Zhu Haoyu, 18, a history major, wears his iPod everywhere on campus. The freshman has it going out for a walk, visiting the library or lying in bed. However, he found that his habit is like displaying a big “Do not disturb ”sign for himself.

As time slips away, he has begun to regret not having conversed much with his peers around . “As I put the little buds (耳机) into my ears, I’m immersed in a universe of my own, forgetting all troubles in the real world,” said Li.

The MP3 player is one of a number of gadgets (小玩意)—starting with the Sony Walkman, which led to the iPod, iPhone and iPad —that give people the ability to shut themselves off from world around them.

Youngsters delight in handset (手持的) technology. In public, students chat on their cell phones, stopping only to talk briefly to friends. On buses or trains it’s common to see youngsters with PlayStations instead of playing poker or sharing jokes or games. And during airline flights, people watch episodes (连续剧) of US TV dramas on their iPads, rather than talking.

The BBC News magazine recently published an article saying that headphone wearing culture is making us anti-social. “Half of humankind is wired to a parallel universe that leaves them ignoring their surroundings and fellows,” wrote Tom de Castella.

Actually, it’s a decade since Apple unveiled the iPod, which promised “1,000 songs in your pocket”. In 2007 more than half of Western residents were using an iPod or MP3 player.

Entertainment is on offer in all surroundings, not just at home. But in the meantime, it has created barriers between us. Many people subscribe to the view that the headphone culture is creating a “spoilt, selfish generation that lacks civic（公民的）culture”.

However, many users of portable MP3 players argue that the device, as a mind drug, helps them relieve stress by escaping for a while. It is also said to be able to help some students concentrate on work or study. “If you want to get away from the hucksters (小贩) on the way, just start listening to your player,” said Liu, a freshman. “They do not approach people with headphones on.” This might also mean he’s blocking those who want to ask him for the directions.

Experts, however, say that short contacts or mini conversations with strangers are helpful to our mind. Many experts warn that it is dangerous to lose touch with people in our lives.

1.Zhu Haoyu found that his wearing the iPod        .

2.The underlined word “immersed” can be replaced by         .

3.What is the main idea of the fourth paragraph?

4.Which of the following is not true?

5.What is the writer’s attitude towards the headphone culture ?

For many employers, Facebook, MySpace and other social networking sites are already a threat （威胁） that cut into productivity．Now they have something else to worry about—the games hosted by these sites．
This new type of social gaming is called "asynchronous" gaming and allows people to play with their friends without having to be online at the same time．The low-intensity （低强度） engagement has made games such as FarmVille, Cafe World and Pet Society popular among employees who often log on during office hours．
"What we are seeing is that more and more people and organizations are recognizing the productivity lost so probably more chief information officers are blocking Facebook applications," Rebecca Wettemann of Nucleus Research said．
Boston-based Nucleus Research, which conducted a recent study into the effects of social networking sites on productivity, said nearly half of office employees in the United States access social networking sites at work, which leads to an average loss of 1．5 percent of total office productivity．
Facebook, which has 350 million users, says at least 20 percent of its members play games online．Sebastien de Halleux, CEO and co-founder of online game creator Playfish, said Asia is growing at a faster pace than other regions．"We had no idea that it would spread so fast．．．when we had 100,000 users after one month, we thought it was the biggest success ever．Now with 60 million users we think this is only the beginning of something much bigger," he added．
Zynga's FarmVille, the best known game with over 70 million active users to date, allows players to own a virtual farm where they can grow crops and raise animals．
While companies try to limit access to social networking sites, not everyone sees the games as harmful．
61．We can learn that Pet Society is a game _____．
A．popular among employers             B．without having to be online
C．merely played during office hours      D．that can be played online at a different time
62．It can be inferred from the passage that ____．
A．Playfish is owned by Sebastien and Rebecca
B．Playfish has over 70 million active users to date
C．Asia will be the largest potential market for Playfish
D．Playing online games loses 1．5 percent of total office productivity
63．The best title of the passage would be ____．
A．Social Network Gaming             B．New Threat to Productivity
C．Social Networking Sites              D．Latest Survey on Productivity
64．What would most probably be discussed next after the last paragraph?
A．Opinions in favor of online games．
B．Measures to limit access to social networking sites．
       C．Suggestions on how to improve productivity．
D．More examples about the bad effects of online games．

Ⅲ  阅读（共两节，满分40分）

.第一节：阅读理解（共15小题；每小题2分，满分30分）

                                 A

    Today I’ll be talking about the invention of the camera and photography. The camera is often thought to be a modern invention, but as early as 1727, a German physicist discovered that light darkens silver salt. Used as a camera, a big box was set up, and a small hole was cut in one side to let the light in; he made temporary pictures on the salt. Silver salt is still the base of the photographic film today. Then a French scientist made the first permanent picture by using a special piece of metal which was covered with silver salt. A photograph he made in 1826 still exists.

    The painter De Gear improved the process by covering the metal also with placing the common salt which we can eat. This was in 1839, the official date of beginning of photographs. But the problem was the printing of the photographs. And it wasn’t until other scientists developed the kind of photographic paper we now use that good prints were possible and photography became truly modern. In the 1870’s, Matthew Bradey was able to take his famous pictures in American Civil War. In the 20’s of this century, Georges Mann of the United States simplified film developing (冲洗), and Dr Edward Lane invented the so—called ‘Instant Camera’ which uses self—developing film. If we say photography came into existence in 1839, it follows that it took more than 100 years for the camera to reach its present condition of technical refinement(密度).

1. What discovery was the basis of photography?

   A. Light darkens silver salt.                     B. Light darkens natural salt.

   C. Light darkens silver.                         D. Light darkens self--developing film

2. How was the first permanent picture made?

   A. By making use of special paper.               B. By adding common salt to silver salt.

   C. By giving a slight colour to the silver salt.       D. By using a special piece of metal.

3. What does the speaker regard as the official date of beginning of photography?

   A. 1727          B. 1826            C. 1839            D. 1870

4. According to the speaker why is Matthew Bradey remembered today?

   A. He was a soldier.                   B. He took war photographs.

   C. He painted portraits.                 D. He designed a portable camera.

5. What did Doctor Edward Lane invent?

   A. A cheap process of developing film at home.

   B. A new kind of film.

   C. An automatic printer.

   D. An ‘instant camera’ that develops its own film.

October 15, 1970 was declared International White Cane Safety Day (IWCSD) for the first time by the President of the International Federation of the Blind (IFB). This date was adopted at the first convention of the IFB, held in Colombo on October 4, 1969. The object of the exercise is to enable the general public to have a better understanding of blindness and visual handicap, and to make people more aware of the white cane as a mobility aid.

Peguilly d’Herbemont was born on 25th June 1888 into an old French noble family of the same name. In her youth she led the conventional and protected existence, lack of great activity, of a girl from a “good family”, an existence reminding of the life of the aristocracy(贵族) before the French Revolution. She never visited a public school, but was educated by German and English governesses and nuns. Her movements were restricted and were mainly confined to the family positions in Paris and Belgium, but she spent most of her time at the castle of Charmois not far from Verdun.

In the process of helping individual blind people across the road, Peguilly d’Herbemont was made aware by narrow scrapes(刮擦) which almost led to accidents, of the dangerous situation of the visually impaired brought about by the steadily increasing traffic on the roads. She first spoke about measures to protect the blind against street hazards to her mother in 1930, but she was of the opinion that it was unfit for a lady of good society to create a public outcry and advised her to stick to the transcription of books, a popular pastime of ladies of rank at the time.

But the idea did not leave her. The urgent wish to encourage the integration(成为一体) of the blind into society by providing them with a means of moving about more freely without endangering others, and at the same time attracting the attention of passers-by ready to offer assistance, caused her to take the unusual step of writing to the editor of the Paris daily Echo de Paris in which she suggested issuing the blind of the Paris region with white sticks similar to those used by the traffic police.

The editor took up the idea, published it in November 1930 and saw to it that the relevant authorities acted with atypical speed. Thus it was that the white cane received official backing, and on 7th February 1931.

1.The underlined words “the exercise” here refer to _____.

A. the founding of the IFB                                      B. the declaration of IWCSD

C. the convention of the IFB                                            D. the first convention of the IFB

2. Which of the following is true about Peguilly d’Herbemont?

A. She led a typical aristocrat life when she was young.

B. Though she could travel around Europe, she spent most time at Charmois.

C. She was taught German and English at a public school.

D. She worried about possible street hazards for the blind, witnessing many traffic accidents.

3._____ gave her the white cane idea.

A. Her concern about the dangerous situation for the blind caused by the increasing traffic

B. The accident she had when helping blind people across the road

C. The scrapes she got when crossing the road

D. Her urgent wish to integrate into society together with the blind

4.According to the passage, which of the following statements is NOT true?

A. Peguilly d’Herbemont’s mother didn’t want her to draw the public’s attention.

B. It was common for people to write to newspapers to voice their opinion at the time.

C. Peguilly’s strong desire to help the blind made her not a looker-on but an advocate.

D. The editor contributed a lot to the declaration of International White Cane Safety Day.

5.This passage mainly wants to tell us _____.

A. Peguilly d’Herbemont’s achievements

B. how to care for the blind

C. the function of the white cane

D. how International White Cane Safety Day came into being

American author Mark Twain once noted that “life would be surely happier if we could only be born at the age of 80 and gradually approach 18.” Twain’s words were only one of many complaints about aging. The ancient Greek poet Homer called old age “hateful”, and William Shakespeare termed it “terrible winter”.

Alexander the Great, who conquered most of the known world before he died around 323 B.C., may have been looking for a river that healed the ravages of age. During the 12^th century A.D., a king called Prester John ruled a land that had a river of gold and a fountain of youth.

But the name linked most closely to the search for a fountain of youth is 16^th-century Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon. He thought it would be found in Florida. In St. Augustine, the oldest city in the U.S., there’s a tourist attraction. It is said to be the fountain of youth that Ponce de Leon discovered soon after he arrived in what is now Florida in 1513. However, elderly visitors who drink the spring’s water don’t turn into teenagers.

But the tale of the search for a fountain of youth is so appealing(有吸引力的) that it survives anyway, says Ryan K. Smith, a professor of history. “People are more attracted by the story of looking and not finding than they are by the idea that the fountain might be out there somewhere.”

Still, a few grains of truth have helped to support the story. Kathleen Deagan, a professor of archaeology, says a graveyard and the remains of a Spanish mission dating back to St. Augustine’s founding in 1565 have been discovered near the so-called fountain of youth. Michelle Reyna, a spokesperson for the Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park in St. Augustine, says the fountain has been a tourist attraction since at least 1901 and may have been attracting visitors since 1860.

1.According to the passage, who searched for a fountain of youth?

A. Ponce de Leon  B. William Shakespeare. C. Kathleen Deagan   D. Michelle Reyna

2.What does the underlined word “ravages” in the second paragraph probably mean?

A. Growth. B. Limits.      C. Damages.         D. Benefits.

3.What is the attitude of people towards the fountain of youth?

A. People find much pleasure in looking for it.    

B. People believe the existence of it somewhere.

C. People have no interest in searching for it.    

D. People consider the idea of the fountain of youth absurd(荒谬的).

4.The passage mainly tells us _____.

A. how the fountain of youth came into being   

B. why some famous people hate becoming old

C. how to remain young forever         

D. whether the fountain of youth exists

5.Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

A. The underlined words “the story” refers to Alexander the Great ruling a land that had a river of gold and a fountain of youth.

B. Augustine, which is the oldest city in the U.S, lies in Florida.

C. Some elderly visitors find themselves younger after drinking the water from the fountain of youth.

D. Kathleen Deagan is the spokesperson for the Fountain of Youth Archaeological Park.