We have a crisis on our hands. You mean global warming? The world economy? No, the decline of reading. People are just not doing it anymore, especially the young. Who’s responsible? Actually, it’s more like, what is responsible? The Internet, of course, and everything that comes with it – Facebook, Twitter. You can write your own list.
There’s been a warning about the imminent death of literate civilization for a long time. In the 20th century, first it was the movies, then radio, then television that seemed to spell doom for the written world. None did. Reading survived; in fact it not only survived, it has flourished. The world is more literate than ever before – there are more and more readers, and more and more books.
The fact that we often get our reading material online today is not something we should worry over. The electronic and digital revolution of the last two decades has arguably shown the way forward for reading and for writing. Take the arrival of e-book readers as an example. Devices like Kindle make reading more convenient and are a lot more environmentally friendly than the traditional paper book.
As technology makes new ways of the writing possible，new ways of reading are possible. Interconnectivity allows for the possibility of a reading experience that was barely imaginable before. Where traditional books had to make do with photographs and illustrations，an e-book can provide readers with an unlimited number of links：to texts，pictures，and videos. In the future，the way people write novels，history，and philosophy will resemble nothing seen in the past.
On the other hand，there is the danger of trivialization. One Twitter group is offering its followers single-sentence-long “digests” of the great novels. War and Peace in a sentence？You must be joking.We should fear the fragmentation of reading. There is the danger that the high-speed connectivity of the Internet will reduce our attention span--that we will be incapable of reading anything of length or which requires deep concentration.
In such a fast-changing world，in which reality seems to be remade each day，we need the ability to focus and understand what is happening to us. This has always been the function of literature and we should be careful not to let it disappear. Our society needs to be able to imagine the possibility of someone utterly in tune with modern technology but able to make sense of a dynamic，confusing world.
In the 15th century，Johannes Guttenberg’s invention of the printing press in Europe had a huge impact on civilization. Once upon a time the physical book was a challenging thing. We should remember this before we assume that technology is out to destroy traditional culture.
Which of the following paragraphs briefly reviews the historical challenges for reading？（ ）
本题句意为“以下哪一段简要回顾了阅读曾面临的历史挑战？”
A选项：第一段；B选项：第二段；C选项：第三段；D选项：第四段。题目中的historical challenges对应第二段中的“long time”“doom”“survive”，可知第二段在讲述阅读曾经面临的历史挑战。故选B。
The following are all cited as advantages of e-books EXCEPT___________.
本题句意为“以下都是电子书的优点，除了······”
A选项：模式多样；B选项：环境友好；C选项：方便读者；D选项：富有想象力的设计。根据第三段Devices like Kindle make reading more convenient and are a lot more environmentally friendly than the traditional paper book.可知，Kindle等设备使阅读更加方便，比传统纸质书更环保，B、C项正确；根据第四段中an e-book can provide readers with an unlimited number of links：to texts，pictures，and videos.可知，电子书可以为读者提供无限数量的链接：文本、图片和视频，模式多样，A选项正确。文章中没有提到电子书的设计富有想象力，故选D。
Which of the following can best describe how the author feels toward single-sentence-long novels？（ ）
本题句意为“以下哪一项最能描述作者对一句话概括长篇小说的感受？”A选项：讽刺的；B选项：担忧的；C选项：挖苦的；D选项：怀疑的。作者在第五段针对阅读碎片化表明了自己的看法，认为其是有危险的。此外，根据后面提到的We should fear the fragmentation of reading，可知，我们应该担忧阅读碎片化。由此可推断作者对“一句话概括长篇小说”是担忧的。故选B。
According to the passage，people need knowledge of modern technology and_____________to survive in the fast-changing society.
本题句意为“根据文章，为了在瞬息万变的社会中生存，人们需要现代技术知识和······”
A选项：高度敏感；B选项：良好的判断力；C选项：良好的想象力；D选项：集中注意力的能力。根据文章倒数第二段Our society needs to be able to imagine the possibility of someone utterly in tune with modern technology but able to make sense of a dynamic，confusing world.可知，我们的社会要能够设想出现这种人的可能性: 既完全和现代科技合拍，又能理解这个不断变化、令人迷惑的世界。Make sense of意为“感受”，对应A 选项，故选A。
What is the main idea of the passage？（ ）
本题句意为“文章的主旨是？”
A选项：技术推动了阅读和写作的发展；B选项：互联性是新阅读体验的一个特征；C选项：技术对传统阅读既是机遇也是挑战；D选项：技术提供了更多种类的阅读练习。本文主要论述了科技给传统阅读带来的机遇和挑战。故选C。