A new system that scans customers’ fingerprints and deducts the grocery bill fro

A new system that scans customers’fingerprints and deducts (扣除) the grocery bill from their bank accounts has taken supermarketsin southwestern Germany by storm and is being picked up by hardware stores,school restaurants and even bars are picking it up.

The Edeka supermarket chain isthe first retail (零售) business in Germany to use the new system. “Almost a quarter ofour customers pay with their fingers,” said an employee at the headquarters.Edeka has tried the system at 70 of its supermarkets and customers like it.

“At first we thought that onlythe young who really keep up with the latest technology would be interested,but we were wrong,” said Stefan Sewoester from IT Werke. “Almost two-thirds ofthe people who use the system are 40 and older,” he said.

IT Werke, a computer company, isone of the pioneers of fingerprint payment software in Germany. It has helped about 150 shops, restaurants and bars to put in the fingerprintscanning machines.

To sign up for the service,customers must have their fingerprints taken and leave their addresses andbanking details with the shop. The shop then takes the cost of goods directlyout of the customer’s bank account.

“It is a godsend forelderly people because they do not have to remember their pin-code to pay withtheir bank cards, or to look around for their glasses or cash.” Sewoester said.

The stores benefit from thesystem, too. It saves more than time in the check-out line. It also cuts outthe hidden costs of accepting electronic card payments.

Fingerprint date profiling haslong been used to control access and for other security purposes in Germany’s airports, laboratories and nuclear power plants. IT Werke plans to keep refiningthe retail use of the system. It wants to introduce fingerprint payment inschool restaurants with an additional feature that might appeal to parents－they could disable theirchildren’s access to junk food.

1.Which of the following can be the besttitle of the passage?

A. Pay with Fingers.                         B.New Development in Technology.

C. Supermarket Revolution.                   D.Change in Computer Software.

2.Most of the people who use the fingerprintsystem are ______.

A. youngsters            B.housewives           C. ITfans      D. the elderly

3.The underlined word “godsend” probablymeans ______.

A. great fortune sent by God                   B. good luck sent by God

C. good things that happenunexpectedly          D. gift sentby God

4.What do we know by inference from thepassage?

A. Fewer shops will try the newsoftware because of the cost.

B. The new service requirescertain personal information.

C. IT Werke should be the largestcomputer company in Germany.

D. The new change in payment onlybenefits elderly people.

试题答案

【答案】

1.A

2.D

3.C

4.B