首页
登录
职称英语
(1)The Muslim calendar, now in its 1,431st year, follows the cycle of the mo
(1)The Muslim calendar, now in its 1,431st year, follows the cycle of the mo
游客
2023-12-03
16
管理
问题
(1)The Muslim calendar, now in its 1,431st year, follows the cycle of the moon rather than the sun. This means it shifts by 11 days a year in comparison with the Gregorian calendar, completing a full cycle in about 33 years. And it ignores the seasons. Ramadan(斋月), the month of fasting which this year began on August 12th, is now taking place slap in the middle of the Arab world’s summer holiday. Those who observe the fast must not only put up with the heat and the ensuing dangers of dehydration and exhaustion. There are economic costs that did not weigh a generation ago, when consumer culture had yet to take hold. Across the Arab world, for instance, the price of cooking oil shoots up, since fried sweets are a Ramadan speciality. The cost of sugar rises too. So does the price of honey, especially in the Maghreb. Food importers do particularly well out of pistachios(开心果), dates and dried apricots. Caf6s close by day but often make up for that with late-night revels. Many big new television shows are launched during Ramadan, accounting for a third of annual advertising revenue for Arab satellite television stations.
(2)But for many businesses, especially government ones, productivity plummets as the working day shortens by two or three hours. The stock market, however, usually surges, according to a recent study by Ahmad Etebari, a professor at the University of New Hampshire. Studying market patterns in Muslim countries between 1989 and 2007, he found that returns during Ramadan were almost nine times higher than in the rest of the year. The reason, he says, is that the seasonal cheer encourages optimism and thus risk-taking.
(3)But a summer Ramadan is, overall, bad for the economy. Governments worry about the higher cost of producing more electricity. The lights stay on longer, as people have to eat after nightfall. Kuwait’s electricity ministry has given warning of power cuts and electricity rationing, since more locals will stay at home for Ramadan, with air conditioners on full throttle, rather than go abroad, as many of them usually do in August The authorities in many Arab countries offer food subsidies to ensure that families can afford basic staples. Price controls are often imposed on retailers who are tempted to raise prices to take advantage of increased demand.
(4)Western tourists hesitate to spend their holidays at a time when food can be hard to find during the day and alcohol sales are suspended, as in Morocco. Muslim tourists may also choose to stay at home for Ramadan. Egypt, where August is a peak month for tourists from other Arab countries, has launched a festival to entice this high-income customers to come and celebrate away from home.
(5)Visits from the millions of North Africans who work in Europe have been shortened or shifted to earlier dates, as they are less keen to visit their families back home when the weather is scorching. Ferry companies say bookings for Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, which used to peak at the end of August as families returned to Europe for the start of the school year, piled up at the beginning of the month, just before Ramadan. Meanwhile, Arabs who can afford to fly north and west prefer to spend the fasting month in gentler climes. [br] The italicized word "slap" in the first paragraph is closest in meaning to _____.
选项
A、coincidently
B、auspiciously
C、approximately
D、unexpectedly
答案
A
解析
如果按照公历年,穆斯林的斋月每年的时间不一样。首段第4句的意思是今年的拉马丹,也就是8月12日开始的斋月,正是阿拉伯世界最热的时期。句中slap的意思是“正好,恰好”,只有A与之意思最为接近。
转载请注明原文地址:https://tihaiku.com/zcyy/3240435.html
相关试题推荐
PASSAGETWO[br]WhyarewesterntouristsunwillingtovisitMuslimcountriesfo
(1)TheMuslimcalendar,nowinits1,431styear,followsthecycleofthemo
(1)TheMuslimcalendar,nowinits1,431styear,followsthecycleofthemo
(1)TheMuslimcalendar,nowinits1,431styear,followsthecycleofthemo
(1)TheMuslimcalendar,nowinits1,431styear,followsthecycleofthemo
随机试题
ModesofTransportationThereareavarietyofmeans
Whatwereoverahundredhomesshortofbecauseoftheseveralstorms?Theywere
以初速度V0竖直向上抛出一质量为m的小球,上升最大高度是h。如果空气阻力的大小?
不属于免疫放射技术的优点有A.特异性强B.试剂可长时间存放C.操作简便易于标准化
Thechangeinthatvillagewasmiraculou
各种运输方式内外部的各个方面的构成和联系,就是( )。 A.运输系统
用尖牙判断上下颌牙列的近远中相对关系的标志是A:上颌尖牙的远中牙尖嵴、下颌尖牙的
根据反垄断法律制度的规定,市场支配地位是指经营者在相关市场内具有能够控制商品价格
根据《声环境质量标准》,关于乡村区域适用的声环境质量要求的说法,正确的有( )
综合所得适用于()。A.比例税率 B.3%-45%的超额累进税率 C.5%
最新回复
(
0
)