The malls were filled with people seeking gifts for their loved ones. Some of the malls remained open around the clock, partly to satisfy our needs to buy gifts.
Behind the materialistic aspect of shopping for gifts lies the idea of caring, being attentive to the desires of special people in our lives. However, to use a well-worn play on words: it is our presence, not our presents, that truly counts. Many of us, unfortunately, can be so inattentive, even in the presence of our loved ones, that we might as well not be there at all.
Attention is one of the greatest gifts we can give each other. Companies around the globe spend billions every year on advertising to catch our attention for just a short moment at a time. Whole industries – media, entertainment, education – rely on the precious gift of our attention for their continued existence. A baby lacking attention for a long time is likely to he psychologically unhealthy.
In earlier times, both diet and attention could be left unregulated without major cause for concern. There were natural checks and balances: limited availability of food meant few got fat, for example. Similarly, in bygone times we might have spent a few hours municating with the village storyteller, today, watching an entire TV series, while speaking to nobody, is mon. In traditional societies, with smaller population, everyone would get a fair deal of attention. On many issues we might go to see Grandma or Grandpa; now we have Google and Wikipedia.
“She just wants attention.” people tend to think little of those doing things simply for attention. But the truth is that human beings need attention, and giving attention to each other is, to a large extent, what human civilization is based upon. This perhaps explains the runaway success（一举成功）of social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook. While we use such sites for “micro blogging”, “idea voicing” and “status updates” – the reality is that we are often doing no more or less than fulfilling our basic human drive for attention exchange.
I friend you, you friend me, I retweet you, you retweet me. The charming case with which we can now get and give attention is why many people appear overly attached to their smartphones. It is also a vicious（恶性）circle. As ever more people are busy exchanging attention online, there is increasingly less attention to be paid in the real world, which forces more people to seek their attention exchange online, or else risk attention-starvation.
The very nature of attention exchange is being rapidly transformed, and there is a danger that some of us will develop unhealthy practices. Just as eating red meat every day is a bad idea, so it is with too much attention exchange. The biological consequences of our technological advancement in food production are highly visible; heart disease, diabetes and obesity. The consequences of our transformed attention exchanges will be psychological and social, and so may take longer to identify, but they will be equally damaging.
Face-to-face attention is being rarer, and therefore more valuable. In a sense it is priceless. And it is a gift that can be given all-year-round.
【小题1】In the first two paragraphs the author .A．offers advice to attention giversB．analyses the present problemsC．states the necessity of presentsD．puts forward his point of view【小题2】People use social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook to .A．obtain informationB．give attention to othersC．voice their opinions D．notice and get noticed【小题3】Attention exchange was not a major concern in traditional societies because of .A．limited availability of food B．natural checks and balancesC．a much smaller populationD．the guidance from old people【小题4】What can we infer from Paragraph 6-7?A．More people will risk attention-starvation in future.B．The nature of attention exchange is rarely changed.C．Technological advancement contributes to all diseases.D．Transformed attention exchanges do harm to society.【小题5】The writer’s purpose for writing the passage is to .A．advocate more focus on real life attentionB．analyze the necessity of attention givingC．give practical tips on attention exchangeD．remend some social networking sitesD
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(答案→)D
解析：本文叙述了在信息发展快速的年代，由于网络的普及，人们都非常关注网上交友聊天，而很少亲自去关心看望自己的亲戚朋友，作者最后指出我们要提倡多进行面对面的交流和沟通。
【小题1】这是段落大意题。根据前两段可以看出提出了自己的观点，故选D。
【小题2】这是细节理解题。根据giving attention to each other is, to a large extent, what human civilization is based upon. This perhaps explains the runaway success（一举成功）of social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook.人们要互相关注，故选D。
【小题3】这是细节理解题。根据The very nature of attention exchange is being rapidly transformed, and there is a danger that some of us will develop unhealthy practices. The consequences of our transformed attention exchanges will be psychological and social, and so may take longer to identify, 故选B。
【小题4】这是推理判断题。根据The consequences of our transformed attention exchanges will be psychological and social, and so may take longer to identify, but they will be equally damaging.这种做法会给社会带来危害，故选D。
【小题5】这是写作意图题。根据要更多的人去关注现实生活，故选A。