For one brief moment in April, Larry Ellison came within a few dollars of being the richest man in the world. The computer tycoon was holding a global conference call on a Wednesday morning, when the value of his company surged.
It was the moment he almost overtook Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, as the wealthiest on the planet. For a few seconds, as share of traders marked Microsoft down and Oracle up, Ellison came within US $ 200,000 of Gates. The self-proclaimed "bad boy" of Silicon Valley found himself worth more than US $ 52 billion, up from a mere US $10 billion this time last year. Then Microsoft's share price, which had plunged in recent weeks, recovered and the moment passed.
Once, Ellison, founder of the software company Oracle, would have danced around his desk cursing like a pirate at failing to bring down Gates, a rival he had constantly made fun of in public. But Silicon Valley insiders said he remained calm, and muttered: "One day, one day very, very soon." He knew his moment was close.
Unlike Gates, he is not big on charity, preferring to spend his money his way. He has his own private air force, a military-style. crew based at San Jose airport near Redwood City, to help him fly his Gulfstream V jet (with two marbled bathrooms), a Marchetti fighter plane imported from Italy, and a handful of other aircraft, including a trainer for his son. He also plans to import a Russian Mig-29 fighter (capable of 1,500 mph). Why does he want one? So that, he joked, he can blast Gates' home near Seattle. Cars are cheap and cheerful by comparison. He has a relatively modest Porsche Boxster, two specially altered Mercedes and a US $ 900,000 silver McLaren.
In San Francisco he owns a magnificent house in Pacific Heights, one of Western America's most expensive stretches of real estate. The house is a technical marvel. When he inserts his key, the opaque glass door turns transparent, revealing a Japanese garden in the middle of the house. For reasons he knows best, Ellison is obsessed with Japanese culture. Though he says he once briefly dated the actress Sharon Stone, Ellison is better known for the number than the fame of his wives. It is said he introduced himself with: "Can I buy you a car?" In one year he gave at least four US $ 50,000 cars to young ladies.
While Gates comes from a strong family, Ellison still does not know who his father was. He was born to an unmarried mother and adopted by his Russian uncle and aunt. A brilliant but unpredictable self-promoter, he dropped out of college, drove to California in a battered Thunderbird car and ended up working with computer technicians at a bank. "He always had a champagne lifestyle. on beer money," his first wife said.
He set up Oracle in 1977 as a super-salesman with 3 programmers, creating software for businesses. It almost collapsed when it promised more than it could deliver, but since then its fortunes have soared. Now it employs 43,000 people and has designed data-processing systems used by Britain's M15 spy service as well as big western companies. Oracle's software is more Internet- friendly than Gates' Windows, one factor behind the company's recent share price rise.
Since his company got big, Ellison has promised shareholders that he will spend more time in the office. But can he escape being the thrill-seeker he is at heart? As summer approaches, he may find it hard to resist the lure of his yachts, Sakura, one of the longest in the world, and Sayonara (Japanese for "see you later"), which he races furiously. It is dangerous sport, even for guests. Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch once nearly lost a finger when he grabbed a rope during a race onboard the Sayonara. Ellison joked at least he could "still wrote checks".
Regardless of distractions, Ellison will not give up in his battle against Gates. He hates to lose. Ellison declares that any
A.Ellison is as rich as Bill Gates
B.Ellison has US $ 200,000 less than Bill Gates
C.Ellison is richer than Bill Gates
D.Oracle has more money than Microsoft
Mind and body are two parts of a complex organism controlled by the nervous system, which acts on information received from the senses. The way a person perceives and reacts depends on his mood, his state of health, his diet, his body temperature and his level of consciousness.
2. There is considerable evidence that every thought or emotion has some related physical effect, and that every change within the nervous system should have some psychological effect. Although the precise nature of these correlations is not always known, the view that body and mind are constantly interacting in some way is now accepted by most psychologists.
3. The relationship between mind and body is particularly apparent in emotional states, especially those of fear and anger. When a person is in the grip of a powerful emotion his body undergoes changes, just as it does when he is asleep, ill or under the influence of drugs or alcohol. Most people are familiar with such sensations as a dry mouth when they are nervous, or a racing heart when they are afraid or excited. Such physical changes can be measured, for instance, by recording pulse rate and breathing, or by measuring the dilation of the pupils of the eyes.
4. a particularly sensitive measure of bodily change during periods of emotion is the galvanic skin response(GSR). This is used in the instrument known as the lie detector. The GSR depends on the fact that some mental activity produces bodily changes, such as sweating, which affect the skin's resistance to electricity. To measure GSR, electrodes are placed on the palm and on the back of the hand, and a weak current is passed between the electrodes. Changes in the current are recorded in an amplified form, often by means of an automatically controlled pen on moving paper. Other recordings, for instance of pulse, blood pressure and breathing, can be made simultaneously, by an instrument called a polygraph.
5. The galvanic skin response method has proved a very efficient indicator of general psychological arousal. Even slight embarrassment will cause a defection of the recording pen.
A. Every thought or emotion has some related physical effect.
B. GSR is a measure of bodily change during periods of emotion.
C. GSR is very efficient in indicating people's emotion.
D. GSR is very expensive.
E. GSR is used to judging prisoners.
F. Mind and body has an apparent relationship.
Para 2 ______.