Test 17 - Toeic part 7 single-passages - Practice Toeic | Englishfreetest.com

Trend in American Houses

It comes as no surprise that houses have grown in size and cost over the years. At the beginning of the last century, the average home was 80 square meters. In 1950 the average home was no square meters, growing to an average size of 220 square meters in 2000. Costs in 1900 were about $5,000, $11,000 in 1950 and $200,000 last year.

Another interesting fact revealed in the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) report is that although homes have grown in size, lot sizes have begun to decrease significantly. In 1990, the average lot size was 1,630 square meters. Just eight years later the average lot size was 1,430 square meters. In its profile of a typical new home in 2012, the report suggests the average lot size is expected to decrease by another 100 square feet while the house size will increase to 250 square meters.

PREMIER LIMOUSINE SERVICE

Are you planning a special night out on the town? Why not get a limousine for the occasion? Premier Limousine Service, PLS, provides limousine transportation services for special events including birthdays, anniversaries, proms, bachelor parties, nights on the town, airport service, corporate events, and employee rewards.

We have been in business since 2000 providing safe and professional service. All of our drivers are professionally trained chauffeurs. Also, we have a fleet of luxury limousine sedans that will seat anywhere from six to 20 people. Each sedan is equipped with:

□ Tinted windows for privacy

□ Flat-screen TV equipped with DVD player

□ Full-stereo sound system

□ Refrigerator stocked with drinks

□ Snackbar

□ Phone

Rent by the day or hour at our competitive rates. Just pay a general fee and enjoy all the sedan’s amenities. Return customers will receive 20% off for the entire month of April. All drivers hold commercial licenses and have passed our own rigorous driver training courses.

Our company is very serious when it comes to our business. We are current members of the National Limousine Association, the Virginia Limousine Association, and the Bedford Area Regional Chamber of Commerce. Call us and see how we can make your special occasion even better!

Not applicable to sedans for 20 people.

Have you ever wondered about the effectiveness of your telephone skills? Most people today do a lot of business over the phone, but how effective are their phone skills?

Effective phone skills begin with a good attitude.

Steps:

1. Once you pick up the phone, you must remember to be professional and use your first name.

2. Try not to keep a caller on hold for a long time. Always ask the caller if he/she would mind being placed on hold.

3. Be patient and listen to what the customer is saying. (*Effective listening skills are very important.)

4. Try to resist distractions that will pull your attention away from the caller.

5. Develop note-taking skills; write down the caller's name, company and phone number.

6. Do not interrupt the caller, except to draw out his thoughts.

7. When you are about to end a call, it is a good idea to recap or summarize the caller's needs. Repeat the caller's name, company and phone number. This will assure the caller that he/she will receive the information he/she wanted to get. Also, let the caller know what actions will be taken, when you will be sending out the information, or when someone will be contacting him/her regarding his/her call. Finally, always thank the caller for calling.

Tip: Try to smile when you speak to people on the telephone. It will show up in your voice.

To All Employees

Please read the following information in order to be prepared in the unlikely event of a fire or other emergency:

■ On every floor, there must be two illuminated exit signs over each exit door at the end of the corridor. All employees should familiarize themselves with the location of these emergency exits. Elevators should never be used under fire conditions or any suspected fire conditions.

■ If a fire alarm has been activated, calmly evacuate the building via the nearest emergency exit. An alarm will sound as soon as the emergency exit doors are opened, alerting others in the building to begin evacuation. Do not waste valuable time by gathering your belongings to take with you. Leave all personal belongings at your desk.

■ If smoke is present, keep low to the floor. Take short breaths to avoid inhaling any more smoke than necessary.

■ Proceed to the evacuation control point on the ground floor of the east end stairwell (see attached map) and remain there to await any further instructions. Do not attempt to re-enter the building, nor allow others to do so, until the fire department has declared it safe.

From: Mary Dickens

To: Allison Harleycat

Subject: Re: Undelivered Order

Dear Ms. Harleycat:

Thank you for writing to us at www.Affiliano.com. We are sorry to hear that the delivery of your order has not been completed yet (#267740 and #267741). According to the order summary in My Account, estimated delivery date would be August 7 and August 21 respectively. However, since a considerable amount of time has passed, these packages seem to be lost. Please accept our sincere apologies for this inconvenience.

We want to be sure that you receive your order as quickly and safely as possible. But before we can proceed, we need you to verify the shipping address for these orders to check whether the address is the reason for the missing shipments. The shipping address for the original orders is as follows:

Allison Harleycat

600 Old Sanford Oviedo Rd.

Winter Springs, Florida 32708

USA

Could you please click the link at the bottom of this message to send us an e-mail letting us know if this address is correct? As soon as we hear back from you, we will take further appropriate actions.

Thank you for shopping at www.Affiliano.com. Please visit our homepage to provide the information we requested.

Sincerely,

Mary Dickens

Affiliano.com Customer Service

Dolcepress is offering the very best in stationery!

Looking for that unique greeting card or perfect stationery? Really want one-to-one communications with your loved ones? We might be selling exactly what you are looking for as we go beyond the standard templates to create attractive designs that are often kept and framed after the occasion.

Dolcepress delivers unrivaled quality selection and customer service!

We specialize in handmade personalized greeting cards & keepsakes, with unique fabric designs and hand-printed messages that, “Warm the heart and tickle the spirit.” 80 new cards have just been added with “bundle” pricing; the more cards you buy the less they are! We also customize and personalize gift packages for any occasion of your choice, including cards and framed keepsakes along with other related items.

Our 10 highly qualified staff are waiting for you at our Ithaca store. All of our staff work closely with our clients to create one-of-a-kind designs that compliment your event or occasion. Dolcepress’s craftsmanship is famous for its superior quality.

Check out our online stationery catalogue and print it out or call at 24-58760 to order a catalogue.

Store Hours

Monday-Friday 8:30 A.M.-9:00 P.M.

Saturday/Sunday             9:00 A.M.-7:00 P.M.

Click here to find our store locations.

New evidence suggesting that prune sauce may be beneficial to men with stomach cancer was presented at the recent meeting of the American Medical Society in Los Angeles. The study was conducted with men between the ages of 45 and 55 who had recently been diagnosed with various forms of stomach cancer. They were administered 180 milliliters of prune sauce daily for four weeks. Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center measured several aspects of the volunteers' health status before and after their meals. They found a significant reduction in cancer cells in 64 percent of the men. Another 22 percent had some reduction in cancer cells, 10 percent had no change, and only four percent had an increase.

Although the findings are promising, it is too early to generalize the finding as this is just a preliminary study and it will take some time to determine that eating prune sauce can actually fight cancer. The researchers will apply for a federal government grant that will allow them to continue the study with more subjects.

To: Virtual Magazine employees

From: Lauren Popko, General Affairs Director

Date: May 3

Subject: Computer security software update

We are contacting you today to make you aware that the Technology Security Division of our company will be running an upgrade of our firm’s computer security software on May 18 from 6 P.M. to roughly 9 P.M. This will involve total virus and spyware protection and a real-time upgrade of our current antivirus software.

While we admit that it may cause some inconvenience, this work is necessary to protect our computers from the risk of attacks. While the installation is going on, you are not allowed to use computers to access the Internet and please make the necessary arrangements and back up any important data, as this might delete files from your hard drive.

If you have any questions, please contact David Orr in the Technology Security Division. He can be reached at 5429-3290 or at extension 128. Please do not contact the General Affairs Division as it has nothing to do with any technical issues of the software update.

Regards,

Lauren Popko

A Closer Look at the Glaxo Global 1,000

Glaxo, the corporation that ranks the performance of companies in the U.K, is now evaluating the top international companies round the world in what is called the Glaxo Global 1,000 group. As part of the statistics and analyses made available on their Website, www.glaxoratings.com, they are taking a closer look to see what the secrets of the successes of these top organizations are. They say that being big helps a company stay competitive in a global economy, but size alone does not guarantee success.

In an attempt to better analyze the reasons for success, Glaxo looked at various statistics and results of their multidimensional rating system that is based on sales, market value, profits and assets. They then regrouped these 1,000 companies by industry and analyzed what was happening to each of them in terms of profits earned, long- and short-term return on equity, the dividends paid, sales growth and the market price of the company’s stock. They received the assistance of one outside company in making growth forecasts and another company that could audit accounting methods. With the assistance of these firms, they crossed out corporations from their study that didn’t meet the standards of accounting, management, or legal issues.

Of the 1,000 companies, fewer than 100 passed in all categories. One global high performer was the Japanese company Nippon Telegraph & Telephone. This company showed a 49% growth in profits and a 46% total return in the past year. The debt-to- total capital is only 12% and the growth forecast for the next three to five years is expected to be 40%.

To: [email protected]

From: [email protected]

Subject: Thursday’s meeting

Date: January 14th, 2010

Dear Ms. Reed,

I’m afraid that I will be unable to keep our appointment for next Thursday due to some unforeseen business. I realize this meeting was important to both of us, but we’re having some trouble with a major parts supplier. I have to fly over to Bangkok and take care of this or our manufacturing operation will grind to a halt.

We are quite interested in hearing more about the process your firm has developed to cut our manufacturing costs. If it is as efficient as you say it is, it could allow us to possess a financial edge over our rivals.

I know you have had offers from other companies, but I am confident that a large operation like us would be able to easily top any other bids. We are prepared to pay a significant premium for an exclusive license to the techniques. I think it would be worth your while to hold off on signing with anyone else.

If you don’t mind waiting for me, I should be back on Tuesday night. I’ll ask my secretary to arrange our meeting for the following morning. You could join me for breakfast.

I hope to see you then.

William Lampy

Chief Operations Officer

Industrial Management Inc.

Question 28

Question 29

Question 30

Question 31

Question 32. What are the speakers discussing?