题文
New technology links the world as never before. Our planet has shrunk. It’s now a “global village” where countries are only seconds away by fax or phone or satellite link. And, of course, our ability to benefit from this high-tech communications equipment is greatly increased by foreign language skills.Deeply involved with this new technology is a kind of modern businesspeople who have a growing respect for the economic value of doing business abroad. In modern markets, success overseas often helps support domestic business efforts.
Overseas assignments (指派) are becoming increasingly important to advancement within executive (行政) ranks. The executive stationed in another country no longer need fear being “out of sight and out of mind.” He or she can be sure that the overseas effort is central to the company’s plan for success, and that promotions often follow or accompany an assignment abroad. If an employee can succeed in a difficult assignment overseas, superiors will have greater confidence in his or her ability to manage back in the United States where cross-cultural considerations and foreign language issues are becoming more and more common.
Thanks to a variety of relatively inexpensive communications devices (装置) with business applications, even small businesses in the United States are able to get into international markets.
English is still the international language of business. But there is an ever-growing need for people who can speak another language. A second language isn’t generally required to get a job in business, but having language skills gives a candidate the edge when other qualifications appear to be equal.
The employee posted abroad who speaks the country’s language has an opportunity to fast-forward certain negotiations, and can have the cultural insight (洞察力) to know when it is better to move more slowly. The employee at the home office who can communicate well with foreign customers over the telephone or by fax machine is an obvious asset (有价值的人或物) to the firm.
小题1:With the increased use of high-tech communications equipment, businesspeople ________.A．are eager to work overseas B．have to get familiar with modern technology C．are gaining more economic benefits from domestic operations D．are attaching more importance to their overseas business小题2:In this passage, “out of sight and out of mind” (Line 3, Para. 3) probably means ________. A．leaving all care and worry behind B．being unable to think properly for lack of insight C．being totally out of touch with business at home D．missing opportunities for promotion when abroad小题3:According to the passage, what is an important consideration of international corporations in employing people today? A．Ability to speak the customer’s language. B．Connections with businesses overseas.C．Technical know-how. D．Business experience.小题4:The advantage of employees having foreign language skills is that they can ________. A．fast-forward their proposals to headquarters B．better control the whole negotiation process C．easily make friends with businesspeople abroadD．easily find new approaches to meet market needs 题型：未知 难度：其他题型
答案
小题1:D
小题2:D
小题3:A
小题4:B
解析
这篇材料讲的是外语能力在国际商业中的作用，论述的重心落在了国际商业的重要性和易行性上，仅仅在最后两段提到了外语能力的作用。
小题1:细节题：根据第二段的句子： have a growing respect forthe economic value of doing business abroad，意思是对海外业务的经济价值的认可正在增加。第三段认可了海外业务所能带来的仕途价值，这两点共同说明bussinesspeople对海外业务的重视。选C。
小题2:句意理解题：前一句是Overseas assignments are becoming increasingly important toadvancement within executive ranks，句意较好理解，意思是海外职务对于管理人员的升职越来越重要了。从上下文大意来看，确实是在讲述海外任职和职位升迁的关系。文中的观点是海外任职有助于职位提升，那么out of sight可能就是指自己的业绩不入领导的视野，out of mind就是指有了升职机会时，海外高管从来不在领导的考虑之列。符合这个意思的是D
小题3:细节题：第五段开头先讲到英语作为国际通用语的重要作用，但马上话锋一转，指出会讲客户的语言越来越受到重视。此后则直截了当地表示语言技能会增加应聘者被聘用的机会：having language skills gives a candidate the edge when other qualifications appear to be equal，这里的edge就是指的优势。选A
小题4:推理题：从最后一段的句子：The employee posted abroad who speaks the country’s principal language，意思是能够说当地语言的海外员工。下文对这样的员工有两点描述，一是有机会把某些谈判快速推进（has an opportunity to fast-forward certain negotiations），二是具有文化洞察力，知道何时该把谈判放慢（can have thecultural insight to know when it is better to move more slowly）。这两点都是和谈判有关，一快一慢，也就是如何把握谈判的节奏。选B
考点
据考高分专家说，试题“New technology links.....”主要考查你对 [政治经济类阅读 ]考点的理解。政治经济类阅读
政治经济类文章的概念：
要做好这类阅读，平时就要注意了解国内外发生的政治经济大事，掌握一定背景知识，对这类文章的叙述特点及内容安排有一定了解，还要扩展这方面的词汇。阅读这类文章，要抓住文章的核心，即文章整体和各段主要在说什么，也要注意段落之间的逻辑关系。
如何备考政治经济类阅读理解题：
【题型说明】政治经济类阅读文章是高考常选材料之一。该类文章时代气息浓郁，语言鲜活，但熟字新义词、超纲词及专业词语多，长句、难句多。政治类文章大多数是同学们感性趣的内容，读起来倒有似曾相识的感觉，经济类文章读起来就像是雾里看花，文章看完，一头雾水。再加之这类文章的命题侧重于词义猜测、推理判断和文章主旨，同学们对这类题材是望而生畏。
【备考策略】建立心理优势。针对不同体裁的文章，我们要采取相应的阅读方法和技巧。政治类文章多采用记叙文形式，我们可采取“顺读法”，以便抓关键语句，领会文章主旨；而经济类文章则多采用说明文形式，我们则可以采取“逆读法”，先读试题，再从文章中查找有用信息。若遇到的确难读的材料。千万不用着急，因为你觉得难，其他人也一定是同感。在高考前，我们就要有这种心理准备，高考试卷肯定有一、两篇难以阅读的材料。不过，我们平时可以有意识地从报刊杂志上找一些较难的阅读材料来阅读，以培养自己迎难而上的心理素质。
【答题方法】
1、寻找主干：
根据英语中五种基本句型结构，把句子中的主语、谓语、宾语、表语等主要成分找出来，其他成分如定语、状语、补语等则易于理解。找到了句子主干，句子的意思至少明白了一半。
2、剔除从句：
在一个长句中可能会出现若干个从句，在理解时，如果把各个从句剔除出来单独理解，然后把大意拼凑起来，整个长句的意思就会明白六、七分。
3、辨别分句：
一个长句如果是由几个并列、转折、递进、对比关系的分句组成，句中往往有表示这些分句关系的连接词，只要能弄清楚分句和分句之间的逻辑关系，再把各层分句的意思加以连贯，整个长句的句意基本上能跃然脑中。
4、寻找关键词：
如果一个句子看完，一点句意的感觉也没有，下下策就是抓住句中的关键词，通过关键词大体弄懂这个长句的意思。
