阅读理解。
George Prochnik would like the world to put a sock in it. He makes his case in a new book, Listening
for Meaning in a World of Noise. Here he explains himself (using his indoor voice):
"We've become so accustomed to noise, there's about almost a deep prejudice against the idea that
silence might be beneficial. If you tell someone to be quiet, you sound like an old man. But it's never been
more important to find continuing quiet. Silence focuses us, improves our health, and is a key to lasting
peace and satisfaction."
"We need to excite people about the sounds you start to hear if you merely quiet things down a little.
During a Japanese tea ceremony, the smallest sounds becomes a kind of art-the spoons making a light
ringing sound on a bowl, the edges of a kimono (和服) brushing against the floor."
"Dear people are very attentive (专注的) in almost every aspect of life. If two deaf people are waling
together, using sign language, they constantly watch out for each other and protect each other by paying
steady attention to the other. They are connected yet also fully aware of their surroundings. Even deaf
teenagers! We in the hearing world can learn from them. If we remove the powerful blasts (一阵阵) of
noise, we become aware of an extraordinarily rich world around us-of little soft and the sound of footsteps,
of bird songs and ice cracking (开裂声). It's astonishing how beautiful things sound when you can really
listen."
1. What does the phrase "to put a sock in it" in Paragraph 1 probably mean?
A. to be quiet
B. to be colorful
C. to be full of love
D. to be attentive to someone
2. What does Prochnik say about us?
A. We are used to quietness
B. We have to put up with noise
C. We do not think silence to be beneficial
D. We do not believe lasting peace to be available
3. Which of the following is true according to Proehnik?
A. We need more sounds in our lives
B. There is nothing to be learned from the deaf
C. We are not aware how rich the world around us is
D. There is too much noise at a Japanese tea ceremony
4. It can be inferred from the text that _____.
A. we can benefit a lot from old people
B. it is a good idea to use sign language
C. there is no escape from the world of sound
D. it is possible to find how beautiful things sound
