Don't make friends with the sales staff. The more you interact(互动) with the sales staff, the more likely it is that you will buy something. This is because you feel like you don't want to let down someone who has helped you.
Leave your credit cards at home. Research shows people are willing to spend more money with plastic than with cash. The less immediate the payment the more easily people will spend.
At the Supermarket
Slow down and double-check what you're picking up. Stores can make sales very specific and confusing, such as placing a sign offering 50% off a 2kg ham wedged(嵌入) between the full-price 3kg ones. Shoppers could wind up grabbing the wrong one and paying full price.
Don't think when you buy in bulk(大批量) you're getting a better deal. That's not always the case. In the produce department, for example, individual capsicums are almost always cheaper than those in the multi-pack.
Don't buy something in bulk just because it's on sale. The ten-for-$10 promotion is one of the most effective. This is what stores do to get volume out the door—even if they've raised the unit price to do it.
Shopping Online
Hide your cookies. Companies use online cookies(a piece of data from a website stored on your web browser that informs the site of related net activity) to target shopper with relevant ads, but they can also reveal information from your browsing history. Stick to budget-friendly sites to bump into lower offers. And use your browser settings to block third-party tracking cookies.
Look online first. Even if you choose to shop in store rather than online, check sites with user reviews and ratings, such as amazon.com and cnt.com, to find products with the most positive feedback. If the highest-rated items are cheaper online, including delivery, ask the store to match the total price.
Geo-blocking is what some multinational retails do to charge different prices for the same product in different markets. With a little more effort, you can get around geo-blocking. Apple, for instance, will let you shop in their US store by
using US iTunes gift-cards that can be bought online.
Play the Game to Get Instant Bargains
Speak up! Not happy with the view from your hotel window, or the way the burger is cooked? Don't be forced to put up with the poor experience, give honest, polite feedback and we're almost certain you'll be treated to what you expected—and paid for.
Find better online actuation(驱动) deals. Misspelled it! One of the best ways to find great deals on eBay is via auctions(拍卖) that have misspelled words. For example, an “Xbox Connect” will often sell for less than an “Xbox Kinect” since fewer people search for the wrong version. Website fatfingers.com helps you find these listings. With thousands of items listed on eBay with spelling mistakes each year, you're likely to find what you're looking for at much lower prices.
( )53. To control the impulse of shopping, the writer suggests that shoppers ________．
A. follow their inner needs
B. try to visit as many shops as possible C. pay in cash instead of by credit card
D. have a close relationship with the sales staff
( )54. When shopping online, shoppers can fight back against stores and advertisers by ________．
A. blocking third-party tracking cookies B. thinking twice before buying in bulk C. buying products from other countries only D. avoiding being trapped by spelling mistakes
( )55. The writer offers shoppers the game plan of shopping to ________． A. tell them how to get a perfect bargain B. show them the ways to save shopping time C. warn them of the danger of the shopping game D. teach them how to communicate with retailers
C
Attitudes toward new technologies often fall along generational lines. That is, generally, younger people tend to outnumber older people on the front end of a technological shift.
It is not always the case, though. When you look at attitudes toward driverless cars, there doesn't seem to be a clear generational divide. The public overall is split on whether they'd like to use a driverless car. In a study last year, of all people surveyed, 48 percent said they wanted to ride in one, while 50 percent did not.
The fact that attitudes toward self-driving cars appear to be so steady across generations suggests how varying the shift to driverless cars could be. Not everyone wants a driverless car now—and no one can get one yet—but among those who are open to them, every age group is similarly involved.
Actually, this isn't surprising. Whereas older generations are sometimes reluctant to adopt new technologies, driverless cars promise real value to these age groups in particular. Older adults, especially those with limited moving or difficulty driving on their own, are one of the classic use-cases for driverless cars.
This is especially interesting when you consider that younger people are generally more interested in travel-related technologies than older ones.
When it comes to driverless cars, differences in attitude are easily noticeable based on factors not related to age. College graduates, for example, are particularly interested in driverless cars compared with those who have less education, 59 percent of college graduates said they would like to use a driverless car compared with 38 percent of those with a high-school diploma or less.
Where a person lives matters, too. More people who live in cities and suburbs said they wanted to try driverless cars than those who lived in rural areas.
While there's reason to believe that interest in self-driving cars is going up across the board, a person's age will have little to do with how self-driving cars can become mainstream. Once driverless cars are actually available for sale, the early adopters will be the people who can afford to buy them.
( )56. What happens when a new technology appears?
A. It often leads to great inventions in other related fields. B. It contributes greatly to the advance of society as a whole. C. It further widens the gap between the old and the young. D. It usually draws different reactions from different age groups. ( )57. What does the author say about the driverless car? A. It does not seem to create a generational divide. B. It will not necessarily reduce road accidents. C. It has given rise to unrealistic expectations. D. It may start a revolution in the car industry.
( )58. Why does the driverless car appeal to some old people? A. It saves their money and energy. B. It helps with their moving.
C. It adds to the safety of their travel. D. It makes their life more interesting.
( )59. What is likely to affect one's attitude toward the driverless car? A. The field of their special interest. B. The location of their living place. C. The amount of training they received. D. The length of their driving experience.
D
Twenty years ago, I was at a party, talking to a man whose name I have long since forgotten. Sometimes I think this man came into my life for the unique purpose of telling me this story, which has delighted and inspired me ever since.
The story he told me was about his younger brother, who was trying to be an artist; it was a real story about how brave, creative and trusting his brother was. For the purpose of this story, let's call the little brother Little Brother.
Little Brother, a young painter, went to France to surround himself with beauty and inspiration. He lived on the cheap, painted every day, visited museums, traveled to picturesque places, bravely spoke to everyone he met, and showed his work to anyone who would look at it. One afternoon, he struck up a conversation at a cafe with a group of charming young people who turned out to be some fancy nobles. They took
a liking to Little Brother and invited him to a party that weekend in a castle in the Loire Valley. They said this was going to be the party of the year. It would be attended by the rich and famous and by several crowned heads of Europe. Best of all it was a masquerade ball(化装舞会) where nobody would hesitate in their spending on the costumes(特殊场合穿的套服). “Dress up，” they said, “and join us！”
Excited, Little Brother worked all week on a costume that he was certain would be highly impressive. He held back on neither the details nor the imagination of this creation. Then he rented a car and drove three hours to the castle. He changed into his costume in the car and went up the castle steps. Little Brother entered the ballroom, head held high.
Upon arrival, he immediately realized his mistake.
This was indeed a costume party—his new friends had not misled him there—but he had missed one detail in translation: This was a themed costume party. The theme was “a medieval court”. And Little Brother was dressed as a lobster(龙虾)．
All around him, the wealthy and beautiful were dressed in fancy clothes, wearing sparkling jewels. Little Brother, on the other hand, was wearing a red coat, red tights, red ballet slippers, and giant red claws. Also, his face was painted red. And he was the only American in the room, too.
He stood at the top of the steps for one long, frightful moment. Running away in shame seemed like the easiest response. But he didn't run. Somehow, he found his determination. He'd come this far, after all. He'd worked really hard to make this costume, and he was proud of it. He took a deep breath and walked onto the dance floor.
As he moved into the crowd, a silence fell. The dancing stopped. The other guests gathered around Little Brother. Finally someone asked him what on earth he was.
Little Brother bowed deeply and announced, “I am the court lobster.” Then: laughter.
Not ridicule—just joy. They loved him. They loved his sweetness, his weirdness(怪诞), his giant red claws, and his skinny legs in his bright tights. He made the party. Little Brother even ended up dancing with the queen of Belgium.