Nora, a 17-year-old American, notices that when she has to do a paper for school and researches it on the Internet, she rarely reads a whole page and does deep reading. “I’ll read the beginning of a paragraph and then I'll skip(跳过) the rest,” she says.
While Nora's mother, Martha, loves sitting down with a good book and reading carefully, her daughter may be the wave of the future.
“Deep reading”, or slow reading, is a process in which people think carefully while they read. With most, that means slowing down --- even stopping and rereading a page or paragraph to really understand what the author is trying to say.
Last summer, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said he was concerned about what he sees as a decline(衰退)in slow reading. Instant messages and 140-character tweets(微博)appear to be reducing out ability to concentrate on a single idea or theme of a book, he told Foreign Policy Magazine.
It's easy to forget the benefits of deep reading in an age when anything worth doing is done fast. Experts warn that without deep reading, it is impossible to be an educated person of the world, a knowledgeable voter or even an imaginative thinker.
“If you want to have a deep relationship with a text and understand a complex idea, then slow reading is a preferred style. It is good for pleasure, too. It is not a rushed experience and you can lose yourself in a text,” said Canadian writer John Miedema, the author of the book Slow Reading.
US' Ohlone College English professor Cynthia Lee Katona says reading is a highly social activity that builds the mind and social connections. If you read, she says, you simply know more and have more to talk about with friends, partners and people you know.
Deep reading can also take a reader on a trip around the world even if they are sitting in a living room armchair, Katona says. Also, deep reading helps people develop thinking, writing and conversation skills.
“If you like beautiful things, authors put words together that are really beautiful and expressive,” she says. “If you want to write well--- and there are lots of reasons to express yourself clearly --- you should read.”
小题1:The comparison(对比)between Nora and her mother's reading habits _______.
A.introduces the wave of future |
B.adds a lot of fun for readers |
C.explains what deep reading is |
D.calls attention to deep reading |
小题2:What leads to the decline of deep reading, according to Eric Schemidt?
A.The fast pace of modern society. |
B.The lack of desire for knowledge |
C.The weakening ability to concentrate. |
D.The wide use of instant messages and tweets. |
小题3:What does the underlined word “it ” refer to in paragraph 6?
A.A deep relationship. | B.A complex idea. |
C.Slow reading. | D.A preferred style. |
小题4:According to the article, Cynthia Lee Katona's opinion of deep reading is that _______.
A.it makes sure you a better paid job |
B.it makes you a better writer |
C.it is better than travelling |
D.it helps build better family relationship |
小题5:What is the main point of the article?
A.The importance of deep reading. |
B.How to improve reading skills. |
C.The benefits of different reading styles. |
D.The secrets of a knowledgeable person |