Frederick M. Hess is the director of education policy studies at the American Enterprise Institute, which is a nonprofit organization that conducts research on many public issues. He says that a long summer vacation doesn’t make sense in today’s world.

Can American students afford to take a summer vacation? In a summer vacation, millions of kids spend valuable time sending messages, watching TV, playing video games and doing shopping in the mall. They will also be putting their academic futures at risk.

Summer vacation once made sense in the past when you didn’t need an education to get a good job. But now things have changed. For today’s students, academic skills are important to students’ future success, but such skills are affected in the summertime. Many nations don’t give kids an American-style summer vacation. They offer no more than seven consecutive(连续的) weeks of vacation. Most American school districts offer up to thirteen weeks. To compete in the global marketplace, Americans must be prepared to go up against international competitors.

Summer vacation also causes challenges for today’s families. In the 1960s, more than 60% of families had a stay-at-home Mom. Now, two-thirds of American children live in households where every adult works. For these families, summer vacation can be more burden than break. Someone must watch the kids.

But the biggest problem may be how summer vacation hurts academic achievement. Researchers have found that disadvantaged students lose significant ground in the summertime.

A longer school year does not have to be an invitation to hard boring work. Rather, it should allow time-pressed teachers to conduct richer and more imaginative lessons. Schools would have more time to devote to athletics, languages, music and the arts. Summer vacation can be a grand thing. But in the 21st century, it may also be outdated.

Title: Long Summer 　1

　　Digital television broadcasting, the “TV of the 21st Century”, was launched in Japan on Dec．1, 1999．

　　At first, the service is limited only in three of Japan's largest cities Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya, but the Japanese government is aimed to make it available in all major Japanese cities by the end of 2006．The government says that by July 24, 2011, analog (模拟) television broadcasting in Japan will officially be a thing of the past．

“As we mark 50 years since the start of analog television broadcasting in 1953, I believe we are at a historic moment as television evolves one step further,” said Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi．

　　For now, it's estimated that about 12 million families around the area of the three above-mentioned cities can enjoy the service of digital television broadcasting．But because of Japan's mountainous terrain (地形), actual viewers may be as low as 300,000, according to scientists．

　　To watch digital television broadcasting, viewers need to get a digital TV set or attach a tuner (调谐器) to an ordinary one．

　　Scientists say the service of digital television broadcasting may not become popular in Japan for a while because most Japanese are not familiar with it now．A recent survey found 40 percent of Japanese TV viewers know nothing about the digital broadcasting technology．

1．What may limit the number of the viewers of digital television broadcasting?

[　　]

A．The TV viewers lack the digital television broadcasting technology．

B．Most Japanese are living in mountains．

C．The majority of Japanese are unwilling to fit a tuner to an ordinary TV set．

D．Many people can't afford to buy digital TV sets．

2．The proper meaning of the underlined word evolves in the third paragraph is ________．

[　　]

3．After reading the text we know that________．

[　　]

A．it's possible for Japanese to enjoy the service of digital television broadcasting in about seven years

B．the Japanese government will make it available for all the Japanese to enjoy the service of digital television broadcasting in 2006

C．digital television broadcasting can't allow larger amounts of information to be passed

D．it's difficult for the viewers to get familiar with digital television broadcasting

4．Which of the following is the best title of the passage?

[　　]

A．TV of the 21st Century Digital Television Broadcasting

B．Digital Television Broadcasting Launched in Japan

C．Advantages of Digital Television Broadcasting

D．Digital Broadcasting Technology

Young Japanese people are evolving a new lifestyle for the 21st century based on the cell phones that few are now able to live without.

While about one-third of Japanese primary school students aged 7-12 use cell phones, by the time they get to high school, that figure has shot up to 96 percent, according to a government survey released last month. They are using their phones to read books, listen to music, chat with friends and surf the Internet -- an average of 124 minutes a day for high school girls and 92 minutes for boys.

While the wired world they now inhabit holds enormous advantages for learning and communicating, it also brings a downside, say experts who point to a rise in cyber-bullying and a growing inability among teenagers to deal with other people face to face. "Kids say what's most important to them, next to their own lives, is their cell phone," said Masashi Yasukawa. "It's a very scary world," he said. "As they reveal personal information about themselves, children can become prey (猎物) of adults who cheat or are sexually attracted to children. "

Education professor Tetsuro Saito said a survey of 1,600 middle school students aged around 14 found that most middle school cell phone users rarely used their phones to talk. Children seemed to want the security of communicating with someone, without the bother of dealing with a real person.

"Communication ability is bound to decline as cell phones and other devices are now getting between people," he said. Tomomi, 18, said: "I send some 20 emails a day. There are people I don't talk with -- even if I see them at school, I just exchange mail with them. I guess we're connected only by a machine."

Saito's survey found that students can also use their cell phones as an emotional crutch (拐杖) , and the more problems they have at home, the more dependent they seem to become on their phones. More than 60 percent of students who said they do not enjoy being with their families send 20 or more emails a day, compared with 35 percent of those happy with their families.

And even if cell phones can bring comfort, it can come at a terrible cost.

64. Which of the following topics is not included in the passage?

A. Sending emails to people around.                         B. Doing reading and listening to music.

C. Watching television on the cell phone.                   D. Getting the psychological dependence.

65. What's the meaning of the underlined word "downside" in Paragraph 3?

A. space below something solid or hard                     B. down part of a hill or mountain

C. decreasing of a certain figure                         D. negative part or disadvantage of something

66. Masashi says the cell phone is a scary world because the children will ________.

A. be exposed to a lot of frightening information

B. have their personal information exposed to some bad people

C. be attractive to some other children

D. go hunting with some adults who will cheat them

67. What will possibly be talked about in the paragraph that follows the passage?

A. The comfort brought by cell phones.                     B. The average cost of cell phones in Japan.

C. The high cost a teenager's phone bill hits.        D. The writer's attitude towards the problem.

Young Japanese people are evolving a new lifestyle for the 21st century based on the cell phones that few are now able to live without.
While about one-third of Japanese primary school students aged 7-12 use cell phones, by the time they get to high school, that figure has shot up to 96 percent, according to a government survey released last month. They are using their phones to read books, listen to music, chat with friends and surf the Internet -- an average of 124 minutes a day for high school girls and 92 minutes for boys.
While the wired world they now inhabit holds enormous advantages for learning and communicating, it also brings a downside, say experts who point to a rise in cyber-bullying and a growing inability among teenagers to deal with other people face to face. "Kids say what's most important to them, next to their own lives, is their cell phone," said Masashi Yasukawa. "It's a very scary world," he said. "As they reveal personal information about themselves, children can become prey (猎物) of adults who cheat or are sexually attracted to children. "
Education professor Tetsuro Saito said a survey of 1,600 middle school students aged around 14 found that most middle school cell phone users rarely used their phones to talk. Children seemed to want the security of communicating with someone, without the bother of dealing with a real person.
"Communication ability is bound to decline as cell phones and other devices are now getting between people," he said. Tomomi, 18, said: "I send some 20 emails a day. There are people I don't talk with -- even if I see them at school, I just exchange mail with them. I guess we're connected only by a machine."
Saito's survey found that students can also use their cell phones as an emotional crutch (拐杖) , and the more problems they have at home, the more dependent they seem to become on their phones. More than 60 percent of students who said they do not enjoy being with their families send 20 or more emails a day, compared with 35 percent of those happy with their families.
And even if cell phones can bring comfort, it can come at a terrible cost.

1. 1.

   Which of the following topics is not included in the passage?

   1. A.
      Sending emails to people around.                        
   2. B.
      Doing reading and listening to music.
   3. C.
      Watching television on the cell phone.                  
   4. D.
      Getting the psychological dependence.
2. 2.

   What's the meaning of the underlined word "downside" in Paragraph 3?

   1. A.
      space below something solid or hard                    
   2. B.
      down part of a hill or mountain
   3. C.
      decreasing of a certain figure                        
   4. D.
      negative part or disadvantage of something
3. 3.

   Masashi says the cell phone is a scary world because the children will ________.

   1. A.
      be exposed to a lot of frightening information
   2. B.
      have their personal information exposed to some bad people
   3. C.
      be attractive to some other children
   4. D.
      go hunting with some adults who will cheat them
4. 4.

   What will possibly be talked about in the paragraph that follows the passage?

   1. A.
      The comfort brought by cell phones.                    
   2. B.
      The average cost of cell phones in Japan.
   3. C.
      The high cost a teenager's phone bill hits.       
   4. D.
      The writer's attitude towards the problem.

       Someday a stranger will read your e-mail without Your permission or scan the website you’ve visited. Or perhaps someone will casually glance through your credit card purchases or cellphone bills to find out your shopping preferences or calling habits.

       In fact, it’s likely some of these things have already happened to you. Who would watch you without Your permission? It might be a spouse, a girlfriend, a marketing company, a boss, a cop or a criminal. Whoever it is, they will see you in a way you have never intended to be seen―the 21^st century equivalent of being caught naked.

       Psychologists tell us boundaries are healthy―it’s important to reveal yourself to friends, family and lovers stages, at appropriate times. But few boundaries remain. The digital bread crumbs you leave everywhere make it easy for strangers to reconstruct who you are, where you are and what you like. In some cases, a simple Google search can reveal what you think. Like it or not, increasingly we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret.

       The key question is: Does that matter?

       For many Americans, the answer apparently is “no”.

       When opinion polls ask Americans about privacy, most say they are concerned about losing it. A survey found an overwhelming pessimism about privacy, with 60 percent of respondents saying they feel their privacy is “slipping away, and that bothers me.”

       But people say one thing and do another. Only a tiny fraction of Americans change any behaviors in an effort to preserve their privacy. Few people turn down a discount at tollbooths(收费站) to avoid using the EZ-Pass system that can track automobile movement. And few turn down supermarket loyalty cards. Privacy economist Alessandro Acauisti has run a series of tests that reveal people will surrender personal information like Social security numbers Just to get their hands on a pitiful 50-centoff coupon(优惠券).

       But privacy does matter―at least sometimes. It’s like health: When you have it, you don’t notice it. Only when it’s gone do you wish you’d done more to protect it.

60. What does the author mean by saying “the 21^st century equivalent of being caught naked” in paragraph2?

       A. People’s personal information is easily accessed without their knowledge.

       B. In the 21^st century people try every means to look into other’s secrets.

       C. People tend to be more flank with each other in the information age.

       D. Criminals are easily caught on the spot with advanced technology.

61. What would psychologists advise on the relationships between friends?

       A. Friends should open their hearts to each other.

       B. Friends should always be faithful to each other.

       C. There should be a distance even between friends.

       D. There should be fewer disputes between friends.

62. According to the passage, privacy is like health in that _______.

       A. people will make every effort to keep it

       B. its importance is rarely understood

       C. it is something that can easily be lost

       D. people don’t cherish it until they lose it