Part A
Directions: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. (40 points)
The past 40 years have witnessed an extraordinary evolution. From slow expensive machines controlled by punched cards, computers have become low-cost, powerful units taking up no more space than a briefcase. Simultaneously, our world has become interlaced with telephone wires, optic fibers, undersea cables, microwave links, television channels and satellite communications.
At the crossing of these two developments stands the Internet—a direct result of computer technology intersecting with communication technology. But for many in the world of today's media, this is merely a first landmark in what promises to be a giant upheaval in the way people communicate, relax and work. This is the era of digital convergence.
According to a recent article in Scientific American, convergence is in principle "the union of audio, video and data communications into a single source, received on a single device, delivered by a single connection." Digital technology has already provided a medium for integrating media that until now required distinct channels of communication: we can now send emails using our televisions or text messages over mobile phones. Real-time video can be transmitted over radio channels, while television and radio can be received on Personal Computers.
Full digital convergence promises real-time access to information anywhere in the world, and global communication through text, graphics, video and audio. In fact, there seems to be no technological limit to what might be possible. "The reality of 'anywhere, anytime' access to broadband digital networks is going to make our lives freer and fuller," Gerald Levin, chief executive officer of AOL Time Warner, has promised. But technology alone cannot bring about such a world, as long as consumers and companies do not embrace it, convergence is likely to go the way of several hyped-up predecessors.
Over a decade ago, for example, virtual reality was the technology of the future, and many people anticipated a day where we would be wearing head-mounted displays and interacting with all manner of virtual environments. At the time there was real concern about changes in industrial practices and social behavior. brought about by this technology. So what happened to this vision？ Well, we got it wrong. Currently, the home computer is the main interface to the Internet. But relatively few people in the world have access to PCs, and few would argue that they are ideal for the purpose—they can crash and freeze because they were not designed for widespread Internet use.
In this text the extraordinary evolution refers to______.

A. the appearance of the smaller, low-cost and powerful computers.
B. the interrelated telephone wires, optic fibers, undersea cables, microwave links.
C. the popularity of TV channels and satellite communication.
D. the fast development of computer and communication technology.