Passage 1
A new study from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) at Tufts University shows that today’s youth vote in larger numbers than previous generations, and a 2008 study from the Center for American Progress adds that increasing numbers of young voters and activists support traditionally liberal causes. But there’s no easy way to see what those figures mean in real life. During the presidential campaign, Barack Obama assembled a racially and ideologically diverse coalition with his message of hope and change; as the reality of life under a new administration settles in, some of those supporters might become disillusioned. As the nation moves further into the Obama presidency, will politically engaged young people continue to support the president and his agenda, or will they gradually drift away?
The writers of Generation O (short for Obama), a new Newsweek blog that seeks to chronicle the lives of a group of young Obama supporters, want to answer that question. For the next three months, Michelle Kremer and 11 other Obama supporters, ages 19 to 34, will blog about life across mainstream America, with one twist: by tying all of their ideas and experiences to the new president and his administration, the bloggers will try to start a conversation about what it means to be young and politically active in America today. Malena Amusa, a 24-yearold writer and dancer from St. Louis sees the project as a way to preserve history as it happens. Amusa, who is traveling to India this spring to finish a book, then to Senegal to teach English, has ongoing conversations with her friends about how the Obama presidency has changed their daily lives and hopes to put some of those ideas, along with her global perspective, into her posts. She’s excited because, as she puts it, “I don’t have to wait [until] 15 years from now” to make sense of the world.
Henry Flores, a political-science professor at St. Mary’s University, credits this younger generation’s political strength to their embrace of technology. “[The Internet] exposes them to more thinking,” he says, “and groups that are like-minded in different parts of the country start to come together.” That’s exactly what the Generation O bloggers are hoping to do. The result could be a group of young people that, like their boomer parents, grows up with 9/13 a strong sense of purpose and sheds the image of apathy they’ve inherited from Generation X. It’s no small challenge for a blog run by a group of ordinary—if ambitious—young people, but the members of Generation O are up to the task.
What is the finding of a new study by CIRCLE?
文章第一段第一句提到“A new study from the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement (CIRCLE) at Tufts University shows that today’s youth vote in larger numbers than previous generations”。由此可知，CIRCLE的调查发现表明当代的年轻人投票的人数要比以前的多。故选A。
What is the main concern of the writers of Generation O?
文章第一段最后一句提到“As the nation moves further into the Obama presidency, will politically engaged young people continue to support the president and his agenda, or will they gradually drift away?”，奥巴 马上台之后，年轻人是否会继续支持他呢？第二段第一句又提到“The writers of Generation O (short for Obama), a new Newsweek blog that seeks to chronicle the lives of a group of young Obama supporters, want to answer that question.”由此可知，奥巴马一代的作家们主要关注的是年轻人是否会继续支持奥巴马的政策。 故选C。
What will the Generation O bloggers write about in their posts?
文章第二段第二句提到“For the next three months, Michelle Kremer and 11 other Obama supporters, ages 19 to 34, will blog about life across mainstream America...”。由此可知，奥巴马一代的博客作者们将会推 送他们在奥巴马政权下的生活。故选D。
What accounts for the younger generation’s political strength according to Professor Henry Flores?
文章最后一段第一句提到“Henry Flores, a political-science professor at St. Mary’s University, credits this younger generation’s political strength to their embrace of technology.”。Henry Flores将年轻一代的政治热 情归功于技术的力量。后文又特别点出这里说的技术就是指网络技术。故选C。
What can we infer from the passage about Generation X?
文章最后一段倒数第二句提到“The result could be a group of young people that, like their boomer parents, grows up with 9/13 a strong sense of purpose and sheds the image of apathy they’ve inherited from Generation X.”。由此可知，X一代对政治的态度是淡漠的。故选D。