填空题
1 [■] At the turn of the century, the American economy shifted from its reliance on bulk manufacturing to a more service-based domain and lightweight high technology products. 2 [■] The period when manufactured goods were produced by semi-skilled workers in factories located not far from the raw materials that were transported by rail, truck, and canal was drawing to a close. 3 [■] Highly trained scientists and technicians were developing products based upon electronic devices rather than tons of brute steel. 4 [■]
1 [■] This new era allowed for the dispersal of manufacturing facilities and company headquarters. 2 [■] With this freedom of location came the problem of transferring information and goods to scattered places. 3 [■] Some items could be delivered electronically, but discs, paper, tapes and the like posed some serious logistical problems. 4 [■] Heralded as one of the great entrepreneurial figures of recent times, Fred Smith took astonishing risks to fulfill his vision and go against the United States Postal Service. For us, who live in a changing context of transportation and communication, his actions seem less precipitous and rash than to his contemporaries. But the Federal Express story should serve as a reminder that many of the best entrepreneurs are just as skilled at judging, controlling and minimizing risks as they are in taking them.
With much of Smith"s family in the transportation industry, he used part of the profits from selling his inherited father"s restaurants to serve as venture capital. 1 [■] Though he did well in school, his interest focused on extra curricular activities, including starting a record label at age 15 that still exists today. 2 [■] At Yale, he enrolled with the Marine Corp Reserve Officers Training Program and the Flying Club. 3 [■] He focuses his thesis on discussing the need for moving high priority, time-sensitive material in a more efficient manner. 4 [■] Aware that few packages were sent directly to their destination by existing carriers, Smith proposed to have them shipped from one city to the next on different airlines to their final destination. Smith"s professor, citing problems with federal regulations and competition from larger airlines that would preclude any chance of such a firm being successful, gave the paper a C.
After dropping out of college, Smith turned a faltering airplane engine repair business into a stable business. 1 [■] It was from there that he began his dream of sending packages overnight in the formation of Federal Express. 2 [■] By studying where the traffic of priority items was headed, Smith was able to construct a service that answered the complaints that many businesses had with existing services. 3 [■] He initiated a postal service, which guaranteed the secure delivery of any items within a minimum of 3 days. 4 [■] Smith contacted airline carriers and offered them a percentage of the fees he charged so that he may be able to ship his items on their planes via the fastest route possible.
Today, the FedEx, as the company is termed, is synonymous with speedy delivery. It is one of the most lucrative and fastest growing businesses in the world. It boasts headquarters in virtually any location on the globe, while its employees are respected for their courtesy and efficiency and dealing with customers.

electronic: implemented on a computer or computer network
entrepreneur: a person who organizes, operates, and assumes the risk for a business venture
extra-curricular: being outside the regular curriculum of a school or college
carrier: one that transports or conveys

填空题 Look at the four squares in paragraph 1 that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.
It was the dawn of a new industrialized era.
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填空题 Look at the four squares in paragraph 2 that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.
Companies could locate their basis in areas most conducive to attracting the best managers, scientists and workers.
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填空题 Look at the four squares in paragraph 3 that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.
During his junior year at the university, he wrote a paper analyzing the state of the U.S. freight service.
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填空题 Look at the four squares in paragraph 4 that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.
This included weekends and any extraneous statutory holidays as well.
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