The neglected baby is crying alone.The young man, suffering from a lack of sleep, threatens with
suicide (自杀). The marriage fails because of the husband's obsessive (沉迷的) behaviour.
Is this just another story of social breakdown in the modern age?Not really.But they are the effects
of a real social problem--Internet Addiction (上瘾). Or, Internet Addiction disorder.
There have been few long-term studies of this very 21st century illness.
But the extension of the obsession is obvious from the popularity of one game alone:"Halo 2". It's a
first-person shooter developed by Budgie Studios for the Xbox video game console.By early 2005,1
million players worldwide had clocked up an amazing 100 million hours on the game.
China has about 94 million regular Internet users.Of these, a survey suggested,4.4 million are
teenagers so addicted to it that they neglect everything else.
Video gamers who have gone too far display symptoms similar to those of alcohol and drug abusers.
"The real world meant nothing to me when I was fully involved with online games.I lost track of time,
space, hunger, pain, everything, " explained Liu Pinyi, a 19-year-old college dropout.She has had
treatment in Beijing for her addiction.
What makes it similar to drugs is that online game addicts also develop a chemic
al imbalance in the
brain.Gaming stimulates (刺激) the production of a chemical compound that produces euphoric or
pleasant feelings.When they're away from the screen, their levels of chemicals produce this" high" drop.
And the addict suffers feelings of anxiety and headaches.
Experts say young people are attracted to video games partly because they are thrust right into the
centre of the action.This allows them to overcome a lack of confidence which people at that age can
often suffer from.
But, addiction is not the only problem.A Harvard University survey of 81 video games in 2004 found
that 98 percent contained violence for 36 percent of the total playing time.
China strengthened controls on computer games again this week, with the Mi
nistry of Culture banning
nine online games.The ministry said it would also force game operators to technically filter out content that could cause addiction.
1. By the first paragraph, the author means to________.
A. warn some Internet users of their problems
B. show how serious the problems are if we use the Internet too much
C. direct the readers to the topic of the passage
D. show his worries about the problems in the modern age
2. The example of "Halo 2" is given to show________.
A. how popular online games are
B. online games are really harmful
C. game players are worldwide
D. game players are easy to be obsessive
3. What would be the best title for the passage?
A. Web Produces Addict Disorder
B. Web Brings About Serious Social Problems
C. The Internet and Its Disadvantages
D. Online Games and Their Harm
4. Experts think that young people are attracted to video games because they________.
A. forget everything else
B. lack of confidence in reality
C. have no other interests
D. want to avoid the real world
5. The underlined phrase"filter out"in the last paragraph probably means________.
A. clear away
B. cover up
C. reduce
D. control
