阅读是提高外语技能的重要手段，而快速阅读又是阅读技能的重要方面，进行科学合理的快速阅读训练，有助于帮助学生运用和掌握正确的阅读方法，养成良好的阅读习惯，有效培养阅读能力，从而促进学习者外语综合技能的迅速提高。实际阅读都具有明确和特定的目的：对整篇文章主旨内容的把握，对文章观点的评判，对局部内容的理解，对事实与细节的分辨，对具体信息的捕捉等。
《大学英语快速阅读新目标》第l册至第4册按照《大学英语课程教学要求（试行）》，结合大学英语四级新题型对快速阅读能力的要求，并根据大学英语阅读能力培养的实际需要编写。所选内容遵循的原则是：内容新颖，时代感强，选材既有历史、传统的内容，也有社会、科技发展的*新信息；体裁和题材多样化，考虑到知识的多样性，文、理、工、医等内容兼顾；内容富有知识性和趣味性，既增长学习者的多元知识，又能使学习者保持阅读兴趣；材料来源多样化，语言地道。本套教材共4册，每册及单元之间由浅入深、由易到难、循序渐进。第l册至第4册文章的长度梯度增长，*终与大学英语四级考试的要求相吻合。每册由8个单元构成，每单元有4篇阅读材料。每篇阅读材料后面设10道测试题，按照大学英语四级快速阅读

Unit 1
Passage 1 Air Pollution and Heart Disease
Passage 2 Scientists Study Children Who Feel No Pain
Passage 3 Stop the Spread of Deadly Bird Flu
Passage 4 How Intelligence Develops in Babies
Unit 2
Passage 1 Sharks and People: Guess Which One IS More Dangerous than the Other One
Passage 2 Time--One of the Great Mysteries of Our Universe
Passage 3 Genetically Modified Foods--Feed the World?
Passage 4 Chinese Americans
Unit 3
Passage 1 US College Education System
Passage 2 Basketball in America
Passage 3 Six Thinking Hats--Looking at a Decision From All Points of View
Passage 4 Read Efficiently by Reading Intelligently
Unit 4
Passage 1 Climate Change or Global Warming?
Passage 2 Cloning in Nature
Passage 3 Bermuda Island: A Legendary Place?
Passage 4 The Internet vs. the Information Superhighway
Unit 5
Passage 1 Becoming Open to Others
Passage 2 Sweet Dream: Sleep Less. Live Longer
Passage 3 Is Romantic Love the Most Important Condition for Marriage?
Passage 4 Aging Processes in Perspective
Unit 6
Passage 1 Eating in America
Passage 2 Environmental Pollution
Passage 3 Environmental Problems
Passage 4 The History of Thanksgiving and Its Celebrations
Unit 7
Passage 1 What Are the Risks of Smoking?
Passage 2 Jazz
Passage 3 Beijing and Green Olympic Games
Passage 4 On Friendship
Unit 8
Passage 1 Lies and Truths
Passage 2 Women, Men & Money
Passage 3 An American Love Affair
Passage 4 Body Language: Eye Signals
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