As suburbs grew, businesses moved into the new areas. Large
shopping centres containing a great kind of stores changed consumer patterns.
67. ______ The number of
these centres rose from eight in the end of World War Ⅱ to
68. ______ 3,840 in 1960. With easy parking and convenient
evening time, customers 69.
______ could avoid city shopping entirely. New highways created a better
access to 70. ______ the suburbs and its shops.
The Highway Act of 1956 provided $ 26,000 million, the largest public work
expenditure in U.S. history, to build more 71.
______ than 64,000 kilometres of federal roads to link together all parts of
the country. Television, consequently, had a powerful impact
on social and 72.
______ economic patterns. Developing in the 1930s, it was not widely marketed
until 73. ______ after the war. In 1946 the country had
about fewer than 17,000 TV sets. 74.
______ Three years later, consumers were buying 250,000 sets a month, and
by 1960 three-quarters of all families owned at least one set. In middle of
the 75. ______ decade, the average family watched
television four to five hours a day. Americans of all ages grew exposed to
increasingly sophisticated advertisements 76. ______ for
products said to be necessary for the good life.