2014高考英语阅读理解基础练习精品题(16)及答案.doc2014 高考英语阅读理解基础练****精品题( 16 )及答案阅读理解 That little “a” with a circle curling around it that is found inE– mail addresses is monly referred to as the “ at” symbol. Surprisingly though, there is no official, universal name for this sign. There are dozens of strange terms to describe the "@" symbol. Before it became the standard symbol for electronic mail, the "@" symbol was used to represent the cost of something or how heavy something is. For instance, if you purchased 6 apples, you might write it as6 apples "@" $ each. With the introduction of e-mail came the popularity of the "@" symbol. The "@" symbol or the "at sign" separates a person's online user name from his mail server( 服务器) address. For instance, ******@. Its widespread use on the made it necessary to put this symbol on keyboards in other countries that have never seen or used the symbol before. Asa result, there is really no official name for this symbol. The actual origin of the symbol remains a mystery. History tells us that the @ symbol came from the tired hands of the Middle Ages. During the Middle Ages before the invention of printing machines, every letter ofa word had to be copied with great efforts by hand for each copy ofa published book. The monks that performed these long, boring cop ing duties looked for ways to reduce the number of individual strokes ( 笔画) per word mon words. Although the word “ at” is quit