If you have been joining in chat room conversations, or trading email with web pals （网友） , you have become one of the millions who write in a peculiarly short form of English.

And you’ve got a sense of humor about short forms like SOHF （= sense of humor failure） to describe Internet newcomers who don’t understand you.

Across the globe, every night teenagers and their elders are “talking online”, many of them all talking at the same time.

It’s fast: try talking to six people at once．It’s brief: three or four words per exchange．It takes wit, concentration, and quick fingers.

And it requires tremendous linguistic economy （语言省略）．There’s neither time nor space for explanations．Why consume precious key-strokes （键盘敲击） telling six friends you have to leave for a moment to take care of your little brother when BRB（ = be right back） will do?

Want to enter a conversation? Just type PMFJI （= pardon me for jumping in）.

Interested in whom you are talking to? Type A/S/L, the nearly universal request to know your pal’s age, sex and location．You may get 15/M/NY as a response from your pal.

If something makes you laugh, say you are OTF （= on the floor）, or LOL （= laughing out loud）, or combing the two into ROTFL （ = rolling on the floor laughing） .

And when it is time to get back to work or go to bed, you type GTG （= got to go） or TTYL （=talk to you later）.

People want to write as fast as possible, and they want to get their ideas across as quickly as they can．Capital letters are left in the dust, except when expressing emotion, as it takes, more time to hold down the “shift” key and capitals．Punctuation （标点） is going, too．

Many people talk on the Internet ______.

       A．by sending short emails                     

       B．by using a particular short form of English

       C．by using peculiar English words and expression   

       D．in a funny way

In order to talk to several people at the same time on the Internet ______.

       A．you have to speak fast and fluently

       B．you should speak with wit and humor

       C．you have to express your ideas in a brief way

       D．one should pay much attention to the accuracy of words

If you get 17/F/NY as an answer to your A/S/L, it means______.

       A．the person on the other end is 17 from New York and he is fine

       B．you are talking to a girl who is 17 and lives in New York

       C．you are talking to 17 girls who are from New York

       D．the person who you are talking to is a 17-foot tall New York girl

To save time on the Internet, __________.

       A．some people leave their letters in the dustbin  

       B．some people never use “shift” in their writing

       C．many people leave the capital and punctuation 

       D．people seldom use capital letters or punctuation

America, has always had people of many different nationalities and languages. The 1990 census (人口普查) indicates that almost 14% of Americans speak a non-English language at home. Yet only 3% reported that they spoke English “not well” or “not at all ”. That means that slightly more than one out of 10 Americans could be considered bilingual. Besides that, many high school and college students---and even some elementary school students---are required to take a foreign language. Actually, a growing number of Americans are coming to appreciate the benefits of using different languages.

    Ethnic enclaves (少数民族聚居地) have preserved the language and culture of American immigrants. Some local residents can function quite well in their native language, without having to bother learning English. Regions such as southern Florida and the Southwest have numerous Spanish-speaking neighborhoods. In fact, Spanish speakers---numbering over 17 million---form the largest non-English linguistic group in America. But Chinese, Vietnamese, Italian, Polish and many other ethnic group add to the linguistic flavor of America. Foreign languages are so commonly used in some ethnic neighborhoods that visitors might think they are in another country!

    Although some Americans welcome this linguistic and cultural diversity, others have begun to fear that the English language is being threatened. Since the 1980s, the “English Only ” movement has sought to promote legislation (立法) which would establish English as the “official language” and restrict the use of non-English language. However, some groups, including TESOL, the organization for Teachers of English to Speakers of Other language, object to such “language restrictionism”. But so far, 19 states have passed “English Only” legislation, and the topic is the focus of an ongoing debate.

Whether or not English is the official language of the United States, it remains the “language of wider communication”. Nearly everyone recognizes the need to develop the ability in using English in order to do well in America. American also recognize that English is the international language, and people with good English skills can get by in many international settings. On the other hand, in a world growing increasingly smaller, second language skills can be a great favor. They can build cross-cultural bridges and give people an edge in a variety of career field. Indeed, lack of foreign language skill can limit one’s chances for advancement and keep one in a cultural dead-end street. 

Ethnic groups have preserved their native languages because ______.

       A. their native languages are commonly used in their neighborhoods

       B. ethnic groups are not allowed to speak English

       C. ethnic groups can do very well in their native languages

       D. ethnic groups don’t allow their natives to learn English

The underlined word “bilingual” in paragraph 1 probably means ______.

       A. being able to speak two languages    B. being able to speak one language

       C. being able to speak different languages    D. being able to speak many foreign languages

Which of the following is TRUE about “English Only” movement?

       A. Its purpose was to establish a legislation of restricting the use of English.

       B. TESOL was in favor of “English Only ” by objecting to “English plus”.

       C. It was launched because English was being threatened.

       D. A large majority of American states support the movement.

What can be the best title of this passage?

       A. The English Only Movement        B. Learn to speak English

       C. English---an International Language D. Being Bilingual

    For more than six million American children, coming home after school means coming home to an empty house. Some deal with the situation by watching TV. Some may hide. But all of them have something in common. They spend part of each day alone. They’re called latchkey children. They’re children who look after themselves while their parents work and their bad condition has become a subject of concern（关心）。

    Lynette Long was once the principal（校长）of an elementary school. Said, “We had a school rule against wearing jewelry. A lot of the kids had chains around their necks with keys attached（附带）。 I was often telling them to put them inside their shirts. There were so many keys that it never came to my mind what they meant.” Slowly, she learned they were house keys.

    She and her husband began talking to the children who had them. They learned of the effect working couples and single parents had on their children Fear is the biggest problem faced by children at home alone. One in each three latchkey children the Longs talked to reported being scared（害怕）.Many had nightmares and were worried about their own safety.

    The most common way latchkey children deal with their fears is by hiding. It might be in a shower stall, under a bed, in a closet. The second is TV. They’ll often play it high volume.

     It’s hard to get statistics（统计数字）on latchkey children, the Longs learned. Most parents are slow to admit they leave their children alone.

The main idea about “latchkey” children is that they ______.

are growing in numbers

are also found in middle-class neighborhoods

watch too much TV during the day

suffer problems from being left alone

Which sentence in the second paragraph is the topic sentence?

We had a school rule against wearing jewelry.

A lot of kids had chains around their necks.

I was often telling them to put them inside their shirts.

She learned they were house keys.

The main feeling these children have when they are at home by themselves is ______.

   A. tiredness     B. freedom     C. loneliness     D. fear

The word “nightmare” in the third paragraph probably means______.

   A. night suit                                  B. night habit

   C. terrible dream at night          D. staying up at night

We may draw a conclusion that_______.

latchkey children enjoy having such a large amount of time alone

latchkey children try to hide their feeling

latchkey children often watch TV with their parents

it’s difficult to find out how many latchkey children there are

         It’s a goal for millions and millions of families every year——keep the Christmas spending within a certain amount, but can still afford the gifts that your loved ones will enjoy. Never has this concern been greater in recent years than right now. Even so, there are several things that you can do to help.

         Hit the sales.

         No one wants to get up at four o’clock in the morning and fight to get the best deal on Black Friday, and it’s surely very tough to pick up the courage and get out there in the cold for a good deal, but sometimes——it can be well worth. Many retailers(零售商) offer specials all through the day——and some even offer online Black Friday specials, so you may still be able to get a great deal on Black Friday.

         Pay close attention to advertisements.

        Once the Christmas shopping season is coming, retailers hungry for business will do just about whatever to get you in the store. Pay very close attention to weekly advertisements of sales among the major retailers and you may be lucky enough to find different prices for the same thing in different shops.

         Shop online.

         Some of us don’t like running from store to store in order to get the best price on the perfect gift, and some of us don’t like to go out in the cold at all——thankfully for us, we can do online shopping.

         The world of online shopping lets people visit all the major retailers as well as some specialty stores that could only be found on the Internet. Customers can find exactly what they are looking for, at the best possible price without ever having to leave the house. With traditional Christmas shopping consumers are sometimes limited to what’s left in stock if they wait too long to get to a particular store.

The first paragraph implies that ______.

         A. nowadays not many people can afford expensive gifts

         B. recently many people don’t want to spend money on gifts

         C. Christmas is a time to make our loved ones enjoy their gifts

         D. Christmas is a time to make us feel free to buy our loved ones gifts

      In the writer’s opinion, it is rewarding on Black Friday _____.

         A. if the weather is not very cold              B. if we don’t have to fight for the best deals

         C. if we don’t have to get up early  D. If we get what we want at a good price

The underlined word “specials” means_______.

         A. some experts in shopping                  

         B. certain things for especially low price

         C. some kind of help for a certain customer

         D. things that can only be found on Friday

We can have more choices _____.

         A. on Black Friday                                B. in a particular store

         C. on the Internet                                         D. from retailers

Picasso, the famous Spanish painter, was born in 1881. His father was an art teacher. Picasso began to paint very early. He was admitted to the Royal Academy at the age of 15. After 1900, he spent much time in Paris, living there from 1904 to 1947, when he moved to the south of France.

    Throughout his career, Picasso moved from style to style with ease. He practiced sculpture, illustrated books and also showed great interest in pottery design and other fields of art.

    Picasso produced a great number of drawings during his lifetime. No later artist of the School of Paris has replaced him in international influence.

    Picasso is generally considered to be the foremost figure in 20th century French art. His paintings are now exhibited in leading European and American galleries.

The main idea of the passage is ______.

    A. Picasso is considered to be the foremost figure in the French art

    B. Picasso is a famous Spanish painter

    C. Picasso spent much time in Paris, living there from 1904 to 1947

    D. Picasso’s life and art

According to the writer, Picasso was ______.

    A. more important than any other French artist in international influence

    B. more important than any other Spanish artist in international influence

    C. the most important figure in Spain

    D. the most important figure in France

How long did he stay in Spain and France?

A. Over 19 years in Spain and the rest life in France.

B. 15 years in Spain and 43 years in Paris.

C. 15 years in Spain and the rest life in Paris.

D. He did not stay so long in Pads than in Spain.

Picasso moved from style to style with ease. It means ______.

A. he did not like only one style

B. he changed his style without difficulty

C. he liked not only sculpture, but also pottery design

D. he showed great interest in other fields of art