“Let’s go down one more, push your enter key...” says a volunteer helping senior citizens work a web(网) session on the Internet.
David Lansdale has found a way to light up the lives of the elderly. He gets them wired to the Internet. “If you hit your enter key, it will bring up this particular e-mail...”
Pauline Allen is one of those who has started using the Internet, “I thought I was through with life, I was ready for a rocking chair, because I was 86 years old. And I haven’t found the rocking chair yet.” “You found the keyboard?” asks the reporter. “That’s right, I found the keyboard.”
The average age of Lansdale’s students is around 68. All are in nursing or assisted care homes. He used family relationships to introduce them to the World Wide Web.
David Lansdale says, “Here they are in California, the family was back in New York, the opportunity to connect, to cross the time and space, was incredibly precious (valuable) to them.”
“I hear you are so beautiful.” Lillian Sherly writes an e-mail to a newborn great granddaughter. Working with one another, the senior learn as a group. They learn to master the Internet and to overcome what Lansdale calls the maladies of the institutionalized: loneliness, helplessness, boredom, and loss of memory.
Mary Harvey says, “Bingo just doesn’t interest me. But this does, believe me, this does.”
Ninety-four-year old Ruth Hyman is a star pupil and instructor. She says, “When I send a letter to my grandchildren, and great grandchildren, they hang it up in their offices, just like I used to hang their drawings on my refrigerator. Ha, ha.”
David Lansdale says, “There’s a collective benefit. There is an element(因素) of treatment. Remember we started as a support group.”
Dixon Moore house says, “I just wish I was 15 years old and getting to learn all this.” The senior calls their weekly meetings Monday Night Live. And many say the meetings have given them new life. Ruth Hyman says, “Three years ago, they told me I wasn’t going to live. But I showed them, and got work, and I’ve worked ever since.”
1. The purpose of David Landsdale’s work is to _______.
A. keep the health of the mind of the senior B. popularize the use of computers among the old
C. organize the senior as a group to work D. help the senior connect with their families
2. The words “the maladies of the institutionalized” used in the text refer to _______.
A. the difficulties in learning B. the problems caused by getting old
C. some kinds of treatments D. the worries about the Internet
3. How many examples does the writer give to prove that the senior enjoy the Internet?
A. Four. B. Five. C. Six. D. Seven.
4. It can be inferred that Ruth Hyman’s younger generations hang her mails up _______.
A. in order not to lose the letters B. in order not to forget something important
C. to make the offices more beautiful D. to show pride in their grandmother’s work
【答案与解释】社会在进步，网络在发展，老年朋友也可通过学习进入和使用网络。David Lansdale通过网络唤起了老年朋友的生活情趣和热情。
1. A。主旨题。从第6段中的 They learn to master the Internet and to overcome… 可知 David Landsdale 的目的是要老年人克服他们所面临的各种心理问题，唤起他们对生活的热情。
2. B。语义理解题。从第6段最后一句中的 …what Lansdale calls the maladies of the institutionalized: loneliness, helplessness, boredom, and loss of memory 可对 the maladies of the institutionalized 的解释，所以选B。
3. B。细节题。文中提到了五个人的事例。
4. D。推断题。从第8段中的 …they hang it up in their offices, just like I used to hang their drawings on my refrigerator 可以看出 Ruth Hyman 的孙子和重孙们对她的作品感到很骄傲。
