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"Sugar, alcohol and tobacco," economist Adam Smith once wrote, "are commodities which are nowhere necessaries of life, which have become objects of almost universal consumption, and which are, therefore, extremely popular subjects of taxation."
Two and a half centuries on, most countries impose some sort of tax on alcohol and tobacco. With surging obesity levels putting increasing strain on public health systems, governments around the world have begun to toy with the idea of taxing sugar as well.
Whether such taxes work is a matter of debate. A preliminary review of Mexico's taxation found a fall in purchases of taxed drinks as well as a rise in sales if untaxed and healthier drinks. By contrast, a Danish tax on foods high in fats was abandoned a year after its introduction, amid claims that consumers were avoiding it by crossing the border to Germany to satisfy their desire for cheaper, fattier fare.
The food industry has, in general, been firmly opposed to such direct government action. Nonetheless, the renewed focus on waistlines means that industry groups are under pressure to demonstrate their products are healthy as well as tasty.
Over the past three decades, the industry has made some efforts to improve the quality of its offerings. For example, some drink manufactures have cut the amount of sugar in their beverages.
Many of the reductions over the past 30 years have been achieved either by reducing the amount of sugar, salt or fat in a product, or by finding an alternative ingredient. More recently, however, some companies have been investing money in a more ambitious undertaking: learning how to adjust the fundamental make-up of the food they sell. For example, having salt on the outside, but none on the inside, reduces the salt content without changing the taste.
While reformulating recipes(配方)is one way to improve public health, it should be part of a multi-sided approach. The key is to remember that there is not just one solution. To deal with obesity, a mixture of approaches-including reformulation, taxation and adjusting portion sizes-will be needed. There is no silver bullet.
1
What did Adam Smith say about sugar, alcohol and tobacco?
A.
They were profitable to manufacture.
B.
They were in ever-increasing demand.
C.
They were subject to taxation almost everywhere.
D.
They were no longer considered necessities of life.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
C
系统解析：
事实细节题。第一段通过亚当·斯密的话引入对糖、酒、烟征税的话题。该段中有三个由which引导的定语从句修饰先行词commodities，由第三个定语从句可知，糖、酒、烟是极为受欢迎的征税对象。C选项“几乎所有的地方都对它们征税”符合原文，故本题答案为C。
2
Why have many countries started to consider taxing sugar?
A.
They are under growing pressures to balance their national budgets.
B.
They find it ever harder to cope with sugar-induced health problems.
C.
They practice of taxing alcohol and tobacco has proved both popular and profitable.
D.
The sugar industry is overtaking alcohol and tobacco business in generating profits.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
B
系统解析：
事实细节题。第二段提到，许多政府开始考虑征收糖税。第二句中With引出的是原因状语，表明征收糖税的原因在于激增的肥胖水平给公共卫生系统带来巨大的压力。B选项“他们觉得应对由糖引起的健康问题越来越困难”符合原文提到的原因，故本题答案为B。
3
What do we learn about Danish taxation on fat-rich foods?
A.
It did not work out as well as was expected.
B.
It gave rise to a lot of problems on the border.
C.
It could not succeed without German cooperation.
D.
It met with firm opposition from the food industry.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
A
系统解析：
事实细节题。第三段讨论了糖、酒、烟税的有效性问题。墨西哥的酒税是有效的，但是丹表征收的高脂肪食品税却在执行一年后就被废除了，因为消费者为避免纳税可以跨境去德国购买能满足其需求且更便宜、脂肪含量更高的食品。由此可知，A选项“没有像预期的那样有效”符合原文意思，故本题答案为A。
4
What is the more recent effort by food companies to make foods and drinks both healthy and tasty?
A.
Replacing sugar or salt with alternative ingredients.
B.
Setting a limit on the amount of sugar or salt in their products.
C.
Investing in research to find ways to adapt to consumers' needs.
D.
Adjusting the physical composition of their products.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
D
系统解析：
事实细节题。第六段指出，食品公司也在采取措施提高自己产品的质量。之前采取的方式是要么减少糖、盐或脂肪的含量，要么找替代成分。但是最近的努力方向是学习如何调整食品的基本物质构成。因此D选项“调整其产品的物质构成”是对原文的转述，故本题答案为D。
5
What does the author mean by saying, at the end of the passage, "There is no silver bullet"(Line 4, Para 7)?
A.
There is no single easy quick solution to the problem.
B.
There is no hope of success without public cooperation.
C.
There is on hurry in finding ways to solve the obesity problem.
D.
There is no effective way to reduce people's sugar consumption.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
A
系统解析：
语义理解题。第七段是对全文的总结，作者指出改善公共健康需要多方面的措施，包括重新设计配方、征税和调整各成分含量等。There is no silver bullet是对第三句的总结和进一步说明，A选项“该问题没有唯一的轻松快速解决的方案”是对该句的最好解释，故本题答案为A。
You may have heard some of the fashion industry horror stories: models eating tissues or cotton balls to hold off hunger, and models collapsing from hunger-induced heart attacks just seconds after they step off the runway.
Excessively skinny models have been a point of controversy for decades, and two researchers say a model's body mass should be a workspace health and safety issue. In an editorial released Monday in the American Journal of Public Health, Katherine Record and Bryn Austin made their case for government regulation of the fashion industry.
The average international runway model has a body mass index (BMI) under 16-low enough to indicate starvation by the World Health Organization's standard. And Record and Austin are worried not just about the models themselves, but about the vast number of girls and women their images influence.
"Especially girls and tens", says Record. "Seventy percent of girls aged 10 to 18 report that they define perfect body image based on what they see in magazines." That's especially worrying, she says, given that anorexia(厌食症)results in more deaths than does any other mental illness, according to the National Institute of Mental Health.
It's commonly known that certain diseases are linked with occupations like lung disease in coal miners. Professional fashion models are particularly vulnerable to eating disorders resulting from occupational demands to maintain extreme thinness.
Record's suggestion is to prohibit agents from hiring models with a BMI below 18.
In April, France passed a law setting lower limits for a model's weight. Agents and fashion houses who hire models with BMI under 18 could pay $82,000 in fines and spend up to 6 months in jail. Regulating the fashion industry in the United States won't be easy, Record says. But with the new rules in France, U.S. support could make a difference. "A designer can't survive without participating in Paris Fashion Week", she says, adding, "Our argument is that the same would be true of New York Fashion Week."
6
What do Record and Austin say about fashion models' body mass?
A.
It has caused needless controversy.
B.
It is focus of the modeling business.
C.
It is but a matter of personal taste.
D.
It affects models' health and safety.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
D
系统解析：
事实细节题。第二段说明雷科德和奥斯汀对模特体重的观点，第一句第一个and之后的two researchers指的就是这两人，他们认为模特的体重应该成为职场健康的安全问题，因此D选项“影响模特的健康和安全”符合原文表述，故本题答案为D。
7
What are Record and Austin advocating in the Monday editorial?
A.
A change in the public's view of female beauty.
B.
Government legislation about models' weight.
C.
Elimination of forced weight loss by models.
D.
Prohibition of models eating non-food stuff.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
B
系统解析：
事实细节题。第二段第二句说明了雷科德和奥斯汀的观点，他们在杂志上阐述了政府监管时尚业的理由。case此处是“论据，理由”的意思，因此B选项“政府立法规定模特体重”是对原文的转述，故本题答案为B。
8
Why are Record and Austin worried about the low body mass index of models?
A.
It contributes to many mental illnesses.
B.
It defines the future of the fashion industry.
C.
It has great influence on numerous girls and women.
D.
It keeps many otherwise qualified women off the runaway.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
C
系统解析：
事实细节题。第三到五段分析模特身材过瘦带来的影响。由第三段第二句可知，雷科德和奥斯汀担心的不仅仅是模特自身，还有受其形象影响的广大女性。第四段第一、二句进一步说明，70%的10--18岁女孩都是根据在杂志上看到的来定义完美身材，这一点尤其让人担心。因此C选项“对许多女性有巨大影响”是两人担心模特体重过低的主要原因，故答案为C。
9
What do we learn about France's fashion industry?
A.
It has difficulty hiring models.
B.
It has now a new law to follow.
C.
It allows girls under 18 on the runway.
D.
It has overtaken that of the United States.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
B
系统解析：
事实细节题。第七段以法国为例解释说明雷科德的建议。第一句提到，法国四月份通过了一项法律，对模特的体重规定了更低的限制。第二句详细解释道，任何雇用体重指数低于18的模特的公司都会受到处罚，因此B选项“现在有一项新的法律要遵守”符合原文表述，故答案为B。
10
What does Record expect of New York Fashion Week?
A.
It will create a completely new set of rules.
B.
It will do better than Paris Fashion Week.
C.
It will differ from Paris Fashion Week.
D.
It will have models with a higher BMI.
本题答案：
A
B
C
D
参考答案：
D
系统解析：
事实细节题。第七段最后一句提到，雷科徳希望纽约时装周也能如此。本句中the same指的是本段第五句A designer can't survive without participating in Paris Fashion Week。法国已经通过法律要求雇用体重指数高于18的模特，而设计师要想生存必须参加巴黎时装周和纽约时装周，由此可推断，美国纽约时装周上也会出现体重指数更高的模特，故答案为D。
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