求雅思题

READING PASSAGE HearingProblems

Paragraph 1 (Q.1) The old adage extols the virtue ofsilence by claiming it is golden, yet experience tells us thatsilence is as hard to come by as the precious metal itself. Thebenefit of silence to the human ear is scientificallydemonstrable. Less superfluous noise; less impairment to thehearing. Yet this precious commodity is no longer valued. Noiseis ever present in modern life and is an accumulative experience.The ill effects of noise pollution are of two kinds: acute -exposure to an individual instance of a very loud noise, such asa gunshot or explosion; and chronic - the experience of too muchnoise over an extended period of time.

Paragraph 2 (Q.2) City and urban dwellers exist in anincreasingly noise-ridden environment, and it is now almostimpossible to escape exposure to high noise levels. Even if weexclude the more obvious sources of noise pollution such as jetplane engines, road works, power tools, loud music at