call is badly designed. It deserves to die. Consider: If I suddenly decide I want to dial you up, I have no way of knowing whether you’re busy, and you have no idea why I’m calling.
We have to open Schr?dinger’s box every time, having a conversation to figure out whether it’s OK to have a conversation. Plus, voice calls are emotionally high-bandwidth, which is why it’s so weirdly exhausting to be interrupted by one. ( We apparently find voicemail even more torturous: Studies show that more than a fifth of all voice messages are never listened to. )
The telephone, in other words, doesn’t provide any information about status, so we are constantly interrupting one another. The other tools at our disposal are more polite. Instant messaging lets us detect whether our friends are busy without our annoying them, and texting lets us ping one another but not at the same time. ( Plus, we can spend more time thinking about what we want to say. ) Despite the hue and cry about becoming an “ always on ” society, we’re actually moving away from the demand that everyone should be available immediately.
We’ll still make fewer phone calls, as most of our former phone time will migrate to other media. But the calls we do make will be longer, reserved for the sort of deep discussion that the medium does best.
As video chatting becomes more common, enabled by the new iPhone and other devices, we might see the growth of persistent telepresence, leaving video-chat open all day so we can speak to a spouse or colleague spontaneously. Or, to put it another way, we’ll call less but talk more.
73. The writer of the text thinks that what is happening with mobile phone calls
is ________.
A. an unexpected occurrence B. a strange but very predictable fact C. an interesting social phenomenon D. negative for social interaction
74. In paragraph 3, the writer’s attitude towards phone voice calls is
__________. A. doubtful B. concerned C. positive D. negative 75. The phrase “ hue and cry ” in paragraph 5 means __________. A. appeal B. protest C. claim D. argument 76. What does the writer think will happen to voice calls in the future? A. They will only be used in emergencies. B. They will continue to get more expensive. C. They will only be used between family members.
高三英语第11页共14页
D. They will be used mainly for intimate and detailed discussions. 77. What is the best title of the passage? A. Video Chatting B. Talking into Smartphones
C. The Death of the Phone Call D. Mobile Phone calls
Section C
Directions: Read the passage carefully. Then answer the questions or complete the statements in the fewest possible words.
Next week, as millions of families gather for their Thanksgiving feasts, many other Americans will go without. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, more than 12 million households lack enough food for everyone in their family at some time during the year---including holidays.
Hunger is surprisingly widespread in our country---one of the world’s wealthiest---yet the government estimates that we waste almost 100 billion pounds of food each year, more than one-quarter of our total supply.
Reducing this improper distribution of resources is a goal of America’s Second Harvest, the nation’s largest domestic hunger-relief organization. Last year, it distributed nearly 2 billion pounds of food to more than 23 million people in need.
America’s Second Harvest is a network of 214 inter-connected food banks and other organizations that gather food from growers, processors, grocery stores and restaurants. In turn, the network distributes food to some 50,000 soup kitchens,homeless shelters and old people’s centers in every county of every state.
A great deal of work is involved in distributing tons of food from thousands of donors to thousands of small, nonprofit organizations. Until a few years ago, America’s Second Harvest lacked any effective way to manage their inventory ( 存货 ). Without accurate and timely information, soup kitchens were sometimes empty while food was left to spoil in loading places.
In 2000, America’s Second Harvest began to use a new inventory and financial-management system---Ceres. It is software designed specifically for hunger-relief operations. It is used by more than 100 America’s Second Harvest organizations to track food from donation to distribution.
Ceres has helped reduce the spoiling of food and improve distribution. An evaluation found that the software streamlined( 提高效率 ) food banks’ operations by 23 percent in the first year alone.
With more accurate and timely reports, Ceres saves time, frees staff
高三英语第12页共14页
members to focus on finding new donors, and promises more efficient use of donations.
Hunger in America remains a troubling social problem. Technology alone cannot solve it. But in the hands of organizations such as America’s Second Harvest, it is a powerful tool that is helping to make a difference---and helping more Americans to join in the feast.
(Note: Answer the questions or complete the statements in NO MORE THAN TEN WORDS.)
78. What is the total supply of food in America every year according to the
passage ?
_____________________________________________________________. 79. By “ this improper distribution of resources ” in Paragraph 3, the writer
means that many Americans ____________________________food while others ____________________________ food.
80. What problem was America’s Second Harvest faced with in distributing food
before Ceres was created?
_____________________________________________________________. 81. Thanks to ____________________________________________________
provided by Ceres, more staff are freed to be committed to finding new donors and America’s Second Harvest is able to give out food more efficiently.
第II卷 （共47分）
I. Translation
Directions: Translate the following sentences into English, using the words given in the brackets.
1. 有可能防止金融危机将来再次发生吗？ ( possible ) 2. 除非采取紧急措施，否则我们的计划将泡汤。( spoil ) 3. 整个团队只有互相配合才能按时完成这项任务。( Only )
4. 据报道上海迪斯尼乐园的面积将是香港迪斯尼的四倍。( report v. ) 5. 有所得就有所失，我们要意识到这一点。( while )
II. Guided Writing
高三英语第13页共14页
Directions: Write an English composition in 120-150 words according to the instructions given below in Chinese.
现在上网阅读的人越来越多，人们可以更快地从网上读到新闻，找到他们所需要的信息或下载文学作品。
1. 你认为网络是否能最终代替书刊报纸？ 2. 举例说明你的理由。
高三英语第14页共14页