Passage Two

　　Questions 62 to 66 are based on the following passage.

　　Kodak’s decision to file for bankruptcy(破產)protection is a sad, though not unexpected,turning point for a leading American corporation that pioneered consumer photography anddominated the film market for decades, but ultimately failed to adapt to the digital revolution.

　　Although many attribute Kodak’s downfall to “complacency(自滿) ,” that explanation doesn’tacknow-ledge the lengths to which the company went to reinvent itself. Decades ago, Kodakanticipated that digital photography would overtake film — and in fact, Kodak invented thefirst digital camera in 1975 — but in a fateful decision, the company chose to shelf its newdiscovery to focus on its traditional film business.

　　It wasn’t that Kodak was blind to the future, said Rebecca Henderson, a professor at HarvardBusiness School, but rather that it failed to execute on a strategy to confront it. By the timethe company realized its mistake, it was too late.

　　Kodak is an example of a firm that was very much aware that they had to adapt, and spent alot of money trying to do so, but ultimately failed. Large companies have a difficult timeswitching into new markets because there is a temptation to put existing assets into the newbusinesses.

　　Although Kodak anticipated the inevitable rise of digital photography, its corporate(企業的)culture was too rooted in the successes of the past for it to make the clean break necessary tofully embrace the future. They were a company stuck in time. Their history was so important tothem. Now their history has become a liability.

　　Kodak’s downfall over the last several decades was dramatic. In 1976, the companycommanded 90% of the market for photographic film and 85% of the market for cameras. Butthe 1980s brought new competition from Japanese film company Fuji Photo, which underminedKodak by offering lower prices for film and photo supplies. Kodak’s decision not to pursue therole of official film for the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics was a major miscalculation. The bid wentinstead to Fuji, which exploited its sponsorship to win a permanent foothold in themarketplace.

　　62. What do we learn about Kodak?

　　A) It went bankrupt all of a sudden.

　　B) It is approaching its downfall.

　　C) It initiated the digital revolution in the film industry.

　　D) It is playing a dominant role in the film market.

　　63. Why does the author mention Kodak’s invention of the first digital camera?

　　A) To show its early attempt to reinvent itself.

　　B) To show its effort to overcome complacency.

　　C) To show its quick adaptation to the digital revolution.

　　D) To show its will to compete with Japan’s Fuji photo.

　　64. Why do large companies have difficulty switching to new markets?

　　A) They find it costly to give up their existing assets.

　　B) They tend to be slow in confronting new challenges.

　　C) They are unwilling to invest in new technology.

　　D) They are deeply stuck in their glorious past.

　　65. What does the author say Kodak’s history has become?

　　A) A burden.

　　B) A mirror.

　　C) A joke.

　　D) A challenge.

　　66. What was Kodak’s fatal mistake?

　　A) Its blind faith in traditional photography.

　　B) Its failure to see Fuji photo’s emergence.

　　C) Its refusal to sponsor the 1984 Olympics.

　　D) Its overconfidence in its corporate culture.

　　【總評】本文為我們分析了柯達公司雖然看到了市場前景，但是并沒有在戰略上把握機會，等意識到錯誤時，已經為時已晚，并最終走向衰敗。對于一出生就接觸各種數碼產品的考生來說，柯達也許是個并不熟悉的企業，這或許會對閱讀帶來一定影響。而且本文也有不少商務用語，如strategy(戰略，策略)、sponsorship(贊助)，及一些關鍵詞如anticipate(預期、預計)等，難度并不算小。所以平時對于詞匯的積累是快速理解閱讀內容的關鍵。

　　62. B. It's approaching its downfall.

　　【解析】細節題。從全文第一句中的bankruptcy (破產) 以及第二段第一句Although many attributeKodak's downfall to "complacency"... 可知柯達已經衰落了。所以正確答案為B。

　　根據第全文第一句…a sad, though not unexpected turning point… 可知柯達的衰敗，是早有預期的，而不是突然的，排除答案A. It went bankrupt all of a sudden;

　　根據第一段最后一句... but ultimately failed to adapt to the digital revolution可知柯達最終沒有適應數字革命，排除答案C. It initiated the digital revolution in the film industry;

　　根據第一段內容，dominate用的是過去分詞形式，即柯達在膠卷市場占主導地位是過去的事實，而非現今，排除答案D. It is playing the dominant role in the film market.

　　63. A. To show its early attempt to reinvent itself.

　　【解析】推理題。柯達發明第一臺數碼相機的例子出現在第二段，該段一開始指出很多人將柯達的衰敗歸結于柯達的自滿，但是這個解釋并沒有承認柯達在自我改造上做出的努力。接下來作者用柯達發明了第一臺數碼相機來例證柯達在reinvent上的嘗試。所以正確答案為A。

　　答案C. To show its quick adaptation to the digital revolution.與第一段最后一句ultimately failedto adapt to the digital revolution. 相沖突，且發明了第一臺數碼相機并不足以說明其順應了數碼革命。

　　64. D. They are deeply stuck in their glorious past.

　　【解析】細節題。根據題干關鍵詞large companies和switch定位到第四段最后一句Large companieshave a difficult time switching to new markets because there is a temptation to put existingassets into the new businesses. 根據此句可知，大公司不能進入新市場的原因是他們在開創新業務的過程中，依然不愿放棄現有的優勢。接來下第五段用柯達的事例繼續闡釋了這句話的含義，即 too rooted in thesuccesses of the past for it to make the clean break necessary to fully embrace the future，沉溺于過去的輝煌，而不能完全擁抱未來。所以正確答案為D. They are deeply stuck in their glorious past.

　　65. A. A burden.

　　【解析】細節題。根據第五段最后一句話Their history was so important to them. Now their historyhas become a liability.可知柯達的歷史已成自身發展的負擔。burden是對liability的同義轉換。所以正確答案為A。

　　66. C. Its refusal to sponsor the 1984 Olympics.

　　【解析】細節題。最后一段第一句說柯達在過去幾十年間的衰敗是戲劇性的。之后通過一個個例子來舉例說明。從文中Kodak’s decision not to pursue the role of official film for the 1984 Los AngelesOlympics was a major miscalculation.可知柯達犯的主要錯誤是沒有贊助1984年的奧林匹克。而對手富士拿到了競標，并由此贏得了市場上的永久立足點。所以正確答案為C。