本教程旨在帮助学生在学习大学英语过程中适应并熟悉国内外大规模标准化考试中阅读部分的各项要求。本教程在选材方面，尽量选择既能激发学生兴趣又能开拓视野、扩大知识面、启发思考和具有时代气息的文章。作为阅读教材，本教程特别注意所选体裁和题材的多样化，以引起学生的兴趣，培养他们阅读各类文章的能力，丰富他们的语言知识。教程中所选体裁不仅有一般阅读教材常见的科学小品、人物传记和表述性文章，而且还选了些小故事和回忆录，使教材内容丰富，语言生动，可读性强。
本教程是根据《大学英语教学指南》《中国英语能力等级量表》五、六级阶段和《关于大学英语四、六级考试题型调整的说明》对阅读理解的相关要求而编写的。阅读文章后的练习包括以下五类题型：多项选择题、信息匹配题、词汇填空题，以及基于观点迥异的相对篇章所出的识别不同观点题和归纳总结、信息核实题。

Unit 0ne
Part Ⅰ The Creation of the Automotive World
Part Ⅱ How the Automobile Shaped America：The’Burbs
Part Ⅲ America's Romance with the Car
Part Ⅳ The Benefits and Drawbacks of Electric Cars
Part Ⅴ The Automobile Shapes the City
Unit Two
Part Ⅰ Climate Change一WhatY0u Can Do
Part Ⅱ The History and Development of Suburbs
Part Ⅲ Millennials Are Happiest in Cities
Part Ⅳ The Advantages of Suburban and City Life
Part Ⅴ Time to Leave the Big City for the Little City
Unit Three
Part Ⅰ Black Holes
Part Ⅱ Carl Sagan and the Cosmos Legacy
Part Ⅲ The Hubble Space Telescope
Part Ⅳ The Advantages and Disadvantages of Space Exploration
Part Ⅴ China's Chang’e Program：Missions to the Moon
Unit Four
Part Ⅰ The Economics of Product Design
Part Ⅱ The Modern Workplace：Flat，Flexible and Wired Up
Part Ⅲ What Does an Industrial Designer D0？
Part Ⅳ The Pros and Cons ofWorking an Office Job
Part Ⅴ Staying Happy
Unit Five
Part Ⅰ Linda's New Friend
Part Ⅱ The Meaning of Friendship in a Social Networked World
Part Ⅲ What Are the Advantages of Digital Communication？
Part Ⅳ The Pros and Cons of Making Friends at the Office
Part Ⅴ Friendship in the Age of Social Media
Unit Six
Part Ⅰ Lawyers and Professors and Cars and Clothing
Part Ⅱ A Decidedly Mixed Bag
Part Ⅲ Long Live the Mom and Pop：Why Small Businesses Have a Magic Touch
Part Ⅳ The Advantages and Disadvantages of Small-Business Ownership
Part Ⅴ AVisit to the Hema Store in Beijing
Appendix Key to Comprehension Exercises