2019英语六级长篇阅读模拟题(三)
Passage Three
Words： 1,372
Higher Grades Challenge College Application Process
A) Josh Zalasky should be the kind of college applicant
with little to worry about. The high school senior is taking three Advanced Placement courses. Outside the classroom, he，
s involved in mock trial, two Jewish youth groups and has a
job with a restaurant chain. He，s a National Merit
semifinalist and scored in the top ? percent of all students who take the ACT.
B) But in the increasingly frenzied world of college admissions, even Zalasky is nervous about his prospects. He doubts he#ll get into the University of Wisconsin, a top choice. The reason： his grades. It$s not that they%re bad.
It&s that so many of his classmates are so good. Zalasky’s GPA is nearly an A minus, and yet he ranks only about in the middle of his senior class of 543 at Edina High School
outside Minneapolis, Minnesota. That means he will have to
find other ways to stand out.
C) “It’s extremely difficult,” he said. “I spent all summer writing my essay. We even hired a private tutor to
make sure that essay was the best it can be. But even with that, it’s like I*m just kind of leveling the playing field.” Last year, he even considered transferring out of his highly
competitive public school, to some place where his grades would look better.
D) Some call the phenomenon that Zalasky’s fighting “grade inflation”—implying the boost is undeserved. Others say students are truly earning their better marks. Regardless, it’s a trend that’s been building for years and may only be accelerating： many students are getting very good grades. So many, in fact, it is getting harder and harder for colleges
to use grades as a measuring stick for applicants.
E) Extra credit for AP courses, parental lobbying and genuine hard work by the most competitive students have combined to shatter any semblance of a Bell curve, one in which A，s are reserved only for the very best. For example,
of the 47,317 applications the University of California, Los Angeles, received for this fall’s freshman class, nearly
23,000 had GPAs of 4.0 or above.
F) That’s also making it harder for the most selective colleges—who often call grades the single most important factor in admissions—to join in a growing movement to lessen the influence of standardized tests.
G) “We，re seeing 30, 40 valedictorians at a high school because they don，t want to create these distinctions between students,” said Jess Lord, dean of admission and financial
aid at Haverford College in Pennsylvania. “ If we don’t
have enough information, there’s a chance we’ll become more heavily reliant on test score s, and that’s a real negative
to me.”
H) Standardized tests have endured a heap of bad
publicity lately, with the SAT raising anger about its expanded length and recent scoring problems. A number of schools have stopped requiring test scores, to much fanfare.
I) But lost in the developments is the fact that none of the most selective colleges have dropped the tests. In fact, a national survey shows overall reliance on test scores is higher in admissions than it was a decade ago. “It’s the only thing we have to evaluate students that will help us
tell how they compare to each other,” said Lee Stetson, dean of admissions at the University of Pennsylvania.
J) Grade inflation is hard to measure, and experts，caution numbers are often misleading because standards and scales vary so widely. Different practices of “weighting” GPAs for AP work also play havoc. Still, the trend seems to be showing itself in a variety of ways.
K) The average high school GPA increased from 2.68 to
2.94 between 1990 and 2000, according to a federal study. Almost 23 percent of college freshmen in 2005 reported their average grade in high school was an A or better, according to a national survey by UCLA’s Higher Education Research Institute. In 1975, the percentage was about half that.
L) GPAs reported by students on surveys when they take the SAT and ACT exams have also risen—and faster than their scores on those tests. That suggests their classroom grades aren’t rising just because students are getting smarter. Not surprisingly, the test-owners say grade inflation shows why testing should be kept： it gives all students an equal chance to shine.
M) The problems associated with grade inflation aren’t limited to elite college applicants. More than 70 percent of schools and districts analyzed by an education audit company called SchoolMatch had average GPAs significantly higher than they should have been based on their standardized test scores—including the school systems in Chicago, Illinois, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Denver, Colorado, San Bernardino, California, and Columbus, Ohio. That raises concerns about students graduating from those schools unprepared for college. “They get mixed in with students from more rigorous schools and they just get blown away,” said SchoolMatch CEO Wil liam Bainbridge.
N) In Georgia, high school grades rose after the state began awarding HOPE scholarships to students with a 3.0 high school GPA. But the scholarship requires students to keep a
3.0 GPA in college, too, and more than half who received the HOPE in the fall of 1998 and entered the University of
Georgia system lost eligibility before earning 30 credits. Next year, Georgia is taking a range of steps to tighten eligibility, including calculating GPA itself rather than relying on schools, and no longer giving extra GPA weight to vaguely labeled “honors” classes.
O) Among those who work with students gunning for the
more selective colleges, opinions differ as to why there seem to be so many straight-A students. “I think there are more pressures now than there used to be, because 20 or 30 years ago kids with a B plus average got into some of the best colleges in the country,” said William Shain, dean of admissions and financial aid at Bowdoin College in Maine.
“It didn，t matter if you had a 3.9 instead of a 3.95. I don，
t know if it matters now either, but people are more likely
to think it does.”
P) Lord, the Haverford dean, sees grade inflation as the outcome of an irrational fear among students to show any slip up—in grades or discipline. In fact, colleges like his are often more interested in students who have overcome failure
and challenge than robots who have never been anything less
than perfect. “There，s a protection and encouragement of
self-esteem that I don’t agree with, but I think it’s a lot
of what’s going on here,” he said. “And the college admissions process feeds into that.”
Q) Back in Minnesota, Edina may join a growing number of schools that no longer officially rank students—a move that could help students like Zalasky, who says he was told by Wisconsin his class rank makes him a longshot. “They feel they’re being left behind or not getting into the schools
that they’re applying to because of a particular class rank,” says Edina counselor Bill Hicks. “And there is some validity with respect to some certain schools that use certain formulas.”
R) But the colleges most popular with Edina students
already know how strong the school is：students’ median
verbal and math SAT scores are 1170 out of 1600. Hicks isn’t willing to blame the concentration grades at the top on spineless teachers, or on grade-grubbing by parents and students. Expectations are high, and grades are based on
student mastery of the material, not a curve. Wherever
teachers place the bar for an A, the students clear it.
S) “Everyone here is like, ‘ if I can get a 98 why
would I get a 93? said Lavanya Srinivasan, who was ranked
third in her Edina class last year. Far from being pushovers, she says, Edina teachers are tougher than those in a course
she took at Harvard last summer. Zalasky agrees the students work hard for their high grades. “The mentality of this
school is, if you’re not getting straight A，s you’re not doing well,” he said. “There’s just so much pressure on us day in and day out to get straight A’s that everybody does.” Hicks compares the atmosphere at Edina to the World Series expectations that always surround the superstar lineup of the New York Yankees. “If they don’t win it,” he said, “then
it’s failure.”
1. Nearly half of the applications that the University of California received this autumn had GPAs of 4.0 or above.
2. It，s also harder for the most selective colleges to lessen the effect of standardized tests.
3. More than 30 years ago, about 11.5 percent of college freshmen reported their average grade in high school was an A
or better.
4. Because of the negative effects of standardized tests recently, a lot of universities have no longer required test scores.
5. Some think Zalasky’s improvement unworthy, while
others think his high grades win the praise for him.
6. Because many of his classmates are so outstanding, Zalasky is nervous about his college application.
7. Some colleges would like to admit students who have conquered failure and challenge rather than those who have never been anything less than perfect.
8. In the next year, Georgia is taking a series of measures to tighten qualification, including calculating GPA itself and avoiding paying too much attention to vaguely labeled “honors” classes.
9. In Zalasky，s opinion, students are put under great pressure to work hard to get straight A"s, or they will be regarded as losers.
10. More and more schools no longer officially rank students by grade, which can help students like Zalasky.
2019年12月大学英语六级考试(全一套) Part I Writing (30 minutes) Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay on theimportance of having a sense of social responsibility. You should write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words. Part II Listening comprehension (30minutes) Section A Directions: In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of eachconversation, you will hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will bespoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from thefour choices marked A), B) C)and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre. Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard 1. A)It focuses exclusively on Jazz. B) It sponsors major jazz concerts. C) It has several branches in London. D) It displays albums by new music talents. 2. A) It originated with cowboys. B) Its market has now shrunk. C) Its listeners are mostly young people. D) It remains as widespread as hip hop music. 3. A)Its definition is varied and complicated. B) It is still going through experimentation. C) It is frequently accompanied by singing. D)Its style has remained largely unchanged. 4.A) Learn to play them.
关于大学英语四、六级考试题型调整的说明自2013年12月考次起，全国大学英语四、六级考试委员会将对四、六级考试的试卷结构和测试题型作局部调整。调整后，四级和六级的试卷结构和测试题型相同。 一、试卷描述 四级和六级的试卷结构、测试内容、测试题型、分值比例和考试时间如下表所示： 二、新题型说明
1. 单词及词组听写 原复合式听写调整为单词及词组听写，短文长度及难度不变。要求考生在听懂短文的基础上，用所听到的原文填写空缺的单词或词组，共10题。短文播放三遍。 2. 长篇阅读 原快速阅读理解调整为长篇阅读理解，篇章长度和难度不变。篇章后附有10个句子，每句一题。每句所含的信息出自篇章的某一段落，要求考生找出与每句所含信息相匹配的段落。有的段落可能对应两题，有的段落可能不对应任何一题。 3. 翻译 原单句汉译英调整为段落汉译英。翻译内容涉及中国的历史、文化、经济、社会发展等。四级长度为140-160个汉字；六级长度为180-200个汉字。 三、成绩报道 成绩报道分为总分和单项分。单项分包括：1）听力，2）阅读，3）翻译和写作。 四、样题 大学英语四级考试样题见附件1。（附件为PDF格式文件） 大学英语六级考试样题见附件2。 全国大学英语四、六级考试委员会 2013年8月14日 附件1。
Part I Writing (30 minutes) Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay. You should start your essay with a brief description of the picture and then express your views on the importance of learning basic skills. You should write at least 120 words but no more than 180 words. Write your essay on Answer Sheet 1. 注意：此部分试题请在答题卡 1 上作答。 Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes) Section A Directions: In this section, you will hear 8 short conversations and 2 long conversations. At the end of each conversation, one or more questions will be asked about what was said. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After each question there will be a pause. During the pause, you must read the four choices marked A), B), C) and D), and decide which is the best answer. Then mark the corresponding
2019年6月英语六级听力真题答案（第一套）Section A Long Conversations 1. D) A project with a troublesome client. 2. B) Take wedding photos. 3. C) Nervous. 4. A) Start her own bakery. 5. D) They have to be more responsible for what they do. 6. Behave like adults. 7. D) Those who respect her student commitments. 8. C) Those conductive to their academic studies. Section B Passages 9. B) They break away from traditional ways of thinking. 10. C) They resulted in a brand new style of skiing technique. 11. He won three gold medals in one Winter Olympics. 12. B) They die almost instantly. 13. D) It has an instant effect on your body chemistry. 14. To enjoy good health while in dark moods. 15. B) They are closely connected. Section C Lectures or Talks 16. D) They focus their attention on different things.
大学英语六级阅读模拟试题及答案 第一篇 A scientific panel convened by the World Health Organization recommended guidelines on Friday for doctors conducting clinical studies of SARS patients. The panel urged doctors to apply the guidelines in analyzing the masses of potentially useful information about various therapies that were collected in this year’s epidemic. Much of that information has not been published or analyzed. “It is a matter of urgency to get better analysis and review,” said Dr. Simon Mardel, a WHO official who led the two-day meeting that ended on Friday. He said thousands of potential therapies and compounds had been tested so far as researchers try to determine treatments for SARS, or severe acute respiratory syndrome. “We recognize that having no treatment for SARS is hindering our ability to control an epidemic in so many ways.” He said. In the epidemic earlier this year, various treatments, like drugs to fight the virus or strengthen the immune system, as well as traditional Chinese medicine, were delivered under emergency conditions, in widely different settings and countries to patients suffering from varying stages of the illness. Those conditions—generally without standardized measurements or controlled situations—have made it hard to interpret results. Standard supportive therapy like nursing, and in severe cases the use of mechanical respirators（呼吸器）to help patients breathe, is the mainstay（主要支持）of SARS care, and helped many patients survive. But doctors still do not know how best to treat SARS patients who have breathing difficulties. Dr. Mardel said. One method is invasive ventilation. A second method involves blowing oxygen into the lungs through a mask. Both carry the risk of transmitting the virus to hospital employees. Without proper analysis, the panel was unable to say definitively which treatment worked best, or which caused the most harm. “There is a lack of shared information,” Dr. Mardel said, noting that a lot of data have not been published. The panel also agreed on guidelines that would allow doctors to conduct quick and safe clinical trials, a process that generally takes years to complete. The world Health Organization, a United Nations agency did not release the guidelines. Dr. Mardel said they were flexible because no one knew where, when and in what setting SARS would return. Experts in many countries have already listed the treatments they want to test, and the health agency is leaving these decisions to individual nations. 1. Guidelines recommended by the scientific panel can be used for _____. A. gathering potentially useful information about various therapies collected B. conducting clinical studies of SARS patients C. determining treatment for SARS D. publishing all the information about SARS
2014年12月大学英语六级长篇阅读匹配1 It's Time to Pay Attention to Sleep A. After being diagnosed with brain and lung cancer in 2011, Lynn Mitchell, 68, was averaging about an hour of solid sleep a night. Stressed about her treatments, she was paying for it in hours of lost sleep. B. The brain cancer was already affecting her mobility--Mitchell was often dizzy and would lose her balance--but the lack of sleep made things worse. Even walking became increasingly difficult. Exhausted in the mornings, she was practically incoherent (精神恍惚). When her doctors recommend she see a sleep therapist, Mitchell was relieved at how benign it sounded in comparison to the chemotherapy (化学疗法)she had undergone and the gene therapy trial she was undergoing, which had side effects like nausea and fatigue. C. For about nine weeks, Mitchell worked with the sleep therapist to adjust her sleep habits. She went to bed only when she was extremely fired. She quit watching TV in bed. She stopped drinking caffeinated (含咖啡因的) coffee in the evening. She also learned breathing exercises to relax and help her fall asleep. It was all quite simple and common sense, and most importantly, noninvasive and didn't require taking any pills. D. "It's common knowledge that sleep is needed for day to day function," says Dr. David Rapoport, director of the Sleep Medicine Program at NYU School of Medicine. "What isn't common knowledge is that it really matters--it's not just cosmetic." Rapoport has long seen people seek sleep therapy because they're chronically fired or suffering from insomnia, but an increasing number of patients are being referred to his center for common diseases, disorders, and mental health. E. Researchers have known for some time that sleep is critical for weight maintenance and hormone balance. And too little sleep is linked to everything from diabetes (糖尿病) to heart disease to depression. Recently, mounting evidence indicates that sleep plays a role in nearly every aspect of health. Beyond chronic illnesses, a child's behavioral problems at school could be rooted in mild sleep apnea (呼吸暂停). And studies have shown children with ADHD (注意力缺陷多动症) are more likely to get insufficient sleep. A recent study published in the journal SLEEP found a link between older men with poor sleep quality and cognitive decline. Another study shows sleep is essential in early childhood for development, learning, and the formation and retention of memories. F. But to many of us, sleep is easily sacrificed, especially since lack of it isn't seen as life threatening.Over time, sleep deprivation can have serious consequences, but we mostly sacrifice a night of sleep here and there, and always say that we'll "catch up." Luckily, it is possible to make up for sleep debt (though it can take a very long time), but most Americans are still chronically sleep deprived.
2016年6月英语四级考试长篇阅读答案(卷二) Section B Directions: In this section, you are going to read a passage with ten statements attached to it. Each statement contains information given in one of the paragraphs. Identify the paragraph from which the information is derived. You may choose a paragraph more than once. Each paragraph is marked with a letter. Answer the questions by marking the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2. Could Food Shortages Bring Down Civilization? [A] For many years I have studied global agricultural, population, environmental and economic trends and their interactions. The combined effects of those trends and the political tensions they generate point to the breakdown of governments and societies. Yet I, too, have resisted the idea that food shortages could bring down not only individual governments but also our global civilization. [B] I can no longer ignore that risk. Our continuing failure to deal with the environmental declines that are undermining
2019年12月大学英语六级考试真题 Part I Writing (30 minutes) Directions: For this part, you are allowed 30 minutes to write an essay on the importance of having a sense of community responsibility. You should write at least 150 words but no more than 200 words. Part II Listening Comprehension (30 minutes) Section A Directions:In this section, you will hear two long conversations. At the end of each conversation, you will hear four questions. Both the conversation and the questions will be spoken only once. After you hear a question, you must choose the best answer from the four choices marked A), B), C) and D). Then mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 1 with a single line through the centre. Questions 1 to 4 are based on the conversation you have just heard. 1.A)It focuses exclusively on jazz. B) It sponsors major jazz concerts. C) It has several branches in London. D) It displays albums by new music talents. 2.A) It originated with cowboys. B) Its market has now shrunk. C) Its listeners are mostly young people. D) It remains as widespread as hip hop music. 3.A)Its definition is varied and complicated. B) It is still going through experimentation. C) It is frequently accompanied by singing. D) Its style has remained largely unchanged. 4.A) Learn to play them. B) Take music lessons. C) Listen to them yourself. D) Consult jazz musicians. Questions 5 to 8 are based on the conversation you have just heard.
大学英语六级阅读理解的分数组成大学英语六级阅读理解的分数组成 分值占整套试卷的35%满分248.5分考试时间：40分钟 说明： 1、选词填空5% 2、长篇阅读10% 3、仔细阅读20% 妙招之一，我们要扫读全文，确定文章的大概结构。 如何扫读全文呢重点去读文章的第一段，如果各部分有小标题，还要读一下各部分的小标题，如果无小标题，则扫读每段的首句，这样做的目的就是为了把握文章的大意和总体结构，同时也能快速的得出后面主旨题的答案。 妙招之二，要将考查题目与原文相对应。 六级考试与考研英语一样，在题目的设置上呈现出出题顺序与行文顺序一致的规律。最后一题的答案定位信息点一般不可能在第一段或前面几段出现。所以我们按顺序把每一道题目题干中的定位词先划出来，再按段落顺序依次去定位。 那么，何为定位词呢?通常分为两类：第一类是表时间、数字及首字母大写的人名地名等专有名词;第二类是比较长，比较复杂的名词;这里切记，不能用表达中心思想的主题词去定位，因为文章通篇讲的都是它。由于问题顺序和文章行文顺序一致，所以先做第一小题，然后做第二小题，看一道，做一道。千万不要把文章全部看完后再做题，或者全部题目看完后再读文章。
在将题目和文章比对的同时，要善于学会精读重点信息。比如，文中举例处，引语及多个名词并列而不是完整句子的内容，均可略读。此外，要多关注文中的逻辑关系词，对于这些词的把握，有助 于我们精确把握重要信息。通常要注意下面三种逻辑关系： (1)并列、递进关系：and，or，besides，furthermore， what’smore，then，inaddition，moreover，inotherwords; (2)因果关系：asaresultof，onaccountof，asaresult，thanksto，therefore，hence，consequently，because，for，dueto，owingto; (3)转折关系：whereas，however，but，nevertheless，yet，infact; 最后，要学会运用特殊的标点符号，比如冒号，破折号，小括号。这些标点符号的出现就是对前面的内容作进一步的说明。所以，在 阅读文章时，可以跳读这些标点符号后面的信息，从而帮助我们节 省更多宝贵的时间并且更加快速地把握文章的主旨。 妙招之三，精炼原文，学会概括。 1、扩充词汇量 2、学会对六级不同考试题目的理解
2019年6月英语六级阅读真题及答案【含解析】 今年的六级阅读难度和去年12月份的难度持平 Passage One Professor Stephen Hawking has warned that the creation of powerful artificial intelligence (AI)will be “either the best, or the worst thing, ever to happen to humanity ”,and praised the creation of an academic institute dedicated to researching the futu re of intelligence as “crucial to the future of our civilization and our species”. Hawking was speaking at the opening of the Leverhulme Center for the Future of Intelligence(LCFI)at Cambridge University, a multi-disciplinary institute that will attempt to tackle some of the open-ended questions raised by the rapid pace of development in AI research. “We spend a great deal of time studying history,” Hawking said, “which, let’s face it ,is mostly the history of stupidity. So it’s a welcome change that people are studying instead the future of intelligence.” While the world-renowned physicist has often been cautious about AI, raising concerns that humanity could be the architect of its own destruction if it creates a super-intelligence with a will of its own, he was also quick to highlight the positives that AI research can bring “The potential benefits of creating intelligence are huge”, he said, “We cannot predict what we might achieve when our own minds are amplified by AL. Perhaps with the tools of this new
2011年6月大学英语六级真题及答案 Part IV Reading Comprehension (Reading in Depth) (25 minutes) Section A Directions: In this section, there is a short passage with 5 questions or incomplete statements. Read the passage carefully. Then answer the questions or complete the statements in the fewest possible words. Please write your answers on Answer Sheet 2. Questions 47 to 51 are based on the following passage. How good are you at saying "no"? For many, it's surprisingly difficult. This is especially true of editors, who by nature tend to be eager and engaged participants in everything they do. Consider these scenarios: It's late in the day. That front-page package you've been working on is nearly complete; one last edit and it's finished. Enter the executive editor, who makes a suggestion requiring a more-than-modest rearrangement of the design and the addition of an information box. You want to scream: "No! It's done!" What do you do? The first rule of saying no to the boss is don't say no. She probably has something in mind when she makes suggestions, and it's up to you to find out what. The second rule is don't raise the stakes by challenging her authority. That issue is already decided. The third rule is to be ready to cite options and consequences. The boss's suggestions might be appropriate, but there are always consequences. She might not know about the pages backing up that need attention, or about the designer who had to go home sick. Tell her she can have what she wants, but explain the consequences. Understand what she's trying to accomplish and propose a Plan B that will make it happen without destroying what you've done so far. Here's another case. Your least-favorite reporter suggests a dumb story idea. This one should be easy, but it's not. If you say no, even politely, you risk inhibiting further ideas, not just from that reporter, but from others who heard that you turned down the idea. This scenario is common in newsrooms that lack a systematic way to filter story suggestions. Two steps are necessary. First, you need a system for how stories are proposed and reviewed. Reporters can tolerate rejection of their ideas if they believe they were given a fair hearing. Your gut reaction (本能反应) and dismissive rejection, even of a worthless idea, might not qualify as systematic or fair. Second, the people you work with need to negotiate a "What if ...?" agreement covering "What if my idea is turned down?" How are people expected to react? Is there an appeal process? Can they refine the idea and resubmit it? By anticipating "What if...?" situations before they happen, you can reach understanding that will help ease you out of confrontations. 47. Instead of directly saying no to your boss, you should find out __________. 48. The author's second warning is that we should avoid running a greater risk by __________. 49. One way of responding to your boss's suggestion is to explain the __________ to her and offer an alternative solution. 50. To ensure fairness to reporters, it is important to set up a system for stories to __________. 51. People who learn to anticipate "What if...?" situations will be able to reach understanding and avoid __________. Section B Directions:There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre. Passage One Questions 52 to 56 are based on the following passage. At the heart of the debate over illegal immigration lies one key question: are immigrants good or bad for the economy? The American public overwhelmingly thinks they're bad. Yet the consensus among most economists is
2020年英语六级长篇阅读冲刺练习题及解析(3) Preparing for Computer Disasters A： Summary： When home office computers go down, many small businesses grind to a halt. Fortunately, taking steps to recover from disasters and minimize their effects is quite straightforward. B： Fires, power surges, and floods, they're all facts of life. We read about them in the morning paper and see them on the evening news. We sympathize with the victims and commiserate over their bad luck. We also shake our heads at the digital consequences—melted computers, system failures, destroyed data. Yet, somehow, many of us continue to live by that old mantra of denial： "It won't happen to me." Well, the truth is, at some point you'll probably have to deal with at least one disaster. That's just how it goes, and in most aspects of our lives we do something about it. We buy insurance. We stow away provisions. We even make disaster plans and run drills. But for some reason, computer disaster recovery is a blind spot for many of us. It shouldn't be. Home computers contain some of our most important information, both business and personal, and making certain our data survives a disaster should be a priority. Moreover, even the smallest disaster can be a serious disruption. Personal computers have become an integral part of the smooth-running household. We use them to communicate, shop, and do homework, and they're even more vital to home office users. When home office computers go down, many small businesses grind to a halt. Fortunately, taking steps to recover from disasters and minimize their effects is quite straightforward. With a good