本教程共14单元，每单元围绕一个主题展开，并按照阅读材料的难度与篇幅长短进行编写。每单元由三篇文章组成，选用当代英语的常见语体或文体作为素材，选文语言规范、富有文采，题材广泛，以反映现实生活及科普类文章为主。每篇文章都配有习题，考虑到大学英语四六级考试和英语专业四八级的考试的实际需要，习题设计为三部分，分别从全文理解、生词回顾，和思维拓展等方面展开，以便学生在做习题时，不仅夯实了本单元的学习内容，也练习了考试题型。

Unit 1 Power of Love
Reading A How to Find True Love
Reading B Homemaking 101
Reading C My $325 Salvation
Unit 2 To Be Healthy
Reading A Simple Secrets of Success
Reading B Get More Sleep -- Or It Will Get You
Reading C Surviving on Thin Air
Unit 3 Nature and Facts
Reading A Pollution of Woodsmoke from Cooking Fires
Reading B Death of the Nile (I)
Reading C Death of the Nile (II)
Unit 4 Kaleidoscope
Reading A The Island with the Lowest Crime Rate in the World
Reading B Pss! Want to Buy the Right Child Genes?
Reading C The Double Blanket
Unit 5 Living Figures
Reading A Birthday Girl's 20-Year Miracle
Reading B Titanic Star Leonardo DiCaprio Takes on a Demanding Double Role
Reading C Job Dissatisfaction
Unit 6 Animals
Reading A Bats Are Fascinating Creatures
Reading B The Magnificent World of Snakes
Reading C Daughter of Sunshine
Unit 7 Society and Innovation
Reading A When Laptops "Walk Away", CompanySecrets Go, Too
Reading B In Case You Tuned in Late
Reading C Cars of the Future
Unit 8 Culture
Reading A The Wild Era That Changed What We Wear
Reading B The Painter in the Yellow House
Reading C New Species of Human Ancestor
Unit 9 Literature
Reading A The Market-Place
Reading B Hills Like White Elephants
Reading C The Footsteps Die Out Forever
Unit 10 Taking Care of the Planet
Reading A We Are Living on a Plastic Planet
Reading B Secrets of Life on Early Earth and Other Planets
Reading C Cities May Make Their Own Weather
Unit 11 Education
Reading A Parents Have the Power to Help in the Schooling
Reading B Turning into Teenagers
Reading C How Fast Should a Person Read?
Unit 12 Economy
Reading A Managing Through a Downturn
Reading B Starting a Small Business in Australia
Reading C The Economy: Don't Hit the Reset Button
Unit 13 Science and Technology
Reading A Explosion in the Night Sky
Reading B Old Order and New Order in Science and Technology
Reading C Oil
Unit 14 Lifestyle
Reading A Make the Right Colors Work for You
Reading B Why Business Needs Scientists
Reading C Living in a Virtual World