English nowadays is widely used in science, business, the media and popular culture. For example, 80% of e-mails on the internet are in English. But where will English be at the end of the 21st century?
One view is that English is going to become even more important as a global language, being most widely used in trade and media while some other languages will become less important or just disappear. Another view is that English is already breaking up into several separate languages. There are already dictionaries of the “New Englishes”, such as Australian English, full of words that a British English speaker would not recognize.
Hopefully, neither of these things will happen. Although different varieties of English will continue to develop around the world, standard English will survive for international communication. However, it is impossible for one language to totally control the world. Already, other languages are fighting back against the control of English on the net. Governments around the world are also starting to protect smaller languages and recognize the importance of keeping a variety of cultures and languages. English will probably stay in control for a long time, but it certainly won’t become the only language in the world.
【小题1】 According to the situation, how many people do you think speak English now?
| A.200 million | B.300 million | C.500 million | D.a billion |
| A.Chinese | B.English | C.French | D.German |
| A.The Change of English | B.Different Varieties of English |
| C.The Future of English | D.The Cause of English Change |
Tourism wasn’t as important as it is today. In the past, only people with a good deal of money could travel on holidays to other countries. More people travel today than in the past because there is a growing middle class in many parts of the world; that is to say, people now have more money for travel. Special plane fares(费用) for tourists make travel less expensive and more attractive than ever before. One person doesn’t travel for the same reason as another. But most people enjoy seeing countries that are different from their own. They also like to meet new people and to taste new food.
Tourism causes many changes in a country and in people’s lives. People build new hotels and restaurants and train native men and women as guides to show visitors interesting places. There’re new nightclubs and other amusements. International tourism is clearly a big business.
【小题1】In the old days _________ could travel to other countries.
| A.boys and girls, men or women, young or old |
| B.either kings or queens |
| C.both the poor and the rich |
| D.nobody but those who had money |
| A.people have become interested in traveling |
| B.traveling today is easier than in the past |
| C.people now have spare money for travel |
| D.great changes have taken place in the world |
| A.Travel by air to other countries is much cheaper today. |
| B.More guides are being trained to show beautiful spots. |
| C.Modern telegraph lines make travel less expensive. |
| D.New hotels and restaurants have been built. |
| A.Tourism won’t bring any changes in people’s minds. |
| B.People have some trouble in making journey. |
| C.With the development of tourism, great changes have taken place in many parts in the world. |
| D.Tourism causes only some changes in clothing. |