刚接触托福阅读技巧的同学通常会对定位比较着迷，因为只要定得到，读得懂，审得准，就能快速选中答案。在征服托福阅读的道路上，定位这项基本技巧确实帮助了不少同学又快又准选出答案。但是，随着技巧的日渐成熟，随着文章的大量接触，不少同学在遇到“不好定位”甚至“无法定位”的题目时，难免挫折感倍增，甚至怀疑此前用得纯熟的定位技巧出了问题。其实，这些“特例”，除了强调平时基本功的重要性以外，也在另一层面显示了使用定位技巧解决大部分题目的必要性。
接下来就来看看比较典型的“不好定位”的题目，以TPO10 Chinese Pottery的第7题为例：
Paragraph 4: Trade between the West and the settled and prosperous Chinese dynasties introduced new forms and different technologies. One of the most far-reaching examples is the impact of the fine ninth-century AD. Chinese porcelain wares imported into the Arab world. So admired were these pieces that they encouraged the development of earthenware made in imitation of porcelain and instigated research into the method of their manufacture. From the Middle East the Chinese acquired a blue pigment—a purified form of cobalt oxide unobtainable at that time in China—that contained only a low level of manganese. Cobalt ores found in China have a high manganese content, which produces a more muted blue-gray color. In the seventeenth century, the trading activities of the Dutch East India Company resulted in vast quantities of decorated Chinese porcelain being brought to Europe, which stimulated and influenced the work of a wide variety of wares, notably Delft. The Chinese themselves adapted many specific vessel forms from the West, such as bottles with long spouts, and designed a range of decorative patterns especially for the European market.
7. According to paragraph 4, one consequence of the trade of Chinese ceramics was
A. the transfer of a distinctive blue pigment from China to the Middle East
B. an immediate change from earthenware production to porcelain production in European countries
C. Chinese production of wares made for the European market
D. a decreased number of porcelain vessels available on the European market
这道题其实定位不难，通过题干里面的 “consequence” “trade” “Chinese ceramics”这些定位词 ，同学们会发现其实定位句就是本段的第四句“So admired were these pieces that they encouraged the development of earthenware made in imitation of porcelain and instigated research into the method of their manufacture”。但是，透过几个选项，居然没有中意的。这到底是怎么回事？难道是定位技巧出了问题？其实不然，至始至终，定位没错，定位句更没错，但是为什么就没有达到“定得到，读得懂，审得准，就能快速选中答案”的效果呢？原因很简单，就是本段里面其实有好几个“consequence”，定位句只是其中的一个“consequence”，而正确选项是另外一个“consequence”，所以，要想选到另外一个“consequence”，方法有两种，一是沿着原文继续往下读，二是从选项倒回去有目的地寻找，而这两种方法跟我们传统的阅读方法相差无异——几乎把整个段落扫完。就这道题目而言，正确选项C的同义替换就是最后一句，确实要求同学们扫完整个段落。但是，这只是定位题目里面的特例而已，绝大多数情况下，同学们还是可以依靠定位句“秒选”答案，而不用把整个段落扫完。这样的特例，除了再次强调高分阅读“基本功为主”“技巧为辅”的原则，也是间接提醒同学们解题时需要注重方法多样，多管齐下，找出正确答案才是王道。
