Section III Reading Comprehension
Directions:
Each of the passages below is followed by some questions. For each question four answers are given. Read the passages carefully and choose the best answer to each of the questions. Put your choice in the ANSWER SHEET. (40 points)
Text 1
The entrepreneur, according to French economist J.B. Say, “is a person who shifts economic resources out of an area of lower and into an area of higher productivity and yield.” But Say’s definition does not tell us who this entrepreneur is. Some define the entrepreneur simply as one who starts his or her own new and small business. For our purposes, we will define the entrepreneur as a person who takes the necessary risks to organize and manage a business and receives the financial profits and nonmonetary rewards.
The man who opens a small pizza restaurant is in business, but is he an entrepreneur? He took a risk and did something, but did he shift resources or start the business? If the answer is yes, then he is considered an entrepreneur. Ray Kroc is an example of an entrepreneur because he founded and established McDonald’s. His hamburgers were not a new idea, but he applied new techniques, resource allocations, and organizational methods in his venture. Ray Kroc upgraded the productivity and yield from the resources applied to create his fast-food chain. This is what entrepreneurs do; this is what entrepreneurship means.
Many of the sharp, black-and-white contrasts between the entrepreneur and the professional have faded to gray color. Formerly, professionals such as doctors, lawyers, dentists, and accountants were not supposed to be entrepreneurial, aggressive, or market oriented. They were “above” the market-driven world. Entrepreneurs, on the other hand, were the mavericks of society. They were risk-takers who aggressively sought to make something happen. Long hours were about all the two worlds had in common. However, increased competition, saturated markets, and a more price-conscious public have changed the world of the professionals. Today they need to market their skills, talents, and competencies. Lawyers advertise their services. Doctors specialize in one form of surgery. Accounting firms join with other businesses (e.g., consulting and law) to serve clients.
Entrepreneurs exhibit many different behaviors; searching for a specific personality pattern is very difficult. Some entrepreneurs are quiet, introverted, and analytical. On the other hand, some are brash, extroverted, and very emotional. Many of them share some qualities. Viewing change as the norm, entrepreneurs usually search for it, respond to it, and treat it as an opportunity. An entrepreneur such as Ray Kroc of McDonald’s is able to take resources and shift them to meet a need. Making the decision to shift resources works better if a person is creative, experienced, and confident.
41. According to the first paragraph, who can be regarded as an entrepreneur?
[A] The CEO of a big company. [B] The owner of a profitable restaurant.
[C] A man who started a new kind of business. [D] A successful salesman.
42. According to the text, the professionals .
[A] are quite different from entrepreneurs even now
[B] were considered to be enterprising and market-centered
[C] were price-conscious
[D] have to advertise themselves in nowadays
43. From the text, we learn that .
[A] an entrepreneur should be very extroverted
[B] an entrepreneur should be quick to seize opportunities
[C] change is not norm in an entrepreneur’s eyes
[D] the French economist J.B. Say is the first person who gave the definition of “entrepreneur”
44. The purpose of the author in writing the passage is to .
[A] complete the definition of entrepreneur
[B] tell the readers what is entrepreneur and the main characteristics of entrepreneurs
[C] show what kind of people can become entrepreneurs
[D] illustrate why Ray Kroc can become an entrepreneur
45. What will most possibly follow the text?
[A] An example of how an entrepreneur operates. [B] Another theory about entrepreneurship.
[C] The bad effects of entrepreneurs. [D] The good effects of entrepreneurs.
答案解析
41. C 推断题。根据第一段可知，一个企业家必须具备三个条件：有效配置有利的资源并使自己有所得;是创业者;冒必要的风险。A中的首席执行官，B中的老板和D中的销售商都不一定是创业者。只有C，自己开创新事业的人才同时符合以上三个条件，故选C。
42. D 推断题。由题干关键词the professionals定位文章第三段，D提到如今他们需要推销自己，与文中的the need to market their skills, talents, and competencies意思相符，故为正确答案;B所说的有事业心、以市场为中心是企业家的特质，故排除;第一句提到：现在企业家和专业人员之间的明显差异已经逐渐变得模糊了，由此可知A不正确;C为强干扰项，价格意识是针对大众而非只针对专业人士的，故排除。
43. B 细节题。由选项可知，本题针对企业家的情况进行提问，第四段提到企业家们在性格上是有所不同的，有的冲动、外向，有的从容含蓄，但他们有一个共同的特点，就是冷静看待变化，寻找变化并对其作出反应，把变化看作机遇，由此可排除A和C，B提到应该迅速抓住机遇，与该段中treat it (change) as an opportunity意思相符，故为答案。文中并没有说J.B. Say是给entrepreneur定义的第一人，因此也可排除D。
44. B 主旨题。文章开篇提到J.B. Say给entrepreneur下的定义只是一个引子，并不是作者的写作意图，故排除A;文章第二段开始谈到如何判断真正的企业家，第三段比较企业家和专业人士的不同，第四段谈到企业家的特质，由此可知B最符合文意。文章只是提到企业家的特点，但并未具体说明哪种人可以成为企业家，故C错误，而谈到 Ray Kroc只是举了一个成功的例子，故D也是错误的。
45. A 推断题。文章最后说一个人如果具有创造力、富有经验且有信心，就能作出正确的决定使资源得到更好的配置和利用。这应该是作者提出的一个论点，但文章此处并没有用例子去证明怎样运用创造力、经验和信心，因此可推断，作者接下来将会举例对此进行说明，所以选A。
参考译文
法国经济学家J.B. Say认为，企业家就是把经济资源从生产力和产量较低的领域转移到生产力和产量较高的领域的人。但是Say所下的定义并没有告诉我们谁是企业家。有些人把企业家简单地定义为白手起家，开创自己小规模的事业的人。从我们的角度来讲，我们将企业家定义为承担必要的风险来组织和管理一事业并获得经济收益和非货币回报的人。
一个开小比萨店的人是在做买卖，但是他是一个企业家吗?他承担着风险从事买卖，但他转移了资源或创业了吗?如果答案是肯定的话，那他就可以被看成是个企业家。雷·克罗克就是一个企业家的范例，因为他创立了麦当劳。他所卖的汉堡包并不是个新事物，但是他在创业过程中应用了新的技术、资源配置方法和组织方法。雷·克罗克从资源分配中提高了生产力和产量，从而创造出了他的速食连锁企业。这就是企业家所做的事，也就是企业家的含义。
企业家和专业人员之间许多明显的、黑白分明的差异现在都逐渐变得模糊了。在过去，人们认为像医生、律师、牙医、会计师等专业人员都不是具有创业技能的、富有冒险精神或有市场导向观念的人。他们位于市场驱使的世界之上。另一方面，企业家们是社会中特立独行者。他们是积极地探索并促使某些事发生的冒险者。两个世界的共同之处在于时间漫长。然而，不断加剧的竞争、饱和的市场以及一个更加具有金钱意识的社会改变了专业人员的世界。今天他们需要推销他们的技能、才干和能力。律师需要为他们的服务做广告;医生只专攻于某一外科手术;会计公司兼营其他的业务，例如客户咨询和法律事务。
企业家们展示许多不同的行为，要从中找出一种特定的个性模式是很困难的。有些企业家是从容的、含蓄的，具有很强的分析能力。另一方面，有些是冲动的、外向的，也非常情绪化的。但他们都有一些共同的特征，那就是处变不惊，善于发现变化并对其作出反应，并把变化看作机遇。一个像麦当劳的雷·克罗克那样的企业家能够利用并合理分配资源来满足需求。一个人如果具有创造力、有信心并富有经验，就能作出正确的决定使资源得到更好的配置和利用。
