1 . Stories are shared in many ways. They are described in books and magazines. They are read around the campfire at night. They are randomly distributed from stand-alone booths. But what else?
To revive literature in the era of fast news and smartphone addiction, Short Edition, a French publisher of short-form literature, has set up more than 30 story dispensers (分发机) in the USA in the past years to deliver fiction at the push of a button at restaurants, universities and government offices.
Francis Ford Coppola, the film director and winemaker, liked the idea so much that he invested in the company and placed a dispenser at his Cafe Zoetrope in San Francisco. Last month, public libraries in some other cities announced they would be setting them up, too. There is one on the campus at Penn State. A few can be found in downtown West Palm Beach, Fla. And Short Edition plans to announce more, including at the Los Angeles International Airport.
“Everything old is new again,” said Andrew Nurkin, director of the Free Library of Philadelphia, which is one of the libraries that set up the dispensers. “We want people to be easily exposed to literature. We want to advance literacy among children and inspire their creativity.”
Here’s how a dispenser works. It has three buttons on top indicating choices for stories that can be read in one minute, three minutes or five minutes. When a button is pushed, a short story is printed.
The stories are free. They are chosen from a computer category of more than 100,000 original submissions by writers whose works have been evaluated by Short Edition’s judges, and transmitted over a mobile network. Offerings can be tailored to specific interests, like children’s fiction or romance. Short Edition gets stories for its category by holding writing contests.
Short Edition set up its first booth in 2016 and has 150 machines worldwide. “The idea is to make people happy,” said Kristan Leroy, director of Short Edition. “There is too much unhappiness today.”
1. What do we know about the stories sent by dispensers?| A．They are easily read. |
| B．They are short in form. |
| C．They can be bought from booths. |
| D．They can be found in magazines. |
| A．Paragraph 3. | B．Paragraph 5. |
| C．Paragraph 6. | D．Paragraph 7. |
| A．To introduce French literature. |
| B．To get rid of smartphone addiction. |
| C．To make people have access to literature. |
| D．To reduce the financial stress of libraries. |
| A．Everything Old Is New |
| B．Online Reading: a Virtual Tour |
| C．Short Edition Is Getting Popular |
| D．Taste of Literature, at the Push of a Button |
2 . I don’t remember the exact date I met Marty for the first time. Like a lot of people who want to get through a checkout line, I found my thoughts on speed, nothing more. The line I was standing in wasn’t moving as quickly as I wanted, and I glanced toward the cashier, who was receiving money from customers.
He was an old man in his sixties. I thought, well, it probably took him a little longer to get the jobs done. For the next few minutes I watched him. He greeted every customer before he began scanning the goods they were purchasing. Sure, his words were the usual, “How’s it going?” But he did something different—he actually listened to people. Then he would respond to what they had said and talk with them briefly.
I thought it was strange, but I guessed I had grown accustomed to people asking me how I was doing simply out of a conversation without thinking. Usually, after a while, you don’t give any thought to the question and just say something back quietly.
This old cashier seemed sincere about wanting to know how people were feeling. Meanwhile, the high-tech cash register rang up their purchases and he announced what they owed. When customers handed money to him, he pushed the appropriate keys, the cash drawer popped open, and he counted out their change.
Then magic happened.
He placed the change in his left hand, walked around the counter to the customers, and extended his right hand in an act of friendship. As their hands met, the old cashier looked the customers in the eyes. “I want to thank you for shopping here today,” he told them. “You have a great day. Bye-bye.” The looks on the faces of the customers were priceless.
Now it was my turn. I glanced down at the name tag on his red waistcoat, the kind experienced Wal-Mart cashier wore. It read, “Marty.”
Marty told me how much I owed and I handed him some money. The next thing I knew he was standing beside me, offering his right hand and holding my change in his left hand. His kind eyes locked onto mine. Smiling, and with a firm handshake…
1. While the author stood in the checkout line, she felt ______.| A．mad | B．enthusiastic | C．comfortable | D．impatient |
| A．talk about unimportant topics | B．develop a mindless conversation |
| C．remain calm while having a talk | D．face communication problems |
| A．He was patient with all the questions from customers. |
| B．He spent as much time as possible serving customers. |
| C．He expressed his sincerity while giving back the change. |
| D．He showed particular interest in customers’ personal life. |
| A．Marty was a talkative man. |
| B．Marty cared a lot about what he did. |
| C．The author got along well with others. |
| D．The author was dissatisfied with such a waste of time. |
3 . The Google Brain team has been working on computing systems called “neural networks”—systems that were designed based on how neurons work in the human brain.
This time, they gave a mission to three of the neural networks, which they named Alice, Bob and Eve. Each of the networks had its own job—Alice sent messages to Bob, Eve tried to “eavesdrop”(偷听) and find out the messages, and Alice and Bob had to figure out a way to hide the messages from Eve. All the help that Alice and Bob got from the researchers before the mission began was made up of a set of numbers, which Eve didn’t have access to.
At first, Alice was not very good at sending secret messages. But slowly it worked on a way to encrypt(加密) them—putting information into a special code so that others could not understand it if they got the information—using he numbers given by researchers. And after practice, Bob also came to be able to decrypt(解密) Alice’s messages. Without the numbers or keys, Eve failed to understand Alice’s “speech” most of the time.
This test is considered a big step in the development of computers’ learning skills. “Computing with neural networks on this scale has only become possible in the last few years, so we truly are at the beginning of what’s possible, ” Joe Sturonas of US encryption company PKWARE told New Scientist magazine.
Unfortunately, the test happened only one week after UK physicist Stephen Hawking, While speaking at Cambridge University, warned how AI(artificial intelligence)could develop a will of its own. This could be “either the best or the worst thing ever to happen to human being”, he said.
But just as Sturonas pointed out, no matter what the possibilities of computers are in the future, they are just starting out. We still have plenty of time to work out a solution before they get anywhere near becoming a threat to humanity.
1. For what purpose was the test conducted?| A．To study how neurons work in the human brain. |
| B．To study how computing systems work and learn. |
| C．To find out a more effective way to keep secrets. |
| D．To find out a more powerful way to break the codes. |
| A．encrypting—messages—code—messages—decrypting |
| B．messages—encrypting—code—decrypting—messages |
| C．code—messages—encrypt—decrypting—messages |
| D．messages—code—decrypting—encrypting—messages |
| A．AI must be a blessing. | B．AI should be forbidden. |
| C．AI is sure to be a failure. | D．AI is a double-edged sword. |
| A．Hopeful. | B．Doubtful. |
| C．Puzzled. | D．Panicked. |
4 . For decades, world wars and fears of a brave new world have made British workers very anxious. Yet it appears that the rise of robots has been overestimated, according to new data. The Office of National Statistics (ONS) published a series of data which showed that far fewer jobs are at risk of replacement by robots than previously thought.
In 2017, out of the 19.9 million jobs analyzed in England, 7. 4 percent of people were employed in jobs at high risk of replacement. This marked a fall of 0.7 percent less than in 2011. However, the number of employees that were in jobs at low risk of replacement in 2017 was 27.7 percent of all employees, a rise of 2.4 percent since 2011.
The ONS found that the three jobs with the highest possibility of replacement are waiters and waitresses, shelf fillers and the most basic sales jobs. As expected, regular things in a fixed order and repeated tasks can be carried out more quickly and efficiently by an algorithm(计算程序) written by a human, or a machine designed for specific functions. Therefore, the risk of replacement in such jobs is to be higher.
However, the three jobs at the lowest risk of replacement are doctors, higher education professionals and senior education professionals. Furthermore, while the general number of jobs has increased, most of these are jobs that are at low or medium (中等的) risk, suggesting that the labour market may be changing to jobs that require more complex skills.
Alessandro, an expert in AI, said he was not surprised by the fall in jobs which were at risk. “When something like technology becomes fashionable, there's a rise in major expectations. Our expectation reaches the highest point, and then it comes back down to a more realistic level,” he added.
1. What do data in paragraph 2 mainly want to show?| A．Robots are helpful to job market. |
| B．The future of robots looks bright, |
| C．Robots have better performance than people. |
| D．The threat of job replacement by robots isn't as serious as expected. |
| A．Regular and repeated tasks are likely to be replaced. |
| B．The work of service will no longer exist. |
| C．More people prefer working on computers. |
| D．Jobs with lower pay will totally be replaced by machines. |
| A．Doubtful. | B．Uncertain. |
| C．Supportive. | D．Critical. |
| A．Most Jobs Are Being Replaced by Robot |
| B．Jobs Replaced by Robots Are Fewer Than Thought |
| C．People's Anxiety on Education |
| D．The Robot Application on Education Industry |
5 . Kids Nature and Survival Camp
Set free your kids’ imagination and spirit of adventure at this camp, as they learn about the natural environment and the important skills of survival.
Activity overview
* 44-day Camp in the Santa Cruz Mountains
* Basic Survival Skills: Shelter, Water, Fire, Food
* Expert Instructors-with a minimum of 10 years of experience
* Set your own custom(定制的) camp date
Details
* The camp will run for 5 hours each day: 9 am-2 pm.
* This class is 100% hands-on and very active. Everything your kids learn, they will do—no indoor classrooms or long lectures.
* Each day will center around one of the 4 main necessities of survival: SHELTER(day 1). WATER(day 2), FIRE(day 3), and FOOD(day 4).
Dates offered
* We offer 1 public camp date each summer for ages 8-12. For 2021, that date is August 5-8(9 am-2 pm each day). To book that date for a child between the ages of 8-12, please click the REGISTER NOW link below.
* We also arrange custom/private camp dates for both kids and teens all year round.
Extra information
* 4-Day Camp: $395
* Add shuttle(班车) ride to/from downtown Santa Cruz for $160($40 per day)
* At this time we do not have shuttle service from the Silicon Valley side of the hill, but we do work to help organize carpools(拼车) from the Los Gatos/Saratoga/Campbell area each year for interested parents.
1. What will kids learn if they join the camp?| A．How to make long lectures. | B．How to survive in the wild. |
| C．How to organize a camp. | D．How to improve their imagination. |
| A．It is free for all children. | B．Children could learn it online. |
| C．It is based on practicing in person to learn. | D．Kids could hook a public camp date each spring. |
| A．Los Gatos. | B．Santa Cruz. | C．Saratoga. | D．Campbell. |
6 . From now on, never spend your precious time thinking of reasons for your failures and shortcomings. Instead, realize that the seeds of success were planted within you when you were born. Only you have the power to make those seeds grow.
The seeds, and the power to grow them, are contained in the most awesome machine ever created：the human mind. Success is a choice and not a chance. You were born a winner. You were born rich. You can be a success if only you make the right choice.
You cannot be successful without first developing your self-esteem. Your level of self-esteem is always based on the degree of control that you are able to exercise over yourself, and thus over your life. People with low self-esteem are people who do not believe that they have any power, or responsibility for their lives. They are the perennial（长期的）victims and martyrs. They are leaves tossed（摇摆）by the winds of chance blown about with any sudden change in the weather.
You can exercise control over your life only to the degree that you believe that you are responsible for everything that happens in your life. Failures think that everything happens by accident and chance. Successful people realize that they are responsible.
Everything happens as a result of something. If we can identify the cause, we can control the effect. We are responsible for what we choose to think and believe. One generally rises to the level that one expects. We are responsible for setting our expectations. Our success is dependent upon our level of confidence.
If you associate with positive-thinking people, you are definitely going to achieve success. On the contrary, the opposite happens. We are responsible for finding, planting, and nurturing the seeds that contain future victory, born from setbacks.
In short, in all areas of your life, whether they be financial, physical, emotional, or spiritual, you are responsible. Once you recognize this, accept it, and firmly believe it, you are on the road to success.
1. People with low self-esteem are compared to leaves because they ______.| A．are ready to change their minds | B．are easily affected by windy weather |
| C．don't have the power to face their fate | D．can't exercise control over themselves |
| A．success is the result of hard work | B．working hard will lead to success |
| C．their failure is only because of bad luck | D．they don't make efforts to succeed |
| A．whether we will succeed depends on our attitudes |
| B．one’s expectation is the key to future success |
| C．thoughts and beliefs are the result of creative mind |
| D．setting our expectations is essential before taking action |
| A．the proof of the author's points | B．the conclusion of the argument |
| C．an introduction to another topic | D．a comparison between two views |
| A．The secrets of success． | B．Success is a choice． |
| C．Develop our confidence． | D．How to achieve success． |
7 . There are various reasons why people travel. Some tourists go to see battlefields or other historic remains. Others are looking for culture, or simply want to have their pictures taken in front of famous places. Most European tourists are looking for a sunny beach to lie on.
Northern Europeans are willing to pay a lot of money for the sun because they have so little of it. People of cities like London, Copenhagen and Amsterdam spend much of their winter in the dark because the days are so short, and much of the rest of the year in the rain. This is the reason why the Mediterrancan has always attracted them.
Every summer many people travel to Mediterranean resorts and beaches for their vacation. They all come for the same reason: sun! The huge crowds mean lots of money for the economics of Mediterranean countries. Italy’s 30,000 hotels are booked without a break every summer. And 13 million people camp on French beaches, parks and roadsides. About 37 million tourists visit there yearly, or one tourist for each person living in Spain.
But there are signs that the area is getting more tourism than it can deal with. The Mediterrancan is already one of the most polluted seas on earth. None of these, however, is ruining anyone’s fun. Obviously, they don’t go there for clean water. They allow traffic jams and seem to like crowded beaches. They don’t even mind the pollution. No matter how dirty the water is, the coastline still looks beautiful. And as long as the sun shines, ifs still better than sitting in the cold rain in Berlin, London, or Olso.
1. Europeans travel mostly for the reason that ___________.| A．they are interested in different cultural and social customs |
| B．they want to see some famous historic sites |
| C．they would1 like to take pictures in front of famous places |
| D．they wish to escape from the cold and darkness |
| A．all the 37 million people living in Spain are tourists |
| B．there are a large number of tourists visiting Spain |
| C．every person living in Spain has to take care of a tourist |
| D．every family in Spain is visited by a tourist every year |
| A．Polluted water. | B．Crowded buses. | C．Rainy weather. | D．Traffic jams. |
| A．People travel for different reasons. | B．Travelling causes a lot of problems. |
| C．Northern Europeans travel for sun. | D．Europeans are fond of travelling. |
8 . La Belle Personne is boring, but I love it. The 2008 French film features extremely softened and washed-out colors, a relatively uneventful plotline, and lifeless performances from the main characters, all of which give the film its unique charm.
The plain beauty of La Belle Personne comes not from its extremely unique plot, but rather its literary elements. Of course, the film is visually pretty lacking in liveliness. An editor must have purposely and smartly dealt with every single shot. The dominating colors in each of these shots are a vivid black, grey and white, making for a melancholic(忧郁的）atmosphere. While one could easily view this lack of vividness as exhausting,I would argue that it makes for a beautifully unconventional cinematic experience.
There are no artificial mental spark stimulated by the visuals, and the viewers must therefore sit with themselves for an hour and a half, reflecting on what the piece personally means to them and how it genuinely makes them feel. Aside from a few major plot points, nothing terribly remarkable happens in La Belle Personne. It's more like a lazy river under grey skies where the water is slightly too cold. But if you relax, your body temperature adjusts and you can sit back and just enjoy the ride.
Although our current world may be both literally and symbolically on fire, it's no secret that campus life in and of itself is considerably more boring than usual. With no parties to attend, most classes online, and the majority of clubs limited to Zoom Meetings, waking up every day might feel a bit more tedious. However, just like La Belle Personne has shown us, it's important to appreciate your environment for what it is. In terms of campus life, sometimes it's not so horrible for things to be slow-paced, as it allows space for reflection and being present.
1. What do we know about La Belle Personne from the first paragraph?| A．It enjoys high popularity. |
| B．It owns special artistic charm. |
| C．It applies modern techniques. |
| D．It features lively performances. |
| A．All its viewers feel positive on it. |
| B．It gives viewers a sense of ridiculousness. |
| C．It suits those preferring sensory stimulation. |
| D．It is worth tasting slowly and heart-wholly. |
| A．Boring. | B．Painstaking. | C．Impractical. | D．Unnecessary. |
| A．To show the importance of going to the movies. |
| B．To recommend people to enjoy an unique movie. |
| C．To introduce a way to appreciate a certain movie. |
| D．To call for a slow-paced and positive school life. |
9 . A pair of hi-tech, smart glasses has been designed to scan crowds of people and find missing children“within seconds". Jerry Farsoun has promised that the "world-first" glasses, would not record video or collect private data. One pair of glasses sells for $2,200 until February and then the price will be $3,000.
Mr Farsoun, from Greensborough, said a feeling of helplessness he experienced after his two-year-old son disappeared among crowds at Federation Square in Melbourne two years ago sparked the idea, which has been developed by a company founded by him called Leelou.
"Instead of the whole process where someone describes the missing person s features and what they're wearing, all of that--this technology already has the person's profile in its system and cuts straight to looking for the person," Mr Farsoun said. A person's profile is created through the free app, Leelou, and at the press of an SOS button, audio and GPS coordinates (坐标) are instantly sent to a user's nominated guardians (指定监护人) and displayed on a dashboard. Guardians wearing the glasses can then scan the crowd until the technology matches the missing profile to the correct person. Whoever finds the missing person is then rewarded between 70 to 80 per cent of the $165 fee to create the profile on Leelou. “The glasses act like a human eye--they scan crowds, screening for the missing person and providing personal safety during big, public gatherings," Mr Farsoun said.“We then reward users to help locate missing children."
The glasses could also act like a phone, so that wearers could watch Netflix, access Alexa and social media sites--and more than 150 other apps. He said the invention could help people feel more positive about the usefulness of technology, rather than focus on negatives, such as the potential for invasion of privacy. Leelou is available on Apple and Google app stores, while glasses can be pre-ordered from Leelou’s website. Mr Farsoun said his team was ready to start delivering the glasses to customers. "This has the potential to cut the number of children reported missing each year in Australia."
1. What led Mr Farsoun to getting involved in this invention?| A．The despair after his son’s missing. |
| B．Many reports on missing children. |
| C．His own experience of getting lost. |
| D．Smart devices that can scan crowds. |
| A．The audio and GPS of a person. |
| B．A detailed description of a person. |
| C．Contact information of a person. |
| D．Privacy and secrets of a person. |
| A．The high price. |
| B．Limited functions. |
| C．Invasion of privacy |
| D．Harmful scanning rays. |
| A．Hi-tech Glasses Act as Your Safety Guard |
| B．Glasses Have Cut the Number of Lost Kids |
| C．Smart Glass Help to Spot Missing Kids |
| D．Locating Missing Kids Can Be Rewarded |
10 . The January fashion show, called Future Fashion, exemplified how far green design has come. Organized by the New York-based nonprofit Earth Pledge, the show inspired many top designers to work with sustainable (可持续的) fabrics for the first time. Several have since promised to include organic fabrics in their lines.
The designers who undertake green fashion still face many challenges. Scott Hahn, a cofounder with Gregory of Rogan and Loomstate, which uses all-organic cotton, says high-quality sustainable materials can still be tough to find. “Most designers with existing labels are finding there aren’t comparable materials that can just replace what you’re doing and what your customers are used to,” he says. For example, organic cotton and non-organic cotton are virtually indistinguishable once woven into a dress. But some popular synthetics(合成物), like stretch nylon, still have few eco-friendly equivalents(等同物).
Those who do make the switch are finding they have more support. Last year the influential trade show Designers & Agents stopped charging its participation fee for young green entrepreneurs (企业家) who attend its two springtime shows in Los Angeles and New York and gave special recognition to designers whose collections are at least 25% sustainable. It now counts more than 50 green designers, up from fewer than a dozen two years ago.
This week Wal-Mart is set to announce a major initiative(举措) aimed at helping cotton farmers go organic: it will buy transitional cotton at higher prices, thus helping to expand the supply of a key sustainable material. “Main-stream is about to occur,” says Hahn.
Some analysts are less sure. Among consumers, only 18% are aware that eco-fashion exists, up from 6% four years ago. Natalie Hormilla, a fashion writer, is an example of the consumer who is unwilling to make changes. When asked if she owned any sustainable clothes, she replied, “Not that I’m aware of.” Like most consumers, she finds little time to shop, and when she does, she’s on the hunt for “cute stuff that isn’t too expensive.” By her own admission, green just isn’t yet on her mind. But thanks to the combined efforts of designers, retailers and suppliers—one day it will be.
1. What is said about Future Fashion?| A．It inspired leading designers to start going green. |
| B．It showed that designers using organic fabrics would go far. |
| C．It served as an example of how fashion shows should be organized. |
| D．It convinced the public that fashionable clothes should be made durable. |
| A．much more time is needed to finish a dress using sustainable materials |
| B．they have to create new brands for clothes made of organic materials |
| C．customers have difficulty telling organic from non-organic materials |
| D．quality organic replacements for synthetics are not readily available |
| A．She doesn’t seem to care about it. | B．She doesn’t think it is sustainable. |
| C．She is doubtful of its practical value. | D．She is opposed to the idea very much. |
