2 . Now let us look at how we read. When we read a printed text, our eyes move across a page in short, jerky movement. We recognize words usually when our eyes are still when they fixate (固定). Each time we fixate, we see a group of words, this is known as the recognition span or the visual span. The length of time for which the eyes stop — the duration of the fixation — varies considerably from person to person. It also varies within one person according to his purpose in reading and his familiarity with the text. Furthermore, it can be affected by such factors as lighting and tiredness.

Unfortunately, in the past, many reading improvement courses have concentrated too much on how our eyes move across the printed page. As a result of this misleading emphasis on the purely visual aspects of reading, numerous exercises have been devised to train the eyes to see more words at one fixation. For instance, in some exercises, words are flashed on to a screen for, say, a tenth or a twentieth of a second. One of the exercises has required students to fix their eyes on some central point, taking in the words on either side. Such word patterns are often constructed in the shape of rather steep pyramids so the reader takes in more and more words at a successive fixation. All these exercises are very clever, but it is one thing to improve a person’s ability to see words and quite another thing to improve his ability to read a text efficiently. Reading requires the ability to understand the relationship between words. Consequently, for these reasons, many experts have now begun to question the usefulness of eye training, especially since any approach which trains a person to read isolated words and phrases would seem unlikely to help him in reading a continuous text.

1. The time of recognition span can be affected by the following facts except         .

A．lighting and tiredness	B．one’s purpose in reading
C．the length of a group of words	D．one’s familiarity with the text

2. The author may think that reading            .

A．demands more mind than eyes

B．demands a deeply-participating mind

C．requires a reader to see words more quickly

D．requires a reader to take in more words at each fixation

3. What does the author mean by saying“but it is one thing to improve a person’s ability to see words and quite another thing to improve his ability to read a text efficiently” in the second paragraph?

A．The ability to see words is not needed when an efficient reading is conducted.

B．The reading exercises mentioned can’t help to improve one’s ability of efficient reading.

C．The reading exercises mentioned have done a great job to improve a person’s ability to see words.

D．The reading exercises mentioned can’t help to improve both ability to see and to comprehend words.

4. Which of the following is NOT true?

A．The emphasis on the purely visual aspects is misleading.

B．Many experts begun to question the efficiency of eye training.

C．The visual span is a word or a group of words we see each time.

D．The eye training will help readers in reading a continuous text.

4 . Directions: Complete the sentences with the words given in the box. Each word can be used only once. There is one word more than you will need.

A. equal   B. demanding   C. benefits   D. employ   E. reach   F. increase G. access   H. convey   I. conditions   J. superior   K. approached

There is distinction between reading for information and reading for understanding. Thus we can     1     the word “reading” in two distinct senses.

The first sense is the one in which we read newspapers, magazines, or anything else. We can get     2     to the content of those materials easily. Such materials may increase our store of information, but they cannot improve our understanding. And clearly we don’t have any difficulty in gaining the new information, for our understanding was     3     to them before we started. Otherwise, we would have felt the shock of puzzlement.

The second sense is the one in which we read something that at first we do not completely understand. Here the thing to be read is at the first sight better or higher than the reader. The writer is communicating something that can     4     the reader’s understanding. Such communication between unequals must be possible. Otherwise one person could never learn from another. Here “learning” means understanding more, not remembering more information.

What are the     5     in this kind of reading? First, there is inequality in understanding. The writer must be “    6    ” to the reader in understanding. Besides, his book must     7     something he possesses and his potential readers lack. Second, the reader must be able to overcome this inequality in some degree. And he should always try to     8     the same level of understanding with the writer. If the equality is     9    , success of communication is achieved.

Besides gaining information and understanding, there’s another goal of reading -- entertainment. It is the least     10     and requires the least amount of effort. Everyone who knows how to read can read for entertainment if he wants to. In fact, any book that can be read for understanding or information can probably be read for entertainment as well.

5 . The red phone box in Britain is a perfect example of the British traditional culture. However, with the fast development of mobile phones, it has lost its place in people’s everyday life. In order to save their loved red phone boxes, people have thought up many ideas, for example, to turn them into toilets or art houses.

In a village in Somerset, a place in South West England, villagers have found a novel way to save their red phone box. They turned it into a mini library to deal with the shortage of libraries in their area. The idea was given by a local villager, Janet Fisher, who lives opposite the phone box. Villagers rallied together to set up the book box. Over 100 books and a variety of movies and music CDs are available at this tiny library. The books are of different kinds, ranging from cooking books to the classics and children’s books.

People can put the books that they have read inside the phone box, and take away the books that they’d like to read. The books are always changing. There is a regular check on the books to keep the phone box collection fresh.

Anyone is free to come to read books there. The phone box library is open every day around the clock and is lit at night. “It’s very pleasing that the red phone box has been saved. More importantly, it can continue providing a service for us,” said one of the villagers.

1. The red phone box has been a symbol of ________.

A．the European architecture	B．the British culture
C．the development of technology	D．British people’s daily life

2. The underlined word “novel” in paragraph 2 means ________.

A．separate

B．traditional

C．ridiculous

D．new

3. People in Somerset turned the red phone box into a mini library to _______.

A．keep its original function

B．make up for the lack of library service

C．provide a place to exchange ideas

D．to enlarge the collection of the local library

4. Which of the following statements is true about the red phone box?

A．The library is open to the public only at night.

B．The library was set up by a local villager living opposite a phone box.

C．People can borrow books and other audio-visual products there.

D．Regular check is made to keep the books in good order.

10 .

No, it’s not their shoe size.

They read. At least two books a month. They’re also among the top 10 richest people in the world. And they’re not alone in their love for books, with 1, 200 other millionaires, who quote reading as a core part of their self-education.

You knew that reading books makes your life better. It’s not even all about money, fame and success. It’s about becoming a more knowledgeable and valuable person. Additionally, reading helps you prevent stress and keep depression at bay, while enhancing your confidence, improving your decision-making, increasing your empathy and overall satisfaction with life.

You know all the benefits of reading, so what’s stopping you from reading more books?

Time!

“I don’t have time to read.”

Have you said those words before?

You say it because...

you have an incredibly demanding college degree to study for…

your loved ones are sitting at home, counting on you to put food on the table…

you are too occupied with work to open a book…

But let’s imagine another reality for a second. What would your life look like if you read just two books every month?

Would you finally…

have what it takes to start that business?

be a better parent?

feel more fulfilled?

Hold on to that vision for a second. If you want to make it a reality, this email course, Time 2 Read, will be your guide for the next 10 days. It’s free of charge and specifically designed to help you take time back, start building a daily reading habit and turn wanting to read into actual reading.

Enter your email below to make time to read, start learning daily and become more valuable to the world.

You’ll be sent 7 lessons via email over the next 10 days, starting right after you sign up here. Each email contains a story, a principle, and an experiment. Get started, and your reading life will never be the same!

1. Where does this passage probably come from?

A．A leaflet publicizing a reading activity.

B．A website promoting a reading course.

C．A TV program advertising reading skills.

D．A handbook providing reading materials.

2. Why does the author mention the four famous people at the beginning?

A．To express his admiration for them.

B．To indicate the importance of reading.

C．To highlight their time management skills.

D．To illustrate the success of the course.

3. Who are most likely to be interested in Time 2 Read?

A．Those who are willing to read more but struggle with time.

B．Those who are sick of making excuses to delay their life plans.

C．Those who are eager to become a millionaire like the four guys.

D．Those who are determined to be more and more self-disciplined.