English as a Foreign Language

　 Who taught you to speak English? Your parents, while you were a young child? Your teachers at school? Perhaps even the BBC as a grown-up. Whoever it was, somehow you have developed an understanding of what is rapidly becoming a truly global language.

　 There are now about 376 million people who speak English as their first language, and about the same number who have learnt it in addition to their mother tongue. There are said to be one billion people learning English now and about 80% of the information on the Internet is in English.

　 Is this a good thing, or a bad thing? Should we celebrate the fact that more and more of us can communicate, using a common language, across countries and cultures（文化）？Or should we worry about the dangers of ‘mono-centralism’, a world in which we all speak the same language, eat the same food and listen to the same music?

　 Does it matter if an increasing number of people speak the same language? On the contrary（相反），I would have thought－although I have never accepted the argument that if only we all understood each other better, there would be fewer wars. Ask the people of India（where many of them speak at least some English）and Pakistan（the same situation with India）…

　 If we all speak English, will we then all start eating McDonalds burgers? Surely not. If English becomes more dominant（占主导地位的）, it will kill other languages ? I doubt it. When I travel in Africa or Asia, I am always surprised by how many people can speak not only their own language but often one or more other related languages, as well as English and perhaps some French or German as well.

　 When we discussed this on Talking Point a couple of years ago, we received a wonderfully poetic email from a listener in Ireland. “The English language is a beautiful language. Maybe it’s like a rose,” he said. “But who would ever want their garden just full of roses?”

　 Well, I love roses, and I think they make a beautiful addition to any garden. But the way I see it, just by planting a few roses, you don’t necessarily need to pull out everything else. If more and more people want to plant English roses, that’s fine by me.

67．By saying “Ask the people of India…and Pakistan”（in Paragraph 4）, the author is trying to show that _____.

A．speaking the same language doesn’t necessarily bring peace

B．wars can destroy the relationship between two countries

C．English doesn’t kill other languages

D．English is widely used in the world

68．What does “garden” in the last two paragraphs stand for?

A．Language　　　　　　　 B. Family　 　　　　　　　 C. The world　　　　　　　 D. The Earth

69．The author would probably agree that ______.

A．it’s very hard to plant many kinds of flowers in a garden

B．it’s good for people from other countries to learn English

C．more and more people like to plant roses in their gardens

D．English is easier to learn than other languages

70．This passage is mainly about ________.

A．why English has become a global language

B．how many people in the world speak English

C．how people in the world learn English as a foreign language

D．whether we need to worry about English being a world language

If English means endless new words, difficult grammar and sometimes strange pronunciation, you are wrong. Haven't you noticed that you have become smarter since you started to learn a language?
According to a new study by a British university, learning a second language can lead to an increase in your brain power. Researchers found that learning other languages changes grey matter. This is the area of the brain which processes information. It is similar to the way that exercise builds muscles.
The study also found the effect is greater, the younger people learn a second language.
A team led by Dr Andrea Mechelli, from University College London, took a group of Britons who only spoke English. They were compared with a group of "early bilinguals" who had learnt a second language before the age of five, as well as a number of later learners.
Scans showed that grey matter density (密度) in the brain was greater in bilinguals than in people without a second language. But the longer a person waited before mastering a new language, the smaller the difference.
"Our findings suggest that the structure of the brain is changed by the experience of learning a second language," said the scientists.
It means that the change itself increases the ability to learn.
Professor Dylan Vaughan Jones of the University of Wales, has researched the link between bilingualism and maths skills. "Having two languages gives you two windows on the world and makes the brain more flexible (灵活的),"he said. "You are actually going beyond language and have a better understanding of different ideas."
The findings were matched in a study of native Italian speakers who had learned English as a second language between the ages of two and 34. Reading, writing, and comprehension were all tested. The results showed that the younger they started to learn, the better. "Studying a language means you get an entrance to another world," explained the scientists.
【小题1】The main subject talked about in this passage is ______.

If English means endless new words, difficult grammar and sometimes strange pronunciation, you are wrong. Haven’t you  noticed that you have become smarter since you started to learn a language?
According to a new study by a British university, learning a second language can lead to an increase in your brain power. Researchers found that learning other languages changes grey matter. This is the area of the brain which processes information. It is similar to the way that exercise builds muscles.
The study also found the effect is greater, the younger people learn a second language.
A team led by Dr Andrea Michelle, from University College London, took a group of Britons who only spoke English. They were compared with a group of “early bilinguals” who had learnt a second language before the age of five, as well as a number of later learners.
Scans showed that grey matter density (密度) in the brain was greater in bilinguals than in people without a second language. But the longer a person waited before mastering a new language, the smaller the difference.
“Our findings suggest that the structure of the brain is changed by the experience of learning a second language,” said the scientists.
It means that the change itself increases the ability to learn.
Professor Dylan Vaughan Jones of the University of Wales has researched the link between bilingualism and maths skills. “Having two languages gives you two windows on the world and makes the brain more flexible (灵活的).” he said. “You are actually going beyond language and have a better understanding of different ideas.”
The findings were matched in a study of native Italian speakers who had learned English as a second language between the ages of two and 34. Reading, writing, and comprehension were all tested. The results showed that the younger they started to learn, the better. “Studying a language means you get an entrance to another world,” explained the scientists.
【小题1】The main subject talked about in this passage is ______.