8．"Did you hear what happened to Adam Last Friday？"Lindsey whipers to Tori．
With her eyes shining，Tori brags，"You bet I did，Sean told me two days ago．"
Who are Lindsey and Tori talking about？It just happens to be yours truly，Adam Freedmam，I can tell you that what they are saying is （a） not nice and （b） not even true．Still，Lindsey and Tori aren't very different from most students here at Linton Higt School，including me．Many of our conversations are gossip（閑話）．I have noticed three effects of gossip：it can hurt people，it can give gossipers a strange kind of satisfaction，and it can cause social pressures in a group．
An important negative effect of gossip is that it can hurt the person being talked about．Usually，gossip spreads information about a topic-breakups，trouble at home，even dropping out-that a person would rather keep secret．The more embarrassing or shameful the secret is，the juicier the gossip it makes．Probably the worst type of gossip is the absolute lie．People often think of gossipers as harmless，but cruel lies can cause pain．
If we know that gossip can be harmful，then why do so many of us do it？Tht answer lies in another effect of gossip：the satisfaction it gives us．Sharing the latest rumor（傳言）can make a person feel important because he or she knows something that others don't．Similarly，hearing the latest rumor can make a person feel like part of the"in group．"In other words，gossip is satisfying because it gives people a sense of belonging or even superiority（優越感）．
Gossip also can have a third effect：it strengthens unwritten，unspoken rules about how people should act．Professor David Wilson explains that gossip is important in policing behaviors in a group．Translated into high school terms，this means that if everybody you hang around with is laughing at what John wore or what Jane said，then you can bet that wearing or saying something similar will get you the same kind of negative attention．The do's and don'ts conveyed through gossip will never show up in any student handbook．
The effects of gossip vary depending on the situation．The next time you feel the urge to spread the latest news，thing about why you want to gossip and what effects your"juicy story"might have．
41．The author uses a conversation at the beginning of the passahe toA．
A．introduce a topic
B．present an argument
C．describe the characters
D．clarify his writing purpose
42．An important negative effects of gossip is that itD．
A．breaks up relationships
B．embarrasses the listener
C．spreads information around
D．causes unpleasant experiences
43．In the auther's opinion，many people like to gossip because itA．
A．gives them a feeling of pleasure
B．helps them to make more friends
C．makes them better at telling stories
D．enables them to meet important people
44．Professor David Wilson thinks that gossip canB．
A．provide students with written rules
B．help people watch their own behaviors
C．force school to impove student handbooks
D．attract the police's attention to group behaviors
45．What advice does the author give in the passage？D
A．Never become a gossiper
B．Stay away from gossipers
C．Don't let gossip turn into lies
D．Think twice before you gossip．
分析 本文是一篇議論文．文章討論了傳言的3中危害危害和人們為什么喜歡傳閑話．1．是它能傷害人；2．它能改傳言者一種奇怪的滿足感；3 它能引起社會壓力．傳言的效果是不同的，取決于情況．
解答 41．A 推理判斷題． 根據文章第三段的Many of our conversations are gossip．句意：我們的話題很多都是閑話．可知開頭的對話是為了介紹本文的主題，故選A．
42．D 細節理解題．根據文章第四段的An important negative effect of gossip is that it can hurt the person being talked about，可知主要危害是他會給被討論的人帶來不愉快的經歷，故選D．
43．A 細節理解題．根據文章第五段的The answer lies in another effect of gossip：thesatisfaction it gives us，可知人們散播傳言是因為它會帶來滿足感，故選A．
44．B 細節理解題．根據文章第六段的Professor David Wilson explains that gossip isimportant in policing behaviours in agroup．可知他認為傳言能幫助人們觀察自身的行為，故選B．
45．D 細節理解題．根據文章最后一段的The next time you feel the urge to spread thelatest news，think about why you want to gossip and what effectsyour"juicy story"might have．可知作者的建議是讓人們在傳言之前三思而后行．故選D．
點評 這是一篇議論文，要求學生仔細的閱讀文章，找到相關信息回答問題，以及推斷答案．
