Text I:

Japanese Taking Little Time Off for Vacations

Tokyo (AP)

On paper, the Japanese worker looking for some time off doesn’t have it so bad. Japan has more national holidays than the United States or Germany, and the average employee can count nearly 18 days of paid vacation. Actually taking those days, however, is another matter altogether.

Despite a high-profile effort by the government to get people to take more time off, the still shaky economy and deeply entrenched social pressures are keeping Japan’s workaholic work force glued to the office.

“I can’t take any New Year’s holidays,” said office worker Masuko Tanaka. Though she won’t be at her office on the first three days of the New Year, which are national holidays, her husband is a shopkeeper and she has to help out. And when she takes her real vacation, a week in February, she’ll have to go without him. He’ll be working. “I wish I could take more than a week,” she said. “But the environment at work doesn’t really let you do that.”

According to the latest statistics released by the government, it is a lucky worker getting five straight days off around New Year’s, Japan’s most important holiday season. And of the average 17.8 days of paid vacation, most people actually take only about nine.

One of the main reasons is peer pressure. Instead of seeing vacation time as an entitlement, many Japanese feel embarrassed to claim vacation days that will have them off while their coworkers aren’t. Workers are thus much more comfortable taking national holidays when everyone else gets a rest as well.

“There’s a mental barrier – it’s easier when holidays are institutionalized,” said Akiyoshi Takumori, chief economist at Sakura Securities company

www.cnn.com – November 20, 2000

01. The topic of the passage is:

a. the Japanese can’t take New Year’s holidays.
b. Japan’s holidays.
c. Japanese taking little time off for vacations.
d. Peer pressure.
e. Vacations X Japanese workers.

02. Which sentence best expresses the main idea of the passage above:

a. Japanese workers don’t have much time off during the year.
b. The shaky economy in Japan is driving workers crazy.
c. On paper Japanese workers have a lot of holidays, and yet they don’t take them off.
d. Only institutionalized holidays are taken off.
e. Japan has more national holidays than the United States or Germany.

03. According to the text, what is the best definition for the word shaky in “Despite a high-profile effort by the government to get people to take more time off, the still shaky economy and deeply entrenched social pressures are keeping Japan’s workaholic work force glued to the office”?

a. blocked
b. undependable
c. unstable
d. overwhelmed
e. shocked

Text II:

Malini Ramani, a 30-year-old Indian socialite who’s set a new course as a designer, caused an uproar when she displayed a demure dress based on the Indian flag for the inaugural India Fashion Week in August. Police raided her stand and seized the sequined number. They are charging her with breaking a law against displaying the national flag. Asked about that, Malini said that she didn’t mean to do any kind of harm to anyone and she had given public apologies. She added that when she designed the garment, she only meant to be patriotic. The dress was not even for sale.

Newsweek – September 11, 2000

04. Which question about the text cannot be asked?

a. How old is Malini Ramani and where is she from?
b. Why did she set a new course as a designer?
c. What did Malini cause when she displayed a demure dress based on the Indian flag?
d. What did the Indian police do?
e. What is Malini being charged with?

05. The text says that

a. socialites have privileges in the social structure of India, particularly when they face legal problems.
b. laws are not often enforced in India; that’s why people think there’s much ado about nothing in Malini’s particular case.
c. although Malini didn’t mean to sell her creation, fashion is an increasingly profitable business in India nowadays.
d. Malini had her stall attacked and her creation taken by sudden force.
e. the Indian Fashion Week takes place every August and it is mainly visited by socialites.

Text III:

“Today in America, $2 out of every $5 is spent eating away from home. In 1954, it was nearer $ 1 out of every $10. Based on that, it’s not difficult to see the tremendous opportunity that has existed in the foodservice industry during the past 20 years. Yet, from my vantage point as a keen observer of industry trends and events, I’ve seen hundreds of people and thousands of restaurants go broke. At the same time, I am personally aware of over 100 different people who have become millionaires in their endeavors in the foodservice field.”

Reading Methodologies Workbook – UCRiverside

06. Which alternative best expresses the main idea of the paragraph?

a. Chances of becoming a millionaire with food industry are far away from going broke.
b. Most people in America eat out.
c. Not only food business can make you succeed.
d. It doesn’t mean that all food business will succeed, although it has grown along the past 20 years.
e. Foodservice: the best field to invest your money in.

07. Mark the alternative which contains facts about the paragraph:

a. Hundreds of people and thousands of restaurants go broke every year.
b. Over 100 different people have become millionaires in the foodservice field.
c. Nowadays two dollars out of every five spent for food is spent eating away from home.
d. Foodservice industry is a tremendous success.
e. Although foodservice is a great opportunity for good business, people must be careful with their investments.