1 . New Yorker writer Kyle Chayka came of age alongside the internet. As a teen, he published his own blog and joined forum (论坛) for pop music. He discovered one of his favorite Jazz songs --- John Coltrane’s full version of “My Favorite Things” – driving around at night, listening to the local radio station.
Chayka misses the time ---and the ways, then, that personal discoveries like these were made. In his new book, Filterworld: How Algorithms (算法) Shaped Culture, Chayka says he never would have fallen in love with Coltrane’s songs if he’d heard it on Spodify. He says he doubts Spodify’s algorithm would even suggest it, because the song is so long. And that, even if it did, he wouldn’t have learned anything about Coltrane as an artist, because the Spodify interface doesn’t provide the same context that a radio DJ does, sharing details between songs. The person behind the song choice, he argues, made his emerging interest in Coltrane possible in a way modern recommendation system cannot.
This is one of many “back in my day” stories Chayka uses to illustrate his argument that algorithms have “shaped culture”. Thanks to recommendation generators like Tiktok’s top picks and Spodify’s autoplay suggestions, “the least troublesome and perhaps least meaningful pieces of culture are promoted,” Chayka argued. He admits that quality is subjective when judging these things, and instead argues that recommendation systems undermine personal taste. Taste, he writes, was once a combination of personal choices and popular influence --- but now algorithms rely more on choices of the masses. Developing taste requires effort and active engagement, but what we see now are algorithms turning taste into consumerism.
A central point of the book, in fact, is that people today are not only well aware of the power of algorithms, they can’t escape them. He interviews a young woman who wonders if “what I like is what I actually like,” worried that her taste is so shaped by algorithms that she can’t trust herself. The book may be most useful in these sections, where Chayka and his interviewees attempt to make sense of how internet algorithms have shaped their own lives and work.
1. What causes Chayka to be interested in John Coltrane’s music?| A．The details provided by algorithm. | B．Listening to the local radio station. |
| C．Recommendation of Spodify. | D．The charm of John Coltrane. |
| A．How early internet shapes our culture. |
| B．How technology impacts our personal taste. |
| C．How social media changes our view of reality. |
| D．How digital platform redefine mass consumption. |
| A．underestimate. | B．enhance. |
| C．transform. | D．disturb. |
| A．Show the highlights of the book. | B．Comment on the structure of the book. |
| C．Encourage the use of internet. | D．Praise Chayka’s writing styles. |
2 . Working in undergraduate admissions at Dartmouth College has introduced me to many talented young people through their college applications. The problem is that many remarkable students become indistinguishable from one another, at least on paper. It is incredibly difficult to choose whom to admit.
The greatest surprise I’ve ever come across in my admissions career came from a student who went to a large public school in New England. He was clearly bright, as evidenced by his class rank and teachers’ praise. He had a supportive recommendation from his college headmaster and an impressive list of extracurriculars. Even with these qualifications, he might not have stood out. But one letter of recommendation caught my eye. It was from a school doorkeeper.
This letter was different. The doorkeeper wrote that he felt it necessary to support this student because of his thoughtfulness. This young man was the only person in the school who knew the names of every member of the cleaning staff. He turned off lights in empty rooms, consistently thanked the hallway monitor each morning and tidied up after his peers even if nobody was watching. This student, the doorkeeper wrote, had a refreshing respect for every person at the school, regardless of position, popularity or influence.
Over 15 years and 30,000 applications in my admissions career, I had never seen a recommendation from a school doorkeeper. It gave us a new lens into a student’s life in the moments when nothing “counted.” That student was admitted by a shared vote of the admissions committee.
Next year there might be a flood of doorkeeper recommendations thanks to this essay. But if it means students will start paying as much attention to the people who clean their classrooms as they do to their principals and teachers, I’m happy to help start that trend. But the story shouldn’t stop there.
1. What mainly leads to the author’s difficulty in choosing whom to admit?| A．The growing number of applicants. | B．The limited recruiting guidance. |
| C．The varied versions of applications. | D．The overall excellence of applicants. |
| A．It provided a new angle into the candidate’s qualities. |
| B．It spared the routine elements and worked wonders. |
| C．It was written by a doorkeeper without telling the student. |
| D．It catered to the author’s inner criteria for college applicants. |
| A．Modest and admirable. | B．Intelligent and adventurous. |
| C．Kind and thoughtful. | D．Open-minded and outgoing. |
| A．Recommend it to friends. | B．Explore further behind it. |
| C．Use it as needed. | D．Evaluate its effects. |
3 . I’ve been paralyzed (瘫痪的) since childhood and I started using a wheelchair in first grade. So I’ve had 30 years to learn just how
As a culture, Americans are
Well, here’s the
“So how am I supposed to be helpful?” you might be asking. You have to
Like anyone else, disabled people are both capable and in need of some help. If you want to be genuinely, actively “
| A．capable | B．desperate | C．friendly | D．responsible |
| A．promised | B．convinced | C．trusted | D．questioned |
| A．brave | B．honest | C．helpful | D．grateful |
| A．test | B．change | C．reason | D．problem |
| A．forget | B．refuse | C．continue | D．pretend |
| A．still | B．also | C．even | D．already |
| A．believe in | B．catch up with | C．smile at | D．pay attention to |
| A．tell | B．answer | C．lie | D．focus |
| A．kind | B．useful | C．faithful | D．polite |
| A．guidance | B．profession | C．performance | D．inclusion |
4 . Do I think the sky is falling? Sort of.
My husband and I were recently in Egypt, where the temperature was a bit warm for my tiny princess self. So, we left Egypt. Back home, my dearest friends struggled with health stuff, with family craziness…
The game of life is hard, and a lot of us are playing hurt.
I ache for the world but naturally I’m mostly watching the Me Movie, where balance and strength are beginning to fail. What can we do as the creaking elevator of age slowly arrives? The main solution is to get outside every day, ideally with friends. Old friends even thoughts of them-are my comfort.
Recently I was walking along a beach with Neshama. We go back 50 years. She is 84, short and strong. Every so often, she bent down somewhat tentatively (踌躇地) and picked up small items into a small cloth bag. “What are you doing?”
“I’m picking up micro litter. I try to help where I can.”
I reminded her of an old story. A great warhorse comes upon a tiny sparrow (麻雀) lying on its back with its feet in the air, eyes tightly shut with effort. The horse asks it what it’s doing.
“I’m trying to help hold back the darkness.”
The horse laughs loudly, “That is so funny. What do you weigh?”
And the sparrow replies, “One does what one can.”
This is what older age means. We do what we can.
We continued our walk. Neshama bent tentatively to pick up bits of litter and started to slip, but I caught her and we laughed. We are so physically weak in older age, but friendship makes it all a rowing machine for the soul. We can take it, as long as we feel and give love, and laugh gently at ourselves as we fall apart. We know by a certain age the great lies in our life—if you do or achieve this or that, you will be happy and rich. Love and service make us rich.
1. What contributes most to making the author happy at present?| A．Watching movies. | B．Meeting old friends. |
| C．Traveling in Egypt. | D．Walking on the beach. |
| A．Neshama’s fear. | B．Neshama’s dream. |
| C．The author’s approval. | D．The author’s doubt. |
| A．Determined and helpful. | B．Responsible and caring. |
| C．Narrow-minded but friendly. | D．Bad-tempered but supportive. |
| A．Staying with families. | B．Being rich and healthy. |
| C．Doing what one can. | D．Living a comfortable life. |
5 . During the winter of 1986 I was working at a construction site near Oakland, California. It is not
On my way to pay for the gas, I stopped and asked him if I could
I stopped and looked back at him as he was getting into his car. I looked down at my
| A．easy | B．fair | C．unusual | D．certain |
| A．exception | B．problem | C．wonder | D．sense |
| A．Beginning | B．Stopping | C．Getting | D．Finishing |
| A．factory | B．company | C．gas station | D．police station |
| A．suggesting | B．ignoring | C．thinking | D．noticing |
| A．nervous | B．afraid | C．happy | D．amazed |
| A．difficulty | B．fun | C．words | D．relations |
| A．disturb | B．approach | C．help | D．teach |
| A．examined | B．accepted | C．considered | D．declined |
| A．explain | B．complain | C．expect | D．expose |
| A．others | B．himself | C．work | D．me |
| A．legs | B．arms | C．shoes | D．hands |
| A．week | B．night | C．month | D．winter |
| A．encounter | B．incident | C．trip | D．party |
| A．bleed | B．change | C．hurt | D．talk |
6 . Several weeks ago I got a call from a good friend whose husband had just been diagnosed with cancer. “Do we tell the kids?” she asked. “
Adults always insist that children be honest,
I believe in telling children the truth. I believe this is vital for their understanding of the world, their confidence, and the development of their morals and values. This doesn’t mean kids need to be unnecessarily frightened or told more than they can
One night I was in the car with our two oldest daughters. It was dark and cozy — the
Time marches on, and so do
| A．Hopefully | B．Immediately | C．Certainly | D．Fortunately |
| A．important | B．heartbreaking | C．puzzling | D．fascinating |
| A．and | B．for | C．or | D．but |
| A．grateful | B．typical | C．tough | D．original |
| A．take in | B．deal with | C．break away | D．try out |
| A．sense | B．aim | C．virtue | D．talent |
| A．clap | B．tell | C．reflect | D．prove |
| A．personal | B．ordinary | C．perfect | D．usual |
| A．cried | B．shouted | C．whispered | D．insisted |
| A．Therefore | B．Otherwise | C．Instead | D．However |
| A．defence | B．discussion | C．occasion | D．debate |
| A．effective | B．inspiring | C．particular | D．emotional |
| A．parents | B．children | C．friends | D．individuals |
| A．While | B．Since | C．When | D．Because |
| A．take off | B．set off | C．turn off | D．paid off |
7 . When I was a boy, we lived right next to a forest. I spent a lot of time
That was why it was so hard for me
One afternoon after a long day’s work, I was feeling particularly
In this life we all start out as an acorn, but whether we
| A．working | B．playing | C．studying | D．watching |
| A．mountain | B．yard | C．forest | D．park |
| A．when | B．until | C．if | D．unless |
| A．unfair | B．tiring | C．poor | D．dangerous |
| A．thrown away | B．carried off | C．cut down | D．turned over |
| A．available | B．promising | C．lovely | D．concrete |
| A．depressed | B．amazed | C．ashamed | D．frightened |
| A．walk | B．picture | C．lesson | D．risk |
| A．school | B．team | C．childhood | D．farm |
| A．survived | B．attracted | C．surprised | D．convinced |
| A．message | B．sentence | C．letter | D．story |
| A．uncovered | B．pocketed | C．planted | D．swallowed |
| A．discover | B．protect | C．search | D．become |
| A．reason | B．ability | C．courage | D．chance |
| A．Leave | B．Explain | C．Introduce | D．Apply |
8 . A few years ago I went through a period of such severe depression that life didn’t seem worth living. It was like permanent
Then I saw snowdrops pushing through the
I could spend hours
Of course, fresh air and exercise help to
At the end of the first garden I made
The leaves dropped until it looked no more than a(n)
| A．spring | B．summer | C．fall | D．winter |
| A．freezing | B．soft | C．smooth | D．dirty |
| A．come back to earth | B．come back to life | C．come true | D．come up |
| A．Before | B．Whether | C．Although | D．As |
| A．dead | B．burdened | C．alive | D．compared |
| A．optimistic | B．pessimistic | C．traditional | D．creative |
| A．recovered | B．accompanied | C．blocked | D．returned |
| A．addicted | B．eager | C．lost | D．devoted |
| A．touched | B．impressed | C．affected | D．released |
| A．excited | B．depressed | C．delighted | D．sensitive |
| A．accumulate | B．relieve | C．disturb | D．deepen |
| A．hope | B．desire | C．emotion | D．moral |
| A．stood | B．suffered | C．waited | D．lined |
| A．stable | B．complex | C．absolute | D．useful |
| A．promoted | B．inspired | C．awarded | D．hurt |
9 . Climbing, I once thought, was a very manly activity, but as I found my way into this activity, I came to see that something quite different happens on the rock.
Like wild swimming, rock climbing involves you into the landscape. On the rock, I am fully focused. Eyes pay close attention, ears are alert, and hands move across the surface. Unlike walking, where I could happily wander about absent-mindedly, in climbing, attentive observation is essential.
As an arts student studying English literature, I discovered a new type of reading from outdoor climbing. Going out on to the crags (悬崖), I saw how you could learn to read the rocks and develop a vocabulary of physical movements. Good climbers knew how to adjust their bodies on to the stone. Watching them, I wanted to possess that skillful “language”.
My progress happened when I worked for the Caingorms National Park Authority.Guiding my explorations into this strange new landscape was Nan Shepherd, a lady too. Unlike the goal-directed mindset of many mountaineers, she is not concerned with peaks or personal achievement. Shepherd sees the mountain as a total environment and she celebrates the Caingorms as a place alive with plants, rocks, animals and elements. Through her generous spirit and my own curiosity, I saw that rock climbing need not be a process of testing oneself against anything. Rather, the intensity of focus could develop a person into another way of being.
Spending so much time in high and st ony places has transformed my view on the world and our place in it. I have come into physical contact with processes that go way beyond the everyday. Working with gravity, geology (地质学), rhythms of weather and deep time, I gain an actual relationship with the earth. This bond lies at the heart of my passion for rock climbing. I return to the rocks, because this is where I feel in contact with our land.
1. What does the writer find important in climbing?| A．Balance. | B．Concentration. |
| C．Determination. | D．Perseverance. |
| A．Climbing goes together with nature. |
| B．Every mountain top is within reach. |
| C．The best climber is the one having fun. |
| D．You can not achieve high unless you change. |
| A．Time. | B．Transformation. | C．The world. | D．My view. |
| A．It challenges her to compete with men. |
| B．It allows her a unique attitude toward rock. |
| C．It teaches her how to possess a new language. |
| D．It makes her feel connected with the earth. |
10 . Frank Herbert’s science fiction Dune was the first coming-of-age story that helped me survive my lonely junior high school. At age 12, my life was the tiny, boring cycle of home, school and my parents’ store. Dune cracked it all open and led me to a universe that made my little world a lot more bearable. Unlike Holden Caulfield in The Catcher in the Rye who kept breaking windows, Dune’s main character, Paul Atreides, equipped me with a junior-high survival guide.
Paul is not a classic underdog. He’s the son of a king. He’s been trained since birth in war arts, politics and critical survival skills by a group of smart and experienced men with impossible-to-pronounce names. But when his world is turned upside down-when he leaves his home, loses his father and enters a physically and politically hostile environment-he doesn’t complain and cry. He adapts.
To this day, I still can recite his words against fear: “I must not fear. Fear is the mind-killer. Fear is the little-death that brings total destruction. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me and through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain.”
The steady diet of literary fiction assigned by my teachers was escapist and the very act of reading (whatever the content) usually took me out of a given moment, but didn’t provide much advice on how to face my daily conflicts and painful insecurity.
Dune was escapist, too. However, it was expansive and literally redefined possibility for me who had been struggling along with eyes on the ground, just trying to make it through another day of boredom and hardship of being a teenage girl. Paul lifted my eyes up so I could see the stars.
1. Which best explains “hostile” underlined in paragraph 2?| A．Safe. | B．Unfriendly. | C．Unbeneficial. | D．Pleasant. |
| A．His good education. | B．His noble birth. |
| C．His courage to face fear. | D．His escapist attitude. |
| A．She was an optimistic girl. | B．She was not loved by her parents. |
| C．She had a carefree childhood. | D．She felt insecure and unconfident. |
| A．The Catcher in the Rye Should Be Banned |
| B．Teenagers Should Not Read Literary Fictions |
| C．Dune Became My Junior-High Survival Guide |
| D．Science Fiction Is Better Than Literary Fiction |
