[单选题]
In 1937， the economist Ronald Coase asked a simple question.Why do companies exist? Classical economics did not have a good answer for why everyone did not transact fluidly in the open market.Centrally planned companies with employees stood out as “islands of conscious power”， like “lumps of butter condensing in a pail of buttermilk”， as one contemporary put it.Coase said there were lumps in the buttermilk because there were costs to doing everything in the market.Take hiring labour.You had to find people to do things for you.You had to work out the right price.It was more efficient for entrepreneurs to hire employees who agreed simply to follow orders in exchange for pay.
Technology has cut the transaction costs of hiring in the open market.Xenios Thrasyvoulou runs an online freelancer marketplace called PeoplePerHour， which allows entrepreneurs to chop up jobs into tasks and auction them off to workers they have never met， but can nonetheless trust because they have quality ratings from previous gigs， regardless of the fact they are not employees but “independent contractors”.
Yet the economist Chris Dillow points out that it still makes sense to have some workers in-house： people you want to keep away from competitors; people who create your intellectual property and keep your secrets.The fall in transaction costs has not eliminated the need for companies.But it is shifting the borderline between a central core of employees and a margin of not-quite-employees， who can be picked up and put down at will in the open market.
This has troubling implications for inequality， not just inequality of income but inequality of security.Of course， some people may well opt for life on the margin because they value the variety.The talented may prosper in the open market by auctioning their time to the highest bidder.But others may find they do not have a choice - that they do not have the skills or qualities to persuade companies to move them from the margin to the core.
Policymakers are not powerless in the face of these technological forces.Tax and regulation help determine where the corporate boundary lies.In the UK， tax policy encourages the swell of the margin， since employing someone directly incurs a bigger tax bill than using a self-employed contractor to do the same work.The government tried to reduce the disparity by raising tax on the self-employed， but relented at the first sign of resistance.
Employment law， in contrast， draws a line in the sand.It states that when companies exert control over how and when people work， they must bring them in-house and make them employees.There are companies straining at that boundary already.Some are running over it without punishment from the state.With technology and tax policy pushing relentlessly towards a bigger margin and a smaller core， the government will need to beef up employment law enforcement dramatically if it wants to hold the line.
The shifting borderline between the core and the margin may______.
Aresult from employees' insecurity
Bcontribute to income inequality
Cworsen unfair competition
Dreduce job opportunities
参考答案：B
[单选题]
If a genetic test could tell whether you are at increased risk of getting cancer or Alzheimer's， would you take it? Once used only for medical reasons? basic predictive genetic tests can now be ordered online for a few hundred dollars.In April，one company， 23andMe， in California? received regulatory approval to screen for risk factors connected to ten diseases and genetic conditions.The ruling could open the floodgates for others to sell direct to consumers.
Unlike diagnostic genetic tests， predictive ones are conducted on people without symptoms.Tests might influence financial as well as medical decisions.Someone likely to contract cancer may buy cancer or critical- illness cover， which pays a lump sum upon diagnosis.Because predictive tests - unlike diagnostic ones - often need not be disclosed， the customer can secure an advantage over a future insurer.
So underwriters warn that predictive genetic testing could well lead to adverse selection.The New York Times recently reported on a woman who bought long-term care insurance after testing positive for ApoE4，a mutation of a gene related to increased risk of Alzheimer's.The insurer had tested her memory three times before issuing the policy， but could not know about the genetic result.Asymmetry of information - when the customer knows more than the insurer - is the industry's nightmare.If predictive tests further improve and become more common while non-disclosure rules stay in place， some insurance products might eventually die out.Either insurers would go belly-up， or premiums would become prohibitively expensive.Hence， argue some insurers， if the customer knows something relevant about their health， so should the insurer.
However， those seeking new policies fear that underwriters may use predictive information to discriminate.Some might lose access to insurance.This raises ethical questions about when， if ever， genetic discrimination is acceptable.Moreover， since the relative role that genes play in the development of diseases is still being studied， some people might be unfairly and wrongly penalised.
Regulations today often protect consumers from the compulsory disclosure of predictive tests.But the rules are patchy.In Britain the industry has agreed to a blanket suspension， renewable every three years， on using predictive genetic information.In America the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act bans health insurers from using such results， but is silent on other types of insurance.
Some regulators， such as Germany's， have outlawed direct-to-consumer tests.But nothing stops Germans from ordering from abroad， and， just as it became normal for life insurers to ask for family history， so insurers will surely eventually have access to relevant genetic information.The question will be what they are allowed to do with it.When blood tests for AIDS first appeared， insurers also complained about adverse selection.Many jurisdictions ruled they could not be used for calculating health premiums， as these were a basic good， but could be used for life policies.As genetic testing spreads， society and insurers may face many similar difficult assessments.
Insurers argue that there should be______.
Aequal access to predictive information
Brestraint on genetic test development
Cpolicy support for new insurance products
Dlegislative control on premium increases
参考答案：A
[单选题]
Do Americans hate science? They certainly seem to hate it more than they used to， as they rage against experts in every field.This is more than a traditional American distaste for eggheads and intellectuals.Americans， increasingly， are acting on myths and misinformation about science， and placing themselves at significant risk.Of course， Americans don't really hate science.Rather， it is more accurate to say that the American public distrusts scientists? rather than science itself.Scientists， however， should be consoled by the fact that they are disdained not for their work， but for being part of an undifferentiated mass of “experts”， whom a fair number of Americans now view as， at best， a suspect political class， and， at worst， as an enemy.
In one sense， this attack on the defenders of established knowledge was inevitable.It is not only fueled by an obvious culprit-the internet-but also by the unintended side effects of otherwise positive social changes.Universal education and increased social mobility， among other changes， have thrown America's experts and citizens into direct contact after nearly two centuries in which they lived segregated lives and rarely interacted with each other.And yet the result has not been a greater respect for knowledge， but the growth of an irrational conviction among Americans that everyone is as smart as everyone else.To understand this， and to think about solutions， requires a deeper look at causes.Both the professional community and the public it serves bear some responsibility for our perilous condition.
The public rejection of science is an extension of our politics， which in turn have become an expression of our constant outrage about everything that offends our deepest beliefs about ourselves.As social scientist David Dunning has put it： “Some of our most stubborn misbeliefs arise not from primitive childlike intuitions， but from the very values and philosophies that define who we are as individuals.” When those misbeliefs are challenged， laypeople take it not as correction but as a direct attack on their identity.
The expert community， however， must shoulder some of the blame for the collapse of the relationship between science and the public.Experts often intrude on from empirical knowledge to normative demands and thus validate the suspicions of laypeople that the real goal of expert advice is to force compliance with expert policy preferences.Experts cannot compel civic engagement， and they must accept that their advice， which might seem obvious and right to them， will not always be taken in a democracy that may not value the same things they do.The job of mediating those values and policies lies with elected officials.The knowers cannot be the deciders.
At the same time， experts cannot withdraw from a public arena increasingly controlled by opportunistic politicians who seek to discredit empiricism and rationality.Instead? the expert community must help to lead laypeople back along the road to a better day when the citizens valued scientists as essential parts of the American story.Experts must continue， as citizens， to advocate for those things they believe to be in the public interest， but the most important role they can play is defend a stark but considerate insistence on science and reason as the foundation for public policy.
In David Dunning's view， misbeliefs of laypeople______.
Areflect their outrage about politics
Bsuppress their primitive intuitions
Csafeguard their identity from harm
Dare difficult to rectify
参考答案：D
[单选题]
Who knows better than your customers where your operations can be improved?Today progressive firms increasingly rely on advisory councils to suggest improvements, recommend action, and offer feedback on programs and policies.In fact, many companies feel that this form of communication is vital to the continuous improvement of their business operations.
A council, among other things, improves communication and spurs improvement of operations.Remember that the secret to success is dialogue-the exchange of ideas and opinions.Focus on problems your customers have Spell out your goals and objectives.
Each meeting should have a specific objective to accomplish.Determine the meetings frequency.If you want to implement a strategic plan, an annual meeting may be enough.If you want to focus on operational issues, more meetings may be needed.
A good council will have no more than 12 people, with half of the members from your company and half from your customers.It should also have diversity in its membership.Members should serve from one to three years-rotation of membership will ensure the council doesn’t become stale.
Find an approximate meeting site, whether it's in house or off site, where there will be no ptions.You should pay for all the expenses related to the meeting-members are providing your company with a service.Treat them as your guests and your experts.
If you have a fixed beginning and ending time to your meeting, stick to it.when structuring he meeting, remember the 80/20 problem-solving rule.Structure the meeting so that 20 percent of the time is spent identifying or discussing a problem and 80 percent of the time is spent designing a solution.
Often it is helpful to have a person act as timekeeper and announce when the agenda time for a particular item has expired.However, during the meeting, be flexible.The facilitator can allow the group to decide whether to move on to the next item or extend the discussion.As you go along,look to narrow the differences among members and form a consensus.
As the meeting closes, summarize what was accomplished, checking for an agreement and commitment among the members.Make a detailed list of the follow-up items, who has responsibility for each item, and a timeline for completion.
The result from really listening to and learning from your customers in a well-run advisory council can pay huge dividends.
To ensure the success of the meeting，______.
Athe membership should not be neglected
Borganizers should make summaries after that
Cthe meeting should be held frequently.
Dcommunication can promote the development of companies
Eit's better to elect a president.
Fcompanies can find out problems
Gis important, so it's better to have a person to set the pace
参考答案：A
[单选题]Cancer is used generically for more than 100 different diseases, including malignant tumours of different sites, such as breast, stomach, colon/rectum, lung and, mouth. The disease arises principally as a consequence of individual exposure to the substances that cause cancer in what individuals inhale, eat and drink, or are exposed to in their personal or work environment. (41)______
Many of the chronic disease risks, and the diseases themselves, overlap. In developed countries, cancer is the second-biggest cause of death after cardiovascular disease (CVD), and epidemiological evidence points to this trend emerging in the less developed world. (42)______Already more than half of all cancer cases occur in developing countries.
There are approximately 20 million people living with cancer at the moment; by 2020 there will be an estimated 30 million. And the impact is far greater than the number of cases alone would suggest. (43) ______Cancer can also be profoundly distressing as well as economically disruptive to patients' families. The clinical care of cancer patients is a costly element in public health budgets.
Dietary factors are estimated to account for approximately 30% of cancers in western countries, making diet second only to tobacco as a preventable cause of cancer. This proportion is thought to be about 20% in developing countries and is projected to grow. As developing countries become urbanised, patterns of cancer, particularly those most strongly associated with diet and physical activity, tend to shift towards the patterns of economically developed countries. Cancer rates also change as populations move between countries and adopt different dietary patterns.
The relative importance of cancers as a cause of death is increasing. The incidence of lung cancer and cancers of the colon and rectum, breast and prostate, generally increases in parallel with economic development, as stomach cancer declines. Cancer is also strongly associated with social and economic status. (44)______
In recent years, substantial evidence has pointed to the link from overweight and obesity, to many types of cancer such as colon/rectum, breast and kidney. The composition of the diet is also important since fruit and vegetables may have a protective effect by decreasing the risk for some cancer types such as oral, oesophageal, gastric and colorectal cancer.
Regular physical activity has also been seen to have a protective effect in reducing the risk of breast and colorectal cancer. High intake of preserved meat or red meat might be associated with increased risk of colorectal cancer. (45)______
The wealth of knowledge that already exists about cancer risk factors provides obvious and ample scope for action to reduce the cancer burden of all countries. After tobacco, overweight and obesity seems to be the most important avoidable cause of cancer.
Given that poor nutrition, physical inactivity, obesity, tobacco and alcohol, are risk factors common to other chronic diseases, such as CVD, type 2 diabetes, and respiratory diseases, conducting a cancer prevention programme within the context of an integrated chronic disease prevention programme would be an effective national strategy.
请写出41题正确答案。
AThis is particularly true in countries of “transition” or middle income countries, such as in South America and Asia.
BCancer risk factors are highest in groups with the least education. In addition, patients in the lower socioeconomic classes have consistently poorer survival rates than those in higher social class.
CAnother aspect of diet clearly related to cancer risk is the high consumption of alcoholic beverages, which convincingly increases the risk of the oral cavity, pharynx, larynx, oesophagus, liver and breast cancers.
DRegardless of prognosis, the initial diagnosis is often perceived by patients as life-threatening, with over one-third of sufferers experiencing clinical anxiety and depression.
EPersonal habits, such as tobacco use, dietary and physical activity patterns—as well as occupational and environmental conditions—rather than genetic factors, play the major roles in the development of cancer.
FWhile tobacco use is the single largest causative factor—accounting for about 30% of all cancer deaths in developed countries and an increasing number in the developing world—dietary modification and regular physical activity are significant elements in cancer prevention and control.
参考答案：E
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