【推荐1】The idea behind the Internet of Things (IoT) is that the world would be a better place if all sorts of electronics would be computerized. Billions of tiny computers could monitor air quality and traffic patterns. It is estimated that there could be a trillion connected devices in the world by 2035 — more than 100 for every person..

With continued growth in the IoT, regularly replacing a trillion batteries would be inconvenient. Researchers have built chips that get energy from light or heat. But such sources producing only a small amount of power can’t be used to replace a battery, the maintenance of which can be difficult and costly, especially in places where a battery is hard to reach.

Aline Eid and her colleagues proposed a better idea. Using a piece of equipment called a Rotman lens, they have designed a small, flexible antenna (天线) to harvest electrical power from signals of 5G mobile phone towers. Rotman lenses, which were invented in 1963, focus and redirect electromagnetic (电磁的) radiation. “Most people use Rotman lenses in the transmission (发送) mode,” says Dr. Eid. “We decided to change that concept, and use them in the opposite mode.”

Her lens is able to collect electromagnetic radiation from all directions. Letting it work in urban environments in which waves spread unpredictably improves the amount of harvest able power greatly. And 5G also offers more power in the first place. The standard on which it is based covers communications on a wide range of frequencies. Furthermore, 5G’s frequencies ranging between 24GHz and 100 GHz are rarely used, so 5G networks are unlikely to suffer from the disturbance from a huge number of devices.

According to the team, their antenna can harvest useful quantities of power even at a long distance, Feeding their work into computer models suggests it should be able to harvest around six microwatts of power at a distance of 180 meters from a tower. That is enough to let the sort of simple, low-power chips that will make up the IoT do useful work. If more power is needed, a bigger antenna can be used.

1. What has been a barrier in the development of IoT technology?

A．How to efficiently power IoT devices.	B．How to monitor a mass of tiny computers.
C．How to reduce the cost of maintaining IoT chips.	D．How to computerize different sorts of electronics.

2. What is the concept behind Aline’s using Rotman lenses?

A．They can send radio signals to 5G towers.	B．They can communicate with 5G frequencies.
C．They can receive electromagnetic radiation.	D．They can broadcast radiation waves in all directions.

3. According to the text, which of the following belongs to a characteristic of 5G networks?

A．Having stricter standards.	B．Consuming less power to operate.
C．Supporting a wide range of devices.	D．Having little risk of being disturbed.

4. What does Aline’s team indicate by explaining their antenna?

A．Transmission distance is a potential challenge.

B．The goal of constructing the IoT can be achieved.

C．There is a long way to go in terms of 5G technology…

D．New generations of mobile phones are power-consuming.

【推荐2】If work is leaving you exhausted, try turning off your phone at lunchtime. A study found that people who played on their phones during their lunch breaks were more tired in the afternoon than those who went for a walk or read a book. This may be because they used up more mental energy. Whatever the reason, researchers said employees should be aware of the effect and that employers should consider introducing the “digital detox”.

For the study, some 425 men and women were asked how they spent their lunch breaks and how they felt at the time and afterwards. Roughly half said they spent their breaks on digital devices such as smartphones, while the others enjoyed activities such as chatting to a friend or going for a walk. Both groups said they felt they had got away from work during lunch. However, those who had played on their phones didn’t feel rejuvenated afterwards. They were more likely to say they felt “used up” and “burned out” as the day went on.

The researchers said that multitasking on a smartphone by, for example, listening to music while writing an email, can be mentally exhausting. Even something as seemingly simple as reading the news on a phone takes up more brainpower than reading the same information in a newspaper because of the energy needed to ignore the various links embedded (嵌入) in the article and the advertisements that constantly appear.

The researchers wrote in the journal Computers in Human Behavior, “If employees don’t handle tiredness properly at break time, they will be exhausted by their job demands. Organizational interventions (干预) such as ‘digital detox’ and awareness in employees about the negative effects of smartphone breaks are necessary for employees to find effective relaxation.”

1. What can the underlined word “rejuvenated” in Paragraph 2 be replaced by?

A．Ashamed.

B．Upset.

C．Interested.

D．Energetic.

2. The study was conducted mainly to find out ______.

A．whether smartphone breaks were necessary

B．whether people felt exhausted at work

C．how smartphone breaks affected people

D．how people spent their lunch breaks

3. What does the author try to express in the third paragraph?

A．News on smartphones is less accurate.

B．Multitasking has become a way of life.

C．Too many links and advertisements are in the news.

D．Smartphone multitaskers can become mentally exhausted.

4. According to the text, “digital detox” refers to a time when people ______.

A．are devoted to their work	B．turn off electronic devices
C．get rid of tiredness completely	D．realize the role of digital devices

【推荐3】A 9-year-old British schoolgirl, a double amputee (双侧截肢者), is set to make history after she walked the catwalk at New York Fashion Week.

Daisy-May Demetre has been chosen as a model for the French-inspired fashion line Lulu et Gigi Couture after its founder saw her modeling in London. Her appearance at the famous New York Fashion Week on September 8th marked the first time a double amputee had starred in the catwalk. The Birmingham schoolgirl is also set to show herself in Paris Fashion Week.

Daisy-May’s legs were amputated as a result of being born with fibular hemimelia, a birth disease in which part of the fibular bone (腓骨) in the leg is missing.

Her parents, Alex and Claire Demetre, were shocked to know that the child would “have no legs”. Her parents were faced with the predicament of whether to watch Daisy-May grow up with deformed (畸形的) legs that she wouldn’t be able to use or to allow doctors to perform a double amputation. They couldn’t make up their minds. It was not until the average child began to walk and her leg bones began to influence her balance and normal life that her parents decided to choose amputation.

“We didn’t know at the time that Daisy-May would be as good as she is now,” said Alex. “At the time, I isolated (孤立) myself — I had drinking problems. That has all changed — and that’s down to her taking each day with a big smile on her face,” he added. “She told me not to worry and inspired me to be brave.”

Daisy-May’s career has since sky-rocketed in popularity. Alex, meanwhile, says that he couldn’t be prouder of his daughter. “The disability doesn’t stop Daisy-May. She just does Daisy, the way she goes about life with a smile on her face.”

1. What do you know about Daisy-May Demetre?

A．Her first performance on the catwalk didn’t succeed.

B．She became a double amputee because of an accident.

C．She is the first double amputee to perform at the fashion show.

D．She looks forward to performing for more fashion lines.

2. What does the underlined word “predicament” in the 4th paragraph mean?

A．An unexpected danger.	B．A difficult situation.
C．A painful operation.	D．A serious examination.

3. What could be inferred from Paragraph 5?

A．Alex gave Daisy-May the greatest encouragement.

B．Daisy-May isolated herself after the amputation.

C．Daisy-May is a girl with an optimistic mind.

D．Alex expected Daisy-May to be a model at her young age.

4. What can be a suitable title for the text?

A．Daisy-May Walked on the Catwalk with One Leg

B．A Double Amputee Is a Gymnast as Well as a Model

C．A British Schoolgirl Set a New Record in the Fashion Show

D．A 9-year-old Double Amputee Makes History on the Catwalk