Blockbuster, which has, in fact, started a similar service? What will it mean for movie studios and theaters? What does it show about \like those for Dutch movies or classic musicals, into a (32) large audience? But one other major implication has (33) been mentioned: what this and similar Internet-based businesses mean for that stalwart of the old economy, the United States Postal Service.

Every day, some two million Netflix envelopes come and go as first-class mail. They are joined by millions of other shipments from （34） pharmacies, eBay vendors, Amazon.com and other businesses that did not exist before the Internet.

The（35） of \mail\in the age of instant electronic communication has been predicted at least as often as the coming of the paperless office. But the consumption of paper keeps （36） . It has roughly doubled since 1980. On average, an American household receives twice as many pieces of mail a day as it did in the 1970's.

The harmful side of the Internet's impact is obvious but statistically less important than many would guess. People (37) write fewer letters when they can send e-mail messages. To (38) through a box of old paper correspondence is to know what has been _(39) in this shift: the pretty stamps, the varying look and feel of handwritten and typed correspondence, the tangible (40) that was once in the sender's hands.

V. Reading comprehension Section A Passage one

（1）When I was a young girl living in Ireland, I was always pleased when it rained, because that meant I could go treasure hunting. What’s the connection between a wet day and a search for buried treasure? Well, it’s quite simple. Ireland, as some of you may already know, is the home of Leprechauns – little men who possess magic powers and, perhaps more interestingly, pots of gold. （2）Now, although Leprechauns are interesting characters, I have to admit that I was more intrigued by the stories of their treasure hoard. This, as all of Ireland knows, they hide at the end of the rainbow. Leprechauns can be fearsome folk but if you can discover the end of the rainbow,

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they have to unwillingly surrender their gold to you. So whenever it rained, I would look up in the sky and follow the curve of the rainbow to see where it ended. I never did unearth any treasure, but I did spend many happy, showery days dreaming of what I could do with the fortune if I found it.

（3）As I got older, and started working, rainy days came to be just another nuisance and my childhood dreams of finding treasure faded. But for some people the dream of striking it lucky never fades, and for a fortunate few, the dream even comes true! Such is the case of Mel Fisher. His dream of finding treasure also began in childhood, while reading the great literature classics “Treasure Island” and “Moby Dick”. However, unlike myself, he chased his dream and in the end managed to become one of the most famous professional treasure hunters of all time, and for good reason. In 1985, he fished up the priceless cargo of the sunken Spanish ship Atocha, which netted him an incredible $400 million dollars!

（4）After the ship sank in 1622 off the coast of Florida, its murky waters became a treasure trove of precious stones, gold bars and silver coins known as “pieces of eight”. The aptly-named Fisher, who ran a commercial salvaging operation, had been trying to locate the underwater treasure for over 16 years when he finally hit the jackpot! His dreams had come true but finding and keeping the treasure wasn’t all plain sailing. After battling with hostile conditions at sea, Fisher then had to battle in the courts. In fact, the State of Florida took Fisher to court over ownership of the find and the Federal government soon followed suit. After more than 200 hearings, Fisher agreed to donate 20% of his yearly findings for public display, and so now there is a museum in Florida which displays hundreds of the objects which were salvaged from the Atocha.

（5）This true story seems like a modern-day fairytale: a man pursues his dream through adversity and in the end, he triumphs over the difficulties - they all live happily ever after, right? Well, not exactly. Archaeologists object to the fact that with commercial salvaging operations like Fisher’s, the objects are sold and dispersed and UNESCO are worried about protecting our underwater heritage from what it describes as “pillaging”.

（6）The counter-argument is that in professional, well-run operations such as Fisher’s, each piece is accurately and minutely recorded and that it is this information which is more important than the actual object, and that such operations help increase our wealth of archaeological

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knowledge. Indeed, as in Fisher’s case, they make history more accessible to people through museum donations and information on web sites.

（7）The distinction of whether these treasure hunters are salvaging or pillaging our underwater heritage may not be clear, but what is clear is that treasure hunting is not just innocent child’s play anymore but profitable big business. I have learnt that the end of the rainbow is beyond my reach, but in consolation, with just a click of the mouse, I too can have a share in the riches that the Atocha has revealed. As Friedrich Nietzsche so wisely said: “Our treasure lies in the beehive of our knowledge.”

41. In Para.4, the phrase “hit the jackpot” means ______according to the text. A. discovered the jackpot. B. found the treasure C. broke one of the objects D. ran a salvaging operation

42. It can be concluded from Paras. 5 and 6 that _________. A. people hold entirely different views on the issue B. UNESCO’s view is different from archaeologists’ C. all salvaging operations should be prohibited D. attention should be paid to the find’s educational value

43. How did the author feel about the treasure from the Atocha (Para. 7)? A. She was unconcerned about where the treasure came from B. She was sad that she was unable to discover and salvage treasure. C. She was angry that treasure hunters were pillaging heritage. D. She was glad that people can have a chance to see the treasure.

Passage two

（1）PAUL was dissatisfied with himself and with everything. The deepest of his love belonged to his mother. When he felt he had hurt her, or wounded his love for her, he could not bear it. Now it was spring, and there was battle between him and Miriam. This year he had a good deal against her. She was vaguely aware of it. The old feeling that she was to be a sacrifice to this love, which

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she had had when she prayed, was mingled in all her emotions. She did not at the bottom believe she ever would have him. She did not believe in herself primarily: doubted whether she could ever be what he would demand of her. Certainly she never saw herself living happily through a lifetime with him. She saw tragedy, sorrow, and sacrifice ahead. And in sacrifice she was proud, in renunciation she was strong, for she did not trust herself to support everyday life. She was prepared for the big things and the deep things, like tragedy. It was the sufficiency of the small day-life she could not trust.

（2）The Easter holidays began happily. Paul was his own frank self. Yet she felt it would go wrong. On the Sunday afternoon she stood at her bedroom window, looking across at the oak-trees of the wood, in whose branches a twilight was tangled, below the bright sky of the afternoon. Grey-green rosettes of honeysuckle leaves hung before the window, some already, she fancied, showing bud. It was spring, which she loved and dreaded.

（3）Hearing the clack of the gate she stood in suspense. It was a bright grey day. Paul came into the yard with his bicycle, which glittered as he walked. Usually he rang his bell and laughed towards the house. To-day he walked with shut lips and cold, cruel bearing, that had something of a slouch and a sneer in it. She knew him well by now, and could tell from that keen-looking, aloof young body of his what was happening inside him. There was a cold correctness in the way he put his bicycle in its place, that made her heart sink.

（4）She came downstairs nervously. She was wearing a new net blouse that she thought became her. It had a high collar with a tiny ruff, making her, she thought, look wonderfully a woman, and dignified. At twenty she was full-breasted and luxuriously formed. Her face was still like a soft rich mask, unchangeable. But her eyes, once lifted, were wonderful. She was afraid of him. He would notice her new blouse.

（5）He, being in a hard, ironical mood, was entertaining the family to a description of a service given in the Primitive Methodist Chapel. He sat at the head of the table, his mobile face, with the eyes that could be so beautiful, shining with tenderness or dancing with laughter, now taking on one expression and then another, in imitation of various people he was mocking. His mockery always hurt her; it was too near the reality. He was too clever and cruel. She felt that when his eyes were like this, hard with mocking hate, he would spare neither himself nor anybody else. But Mrs. Leivers was wiping her eyes with laughter, and Mr. Leivers, just awake from his Sunday nap,

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