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Question 71—80 are based on the following passage.
The fact that most Americans live in urban areas does not mean that they reside in the center of large cities. In fact, more Americans live in the suburbs of large metropolitan areas than in the cities themselves.
The Bureau of the Census regards any area with more than 2,500 people as an urban area, and does not consider boundaries of cities and suburbs.
According to the Bureau, the political boundaries are less significant than the social and economic relationships and the transportation and communication systems that integrate a locale. The term used by the Bureau for an integrated metropolis is an MSA, which stands for Metropolitan Statistical Area. In general, an MSA is any area that contains a city and its surrounding suburbs and has a total population of 50,000 or more.
At the present time, the Bureau reports more than 280 MSAs, which together account for 75 percent of the US population. In addition, the Bureau recognizes 18 megapolises, that is, continuous adjacent metropolitan areas. One of the most obvious megapolises includes a chain of hundreds of cities and suburbs across 10 states on the East Coast from Massachusetts to Virginia, including Boston, New York, and Washington, D.C. In the Eastern Corridor, as it is called, a population of 45 million inhabitants is concentrated. Another megapolis that is growing rapidly is the California coast from San Francisco through Los Angeles to San Diego.
11. Which of the following is the best title for the passage?
A. Metropolitan Statistical Areas
B. Types of Population Centers
C. The Bureau of the Census
D. Megapolises
12. According to the passage, where do most Americans live?
A. In the center of cities.
B. In the suburbs surrounding large cities.
C. In rural areas.
D. In small towns.
13. The underlined word “reside” in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to _____.
A. fill
B. decide
C. occupy
D. live
14. According to the Bureau of the Census, what is an urban area?
A. A chain of adjacent cities.
B. An area with at least 50,000 people.
C. The 18 largest cities.
D. An area with 2,500 people or more.
15. Which of the following are NOT considered important in defining an urban area?
A. Political boundaries.
B. Transportation networks.
C. Social relationships.
D. Economic systems.
16. The underlined word “integrate” in Paragraph 3 is closest in meaning to _____.
A. benefit
B. define
C. unite
D. restrict
17. Which of the following is NOT true?
A. An integrated metropolis is an MSA.
B. MSA stands for Metropolitan Statistical Area.
C. A metropolis includes at least a metropolitan.
D. An MSA refers to city and its suburbs, with over 50,000 people.
18. The underlined word “adjacent” in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to _____.
A. beside each other
B. growing very fast
C. the same size
D. densely populated
19. According to the passage, what is a megapolis?
A. One of the 10 largest cities in the United States.
B. One of the 18 largest cities in the United States.
C. One of the 100 cities between Boston and Washington.
D. Any number of continuous adjacent cities and suburbs.
20. Why does the author mention the Eastern Corridor and the California coast in Paragraph 4?
A. As examples of megapolises.
B. Because 75 percent of the population lives there.
C. To conclude the passage.
D. The Bureau of the Census is located there.
“what does the middleman do but add to the price of goods in the shops?” Such remarks are aimed at the intermediate operations between manufacturers and final customers. This practice usually attracts a lot of attention from the public and the press and the operation most talked about is what is often called wholesaling.
The wholesaler buys goods in large quantities from the manufacturers and sells them in smaller parcels to retailers, and for this service his selling price to the retailer is raised several percent higher. But his job is made more difficult by retail demand not necessarily running level with manufacturers’ production. Because he adjusts or regulates the flow of goods by holding stock until required, he frees the manufacturer, to some extent, from the effect on production of changing demand and having to bear the whole risk.
The manufacture can then keep up a steady production flow, and the retailer has no need to hold heavy stocks, who can call on the wholesaler for supplies any time. This wholesale function id like that of a valve in a water pipe. The middleman also bears part of the risk that would otherwise fall on the manufacturer and also the retailer.
The wholesaler provides a purely commercial service, for which he is too well rewarded. But the point that is missed by many people is that the wholesaler is not just someone adding to the cost of goods. It is true one could eliminate the wholesaler but one would still be left with his function: that of making sure that goods find their way to the people who want them.
21. “Middleman” in the passage almost equals to all the following in meaning EXCEPT _____.
A. go-between
B. intermediary
C. manufacturer
D. wholesaler
22. “This practice” in Paragraph 1 most probably refers to the fact that the middleman _____.
A. increases the prices in the shops
B. buys from you and sells to me
C. aims remarks at manufacturers
D. interferes with end user customers
23. The wholesaler obtains higher selling prices for _____.
A. small parcels he sells
B. goods he buys in bulk
C. the service he provides
D. the information he offers
24. A middleman’s work may become difficult because _____.
A. manufacturers run their production on a much higher level
B.market demand may not be the same as industrial production
C. retailers are not necessary in running their retailing business
D. retailers demand lower levels than those demanded by manufacturers
25. The wholesaler regulates the flow of goods by _____.
A. running level with manufacturers’ production
B. holding down stock of commodities
C. keeping stock for stronger demand
D. adjusting the prices of goods in time
26. The middleman relieves the producer of _____.
A. fluctuating market demand and staying at risk
B. the production of commodities for the retail market
C. some extent of production of changing demand
D. storing goods in a warehouse until they are needed
27. What function of the wholesaler is compared to a valve?
A. Controlling the flow of goods.
B. Pushing up demand from retailers.
C. Bearing part of the risk for manufacturers.
D. Selling goods to retailers.
28. Which of the following statement is true?
A. People cannot do without the wholesaler’s function.
B. The function of the wholesaler does not add to the cost of goods.
C. The wholesaler helps to reduce the price of goods in shops.
D. The wholesaler is well paid for his commercial service.
29. The author quite possibly believes that the function of the wholesaler is _____.
A. good but too costly
B. necessary but harmful
C. removable but necessary
D. acceptable but unnecessary
30. Which of the following titles is most appropriate for this passage?
A. The Greedy Wholesalers
B. The Wholesalers in the Public Eye
C. A Retail Market with Wholesalers
D. Can We Do without the Wholesaler?
