You’re in a department store and you see a couple of attractive young women looking at a sweater.You listen to their conversation:

　　“I can’t believe it — Lorenzo Bertolla! They are almost impossible to find.Isn’t it beautiful? And it’s a lot cheaper than the one Sara bought in Rome.”

　　They leave and you go over to see this incredible sweater.It’s nice and the price is right.You’ve never heard of Lorenzo Bertolla, but those girls looked really stylish.They must know.So, you buy it.You never realize that those young women are employees of an advertising agency.They are actually paid to go from store to store, talking loudly about Lorenzo Bertolla clothes.

　　Every day we notice what people are wearing, driving and eating.If the person looks cool, the product seems cool, too.This is the secret of undercover marketing.Companies from Ford to Nike are starting to use it.

　　Undercover marketing is important because it reaches people that don’t pay attention to traditional advertising.This is particularly true of the MTV generation — consumers between the age of 18 and 34.It’s a golden group.They have a lot of money to spend, but they don’t trust ads.

　　So advertising agencies hire young actors to “perform” in bars and other places where young adults go.Some people might call this practice misleading, but marketing executive Jonathan Ressler calls it creative.“Look at traditional advertising.Its effectiveness is decreasing.” It is true, because everyone knows an ad is trying to persuade you to buy something.However, you don’t know when a conversation you overhear is just a performance.

　　1.The two attractive young women were talking so as to ______.

　　A.get the sweater at a lower price B.be heard by people around

　　C.be admired by other shoppers D.decide on buying the sweater

　　2.Lorenzo Bertolla is ______.

　　A.a very popular male singer B.an advertising agency

　　C.a clothing company in Rome D.the brand name of clothes

　　3.What can we infer from the passage?

　　A.Traditional advertising will soon disappear in the market.

　　B.The MTV generation tends to be more easily influenced by all kinds of ads.

　　C.That traditional advertising is too direct may lead to its decreasing effectiveness.

　　D.Undercover marketing will surely be banned soon by the government.

　　4.Which of the following would be the best title for the passage?

　　A.Two Attractive Shoppers B.Lorenzo Bertolla Sweaters

　　C.Ways of Advertising D.Undercover Marketing

　　A single night of taking the drug Ecstasy (摇头丸) can cause serious brain damage and speed up the start of Parkinson’s disease, scientists say.Just two or three Ecstasy tablets can permanently destroy brain cells that affect movement and reasoning, according to American research that links the drug to Parkinson’s for the first time.

　　A study by a team at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland, involving squirrel monkeys and baboons (狒狒) found that both species suffered permanent damage to key cells, which are lost in Parkinson’s, after receiving three low doses(剂量)of Ecstasy at three-hour periods.

　　The study is particularly important because baboons are one of the best animal models for the human brain.George Ricaurte, who led the research, said that the widespread abuse of drug might have caused severe damage.“The most troubling result is that young adults using Ecstasy may be increasing their risk of developing Parkinsonism as they get older.”

　　Alan Leshner, a former director of the US National Institute on Drug Abuse, said, “This study emphasizes the multi-aspect damage that Ecstasy causes to users.We’ve long known that repeated use damages brain cells.But this study shows that even very occasional use can have long-lasting effects on many different brain systems.It sends an important message to young people: don’t experiment with your own brain.”

　　Janet Betts, a mother whose teenage daughter Leah died after a single Ecstasy tablet in 1995, said, “This comes as no surprise.But people can’t see the effects at first, and they say it won’t happen to them.We’ll see the symptoms later, just as we have with smoking.”

　　5.The article is intended to ______.

　　A.explain the bad effects of drugs on people’s health

　　B.warn young people of the risk of taking the drug Ecstasy

　　C.persuade people out of such bad habits as smoking and using drugs

　　D.tell us the links between the drug Ecstasy and Parkinson’s disease

　　6.We know from the passage that a low dose of Ecstasy ______.

　　A.won’t cause serious brain damage

　　B.can permanently destroy one’s brain cells

　　C.will result in immediate symptoms

　　D.may bring on Parkinson’s at once

　　7.Why are squirrel monkeys and baboons involved in the experiments?

　　A.Because their brain is similar to human being’s.

　　B.Because these animals usually take drugs.

　　C.Because these animals will soon get well after the experiment.

　　D.Because there is a model in the animals’ brains.

　　8.The underlined word “This” in the last paragraph probably means that ______.

　　A.Leah died after a single Ecstasy tablet in 1995

　　B.taking drug has the same symptoms as smoking

　　C.occasional use of the drug can have long-lasting effects on the brain systems

　　D.people have long known that repeated use of the drug damages brain cells

　　参考答案

　　1.B 【命题立意】考查考生对具体信息的理解能力。

　　【试题解析】由第3段可知,她们其实是商家请的广告职员, 目的就是通过大声讨论

　　商品吸引顾客对其商品的关注和兴趣, 故选B。

　　2.D 【命题立意】考查考生对具体信息的理解能力。

　　【试题解析】由第1段中的looking at a sweater及第3段最后的Lorenzo Bertolla

　　clothes可知, 这是一个服装品牌。

　　3.C 【命题立意】考查学生的判断推理能力。

　　【试题解析】A项说法无根据。根据第5段的1、2句排除B项; D项说法在文中

　　无事实依据, 也过于武断, 故排除。又根据最后一段的内容可断C

　　项正确。

　　4.D 【命题立意】考查考生对短文主旨要义的理解能力。

　　【试题解析】文章主要讲述了商家雇请广告员工来吸引顾客的新的广告模式—

　　undercover marketing, 即秘密营销。

　　【语篇解读】 本文是调查报告。研究表明, 一粒小小的摇头丸在使你迷幻的同时 也对你的脑细胞造成了永久性的损害.

　　5.B 【命题立意】考查学生的判断推理能力。

　　【试题解析】根据第3段最后一句话, 第4段最后一句话, 及最后一段, 可以推断

　　作者想提醒人们, 尤其是年轻人要远离摇头丸。

　　6.B 【命题立意】考查考生对具体信息的理解能力。

　　【试题解析】由第1段第2句及第2段中的 “… both species suffered permanent

　　damage… after receiving three low doses of Ecstasy at three-hour

　　periods”可知答案为B。

　　7.A 【命题立意】考查考生对具体信息的理解能力。

　　【试题解析】 由第3段第1句中的because baboons are one of the best animal models

　　for the human brain可知答案。

　　8.C 【命题立意】考查考生根据上下文推断词义的能力。

　　【试题解析】 由整篇文章的主题(第1段), 第4段中的 “even very occasional use can have long-lasting effects on many different brain systems”及最后一段中的#FormatImgID_0#“But people can’t see the effects at first, and they say…”可推测 “This”指摇头丸对大脑造成的永久性伤害。

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