All the credit card organizations charge interest on a monthly basis which may______ 25 per cent a year, yet judicious purchasing using a card can mean that you obtain up to weeks interest-free-credit.

A . SELECT cust_last_name, cust_credit_limit FROM customers ORDER BY cust_credit_limit DESC B . SELECT cust_last_name, cust_credit_limit FROM customers ORDER BY cust_credit_limit C . SELECT cust_last_name, cust_credit_limit FROM customers ORDER BY cust_credit_limit NULLS LAST D . SELECT cust_last_name, cust_credit_limit FROM customers ORDER BY cust_last_name, cust_credit_limit NULLSLAST

A . You can't. B . No one uses it. C . I am afraid you can't. D . Who told you?

A．many people prefer paying by cash B．the recession makes people spend less C．people prefer debit cards than credit cards D．it is more difficult for young people to get credit cards

W: But the card holders should pay a significant annual fee, perhaps as high as ￡ 50. Q: What is the disadvantage for gold cards holders？ (16) A．High credit limits B．High annual fee. C．Low interest rates. D．Monthly statements.

A．Parents. B．Students themselves. C．College and university administrators. D．Credit card issuers.

W: Here it is, sir. Your bill totals 100 dollars. You can use two kinds of credit cards, American Express and State Express. M: That is fine. I have the American Express. Here is 15 dollars; that's my tip for you. W: Thank you very much, sir. Where does the conversation happen probably？ A．In the post office B．In the bank C．In the restaurant D．In the company

A．increases in assets are recorded on the debit side of the account B．increases in retained surplus dividends are recorded on the debit side of the account C．decreases in liabilities are recorded by debits D．decreases in expenses are recorded by credits

A．confirming bank B．accepting bank C．issuing bank D．negotiating bank

&8226;For each question 13--18, mark one letter (A, B, C, or D) on your Answer Sheet for the answer you choose. HOW THE CREDIT CARD CAPTURED AMERICA The proliferation of platinum American Express cards in the 1980s spawned rumors of an ultimate, highly exclusive, never publicized "Black Card". Carried by billionaires, it reportedly allowed holders to demand private shopping sprees at the world's most exclusive shops and to summon helicopters in the middle of Sahara. American express vehemently denies the existence of such a charge card. But the persistence of the myth suggests the social importance credit cards have for so many Americans. As one business writer puts it, "to have one's credit cards canceled is now akin to being excommunicated by the medieval church." America's love affair with the credit card began in 1949, when businessman Frank X. McNamara finished a meal in a New York restaurant and then discovered he had no cash. In those days, gasoline and store charge cards were common, but cash was standard for almost everything else. The embarrassed McNamara called his wife, who rushed over to bail him out. His predicament gave him the idea for Diners Club. Within a year some 200 people carried the world's first multi-use credit card. The problem was to persuade enough people to carry the cards. Diners Club turned to promotions. It gave away a round-the-world trip on a popular television show. The winners charged their expenses and made it "from New York to New York without a die in their pockets". Banks, sensing among less affluent a pent-up desire to spend, began issuing cards of their own. The first to turn a profit was Bank of America's Bank Americard. Bankers from all over the country descended on its California headquarters to learn the secret of its success--so many that in 1966 Bank Americard, today known as Visa, began forming alliances with banks outside the state. The Bank Americard network soon faced a competitor when Wells Fargo Bank joined with 77 others to create what became Master Charge. After scooping up 1.3 million more "Everything Card" holders from what was then First National City Bank, Master Charge--today's Master Card--became for a while the biggest bank card in the country. Five million holiday credit-card shoppers would have created a bonanza for the banks, but in the rush to market, the hanks had been less than cautious in assembling their lists. Some families received 15 cards. Dead people and babies got cards. Even a dachshund named Alice Griffin was sent one that promised she would be welcomed as a "preferred customer" at Chicago's finest restaurants. Hundreds of Chicagoans discovered they could use or sell a car they "found", and by law, the person whose name appeared on it was liable for the charges--even if he or she had never requested or received the card. When the prime rate hit 20% in 1981, the banks found that consumers didn't mind paying rates of 18--22% on their credit-card balance. High interest rates helped attract new players into the credit-card area, including sears' Discover Card and Visa. Airlines, car and insurance companies, even long-distance phone companies allied themselves with banks to offer credit cards. Experts estimate there are from 15, 000 to 19, 000 different cards available in the country. Of course, credit cards have not only replaced cash for many purposes, but also in effect have created cash by making it instantly available virtually everywhere. The credit-card advance is becoming as ubiquitous as the automated teller machine. What is the rumor of "Black card"？ A．The holder can spend freely at the best shops. B．The credit card allows holders to pay their check without cash. C．The holders can summon helicopters in desert. D．The credit card is very important in American society.

A．SELECT？cust_last_name,？cust_credit_limit？FROM？customers？ORDER？BY？cust_credit_limit？DESC B．SELECT？cust_last_name,？cust_credit_limit？FROM？customers？ORDER？BY？cust_credit_limit C．SELECT？cust_last_name,？cust_credit_limit？FROM？customers？ORDER？BY？cust_credit_limit？NULLS？LAST D．SELECT？cust_last_name,？cust_credit_limit？FROM？customers？ORDER？BY？cust_last_name,？cust_credit_limit？NULLSLAST

(88)

(9) A．The credit card can be used at any shop without paying cash. B．The credit card can he used at any appointed shop together with cash. C．The credit card can be used at any appointed shop without paying cash. D．The credit card can be used to withdraw any amount of cash.

(57)

A credit card that will not work unless it hears its owner's voice could become al important weapon in the fight against fraud (欺骗). The card requires users to give a spoken password that it recognizes using a built-in voice-recognition chip. The idea is to prevent thieves using a stolen card or fraudsters using someone else's credit card details to buy goods online. A model built by engineers at Beepcard in Santa Monica, California, represents the first attempt to pack a microphone, a loudspeaker, a battery and a voice-recognition chip into a standard-sized credit card. They are not quite there yet: the card is the length and width of an ordinary credit card, but it is still about three times as thick. The company now plans to make it thinnet. The voice card is based on an earlier Beepcard technology d esigned to prevent fraud in online transactions. This earlier card has no microphone," but has a built-in loudspeaker that it uses to "squawk" (发出叫声)a voice ID signal via a computer's microphone to an online server. By verifying (证实) that the signal matches the card details, the server can establish that the user is not simply keying in a credit card number but actually has the card to hand．The ID code changes each time the card is used in a pre-ordered sequence that only the server knows. This prevents fraudsters recording the beeps, noting the card details and then playing back the audible ID when they key in the details later. But this earlier technology cannot prevent fraudulent use of stolen cards. The new one can. The new voice card also identifies itself by its ID squawk, but it will not do this until it has verified the legitimate (合法的) user's spoken password．Thieves will be unable to use the card because even if they knew the password they would have to be able to copy the owner's voice with a high degree of accuracy. The challenge for Beepcard has been to develop voice-recognition and audio circuitry that can be powered by a mini battery embedded (嵌入的) in a credit card．To maximize battery life, the electronics are only switched on when the card is being used.Pressing a button on the card's surface prompts it to utter "Say your password" in female voice. If the voice-recognition software proves that the password is authentic (真实的), it sends its ID squawk which the server then identifies, allowing the transaction to proceed. 第 36 题 The voice credit card is an important invention because A．it can be made cost-effectively. B．it can leave voice messages. C．it makes online shopping easy. D．it makes fraud difficult.