The regular use of text messages and e-mails can lower the IQ more than twice as much as smoking marijuana (大麻). That is the statement of researchers who have found that tapping away on a mobile phone or computer keyboard or checking for electronic messages temporarily knocks up to 10 points off the user’s IQ. This rate of decline in intelligence compared unfavorably with the four-point drop in IQ associated with smoking marijuana, according to British researchers, who have described the phenomenon of improved stupidity as “infomania”. The research conducted by Hewlett Packard, the technology company, has concluded that it is mainly a problem for adult workers, especially men.
It is concluded that too much use of modern technology can damage a person’s mind. It can cause a constant distraction of “always on” technology when employees should be concentrating on what they are paid to do. Infomania means that they lose concentration as their minds remain fixed in an almost permanent state of readiness to react to technology instead of focusing on the task in hand. The report also added that, in a long term, the brain will be considerably shaped by what we do to it and by the experience of daily life. At a microcellular(微蜂窝，微孔的) level, the complex networks of nerve cells that make up parts of the brain actually change in response to certain experiences.
Too much use of modern technology can be damaging not only to a person’s mind, but to their social relationship. 1100 adults were interviewed during the research. More than 62 percent of them admitted that they were addicted to checking their e-mails and text messages so often that they scrutinized work-related ones even when at home or on holiday. Half said that they always responded immediately to an e-mail and will even interrupt a meeting to do so. It is concluded that infomania is increasing stress and anxiety and affecting one’s characteristics. Nine out of ten thought that colleagues who answered e-mails or messages during a face-to-face meeting were extremely rude.
The effects on IQ were studied by Dr. Glenn Wilson, a psychologist at University of London. “This is a very real and widespread phenomenon,” he said. “We have found that infomania will damage a worker’s performance by reducing their mental sharpness and changing their social life. Companies should encourage a more balanced and appropriate way of working.”
1.We can learn from the passage that “infomania” ______.
A. has a positive influence on one’s IQ
B. results in the change of part of the brain
C. lies in the problem of lack of concentration
D. is caused by too much use of modern technology
2.The research mentioned in the passage is most probably about ______.
A. the important function of advanced technology
B. the damage to one’s brain done by unhealthy habits
C. the relevance between IQ and use of modern technology
D. the relationship between intelligence and working effectiveness
3.The underlined word “scrutinized” probably means “______”.
A. examined carefully B. copied patiently
C. corrected quickly D. admitted freely
4.Which of the following shows the structure of the passage?
CP: Central Point P: Point Sp: Sub-point(次要点) C: Conclusion |
Napoleon, as a character in Tolstoy’s War and Peace, is more than once described as having “fat little hands”. Nor does he “sit well or firmly on the horse”. He is said to be “undersized”, with “short legs” and a “round stomach”. The issue here is not the accuracy of Tolstoy’s description-it seems not that far off from historical accounts but his choice of facts: other things that could be said of the man are not said. We are meant to understand the difference of a warring commander in the body of a fat little Frenchman. Tolstoy’s Napoleon could be any man wandering in the streets and putting a little of powdered tobacco up his nose-and that is the point.
It is a way the novelist uses to show the moral nature of a character. And it turns out that, as Tolstoy has it, Napoleon is a crazy man. In a scene in Book Three of War and Peace, the wars having reached the critical year of 1812,Napoleon receives a representative from the Tsar (沙皇) ,who has come with peace terms. Napoleon is very angry: doesn’t he have more army? He, not the Tsar, is the one to make the terms. He will destroy all of Europe if his army is stopped. “That is what you will have gained by engaging me in the war!” he shouts. And then, Tolstoy writes, Napoleon “walked silently several times up and down the room, his fat shoulders moving quickly".
Still later, after reviewing his army amid cheering crowds, Napoleon invites the shaken Russian to dinner. “He raised his hand to the Russian’s face,” Tolstoy writes, and "taking him by the ear pulled it gently. . . ". To have one’s ear pulled by the Emperor was considered the greatest honor and mark of favor at the French court. “Well, well, why don’t you say anything?” said he, as if it was ridiculous in his presence to respect any one but himself, Napoleon.
Tolstoy did his research, but the composition is his own.
1.Tolstoy’s description of Napoleon in War and Peace is__________.
A. far from the historical facts
B. based on the Russian history
C. based on his selection of facts
D. not related to historical details
2. Tolstoy intended to present Napoleon as a man who is__________.
A. ill-mannered in dealing with foreign guests
B. fond of showing off his iron will
C. determined in destroying all of Europe
D. crazy for power and respect
3. What does the last sentence of the passage imply?
A. A writer doesn’t have to be faithful to his findings.
B. A writer may write about a hero in his own way.
C. A writer may not be responsible for what he writes.
D. A writer has hardly any freedom to show his feelings.
A Russian legend has a story about the origins of cats. The cat’s coat, it was said, was originally designed for the dog, but the dog became so impatient when coats were being handed out that he was told to wait at the back of the queue. The cat was given the fur instead of the dog. This, according to Russian folk storied, is the origin of why dogs dislike cats.
A nameless cat with a taste for travel flew for three weeks between New York and Tel Aviv in 1984. It escaped from its owner’s cat-box in the plane’s luggage compartment(行李仓)on the first trip and all efforts to get it out with bowls of milk and food failed. After nearly 80,000 miles of flying the airline called in a vet who got it out.
The Chinese attitude to the cat was not clear. Cats were welcome for their ability to kill mice and were considered suitable pets for women. On the other hand, they were suspected of bring bad luck into the home. In the days before the invention of the watch, it was said that they used their cats as clocks. The pupils(瞳孔)of the cat’s eyes were believed to gradually change shape with the position of the sun in the sky. At midday they were a narrow line and they gradually became rounder until sunset.
Britain’s cleanest cat is undoubtedly Harvey, a five-month-old Persian who climbed into his owner’s washing machine. He went through a ten-minute wash cycle before someone noticed him through the glass door, and pressed the “stop” button. Harvey was soon back to his usual self.
Cats seem to be able to sense earthquakes. Josie, who lives in California, warned her family of a quake in 1971.
She wore her owners. Mr. and Mrs. Miller, at 5:50am by jumping onto the bed and running around. When the Miller followed her out of the house, Josie ran off. The earthquake was only a small one, but the cat raised the alarm every time there was a quake after that.
1.From the Russian legend we know the dog_____.
A. sees the cat his friend. B. received the fur coat.
C. disliked the fur D. got punished by God
2.Which of the following shows it is sometime in the afternoon according to the Chinese belief?
3.Which of the following correctly matches the picture to the paragraph which describes the event?
A. Picture a)---Paragraph 1 B. Picture b)---Paragraph3
C. Picture c)---Paragraph 5 D. Picture d)---Paragraph 4
假设你是新华中学高三2班的学生李华,你的英国笔友Simon刚转学,感到一切都很陌生。他在邮件中向你询问如何尽快融入新环境。请你根据以下信息回信。
1.多跟同学交流沟通;
2.积极参加学校活动;
3.向老师寻求帮助。
注意:1.词数:100左右;
2.可适当增加细节,以使行文连贯;
3.开头和结尾已给出,不计入总词数。
Dear Simon,
短文改错
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号（
），并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线（＼）划掉。
修改：在错的词下画一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1. 每处错误及其修改均仅限一词；
2. 只允许修改10处，多者（从第11处起）不计分。
I am travelling back with my parents from seeing my grandparents then it started to snow. At first, I thought it was fun and everything looked beautifully. I was looking forward to make a snowman in the playground at school the next day, and suddenly the car drove off road and into a channel. My father called the rescue team, but they said that would be a long time before they could reach us. However, we sang songs and told stories to pass the time. Several hour later, the rescue team pulled their car out of the channel. At last, we managed to drive very slowly to home. I would never forget this experience.
短文填空
阅读下面材料，在空白处填入适当的内容（1个单词）或括号内单词的正确形式。
Many English language learners believe that the 1. (great) difficulty with listening comprehension is that the listener cannot control how quickly a speaker speaks. They feel that what the speaker says disappear 2. they can follow, while the words in a written text remain on the page where the reader can look back at them. This frequently means that students 3. are learning to listen cannot keep up. They are so busy working out the meaning 4. one part of what they hear that they miss the next part. Or they 5. (simple) ignore a whole section because they fail to catch it quickly enough. Either way, they fail.
Another difficulty is that the listener is not always in a position to get the speaker to repeat what has been said. And, of course, repeats cannot 6. (ask) for when listening to the radio or watching TV.
Besides, 7. (choose) of vocabulary is in the hands of the speaker, not the listener. Very often, for people listening to a foreign language, an unknown word can be like a suddenly 8. (drop) barrier (障碍) making them stop and think about the meaning of the word, 9. (cause) them to miss the next part of the speech. In listening, it really is a case of “He who 10. (stop) to work out the meaning is lost.”
