13.The iPhone,the iPad:each of Apple's products sounds cool and has become a fad(一時的風尚).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---used the title in 2008.A lovely bear---popular in the US and UK---that plays music and video is called"iTeddy".A slimmed-down version(簡裝本) of London's Independent newspaper was started last week under the name"i".
In general,single-letter prefixes(前綴) have been popular since the 1990s,when terms such as e-mail and e-commerce(電子商務) first came into use.
Most"i"products are targeted at (針對)young people and considering the major readers of 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,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 BBC Magazines."Even when Apple created the iPod,it seems it didn't have one clear definition(定義),"he says.
"However,thanks to Apple,the term is now connected 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 BBC Magazines voted"i"as one of the top 20 words that have come to define the last decade(十年).
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 connected with all things advanced and modern.However,as we entered the new century,the fashion disappeared.
71.People use iPlayer toC.
A.listen to music B.make a call
C.watch TV programs online D.read newspapers
72.We can infer that the Independent's"i"is designed forA.
A.young readers
B.old readers
C.fashionable women
D.engineers
73.The underlined word"ambiguous"means"B".
A.popular B.uncertain C.clear D.unique
74.Nowadays,the"i"term often reminds people of the products which areA.
A.portable B.environmentally friendly C.advanced D.recyclable
75.The writer suggests thatD.
A."i"products are often of high quality
B.iTeddy is alive bear
C.the letter"b"replaces letter"i"to name the products
D.the popularity of"i"products may not last long.
分析 作者由iPhone,iPad 中的i 列舉字母用于許多產品的例子,并總結了這一現(xiàn)象的特點及自己對此現(xiàn)象的看法.
解答 71.C 細節(jié)理解題 根據第一段The BBC's iPlayer---which allows Web users to watch TV programs on the Internet---used the title in 2008.可知iPlayer是用來在網上看電視節(jié)目的,故選C
72.A 細節(jié)理解題 根據Most"i"products are targeted at (針對)young people and considering the major readers of Independent's"i",it's no surprise that they've selected this fashionable name.可知,這是針對年輕人的,故答案為A
73.B 猜測詞義題 ambiguous"模糊不清的",此處指使用字母i 是因為它的意思不太明確,沒人知道確切代表哪個單詞,故選B
74.A 細節(jié)理解題 根據However,thanks to Apple,the term is now connected with portability (輕便).可知,現(xiàn)在人們經常把i 和輕便聯(lián)系起來.Portable"輕便 的",故選A
75.D 推理判斷題 根據第一段The iPhone,the iPad:each of Apple's products sounds cool and has become a fad(一時的風尚).和最后一段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 connected with all things advanced and modern.可知作者的觀點:這種流行不會太長久,故答案為D
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