名校最新大学英语四级阅读精讲的系列讲义：(130)

　　Welcome to the U.S.A.! Major credit cards are accepted!

　　By the millions they are coming no longer the tired, the poor, the wretched masses longing for a better living. These are the wealthy. We dont have a budget, says a biologist from Brazil, as she walks with two companions through New York Citys South Street. We just use our credit cards.

　　The US has long been one of the worlds most popular tourist destinations, but this year has been exceptional. First, there was the World Cup, which drew thousands from every corner of the globe; then came the weakening of the US dollar against major currencies. Now the US, still the worlds superpower, can also claim to be the worlds bargain basement. Nobody undersells America these days on just about everything, from consumer electronics to fashion clothes to tennis rackets. Bottom retail prices anywhere from 30 % to 70% lower than those in Europe and Asia have attracted some 47 million visitors, who are expected to leave behind $ 79 billion in 1994. Thats up from $74 billion the year before.

　　True, not everyone comes just for bargains. There remains an undeniable fascination in the rest of the world with all things American, nourished by Hollywood films and US television series. But shopping the USA is proving irresistible. Every week thousands arrive with empty suitcases ready to be filled; some even rent an additional hotel room to hold their purchases. The buying binge(无节制)has become as important as watching Old Faithful Fountains erupt in Yellowstone Park or sunbathing on a beach in Florida.

　　The US has come at last to appreciate what other countries learned long ago: the pouring in of foreign tourists may not always be convenient, but it does put money in the bank. And with a trade deficit at about $130 billion and growing for the past 12 months, the US needs all the deposits it can get. Compared with American tourists abroad, visitors to the US stay longer and spend more money at each stop; an average of 12.2 night and $ 1624 a traveler versus the Americans four nights and $298.

　　1. From what the Brazilian biologist says, we know that tourists like her ____.

　　A) are reluctant to carry cash with them

　　B) simply don t care how much they spend

　　C) are not good at planning their expenditure

　　D) often spend more money than they can afford

　　2.The reason why 1994 was exceptional is that ____.

　　A) it saw an unusually large number of tourists to the US

　　B) it witnessed a drop in the number of tourists to the US

　　C) tourism was hardly affected by the weakening of the US dollar that year

　　D) Tourists came to the US for sightseeing rather than for bargains that year

　　3.By saying nobody undersells America , the author means that ____.

　　A) no other country underestimates the competitiveness of American products

　　B) nobody expects the Americans to cut the prices of their commodities

　　C) nobody restrains the selling of American goods

　　D) no other country sells at a lower price than America

　　4.Why does the author assert that all things American are fascinating to foreigners?

　　A) Because they have gained much publicity through the American media

　　B) Because they represent the world s latest fashions

　　C) Because they embody the most sophisticated technology

　　D)Because they are available at all tourist destinations

　　5.From the passage we can conclude that the US has come to realize____.

　　A) the weakening of the US dollar can result in trade deficits

　　B) the lower the retail prices, the greater in profits

　　C) tourism can make great contributions to its economy

　　D) visitors to the US are wealthier than US tourists abroad

　　答案与解析：

　　1.B。

　　从巴西生物学家所说的话，我们得知像她这样的游客完全不介意他们花多少钱。细节推理型，通过对某一段话的理解，并进行总结和概括。原文第二段提到现在涌入的是富人,所以当她说 We don t have a budget, we just use our credit cards 是指花钱不用做预算，想买就用信用卡，其暗含的意思就是选项B所表达的信息。故本题的正确答案是B。

　　2.A。

　　1994年特别突出的原因是在那一年到美国的游客数目非常大。细节推理型，通过对某一段话的理解，并进行总结和概括。原文第三段说明美国早已成为旅游胜地，1994年不同于往年，其原因是世界杯吸引了大批游客，美元下跌使在美国购物便宜到了极点，这更吸引了大量的游客。而这一观点恰好与选项A相一致。这句话中的动词saw的意思是 目睹了 之意。故本题的正确答案是A。

　　3.D。

　　在文章第三段中，作者说了这样一句话：nobody undersells America，他所暗含的意思是没有哪个国家的物价水平比美国更低。细节推理型，通过对某一段话的理解，并进行总结和概括。在文章的第三段中Now the US, still the worlds superpower, can also claim to be the worlds bargain basement的中文意思是：美国现在仍是世界上的超级大国，也可以声称是世界上的廉价商品部。所以，nobody undersells America这句话所暗含的意思是：没有哪个国家的物价水平比美国更低。在后文中，作者又提到了美国的零售底价比欧洲低30%，比亚洲低70%。这一事实更证明了这一观点的正确性。故本题的正确答案是D。

　　4.A。

　　作者为什么得出结论：所有的美国货对外国人来说都是非常具有吸引力的?细节推理型，通过对某一段话的理解，并进行总结和概括。文章的第四段第二句话There remains an undeniable fascination in the rest of the world with all things American, nourished by Hollywood films and US television series. But shopping the USA is proving irresistible.说明媒体使人们对美国货产生迷恋。在四个选项中，只有选项A与这句话在观点上是一致的。故本题的正确答案是A。

　　5.C。

　　读完这篇文章，我们可以得出结论：美国已经意识到旅游业为美国经济的发展做出非常重大的贡献。主题归纳型，通过总结和归纳，进而得出文章的主题。通读完全文后，我们可以得知：大批外国游客涌入美国，并给美国政府带来了大笔收入。另外，文章第五段强调美国终于开始重视外国游客大量涌入给美国经济带来的巨大贡献。综合以上两点，我们可以得知选项C正是作者的观点和结论。故本题的正确答案是C。