Question

The iPhone, the iPad: each of Apple’s products sounds cool and has become a fad (一度時(shí)髦的風(fēng)尚). Apple has cleverly taken advantage of the power of the letter “i” — and many other brands are following suit. The BBC’s iPlayer — which allows Web users to watch TV programs on the Internet — adopted the title in 2008. A lovely bear — popular in the US and the UK — that plays music and video is called “iTeddy”. A slimmed-down version of The Independent newspaper was launched last week under the name “i”.

In general, single-letter prefixes have been popular since the 1990s, when terms such as e-mail and e-commerce first came into use.

Most “i” products are aimed at young people and considering the major readers of The Independent’s “i”, it’s no surprise that they’ve selected this fashionable name.

But it’s hard to see what’s so special about the letter “i”. Why not use “a”, “b”, or “c” instead? According to Tony Thorne, former head of the Language Center at King’s College London, “i” works because its meaning has become ambiguous. When Apple uses “i”, no one knows whether it means Internet, information, individual or interactive, Thorne told BBCMagazines. “Even when Apple created the iPod, it seems it didn’t have one clear definition,” he says.

“However, thanks to Apple, the term is now associated with portability (輕便).” Adds Thorne.

Clearly the letter “i” also agrees with the idea that the Western world is centered on the individual. Each person believes they have their own needs, and we love personalized products for this reason.

Along with “Google” and “blog”, readers of BBCMagazines voted “i” as one of the top 20 words that have come to define the last decade.

But as history shows, people grow tired of fads. From the 1900s to 1990s, products with “2000” in their names became fashionable as the year was associated with all things advanced and modern. However, as we entered the new century, the trend unavoidably disappeared.

1.People use iPlayer to _________.

A．listen to music      B．make a call         C．read newspapers    D．watch TV programs online

2.We can infer that The Independent’s “i” is aimed at _________.

A．engineers         B．old readers        C．fashionable women  D． young readers

3.Nowadays, the “i” term often reminds people of the products which are _________.

A．environmentally friendly                  B．easy to carry       C．a(chǎn)dvanced  D．recyclable

4.The writer suggests that _________.

A．“i” products are often of high quality

B．iTeddy is a living bear

C．the popularity of “i” products may not last long

D．the letter “b” replaces the letter “i” to name the products

 

Answer 1

【答案】

1.D

2.D

3.B

4.C

【解析】

試題分析：本文主要講述的是“I”這個(gè)單詞在英語的廣泛使用，并分析了原因和前景。

1.細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)第一段3,4行The BBC’s iPlayer — which allows Web users to watch TV programs on the Internet — adopted the title in 2008.說明人們用這種工具在網(wǎng)上看電視節(jié)目，故D正確。

2.細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)文章第三段Most “i” products are aimed at young people and considering the major readers of The Independent’s “i”, it’s no surprise that they’ve selected this fashionable name.說明這樣的產(chǎn)品主要的目標(biāo)人群就是年輕人，故D正確。

3.細(xì)節(jié)題。根據(jù)文章倒數(shù)第三段“However, thanks to Apple, the term is now associated with portability (輕便).” Adds Thorne.說明這樣的說法是與輕便有關(guān)，故B正確。

4.推理題。根據(jù)文章最后一段But as history shows, people grow tired of fads. From the 1900s to 1990s, products with “2000” in their names became fashionable as the year was associated with all things advanced and modern. However, as we entered the new century, the trend unavoidably disappeared.說明人們對(duì)于時(shí)尚的品味是不斷變化的，故也許不久以后，人們就會(huì)不再使用I這個(gè)字了。故C正確。

考點(diǎn)：考查文化類短文閱讀

點(diǎn)評(píng)：本文主要講述了I這個(gè)字母的流行的原因，本文主旨鮮明,做題時(shí)要注意文章的首段和每一段的首句或尾句，因?yàn)樗鼈兺�往就是文章的主題句。閱讀中要注意要點(diǎn)之間的關(guān)系。然后帶著問題，再讀全文，找出答題所需要的依據(jù)，完成閱讀任務(wù)。