【推荐1】China has completed its home-grown BeiDou Navigation (导航) Satellite System (BDS) with the successful launch of two more BDS-3 satellites, 19 in all, and has started providing services to countries participating in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) since the end of 2018. The BDS, which will compete against the US’ Global Positioning System (GPS), will provide high-precision, reliable positioning, navigation and timing services anywhere in the world by the end of 2020.

The Belt and Road Initiative is an ambitious effort to improve regional cooperation and connectivity in a trans-continental range. The initiative aims to strengthen infrastructure (基础设施), trade, and investment links between China and some 65 other countries. It is also expected to increase Beijing’s influence in these countries.

“This is a key step for the BDS developing from a Chinese home system to a regional and then a global navigation system,” said Yang Changfeng, chief designer of the BeiDou system. China plans to launch another 11 BDS-3 satellites between the end of 2018 and 2020. China developed the BDS through a unique technological approach, contributing Chinese wisdom to the theory and construction of international satellite navigation systems.

Altogether 18 BDS satellites have been sent into space in 2018, making this year the most intensive launch of the BDS satellites. They improved their work efficiency by reforming the management process. The number of satellite staff at the launch center has been reduced by nearly half, and the testing time before launch has been shortened by nearly a third. In the CAST production base in Beijing, several BDS satellites are being manufactured at the same time. They try to improve intelligent manufacturing capability, and cut down production times. Construction of the BDS-3 system has accelerated.

Once the BDS is fully completed, it will be the fourth global satellite navigation system after the US GPS system, Russia’s GLONASS and the European Union’s Galileo. India too, is building its navigational system called the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), with an operational name of NAVIC.

1. When can the BDS offer global services?

A．In 2018.

B．In 2019.

C．In 2020.

D．In 2025.

2. What can the BDS do now?

A．Take the place of the GPS of the USA.

B．Watch anyone anywhere in the world.

C．Control the Belt and Road countries.

D．Serve the Belt and Road Initiative.

3. What does paragraph 4 mainly talk about?

A．The unique characters of the BDS.

B．The Chinese technology of the BDS.

C．The efforts of the staff of the BDS.

D．The difficulties the BDS has to deal with.

4. What can be the best title for the text?

A．China’s BDS is approaching its goal step by step

B．China’s BDS has become the fourth global satellite navigation system

C．China’s BDS helps BRI increase Beijing’s international influence

D．The unique technological approach makes China’s BDS outstanding

【推荐2】Nowadays, the world is slowly becoming a high-tech society and we are now surrounded by technology. Facebook and Twitter are innovative tools; text messaging is still a somewhat existing phenomenon and even e-mail is only a flashing spot on the screen when compared with our long history of snail mail. Now we adopt these tools to the point of essentialness, and only rarely consider how we are more fundamentally affected by them.

Social media, texting and e-mail all make it much easier to communicate, gather and pass information. But they also present some dangers. By removing any real human engagement, they enable us to develop our abnormal self-love without the risk of disapproval or criticism theatrical metaphor (隐喻), these new forms of communication provide a stage on which we create our own characters, hidden behind a fourth wall of tweets, status updates and texts. This unreal state of unconcern can become addictive as we separate ourselves a safe distance from the cruelty of our fleshly lives, where we are imperfect, powerless and insignificant. In essence, we have been provided not only the means to be more free, but also to become new, to create and protect a more perfect self to the world. As we become more reliant on these tools, they become more a part of our daily routine and so we become more restricted in this fantasy.

So it is that we live in a cold era, where names and faces represent two different levels of closeness, where working relationships occur only through the magic of email and where love can start or end by text message. An environment such as this reduces interpersonal relationships to mere digital exchanges.

Would a celebrity have been so daring to do something dishonorable if he had had to do it in person? Doubtful. It seems he might have been lost in a fantasy world that ultimately convinced himself into believing the digital self could obey different rules and regulations, as if he could continually push the limits of what’s acceptable without facing the consequences of “real life.”

1. The author compares e-mail with snail mail to show ________.

A．the influence of high-tech on our life	B．the history of different types of mails
C．the value of traditional communications	D．the rapid development of social media

2. What can we know about new communication tools?

A．Destroying our life totally.	B．Posing more dangers than good.
C．Helping us to hide our faults.	D．Replacing traditional letters.

3. What is the potential threat caused by the novel communication tools?

A．Sheltering us from virtual life.	B．Removing face-to-face interaction.
C．Leading to false mental perception.	D．Making us rely more on hi-tech media.

4. What can be inferred from the last two paragraphs?

A．Technologies have changed our relationships.

B．The digital world is a recipe for pushing limits.

C．Love can be better conveyed by text message.

D．The digital self need not take responsibility.

【推荐3】This year marks exactly two centuries since the publication of “Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus,” by Mary Shelley. Even before the invention of the electric light bulb, the author produced a remarkable work of speculative fiction that would foreshadow (预示) many ethical questions to be raised by technologies yet to come.

Today the rapid growth of artificial intelligence (Al) raises fundamental questions: “What is intelligence, identity, or consciousness? What makes humans humans?” What is being called artificial general intelligence, machines that would imitate the way humans think, continue to puzzle scientists. Yet humans remain fascinated by the idea of robots that would look, move and respond like humans, similar to those depicted on sci-fi TV series such as “Humans”. Just how people think is still far too complex to be understood, let alone reproduced, says David Eagleman, a Stanford University neuroscientist. “We are just in a situation where there are no good theories explaining what consciousness actually is and how you could ever build a machine to get there.”

But that doesn’t mean crucial ethical issues involving AI aren’t at hand. The coming use of autonomous vehicles, for example, poses thorny (棘手的) ethical questions. Human drivers sometimes must make split-second decisions. Their reactions may be a complex combination of instant reflexes, input from past driving experiences, and what their eyes and ears tell them in that moment. AI “vision” today is not nearly as sophisticated as that of humans. And to anticipate every imaginable driving situation is a difficult programming problem.   

Whenever decisions are based on masses of data, “you quickly get into a lot of ethical questions,” notes Tan Kiat How, chief executive of a Singapore-based agency that is helping the government develop a voluntary code for the ethical use of Al. Along with Singapore, other governments and mega-corporations are beginning to establish their own guidelines. Britain is setting up a data ethics center India released its Al ethics strategy this spring.

On June 7 Google promised not to design or employ Al that would cause “overall harm,” or to develop Al-directed weapons or use AI for surveillance (监视) that would break international norms (规则). It also promised not to employ AI whose use would violate international laws or human rights.

While the statement is vague, it represents one starting point. So does the idea that decisions made by Al systems should be explainable, transparent, and fair.

To put it another way: How can we make sure that the thinking of intelligent machines reflects humanity’s highest values? Only then will they be useful servants and not Frankenstein’s out-of-control monster.

1. Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein is mentioned because it________.

A．fascinates AI scientists all over the world

B．has remained popular for as long as 200 years

C．involves some concerns raised by Al today

D．has sparked serious ethical controversies

2. In David Eagleman’s opinion, our current knowledge of consciousness________.

A．helps explain artificial intelligence	B．can be misleading to robot making
C．inspires popular sci-fi TV series	D．is too limited for us to reproduce it

3. The solution to the ethical issues brought by autonomous vehicles________.

A．can hardly ever be found	B．is still beyond our capacity
C．causes little public concern	D．has aroused much curiosity

4. Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

A．AI’s Future: In the Hands of Tech Giants

B．Frankenstein, the Novel Predicting the Age of AI

C．The Conscience of AI: Complex but Inevitable

D．AI Shall Be Killers Once Out of Control

【推荐2】A new study of 8,000 young people in the journal of Health and Social Behavior shows that although love can make adults live healthily and happily, it is a bad thing for young people. Puppy love may bring stress for young people and can lead to depression(抑郁). The study shows that girls become more depressed than boys, and younger girls are the worst of all.

The possible reason for the connection between love and higher risk of depression for girls is “loss of self”. According to the study, even though boys would say “lose themselves in a romantic relationship”, this “loss of self” is much more likely to lead to depression when it happens to girls. Young girls who have romantic relationships usually like hiding their feelings and opinions. They won’t tell that to their parents.

Dr. Marianm Kaufman, an expert on young people problems, says 15% to 20% young people will have depression during their growing. Trying romance often causes the depression. She advises kids not to jump into romance too early. During growing up, it is important for young people to build strong friendships and a strong sense of self. She also suggests the parents should encourage their kids to keep close to their friends, attend more interesting school activities and spend enough time with family. Parents should watch for signs of depression—eating or mood changes—and if they see signs from their daughters or sons, they need to give help. The good news is that the connection between romance and depression seems to become weak with age. Love will always make us feel young, but only maturity(成熟) gives us a chance to avoid its bad side effects.

1. What’s the main idea of the passage?

A．Puppy love may bring young people depression.

B．Parents should forbid their children’s love.

C．Romance is a two-edged sword for adults .

D．Romance is good for young people.

2. Which of the following is more likely to have depression?

A．Young people who have a strong sense of self.

B．Young boys whose parents watch for their behavior.

C．Young girls who always hide their feelings and opinions.

D．Careless parents whose children are deep in love.

3. What can be inferred from the passage?

A．Lacking love can lead young people to grow up more quickly.

B．The older a woman is, the less likely she seems to lose herself in romance.

C．Parents should help their children to be aware of the signs of depression.

D．Early love makes young people keep close to their friends and parents.

4. What’s the author’s attitude towards puppy love?

A．Puzzled.	B．Frightened.
C．Unconcerned.	D．Disapproving.

【推荐3】Many mental health professionals viewed the pursuit of happiness as a foolish mistake until quite recently. Most of them used to concentrate their energy and attention on individuals suffering from diseases like depression and anxiety, or on relieving despair rather than promoting well-being. But that’s all beginning to change. Supporters of “positive psychology” think that happiness is a goal that people can—and should—work toward. They believe that it’s not only possible but crucially important. Health means not just the absence of disease but a positive sense of involvement and engagement in life. Unless you know how to enjoy life, your life is not really happy. This doesn’t mean that finding happiness is easy—a variety of obstacles stands in the way. The first, perhaps the biggest, is genetics.

Happiness, it seems, is decided—at least in part—by personality features that are largely passed on from their parents. In a study published in 2018, researchers at the University of Edinburgh examined personality and happiness data on more than 900 pairs of twins. They found a close genetic relationship between happiness and positive personalities such as openness and agreeableness. Identical twins (同卵双胞胎) were more likely to share these positive features than non-identical twins; they were also more likely to report similar levels of well-being.

Major life events as well as social and economic factors can also stand in the way of happiness. More often than not, however, people get in their own way by looking for happiness in all the wrong places. They aren’t particularly good at recognizing what will bring them lasting joy: Although money tops many people’s wish lists, study after study has found that once basic needs are met, additional wealth doesn’t add much to people’s sense of well-being and contentment.

Experts in the field of positive psychology still believe it’s possible for people to push their happiness upward—not just temporarily but over the long term.

1. What’s the shift in mental health study?

A．Health means the absence of disease.

B．Emphasis is placed on the pursuit of happiness.

C．Well-being is found to be something one was born with.

D．More attention is paid to anxiety and depression.

2. Which of the following statements is NOT true?

A．Different obstacles are in the way of finding happiness.

B．Happiness is largely dictated by one’s personality.

C．Identical twins are more likely to be on the same level of well-being than non-identical twins.

D．Wealth always plays an important role in people’s sense of happiness and contentment.

3. The obstacles standing in the way of happiness include all of the following elements EXCEPT .

A．emotive factors	B．genetics
C．social factors	D．economic factors

4. According to the experts of positive psychology, what’s the essential point of the pursuit of happiness?

A．Material prosperity.	B．Freedom.
C．Long-term efforts.	D．The avoidance of stress.