Lets fact it: Texting is here to stay. The average 13 to 17yearold sends 2,900 texts a month, according to the market research firm Nilesen. And while it might be a punishable offense in most schools, some teachers say that texting has educational tieins1 and that it can teach positive language skills.
The general thinking is that the more teenagers text, the more likely it is that abbreviations2 such as OMG (for “Oh my God”) or mangled3 or simplistic syntax will seep into their schoolwork. But educators say those concerns are without merit and are not based on research.
Forwardthinking teachers say the informal writing style that defines text messages can be included into class lessons. And a new study from California State Univesity researchers has found that texting can improve teens writing in informal eassay and many other writing assignments.
Teachers such as Cindi Rigsbee of Orange County, N.C., have asked students to translate passages from classic literature to textingspeak to demonstrate4 language comprehension in different contexts. A finding from the CUS study supports that concept： “Textingspeak is not a mangled form of English that is degrading proper language but instead a kind of ‘pidgin’ language all its own that actually stretches teens language skills.” The research does admit that too much texting can hurt students performance on most formal types of essay writing.
And then there are health concerns associated with texting. News reports have cited physicians and psychiatrists fears that the practice could take a toll on childrens sleep patterns and their ability to think for themselves. Researchers also are speaking out against texting while driving; they say it can be more dangerous than drunk driving.
But civics5 teacher Annie McCanless says that texting has become an established part of teens lives. “It can be used as real tools as opposed to a hindrance,” she told the Observer. Students interviewed by the North Carolina paper said that they routinely text their friends at night when they have questions about homework assignments or about when projects are due.
【生词注释】
1. tieinsn. 搭售2. abbreviationn. 缩写；缩写词3. mangledadj. 融合的4. demonstratevt. 说明，演示5. civicsn. 公民；公民学
1. According to the text, people used to think that .
A. texting has negative influence on language
B. texting donesnt simplify the formal language
C. texting will make teachers feel upset at school
D. texting can be used as a tool of education in class
2. The attitude of Cindi Rigsbee towards using texting is .
A. indifferentB. favorableC. neutralD. critical
3. What problem may too much texting cause?
A. Teens may damage the beauty of language.
B. Teens may run into the danger of being drunk.
C. Teens cant think independently.
D. Teens may suffer from eating disorder.
4. What might be the most suitable title for the passage?
A. Is texting a mangled form of English?
B. What do you think about texting in school?
C. Are there ways to use texting to improve learning?
D. Could texting be good for students?
Last year, 15 teams made it to the finals of the first Grand Challenge, a 142mile （228kilometer） road race across the desert.
Any type of vehicle could enter the contest, but there was one big demand. Drivers were not allowed. Neither were passengers nor remote controls. Vehicles had to drive themselves over rugged1 place and around blocks, with no help from people. None of the entries made it.
After watching vehicle stall, crash, or burn in the last contest, competitors perfected their strategies2 and learned their lessons. This year, five out of the 23 finalists completed the 130mile （210kilometer） course through the Mojave Desert along the CaliforniaNevada border. Stanley was the winner.
A U.S. government agency called the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency （DARPA） created and sponsored3 the Grand Challenge. Given a support by DARPAs race, robotic vehicle technology is coming closer to satisfying the government requirement that onethird of future army vehicles be driverless. The military would like to find better ways to transport goods during wartime without endangering4 soldiers.
This years success was a result of recent advances in sensors5 and computer software, experts say. Stanley had five laserbeam sensors on its roof. It also had a specialized6 system for avoiding obstacles that was trained on data collected as human drivers drove the car over a variety of terrain.
Soldiers arent the only ones who stand to benefit from the new technology. Someday, all cars and trucks might use similar strategies to make our own road adventures safer and easier.
【生词注释】
1. ruggedadj. 崎岖不平的；多岩石的2. strategyn. 战略学；兵法
3. sponsorvt. 赞助；发起；主办资助4. endangervt. 危及；使遭受危险
5. sensorn. 传感器；灵敏元件6. specializedadj. 专门的
1. Which of the following can take part in the contest?
A. A car with a skilled driver in it.
B. A car with an intelligent passenger.
C. A car which can be controlled by remote controls.
D. A car which can do drive itself without others help.
2. Competitors improve their strategies mainly by .
A. learning lessons from failures of other vehicles
B. equipping a computer on it
C. doing a lot of research on deserts
D. asking help from car factories
3. The purpose of the contest is .
A. to find new ways to protect goods
B. to avoid unnecessary wars
C. to meet the government requirement
D. protect drivers and passengers
4. We owe the real success to .
A. computer software
B. special roofs
C. a special system
D. important data
The concept of solar power satellites, or SPS, first put forward in the 1960s, is still not widely known by the general public. For example at many public exhibitions about Energy, SPS is not even mentioned. This is mainly because very little funding has been spent on SPS research to date-about 1/1000 of 1% of the approximately1 US ＄1 trillion that governments have spent subsidizing2 the development of nuclear power over the past 50 years.
