English nowadays is widely used in science, business, the media and popular culture. For example, 80% of e-mails on the internet are in English. But where will English be at the end of the 21st century?

     One view is that English is going to become even more important as a global language, being most widely used in trade and media while some other languages will become less important or just disappear. Another view is that English is already breaking up into several separate languages. There are already dictionaries of the “New Englishes”, such as Australian English, full of words that a British English speaker would not recognize.

      Hopefully, neither of these things will happen. Although different varieties of English will continue to develop around the world, standard English will survive for international       communication. However, it is impossible for one language to totally control the world. Already, other languages are fighting back against the control of English on the net. Governments around the world are also starting to protect smaller languages and recognize the importance of keeping a variety of cultures and languages. English will probably stay in control for a long time, but it certainly won’t become the only language in the world.

According to the situation, how many people do you think speak English now?

A. 200 million     B. 300 million    C. 500 million    D. a billion

At present, what is the most important language in the world?

   A. Chinese        B. English       C. French        D. German

What is the best title of the passage?

 A. The Change of English           B. Different Varieties of English  

 C. The Future of English            D. The Cause of English Change   

The iPhone, the iPad, the iPod : each of Apple’s products sounds cool and has become a fad (时尚). 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 came out last week under the name “i”.

   In general, single-letter prefixes have been popular since the 1990s, when terms such as e-mail and e-commerce first came into use.

   Most “i” products are aimed at young people and considering the major readers of Independent’s “i”, it is 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 the 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 iPad, 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 “Twitter”, 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, fads come and go. From the 1900s to 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(不可避免地)disappeared.

1.People use iPlayer to ____________.

   A. listen to music       B. make a call   C. watch TV programs online  D. read newspapers

2.We can infer that the Independent’s “ i ” is aimed at _____________.

   A. young readers         B. old readers    C. fashionable women     D. engineers

3. Nowadays, the “i” term often reminds people of the products that are ______________.

   A. advanced      B. portable          C. recyclable      D. environmentally friendly

4.The author of the passage would probably agree that _______________.

   A. “i” products are often of high quality      B. all “i” products have something to do with Internet

   C. the popularity of “i” products may not last long   D. iTeddy is a live bear

 

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