单选题 Remember the Stone Age days of research back in elementary school and middle school? We would spend countless hours digesting the information we could find on index cards. Do you recall using those ancient computers that ran with the Gopher program or some generic database whose name connoted a marmot that could take half an hour to find Moby Dick?
Well, all I have to say can be summed up in five words: Thank God For The Internet! Screw going to the library! I have access to dozens of databases, journals, and collections of literature fight at my fingertips. I can complete all of my research at home and no longer must run amok in the library, stressing out while trying to find Shakespeare's The Tempest or some other book, all the while trying to block out the noisy study groups who have forgotten what the "silence policy of libraries" means.
If you recall the flood epidemic that hit Colorado State University just a couple summers ago, that natural disaster wreaked havoc all over campus. A large portion of journals and texts were located in our libraries' basement which completely filled up with about 10 feet of rain water in a matter of hours.
The Lory Student Center's basement was also flooded and that was where the university bookstore was located. This forced almost every professor to order new textbooks and that really put a dent in our wallets. Many students here, myself included, still have to face the disappointment of searching for a particular book or journal for a last minute paper, only to find out that the certain item was a casualty of the flood.
Thanks to the Internet, the university implemented the Inter-Library Loan system. Several universities around Colorado have generously aided us in our research endeavors by loaning any resource we need for at least two to three weeks. All we have to do is type in a request and five other university libraries automatically search for that information.
Without this program, I may have failed several papers and projects. I would have had to spend my nights running from public library to public library around the state just to find a certain article or novel. The World Wide Web has also given us the capability to order any textbook at a much lower price than the university bookstores charge. Hey, we're all college students and we're usually broke, so anytime we can find a deal or discount that will save us a few bucks, we will gladly take it.
And last but not least, for those of us who are constantly homesick, have a special someone far away or still want to keep in touch with pals, we have e-mail. Like .most of you, I moved away from home to go to school and my high school friends spread out across the globe. Instead of wasting money on stationery and en- velopes and stamps (which seem to increase in price about every year), I can chat with everyone through the Internet. Plus, scanning has allowed us to send pictures to our sweethearts, friends, and family who have forgot- ten what we look like. So, I'm asking everyone to get on their hands and knees and to pay homage to the tele-communications god, the Internet.

单选题 The word "havoc" in the third paragraph means
A. great concern. B. widespread horror.
C. long-lasting influence. D. great damage or destruction.

【正确答案】 D

【答案解析】[解析] 第3段首句。
[解析] 词义题。文章第3段举科罗拉多州立大学爆发洪水的例子，来说明互联网出现以前的落后情形。第3段第2句说大量期刊和教材被淹，且接下来的第4段说明了因这次洪水而造成的损失和给学生带来的麻烦。因此可推断此处havoc的意思应该是“巨大破坏”。
[点睛] 根据上下文，可首先确定havoc应该带有消极意义，把选择的范围缩小至选项B和选项D，再根据下文说到的洪水造成的破坏可以推断havoc在文中与实际的破坏有关，而不是与心理损害有关，由此可排除选项B。

单选题 What is the disappointment many students have to face in finishing their paper?
A. Almost every professor forced them to buy textbooks by themselves.
B. The books or journals they are searching for are destroyed by the flood.
C. They are too busy fighting against the flood to finish their paper.
D. Their papers are greatly damaged by the unexpected flood.

【正确答案】 B

【答案解析】[解析] 第4段末句。
[解析] 细节题。第4段末句中的不定式结构表明了学生为完成论文而不得不去面对令人沮丧的事实，其中不定式的宾语从句中的主语the certain item指的就是学生为了写论文而寻找的参考书，只要明白了the cerrain item的所指，就不难判断选项B为正确答案。
[点睛] 本题稍具干扰性的是选项A，原文第4段也有提到professor，textbook等字眼，原文虽然表明新课本得由学生付款，但它们是由教授预订的，也就是说不用学生自己去找到并购买课本，因此选项A不正确。

单选题 What can be inferred from the 6th paragraph?
A. Books sold at the university bookstores are usually expensive.
B. It is not easy to find books on sale or at a discount.
C. College students can borrow novels from any public library in the state.
D. The college students like bargaining with the university bookstores.

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】[解析] 第6段。
[解析] 推断题。从第6段第2句中的from pubfic library to public fibrary around the state可以推断学生可以从州里的任何一间公共图书馆借书，因此选项C为本题答案。
[点睛] 第6段第3句虽然指出互联网上买书比在学校书店买书便宜，但这并不意味着学校书店的书价格很高，因此选项A不正确；该段末句提到学生爱买打折的书，但从该句不能确定打折的书容不容易找到，因此选项B不正确；原文没有提及学校书店的书能否讲价，因此选项D也不正确。