When it comes to translating basic
research into industrial Success, few nations can match Germany. Since the
1940s, the nation's vast industrial base has been fed with a constant stream of
new ideas and {{U}}expertise{{/U}} from science. And though German
prosperity (繁荣) has faltered (衰退) over the past decade because of the huge cost
of unifying east and west as well as the global economic decline, it still has
an enviable record for turning ideas into profit. Much of the
reason for that success is the Fraunhofer Society, a network of research
institutes that exists solely to solve industrial problems and create
sought—after technologies. But today the Fraunhofer institutes have competition.
Universities are taking an ever larger role in technology transfer, and
technology parks are springing up all over. These efforts are being complemented
by the federal programmes for pumping money into start-up companies.
Such a strategy may sound like a recipe for economic success, but it is
not without its critics. These people worry that favoring applied research will
mean neglecting basic science, eventually starving industry of fresh ideas, ff
every scientist starts thinking like an entrepreneur (企业家), the argument goes,
then the traditional principles of university research being curiosity-driven,
free and widely available will suffer. Others claim that many of the programmers
to promote technology transfer are a waste of money because half the small
businesses that are promoted are bound to go bankrupt within a few
years. While this debate continues, new ideas flow at a steady
rate from Germany's research networks, which bear famous names such as
Helmholtz, Max Planck and Leibniz. Yet it is the fourth network, the Fraunhofer
Society, that plays the greatest role in technology transfer.
Founded in 1949, the Fraunhofer Society is now Europe's largest organization for
applied technology, and has 59 institutes employing 12000 people. It continues
to grow. Last year, it swallowed up the Heinrich Hertz Institute for
Communication Technology in Berlin. Today, there are even Fraunhofers in the US
and Asia.
单选题
What factor can be attributed to German prosperity?
A. Technology transfer.
B. Good management.
C. Hard work.
D. Fierce competition.
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[解析] 细节题。利用题干关键词German prosperity可以定位到第一段“And though German prosperity has faltered over the past decade because of the huge cost of unifying east and west as well as the global economic decline, it still has an enviable record for turning ideas into profit”，即“尽管德国的繁荣因为统一东德和西德的巨大成本和全球经济的衰退而开始衰落，但是它仍旧因为其将想法变成利益而拥有令人羡慕的记录”，由此可知，德国繁荣的原因之一就是将想法变成利润，即把理论转化为技术，所以A为正确答案。
单选题
Which of the following is NOT true of traditional university research?
A. It is free.
B. It is profit-driven.
C. It is widely available
D. It is curiosity-driven.
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】[解析] 细节题。利用题干关键词traditional university research可以定位到第三段“...then the traditional principles of university research being curiosity-driven free and widely available will suffer”，即“属于好奇心驱动的、免费的和可广泛获得的大学研究的传统原则将受到不良影响”，所以正确答案为B。
单选题
The Fraunhofer Society is the largest organisation for applied
technology in ______.
A. Asia
B. USA
C. Europe
D. Africa
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】[解析] 细节题。利用题干Fraunhofer。可以定位到最后一段“Founded in 1949, the Fraunhofer Society is now Europe's largest Organisation for applied technology”，即“Fraunhofer成立于1949年，是目前欧洲最大的应用技术的组织”，可知答案为C。
单选题
When was the Fraunhofer Society founded?
A. in 1940.
B. Last year.
C. After the unification.
D. In 1949.
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[解析] 细节题。利用题干Fraunhofer可以定位到最后一段“Founded in 1949, the Fraunhofer Society...”，所以D为正确答案。
单选题
The word "expertise" in line 3 could be best replaced by ______.