格局。

2.Which one is the mobile-first attempt to bring news directly on to its own platform?

A.Facebook's Instant Articles

B.Twitter

C.Ibet

D.Google

答案解释：文章第三段

3.Which one mirrors Facebook to carry commercial messages from iAd?

A.Instant Articles

B.Apple News

C.NetMarketShare

D.Google News

答案解释：下周将登陆IOS9的Apple News是借鉴了FB上即时文章对于广告屏蔽的设置。

4.What leaked publishers have come to rely more on selling ad networks programmatically?

A.Operating costs

B.Page view

C.Pricing power

D.Advertising expenses

答案解释：倒数第四段，定价权暴露了他们越来越多依赖于这种使用自动化计算机系统在互联网上提供营销信息的方式。

日元贬值让进口商处于困境

日元的贬值使日本的进口商处于困境，同时，也使大型出口公司利润增加。日本政府谨慎地为日本银行创造可驾驭的经济环境。但是因为顾客的特定需求，可选择的原料商很有限，使得像奥佳华一类的公司运营得十分艰难。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

manoeuvre 调遣

Inflation 通货膨胀

Stimulus 刺激物

Swell 膨胀

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分17秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分24秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分43秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分36秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Interest rate rise: Japan prospect of weaker yen leaves sour taste（361words）

By Robin Harding in Tokyo

Kinako — a sweet yellow flour used in desserts — is as quintessentially Japanese as food ingredients come,but even this niche product is not immune to economic ripples emanating from the US Federal Reserve.

Yoshio Ogawa,president of 103-year-old Ogawa Industries,makes most of his kinako using soyabeans imported from the US. The dollar exchange rate is crucial to his profitability.With the yen already trading at about Y124 to the dollar,down more than 50 per cent in the two-and-a-half years since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe came to power,importers such as Mr Ogawa can ill-afford more yen weakness.

“If we can pass the price rises on then it is fine but the question is whether consumers keep buying,” he says.

Inflation in Japan is still running close to zero,so even if the Fed does not tighten policy in September,at some point there will be a sharp divergence between US and Japanese interest rates.

Higher US rates make it relatively more attractive to hold dollars. But while a weaker yen hurts importers such as Mr Ogawa by pushing up the price of foreign foodstuffs and energy,it also swells profits at big exporters such as Toyota.

The export boost is a stimulus,encouraging Japan's manufacturers to raise production and investment at home,although big companies have been slow to accept yen weakness is here to stay.

So far the spur to Japanese growth has not been enough to drive up wages. Companies such as Ogawa Industries are left in a bind,because the prices of their inputs have risen but the incomes of their customers have not.

That has changed yen politics.Whereas yen weakness got a warm welcome in the early days of Abenomics in 2013,politicians are now much warier,creating a tricky environment for the Bank of Japan to navigate.

Mr Ogawa is doing what he can to prepare for a stronger dollar. But he points out that his room for manoeuvre is limited because customers want non-genetically modified soya. That restricts his choice of suppliers.

“One choice is to use more domestic beans,” he says,adding that Japanese produce,however,is not cheap.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.According to the article,What factor is crucial to Ogawa's profitability?

A.customers preference

B.government support

C.dollar exchange rate

D.wheather

答案解释：第二段原话 The dollar exchange rate is crucial to his profitability

2.Why there is divergence between US and Japanese interest rates?

A.tight policy

B.low inflation in Japan

C.financial crisis

D.deflation in Japan

答案解释：第五段整句，讲近乎于0的通胀

3.Who will be benefited by weaker yen?

A.big exporters

B.big importers

C.ordinary people

D.Japenese travelers

答案解释：第六段最后，像toyota之类的大出口商。

4.What is the factor encourage Japan's manufacturers to raise production at home?

A.boost of export

B.the boost of foreign traveler

C.the boost of export

D.government support

答案解释：第七段,第一句

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.4

东芝发布延期财报:净亏378亿日元

今年7月，东芝因为造假、虚报利润高达30亿美元引爆了日本史上最大的会计丑闻，社长田中久雄为此引咎辞职。事件也造成了东芝原定8月披露的财报延期，直至9月7日发布了2014财年财报：整个财年的净亏损额为378亿日元(约合人民币20.2亿元)。此消息一出，市场一片哗然，东芝公司亏损在哪里，它在哪里又是赚钱的？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

fallout 后果

fiscal 财政的

net loss 净损失

impairment 减值

amendments 修正案

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分5秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分51秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分2秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分42秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Toshiba falls into the red with Y37.8bn full-year loss（428words）

By Kana Inagaki in Tokyo

Toshiba has reported an annual loss of $318m,finalising the extent of the fallout from an accounting scandal that stretches back seven years and has wiped more than a third off the company's share value.

Shares initially rose more than 5 per cent after Toshiba finally published its revised earnings on Monday,but investors said the company must do more to allay concerns about its nuclear and semiconductor businesses,which led to the massive writedowns.

For the fiscal year to the end of March,the Japanese industrial group,which also makes televisions and laptops,reported a net loss of Y37.83bn（$318m),after recording a profit of Y60.24bn a year earlier. Before the scandal broke,the company had anticipated a net profit of Y120bn.

Operating profit declined 34 per cent from the previous year to Y170bn,while revenue increased 2.6 per cent to Y6.66tn.

Toshiba has been unable to close its books since flagging accounting irregularities in April but had warned it would swing to a full-year net loss as a result of related impairment charges.

A subsequent investigation found that senior executives had played a role in inflating profits by more than $1bn over seven years,leading to a board shake-up and the resignation of Hisao Tanaka,its former chief executive.

The company missed two deadlines to report results,last week delaying its earnings release for the second time after discovering new accounting issues that required further investigation.

On Monday,Toshiba also said it had revised down its pre-tax profit figures by Y225bn over a seven-year period dating back to 2008. On a net profit level,the downward revisions totalled Y155bn.

The amendments came after Toshiba wrote down the value of its nuclear business involving a project in south Texas,the semiconductor division and its struggling consumer electronics businesses such as televisions and PCs. The writedown did not involve Westinghouse,Toshiba's US-based nuclear power company.

“Toshiba's decision not to write down the Westinghouse unit leaves uncertainty on its nuclear business,” said Naoki Fujiwara,a fund manager at Shinkin Asset Management.

“There are still questions about lawsuits and what kind of regulatory penalties Toshiba will receive so investors won't be seriously buying Toshiba shares just because they are cheap,” Mr Fujiwara added.

Toshiba shares closed up 1.8 per cent on Monday,after earlier gaining as much as 5.8 per cent. They have fallen as much as 34 per cent since the scandal came to light five months ago.

The company will hold an extraordinary shareholders' meeting on September 30 to seek approval of its new board members.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How many years ago was the accounting scandal?

A.six

B.five

C.two

D.seven

答案解释：文章第一段，东芝公司的会计丑闻可追溯到7年之前。

2.What kind of businesses did investors ask to allay concerns?

A.electronics

B.nuclear

C.health

D.energy

答案解释：文章第二段投资者说，公司必须做更多的工作来消除关于其核和半导体方面的关注。

3.Who played a role in inflating profits by more than $1bn in a subsequent investigation?

A.middle management

B.skilled worker

C.senior executives

D.senior engineer

答案解释：随后的调查发现，高管在虚报利润超过10亿美元中扮演了重要角色。

4.Why investors won't be seriously buying Toshiba shares even they are cheap?

A.There are still questions.

B.Japanese yen has become weak

C.They hate the scandal.

D.They don't have enough money.

答案解释：在诉讼和定罚上的问题让投资者仍然谨慎，而不会只因为价低购入。

P2P贷款的信用评级

中国最大的P2P借贷网站之一信而富的创始人兼CEO王征宇称，“一个人使用社交网络服务越多，就越能表明他关心自己的名誉和诚信，”而网购记录是另一个关键变量。（P2P是 peer-to-peer 或 person-to-person 的简写,意思是个人对个人）

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

creditworthiness 商誉

peer 同伴

algorithm 算法

milieu 环境

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分43秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分46秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分41秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分56秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

China P2P lender banks on social media usage（565words）

By Charles Clover in Beijing

If you spend a lot of time chatting on social networks or playing computer games,you might be helping your credit score.

At least that is what one of China's largest peer-to-peer lending sites reckons,having rated 50m Chinese consumers for creditworthiness using social networking and computer gaming data.

The data were provided by Tencent,drawn from the internet group's hundreds of millions of users. They were processed by China Rapid Finance using an algorithm that looks at frequency and amount of time spent using Tencent services,everything from WeChat,the social chat app with 600m users,to Candy Crush Saga,the popular smartphone game.

The criteria may seem unusual but Zane Wang,founder and chief executive officer of China Rapid Finance,says internet user behaviour is sufficient to establish reliable creditworthiness.

Moreover,that is all there is to score some of the 80 per cent of Chinese who have no credit history or access to credit.

“These are 500m Chinese consumers who are currently financially active……but are not covered by the current financial system,” said Mr Wang. “That is the gap we are trying to fill.”

Using its non-standard scoring method,China Rapid Finance has arranged 3m peer-to-peer loans in the six months since its partnership with Tencent began in February. The company declined to disclose the monetary value of the loans.

The credit-scoring algorithm examines how long and how frequently people use Tencent services,said Mr Wang. “The more someone uses social networking services[the more it]shows that people are concerned for their reputation,concerned for their integrity,” he added.

Internet purchasing history — even buying points in an online computer game — was another key variable,he added.

“These criteria are different from traditional credit bureaus,but using the data we can still tell if a person will have a tendency to pay back a loan,” said Mr Wang.

How well the algorithm does in establishing creditworthiness is hard to pin down as the programme has only been running for six months,but Mr Wang said annualised loss rates were currently only slightly higher than the average for Chinese consumer credit cards.

The China Rapid Finance platform connects would-be borrowers with lenders who are seeking higher returns than are offered by bank deposits and potentially also an alternative investment to China's risky stock markets.

The loans are not exactly cheap,with a 21 per cent annual interest rate — about 3 percentage points more than traditional credit cards. Because the data do not shed any light on income or ability to pay back,borrowers start out small at around $80,with repeat borrowers enjoying credit up to $10,000.

China Rapid Finance was founded in 2001 and had a pre-money valuation of $1bn after its most recent $35m funding round in July. There is speculation it may be looking towards an initial public offering,although Mr Wang declined to confirm any plans.

Online peer-to-peer lending has developed rapidly amid a push by Beijing to expand financing for consumers and small businesses.

Upwards of 1,500 companies operate in China's P2P lending milieu. The largest,Lufax,is a subsidiary of Ping An Insurance and was earlier this year valued at $10bn in a funding round.

Ant Financial,the finance affiliate of US-listed e-retailer Alibaba,this year launched Sesame Credit Management,a credit rating system that draws on the Chinese ecommerce group's trove of user data.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What is the source of the data?

A.qihoo

B.soso

C.Tencent

D.Baidu Date

答案解释：这些数据由互联网集团腾讯(Tencent)提供，来自其成百上千万用户。

2.What is adequate to establish reliable creditworthiness for Zane Wang?

A.internet producer behavior

B.internet regulator behavior

C.administration behavior

D.internet user behavior

答案解释：信而富的创始人兼首席执行官王征宇(Zane Wang)称，利用互联网用户行为足以建立可靠的信用评级。

3.How many people do not have credit history or access to credit in China?

A.majority

B.minority

C.half

D.everyone

答案解释：文章第五段，没有信用记录或信贷获取途径的人占80%左右。

4.Why do some people choose P2P instead of a bank?

A.lower risk

B.higher returns

C.shorter cycles

D.wider range

答案解释：倒数第六段，这些贷款人正在寻找比银行存款更高的收益率。

麦当劳与汉堡王的“合家套餐”？

这是一次历史性的合作，任何一个机智的公司都不会拒绝，二者共同推出主打美味的“和平汉堡”，是否能像预期为二者带来无尽回报？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

combo 套餐

stunt 噱头

ceasefire 停战

flagship 旗舰

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

1分24秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

0分20秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分57秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分20秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

McDonald's throws out Burger King's combo plan（202 words）

By Malcolm Moore

It was a calculated offer that only a heartless company could refuse: a marketing stunt to create a “hamburger of peace”.

In a full-page advertisement in the New York Times and the Chicago Tribune and online on Wednesday,Burger King laid down a challenge to its rival McDonald's.

“How about we call a ceasefire on these so-called ‘burger wars'?” Burger King asked,proposing that the two companies unite “the tastiest bits” of their flagship burgers into one “delicious,peace-loving burger”.

The result would be half Big Mac,half Whopper,and sold by staff wearing half-and-half uniforms in a pop-up shop in Atlanta,halfway between McDonald's headquarters in Chicago and Burger King's base in Miami,on September 21.

All proceeds from the “McWhopper” would go to Peace One Day,a non-profit group seeking to raise awareness of the UN's International Day of Peace on the same day.

But McDonald's wasted no time in using the olive branch as kindling. “Let's acknowledge that between us there is simply a friendly business competition and certainly not the unequalled circumstances of the real pain and suffering of war,” wrote Steve Easterbrook,McDonald's chief executive. “PS. A simple phone call will do next time,” he added.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who is Burger King's rival by paragraph 2?

A.Big Mac

B.Whopper

C.Machael Jacobson

D.McDonald's

答案解释：周三汉堡王对其竞争对手麦当劳提出了挑战

2.What is the point of the “flagship burgers” by Burger King?

A.harmonious

B.free

C.delicious

D.good smell

答案解释：文章第三段。

3.Where can you see the staff wearing half-and-half uniforms in a pop-up shop?

A.Chicago

B.Atlanta

C.Miami

D.New York

答案解释：这一幕可能在Atlanta出现

4.What kind of business competitions between McDonald's and Burger King?

A.Cfriendly

B.simple

C.unclear

D.cruel

答案解释：文章最后一段：这仅仅是一场友好的商业竞争。

深圳高盛骗局

以往的中国“山寨”货，大都是制作盗版电影，生产山寨手袋、劳力士，而最近备受关注的是出现了“假”高盛——高盛(深圳)金融租赁公司。这家公司的中文名和英文名称都与美国高盛公司一模一样，规模不到100人，其在官网上更自称是深圳最大的金融租赁公司之一。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

nestled 依偎

enforcement 实施

heartland 中心地带

forum 论坛

masquerade 伪装

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分25秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分10秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Shenzhen Goldman Sachs is China's latest fake（456 words）

By Ben Bland,South China correspondent

After a fake Apple store,a fake Ikea and a fake branch of one of the world's biggest banks,China's innovative copycats seem to be scaling the value chain: all the way up to Goldman Sachs,the international investment bank.

Nestled in the boomtown of Shenzhen,bordering Hong Kong,Goldman Sachs（Shenzhen）Financial Leasing Company is the latest case to emerge.

It is listed as operating out of an office building in the Bao An district and its existence was brought to light by the International Union of Operating Engineers,a US-based trade union that has been campaigning against corruption in Macau,the Chinese casino gambling centre close to Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

The IUOE published a screen grab of the company's website but the site has since been taken down.

While the Chinese government has repeatedly emphasised its desire to protect intellectual property rights,enforcement is lax and abuses of brand names and outright fakery are common across the Chinese economy.

Many factories in Shenzhen and the surrounding industrial heartland of the Pearl River Delta still churn out fake designer handbags and imitation smartphones by the truckload and China's leading ecommerce websites provide a ready forum for their distribution.

On a visit to China in April,Penny Pritzker,the US secretary of commerce,warned that “the real conversation needs to be not just about the laws on the books but also about the court system and the broad and consistent application of these rules”.

A spokesman for Goldman Sachs said there were no links between it and the Shenzhen company and that it was “looking into the matter”.

While it uses the English name Goldman Sachs（Shenzhen）Financial Leasing Company,there is no evidence that the Chinese entity was masquerading as the international investment bank.

A receptionist answering the company's phone said it had nothing to do with the US Goldman Sachs and that she did not know why the company used the same English name.

Its name is registered in Chinese using the common characters Gao and Sheng,which mean high and prosperous and are the same characters used to make up Goldman Sachs' Chinese name.

A fake branch of China Construction Bank,the world's second-largest bank by assets,was discovered this month in the city of Linyi,in China's eastern Shandong province.

The enterprising man who set it up was discovered after a month when a local woman who had deposited Rmb40,000（$6,200）found she was unable to make withdrawals in a real branch of CCB.

In a similar case last year,a rural co-operative near the city of Nanjing upgraded itself into a bank and attracted $32m in deposits by promising interest rates as high as 2 per cent a week.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which one of the following is not mentioned as a fake company?

A.Leicht

B.Ikea

C.Apple store

D.branch of bank

答案解释：文章第一段

2.Which country's organization brought the fake Goldman Sachs to light?

A.Britain

B.Spain

C.China

D.America

答案解释：其存在是由总部位于美国的国际机械操作工人工会(IUOE)揭发的。

3.Which region has many factories for fraud in the article?

A.Yangtze River Delta

B.Pearl River Delta

C.three Northeastern Provinces of China

D.west of China

答案解释：在深圳及周边的珠三角工业腹地，很多工厂仍在源源不断地量产假冒名牌手袋和山寨智能手机。

4.Which bank was masqueraded in Linyi?

A.China Construction Bank

B.Industrial & Commercial Bank of China

C.Agricultural Bank of China

D.China Huaxia Bank

答案解释：山东省临沂市一家假冒中国建设银行在“营业”一个月后揭穿，因为一名存入4万元人民币（合6200美元）的女子发现自己无法在一家真正的建行分行提款。

Uber在华“难行”

为了招募司机和吸引乘客，一年来Uber已经在中国支出了逾10亿美元。它宣称取得了初步的成功，在11个城市快速发展，每天有逾100万单业务，但Uber也承认，其中一些是欺骗性的。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

stake 打赌

imperative 势在必行的

formula 准则

logistics 物流

intriguing 有趣的

contemplating 沉思

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分17秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

3分12秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分42秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分18秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Making it big in China requires a large measure of localization（780 words）

By Richard Waters

Can a US consumer internet company ever make it big in China?That question,which has long dogged Silicon Valley,is starting to take on the urgency of a strategic imperative.

It isn't just that China is a juicy target in its own right. There is a risk to ceding ground to emerging Chinese rivals in their booming home market at a time when those companies are taking their first,tentative steps towards going global. US companies,themselves accustomed to using dominance of a massive domestic market as a launch pad to take on the world,should understand what's at stake.

Uber and Airbnb,the yin and yang of the sharing economy,are the latest to try their luck. The ride-hailing app that likes to batter down doors is in a pitched battle with a Chinese local competitor backed by two of those aspiring global players,Tencent and Alibaba. Airbnb,which prefers a less confrontational approach,this week lined up some influential allies as it seeks its own way in.

“Localisation” figures prominently in both companies' game plans. Having the right management and local backers and supporters certainly helps. Knowing when to adapt a successful global formula will also be key. The failure in China of eBay,which was outflanked by Alibaba's free listings for buyers and its introduction of a payment service to reduce fraud risks,is still a case study in how an adaptable local rival can come out on top.

Uber and Airbnb at least have one advantage over companies like Google and Yahoo,which failed before them: they aren't directly involved in the online media and communications businesses,making them less obviously targets of an authoritarian state.

But any successful internet business is to some extent a challenge to the status quo. China's latest gesture towards online control — to station police officers physically inside internet companies — is an indication of the outsized influence that the successful internet companies can have,whatever corner of the market they are in.

One reason is the amount and range of the data they hold. Amassing a giant database about the movements of a nation's citizens is a key asset. And that is likely to be only a starting point,as the winning platforms reach into more areas of online（and,increasingly,offline）life.

Holding the data locally might give authorities greater confidence that they can tap into it when they need: Uber has data centres for its operations inside China. But there is still a question about whether a foreign company could ever be trusted to be as compliant as a local competitor.

Another factor that weighs on foreign players is the way that competition tends to evolve in internet markets. Many turn into winner-takes-all affairs,with the companies that come out on top ending up as centres of power in their own right.

The immodest ambitions of a company like Uber highlight what is at stake. It aspires to become an essential part of the infrastructure of any big city,not only supplying personal transport but also handling logistics. Local governments in China may resist foreign control of something so essential,even if Uber promises to help solve some of the problems caused by swelling personal car ownership for China's polluted and traffic-clogged cities.

A key question now will be how far the latest US aspirants are prepared to go to become truly “local” to overcome reservations like these. Uber's funding arrangements for China are the most intriguing. It already has Chinese investors and is now trying to close a funding round for a separate Chinese unit,bringing outside investors directly into the business.

An Uber spokesperson says the company is also contemplating a local initial public offering,some time in the future,for its Chinese arm,though there are no plans for a one at the moment.

Given its huge need for capital and the particularly cut-throat nature of the Chinese taxi app wars,local investors will be useful. A structure like this would also give Uber more flexibility to adapt later — for instance by bringing in local partners or even,if forced,to reduce its stake in the Chinese venture.

But for any US internet company,staying in the driving seat will be a priority. Yahoo's decision to fold its struggling Chinese business into Alibaba a decade ago turned into one of the most successful internet investments ever made. But now,as it gets ready to spin out what's left of that minority stake,Yahoo's diminished role is all too obvious. That is a fate its successors will be working hard to avoid.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who is backing Uber's Chinese local competitor?

A.Tencent and Alibaba

B.Tencent and Baidu

C.Sina and 360

D.Baidu and Alibaba

答案解释：Uber在中国竞争对手的金主包括中国互联网公司腾讯(Tencent)和阿里巴巴(Alibaba)

2.Which company did not fail before Uber and Airbnb?

A.Google

B.Yahoo

C.Amazon

D.Apple

答案解释：谷歌(Google)、雅虎(Yahoo)和亚马逊(Amazon)都曾押注中国，但全都败北。

3.What is the most key asset for internet business to be successful in China?

A.core technology

B.government support

C.a giant database

D.public praise

答案解释：收集大量的本地数据库是最重要的资产，然而这只是起点。

4.What is the priority for US internet company?

A.attracting more investors

B.staying in the driving seat

C.the relationship with government

D.boosting television advertisement

答案解释：文章最后一段

官方请求加快电子香烟药物许可审核

电子烟是一种模仿卷烟的电子产品，它是通过雾化等手段，将尼古丁等变成蒸汽后，让用户吸食的一种产品。在一个新的事物研发的时候，总是伴随着争议与期待，到底电子香烟能否成为“资深烟民”的戒烟良药？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

regulatory 监管的

inadvertently 非故意地

nicotine 尼古丁

inhaler 吸入器

pipeline 渠道

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分7秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分59秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分51秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分59秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Officials call for faster medicinal licensing of ecigarettes （599 words）

By Mark Odell

Health officials have called for a review of ecigarette licensing to speed up their availability on prescription after concluding they can help smokers quit.

A report commissioned by Public Health England estimated they are 95 percent less harmful than tobacco but observed no product has secured approval to make it available on prescription in the five years since procedures were put in place to license tobacco replacement products.

“Much of England's strategy of tobacco harm reduction is predicated on the availability of medicinally licensed products that smokers want to use,” said the report.

It called for a review of the licensing process put in place by the UK Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency in 2010,citing concerns the current cost of obtaining a licence would limit innovation and favour products produced by big tobacco companies “The fact that no licensed ecigarettes are yet on the market suggests that the licensing route to market is not commercially attractive. The absence of non-tobacco industry products going through the MHRA licensing process suggests that the process is inadvertently favouring larger manufacturers……which is likely to inhibit innovation in the prescription market,” the report said.Last year,a new type of nicotine inhaler backed by British American Tobacco won MHRA clearance. However,the product,Voke,is not yet commercially available in the UK and is not defined as an ecigarette because it uses the propellants found in asthma inhalers to deliver nicotine.

According to the report,BAT has submitted an ecigarette product for approval and rival products are also in the pipeline but “it is unclear at what stage the applications are”.

The one-off cost of the application process is estimated by the MHRA as between £252,000 and £390,000,along with annual costs of between £65,000 and £249,000 per product.

“A review of the……licensing process therefore seems appropriate,including manufacturers' costs and potential impact. This could include a requirement for MHRA to adapt the processes and their costs to enable smaller manufacturers to apply,and to speed up the licensing process,” the report said.

The report also warned that new EU legislation,which is likely to come into force in the UK in 2017,would take ecigarettes containing high nicotine doses off the market “potentially affecting heavier smokers”.

Among other conclusions,the study by teams from King's College London and Queen Mary London found the message that ecigarettes are much less harmful than tobacco was not getting through to smokers.

Instead,research questioning their safety has contributed to recent slowing demand.

“Ecigarettes are not completely risk free but compared to smoking,evidence shows they carry just a fraction of the harm,” said Professor Kevin Fenton,director of health and wellbeing at Public Health England. “The problem is people increasingly think they are at least as harmful and this may be keeping millions of smokers from quitting.”

Local services that help people to stop smoking should “look to support ecigarette users in their journey to quitting”.

However,a report last year by the World Health Organisation said it was too early to conclude whether ecigarettes helped smokers quit. It also said they should be banned in public buildings.

There is also concern that the use of ecigarettes would encourage young people to start smoking. The report by PHE said there was “no evidence” to support this.

The WHO report found there were not enough data to establish whether the trends for the growing popularity of ecigarettes in the UK and the gradual decline in nicotine use were “causally related”.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What's the percent of ecigarette less harmful than tobacco by Public Health England estimated?

A.50%

B.-95%

C.95%

D.-50%

答案解释：文章第二段，电子烟比烟草的危害小得多。

2.Whose product won MHRA clearance last year?

A.British American Tobacco

B.Chinese Tobacco

C.Japanese Tobacco

D.Germany Tobacco

答案解释：文章第六段，BAT的新产品赢得MHRA clearance。

3.What factor has contributed to recent slowing demand of ecigarette?

A.price

B.fashion

C.government tax

D.safety

答案解释：由于安全性被质疑使销售量下降。

4.Whose report last year doubted whether ecigarettes helped smokers quit?

A.WTO

B.MHRA

C.WHO

D.UK government

答案解释：是World Health Organisation 认为现在下结论还为时尚早。

好莱坞UTA进军音乐领域

UTA创建于1991年，是好莱坞五大经纪公司中的后起之秀，由鲍尔·班尼戴克和领先艺术家（Bauer Benedek and Leading Artists agencies）两家中型经纪公司合并而成。很多好莱坞一线明星都是UTA的客户，其中包括约翰尼·德普、哈里森·福特、米莉·赛鲁斯、科恩兄弟。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

acquisition 收购

veteran 老手

hedge fund 对冲基金

peers 同行

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分35秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分14秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分2秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分3秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Hollywood talent agent UTA expands into global music business（637 words）

By Shannon Bond in New York

United Talent Agency is expanding into the global music business with the acquisition of The Agency Group of the UK,as the Hollywood agency boosts its financial firepower with an investment from ValueAct Capital's Jeffrey Ubben.

The move to raise UTA's profile comes as the fiercely competitive talent management sector is being rocked by a new round of inter-agency wars and as the broader media business is undergoing a sweeping digital shift.

The purchase of TAG,whose line-up of more than 2,000 clients includes Mariah Carey,Ringo Starr,The Black Keys and Dolly Parton,significantly increases UTA's representation of big global touring acts.

“Our desire and appetite to grow in the music business really mirrored[The Agency Group's]desire and appetite to provide a much more complete platform for their artists,” said Jeremy Zimmer,UTA chief executive.

TAG was founded in 1981 by Neil Warnock,a music industry veteran who has represented acts including the Rolling Stones,The Doors and Michael Jackson. It has expanded aggressively in recent years to represent global clients from seven offices in Britain,US,Sweden and Canada.

Mr Warnock will become UTA's head of worldwide music. Gavin O'Reilly,TAG's chief executive who joined in 2013 and who was previously chief executive of Ireland's Independent News & Media,is leaving the company.

UTA is boosting its financial muscle with a minority investment from Mr Ubben,founder of ValueAct,the US activist hedge fund that holds stakes in 21st Century Fox and Rolls-Royce.

In addition to helping fund the purchase of TAG,the investment will provide growth capital and fund strategic initiatives. Mr Ubben will join UTA's board as a non-voting member.

“We want access to somebody who really understands how businesses expand,how businesses continue to provide a smart transition for the next generation of executives,all the things that fast-growing businesses deal with,” Mr Zimmer said.

Like its larger rivals Creative Artists Agency and William Morris Endeavor,UTA has been expanding its range of services from its traditional business representing Hollywood actors,directors and writers to areas including branding,corporate marketing,digital strategy and investing.

However,Mr Zimmer said UTA's primary focus remains on representing artists and advising them on the opportunities created by new technologies and platforms.

“Where some of our colleagues are trying to diversify out of representation and get into much more broad ownership of businesses,we're really doubling down on the representation business,” he said. “We believe that representing artists,to have opportunities to connect with a fan base,that's a super powerful business to be in,whether with musicians,actors or fine artists.”

Earlier this year,UTA won 12 agents and a number of high-profile clients including Kanye West,Chris Pratt and Will Ferrell from CAA in one of the industry's largest defections in decades.

Unlike its bigger peers,UTA has not pursued private equity backing in the course of its growth. CAA's majority shareholder is TPG,and WME's recent $2.3bn purchase of IMG was backed by Silver Lake,the technology-focused private equity firm.

Mr Zimmer said UTA had looked at different ways to bring in outside financing but the company was “not comfortable with the traditional structure of private equity” investment.

“The investment from Jeff is a very different kind of investment. He's a private individual — he has no controls on the business and no rights over how we operate on a day-to-day basis. And there's no built-in exit provision that puts a ticking clock on the relationship.”

Mr Ubben is a long-time value investor who has been involved in dealmaking and overhauls at companies including Microsoft and Valeant. He played a role in Thomson's 2007 acquisition of Reuters,as the UK news and data company's second-biggest shareholder,and he served as chairman of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia following Martha Stewart's indictment.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which company will be acquired by UTA?

A.Cosmos Music

B.The Agency Group

C.Soundcloud

D.ValueAct Capital

答案解释：文章第一段，UTA将要收购世界最大的独立音乐代理公司The Agency Group。收购之后TAG将和UTA旗下的音乐部门合并，并为其带来大量知名音乐人的代理。

2.Which company is UTA's model in the music business?

A.ECG

B.TPG

C.TAG

D.CAA

答案解释：Jeremy Zimmer表示希望借鉴TAG为旗下艺人提供更完善的平台。

3.How can we describe TAG in the music industry?

A.inexperienced

B.Operating rich

C.callow

D.evil

答案解释：1981年，业内老手Neil Warnock创立了The Agency Group公司，Neil Warnock 和上个时代里众多最具有影响力的音乐人工作过，比如滚石乐队、迈克尔.杰克逊等。如今花名册上拥有超过2000名艺术家，并且还为艺术家提供品牌整合、数字媒体管理等多方面的增值服务。

4.Who is CAA's majority shareholder?

A.IMG

B.UTA

C.TAG

D.WME

答案解释：文章倒数第四段。

人人皆智者？

智慧是时间，智慧是金钱。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

twinge 刺痛

resilient 弹性的

scorn 轻蔑

jury 陪审团

prizefighter 职业拳击手

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分17秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分38秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分19秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分9秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

We are all sophists now — or should be（697 words）

By Janan Ganesh

If you feel a twinge in your neck,it is from looking over your shoulder. Western professionals can sense threats to their livelihoods closing in. Technology and foreign wage competition stalk graduates these days,if not quite as cruelly as they hunted down factory workers in past decades. Doctors know that a medical diagnosis can be Skyped in from India. Bankers know that trades can be executed by algorithms. Some swine is probably working on the automation of political commentary,too.

Our thoughts turn to that existential question: what do we have that cannot be mechanised or outsourced on the cheap?“Creativity”,supposedly,but this can mean anything. It has joined “disruption” and “network” in the weightless lexicon of the TED age. Less a skill than a cast of mind,creativity is also hard to teach. Parents anxious about their children's prospects cannot very well exhort them to be inventive.

The real answer is more specific and less high-minded. The most resilient skill in the modern world is argument. We are all sophists now,or should be. The ancient Greeks saw these teachers of rhetoric as amoral transients. In a culture that prized civic loyalty,they wandered from city to city instructing locals in the art of argument for a fee. In a civilisation that believed in eternal truths,they would,as a matter of professional pride,make the case for or against any proposition.

Scorned then,imperious now. What unites the elite professions in any international city is their command of sophistry. Barristers and management consultants,political advisers and advertising executives,public-relations strategists and even certain types of investment banker: all trade on the same skill. It is the ability to frame any given problem on your own terms so that your conclusion is irresistible to the client（or jury,or investor,or politician,or reader). To be clear,this is not the same thing as being right. What matters is being persuasive.

Before any of these professions take offence: there is nothing innately wrong with sophistry. The paying party,who is usually smart and well-resourced,can walk away if dissatisfied. And yes,newspaper columnists practise the same craft. Each week we try to hem you into a corner,dear reader,with premises,syllogisms and flurries of language until you accept our argument — or at least feel uneasy if you do not. In boxing,they call it “cutting off the ring”. A prizefighter uses guile and footwork to steer his opponent to the ropes,at which point the poor guy has few options.

The likes of Bain and McKinsey do not win clients by simply flashing their famous brand names. They go into businesses and make systematic arguments about how things might run better. They use facts,yes,but also analogies,invented categories,three-point plans and other forms of rhetoric. They cut off the ring.

London is built on sophistry. Foreigners hire our lawyers and consultants because their skills are hard to find among machines or cheaper labour in countries with less-developed service sectors. Our species is a hundred Sergey Brins from the kind of robotic technology that can reproduce the argumentative flair of a Jonathan Sumption,the QC（and now judge）who earned a reportedly vast fee for defending Roman Abramovich against another rich Russian,Boris Berezovsky,in a lawsuit in 2012.

Politicians mean well when they talk of the “knowledge economy” and the importance of training ourselves for it. But as a description of reality,it fails. The professions with lustre and durability do not rest on knowledge as such. Even barristers often convert to the career quickly after studying something else at university.

A computer programmer has more hard knowledge than a brand consultant: but who is more likely to withstand technological change?A London taxi driver literally possesses the Knowledge,through years of learning and several failed attempts. But it took only pocket-sized satellite navigation to make his life harder. Meanwhile,the sophisticated blagger in his back seat has his pick of employers.

Learn to code,runs the received career advice of today. It is shrewder to learn how to argue. If the sophists were still around,they could charge a fortune.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.what do we have that cannot be mechanised or outsourced on the cheap in the second paragraphs?

A.skill

B.gift

C.creativity

D.appearance

答案解释：文章第二段，答案是创造力

2.What is the most resilient skill in the modern world?

A.argument

B.fight

C.leadership

D.compromise

答案解释：现实生活中答案更加具体易懂，最有弹性的技能就是论证。

3.Which one of the following is not a way to make things run better for Bain and McKinsey?

A.facts

B.fantasy

C.analogies

D.invented categories

答案解释：倒数第五段

4.Which city is built on sophistry?

A.Exceter

B.Moscow

C.London

D.New York

答案解释：倒数第四段明确说明，同时外国人也更加愿意雇佣其顾问和律师。

在中国“瘦身”的奥利奥

数据表明，在庆祝100周年的声光魅影以后，奥利奥饼干的中国市场份额缩小了三分之一，从2012年的近9%下降至现在的6%。这是一则中国新式消费的寓言：更挑剔、更多变——获利空间可能也更小。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

skyscrapers 摩天大楼

ubiquitous 无所不在的

Euromonitor 欧睿(公司名）

Mainlanders 大陆人

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分31秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分46秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分24秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分11秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

A parable of Oreos and ovens（716 words）

By Patti Waldmeir in Shanghai

Three scant years ago,Shanghai celebrated the 100th birthday of one of history's most famous junk foods — the Oreo biscuit — with fireworks on the Bund and multi-storey neon adverts projected on to skyscrapers. But now China has put Oreo on a diet.

This is a country where,within living memory,millions starved to death. People will,to this day,tell you how they ate roots or shoots or even dirt to stay alive. Little wonder the Chinese market was a pushover for the ubiquitous black-and-white sandwich cookie.Foreign treats were seen as healthier than local snacks,because they were imported from places that did not have such a vigorous tradition of poisoning residents with tainted ingredients,as was the fad in China. When I moved here in 2008,it took a while to get used to the notion that McDonald's was a healthy option,purely because it was less likely to be toxic. Here,when mainlanders tell you something is “healthy”,they often mean that it won't be immediately fatal.

But in the past few years,China has begun to discover that heavy metals are not the only things to avoid in snack foods. There is that small matter of fat and sugar,too. Last week,Chinese media carried stories saying that Mondelez,the maker of Oreo,was shutting down some Shanghai production because people were going right off biscuits. The US company waffled a bit about “optimising our supply chain” and shifting production elsewhere,but the company had made clear in the past that Oreo was in trouble in China. Figures from Euromonitor show that,since the sound and light of its centenary celebration,the biscuit has lost one-third of its market share in China,from nearly 9 per cent of the market in 2012 to 6 per cent now.

So that is how Oreo ended up watching its waistline: Mondelez introduced a new “Oreo Thin”,just to woo Chinese consumers,and it did so well that they last month announced that Americans will be able to opt for the skinnier cousin too. All because of a revolution in eating habits that took decades in the west — and only a handful of years in China.

That's not Oreo's only problem: many of the world's most successful brands made it to China early and had a long run almost unrivalled,but are losing their first-mover advantage.（KFC has that problem too,compounded by a spot of bad publicity on the food quality front.） Meanwhile,mainlanders have developed one of the most fickle palates on earth: Americans may want the same cookie Mum gave them with their milk after school; but Chinese want something new every day. Local companies are often nimbler than multinationals at introducing green tea or purple sweet potato alternatives to traditional flavours.

And cookie companies are facing competition from an even more unlikely source: home bakers. When I moved here,ovens were rare in normal homes: I figured that was why mine didn't work too well. But now many a Chinese bride insists on having one. Sales of the countertop ovens preferred on the mainland have more than quadrupled since I started wielding a flour sifter on Chinese shores,and a 318-piece everything-you-could-ever-need baking set can be had on Alibaba's Taobao for only 137 devalued renminbi.

For,given that the vast majority of Chinese under 30 have never known an hour of hunger in their lives,let alone survived on roots and shoots,just filling the tummy is no longer the point. They cook for fun — and for health reasons,says Qian Zhaoli,a 27-year-old marketing manager in Shanghai. She's started baking her own rusks because her first child is teething. “I wanted her to have the healthiest ones,without any additives,” she says,adding that shop-bought rusks have such a long shelf life,and “who knows how many artificial colours and preservatives they contain?” Plus,western-style baking is far easier than cooking any of China's complicated cuisines,she says,noting that in Shanghai most cooking is done by men.

This is not just a tale of Oreos and ovens. It is a parable for a new type of Chinese consumption: more finicky,more fickle — potentially less profitable. Anyone selling almost anything here should watch it closely. May the best rolling pin win.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What is the author's attitude about Oreo?

A.Healthy

B.yucky

C.bad for health

D.good for teeth

答案解释：第一段作者说奥利奥是junk foods之一，所以应该是对健康无益的食物。

2.What is the meaning of “healthy” by mainlanders about food?

A.it won't be immediately fatal

B.little fat and sugar

C.it is non-toxic

D.all of non-gm ingredients

答案解释：第三段：在这里，当有内地人告诉你什么东西是“健康”的，他们的意思通常是指这种东西不会立即致命。

3.Where is production closed by Mondelez,the maker of Oreo?

A.Guangzhou

B.Beijing

C.Chengdu

D.Shanghai

答案解释：因为人们正在丧失对饼干的兴趣，奥利奥的制造商亿滋(Mondelez)关了上海一些生产线。

4.Who is the competition from an even more unlikely source for cookie companies?

A.Cake shop

B.Supermarket

C.Home oven

D.Male chef

答案解释：饼干公司还遇到了一个看起来更不可能的竞争对手：家庭烘焙机器。只填饱肚子不再是重点，他们下厨是为了乐趣，也是因为更加健康。

“不在办公室”留言指南

作为公事繁忙的上班族，休假或外出会议等事宜会不可避免地影响到回复重要的工作邮件，因此人们往往会选择留下out-of-office信息——其目的就在于告知发邮件的对方静待回复或是另请高明，避免耽误紧急事项。然而在科技飞速发展的今天，传统的out-of-office邮件似乎略显过时，或许我们需要更聪明的方式来管理那些离开办公室的时间？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

merit 值得

hurdle 障碍

self-referential 自指的

affliction 苦恼

ruse 策略

plausibility 可信度

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分24秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

3分16秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分45秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分19秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

The out of date out-of-office message（790 words）

By Lisa Pollack

When Professor Randy Pausch took a month off work for his honeymoon,his boss at Carnegie Mellon University insisted that he be reachable. So he recorded a message for when people tried to call. On it he explained that he'd waited until 39 to get married. Then he gave the names of his new in-laws and the town they lived in,so a caller could get their number from directory assistance. Then,lastly: “If you can convince my in-laws that your emergency merits interrupting their only daughter's honeymoon,they have our number.”

I was thinking about this clever out-of-office notification as I tried to construct my own in email form. Prof Pausch's honeymoon message is a story from a more technologically innocent age — it was about 15 years ago,which is at least 100 in internet years. Back then,aside from the hurdles put in place by determined honeymooners,there were also plausible reasons to be out of touch. Now,technology is so good that it's ruined our favourite excuses for not being reachable. Writing that one has “limited” or “intermittent” access to email is usually no more than a declaration that one intends to be choosy about dealing with it.

But this is only half the story. The other is that technology,particularly when it comes to the out-of-office message,hasn't kept up. There's a robot that walks like a dog and cars drive themselves,so why don't we have smarter ways to manage time spent away from work?

An obvious improvement would be to add functionality to email clients that spreadsheet software has had for years: warnings that self-referential loops,aka “circular references”,have been created. This affliction hits parts of Europe especially hard in August. Person A is out of the office,please contact Person B if it's urgent. Person B says the same,refers emailer to Person C in an emergency. Person C refers to Person A. It is either a clever ruse or poor planning,but given that everyone is already emotionally and mentally,if not physically,out of the door when they set this up,it's probably the latter.

From this it logically follows that any new out-of-office technology would have to respect the fact that having high quality time off is a team effort. So one of the top features for development should be a warning that pops up when you're about to email someone from whom you've already received an out-of-office. The system will be smart enough to consider the dates that the holiday-maker said they were away in their email. This isn't my idea. It's covered by a US patent filed（grant pending）in 2006 that's owned by IBM.

I'd like it to go one further by having it hook up with an email scheduling service,giving you the option to forward the conversation to the well-slept sod on the day of their return in order to make absolutely clear that yes,they were right to wish that they could have just stayed in the Lake District forever.

Provided colleagues heeded the warnings,such functionality would be a boon to those of us who have poor self-control when it comes to unplugging from the Matrix. It would also,however,provide the added bonus of making it abundantly clear who the most and least helpful people are when we are attempting down time.

Perhaps in the year after the release of a new add-in to Gmail or Outlook that provides this tool,the survey for the 100 Best Companies to Work For could include a Jerk Index measuring the number of out-of-office notices heeded versus overridden.

The next new feature would generate a public plausibility score for a given out-of-office message. If the message says “intermittent access” but the person is replying to messages at a rate that implies that they want an excuse not to spend time with their family,their plausibility score would be near zero.

If the message says “no access” and the person replies to anything,this system will send them an image of US talk-show host Maury Povich along with the text: “Your out-of-office said that you wouldn't be replying to emails. The fact that you replied determined that was a lie.”

As for my own message,I decided on something non-committal. Until technology catches up,I might as well keep my options open. Oh,and I left Person B out of it. He's not in anyway.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What's the author's attitude towards the current out-of-office notifications?

A.Approving

B.Favorable

C.Discontent

D.Positive

答案解释：文章第三段作者提到她认为目前的out-of-office信息与科技发展的水平不符，希望有更加明智的方式解决这一问题，这说明她对现状并不满意。

2.What have probably caused the circular references?

A.A Poor planning

B.A clever ruse

C.A purposely arranged trick

D.An unexpected accident

答案解释：文章第四段作者提到这种绕圈式的互相推诿很有可能是源于内部计划的不完善而非刻意安排的策略。

3.Which of the following companies is mentioned as the owner of the patent of a new out-of-office technology?

A.Facebook

B.IBM

C.Apple

D.Google

答案解释：文章第五段提到IBM在2006年提交了关于智能邮件的该项专利。

4.Which of the following is not mentioned as one of the features of the new system of out-of-office messages ?

A.Considering when the holiday-maker would return

B.Hooking up with an email scheduling service

C.Generating a public plausibility score for out-of-office messages

D.Providing backup plan for the email users

答案解释：文章第五、第六和第九段分别提到该系统的特点包括智能确定度假者设定的回归时间、和电邮日程服务连接以及为out-of-office信息可信度评分。

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.5

助力抢滩好莱坞

中国作为仅次于美国的第二大票房市场有着足够巨大的魅力吸引投资者前赴后继。然而中国公司除了充足的资金之外，仍需要加深对好莱坞的了解：有时要成功完成一项收购，一位具有丰富经验和相关知识的中介是必不可少的。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

blockbuster 大片

complementarity 并协性

conglomerate 联合大企业

venture 商业冒险

contingent 代表团

orchestrate 精心策划

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分54秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分25秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分9秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分6秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

China will need to rely on intermediaries to succeed in Hollywood（664words）

By Henny Sender

Last week Relativity Media,a Hollywood film studio,filed for bankruptcy protection. But even before its fall from grace,Chinese companies including Alibaba Pictures,Baidu,Dalian Wanda,Tencent,and Huayi Brothers Media Corp had been eyeing the business closely.

A lot of Chinese money has already found its way into California. In the past year Chinese investors have put billions into Silicon Valley companies including Uber,Airbnb and LinkedIn.But of late China Inc has become increasingly focused on the US film industry — in a bid to crack how to make Hollywood blockbusters with Chinese characteristics. This relationship has a natural complementarity. US studios have the know-how but are cash-strapped and risk averse,while the Chinese have abundant capital and an appetite for risk,which lends itself to financing films.

Hunan Television and Broadcast,a government-controlled company,has already put $375m into Lions Gate Entertainment,the studio behind the blockbuster action film series The Hunger Games. Fosun,a privately held conglomerate,plans to spend up to $200m backing Studio 8,an independent studio founded by Jeff Robinov,former head of Warner Brothers. And an arm of Citic,the Chinese state-owned group,has committed $125m to a venture run by Dick Cook,a former Walt Disney executive.

Certainly,the economic fundamentals make sense. China is already the second-largest movie market after the US by value of tickets sold,and it is expected to become the largest by 2020. If the country is to shift from a manufacturing-led,export-driven economy to one based on domestic demand and services,entertainment will become ever more important.For non-Chinese companies seeking to profit from this growth market,local partnerships offer a way of keeping a greater share of revenues. Regulations restrict the number of entirely foreign films that can be shown and the percentage of box revenues that foreign studios may collect.

It is for these reasons that Chinese technology companies have been visiting Los Angeles in search of content,strategic investors and film distributors. A few months ago,Sequoia Capital China was part of a large contingent of Chinese entrepreneurs that spent days with executives at Fox,Sony Pictures Entertainment and STX Entertainment.

New companies are also looking at getting involved. Li Ruigang,former president of Shanghai Media Group,is heading up China Media Capital,a vehicle to invest in content on both sides of the Pacific. Some of the most successful technology entrepreneurs and investors in China want to take big stakes in CMC. In addition,some strategic players are considering partnering with online asset management firms in China to help crowdfund potential acquisitions.

Donald Tang,a former Bear Stearns executive who shuttles between Los Angeles and Shanghai,has formed a venture with backing from Tencent and others to capitalise on this trend. He has already orchestrated two of the biggest marriages between Hollywood and China: he was deeply involved in Dalian Wanda's $2.6bn purchase of AMC,the US's second-biggest cinema chain,and Huayi's commitment to put hundreds of millions of dollars into STX（which also has money from China-based Hony Capital and the growth capital arm of TPG,the private equity firm).

Of course,the Chinese are not the first to succumb to the lure of Hollywood. But whether they succeed will depend on their willingness to accept a reliance on intermediaries and co-investors,such as Mr Tang. “They have a lot of ambition but not a lot of knowledge,” says one mainlander familiar with the Chinese initiatives.

Historically,Chinese companies have been reluctant to pay for advice — or acknowledge their need for it. Yet it is often not enough simply to pay the highest price. Sellers want certainty that a deal will be done,but all too often Chinese buyers fail,either because they cannot get approval or because they lack the financing.

Still,one day it will probably be a Chinese dragon that roars out from American movie screens before the opening titles roll.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which of the following companies is not mentioned as having been eyeing Relativity Media closely?

A.Alibaba Pictures

B.Tencent

C.Baidu

D.SOHU

答案解释：文章第一段提到曾经密切关注相对论传媒的中国公司包括阿里巴巴、腾讯和百度等。

2.Which of the following Silicon Valley companies is not mentioned as having been invested by Chinese companies?

A.Radiant Entertainment

B.Uber

C.Airbnb

D.LinkedIn

答案解释：文章第二段提到中国投资者在加州硅谷投资的公司包括领英、优步和空中食宿。

3.When is China expected to become the largest movie market ?

A.By 2018

B.By 2022

C.By 2020

D.By 2025

答案解释：文章第五段提到中国目前是仅次于美国的第二大电影市场，并且有望在2020年前成为第一。

4.Why do non-Chinese companies need local partnerships in China?

A.Keeping a greater share of revenues

B.Broadening international horizon

C.Deepening understanding of Chinese cultures

D.Cutting down expenses

答案解释：文章倒数第六段提到作为非中国公司在中国市场受到重重限制，寻求当地的合作者有助于他们保持更多收益。

“少林CEO”释永信被传正在接受调查

释永信是现任少林寺方丈、中国佛教协会副会长、河南省佛教协会会长。据报道，释永信因私生子和挪用公款问题被人指控，但少林寺方面否认其正接受调查。中国佛教协会在其网站上表示，针对释永信的指控“关乎少林寺乃至中国佛教的形象和声誉”。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

lurid 耸人听闻的

allegation 指控

disciple 门徒

embezzle 贪污

oust 罢黜

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分9秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分53秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分3秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分43秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Mystery deepens over China's scandal-hit ‘CEO monk' Shi Yongxin（433words）

By Lucy Hornby in Beijing

The Chinese abbot who turned the temple where kung fu was invented into a sprawling commercial empire failed to turn up at a Buddhist meeting in Thailand this weekend,fuelling speculation that he is under investigation after weeks of lurid allegations.

Shi Yongxin,the round-faced,yellow-robed “CEO monk” who heads the Shaolin Temple,has been accused by a former disciple of fathering several children out of wedlock and embezzling money.

The allegations,widely reported in Chinese media,are the latest in a string of controversies surrounding the globe-trotting abbot,whose aggressive commercialisation of the historic temple for tourism,martial arts and cultural purposes has made him China's most famous Buddhist and turned the Shaolin temple into China's most recognisable brand.

A communications officer at the temple,surnamed Ma,denied that Abbot Shi was under investigation. Abbot Shi could not immediately be reached for comment.

The temple,tucked into a forested mountainside in central Henan province,houses warrior monks whose high kicks and seemingly magical powers have featured in numerous action films. The temple fell on hard times after being stripped of its lands and monks under Communist rule,but staged a comeback under Abbot Shi.

A crackdown on corruption and consolidation of political power under President Xi Jinping has already claimed other religious figures,including celebrity guru Wang Lin,who stands accused of murder. Mr Wang is the qigong master-turned oil mogul who testified in the trial of ousted energy and security tsar Zhou Yongkang.

Religious activity in China is managed by government bureaucracies,and the revenue-generating potential of popular temples that survived several decades of Communist upheaval is often combined with suspicion over their potential influence.Abbot Shi enjoyed the blessing of the authorities and was a member of the National People's Congress and vice-chairman of the state-backed Buddhist Association of China.

The allegations against Abbot Shi have “affected the image and reputation of Chinese Buddhism”,the Buddhist Association said on its website. The State Administration of Religious Affairs last week asked its local bureau to investigate the allegations,according to an unconfirmed report in Chinese media. An official at the bureau said: “We are looking into it.”

Abbot Shi has survived earlier controversies,including the 2009 plan to list the temple on the stock market that was widely derided in China. He later blamed the local government for the plan.Earlier this year,he travelled to Australia to present a $3.8m cheque to purchase land for a $380m kung fu theme park,hotel,golf course and property development.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which of the following is mentioned as one of the allegations towards Abbot Shi?

A.Accepting bribes

B.Embezzling money

C.Commercializing the Shaolin temple

D.Evading taxes

答案解释：文章第二段提到针对释永信的指控包括贪污和非婚生子。

2.Which of the following did not turn the Shaolin temple into China's most recognisable brand according to the third paragraph?

A.Splendid history

B.Aggressive commercialisation

C.Martial arts

D.Vegetarian food

答案解释：文章第三段提到释永信对少林的商业化使其成为中国知名度最高的品牌。

3.Where is Shaolin temple?

A.In Shandong

B.In Henan

C.In Shanxi

D.In Anhui

答案解释：文章第五段提到少林寺位于河南省嵩山。

4.In which of the following countries did Abbot Shi purchase land for a kung fu theme park?

A.Australia

B.USA

C.Thailand

D.Korea

答案解释：文章最后一段提到今年早些时候释永信赴澳大利亚购买土地营建功夫主题公园。

Uber面对最后一个十亿人的市场？

Uber目前在印度市场积极发展并推出种种策略与当地的竞争对手抗衡，然而这最后的十亿人市场最终是否能被Uber成功拿下还有待观察。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

gambit 策略

equity 股票

inflated 言过其实的

autorickshaw 电动三轮车

beef up 加强

阅读即将开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用时间，并对照下方给出的参考值来估算您的阅读速度。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

6分2秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

3分37秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分1秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分24秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Uber faces the “last 1bn person market”（844words）

By James Crabtree in Mumbai

Uber chief executive Travis Kalanick often describes India as a “global priority market”. Quite how much of a priority only became clear last week,as the car-hailing service unveiled plans to sink an extra $1bn into the country over the next nine months.

Depending on the point of view,Mr Kalanick's gambit is either a bold move by one of America's most daring technology companies,or a last-ditch attempt to avoid being left behind by a larger local competitor,a fate his company has already suffered in China.

But while Uber is fighting taxi-app wars with a host of rivals across Asia,its battle with Bangalore-based Ola carries special significance,given the huge potential size of India's still under-developed market.

Uber has deep pockets,having raised close to $10bn in equity and debt since its founding five years ago. But Ola is also well-financed,with backing from Russian billionaire Yuri Milner's DST Global fund,and Japan's Softbank.

Ola is also nearing closing a new $500m funding round at an implied equity valuation for the company of more than $4bn,according to three people familiar with its plans. A further round at an even steeper valuation is likely later this year. “Cash isn't the issue,” says one Ola investor,who spoke on condition of anonymity. “They[Uber]are putting in $1bn,but we are going to have at least $1bn too. We won't be outgunned.”

Elsewhere Mr. Kalanick is playing catch-up. Uber says it can hit 1m rides a day by next March,up from about 200,000 today. Ola,by contrast,already claims 500,000 daily rides — although both companies routinely accuse each other of inflated figures,making the true picture hard to judge.

What is clear is that Uber has often struggled since launching in India in 2013.Its growth has been rapid,helped along by its willingness to adapt to local conditions,such as allowing customers to pay in cash or adding cheaper autorickshaws to its service. But India's sheer complexity has often overwhelmed the small teams Uber deploys to launch in new cities. A temporary ban in New Delhi last December following sexual assault allegations caused a particular crisis,forcing it to beef up its management.

Uber's hopes now rest on quicker expansion. Today it operates in 18 cities,far behind Ola's 100 or more. Amit Jain,Uber's president in India,says this “rigorous” approach has been deliberate,implying that its narrower footprint allows better service. Either way,a spate of city launches are likely.

Serving more customers in existing locations such as Mumbai will be just as important,which in turn means finding extra drivers. In mature markets like America,Uber increases supply by persuading people to turn their cars into part-time taxis. In India,where vehicle ownership levels are minuscule,this is unlikely to work.

Instead,it must now find,train and retain a vast pool of new drivers,most of whom will not have worked behind the wheel before. Ola says it will grow from 150,000 drivers today to about 1m by 2017. Uber,which now has about 50,000,needs a similarly dramatic jump.Then there is the thorny issue of profit. Uber's deep pockets allow it to lure drivers and passengers from rivals via costly incentives,often losing money on each ride. But eventually these sops must be cut back,often causing resentment.

“I earned a lot of money in the beginning,but it has gone down drastically now,because they cut back on special bonus payments,” says one driver in Mumbai who signed up with Uber six months ago,but who asked not to be named. “They have put in too many cars and now there are not enough customers,” he adds.

Other problems are likely too,from regulatory delays to protests from anxious old-style cabbies. Yet India's taxi-app sector is still set for rapid growth. Morgan Stanley analysts says it will be worth $5bn by 2020. Ola founder Bhavish Aggarwal talks even more boldly of India becoming the first country to grow rich without mass car ownership — because Indians will use cheap and readily available taxis instead.

That may be far-fetched,but it helps to explain why Uber,Ola,and their various investors,are willing to deploy such vast sums to conquer a market that remains far smaller than China's — and in which the American company at least is by no means assured of victory.“It's a bit of a war out there,but it will be winner takes all,and India is the last billion person market left,” says Anupam Mittal,a Mumbai-based entrepreneur and early Ola investor. “And remember this is India,it isn't Sweden. We have entrepreneurs with knuckles and sharp elbows. They aren't going to get knocked over easily.”

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How much did Uber plan to sink into the country over the next nine months?

A.$10bn

B.$500m

C.$1bn

D.$4bn

答案解释：文章第一段提到Uber将印度视为优先市场，并打算在未来九个月内增加$1bn的投资。

2.Which of the following is mentioned as Ola's investor?

A.Japan's Softbank

B.Menlo Ventures

C.Fidelity Investment Group

D.Goldman Sachs

答案解释：文章第四段提到Ola有着稳定的资金来源，其中包括日本的软件银行集团。

3.Why does Uber's battle with Bangalore-based Ola carry special significance?

A.Ola is as well-financed as Uber

B.Uber is fighting taxi-app wars with a host of rivals including Ola

C.India's still under-developed market holds great potential

D.Ola is the only local competitor in India

答案解释：文章第三段提到Uber对Ola的竞争因印度市场的巨大潜力而有着特殊的重要意义。

4.Which of the following is not mentioned as Uber's current problem?

A.India's sheer complexity

B.Fund shortage

C.Finding extra drivers

D.Regulatory delays

答案解释：文章提到Uber打算在未来九个月内增加$1bn的投资，说明在一段时间内Uber不存在资金不足的问题，而其他三个选项则都是文中指出的Uber面临的挑战。

好莱坞电影公司相对论申请破产保护

参与制作电影《社交网络》、《斗士》和《赎罪》等作品的相对论传媒（Relativity）是一家美国的独立电影公司，总部位于加州洛杉矶县的西好莱坞。公司参与制作、发行了超过200部影片。有37部电影登上北美票房榜冠军，58部电影的全球票房超过1亿美圆。总计获得过60个奥斯卡奖提名。近期由于债台高筑，经营不善，不得不申请破产保护。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

bankruptcy 破产

liability 债务

collapse 崩溃

helipad 直升机停机坪

retail 零售

阅读即将开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用时间，并对照下方给出的参考值来估算您的阅读速度。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分20秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分59秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分8秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分44秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Hollywood film-maker Relativity files for bankruptcy（449words）

By Matthew Garrahan in New York

Relativity Media,the Los Angeles-based entertainment group,has filed for bankruptcy protection after missing payments to lenders and running up as much as $1bn in liabilities.The filing is the biggest Hollywood bankruptcy since the collapse of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer four years ago. MGM emerged from bankruptcy with its debt holders in control of the company: its largest shareholder,Anchorage Capital,is the lead debt holder of Relativity Media.

The company will be auctioned off,with Blackstone and FTI Consulting running a process that will be overseen by the bankruptcy court. Relativity has received a commitment of $45m debtor-in-possession financing — funds which will keep it operating during the sale.Relativity,which released films such as Act of Valor and Immortals,was started by Ryan Kavanaugh,a colourful character who once earned the ire of neighbours by landing his helicopter on the rooftop emergency helipad of a nearby building.

Mr Kavanaugh raised hundreds of millions of dollars to invest in movie studio production slates. He initially earned millions of dollars in fees from the performance of those slates,and later expanded into production and distribution with backing from Elliott Associates,the New York hedge fund run by Paul Singer.

However relations with Elliott quickly soured. Ron Burkle,the retail billionaire — and a close friend of Bill Clinton — stepped in,backing the company. Relativity had scored with Limitless,starring Bradley Cooper,but failed to repeat the success,releasing a string of movies that underperformed.

Expansion into new lines of business,such as athlete representation,education and branding proved to be a further drain on the company's resources. In recent months it has lurched from crisis to crisis,seeking emergency financing deals in a bid to stay afloat.

Mr Kavanaugh is expected to stay with the company through the bankruptcy process. Relativity,which is cutting 75 jobs,is being represented in its bankruptcy filing by Sheppard Mullin,the law firm. The filing,in the Southern District of New York,reveals that the company has up to $1bn of liabilities.

“The actions we are announcing today will protect our valuable franchise and allow us to emerge as a stronger,more focused company,” Mr Kavanaugh said in a statement.

Mr Kavanaugh has been on the receiving end of a lawsuit filed recently by RKA Film Financing,a film promotion group,which accused the company of misusing funds. In its legal filing it called Mr Kavanaugh a “conman” who “through dishonesty and deceit,operated a scheme to defraud investors and convert and misappropriate their funds”.

Relativity fired back with a $200m countersuit,claiming that RKA was seeking to exploit its efforts to refinance the company.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Why did Relativity Media file for bankruptcy protection?

A.Making bad investments

B.Missing payments to lenders

C.Stock prices declining

D.Investor withdrawls

答案解释：文章第一段提到相对论公司之所以申请破产保护是因为该公司目前债台高筑，且无能力偿还借方。

2.Which of the following is mentioned as the biggest Hollywood bankruptcy?

A.MGM

B.Relativity

C.Paramount Pictures

D.Twentieth Century Fox

答案解释：文章第二段提到相对论破产是继四年前米高梅破产之后好莱坞最大的破产事件。

3.What is the purpose of giving Relativity a commitment of $45m debtor-in-possession financing?

A.Paying off the company's debts

B.Helping Relativity make new investment

C.Covering the expenses of lawsuit

D.Keeping the company operating during the sale

答案解释：文章第三段提到该笔资金用于维持Relativity在破产清算等一系列手续过程中的运转。

4.What did RKA Film Financing accuse Mr Kavanaugh of?

A.Doing illegal business

B.Appropriating public funds

C.Misusing funds

D.Stealing trade secret

答案解释：文章倒数第二段提到RKA Film Financing因Mr Kavanaugh不当使用资金而将之告上法庭。

女星Jane Birkin要求爱马仕Birkin包改名？

Birkin包（柏金包）是由生产皮革及成衣的制造商爱玛仕（Hermès）于1984年推出的一款手提包。这款包是以长期居住在法国的英国歌手简·柏金（Jane Birkin）命名的。然而近期Jane Birkin发布声明要求爱马仕停止使用她的名字，原因是Birkin包使用鳄鱼皮制作，而供应商杀死鳄鱼的过程十分残忍。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

slaughter 屠宰（动物）

alleged 声称的

gruesome 可怕的

issue 发布

implicate 牵涉

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分21秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分0秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分8秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Jane Birkin demands Hermès remove her name from crocodile bag（450words）

By Catherine Bennett in Paris

British singer and actress Jane Birkin has demanded that her name be removed from one of luxury brand Hermès' most distinctive handbags.

The Birkin bag,which can command prices of more than £40,000,comes in a crocodile leather version,which has led to protests by animal rights activists.

Ms Birkin released a statement on Tuesday evening saying: “Having been alerted to the cruel practices reserved for crocodiles during their slaughter to make Hermès handbags carrying my name,I have asked Hermès to debaptise the Birkin Croco until better practices in line with international norms can be put in place.”

Animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals（Peta）recently released an exposé into the cruel treatment and slaughter of crocodiles,in which alleged employees of a crocodile farm part-owned by Padenga Holdings in Texas were recorded stating that the farm supplied Hermès. The video then went on to show the crocodiles being killed by various,gruesome means.

Ingrid Newkirk,president and co-founder of Peta,said of Ms Birkin's request: “Peta,on behalf of all kind souls in the world,thanks Ms Birkin for ending her association with Hermès……soon,no one will want to be caught dead carrying one,and animal advocates will then breathe a sigh of relief.”

Hermès did not respond to a request for comment. According to Reuters,the company issued a statement on Wednesday saying that it was equally “shocked by the images” broadcast.

It denied that the farms portrayed in the video belonged to the group,and promised that “an investigation is under way at the Texas farm which was implicated in the video. Any breach of rules will be rectified and sanctioned.”

The bag was named after a chance meeting on an aeroplane in 1981 between Ms Birkin and Jean-Louis Dumas,Hermès' then-chief executive. He created the Birkin bag in her honour three years later. A fuchsia Hermès Birkin bag was the most expensive handbag ever sold,fetching HK$1.7m（US$222,000）at a Christie's auction in Hong Kong last month.

Hermès reported €4.1bn in revenue last year. Its leather goods and saddlery division,which manufactures the Birkin bag,accounted for 45 per cent of the group's sales in 2014,with a turnover of €1.8m and 15 per cent growth compared with the previous year.

In recent years,luxury manufacturers have been buying up tanneries and crocodile farms over the world in order to secure a supply of the raw materials needed to make their luxury products. It takes up to three crocodiles to make a Birkin bag.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Why did Ms Birkin demand that her name be removed from Hermès' handbags?

A.She was aware that the crocodiles being cruelly slaughtered.

B.Her name had been used without her consent.

C.The contract between Ms Birkin and Hermès was due.

D.Ms Birkin had not received proper payment.

答案解释：文章第三段提到Jane Birkin之所以要求爱马仕停止使用她的名字是由于她获悉用于制作爱马仕皮包的鳄鱼皮来自被残酷屠杀的鳄鱼。

2.Which of the following is mentioned as the part-owner of the crocodile farm in the video?

A.Hermès

B.Lone Star

C.Padenga Holdings

D.PETA

答案解释：文章第四段提到PETA组织近期曝光一段虐杀鳄鱼的视频，其中牵涉的鳄鱼农场属于德州Padenga Holdings旗下。

3.Which of the following is mentioned as part of Hermès' statement?

A.An investigation is being held at the farm implicated in the video.

B.The farm implicated in the video will be closed in the near future.

C.The company has consented the request made by Jane Birkin.

D.It has been confirmed that the farm belonged to Hermès.

答案解释：文章第六段和第七段提到爱马仕于周三发布声明，宣称涉事鳄鱼农场正在接受调查，且否认该农场属于爱马仕旗下。

4.How much did Hermès' leather goods and saddlery division account for the group's sales in 2014?

A.60%

B.30%

C.45%

D.50%

答案解释：文章倒数第二段提到爱马仕的皮制商品和马具销售占到2014年度总利润的45%。

百度财报令人失望，股价遭重挫

百度是全球最大的中文搜索引擎和最大的中文网站，该公司于2005年在美国纳斯达克(Nasdaq)上市，一举打破首日涨幅最高等多项纪录，并成为首家进入纳斯达克成分股的中国公司。然而近期该公司的季度业绩没有实现关键目标致使其股价于本周一大跌，同时中国国内股市亦再现震荡行情。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

Nasdaq-listed 纳斯达克上市的

turmoil 混乱

scrutiny 仔细观察

unveil 使公布

attributable 可归因于…的

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分39秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分27秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分30秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Baidu shares hit as results disappoint（307words）

By Charles Clover in Beijing

Shares in China's Nasdaq-listed search engine Baidu fell 8 per cent on Monday after it missed key targets in its quarterly earnings and amid renewed turmoil in China's domestic stock markets.

The Chinese internet giant,which has a stake in Uber,has been under scrutiny by investors as the apps-driven mobile internet threatens the role of traditional search engines. This month Baidu unveiled a bold strategy to invest $3.2bn in “online to offline” services where smartphones are used to hail taxis,buy movie tickets and shop.

However,analysts and traders on Monday were focusing on the bottom line and Baidu's quarterly numbers disappointed: the company forecast current-quarter revenue would rise 34.4 to 37.4 per cent to a range of Rmb18.17bn-Rmb18.58bn（$2.9bn-$3bn),falling short of analysts' average estimate of Rmb18.79bn,according to a Thomson Reuters poll.

Operating profit in the second quarter came in at Rmb3.4bn,a 2.5 per cent decrease from the same period in 2014.Net income attributable to Baidu in the second quarter was Rmb3.6bn,a 3.3 per cent increase from the year-earlier period.

Baidu shares fell to $197 on Monday in New York. They hit their lowest point of the year,of $184,on July 8.

Selling pressure was exacerbated by overall jitters about China's stock markets,which collapsed earlier this month but had been improving for the past three weeks,until renewed selling on Monday sent the Shanghai Composite index down 8.5 per cent — its worst one-day fall in eight years.

Shares in other US-listed Chinese companies have been hit as well because market turmoil in mainland A shares has dented confidence more broadly.

Alibaba,the New York-traded Chinese ecommerce giant,hit a post-September 2014 listing low on July 8 of $77,though it had recovered to $81 as of Monday.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How much did the shares in China's Nasdaq-listed search engine Baidu fall on Monday?

A.11%

B.7%

C.5%

D.8%

答案解释：文章第一段提到在纳斯达克(Nasdaq)上市的中国搜索引擎百度(Baidu)股价周一大跌8%。

2.Which of the following is not mentioned as one of the “online to offline” services that Baidu unveiled this month?

A.Hire driving service

B.Hail taxis

C.Buy movie tickets

D.Shop

答案解释：文章第二段提到百度公司公布了一项大胆战略，将在“线上到线下”(O2O)服务领域投资32亿美元，在该领域，用户可以利用智能手机叫车、购买电影票和购物。

3.When did Baidu's share hit the lowest point of the year?

A.In March

B.In January

C.In July

D.In June

答案解释：文章第五段提到百度公司股价曾于7月8日曾触及184美元的今年最低水平。

4.Which of the following is mentioned as the reason of shares in US-listed Chinese companies having been hit?

A.Companies failing to achieve their key targets

B.Stock market turmoil in mainland

C.Shrinking economies

D.Profit decline

答案解释：文章第六段和第七段都提到受到中国大陆地区股市大跌的影响，百度及其他纳斯达克上市的中国公司股价下跌压力增加。

中国游客不再热衷东南亚？

东南亚主要旅游目的地的中国游客显著减少，这在一定程度上不止是因为一起空难和地缘政治紧张的结果。对于全球很多地方，接待出境游的中国人是一个成长型行业。作为旅游目的地国家和航空公司都应以更加细腻的战略方式对待中国游客市场。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

geopolitical 地缘政治

swamp 淹没

coup 政变

aviation 航空

reluctance 勉强

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分25秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分35秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分34秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分53秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Chinese tourists spurn SE Asia holidays（539words）

By Ben Bland

Key Southeast Asian markets have seen a marked drop in Chinese tourists,a growth sector across much of the globe,as air crashes and geopolitical tensions take their toll.

While China spends more on outbound travel than any other nation,up 28 per cent to $165bn last year,the reversal of fortunes for some of Southeast Asia's main tourism destinations underlines the risks that countries face as they look to China for growth.

The trend is particularly concerning for countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia that were banking on Chinese tourists to help boost their slowing economies.

“These Asian markets have been the early recipients of the largest Chinese outbound flows and have quickly adapted to a recognition that the China market will progressively swamp all others,” said Will Horton,an analyst at the Centre for Aviation,a research company,in Hong Kong.

“Chinese media and shifts in political winds can abruptly — but often temporarily — turn off traffic flows. Excessive reliance on any one tourism source inevitably creates this problem.”

Excluding Thailand,which has seen a rebound in Chinese tourist numbers since another military coup last year,the number of Chinese visitors to Southeast Asia fell in the first three months of this year to 1.5m,from 1.9m a year earlier,according to the Centre for Aviation.

That signals a continuing trend,with Chinese arrivals in Southeast Asia,excluding Thailand,falling to 6.2m last year from 6.4m in 2013.

By contrast,Japan,helped by its weakening currency,and the rest of North Asia have seen a jump in Chinese tourists,up 38 per cent to 3.3m in the first quarter of this year,compared to a year earlier.

Michael Beer,an aviation analyst at Citigroup in Hong Kong,said that the deadly crashes last year involving Malaysia Airlines' flights MH370 and MH17 and AirAsia Indonesia's QZ8501 have shaken Chinese tourists' confidence in travelling to the region.

Malaysia's much-criticised handling of the loss of MH370,which disappeared mysteriously en route to Beijing with 152 Chinese among the 239 people on board,has added to the reluctance to travel there.

Vietnam and the Philippines have suffered because of rising political tensions connected to their maritime disputes with Beijing in the South China Sea.

Analysts say that while the most Chinese tourists would not feel any direct impact,the political climate,and its reporting in the sometimes nationalistic state-controlled media,affects their travel decisions.

Joey,a 28-year-old from Shanghai,was recently persuaded by her friends to drop plans to visit Vietnam because they were still concerned about a small outbreak of anti-Chinese rioting last year.

“I think even though the incident was a long time ago,the concept of Vietnam as a disorderly place hasn't changed,” she said.

Mr Horton of the Centre for Aviation argues that countries and airlines need to take a more nuanced approach to the lucrative Chinese market.

“There is little doubt that in the long term Chinese tourists will change the face of global tourism,” he said. “But managing the short and medium term blips will be a big part of a China tourism strategy.”

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which of the following is not mentioned as the reason of Chinese tourist spurning SE Asia holidays?

A.Air crashes

B.Geopolitical tensions

C.An increase in the number of direct flights

D.The influence of state-controlled media

答案解释：文章第一段最后和倒数第五段分别提到东南亚旅游目的地国家客流受影响的原因包括之前的空难和地缘政治紧张以及中国的媒体风向。

2.Which of the following countries has seen a jump in Chinese tourists?

A.Japan

B.Malaysia

C.Indonesia

D.Vietnam

答案解释：文章中作者在第八段提到日本得益于日元疲软，见证了前往该国中国游客数量的跳跃式上升。

3.What's the author's attitude towards Chinese tourists spurning SE Asia holidays?

A.Satisfied

B.Objective

C.Reluctant

D.Discontent

答案解释：文章中作者以第三者角度列举了东南亚旅游国家目前中国游客减少的现状和其背后的原因，其中并没有加入过多个人情感色彩，整体态度是客观地陈述事实。

4.Which of the following countries suffered decline of Chinese tourists because of maritime disputes?

A.Philippines

B.Russia

C.USA

D.Korea

答案解释：文中倒数第五段提到越南和菲律宾受到与中国南海争端的影响导致吸引游客数量下滑。

苹果手表的未来？

自苹果发售iWatch以来，业界和消费者大都对该产品持平淡甚至负面的评价。虽然苹果并没有对外公布其手表业务的上半年销售额，但业内人士均对其达到目标销售额的可能表示怀疑。苹果的这一次可穿戴式智能设备的尝试，未来的发展到底如何？现在，还是个未知数。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

anecdotally 传闻地、据传

scepticism 怀疑主义、怀疑态度

device 装置

debut 首次出场

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分37秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

3分23秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分50秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分20秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Doubts remain over prospects of Apple Watch（808words）

By Tim Bradshaw

Apple's launch of its Watch in April was its most significant product introduction since the iPad made its debut five years ago.

But,three months in,the response from analysts and consumers bears a greater resemblance to the launch of the iPhone than to the more enthusiastic reception that first greeted the iPad. Despite its subsequent success the iPhone was initially met by confusion and widespread doubts about its prospects.

With no sales figures from Apple to act as a guide,speculation about the Watch's performance has run wild. Estimates for sales so far range between 2m and 5m,with first-year sales pegged anywhere between 10m and 30m.

Alongside the prospects for future iPhone growth in emerging markets such as China,analysts will be listening keenly for any hints about Watch sales during Tuesday's quarterly earnings call.

Most analysts caution that it is too early to assess its potential,especially in the slow-selling summer months before holiday sales ramp up. But after mixed reviews from the tech press and concerns that the Watch's demonstration tables in Apple Stores have been relatively quiet compared with the iPad's arrival,some analysts are already reining in their forecasts.

Andy Hargreaves,a Pacific Crest analyst,said in a recent note that while initial demand was “very strong”,analysis of online search query volume suggested consumer interest has since fallen “below the iPod（with an ‘o')”.

“Our confidence is declining,which suggests risk to our 2016 estimate of 24m[sales]is increasing,” he added.

Ben Wood,analyst at CCS Insight,concedes that his initial estimate of 20m sales by the end of this year may be “a little optimistic”.

“Is momentum flagging?It feels to me anecdotally it is in the US and UK,” he said,noting that it was nonetheless outselling rival smartwatches from the likes of Samsung,LG and Motorola.

Some potential customers were put off by the initial need to make a reservation to try the Watch in-store and having to wait weeks to buy online,due to supply constraints,said James McQuivey of Forrester Research,who forecasts 10m units sold this year.

Those early supply problems have been solved,but some see the plentiful stock in US Apple Stores as a sign of low demand. By contrast,the iPad was at the time the fastest-selling new tech product ever,with 3m units shifted in its first 80 days.

“The fact is we don't need Watches the way we needed tablets,” Mr.Mc Quivey said,pointing out that they filled a gap between smartphones and traditional PCs.

Comments from early Watch customers echo that perspective. Cathrine Andersen,a Danish tech entrepreneur working in San Francisco,found her Apple Watch a “disappointment” and returned it after a week.

“I work in an innovation unit of a big tech company so I'm used to trying out new things. I was really excited about the Apple Watch,” she said. But after unpacking it,she struggled to set up and personalise the device.

“I felt so stupid. It was a very atypical Apple experience for me,” she said. “I expected it to work as soon as I put it on my wrist and it just didn't.”

Wolfgang Blau,executive director of digital strategy at Guardian News & Media,wishes he had not bought the Apple Watch.

“There were many issues around the first iPhone as well,” he wrote on Facebook. “But you could at least make a phone call with it,while the Apple Watch is not even a decent watch.”

While other buyers have been more enthusiastic,the sense that Apple Watch has underwhelmed emerges from many conversations in Silicon Valley,from entrepreneurs and investors to app developers. One venture capitalist who had tweeted bold predictions for the Watch before its launch said he had already stopped wearing his and heard that apps made by his portfolio companies had received limited usage. Apple hopes to address problems with apps through a forthcoming software update.

However,according to a study by tech analyst group Creative Strategies and Wristly,a start-up which polls a panel of more than 1,000 Watch owners weekly,Apple's smart watch is more popular with people outside the tech bubble than it is among that more traditional community of early adopters.

Wristly found that below half of the buyers it surveyed were tech “insiders” or app developers,with the majority working in other industries.

Many first-generation tech products suffer scepticism in their early days. Ms Andersen says she would consider buying the second version of the Apple Watch,which sources familiar with Apple's plans say is likely to emerge in the first half of next year.

Apple declined to comment on the Watch's sales.

Version one “was a good try”,John Maeda,design partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield& Byers,said at Fortune's Brainstorm Tech conference last week. “Let's see what comes next.”

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How is the sales performance of Apple Watch so far?

A.Better

B.Worse

C.Remain stable

D.Not mentioned

答案解释：文章第三段作者讲到苹果并没有放出任何销售数字，因此我们无法得知苹果手表销售表现是变好还是变坏。

2.What's the general attitude（by the buyers）towards first generation tech product?

A.Enthusiastic

B.Terrified

C.Skeptical

D.Thrilled

答案解释：文章倒数第三段提及科技产品的第一代总是会被消费者带着怀疑的目光审视。

3.Which Apple product has similar review to Apple Watch by consumers when deputed?

A.iPod

B.iPhone

C.iPad

D.Macbook Pro

答案解释：文章第二段作者写了消费者对苹果手表的评论就好像当年苹果手机初次发售时一样。

4.Apple Watch is least popular in which group of people?

A.Businessmen

B.Farmers

C.Students

D.Early Tech professionals

答案解释：文章倒数第五段放出了一个公司的调查结果，显示苹果手表对外行人吸引力更大，在科技行业的评价最低。

罗森（Lawson）便利店眼中的日本商机

每隔两三个街区，转过一个街角都能看到一家便利店，这是日本独有的风景。也正是因为如此景象，人们应该都会认为日本的便利店市场已经非常饱和了。但是近日，在中国等新兴市场势头正旺的连锁便利店罗森（Lawson）的高层表示，他们在看似饱和的日本市场看到了机遇。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

saturation 饱和

shabby 破旧的

perennial 长久的、持续的

Seven & I Holdings 柒合伊控股（7-11所属公司）

nascent 新生的

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分36秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分42秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分38秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分55秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Lawson still sees big growth potential in Japan（555words）

By Robin Harding

It can feel like there is a convenience store on every street corner in Japan,but according to the head of number two operator Lawson there is still massive potential for growth.

“The first question from foreign investors is always: ‘When is the saturation point?You guys are opening up like crazy',” said Genichi Tamatsuka in an interview with the Financial Times. “‘Not yet,' I tell them,” he said.

Mr. Tamatsuka's comments are a reminder that despite Japan's difficult demographics there are still opportunities in what remains an enormous retail market.

Lawson plans to open 1,200 new stores in Japan this year on top of its existing 12,000,while closing 750,for a net increase of more than one shop a day. Mr. Tamatsuka argues that it is the very ageing and depopulation of rural Japan that creates an opening.

“There are 55,000 convenience stores in Japan,” he said. “Thirty years ago there were 1.6m retail stores in total and now there are less than 1m. If you go to the countryside,there are places where the supermarket is gone,the bookshop is gone,and the number of places to shop has really fallen.”

Meanwhile,family units are shrinking,women are working,and they are busier,said Mr. Tamatsuka. “Whereas people used to go to a big supermarket and prepare meals for a family of four or five,now they're busier,they're older,and they prefer to buy in a small neighborhood store.”

In many countries convenience stores are shabby vendors of lottery tickets and packets of cigarettes,but in Japan the “combini”,as they are known,are brightly lit,market-tested venues for a panoply of products and services. Customers can pay bills,pick up a new videogame,send a parcel or book concert tickets.

In areas where other stores are absent,Lawson can step in,said Mr. Tamatsuka. “With our scale of 12,000 stores,our supply chain and platform,we can supply food and necessities to these neighborhoods.” Convenience stores,he points out,are only 5 per cent of total retail outlets.

In taking over the top job last year,Mr. Tamatsuka was following a charismatic chief executive for the second time in his career.

In 2002,he was promoted to run Fast Retailing's Uniqlo clothing chain at the age of just 39,after successfully launching its UK operation. But in 2005,founder Tadashi Yanai pushed him aside and became chief executive again.

At Lawson he is following Takeshi Niinami,who left to run the drinks company Suntory Holdings after 12 hard-charging years in which the convenience store grew steadily but remained a perennial number two to market leader Seven & I Holdings.

Mr. Tamatsuka said there are some signs of an improvement in domestic consumption,which has lagged behind a recovery in the corporate sector,with real wages hit by last year's rise in sales tax.

“It's been a year since the consumption tax rise. From May and June it feels like there's been a small pick-up,” he said. “It's really important heading into the summer and autumn that we generate some momentum in consumption.”

International expansion is the other growth area for Lawson,which like many Japanese retailers is trying to export its level of customer service. It has 500 stores in China and nascent chains in Thailand,Indonesia and the Philippines.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What is the focus of Lawson's investors' curiosity?

A.Profitability of convenient store

B.Saturation point of the market

C.Productivity of Lawson's employee

D.Influence of government regulation

答案解释：文章第二段作者提到了罗森的投资者最常关心的问题就是“什么时候市场达到饱和点？”

2.Which Japanese company is the number one market-shareholder in the retail industry?

A.Lawson

B.Seven & I Holdings

C.Tesco

D.Target

答案解释：文章倒数第四段讲到Lawson一直是第二名，排在Seven & I Holdings之后。而Tesco是英国公司，Target是美国公司。

3.What happened to the amount of the convenient store in Japanese market comparing with the number from 30 years ago?

A.Smaller

B.Larger

C.No change

D.Don't know

答案解释：文章第五段一开头就引用了Lawson的二把手，点出和30年前比较，现在的便利店数量少了很多。

4.Where do people prefer to go to nowadays when they need to prepare a meal?

A.Shopping mall

B.Farmers' market

C.Convenient store

D.Big supermarket

答案解释：文章第六段讲了现在因为日本家庭组成变了，人们不再去大超市买材料准备饭食而是到便利店快速地买一点解决。

苹果三星与业界协商推出电子SIM卡

买了新手机，却被迫更换号码？不想换运营商，就无法使用新手机？由于现在各个型号品牌手机还是使用传统的只与特定运营商绑定的SIM卡，这样的经历常常发生。有消息称，苹果、三星正在与诸多大型电信公司进行协商，希望在不久的未来推出统一内置型SIM卡。这种新型SIM卡将兼容世界上许多大型电信运营商的信号，使手机被锁定在某一特定运营商不能变更的时代成为过去。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

GSMA 全球移动通信协会

Deutsche Telekom 德国电信

Etisalat 阿联酋电信

Hutchison Whampoa 和记黄埔（香港）

Orange 法国电信旗下手机电信子公司

Telefónica 西班牙电信 Vodafone|沃达丰（爱尔兰）电信

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分7秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分26秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分27秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分51秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apple,Samsung in talks with telecom groups to launch e-Sim card（515words）

By Daniel Thomas and Tim Bradshawi

Apple and Samsung are in advanced talks to join the rest of the telecoms industry to launch electronic Sim cards,in a move could fundamentally change how consumers sign up to mobile operators.

The GSMA,the industry association which represents mobile operators worldwide,is close to announcing an agreement to produce a standardised embedded Sim for consumer devices that would include the smartphone makers.

The traditional Sim card locks in the user to a network but an embedded Sim would enable a smartphone,tablet or wearable user to avoid locking themselves into a plan with a single operator or sign up to switch instantly.

Networks expected to support the plans include AT&T,Deutsche Telekom,Etisalat,Hutchison Whampoa,Orange,Telefónica and Vodafone.

Anne Bouverot,chief executive of the GSMA,said all parties were heading towards an agreement for the “common architecture”.

However,with any deal still contingent on finalising the technical specifications it will be at least a year before any devices supporting the electronic Sim reach the market.

The GSMA said: “With the majority of operators on board,the plan is to finalise the technical architecture that will be used in the development of an end-to-end remote SIM solution for consumer devices,with delivery anticipated by 2016.”

Last year,Apple revealed its own Sim card for its latest iPads. However,it was supported by only a handful of operators such as T-Mobile and AT&T in the US,and just EE in the UK. Those familiar with its UK rollout said that it had not been widely adopted.

The electronic Sim is not expected to replace the Apple Sim,a piece of plastic that fits into a device and could be included in the next generation of iPhones.

The GSMA said it was “continuing to work with Apple to secure their support for the initiative. While we are optimistic,a formal agreement with them is still in progress.” Apple declined to comment.

The GSMA has already come up with an embedded Sim standard for the management of connections in the machine to machine market,where physical SIMs might not easily be changed in devices such as utility meters,traffic lights or assisted living systems.

“We have got everyone back on one point,with Apple and Samsung agreeing to be part of that specification,” said MsBouverot. “We have been working with them and others to create an industry solution for machines and will agree a solution for consumer electronics.” MsBouverot,who will step down as chief executive this year,said an industry-wide electronic Sim was one of several objectives established during her time in office.

She added that about 3.7bn people had a mobile phone — about half the world's population — but that connecting the remainder would be a huge challenge for the industry.MsBouverot also pointed to the service that allowed the phone to act as a single point of identity for multiple online services,but added that more work was needed on developing next-generation 5G mobile networks.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which telecom company does the future electronic sim card not support?

A.Deutsche Telekom

B.AT&T

C.Vodafone

D.China Mobile

答案解释：文章第四段作者列出了一系列将会被支持的电信公司，其中没有中国的任何移动营业商。

2.What percentage of the world's population owns a mobile phone?

A.>25%

B.≈50%

C.<75%

D.≈100%

答案解释：文章倒数第二段展示了数据，表示大约一半的世界人口拥有手机。

3.What is the disadvantage of traditional SIM card?

A.Provide too many choices of network

B.Limit the type of mobile phone users can use

C.Create an open ecosystem

D.Lock users in to one network

答案解释：文章第三段一开头作者就点出传统SIM卡的问题：把用户锁在某一个特定系统中。

4.What's the future goal of the telecom industry according tothe chief executive of the GSAM?

A.Developing 5G mobile network

B.Reducing to 3G mobile network

C.Creating a globally united network providerC

D.Forming a more competitivemarket than now

答案解释：文章最后引用GSMA主席的话来带出未来目标：发展5G网络。

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.6

GoPro（户外运动相机）的流行与困境

外出旅游还带自拍杆？你out啦！现在风靡一时的户外运动相机GoPro让人们可以方便地纪录任何旅行或运动中的点滴。但就是如此流行的GoPro也不可避免为了应对用户逐渐提高的需求而加速的产品迭代，以及和想从这个新兴市场分一杯羹的其他公司的竞争。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

Drone 无人机

Polariod 宝丽来（拍立得）

Rugged 结实耐用的

Frame 帧

Megapixel 百万像素

Aficionados 狂热爱好者

Quadcopter 四轴飞行器

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分45秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分13秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分18秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分48秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

GoPro launches Hero 4 Session cube camera in design shift（484words）

By Tim Bradshaw

GoPro is breaking away from the camera design it has used since switching from 35mm film to digital video nine years ago as it tries to battle increased competition.

This month's launch of the $399.99 cube-shaped Hero 4 Session,which is half the size of its flagship Hero 4 Silver and Black devices,comes as part of a shake-up this year that includes lower prices and new products,including 360-degree “spherical” video and a remote-controlled flying drone.

By broadening its range,GoPro hopes to sustain its lead over a growing number of rival action cameras from Sony,iON,Xiaomi,HTC and Polaroid.

Nick Woodman,GoPro's chief executive,said the Session was the company's “smallest,lightest,most convenient GoPro”.

The company described it as a personal project for Mr Woodman,who launched the first of GoPro's rugged,portable cameras in 2004,with the first digital camera coming two years later.

The Session boasts high-definition 1080p video,at up to 60 frames per second,and 8 megapixel still photos,similar specifications to the middle of GoPro's existing range. It will also be able to work with most of the company's existing mounts and other accessories,which have been central to the brand's appeal to action sports aficionados.

But the device does away with most of the screens and buttons of its traditional devices,instead pairing wirelessly to a smartphone or optional remote control to view captured footage and change camera settings.

GoPro is hoping to improve the accessibility of its devices. Like Polaroid's $100 Cube device,the Session has just one main button on the top,to start and end recording. It is waterproof without needing an extra case and has a dual-microphone system that makes for clearer sound recording.

Polaroid is releasing a new version of the Cube this month,costing $150,which adds wireless connectivity.

According to analysts at IDC,GoPro accounts for more than half of all action-camera sales. The launch of the Session,which will go on sale in most markets this month,follows the June launch of the Hero+,an entry-level device costing $300,to help fend off lower-priced competition from Chinese manufacturers.

Mr Woodman announced in May that GoPro would launch a drone camera within the next 12 months,capitalising on growing interest in aerial photography thanks to the falling cost of remote-controlled quadcopters such as DJI's Phantom. GoPro is also working with Google to create a 360-degree camera made up of 16 Hero devices.

In addition,GoPro announced new accessories and mounts across its Hero range,from a foam case that reduces wind noise to the “Floaty” to keep the Session from sinking.

The company's valuation has increased by about two-thirds since its initial public offering just over a year ago,as it continues to post strong growth. But its stock,which closed at $51.75 on Friday,is trading well below its highs of more than $90 last October.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What does this new Hero 4 Session have in common with other GoPro products?

A.Compatible to most GoPro mounts and accessories.

B.Needs extra casing to be waterproof.

C.Same quality of film recorded.

D.Has dual-microphone system for sound recording.

答案解释：文章详细描述了GoPro新产品的新特点，包括无需单独外壳即可防水、更高拍摄画质、和新的双麦克风系统。而共同点则是都能与GoPro其他推出的支架和配件通用。

2.Which company is not GoPro's competitor?

A.XIAOMI

B.Google

C.SONY

D.Polariod

答案解释：文章中部作者提及了GoPro的竞争对手包括Sony,iON,Xiaomi,HTC 和 Polaroid，而后面讲Google则是GoPro的合作研发伙伴。

3.Which action does GoPro not take to fight the competition?

A.Develop new products

B.Create more accessories of GoPro cameras

C.Release products with lower price

D.Merge with Chinese manufacturers

答案解释：文章里讲到了GoPro的策略，比如更低价和新产品还有更多配件。

4.What is the author's opinion towards GoPro's future?

A.Bright

B.Poor

C.Worrisome

D.Strong

答案解释：该文作者在最后一段指出，虽然GoPro现在依旧强势增长，但其股价（$51.75）已经远低于最高值（>$90）。所以，作者对于GoPro的前景是担心的。

中国式肥胖

牛肉和猪肉，你会吃哪一种？牛油果和大白菜，你又会选择哪一个？新华社不久前报道称，中国肥胖人口比例已经超越西方国家。这其中当然有着中国经济发展带来社会繁荣人民生活质量提高的因素，但也存在许多带有独特中式色彩的文化影响。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

Girth 腰围

Radical 基本的（也有激进之意）

Fad 一时的流行

Gung-ho 狂热的

Cholesterol 胆固醇

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分53秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分58秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分33秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分14秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Fat is a cultural issue for ever-expanding China（747words）

By Patti Waldmeir

When flying to the US for our summer holiday each year,my family has a foolproof method of locating our check-in queue at Shanghai's Pudong airport: look for the passengers with the greatest girth. The largest people fly to America.

But according to last week's Chinese newspapers,we may soon have to find a new strategy（something radical like looking for our flight number on the departures board). Xinhua,the state news agency,reported that China now has a higher percentage of overweight and obese people than the west.

Even more interestingly,Xinhua further asserted that the reason that China has supposedly overtaken the US as the world's obesity superpower is not the one most of us would imagine. Relax KFC: apparently it's not your fault for once.

Yum Brands,which owns the popular Southern fried chicken chain,may be the undisputed market leader in Chinese fast food — but that's not what's making the country fat. It's more likely to be hotpot. Even vegetables,it seems,make Chinese people plump these days: growing affluence means people can add more oil to their meals,and that's the real culprit,apparently: oil and salt-heavy foods,such as hotpot and grilled meat. The Communist party mouthpiece,Global Times,says it's all doublethink anyway: “Eating meat products is mistaken for[living]the lifestyle of the rich,” the paper quotes an expert saying.

Xinhua didn't produce any statistics to support the claim that China is now fatter than the west. It based its story on a study by the National Health and Family Planning Commission,which found that 30 per cent of the country's adults were overweight in 2012 — and that the rate had swollen by almost a third since a decade earlier. Nearly 10 per cent of children aged six to 17 were overweight,double the rate in 2002,the report said. No definitions,or comparative statistics for other countries,were given.

But even if China hasn't yet trounced the world on this measure,it will do soon. The most recently published international study of the issue had China already at number two behind the US,and rising rapidly. And that's where all those fattening vegetables come into it. One 2011 study found that Chinese youths who ate more vegetables and less fast food,and came from richer households,were fatter than those who didn't. “Overweight-related correlates seem to play different roles in the Chinese culture than in western cultures,” the study's authors conclude. Translation: fat is cultural; and fat fads are even more so.

For example,it's obvious that the Chinese middle class can afford to eat more steak these days; what's not so obvious is why they think it's such a good idea. Yu Peidi is one of this new generation of gung-ho meat-eaters — and like many of his compatriots,he believes it's actually the healthier option. We had lunch with Yu,nicknamed Little Fish,on his 30th birthday: but he's not planning a big change in his eating habits（despite a recent health check-up that showed cause for concern in the liver region).

“I think beef is good,it's high in protein……if it's fattening,it has much more nutritional value than pork,” he said,while tucking into a teriyaki portion of the stuff in a Shanghai hostelry. Was he aware that many westerners think beef is bad for the heart,I asked. He was astounded. Did he know lots of non-Chinese think shrimp is bad for cholesterol?He hadn't heard that one either.

I've got no idea which of us is right: the point is that our two cultures' beliefs about food are so different. I think Chinese food is,on balance,healthier than western food; and he,on balance,thinks the opposite. My Chinese colleague piped up to say she forces herself to eat an avocado a day to lose weight; I mentioned I hadn't touched one in decades,for exactly the same reason. Veins and arteries must be cultural too.

Luckily we all agree we should go to the gym more often（or,in Little Fish's case,at all). His parents rode bikes and walked everywhere so they didn't need to work out; but his generation of middle-class professionals knows they have no choice. Health clubs are booming in every Chinese city,and Little Fish plans to join up soon. There's doubtless one opening in that shopping mall near him — right next to all the new steak restaurants.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which of the following is the main point of view by Xinhua's report?

A.The problem of obesity is worse in China nowadays than in the west.

B.More western people are overweight,compare with Chinese people.

C.Chinese people are eating very healthy as people become wealthier.

D.Western food is bad for people,as it causes many health problems.

答案解释：文章第二段明确写道，“新华社报道称，中国现在国民肥胖人数比例已经超越了西方国家”。

2.What is the author's opinion towards the Chinese food?

A.Weird

B.Bland

C.Healthier

D.Unappetizing

答案解释：文章的倒数第二段作者表示自己认为中国食物总体来讲是比西方食物更健康的，而中国人的看法却恰恰相反。

3.What is the anomaly of today's Chinese society?

A.Middle-class family can afford more meat,which makes them obese.

B.People do not like or eat western food because they are not healthy.

C.Rich people are fatter,creating a “fat” culture.

D.As people become rich,they eat less and less vegetables.

答案解释：该文作者指出很重要的一个奇怪现象：有钱人吃的蔬菜更多，可是他们却比其他人更胖。她发现，在中国好像肥胖已经成为了一时的流行文化。

4.Which of the following can be a possible solution to the obesity problem in author's opinion?

A.Eat more vegetables

B.Work out more often

C.Do not eat western food

D.Stop eating beef and shrimp

答案解释：文章最后一段，作者提及她和“小鱼（Little Fish）”都赞同需要多去健身房，也写到中国现在的中年人们都意识到了这个共同的解决方案。

泰勒·斯威夫特的版权费之争

美国流行音乐天后泰勒·斯威夫特，似乎成心要和新兴的互联网音乐流媒体服务“过不去”。去年底，斯威夫特曾因为版权费纠纷从流媒体音乐巨头Spotify撤下全部歌曲，6月21日，斯威夫特对“苹果音乐”免费试用三个月期间不支付艺人版权费的做法提出批评，并表示不会给苹果提供自己最热门的《1989》专辑。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

Predicament 窘境

Radiohead 英国著名摇滚乐队－电台司令

Royalties 版税

Vinyl discs 黑胶唱片

Succumbing 屈服

Guise 姿态,名义

Clout 影响力

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分8秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

3分7秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分39秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分16秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Taylor Swift is fighting the wrong part of the music industry（768words）

By Jonathan Ford

Ever since their incomes from recorded music started to shrink more than a decade ago,musicians have pondered long and hard about whom to blame for their predicament.

They certainly do not lack for potential villains,whether the youthful entrepreneurs who created pirate file-sharing services such as Napster,complacent record label bosses or Apple co-founder Steve Jobs,whose insistence on selling downloads by the track cut album sales to ribbons.

But led by a vocal group of influential artists such as Taylor Swift and Thom Yorke,the lead singer of Radiohead,many have chosen instead to point the finger at the technological services that stream music,which include Spotify,Deezer and Apple Music.

These companies may be bringing artists together with audiences. They may also be the only part of the recorded music business in which sales are increasing now that the market for paid-for downloading has started to tail off. But stars such as Ms Swift believe they are “devaluing” the product.

Not only are such services attacked for paying relatively meagre royalties to artists. Critics say that because consumers can get music without paying for it,via services such as Spotify's free tier,streaming companies also drive down sales of physical music,such as CDs. Ms Swift pulled her entire repertoire from Spotify last year to stop it being listened to on the service's free tier.

There is just one problem with the underlying thesis. It is almost entirely wrong.

Streaming may not be providing a fat living for the artists. But here is the thing: it is not making much of one for the streaming services either. Spotify,for instance,is absorbing substantial losses as it tries to build its customer base. The company pays four-fifths of its revenues away,the great majority to artists,songwriters and record labels.

As for the price point,it is a trade-off. Charging subscribers $120 a year to listen to all the music they want,as Spotify does,may not sound a whole lot. But even in the golden age of CD sales,the average consumer only spent about $50 a year on music. Giving stuff away for free may be annoying; but unless you offer the consumer a taster you may never build the market.

Rather than agonise about Spotify's model,artists might do better to direct some pointed questions closer to home if they really want to understand why their royalty cheques are so small. The economics of the music business have changed vastly in recent years. The deals they have with the music labels have not.

It is a point highlighted in a recent report from EY,the professional services firm,and the French record label industry association SNEP,which looked at where streaming revenues end up. What this showed is that while artists and songwriters share about 17 per cent between them,the labels walk off with just under 50 per cent. That is pretty much the same split as when all sales were physical.

Yet it is far from clear why this should be so. The cost structure of digital music is very different from its analogue predecessor. Labels do not,for instance,bear the costs of manufacturing and distributing a physical product. There is no need to do long runs of CDs or vinyl discs and flog them “sale or return” to retailers. Breakages in transit no longer eat into margins.

Moreover,the “digital dividend” goes beyond manufacturing and distribution. Lower start-up costs enable more artists to launch and prove themselves without the aid of labels,which hang back and pick up those who cut through. Artists and repertoire costs — the industry's version of R&D — have fallen a fifth since 2009. It is one reason why industry margins have held up despite a falling top line.

MrYorke may choose to stigmatise streaming as the “last desperate fart of a dying corpse”. But rather than succumbing to despair,artists might reasonably ask why the labels have not shared the digital dividend with them. It is not as if these companies do anything other than exploit rights granted to them by musicians. It is also not clear that this service has become more valuable in the digital age.

So here is a suggestion for Ms Swift in her guise as spokesperson for the industry. Expend less energy on bashing streaming services; they are the only viable future. Use your clout to make the labels more fair in their dealings with artists. A baseline set of contractual terms for digital,backed by more transparency about who is paying what to whom,might be a start.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What did Taylor Swift think about streaming companies such as Spotify,Deezer and Apple Music?

A.These companies destroy her music.

B.She loves these companies and what they do.

C.The actions of these companies are reducing the value of her music.

D.She does not think these companies are affecting her at all.

答案解释：文章第四段在描述过提供音乐播放服务的公司的好处之后，翻转语气讲到“但是像taylor swift一样的明星则认为这些公司让他们的音乐产品贬值了”。

2.What is the author's opinion towards the streaming companies?

A.Sympathetic

B.Negative

C.Indifferent

D.Disapproving

答案解释：文章的第六、七段作者明确表示像swift一样的音乐人们想错了，那些提供音乐播放服务的公司其实也只是在维持，并没有暴富或克扣任何人的利益。所以作者对那些公司的态度是支持并同情的。

3.In author's opinion,who should be blamed by stars like Taylor and Thom?

A.The streaming companies

B.Themselves

C.The record labels

D.Consumers

答案解释：该文作者最重要的一个观点就是，相比提供音乐播放服务的公司，艺人们真正应该责问的是他们的音乐制作公司，因为那些老板们拿走了将近一半的利润。

4.What is the predicament of music artists like Taylor Swift?

A.Not creating music of the same quality anymore.

B.Not earning as much as they were back in days.

C.Do not have to ability to sing live.

D.Do not agree with their record label bosses

答案解释：虽然作者并没有明确指出艺人们的窘境，但文章前两段都指出了艺人们的困境在于没有足够的收入。

谷歌与苹果：移动大战方兴未艾

精品投资银行Digi-Capital的数据显示，开发者从应用获得的营收中，约45%来自苹果App Store，29%来自谷歌Play Store。上周，赶上并试图超越苹果是谷歌传递给开发者的强大潜台词。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

implementation 实现[ɪmplɪmen'teɪʃ(ə)n]

algorithm 算法['ælgərɪð(ə)m]

degenerate 退化[dɪ'dʒen(ə)rət]

momentum 势头[mə'mentəm]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

7分0秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

4分17秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

3分12秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

1分49秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apps spearhead Google's battle with Apple（1093words）

By Richard Waters and Tim Bradshaw in San Francisco,May 31,2015 5:45 pm

Sebastian Thrun,former head of the Google X — the advanced projects lab set up to make big bets on the future — knows all about technological ambition. Driverless cars,high-altitude balloons providing internet access and contact lenses that monitor blood sugar levels were all products that flowered under his leadership.

But when it comes to the Android operating system for mobile devices,Mr Thrun says this is not the time for Google to pursue bold new visions. With smartphone wars well advanced — he believes it is now all about smaller incremental advances,as Apple and Google slug it out for global advantage.

“You can have great visions,but change takes implementation,it takes small steps,” Mr Thrun said last week,after watching the opening presentation at Google I/O,the group's annual technology showcase event. “What I saw was Android playing out,Android getting into the mature phase.”

Sameer Iyengar,a former Google employee who is now a co-founder of app maker Beautylish,questioned whether Google was being bold enough in laying out its tech vision: “The thought leadership is maybe absent,compared to where it was in the past.”

He credited Google with taking a lead in at least one area: machine learning — a form of artificial intelligence that the company says is being used to enhance its mobile software and make apps on Android work better.

Applications of AI were among the most eye-catching demonstrations at the event last week,underlining Google's aims of using its massive computing base and advanced algorithms to make its services far more relevant and useful.

On at least one measure,Android has been a spectacular success. Conceived by Google as a defensive strategy to ensure its internet services were not locked out of mobile handsets by companies such as Apple or Microsoft,the software has turned into the dominant smartphone platform — accounting for about 80 per cent of the market worldwide.

But there is a hard slog ahead. With a disparate group of handset makers in the Android camp,the platform has struggled to match the more polished set of services and hardware that Apple has built around the iPhone,such as Apple Pay and,more recently,Watch.

Also,to make money,Google needs to reinforce the prominent position of its own services at a time when the open-source Android world threatens to break apart. Hardware makers,ranging from Amazon to Xiaomi,are looking to use Android as a platform for their own app stores and services — displacing Google.

“They have to make sure Android doesn't just degenerate into low-end devices and fragmentation,” says Al Hilwa,an analyst at IDC,the tech research firm.

If that were not enough,Google has to deal with the consequences of its own,expansive vision. This has taken Android into a broad array of new markets,from “smart” home appliances to cars. “Where Apple is always very focused on a few product categories,Google wants to be in everything,” says Jan Dawson of Jackdaw Research. “It's hard for Google to keep making meaningful progress across all those different domains and keep up with Apple.”

Winning the hearts and minds of app developers — the focus of Google I/O last week,and the rival Apple developer conference next week — has become a key part of the battle.

Creating a marketplace where app developers can make money has been at the heart of Apple's formula for encouraging them to do their best work first for its mobile devices.

But the Android world has been catching up.

For most developers,the calculation is now finely balanced. Like many,Mr Iyengar says his app reaches far more people on Android devices but,on an individual basis,iOS customers are more profitable for his company.

Google's Play Store had been gaining ground as a source of income for developers,but the momentum in recent months turned back to Apple. Tero Kuittinen,managing director Magid Associates,a consultancy,and an adviser to several gaming companies,says app makers were “taken aback” by the shift,which followed the launch of larger iPhones.

According to some industry estimates,the sheer weight of numbers is finally starting to play in Android's favour — even if Google is not the only beneficiary.

Apple's App Store accounts for about 45 per cent of the revenue that developers make from apps,compared with 29 per cent for Google's Play,according to Digi-Capital.

But counting in the income from handsets in China — where Google's apps are blocked,meaning it makes no money — pushes the overall Android share to 52 per cent,Digi-Capital calculates.

Last week,matching — and trying to surpass — Apple was a strong subtext of Google's pitch to developers. New features included Android Pay,a rival to Apple Pay and a fresh attempt to break into mobile payments after the disappointment of Google Wallet. A new Google Photos app — with the promise of software that can automatically organise libraries of pictures — also echoed capabilities that are already offered by Apple.

But in other areas,Google seemed unprepared. While smartwatches based on last year's Android Wear technology have been put in the shade by the launch of Apple Watch,Google had little new to show off in response. This was a sign that it is surrendering early leadership in wearables to Apple,according to Carolina Milanesi,an analyst at Kantar Worldpanel.

Yet some of the latest attempts to extend the Android universe clearly play to Google's strengths.

Its new photos app offers free storage for an unlimited number of pictures — echoing the launch of Gmail,the company's free email service,in 2004,although the cost of storage has fallen greatly since then and has become less of a competitive differentiator.

Sucking in large volumes of photos also presents a new opportunity for Google to add to its already substantial mass of data about users. Company executives say they have not made plans to scan the pictures for advertising purposes but make no secret of the fact that a person's photo library comprises a highly valuable source of information about them.

Meanwhile,to improve the experience of using Android handsets in emerging markets,where low-end hardware and unreliable networks often hamper performance,Google announced new ways of using its services offline. These included the ability to view maps and directions while not connected.

They all represent attempts by Google to shift more of the value to its own services rather than embed it in the Android open-source software,says Mr Hilwa — a way to ensure that Google remains at the centre of the Android universe.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which of the following technological devices does not belong to the Google X?

A.UAV(unmanned aerial vehicle)

B.Driverless cars

C.high-altitude balloons（providing internet access）

D.contact lenses（to monitor blood sugar levels)

答案解释：文章第一段塞巴斯蒂安·特伦（Google X前负责人）深谙什么才是科技雄心。Google X在其领导下研发了无人驾驶汽车、提供互联网接入的高空轻气球以及监测血糖水平的隐形眼镜。

2.According to the author,in which of the flowing area does Google have the advantage over Apple?

A.sliding unlock

B.Apple Pay

C.machine learning

D.Apple Watch

答案解释：谷歌前员工、现为应用(app)制造商Beautylish联合创始人的萨米尔·延加虽然质疑谷歌的科技愿景方面的胆略和思想领导力，但是在第五段还是肯定了其在机器学习领域的领先地位,Apple Pay 和Apple Watch是苹果围绕iphone打造的服务和硬件。

3.Google's apps are blocked in which country?

A.Africa

B.Japan

C.China

D.Czech Republic

答案解释：文章倒数第六段，根据Digi-Capital的统计，开发者从应用获得的营收中，约45%来自苹果App Store，29%来自谷歌Play Store。若加上来自中国的手机的收入（谷歌的应用在中国遭封锁，意味着谷歌本身无钱可赚），Android的整体市场份额将升至52%。

4.Which of the flowing is true about Google's new photos app?

A.Google will charge users a premium for more than 5G of storage.

B.It can only be used by people who have Gmail account.

C.It offers free storage for an unlimited number of pictures.

D.Google plans to scan the pictures for advertising purposes.

答案解释：谷歌新的照片应用可提供无限量的免费图片存储，呼应了2004年谷歌推出Gmail免费电子邮件服务之举，倒数第四段，谷歌高管表示，他们并没有为广告目的而扫描图片的计划，但并不掩饰这样一个事实，即一个人的照片库包含有关他/她的极有价值的信息。

全球经济复苏将有失速的风险

最新的全球经济复苏追踪指标显示，较弱的新兴市场正在控制增长，可能导致全球经济复苏有失速的风险。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

Momentum 势头[məˈmentəm]

Durability 耐久性[ˌdjʊərə'bɪlətɪ]

Fragile 虚弱的[ˈfrædʒaɪl]

Dissipated 驱散[ˈdɪsɪpeɪtɪd]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分41秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分44秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分40秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分56秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Global recovery at risk of stalling（562words）

By Chris Giles,April 12,2015 12:361 pm

The global economy is mired in a “stop and go” recovery “at risk of stalling again”,according to the latest Brookings Institution-Financial Times tracking index. The index,released ahead of the International Monetary Fund's twice-yearly forecasts this week,highlights how the modestly improved growth outlook in advanced economies has been offset by weakness in emerging markets.

“A modest reversal of fortunes between the advanced and emerging market economies belies the fact that both groups still face stunted growth prospects,” said Professor Eswar Prasad,an economist and senior fellow at Brookings.

The world economy grew 3.4 per cent last year,according to the IMF,roughly at its long-term average rate,which disappointed many officials who expected faster expansion because output is still recovering from the effects of the 2008-09 global financial crisis and faster-growing emerging economies now account for more than half of the world economy.

Last week,Christine Lagarde,head of the IMF,described the world's current economic performance as,“just not good enough”.The Tiger index — Tracking Indices for the Global Economic Recovery — shows how measures of real activity,financial markets and investor confidence compare with their historical averages in the global economy and within each country. “Barring three economies with sustained growth momentum — the US,UK,and India — there are few others where short-term growth prospects look encouraging,” Prof Prasad said.

The Tiger growth index for advanced economies has improved modestly since the oil price almost halved in the second half of last year,reflecting increased household spending in Europe and Japan. But these weak economies still have some way to go before showing the momentum they normally enjoy in an economic upswing. In the US there is evidence of a weak patch in the first quarter of the year with slower employment growth. According to Prof Prasad that suggests “the persistent strength of the US dollar and the burden of carrying the world economy on its shoulders might be weighing on the US economy”.

There is a varied picture in the large emerging economies of China and India,which are the world's largest and third-largest economies,measured by purchasing power parity.

China's economic prospects are slowing as the government attempts to rebalance activity from public investment towards higher domestic consumption. By contrast,India is enjoying the fruits of cheap oil and energy,which reduces import costs,the trade deficit and government borrowing. “India remains a bright spot among the emerging market economies,although the pace of reforms and the durability of growth remain significant elements of concern,” Prof Prasad said.

In the next tier of emerging economies,including Brazil,Turkey and Russia,prospects have dimmed as cheaper oil and commodity prices have exposed underlying structural weaknesses.

In the months ahead,the global economy is likely to face the first US interest rate rise for almost nine years,threatening to destabilise a fragile recovery and expose badly run economies to capital flight.

This prospect increases the need for reforms to boost the resilience of economies in every country,Prof Prasad said. “The urgency of structural reforms seems to have dissipated,with many economies relying on loose monetary policy and weak exchange rates to prop up growth and counter deflationary pressures”.

“In the absence of a strong revival of domestic demand supported by a more balanced set of policies,a robust and sustained global economic recovery will remain elusive,” he added.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which of the following is not true about The Tiger Index?

A.Abbreviation of Tracking Indices for the Global Equity Return

B.Measures of financial markets in the global economy

C.Measures of investor confidence compared with their historical averages within each country

D.Abbreviation of Tracking Indices for the Global Economic Recovery

答案解释：文章第六段，解释了全球经济复苏追踪指标是Tracking Indices for the Global Economic Recovery的缩写，此指数计算和比较全球与每个国家的经济实际活动措施，金融市场和投资者的信心。

2.According to the article,what was the reason for increased household spending in Europe and Japan?

A.Loosing monetary policy

B.Weak exchange rate

C.Drop of oil price

D.Inflation

答案解释：文章第八段，先进经济体的全球经济复苏追踪指标提高的原因在于欧洲和日本的家庭支出增加，而增加的原因则是石油价格的减半。

3.Which of the following is true about the impact of falling oil price?

A.Decrease household spending in India

B.Increase India's government borrowing

C.Reduces India's import costs

D.Increase India's trade deficit

答案解释：文章第十一段，油价下跌帮助印度降低进口成本，贸易赤字和政府债务。

4.What can be inferred from the conclusion Professor Eswar Prasad made?

A.The world economy will grow faster next year

B.Oil price will be the main boost to the global economy next year

C.Many economies relying on loose monetary policy and weak exchange rates to prop up growth and counter deflationary pressures

D.Modestly improved growth outlook in emerging economies has been offset by advanced markets

答案解释：文章的最后，普拉萨德说“结构性改革的紧迫性似乎已经消退，许多经济体依赖宽松的货币政策和较弱的汇率来支持增长和反通缩压力”。

亚投行：大国博弈又一仗

2015年3月17日是亚投行创始成员国资格申请截止的“关键日”。这天，法德意三国宣布效仿英国，加入该银行，此举似乎让美国感觉 “很吃醋”……

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

ally 同盟国['ælaɪ]

setback 挫折

democracy 民主[dɪ'mɒkrəsɪ]

unrepentant 顽固不化的[ʌnrɪ'pent(ə)nt]

Treasury 财政部['treʒ(ə)rɪ]

geopolitical 地缘政治[,dʒiːə(ʊ)pə'lɪtɪk(ə)l]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分39秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分10秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分15秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分47秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Europeans defy US to join China-led development bank（475words）

by George Parker in London,Anne-Sylvaine Chassany in Paris and Geoff Dyer in Washington,March 16,2015 10:49 pm

France,Germany and Italy have all agreed to follow Britain's lead and join a China-led international development bank,according to European officials,delivering a blow to US efforts to keep leading western countries out of the new institution.

The decision by the three European governments comes after Britain announced last week that it would join the $50bn Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank,a potential rival to the Washington-based World Bank.

Australia,a key US ally in the Asia-Pacific region which had come under pressure from Washington to stay out of the new bank,has also said that it will now rethink that position.

The European decisions represent a significant setback for the Obama administration,which has argued that western countries could have more influence over the workings of the new bank if they stayed together on the outside and pushed for higher lending standards.

The AIIB,which was formally launched by Chinese President Xi Jinping last year,is one element of a broader Chinese push to create new financial and economic institutions that will increase its international influence. It has become a central issue in the growing contest between China and the US over who will define the economic and trade rules in Asia over the coming decades.

When Britain announced its decision to join the AIIB last week,the Obama administration told the Financial Times that it was part of a broader trend of “constant accommodation” by London of China. British officials were relatively restrained in their criticism of China over its handling of pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong last year.

Britain tried to gain “first mover advantage” last week by signing up to the fledgling Chinese-led bank before other G7 members. The UK government claimed it had to move quickly because of the impending May 7 general election. The move by George Osborne,the UK chancellor of the exchequer,won plaudits in Beijing.

Britain hopes to establish itself as the number one destination for Chinese investment and UK officials were unrepentant. One suggested that the White House criticism of Britain was a case of sour grapes: “They couldn't have got congressional approval to join the AIIB,even if they wanted to.”

The US Treasury has voiced concerns about governance at the new bank,especially the environmental and social standards it attaches to its loans. It said it was worried that the AIIB could become a “low-quality” institution.

Privately,US and Australian officials have suggested that the British decision to break ranks and join the bank was driven by commercial considerations and that London was blind to the broader geopolitical implications in the Asia-Pacific region.

South Korean media have reported that Seoul will also now rethink its decision not to join the AIIB. Japan,the US ally in the region that is most worried by China's growing influence,is not expected to become a member.

Additional reporting by James Politi in Rome and Jamie Smyth in Sydney

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which is not an impact the European decisions have brought to the US?

A.US would lose a key ally in the Asia-Pacific region.

B.They gave a heavy shock to the Obama administration.

C.US failed to prevent the West from joining the AIIB.

D.The AIIB is likely to be a rival of the World Bank.

答案解释：文章前半部分中，法德意三国的决定代表了奥巴马政府的一次重大挫折,因为美国一直试图阻止西方主要国家加入该银行，同时亚投行可能会成为总部位于华盛顿的世界银行的竞争对手。

2.What's the core issue over the coming decades between China and the US?

A.What's the new element of US Economic Development.

B.How does Chinese create new financial institutions.

C.Who will define the economic and trade rules in Asia.

D.How does Asia increase the international influence.

答案解释：文章第五段，中美两国就未来几十年谁将界定亚洲金融和贸易规则的竞争日益激烈。

3.What is the main reason for the UK government to join the AIIB?

A.Considering the commercial issues.

B.Making Endless Concessions to China.

C.The impending general election on May 7th.

D.Some favorable geopolitical factors.

答案解释：第七段，英国政府声称，由于5月7日大选临近，英国不得不迅速采取行动。英国财政大臣乔治·奥斯本此举赢得中国的称赞。

4.According to the last paragraph,which of the following countries will most probably join the AIIB?

A.Australia

B.Japan

C.Korea

D.Canberra

答案解释：最后一段，韩国媒体称，韩国现在也会重新考虑其不加入亚投行的决定。美国在亚洲的盟友——日本对于中国影响力与日俱增最为担忧，预计日本不会加入该银行。

中国与印度的“市盈率”

如果把中国和印度比作两家公司，那么曾经富有活力的增长股“中国公司”近年来开始发布负面的盈利预警，而经历了令人失望的十年的“印度公司”则东山再起……

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

pan out 结果是

asset 资产['æset]

demographics 人口结构[demə'græfɪks]

infrastructure 基础设施['ɪnfrəstrʌktʃə]

MSCI 摩根士丹利资本国际公司

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分45秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分6秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分30秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分31秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Chindia Inc: trading places（315words）

by Lex,March 11,2015 3:40 pm

Does India look too expensive versus China?

Countries are not companies（unless they are Apple,considerably bigger on some measures than many sovereign states). But stripped to the basics,they have some similar characteristics. So if China and India were companies,what sort might they be?

China Corp,once a racy growth stock,attracted dollars eager to take part in its anticipated rise. Broadly,this panned out as expected — and,arguably,better. Up until this decade,China Corp tended to deliver positive profit warnings as GDP and fixed asset investment accelerated.

This phase is past. In recent years,GDP growth targets have been falling; profit warnings have turned negative. The latest forecast for this year is “about” 7 per cent,down from last year's target of 7.5 per cent. And even that lower target may be missed. Yesterday,economic figures including retail sales,industrial production and fixed asset investment all came in uncomfortably below forecasts.

By contrast,India Inc is making a comeback after a disappointing decade. The country's 1.3bn people,favourable demographics and under-developed economy make it the land of opportunity. We may have heard this before but a new chief executive（Narendra Modi,prime minister）has inspired new hope. GDP growth has been revised up,and has room to surprise if more restructuring occurs. Not everything is rosy — infrastructure is a challenge and reform is slow — but India Inc's room to make small changes which have a large impact contrasts favourably with China Corp. The latter's management seems flummoxed by the challenges to its model.

Maybe this is in the price. MSCI's India index trades on 16 times next year's earnings; China on nine times. India is forecast to grow by 17 per cent,with China at 13.Not such a vast difference in growth,perhaps,to warrant such valuation disparity. But in a world where growth is scarce,small differences are worth a lot. Upgrades are worth even more.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Why does China Corp tend to issue positive profit warnings according to the article？

A.As some economic figures growth speeded up.

B.As China issued a racy growth stock recently.

C.As China's economy showed better as expected.

D.As GDP growth targets have been falling.

答案解释：文章第二段，“中国公司”往往发出正面盈利预告，因为GDP和固定资产投资的相关经济数据加速增长。

2.The word " favourable" in paragraph 4 can be replaced by "____".

A.Concentrated

B.Restricted

C.Furthersome

D.Redundish

答案解释：第四段中，“印度公司”坐拥13亿的人口、有利的人口结构以及欠发达的经济使之成为一块机遇之地。concentrated译为“集中的”，restricted译为“受限制的”，redundish译为“冗杂的”

3.What can be inferred from paragraph 4?

A.The development of India Inc is rosy all the way.

B.Infrastructure of India Inc is not a challenge.

C.A small change can provide further effect for India.

D.China Corp can benefit from its remarkable management.

答案解释：推断题，印度并非一切如意，基础设施建设构成挑战，改革步伐缓慢，但印度进行小改变就能带来大影响的空间，而中国的管理似乎因其发展模式面临的挑战而变得混乱。

4.Which of the following statements is true according to the last paragraph?

A.China and India are face with a vast gap.

B.India won the comparison base on price strength.

C.Small gaps are worth much in a economic world.

D.MSCI's index trades assured valuation disparity.

答案解释：最后一段，摩根士丹利资本国际指数目显示两家公司的增长率并不会有如此大差异来保证这样的估值差距。但是在如今这个增长稀缺的世界，小差距也有重大意义。评级上调的价值就更大了。

苹果：数字表冠的野心

Apple Watch，是库克接替乔布斯之后推出的首款全新类型产品，这款万众期待的智能手表又一次展现了苹果的野心：革新可穿戴设备，进军时尚业，引领消费行为......

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

unveiling 揭幕式[,ʌn'veɪlɪŋ]

reveal 透露[rɪˈvi:l]

Yerba Buena centrer 芳草地艺术中心

virtual|['vɜːtjʊəl] 虚拟的

compatible 兼容的[kəm'pætɪb(ə)l]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分12秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分54秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分4秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分43秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apple spotlights apps to woo Watch buyers（437words）

by Tim Bradshaw,March 9,2015

Apple is turning to partners' applications to persuade consumers to pay between $349 and $17,000 for its new Watch,as it launched its first new category of device since Tim Cook succeeded Steve Jobs as chief executive.

Monday's unveiling of the highest profile wearable device to date focused on messaging,health and telling the time even as Mr Cook previewed third-party apps that will let users be more productive,unlock doors and view photos.

“Apple brings a whole new personal dimension in timekeeping that's never been done before,” Mr Cook,who first revealed the Watch in September,told an audience of hundreds of reporters,partners and Apple employees at the Yerba Buena centre in San Francisco.

“It's a revolutionary new way to communicate with others and it's a comprehensive fitness companion,” he said. “There will be some great third party apps……When you unleash that creativity it's incredible.”

The Watch will have a battery life of 18 hours,Mr Cook said,and incorporate the Apple Pay mobile payments system and Siri,Apple's virtual assistant. It will go on sale in nine countries from Australia to the US on April 24.

Under the design leadership of Sir Jonathan Ive,Apple has wooed the fashion industry with a stylish array of finishes and bands Mr Cook called “absolutely fabulous”,with pricing running from $349 for the Sport version to $10,000-$17,000 for the Edition,which features a gold case.

In a nod to both fashion and fitness,Mr Cook shared the stage with Christy Turlington Burns,model,marathon runner and founder of Every Mother Counts,a maternal health organisation,who features in marketing for the Watch.

However,some tech analysts have questioned whether its compact colour touchscreen and novel “digital crown” controller can win over those consumers who have not been tempted to buy existing smartwatches from the likes of Samsung,Motorola or Pebble.

Wall Street forecasts for the device's unit sales in its first full year on the market range between 20m and 30m.

Only owners with iPhones launched since 2012 — estimated to be more than 300m people — will find their smartphone is compatible with the Watch when it goes on sale next month.

Alongside the health-tracking,messaging,payment and timekeeping functions Apple has created as tent pole features for its smartwatch,Mr Cook introduced apps from social networks such as Facebook,Instagram,WeChat and Twitter,sports scores from ESPN and Major League Baseball and transport services such as car-hailing app Uber and American Airlines ticketing.

Advocates for the Watch say that it can reduce the estimated 150 times a day that smartphone owners check their mobile devices.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which of the following features about the new Apple device is incorrect?

A.Clean the office

B.Tell the time

C.Send the message

D.Manage the health

答案解释：文章第二段，周一的发布会聚焦于信息发送和健康，库克在会上预演了支撑迄今最高调可穿戴技术产品的第三方应用。

2.In paragraph 6，the two types of Apple Watch are Sport version and ______?

A.Business version

B.Copper version

C.Gold edition

答案解释：第六段，苹果手表有标价349美元的运动版和标价10000美元到17000美元不等的黄金版。

3.According to the author，who will be the potential customers of Apple Watch?

A.The businessmen

B.The sports enthusiasts

C.The users of iPhone

D.The overseas students

答案解释：第十段，只有2012年以来发布的iPhone能与这款将于下月上市的智能手表兼容，这意味着潜在用户大约超过3亿。

4.The third party apps introduced by Mr Cook in paragraph 11 including?

A.WeChat、Linkin、Blogger

B.ESPN、Youtube、MSN

C.Facebook、Instagram、WeChat

D.Skype、Major League Baseball

答案解释：倒数第二段，库克加入了Facebook、Instagram、微信和Twitter的应用，还有来自娱乐与体育节目电视网和职业棒球大联盟的赛事查询,以及叫车软件Uber和美国航空订票软件等交通服务应用。

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.7

被困在城市交通中的Uber

这款召车软件首先必须要做的，得是从全球各地的出租车司机抗议和政治困境中挣扎出来。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

incumbent 现任的

remorseless 残酷的

congestion 阻塞

bolster 支持

justification 辩解的理由

ostensibly 表面上看

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分52秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分51秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分45秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分57秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Uber stuck in city traffic（578words）

Everybody loves disruption,except the people who are being disrupted. As Uber,the app-based ride-hailing service,has spread rapidly from its San Francisco home to cities around the world,it has repeatedly faced resistance from incumbent taxi operators,who are often politically influential. Regulators and legislators from Brussels to Beijing have moved to restrict Uber's operations.

Some of the fiercest opposition has come in Europe,where the culture clash between the remorseless competition of the US tech industry and the locals' respect for tradition and deference to established interests is especially stark. While Uber's operations give rise to legitimate questions about safety and congestion,the public interest issues used as pretexts for cracking down on the company are often spurious. The proposed new restrictions in London,which would put Uber at a competitive disadvantage against the city's black cabs,are a case in point.

Uber has often not helped its own cause. Concerns about the company's use of data on customers' movements,allegations that an executive had talked about smearing unfriendly journalists and complaints about its tax planning have made it harder for Uber to win the battle for hearts and minds.

It has been seeking to bolster its soft skills by hiring experienced political operators and has sharpened up how it presents its arguments. London is a chance to show that the investment has been worthwhile.

As in other cities,the proposals of Transport for London,which regulates the city's taxis,are dressed up as measures to protect public safety. The details of the measures reveal how flimsy those justifications are.

For example,one idea is to make riders wait at least five minutes before being picked up after hailing a ride through Uber or another similar service,even if there is an available driver close by,an obstruction that will provide nothing but irritation for passengers. Another suggestion is that drivers should be allowed to use only one ride-hailing app,which would impede one of the most effective checks on any abuses by Uber: competition between a number of different services.

In this somewhat random set of ideas,it is hard not to see an attempt by Boris Johnson,London's mayor,to restore relations with the city's black cab drivers. Many of them backed him when he was voted into office in 2008,and plenty are natural supporters of his Conservative administration,but his perceived reluctance to clamp down on Uber has led to angry protests against him.

Transport for London has opened a consultation on its proposals,and may not adopt any of them. For an ostensibly pro-market Conservative administration,it will be hard to justify restraints on innovation simply because it creates losers as well as winners. Uber has right on its side — consumers,not regulators,should decide which transport options are best for them — but that may not be enough. Its campaign to block the proposals has started well: an online petition had by this weekend received more than 132,000 signatures. But while its business relies on a technological solution for navigating a city's streets,there is no such fix for finding a route through its politics.

If it wants to continue to grow in London and around the world,Uber needs to be able to persuade politicians that it is worth facing down the established taxi operators who are resisting change. If vested interests prevent its innovations in service from reaching their full potential,it would count as an enormous missed opportunity.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which area is the most strongly opposed to the Uber?

A.Asia

B.North America

C.Europe

D.South America

答案解释:优步面临的一些最强烈的反对来自欧洲，在那里，美国科技业的冷酷竞争与当地对传统的尊重和对既得利益的顺从之间的文化冲突尤其明显。

2.Which city's new restriction is a typical example that would put Uber at a competitive disadvantage against the city's black cabs?

A.London

B.Brussels

C.Beijing

D.San Francisco

答案解释:伦敦新提出的限制就是一个典型的例子，这些限制使优步相对于伦敦的“黑色”出租车陷于不利的竞争地位。

3.What is the author's attitude the proposals of Transport for London?

A.supported

B.trashy

C.satisfied

D.heartrending

答案解释:通过给出的两个例子，结果分别是激怒乘客和使行业竞争受到阻碍，所以作者是认为这些措施没有起到效果的。

4.Who should be persuaded by Uber to continue to grow in London and around the world?

A.politicians

B.passengers

C.tax drivers

D.reporters

答案解释:要想在伦敦及全球各地继续增长，优步需要说服政客相信，挫败那些抵制改变的现有出租车运营商是值得的。

苹果：拦截广告？下架吧！

苹果公司日前表示，最近已经在软件商店中“移除”了少数软件，主要是担心这些软件对于用户的数据安全造成风险。苹果表示，一些外部软件在iOS设备中安装了数字证书，可能导致用户个人隐私被第三方监控。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

intercept 阻截

encrypt 加密

protocol 协议

amend 修改

decrypted 解密

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分25秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分10秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apple pulls adblocker that worked on mobile apps such as Facebook（456words）

By Robert Cookson,Digital Media Correspondent

Apple has pulled the first app to allow iPhone users to block advertisements in mobile apps of companies such as Facebook,citing concerns about customer security.

Been Choice was launched in the US this month using more powerful technology than other adblockers,which are only able to eliminate ads within web browsers.

But Apple raised concerns related to the way the company — and other apps that it did not name but also pulled — intercepted users' internet traffic. In particular,Been Choice disrupted a security protocol called SSL that is used by companies such as Facebook,Google,Pinterest and Yahoo to encrypt the data that passes between a mobile device and their own servers.

“We are working closely with these developers to quickly get their apps back on the app store,while ensuring customer privacy and security is not at risk,” Apple said.

David Yoon,co-founder of Been Choice,said the company was amending its app following Apple's recommendations and would resubmit it to the company on Friday for “expedited approval”.

But he added that Been Choice would still be able to block ads in the Safari web browser and certain apps including Apple News,The New York Times and Pandora,the internet radio company. Mr Yoon said that Apple appeared to have no problem with blocking ads in apps so long as the process did not disrupt end-to-end encryption.

Mr Yoon also denied that his app was insecure. He said the company protected users by encrypting their data and sending it through a virtual private network,or VPN. He added that the data were only briefly decrypted on the company's servers.

“But when[Apple says]that end-to-end encryption needs to be guaranteed for our app to be on the App Store,what can we do but comply?” he said.

Been Choice's power was down to the fact that it installed a “root certificate” — a kind of digital signature — from its own server on to smartphones. This allowed the company to route internet traffic to its own server,where it was decrypted and the ads were filtered out through a process known as “deep packet inspection”.

When this process is used by a hacker,it is known as a man-in-the-middle attack. However,it is also used legitimately by many companies to monitor the traffic that flows in and out of their systems.

Apple's decision will probably be welcomed by the digital media industry,which has become increasingly worried about the rise of consumers blocking ads.

But the most popular adblockers for iPhones,such as Crystal and Purify,are not affected by Apple's latest policy statement. Those services block ads exclusively within the Safari web browser,using a technology framework designed for the purpose by Apple.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What security protocol has been chosen by Facebook and Google to encrypt the data?

A.TCP/IP

B.SSL

C.HTTP

D.TLS

答案解释：许多公司例如FB、谷歌、雅虎选择SSL安全协议去阻隔用户设备和服务之间的数据以保障用户信息安全。

2.What will happen if the company amending its app following Apple's recommendations before resubmitting?

A.get more PV

B.prohibition of use

C.get free ads

D.get quick approval

答案解释：按照苹果的建议修改后重新提交，将获得更快的审批通过。

3.What is the aim of decrypting date briefly for Been Choice?

A.company's commercial use

B.company's service needs

C.Apple's commercial use

D.increase of efficiency

答案解释：Mr. Yoon强调，他们简略的解密用户信息以提供服务。

4.Who will welcome Apple's decision in this article?

A.advertising agency

B.network security companies

C.digital media companies

D.government sector

答案解释：倒数第二段，在数字传媒领域，这一举措可能会受欢迎。

百胜：未必百胜

快餐对你是有害的，无论是在你的胃里，还是在你的投资组合里。本周，炸鸡、墨西哥玉米薄饼卷和比萨饼的供应商百胜集团(Yum! Brands)发布了糟糕的财报。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

portfolio 证券投资组合

macroeconomic 宏观经济

stumble 绊倒

scandal 丑闻

bounce 反弹

cachet 威望

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分1秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分15秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分36秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分33秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Yum: Yuck（338words）

Fast food is bad for you,whether in your stomach or your portfolio. This week,fried chicken,taco and pizza vendor Yum Brands delivered soggy results. It blamed the poor performance on slower than expected growth in China,which accounts for more than a third of its operating profit. The stock slumped nearly a fifth in response.

Everyone agrees that China's economy is slowing; the only debate is how much and why. So,many will assume that Yum's problems are macroeconomic. They are not.

The issue is not that the Chinese consumer is choosing to save rather than spend. Japanese clothing retailer Uniqlo,owned by Fast Retailing,fell short of expectations for its full year numbers this week — but not because of China. That market delivered profits up two-thirds year on year.

The spending stretches to food as well. Starbucks' China revenues are still growing,for example. It is Yum in particular that is going sideways.

In fact,the fast food category is stumbling worldwide. Junk food popular in the 1980s and 1990s has been losing its appeal. McDonald's top line has stood still for four years,despite efforts to introduce healthy menus. Even in the US,where unhealthy is the national pastime,golden arch revenues have gone nowhere.

More importantly,for companies operating in China,the Chinese consumer learns quickly — about both the good and the bad. As social media spreads,brand destroying food safety scandals（of which Yum has had a few）are hard to contain. And as tastes become more sophisticated,lost consumers may not return. Yum's numbers in China have bounced back from the scandals,just not as strongly as expected. Middle-class preferences do not extend to the cheap and cheerful.

China's economic growth may be slowing,but the economy is still growingved on from junk food. Time for investors seeking exposure to China to do the same.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What is the main reason for the poor performance as Yum Brands said?

A.poor performance in US

B.tastes are changing

C.slower than expected growth in China

D.global cost increases

答案解释：该集团把原因归结为在华增长不及预期——中国市场对该集团营业利润的贡献超过三分之一。

2.As for China' macroeconomic,what are people arguing about?

A.reason for the decline

B.whether the economy fell

C.current situation of enterprises

D.prospects for development

答案解释：文章第二段，所有人都认同，中国经济在放缓；唯一存在争议的地方是放缓的幅度和原因。

3.Which one is not mentioned as the reason for lost consumers without coming back?

A.pay more attention to safety scandals

B.Chinese consumer is choosing to save money

C.tastes become more sophisticated

D.social media spreads

答案解释：文章倒数第二段，而百胜的问题也不在于中国消费者正在选择储蓄而不是消费。

4.What kind of food the Chinese starting to prefer?

A.junk food

B.healthy food

C.carnivorous

D.vegetarian diet

答案解释：中国食客已开始远离垃圾食品所以他们更偏爱健康食品。

谷歌测试即时新闻发布，挑战苹果FB

2015年，苹果和脸书先后发布了新闻应用，让自己成为最佳的新闻渠道，为了抗衡对手，谷歌在10月7日联手30家媒体公布AMP计划，企图改善网页新闻的载入速度。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

clutter 杂乱

detract 减损

lure 吸引

subscription 订阅

specifications 规格

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分37秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分42秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分39秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分55秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Google takes on Facebook and Apple with faster web-based news（557words）

By Robert Cookson in London and Matthew Garrahan in New York

Google has launched another offensive in its battle to keep news sites on the open web rather than locked in mobile apps controlled by its rivals Facebook and Apple.

The company announced on Wednesday that it was working with more than 30 news publishers,including The Guardian,the BBC and the Financial Times,as well as several technology groups such as Twitter and LinkedIn,on an initiative called Accelerated Mobile Pages. Google plans to implement the technology early next year.

The aim is to make news web pages load instantly on smartphones and tablet devices. Slow loading times of news stories have been a key factor driving readers and publishers towards mobile apps,which are cleaner,quicker to load and have fewer ads.

Web pages that are cluttered with ads have spurred the growth of adblocking apps,which are threatening revenues of online publishers.

David Besbris,vice-president of engineering at Google's search division,said ads in news stories served in its new page format would not slow load times. “The ad format……makes sure the ad enhances the page and doesn't detract from it,” he said. News distribution is becoming one of the fiercest battlegrounds among Silicon Valley's biggest technology groups.In May Facebook launched “instant articles”,which allows news publishers to post stories directly into its mobile app rather than having to link back to their own websites. The offering lured publishers including The New York Times and BuzzFeed by arguing that the resultant speed would be highly attractive to readers. Last month,the Washington Post became the first news organisation to allow all of its articles to be published on the platform,saying it was able to give “readers a lightning-fast user experience”.

Last month,Apple launched its News service,which also loads articles immediately within an app.

“Every time a web page takes too long to load,they lose a reader — and the opportunity to earn revenue through advertising or subscriptions,” Mr Besbris said.

Google's initiative is designed to bring the speed of native mobile apps to the open web. The project is also open source,meaning that any publisher or technology company can use it for free.

“This is a really important moment for us to help make the web great again,” Mr Besbris said.Smartphones and tablets have been replacing desktop computers as the primary way that people access the internet,with users increasingly using apps that do not rely on the web. This shift has been a problem for Google because so much of its advertising revenue is based on web pages.

But many publishers are wary of handing over their content to Facebook and Apple's so-called “walled gardens”,whereby users are steered to those companies' own services.

Tony Danker,chief strategy officer at Guardian News & Media,publisher of The Guardian,said that accelerated mobile pages was “a project of real ambition. It seeks simultaneously to create a great user experience,to give more autonomy to publishers to deliver that and to develop effective advertising for the mobile web.”

The Google-led initiative involves creating common standards for the technical underpinnings of mobile web pages.

The code underlying the plan has been posted to GitHub,an online forum for software developers.

Many technical specifications are yet to be worked out,including how the initiative will deal with advertising and subscriptions.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What is the aim of this new technology?

A.to reduce landing time

B.to reduce the number of ads

C.to expand the scope of news

D.to encourage original content

答案解释:Accelerated Mobile Pages期望让移动用户在短时间内找到发行商的海量内容，这对于吸引读者尤为重要。

2.What is becoming one of the fiercest battlegrounds among Silicon Valley's biggest technology groups as Besbris said?

A.artificial intelligence

B.news writing

C.social function

D.news distribution

答案解释:新闻发布正在成为硅谷竞争激烈的新战场。

3.Who became the first one to allow all of its articles to be published on FB's platform?

A.New York Times

B.Washington Post

C.BuzzFeed

D.Financial Times

答案解释:《华盛顿邮报》之前表示，会把全部在公司网站中发布的新闻同时发布到Instant Articles平台上。

4.How much should the publishers pay for the Accelerated Mobile Pages?

A.charging them by PV

B.charging them by word number

C.charging them by quantity

D.free

答案解释:与苹果的Apple News以及Facebook的“即时文章”（Instant Articles）所不同的是，发行商在谷歌的“加速移动网页项目”上展示内容时不必向后者支付费用。

争议：香港计划改造英殖民时代邮筒

香港的大街小巷中散布着的街头邮筒共有1148个。其中，仍有59个铸铁邮筒上保留着英国皇家标志。因为这59个邮筒是在1997年前安置的。近日香港邮局宣布，他们将会用铁板盖住所有的英国皇室标记，这一行为被保育团体批评为去殖民地化，摧毁街头历史遗迹。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

humble 不起眼的

insignia 徽章

deem 认为

territory 领土

decolonize 去殖民化

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分42秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分11秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分16秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分47秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Anger at Hong Kong plan to stamp out British symbols on postboxes（479words）

By Ben Bland in Hong Kong

The humble postbox,as much a legacy of British rule as railways and cricket,has become the latest target of Hong Kong's pro-Beijing establishment.

The Hong Kong authorities plan to cover up royal insignias on colonial-era postboxes,deeming the ciphers inappropriate. But the move is stirring another clash with activists who accuse the establishment of undermining the city's autonomy.

Campaigners are asking why it is only now,18 years after the territory was returned to China,that the Post Office wants to make the change to the remaining 59 colonial post boxes,a small fraction of the more than 1,100 in use.

“This is a very bad idea,” said Sin Wai-man,who runs a group lobbying to preserve the old postboxes. “The only reasonable conclusion we can draw is that they are trying to remove the colonial history from Hong Kong. Maybe there's some political agenda behind it,to push decolonisation in order to appease their bosses in mainland China.”

Some lawmakers have written to the head of the Post Office,asking for the decision to be reversed to protect Hong Kong's heritage.

The postboxes,which bear the Hong Kong Post Office logo,carry a range of royal ciphers including those of George V,George VI and Elizabeth II,as well as one that features the Scottish crown.

The Post Office said it was still finalising the plans and that when it blocks out the royal symbols it will “take care not to cause any damage to these insignia”.

Hong Kong was guaranteed a “high degree of autonomy” from Beijing under the one country,two systems arrangement set up following the 1997 handover.

But opposition politicians and activists fear that the city's freedoms,which are unique in authoritarian China,are coming under increasing attack from the Hong Kong government and its allies in Beijing.

They point to the government's failure to implement truly democratic elections for the chief executive and to a continuing dispute over academic freedom at Hong Kong University.Adding to activist concerns,normally reticent mainland officials have shown an increasing willingness to express their frustration with Hong Kong publicly.

Last month Chen Zuo'er,who heads a mainland think-tank on Hong Kong affairs,blamed the territory's mounting social and economic problems on what he said was a failure to decolonise.

Zhang Xiaoming,who leads Beijing's liaison office in Hong Kong,said those calling for democratic reforms failed to understand the limitations of the city's mini-constitution.Anson Chan,head of Hong Kong's civil service at the end of British rule and after handover,said Hong Kongers were not prepared to “be told to shut up and listen to what the liaison office wants”.

She added: “We can certainly do more to better understand our motherland but not at the risk of compromising the core values and defending the high degree of autonomy in one country two systems.”

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What did the activists blame for?

A.Influence city appearance

B.The establishment of urban autonomy

C.Destruction of human rights

D.Destroy friendly relationship with UK

答案解释：他们指责这样遮盖徽章的行为破坏了城市自治的建立。

2.How did the protesters think of the 59 post boxes?

A.evidence of a crime

B.feature spot

C.utility function

D.important heritage

答案解释：反对者认为这些邮筒是历史遗迹，而应该保护。

3.Which one is not mentioned as the royal cipher?

A.George V

B.George VI

C.Elizabeth V

D.Elizabeth II

答案解释：文章第六段，此外还包括Scottish crown。

4.What are opposition politicians and activists afraid of?

A.attacking freedom

B.economic slowdown

C.safety problem

D.currency deflation

答案解释：反对者们担心来之不易的自由受到政府的攻击。

百度拟联手中信推出在线银行

BAT金融战在即，各家何去何从？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

conglomerate 集团，大企业

affiliate 使隶属于

pilot 试点

sought 探寻

downplay 淡化

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分55秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分45秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分58秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分41秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Baidu in Citic Bank tie-up despite doubts over online bank model（414words）

By Gabriel Wildau in Shanghai

Chinese internet search group Baidu will partner with Citic Bank to launch an online bank,local media reported,even as banks launched by Alibaba and Tencent have failed to meet expectations.

Internet companies have shaken up China's financial sector in recent years,with mobile payments,wealth management and peer-to-peer lending the biggest growth areas.

China Citic Bank,part of state-owned conglomerate Citic Group,suspended its shares in Shanghai and Hong Kong on Monday pending announcement of a “proposed external investment”. Baidu declined to comment on the report by 21st Century Business Herald,but said it would make an announcement tomorrow.

In January,Tencent launched the country's first online-only bank,WeBank,named for the gaming and social media company's s popular WeChat instant messaging app. The financial affiliate of Alibaba Group,Ant Financial,followed with its own — MyBank — in June.

China's banking regulator granted bank licenses to Tencent and Ant Financial as part of a pilot programme to encourage privately owned banks. In a sign of the government's hope that private banks can help channel finance to small,private companies,Chinese premier Li Keqiang attended WeBank's launch ceremony. China's nine largest banks are all state-owned and favour lending to large,state-owned groups.

But WeBank's maiden year has been rocky. Bank president Cao Tong resigned in September,and vice president Zheng Xinlin,who handled interbank business,also recently resigned,the bank confirmed on Tuesday. WeBank has also sought to downplay expansion expectations.

“We don't think of ourselves as running a traditional bank. WeBank is an internet platform through and through,but one with a banking licence,” Gu Min,chairman,said last month.

WeBank has granted Rmb4bn（$627m）in consumer loans,of which Rmb2bn are currently outstanding,said the bank. MyBank had granted Rmb3bn in loans to 180,000 small companies in its four months,executives said at a press conference in October,without specifying the amount outstanding.

A key issue for online lenders is whether they can accept deposits under Chinese banking rules that require customers to present identification in person at a bank branch in order to open an account. In September,China Merchants Bank,China's sixth-largest lender,ended an arrangement that allowed its clients to open WeBank accounts.

Last March Citic announced plans to issue “virtual” credit cards in partnership with Alibaba and Tencent that would allow users to pay by scanning QR codes,but the central bank halted the initiative days later.

Citic did not reply to requests for comment on Tuesday.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which one is not mentioned as the biggest growth area for China's financial sector?

A.mobile payments

B.wealth management

C.insurance Finance

D.peer-to-peer lending

答案解释：互联网公司近年撼动了中国金融业，移动支付、理财以及个人对个人贷款成为最大的增长领域。

2.What did China Citic Bank do on Monday?

A.announced its Listing Agreement

B.dividend in specie

C.suspended its shares

D.offered for subscription

答案解释：中信银行宣布其在上海和香港上市的股票停牌，等待宣布一项“拟议的外部投资”。

3.Who launched China's first online-only bank?

A.Baidu

B.Alibaba

C.Tencent

D.Google

答案解释：腾讯发起成立了中国首家在线银行微众银行(WeBank)。

4.What is the key issue for online lenders when open an account?

A.line of credit

B.identity verification

C.problem of sign and seal

D.deposit period

答案解释：在线银行面临的一个关键问题是，他们是否能根据中国银行业的规定接收存款，这些规定要求客户开设账户时必须亲自到银行网点出示身份证件。

亚马逊帮初创企业做销售

亚马逊本周将在英国为初创企业启动网售平台，为新兴技术公司扩大客户群提供新的渠道。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

dedicated 专用的

start-up 初创企业

inventory 库存

undeclared 未申报的

run-up 助力

regime 政权

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分47秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分41秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分55秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分40秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Amazon launches online platform to tap into UK start-up scene（403words）

By Murad Ahmed in London

Amazon will this week launch an online platform for British start-ups to sell and market their products,providing a new shop window for small tech companies attempting to reach a wider range of consumers.

The retailer said Launchpad,which it started in the US in July,would partner venture capital groups including Andreessen Horowitz and crowdfunding platforms such as Crowdcube,to discover fledgling tech groups.

The world's largest online retailer said it would promote their products on a dedicated part of the Amazon UK website,providing marketing support,manage inventory and help distribute products through its delivery network — while taking an undeclared cut of the start-ups' sales.

Christopher North,managing director of Amazon.co.uk,said the move was an effort to help small companies in the run-up to Christmas,while displaying products that would otherwise be missed by its millions of consumers.

“We know from talking to start-ups that bringing a new product to market can be just as challenging as building it,” he said. “Amazon Launchpad gives start-ups support……so they can focus on inventing on behalf of customers.”

But the initiative may also be an effort to show that the company is more supportive of the UK business,after it has previously come under fire from British authorities for its low tax regime. In a response to the controversy,the company began paying tax on sales to its UK customers in Britain in May rather than through Luxembourg.

Among the products that will be available on the site are the Kano children's computer kit,the Wileyfox 4G smartphone and iKettle,a WiFi-enabled kettle.

Many of the products chosen for the site will have raised money on crowdfunding websites,such as Kickstarter and Indiegogo. These sites have a dedicated audience,with millions willing to pay for products at a conceptual stage before they are manufactured,helping to provide the early capital to get ideas off the ground. But such sites cannot provide the size of Amazon's customer base,which these groups need to reach as they become mass market.

Amazon is rapidly expanding its operations in the UK. In 2016,it will move to new offices in east London,near the growing cluster of start-ups in the British capital,providing space for more than 5,000 employees. The company already employs about 8,000 staff in the country,though the majority work in its “fulfilment centres” — enormous warehouses where it stores goods and fills orders.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What kind of companies could be Amazon's target customer?

A.small tech companies

B.transnational enterprises

C.quoted tech companies

D.small media companies

答案解释：亚马逊在英国为初创企业启动网售平台，为新兴技术公司扩大客户群提供新的渠道。

2.Where was Launchpad launched in July?

A.Britain

B.America

C.France

D.Canada

答案解释：亚马逊曾于7月份在美国推出的网购平台Launchpad。

3.Which service is not provided now?

A.marketing support

B.manage inventory

C.distribute products

D.after-sale issue

答案解释：亚马逊表示，将在亚马逊英国官方网站开辟专门页面，为他们提供市场推广、库存管理、商品送递服务。

4.Who criticized Amazon for its low tax regime previously?

A.UK customers

B.British authorities

C.Luxembourg

D.British tech companies

答案解释：之前亚马逊曾因税务安排受到英国主管部门的批评。

Snapchat发力视频成社交黑马

人类已经进入了“过度分享”的阶段。Snapchat这种“阅后即焚”的功能为年轻人互相发送照片提供了安全平台，因为这些信息不会在网上留下痕迹，当然也满足了那些想要发送商业机密或者敏感信息的用户。近日其日浏览量突破60亿条，直追Facebook。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

clips 剪辑

engaging 迷人的

like-for-like 等同于

ephemeral 短暂的

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分49秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分15秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分19秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分48秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Snapchat triples video traffic as it closes the gap with Facebook（489words）

By Tim Bradshaw in San Francisco

Snapchat is closing the gap with Facebook in the social networks' battle for scale in video. The number of videos viewed on messaging app Snapchat every day has tripled since May to 6bn,according to people close to the company.

That compares with the 8bn daily video views announced by Facebook last week,which has doubled from 4bn in April. Facebook's figure includes both desktop and mobile views,while Snapchat's audience — though smaller in size overall — is entirely made up of smartphone users.

Snapchat confirmed the 6bn views figure,but declined to comment further.

Video is fast becoming one of the most popular activities on social networking apps,and the race for eyeballs comes as analysts predict huge growth in digital video advertising. Clips are an important source of new revenue,as advertising rates tend to be higher for video compared with static images or text.

During last week's earnings call,Facebook chief executive Mark Zuckerberg said 500m people watched videos every day on its site and apps.

“Over the next few years,video is going to be some of the most engaging content online,” Mr Zuckerberg told analysts on Wednesday.

Last month Facebook began testing a new page dedicated to video in its app. Some 1.5m small businesses posted video to the site in September. Facebook has set its sights on beating Google's video site YouTube,which has more than 1bn monthly active users who generate “billions of views” every day. Snapchat says it has more than 100m daily active users.

Comparing the three services' video consumption on a like-for-like basis is difficult. YouTube prefers to track usage in hours,while Facebook counts a video as viewed if it has played for just three seconds. Snapchat reportedly charges advertisers for videos that play for fractions of a second,as many of its ephemeral clips are much shorter than on other platforms. Last month it launched a new ad format,“sponsored lenses”,allowing marketers to add digital “stickers” to users' video messages to promote their products.

eMarketer forecasts a 42 per cent leap in digital video revenues this year to $7.5bn in the US,while Forrester Research estimates that ad spending on the medium will reach $12.6bn in the US by 2019.

Mr Zuckerberg said last week that the kinds of video being watched on digital platforms were very different to the long-form content aired on television,requiring producers to adapt their output.

“The more interesting question is not in the near term what we're going to do to develop ways to consume long-form content,but what traditional media and content producers who have traditionally produced long-form content are going to do to chunk their stuff up better,so that way it can be more easily consumed by this big community online,” he said.

“We're just so early in this right now. It's pretty amazing how quickly it's growing,but there's a lot more to do.”

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which company's figure is entirely made up of smartphone users?

A.Snapchat

B.Facebook

C.Youtube

D.eMarketer

答案解释：Facebook上周宣布，其每天的视频观看量达到80亿次，较4月的40亿次实现翻番。Facebook的数据既包含桌面端也包含移动端，而Snapchat的观看量完全由智能手机用户贡献。

2.What kind of content is more attractive to the eyeballs today?

A.static images

B.video

C.text

D.origin story

答案解释：看视频已经成为社交网络上最受欢迎的一种活动，而由于分析师预计数字视频广告的需求量巨大，因此各大社交网络公司都在争相拓展这项业务。

3.Why it is difficult to compare the three services' video consumption?

A.different statistical methods

B.deadline is different

C.diverse statistical range

D.protect the trade secrets

答案解释：YouTube习惯以时长来统计视频播放量，Facebook则以播放次数计算。

4.Which country is forecasted a 42 per cent leap in digital video revenues this year by eMarketer?

A.Britain

B.China

C.America

D.India

答案解释：市场研究公司eMarketer预计，美国今年数字视频营收将增长42%，达到75亿美元。

Facebook联合媒体集团推新闻聚合应用

尽管很多人已经把Facebook当作主要的新闻来源，但在新闻聚合领域，Twitter依然占据统治地位。为了改变这一现状，Facebook将与数十家媒体展开合作，通过Notify为用户提供实时新闻。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

standalone 独立的

embed 嵌入

dominant 主导的

debut 首次亮相

slingshot 弹弓

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分47秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分21秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分6秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分5秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Facebook links with media groups to launch news app（654words）

By Matthew Garrahan in Dublin and Tim Bradshaw in San Francisco

Facebook is preparing its latest push into news with a new standalone app called Notify that is scheduled to launch next week,with content from dozens of media partners including Vogue,the Washington Post and CBS.

The standalone app will alert users to new stories from professional media outlets as Facebook squares up against Snapchat and Twitter in a battle for mobile news,raising the stakes for media and publishing companies trying to reach the smartphone generation.

It follows a positive response from publishers and readers to Facebook's Instant Articles,which embed stories in its mobile app. In a sign of its growing confidence in news distribution,two weeks ago Facebook launched Instant Articles to all iPhone users after months of testing the service. Thousands of articles are pushed out every day to its vast mobile audience,with a promise to publishers that faster load times will increase readership and engagement.

Notify,Facebook's follow-up to Instant Articles,will be made available as a standalone app next week,according to people familiar with its plans. It will feature content from a range of print,digital and video companies,including Vogue,Mashable,CNN and the Washington Post. CBS,Comedy Central and Billboard magazine are also involved.

After reports of early testing for Notify emerged over the summer,Facebook is now giving the go-ahead to a full launch this week. Facebook declined to comment.

The social network has built a dominant position in mobile advertising,due to the success of the social network's mobile apps. Mobile ad revenue grew 72 per cent year on year to $3.3bn in its third quarter,Facebook said on Wednesday,and now makes up more than three quarters of the group's ad revenue.

Its renewed push into mobile news reflects a big,global shift in media consumption patterns. Mobile use accounts for 24 per cent of US media consumption time but only 8 per cent of advertising spending ,according to Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers,the private equity firm. It estimates that this gap in the US is equivalent to a $25bn opportunity.

Facebook is hoping to fend off a challenge in this growing market from its smaller rivals in social networking,Twitter and Snapchat. Apple has also shown renewed interest in the sector with September's launch of its new News aggregator app. Google is working with more than 30 publishers on an initiative called Accelerated Mobile Pages.

The launch of Snapchat's Discover service in January woke up media companies to the potential of mobile video. Companies involved in the service,including Vice and CNN,were able to charge higher rates for ads that were viewed on the service than for traditional digital video placements.

May's introduction of Instant Articles gave publishers including BuzzFeed,the New York Times and the Washington Post a new way to embed stories directly into Facebook's news feed. Stories appear faster than if users click a link to media companies' own websites. Publishers can sell ads inside the content themselves,keeping all of the revenue,or let Facebook do so,sharing 30 per cent of the income with the social network.

Notify's debut follows last month's arrival of Twitter's new Moments service. A team of editors from both Twitter and publisher partners combines tweets and videos from reporters and regular users of its mobile app into news stories.

Facebook has seen huge success in attracting users to its core smartphone apps,including Messenger. In its June quarter,it said monthly active users on mobile had leapt 23 per cent in the past year to 1.3bn. More than three quarters of its advertising revenue comes from mobile devices.

But other attempts at standalone apps have not always been so successful,particularly those aimed at luring younger users over from Snapchat. Its first attempt at a Snapchat-style messaging service,Poke,was scrapped and last year's Slingshot,a standalone video chat app,has also failed to gain substantial numbers of users.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which one is not mentioned as Notify's partner?

A.Yahoo News Digest

B.Vogue

C.the Washington Post

D.CBS

答案解释：Yahoo News Digest是Notify的同类竞争产品。

2.What kind of user can enjoy the Instant Articles service?

A.some Sumsung users

B.all iPhone users

C.some web users

D.a small number of iPhone users

答案解释：文章第三段，所有iPhone可以使用Instant Articles。

3.Who is the “master controller” in mobile advertising?

A.Twitter

B.BuzzFeed

C.Snapchat

D.Facebook

答案解释：Facebook已经在移动广告领域建立了自己的主导地位，这一切也主要得益于该公司自身的诸多移动应用。

4.Who is working with more than 30 publishers on Accelerated Mobile Pages?

A.Twitter

B.Snapchat

C.Google

D.Apple

答案解释：谷歌与30多家发行商合作，计划推出名为“Accelerated Mobile Pages”移动新闻服务，这些公司在移动新闻领域的动向将给Facebook带来更大的压力与挑战。

电商发展推动快递货车市场

网购发展迅速，并随着英国企业扩大规模，从而推动了英国对货车投资金额的增长。“物流是电商行业接下来的战场”——这句话或许马上应验。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

hire-purchase 分期付款

buoyant 浮力的，上涨的

logistics 物流

consultancy 咨询

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分22秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分0秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分9秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Online shopping boom leads to record increase in vans（452words）

By Michael Pooler

The boom in online shopping and revived construction activity has led to record levels of investment in vans and trucks,as British businesses enlarge their fleets.

Finance for commercial vehicles on lease and hire-purchase agreements rose 10 per cent to £6.5bn in the year ending in August,according to the Finance and Leasing Association,a trade body.

The figures point to the broader economic recovery,as well as a shift in how consumers buy — and receive — goods.

Driving the growth was the buoyant retail sector and an increase in people setting up businesses,said BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions,with some of the strongest demand for vans coming from self-employed workers in the building and associated trades.

“It's very easy to get vehicles financed on very competitive rates these days,” said Brian Templar,of logistics consultancy Davies and Robson.

Following a drop in demand for trucks last year due to changes in legislation,registrations have jumped 36 per cent in 2015. The number of vans on the road has continued to rise thanks to online shopping,with 17 per cent more added this year,according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

This reflects how retailers and logistics companies are making fewer large deliveries to stores but more small deliveries to homes. Online sales account for a fifth of all non-food retail sales in Britain.

“Logistics is the next big battleground in ecommerce.[Retailers]have always delivered larger items like furniture but now they will be able to offer it even for smaller items,” said Anita Balchandani,partner at OC&C. The consultancy put the UK ecommerce market size at £42bn last year and forecasts it will rise to £61bn by 2018.

Argos challenged its online and bricks-and-mortar rivals last week as it became the first high-street brand to launch same-day deliveries seven days a week throughout the country. Amazon Prime Now offers shipments within an hour in Coventry and London,and has been introducing a similar service for frozen and chilled foods in parts of the capital.

Meanwhile Ocado,the upmarket online grocer,spent £12.5m on vehicle leases in 2014,against £9m the previous year.

The need for expanded vehicle fleets was underlined on ‘Black Friday' in November last year,when a number of companies were caught out by a record-breaking day of online shopping. Delivery delays resulted.

Evidence of the fierce competition in the parcel delivery market was seen when City Link collapsed into administration last Christmas Eve making about 2,400 staff redundant and laying off 1,000 self-employed drivers.

However,addressing the longstanding shortage of drivers will prove one of the biggest challenges for companies with delivery operations in the coming years,said Robin Byde of brokerage Cantor Fitzgerald.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What is Templar's attitude towards getting vehicles financed these days?

A.difficult

B.bored

C.expectant

D.easy

答案解释：在当今激烈的竞争下，获得对车辆的融资机会是很容易的。

2.Why there is a drop in demand for trucks last year?

A.supervision strongly

B.legislation changed

C.Economic Crisis

D.trade barrier

答案解释：据汽车制造商和贸易商协会表示，去年由于法律条例发生变化，货车的需求下降了一些，2015年的需求则增长了36%。

3.Where were the fewer goods delivered to from retailers and logistics companies?

A.home

B.office

C.stores

D.bakery

答案解释：这也反应零售商和物流公司减少了对商场的配送，扩大了送货到家的规模。

4.How long will it take in the rapid speed if you buy a book on Amazon in Coventry?

A.1 hour

B.1 day

C.seven days

D.12hours

答案解释：亚马逊在伦敦和考文垂推出了Prime Now服务,最快一小时送达。

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.8

被LED灯吸引的工业巨头

LED（Light Emitting Diode）是发光二极管的简称。目前LED的应用包括汽车信号灯、交通信号灯、室外全色大型显示屏以及特殊的照明光源等。LED优越的特性正使之逐渐取代电灯泡，而众多注意到这一趋势的工业巨头正在不断调整自身战略，以适应市场的新变化。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

conglomerate 联合大企业

upheaval 突变

oligopoly 求过于供的市场情况

hitherto 迄今

sophisticated 精致的

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分22秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分0秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分8秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Industrial giants caught in LED headlights（451 words）

By Chris Bryant in Frankfurt

Shoppers at the Carrefour hypermarket in Lille no longer have to ask for help to find items on special offer — instead they can navigate to them using their smartphone.

Philips,the Dutch technology conglomerate,has installed 800 light-emitting diode fixtures at the 7,800 square metre store that can send a location signal to a customer's phone using light invisible to the human eyes.

“With the right sensors installed,an LED light-fitting could become the best GPS ever by directing customers or visitors to where they want to go” says Gaia Nocchi,director at Frost & Sullivan,the research and consulting firm.

Lighting is starting to become part of the “internet of things” — where different devices are all connected on telecoms networks — but for incumbent manufacturers this rapid technological shift is causing huge upheaval.

Industrial giants Philips,Siemens and General Electric for decades enjoyed an oligopoly in the hitherto slow-moving lighting market,which James Stettler,an analyst at Barclays,compares with a “licence to print money”,partly because people have to regularly replace their bulbs.

Now LEDs are fast displacing traditional light sources such as incandescent,halogen and fluorescent bulbs,catalysed partly by double-digit annual price declines in components.

Government regulations also have supported the growth of LEDs because of their energy efficiency. They produce light using semiconductors — whereas traditional light bulbs rely on filaments — and therefore consume less electricity.

LEDs also last much longer than old-style bulbs and are far more sophisticated. For example,the new 68-storey International Youth Culture Centre in Nanjing,China,has 700,000 LED lights capable of illuminating the building façade in different colours at night.

Frost & Sullivan estimates the global LED lighting market grew 35 per cent to $32.3bn last year,and it is forecast to more than double to $70bn by 2019. LED as a proportion of the total lighting market is set to near 50 per cent by the end of 2015 and reach 84 per cent by 2020.

The incumbents saw the tech revolution coming and are now among the biggest players,but the rapid growth in LEDs has attracted new low-cost competitors,particularly from Asia.

The incumbents are responding to these challenges in different ways,but broadly speaking they are restructuring legacy,high-volume lighting units and regearing their business models towards “smart” and “connected lighting”.

“In 10 years there might not be a single light bulb left. If your core competence isn't needed any more,then you need to adapt — the challenge is to move from being a general lighting company to a solution provider,” says Ms Nocchi.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How can shoppers at the Carrefour hypermarket find items on special offer?

A.Using their smartphones

B.Asking the shop assistants

C.Looking for special signs

D.Using GPS

答案解释：文章第一和第二段提到顾客可以通过使用智能手机接收LED光信号来找到特价商品，而不需要寻求他人帮助。

2.Which of the following is not mentioned as one of the industrial giants having enjoyed an oligopoly in the lighting market?

A.Philips

B.Siemens

C.A.O.Smith

D.General Electric

答案解释：文章第五段中提到了Philips，Siemens和General Electric三家工业巨头公司。

3.Why have government regulations supported the growth of LEDs ?

A.Their universality

B.Their Energy efficiency

C.Their low price

D.Their high quality

答案解释：文章第七段提到政府支持LED的发展是由于LED的用电率更低，即更加省电。

4.Which of the following is not mentioned as LED's advantage?

A.Consuming less electricity

B.Creating less pollution

C.Lasting longer

D.Being more sophisticated

答案解释：文章第七和第八段提到LED的优势包括更加省电、使用寿命更长和效果更精致。

令人上瘾的动感单车健身俱乐部

当健身俱乐部都面临经营困境时，动感单车健身俱乐部 SoulCycle 却风靡全美。据《福布斯》报道，它的会员忠诚度超高，很多人达到上瘾的程度。和单调昏暗的传统健身俱乐部不同，SoulCycle的一切看上去都精致漂亮，富有吸引力。该俱乐部的卖点不仅在于为人们提供健身场所，更在于通过良好的气氛为顾客创造积极心情。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

IPO 首次公开募股

prospectus 内容介绍

meditative 冥想的

gratify 使满意

affinity 密切关系

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

1分6秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分44秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分14秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分26秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

SoulCycle: reinventing the wheel（261 words）

Would you pay $34 to ride a stationary bike against a backdrop of throbbing dance music in a room full of candles for 40 minutes（and that is before paying to rent the customised cycling shoes)?That is a basic description of SoulCycle,the exercise phenomenon that has gripped the Manhattan jet set. SoulCycle filed its IPO prospectus on Thursday revealing a business that generated $112m of revenue in 2014.

But that $34 does not just burn a few hundred calories — it comes with an emotional therapy session,which may just be a bargain（and is certainly far cheaper than lying on a psychiatrist's sofa for an hour). The pitch the exercise studio chain makes is that it is bringing “soul to the people” with instructors who “guide riders through an inspirational,meditative fitness experience”.

Providing such an experience happens to be financially gratifying too. SoulCycle boasts operating margins of 35 per cent. Not unlike financial services,it seems talent matters as riders develop an affinity for particular instructors. And staff costs are its single largest expense,running at Wall Street-like 45 per cent of class revenue.

As it turns out,the psychic benefits of exercise are not just for the well-heeled. A discount gym chain,Planet Fitness,is soon to price its own IPO. It emphasises a “judgment-free zone” without “gymtimidation”. A prospering world demands physical and emotional wellbeing. Clever entrepreneurs have figured out they can be offered in the same venue — at a healthy profit.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How much revenue did the SoulCycle generate in 2014?

A.$112bn

B.$12m

C.$112m

D.$11bn

答案解释：文章第一段提到SoulCycle在2014年的收入是$112m。

2.Which of the following is not mentioned as offered by SoulCycle?

A.Energy drinks

B.Stationary bikes

C.Candles

D.Background music

答案解释：文章第一段提到在SoulCycle运动时顾客可在点满蜡烛的室内伴着富有节奏感的背景音乐蹬脚踏车，全文没有指出该健身房提供运动饮料。

3.Which of the following is SoulCycle's single largest expense ?

A.Facility maintenance

B.Electric power

C.Staff costs

D.Propaganda costs

答案解释：文章第三段提到SoulCycle最大的支出是人事费用。

4.Which of the following companies is mentioned to be soon to price its own IPO?

A.24 Hour Fitness

B.California Fitness

C.LA Fitness

D.Planet Fitness

答案解释：文章最后一段提到Planet Fitness即将进行首次公开募股。

澳大利亚为同性婚姻破冰？

2013年澳大利亚联邦大选中，自由党参与的联盟胜出成为执政党，现任自由党联邦领袖托尼·阿博特成为新一任联邦总理。澳大利亚目前是最后几个禁止同性婚姻的英语国家之一，而这种情况或许很快就要改变了。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

resume 重新开始

counter 反驳

referendum 全民公投

intensify 加剧

tackle 着手处理

staunch 坚定的

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

5分34秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分48秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

2分25秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分12秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Australia's Liberals draw the line at same-sex marriage（720 words）

By Jamie Smyth

Every year Sydney throws open its doors to gay,lesbian and transgender communities from around the world for a Mardi Gras parade and street party that helps project an image of Australian tolerance. Yet despite the celebrations,Australia is now among the last English-speaking countries still prohibiting same-sex marriage.

This may be about to change. As parliament prepares to resume on Monday after a winter break there are signs Australia could follow Ireland and the US and legalise gay marriage.Several bills proposing to legalise same-sex marriage will come before parliament this month with at least one co-sponsored by members of the governing Liberal party and the opposition. Polls show that the public backs liberalising marriage laws and campaigners for gay marriage have delivered the best lines on the issue.

“We are your brothers and your sisters,your sons and your daughters,your friends and your fellow Australians,and this is a debate about us,” said Penny Wong,a Labor senator and lesbian,in a debate at the National Press Club in Canberra last week with Cori Bernardi,a Conservative lawmaker and opponent of change. Mr Bernardi,who in 2012 said allowing gay marriage could open the door to recognising relationships between animals and humans,countered that redefining marriage on the basis of equality would lead to a “dictatorship of relativism”.

The successful referendum in Ireland — a country seen by many Australians as more conservative than their own — struck a chord with many people. For some there was a sense of national embarrassment following the Irish vote and this has intensified since the US Supreme Court backed gay marriage in June.

“The fact that same-sex couples can now marry in Galway and Mississippi but not Sydney or Melbourne is quite humiliating for a country that prides itself on being tolerant and inclusive,” says Rodney Croome of the Marriage Equality Alliance.

Business has also weighed into the debate with Wesfarmers and Qantas among more than 300 big companies publicly backing gay marriage. But in politics here,rational arguments do not always win the day. Under Prime Minister Tony Abbott,Australia became the first country to scrap a national carbon tax — a move that is causing emissions to rise just as the country comes under international pressure to tackle climate change.

Mr Abbott,who quit a seminary before entering politics,is a staunch opponent of marriage equality and a conservative who has drawn support from his party's right wing. Even the intervention of his sister,Christine Forster,a Liberal councillor and lesbian who campaigns on gay rights,failed to shift the position of a leader who once told a television interviewer he felt “threatened” by homosexuality.

Last month,when Mr Abbott learnt a cross-party bill on gay marriage would be tabled,he downplayed the prospect of it ever being voted on in parliament. His opposition could prove fatal if he can delay any vote on it into next year when an election is likely. But his ability to stifle debate within the Liberal party and stall a vote is far from guaranteed given his own fragile grip on power.

He narrowly survived a leadership challenge within his own party in February following a series of gaffes,policy missteps and poor poll ratings. The resignation last week of parliamentary speaker Bronwyn Bishop — a close friend and ally of his — over an expenses scandal has further dented his standing.

Mr Abbott's ability to postpone a vote on marriage equality will be a test of strength within the Liberal party. If he pushes back against the bill too hard he risks alienating the liberal wing of his party,while capitulating too easily could see him lose support among his allies on the conservative right.

Even if supporters of the bill can force a parliamentary vote,there is no guarantee it will pass. Analysts say the numbers on each side of the debate in parliament are almost equally matched,and to ensure its passage the Liberal party would have to allow its MPs a conscience vote. The Labor party has already done so for its MPs. But giving the same freedom to Liberal lawmakers could mean Mr Abbott delivers one liberal reform he does not support.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What's Australian public's attitude towards legalising gay marriage?

A.Supportive

B.Discontent

C.Conservative

D.Cautious

答案解释：文章第三段提到根据民调显示，澳大利亚公众对同性婚姻的态度是较为支持的。

2.Which of the following regions is mentioned as an exemplory precursor in same-sex marriage?

A.UK

B.Japan

C.Singapore

D.Ireland

答案解释：文章第五段提到不少澳大利亚人一直将爱尔兰视为更加保守，而之前在爱尔兰公投中通过的同性婚姻法案对澳大利亚人亦有很大触动。

3.What's Mr Abbott's attitude towards same-sex marriage ?

A.Positive

B.Favorable

C.Disapproving

D.Satisfied

答案解释：文章第八段提到Mr Abbott一直是婚姻平等的坚决反对者，对同性婚姻并不支持。

4.Which of the following factors is not mentioned as a cause of Mr Abbott's fragile grip on power?

A.The resignation of parliamentary speaker Bronwyn Bishop

B.Being invloved in scandal himself

C.Policy missteps

D.Poor poll ratings

答案解释：文章倒数第三段提到Mr Abbott由于此前好友兼同盟的Bronwyn Bishop卷入丑闻并辞职事件以及较低的支持率和政治失误而陷入了不利局面。

《复联2》对于迪士尼意味着什么？

在迪士尼接近百年的历史中，做过最正确的决策，或许就是2009年四十多亿美元巨资收购漫威。后来的几年，仅是漫威系列电影的票房就达到了63亿美元。超级英雄也在大众文化娱乐中占据了核心地位，让迪士尼在周边衍生、主题乐园等方面开辟更多财源，成为更强大的赚钱机器。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

subscriber 用户

merchandise 商品

sequel 续集

prop 支撑

grossing 总额

reverberate 回弹

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分15秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分56秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分6秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分44秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

The Avengers spur Disney to record profit（441words）

By Matthew Garrahan in New York

The blockbuster box office performance of The Avengers: Age of Ultron powered Walt Disney to record third-quarter profits,with the media group also reporting improved performances at its theme parks and consumer products divisions.

Profits beat analyst estimates — the 11th consecutive quarter that Disney earnings have come in ahead of forecasts — but revenues were lower than forecast. This was partly a consequence of weakness in the euro,which hit Disneyland Paris revenues by $100m.

Bob Iger,chief executive,began an earnings call mounting a robust defence of ESPN,Disney's sports cable network,which has lost some subscribers as viewers reassess their cable television bills and move to cheaper packages.

Mr Iger said there were no plans to move ESPN to an “over the top” service — and go direct to consumers — as other sought after channels such as HBO,have done. ESPN had embraced technology “better than anyone else in traditional media”,he said,adding that watching television via cable and satellite was still “the dominant form of viewing”.

Operating income at Disney's cable networks division rose 7 per cent to $2.1bn,thanks to a better performance from the Disney Channel,Disney's ABC Family network — and ESPN.Frozen,Disney's 2013 Oscar-winning hit continues to generate strong returns. Merchandise associated with the movie and Disney's upcoming Star Wars: The Force Awakens lifted consumer products profits 27 per cent to $348m.

Disney's movie studio,meanwhile,generated operating income of $472m — a 15 per cent increase on the comparable period last time,due to the performance of The Avengers sequel and Cinderella.

Results at the studio were held back by Tomorrowland,the George Clooney science fiction movie,which performed worse than expected at the box office. However,Inside Out,from Disney's Pixar division,propped up the studio's returns.

Star Wars fans are counting the days until the December release of the new film. Analysts expect the movie to be among the biggest grossing releases ever.

“We're making no estimates whatsoever in what we think the film will do,” said Mr Iger. However,he added that the company owned “the most valuable film franchise that ever existed. We fully expect the success of this film to reverberate throughout the company this year and beyond.”

Earnings per share of $1.45 beat analyst estimates. Revenues across the company rose from $12.5bn to $13.1bn while net income increased from $2.2bn to $2.5bn.

Disney shares fell more than 6 per cent in after-market trading.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What caused Disney's revenues to be lower than forecast?

A.Weakness in the euro

B.Declining overall profits

C.Poor performance in consumer products divisions

D.Increasing subscribers of ESPN

答案解释：文章第二段提到迪士尼公司本季度利润低于预测有部分原因是欧元疲软导致巴黎迪士尼营业额受冲击。

2.The better performance of which departments is not related to the increasing operating income at Disney's cable networks division?

A.Disney Channel

B.Consumer products divisions

C.Disney's ABC Family network

D.ESPN

答案解释：文章第五段提到迪士尼公司的有线电视网络分部业绩上升，主要是由于迪士尼频道、ABC家庭和ESPN的更好表现。

3.Which of the following movies is mentioned as performing worse than expected at the box office?

A.Tomorrowland

B.Inside Out

C.Frozen

D.The Avengers: Age of Ultron

答案解释：文章第八段提到电影《明日世界》的票房表现低于预期。

4.When will the new film of Star Wars be released ?

A.In September

B.In Octorber

C.In November

D.In December

答案解释：文章第九段提到《星球大战》的粉丝正热切期待十二月发布的电影续作。

谁动了苹果投资者的“奶酪”？

周三早上，苹果的股票在接连五天下跌至自一月以来股价最低点之后，终于刹住了脚步。在苹果股价的连续走低背后，到底隐藏着投资者怎样的顾虑？市场是否不再接受苹果独居鳌头的状况？消费者对于苹果的期待值和需求狂潮是否就此消退？究竟是谁，动了苹果投资者的“奶酪”？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

bullish 积极乐观的，看涨的

behemoth 巨头

Atop 在…顶上

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分8秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分52秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分3秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分43秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

What is eating Apple investors?（432words）

By Kadhim Shubber

Apple's shares slid to their lowest point since January on Wednesday morning before its five-day losing streak finally halted as buyers emerged.

The world's most valuable company has been hit by investor concern about its business in China,where there are signs economic growth is slowing and where Apple has recently slipped from its pre-eminent position in the smartphone market.

Despite Tim Cook's bullish comments on China during Apple's recent third-quarter earnings call,investors have sold off the company,wiping more than $111bn off its market value since July 21,a 15 per cent drop.

Shares opened a further 2 per cent lower on Wednesday but recovered by mid-morning,leaving it up 1.6 per cent at $116.44.The technology behemoth has fallen in 10 out of the past 12 trading sessions and a further drop on Wednesday would have been the stock's sixth straight day of losses — the longest such stretch since February 2013

Apple's share price slide has weighed heavily on broader stock market indices,with every $1 change in Apple's share price resulting in a 0.65 point shift in the S&P 500,according to Howard Silverblatt,senior index analyst at S&P Dow Jones Indices.

“The combination of Apple's size and price moves results in an enormous impact on indices,with the only comparison being International Business Machines' impact in the early 1980s,when PCs were new,and IBM was expected to own the market,” he said in a note.Although Apple more than doubled its sales in China to nudge third-quarter revenues and earnings just ahead of market forecasts,investors were rattled as iPhone sales fell short of expectations.

Their concerns were reinforced after research outfit Canalys said this week that Apple has lost its position atop the Chinese smartphone market to local upstart Xiaomi during the second quarter.

Apple dropped to third in China in the second quarter,according to Canalys,falling behind Xiaomi at number one and Huawei in second place. “Competition among major brands has never been so intense,” said Jingwen Wang in the report.

Sliding commodity prices,which Wall Street has taken as evidence of a slowdown in China's economy,along with turmoil in the country's stock markets,have added to bearish investor sentiment around Apple.

During Apple's earnings call on July 21,chief executive Tim Cook shrugged off concerns about the sharp drop in China's stock markets and worries about its economic growth,saying the company remained “extremely bullish” on the country.

“Nothing that's happened has changed our fundamental view that China will be Apple's largest market at some point in the future,” he said.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which market is the most concerning to investors ?

A.America

B.India

C.China

D.UK

答案解释：文章第二段提到投资者最担心对他们有影响的就是苹果在中国市场的表现。

2.Which company in the 1980s' market can be a comparison of Apple in today's market?

A.Microsoft

B.Intel

C.Cisco

D.IBM

答案解释：文章第六段作者在举例的时候说，只有1980年代的IBM可以和现在的苹果做比较。

3.What is Tim Cook's attitude towards the Chinese market?

A.Indifferent

B.Negative

C.Don't know

D.Positive

答案解释：文章第三段Tim Cook对中国的发言被形容成是“bullish”－看涨的，说明他对中国市场还是很正面乐观的。

4.Which domestic company did Apple lose its atop position in the Chinese market to?

A.Xiaomi

B.Huawei

C.Samsung

D.HTC

答案解释：文章倒数第五段写了苹果是让位给了小米。同时，应该了解小米和华为是中国大陆公司，三星是韩国公司，HTC是台湾公司。

印度穆斯林州的牛肉禁令

印度一些主要为穆斯林居住的州实施牛肉禁令，引起了巨大的社会反响。一些法官认为牛肉的买卖严重地影响了当地人的宗教情绪，督促当局严格实施禁牛肉法令。然而社会各界却有不同意见，一些人认为禁牛令侵犯了他们遵循饮食习惯的自由。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

slaughter 屠杀

enforcement 实施

enthusiastic 狂热的

separatist insurgency 分裂分子的暴乱

religious sentiments 宗教情感

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分56秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分19秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分22秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分49秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

India's only Muslim-majority state hit by beef ban（499words）

By Amy Kazmin in New Delhi

Authorities in India's only Muslim-majority state,Jammu and Kashmir,have been ordered to enforce a 150-year-old beef ban — the latest step in a campaign by Hindu nationalists to stop the slaughter of cows that they revere as deities.

Acting on a public interest litigation brought by a Hindu lawyer,the Jammu and Kashmir High Court instructed law enforcement officials to “strictly enforce” an 1862 ban on slaughtering cows,which had been imposed by the then maharaja,a Hindu.

Kashmir's Muslim population are enthusiastic meat eaters,although the most popular meats — and those prepared for festivals — are lamb and chicken. But beef is eaten by poor families who cannot always afford more expensive meats.

In recent decades,Kashmir's law enforcement agencies have been focused on battling a violent separatist insurgency and social unrest by Kashmiri Muslims,and paid little heed to a beef ban buried in the statute books.

But the two Hindu judges of the high court urged the police chief to take firm action against the slaughter and sale of beef after a petition that said such practices “severely affected religious sentiments” of the state's Hindu minority.

“Kashmiris are lamb eaters not beef eaters,but the ban is provocative,” said Basharat Peer,author of Curfewed Nights,a celebrated memoir about growing up at the height of the Kashmiri separatist insurgency.

“It is just another effort to promote cultural hegemony of the Hindu nationalists. It's none of their business what we eat.”

The decision to enforce Kashmir's beef ban comes amid growing public fears that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party is imposing the dietary restrictions of some of India's religious faiths on the entire population — ostensibly out of respect for “religious sentiments”.

In March,the BJP government in the state of Maharashtra introduced a draconian ban on the sale and consumption of beef,which Christians and Muslims said was a clear violation of their right to follow their own dietary traditions and habits.

Mumbai is also in the midst of a public furore over a four-day ban on the sale of any meat in the city — and in the entire state of Rajasthan — during a festival of India's Jain community,a minority who are strict vegetarians.

“It isn't about meat. It isn't about religion. It is about using state power to impose your preferences on another in a free country,” Chetan Bhagat,the best-selling Indian author told his 5.6m Twitter followers,commenting on the Mumbai ban. “The state,government and laws in a democracy are designed to protect people's freedom not take it away.”

About 30 per cent of Indians are vegetarians but many believe they are on a spiritually higher plane than their meat-eating compatriots and often try to promote vegetarianism in public life.

In the state of Madhya Pradesh,for example,Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan,a member of the BJP,has opposed proposals to provide regular eggs to poor children as part of a state programme to battle malnutrition.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Why beef is eaten by poor families in Kashmir?

A.They have different appetite

B.They raise cattle

C.Beef is more delicious

D.They cant afford more expensive meat

答案解释：第三段最后一句，穷人吃不起更贵的肉类所以吃牛肉。

2.Why Kashmir's law enforcement agencies pay little attention to beef ban?

A.They don't want to ban beef strictly

B.They focus on the separatist insurgency and social unrest

C.They just forgot it

D.They are opposed by the public

答案解释：第四段，讲Kashmir的执法机构把重心放在了分裂分子的暴乱和社会动荡上。

3.What is Christians and Muslims' attitude toward the draconian ban of beef in the state of Maharashtra?

A.They support it due to religious sentiment

B.They regard it violates their right and habits

C.It is not influential at all

D.They agree that they benefited from it

答案解释：倒数第五段，他们认为对牛肉的禁止侵犯了他们的权利——遵循他们传统的饮食习惯。

4.Chetan Bhagat is the best-selling Indian author. What is his comment on beef ban?

A.Government and laws should protect people's freedom

B.It is hard to implement

C.Public should follow it strictly

D.It respects to religion

答案解释：倒数第三段，这个作家说，你不能把个人喜好强加给别人，特别是在这个自由的国度。政府应该保护人们的自由而不是取走他们。

苹果公司年度发布大会

苹果公司在9月9日举行每年一度的产品发布大会，包括新一代的iPhone，手表，和苹果支付功能。新一代的iPhone会有一系列的升级。同时，虽然苹果电子手表的销量并不如预期中的理想，但也已经占据了20%的市场，仅次于Fitbit。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

hype 宣传广告

quirky 离奇的

revamp 改进

strives 斗争

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分25秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分10秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apple schedules annual iPhone debut for September 9 （584words）

By Tim Bradshaw in London

Apple has scheduled its annual iPhone debut for Wednesday September 9,a year to the day after 2014's launch of its latest handset alongside Apple Pay and the Watch.

Invitations were sent out to members of the press and analysts on Thursday morning,California time,bearing the teaser: “Hey Siri,give us a hint”.

When asked for a “hint”,Siri responds with cryptic comments such as: “Well,I hear there's something big happening on September 9” and “Why don't you check a rumours blog?That's what I do.” Fuelling the hype that inevitably accompanies any such launch,Apple fans posted quirky responses from the iPhone's virtual assistant to social media.

Stakes are high for the new device,which is likely to go on sale in the last week of September,as Apple strives to defy slowing growth in the global smartphone market and economic uncertainty in China,its most important source of new customers.

Analysts at Morgan Stanley predict that iPhone unit sales next year will grow by just 3 per cent,compared with 35 per cent in its most recent quarter.

Unlike last year's Silicon Valley-based iPhone 6 event,next month's unveiling will be held at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco. The large 7,000-person capacity venue is better known for concerts,playing host to musicians including Janet Jackson,Jack White and Ellie Goulding.

The venue is expected to see the debut of the iPhone 6S,which in keeping with previous “S” models is likely to see upgrades to the handset's internal technology,such as a faster processor,while maintaining the current model's size and design.

New features are rumoured to include the addition of “Force Touch”,where pressing harder on the iPhone's screen will allow for new kinds of interaction,a concept first introduced on the Apple Watch. Apple-focused news site 9to5Mac suggested on Thursday that the iPhone 6S's camera will also see a significant upgrade,with its resolution increased from 8 megapixels to 12,with 4K video capture.

The iPhone will run iOS 9,which Apple introduced in June,including a new “Proactive” personal assistant to bolster Siri's capabilities,improved maps and a new News app.Alongside a new iPhone,the California-based technology company is expected to reveal its long-awaited revamp to Apple TV,bringing the App Store to its set-top box for the first time and introducing a new remote control. Apple has been seen as falling behind rivals such as Roku,Google's Chromecast and Amazon's Fire TV in the interactive television market,where it has not made significant improvements to its device since 2012.

Apple's share price was up 3 per cent by lunchtime in New York at about $113,as it continues to rally after recent stock market concerns over its growth prospects in China that briefly saw its shares dip below $100 earlier in the week.

Earlier on Thursday,research on the market for wearable technology by analysts at IDC found that Apple Watch had leapt into second place behind Fitbit in the second quarter,ahead of rival smartwatch makers such as Samsung,LG,Motorola and Pebble.

Even though Apple Watch sales have come in lower than some forecasters had estimated,IDC found that it had taken 20 per cent of the global market for wearable devices in its first quarter of availability,just behind Fitbit at 24 per cent. Samsung's share,however,has fallen from 14 per cent a year ago to 3 per cent in the three months ended June,according to IDC.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Where is Apple's most important source of new customers?

A.Japan

B.India

C.Brazil

D.China

答案解释：第四段最后，讲中国是新客户最重要的来源

2.Which one is not the upgrades of iphone6S?

A.Faster processor

B.Bigger screen

C.Better camera

D.“Force Touch”

答案解释：第七八段，讲了新一代的更新

3.In which sector,Apple is regarded falling behind its rivals?

A.Smart watch

B.Personal computers

C.Tablet

D.Interactive television

答案解释：倒数第四段，讲Apple TV 不如他的竞争对手们，从2012年来没有重大更新

4.Apple watch's sales had leapt into the second place. So who is only one ahead of Apple?

A.LG

B.Samsung

C.Fitbit

D.Motorala

答案解释：最后两段讲苹果已经占据了可佩戴电子设备市场的20%，仅次于Fitbit的25%。

滴滴快的：“对手的对手即朋友”？

为牵制Uber，滴滴快的投资其美国对手Lyft，意在趁 Uber 在中国扩张之时，直捣 Uber 的大本营。Uber本来在中国的仗就不好打，而回头发现这财大气粗的对手又投资了老家的对头。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

underscores 强调

undisclosed 未泄露的

turf 地盘

merger 合并

incur 招致

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分6秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分18秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分38秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分34秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Uber's Chinese rival invests in Lyft（345words）

By Leslie Hook in San Francisco

China's biggest ride-hailing company,Didi Kuaidi,has invested in Uber's chief US rival Lyft,as it expands its global network of investments in companies that compete with Uber.

Didi's investment in Lyft underscores the fierce competition between Didi and Uber as they battle to control the ride-hailing market in China,and beyond. In August Didi invested in another Uber rival,Malaysia-based GrabTaxi,which operates in Southeast Asia.

Didi Kuaidi invested an undisclosed amount in Lyft during a May fundraising round,according to people familiar with the matter.

Global competition for ride-hailing has increasingly become about winning the right investors,not just winning drivers and customers. This is particularly true in China,where Uber is backed by Chinese search engine Baidu,while Didi Kuaidi has investments from Alibaba and Tencent.

Lyft currently operates only in the US,and is Uber's main competitor in the US domestic market. Other Lyft investors include Rakuten,the Japanese online retailer,as well as Carl Icahn,the activist investor. A fundraising round in March valued Lyft at $2.5bn.

The investment from Didi Kuaidi underscores how its battle with Uber is playing out not only on its home turf in China,but around the world. Didi Kuaidi controls a majority of the Chinese market,following a merger between Didi Dache and Kuaidi Dache in February.

Uber has been investing heavily in China and Chief Executive Travis Kalanick has been touring there this month in a bid to win favour in a market that is traditionally difficult for foreign companies to crack.

Uber closed a $1.2bn fundraising round earlier this month for its Chinese unit,while Didi closed a $3bn fundraising round earlier this year. This has left the companies flush with cash,despite heavy losses that they incur by providing incentives and discounts to drivers and riders. Didi Kuaidi's losses were three times its revenues during the first five months of this year,according to a document seen by the Financial Times.

Didi's investment in Lyft was first reported by the Wall Street Journal.

Additional reporting by Henny Sender and Charles Clover.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which country is GrabTaxi based?

A.Thailand

B.Indonesia

C.Malaysia

D.Marlay

答案解释：8月滴滴投资了东南亚市场的打车软件GrabTaxi，一方面滴滴想要借此扩大在东南亚市场的存在感，一方面滴滴想要借此牵制 Uber 的东南亚的扩张步伐。

2.Who will not help ride-hailing apps to win the competition?

A.right investors

B.strong competitors

C.drivers

D.customers

答案解释：除了司机和乘客，有正确的投资者也很重要。

3.Who is the activist investor for Lyft?

A.Carl Icahn

B.Didi Kuaidi

C.Rakuten

D.Alibaba

答案解释：文章第五段。

4.How many times is the loss compared with the revenue for Didi Kuaidi during the first five months of 2015?

A.twice

B.one third

C.3 times

D.about the same

答案解释：今年头5个月滴滴快的损失是其收入的三倍。

骑行上班没头盔？请再想想

现代城市中越来越多的人选择骑车去上班，不仅可以避免在汽车或地铁上的拥挤，同时也收获了运动带来的快乐。然而，都市的交通还是无法避免马路上很可能突然冲出来的出租车以及突然转弯的货车：据调查由于不带头盔造成伤亡的上班族并不在少数。除了疼惜爱车，也请爱惜自己的身体——佩戴头盔，注意安全。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

reflective 反光的

menace 恐吓

mandatory 强制性的

paediatric 儿科的

polypropylene 聚丙烯

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分47秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分48秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分42秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分57秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Cycling to work without a helmet?Please think again <（570words）

By Charles Wallace

I had an interview recently with a lawyer in London who began by apologising for being out of breath. “My wife banned me from riding my bike after three accidents in central London in the space of 12 months,” he explained. “I've gotten out of shape.”

I mentioned that I had just walked from Hackney in east London to the City and was surprised at the number of cyclists in the latest reflective and polypropylene cycling gear who were nonetheless weaving in and out of traffic without a helmet. My lawyer friend laughed knowingly. “I keep a photo on my phone of my cracked helmet to show people what their head might look like when they cycle without one,” he said.

With more people cycling to work in cities such as London,New York,and San Francisco,the conversation often turns to the dangers of riding in heavy city traffic. Are taxis stopping without warning the greatest menace or perhaps delivery vans turning suddenly?

Boris Johnson,the mayor of London,has often sung the praises of cycling to work,and the rental bicycles scattered through the city are even nicknamed “Boris bikes” because of his support for them. But even though Mr. Johnson has had a few close calls while cycling,he has refrained from making bicycle helmets mandatory.

I understand that riding in hot weather with a helmet can be uncomfortable,but I think the case for helmets,mandatory or not,is hard to dispute. Australia,New Zealand and parts of Canada have adopted compulsory helmet laws and it is clear that cycling deaths declined in the years after those laws were adopted.

Some have pointed out that the number of heart attacks rose in Australia because some cyclists gave up riding to work rather than wear a helmet,but is that really relevant?

The grim fact is that London had already reached eight cycling deaths by June of this year and New York recorded a doubling of fatalities from nine to 18 in 2014.It is true that the number of cyclists is increasing in both cities,which is a good thing,but that does not diminish the avoidable dangers. The victims included a prominent Manhattan surgeon and a neuroscientist,who were not wearing helmets.

Michael Carter,a paediatric neurosurgeon in Bristol,told me recently that he often sees cases of head injuries from bicycle accidents in his hospital's emergency room that could have been avoided if the cyclists had worn helmets. “It makes no sense whatsoever to ride without a helmet,” said Dr Carter,who has stopped cycling in the city because of the recent deaths of two friends.

The Cochrane Library,widely accepted as the gold standard for medical research worldwide,looked at bicycle accidents and did a statistical comparison of different studies to see if there were patterns in helmet use.

The review said that three quarters of all fatalities on bicycles result from head injuries. It found that “wearing a helmet reduced the risk of head or brain injury by approximately two-thirds or more,regardless of whether the crash involved a motor vehicle.”

One solution to the problem of bicycle safety is the creation of dedicated bike lanes,which has happened in Berlin,New York and other cities and should be tried elsewhere. But they do not eliminate the danger entirely and the reasonable response is to wear a helmet,even for short rides.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Why the lawyer show the photo of cracked helmet to people?

A.A kind of memory

B.Share the funny story

C.Warning people to wear helmets

D.Prove that he is very clever

答案解释：作者朋友用破碎头盔的照片告诉大家假如不带头盔，这个样子很可能就是事故之后的头的受伤程度。

22.What is the” Boris bikes” meaning?

A.safe helmets

B.rental bicycles

C.Real-time traffic app

D.bikes without helmets

答案解释：“鲍里斯市长自行车”是可在伦敦市内租赁的自行车。

3.Which place did not force people to wear helmets?

A.London

B.Australia

C.New Zealand

D.parts of Canada

答案解释：澳大利亚、新西兰和加拿大的部分地区，骑行时佩戴头盔是强制性的。

4.How many percentage of people were injured in the head on bicycles?

A.two-thirds

B.50%

C.75%

D.36%

答案解释：倒数第二段，约四分之三的人头部受伤。

YouTube为广告商“放大招”

在YouTube赚得风生水起的时候，金主们却有一些顾虑：YouTube给出的广告投放数据是真实的吗？他们购买了广告，但是却没办法准确知道自己投放的广告到底有多少人看了：因为YouTube是支持跳过广告的。为回应金主的不满，YouTube正计划向广告商提供互联网视频广告的观看次数数据。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

initiative 主动性

Unilever 联合利华

transparency 透明度

ultimately 最终

reluctant 不情愿的

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分57秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分54秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分47秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分58秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

YouTube to provide viewer data to advertisers（585words）

By Robert Cookson,Digital Media Correspondent

YouTube is preparing to allow companies to independently verify what proportion of the adverts they place on the video platform can be seen by viewers.

The move is a response to complaints by advertisers such as Unilever and Kellogg's,which have become increasingly concerned that they are wasting money on ads that are not visible.There are many reasons why an ad may not be seen,such as when it loads in a part of a web page that falls outside of the viewer's screen. In other cases,the viewer may scroll away from the ad before they have a chance to see it or minimise their web browser while the ad is playing.

Kellogg's,the US food group,reportedly stopped buying ads on YouTube this year because it was unable to independently verify what proportion had a chance to be seen.

But according to people familiar with YouTube's plans,the Google-owned company has recently given in to pressure to provide much greater transparency.

In particular,YouTube plans to let third-party verification groups access data on the position and context of ads shown on the site,the people said.

This initiative is expected to start by the end of the year and is likely to attract interest from well-known verification companies including ComScore,DoubleVerify and Integral Ad Science.

Google already offers an in-house measurement system called Active View for testing whether ads are seen. In May,it published a study of “viewability” across its ad networks,including DoubleClick and YouTube. It found that the average viewability of video ads across the web was 54 per cent — meaning that only about half of the ads could be seen — while on YouTube it was 91 per cent.

A video ad is counted as “viewable” when at least half of its pixels are visible on screen for at least two consecutive seconds,according to standards set by the Media Rating Council and the Interactive Advertising Bureau. Some advertisers believe that this definition is too lax.Google said: “We're committed to meeting all of our clients' measurement needs” and “are taking our clients' feedback into account as we continue to roll out new solutions”. However,it declined to provide any details about the plans for YouTube,which is estimated to make revenues of more than $4bn a year from advertising.

Unilever,the consumer goods group and second-largest advertiser in the world,has been particularly vocal about the need for much greater transparency in the market for online advertising.

Keith Weed,chief marketing officer,said: “We see the industry continuing to move in the right direction. Our hope is that these steps will ultimately lead to 100 per cent viewability through third-party verification across the industry.”

However,Mr Weed's hope that the company would only have to pay for ads if they are seen remains a long way from being realised. Obstacles include the lack of a consensus about exactly what “viewable” should mean and the resistance of many big internet companies and media groups to share data with advertisers.

Facebook said it was taking steps to give marketers “full confidence in their ads being seen”. However,it suggested that this could be achieved without opening up its app to independent measurement companies,arguing that “third-party verification view tags often slow down consumer experience and don't always report views consistently”.

Another reason that some website and app owners are reluctant to allow advertisers to put third-party verification tags on their sites is that doing so risks compromising valuable user data.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which of the following is not the reason of an ad may not be seen?

A.website loading error

B.it falls outside of the screen

C.users scroll away from the ad

D.minimise their web

答案解释：文章第二段讲述了原因。

2.Which of the following verification company has not been involved?

A.ComScore

B.Unilever

C.DoubleVerify

D.Integral Ad Science

答案解释：这一措施有望在今年年底之前开始展开，涉及到的第三方审查公司包括ComScore、DoubleVerify和Integral Ad Science。

3.How many ads could be seen by the study of “viewability”?

A.91 percent

B.half

C.minority

D.not mentioned

答案解释：调查发现在视频中可视的广告是54%，YouTube给出的数据却是91%。

4.How to detect the effective amount of advertising?

A.online survey

B.compulsory viewing advertising

C.telephone interview

D.put third-party verification tags

答案解释：YouTube将允许第三方审查公司在其网站上插入验证代码，以此让他们获得广告位置和内容的相关数据。

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.9

电商发展推动快递货车市场

网购发展迅速，并随着英国企业扩大规模，从而推动了英国对货车投资金额的增长。“物流是电商行业接下来的战场”——这句话或许马上应验。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

hire-purchase 分期付款

buoyant 浮力的，上涨的

logistics 物流

consultancy 咨询

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分22秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分0秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分9秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Online shopping boom leads to record increase in vans（452words）

By Michael Pooler

The boom in online shopping and revived construction activity has led to record levels of investment in vans and trucks,as British businesses enlarge their fleets.

Finance for commercial vehicles on lease and hire-purchase agreements rose 10 per cent to £6.5bn in the year ending in August,according to the Finance and Leasing Association,a trade body.

The figures point to the broader economic recovery,as well as a shift in how consumers buy — and receive — goods.

Driving the growth was the buoyant retail sector and an increase in people setting up businesses,said BNP Paribas Leasing Solutions,with some of the strongest demand for vans coming from self-employed workers in the building and associated trades.

“It's very easy to get vehicles financed on very competitive rates these days,” said Brian Templar,of logistics consultancy Davies and Robson.

Following a drop in demand for trucks last year due to changes in legislation,registrations have jumped 36 per cent in 2015. The number of vans on the road has continued to rise thanks to online shopping,with 17 per cent more added this year,according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.

This reflects how retailers and logistics companies are making fewer large deliveries to stores but more small deliveries to homes. Online sales account for a fifth of all non-food retail sales in Britain.

“Logistics is the next big battleground in ecommerce.[Retailers]have always delivered larger items like furniture but now they will be able to offer it even for smaller items,” said Anita Balchandani,partner at OC&C. The consultancy put the UK ecommerce market size at £42bn last year and forecasts it will rise to £61bn by 2018.

Argos challenged its online and bricks-and-mortar rivals last week as it became the first high-street brand to launch same-day deliveries seven days a week throughout the country. Amazon Prime Now offers shipments within an hour in Coventry and London,and has been introducing a similar service for frozen and chilled foods in parts of the capital.

Meanwhile Ocado,the upmarket online grocer,spent £12.5m on vehicle leases in 2014,against £9m the previous year.

The need for expanded vehicle fleets was underlined on ‘Black Friday' in November last year,when a number of companies were caught out by a record-breaking day of online shopping. Delivery delays resulted.

Evidence of the fierce competition in the parcel delivery market was seen when City Link collapsed into administration last Christmas Eve making about 2,400 staff redundant and laying off 1,000 self-employed drivers.

However,addressing the longstanding shortage of drivers will prove one of the biggest challenges for companies with delivery operations in the coming years,said Robin Byde of brokerage Cantor Fitzgerald.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What is Templar's attitude towards getting vehicles financed these days?

A.difficult

B.bored

C.expectant

D.easy

答案解释：在当今激烈的竞争下，获得对车辆的融资机会是很容易的。

2.Why there is a drop in demand for trucks last year?

A.supervision strongly

B.legislation changed

C.Economic Crisis

D.trade barrier

答案解释：据汽车制造商和贸易商协会表示，去年由于法律条例发生变化，货车的需求下降了一些，2015年的需求则增长了36%。

3.Where were the fewer goods delivered to from retailers and logistics companies?

A.home

B.office

C.stores

D.bakery

答案解释：这也反应零售商和物流公司减少了对商场的配送，扩大了送货到家的规模。

4.How long will it take in the rapid speed if you buy a book on Amazon in Coventry?

A.1 hour

B.1 day

C.seven days

D.12hours

答案解释：亚马逊在伦敦和考文垂推出了Prime Now服务,最快一小时送达。

Facebook为员工推出“2G星期二”

Facebook表示生活在欠发达国家的不少人仍在使用极慢速的2G网络。他们需要了解世界各地的人们如何使用不同的网络连接使用Facebook，以便为用户建立最好的平台。为了真实感受用户体验，2G网速真的来了。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

sacrifice 牺牲

simulate 模拟

mimic 模仿的

emerging 新兴的

neutrality 中立

infancy 摇篮时期

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分32秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分40秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分37秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分55秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Facebook goes slow with ‘2G Tuesdays' for developers（550words）

By Hannah Kuchler in San Francisco and James Crabtree in Mumbai

Facebook is encouraging its employees to sacrifice speedy internet connections and experience the stumbling 2G more common in emerging markets,with the introduction of “2G Tuesdays”.

Staff at Facebook's plush Silicon Valley campus,accustomed to being ferried to and from the office in WiFi-enabled buses,are being asked to experience slow connection speeds to help “build a better product for all of the people using[Facebook's app]”.

On “2G Tuesdays”,employees are sent notifications giving them the option to have their mobile phones simulate a 2G connection to help them understand how to develop the Facebook app to make it easier to use on a poor internet connection.

“People are coming online at a staggering rate in emerging markets and,in most cases,are doing so on mobile via 2G connections. But on the lower end of 2G networks,it can take about two minutes to download a webpage,” says Facebook. “We need to understand how people use Facebook in different internet connections in all parts of the world so we can build the best experience for them.”

The social network's attempts to redesign its products for users with slower connections mimic moves by other global tech companies seeking growth in countries such as India. Google,for instance,has launched a low-speed version of its search service and an offline function for video site YouTube.

Facebook is seeking to bring more people in emerging markets online through its Internet.org programme,which provides 60 basic services and the social network to people in 19 countries for free,by striking deals with telecoms carriers who are betting the customers will start paying later.

But Internet.org has been criticised,particularly in India — which is fast becoming one of the social network's most important markets — for breaking the principle of “net neutrality” under which no web traffic is prioritised or treated differently.

The social network has fixed its sights on India,with its population of almost 1.3bn,about 10 per cent of whom use Facebook and many of whom use Facebook-owned WhatsApp for messaging. With no access to China,where the internet is closely monitored,India — to which Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg is paying a visit this week — is the company's largest potential market.

Facebook's internal estimates suggest India will overtake the US as its largest market by users in the next 18 months,and research group eMarketer projects that it will reach 200m users there by 2017,having surpassed 100m early last year.

However,analysts say Facebook faces challenges earning money from its huge user bases in countries such as India,where digital advertising is in its infancy and average revenue per user is far below mature markets such as the US and UK.

“In India,the usage outlook is strong but our ad revenue outlook is weak,” said Debra Aho Williamson of eMarketer. “Facebook's ad revenue in the country is likely quite low,reflecting the immature state of the digital ad business.”

Mr Zuckerberg will host a town-hall meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday,taking questions from Indian Facebook users.

The Q&A session follows a visit last month by Narendra Modi,India's prime minister,to Facebook's Silicon Valley headquarters,where he participated in a similar session where the public asked questions on everything from Facebook to pollution in New Delhi.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who can experience the slow connection speeds?

A.developers

B.managers

C.all employees

D.users in Asia

答案解释：Facebook员工在每个星期二登录使用News Feed(信息流)功能时，会被要求是否需要使用连接速度较慢的2G网络，连接时间将持续约一个小时。

2.What is the purpose of ‘2G Tuesdays' activity?

A.to attract attention

B.to build a better product

C.to fight against the opponent

D.to team building

答案解释：其目的是得到真实的反馈，更好的改善自己的产品以适应更多的用户。

3.Who has launched a low-speed version of its search service?

A.Facebook

B.WhatsApp

C.eMarketer

D.Google

答案解释：文章第五段，谷歌也是其中之一。

4.Where is the Facebook's largest potential market?

A.China

B.Canada

C.India

D.Japan

答案解释：由于中国的严密监管，印度成了FB最大的潜在市场。

百事取消赞助印度板球联赛

据统计，印度12亿人口中有7亿半人一年至少打4次板球，85%的人会关注板球赛事，其中就包括印度最大的联赛——印度超级板球联赛IPL。百事公司近日宣布退出赞助IPL的协议，放弃这个利润丰厚、却为丑闻缠身的年度盛事。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

sponsorship 赞助

cricket 板球

lucrative 合算的

razzmatazz 精力

showbiz 演艺圈

auction 拍卖

franchises 特许经营权

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分12秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分52秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分0秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Pepsi drops sponsorship of scandal-hit Indian cricket league（605words）

By James Crabtree in Mumbai

PepsiCo has pulled out of a Rs4bn（$62m）sponsorship deal with the Indian Premier League cricket tournament,dealing a further blow to the lucrative but scandal-plagued annual event.The US-based beverage group signed a five-year title sponsorship arrangement in 2012,but formally ended its association with the event on Sunday after just three seasons.

The Board Of Control For Cricket In India,the sport's governing body and the IPL's owners,said Chinese phonemaker Vivo Electronics would become the IPL's title sponsor for the two remaining seasons of Pepsi's contract.

Neither the BCCI nor PepsiCo commented on the reason for the termination. The BCCI also gave no details of the financial deal struck with Vivo,although in a statement it said the Chinese company would provide a bank guarantee for payment in the “next 10 days”.However,reports earlier this month in the Indian Express newspaper suggested that PepsiCo had sent a termination notice to the BCCI citing issues relating to the governance of the IPL. The US group declined to comment on the document.

“Losing a global company like Pepsi is obviously a blow,” said Ayaz Memon,a Mumbai-based cricket writer and commentator. “They seem to have become fed up with these governance problems,and decided it wasn't worth the reputation problems.”

Since launching in 2009,the IPL has attracted huge audiences with its television-friendly shorter cricket format and showbiz razzmatazz,in turn convincing companies such as PepsiCo and UK-based telecommunications group Vodafone to sign up as sponsors as a means to connect with India's sports-mad public.

But despite its financial successes,the event has also been hit by repeated management bust-ups and corruption allegations. Most seriously a handful of players and administrators were caught up in a betting and match-fixing scandal in 2013.

PepsiCo's pullout is the latest aftershock of that scandal,which ultimately saw two of the tournament's eight teams suspended in July,following an investigation led by a former Indian Supreme Court judge.

On Sunday,the BCCI confirmed that it planned to hold an auction to create temporary teams to replace the banned franchises for the next two years.

In a statement,Vipul Prakash,a vice-president at PepsiCo in India,said that the group's termination decision had been “mutually agreed” with the BCCI. “We will continue to associate with sports and cricket as a platform to connect with our consumers,” he said.Vivo Electronics,which is relatively minor player in India's fast-growing smartphone market,could not be reached for comment.

However,the Chinese group's decision to become a sponsor makes it the latest in a line of mobile and e-commerce groups to sign up with the IPL as they seek to build brand awareness in India.

Online retailers such as India's Flipkart and US-based Amazon advertised heavily during the most recent season,which ended in May. Indian mobile commerce company Paytm,which is backed by China's Alibaba,has also been exploring potential sponsorship deals with the BCCI.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How long is the contract effective for Pepsi and Indian cricket league originally?

A.3years

B.2years

C.5years

D.1years

答案解释：这家美国饮料公司在2012年签订了5年的有效合同。

2.Who will become the IPL's title sponsor for the next season of Pepsi's contract?

A.Walmart

B.Vivo Electronics

C.AT&T

D.Xiaomi

答案解释：中国手机制作商Vivo将接替百事可乐为之后的两个赛季提供赞助。

3.What is the reason for the termination by PepsiCo?

A.scandal-plagued

B.fund shortage

C.policy changes

D.not disclosed

答案解释：BCCI 和PepsiCo两方面都没有解释终止合同的原因，因没有透露更多的细节。

4.Who has been exploring potential sponsorship deals with the BCCI?

A.Flipkart

B.Amazon

C.Paytm

D.Coca Cola

答案解释：阿里巴巴支持的Paytm也在寻求可能的合作关系。

脱口秀女王高调投资轻体公司

美国脱口秀女王Oprah Winfrey 19日买进全球最大的轻体连锁之一慧俪轻体（Weight Watchers）10% 的股份，同时高调宣布加入该公司董事会。引来公众争相购买该公司的股票，股价由6.79美元升到13.92美元，令奥普拉一日内大赚4500万美元（折合人民币2.8亿元）。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

wholesomeness 健康

ingredients 要素

nourishment 营养

clout 影响力

reinvigorate 振兴

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分12秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分52秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分0秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Weight Watchers shares surge after Oprah Winfrey buys 10% stake（605words）

By Lindsay Whipp in Chicago

Oprah Winfrey has taken a 10 per cent stake in Weight Watchers,more than doubling the dieting service group's market value in a day amid expectations that the former queen of American daytime television will help revive earnings from a 15-year low.

Ms Winfrey,who has been frank about her struggles with weight loss,bought newly issued shares representing 10 per cent of the group's outstanding stock at $6.79 apiece,for $43.2m. The shares closed up $7.13 or 105 per cent at $13.92.

The surge in the shares erased much of their decline over the past year and more than doubled the value of Ms Winfrey's stake. She also received options to acquire an additional 5 per cent.

Weight Watchers has struggled with a fundamental shift in the way people tackle weight loss,with an increasing focus on wholesomeness and natural ingredients,amid a growing perception that diets lack nourishment. It is a change that has pushed Weight Watchers' sales to a five-year low and net income to the lowest in at least 15 years,and has forced companies such as Nestlé to rethink its Lean Cuisine frozen food brand as revenues decline.“We are expanding our purpose from focusing on weight loss alone to more broadly helping people lead a healthier,happier life,” said chief executive Jim Chambers.

Those interested in health and wellness are also increasingly turning to apps such as Nike's RunKeeper,My Fitness Pal and Lose It to guide them. Weight Watchers also has its own apps,which Ms Winfrey has started using for the first time along with a company personal coach.

“Weight Watchers has given me the tools to begin to make the lasting shift that I and so many of us who are struggling with weight have longed for,” Ms Winfrey said. Weight Watchers has not been short of celebrity endorsers,which have included Jennifer Hudson,the 2007 Oscar winner,who lost 80 pounds and appeared on Ms Winfrey's eponymous TV show in 2011 to discuss her experience.* The company has also featured singer Jessica Simpson.

But Weight Watchers is betting that the considerable clout that Ms Winfrey,who has an estimated net worth of $3bn,will bring to the company will reinvigorate it. Her daytime TV show would haul in ratings of around 13m at its peak,and although she abdicated her throne in 2011,she is still very much in the public eye,as a media mogul,actress,producer and philanthropist.

She will join Weight Watchers' board and act as an adviser,adding her perspective to the programme and its content. The company also said it planned to feature Ms Winfrey in its marketing.

She described her decades-long battle with weight loss,detailing how she received in 1988 the highest ratings for her show at the time after losing 67lb and wheeling in a wagon of fat on stage. However,her weight continued to fluctuate radically after that and she was diagnosed with hypothyroidism.

“With all the other things that I know how to do and all the other things that I'm so great at and all the other accomplishments,I can't believe I'm still talking about weight,” she said in a 2009 interview in her own magazine.

Weight Watchers was founded in a New York basement in 1963,was acquired by Heinz in 1978 and subsequently bought by Dutch group Artal in a leveraged buyout in 1999. It was listed in 2001.

Additional reporting by Richard Blackden and Mackenzie Weinger

* The article has been amended to correct the name of the celebrity who appeared on Ms Winfrey's show to Jennifer Hudson

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What I the attitude of Oprah about her struggles with weight loss?

A.forthright

B.hidden

C.disgusting

D.unclear

答案解释：文章第二段，她的态度一直是坦诚的。

2.What is the purpose of chief executive Jim Chambers?

A.to help people lose weight

B.to help people grow taller

C.to make people healthier

D.to help people design clothes

答案解释：Jim的目标不仅是帮助人们减重，还有使他们过上更加快乐、健康的生活。

3.What's her position in the Weight Watchers?

A.hostess

B.public relations staff

C.sales manager

D.adviser

答案解释：奥普拉加入董事会并扮演建议者的角色，为公司项目和内容提出建议。不过公司也表示考虑到她的影响力，或许会让她参与市场部分。

4.What is wrong with Winfrey after 1988?

A.suffering from malaria

B.suffering from hypothyroidism

C.suffering from labyrinthitis

D.suffering from anaphylaxis

答案解释：奥普拉曾被确诊为甲状腺功能减退（简称甲减），导致机体代谢降低。

获得谷歌近年首投的中企

自2010年基本退出中国大陆市场后，谷歌在国内的活动越来越少。近日国内一家人工智能初创公司出门问问（Mobvoi）宣布，获得谷歌投资的C轮融资，累计融资7500万美金 。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

empower 授权

disclose 披露

Sequoia Capital 红杉资本

censored 受审查的

vice-president 副总裁

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分17秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分5秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分55秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分1秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Google takes stake in Chinese voice recognition start-up Mobvoi（613words）

By Henny Sender in Singapore

Google has taken a significant minority stake in Mobvoi,a Beijing-based start-up that has developed Chinese-language voice recognition and search technology for mobile devices.

The investment underscores how rapidly Chinese entrepreneurs are developing new technologies for the domestic market and comes as the Silicon Valley group continues to look for ways to rebuild its internet services offering in the country.

“The new funding by Google will enable the company to further enhance its core artificial intelligence technologies,and develop new consumer products empowered by[artificial intelligence],and explore robotics technologies,” Mobvoi said.

Earlier this year,the two companies signed a strategic partnership agreement,with Mobvoi providing search and speech recognition for Android Wear,Google's smartwatches.

The companies did not disclose the value or the size of the investment,but people familiar with the matter said it was between 10 and 20 per cent.

Voice recognition applications are among the hottest areas for tech groups on both sides of the Pacific. In the past,the flow was almost entirely one way from the US to China but the relationship has evolved.

Li Zhifei,Mobvoi's founder and chief executive,received his PhD in speech recognition and natural language processing in the US and worked at Google before returning to China in 2012 to start his own company.

“Without Johns Hopkins University and my two years at Google,I could never have gotten funding so easily,” said Mr Li. “Now,though,a real ecosystem is emerging in China with a market and investors and scale.”

Neil Shen,founder of the Chinese arm of Sequoia Capital,the venture capital firm,said the combination of a potentially vast mainland market for voice recognition apps and Mr Li's background was the key driver behind his decision to invest in Mobvoi on day one.

The tie-up between Google and Mobvoi will inevitably lead to speculation about the US group's wider ambitions in China.

The company has seen a steady decline in the popularity of its search engine in the country since it moved the servers powering it to Hong Kong in 2010,after dropping its censored domestic search service on the mainland.

Chinese internet companies Baidu,Alibaba and Tencent dominate but some observers believe there is an opportunity for a better service to thrive.

“There is still a huge opportunity for search in China”,said the head of one asset management group. “People want Google to come in. Monopoly power means firms have no incentive to improve.”

However,Google is not considering relaunching a domestic Chinese search engine,according to a person familiar with its plans,but is seeking regulatory approval to launch a mobile app store for users of its Android mobile operating system.

Hardware companies in the country are developing a reputation for producing cutting-edge technology. Mobvoi,whose Chinese name is Chumenwenwen,produces its own wearable devices,notably a smart watch that uses its own operating system and has a months-long backlog on orders. Shenzhen-based DJI is the largest maker of consumer drones worldwide and has a valuation of at least $8bn.

Mobvoi's voice search function is mainly directed at enquiries about travel and local services but Mr Li hopes to move on to cars and robots with Google's help.

The new investment financing brings total equity capital raised to $75m in three rounds of financing. In addition to Sequoia and Google,Mr Li has funding from Susquehanna Investment Management and two strategic investors involved in the smart watch operation.“We were impressed by their innovative approach and the early traction that they've seen,which is why we're pleased to support them with this investment,” said Don Harrison,vice-president of corporate development at Google.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What device did Mobvoi develop the search technology for?

A.computer

B.iPad

C.mobile phone

D.smart watch

答案解释：“出门问问”是一款基于语音识别、语义理解技术，面向移动搜索领域的智能手机应用。

2.As Mobvoi said,what use does not include of the new funding by Google?

A.enhance core technologies

B.open up the US market

C.develop new products

D.explore robotics technologies

答案解释：文章第三段，Mobvoi对投资的使用方向简单说明。

3.Who gave the information about voice recognition to Chinese tech groups in the past?

A.Britain

B.Hongkong

C.Chinese scientists

D.America

答案解释：在过去通常是美国与中国交流语音识别领域的信息，而如今关系已进一步进化。

4.Which area will Mobvoi's voice search function be used for with Google's help?

A.smart watches

B.unmanned aerial vehicle

C.cars and robots

D.products of Google X

答案解释：在谷歌的协助下，Mobvoi想尝试向汽车和机器人领域进军。

假新闻带来的Twitter股价“历险记”

不久前，一则Twitter被估价310亿美元的假新闻，让大清早的纽约证券交易所见证了Twitter的股价的短暂暴涨，随后的交易日里其股价又落回了正常范围。这不禁引起思考，虚假新闻到底对一个公司的金融表现影响有多大？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

bid 出价，投标

purporting 声称

prankster 恶作剧的人

commentator 评论家

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分6秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分25秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分26秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分51秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Twitter shares spike on fake bid story（513words）

By Hannah Kuchler

Twitter shares briefly spiked in early New York trading after a fake online news story claimed the messaging company had received an offer valuing it at $31bn.

Shares in the group leapt by as much as 8 per cent when traders reacted to a story purporting to be from Bloomberg News,but which was actually published on a mocked-up lookalike website.

In the fake report,“people with knowledge of the situation” indicated that the messaging platform was working with bankers to consider the offer,from an unnamed bidder.However,a spokesperson for Bloomberg News used Twitter to warn that the story was fake. A Twitter spokesperson also referred investors to the Bloomberg statement.

Twitter is the latest company to fall victim to the ease and speed at which fake information can travel around the internet — spread either by those seeking a quick financial gain or pranksters.

The Twitter news story carried a ‘Bloomberg. market” web address rather than the official site's ‘Bloomberg.com',but was linked to a homepage showing the same stories as the genuine Bloomberg site. Only some of the links on the lookalike homepage were functional,however.

The story did not appear on the Bloomberg terminal news stream,which many traders rely on for market-moving news.

Twitter's share price fell back roughly to where it had been before the fake story was published,still up 3 per cent on the day at $37.

Twitter has been the subject of speculation about a possible takeover bid since Dick Costolo,the former chief executive,announced his resignation last month.Many commentators — as referenced by those “quoted” in the fake story — have suggested Google could buy the company,which is now being led by co-founder and former chief executive Jack Dorsey on a temporary basis.

The messaging platform previously suffered a swing in its stock price when its earnings were published earlier than planned in April. The stock fell by as much as 26 per cent — shaving more than $6bn from the group's market capitalisation — when the earnings report was released ahead of schedule on a platform owned by Nasdaq but scraped by Selerity,a data-gathering company that searches for market-moving news.

At the time,MrCostolo,who was still leading the company,said it was “not particularly fortuitous timing” given Twitter's results would have disappointed the market even if they had been released on time. Nasdaqapologised for the “operational” error.

Other companies have also been recent victims of misinformation about fake bids. Shares in cosmetics company Avon surged 20 per cent in May when a bid was announced in a seemingly plausible US Securities and Exchange Commission filing by an unknown private equity firm called PTG Capital. PTG is now being sued by the SEC,which claims it made the fake bid as part of a “stock manipulation scheme”.

Earlier this year,a fake press release claimed Carlo Messina,chief executive of IntesaSanpaolo,the Italian bank,had admitted to manipulating the accounts and resigned. Similarly,a fake press notice last year claimed there had been an accounting scandal at outsourcing company G4S.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.According to the author,what is the main reason of Twitter's share price spike?

A.Twitter's insider trading

B.Fake news from internet

C.No idea

D.Government regulation

答案解释：文章第五段作者指出twitter此次股价震荡是由于网络快速传播虚假新闻导致的。

2.Which of the following was the alleged source of the fake bid?

A.Bloomberg News

B.Twitter

C.Google

D.Financial Times

答案解释：文章第二段作者讲述了假新闻做了一个类似彭博社（Bloomberg News）的假网站来忽悠读者以为是真的彭博社发的新闻。

3.What's the author's attitude on companies that had been involved in such fake news?

A.Sympathetic

B.Aversion

C.Indifferent

D.Happy

答案解释：文中倒数第二段写到了其他虚假新闻的“受害者”，从作者语言表达上不难看出他是同情这些受影响的公司的。

4.Which company owns the platform that's responsible for the mistiming of Twitter's information release?

A.Twitter itself

B.Bloomberg

C.Nasdaq

D.Selerity

答案解释：文章第十一段作者提到Twitter之前由于纳斯达克（Nasdaq）拥有的平台信息推送时间点失误而遭受损失。

“危险”的生鱼片？

在纽约和伦敦的金融区，聚集着众多以商务人士为主要顾客群体的小型餐馆饭店。近几年，这些小店提供的食物从简单的三明治变换成了寿司和生鱼片。随着经济发展，生活水平提高，人们纷纷寻找新的健康美食。日式寿司和生鱼片好像在几年前成为了“健康”的新代言人。但是最近人们却发现，来自大海的这色香味俱全的美味，也暗藏汹涌。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

mercury 水银

sashimi 生鱼片

marlin 枪鱼

albacore tuna 长鳍金枪鱼

dietary 食谱

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分52秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分51秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分45秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分57秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Sushi addicts need to be aware of mercury toxicity risk（578words）

By Charles Wallace

Is eating sushi safe?

During a recent meal with a Wall Street financial adviser,he mentioned that he eats sushi several times a week because he believed it to be the most healthful and convenient way to dine while continuing to work at his desk. I was left wondering if that was as healthful as he said,given the recent concern about mercury in fish.

All around the financial centres in London and New York,shops which once featured only simple sandwiches now stock different types of sushi and sashimi,including those made from various types of tuna. This despite the well-publicised concern when Richard Gelfond,CEO of the US cinema group Imax,reported that he had been diagnosed with mercury toxicity after eating sushi on a daily basis.

In addition,the actor Jeremy Piven,star of ITV's Mr. Selfridge franchise,also was reported to have been hospitalised for mercury toxicity from eating sushi.

While the European Food Safety Authority issued a new advisory notice on fish consumption earlier this year,it said that the types of fish consumed in Europe and fish-eating habits were so different across the continent that it was up to the individual countries to give specific advice.

Britain's NHS has advice about canned tuna but not about sushi. The US Food and Drug Administration recently set its first minimum fish consumption target ,emphasising the benefits of eating more low-mercury fish.

Given this confusion,I asked Michael Gochfeld,who has studied mercury toxicity for 30 years,what his best advice is about fish consumption.

Dr. Gochfeld,an adjunct clinical professor in the Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute at New Jersey's Rutgers University,said most people do eat too little fish,an excellent source of protein and omega-3 fatty acids,which have been shown in some studies to be protective against heart disease and cancer. But he acknowledged that there can be too much of a good thing.

“If you eat fish rarely,such as less than once a month,it's likely that your health will benefit from eating more fish,” Dr. Gochfeld explains. “If you eat fish frequently,more than twice a week,you have to pay attention to eating low mercury fish if you don't want to get food poisoning.”

Among the fish that have been found to have the highest mercury content are swordfish,shark,marlin and albacore tuna. “If you go to a high-end sushi bar in New York,the chances are the tuna sushi will be bigeye tuna with high mercury levels,” he says,adding that in Japan,sushi is a prized delicacy but eaten only once a month. Sushi is often made from fish other than tuna,which can be safe to eat in larger quantities.

This mercury warning is especially true for pregnant women. “Having even one meal with high mercury fish,like one swordfish serving,at the wrong time could have an impact on a developing foetus,” Dr. Gochfeld cautions.

While he loves tuna sushi himself,he restricts his consumption to once a month and eats low mercury fish such as salmon a couple of times a week.

That advice is similar to the counsel from the British government,which says that pregnant women and young children should not eat swordfish,shark or marlin,and that other adults should limit their intake to one portion a week. As for me,I love salmon so that is my dietary mainstay,but also eat other low-mercury fish.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What's the author's opinion towards eating sushi and sashimi on a regular basis?

A.Healthy

B.Deadly

C.No idea

D.Concern

答案解释：文章第二段最后作者在讲述了他的朋友的想法后，提到自己并不认为经常吃寿司和生鱼片那么健康。相反，基于最近一些关于鱼类水银含量的调查结果让他很担忧。

2.When would it be safe to eat sushi and sashimi?

A.If you rarely eat fish

B.If you eat fish more than two times a week

C.If you really love fish

D.If you live on the sea

答案解释：文章第九段作者援引一位助理临床医师的话来指出，对于很少吃鱼的人来说，生鱼片和寿司能为健康带来帮助；但如果一周吃鱼超过两次，再在此基础上增加生鱼片和寿司的食用就会带来可能水银中毒的危害。

3.Which fish is not one of those with high mercury level?

A.Swordfish

B.Salmon

C.Shark

D.Albacore tuna

答案解释：文中倒数第四段作者点到了几种公认的含水银量多的鱼类，包括剑鱼(swordfish)、鲨鱼(shark)、枪鱼(marlin)和长鳍金枪鱼(albacore tuna)，而三文鱼(salmon)恰恰相反是含水银量较少的鱼类。

4.The possibility of mercury toxicity is most dangerous to which group of people?

A.Businessmen

B.Pregnant Women

C.Fashion Model

D.Government Official

答案解释：文章最后三段都强调了对于过多食用寿司或生鱼片带来水银中毒的影响最大的群体就是怀孕的妇女。

德约科维奇成功卫冕温网

北京时间7月12日晚9点30分，英国温布尔登网球场和众多网球迷一起见证了一场精彩绝伦的比赛。这场温网的男单决赛，男子网球世界第一与世界第二的比赛，众人瞩目。大家都在好奇，到底是卫冕冠军德约科维奇在温布尔登这片草地上再次称王，还是温网一路状态极佳的网球天王费德勒能够拔得头筹。这一场被雨打断仍旧精彩的比赛，最终的冠军属于在第四盘抓住机会敲定胜局的小德。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

upstart 新贵，暴发户

usurper 篡位者

tiebreak 打破平局

hurrah 象声词，意为欢呼

combat 战斗，比赛

nibble 轻咬

serene 晴朗的，顺利的

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分38秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分16秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分3秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分4秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Novak Djokovic the upstart keeps grip on Wimbledon title（642words）

By Matthew Engel

Roger Federer returned to his old palace,Wimbledon Centre Court,on Sunday to reclaim the throne from the upstart Novak Djokovic. But usurpers can have a nasty habit of keeping a firm grip on the levers of power. And this one never really looked like letting go.

Djokovic became the first man since Federer himself nine years ago to retain the men's title,winning his third Wimbledon and his ninth grand slam — his victim's totals of seven and 17 may yet be in sight.

This was a final that promised to be an epic. When Federer took control of the second set tiebreak and levelled the match,there were a couple of roars perhaps louder than anything ever heard on the Centre Court（patriotic occasions excepted). Djokovic had reached set point seven times in the second yet failed to seal the deal. But for Federer and his army of supporting Wimbledonians this was the last hurrah.

Federer got to break point himself at the start of the third set,but the moment passed and he blew the next game. From then on the life went out of the contest. It had started out as one of overwhelming intensity: for a time even a missed first serve seemed to tilt the combat in the other direction. But it began to matter less; and a 20-minute rain delay failed to change the momentum.

Djokovic won 7-6 6-7 6-4 6-3 in just under three hours. As has become his victory custom he nibbled a little Centre Court grass in celebration. “It tasted great this year,” he said. I dread to think what Federer might have eaten.

His progress to the final had been uncommonly serene — just one service game lost in six matches; Djokovic,in contrast,had often been edgy and was forced to stare into the abyss when two sets down to the South African Kevin Anderson. And in the opening manoeuvres of the final the champ was slow to get into his rhythm while his opponent was strutting like a turkey cock. And in a sense Federer made the weather throughout: 58 outright winners against 46. But he also made more mistakes: 33 unforced errors v 16.

Some of his strokes — oh,those wondrous whipped forehands! — were absolutely beautiful,as ever. But promising looking rallies would end with a groan and a tepid tap into the net. Djokovic's crucial break in the third set was decided when Federer,the least likely human in history to blow such a moment,missed the easiest of kills.

You might say the errors were forced psychologically if not technically. Djokovic kept working the ball on to Federer's（slightly）weaker backhand,kept him at the back at the court,and kept the rallies going long enough for what seemed like mental tiredness to set in. This is what Andy Murray completely failed to do in the semi-final.

The joy of men's tennis over the past few years has been the combat between the big four — these two,Murray and Rafael Nadal. Now,with Federer 34 next month,Nadal's body rebelling and Murray's mental strengths not quite compensating for his technical weaknesses,we may be looking at The Big One,the 28 year-old SuperSerb. Only Paris remains unconquered.

There is something about the unflashiness of the tennis that makes him easy to underestimate. But he has become the undisputed master not just of the backhand and the service return,but also of the mysterious art of winning the crucial point. He collected this trophy with a cross-court backhand and a few primal screams.

Ever since Nadal first overcame him here in 2008,we have been talking about the twilight of the great tennis god Federer. The sun has gone down infinitely slowly in a blaze of gold,even though this time he had to settle for a silver salver.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Why was this epic final match between Federer and Djokovic paused and delayed for about 20 minutes?

A.Bad weather

B.Broken tennis racket

C.Threat of a potential bomb

D.Sudden health problem

答案解释：文章第四段最后讲到了比赛由于大雨而暂停延迟，但也没能帮助费德勒挽回局面。

2.Which country did this match take place?

A.Australia

B.UK

C.France

D.USA

答案解释：文章开头作者就讲到了是在温布尔登球场发生的比赛，后文也提及了英国是所在国。同时，有对网球基本知识的都应该知道，网球界四大满贯赛事分别承办于：英国温布尔登、美国纽约、澳大利亚墨尔本和法国巴黎。

3.What's author'sattitude towards Federer?

A.Concerned

B.Negative

C.Positive

D.Loser

答案解释：文章中作者的态度最明显的呈现是在最后一段他对费德勒的笔墨。虽然费德勒在2008年开始就被认为是最后曙光，但作者认为费德勒的“金色光环（胜利的能力）是在以无穷缓慢的速度消失”。所以作者对于费德勒的态度是十分正面的。

4.Who is not in the list of “the big four” in men's tennis?

A.Murray（穆雷）

B.Wawrinka（瓦林卡）

C.Nadal（纳达尔）

D.Federer（费德勒)

答案解释：文中倒数第三段作者提名了现在男子网球界的“四大天王”：Murray（穆雷)、Nadal（纳达尔)、Federer（费德勒)、Djokovic（德约科维奇)。Wawrinka（瓦林卡)虽然不久前打败德约科维奇拿到法网冠军，但还没有成为作者口中“the big four”的一员。

安全气囊存有隐患 本田再召回450万辆车

随着汽车的普及，驾驶及乘坐汽车的安全隐患也逐渐暴露出来。为了消除人们对汽车安全性的顾虑，汽车厂商已经在车的各个方面增添了加强安全性能和保护作用的部件。谁曾想，本意为安全考虑的添加配置，竟然成了安全隐患。本田汽车的召回规模再一次扩大，意味着汽车配件安全问题再一次进入人们的视野。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

recall 召回

Takata 日本高田株式会社

propellant 推进剂

pellet 颗粒

shrapnel 飞溅的碎片

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分2秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分49秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分0秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分42秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Honda recalls another 4.5m vehicles for Takata airbag faults（423words）

By Kana Inagaki

Honda is expanding its recall to include newer vehicles fitted with potentially faulty airbags made by Takata,bringing the total for Japan's third-largest carmaker to some 24.5m vehicles.

The company said on Thursday that it would recall an additional 4.5m vehicles manufactured between 2007 and 2011,of which 1.63m are in Japan,to replace driver-side air bag inflators.

Vehicles in the US and Canada are not included in the latest measure. So far,recalls have affected vehicles manufactured in years before 2006.

Honda,which had the closest ties with Takata,has been hardest hit by one of the worst recall crises in automotive history,affecting more than 10 carmakers worldwide.

It decided to expand its recall as a preventive measure after it discovered density problems with propellant pellets inside inflators,which could lead to improper deployment of the airbags.

Takata,regulators and automakers have been unable to pin down the cause of incidents in which some Takata airbags have exploded when deploying,scattering shrapnel inside the car. But the material used inside some inflators is thought to degrade under persistently high heat and humidity,raising the risk of ruptures.

The problems have killed at least eight people and injured more than 100 people worldwide.

A day earlier,Nissan disclosed that an X-Trail sport utility vehicle installed with a Takata airbag exploded in June on a Japanese highway,causing a fire.

The inflator on the passenger side,which was empty at the time,exploded and the driver's left cheek was lightly burnt. It was unclear whether the injury was linked to the explosion or the car crash.

The vehicle had been recalled in April 2013 and the carmaker had sent five reminders to the driver to replace the airbag. Nissan said it would step up measures to ensure drivers bring in vehicles that are included in its recall campaigns.

Last month,Shigehisa Takada,the reclusive chief executive of Takata,issued his first personal apology for the faulty airbags but defended the company's handling of the safety crisis that dates to the mid-2000s. Mr Takada also declined to answer questions on where the responsibility lies for the cost of recalls.

Takahiro Hachigo,Honda's new chief executive,recently said the carmaker had no plans to provide financial support to help Takata cope with the recall costs.

The expanding recalls have led to substantial costs that contributed to Honda's reporting a 14 per cent year-on-year decline in annual net profit. Takata also booked a net loss of Y29.6bn（$243m）for the fiscal year that ended in March.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What's the main cause of Honda's recall?

A.Low quality tire

B.Self-combust（自燃）engine

C.Potential airbag defect

D.Defect on car door design

答案解释：文章一开头就讲了本田召回汽车是因为存在安全隐患的问题安全气囊。

2.Which company is responsible for producing the flawed airbag?

A.Honda

B.Takata

C.Nissan

D.Toyota

答案解释：文中讲到高田（Takata）是安全气囊的生产商，而其他三个选项其实是日本三大汽车厂，均受到了此次高田安全气囊问题的影响。

3.What's author's opinion on the affect of this incident on Honda's financial status?

A.Negative

B.No affect

C.Little impact

D.Destructive

答案解释：文章中明确虽然本田自称不会承担任何损失，但作者放出了数据显示该事件还是对本田的资产有一定影响，只是并不巨大。

4.What is the result of such airbag defect in accident?

A.Causing a fire

B.Unclear

C.Does not do anything

D.Explode under impact

答案解释：作者在文章里也表示了，虽然安全气囊存在问题是肯定的，但到底在事故中起了怎样的作用尚不明确。

英国银行税收新政

银行及投资金融业一直是政府税收的重点行业。近日在众多金融机构汇聚的英国，财政大臣George Osborne就宣布了适用于银行业的新利润附加税政策，以代替原有的征税要求。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

levy 征税

curb 限制，控制

fillip 推动，促进

diversified 多样性

sketchy 粗略的，大概的

HQ(=Headquarter） 总部

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分5秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分17秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分38秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分34秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

UK banks: the levy runs dry（344words）

The UK bank levy,introduced in 2011,has not obviously made lenders safer,curbed excessive risk-taking by bankers,or directly cut bonuses. But it has served other purposes. It helps UK chancellor George Osborne to balance the books: the levy handed a £2.8bn fillip to public finances in the past tax year. It also rewards taxpayers for their implicit guarantee of the sector.

Still,in his Summer Budget on Wednesday Mr. Osborne said he would reduce the levy over six years,and introduce an 8 per cent tax surcharge on bank profits from next year. Crucially for geographically diversified,UK-based lenders such as HSBC and Standard Chartered,the levy will no longer be calculated on worldwide balance sheets after 2021.

Details are sketchy. It is not clear whether Mr. Osborne's surcharge is on global or UK profits,for example — but either way it will hit shareholder returns and capital generation when both need to improve. And despite Mr. Osborne's previous encouragement of challenger banks — which are not subject to the bank levy and had no role in causing the financial crisis — he has hammered them hard with the tax surcharge. Virgin Money shares fell 10 per cent. The surcharge will swiftly penalise banks that are more profitable — and more UK-focused — such as Lloyds Banking Group . But Mr. Osborne will not be bothered,given the £1.7bn the Treasury expects to rake in by 2021 as the new tax offsets the reducing levy.

HSBC and Stan Chart will benefit only if the surcharge is based on UK profits,and the levy will not disappear completely. The levy is harsh on HSBC. Less than half of its assets are in Europe,but it paid more than 40 per cent of the £1.7bn total for the big four UK banks last year. No surprise that it is considering moving its HQ to Hong Kong. It may yet do so.

Mr. Osborne claims Britain is open for business,yet his budget changes（so soon after March's levy increase）and continued intervention in UK banks convey a message of unpredictability.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.What detail is missing from the UK chancellor's statement about the new tax surcharge?

A.The size of this surcharge

B.The target profit category of this new surcharge

C.Starting date of such surcharge

D.Targeted industry of the surcharge

答案解释：文章第二段明确英国财政大臣讲了是从明年开始征收8%的银行业所得利润的附加税。作者在下一段说到，首相唯一没有讲的就是该附加税到底是从哪一类所得利润征收。

2.Which financial/investment group is not mentioned in this article?

A.Standard Chartered

B.Chase

C.Virgin Money

D.Lloyds Banking Group

答案解释：Chase是美国银行，而该文章关注在英国的银行业和新征税政策的影响。

3.Which city is HSBC considering moving its headquarter to?

A.London

B.New York

C.Beijing

D.Hong Kong

答案解释：文章倒数第二段提到HSBC（汇丰银行）因为这个新的征税法案的影响可能会把总部移到香港。

4.What's the author's attitude towards UK's economics?

A.Uncertain

B.Problematic

C.Weak

D.Strong

答案解释：作者在最后讲到虽然英国首相的说法是积极的，但是数据证明了不稳定、不确定性的存在。

英国《金融时报》
原文阅读精选集Vol.10

保险公司遇难题：无人驾驶汽车怎么破？

发生事故时究竟是什么原因？到底是机器在操作、还是用户在使用程序？如果不是人为的，那责任该找谁来界定？这些都是保险公司头疼的问题。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

severity 严重，猛烈[sɪ'verɪtɪ]

premium 保险费，溢价['priːmɪəm]

halve 二等分[hɑːv]

way off 离得很远

collision 碰撞[kə'lɪʒ(ə)n]

afield 远处，战场上[ə'fiːld]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分42秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分12秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分17秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分48秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Insurers face driverless cars challenge（480words）

By Oliver Ralph

The development of driverless and automated cars could shrink the size of the UK motor insurance market and force insurers to diversify,Standard & Poor's has warned.

In a report on the impact of automation,the rating agency said the trend would reduce the frequency and severity of claims,pushing down premiums.

“It will be some time before these features become common,but when they do we expect a continuation in the trend of falling accidents,” said Robert Greensted,analyst at S&P.

The total number of vehicle miles driven has remained static in the UK over the past 15 years,but the number of people killed or seriously injured has almost halved.

According to KPMG estimates,by 2040 the personal automobile insurance sector could shrink to less than 40 per cent of its current size.

The arrival of completely driverless cars（without steering wheels or pedals）on the roads is still some way off — 20 years,according to Thatcham,an automotive research centre — but in the shorter term,more basic levels of automation are already having an impact.

“We are seeing some great benefits,especially in autonomous emergency braking,which leads to a reduction in accident frequency and a 40 per cent reduction in personal injury claims,” said Peter Shaw,chief executive of Thatcham. “We are calling for regulation of autonomous braking — we'd like to see it made a legal requirement.”

Almost three-quarters of cars launched last year had autonomous emergency braking as either standard or an optional extra.

While these developments have undoubted safety benefits,they create challenges for insurers. “We'll need to know,at the time a car has a collision,who is in charge. Was the vehicle self-driving,or was the owner driving?The vehicle status — who is doing the driving — needs to be available to all insurers,” said Mr Shaw.

“Over the next 20 to 30 years we will see a shift from personal liability to product liability but perhaps not a complete shift,” he added.

The insurance industry is readying itself for a response. The Association of British Insurers,along with Thatcham and 11 insurers including Admiral,Direct Line,LV= and the Lloyd's insurance market,has created a group to work with the government on the future of automated vehicle use.

The issues it will consider include liability after an accident,the use of data and potential changes to traffic laws. The group will be chaired by David Williams,head of underwriting at Axa.

S&P believes that,faced with the impact of automation,motor insurers will have to diversify into other businesses,including home,pet or gadget insurance.

But it is possible they will look further afield. “They may also look to non-insurance products. A number of insurers already own price comparison sites. They might also look into consumer finance — a lot of them offer premium finance already,” said S&P's Mr Greensted.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which one would be increased by the trend of automation in the report?

A.severity of claims

B.efficiencies

C.premiums

D.frequency of claims

答案解释：评级机构表示,这一趋势将减少索赔的频率和严重程度,降低保险费，所以可以提高效率。

2.What is the attitude towards completely driverless cars' generalization by Thatcham?

A.technical leak

B.violate the principle

C.insignificant

D.need time

答案解释：Thatcham表示，完全自动化的汽车（没有方向盘、脚踏板等）上路还需要大概20年，但是现在小型自动化汽车已经产生了一定影响。

3.What is the percentage of cars launched had autonomous emergency braking as either standard or an optional extra in 2015?

A.40%

B.50%

C.75%

D.25%

答案解释：原文的表述是“three-quarters”。

4.What is the trend of insurance industry in the further?

A.digitize

B.diversify

C.privatization

D.nationalization

答案解释：综合全文，未来的保险产业将越来越多样化。Nationalization指国有化。

巴基斯坦：政府过滤内容YouTube终获解禁

在终止服务三年之后，全球最大的视频网站YouTube周一正式重返巴基斯坦市场。YouTube为重返巴基斯坦市场，专门为该国推出了特殊版，准许巴基斯坦政府对认为存有亵渎的视频内容进行过滤。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

inflammatory 煽动性的[ɪn'flæmət(ə)rɪ]

alongside 在…旁边[əlɒŋ'saɪd]

telecom 电信['telɪkɒm]

pagan 异教徒的['peɪg(ə)n]

censorship 审查制度['sensəʃɪp]

blasphemous 亵渎神明的['blæsfəməs]

quell 平息[kwel]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分4秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分16秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

0分37秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分34秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Pakistan lifts YouTube ban after three years（342words）

By Leslie Hook in San Francisco and Farhan Bokhari in Islamabad

Pakistan announced on Monday that it was restoring YouTube access in the country,after Google created a Pakistan-specific version of its video platform that allows authorities to censor content on the site.

YouTube was blocked in Pakistan in 2012 after the posting of an inflammatory video,Innocence of Muslims,sparked violent protests across the Muslim world. The three-year ban has been one of the site's most high-profile outages,alongside its legal battles in Turkey.

Pakistan's government on Monday ordered the country's telecom regulator to lift a ban on YouTube within 48 hours,a senior Pakistani official told the Financial Times. “We have reached an understanding with YouTube so that material considered offensive will not be shown in Pakistan,” he said.

Under the agreement,the Pakistan Telecom Authority will be able to ask YouTube to remove any material it deems offensive,the government said in a statement.

YouTube maintains more than 85 country-specific sites around the world in order to showcase local content,and in some cases to comply with local censorship laws.

In Google's most recent transparency report,the company said that YouTube received more than 12,000 takedown requests from governments during the second half of 2014.The company said it had complied with about half of these demands.

Western diplomats said the ban had become irrelevant as many users in Pakistan had found ways to access YouTube using proxy servers. “Many users were able to successfully access YouTube so what was the point[of]keeping the ban,” said one.

YouTube and other US sites including Facebook have faced periodic blocks in Pakistan over content that is deemed to be blasphemous.

The film,which sparked the ban and caused riots across the Muslim world,was a crude piece of propaganda against the Prophet Mohammed. After the attacks,YouTube removed the video from its site in Egypt and in Libya,but it remained uploaded in other countries.

Protests in Pakistan over the film grew so large that the US government ran advertisements on local television denouncing the film,hoping to quell the violence.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How could YouTube get the permit from Pakistan?

A.create a specific version

B.bribe local officials

C.setup the upload limit

D.real-name system

答案解释：谷歌设立了一个巴基斯坦专用版YouTube网站，允许巴基斯坦当局审查该网站的内容。

2.Who sparked violent protests after the “inflammatory video” in 2012?

A.local people

B.Buddhists

C.US authorities

D.Muslims

答案解释：视频引发了整个穆斯林世界的暴力抗议

3.What kind of contents can be removed by Pakistan's government?

A.religious

B.offensive

C.pagan

D.pornographic

答案解释：根据协议，巴基斯坦电信管理局(Pakistan Telecom Authority)可要求YouTube移除一切该局认为具有冒犯性的内容。

4.Why the western diplomats said the ban had become irrelevant?

A.Pakistani didn't like watching video at all.

B.Pakistani could access YouTube using proxy servers.

C.Google did not care about advertising revenue in Pakistan.

D.The violence can't be quelled by police.

答案解释：YouTube被封之后，巴基斯坦的网民用代理服务系统或VPN翻墙上网浏览。

全球海运市场：亚马逊中国来了

从商品零售到云计算，从卡车、飞机货运再到轮船远洋运输，人类似乎已经挡不住亚马逊的扩张步伐。亚马逊中国公司已经获得了美国的远洋货物运输牌照，成为一家海洋货物运输公司，此举也意味着亚马逊进入了价值3500亿美元的全球海洋运输市场。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

logistics 物流，后勤[lə'dʒɪstɪks]

vessel 船，血管，容器['ves(ə)l]

large-scale 大规模的

freight 运送[freɪt]

foray 侵略，袭击['fɒreɪ]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分25秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分2秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分10秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分45秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Amazon lands China ocean shipping licence（455words）

By Leslie Hook in San Francisco

Amazon has obtained an ocean shipping licence in China,as the company expands its reach into logistics operations around the world.

The new licence allows Amazon to buy and sell space on vessels,a potential step towards providing large-scale shipping services to companies that sell on Amazon.com.

“This could allow them to go direct to the factories in China to sell to consumers in the United Sates,” said Ryan Petersen,chief executive of Flexport,a US-based freight forwarding company.

“It fits so naturally with their network,” he added. “They already do this beautiful logistics network in the US,why wouldn't you want to extend that internationally?”

The Seattle-based technology company has been investing heavily in logistics,launching one-hour delivery in more than 20 cities last year and also testing an air cargo shipping programme in the US.

Amazon,which loses about $1bn per quarter on shipping costs,has been expanding its reach across the logistics chain,particularly in the US. Last year it purchased its first fleet of Amazon-branded truck trailers to help ferry goods between warehouses. The company also started running a pilot programme for air cargo operations out of Wilmington,Ohio,according to analysts.

Big retail companies in the US such as Walmart typically buy space directly from shipping lines,making Amazon the only major US retailer that has taken the unusual step of getting its own licence.

Amazon's ocean shipping volume is less than a tenth of Walmart's,according to people familiar with the matter. Walmart ships only goods that it has already purchased in China,whereas Amazon's licence will allow it to sell shipping space to third parties if it wishes,as well as shipping its own goods.

The licence,held by Amazon China,allows it to buy space from vessel owners and sell it to the public. It was registered with US authorities in November,and went unnoticed until it was spotted in an online database on Thursday by Flexport.

However,analysts questioned whether Amazon would use the licence to provide shipping services for third parties. “I haven't seen their forays into transportation as being a business they want to provide for others,as much as a way to secure capacity for their own network,” said Peter Tirschwell,senior director at IHS Maritime,citing Amazon's trucking and air cargo programmes as examples.

He added that selling shipping space was “not a growth business,and not a profitable business”.

A spokeswoman for the US Federal Maritime Commission said Amazon China's registration papers were submitted on November 9. The company is one of more than 1,300 foreign-registered companies with a similar licence,technically known as a non-vessel operating common carrier licence.

Amazon did not respond to a request for comment.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Where is Amazon's headquarters in US?

A.Chicago

B.Seattle

C.Houston

D.Wilmington

答案解释：原文对亚马逊的表述是“Seattle-based”。

2.What is the Amazon's attitude towards logistics in recent years?

A.significant

B.indifferent

C.forbidden

D.anxious

答案解释：亚马逊公司对物流一直很重视，还在部分城市尝试了一小时之内就可以拿到包裹和无人机派送包裹的服务。

3.What were Amazon-branded truck trailers used for?

A.air cargo operations

B.precision instrument

C.ferry goods

D.passenger transport

答案解释：去年亚马逊购入大批送货卡车，走上自建物流这条路，还在在俄亥俄州威明顿试运营了航空快递业务。

4.What is the difference between Walmart and Amazon about ocean shipping in plan?

A.the way obtain a licence

B.unpiloted or piloted

C.entry into China market or not

D.services for third parties

答案解释：亚马逊计划对潜在的第三方提供物流服务。

电影流媒体新联盟

新年的1月，万达刚刚并购了传奇，苹果被传准备收购时代华纳，出品《卧虎藏龙》的中国电影业巨头已和伦敦一家创业企业组建合资公司，将在中国市场推出电影流媒体服务。大动作之后，中国影迷能否得到更多好处？

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

mogul 有权势的人['moɡl]

joint venture 合资公司

alliance 联盟[ə'laɪəns]

navigate 操纵['nævɪgeɪt]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分7秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分52秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分3秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分43秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Mogul behind ‘Crouching Tiger' film to launch streaming service（431words）

By Robert Cookson,Digital Media Correspondent

The Chinese movie mogul behind Crouching Tiger,Hidden Dragon has formed a joint venture with a London-based start-up to launch a film streaming service in China.

Dong Ping,who sold film production company ChinaVision to Alibaba for $800m in 2014,last year took control of Hong Kong-listed company Huanxi Media. Huanxi will announce on Thursday that it has agreed an alliance with Mubi,a streaming service headquartered in the UK.

China's cinema box office revenues surged 40 per cent last year to $6.8bn and the country will overtake the US as the world's largest movie market by 2018,according to research group IHS. But its market for film subscription services is still relatively small.

Netflix,the world's largest film streaming service,which expanded into 130 more countries this month,has yet to enter China — having failed to obtain permission from the government to do so.

Huanxi and Mubi said they expected to launch their service in China this year,though they declined to detail how they would obtain the necessary licences from Beijing.

“We know how to navigate through all the regulations,” said Steven Xiang,chief executive of Huanxi Media.

Mubi's rivals in the Chinese market include Alibaba,Tencent and Baidu,whose video offering iQiyi has more than 10m paying subscribers.

Efe Cakarel,chief executive of Mubi,said the service had the potential to attract “millions of subscribers” thanks to its exclusive access to films produced by Huanxi.

“We'll have exclusive access to potentially the biggest films coming out of China,” he said.Ning Hao and Xu Zheng,two of Chinese's most successful film directors,are co-founders of Huanxi and will be making original content for the group. Lost in Hong Kong,their latest production,has grossed more than $250m at the Chinese box office,making it one of the country's most commercially successful films.

Huanxi has agreed to invest $40m in the joint venture and will own 70 per cent of the new company.

Mubi is licensing its streaming technology in perpetuity to the venture and providing operational expertise in exchange for a 30 per cent stake.

Huanxi has also agreed to invest $10m for an 8 per cent stake in Mubi itself,valuing the company at $125m. In its last funding round in 2014,Mubi was valued at $25m.

One of the main ways that Mubi differs from other streaming services is that it offers a small catalogue of just 30 films at any one time. Each day a new title is added and another is removed — a product feature that Mubi has patented in the US.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Who bought the film production company ChinaVision for $800m in 2014?

A.Baidu

B.Tencent

C.Mubi

D.Alibaba

答案解释:2014年以8亿美元把电影制作公司文化中国传播集团(ChinaVision)出售给阿里巴巴。

2.Where is Mubi's headquartered?

A.America

B.Britain

C.Beijing

D.Hong Kong

答案解释:周四欢喜传媒宣布，已和总部设在英国的流媒体服务供应商Mubi达成联盟。

3.What's the matter with Netflix to enter China?

A.small film subscription services market

B.not the world's largest movie market

C.without government's permission

D.capital scarcity

答案解释:到本月，世界最大的电影流媒体服务供应商Netflix已扩展到了130多个国家。但由于未能获得中国政府的许可，Netflix至今未能打入中国市场

4.Which one is the latest production from Huanxi as mentioned?

A.Lost in Hong Kong

B.Crouching Tiger,Hidden Dragon

C.Lost in Thailand

D.Coming Home

答案解释:徐峥和宁浩分别在欢喜传媒持股19%，为第二大股东。《泰囧》是其最新作品。

Apple Music成绩单喜人

2015年10月时，苹果官方曾宣布旗下音乐流媒体服务Apple Music付费用户已经达到 650万，而短短3个月后如今已经超过1000万。作为对比，目前用户数量最多的音乐流媒体服务提供商Spotify用了6年时间才实现了千万付费用户。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

subscriber 订户[səb'skraɪbə(r)]

doldrum 赤道无风带，文中指不景气['dɒldrəmz]

groundwork 根基['graʊn(d)wɜːk]

subsequent 后来的['sʌbsɪkw(ə)nt]

hi-fi music 高保真音乐

rumour 谣言，传闻['ruːmə]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分44秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分46秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分41秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分56秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apple's music streaming subscribers top 10m（566words）

By Matthew Garrahan in New York and Tim Bradshaw in San Francisco

Apple has passed 10m subscribers for its music streaming service,taking six months to hit a milestone that took its arch-rival Spotify six years to hit,say people familiar with the matter.

The rapid growth of Apple Music,which launched in more than 100 countries in June,raises the stakes in streaming,a form of distribution that offers hope to the music industry after more than a decade in the doldrums.

“It's good news that Apple is making streaming work but it is also going to accelerate the decline of downloads,” said Mark Mulligan,music industry analyst with Midia Research. Apple was rapidly gaining on Spotify and at its current growth rate had “the potential to be the leading music subscription service sometime in 2017.”

Streaming is becoming the dominant form of digital music consumption and is growing rapidly as download sales decline. In the US,total sales of album downloads fell 9 per cent in 2014 while sales of individual tracks declined 12 per cent,according to Nielsen Music data. However,demand for streaming increased more than 50 per cent,with 164bn songs streamed.

Spotify and Apple have a clear lead over the competition. Deezer,the France-based streaming service,has more than 6.3m users and last October scrapped a €300m initial public offering that would have valued it at €1bn. Tidal,the artist-owned service led by hip hop artist Jay Z,reportedly hit 1m subscribers in the same month.

Spotify,which has a valuation of more than $8bn,has laid the groundwork for an initial public offering. By the time it hit 10m subscribers in 2014,the service had 40m active users in 56 markets.

The Swedish company's growth has accelerated since 2014.In June it said it had reached 20m paying subscribers out of a total of more than 75m monthly listeners. That figure is likely to have increased further in the subsequent six months,during which time Spotify has been riding high in Apple's App Store charts. This weekend,it was the third top-grossing app in the US App Store,suggesting that many iPhone users are already paying for Spotify subscriptions using their iTunes accounts.

Just before Christmas,The Beatles back-catalogue arrived on streaming services,bringing one of the last major holdouts to digital streaming. Last month Apple Music was made available on Sonos wireless speakers,its first partnership with a hi-fi maker.

Music is expected to become increasingly important to Apple's 2016 device launches. The 9to5Mac blog reported last week that the company will ditch the 3.5mm headphone jack on the next generation iPhone,the standard on portable music players dating back to the original Sony Walkman in 1979. Instead digital headphones would connect to its Lightning port,which is also used for charging and data transfer to and from a PC. As well as providing higher-quality audio,the change could accelerate a growing move towards wireless headphones,which can already connect over Bluetooth to the iPhone and Apple Watch.

Apple declined to comment on rumoured changes to its headphone socket or its music streaming subscribers.

That would enable Apple to make the next iPhone even thinner or free up more space for other components such as batteries. At the same time,the company would be able to promote compatible headphones from its Beats subsidiary,which it acquired for $3bn in 2014 and formed the technical basis of its music subscription service.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How many years did Spotify take to pass 10m subscribers?

A.six years

B.six months

C.three months

D.a decade

答案解释：作为竞争对手，目前用户数量最多的音乐流媒体服务提供商Spotify用了6年时间才实现了千万付费用户。

2.What is the situation about music industry in US?

A.booming

B.glorious

C.not good

D.highly cyclical

答案解释：实际上美国音乐市场并不景气，原文用了“in the doldrums”。

3.Which one was the third top-grossing app in the US App Store this weekend?

A.Deezer

B.Spotify

C.Tidal

D.Apple Music

答案解释：这表明许多iPhone用户已经使用iTunes账户支付Spotify订阅。

4.Who cooperated with Apple firstly as a hi-fi maker?

A.Bose

B.Sonos

C.JBL

D.Sony

答案解释：音响厂商Sonos12月宣布，苹果音乐服务Apple Music的订阅用户将能够通过Sonos的扬声器播放列表中的歌曲。

小表情 大生意

这种小图标似乎已经成为一种新的社交语言和商业机会，不仅连教皇和卡戴珊都推出了自己的表情包，甚至发个表情就可以召唤美食外卖！

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

vernacular 方言[və'nækjʊlə]

up-to-the-minute 最新的

droid 机器人[drɒɪd]

lexicon 词典['leksɪk(ə)n]，复数 lexica或lexicons

authentically 真正地[ɔ'θɛntɪkli]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分52秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分24秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分9秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分6秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Emojis put on a commercial smile（662words）

By Hannah Kuchler in San Francisco and Shannon Bond in New York

What do the Pope,Pepsi,Playtex tampons and reality-television star Kim Kardashian have in common?They all exist in emoji form,the messaging icons that have gone beyond smiley faces to become a marketing phenomenon.

On Monday,Ms Kardashian released a set of emojis themed on her,on to the App Store. Popemoji is a set of cartoon icons developed by Swyft Media to coincide with the pontiff's visit to the US earlier this year.

Pepsi has made a short film and an emoji keyboard while Playtex uses emoji sentiment analysis to understand how women are feeling about its products.

“It's been this concentrated burst of emoji fever,” says Robert Candelino,vice-president and general manager for haircare at Unilever,the consumer goods group. “We saw emojis emerging as this new social vernacular,by which three-quarters of people in[the US]are communicating in a daily basis.”

Consumers are spending more time in messaging apps from Facebook Messenger to Instagram,the photo-sharing site on which nearly half the captions contain an emoji,and less time where marketers have been used to reaching them: in front of the TV.

Emojis are also becoming a business,with start-ups employing teams of artists to design up-to-the-minute images and advising marketers eager to become part of consumers' conversations.

“Emojis are the largest shift in consumer behaviour on the internet since social media,” says Travis Montaque,founder of Emogi,a marketing data company.

Walt Disney,the media group,allowed Twitter users who used the hash tag #StarWars on Twitter to automatically insert an icon of a droid into a tweet. You can order a pizza from Domino's by simply sending a pizza emoji via SMS.

Brands want to create a “visual lexicon” that people can incorporate into their online conversations,says Christian Brucculeri,chief executive of Snaps,a company that creates branded content,such as emojis,“stickers” and gifs.

The company has worked with 75 brands including fast-food chain Burger King,Unilever and Comedy Central,the television network,and says users have shared 100m images through messaging and social media.

The company is working on a new product for retailers that will attach emojis to digital coupons,which consumers can add to their mobile wallets and use in stores.

“We are seeing an increase in visual communications among consumers. Brands want to be part of that,whether with emojis or gifs and videos or animated experiences,” says Mr Brucculeri.

For Unilever's Dove brand,Snaps made an emoji keyboard consisting of 27 curly-haired women with various hair lengths,hair colours and skin tones,as part of its “Love Your Curls” campaign. The keyboard has been downloaded more than 850,000 times since its launch on November 4.

For the second season of the Comedy Central sitcom Broad City,an emoji,sticker and gif keyboard were aimed at “superfans” who might spread the word about the show,says Lesley Robin,director of social strategy. “We're always looking to reach our fans where they already are,using their existing behaviours,” she says. “Fans of Broad City are heavily into messaging: texting their girlfriends,using emojis on various apps.”

Other emoji businesses include San Francisco-based iMoji and Idibon,where former Stanford linguist Tyler Schnoebelen helps marketers understand how to use emojis authentically in communications including customer service.

Emogi lets people use emojis to react to online advertisements. To close a pop-up ad,the viewer clicks on the emoji that represents how they feel about it. The company is partnering with IBM to analyse sentiment and help marketers target their online advertising based on the information they get from its emoji-infused ads.

Mr Montaque expects this sort of online temperature-taking to be of particular interest to marketers during the US presidential election. “We see 2016 being a big year in political advertising as they look to influence voters' opinion,” he says.

万达瞄准好莱坞

据统计，《福布斯》2015年中国富豪榜前十大富豪中，有8人在投资电影。近日一向热衷于电影投资的中国大连万达集团正式杀入好莱坞，拟购入美国电影制作公司传奇影业(Legendary Entertainment)超过50%股权。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

Pacific Rim 电影《环太平洋》

negotiate 谈判[nɪ'gəʊʃɪeɪt]

sequel 续集['siːkw(ə)l]

spin-off 衍生产品

paramount 最高统治者['pærəmaʊnt]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

4分44秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分20秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分5秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分5秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Dalian Wanda in talks to buy Hollywood film producer（650words）

By Matthew Garrahan in Las Vegas

Dalian Wanda,the property and media group controlled by Wang Jianlin,China's richest man,is in talks to buy the Hollywood company behind films such as Godzilla and Pacific Rim.

If a deal is concluded between Wanda and Legendary Entertainment,the media company started by Thomas Tull,it will strengthen ties between Hollywood and the world's fastest-growing movie market.

Wanda,which bought the AMC Entertainment cinema chain in 2012,is negotiating to acquire a controlling stake in Legendary,which counts Japanese technology group SoftBank among its investors. The deal could be announced as early as next week and values Legendary at $3bn-$4bn,according to people familiar with the matter.

Mr Wang has been looking for a Hollywood studio to buy for several years. His company was linked with a purchase of DreamWorks Animation last year but the talks broke down. He also told reporters a year ago that he intended to buy Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer or Lions Gate Entertainment but a deal did not materialise.

People familiar with the matter said talks with Legendary were at an advanced stage. The company has enjoyed a good year at the box office: it has a production deal with Universal Pictures and has invested in hits such as Straight Outta Compton and Jurassic World,which was 2015's biggest movie in the US until the recent release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens.

It recently announced a sequel to Godzilla and a spin-off,featuring Godzilla and King Kong,which it will produce with its former production and distribution partner Warner Brothers.

In 2011 Legendary launched Legendary East,a Hong Kong-based joint venture company to co-produce films in China,thereby escaping China's import quotas. It plans to release its first project with the state-owned China Film Co this year: The Great Wall,a fantasy epic starring Matt Damon and directed by Zhang Yimou,one of China's best-known filmmakers.

Legendary's movies have performed well in China,particularly Godzilla and Pacific Rim,where box office returns are booming thanks to a spate of multiplex developments.

China's cinema market is growing rapidly. Its total box office increased by 49 per cent in 2015 according to state figures,generating $6.8bn in revenues. The country is adding an average of 22 screens per day. If it continues to grow at its current rate,China is projected to overtake the US as the world's largest film market by 2017.

“China's movie industry is booming at unprecedented speed,” Mr Wang said in a 2014 interview. “Buying a well-known US company will help our distribution overseas.” China's film market was “growing a lot faster than that of the US”,he added.

Wanda and Legendary declined to comment on the talks,which were first reported by Reuters. If a deal goes ahead it could pave the way for more tie-ups between Hollywood production companies and China-based media groups. Alibaba Pictures,the Chinese retailer's entertainment arm,invested in Paramount's Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation in 2015 and was the official partner for the movie's launch in China.

Mario Gabelli,the second-largest holder of voting shares in Viacom,which owns Paramount,recently urged Sumner Redstone's media group to sell a stake in its movie studio to Alibaba to generate new funds and smooth the way for it to produce more films in the country.

“If Alibaba is going to be serious about getting into the entertainment industry Viacom should sell[Alibaba founder]Jack Ma a piece of Paramount,” Mr Gabelli said.

A Wanda-Legendary tie-up would be the latest in a string of deals for Mr Wang. He recently spent $52m on a 20 per cent stake in Atlético Madrid,the Spanish football club,bought the organiser of Ironman triathlons for $650m,and paid more than €1bn for Infront Media,the Swiss sports rights agency led by the nephew of former Fifa president Sepp Blatter.

Additional reporting by Patti Waldmeir in Shanghai and Shannon Bond in New York

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.When Wanda bought the AMC Entertainment cinema chain?

A.2012

B.2015

C.2010

D.2011

答案解释：万达2012年收购美国第二大院线AMC。

2.Which shareholder has already decided to sell equity?

A.ABRY Partners

B.AIG Direct Investments

C.SoftBank

D.Columbia Capital

答案解释：王健林将购入的股份估值在30亿至40亿美元之间。其余股权则由传奇的创办人兼CEO塔尔及其余管理层拥有。传奇其他的股东，日本软银集团和美资基金Waddell&Reed已决定出售所持股份。

3.Which one is not on the Wanda's “want but unfulfilled list” in the last few years?

A.DreamWorks Animation

B.Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

C.Lions Gate Entertainment

D.Warner Brothers

答案解释：梦工厂动画公司、米高梅公司和狮门娱乐都曾在万达的“欲望清单”，但最终都没有实现。

4.When China will overtake the US as the world's largest film market according to prediction?

A.2011

B.2016

C.2017

D.2019

答案解释：根据预计中国的票房收入和银幕数量将在2017年超越美国，成为全球最大的电影市场。

国产啤酒 “压力山大”

对一些人来讲，夜晚坐在街边的路边摊上，一边“撸串儿”一边“吹”一瓶燕京，恐怕是夏天最惬意的事情了。但并非所有中国消费者都好这一口。中国经济放缓以及外国啤酒品牌的涌入，给燕京啤酒和其他国内啤酒生产商带来了销售压力。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

swig 痛饮[swɪg]

skewer 烤串['skjuə]

brewer 啤酒制造者['bruːə]

consolidation 合并[kən,sɒlɪ'deɪʃən]

moderate growth 温和增长

stalwart 坚定的['stɔːlwət; 'stæl-]

nightclubber 夜店(nightclub的变形）

woe 灾难，悲痛[wəʊ]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分27秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

2分36秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分34秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分54秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Chinese beer: under pressure as economy slows amid competition（542words）

By David Wilder

Some believe there is nothing finer than swigging barely-chilled Yanjing beer straight from the bottle,sat on a stool on a Beijing side street,eating skewers of barbecued mutton of questionable origin.

Not all Chinese consumers agree. Sales of Yanjing,along with those of other domestic brewers,are under pressure as the economy slows and foreign brands make inroads.

Beer sales in China dropped 8 per cent by volume in the first half of 2015 from a year earlier,a fall that was blamed on the state of the economy but also unseasonable weather.

Sales are likely to return to moderate growth,but the industry trends of more consolidation and more attempts to shift upmarket to protect margins are likely to continue,according to FT Confidential Research,a research service from the Financial Times.

Yanjing faces a greater challenge than market leader Tsingtao. According to a recent FT Confidential Research survey of 1,000 beer drinkers across the country,Yanjing was the fifth most popular brand,cited by 15.9 per cent of respondents as one of the two beer brands that they most often purchase. It was well behind Tsingtao,which was cited by 57 per cent of respondents.

Yanjing isn't helped by its limited geographic reach: it's a Beijing stalwart,deriving 25 per cent of its sales from the capital,though the company is trying to expand its presence by targeting rural areas.

But Yanjing is also a popular beer with low income groups in a market of changing and increasingly sophisticated tastes. It lags behind rivals offering more mid-priced to premium beer to offset falling margins. Tsingtao's peach beer comes in a shocking pink can aimed at a female audience,while Yanjing's Party beer promises to “put you in a happy state of mind”.

The demand for better beer is certainly there: the FTCR survey found that 58 per cent of respondents usually pay more than Rmb6（$0.95）for a 330ml bottle of suds,a level considered mid-range and above by brewers.

But even market leaders Tsingtao and CR Snow,whose mid-priced and premium beer sales account for 40 per cent and 45 per cent of total sales,face a challenge from the rapid growth of imported brands. Domestic beer volume sales may have fallen in the first half but those of imported beer rose 63 per cent,continuing the rapid growth of recent years as import costs tumble and China's army of nightclubbers multiplies.

Imports account for just 1 per cent of total overall consumption but they are likely to continue growing at a rapid clip. Domestic beer sales growth may return to the low single digits should the forces blamed for this year's falls prove temporary,but domestic brands will come under increasing pressure from these imports.

Industry woes are also likely to keep driving consolidation. Tsingtao is buying Suntory's share in an eastern China joint venture to try to turn around sales there after they fell 15.2 per cent in the first half.

AB InBev's purchase of SABMiller may prove the exception: SABMiller owns a 49 per cent stake in CR Snow and the tie-up would result in combined market share of around 40 per cent. That's likely to be a six-pack too many for Beijing's antitrust regulators.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.Which one is not mentioned as the reason of beer sales in China dropped in the first half of 2015?

A.the economy slows

B.AB InBev's purchase of SABMiller

C.foreign brands make inroads

D.unseasonable weather

答案解释：文章前三段

2.Who is the market leader as mentioned in China?

A.Yanjing

B.CR Snow

C.Tsingtao

D.Harbin

答案解释：比起市场领先者青岛啤酒(Tsingtao Brewery)，燕京啤酒面临的挑战更大。

3.Which one was the fifth most popular brand in the survey?

A.Yanjing

B.CR Snow

C.SABMiller

D.Heineken

答案解释：调查显示，燕京啤酒在最受欢迎的品牌中位列第五。

4.Why the article mentioned the purchase of SABMiller is an exception?

A.bought a Chinese enterprise

B.goes against the government strategy

C.too much market share

D.economy is rough

答案解释：百威英博(AB InBev)收购SABMiller可能是一个例外：SABMiller持有华润雪花啤酒49%的股份，而这一联姻将使得合并后的市场份额达到40%左右。对于北京的反垄断监管机构而言，这样的市场份额可能过大了。

看电视out了？

美国观众正大举放弃在黄金时段观看电视节目，今年大多数有线电视频道的收视率都出现下滑，这一趋势正在重塑媒体格局，并让投资者不安。有线网络的平均收视率下降表明，关注日益使用点播流媒体服务，而不是打开电视看直播。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

prime time 黄金时段

multiyear 年度

cord-cutting 掐线（取消有线电视和卫星电视订阅）

satellite 卫星['sætəlaɪt]

rating 等级['reɪtɪŋ]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

3分20秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分59秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分8秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分44秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

US media companies hit by viewer switch to online services（449 words）

By Matthew Garrahan in New York

A great switch-off is under way on US primetime television with a majority of cable channels losing viewers in 2015,a trend that is reshaping the media landscape and rattling investors.Audience data compiled by Nielsen,the research firm,show that 26 of the top 35 cable channels attracted lower average primetime audiences in 2015 compared with 2014.ESPN,Bravo,Comedy Central and MTV were among those hit.

“This is a multiyear issue and is leading to lower industry advertising growth,” said Michael Nathanson,a media analyst with Moffett Nathanson. “A business that had been growing in advertising is now struggling.”

Lower audience ratings and fears about “cord-cutting” — the cancellation of cable and satellite television subscriptions — hit US media shares in 2015 with the S&P 500 Media Index falling 5.5 per cent,far more than the broader market,which was flat for the year.

Walt Disney,which recently released Star Wars: The Force Awakens ,and AMC Networks,home of The Walking Dead series,are the only media companies to end the year with their shares up on 2014.Disney sparked a sell-off in media stocks this summer when it warned that subscriber growth at its ESPN network had slowed. The channel lost an estimated 3m subscribers in the year to August,said Nielsen.

Lower average audience ratings for cable networks are indicative of a big shift in viewing habits. Audiences are increasingly using on-demand streaming services,such as Netflix,Amazon and Hulu,rather than tuning in to watch live television. “The world is moving to on-demand viewing,” Mr Nathanson said.

The Nielsen data include viewings of programmes on digital video recorders up to seven days after their air date. But the ratings do not include views of shows on online services,which has been a point of contention with media chief executives,such as Viacom's Philippe Dauman.

Nielsen will launch a new measurement system in 2016 that aims to include viewing on alternative services and devices.

Among the few networks to attract larger average primetime audiences were cable news channels Fox News and CNN. Both benefited this year from the Donald Trump effect,with Republican primary debates setting ratings records for non-sport cable programmes.

Mr Trump's appearance at the first Republican primary debate propelled Fox to attract four times the viewers that tuned in to watch GOP primary debates in the 2012 election.Ratings for the Republican debates have held up since then,with CNN,CNBC and Fox Business Channel achieving record ratings for the debates they have aired.

Mr Trump recently asked for a $5m payment from CNN in return for participating in its December debate. The network refused to pay and Mr Trump appeared as scheduled.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How many main cable channels attracted lower average primetime audiences in 2015 compared with 2014?

A.35

B.14

C.26

D.9

答案解释：在最受欢迎的35个有线电视频道中，有26个频道的黄金时段平均观众数量低于2014年。

2.What will be affected by the lower audience ratings as Michael said?

A.advertising revenue

B.programme quality

C.reputation

D.sales volume of TV

答案解释：这种情况已持续多年，正导致行业广告增速下滑。

3.Which media company is with its shares up on 2014?

A.Netflix

B.AMC NetworkScripps

C.EMI

D.ESPN

答案解释：股价较2014年上涨的传媒公司只有沃尔特·迪斯尼公司(Walt Disney)和AMC Networks。

4.Why Trump asked for a $5m payment from CNN?

A.advertising fee

B.adminisstrative expenses

C.appearance fee

D.office allowance

答案解释：美国共和党总统参选人特朗普之前表示，在出席共和党辩论会时要向CNN收取500万美元出场费。

苹果新规：大股东可提名董事

苹果本周表示，已对董事会章程进行修订。普通投资人通过集体参与，影响上市公司的董事会成员任命，这被称为“代理参与制”，苹果成最新一家引入这种机制的公司。

测试中可能遇到的词汇和知识：

nomination 提名[nɒmɪ'neɪʃ(ə)n]

amended 修正的[ə'mendid]

bylaw 内部章程['bai,lɔ:z]

proxy access 代理参与制

capitalization 市值[,kæpɪtəlɪ'zeʃən]

阅读马上开始，建议您计算一下阅读整篇文章所用的时间，对照下方的参考值就可以评估出您的英文阅读水平。

如果您读完全文用时为：

那么，您的阅读速度相当于

每分钟阅读的英文单词数

2分52秒

母语为英语者的朗读速度

140

1分44秒

母语为英语的中学生的阅读速度

250

1分57秒

母语为英语的大学生的阅读速度

350

0分41秒

母语为英语的速读高手

1000

Apple opens board nominations to large investors（410 words）

By Tim Bradshaw in San Francisco and Stephen Foley in New York

Apple has amended its corporate bylaws to allow shareholders to nominate new board members,making it the latest in a string of US companies to introduce a measure that offers greater control to investors.

The issue of so-called proxy access has gone from a fringe issue to mainstream practice in just two years,as major institutional investors including BlackRock and T Rowe Price and many of the largest US pension funds have demanded improved shareholder rights.

As the world's most valuable company,Apple now tops a growing list of corporations that allows its investors — either alone or working as a group — to nominate a board member,as long as they have held at least 3 per cent of the company's shares for at least three years.

At Apple's present market capitalisation of just under $600bn,that would mean investors would need to hold stock worth almost $18bn to qualify.

Microsoft,Coca-Cola and Philip Morris International are among more than 50 members of the S&P 500 index to have introduced proxy access rights this year.

Pension funds led by the New York City Employees' Retirement System and Calpers in California put more than 100 resolutions at shareholder meetings around the US this year demanding proxy access,and are threatening to target dozens more companies next year.

Opponents of proxy access say that choosing directors is a task best left to the board of a company,with shareholders having a vote on their choices. But this year has seen a growing number of boards decide to offer the new rights rather than face a showdown with investors at a public meeting.

Apple's change is the latest move to open up its corporate governance under chief executive Tim Cook,from improving the transparency of its supply chain practices to the introduction of more performance-related compensation for its executives.

In 2014,a narrow majority of Apple shareholders approved majority voting for the election of directors,which had been long sought by corporate governance campaigners. At the most recent annual meeting in March,a shareholder proposal demanding proxy access was defeated but attracted significant support,with 39 per cent of votes cast in favour of the change.

Under the new Apple bylaws,which were updated on Monday and revealed in a regulatory filing on Tuesday,a group of up to 20 shareholders can nominate up to 20 per cent of Apple's board,or one of its eight directors.

Apple declined to comment beyond Tuesday's filing.

请根据你所读到的文章内容，完成以下自测题目：

1.How many years should the shareholders holding 3 % shares to be nominated at any rate?

A.2

B.5

C.3

D.8

答案解释：如果一名苹果股东持有3%的股权超过了三年时间,则可以提出公司董事的提名建议。

2.How much would investors need to hold to qualify at least?

A.$600bn

B.$18bn

C.$8bn

D.$81bn

答案解释：苹果公司目前的市值接近6000亿美元，这意味着投资者需要持有股票价值近180亿美元。

3.Which one is not mentioned to have introduced proxy access rights this year?

A.Microsoft

B.KFC

C.Coca-Cola

D.Philip Morris International

答案解释：代理权咨询公司机构投资者服务今年10月表示，标准普尔500指数中近10%的公司已经或承诺提供代理参与权。

4.How many directors are there in Apple now?

A.8

B.9

C.3

D.20

答案解释：目前苹果董事会有8名成员。

The End

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