“Mass adoption of the Internet is driving one of the most exciting social, cultural, and political transformations in history, and unlike earlier periods of change, this time the effects are fully global,” Schmidt and Cohen write in their new book The New Digital Age.
Perhaps the most profound changes will come when the five billion people worldwide who currently lack Internet access get online. The authors do an excellent job of examining the implications of the Internet revolution for individuals, governments, and institutions like the news media. But if the book has one major shortcoming, it’s that authors don’t spend enough time applying a critical eye to the role of Internet businesses in these sweeping changes.
In their book, the authors provide the most authoritative volume to date that describes — and more importantly predicts — how the Internet will shape our lives in the coming decades. They paint a picture of a world in which individuals, companies, institutions, and governments must deal with two realities, one physical, and one virtual.
At the core of the book is the idea that “technology is neutral, but people aren’t.” By using this concept as a starting point, the authors aim to move beyond the now familiar optimist vs. pessimist dichotomy (对立观点) that has characterized many recent debates about whether the rise of the Internet will ultimately be good or bad for society. In an interview with TIME earlier this week, Cohen said although he and his co-author are optimistic about many aspects of the Internet, they’re also realistic about the risks and dangers that lie ahead when the next five billion people come online, particularly with respect to personal privacy and state surveillance(监视).
28. In what way is the rise of the Internet similar to the invention of the printing press and the telegraph?
A. It transforms human history. B. It revolutionizes people's thinking.
C. It is adopted by all human beings. D. It makes daily communication easy.
29. In what respect is the book The New Digital Age considered inadequate?
A. It lacks an objective evaluation of the role of Internet businesses
B. It fails to look into the social implications of the Internet.
C. It fails to recognize the impact of the Internet technology.
D. It does not address the technical aspects of Internet communication.
30 What will the future be like when everybody gets online?
A. People don’t have to travel to see the world.
B. People will have equal access to information.
C. People will be living in two different realities.
D. People don’t have to communicate face to face.
31. What does the passage say about the authors of The New Digital Age?
A. They leave many questions unanswered concerning the Internet.
B. They don’t take sides in analyzing the effects of the Internet.
C. They have explored the unknown territories of the virtual world.
D. They are optimistic about the future of the Internet revolution.
D
In modern society there is a great deal of argument about competition. Some value it highly, believing that it is responsible for social-progress and prosperity. Others say that competition is bad; that it sets one person against another; that it leads to unfriendly relationship between people.
I have taught many children who held the belief that their self-worth relied on how well they performed at tennis and other skills. For them, playing well and winning are often life-and-death affairs. In their single-minded pursuit of success, the development of many other human qualities is sadly forgotten.
However, while some seem to be lost in the desire to succeed, others take an opposite attitude. In a culture which values only the winner and pays no attention to the ordinary players, they strongly blame competition. Among the most vocal are youngsters who have suffered under competitive pressures from their parents or society. Teaching these young people, I often observe in them a desire to fail. They seem to seek failure by not trying to win or achieve success. By not trying, they always have an excuse: "I may have lost, but it doesn't matter because I really didn't try." What is not usually admitted by themselves is the belief that if they had really tried and lost, that would mean a lot. Such a loss would be a measure of their worth. Clearly, this belief is the same as that of the true competitors who try to prove themselves. Both are based on the mistake belief that-one's self-respect relies on how well one performs in comparison with others. Both are afraid of not being valued. Only as this basic and often troublesome fear begins to dissolve (缓解) can we discover a new meaning in competition.
32. What does this text mainly talk about?
A. Competition helps to set up self-respect.
B. Competition is harmful to personal quality development.
C. People hold different opinions about competition.
D. Failures are necessary experience in competition.
33. Some people favor competition because they think it __.
A. builds up a sense of pride B. pushes society forward
C. improves social abilities D. develops people's relationship
34. The underlined phrase "the most vocal” in Paragraph 3 refers to those who
A. are strongly against competition B. highly value competition
C. try their best to win D. mostly rely on others for success
35. Which viewpoint does the author agree to?
A. Self-worth relies on winning. B. Competition leads to unfriendly relationship.
C. Fear of failure should be removed in competition. D. Winning should be a life-and-death matter
第二节 （共5小题；每小题2分，满分10分）
根据短文内容，从短文后的选项中选出能填入空白处的最佳选项。选项中有两项为多余选项。
Every living thing has genes．Genes carry information．36 They make sure that humans give birth to humans and cows give birth to cows．They also make sure that a dog doesn’t give birth to a frog，or an elephant to a horse．However，genetic engineers take genes from one species—for example，a snake，and transfer them to another—for example，corn． 37 Such new life forms have been described，by some scientists as a real-life Frankenstein．
Genetic engineers put duck genes into chicken to make the chickens bigger．They put hormones(激素)into cows to make them produce more milk．They put genes from flowers into beans and from fish into tomatoes．38 It just makes them easier and faster for the farmer to grow．
The effects of genetic engineering on the natural world may be disastrous．The engineers may create strange life beings，or monsters．that we cannot contro1． 39 They’11have to find one，fight for one—or kill for one．It may be your land they fight for—or you that they kill．Moreover，the effects of these experiments can often be cruel．In America，pigs were given human genes to make them bigger and less fatty．The experiment failed．The pigs became very ill and began to lose their eyesight．
We would all like a better，healthier and longer life，and genetic engineering might give us this．On the other hand，it may be a dangerous experiment with nature．In the story of Frankenstein，the doctor created such a terrible and dangerous monster that he had to destroy it．40
A．They are passed on from generation to generation．
B．In this way a new life form is created．
C．The new life forms have no natural habitat or home．
D．This doesn’t make them cheaper，tastier，or healthier．
E．Then they feed the tomatoes to the fish．
F．We must make sure that this tale remains a story—and no more than that．
G．The information tells us what to do or what not to do．
第三部分：语言知识运用（共两节，满分45分）
