A. VISION B. OUTLOOK C. IMAGE D. JUDGMENTQUESTION II

60. A. vision B. outlook C. image D. judgment

Question II: Supply the most suitable word for each blank. (10 pts)

In the 21

century food will (61)______ more than just you feed you. A new range of products

appearing on shelves in shops and supermarkets (62) ______ designed to give you specific health benefits. The

demands of modern life make these foods very attractive. Not only do they provide proven ways to improve

health, but they are also very attractive (63) ______ a quick and convenient way of making sure we enjoy a

healthy diet.

In some countries it is already possible to buy crisps that make you feel (64) ______ depressed, chewing

gum that increases your brain power and tea that helps you (65) ______ over the tiredness associated (66)

______ long-distance air travel. In the future, experts promise biscuits that will keep you healthy, and hot

chocolate drink to give you strong bones.

Despite the fact that these “functional” foods cannot replace a balanced diet and regular exercise, they

can help the body perform at (67) ______ best a lot of the time. At (68) ______, these foods are more expensive

than other foods, but that is due to the ingredients they (69) ______ of and the way they are made. All the foods

contain probiotics (70) ______ increase the number of “good” bacteria in your stomach, helping to keep your

digestive system healthy.

Question III: Read the passage and choose the best answers to questions below. (10 pts)

The Digital Divide

Information technology is influencing the way many of us live and work today. We use the Internet to look

and apply for jobs, shop, conduct research, make airline reservations, and explore areas of interest. We use e-

mail and the Internet to communicate instantaneously with friends and business associates around the world.

Computers are commonplace in homes and the workplace.

Although the number of Internet users is growing exponentially each year, most of the world’s

population does not have access to computers or the Internet. Only 6 percent of the population in developing

countries are connected to telephones. Although more than 94 percent of U.S. households have a telephone,

only 42 percent have personal computers at home and 26 percent have Internet access. The lack of what most of

us would consider a basic communications necessity – the telephone – does not occur just in developing

nations. On some Native American reservations only 60 percent of the residents have a telephone. The move to

wireless connections may eliminate the need for telephone lines, but it does not remove the barrier to equipment

costs.

Who has Internet access? Fifty percent of the children in urban households with an income over $75,000

have Internet access, compared with 2 percent of the children in low-income, rural households. Nearly half of

college-educated people have Internet access, compared to 6 percent of those with only some high school

education. Forty percent of households with two parents have access; 15 percent of female, single-parent

households do. Thirty percent of white households, 11 percent of black households, and 13 percent of Hispanic

households have access. Teens and children are the two fastest-growing segments of Internet users. The digital

divide between the populations who have access to the Internet and information technology tools is based on

income, race, education, household type, and geographic location. Only 16 percent of the rural poor, rural and

central city minorities, young householders, and single parent female households are connected.

Another problem that exacerbates these disparities is that African-Americans, Hispanics, and Native

Americans hold few of the jobs in information technology. Women hold about 20 percent of these jobs and are

receiving fewer than 30 percent of the computer science degrees. The result is that women and members of the

most oppressed ethnic groups are not eligible for the jobs with the highest salaries at graduation. Baccalaureate

candidates with degrees in computer science were offered the highest salaries of all new college graduates in

1998 at $44,949.

Do similar disparities exist in schools? More than 90 percent of all schools in the country are wired with at

least one Internet connection. The number of classrooms with Internet connections differs by the income level

of students. Using the percentage of students who are eligible for free lunches at a school to determine income

level, we see that nearly twice as many of the schools with more affluent students have wired classrooms as

those with high concentrations of low-income students.

Access to computers and the Internet will be important in reducing disparities between groups. It will

require greater equality across diverse groups whose members develop knowledge and skills in computer and

information technologies. If computers and the Internet are to be used to promote equality, they will have to

become accessible to populations that cannot currently afford the equipment which needs to be updated every

three years or so. However, access alone is not enough. Students will have to be interacting with the technology

in authentic settings. As technology becomes a tool for learning in almost all courses taken by students, it will

be seen as a means to an end rather than an end in itself. If it is used in culturally relevant ways, all students can

benefit from its power.