Question

    A 2003 U．S． Education Department survey of adult literacy（识字） estimates that over 10 percent of adults in America can not read． Globally， the number is over 775 million．

For the elderly， illiteracy makes other problems worse in big ways． ABC News reported on a study from the Archives of Internal Medicine， which said that adults who were unable to read their prescriptions （处方） were 50 percent more likely to give in to disease than literate old people．

Various organizations， including the New York Public Library， sponsor adult literacy programs． Success stories， like Ed Bray， are always inspiring．

Ed Bray stormed the beach at Normandy during World War II， earning two purple hearts． And yet， the toughest thing the 89-year-old said he had to face in his life was his illiteracy． For decades， Bray went to extraordinary efforts to keep his inability to read or write a secret． While on the job at an Air Force base， he had a coworker help him with documents． At home， his wife did the same for 62 years until her death in 2009． Finally， the determination to get rid of the shame and learn how to read broke through． " I want to read one book，" he said． "I don't care if it's about Mickey Mouse． I want to read one book before I die．"

In early 2013， Bray found Professor Tobi Thompson at Oklahoma's Northeastern University． Her patient and dedicated （奉献的） attitude helped Bray accomplish what he never thought possible． In February， he read his first book， a grade-school biography of George Washington． "It just makes me feel good，" Bray said． He's since gone on to read three books and has no plan to stop now．

1.What can be inferred from the text about the problem of illiteracy？ ______

A. The American government ignored it．

B. It is especially troublesome for old people．

C. Global organizations are founded to deal with it．

D. 10percent of the adults in the world are illiterate．

2.Why did Ed Bray keep his illiteracy secret？ ______

A. He considered it as a shame．

B. He didn't want to disappoint his wife．

C. He thought it unmatched the honors he won．

D. He was afraid it would affect his service in the Air Force．

3.In paragraph four the underline part "it's about Mickey Mouse" is used to mean ______ ．

A. it's a famous book B. it's a classic book

C. it's a simple book D. it's an interesting book

Answer

1.B

2.A

3.C

【解析】

本文就美国教育部2003年的一项成人识字调查估计，美国超过10%的成年人不会识字。对于老年人来说，文盲在很大程度上使其他问题变得更糟。美国人就这种现状进行了一系列的改变措施。

1.细节理解题。根据第二段句子：For the elderly， illiteracy makes other problems worse in big ways．对于老年人来说，文盲在很大程度上使其他问题变得更糟。可见这对老年人来说特别麻烦。所以选B。

2.推理判断题。根据第三段句子：And yet， the toughest thing the 89-year-old said he had to face in his life was his illiteracy．然而，这位89岁的老人说他一生中最难面对的是他的文盲．可见对于自己是个文盲这件事应该是感到羞愧的。故选A。

3.句意理解题。"I don't care if it's about Mickey Mouse． I want to read one book before I die．我不在乎是不是关于米老鼠．我想在死前读一本书。"可以理解他读书的强烈愿望，Mickey Mouse是儿童书，可以理解为是很容易的书也可。故选C。