单选题 Not many 25-year-olds can reasonably claim to have changed the world. The IBM personal computer, which was launched in 1981 and celebrates its 25th birthday in August, is a rare exception. Other personal computers had been launched before; but it was the IBM PC that ended up defining the standard around which a vast new industry then coalesced. IBM, the titan of the computing World at the time, quickly lost control of its own creation, allowing others to reap the benefits. But leave aside what the PC has done for the fortunes of particular companies, and instead step back and consider what the PC has done for mankind.
The PC's most obvious achievement has been to help make computers cheaper, more widely available and more useful than ever before. Before it appeared, different computers from different manufacturers were mostly incompatible with each other. The PC's architecture was not perfect, but its adoption as an industry standard made possible economies of scale in both hardware and software. This in turn reduced prices and enabled the PC to democratise computing.
But although the PC has its merits, it also has its faults. Its flexibility has proved to be both a strength and a weakness: it encourages innovation, but at the cost of complexity, reliability and security. And for people in the developing world, PCs are too bulky, expensive and energy-hungry. W. hen it comes to extending the benefits of digital technology--chiefly, cheap and easy access to information to everyone on the planet, the PC may not be the best tool for the job.
Look on the streets of almost any city in the world, however, and you will see people clutching tiny, pocket computers, better known as mobile phones. Already, even basic handsets have simple web-browsers, calculators and other computing functions. Mobile phones are cheaper, simpler and more reliable than PCs, and market forces--in particular, the combination of pie-paid billing plans and microcredit schemes--are already putting them into the hands of even the world's poorest people. Initiatives to spread PCs in the developing world, in contrast, rely on top-down funding from governments or aid agencies, rather than bottom-up adoption by consumers.
All kinds of firms, from giants such as Google to start-ups such as CellBazaar, are working to bring the full belle, fits of the web to mobile phones. There is no question that the PC has democratised computing and-unleashed innovation, but it is the mobile phone that now seems most likely to carry the dream of the "personal computer" to its conclusion.

单选题 Why dose the author hold the opinion that the IBM personal computer is a rare exception?
[A] Personal computer is an amazing invention.
[B] IBM lost control of personal computer.
[C] The birth of IBM personal computer makes drastic changes in our society.
[D] Among the firms making the biggest splash in personal computer world is IBM.

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】[直击题眼] 第一段开头第二句：The IBM personal computer．．．is a rare exception．…but it was the IBM PC that ended up defining the standard around which a vast new industry then coalesced.
[深层剖析] 本题是针对文章开头引入的话题提出问题的。文章第一句话提到很少有人或公司在25岁的时候就能够影响世界了，而IBM公司的个人电脑则是例外，它确立了PC标准，使之成为新产：业的结合点。由此可以推断它使世界产生了巨大的变化。因此，[C]正确。
[主干扰项分析] 个人电脑的确是一项神奇的发明，但是不是IBM第一个发明的，文章没有提到。况且IBM的成功在于其建立了PC的标准，故[A]不对。[B]在文章的后半段也讲到了，但这是IBM失败之处。◆谨记：正确的观点不一定是正确的答案，错误的观点也未必是错误的选项。
[次干扰项分析] [D]选项的难点在于其句法和词组。make a splash是“引起轰动效应”的意思。在很多同学的主观印象中认为IBM是最好的电脑，但其市场运作并不好。此句要想成为正确答案，需要一个限定状语，即：在制定PC标准方面，IBM引起了轰动效应。

单选题 As a result of an industry standardization, PC becomes ______.
[A] more and more popular. [B] more and more effective
[C] more and more efficient. [D] more and more portable.

【正确答案】 A

【答案解析】[直击题眼] 第二段结尾：The PC's architecture was not perfect，but its adoption as an industry standard…This in turn reduced prices and enabled the PC to democratise computing．
[深层剖析] 本题相对比较简单，此题的思维方式与2007年第3篇文章第2题很相似。题干问及由于M事件的发生导致N的结果。根据原文，工业标准化导致了计算机软硬件产业的规模化、PC机的价格下降以及计算机的普及。本题还考到一个单词“democratise”，这个词的本意是“民主化”，但在文中可以理解为使计算机普及的意思。因此，[A]正确。◆注意：考研大纲中的词汇之所以没有中文翻译，是因为很多中英文单词之间很难划等号，用简单的几个中文词语来解释英文单词的含义往往不够准确，而且很难把英文词语的文化内涵及感情色彩表达出来，这一点也恰恰成了阅读的出题点。
[主干扰项分析] [B]effective“有效的，产生预期结果的”，如The law is no longer effective．该法案已失效。[C] efficient“(人)能胜任的；有能力的”，如He's efficient at his job．他能胜任工作。也指“(工具、机器、系统等)有效力的”。二者均不如[A]切合题意。
[次干扰项分析] 是否便于携带，文章中没有提到，故[D]选项不正确。

单选题 It can be inferred from the third paragraph that ______.
[A] it is hard to find a job as a computer engineer.
[B] PC is not the best option as a tool to gather information.
[C] PCs are so expensive and energy-hungry.
[D] every advantage has its disadvantage.

【正确答案】 B

【答案解析】[直击题眼] 第三段：But although the PC has its merits，it also has its faults…but．．．And．．．expensive and energy-hungry…cheap and easy access to information—to everyone on the planet，the PC may not be the best tool for the job.
[深层剖析] 本题相对比较难，其题干形式在近年考试中出现频率很高。这种题目要求对第三段所有信息全部理解，本段出现了转折，通常正确答案应该在转折之后出现。全段结尾谈到如果就数字技术带给这个星球上所有人的好处——主要是获取信息既便宜又容易——而言，PC也许并非最好的工具。因此，[B]正确。◆注意：此类题目不一定是考段落主旨。
[主干扰项分析] 本题之所以较难，主要在于[C]和[D]的干扰性很强。[C]选项的内容确实在文中提过，但文中谈到其昂贵和高耗能问题时是针对发展中国家讲到的，[C]缺少限定内容。[D]是一个成语，乍一看，觉得很像本段大意的总结，但其意思太过空泛；另外，本段强调的主要是个人电脑的劣势，故不选[D]。
[次干扰项分析] 选择[A]选项的同学是因为全段最后一句没有读懂。

单选题 By saying "from giants such as Google to start-ups such as CellBazaar" ( Line 1, Paragraph 5 ) , the author implies that ______.
[A] Google is more profitable than CellBazaar.
[B] they are Search-engine vendors.
[C] they are rushing to provide services to mobile phones.
[D] they have reaped the benefits from mobile phone industry.

【正确答案】 C

【答案解析】[直击题眼] 第五段开头：All kinds of firms，from giants such as Google to start-ups such as CellBazaar，are working to bring the full benefits of the web to mobile phones．
[深层剖析] 本题对应的考点出处句为一个插入结构，其实是一个举例，目的是为了说明主句的观点，即：各种各样的公司无不在努力将所有网络优势整合到手机上。[C]中的are rushing to表示“争先恐后”，符合题意。
[主干扰项分析] [D]选项的干扰性很强。其主要错误是have reaped这一时态问题，原文中用进行时态表将来are working to bring，但[D]选项认为这些网络公司已经获利了，这与原文相互矛盾。因此，[D]错误。◆注意：部分选项会通过时态和语态来设置干扰项，考生必须认真阅读原文的谓语动词。
[次干扰项分析] 选择[A]和[B]的同学是因为在作答时掺杂了个人主观意识，认为Google是全球最大的搜索引擎公司，而且很有钱，这些都是生活常识，文中根本没有提到。◆谨记：掺杂生活常识的选项往往是错误的。

单选题 What is the author's attitude towards mobile phone?
[A] Optimistic. [B] Critical. [C] Biased. [D] Prospective.

【正确答案】 D

【答案解析】[直击题眼] 原文最后一句：．．．but it is the mobile phone that now seems most likely to carry the dream of the “personal computer” to its conclusion．
[深层剖析] 本题考查对作者态度的理解。文章从第三段开始论述个人电脑在发展中国家的弊端，进而引出手机的优势，在文章结尾提到手机将实现个人电脑的梦想，因此作者对手机的发展是看好的。即[D]为正确答案。◆注意：此类型题要熟练掌握感情色彩词汇。
[主干扰项分析] [A]选项容易误选。“乐观的”的感情色彩较为明显，不如[D]客观。
[次干扰项分析] [B]“批判的”和[C]“带有偏见的”与作者表达的意思不一致。