单选题 Once upon a time, innovation at Procter & Gamble flowed one way: from the United States outward. While the large Cincinnati-based corporation was no stranger to foreign markets, it usually sold them products that were already familiar to most Americans. Many Japanese families, for instance, swaddle their babies in Pampers diapers, and lots of Venezuelans brush their teeth with Crest. And of course (company executives assumed) Americans at home wanted these same familiar, red-white and blue brands. We might buy foreign-made cars, or chocolates, or cameras but household cleaners and detergents?
Recently, however, P&G broke with this long-standing tradition. Ariel, a P&G laundry detergent, was born overseas, and is a familiar sight on store shelves in Europe and Latin America. Now bilingual packages of Ariel Ultra, a super-concentrated cleaner, are appearing on supermarket shelves in Los Angeles.
Ariel's appearance in the United States reflects demographic changes making Hispanics the nation's fastest-growing ethnic group. Ariel is a hit with this population. In fact, many Mexican immigrants living in Southern California have been "importing" Ariel from Tijuana, Mexico. "Hispanics knew this product and wanted it," says P&G spokeswoman Marie Salvado. "We realized that we couldn't convince them to buy (our) other laundry detergents." P&G hopes that non-Hispanic consumers will give Ariel a try too.
Ariel's already strong presence in Europe may provide a springboard for the company to expand into other markets as well. Recently P&G bought Rakona, Czechoslovakia's top detergent maker. Ariel, currently a top seller in Germany, is likely to be one of the first new brands to appear in Czech supermarkets. And Ariel is not the only foreign idea that the company hopes to transplant back to its home territory. Cinch, an all-purpose spray cleaner similar to popular European products, is currently being test-marketed in California and Arizona. Traditionally Americans have used separate cleaners for different types of surfaces, but market research shows that American preferences are becoming more like those in other countries.
Insiders note that this new reverse flow of innovation reflects more sweeping changes at Procter & Gamble. The firm has hired many new Japanese, German, and Mexican managers who view P&G's business not as a one-way flow of American ideas, but a two-way exchange with other markets. Says Bonita Austin of the investment firm Wertheim-Schroeder, "When you met with P&G's top managers years ago, you wouldn't have seen a single foreign face."Today, "they could even be in the majority."
As Procter & Gamble has found, the United States is no longer an isolated market. Americans are more open than ever before to buying foreign-made products and to selling U. S. -made products overseas.

单选题 According to the passage, which of the following is tree?
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】[注释] 第五段最后两句表明:几年前在Procter & Gamble公司的高层管理人员中没有外国人,但现在外国人在公司的高层管理人员中甚至占多数。
单选题 According to the passage, all of the following are true about Ariel except______.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】[注释] 文章第四段表明:Ariel在德国是最畅销的洗涤剂,但在捷克斯洛伐仅是很可能将要上市的新品牌之一。题目问的是四个选项中哪一项不符合文章的意思,所以应该选A项。
单选题 The "insider" ( paragraph 5, line 1 ) is most probably.______.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】[注释] “insider”一词的意思是“内部的人、知道内情的人、权威人士”,因此文章中的“insider”很可能是公司的雇员或是了解情况的人,所以只有B项最符合题意。
单选题 According to the passage, Procter & Gamble hopes to transplant foreign idea back to its home territory because
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】[注释] 文章最后一段最后一句表明:对于购买外国制造的产品以及在海外销售美国产品,美国人比以前任何时候都持一种更开放的态度。在这题的几个选项中,只有A项最能说明问题。
单选题 The author may most probably agree that______.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】[注释] 作者在丈章中讲述的是Procter & Gamble公司新的销售理念,主要谈到的是该公司比以前更加注意美国市场与其他国家市场之间的双向交流。因此,在四个选项中,只有A项是最符合作者在丈章中所蕴含的意思的,即当代商业越来越重视全球概念。