Decide which of the choices given below would correctly complete the passage if inserted in the corresponding¹ blanks. Mark the correct choice for each blank on your ANSWER SHEET.? 

Who won the World Cup 1998 football game? What happened at the United Nations? How did the critics like the new play 　　1 an event takes place, newspapers are on the streets giving the details. Wherever anything happens in the world, reporters are on the spot to gather the news. Newspapers have one basic 　　2, to get the news as quickly as possible from its source, from those who make it to those who want to　　3 it. Radio, telegraph², television, and　　4 inventions brought competition for newspapers. So did the development of magazines and other means of communication. 　　5, this competition merely spurred³ the newspapers on. They quickly make use of the newer and faster means of communication to improve the　　6 and thus the efficiency⁴ of their own operations. Today more newspapers are 　　7 and read than ever before. Competition also led newspapers to branch out into many other fields. Besides keeping readers　　8 of the latest news, today’s newspapers educate and influence readers about politics and other important and serious matters. Newspapers influence readers’ economic choices　　9 advertising⁶. Most newspapers depend on advertising for their very　　10. Newspapers are sold at a price that　　11 even a small fraction⁷ of the cost of production. The main　　12 of income for most newspapers is commercial advertising. The success in selling advertising depends on a newspaper’s value to advertisers. This　　13 in terms of circulation⁸. How many people read the newspaper? Circulation depends somewhat⁹ on the work of the circulation department and on the services or entertainment 　　14 in a newspaper’s pages. But for the most part, circulation depends on a newspaper’s value to readers as source of information 　　15 the community, city, country, state, nation and world and even outer space. 

1. A. Just when B. While C. Soon after D. Before 
2. A. reason B. cause C. problem D. purpose 
3. A. make B. publish C. know D. write 
4. A. another B. other C. one another D. the other 
5. A. However B. And C. Therefore D. So 
6. A. value B. ratio⁵ C. rate D. speed 
7. A. spread B. passed C. printed D. completed 
8. A. inform B. be informed C. to be informed D. informed? 
9. A. on B. through C. with D. of 
10.A. forms B. existence C. contents D. purpose 
11. A. tries to cover B. manages to cover C. fails to cover D. succeeds in 
12.A. source B. origin C. course D. finance 
13. A. measures B. measured C. is measured D. was measured 
14. A. offering B. offered C. which offered D. to be offered 
15.A. by B. with C. at D. about 

参考答案及解析： 
1. C) 根据上下文，此空应该为介词，故选项A和B可被排除，因为它们后边不能直接跟名词短语。根据句义，选项C为正确答案。? 
2. D) 根据语义线索（报纸有一个基本目的就是以最快速度从新闻来源处得到新闻）可知选项D为正确答案。? 
3. C) 根据语义线索选项C know 为正确答案。? 
4. B) 此题涉及other, another 两词的用法。Other可以单独使用也可以和定冠词the一起使用，other一般用来修饰表示不确定所指的复数可数名词，意为“其他”；the other用来指代或修饰特定范围内的第二者或第三者等，不合适。Another一般修饰可数名词单数，不合适。One another是相互代词，不能作限定词。综上，根据语法线索，选项B为正确答案。 
5. A) 根据上下文，该句句义有转折，故表示转折意义的关系副词选项A However为正确答案。其它三词：and为表示并列关系的并列连词；therefore和so为表示因果关系的关系副词。? 
6. D) 根据上下文，报纸报道新闻应该发展更新更快的通讯方式，可知其目的是为提高速度从而提高效率。故选项D为正确答案。? 
7. C) 此题可用排除法。根据语义线索（今天印刷的和人们阅读的报纸比以往任何时候都多）可将A，B和D排除。? 
8. D) 此题涉及动词keep的用法。动词keep后可接复杂宾语结构，即宾语+宾语补语的结构。形容词，?ed分词，ing分词等都可作宾补。其中?ed分词表示被动含义；ing分词表示主动含义。此句句义为“除了使读者知悉最新的新闻外 … ”，因此根据语法线索，含有被动意义的选项D为正确答案。 ? 
9. B) 根据句义可知此空应使用意为“通过”的介词。故选项B through 为正确答案。 ? 
10. B) 根据上下文可推断此句大概句义为“报纸通过广告维持它们的存在”，故选项B existence“存在”为正确答案。? 
11. C) 根据上下句句义可以推断，报纸不是通过出售其本身所得来维持其生存，而是通过刊登广告的收入来维持其生存，并且对于大多数的报纸来说主要的经费来源是商业广告，而不是出售报纸，因此可以猜测出报纸的售价不能涵盖其制作印刷成本，因此选项C为正确答案。其它三项意义不符。? 
12. A) 根据上句可推断此句的答案只能从A、B两项之间产生。Origin意为“起源，根源”不合适。故选项A source“来源”为正确答案。 
13. C) 根据此句义“这（报纸对广告商的价值）是以报纸的发行量来衡量” 及上下文可推断此空应填动词的被动形式，故选项C为正确答案。 
14. B) 选项B为ed分词作后置定语。 
15. D) 根据词汇线索和语义线索可知，此处需要使用介词about，表示“关于社区、国家和世界的信息”。