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

Each of us fails from time to time. If we are wise, we accept these failures as a  36  part of the learning process. But all too often as parents and teachers we disallow this  37  right to our children.

When I see a child  38  to this kind of pressure, I think of Donnie.

    Donnie was my youngest third grader. His  39  of failure kept him from classroom games that other children enjoyed. He 40  answered questions — he might be wrong.

I tried my best to build his  41. But nothing changed until midterm, when Mary Anne, a student teacher, was assigned （安排）to our classroom.

   She was young and pretty, and she loved children. My pupils, Donnie included, 42  her.

   One morning, we were working math problems at the chalkboard. Donnie had 43  the problems with painstaking neatness. Pleased with his progress, I 44  the children with Mary Anne and went for art materials. When I returned, Donnie was in 45 . He’d missed the third problem.

   My student teacher looked at me in despair. Suddenly her face  46. From the desk we shared, she got a container filled with pencils.

   "Look, Donnie," she said, kneeling beside him and gently 47 the tear?stained face from his arms. "I’ve got something to48 you." She removed the pencils, one at a time, and placed them on his desk.

   "See these 49 , Donnie," she continued. "They belong to Mrs. Lindstrom and me. See how the erasers are 50 ? That’s because we make mistakes too.But we erase the mistakes and try again. That’s what you 51  learn to do, too."

    She kissed him and stood up. "Here," she said, "I’ll leave one of these pencils on 52  desk so you’ll remember that everybody makes mistakes, 53  teachers." Donnie looked up with love in his eyes and a smile.

    The pencil became Donnie’s  54  possession. That, together with Mary Anne’s frequent encouragement, gradually 55  him that it’s all right to make mistakes — as long as you erase them and try again.

36. A. small              B. basic             C. necessary                    D. large

37. A. correct            B. same             C. important                   D. natural

38. A. suffering           B. object              C. fall                      D. subject

39. A. fear                B. lesson              C. chance                           D. sense

40. A. always            B. often             C. never                      D. seldom

41. A. self－protection   B. self－improvement    C. self－confidence     D. self－learning

42. A. respected          B. disliked            C. avoided                   D. mined

43. A. worked out       B. copied              C. gone over                   D. leaned

44. A. left                     B. offered             C. missed                           D. parted

45. A. surprise                 B. astonishment        C. anger                      D. tears

46. A. darkened           B. brightened        C. pulled                     D. loosened

47. A. lifting             B. picking            C. holding                   D. pushing

48. A. help               B. show             C. reward                           D. promise

49. A. pencils            B. mistakes           C. marks                     D. containers

50. A. used               B. built             C. worn                       D. damaged

51. A. may               B. must             C. will                     D. can

52. A. my                     B. someone’s        C. the teacher’s               D. your

53. A. still                B. also              C. even                       D. not

54. A. prized             B. own              C. kept                     D. expected

55. A. warned           B. informed          C. persuaded                   D. reminded

Margaret, married with two small children, has been working for the last seven years as a night cleaner, cleaning offices in a big building.

She trained as a nurse, but had to give it up when her elder child became seriously ill. “I would have liked to go back to it, but the shifts（工作班次）are all wrong for me, as I have to be home to get the children up and off to school.”

So she works as a cleaner instead, from 9 p.m. till 6 a.m. five nights a week for just ￡90, before tax and insurance. “It’s better than it was last year, but I still think that people who work ‘unsocial hours’ should get a bit extra.”

The hours she’s chosen to work mean that she sees plenty of the children, but very little of her husband. However, she doesn’t think that puts any pressure on their relationship.

Her work isn’t physically very hard, but it’s not exactly pleasant, either. “I do get angry with people who leave their offices like a place for raising pigs. If they realized people like me have to do it, perhaps they’d be a bit more careful.”

The fact that she’s working all night doesn’t worry Margaret at all. Unlike some dark buildings at night, the building where she works is fully lit, and the women work in groups of three. “Since I’ve got to be here, I try to enjoy myself—— and I usually do, because of the other girls. We all have a good laugh, so the time never drags.”

Another challenge Margaret has to face is the reaction of other people when she tells them what she does for a living. “They think you’re a cleaner because you don’t know how to read and write,” said Margaret, “I used to think what my parents would say if they knew what I’d been doing, but I don’t think that way any more. I don’t dislike the work though I can’t say I’m mad about it.”

Margaret quit her job as a nurse because _______.

  A. she wanted to earn more money to support her family

B. she had suffered a lot of mental pressure

C. she needed the right time to look after her children

D. she felt tired of taking care of patients

Margaret gets angry with people who work in the office because _______.

A. they never clean their offices

B. they look down upon cleaners

C. they never do their work carefully

D. they always make a mess in their offices

When at work, Margaret feels _______.

A. light-hearted because of her fellow workers

B. happy because the building is fully lit

C. tired because of the heavy workload

D. bored because time passes slowly

The underlined part in the last paragraph implies that Margaret’s parents would _______.

  A. help care for her children

B. regret what they had said

C. show sympathy for her

D. feel disappointed in her

七选五

The seven Cs of a good letter

What is the secret of writing a good letter? Here are two main ones. Don’t try to be fancy. Don’t try to impress your reader. You will be successful if you follow these seven Cs.

Clear. Use short, direct sentences.      Talk as if the reader were right there with you .Above all, don’t use an introduction.

Correct.      Don’t guess, even for spelling. Refer to your dictionary. If you need to , check a reference book too. Use them as much as you need to.

Complete. Don’t scatter our points.      This is good organization too.

Courteous. Be friendly rather than overly casual. Present your information nicely even if you are complaining about something . In all letters, treat others as you want them to treat you.

Concise. Make each point as clearly and briefly as you can.

Conversational. This is really the secret of good writing.       Such a letter has a natural, friendly tone. Let your personality come through naturally.

Considerate.       Write about what you believe the reader needs or wants to know. Try to be helpful. This will build good feeling toward you.

The seven Cs are about writing letters. But how about school papers? Use the seven Cs. Write as if you are talking to your teacher or professor. You’ll be surprised. You’ll almost instantly become a good writer. And you might even enjoy writing from now on.

Just “talk” to the person

Think of the readers’ point of view as you write.

Make them easy to understand

Include long sentences in your letter

Make sure what you say is correct

Writing should not be taken too seriously

Finish one point completely before going on to the next.

七选五答案______________________

What’s On Stage

An acrobatic show: To celebrate its 50^th anniversary, the China Acrobatic Troupe(剧团) will present “The Soul of China”, where the seemingly impossible is made real. Chills will run down your spine(脊柱) as you watch breathlessly as performers take their art and their bodies to the edge.

Time: 7:30 p.m., September 13-19

Place: Capital Theatre, 22 Wangfujing Dajie, Dongcheng District

Exhibitions

Joint Show: A group ink painting exhibition is running at the Huangshicheng Art Gallery in Beijing. About 50 works by 25 young artists including Ge Yun and Yu Yang are on display.

Time: 9:00 a. m.—5:00 p.m. until September 10

Place: Huangshicheng Art Gallery, 136 Nanchizi Dajie, Dongcheng District

Oil paintings: The Wanfung Art Gallery will host a joint show of oil painting by 10 young and middle-aged artists. On display are more than 30 of their latest works, which capture the wondrous variety of life in unique styles.

Time: 9:00 a.m.—4:00 p.m. until September 15

Place: 136 Nanchizi Street, Dongcheng District

Literature museum: The National Museum of Modern Chinese Literature offers an in-depth study of the evolution of Chinese contemporary literature from 1919 to 1949.

Time: 9:00 a.m.—4:00 p.m., daily

Place: 45 Anyuan Donglu, Chaoyang District(Shaoyaoju area)

Concerts

Beijing rocks: “The Fashion Night of Chinese Rock” is set to bring rock fans out by the thousands next month. Nine Chinese rock bands will perform at the concert, including older generation bands, middle generation and some recent arrivals. The audience will be given a chance to decide what songs they want to hear, which is sure to bring a storm.

Time: September 16

Place: The Olympic Center

Belgium Orchestra：La Petite Bande, the Baroque Orehestra of Belgium, will perform in Beijing at the Grand Theatre of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities as part of activities across the world in memory of the 250^th anniversary of Bach’s death.

Time: 7:30 p.m. September 11—14

Place: Grand Theatre of the Cultural Palace of Nationalities

What do you think of the acrobatic show mentioned here?

   A. When you watch it, you will certainly feel cold.

   B. Something strange will puzzle everyone, including scientists.

   C. Unexpected things will make you excited and surprised.

   D. Even the bravest ones will be too frightened to go on watching

The most characteristic thing about the Fashion Night of Chinese Rock is that        .

   A. it will let the audience choose the performers and the music

   B. it is to bring thousands of rock fans out of their homes

   C. it will certainly cause a rock storm throughout China

   D. it is to be held in memory of one of the greatest musicians

Suppose it is September 14 today, how many activities can people choose to attend?

   A. 2.    B. 3.   C. 4.   D. 5.

On the whole, we can conclude         .

   A. people in Beijing prefer modern culture to something traditional

   B. there are usually more cultural activities in September than in any other month

   C. most of the cultural activities in Beijing are for foreign visitors only

   D. we can enjoy a large variety of cultural activities in Beijing