D

       The regular use of text messages and e-mails can lower the IQ more than twice as much as smoking marijuana(大麻). That is the claim of psychologists who have found that tapping away on a mobile phone or computer keypad or checking them for electronic messages temporarily knocks up to ten points off the user’s IQ.

       This rate of decline in intelligence compares unfavorably with the four-point drop in IQ associated with smoking marijuana, according to British researchers, who have labeled(貼標(biāo)簽于，指……為，分類) the fleeting phenomenon of enhanced stupidity as “infomania”.

       The noticeable drop in IQ is believed to be the result of the constant distraction of “always on” technology when employees should be concentrating on what they are paid to do. Infomania means that they lose concentration as their minds remain fixed in an almost permanent state of readiness to react to technology instead of focusing on the tasks in hand.

       The brain also finds it hard to deal with keeping lots of tasks in motion at once, reducing its overall effectiveness. While modern technology can have huge benefits, excessive(過度的) use can be damaging not only to a person’s mind, but to his or her social life.

       Eighty volunteers took part in clinical (臨床的)trials on IQ damage and 1,100 adults were interviewed.

       More than six in ten people polled admitted that they were addicted to checking their e-mails and text messages so that they examined work-related ones even when at home or on holiday. Half said that they always responded immediately to an e-mail and one in five would interrupt a meeting to do so.

       Furthermore, Informania is having a negative effect on work colleagues, increasing stress and disagreeing feelings. Nine out of ten polled thought that colleagues who answered e-mails or messages during a face-to-face meeting were extremely rude. Yet one in three Britons believed that it was not only acceptable, but actually diligent and efficient to do so.

67. What does the underlined part mean?

A. A person’s IQ drops ten points if he or she always checks electronic messages.

B. The person who has a higher IQ enjoys checking electronic messages.

C. The person who has a lower IQ enjoys checking electronic messages.

D. A person’s IQ is ten points higher if he or she always checks electronic messages.

68. What happens to people with infomania?

A. People with infomania can only concentrate on their tasks in hand.

B. People with infomania are addicted to smoking marijuana.

C. People with infomania can’t respond to technology immediately.

D. People with infomania can’t concentrate on their tasks in hand.

69. From the passage, we can learn that     .

A. about 550 interviewees responded to an e-mail immediately

B. about 670 interviewees responded to an e-mail immediately

C. about 40 taking part in clinical trials on IQ were addicted to checking e-mail

D. about 16 taking part in clinical trials on IQ refused to answer e-mails immediately

70. What is the main idea of this passage?

A. The regular use of text messages and e-mails can be compared to smoking marijuana.

B. Modern technology can damage a person’s mind.

C. The regular use of text messages and e-mails can harm your IQ.

D. Electronic messages can have effects on the user’s life.

閱讀下面短文, 掌握其大意, 然后從1～25各題所給的四個(gè)選項(xiàng)中, 選出一個(gè)最佳答案。

　　　　　　    After she did a lot of shopping, Mrs. Smith came out of the shop and started to walk towards the bus-stop. Her bag was so 　　 1 that she had to rest for a few minutes. She stopped 　　 2 a new, bright car. It was just at the side of the road. As she stood there, she saw a policeman 　　 3 towards her. "Excuse me, madam," said the policeman. "Can you 　　 4 that sign over there?" "Yes, I can," said Mrs. Smith. "It 　　 5 'No Parking'."

　　     "Yes, madam. So why have you parked your car here? I shall 6 to give you a parking ticket."

　　　　     "But this isn't my car." said Mrs. Smith.

　　　　     "Isn't it!" said the policeman, and his face turned 7 "I'm very 8 . Still I shall have to put a ticket on the front of 　　 9 car." But he was not able to finish because 10 woman arrived. She kissed the policeman and said, "Hello, dear. I knew I could 11 you here this time of day. Happy birthday! I have got a 12 for you. I have 13 you your birthday present."

　　　　     "Thank you, dear," said the policeman. "But 14 is it?" His wife pointed at the red car. "Here it is," she said. "But you 15 leave it in this road for very long. There's a 'No Parking' sign over there." (sign 招牌 park 停車 point 指)

　　    Nathan Hale was a young American captain. He tried to 16 some maps of the British army's defence works to General Washington. Some British　　 17 caught him and 18 the maps in one of his boots.

　　　　     The guards took him to General Howe. 19 British general asked Hale to work for the British army. He said 20 Hale worked for them, he would not have to worry 21 his rank or pay. But Hale 22 to work for his enemy. He said 23 could make him turn 24 his country. So the general decided to hang Nathan Hale.

　　　　     Before he died, Hale took a last look at his country and said, "I only 25 that I have but one life to lose for my country."

On the whole, it's not something we parents shout about, but one in four of us does it．Hiring private tutors(指老師)for our children is now widespread．And this year, as always，the Easter holidays will be peak time(高峰期) for tutor demand．

“My husband and I tried to tutor her at home，but we found all our knowledge was out of date and we were only confusing Zarreen．We also tried a group revision course but all the children were sitting exams for different boards(入學(xué)考試)． On the whole we think one-two-one tuition works best and it is worth the money．In our case，Preeta is a bit like an elder sister to Zarreen and that's the most important，”says Ashan Sabri from London， whose daughter Zarreen，18，is having tuition in biology and chemistry in preparation for A-levels this summer．

In fact，Preeta Datta is only six years older than her pupil and she is happy to provide extra tuition through mobile phone．“Maybe Zarreen will call me two or three times a week with a question about biology or chemistry, and that's fine to me，”says Datta．

The real question is：does tutoring do any good?

“It's not the magic bullet，”says Professor Judith Ireson．‘It's still up to the child to do the learning．If he or she isn't interested，then sending them to a private tutor won't do any good．”

In which case，surely it's time to break open the Champagne(香檳酒)?Not necessarily, says Elaine Tyrrell，head of the Rowans School．

“While we recommend private tutoring for a few children whose first language isn't English，we don't encourage it for the others，”says Tyrrell．“With the level of education they get here，children really ought to be able to pass the entrance exams without any extra teaching． Besides， our biggest worry is that they might just get in with the help of last-minute tutoring，but，once they actually get to that school，they won't be able to manage．”

It's a point worth considering．After all，who would want their child to stay at the bottom of the class?

56．The passage is most probably written by          ．

        A．a(chǎn) parent    B．a(chǎn) famous professor

C．a(chǎn) student   D．a(chǎn) famous headmaster

57．In Ashan Sabri's opinion，which method is most suitable for her daughter?       ．

       A．Taking different kinds of exams     B．Teaching her at home by herself

C．Finding a private tutor to help her   D．Taking part in group revision courses

55．Elaine Tyrrell doesn't encourage parents to hire private tutors for their children mainly because          ．

      A．children may be misled by private tutors

      B．the quality of private tutoring may be poor

      C．the education that children receive in class is enough for them

       D．children may not have the real ability to deal with their further studies

59．What attitude does the author hold towards home tutoring?         ．

A．Critical    B．Uncertain    C．Supportive  D．Uninterested

60．From the passage we know that        ．

    A．Preeta Datta is only twenty four years old．

    B．Preeta Datta is head of the Rowans school

    C．Judith Ireson is a teacher of the Rowans School

    D．A shan Sabri has a daughter named Zarreen，who is over 18