A
Most kids can walk into a library or bookstore and find hundreds of books they’re able to read. But it’s not that simple for kids who are blind; Laurie is a book lover. She can’t imagine what life looks like without books for those kids, so she learned to be a braille transcriber (盲文转录员) who makes books that can be read by people with vision loss.
Braille transcribers change the printed words of a story or textbook into a code of raised dots. People who are unable to see can read these dots with their fingers. Groups of these raised dots make up the braille alphabet. There are dots for numbers, symbols, and musical notes, too.
When Laurie first saw the dots of the braille alphabet, she wondered if she’d ever be able to read and write them easily. She took a class for about six months. First she learned to form letters in braille. Then she began forming words and punctuation. “Practice，practice, and more practice were the keys to learning,” Laurie says.
Today，Laurie works for a publisher called National Braille Press (NBP). One of her jobs is to transcribe children’s print books into braille. To do this, she first types the story into a computer, and then she uses a computer program to translate those words into the braille code.
“The next challenge,” she says, “is to go through to see if the computer translator made a mistake.” She looks over the translation three to five times to make sure it’s mistake-free. After that, a copy of the braille story is printed with a special printer that produces raised dots. When a book is ready, many copies of it are printed and become available to the public, Some are sold through the NBP Web site. Others are sent to the National Library Service for the blind.
“I love this mission,” Laurie says. “Through my brain power and my fingers, I am putting the dots into some kid’s hands.”
1. Why did Laurie decide to become a braille transcriber?
A. She has a good command of braille.
B. She hopes blind kids also can read books.
C. Braille transcriber is her dream job since young.
D. Other braille transcribers invited her to join them.
2. What can be inferred from the passage?
A. Braille transcribing is a complex and challenging task.
B. Raised dots only show the braille alphabet. and numbers.
C. The National Braille Press is a top publisher for kids’ books.
D. It took Laurie six months to learn how to form letters in braille.
3. Which of the following words can best describe Laurie?
A. Patient and creative. B. Diligent and cooperative.
C. Ambitious and courageous, D. Determined and kind hearted.
【答案】1. B 2. A 3. D
【解析】
本文为一篇说明文。介绍了劳丽为了让失明的孩子能够阅读，学习做一名盲文抄写员，制作失明人士可以阅读的书籍的故事。
【1题详解】
细节理解题。根据第一段 “She can’t imagine what life looks like without books for those kids, so she learned to be a braille transcriber (盲文转录员) who makes books that can be read by people with vision loss.”（她无法想象没有书的孩子们的生活会是什么样子，所以她学习做一名盲文抄写员，制作失明人士可以阅读的书籍。）由此可知，她是为了帮盲孩子能够阅读。故选B。
【2题详解】
推理判断题。根据第三段 “When Laurie first saw the dots of the braille alphabet, she wondered if she’d ever be able to read and write them easily. She took a class for about six months. First she learned to form letters in braille. Then she began forming words and punctuation. ‘Practice，practice, and more practice were the keys to learning,’ Laurie says.”（当劳丽第一次看到盲文字母表上的点点滴滴时，她想知道自己是否能够轻松地阅读和书写它们。她上了大约6个月的课。首先，她学会了用布莱叶盲文字母。然后她开始形成单词和标点符号。劳丽说:“练习，练习，再练习是学习的关键。”）从劳丽的学习过程看，盲文抄写是一项复杂而富有挑战性的工作。故选A。
【3题详解】
推理判断题。从文章第一段 “She can’t imagine what life looks like without books for those kids, so she learned to be a braille transcriber (盲文转录员) who makes books that can be read by people with vision loss.”（她无法想象没有书的孩子们的生活会是什么样子，所以她学会了做一名盲文抄写员，制作失明人士可以阅读的书籍。）可以看出劳丽是热心的。第三段 “ ‘Practice，practice, and more practice were the keys to learning,’ Laurie says.”（ 劳丽说:“练习，练习，再练习是学习的关键。”）和倒数第二段 “She looks over the translation three to five times to make sure it’s mistake-free.”（她把译文检查了三到五遍以确保没有错误。）可以看出劳丽是坚定的。故选D。
