Passage Two Over the past decade,thousands of patents have been granted for what are called business methods.Amazon.com receiv

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问题 Passage Two
Over the past decade,thousands of patents have been granted for what are called business  methods.Amazon.com received one for its”one—click”online payment system.
Merrill Lynch  got legal protection for an asset allocation strategy.One inventor patented a technique for lift ing a box. Now the nation’s top patent court appears completely ready to scale back on business—  method patents,which have been controversial ever since they were first authorized 10 years ago.In a move that has intellectual—property lawyers abuzz the U.S.court of Appeals for the  federal circuit said it would use a particular case to conduct a broad review of business—method  patents.In Bilski,as the case is known,is”a very big deal”,says Dennis.D,Crouch of the  University of Missouri School of 1aw.It”has the potential to eliminate an entire class of pa—tents.” Curbs on business—method claims would be a dramatic about—face;because it was the fed~eral circuit itself that introduced such patents with its 1998 decision in the so—called State  Street Bank case,approving a patent on a way of pooling mutual—fund assets.That ruling produced an explosion in business—method patent filings,initially by emerging internet companies  trying to stake out exclusive rights to specific types of online transactions.Later,move established companies raced to add such patents to their files,if only as 3 defensive move against rivals that might bent them to the punch.In 2005,IBM noted in a court filing that it had been  issued more than 300 business—method patents despite the fact that it questioned the legal basis  for granting them.Similarly,some Wall Street investment films armed themselves with patents for financial products,even as they took positions in court cases opposing the practice. The Bilski case involves a claimed patent on a method for hedging risk in the energy market.The Federal circuit issued an unusual order stating that the case would be heard by all 12 of the court’s j udges,rather than a typical panel of three,and that one issue it wants to evaluate is whether it should”reconsider”its State Street Bank ruling. The Federal Circuit’s action comes in the wake of a series of recent decisions by the Sudreme Court that has narrowed the scope of protections for patent holders.Last April,for examDle,the justices signaled that too many patents were being upheld for”inventions”that are obvious.The iudges on the Federal circuit are”reacting to the anti—patient trend at the SuDreme Court”,says Harolecwegner,a patent attorney and professor at Jorge Washington University Law School.  
The word”about—face”(Line 1,Para 3)most probably means________.

选项 A、loss of good will
B、increase of hostility
C、change of attitude
D、enhancement of dignity

答案C

解析 “about—face”在这里是承前启后的作用,because引导的从句是对于该词所述现象的解释,“当初就是联邦组通过的此类专利……”,而第二段提到了“现在……要缩减商业方法专利”,因此是“态度”的巨大转变。
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