Computer games have been criticised for quite some time over a whole range of issues. Some people say they are overly violent and encourage violent behaviour particularly in children. Others say that they make children unsociable and are bad for their eyes. Some have even attributed falling standards of literacy and a lack of interest in reading on them. Now, however, it seems that computer games have also become a feminist issue.
Game manufacturers have, for some time, been looking to increase the number of female game players. The vast majority of computer games still sell to a mainly male market. Perhaps this is because the violent nature of many of the games appeals more to males or perhaps because many of the main characters in the games are male. Manufacturers' attempts to produce more female characters increase their share of the female gaming market which has met with serious criticism from many women's groups.
While heroines such as Lara Croft of the Tomb Raider game are seen as providing positive role models of strong women, many believe that the character's unrealistic Barbies are subconsciously setting unattainable standards in the minds of young women. Perhaps a stronger criticism is that although many games now include female characters, their role is often secondary and they support the main, male, action characters within the games. Of course the nature of many of the games remains violent and destructive and this in itself could well continue to put off female gamers.
There are now, however, a number of web sites springing up on the World Wide Web to help women deal with this issue. Sites such as Game Girlz, Women Gamers and Game Gal offer game reviews, articles, discussion forums and even employment opportunities for women interested in becoming part of the rapidly expanding games industry. The games are reviewed by women from a very female perspective. Some rate the games from one to ten across a range of criteria which include the appearance of the female characters, the degree of intelligence attributed to them in the game and even the marketing attitude adopted by the company. The sites are obviously looking for games that move away from the very male dominated and violent nature of the majority of computer games. Many of them review games that are more constructive and developmental. Although the common fantasy themes of knights, witches and goblins（妖精） still exist within these games, the aims are often very different. Instead of destroying opposing armies，the aim of the game can be to make peace with them.
With this increased degree of awareness and involvement from women in the games industry many positive changes could be made that could encourage more women and young girls to become enthusiastic about technology. Perhaps we may even find more male gamers moving away from the traditional violent and destructive games towards the more positive values promoted by these more feminine role models, after all Tomb Raider is still one of the most popular computer games on the market, but perhaps that's too much to ask.What is paragraph 1 mainly about ?
| A．The violence in computer games. |
| B．Common criticisms of computer games. |
| C．Children’s feeling in computer games. |
| D．The computer issues. |
Manufacturers want to produce more female characters in order to _______.
| A．increase sales in the male market |
| B．help women learn how to play computer games |
| C．encourage more women to buy computer games |
| D．increase the number of male game players |
From the passage we know that Tomb Raider is _______.
| A．a film which provides positive role models of strong women |
| B．a site which helps women to deal with many issues |
| C．a female role which is secondary in many games |
| D．a computer game which is very popular on the market |
Which would be the best title for the passage ?
| A．Girls’ Games | B．Computer Games |
| C．Children’s Games | D．Games Industry |
Shyness is the cause of much unhappiness for a great many people．Shy people are anxious and self-conscious; that is, they are concerned with their own appearance and actions too much．Negative thoughts are constantly occurring in their minds: What kind of impression am I making? Do they like me? Do I sound stupid? Am I wearing unattractive clothes?
It is obvious that such uncomfortable feelings must affect people unfavorably．A person's self-concept is reflected in the way he or she behaves and the way a person behaves affects other people's reactions．In general, the way people think aboutthemselves has a deep effect on all areas of their lives．
Shy people, who have low respect, are likely to be passive and easily influenced by others．They need faith that they are doing "the right thing"．Shy people are very sensitive to criticism．It makes them feel inferior（自卑）．They also find it difficult to be pleased by praises because they believe they are unworthy of praise．A shy person may respond to a praise with a statement like this one: "You're just saying that to make me feel good, I know it's not true．” It is clear that, while self-awareness is a healthy quality, overdoing it is harmful．
Can shyness be completely got rid of, or at least reduced? Fortunately, people can overcome shyness with determination since shyness goes hand in hand with lack of self respect．It is important for people to accepttheir weakness as well as their strengths．Each one of us has his or her own characteristics．We are interested in our own personal ways．The better we understand ourselves, the easier it becomes to live up to our chances for a rich and successful life．The first paragraph is mainly about______．
| A．the cause of shyness | B．the effect of shyness on people |
| C．the feelings of shy people | D．the questions in the minds of shy people |
According to the writer, self-awareness is______．
| A．harmful to people | B．a weak point of shy people |
| C．the cause of unhappiness | D．a good characteristic |
What is the shy people's reaction to praise?
| A．They are pleased by it． |
| B．They feel it is not true． |
| C．They arevery sensitive to it． |
| D．They feel they are worthy of it． |
We can learn from the passage that shyness can ______．
| A．block our chances for a successful life |
| B．help us to live up to our full development |
| C．enable us to understand ourselves better |
| D．have nothing to do with lack of self respect |
You may open your electronic mail and find information about how to buy medicine, cheap airline tickets, and books and, of course, computers and computer products．There may also be offers for investment deals, bank loans and special holidays．However, to many computer users, this use of electronic spam to sell products has become a major problem as it makes computer communication more difficult．
Many companies who want to send a great deal of advertising might use the services of a “spammer．” A spammer is a person or company that uses computers to send out millions of copies of the same sales information．Spammers find e-mail addresses from websites, news groups and “chat rooms” where people send messages to each other．
Most spam is sent by companies who are trying to get you to buy their products．Some of these are honest companies that offer good products or services for fair prices．These companies can offer their products for a cheaper price than you might find in a store．However, much of the spam on the Internet is sent by criminals who are trying to sell products that do not exist or offer services they will not provide．They are only interested in stealing your money．When you answer their spam you find you are expected to send them money and receive a gift．One country in Africa has become famous for the number of criminals who try every known trick to separate people from their money．What does the underlined word “spam” in the first paragraph probably refer to?
| A．Unwanted electronic information that reaches computer users． |
| B．Computer virus that causes computer communication difficulties． |
| C．Advertisements sent out by companies who want to sell their products． |
| D．Companies that send out millions of copies of the same sales information． |
Which of the following is TRUE according to the text?
| A．Spammers are people who receive spam on their computers． |
| B．Spammers are people who collect e-mail addresses from the Internet． |
| C．Companies who want to send a great deal of advertising are so-called spammers． |
| D．Either individuals or organizations can be regarded as spammers if they send out spam． |
Which is the possible
suggestion from the writer concerning spam?
| A．Look out for any spam that reaches your computer． |
| B．Don’t trust any information on the Internet． |
| C．Buy what is cheaper in the spam． |
| D．Don’t buy anything advertised in the spam． |
What is the main purpose of writing this passage?
| A．To explain what spam is． |
| B．To find out who send out spam． |
| C．To warn readers of the possible dangers of spam． |
| D．To show the advantages and disadvantages of spam． |
Do you love holidays but hate the increase weight that follows? You are not alone．
Holidays are happy days with pleasure and delicious foods．Many people, however, are worried about the weight that comes along with these delicious foods．
With proper planning, though, it is possible to
control your weight．The idea is to enjoy the holidays but not to eat too much．You don’t have to turn away from the foods that you enjoy．The following suggestions may be of some help to you．
Do not miss meals．Before you leave home for a feast （宴会）, have a small, low-fat snack．This may help to keep you from getting too excited before delicious foods．
Begin with clear soup and fruit or vegetables．A large glass of water before you eat may help you feel full．Use a small plate; a large plate will encourage you to have more than enough．
Better not have high-fat foods．Dishes that look oily or creamy have much fat in them．
Choose lean meat （瘦肉）．Fill your plate with salad and green vegetables．
If you have a sweet tooth, try mints （薄荷） and fruits．They don’t have fat content as cream and chocolate．
Don’t let exercise take a break during the holidays．A 20-minute walk after a meal can help burn off extra calories to prevent the increase of fat．Holidays are happy days with pleasure but they may______．
| A．make you hate delicious foods |
| B．bring weight problems |
| C．bring you much trouble in your life |
| D．make you worried about your foods |
Many people can’t help putting on weight after the holidays because they ___．
| A．enjoy delicious foods | B．go to too many feasts |
| C．can’t help refusing delicious foods | D．can’t control themselves |
According to the passage, ______ is necessary part to stop you from putting on weight．
| A．vegetables | B．water |
| C．physical exercise | D．calories of energy |
Extra calories can be found in your body in the form of ______．
| A．fat | B．food | C．energy | D．meal |
When we can see well, we do not think about our eyes often. It is only when we can not see perfectly that we come to see how important our eyes are.
People who are nearsighted can only see things that are very close to their eyes. Many people who do a lot of close work, such as writing and reading, become nearsighted. Then they have to wear glasses in order to see distant things clearly.
People who are farsighted face just the opposite problem. They can see things that are far away, but they have difficulty reading a book unless they hold it at arm’s length. If they want to do much reading, they must get glasses too.
Other people do not see clearly because their eyes are not exactly the right shape. This, too, can be corrected by glasses. Some people’s eyes become cloudy because of cataracts. Long ago these people often became blind. Now, however, it is possible to operate on the cataracts and remove them.
When night falls, colors become fainter to the eyes and finally disappear. After your eyes have grown used to the dark, you can see better if you use the side of your eyes rather than the centers. Sometimes, after dark, you see a small thing to one side of you, which seems to disappear if you turn your head in its direction. This is because when you turn your head, you are looking at the thing too directly. Men on guard duty sometimes think they see something moving to one side of them. When they turn to look straight at it, they can not see it any more, and they believe they were mistaken. However, this mistake happens because the center of the eye, which is very sensitive in daylight, is not as sensitive as the sides of the eye after dark.We don’t know that our eyes are of great importance until ________.
| A．we think about our eyes | B．we cannot see clearly |
| C．we wear glasses | D．we have to do much reading |
According to the passage, a ________ is more likely to be nearsighted.
| A．tailor | B．doctor | C．guard | D．painter |
People who are farsighted ________ .
| A．cannot do a lot of close work without glasses |
| B．can only see things that are very close to their eyes |
| C．have difficulty reading a book if they hold it at arm’s length |
| D．have the same problem as the nearsighted people |
To see a small thing at night, it is better to look ________ .
| A．with wide open eyes | B．with half shut or narrowed eyes |
| C．straight at it | D．in a slightly different direction |
In October, 1961. at Crowley Field in Cincinnati, Ohio, an old, deaf gentleman named William E Hey stood up to throw the first ball of the World Series. Most people at Crowley Field on that day probably did not remember Hoy because he had retired (退休) from professional baseball 58 years earlier, in 1903. However, he had been an outstanding player and the deaf people still talk about him and his years in baseball.
William E. Hoy was horn in Houckstown, Ohio, on May 23, 1862. He became deaf when he was two years old. He attended the Columbus Ohio School for the deaf. After graduation, he started playing baseball while working as a shoemaker.
Hoy began playing professional baseball in 1886 for Oshkosh (Wisconsin) of the Northwestern League. In 1888, he started as an outfielder (外场手) with the old Washington Senators. His small figure and speed made him an outstanding base runner. He was very good at stealing bases during his career. In the 1888 major league season, he stole 82 bases. He was also the Senators' leading hitter in 1888. Hoy was clever; he threw right-handed and batted left-handed. On June 19, 1889, he threw out three batters (击球手) at the plate from his outfield position.
The arm signals used by judges today to show balls and strikes began because of Hoy. The judge lifted his right arm to show that the pitch was a strike, and his left arm to signal that it was a ball. For many years, people talked about Hoy's last ball game in 1903. He was playing for Los Angeles of the Pacific Coast Winter League. It was a memorable game because Hoy made a wonderful play which won the game. It was a very foggy night and, therefore, very hard to see the ball. In the ninth inning (棒球的一局), with two men out, Hoy managed to catch a fly ball to make the third out in spite of the fog. Ms Angeles defeated their opposition and won the game.
After he retired, Hoy stayed busy. He ran a dairy farm near Cincinnati for 20 years. He also became a public speaker and traveled giving speeches. Until a few years before his death, he took 4 and 10 mile walks several mornings a week. On December 15, 1961, William Hoy died at the age of 99 In which order did the following things happen in Hoy's life?
a. Hoy worked as a shoemaker.
b. Hoy began to run a diary farm.
c. Hoy played a memorable game in the heavy fog.
d. Hoy threw the first ball of the World Series.
e. Hoy became deaf.
A. d, e, a, c, b B. e, a, C. b, d C. d, a, e, c, b D. e. a, b, c, d We can infer from the last paragraph that Hoy ________in his late years.
| A．became famous | B．led a relaxed life |
| C．traveled around the world | D．was in good physical condition |
This passage is mainly about ________.
| A．a deaf player devoted to the game of baseball |
| B．baseball game rules and important players |
| C．the rise in the social position of the deaf people |
| D．where the baseball judge hand signals came from |
What can be inferred from this passage?
| A．Hoy was the greatest baseball player in his time. |
| B．Speaking and listening are not necessary in baseball games. |
| C．The judge had to study the hand signals very seriously. |
| D．Hoy's family encouraged him to become a baseball player. |