2008年大学英语四级阅读练习讲座(第四十四讲)

　　Consumers are being confused and misled by the hodge-podge (大杂烩) of environmental claims made by household products, according to a “green labeling” study published by Consumers International Friday .
　　Among the report’s more outrageous (令人无法容忍的) findings，a German fertilizer described itself as “ earthworm friendly”， a brand of flour said it was “non-polluting” and a British toilet paper claimed to be “environmentally friendlier”
　　The study was written and researched by Britain’s National Consumer Council (NCC) for lobby group Consumer International. It was funded by the German and Dutch governments and the European Commission.
　　 “ While many good and useful claims are being made , it is clear there is a long way to go in ensuring shoppers are adequately informed about the environmental impact of products they buy,” said Consumers International director Anna Fielder .
　　 The 10-country study surveyed product packaging in Britain. Western Europe, Scandinavia and the United States. It found that products sold in Germany and the United Kingdom made the most environmental claims on average.
　　 The report focused on claims made by specific products , such as detergent (洗涤剂) insect sprays and by some garden products . It did not test the claims, but compared them to labeling guidelines set by the International Standards Organization (ISO) in September, 1999.
　　 Researchers documented claims of environmental friendliness made by about 2,000 products and found many too vague or too misleading to meet ISO standards.
　　 “Many products had specially-designed labels to make them seem environmentally friendly, but in fact many of these symbols mean nothing,” said report researcher Philip Page.
　　 “Laundry detergents made the most number of claims with 158. Household cleaners were second with 145 separate claims, while paints were third on our list with 73. The high numbers show how very confusing it must be for consumers to sort the true from the misleading.” he said.
　　 The ISO labeling standards ban vague or misleading claims on product packaging, because terms such as “environmentally friendly” and “non-polluting” cannot be verified.“What we are now pushing for is to have multinational corporations meet the standards set by the ISO.” said Page.
　　1. According to the passage, the NCC found it outrageous that ______
　　 A) all the products surveyed claim to meet ISO standards
　　 B) the claims made by products are often unclear or deceiving
　　 C) consumers would believe many of the manufactures’ claim
　　 D) few products actually prove to be environment friendly
　　 2. As indicated in this passage , with so many good claims , the consumers ___
　　 A) are becoming more cautious about the products they are going to buy
　　 B) are still not willing to pay more for products with green labeling
　　 C) are becoming more aware of the effects different products have on the environment
　　 D) still do not know the exact impact of different products on the environment
　　 3. A study was carried out by Britain’s NCC to _______
　　 A) find out how many claims made by products fail to meet environmental standards
　　 B) inform the consumers of the environmental impact of the products they buy
　　 C) examine claims made by products against ISO standards
　　 D) revise the guidelines set by the International Standards Organization
　　 4. What is one of the consequences caused by the many claims of household products?
　　 A) They are likely to lead to serious environmental problems
　　 B) Consumers find it difficult to tell the true from the false
　　 C) They could arouse widespread anger among consumer
　　 D) Consumers will be tempted to buy products they don’t need
　　 5. It can be inferred from the passage that the lobby group Consumer International wants to ____.
　　 A) make product labeling satisfy ISO requirements
　　 B) see all household products meet environmental standards
　　 C) warn consumers of the danger of so-called green products
　　 D) verify the efforts of non-polluting products
　　答案和分析：
　　这是一篇关于巴西人口增长率下降原因分析的说明文。短文开门见山提出主题：巴西人口增长率下降主要是意外的原因(by accident);第二段列举人口增长率下降的数据;而后用三段篇幅剖析两大特殊原因：通俗电视连续剧和分斯付款计划，第三段第三句至第四段剖析连续剧导致人口增长率下降的机理，第五段讲分期付款带来的消费模式的改变及其与人口繁殖的关系。
　　　　 1. (A)主题句理解。短文第一句中more by accident than design相当于more by chance than on purpose.
　　　　 2. (D)要点定位推断。短文中两处提到Third World countries: ①第一段第二句 “countries such as India”;②第二段最后一句 “an achievement that makes it the envy of many other Third World countries”。两句都暗示这些国家做得不如巴西成功。
　　　　 3. (D)词语理解。由上下文确定put it down to 中的it 指上文巴西成功降低人口增长率的事实，句中to 后接的是导致这一事实的两大原因(电视剧和分期付款计划)，前后显然是一种因果关系。
　　　　 4. (A)要点定位归纳。本题指向第三、四两段关于电视连续剧影响人口出生率的要点：电视剧中把上层阶级行为模式和价值观包装得十分诱人，传递到巴西的各个地方，影响着各个阶层的生活方式。少生孩子就是这一生活方式的一大特点。
　　　　 5. (B)要点结论归纳。conclusion 必然在短文最后一段，由consumption was incompatible with unlimited reproduction 即可归纳结论B。