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How cool can libraries be in an era（时代）of iPods and Kindles? More than you think．Only if you know where to go．
Central Library: Seattle, Washington, United States
The Central Library in Seattle is modern and fashionable and has tourists from around the world paying visits and taking tours．It was designed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas and American designer Joshua Ramus．Tours began in 2006, two years after its opening．The library holds various art exhibitions, book signings and other events, while visitors can stop by the Chocolate cart for a coffee and scan through the gift shop anytime
Trinity College Library: Dublin, Ireland
The Trinity College Library in Dublin is the oldest library in Ireland, founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I．It is the largest single library in the world, also known as the Long Room, which contains more than 200,000 0fthe library's oldest books．The Long Room houses one of the oldest harps（竖琴） in Ireland．Dating to the 15th century, the old harp is the model for the symbol foreland．
Geisel Library, University of California: San Diego, United States
At first glance, it looks like a spaceship．Architect William Pereira, who helped design actual space launch facilities at Cape Canaveral in Houston, Texas, designed the library in 1970．It has been featured in sci-fi films, short stories and novels．The library hosts "Dinner in the Library," which invites readers for cocktails, and also a special speech from distinguished authors．
TU Delft Library: The Netherlands
The library at the Delft University of Technology was constructed in 1997 and has more than 862,000 books, 16,000 magazine subscriptions and its own museum．The building itself exists beneath the ground, so you can't really see the actual Library．What makes it interesting is the roof, which is a grassy hill．The roof covers 5,500 square meters．And it has become one of the most striking and greenest structures in the area．
1.Which of the four libraries has the longest history?
A．Central Library．
B．Trinity College Library．
C．Geisel Library．
D．TU Delft Library．
2.What makes Geisel Library different from the others is that
A．famous writers often deliver speeches there
B．it has a reoffer grassy hill
C．Queen Elizabeth I founded the library
D．it is the largest single library in the world
3.In Central Library, you can
A．buy souvenirs
B．drink cocktails
C．enjoy sci-fi films
D．see the old harp
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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If you see a group of people dancing and singing on the street or in the railway station, you don't need to feel surprised．They are a flash mob （快闪族）, which is a group of people who come together suddenly in a public place, do something unusual for a brief period of time, and then quickly break up．They are usually organized with the help of the Internet or other digital communication network．At a predetermined time, they gather and perform some distractions（消遣） such as waving their hands and exchanging books, Then, they quickly break up before the police can arrive．Using mobile phones, the flash mob can change its location if the first one has been replaced for any reason．
Bill Lasik, senior editor of Harper’s Magazine, organized the first flash mob in Manhattan in May 2003 and the first successful flash mob came together on June 3, 2003 - after the first attempt was foiled at Macy's department store．Lasik claimed that the activity was designed to make fun of hipsters （起时髦的人）, and call attention to the cultural atmosphere．
Flash mob gatherings can sometimes shock people．Such an activity might seem amusing and untrue, but it also might frighten people who are not aware of what is taking place．Undoubtedly, flash mobs can serve as good political tools in any direction．They also have great economic potential, such as using flash mobs to advertise a product．
The flash mob is now becoming more and more popular．People use it to do many things．For example, in 2009, Michael Jackson's fans took part in a flash mob to remember him．Hundreds of his fans gathered singing and dancing Michael's famous song "Beat It" together．Flash mobs give people from all walks of life an opportunity to come together to create a memory．
1.The undefined word "foiled" in Paragraph 2 can be replaced by _ 。
A．forgotten B．prevented C．announced D．confirmed
2.What can you learn about the flash mob from the passage?
A．The flash mob usually breaks up quickly for lacking enough time．
B．Once the place for the activity is determined, it can't be changed．
C．The flash mob can be made use offing many fields just for fun．
D．It gives people the chance to come together to do something unusual．
3.The main purpose of the passage is -
A．to entertain B．to encourage
C．to inform D．to persuade
4.The writer's attitude towards the flash mob is
A．negative C．favorable B．objective D．doubtful
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Helen Thomas, the pioneering White House reporter known for putting presidents on the hot seat, died at 92．
To those who regularly watch presidential press conferences, Helen Thomas is a familiar figure．Usually dressed in red and always seated in the front row, she is always the first or second reporter the president calls upon．It is an honor she has earned．Besides, it affords her the perfect opportunity to do what she does best - challenge the president and other public officials to tell the plain truth．She said, "We reporters' priority（首要事情） is the people's right to know - without fear or favor．We are the people's servants．"
Helen Thomas was born in Kentucky in 1920．All the nine Thomas children were brought up to value education, and all were expected to make something of themselves through working hard．She made up her mind while still in high school to become a reporter after writing for the student newspaper．After receiving her bachelor's degree in 1942, Thomas headed straight for Washington, D．C．in search of a newspaper job．Before long, she landed one at Washington Daily News．Her duty included fetching coffee and doughnuts for the paper's reporters and editors．The eager young woman found the atmosphere exciting and was convinced she had made the right career choice．
Her big break came when she was sent to Florida to report on the vacation of President-elect John F．Kennedy and his family．Once President Kennedy took office, Thomas changed her focus from the president's family to his policies．She began attending the daily press briefings at the White House as well as presidential press conferences．Thomas has covered every president since Kennedy．Over the years, Thomas found her job "thrilling and inspiring," but never boring．And she took very seriously her duty to "keep an eye on the president" and keep American people informed．
1.What can we learn about Helen Thomas from the passage?
A．Her career took off after covering the Kennedys．
B．Her first job was to deliver doughnuts to a news agency．
C．She was born to a large family in Kentucky in 1942．
D．She decided to be a reporter while in college．
2.Paragraph 3 is written to show Helen Thomas
A．is a good decision maker for her career
B．appreciates education and hard work
C．wants to be famous by writing reports
D．has great support from her family
3.What does Helen Thomas think other work?
A．Unbearable． B．Exciting．C．Challenging． D．Unforgettable．
4.What can be the best title for the text?
A．A reporter sticking to the facts．
B．A reporter challenging President Kennedy．
C．A reporter from an ordinary family．
D．A reporter for Washington Daily News．
难度: 中等查看答案及解析
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Teachers say the digital age has had a good influence - and a not-so-good influence - on this generation of American teenagers．More than 2,000 teachers took an online survey．Three-quarters of the teachers said the Internet and digital search tools have had a "mostly positive" effect on their students' research habits and skills．But 64 percent said the technologies "do more to distract（使 - - - ---分心） students than to help them academically．" And 87 percent agreed that these technologies are creating an "easily distracted generation with short attention spans．"
The Pew Internet Project did the survey with the National Writing Project．Judy Buchanan is the vice director of the National Writing Project and a co-author of the report．Ms．Buchanan says digital research tools are helping students learn more and faster．"Teachers really favor these tools because they are ways to make some of the learning exciting and engaging．Young people favor these tools．The goal is to really help them become creators of meaningful content, and not just sort of consumers．"
But one problem the survey found is that many students lack digital literacy．They trust too muck of the information they find on the Internet．Judy says these students haven't developed the skills to determine the quality of online information．"It's something that really has to be taught and paid attention to．Because in a world in which things happen quickly, you do need to step back, reflect and analyze the information you have．"
Another problem is blamed on something that might not seem like a problem at all: being able to quickly find information online．Teachers say the result is a reduction in the desire and ability of their students to work hard to find answers．They say students are overly dependent on search engines and do not make enough use of printed books or research libraries．
Many teachers are also concerned that the Internet makes it easy for students to copy work done by others instead of using their own abilities．
1.The text mainly tells us____．
A．all the students use digital tools
B．the Internet is playing a key role
C．teachers encourage using digital tools
D．digital tools bring about benefits and problems
2.Which of the following best shows the structure of the text?
3.The underlined sentence in the third paragraph probably means
A．students do not have the right digital tools
B．students do not always have access to the Internet
C．students haven't the ability to adjust themselves
D．students can't judge online information properly
4.Some students don't tend to work hard because
A．they can get answers on the Internet quickly
B．printed books and libraries around aren't enough
C．the Internet can't make students concentrate
D．they can copy each others' work without being punished
难度: 中等查看答案及解析