Despite rising education levels, Americans of every age are reading less and less for pleasure these days, according to an analysis by the National Endowment for the Arts. The decline(下降) could have bad effects as people tune out books, tune in popular culture and become less socially engaged.
"We've got a public culture which is almost entirely commercial(商业化)and novelty - driven (追新)," says NEA chairman Dana Gioia. "I think it's letting the nation down."
The study gathers years of data on Americans' reading habits and finds that, at every age group, we're reading less.
Most of the data have appeared in private, government and university surveys, but today's report is the first to combine them into a single portrait. It suggests that the demands of school, work and family and the decisive advantage of other forms of entertainment have caused the decline in reading for millions of Americans.
·Only 38% of adults in 2006 said they had spent time reading a book for pleasure.
·65% of college freshmen in 2005 said they read little or nothing for pleasure.
·30% of 13 - year - olds in 2004 said they read for fun "almost every day," down from 35% in 1984.
According to Gioia, a poet, they decline is probably the single most important social issue in the United States today. The findings should be a wake - up call to educators to change the way they teach literature at every level. It was once believed that if someone went to college, they would become a lifelong reader. What we're seeing right now is that we're no longer producing readers. We're producing B. A. s and M. A. s and Ph. D. s.
Cioia also wants main media to wake up to how they can promote good books in many ways. He notes that when a character in the 1994 film Four Weddings and a Funeral recited a few lines of W. H. Auden's poem Funeral Blues, the poet briefly became a best seller.
65.The underlined phrase "tune out" in the first paragraph probably means________.
A.close    B.publish C.prove   D.read
66.According to Dana Gioia, the change of Americans' reading habit________.
A.is positive and valuable      B.does harm to the nation
C.is caused only by popular culture      D.can make poets best sellers
67.Which of the following is NOT the cause for the change in reading habit?
A.Demands of getting a B. A., M. A. or Ph. D.
B.Demands of family, school and work.
C.The change in the way the literature is taught.
D.Advantages of the entertainment.
68.We can infer that the number of teenagers reading for pleasure reduced by________in 20 years.
A.30%    B.38%    C.65%    D.5%

Despite rising education levels, Americans of every age are reading less and less for pleasure these days, according to an analysis by the National Endowment for the Arts. The decline(下降) could have bad effects as people tune out books, tune in popular culture and become less socially engaged.

"We've got a public culture which is almost entirely commercial(商业化)and novelty - driven (追新)," says NEA chairman Dana Gioia. "I think it's letting the nation down."

The study gathers years of data on Americans' reading habits and finds that, at every age group, we're reading less.

Most of the data have appeared in private, government and university surveys, but today's report is the first to combine them into a single portrait. It suggests that the demands of school, work and family and the decisive advantage of other forms of entertainment have caused the decline in reading for millions of Americans.

·Only 38% of adults in 2006 said they had spent time reading a book for pleasure.

·65% of college freshmen in 2005 said they read little or nothing for pleasure.

·30% of 13 - year - olds in 2004 said they read for fun "almost every day," down from 35% in 1984.

According to Gioia, a poet, they decline is probably the single most important social issue in the United States today. The findings should be a wake - up call to educators to change the way they teach literature at every level. It was once believed that if someone went to college, they would become a lifelong reader. What we're seeing right now is that we're no longer producing readers. We're producing B. A. s and M. A. s and Ph. D. s.

Cioia also wants main media to wake up to how they can promote good books in many ways. He notes that when a character in the 1994 film Four Weddings and a Funeral recited a few lines of W. H. Auden's poem Funeral Blues, the poet briefly became a best seller.

65.The underlined phrase "tune out" in the first paragraph probably means________.

A.close    B.publish C.prove   D.read

66.According to Dana Gioia, the change of Americans' reading habit________.

A.is positive and valuable      B.does harm to the nation

C.is caused only by popular culture      D.can make poets best sellers

67.Which of the following is NOT the cause for the change in reading habit?

A.Demands of getting a B. A., M. A. or Ph. D.

B.Demands of family, school and work.

C.The change in the way the literature is taught.

D.Advantages of the entertainment.

68.We can infer that the number of teenagers reading for pleasure reduced by________in 20 years.

A.30%    B.38%    C.65%    D.5%

根据首字母与中文意思写出相应单词的正确形式

1.Aren’t you feeling a________(羞愧的) of your body? I think it’s time for you to lose weight. 

2.As teenagers, it is normal for them to become c________(困惑的，不解的) with the changing world inside and outside of them.  

3.We shouldn’t be e__________(难为情的) about our weight.  

4.The homework in a British high school was a little c_______(具有挑战性的) for me. 

5.During the assembly, the h________(校长) told us about the rules of the school. 

6.I cut him in short in the middle of his e________(解释，说明).  

7.If I can tell them we had an e________(紧急情况), then they won’t be mad any more.

8.I am afraid Mrs. Liu won’t quite a______(同意，赞成) of your being here.  

9.When you exercise, your body produces some chemicals that increase your ability to c_______(全神贯注) when you study.  

10. Diets are u________(无用的) for becoming fit in the long term.

根据首字母与中文意思写出相应单词的正确形式
【小题1】Aren’t you feeling a________(羞愧的) of your body? I think it’s time for you to lose weight. 
【小题2】As teenagers, it is normal for them to become c________(困惑的，不解的) with the changing world inside and outside of them.  
【小题3】We shouldn’t be e__________(难为情的) about our weight.  
【小题4】The homework in a British high school was a little c_______(具有挑战性的) for me. 
【小题5】During the assembly, the h________(校长) told us about the rules of the school. 
【小题6】I cut him in short in the middle of his e________(解释，说明).  
【小题7】If I can tell them we had an e________(紧急情况), then they won’t be mad any more.
【小题8】I am afraid Mrs. Liu won’t quite a______(同意，赞成) of your being here.  
【小题9】When you exercise, your body produces some chemicals that increase your ability to c_______(全神贯注) when you study.  
【小题10】 Diets are u________(无用的) for becoming fit in the long term.

阅读下面短文, 根据汉语或首字母提示以及文章内容, 在每条横线上填入一个适当的英语单词, 使短文意思完整。

1.Today is January 26th. Our class have a discussion about w_______ to

2.stay at home or go out________ a trip as the winter holiday is near. Some of us

3.are in favor of staying at home. They think it’s ________ convenient and

4.comfortable. What’s more, they can _________(省) money for other purposes.

5._______ they will lose the chance of getting to know the outside world.

6.However, o        prefer to go out for traveling since it can increase

7.their ________(知识) and broaden their horizons. But they will spend

8.more money and meet many difficulties while traveling. P       ,

9.I think it would be better to stay home, for I can do what I like, such ______

10.reading books, watching   TV and h        my parents with some housework.