Skill-related Reading
Reading Skill（I）：Skimming
When you read a passage or a book for comprehension，you’d better do it at least twice．For the first time，try to get the main idea of the whole material．And for the second time，focus your attention on specific details．
Skimming，as a fundamental speed-reading skill，is often applied to the first-time reading．By adopting this skill，one looks through the material to grasp the general idea in both content and organization before reading it in detail．Compared with the normal reading speed of 200 230 words per minute，when skimming，the reader reaches a speed of 700 800 words．
To skim，prepare yourself to move rapidly through the pages．You will not read every word；you will pay special attention to typographical cues-headings，boldface and italic type，indenting，bulleted and numbered lists．You will be alert to key words and phrases，the names of people and places，dates，nouns，and unfamiliar words．In general follow these steps：
1．Glance through the title，subtitles and subheadings if there are any．These are the shortest possible summaries of a text or paragraph．
2．Read the entire introductory paragraph and then the first and last sentence only of each following paragraph．For each paragraph，read only the first few words of each sentence or to locate the main idea．
3．Stop and quickly read the sentences containing key words indicated in boldface or italics．
4．When you think you have found something significant，stop to read the entire sentence to make sure．Then go on the same way．Resist the temptation to stop to read details you don’t need．
5．If there are any pictures，maps or diagrams，look at them quickly，too．Remember to read the captions that go with them．
6．If you cannot complete all the steps above，compromise：read only the chapter overviews and summaries，for example，or the summaries and all the boldfaced keywords．When you skim，you take a calculated risk that you may miss something．For instance，the main ideas of paragraphs are not always found in the first or last sentences（although in many textbooks they are）．Ideas you miss you may pick up in a chapter overview or summary．
Good skimmers do not skim everything at the same rate or give equal attention to everything．While skimming is always faster than your normal reading speed，you should slow down in the following situations：
When you skim introductory and concluding paragraphs；
When you skim topic sentences；
When you find an unfamiliar word；
When the material is very complicated．
Once you have done as above，you may grasp rapidly the gist of what the reading material is all about．Reading like this makes the following understanding much easier and more efficient because you have a mental framework into which you can fit details as you are reading．So skimming can not only quicken your reading speed but also facilitate your deeper understanding of the material．
＼Reading Practice＼
I．Directions：Spend no more than 20 seconds skimming each of the following texts，and then choose the best answer．(https://www.daowen.com)
Passage One
With 270 million Americans and 4 million people around the world using cell phones—and more signing up every day—a strong link between mobiles and cancer could have major public-health implications．As cell phones make and take calls，they emit low-level radiofrequency（RF）radiation．Stronger than FM radio signals，these RF waves are still a billionth the intensity of known carcinogenic（致癌的）radiation like X-rays．But the good news is that there are easy ways for those concerned about RF radiation to cut down on exposure．Using your cell phone’s speaker or connecting a wired headset—while keeping the handset away from your body-drastically reduces RF exposure．（Bluetooth headsets help too，but they still emit some radiation．）And given the potentially more serious risks for children，who have thinner skulls than adults，parents might want to wait before handing teens their first phone—or at least ensure they use it mostly for texting．What is the main idea of the above paragraph？A．A large number of American people are using cell phones nowadays．
B．It might be more risky for children to use cell phones．
C．The radiation of cell phones is so harmful that we need some ways to reduce our exposure to it．
D．The radiation of mobile phones is stronger than FM radio signals．
Passage Two
One of the nice things about surrendering to the fact that life isn’t fair is that it keeps us from feeling sorry for ourselves by encouraging us to do the very best we can with what we have．We know it’s not“life’s job”to make everything perfect；it’s our own challenge．Surrendering to this fact also keeps us from feeling sorry for others because we are reminded that everyone is dealt a different hand（一手牌）；everyone has unique strengths and problems in the process of growing up，facing the reality and making decisions，and everyone has those times that they feel victimized or unfairly treated．
What does the above paragraph mainly discuss？
A．It’s nice to accept the injustice of life．
B．It’s nice to surrender to life．
C．We should not surrender to life．
D．We should not feel sorry for ourselves．
Ⅱ．Directions：Skim the following passage within 30 seconds and then answer the questions below．
Passage Three
Memory appears to be stored in several parts of the limbic system of the brain，and any condition that interferes with the function of this system can cause amnesia．Aging is a frequent cause．As humans advance in age，the heart’s action，as well as the walls of blood vessels，change．It is thought that too little blood reaching brain cells，and sometimes the lack of certain nutrients，causes the death of small portions of the brain．Old memories and new ones are kept in different portions of the brain，and many older people can recall events that took place years before while being unable to remember what they ate their last meal．An inability to store or learn new information may also occur with advanced age．Several degeneration diseases of old age can cause profound amnesia．Primarily in older men，transient global amnesia causes severe loss of memory for minutes or hours．This is a progressive condition about which little can be done．
Classic amnesia may be described as the condition of an otherwise healthy person who“wakes up”in a strange place unable to recall his name，where he came from，or where he is going．It is interesting to note that such a person，however，retains knowledge of language and social customs．This kind of amnesia is probably due to emotional stress and is called hysterical amnesia．It occurs when some event is seen as so shameful or when problems become so overwhelming that the person concerned is unable to face reality．Instead，complete amnesia develops．Hysterical amnesia is treated through psychotherapy and sometimes the administration of drugs such as sodium amobarbital，which causes a person to talk freely．Clues to the past may appear under the sedation，and the psychotherapist can use these to prod the memory of the patient．
1．What is the main idea of the first paragraph？
2．What is the main idea of the second paragraph？