1 . In a new blog post for the International Monetary Fund, four researchers presented their findings from a working paper that examines the current relationship between finance and tech as well as its potential future.

Gazing into their crystal ball, the researchers see the possibility of using the data from your browsing, search, and purchase history to create a more accurate mechanism for determining the credit rating of an individual or business. They believe that this approach could result in greater lending to borrowers who would potentially be denied by traditional financial institutions.

At its heart, the paper is trying to wrestle with the dawning notion that the institutional banking system is facing a serious threat from tech companies like Google, Facebook, and Apple. The researchers identify two key areas in which this is true: Tech companies have greater access to soft-information, and messaging platforms can take the place of the physical locations that banks rely on for meeting with customers.

The concept of using your web history to inform credit ratings is framed around the notion that lenders rely on hard-data that might hide the worthiness of a borrower or paint an unnecessarily bad picture during hard times. Citing soft-data points like "the type of browser and hardware used to access the internet, the history of online searches and purchases" that could be included in evaluating a borrower, the researchers believe that when a lender has a closer relationship with the potential client's history, they might be more willing to cut them some slack.

"Banks tend to cushion credit terms for their long-term customers during downturns," the paper's authors write. This is because they have a history and relationship with the customer.

The researchers acknowledge that there will be privacy and policy concerns related to including this kind of soft-data in credit analysis. Getting the soft-data points would probably require companies like Facebook and Apple to loosen up their standards on linking unencrypted information with individual accounts. How they might share information with other institutions would be its own can of worms.

1. What is the approach put forward by the researchers?

A．Replacing banks with soft information.	B．Lending money by predicting the future.
C．Determining credit ratings by web history.	D．Facing the threat posed by high-tech companies.

2. Why do they advocate the new way of rating the borrower’s credit?

A．Traditional finance refuse to lend money.

B．The new approach helps reduce burden on banks.

C．The type of hardware misleads the lender’s judgement.

D．Soft information better reflects the truth than hard data.

3. Which is the closest in meaning with the underlined phrase in Paragraph 4?

A．Be less strict.

B．Share interests.

C．Forgive others’ fault.

D．Cut a piece of bread.

4. What do the researchers worry about?

A．Banks will break up with customers.

B．High tech companies will be in a mess.

C．Sharing information may cause problems of privacy.

D．Competition between tech companies will be more fierce.

2 . NOT that long ago, the world wondered whether clean energy could survive without government support. Now the question is how far it can spread. The number of electric vehicles, which was about 1 million in 2015, last year reached 2 million. In electricity generation, too, trend is with the greens. In the first half of this year wind, solar and hydro generated a record 35% of Germany's power.

Greater success is breeding greater ambition. California is proposing to reach 60% renewable energy by 2030. 176 countries have clean-energy goals. Hawaii, America's most oil-dependent state, has promised to be 100% renewable by the middle of the century and so have 48 poor countries vulnerable to climate change. This week the number of multinationals making a commitment to running their operations on 100% renewable energy rose to 100.

But not every target is helpful. To see why, consider that goal of 100% renewable energy. It makes solving climate change seem easy. In fact, though wind and solar can generate the whole country's electricity some day, renewables still account for less than 8% of the world's total power output. Moreover, cleaning up electricity is only part of the battle. Even though gas-fired heating and cooking can be at least as big a source of greenhouse-gas emissions, renewable heating gets little attention. Transport policy is unpredictable, too. Carmakers may hit their goal of annual sales of 10 million electric vehicles in a decade, but battery-powered road transport, shipping and aviation are dreams. A much-quoted claim that America could rely on wind, solar and hydro alone for its electricity has recently been bitterly criticized by a group of respected academics.

Most importantly, a 100% renewables target confuses means with ends. The priority for the planet is to stop net emissions（净排放量）of greenhouse gases, especially carbon dioxide. Putting too much emphasis on wind, solar and other renewables may block off better carbon-reduction paths. New technologies, such as "direct air capture" systems designed to separate carbon dioxide from the air, may in time prove vital. Likewise, greater energy efficiency could reduce emissions by even more than using renewables would.

1. Why is Germany mentioned in Paragraph 1?

A．To introduce the topic.

B．To compare with the USA.

C．To prove the possibility of the 100% renewables target.

D．To provide a successful example of producing clean energy.

2. What picture is described in the beginning of the passage?

A．A tough fight against climate change.

B．A promising future of clean energy.

C．A huge market of electric vehicles.

D．A fierce competition between countries.

3. Why is every target not realistic according to Paragraph 3?

A．Car makers cannot produce enough batteries.

B．Use of traditional energies causes air pollution.

C．Wind and solar energy will never meet the needs of a country.

D．New energy doesn't receive its due attention in every aspect of society.

4. Which of the following does the writer probably agree with?

A．New energy plays a minor role in reality.

B．Energy efficiency is prior to using renewables.

C．Mxiing up means with purposes matters most.

D．The target of 100 renewables is too high to reach.

3 . Ya Ting had taken me under her wing after hearing me speaking Chinese in a hotel in Lijiang．She had been hitchhiking(搭便车旅行) around China for months．She invited me to travel with her, which was how we ended up on the side of the road looking for a ride to the Tiger Leaping Gorge．Within 20 minutes, we had our first ride．The driver couldn’t take us all the way and ended up dropping us at a freeway crossroads．As a new hitchhiker, I thought that would be the end of our luck, but almost immediately we got another ride．

Our most unforgettable ride was when a twenty－something kid picked us up．He couldn’t take us the whole way so his uncle bought us lunch and a bus ticket for the rest of the journey．He felt it was his duty to help us find a way to complete our trip．It brought tears of joy and thankfulness to my eyes．This was the first time I understood how guests are respected(受尊重) in China．

A few weeks later, we said goodbye．I thought we had been so lucky because we had been a local(本地人) and a foreigner travelling together．But now Ya Ting was no longer around to do the talking, nor did I have someone to depend on if something went wrong．When I stood by a highway in Sichuan, I knew all about the difficulties before me．Now I was just a strange foreigner on her own who suddenly had to manage with poor Chinese．

After about 30 minutes, a couple picked me up and took me the whole eight hours to Chengdu．We ate lunch on the way, and they refused to allow me to pay for any of it, which I had come to learn was typical(特有的) of Chinese culture．This made me believe that people weren’t being friendly because of Ya Ting．

1. What do the author and Ya Ting have in common?

A．They both are foreigners．	B．They both live in Lijiang．
C．They both are hitchhikers．	D．They both speak Chinese well．

2. What can we learn about the author’s trip to the Tiger Leaping Gorge?

A．It was rather tiring．	B．It was very smooth．
C．It was full of danger．	D．It was heart－breaking．

3. What was the main cause of the author’s difficulties mentioned in Paragraph 3?

A．She lost her way．	B．She had little money left．
C．She was unable to find her friend．	D．She was a lone foreign traveler in China．

4. What did the couple do when taking the author to Chengdu?

A．They dropped her halfway．	B．They lent her some money．
C．They offered her a free lunch．	D．They taught her about Chinese culture．