单选题 "Welcome to U.S.A.! Major credit cards accepted!" By the million they are coming — no longer the tired, the poor, the wretched masses longing for the better living. There are the wealthy. "We don't have budget," says a biologist from Brazil, as she walks with two companies through New York City's south street, "we just use our credit cards." The US has long been of the world's most popular tourist destinations, but this year has been exceptional. First there was the world Cup, which draws thousands from every corner of the globe; then came the weakening of the US dollar against major currencies. Now the US, still the world's superpower, can also claim to be the world's bargain basement. Nobody undersells American these days on just about everything, from customer 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 dollars in 1994. That's up from 74 billion dollars 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 in the U. S. A. 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 has become as important as watching Old Faithful Fountains erupt in Yellowstone Park or sunbathing on a breath in Florida. The US has come at least 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 dollars 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 long and spend more money at each stop; an average of 12. 2 night and 1,624 dollars a traveler versus the Americans' four nights and 298 dollars.
单选题 From what the Brazilian biologist says, we know that tourists like her ______.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】解析:本题为推理题。根据文章第2段第2句以及整个文章所叙述的来美国旅游的人的巨大的购物热情,可知这位巴西生物学家既不是善于制定预算,也不是不愿带现金,更不是经常超支,而是购物热情高,根本不在乎花多少钱。
单选题 What's the main idea of this whole passage?
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】解析:本题为归纳题。A、C、D文章都提到,但太片面,不是文章主要讲的。文章从头到尾讲的都是来美国旅游的人巨大的购物热情。
单选题 The reason why 1994 was exceptional is that ______.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】解析:本题为推理题。根据文章第3段所述,可知1994年对美国来说是特别的一年,因为在这一年里,世界杯足球赛在美国举行,美元对其他主要币种的汇率下降,所以吸引了4700万人到美国旅游。
单选题 By saying "nobody undersells America"(Line 5, Para. 3)the author means that ______.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】解析:本题为推理题。根据文章第3段的内容可知,由于美元汇率下降,美国商品成了廉价的商品,无论电器还是网球拍,美国的商品均以比其他国家的商品低30%~70%的价格出售。
单选题 Why does the author assert that all American things are fascinating to foreigners?
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】解析:本题为推理题。根据文章第4段第2句:“There remains an…US television series.”可知美国货之所以吸引人,是受益于美国电影和电视剧的宣传。
单选题 From the passage we can conclude that the US has come to realize that ______.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】解析:本题为细节题。根据文章最后1段的第1句:“The US has…in the bank.”可得出正确答案应为B。
单选题 From the whole passage we can infer that tourism in America is ______.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】解析:本题为推理题。根据文章的主要内容,我们不难推断出美国的旅游业很发达。