3 Better budgeting in recent years may have been seen as a movement from ‘incremental budgeting’ to alternative

3 Better budgeting in recent years may have been seen as a movement from ‘incremental budgeting’ to alternative

budgeting approaches.

However, academic studies (e.g. Beyond Budgeting – Hope & Fraser) argue that the annual budget model may be

seen as (i) having a number of inherent weaknesses and (ii) acting as a barrier to the effective implementation of

alternative models for use in the accomplishment of strategic change.

Required:

(a) Identify and comment on FIVE inherent weaknesses of the annual budget model irrespective of the budgeting

approach that is applied. (8 marks)

May be you have seen this in schools: some students are studying nearly all the time but they just pass their exams, while some others may spend much less time on their books but do much better in exams. How could this happen? People used to think that hard work is the only way to success. But now they have understood that smart work can make them succeed too. Hard workers don’t mind working for long hours, while smart workers always think of several different answers to these questions, such as “Why should I suffer this? ” or “Isn’t there a way to do this? ” Thanks to these people, we can use computers instead of the abacus now. progress in every field is the direct result of “trying to find a better way ” by smart workers. There was a large soap factory in Japan. Once it received an unusual letter from someone who complained that there was no soap in the soap in the soapbox he bought.How could empty soapboxes go out of the factory? The engineers checked the producing and packing. The producing was fine, but in about ten thousand soapboxes, the packing machine let an empty soapbox go. There was no need to spend a lot of money repairing the machine for such a small problem. The engineer soon worked out a solution. He put a huge X-ray machine and two large computers to find out the empty soapboxes. After teaching the workers how to use it, he sat down in his seat, exhausted.

“Sir, we could have solved the problem in a much simpler and cheaper way, ” a worker sa id.

“Really? How?”

“We can put a huge fan near the packing machine. The wind coming from the fan will blow away the empty boxes, leaving the other boxes with soap. ”

See, this is smart work. In order to succeed, we should not only work hard like the engineer, but also think smart like this worker.

1. Some students spend less time on school work but do better in exams because they study longer.

A: F

B: T

2.The passage mainly tells us we should work hard like the engineer and think smart like theworker.

A: T

B: F

3.The soap factory could only put a huge fan near the packing machine to solve problem in amuch simpler and cheaper way.

A: F

B: T

4.The underlined phrase “blow away”means “停止” in Chinese.

A: T

B: F

5.Someone wrote to the soap factory and complained that the soapbox he bought was terrible.

A: F

B: T

Many jobs have been lost and they may not be coming back. Some occupations had already been declining for years due to advance in technology and changes in the global economy. The following is a list of careers that are disappearing. Stage Performers The five-year decline for this career was a surprising 61% .Stage performances have fallen out of fashion and have been almost entirely replaced with movies and home entertainment technologies. Postal service mail sorters After losing almost 57,000 jobs between 2004 and 2009, a further 30% decline in this occupation can be seen by 2018.With more automatic processes for mail sorting and increasing correspondence via e-mail and fax; this job is quickly becoming unnecessary. Office support workers About 300,000 office support jobs disappeared between 2004 and 2009.Secretaries and file clerks are no longer in demand as companies cut costs. Moreover, technologies like voicemail and easy-to-use word processors have enabled professionals to do their own office work. Photo processors With the rise of digital photography and automatic printing, positions for manual photo printers are rapidly disappearing. The occupation has been steadily losing jobs in the last five years and there might be a 24% decline by 2018. Radio operators As technology advances, the need for workers to monitor communications via radio telephone equipment is disappearing. This already small field saw a five-year decline of 43%. 问题：According to the first paragraph, because of the advances in technology and global economic changes,_________A.Many jobs are disappearing sharply

B.Many new occupations are emerging

C.People are attracted to higher-paying jobs

D.Part-time jobs have become more popular

One reason why the career of stage performers is declining so fast is that_________.A.Stage performers can no longer earn big money

B.Fewer people are qualified as stage performers

C.There is less investment in in stage performances

D.Stage performances have become less popular

The benefit of using new technologies in the office is that__________.A.Office workers can work on a flexible work system

B.Professionals are able to do their own office work

C.Secretaries and file clerks are badly in need

D.Employees can enjoy better social welfare

The author expects that by 2018 the occupation of photo processors might decline by__________.A.61%

B.43%

C.30%

D.24%

Which of the following might be best title of the passage?A.Advanced Technologies

B.Rising Unemployment

C.Disappearing Careers

D.Global Economy

请帮忙给出每个问题的正确答案和分析，谢谢！

Recent years have seen many conflicts caused by square dancing, or Guangchangwu. An increasing number of people argue that square dancing should be stopped for it has brought severe problems to daily life, but those who participate in square dancing believe it is a harmless activity to maintain health and be social. What is your opinion? Write a composition of about 200 words on the following topic; Should Square Dancing Be Stopped?

In the past, falling oil prices have given a boost to the world economy, but recent forecasts for global growth have been toned down, even as oil prices sink lower and lower. Does that mean the link between lower oil prices and growth has weakened?

Some experts say there are still good reasons to believe cheap oil should heat up the world economy. Consumers have more money in their pockets when theyre paying less at the pump. They spend that money on other things, which stimulates the economy.

The biggest gains go to countries that import most of their oil like China, Japan, and India. But doesnt the extra money in the pockets of those countries consumers mean an equal loss in oil-producing countries, cancelling out the gains? Not necessarily, says economic researcher Sara Johnson. “Many oil producers built up huge reserve funds when prices were high, so when prices fall they will draw on their reserves to support government spending and subsidies (补贴) for their consumers.

But not all oil producers have big reserves. In Venezuela, collapsing oil prices have sent its economy into free-fall.

Economist Carl Weinberg believes the negative effects of plunging oil prices are overwhelming the positive effects of cheaper oil. The implication is a sharp decline in global trade, which has plunged partly because oil-producing nations can't afford to import as much as they used to.

Sara Johnson acknowledges that the global economic benefit from a fall in oil prices today is likely lower than it was in the past. One reason is that more countries are big oil producers now, so the nations suffering from the prices drop account for a larger share of the global economy.

Consumers, in the U.S. at least, are acting cautiously with the savings theyre getting at the gas pump, as the memory of the recent great recession is still fresh in their mind. And a number of oil-producing countries are trimming their gasoline subsidies and raising taxes, so the net savings for global consumers is not as big as the oil price plunge might suggest.

51. What does the author mainly discuss in the passage?

A) The reasons behind the plunge of oil prices.

B) Possible ways to stimulate the global economy.

C) The impact of cheap oil on global economic growth.

D) The effect of falling oil prices on consumer spending.

52. Why do some experts believe cheap oil will stimulate the global economy?

A) Manufacturers can produce consumer goods at a much lower cost.

B) Lower oil prices have always given a big boost to the global economy.

C) Oil prices may rise or fall but economic laws are not subject to change.

D) Consumers will spend their savings from cheap oil on other commodities.

53. What happens in many oil-exporting countries when oil prices go down?

A) They suspend import of necessities from overseas.

B) They reduce production drastically to boost oil prices.

C) They use their money reserves to back up consumption.

D) They try to stop their economy from going into free-fall.

54. How does Carl Weinberg view the current oil price plunge?

A) It is one that has seen no parallel in economic history.

B) Its negative effects more than cancel out its positive effects.

C) It still has a chance to give rise to a boom in the global economy.

D) Its effects on the global economy go against existing economic laws.

55. Why havent falling oil prices boosted the global economy as they did before?

A) People are not spending all the money they save on gas.

B) The global economy is likely to undergo another recession.

C) Oil importers account for a larger portion of the global economy.

D) People the world over are afraid of a further plunge in oil prices.

Isn’t it surprising that scientists have a better understanding of how many stars there are in the galaxy than how many species there are on Earth? Their estimates of global species diversity vary from 2 to 100 million species. Most people agree on an estimate of somewhere near 10 million and yet only 1.75 million have actually been named. Current knowledge of species diversity is limited. This problem becomes more serious because there is a lack of a central database or list of the world’s species.

New species are still being discovered — even new birds and mammals(哺乳动物). On average, about three new species of birds are found each year, and since 1990, 10 new species of monkeys have been discovered. Other groups are still far from being completely described: an estimated 40 percent of freshwater fishes in South America have not yet been classified.

Scientists were startled in 1980 by the discovery of a huge diversity of insects in tropical forests. In one study of just 19 trees in Panama, 960 new species of beetles were discovered.

As scientists begin investigating other little-known ecosystem, like the soil and the deep sea, “surprising” discoveries of species become commonplace. There is nothing strange about this, though, since as many as a million undescribed species are believed to live in the deep sea. And one gram of a small-sized piece of land might hold 90 million bacteria(菌类) and other microbes(微生物). How many species these communities contain is still anyone’s guess.

16. Which of the following is true?

A) Scientists have a sound knowledge about the diversity of species 

B) Scientists don’t know much about the number of stars in the galaxy

C) Scientists show more interest in stars in the galaxy than in species on Earth  

D) Scientists don’t agree on the number of species in the world

17. How many species are there on Earth according to most scientists?

A) About 2 million  

B) About 10 million

C) About 100 million 

D) About 1.75 million

18. In which of the following groups is the discovery of new species not mentioned in

the passage？

A) Birds  

B) Monkeys 

C) Trees  

D) Freshwater fish 

19. What can you learn from the passage?

A) The soil and the deep sea belong to communities that haven’t been fully explored 

B) It is surprising news wherever new species are discovered in the deep sea 

C) About 90 million species are believed to live in the deep sea  

D) A million species in the deep sea have been discovered and named

20. Which of the following best reveals the main idea of the passage?

A) Surprising discoveries of new species are commonplace

B) The mystery of the deep sea and the soil remains to be uncovered

C) Knowledge of global species diversity is still limited

D) Estimates of global species diversity vary among scientists

Directions: Read the following passage and the statements that follow. Choose the best answer for each statement from the three choices marked A, B and C.

It sounds like an infomercial from late-night TV: Follow this four-step plan and improve your memory in just 14 days!

But researchers have indeed found a way to improve memory function in older people. After a two-week study that involved brainteasers (脑筋急转弯), exercise and diet changes, study participants' memories worked more efficiently.

Here's the program:

Memory Training: brainteasers, crossword puzzles and memory exercises that emphasized verbal skills throughout the day.

Healthy Diet: Five meals daily included a balanced diet rich in omega-3 fats, whole grains and antioxidants (抗氧化剂). Eating frequent meals prevents dips in blood glucose (血糖), the primary energy source for the brain.

Physical Fitness: Brisk daily walks and stretching. Physical fitness has been found in other research to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease.

Stress Reduction: Stretching and relaxation exercises. Stress causes the body to release cortisol (皮质醇), which can impair memory and has been found to shrink the memory centers in the brain.

1. Researchers spent fourteen days finding a way to improve people’s memory().

A.True

B.False

C.Not Mentioned

2.What is TRUE about the ABC rule for online shopping()?

A.It’s a very easy rule, as easy as learning ABC

B.It’s the basic safety rule for online shopping provided by the writer

C.It’s the first letter of the three rules: About me, Benefits, Choices, hence ABC

D.All of the above

3.Either the dean or the principal()the meeting.

A.attends

B.attend

C.are attending

D.have attended

4.Mistake is acceptable during the process of paper cutting().

A.Right

B.Wrong

C.Doesn’t say

5.Many a child()to walk before he can speak.

A.Learn

B.Learns

C.Learned

D.have learned

6.The author quoted the three adjectives used by the guide to describe Istanbul because().

A.the author knows Istanbul very well

B.the author’s ambitions of sightseeing dwindled away after Italy

C.Istanbul is so characteristic that it’s hard to describe it in one word

D.the author is very interested in Istanbul

For years people have been saying that the railways are dead. We all keep hearing that trains are slow, that they lose money, that they’re dying. But this is far from the true. In these days of expensive oil, the railways have become highly competitive with motorcars and planes. If you want to carry people or goods from place to place, they’re cheaper than planes. And they have much in common with planes. A plane goes in a straight line and so does a railway. What is more, a railway takes you from the heart of a city center. It doesn’t hold you up as a car does, in endless traffic jams. And a single train can carry goods which no plane or motorcar could ever do.

Far from being dead, the railways are very much alive. Modern railway lines give you a smooth, untroubled journey. Where else can you eat well, sleep in comfort, feel safe and enjoy the scene while you are traveling at speed at the same time? And we are only at the beginning. For we have just entered the age of super-fast trains, trains traveling at 150 miles an hour and more. Soon we will be wondering why we spent so much on motorways we can’t use because we have not enough money to buy the oil and planes we can’t fly in for the same reason.

1. Some people think the railways are dead for many reasons EXCEPT that ____.

A. planes and motorcars have taken the place of trains

B. oil is expensive today

C. trains are slow

D. railways lose money

2. The writers idea seems to be that ______.

A. we can do without railways

B. trains have much in common with motorcars and planes

C. motorcars and planes are not as good as trains

D. trains are as good as motorcars and planes

3. According to the writer, which of the following is NOT the advantage of railways?

A. It is cheaper to travel by train than by plane.

B. Super-fast trains travel even faster than planes.

C. The railway station is usually at the center of a city.

D. A train carries more goods than a motorcar or plane does.

4. The writer thinks that the railways, far from being dead, are very much alive because ___________.

A. we can have a smooth and untroubled journey

B. we’ll not have enough money to fly everywhere

C. we can now travel in super-fast trains

D. all of the above

5. The best title for this passage may be ________.

A. The Best Choice: Train, Motorcar or Plane

B. The Dying Railways

C. Super-fast Trains in the Future

D. Not the End, But the Beginning

South-East Asias low-cost airlines have gone from feast to famine. Cheap, short-haul, no-frills flying came【C1】______to the region, but people have【C2】______it eagerly. In just ten years,【C3】______the Centre for Asia Pacific Aviation(CAPA), a research firm in Sydney, low-cost carriers share of the regions aviation market has【C4】______from almost nothing to 58%. In Europe, where cheap airlines have been flying for much longer, Easy Jet and its fellows【C5】______only about 40% . Now South-East Asias skies are looking【C6】______ The rise of low-cost carriers reflects potential demand for flying in an increasingly【C7】______part of the world. This year another 12 such airlines may join the 47 already flying in the Asia-Pacific【C8】______This week it was【C9】______that Beijing is planning a new, $ 14 billion airport. In South-East Asia【C10】______has been particularly strong: many of its 600m people live in large archipelagic countries,【C11】______Indonesia and the Philippines, where flying is the easiest way to get around.【C12】______the worlds 15 busiest low-cost international【C13】______, nine are in South-East Asia. All this demand requires aeroplanes: CAPA says South-East Asia is the only region where there are more planes on order than in【C14】______fleets. 【C15】______, the expansion of airlines capacity seems to be getting ahead of the growth in demand. Some low-cost carriers are【C16】______to fill their seats. More luxurious airlines are feeling the trouble, too: this week Cathay Pacific said that【C17】______strong long-haul profits, competition from budget airlines was starting to【C18】______it on short-haul routes. Singapore Airlines expressed【C19】______worries earlier this month. Con Korfiatis, former boss of Jetstar Asia, the low-cost arm of Australias struggling Qantas,【C20】______that "the growth in the market will definitely be there, its just a matter of introducing too much capacity too soon. "

【C1】

A．early

B．quickly

C．late

D．easily

Read the following passage and the statements that follow. Choose the best answer for each statement from the three choices marked A, B and C .

Outdoor Learning Environment

“How do they get the tomato on the vine(藤、蔓)?”

The question shocked Hillis. It reminded him of the time five years ago when he was volunteering at Beattie Elementary School in his daughter’s kindergarten classroom. He’d been reading the children a book about gardening.

“These kids had only seen vegetables in supermarkets,” he says. “I felt that something important was missing in their lives.”

So he went to work. Hillis and his wife, Sally, made the local government believe that it was necessary to create an outdoor learning environment. He and other volunteers raised more than 30,000 dollars to make such a project. The project was designed like the Platte River. Like the river, the school’s front walkway turns east to west, so they planted things along the walkway, such as native grasses which can be found along the river too.

Today, students are greeted every day by the cedar-mulched creation(雪松覆盖的表面), which spreads the length of three city blocks. In the back, there’s a garden, with twenty 1 ton rocks lying in the ground, where teachers hold classes.

The outdoor effort has changed things inside, too. For science, children plant seeds and, based upon each seed’s size and weight, guess how large a vegetable will grow to become. For arts and crafts, they collect fallen leaves and make designs out of them. Other science lessons make up a large part of the outdoor learning process. “No matter what time of the year it is,” Hillis says, “there’s always something going on.”

1.Hillis was a volunteer at Beatte Elementary School five years ago().

A.Right

B.Wrong

C.Doesn’t say

2.Halloween was first celebrated by the()around the fifth century.

A.English

B.American

C.Irish

D.European

3. The purpose of this course is to make the students know various rules of English grammar().

A.True

B.False

C.Not Mentioned

4.Students can tell how large a tomato will grow to become according to the seed’s size().

A.Right

B.Wrong

C.Doesn’t say

5.Craftsmen need knives and gravers of various types to make complicated patterns().

A.Right

B.Wrong

C.Doesn’t say

6. Which of the following doesn’t belong to the western culture()?

A.Europe

B.North Africa

C.Asia

D.America

7. What is the author’s main idea in the text()?

A.Education can be purchased

B.The difference between education and schooling

C.Degree is worthless

D.Students should learn more important knowledge

8. The settlers also taught the Indians to penetrate the forest, to hunt large animals().

A.True

B.False

C.Not Mentioned

9.The passage is mainly about().

A.parts of the brain that store information

B.illness that results in serious memory loss

C.how human brains process, store and recall information

D.how to improve our memory

10.What do you think “ginseng and gingko” probably are()?

A.Plants

B.Animals

C.Food

D.Drinks

11.Halloween happened().

A.from October 31st to November 1st

B.on October 31st

C.on November 1st

D.between October 31st and November 1st

12. How many cultural differences does the author mention in the text()?

A.One

B.Two

C.Three

D.Four