Many of you may have used Siri, a voice assistant of US tech company Apple. You only have to say “hey Siri” and it will answer to your command. However, we may be sacrificing our privacy to enjoy this convenience.
According to a recent report by the Guardian, Siri can be accidentally triggered and start recording private conversations, such as discussions between doctors and patients Some of these recordings are then given to workers outside the company to review. Apple claimed the data was used to help Siri improve, but users were not informed of this measure in the first place. Apple’s Siri is not the only voice assistant to come under fire. In 2018, Alexa, a voice assistant developed by US tech company Amazon, recorded a private conversation between a couple and sent it to a stranger without their permission.
These issues deepened concerns that tech companies are infringing (侵犯) users’ rights of privacy. Many people have long feared that tech companies are listening and collecting data from private conversations, reported Forbes. Using this data, third party companies could then paint an accurate picture of users’ habits and preferences in order to serve them more targeted advertisements, or even worse, sell this private data.
Despite this risk, the popularity of voice assistant seems to be unstoppable. In the near future, everything from your lighting to your air-conditioning to your refrigerator, your coffee maker, and even your toilet could be wired to a system controlled by voice, commented The Atlantic.
Colin Horgan wrote on the blog site Medium that he believed people’s daily lives will soon become a source of data. “ The sounds of our homes, the symphony of life laughing, crying, talking, shouting, sitting in silence-will no longer be considered memories, but data, ” he wrote. To deal with the issue, Blake Morgan, reporter for The Atlantic, believed that the answer is transparency. “All companies need to have messaging ready to explain to customers what they do with private data,” she wrote on The Atlantic.
1. What can be inferred from Paragraph 2?| A．There are some fire-proof voice assistants. |
| B．Many voice assistants are. being developed. |
| C．Some voice assistants are also being criticized besides Siri. |
| D．Data collected by Siri is used for better user experience. |
| A．Serving them targeted advertisements. | B．Sending their message. |
| C．Invading their privacy. | D．Making no improvements. |
| A．Stop collecting data through voice assistant. | B．Explain their use of the data to customers. |
| C．Make their data more transparent. | D．Collect data to better keep memories. |
| A．To show visions of a data world in the future. |
| B．To criticize companies’ invading customers’ privacy. |
| C．To inform people of what tech companies are really up to. |
| D．To draw attention to the privacy issue concerning voice assistants. |
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【推荐1】Generally speaking, newly born babies are not beautiful. They are wrinkled (多皱的) or hairless, or they have an angry look on their face. They seem to say,"Get away! I hate everybody." But to a parent, that hairless, wrinkled, angry-faced baby is the most beautiful and perfect child in the world. When that proud father or mother asks you, "Well, what do you think…isn't she beautiful?" What are you going to say? Is this the time for the truth? Of course not!
You look that father in the eye and say, "Yes, she is! She is really a beauty. She's one in a million. She's going to be a movie star! I can tell! She's as beautiful as a picture."
In English, this is a white lie. White lies don't hurt people. They are not cruel or angry words. People use them to make a difficult thing a little easier. When people don't want to meet someone, or eat something new that they really don't like at a friend's house, they tell a white lie. They are trying to be kind. They feel that being polite is sometimes more important. A doctor tells white lie in order to make a patient feel that his health is not so worse and then the patient may become optimistic.
From what is said above,we may draw a conclusion that we should not treat white lies as obstacles in life, and that sometimes telling a lie should not be associated with the issue of being dishonest. Some white lies can encourage you to be better.
1. What purpose does the first paragraph serve?| A．To emphasize the beauty of newly born babies. |
| B．To show parents' selfless devotion to their children. |
| C．To introduce the topic of a special kind of lie. |
| D．To use examples to prove lies are common in daily life. |
| A．impatient | B．tired | C．delighted | D．careless |
| A．Positive. | B．Indifferent. | C．Objective. | D．Doubtful. |
| A．You tell a parent that the newly-born baby is ugly. |
| B．Your friend's bag isn't beautiful but you say it is. |
| C．You broke the window but you say you didn't. |
| D．You tell your friend that her new haircut is terrible. |
【推荐2】Phonics, which involves sounding out words syllable (音节) by syllable, is the best way to teach children to read. But in many classrooms, this can be a dirty word. So much so that some teachers have had to take phonics teaching materials secretly into the classroom. Most American children are taught to read in a way that study after study has found to be wrong.
The consequences of this are striking. Less than half of all American adults were efficient readers in 2017. American fourth graders rank 15th on the Progress in International Literacy Study, an international exam.
America is stuck in a debate about teaching children to read that has been going on for decades. Some advocate teaching symbol sound relationships (the sound k can be spelled as c, k, ck, or ch) known as phonics Others support an immersive approach (using pictures of cat to learn the word cat), known as “whole language”. Most teachers today, almost three out of four according to a survey by EdWeek Research Centre in 2019, use a mix of the two methods called “balanced literacy”.
“A little phonics is far from enough.” says Tenette Smith, executive director of elementary education and reding at Mississippi’s education department. “It has to be systematic and explicitly taught.”
Mississippi, often behind in social policy, has set an example here. In a state once blamed for its low reading scores, the Mississippi state legislature passed new literacy standards in 2013.Since then Mississippi has seen remarkable gains., Its fourth graders have moved from 49th (out of 50 states) to 20th on the National assessment of Educational Progress, a nationwide exam.
Mississippi’s success is attributed to application of reading methods supported by a body of research known as the science of reading. In 1997 experts from the Department of Education ended the “reading war” and summed up the evidence. They found that phonics, along with explicit instruction in phonemic (音位的) awareness, fluency and comprehension, worked best.
Yet over two decades on, “balanced literacy” is still being taught in classrooms. But advances in statistics and brain imaging have disproved the whole-language method. To the teacher who is an efficient reader, literacy seem like a natural process that requires educated guessing, rather than the deliberate process emphasized by phonics. Teachers can imagine that they learned to read through osmosis(潜移默化) when they were children. Without proper training, they bring this to classrooms.
1. What do we learn about phonics in many American classrooms?| A．It is ill reputed. | B．It is mostly misapplied. |
| C．It is totally ignored. | D．It is seemingly contradictory. |
| A．A burning passion for improving teaching methods. |
| B．A lasting debate over how to teach children to read. |
| C．An increasing concern with children’s inadequacy in literacy. |
| D．A forceful advocacy of a combined method for teaching reading. |
| A．Tolerant. | B．Enthusiastic. | C．Unclear. | D．Disapproving. |
| A．Focusing on the natural process rather than deliberate training. |
| B．Obtaining support from other states to upgrade teaching methods. |
| C．Adopting scientifically grounded approaches to teaching reading. |
| D．Placing sufficient emphasis upon both fluency and comprehension. |
【推荐3】Food safety is a problem in all places around the world and people in different areas of the world prepare foods in different ways. The WHO released five simple rules for preparing food in a safe way.
Key 1: Keep clean.
The first key tells about the importance of washing. People should wash their hands often—before touching food, while they are preparing food, and any time after they go to the toilet. People should wash all surfaces and equipment used for preparing food.
Key 2：
People should separate raw, or uncooked foods from foods that are already cooked and foods that will not be cooked. People should store raw meat, chicken, and fish in containers, or in separate areas. Raw foods should not touch prepared foods.
Key 3：Cook completely.
People should cook eggs and meat, like birds, seafood, and animals, especially carefully. These foods may carry more microorganisms than other foods. Food like soup must be boiled for at least a minute to make it be cooked completely. It is also important that people reheat cooked food completely.
Key 4：Keep food at safe temperatures.
When people are finished with eating, they should keep the left food in a refrigerator below 5℃ and shouldn’t store it for too long. At room temperature, about 20℃, the amount of microorganisms can increase very quickly.
Key 5：Use safe water and raw materials.
| A．Separate raw and cooked foods. |
| B．Eat cooked food immediately while it is still hot. |
| C．They call these rules the “Five Keys to Safer Food”. |
| D．People should use safe water and choose fresh foods. |
| E．Keeping everything clean helps people to avoid microorganisms. |
| F．People should also protect cooking areas and food from insects and animals. |
| G．But temperatures above 60℃ or below 5℃ control the growth of microorganisms. |
【推荐1】Friendship makes life colorful. A teenager who has some good friends is surely more popular than one with few. So people all want others to be their friends, but they don't give friendship back. That is why some friendships don't last very long. To have a friend, you must learn to be one. You must learn to treat your friend the way you want your friend to treat you. Learning to be a good friend means learning three rules: be honest; be generous; be understanding.
Honesty is where a good friendship starts. Friends must be able to trust one another. If you don't tell the truth, people usually find out. If a friend finds out that you haven't been honest, you may lose your friend's trust. Good friends always count on one another to speak and act honestly.
Generosity means sharing and makes a friendship grow. You should share your ideas and feelings with your friends. These can be very valuable to them. They tell your friends what is important to you. By sharing then you help your friend know you better.
Sooner or later everyone needs understanding and help with problems. Something may go wrong at school. Talking about the problem can make it easier to solve. Turning to a friend can be the first step in solving the problem. So to be a friend you must listen and understand. You must try to put yourself in your friend's place so you can understand the problem better.
No two friendships are ever exactly alike. But all true friendships have three things in common. If you plan to keep your friends, you must practice honesty, generosity and understanding.
1. According to the passage honesty is ________.| A．something countable | B．more important than anything else |
| C．as important as money | D．the base of friendship |
| A．A friend who gives you his lunch money is a true friend. |
| B．Sharing your mind with your friend is of great value. |
| C．Discussing your problem with your friend often helps to solve the problem. |
| D．Always tell your friend the truth. |
| A．Honesty Is the Best Policy | B．A Friend in Need Is a Friend Indeed |
| C．How to Be Friends | D．Three Important Points in Life: |
【推荐2】A family on the northeast side of Indiana planned to help feed the hungry so they came up with an idea that they transformed their yard into a scary scene for families to visit when it was Halloween. They thought it was an effort to help hundreds of hungry people across the city.
Heidi Smith and her husband, Randy, had spent hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars preparing for this. They made it. This year, the Smith family is keeping most of their scary fun a surprise. But one thing is for sure—if you go there, you'll have some scary fun. Just get ready to scream there!
The Smith family has turned their passion for Halloween into a way of giving back. It's free to visit, but they ask people to bring a food donation that goes directly to Gleaners Food Bank. It's because 1 in 7 Hoosiers are going hungry every day. Last year in one night, the Smith family collected enough for 600 meals, more than they had expected. It all went to help the 174,000 hungry people in Marion County. “It was so fun; it made all of the hard work all worth it. We had a lot of people come through many times,” Smith added.
Although their yard may be scary, the Smith family says hunger is much scarier. “We'd love to have twice as many meals as last year for Gleaners. If we hit more than that, we will be very pleased,” said Randy Smith.
The H & R “Haunt the Food Drive” will be open for visitors on Halloween. If you would like to visit, their address is 5338 Mark Lane, Indianapolis, Indiana. Click here to visit their Facebook page.
1. What did the Smith family prepare in their yard this year for Halloween?| A．A Halloween scream contest. | B．Some expensive gifts for visitors. |
| C．Some frightening but funny activities. | D．A donation site called Gleaners Food Bank. |
| A．They sold some goods for Halloween. |
| B．They held a Halloween party to raise money. |
| C．They invited the hungry people to eat there for free. |
| D．They asked people visiting the yard to donate food. |
| A．It was too costly for the family. | B．It failed to attract enough people. |
| C．It won support from rich families. | D．It was hard work but very successful. |
| A．600. | B．1,200. | C．1,500. | D．1,800. |
| A．To introduce Gleaners Food Bank. |
| B．To show how to have Halloween fun. |
| C．To advertise a meaningful Halloween event. |
| D．To encourage readers to plan more Halloween activities. |
【推荐3】Household chores might seem a drag, but researchers have suggested tasks like dusting, scrubbing floors and washing the windows might help adults to stay healthy into old age.
Writing in the journal BMJ Open, a Singapore-based team of researchers said regular physical activity “improves physical and mental health, mitigates the risks and effects of chronic diseases, and reduces falls, immobility, dependency and mortality (死亡率) among older adults”. The team randomly recruited (征召) adults from the town of Yishun in Singapore, and asked them to complete cognitive function tests as well as activities to assess their physical capabilities, such as standing up from a chair as quickly as they could. Participants were also quizzed on their levels of physical activity, including the amount of light housework (such as dusting) and heavy housework (such as floor-scrubbing) they did, and were assessed for their risk of having a fall based on measures such as knee extension strength.
The study involved 249 participants aged 21-64 and 240 participants aged 65-90. Most of those who reported doing high levels of heavy or light housework were women. After taking into account factors including age and sex, the team found cognitive scores and attention scores were 8% and 14% higher respectively for older adults doing high amounts of heavy housework—on average 131 minutes a week compared with low levels, which appeared to amount to none at all.
Sit-to-stand times were lower for older adults reporting high amounts of heavy housework compared with low amounts, while they were also assessed asbeing at lower risk of having a fall. The team also found cognitive scores were 5% higher for older adults who reported high levels of light housework — on average doing 902 minutes a week — and memory scores were also higher, comparedwiththoseundertakinglowlevelsofsuchtasks,averaging89minutesaweek.
Gill Livingston, professor of psychiatry of older people at University College London, who was not involved in the work, said the study was interesting but had little meaning as people who are not so well may be expected to do less housework. “I think the advice would be that housework can be good exercise, which is good for your heart and brain. We cannot draw any conclusions from this study that it is specifically protective,” she said.
Charlie Foster, professor of physical activity and public health at the University of Bristol, also urged caution, noting the study relied on self-reported levels of household chores, which may be inaccurate, and did not fully take into account other factors which may influence the results.
1. What is the purpose of the passage?| A．To tell people the more housework the better. |
| B．To stress the importance of health. |
| C．To propose a way to reduce mortality among older people. |
| D．To show us the benefits of doing housework for the old. |
| A．Women are more diligent than men. |
| B．Cognitive and attention scores were 8％and 14% higher for old adults doing more heavy housework. |
| C．The study is reasonable to some extent. |
| D．No other factors influence the result of the research. |
| A．The study was carried out among old people. |
| B．Olderadultsreportinghighamountsofheavyhouseworkareathigherriskofhavingafall. |
| C．Housework is good exercise specifically protective for older adults. |
| D．Levels of high housework have an influence on cognitive and memory scores. |
| A．Indifferent. | B．Supportive. | C．Objective. | D．Favourable. |
