阅读理解。
Some years ago industries had more freedom than they have now, and they did not need to be as careful
as they must today. They did not need to worry a lot about the safety of the new products that they developed.
They did not have to pay much attention to the health and safety of the people who worked for them. Often
new products were dangerous for the people who used them; often conditions in the work place had very bad
effects on the health of the workers.
Of course sometimes there were real disasters which attracted the attention of governments and which
showed the need for changes. Also scientists who were doing research into the health of workers sometimes
produced information that governments could not ignore. At such times, there were inquiries into the causes
of the disasters or the problems. New safety rules were often introduced as a result of these inquiries; however,
the new rules came too late to protect the people who died or who became seriously ill.
Today many governments have special departments that protect customers and workers. In the U.S., for
example, there is a department that tests new airplanes and gives warnings about possible problems. It also
makes the rules that aircraft producers must follow. Another department controls the foods and drugs that
companies sell. A third department looks at the places where people work, and then reports any companies that
are breaking the laws which protect the health and safety of workers. Of course, new government departments
and new laws cannot prevent every accident or illness, but they are having some good results. Our work places
are safer and cleaner than before. The planes and cars that we use for travel are better. Producers are thinking
more about the safety and health of the people who buy and use their products.
1. It can be inferred from the passage that in the past ____.
A. workers often got ill because of the poor working conditions
B. companies were free to put out any products they wanted to
C. many people were killed by dangerous products
D. industries were as careful in management as they are today
2. As can be seen in the passage ____.
A. governments and companies had different opinions about the safety of products
B. scientists also helped improve the safety and health of workers and customers
C. government officials often did not listen to scientists
D. governments paid no attention to the safety of products at all
3. From the passage, we know that some years ago safety rules ____.
A. were put forward due to scientists' recommendations
B. came into being as a result of the workers' demands
C. were introduced because quite a number of people were killed or seriously injured
D. were effective enough to protect workers and customers
4. The special departments protect customers and workers in many ways EXCEPT by ____.
A. testing new products
B. designing new products
C. controlling the sale of products
D. inspecting work places
