Hikosaburo Yasuda of Nakano, Japan, plans to buy an iPad to keep up with junior members in his computer club．"It's important to always try new things, otherwise you get left behind," he says．
Yasuda is 95 years old．He and his colleagues, looking for easier ways to search the Web and send e-mail, represent a potential market for Apple （AAPL）'s iPad．The company has sold 3．27 million iPads since its launch in April, but doesn't break down sales figures by customer age, making it impossible to know with certainty how many seniors are buying them．However, anecdotal evidence suggests it's a hit with the elderly．
The iPad's intuitive interface （直观界面） makes it appealing to senior citizens around the world, says Takahiro Miura, a researcher at the University of Tokyo: "The iPad is a good tool for the elderly because it's very forgiving of mistakes．" Miura's team uses computers to help train senior citizens to rejoin the workforce．"Unlike the PC, it doesn't require previous knowledge," he says．
James Cordwell, a technology analyst at Atlantic-Equities in London, says the iPad's popularity with the elderly is helping Apple reach beyond its traditional base of younger customer. “The world’s population, especially in developed markets, is getting older, and it’s probably a market where Apple has least entered,” Cordwell says. Elderly users are “a key source of growth for them in the future.”
The elderly in Japan, who make up an estimated 22 percent of the population, may prove particularly receptive to the iPad. They spend more than any other group in the country except for those under 30, according to a report by Japan's Cabinet Office. Motoo Kitamura, 78, a former gas salesman, bought an iPad to help him communicate with his 2-year-old grandson and stave off dementia. "Trying new things like that is a good mental exercise," he says.
1.The underlined part “a hit” in Paragraph 2 may probably mean “ ”.
A．a hard strike B．a heavy burden C．quite popular D．very familiar
2.Which of the following is NOT an advantage of the iPad over the PC?
A．It has intuitive interface. B．It is easier to operate.
C．It is more accessible to beginners. D．It is a good mental exercise.
3.What can we learn from the passage?
A．The people under thirty are the largest consumers in Japan except for the elderly.
B．The traditional customers of AAPL’s products are usually the yong.
C．The elderly will soon grow into the largest customer group in place of the young.
D．The elderly in Japan have great enthusiasm for latest hi – tech products.
4.What could be the best title for the passage?
A．The iPad leads Apple to the elderly
B．Ipad hits Japan’s store shelves
C．Ipad’s arrival in Tokyo causes Uapanese to reflect
D．AAPL attempts to balance the old and the yong
It s just a small, white envelope stuck among the branches of our Christmas tree．It has been there for the past 10 years or so．It all began because my husband Mike hated Christmas—the commercial aspects of Christmas-overspending．Knowing he felt this way, I decided one year to avoid the usual presents．The idea came in an unusual way．
Our son Kevin, who was 12 that year, was wrestling at the junior level at the school he attended; and shortly before Christmas, there was a match against a team sponsored by a church．These youngsters, dressed in ragged clothes, presenting a sharp contrast to our boys in their beautiful dresses and shoes．As the match began, I was alarmed to see that the other team was wrestling without headgear, a kind of light helmet designed to protect a wrestler's ears．It was a luxury that the poor team obviously could not afford．Well, we ended up defeating them．Mike, seated beside me, shook his head sadly, "I wish just one of them could have won," he said．"They have a lot of potential, but losing like this could take the heart right out of them．" That's when the idea for his present came．That afternoon, I went to a local sporting goods store and bought wrestling headgear and shoes for the youngsters and sent them anonymously （匿名地） to the church．On Christmas Eve? I placed the envelope on the tree, the note inside telling Mike what I had done and that this was his gift from me．His smile was the brightest thing about Christmas that year and in the following years．
For each Christmas, I followed the tradition．The envelope became the highlight of our Christmas．It was always the last thing opened on Christmas morning and our children, ignoring their new toys, would stand with wide-eyed expectation as their dad lifted the envelope from the tree to show its contents．As the children grew, they joined．
May we all remember the reason for Christmas, and the true Christmas spirit this year and always．God bless梡ass this along to your friends and loved ones．
1.The author avoids usual Christmas presents because her husband _____．
A．likes cheap Christmas presents
B．likes expensive Christmas presents
C．dislikes spending much on large Christmas presents
D．dislikes spending much on unmeaningful Christmas gifts
2.The underlined word "luxury" in Paragraph 2 means "_____"．
A．something of poor quality B．something abundant
C．something strange D．something expensive
3.From the passage we can infer that in character the husband is _____．
A．modest and mature B．kind and practical
C．strong-willed and vain D．optimistic and outgoing
4.What is the most exciting thing for the family at Christmas?
A．Preparing gifts． B．Exchanging gifts．
C．Opening the envelope． D．Writing Christmas cards．
阅读下面短文，从短文后各题所给的四个选项（A、B、C和D）中，选出可以填入空白处的最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
"A parcel arrived for you today," my father told me, as we were driving home from work．"It's quite big．" "Oh, really?" I wondered out loud．"Have you 36 anything? Maybe from Amazon or eBay or something…?" my father continued．"No, Dad．I'm 37 only one thing, but that should arrive in a（n） 38 ．"
On Sunday, I will participate in a（n） 39 activity with some friends,' and．I had asked Bluebell if she could send me some of her homemade smile cards to 40 on the day．Since smile cards would have fit into an envelope,'! couldn't imagine what else could be in the 41 I became increasingly 42 as we continued to drive home．As soon as we arrived, I 43 to open the package．It had a neat, hand-written label （标签）on it．"There might be something easy to 44 inside," my father said, as he handed me some scissors．"Be careful when you open it．"
The package was filled with all sorts of kindness 45 I First, some beautiful colorful posters with kindness ideas and 46 fell onto the floor．There were also loads of wrist bands （护腕）, which I will 47 at our kindness activity． 48 , there were three envelopes in the package——two of them had the most cleanly and neatly 49 smile cards, and the third had a wonderful card inside, which 50 , "Thank you very much for your kindness．．．loads of love, Bluebell．"
"This is really 51 ," my father said．My mother and sister enjoyed the package as well．Bluebell put ．the biggest 52 on all of our faces! When I had asked her for some of her homemade smile cards to 53 some kindness during our activity, I never expected to 54 such a wonderful package filled with all sorts of kindness and inspiration!
You have 55 made my day．Bluebell!
1.A．ordered B．searched C．desired D．paid
2.A．preferring B．wanting C．preventing D．expecting
3.A．poster B．parcel' C．envelope D．e-mail
4.A．sports B．afterschool C．kindness D．business
5.A．make up B．write down C．hand in D．give out
6.A．package B．card C．letter D．envelope
7.A．curious B．surprised C．hopeful D．terrible
8.A．wanted B．walked C．rushed D．stopped
9.A．lose B．break C．use D．pick
10.A．talents B．gifts C．books D．activities
11.A．articles B．music C．poets D．poems
12.A．get rid of B．make good use of C．keep out of D．take possession of
13.A．In conclusion B．In addition C．In short D．In fact
14.A．machinemade B．manmade C．homemade D．shopmade
15.A．told ,B．spoke C．wrote D．read
16.A．amazing B．funny C．crazy D．accidental
17.A．card B. tear C．spot D．smile
18.A．raise B．spread C．collects D．teach
19.A．find B．discover C．receive D．accept
20.A．completely B．partly C．hardly D．nearly
I really don't know _____ I put my wallet．
A．where was it B．it was where that
C．where was it that． D．where it was that
Stephen Hawking has expressed his opinion ?___ humans might one day be able to make spaceships capable of such speeds that time on board would slow down．
A．that B．whom C．which D．what
A truly creative person is able to _____ with fresh ideas from a story told time after time．
A． come on B．come along C．come up D．come out
