Television, which made its first serious appearance in 1939, did not become common until the early 1950s. Since then, millions of children have grown up in front of the set, and many people now worry about the effect that TV has on the young, and on society in general. Educators, psychologists, and crime experts wonder if television should be abolished(取消). Many ordinary parents wish it had never been invented. Why are they so afraid? Is television as harmful as they think it is?

Like almost anything else, television has its good and its bad sides. One should surely thank its inventors for the joy and interest that they have brought into the lives of the old, the sick, and the lonely -- all those who, without it, would have no pleasure and no window on the world.

In truth, television has opened windows in everybody's life. No newspaper has ever reached so many people and shown so clearly what was happening right now in their own country and everywhere else. TV not only gives the news instantly, it also shows it in pictures more powerful than words. It can be said that TV has brought reality to the public. Millions of people now have seen the effects of a battle, a flood, a fire, a crime, disasters of every sort on the screen.

Unfortunately, television's influence has been extremely harmful to the young. Children do not have enough experience to realize that TV shows present an unreal world. They want to imitate what they see. They do believe that the violence they see is normal and acceptable. By the time they are out of high school, most young people have watched about 15,000 hours of television, and have seen about 18,000 killings or other acts of violence. All educators and psychologists agree that the "television generations" are more violent than their parents and grandparents,

According to the same experts, the young are also less patient. Used to TV shows, where everything is quick and entertaining, they do not have the patience to read an article without pictures; to read a book that requires thinking; to listen to a teacher who doesn't do funny things like the people on children's programs. And they expect all problems to be solved happily in ten, fifteen or thirty minutes. That's the time it takes on the screen.

It is certain that television has deeply changed our lives and our society. It is certain that, along with its benefits, it has brought many serious problems. To these problems we must soon find a solution because, whether we like it or not, television is here to stay.

First TV set was made ______.

A. in 1939                                  B. in the 1950s

C. in the 1940s                                   D. in 1919

Which of the following people have a view on TV different from the others?

A. Educators.                     B. TV producers.

C. Crime experts.                D. Psychologists.

According to the author, who need TV most?

A. Educators.

B. Crime experts.

C. The old and the lonely.

D. The children and their parents.

We can conclude that ‘television generations’ are_______.

A. lonely                              B. more patient

C. more violent                 D. more gentle

任务型阅读 (共10小题;每小题1分,满分10分)
请认真阅读下列短文,并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。
注意:每个空格只填1个单词。请将答案写在答题卡上相应题号的横线上。
Waste to Energy—JUST BURN IT!
WHY BURN WASTE?
Waste-to-energy plants generate (产生) enough electricity to supply 2.4 million households in the US. But, providing electricity is not the major advantage of waste-to-energy plants. In fact, it costs more to generate electricity at a waste-to-energy plant than it does at a coal, nuclear, or hydropower plant. 
The major advantage of burning waste is that it considerably reduces the amount of trash going to landfills. The average American produces more than 1,600 pounds of waste a year. If all this waste were landfilled, it would take more than two cubic yards of landfill space. That’s the volume of a box three feet long, three feet wide, and six feet high. If that waste were burned, the ashes would fit into a box three feet long, three feet wide, but only nine inches high!
Some communities in the Northeast may be running out of land for new landfills. And, since most people don’t want landfills in their backyards, it has become more difficult to obtain permits to build new landfills. Taking the country as a whole, the United States has plenty of open space, of course, but it is expensive to transport garbage a long distance to put it into a landfill.
TO BURN OR NOT TO BURN?
Some people are concerned that burning garbage may harm the environment. Like coal plants, waste-to-energy plants produce air pollution when the fuel is burned to produce steam or electricity. Burning garbage releases the chemicals and substances found in the waste. Some chemicals can be a threat to people, the environment, or both, if they are not properly controlled.
Some critics of waste-to-energy plants are afraid that burning waste will hamper (妨碍,阻碍) recycling programs. If everyone sends their trash to a waste-to-energy plant, they say, there will be little motive to recycle. Several states have considered or are considering banning waste-to-energy plants unless recycling programs are in place. Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York City have delayed new waste-to-energy plants, hoping to increase the level of recycling first.
So, what’s the real story? Can recycling and burning waste coexist? At first glance, recycling and waste-to-energy seem to be at odds (不一致), but they can actually complement (弥补) each other. That’s because it makes good sense to recycle some materials, and better sense to burn others.
Let’s look at aluminum, for example. Aluminum mineral is so expensive to mine that recycling aluminum more than pays for itself. Burning it produces no energy. So clearly, aluminum is valuable to recycle and not useful to burn.  
Paper, on the other hand, can either be burned or recycled—it all depends on the price the used paper will bring.
Plastics are another matter. Because plastics are made from petroleum and natural gas, they are excellent sources of energy for waste-to-energy plants. This is especially true since plastics are not as easy to recycle as steel, aluminum, or paper. Plastics almost always have to be hand sorted and making a product from recycled plastics may cost more than making it from new materials. 
To burn or not to burn is not really the question. We should use both recycling and waste-to-energy as alternatives to landfilling.
Waste to Energy—JUST BURN IT!

WHY BURN WASTE?
Advantages of waste to Energy
◆Though at a high (71) _______, waste-to-energy plants can produce enough electricity for 2.4 million US
households.
◆Burning waste can (72) _______ a considerable amount of trash going to landfills.
(73)_______ for landfilling
◆Some communities (74) _______ land for new landfills.
◆Most people refuse to build landfills around.
◆Building landfills in far-away areas will increase the cost of (75) _______ garbage.
TO BURN
OR NOT
TO BURN?
(76) __________ about burning garbage
◆Burning garbage releases chemicals, which, if not
properly controlled, can be (77) _______ to people and the environment.
◆Burning garbage will hamper recycling programs.
Coexistence of recycling and burning waste
Recycling and waste-to-energy can go well with each other in that some materials like aluminum are fit to recycle, while others like plastics are fit to (78) _______.
(79)__________
Whether to burn or not to burn, we should (80) _______ landfilling with both recycling and waste-to-energy to deal with garbage.

任务型阅读 (共10小题;每小题1分,满分10分)

请认真阅读下列短文,并根据所读内容在文章后表格中的空格里填入一个最恰当的单词。

注意:每个空格只填1个单词。请将答案写在答题卡上相应题号的横线上。

Waste to Energy—JUST BURN IT!

WHY BURN WASTE?

Waste-to-energy plants generate (产生) enough electricity to supply 2.4 million households in the US. But, providing electricity is not the major advantage of waste-to-energy plants. In fact, it costs more to generate electricity at a waste-to-energy plant than it does at a coal, nuclear, or hydropower plant. 

The major advantage of burning waste is that it considerably reduces the amount of trash going to landfills. The average American produces more than 1,600 pounds of waste a year. If all this waste were landfilled, it would take more than two cubic yards of landfill space. That’s the volume of a box three feet long, three feet wide, and six feet high. If that waste were burned, the ashes would fit into a box three feet long, three feet wide, but only nine inches high!

Some communities in the Northeast may be running out of land for new landfills. And, since most people don’t want landfills in their backyards, it has become more difficult to obtain permits to build new landfills. Taking the country as a whole, the United States has plenty of open space, of course, but it is expensive to transport garbage a long distance to put it into a landfill.

TO BURN OR NOT TO BURN?

Some people are concerned that burning garbage may harm the environment. Like coal plants, waste-to-energy plants produce air pollution when the fuel is burned to produce steam or electricity. Burning garbage releases the chemicals and substances found in the waste. Some chemicals can be a threat to people, the environment, or both, if they are not properly controlled.

Some critics of waste-to-energy plants are afraid that burning waste will hamper (妨碍,阻碍) recycling programs. If everyone sends their trash to a waste-to-energy plant, they say, there will be little motive to recycle. Several states have considered or are considering banning waste-to-energy plants unless recycling programs are in place. Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York City have delayed new waste-to-energy plants, hoping to increase the level of recycling first.

So, what’s the real story? Can recycling and burning waste coexist? At first glance, recycling and waste-to-energy seem to be at odds (不一致), but they can actually complement (弥补) each other. That’s because it makes good sense to recycle some materials, and better sense to burn others.

Let’s look at aluminum, for example. Aluminum mineral is so expensive to mine that recycling aluminum more than pays for itself. Burning it produces no energy. So clearly, aluminum is valuable to recycle and not useful to burn.  

Paper, on the other hand, can either be burned or recycled—it all depends on the price the used paper will bring.

Plastics are another matter. Because plastics are made from petroleum and natural gas, they are excellent sources of energy for waste-to-energy plants. This is especially true since plastics are not as easy to recycle as steel, aluminum, or paper. Plastics almost always have to be hand sorted and making a product from recycled plastics may cost more than making it from new materials. 

To burn or not to burn is not really the question. We should use both recycling and waste-to-energy as alternatives to landfilling.

Waste to Energy—JUST BURN IT!

WHY BURN WASTE?

Advantages of waste to Energy

◆Though at a high (71) _______, waste-to-energy plants can produce enough electricity for 2.4 million US

households.

◆Burning waste can (72) _______ a considerable amount of trash going to landfills.

(73)_______ for landfilling

◆Some communities (74) _______ land for new landfills.

◆Most people refuse to build landfills around.

◆Building landfills in far-away areas will increase the cost of (75) _______ garbage.

TO BURN

OR NOT

TO BURN?

(76) __________ about burning garbage

◆Burning garbage releases chemicals, which, if not

properly controlled, can be (77) _______ to people and the environment.

◆Burning garbage will hamper recycling programs.

Coexistence of recycling and burning waste

Recycling and waste-to-energy can go well with each other in that some materials like aluminum are fit to recycle, while others like plastics are fit to (78) _______.

(79)__________

Whether to burn or not to burn, we should (80) _______ landfilling with both recycling and waste-to-energy to deal with garbage.

 

 

Have you ever received a gift that was so clearly not your taste that you wondered if perhaps it had been handed to you by mistake? Worse, have you ever given a present and watched your friend look as though she had opened the wrong box? Maybe she responded with a polite “Why, thank you,” but you knew you had missed the mark. Why do presents sometimes go wrong? And what do your choices (good and had) reflect about your personal qualities?

Choosing the right gift is an art, I believe. It calls for empathy-the ability to put yourself into someone else’s head and heart. We’re all able to do this; in fact, we’re born with a kind of natural empathy. After the earliest period of childhood, however, it needs to be reinforced(加强)-by our parents, teachers, friends .When it isn’t, we’re not able to understand other people’s feelings as sharply. This can show in the gifts we select, and so can many other emotional(情感的)qualities.

Think back to the presents you’ve given over the past year, the time and effort you put into your selection, how much you spent, your thoughts while you were shopping ,and your feelings when the receiver opened the package. Keep in mind that what you choose displays your inner world. Of course, you may express yourself differently with different friends, relatives, and other people you know.

We live in a society where exchanging presents is an important part of communication. Ignoring the tradition won’t make it go away. If you really dislike such a tradition, tell your friends ahead of time.

1.The underlined expression “you had missed the mark” means “you had failed to     ”.

A. make her feel better

B. keep your friendship

C. receive a present in return

D. get the expected effect

2.Which of the following is the main idea of the second paragraph?

A. Natural empathy needs to be reinforced.

B. Emotional changes influence one’s choice of gifts.

C. Selecting the right gift is an ability people are born with.

D. Choosing gifts requires one to understand the receivers.

3.In the third paragraph, the author tells us that        .

A. attention should be paid to the receiver’s responses

B. one learns from what he did in the past

C. the choice of girls reflects one’s emotional qualities

D. one should spend more time choosing gifts

4.The best possible title for this passage is “   ”.

A. Ways of Choosing Gifts

B. An Important Tradition

C. Exchanging Presents

D. Message in a Gift

 

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