Passage One
Today, there's scarcely an aspect of our life that isn't being upended by the torrent of information available on the hundreds of millions of sites crowding the Internet, not to mention its ability to keep us in constant touch with each other via electronic mail. "If the automobile and aerospace technology had exploded at the same pace as computer and information technology," says Microsoft, "a new car would cost about $2 and go 600 miles on a thimbleful of gas. And you could buy a Boeing 747 for the cost of a pizza."
Probably the biggest payoff, however is the billions of dollars the Internet is saving companies in producing goods and serving for the needs of their customers. Nothing like it has been seen since the beginning of the Industrial Revolution, when power-driven machines began producing more in a day than men could turn out in nearly a year. "We view the growth of the Internet and e-commerce as a global megatrend, says Merrill Lynch, "along the lines of the printing press, the telephone, the computer, and electricity."
You would be hard pressed to name something that isn't available on the Internet. Consider: books, health care, movie tickets, construction materials, baby clothes, stocks, cattle feed, music, electronics antiques, tools, real estate, toys, autographs of famous people, wine and airline tickets. And even after you've moved on to your final resting place, there's no reason those you love can't keep in touch. company called FinalThoughts. offers place for you to store "afterlife e-mails"you can send to Heaven with the help of a"guardian angel".
Kids today are so computer savvy that it virtually ensures the United States will remain the unchallenged leader in cyberspace for the foreseeable future. Nearly all children in families with incomes of more than $75,000 a year have home computers, according to a study by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Youngsters from ages2to17 at all income levels have computers,with 52% of those connected to the Internet. Most kids use computers to play games（some for 30 hours or more a week）, and many teenage girls think nothing of rushing home from school to have e-mail chats with friends they have just left.
What's clear is that, whether we like it or not, the Internet is an ever growing part of our lives and there is no turning back. "The Internet is just 20% invented," says cyber pioneer Jake Winebaum. "The last 80% is happening now."
What can we learn from Microsoft’s remark?
A、Information technology is developing at an amazing speed.
B、Nowadays cars and airplanes are outrageously overpriced.
C、There’s more competition in information technology industry.
D、Information technology has reached the point where improvement is difficult.
【正确答案】：A
【题目解析】：根据第一段a new car would cost about $2 and go 600 miles on a thimbleful of gas. And you could buy a Boeing 747 for the cost of a pizza.”可以得出答案。
