| 考研每日一练（2016-1-25） |
| 第1题：Text 4 Perhaps only a small boy training to be a wizard at the Hogwarts school of magic could cast a spell so powerful as to create the biggest book launch ever. Wherever in the world the clock strikes midnight on June 20th, his followers will flock to get their paws on one of more than 10m copies of “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix”. Bookshops will open in the middle of the night and delivery firms are drafting in extra staff and bigger trucks. Related toys, games, DVDs and other merchandise will be everywhere. There will be no escaping Pottermania. Yet Mr Potter's world is a curious one, in which things are often not what they appear. While an excitable media (hereby including The Economist, happy to support such a fine example of globalisation) is helping to hype the launch of J.K. Rowling's fifth novel, about the most adventurous thing that the publishers (Scholastic in America and Britain's Bloomsbury in English elsewhere) have organised is a reading by Ms Rowling in London's Royal Albert Hall, to be broadcast as a live webcast. Hollywood, which owns everything else to do with Harry Potter, says it is doing even less. Incredible as it may seem, the guardians of the brand say that, to protect the Potter franchise, they are trying to maintain a low profile. Well, relatively low. Ms Rowling signed a contract in 1998 with Warner Brothers, part of AOL Time Warner, giving the studio exclusive film, licensing and merchandising rights in return for what now appears to have been a steal: some $500,000. Warner licenses other firms to produce goods using Harry Potter characters or images, from which Ms Rowling gets a big enough cut that she is now wealthier than the queen—if you believe Britain's Sunday Times rich list. The process is self-generating: each book sets the stage for a film, which boosts book sales, which lifts sales of Potter products. Globally, the first four Harry Potter books have sold some 200m copies in 55 languages; the two movies have grossed over $1.8 billion at the box office. This is a stunning success by any measure, especially as Ms Rowling has long demanded that Harry Potter should not be over-commercialised. In line with her wishes, Warner says it is being extraordinarily careful, at least by Hollywood standards, about what it licenses and to whom. It imposed tough conditions on Coca-Cola, insisting that no Harry Potter images should appear on cans, and is now in the process of making its licensing programme even more restrictive. Coke may soon be considered too mass market to carry the brand at all. The deal with Warner ties much of the merchandising to the films alone. There are no officially sanctioned products relating to “Order of the Phoenix”; nor yet for “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban”, the film of the third book, which is due out in June 2004. Warner agrees that Ms Rowling's creation is a different sort of commercial property, one with long-term potential that could be damaged by a typical Hollywood marketing blitz, says Diane Nelson, the studio's global brand manager for Harry Potter. It is vital, she adds, that with more to come, readers of the books are not alienated. “The evidence from our market research is that enthusiasm for the property by fans is not waning.” 36. When the author says “there will be no escaping Pottermania”, he implies that ____. [A] Harry Potter’s appeal for the readers is simply irresistible [B] it is somewhat irrational to be so crazy about the magic boy [C] craze about Harry Potter will not be over in the near future [D] Hogwarts school of magic will be the biggest attraction world over 37. Ms Rowling’s reading in London's Royal Albert Hall is mentioned to show ____. [A] publishers are really adventurous in managing the Potter’s business [B] businesses involved with Potter are moving along in an unusual way [C] the media are promoting Pottermania more actively than Hollywood [D] businesses are actually more credible than media in Potter’s world 38. The author believes that ____. [A] Britain's Sunday Times rich list is not very convincing as it sounds [B] Time Warner’s management of licenses is a bit over-commercialised [C] other firms may produce goods using Harry Potter images at will [D] what Ms Rowling got in return for her offering to Warner is a real bargain 39. Paragraph 5 intends mainly to show Warner’s ____. [A] determination to promote Potter [B] consistence in conducting business [C] high regard for Ms Rowling’s request [D] careful restrictions on licensing to Coco-Cola 40. It can be concluded from the last paragraph that ____. [A] products of Potter films have brought enormous profits to Warner [B] current Hollywood’s marketing of Potter may damage its potential [C] readers could get tired of Ms Rowling’s writings sooner or later [D] Warner will maintain the same strategy with Potter in future |
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| 第2题：Directions: In the following article, some sentences have been removed. For Questions 41—45, choose the most suitable one from the list A—G to fit into each of the numbered blank. There are two extra choices, which do not fit in any of the gaps. Mark your answers on ANSWER SHEET 1. (10 points) The place is a lovely meadow surrounded by deep woods on a hilltop overlooking a beautiful lake in the Catskill Mountains 120 miles from New York. It is quarter past eight in the morning, and you are about to commute to your office in the city. Yet there is no paved highway nearer than fifteen miles, and it is fifty to a railroad station. 41) __________________________________________. The aircraft, looking oddly like a horizontal electric fan, drones toward you. When the pilot is directly overhead, all forward movement of the machine ceases and it descends vertically until the cabin door is within a foot of the ground. On the machine’s gray side is painted Helicopter Express to New York. The door opens and you step inside. Fifty minutes later the helicopter bus hovers over a midtown New York building, descends slowly to alight on a roof space some sixty yards square. You go into the building, take the elevator to the street below, and walk half a block to your office. Not quite an hour has elapsed since you drank your morning coffee in your home. 42) ______________________________________. In the air age of tomorrow, the manufacture, sale, and upkeep of the direct—lift machine will become a billion—dollar industry just as the automobile industry. There will be many startling changes in our way of life. 43) ________________________________________________. A cheap, swift helicopter bus service will ferry these people to and from their work. Suburbs will include ten thousand or more square miles. Real estate values will come within the reach of average incomes, and the people will literally return to the good earth. 44) _________________________________________________. But the short haul of less than 1000 miles is equally the task of the helicopter, which can do it with the greatest efficiency. Express and air mail will be carried from the airports to final destination by helicopter. There will be a direct—lift machine service to take airliner passengers from the airport to the city in a few minutes. There will be special delivery of perishable food to your door. The winter growth of fresh vegetables such as beans and tomatoes, celery and lettuce, in the warm South and the Far West has been hitherto restricted because of cost and time or transportation to market. The airline and helicopter freight service will speed such healthy foods to the ends of the nation. 45) __________________________________________________________.. [A] Most important is that hundreds of thousands of people can return to the health and beauty of the countryside. Millions of acres of hitherto inaccessible land will be developed with small homes for medium-or low-income groups. [B] And a new type of architecture-perhaps a house with a flat roof and a pleasantly designed helicopter hangar to one side of it, so that you have only to wheel the machine a few feet to take off. [C] Does this sound like a fantasy imagined by science fiction writers? If so, I can assure you, as a practical aeronautical engineer, that such a trip is neither fantastic nor impractical. I am convinced that a helicopter bus service is not only practicable but, in fact, inevitable. [D] Hence our eating habits will change perhaps more than we realize. Strawberries in January, as it were, available for all. The airline and helicopter freight service render all this possible. [E] Private and bus helicopters will make possible vacations at seashore or mountain for countless thousands. The helicopter will destroy space for millions of people. Nothing is more delightful than touring in a helicopter. To hover and fill one’s eyes with an enchanting vista is to bring joy to the soul. [F] Now you hear a low hum, and over the horizon appears a flying machine. You press the button of a box nearby and a radio signal flashes to the machine. [G] Long-distance transportation of passengers and freight over land and sea will definitely remain the job for the large airplane. |
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| 第3题：Read the following text carefully and then translate the underlined segments into Chinese. Your translation should be written clearly on ANSWER SHEET 2. The “standard of living” of any country means the average persons share of the goods and services which the country produces. A country’s standard of living, therefore, depends first and foremost on its capacity to produce wealth. 46) “Wealth” in this sense is not money, for we do not live on money but on things that money can buy: “goods” such as food and clothing, and “services” such as transport and entertainment. A country’s capacity to produce wealth depends upon many factors, most of which have an effect on one another. Wealth depends to a great extent upon a country’s natural resources, such as coal, gold, and other minerals, water supply and so on. 47) Some regions of the world are well supplied with coal and minerals, and have a fertile soil and a favorable climate; other regions possess none of them. Next to natural resources comes the ability to turn them to use. 48) Some countries are perhaps well off in natural resources, but suffered for many years from civil and external wars, and for this and other reasons have been unable to develop their resources. Sound stable political conditions, and freedom from foreign invasion, enable a country to develop its natural resources peacefully and steadily, and to produce more wealth than another country equally well served by nature but less well ordered. Another important factor is the technical efficiency of a country’s people. Industrialized countries that have trained numerous skilled workers and technicians are better placed to produce wealth than countries whose workers are largely unskilled. 49) A country’s standard of living does not only depend upon the wealth that is produced and consumed within its own borders, but also upon what is indirectly produced through international trade. For example, Britain’s wealth in foodstuffs and other agricultural products would be much less if she had to depend only on those grown at home. Trade makes it possible for her surplus manufactured goods to be traded abroad for the agricultural products that would otherwise be lacking. 50) A country’s wealth is, therefore, much influenced by its manufacturing capacity, provided that other countries can be found ready to accept its manufactures. |
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| 第4题：Part A 51. Directions: You have stayed with your friend Cathy for a whole week. Now you are going home. Write a message to her to 1) express your gratitude 2) show your appreciation of the good days you’ve had together 3) say goodbye You should write about 100 words on Answer Sheet 2. Do not sign your own name at the end of the letter. Use “Susan” instead. You do not need to write the address. ( 10 points ) Part B 52. Directions: Assuming that a manager is going to interview some job applicants and one of his friends gives him a piece of advice that the first impression is not a reliable basis for judgment. This manager wants to hear more from others and decides to have a wall newspaper put up for more views on that topic. 1. You are going to write an article to offer your opinion about it. 2.You should write about 160-200 words neatly on ANSWER SHEET 2.( 20 points ) |
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| 第5题：In the past few decades, remarkable findings have been made in ethology, the study of animal social behavior. Earlier scientists had 1 that nonhuman social life was almost totally instinctive or fixed by genetics. Much more careful observation has shown that 2 variation occurs among the social ties of most species, showing that learning is a part of social life. That is, the 3 are not solely fixed by the genes. 4，the learning that occurs is often at an early age in a process that is called imprinting. Imprinting is clearly 5 instinctive, but it is not quite like the learning of humans; it is something in between the two. An illustration best 6 the nature of imprinting. Once, biologists thought that ducklings followed the mother duck because of instincts. Now we know that, shortly 7 they hatch, ducklings fix 8 any object about the size of a duck and will henceforth follow it. So ducklings may follow a basketball or a briefcase if these are 9 for the mother duck at the time when imprinting occurs. Thus, social ties can be considerably 10, even ones that have a considerable base 11 by genetics. Even among the social insects something like imprinting 12 influence social behavior. For example, biologists once thought bees communicated with others purely 13 instinct. But, in examining a “dance” that bees do to indicate the distance and direction of a pollen source, observers found that bees raised in isolation could not communicate effectively. At a higher level, the genetic base seems to be much more for an allpurpose learning rather than the more specific responses of imprinting. Chimpanzees, for instance, generally 14 very good mother but Jane Goodall reports that some chimps carry the infant upside down or 15 fail to nurture the young. She believes that these females were the youngest or the 16 child of a mother. In such circumstances, they did not have the opportunity to observe how their own mother 17 for her young. Certainly adolescent chimps who are still with their mothers when other young are born take much interest in the rearing of their young brother or sister. They have an excellent opportunity to learn, and the social ties that are created between mother and young 18 Goodall to describe the social unit as a family. The motheroffspring tie is beyond 19;there is some evidence to 20 that ties also continue between siblings of the same sex, that is “brotherbrother” and “sistersister”. 1AassumedBadoptedCbelievedDsurmised 2AconsiderateBconsideratedCconsiderableDconsidering 3AstatuesBstatusesCstatutesDstatures 4AWhats moreBHenceCButDHowever 5AnotBonlyCbutDsolely 6AclarifiesBclassifiesCdefinesDoutlines 7AthanBbeforeCwhenDafter 8AonBwithCinDwithin 9AappropriatedBsubstitutedCassignedDdistributed 10AvariedBdeviatedCdifferedDaltered 11AfashionedBmodifiedCinfluencedDaffected 12AmayBshouldCmustDcan 13AbyBout ofCfromDthrough 14AproveBmakeCturnDcreate 15AotherwiseBstillCyetDeven 16AoneBsoleCsingleDonly 17AlookedBattendedCcaredDprovided 18AguideBcauseCdirectDlead 19AlimitationBimaginationCdoubtDexpectation 20AadviseBhintCimplyDsuggest |
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| 第6题：Text 1 New figures from France,Germany and Italy—the three biggest economies in the 12 country Eurozone —suggest the continent’s economic woes may have been exaggerated.In France, evidence emerged that consumer spending remained solid in July and August,rising 1.4%and 0.6%respectively.Forecasters had generally expected the July figure to show a 0.1% slippage,with August unchanged.But the figures were flattered slightly by a down grade to the June figure,to 0.7% from1.5%. With manufacturing in the doldrums across Europe and the US,consumer spending has been increasingly seen as the best hope of stopping the global economic slowdown from turning into a recession.The French government said the news proved that the economy was holding up to the strain of the slowdown. Meanwhile in Germany,new regional price figures went someway towards calming fears about inflation in Europe’s largest economy—a key reason for the European Central Bank’s reluctance to cut interest 15 states said consumer prices were broadly stable,with inflation falling year on year.The information backed economists’ expectations that inflation for the country as a whole is set to fall back to a yearly rate of 2.1%,compared to a yearly rate of 2.6% in August,closing in on the Eurowide target of 2%.The drop is partly due to last year’s spike in oil prices dropping out of the yearonyear calculation. The icing on the cake was news that Italy’s job market has remained buoyant.The country’s July unemployment rate dropped to 9.4% from 9.6% the month before,its lowest level in more than eight years.And a business confidence survey from quasigovernmental research group ISAE told of a general pickup in demand in the six weeks to early September.But the news was tempered by an announcement by Alitalia,the country’s biggest airline,that it will have to get rid of 2，500 staff to cope with the expected contraction as well as selling 12 aeroplanes. And industrial group Confindustria warned that the attacks on US targets meant growth will be about 1.9% this year,well short of the government’s 2.4% target. And it said the budget deficit will probably be about 1.5%,nearly twice the 0.8% Italy’s government has promised its European Union partners. 21We know from the first paragraph that. Anew figures from the three European countries show the prediction of forecasters is exactly right BEuropean economy gets on better than forecasters have predicted Call of the forecasters expect the fully figure to show a reduction Din three European countries the consumer spending continues to rise 22The term“in the doldrums”in Paragraph 2 refers to . Ain the process of rising Bexperiencing a sharp turning Cin the recessionDrising rapidly 23Which of the following statements is true according to the text?. AThe reason for the ECB’s unwilling to cut interest rates is inflation was actually expected to fall in Germany BIn Germany consumer prices were falling CLast year’s oil prices dropping out of the yearonyear calculation directly leads to the drop of inflation DThe European Central Bank is willing to cut interest rate 24ln this passage,the word“buoyant” in paragraph 4 is closest in meaning to the word. AdepressingBgloomyCactiveDcalm 25lndustrial group Confindustria warned that. Athe attacks on US targets lead to the comparatively lower growth Bthe growth had been well short of the government’s target Cthe budget deficit must be about 1.5% Dthe budget deficit will probably be great different from the country’s promise |
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| 第7题：Survey results indicate that smoking and alcohol and marijuana use increased among residents of Manhattan during the 5～8 weeks after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center which took place on September 11, 2001. Almost onethird of the nearly 1,000 persons interviewed reported an increased use of alcohol, marijuana, or cigarettes following the September 11th attacks. The largest increase was in alcohol use. About onefourth of the respondents said they were drinking more alcohol in the weeks after September 11; about 10% reported an increase in smoking, and 3.2% said they had increased their use of marijuana. The investigators found survey participants by randomly dialing New York City phone numbers and screened potential respondents for Manhattan residents living in areas close to the World Trade Center. Interviews were conducted with 988 individuals between October 16 and November 15, 2001. Participants were asked about their cigarette smoking, alcohol drinking, and marijuana use habits before and after September 11. During the week prior to September 11, 2001, 22.6% of the participants reported smoking cigarettes, 59.1% drinking alcohol, and 4.4% using marijuana. After September 11th, 23.4% reported smoking cigarettes, 64.4% drinking alcohol, and 5.7% smoking marijuana. Among those who smoked, almost 10% reported smoking at least an extra pack of cigarettes a week and among those who drank alcohol, more than 20% reported imbibing at least one extra drink a day. The researchers found that people who reported an increase in substance abuse were more likely to suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and from depression. People who reported an increase in cigarette smoking or marijuana use were also more likely to have both PTSD and depression, while those who reported an increase in alcohol use were more likely to have depression only. Persons who were living closer to the World Trade Center were more likely to increase their cigarette smoking, but other factors such as being displaced from home, losing possessions during the attacks, or being involved in the rescue efforts were not consistently associated with increased substance use. Symptoms of panic attack were associated with an increase in the use of all substances. Increase in substance abuse did not differ significantly between men and women or among racial or ethnic groups. Demographic factors such as age, marital status, and income seemed to play a more critical role in determining if the events of September 11th led to an increase in substance use. 26. The survey results suggest that the largest increase in substance use was . A alcoholB marijuanaC cigarettesD cocaine 27. The survey participants were . A randomly selected United States citizens B randomly selected New York City citizens C randomly selected Manhattan residents who live close to the World Trade Center D randomly selected American citizens who witnessed the terrorist attack 28. The author is trying to show that . A use of substances may vary from time to time B abuse of certain substances is harmful for health C the attack of september 11th has left incurable harm to peoples mental health D terrorist attack increase anxiety and sense of insecurity among residents 29. What can be said about substance abuse after September 11? A People who reported an increase in alcohol use were more likely to have PTSD. B People who were living closer to World Trade Center were most likely to increase cigarette smoking. C Displacement from home and involvement in rescue efforts were consistently associated with increased substance use. D Symptoms of panic attach were unrelated with increased use of substances. 30. What can be inferred from the last paragraph? A Demographic information such as gender, race and marital status was not collected. B Gender and race do not have much effect on the amount of substance abuse. C Age and marital status do not make any difference on substance abuse. D Income is a better predictor of substance abuse than age. |
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| 第8题：Aremote Patagonian town that’s just beginning to prosper by guiding tourists through the virgin forests nearby is being shaken by the realization that it’s sitting on a gold mine. Literally. 41)___________________________________________________________________ Esquel’s plight is winning attention from international conservation and environmental groups such as Greenpeace. 42)__________________________ About 3.2 million acres already are under contract for mineral exploration in poor and sparsely settled Chubut Province, where Esquel is, near the southern tip of South America. 43)______________________________________ Meridian’s project, about 5 miles outside Esquel at a higher elevation, is about 20 miles from a national park that preserves rate trees known as alerces, a southern relative of California’s giant sequoia. Some of them have been growing serenely in the temperate rain forest for more than 3,000 years. The greatest fear is that cyanide, which is used to leach gold from ore, will drain downhill and poison Esquel’s and possibly the park’s water supplies. The mine will use 180 tons of the deadly chemical each month. Although many townspeople and some geologists disagree, the company says any excess cyanide would drain away from Esquel. “We won’t allow them to tear things up and leave us with the toxic aftermath,” said Felix Aguilar, 28, as he piloted a boatload of tourists through a lake in the Alerces National Park.“We take care of things here, so that the entire world can hear and see nature in its pure state. The world must help us prevent this.” 44)__________________________________________________________________________ A young English botanist named Charles Darwin, the author of the theory of evolution, was the first European to see alerces, with trunks that had a circumference of 130 feet. He gave the tree its generic name, Fitzroya cupressoides, for the captain of his ship, Robert Fitzroy. Argentina, pressed by the United States, Canada, the World Bank and other global lenders, rewrote its mining laws in the 1990s to encourage foreign investment.45)________________________________________ Argentina took in more than＄1 billion over the past decade by granting exploration contracts for precious metals to more than 70 foreign and domestic companies. If the country were to turn away a major investor, the message to its mining sector would be chilling. ［A］Whether Meridian Gold Corp. gets its openpit gold mine outside Esquel could determine the fate of mining in Patagonia, a pristine region spanning southern Argentina and Chile. ［B］Forest ecologist Paul Alaback, a University of Montana professor who studies the alerces, said Argentine authorities could gain from Alaska’s successful naturebased tourism. ［C］More than 3,000 worried Esquel residents recently took to the streets in protests aimed at assuring that their neat community of 28,000 becomes a ecotourism center, not a goldrush town. ［D］American Douglas Tomkins, the founder of the Esprit clothing line and a prominent global conservationist, has bought more than 800,000 wilderness acres in Chile to preserve alerces and protect what’s left of the temperate rain forest. Ted Turner, the communications magnate, also has bought land in Argentine Patagonia with an eye to conservation. ［E］Residents also complain that Argentina hasn’t given naturebased tourism a chance. ［F］Mining companies received incentives such as 30 years without new taxes and dutyfree imports of earthmoving equipment. ［G］In Argentina, the town has become a national symbol in the debate over exploitation vs. preservation of the country’s vast natural resources. |
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| 第9题：Responsibilities. We all have them; most of us have more than we’d like. That doesn’t change the reality that, sooner or later, we all have to 1____ up to them. But perhaps it does explain our __2___ to add to the ever-growing list. There’s already so much to do in a day, why tack on an 3_____ burden? Unfortunately, it’s this kind of defeatist mentality 4 __keeps people from enhancing their lives through proper 5 and exercise. Here is the salient point, though: The health and fitness benefits you’ll derive from 6_____ the necessary work are worth whatever sacrifices you must make 7______ the way. I can’t count how many times I’ve heard the same 8 . Each time, I always give the same response: Yes, I say, working out is work. So is taking the 9 to eat right. 10 yourself on the couch or having drinks with friends after work is a lot easier than exercising, and hitting the McDonald’s drive thru takes a lot less time than cooking a 11 at home. But channel surfing, margaritas and a Quarter Pounder. With Cheese aren’t going to produce some of the things worth having—a low cholesterol level or the 12____ to go shirtless on the beach. Those benefits demand a ___13____ effort. I’m not saying you should eschew the ___14__ night on the town or gourmet meal at a five-star restaurant. Both have their ___15____ and are components of a well-rounded life. I’ve enjoyed my ___16____ of revelry and fine ___17___ and look forward to those special opportunities to experience more of the good life. But I’ve managed to find a balance between those ___18 pleasures and a permanent ___19____ to a regular workout and a healthy diet. Because, __20____, it is the latter that will have a lasting improvement on the overall quality of my life. 1. [A] come [B] catch [C] confront [D] face 2. [A] resistance [B] reluctance [C] persistence [D] existence 3. [A] exact [B] external [C] extra [D] extensive 4. [A] that [B] which [C] what [D] who 5. [A] food [B] nutrition [C] diet [D] recreation 6. [A] setting in [B] putting in [C] getting in [D] cutting in 7. [A] along [B] by [C] on [D] in 8. [A] reasons [B] questions [C] doubts [D] excuses 9. [A] chance [B] effort [C] time [D] interest 10. [A] Throwing [B] Planting [C] Sitting [D] Placing 11. [A] dish [B] dinner [C] meal [D] hamburger 12. [A] pride [B] confidence [C] enthusiasm [D] inspiration 13. [A] long time [B] long range [C] long term [D] long distance 14. [A] additional [B] emotional [C] occasional [D] sensational 15. [A] place [B] position [C] location [D] attraction 16. [A] share [B] part [C] portion [D] section 17. [A] meal [B] diet [C] dining [D] eating 18. [A] short dated [B] short lived [C] short legged [D] short tempered 19. [A] coherence [B] experience [C] adherence [D]remembrance 20. [A] in a word [B] in the end [C] in the future [D] in a nutshell |
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| 第10题：Economists often like to speak of Homo economicus—rational economic man. In practice, human economic behaviour is not quite as rational as the relentless logic of theoretical economics suggests it ought to be. When buying things in a straight exchange of money for goods, people often respond to changes in price in exactly the way that theoretical economics predicts. But when faced with an exchange whose outcome is predictable only on average, most people prefer to avoid the risk of making a loss than to take the chance of making a gain in circumstances when the average expected outcome of the two actions would be the same. There has been a lot of discussion about this discrepancy in the economic literature—in particular, about whether it is the product of cultural experience or is a reflection of a deeper biological phenomenon. So Keith Chen, of the Yale School of Management, and his colleagues decided to investigate its evolutionary past. They reasoned that if they could find similar behaviour in another species of primate (none of which has yet invented a cash economy) this would suggest that loss aversion evolved in a common ancestor. They chose the capuchin monkey, Cebus apella, a South American species often used for behavioral experiments. First, the researchers had to introduce their monkeys to the idea of a cash economy. They did this by giving them small metal discs while showing them food. The monkeys quickly learned that humans valued these inedible discs so much that they were willing to trade them for scrumptious pieces of apple, grapes and jelly. Preliminary experiments established the amount of apple that was valued as much as either a grape or a cube of jelly, and set the price accordingly, at one disc per food item. The monkeys were then given 12 discs and allowed to trade them one at a time for whichever foodstuff they preferred. Once the price had been established, though, it was changed. The size of the apple portions was doubled, effectively halving the price of apple. At the same time, the number of discs a monkey was given to spend fell from 12 to nine. The result was that apple consumption went up in exactly the way that price theory (as applied to humans) would predict. Indeed, averaged over the course of ten sessions it was within 1% of the theory’s prediction. One up to Cebus economicus. The experimenters then began to test their animals’ risk aversion. They did this by offering them three different trading regimes in succession. Each required choosing between the wares of two experimental “salesmen”. In the first regime one salesman offered one piece of apple for a disc, while the other offered two. However, half the time the second salesman only handed over one piece. Despite this deception, the monkeys quickly worked out that the second salesman offered the better overall deal, and came to prefer him. 21. The capuchin monkey was chosen for the experiments because____________ [A] it is from South America. [B] it doesn’t understand the concept of money. [C] it is often used in behavioral experiments. [D] it is cute and friendly. 22. How were the monkeys introduced to the idea of a cash economy? [A] They were told that metal discs could be traded for food. [B] They were given metal discs if they gave the researchers food. [C] They were shown the different values of three different kinds of food. [D] They were given some discs which researchers would exchange for food. 23. The researchers reduce the “cost” of apples in order to_________________ [A] see if the monkeys would “buy” more apples, as humans would. [B] see if the monkeys understood the idea of a cash economy. [C] see if the monkeys preferred apples or another kind of food. [D] see what the monkeys would buy with only nine metal discs. 24. The first trading regime mentioned in the final paragraph revealed that ___________ [A] monkeys don’t mind being deceived. [B] monkeys like to take risks. [C] monkeys don’t really understand the concept of a cash economy. [D] monkeys will “buy” from a deceptive person if they offer a better deal. 25. What is the next paragraph likely to cover? [A] A comparison of the way the monkeys behaved and real economic behaviour. [B] A second trading regime. [C] An explanation of the monkeys’ behaviour. [D] A conclusion on how this might affect theoretical economics. |
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