How many times a day do you check your email? When you wake up? Before bed? A dozen times in between? The technology that was supposed to simplify our lives has become the vital time-suck: the average teen spends more than seven hours a day using technological devices, plus an additional hour just text-messaging friends.
The advantage of technological devices is connectedness: email lets us respond on the go, and we are in touch with more people during more hours of the day than at any other time in history. But is it possible we’re more lonely than ever, too? That’s what MIT professor Sherry Turkle observes in her new book, Alone Together, a fascinating portrait of our changing relationship with technology. Turkle details the ways technology has redefined our comprehension of closeness and loneliness—and warns us of the danger of accepting such virtual(虚拟的) relationships in place of lasting emotional connections.
For Turkle, the biggest worry is the effect all these shallow connections have on our development. Is technology offering us the lives we want to live? “We’re texting people at a distance,” says Turkle, “We’re using lifeless objects to convince ourselves that even when we’re alone, we feel together. And then when we’re with each other, we put ourselves in situations where we are alone—constantly on our mobile devices. It’s what I call a perfect storm of confusion about what’s important in our human connections.”
What can’t be denied is that technology, whatever its faults, makes life a whole lot easier. It allows us to communicate with more people in less time and makes conversation simple. But it can also be seductive(具有诱惑性的), providing more stimulation than our natural lives. There are usually some unhealthy videos online which remove teenagers’ attention from their schoolwork. Besides, some online activities make people addicted, which occupied their daily life and affected their ability to form real-world relationships.“Technology can be more immediately satisfying than the labor of building an intimate relationship,” said one highschool student, “Every time I text, I start to have some happy feelings.”
But are any of those feelings equal to the kind we feel when engaged in real, face-to-face communication? Online, you can neglect others’ feelings. In a text message, you can avoid eye contact. A number of studies have found that this generation of teens is less sympathetic than ever. That doesn’t spell disaster, says Turkle—but，
1.From the first paragraph we can infer that_________.
A. email checking helps people wake up early
B. technological device production has been simplified
C. using technological devices costs teens much time
D. people communicate mainly by text-messaging now
2.Turkle’s new book mainly discussed________.
A. ways to draw a fascinating portrait
B. how technology influences human relationships
C. the dangers of accepting emotional connections
D. the advantages of technology
3.What worries Turkle most is that more and more people are_________.
A. starting to accept emotional connections in place of virtual connections
B. convincing themselves by using fewer lifeless objects in connections
C. dropping the use of technological devices for connection with each other
D.being affected by the shallow connections through the mobile devices
4.Which of the following is True according to the passage?
A. Others’ feelings can be ignored in online communication.
B. No stimulation is provided in natural life connections.
C. People always send text messages to avoid eye contact.
D. It may be a disaster that teens are less sympathetic than ever.
5.What is the main purpose of the passage?
A. To instruct people how to do with emails.
B. To stress the importance of technology.
C. To promote a wider use of technological devices.
D. To lead us to consider what’s important in human connections.
The snow cap of Mount Kilimanjaro, famous in literature and beloved by tourists, initially formed some 11,000 years ago, but will be gone in two decades, according to researchers who say the ice fields on Africa’s highest mountain shrank by 80 percent in the past century.
Lonnie G. Thompson,one professor from Ohio State University, said measurements using modern navigation satellites show that the oldest ice layers on the famous mountain were deposited during an extremely wet period starting about 11,700 years ago.The mountain appears in literature, most notably Ernest Hemingway’s “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” and some ancient beliefs in Africa hold the mountain to be a sacred place.
But a temperature rise in recent years is destroying the 150-foot-high blocks of ice that gave Kilimanjaro its unique white cap.“The ice will be gone by about 2030,” said Thompson. The disappearing ice already has reduced the amount of water in some Tanzanian rivers and the government fears that when Kilimanjaro is bald of snow the tourists will stop coming.
“Kilimanjaro is the number one foreign currency earner for the government of Tanzania,” said Thompson. “It has its own international airport and some 20,000 tourists every year. The question is how many will come if there are no ice fields on the mountain.”
Africa was not alone in the global drought. Thompson said other records show that civilizations during this period collapsed in India, the Middle East and South America.
Researchers put markers on the ice field blocks in 1962 and Thompson said measurements using satellites show the summit of the ice has been lowered by about 56 feet in 40 years. The margin of the ice also has moved back more than six feet in the past two years, much smaller than before.
“That’s more than two meter’s worth of ice lost from a wall 164 feet (50 meters) high,” said Thompson. “That’s an enormous amount of ice.”
1.The snow cap of Mount Kilimanjaro ________.
A. will disappear in two centuries
B.first developed some 11,000 years ago
C. resulted in a temperature rise in recent years
D. has decreased to 80 percent over the past century
2.According to Thompson, the disappearing of the snow may mainly influence________.
A. the local water supply
B. the local tourism
C. the weather in the surrounding areas
D. the government foreign currency exchange
3.The underlined word “margin”inParagraph6 means__________.
A. center B. Top C. edge D. back
4.The writer’s tone in this article is___________.
A. concerned B. casual
C. doubtful D. angry
5.Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?
A.Risks of Visiting Mount Kilimanjaro
B. ASacred Place— Kilimanjaro
C. Africa’s Highest Mountain
D. Kilimanjaro Snow Cap May Melt Soon
Karl Fleming joined the military because he needed a change in his life. He had a successful career with a shipping company but he wanted to do something more. He found that something in the U.S. army. Fleming began his service in 2009 and never looked back.
A few years later, Fleming volunteered to go to Afghanistan. There, he worked as a bodyguard for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He enjoyed it, except for the almost-nightly rocket attacks. Karl was never hit directly by a rocket, but he didn’t need to be to feel its effects. The rockets caused severe shaking, shaking so bad that Fleming was left with many injuries. He was also diagnosed with concussions(脑震荡) and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder(PTSD).
Fleming said he was down but not out. Once he returned from Afghanistan, Fleming underwent one test after another. At first, Fleming said he thought he could recover or be able to return to duty and realize his dream of becoming an officer. But then came the news he had never imagined: Fleming would never be an officer because he was too injured to continue.
Fleming said he was depressed after learning his military career was over. Add that to the memory loss, extreme anxiety and the many painful medical procedures he was already experiencing. He rarely ventured outside on the weekend. Instead, he preferred to sleep in. All that changed, however, with Fleming’s service dog, Kuchar.
Fleming said he had heard dogs could help people suffering from PTSD, so he started doing research. Karl eventually selected K9s for Warriors, which is where he met Kuchar, a yellow lab. Fleming and Kuchar trained together for weeks, before returning to Fort Benning. K9s for Warriors provided Fleming with Kuchar and the training for free.
Life with Kuchar has been life-changing. Fleming doesn’t sleep in any more because Kuchar won’t let him. Instead, they venture out into a world Karl was once afraid of — a world for Fleming that now seems impossible to imagine without Kuchar by his side.
1.Karl Fleming joined the army because ___________.
A. he had a successful career
B. he loved to be a soldier
C. he wanted to have a change
D. he expected to work in a shipping company
2.From Paragraph 2, we can learn Karl Fleming was __________.
A. forced to go to Afghanistan
B. struck directly by a rocket one day
C. satisfied with everything in the army
D. injured because of the shaking from the rockets
3.Fleming suffered from the following illnesses except ___________.
A. concussions B. PTSD
C. memory loss D. a heart attack
4.Karl Fleming recovered with the help of ___________.
A. an experienced bodyguard B. a well-trained dog
C. a laboratory engineer D. a military officer
5.The passage is mainly about Fleming’s__________.
A. change of life B. service in the military
C. medical procedures D. experiences in Afghanistan
Directions: Complete the following passage by filling in each blank with one word that best fits the context.
Leaving for college can be a big challenging learning experience. Maybe this is the first time for you to live with people1.aren’t your family members. Because of the differences in values and personalities, unavoidably, conflicts may easily arise betweenroommates.
So how can you develop a successful roommate relationship2.fewer conflicts? First, lose your shyness 3.open up to your roommates by talking about the common interest, which can help you learn each other’s different cultural or social backgrounds. 4., be flexible with your roommatesand adjust your thinking to new situations. Don’t get stuck with 5.thinking patterns and habits that you bring from home. At last, 6.your roommate does something that bothers you, don’t let 7.turn into a bad situation.Try to work together to reach a compromise that8.can both live with.
In a word, a harmonious roommate relationship lies in the friendly communication, mutual respectand acceptance of others’ differences.
Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
It was a terribly cold Christmas Eve with heavy snow outside. I stayed in bed, feeling upset because there wasn’t enough money to buy me the that I’d wanted that year.
Mum came back with some snow in her hair. “Come on, Matt!” she said. “Dress ! It’s freezing cold out tonight.”
, I went out in the cold with Mum and climbed up the sled beside her. She pulled it around the house and then stopped in front of the woodshed(柴房). She went in and with an armload of wood.
“I rode by Jensen’s today,” said Mum, “Little Jakey was out digging around in the snow. They’re out of wood, Matt.”
Jensen lived about two miles down the road. Her husband died 3 months ago, three children, Jakey being only 8 years old.
We loaded the sled high with . Then we went to the store and my mother took down some meat, a sack of flour and a smaller sack of shoes.
We rode the two miles to Jensen’s in . All the way I wondered why Mum bought them some shoes and candy as we didn’t have much money. Jensen had closer neighbors than us. It shouldn’t have been our .
We got to Jensen’s house and unloaded the wood as quietly as possible. Then we took the meat, flour and shoes to the door.
We . Jensen opened the door and let us in. “We brought you a few things, Jensen,” Mum said, the sack of flour and the meat on the table. Then Mum handed her the sack of shoes. Jensen bit her lower lip to keep it from trembling, tears welling out and down her cheeks.
“We also a load of wood, Jensen,” Mum added. She turned to me and said: “Matt, go and bring some in.”
I wasn’t the same person when I went back out to get the wood. Just then the scarf didn’t seem . The look on Jensen’s face and the smiles of her three children was the best Christmas gift of my life.
1.A. scarf B. overcoat C. shoes D. handbag
2.A. fashionably B. casually C. comfortably D. warmly
3.A. Unsteadily B. Unhurriedly C. Unwillingly D. Uncomplainingly
4.A. stepped away B. came out C. broke down D. fell over
5.A. adopting B. taking C. overlooking D. leaving
6.A. wood B. meat C. flour D. grass
7.A. surprise B. danger C. silence D. harmony
8.A. custom B. concern C. comment D. courage
9.A. signed B. chased C. knocked D. hesitated
10.A. taking away B. getting back C. giving out D. putting down
11.A. prepared B. bought C. borrowed D. required
12.A. expensive B. important C. ordinary D. available
There is no doubt that _________ a goal, one needs not only knowledge but also good personalities.
A. achieve B. achieving
C. to achieve D. achieved
