Cast your mind back to the past twenty years and hardly did anyone have their ow

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Cast your mind back to the past twenty years and hardly did anyone have their own email account. The Internet had just taken off in 1991 and people were only using office and PCbased email exchanges.
In the mid 1990s external email providers appeared. The most famous of these was Hotmail, the first free email provider and webbased email service. Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith launched Hotmail on July 4, 1996. And Microsoft took note of and bought Hotmail for $400 million on December 30, 1997, a nice birthday present for Bhatia who turned 29 that day. It was relaunched as MSN Hotmail and in 2007 was relaunched again as Windows Live Hotmail.
Fast forward the present day and most of us have at least a personal webbased email account. It seems impossible to live without them. One of the biggest advantages of email is the fact that communication has become so much easier, especially with those across different time zones. Email takes seconds to send a message whereas letters, as we used to communicate by, could take weeks. Of course there was the fax, that beeping invention from the 1980s, but it wasn’t as secure as email and you never knew if the person on the other end had picked up your fax or if it had got lost somewhere in the office.
In conclusion, one of the best inventions from the 1990s has to be email. But sometimes people are too closely connected to their email and have a compulsion to check it several times a day. At work, people have become lazy and instead of going to speak to the person sitting next to them, they send an email，causing an in box to pile up with more time spent reading email and responding rather than working. Clearly, an invention that saved time because of its quick and speedy connection can now also cause us to waste a lot of time.
小题1:The earliest web-based email came into being probably _______.

A．in 1991

B．in 1996

C．in 1997

D．in 2007

小题2:The author mentions “fax” in the third paragraph in order to tell us that _______.

A．it is exactly as good as email

B．it is much better than email

C．it is less convenient than email

D．it is easier and faster than email

小题3:The underlined word “compulsion” in Paragraph 4 probably means “_______”.

A．strong desire

B．common sense

C．special curiosity

D．general idea

小题4:Which is the main idea of the last paragraph?

A．We should check email boxes frequently.

B．Lazy people like sending an email.

C．Email brings us great convenience.

D．Good inventions also cause problems.

答案

小题1:B
小题2:C
小题3:A
小题4:D

解析

试题分析：文章介绍了通信方式的发展变化。自从有了互联网，电子邮件快速发展，得到了广泛的应用。几乎每个人都有一个电子邮件账号。但是，发明给我们带来便利的同时，也会附带有一些问题的出现。
小题1:根据“In the mid 1990s external email providers appeared. The most famous of these was Hotmail, the first free email provider and webbased email service. Sabeer Bhatia and Jack Smith launched Hotmail on July 4, 1996.”可知，基于网络的最早的电子邮件出现在二十世纪九十年代中期，故选B。
小题2:根据第三段“Of course there was the fax, that beeping invention from the 1980s, but it wasn’t as secure as email and you never knew if the person on the other end had picked up your fax or if it had got lost somewhere in the office.”可知，传真没有电子邮件安全，无法知道对方是否接收了传真，或者把传真的文件放丢了。传真没有电子邮件方便，故选C。
小题3:根据最后一段“But sometimes people are too closely connected to their email and have a compulsion to check it several times a day.”可知，有时候，人们与电子邮件的联系过于密切，以至于有一种一天查收好几次的***。故选A。
小题4:根据最后一段“Clearly, an invention that saved time because of its quick and speedy connection can now also cause us to waste a lot of time.”可知，好的发明在带来便利的同时，也会引起许多问题。故选D。

举一反三

I am a psychologist. I first met Timothy, a quiet, overweight eleven-year-old boy, when his mother brought him to me to discuss his declining grades. A few minutes with Timothy were enough to confirm that his self-esteem(自尊) and general happiness were falling right along with them. I asked about Timothy’s typical day. He awoke every morning at six thirty so he could reach his school by eight and arrived home around four thirty each afternoon. He then had a quick snack, followed by either a piano lesson or a lesson with his math tutor. He finished dinner at 7 pm, and then he sat down to do homework for two to three hours. Quickly doing the math in my head, I found that Timothy spent an average of thirteen hours a day at a writing desk.
What if Timothy spent thirteen hours a day at a sewing machine instead of a desk? We would immediately be shocked, because that would be called children being horribly mistreated. Timothy was far from being mistreated, but the mountain of homework he faced daily resulted in a similar consequence —he was being robbed of his childhood. In fact, Timothy had no time to do anything he truly enjoyed, such as playing video games, watching movies, or playing board games with his friends.
Play, however, is a crucial part of healthy child development. It affects children’s creativity, their social skills, and even their brain development. The absence of play, physical exercise, and freefrom social interaction takes a serious toll on many children. It can also cause significant health problems like childhood obesity, sleep problems and depression.
Experts in the field recommend the minutes children spend on their homework should be no more than ten times the number of their grade level. As a fifthgrader, Timothy should have no more than fifty minutes a day of homework (instead of three times that amount). Having an extra two hours an evening to play, relax, or see a friend would soundly benefit any child’s life quality.
小题1:What does the underlined word “them” in the first paragraph probably refer to?

A．Timothy’s parents.	B．Timothy’s grades.
C．Psychologists.	D．The students.

小题2:What did the writer think of Timothy after learning about his typical day?

A．Timothy was very hardworking.

B．Timothy was being mistreated.

C．Timothy had a heavy burden.

D．Timothy was enjoying his childhood.

小题3:Which of the following statements best describes the writer’s opinion?

A．Children should be allowed enough time to play.

B．Playing board games works better than playing video games.

C．The more they play, the more creative children will become.

D．The depression caused by homework makes children unwilling to play.

小题4:According to the passage, how long should a thirdgrader spend a day doing homework?

A．About ten minutes.

B．No more than twenty minutes.

C．No more than thirty minutes.

D．About fifty minutes.

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International students studying in the UK
The UK has a long history of welcoming international students to study in its universities and colleges. In the UK last year there were over 104,000 international students. Choosing which university or college to go to was like a life-changing decision. Do as much research as possible so that you choose the right course for the right reason.
How to apply for higher education
All applications for higher education courses are made using our online application system, which is available 24 hours a day. You fill in the application form online and it does not need to be completed all at once. Please see the When to Apply page to check the dates by which we should receive your completed application.
Choosing a higher education course to study
Try to do a lot of research when deciding which courses to apply for. You will probably want to find out even more before you accept an offer of a place on a course. When you accept an offer of a place, make sure that all of your questions have been answered. Ask teachers if there is anything to prepare before the course starts. They may suggest that you look at certain books on the course reading list or that you improve your computer skills.
Other help and advice
Unistats is a website that can help you to research subjects and universities before deciding where to apply. You can compare subjects, compare universities and explore useful information about getting a job after graduation. Unistats has statistical (统计的) information on universities, colleges, subjects and teaching style.
Yougo is a student-only networking site where you can meet other applicants online and talk about what you hope to study and the university you hope to attend.
If you have any questions, please call us at 0044-330-333-0230.
小题1:One who wants to get into a university in the UK________.

A．must have a good reason to study abroad

B．can make an application on the Internet

C．should create more learning programs

D．will be asked to send a plan to a teacher

小题2:We can learn from the passage that it is a wise idea to ________.

A．learn basic computer skills in the UK when possible

B．get to know as many teachers as possible in the UK

C．do much research before choosing a college major

D．borrow certain books before going abroad to study.

小题3:Unistats is a website that works to help students ________.

A．select the best university and subject

B．meet other teenage students online

C．study further after finishing a course

D．compare colleges at home and abroad

小题4:What’s the author’s purpose in writing this passage?

A．To give information about higher education in the UK.

B．To describe the types of universities across the UK.

C．To introduce the UK education system to students.

D．To attract international students to study in the UK.

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Sigmund Freud was one of the first scientists to make serious research of the mind. The mind is the collection of activities based in the brain that involve how we act, think, feel and reason.
He used long talks with patients and the study of dreams to search for the causes of mental and emotional problems. He also tried hypnosis(催眠术). He wanted to see whether putting patients into a sleep-like condition would help ease troubled minds. In most cases he found the effects only temporary.
Freud worked hard, although what he did might sound easy. His method involved sitting with his patients and listening to them talk. He had them talk about whatever they were thinking. All ideas, thoughts and anything that entered their mind had to be expressed. There could be no holding back because of fear or guilt.
Freud believed that all the painful memories of childhood lay buried in the unconscious self. This part of the mind he said contains wishes, desires and experiences too frightening to recognize.
He thought that if these memories could somehow be brought into the conscious mind, the patient would again feel the pain. But this time, the person would experience them as an adult. The patient would feel them, be able to examine them and, if successful, finally understand them.
Using this way, Freud reasoned, the pain and emotional pressure of the past would be greatly weakened. They would lose their hold over the person"s physical health. Soon the patient would get better.
Many of Freud"s theories about how the mind works also had strong sexual connections. These included what he saw as the repressed feelings of sons toward their mothers and daughters toward their fathers.
If nothing else, Freud"s ideas were revolutionary. Some people rejected them. Many others came to accept them. But no one disputes his great influence on the science of mental health.
小题1:How many methods did Sigmund Freud use to study the mind?

A．One.

B．Two.

C．Three.

D．Four.

小题2:Sigmund Freud’s research was difficult because ______.

A．he had to work hard and have patients talk freely

B．he had to live with people who had troubled minds

C．he had to listen to unhappy stories of different people

D．he had to give his patients a sense of security

小题3:Sigmund Freud held the idea that the painful memories of childhood ______.

A．could be forgotten forever

B．could have a life-long influence

C．could become wises and desires

D．could be understood unconsciously

小题4:If an adult parent feels the memories of childhood painful, the patient would probably ______.

A．have physical and mental problems

B．be greatly influenced by them

C．have a better understanding of life

D．have a healthier and happier life

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Over 60﹪of pupils in South African schools choose English for learning and teaching, but only 7﹪of pupils speak English as their home language, a recent South Africa survey shows.
Out of the country’s 12.2 million pupils only 851,536 speak English at home, yet 7.6 million pupils choose English as their favorite language of learning and teaching. Zulu is the most widely spoken home language, spoken by over 3.1 million pupils. However, less than a third of them choose to be taught in Zulu. The same thing is true of Pedi-speaking pupils, only a third of such pupils choosing to be taught in their home language. Besides English,
Afrikaans is the only language that has more pupils choosing it as their language of instruction than it has pupils who speak it at home. In primary schools, most pupils will choose African languages. As early as grade four, many would choose English or Afrikaans in their lessons.
The rising number of English-learning pupils is mainly caused by social and cultural reasons. English is the most common spoken language in official and public life in South Africa, the survey reports. In April 2011, the leaders of higher education and training said that they would take some steps to improve the university teaching and prevent the continuing decline of African languages. They suggested that in future every South African university student could be required to learn at least one African language in order to complete their studies at school.
小题1: We can learn from the passage that most South African pupils__________.

A．speak English both at home and at school

B．are required to learn two languages at school

C．choose English as their primary school language

D．are expected to speak their native language at home.

小题2: It can be inferred from the passage that__________________.

A．Afrikaans is the most popular home language in South Africa

B．it’s easier for South African pupils to learn Afrikaans at school.

C．the number of South African pupils learning Afrikaans has increased

D．many South African pupils use Afrikaans at school instead of at home.

小题3: The underlined word “decline” in the last paragraph is closest in meaning to “_________”.

A．going downhill

B．spreading widely

C．growing upwards

D．developing further

小题4: What is the survey in the passage mainly about?

A．The use of native languages in South African families.

B．The language choice and use among South African pupils.

C．The progress in South Africa’s language teaching education

D．The spread of English at schools in South Africa.

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Diet Coke, diet Pepsi, diet pills, no-fat diet, vegetable diet… We are surrounded by the word “diet” everywhere we look and listen. We have so easily been attracted by the promise and potential of diet products that we have stopped thinking about what diet products are doing to us. We are paying for products that harm us psychologically and physically.
Diet products weaken us psychologically. On one level, we are not allowing our brain to admit that our weight problems lie not in actually losing the weight, but in controlling the consumption of fatty, high-calorie（卡）, unhealthy foods. Diet products allow us to jump over the thinking stage and go straight for the counter instead. All we have to do is to swallow or recognize the word “diet” in food brands.
On another level, diet products have greater psychological effects. Every time we have a zero-calorie drink, we are telling ourselves without our awareness that we don’t have to work to get results. Diet products make people believe that gain comes without pain, and that life can be without resistance and struggle.
The danger of diet products lies not only in the psychological effects they have on us, but also in the physical harm that they cause. Diet foods can indirectly harm our bodies because consuming them instead of healthy foods means we are preventing our bodies from having basic nutrients(营养成分). Diet foods and diet pills contain zero calorie only because the diet industry has created chemicals to produce these wonder products. Diet products may not be nutritional, and the chemical that go into diet products are potentially dangerous.
Now that we are aware of the effects that diet products have on us, it is time to seriously think about buying them. Losing weight lies in the power of minds, not in the power of chemicals. Once we realize this, we will be much better able to resist diet products, and therefore prevent the psychological harm that comes from using them.
小题1:The first paragraph mainly tells us _____.

A．diet products can bring out people’s potential

B．people have difficulty in choosing diet products

C．diet products are misleading people

D．people are fed up with diet products

小题2:One psychological effect of diet products is that people tend to ____.

A．resist a variety of diet foods

B．hesitate before they enjoy diet foods

C．pay attention to their own eating habits

D．watch their weight rather than their diet

小题3:The purpose of writing this passage is _________.

A．to warn people of the side effect of diet products

B．to tell people how to lose weight

C．to advise people to eat diet products

D．to introduce some diet products

小题4: Which of the following shows the structure（结构） of the passage?

CP: Central Point P: Point Sp: Sub-point(次要点) C: Conclusion

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