单选题 Nearly all "speed reading" courses have a "pacing" element--some timing device which lets the student know how many words a minute he is reading. You can do this simply by looking at your watch every five or ten minutes and noting down the page number you have reached. Check the average number of words per page for the particular book you are reading. How do you know when five minutes has passed on your watch if you are busy reading the book7 Well, this is difficult at first. A friend can help by timing you over a set period, or you can read within hearing distance of a public clock which strikes the quarter hours. Pace yourself every three or four days, always with the same kind of easy, general interest books. You should soon notice your accustomed w. p. m. rate creeping up.
Obviously there is little point in increasing your w. p. m. rate if you do not understand what you are reading. When you are consciously trying to increase your reading speed, stop after every chapter ( if you are reading a novel) or every section or group of ten or twelve pages ( if it is a textbook) and ask yourself a few questions about what you have been reading. If you find you have lost the thread of the story, or you cannot remember clearly the details of what was said, reread the section or chapter.
You can also try "lightning speed" exercise from time to time. Take four or five pages of the general interest book you happen to be reading and read them as fast as you possibly can. Do not bother about whether you understand or not. Now go back and read them at what you feel to be your "normal" w. p. m. rate, the rate at which you can comfortably understand. After a "lightning speed" reading through probably 600 w. p. m. you will usually find that your "normal" speed has increased--perhaps by as much as 50-100 w. p. m. This is the technique sportsmen use when they usually run further in training than they will have to on the day of the big race.

单选题 According to the passage, a "pacing" device ______.

单选题 In speed reading, looking at your watch every five or ten minutes ______.

【正确答案】 A

【答案解析】[精解] 这道题主要考查考生对细节的把握。由文章第一段第四、五句“How do you know when five minutes has passed on your watch if you are busying reading the book? Well，this is difficult at first．”可以推测，刚开始每5分钟或者10分钟看一下表似乎不太现实。unworkable的意思是“难运转的，不能实行的”。所以本题的答案选A。

单选题 When you are reading a novel, you should check your understanding of the content after ______.

单选题 The purpose of the "lightning speed" exercise is to ______.

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】[精解] 本题考查考生的推理能力。解答本题关键在于理解文章第三段。第三段介绍了首先要快速阅读，来进行闪电阅读练习，这样就能提高正常的阅读速度，并提到运动员也常用类似方法来提高成绩。可见“lightning speed”是通过首先快速浏览文章来提高阅读速度。