2004年9月上海市中級口譯筆試真題
Music too has long been used in supermarkets for marketing purposes. Supermarkets are aware, for example, that slow music causes customers to stay longer in the shop (and hopefully buy more things). At Leicester University psychologists have found that a specific kind of music can influence consumer behaviour. In a supermarket French wine sold at the rate of 76% compared to 20% German wine when French accordion music was played. The same thing happened in reverse when German Bierkeller music was played. In one American study people even bought more expensive wines when classical music was played instead of country music.
Writers and poets have often described the powerful effects of smell on our emotions, and smell is often considered to be the sense most likely to evoke emotion-filled memories. Research suggests however that this is a myth and that a photography or a voice is just as likely to evoke a memory as a smell. Perhaps the reason for this myth is because smells, as opposed to sights and sounds, are very difficult to give a name to. The fact that smell is invisible, and thus somehow more mysterious, may partly explain its reputation as our most emotional sense.
11. What is the use of "aroma box" at Heathrow airport?
(A) It can scent a lot of synthetic fragrance into the environment.
(B) It is a machine which blows warm and fresh air into the environment.
(C) It often pumps the smell of freshly-cut grass from a high-street shop.
(D) It is a box which sends out not only aroma but also music.
12. Who might benefits most from "atmospherics" in the "sensory" marketing?
(A) Psychologists.
(B) Customers.
(C) Shop owners.
(D) The research groups.
13. Research into customer satisfaction showed that _______.
(A) the right smell made people think a product was better
(B) people preferred the smell of lemon to coconut
(C) certain smells could make people dislike a shop
(D) customers rated the goods on sale as more inviting
14. The use of music in supermarkets _______.
(A) may lead customers to pay more of a product
(B) can increase sales of a specific product
(C) makes people buy more foreign wine
(D) causes customers to buy more from in the shop
15. According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?
(A) Smell is the most emotional of the senses.
(B) Smell stimulates our memory more than the other senses.
(C) Smell is considered to be mysterious, as it is untouchable.
(D) Smell is the most difficult sense to identify.
Questions 16-20
The danger of misinterpretation is greatest, of course, among speakers who
