Reading_for_the_Real_World_1_2nd_Ed

Summary

Fill in the blanks with the words from the list. Use each word only once.

portable	code	hackers
cables	accelerated	access

Although it has only a short history, the Internet has had a great impact on modern society. The concept of the Internet came from military research in the 1960s. The military wanted to 1 _________________ its research and control centers through connections to many locations by computers. As more and more people began using the system during the 1980s, privacy and security became an issue due to the threat of 2 _________________ and viruses. In the 1990s, the development of the Internet 3 _________________ rapidly thanks to the World Wide Web and the invention of the first computer 4 _________________ for web pages. Soon after, fiber optic 5 _________________ made the Internet faster and able to carry much more information. In decades to come, 6 _________________

devices will be used instead of computers to retrieve information from the Internet.

Vocabulary Extension

Here are six words that are related to the topic but are not in the reading. Fill in each blank with the best word from the list. Use each word only once.

install

downloaded

idle

crashed

click

frozen

1.I lost all of my homework when my computer __________.

2.Do you know how to __________ this program?

3.To open the file, just __________ on its name.

4.Casey has __________ over 400 MP3 files.

5.If your computer is __________ for a few minutes, the screensaver will start.

6.The computer screen is not responding to the mouse. I think your computer is

__________.

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Supplemental Reading

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10

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Internet and Freedom of Speech

Track 6

One of the most important things that the Internet has fostered or strengthened has been freedom of speech and

freedom of expression. The Internet is a very large common public area that is shared by people all around the world. Due to the diversity of the Net’s users, no one standard can be applied to govern

speech on the Net. Furthermore, the Internet technology itself prevents complete blocking of access to information.

The Internet has helped to promote political freedom in many cases and allowed protesters a way to express their discontent. In 1990, the Internet allowed Chinese dissidents to bypass government censorship and inform the world Chinese community of the rebellion in Tiananmen Square and its tragic outcome. Similarly in 1991, people both in the Soviet Union and around the world were able to access eyewitness accounts of the attempted coup against Mikhail Gorbachev in spite of an information blackout. During Iraq’s invasion of Kuwait, Internet users got up-to-date information through Internet connections with Kuwait even though radio and television broadcasts had been cut off.

In the late 1990s, many countries became alarmed at the freedom of speech

20accessible on the Internet and tried to restrict it. Singapore mandated that political and religious sites must register with the government. China ordered that all Internet users register with the police. And Saudi Arabia restricted Internet use to only universities and hospitals. However, due to the nature of the Internet, none of these efforts has had much lasting effect.

Discussion

Discuss the following questions.

1. What do you usually use the Internet for?

2 How has the Internet changed since you first began using it?

U N I T 2 Computers & Technology 2

Gamers:

Image and Reality

Pre-Reading Questions

Think about the following questions.

1.What are the most popular computer games today?

2.Do you know any people who play a lot of games on the computer? What are these people like?

3.What do you think most gamers have in common?

Vocabulary Preview

Match each word or phrase with the correct definition.

1.	antisocial	a. highly developed; complicated
2.	activity	b. a picture; an idea of how something looks
3.	image	c. an action to hurt or kill others
4.	recognize	d. disliking other people; not fitting in with others
5.	sophisticated	e. an action; a way to enjoy free time
6.	violence	f. to see and understand

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Gamers: Image and Reality Track 7

Video games have become very popular. There numerous games for the personal computer Additionally, game systems, like the Sony

Playstation and the Xbox, can be found in many

5homes. As video games have become more popular and sophisticated, they have influenced popular culture. The character of Lara Croft from the game, Tomb Raider, is well known even to people who have never played the game. There have been

10several movies based on video games, Tomb

Raider included. Obviously, the video game industry is highly profitable, and the designers of a successful game can become very rich. Of course, what this means is that there are many people buying and playing video games. What

kinds of people are they?

15 There are many stereotypes about gamers. The first one is that most gamers are males. Another stereotype about gamers is that they are not interesting or attractive people. According to this view, gamers are mostly fat because they always play games instead of exercising. Even if they are not fat, they are still unhealthy because they rarely go outside or do anything active. Another part of

20this image is that gamers are ugly. They play games because it is impossible for them to find girlfriends. Not only are they ugly, but they are also boring. Gamers have no interests outside games, so games are all that they can talk about, besides computers. Further, this image of gamers implies they are antisocial. They do not know how to communicate with other people. This is the main

25reason that they play games. Gamers spend all of their time alone with their computers, and they only connect with other people through the Internet, where

2 numerous --- many

7 character --- a person in a story

10based on --- originating from; taken from

11profitable --- able to earn money for a company

19rarely --- seldom; not often

23imply --- to suggest; to seems to mean

31	emotional problems --- extreme emotional reactions not usually
	found in others
36	destruction --- damage; complete ruin
37	views --- ideas
46	commit --- to do; to carry out

they can pretend to be different people. This sort of communication is not real, since gamers would never be able to talk the same way with people in the normal world.

30 The most negative stereotype about gamers is that they possibly have emotional problems. Many video games are violent, so gamers might be influenced by that violence. They may start to feel that it is OK to use violence in real life. Further, gamers spend too much time in the false worlds of their games. The result is that they can no longer recognize the real world. They may come to

35believe that they are characters in a game. The result of this could be violence or destruction of property, either real or through computer hacking.

Of course, these views are only stereotypes. There may be some gamers that fit the negative stereotype. However, a recent study about gamers was conducted in the United States by the Pew Internet and American Life Project. This research

40involved a survey of 1,162 college students across the United States. The survey found that most gamers are the same as normal people. According to the survey, both gamers and non-gamers spent the same amount of time doing different kinds of activities, like studying and exercising. Gamers did not spend all their time playing games. They did not spend all their time alone, either. Most of the

45gamers in the survey lived normal lives and had normal friends. For them, gaming was a social activity. These gamers were unlikely to commit violence against others.

Finally, the survey found that just as many women as men played video games. According to this survey, at least, gaming has

become a normal hobby, like any other, and

50case with many other stereotypes, the

image of gamers does not seem to match with reality.

Reading Time

_______ minutes _______ seconds

591 words

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Reading Comprehension

AMark each statement as either true (T) or false (F) according to the reading.

1.____ Gamers are not thought to be like normal people.

2.____ Gamers are thought to be antisocial.

3.____ Many gamers always play games as a way to enjoy time with friends.

4.____ More men play video games than women.

BChoose the best answer according to the reading.

1.What is the main idea of this reading?

a.Gamers have similar personalities, likes and dislikes.

b.Gamers are similar to people’s ideas of them.

c.Gamers are different from people’s ideas of them.

d.Gamers are not similar to each other.

2.What is NOT a stereotype of a gamer?

a.They don’t make friends easily.

b.They dislike sports.

c.They are often boring to other people.

d.They frequently interact with other people.

3.According to the reading, what does “stereotype” probably mean?

a.An idea about gamers that is usually true

b.An idea about gamers that is good to have

c.An idea about gamers that is often too simple

d.An idea about gamers that is wrong

CFor the next two questions, look for the answers in the passage and write them on the lines provided.

1.Why is it dangerous for gamers to think video games are the real world?

______________________________________________________

______________________________________________________

2.Why do people think that gamers play computer games?

______________________________________________________

______________________________________________________

Summary

Fill in the blanks with the words from the list. Use each word only once.

antisocial	activity	image
recognize	sophisticated	violence

Over the years, video games have become more popular and 1 _____________. For most people, the 2 _________________ of a gamer is a man who is overweight and lazy. Because gamers sit in front of computers all day, their lack of physical 3 _________________ makes them gain weight. People also think that gamers are 4 _________________ because they spend so much time alone, playing games that typically focus on killing. However, research indicates that gamers easily 5 _________________ appropriate and inappropriate behavior.

In other words, they are not more likely to commit acts of 6 ________________

than non-gamers.

Vocabulary Extension

Here are six words that are related to the topic but are not in the reading. Fill in each blank with the best word from the list. Use each word only once.

bias

points

weird

ammunition

juvenile

select

1.Roger does very strange things, so most people think he is __________.

2.Now you have to __________ what color hair you want your character to have.

3.Don’t act in that childish way. It’s very __________.

4.Hey! I got 50 __________ for picking up the gold coin!

5.You need a lot of __________ to shoot all your opponents in Quake III.

6.He has a(n) __________ against people who play computer games. He doesn’t like to talk to them.

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Supplemental Reading

Why Play Computer Games?

Track 8

People like video games for different reasons. Playing a game like Quake III allows people to have an imaginary battle, where they can shoot or destroy their opponents. This sort of game can be exciting for some.

Others find that it helps to take away their stress. Quake III is an example of a

5first-person-shooter (FPS) game, one of the most popular kinds of games. There seems to be a thrill that comes with fighting, especially when it is with

other people on the Internet.

Other games provide a different world for the player to enter. These are called adventure games.

10The games may place a player in a different time or place or create an entirely imaginary world. A player may be able to win by fighting, using strategy, or solving puzzles, but the most important point is the

different world of the game. Myst and Riven are two of the most famous

15	adventure games.
	Some role-playing adventure games allow players to create new characters
	for themselves. In the game, a player can be a hero, monster, or any number of
	other kinds of characters. Role-playing games are very popular, particularly on
	the Internet. One of the most popular is Everquest. In this game, players join

20others online to have adventures. They can play many different characters, making different names, abilities, and personalities for themselves. The feeling in these games is like becoming a character in a book. There seems to be a game for just about every kind of personality.

Discussion

Discuss the following questions.

1.What are the advantages of playing video games?

2.What are some problems that playing video games can cause?

U N I T 3 Health & Medicine 1

Body Mass

and Weight

Pre-Reading Questions

Think about the following questions.

1.What are some health problems caused by too much body fat?

2.How can you tell if someone is unhealthily fat?

3.What do you think BMI is?

Vocabulary Preview

Match each word or phrase with the correct definition.

1.	density	a. a way; a procedure
2.	inaccurate	b. mass divided by volume
3.	mass	c. having well-developed muscles
4.	method	d. not exact; not correct
5.	muscular	e. exact; accurate
6.	precise	f. a measure similar to weight

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Body Mass and Weight Track 9

To be obese means to have too much fat on the body. Obese people are not just overweight. Such people are likely to suffer health problems because of their weight. The precise cause of obesity is not clear.

However, it is clear that obesity is a problem in most countries. One study

5estimated that about 55 percent of people in the United States are obese. People need to understand what obesity is and how to tell if they themselves are obese so that they can change their condition.

An obese person does not have to look extremely fat. Even people who seem only slightly overweight can actually be considered obese. If a person has a certain

10amount of fat on their body, then their health might be in danger. This amount of fat is usually thought to be 40 percent of the body’s total composition. Finding a person’s exact fat percentage is troublesome. Most people still rely on their weight measurement to tell them if they are overweight or obese.

There are problems with this method, however. There are recommended

15weights for different ages. In addition, weight alone says nothing about a person’s percentage of body fat, which is most important. People have different body types, which can make weight measurements unreliable. For instance, athletes usually have more muscle mass than other people. Muscle weighs more than fat. Therefore, an athlete may weigh more than their recommended weight, but this does not mean

20	they are not healthy. A more accurate measurement of body fat is needed.
		Probably the most popular method of determining body fat today is the
	Body Mass Index (BMI). BMI is a person’s weight (in kilograms) divided
	by the square of his or her height (in
	to 27 is normal. For women, it is 23 to
25	26. A BMI of 30 or more means a
	1	obese --- overweight in an unhealthy way
	8	extremely --- to the utmost degree; exceedingly;
		excessively
	9	slightly --- a little
	9	certain --- particular
	11	composition --- a mix of all the various parts
	14	recommend --- to suggest
	17	unreliable --- not able to be trusted