The iPhone, the iPad, the iPod, each of apple's products sounds cool and has become a pad (一时的风尚). Apple has cleverly taken advantage of the power of the letter “i”，-- and many other brands are following suit. The BBC’s iPlayer —which allows Web users to watch TV programs on the internet—adopted the title in 2008. A lovely bear—popular in the US and UK—that plays music and video is called “iTeddy”.A slimmed-down version of London’s Independent newspaper，was launched last week under the name “i”.
In general，single-letter prefix have been popular since the 1990s，when terms such as e-mail and e-commerce first came into use.
Most “i”products are targeted at young people and considering the major readers of the Independent’s “i”，it’s no surprise that they’ve selected this fashionable name.
But it’s hard to see what’s so special about the letter “i”.Why not use “a”，“b”or “c”instead？According to Tony Thorne，head of Language Center at King’s College，London，“i”works because its meaning has become ambiguous .When Apple uses “i”，no one knows whether it means internet，information，individual or interactive，Thorne told BBC magazines “even when Apple created the iPod，it seems it didn’t have one clear definition，”he says.
“However，thanks to Apple，the term is now associated with portability （轻便）， ”adds Thorne.
Clearly the letter “i”also agrees with the idea that the Western World is centered on the individual. Each person believes they have their own needs，and we love personalized products for this reason.
Along with “Google”and “blog”，readers of BBC magazines voted “i”as one of the top 20 words that have come to define the last decade.
But as history shows，people grow tired of fads. From the 1900s to the 1990s，products with “2000”in their names became fashionable as the year was associated with all things advanced and modern. However，as we entered the new century，the trend inevitably disappeared.
1.
We can infer that the Independent’s “i”is aimed at _______.
A. young readers B. old readers C. fashionable women D. engineers
2.
“So teach him to close the door”, my daughter Emma responded after listening to me 36 , again, about the dog coming in from the back door, bringing with him a blast of Buffalo January 37 air.
Teach a dog to close a door behind him? That has got to be a really, really 38 thing to do．But then she took a step 39 . “Come on, Kolby”, she said, grabbing some treats（犒劳物） and 40 him in front of the open door. “Touch.” And “touch” he did, which moved the door to a 41 position. She 42 him with a treat, smiled, looked at me, and said “see!” And I saw and became 43 . Over the last few days I have been with Kolby. Each time he comes in I bring him back to the 44 door and ask him to close. There have been 45 in the beginning, but lately more and more successes.
However, there remains much work to be done. I have to get him to follow my hand signal again and again 46 he will close the door from a distance. But, I now realize, 47 you keep to the focus, the 48 will be completed.
What a 49 treat to have a dog that can close the door after himself! Even more wonder can be found in the 50 I learned so clearly from both Emma and Kolby.
A wish is just a wish until you decide to take 51 . Once you 52 the belief that it is “too hard”, then it remains “too hard ” and out of 53 . Once you want to accomplish a goal, and 54 that it is “easy”, then it becomes “easy” to do what needs to be done．Just 55 doing it.
1. A．complain B．scream C．worry D．scare
2. A．thin B．fresh C．dirty D．cold
3. A．interesting B．funny C．tough D．possible
4. A．again B．further C．deeper D．backward
5. A．pushing B．catching C.driving D．positioning
6. A．stopped B．fixed C．closed D．checked
7. A．rewarded B．provided C．offered D．thanked
8. A．moved B．convinced C．concerned D．puzzled
9. A．open B．closed C．broken D．perfect
10.A．pleasures B．experiments C．failures D．pauses
11. A．in case B．even if C．as if D．so that
12. A．even if B．as long as C．in that D．unless
13. A．interest B．task C．profit D．harmony
14. A．wonderful B．small C．different D．simple
15. A．knowledge B．skills C．lessons D．experience
16. A．patience B．part C．delight D．action
17. A．hold on to B．pay attention to C．come up with D．live up to
18. A．date B．touch C．reach D．power
19. A．prove B．decide C．approve D．realize
20. A．imagine B．start C．keep D．enjoy
One day I _____ a newspaper article about the retirement of an English professor at a nearby state college.
A. came across B. came about C. came out D. came to
E-shopping,when properly _____ ,can save us a lot of time and energy.
A. done B. doing C. to do D. is done
---_____ should we look down upon the poor.
---I’m with you on that.
A. By all means B. By any means C. By means of D. By no means
When was _____ you last met Jennifer? I haven’t seen her for ages.
A. it that B. it C. it what D. what
