Many adults in the United States can remember crying the nursery rhyme in the street "Hot cross buns!" But only a few people realize this was an early form of advertising.
Written advertisements probably began with hieroglyphics more than three thousand years ago, but only a few people could read these symbols. So merchants made signs with pictures or hung their tools over their doors to identify their businesses.
In the time of the Roman Empire, wall paintings were a popular form of advertisement. An ad for a play, or some other performance was painted on part of a building or on a wall around a city. People often advertised a house for rent or a freshwater bath in this way, too.
Today, large wall signs are still used for outdoor advertising. But outdoor advertising is only a small fraction of the total advertising. About forty per -cent of all ads are printed in daily newspapers. Radio commercials also provide this kind of information. Some people think they are the best form of advertising because radio broadcasts reach almost everyone in a nation.
Advertisements in magazines and on television reach many people, too. However, usually only large companies can advertise on a national network, because TV commercials shown across the country can cost many thousands of dollars.
Then there are ads that are almost part of daily living. If you use public transportation, you will see large printed ads, called ear cards, on buses and taxis and in trains. Ads are painted on the trucks that deliver products people are buying or selling.
小题1:Which is the passage mainly discussing?
A．Modern advertising
B．Significance of advertising
C．Development of advertising
D．Origin of advertising小题2:Which of the following is the original form of advertising?
A．Signs with pictures
B．Wall signs
C．Street crying
D．Wall painting小题3:Which of the following can best replace the underlined word “hieroglyphics” in Paragraph 2?
A．A signal
B．A signature
C．A symbol
D．A form小题4:Why did the merchants make signs with pictures or hang their tools over their doors ?
A．To have their houses decorated.
B．To make their business known by public.
C．To enable people to learn how to read
D．To advertise their houses to rent小题5:Radio commercials are the best form of advertising because ____________.
A．they can be heard everywhere in a country
B．they are cheap and fast
C．they are most recently developed
D．they can be understood by those who can neither read nor write
小题1:C
小题2:C
小题3:C
小题4:B
小题5:A
题目分析：本文是关于广告也的发展历程，从远古的广告到现代的各种广告形式。
小题1:C 主旨大意题。通过文章的描述可知本文是关于广告也的发展历程，从远古的广告到现代的各种广告形式。故C正确。
小题2:C 细节题。根据第一段Many adults in the United States can remember crying the nursery rhyme in the street "Hot cross buns!" But only a few people realize this was an early form of advertising.
说明Street crying是最初的广告形式，故C正确。
小题3:C 推理题。根据本句Written advertisements probably began with hieroglyphics more than three thousand years ago以及下面的So merchants made signs with pictures or hung their tools over their doors说明在3千年前就有了带有具体符号的书面广告，故该词是指symbol。C正确。
小题4:B 细节题。根据第二段最后一句. So merchants made signs with pictures or hung their tools over their doors to identify their businesses说明他们这样做是让他们的生意被别人知道，故B正确。
小题5:A 细节题。根据第4段3,4行Radio commercials also provide this kind of information. Some people think they are the best form of advertising because radio broadcasts reach almost everyone in a nation.说明A正确。
点评：本文介绍了从古到今的各种广告的形式和广告业的发展历程。考查细节题较多，如2,4,5对于文章中的细节题，要注意文本内容的理解。关键是找出原文的根据，认真核查题支和原文的异同，常犯错误有：绝对化语言，范围扩大或缩小，以偏概全，张冠李戴等。带着问题，再读全文，找出答题所需要的依据，完成阅读。