1 . “Is data the new oil?” asked advocates of big data back in 2012 in Forbes magazine. By 2016, with the rise of big data’s fast-growing cousin deep learning, we had become more certain: “Data is the new oil,” stated Fortune magazine.
Amazon’s Neil Lawrence has a slightly different comparison: Data is coal. Not coal today, though, but coal in the early days of the 18th century, when Thomas Newcomen invented the steam engine. Newcomen built his device to pump water out of the southwest’s rich tin (锡) mines.
The problem, as Lawrence said, was that the pump was rather more useful to those who had a lot of coal than those who didn’t: it was good, but not good enough to be able to buy enough coal in to run it. That was so true that the first of Newcomen’s steam engines wasn’t built in a tin mine, but in coal works near Dudley.
So why is data coal? The problem is similar: there are a lot of Newcomen in the world of deep learning. New companies are coming up with revolutionary new ways to train machines to do impressive tasks, from reconstructing facial data from images to learning the writing style of an individual user to better predict which word they are going to type in a sentence. And yet, like Newcomen, their innovations are so much more useful to the people who actually have large amounts of raw material to work from.
But there is an ending to the story: 69 years later, James Watt made a nice change to the Newcomen steam engine, adding a condenser (冷凝器) to the design. That change, Lawrence said, “made the steam engine much more efficient, and that’s what triggered the industrial revolution.”
Whether data is oil or coal, then, there’s another way the comparison holds up: a lot of work is going into trying to make sure we can do more, with less.
“If you look at all the areas where deep learning is successful, they’re all areas where there’s lots of data,” points out Lawrence. That’s great if you want to classify images of cats, but less helpful if you want to use deep learning to diagnose rare illnesses. “It’s generally considered unacceptable to force people to become sick in order to acquire data.”
It’s not as impressive as teaching a computer to play a game better than any human alive, but “data efficiency” is a vital step if deep learning is to move away from simply taking in large amounts of data and giving out the best correlations (关联) possible.
1. The first of Newcomen’s steam engines wasn’t built in a tin mine because________.A.its operation required a lot of coal | B.it would lose its function in a tin mine |
C.it was in greater demand in coal works | D.the rich mines required more advanced aids |
A.Reconstructing facial data. | B.Predicting a word in a sentence. |
C.Classifying images of cats. | D.Diagnosing rare diseases. |
A.Watt’s condenser helped the steam engine consume less coal. |
B.Data involving patients is often collected through immoral ways. |
C.Teaching machines to learn is a vital step towards data efficiency. |
D.Thomas Newcomen’s steam engine had revolutionary applications. |
A.acquiring data is as complex as mining for coal |
B.a change is required to make more out of less data |
C.data is the new fuel to start an information revolution |
D.a larger amount of data is needed to accomplish something |
2 . Anne of Green Gables (1985)
Lucy Maud Montgomery’s novel Anne of Green Gables, previously filmed in 1934, was afforded a TV-movie treatment in 1985. Anne Shirley is an orphan girl sent to live with a foster family on Canada’s Prince Edward Island. Though she has great difficulty controlling her temper and vivid imagination, Anne eventually wins over her new guardians, bossy Marilla Cuthbert and Mailla’s shy brother Mathew. Anne’s journey is a happy one, but starts out difficult like those of many children adopted at an older age.
Martian Child (2007)
Martian Child tells the story of a widower, David, and his continuation of the adoption process he had started before his wife’s death. His new son, Dennis, believes that he is a Martian. David must contend with this belief and gain access into Dennis’s world. Both characters are born outsiders and they recognize their common sense of loss. Martian Child is a wonderful story for any adopted child, especially those who have created their own origin story to cope with the absence of their birth family.
Despicable Me (2010)
Despicable Me is championed for showing kids how much their presence impacts the lives of their adoptive parents. Gru is a super-bad guy until he meets orphans Margo, Edith and Agnes. They overturned his life and his evil plans as they work to warm his heart and home. Despicable Me is a funny kid movie on the surface, but truly has a lot to say about the love of a child and the effect of that love on their new parents and home.
Annie (2014)
In this remake of one of the most-beloved adoption stories, Annie’s positive attitude shines in the midst of incompetent social workers and greedy foster parents. The songs are cheerful and catchy and the film is happy. While this film could be very challenging for children who have experienced destructive placements, it is generally family-friendly. It also gets points for allowing Annie to exemplify several of the strengths of foster kids: hopeful, brave, tough and smart.
1. The films all deal with the theme of________.A.family conflict | B.parenting | C.adoption | D.child care |
A.Annie & Despicable Me | B.Annie & Anne of Green Gables |
C.Martian Child & Anne of Green Gables | D.Despicable Me & Martian Child |
A.Optimism sees Annie through her bad times. |
B.David tries hard to help Dennis cope with his new life. |
C.The films all have happy endings despite early difficulties. |
D.Despicable Me illustrates the power of love in a serious way. |
A. commercial | B. reducing | C. conduct | D. orbit | E. lunar | F. measures |
G. unmanned | H. programme | I. powerful | J. potentially | K. range |
China’s new Long March-8 rocket makes first flight
China’s new carrier rocket, the Long March-8, made its maiden flight on Tuesday, the country’s space agency said, the first phase of a strategy to deploy launch vehicles that can be reused.
The Long March-8 series is part of China’s endeavours to develop reusable rockets,
The programme has drawn parallels to private US rocket firm SpaceX’s Falcon
The new medium-lift carrier rocket sent five satellites into planned
It
The rocket’s design was based on technologies developed for previous Long March editions, Xinhua reported Tuesday.
It is also expected to lay the foundation for development of large and heavy rockets, shortening development periods and
The five experimental satellites launched by the new rocket will
Beijing has invested heavily in its space
A(n)
The Long March 8 rocket will eventually help China replace its fleet of medium-lift launch vehicles, providing launch services for low Earth orbit satellite constellations and payloads bound for higher altitudes, such as geosynchronous orbit, CASC said.
4 . How does VR work? How does wearable tech make you think you’re standing on Mars when you’re actually about to bump into the kitchen counter? We’ll be explaining how virtual reality headsets work here.
Let’s start with some basics.
The headset set-up is being used by Oculus, Sony, HTC, Samsung and Google, and usually requires three things. A PC, console or smartphone to run the app or game, a headset which secures a display in front of your eyes (which could be the phone’s display) and some kind of input-head tracking, controllers, hand tracking, voice, on-device buttons or trackpads.
Total immersion is what everyone making a VR headset, game or app is aiming towards— making the virtual reality experience so real that we forget the computer, headgear and accessories and act exactly as we would in the real world. So how do we get there?
VR headsets like Oculus Rift and PlayStation VR are often referred to as HMDs and all that means is that they are head mounted displays. Even with no audio or hand tracking, holding up Google Cardboard to place your smartphone’s display in front of your face can be enough to get you half-immersed in a virtual world.
The goal of the hardware is to create what appears to be a life size, 3D virtual environment without the boundaries we usually associate with TV or computer screens. So whichever way you look, the screen mounted to your face follows you. This is unlike AR which overlays graphics onto your view of the real world.
Video is sent from the console or computer to the headset via a HDMI cable in the case of headsets such as HTC’s Vive and the Rift. For Google’s Daydream headset and the Samsung Gear VR, it’s already on the smartphone slotted into the headset.
VR headsets use either two feeds sent to one display or two LCD displays, one per eye. There are also lenses which are placed between your eyes and the pixels which is why the devices are often called goggles. In some instances, these can be adjusted to match the distance between your eyes which varies from person to person.
1. The VR headset set-up calls for the following items except _________.
A.a game | B.a headset | C.a PC | D.a smart phone or console |
A.one invades another world which is quite different |
B.one is exposed to a virtual world as realistic as the real world |
C.one travels in a strange foreign country |
D.one is absorbed in the advanced technology of the headset |
A.VR headsets. | B.VR app. | C.VR smart phones. | D.VR lens. |
A.To overlay graphics onto your view of the real world. |
B.To create an environment that appears to be a life-size and 3D virtual. |
C.To generate a situation that is similar to TV or computer screens. |
D.To introduce an environment that enables one to live in a different world. |
5 . The TheatreWorks Writers’ Lab:
a development space for worldwide writers
24-HOUR WRITING COMPETITION
A programme of TheatreWorks Writer’s Lab
LET YOUR IDEAS SPARK
5 Stimuli
24 Hours
1 script
Are you up for it? Anyone can discover a new you through the competition!
The 24-hour writing competition organized by TheatreWorks Writers’ Lab is back for its 9th year!(Held at the peaceful seaside resort, Aloha Changi, the challenge is on again to stimulate one’s heart and mind to produce a script within 24 hours.)
TheatreWorks Writers’ Lab has for the past 16 years discovered and nurtured new talent, and provided research and development opportunities for existing writers.
Dates: Thu 29 July (4 pm) to Fri 30 July(4pm) 2010
Venue: Aloha Chanji
Competition Categories Prizes for each category
Youth Category 1st Prize: $800
15 to 18 years 2nd Prize: $500
Open Category 3rd Prize: $200
19 years and above Merit Prize: $100
Registration Fee Registration Deadline
Youth-$25 15 July 2016
Open-$25 Limited to 100 places
Visit www.theatreworks.org for a registration form.
1. The underlined word “nurtured” probably means _________.A.discovered | B.provided | C.emphasized | D.cultivated |
A.5 | B.8 | C.16 | D.24 |
A.The event was held by TheatreWorks Writers’ Lab. |
B.The highest prize is $800. |
C.The competition is limited to existing writers. |
D.The registration forms can be downloaded online. |
6 . Like most people, I’ve long understood that I’ll be judged by my occupation, that my profession is used by people to see how talented I am. Recently, however, I was disappointed to see that it also decides how I’m treated as a person.
Last year I left a professional position as a small-town reporter and took a job waiting tables. As someone paid to serve food to people, I had customers say and do things to me I suppose they’d never say or do to the people they know. One night a man talking on his cell phone waved me away, and then called me back with his finger a minute later, saying angrily that he was ready to order and asking where I’d been.
I had waited tables during summers in college and was treated like a peon (勤杂工) by plenty of people. But at 19 years old, I believed I deserved inferior treatment from professional adults. Besides, people responded to me differently after I told them I was in college. Customers would joke that one day I’d be sitting at their table, waiting to be served.
Once I graduated I took a job at a community newspaper. From my first day, I heard a respectful tone from everyone who called me. I assumed this was the way the professional world worked—politely and formally.
I soon found out differently. I sat several feet away from a person in advertising department with a similar name. Our calls would often get mixed up and someone asking for Kristen would be transferred to Christie. The mistake was immediately clear. Perhaps it was because of money, but people used a tone with Kristen that they never used with me.
It’s no secret that there’s a lot to put up with when waiting tables, and fortunately, much of it can be easily forgotten when you pocket the tips. The service industry exists to meet others’ needs. Still, it seemed that many of my customers didn’t get the difference between server and servant.
I’m now applying to graduate school, which means someday I’ll return to a profession where people need to be nice to me in order to get what they want. I think I’ll take them to dinner first, and see how they treat someone whose job is to serve them.
1. What makes the author disappointed?
A.Professionals tend to look down upon workers. |
B.Talented people have to do the job waiting tables. |
C.One’s position is used to measure one’s intelligence. |
D.Occupation affects the way one is treated as a person. |
A.Waiting tables is a hard job. |
B.Some customers are difficult to deal with. |
C.The man making a phone call is absent-minded. |
D.Some customers show no respect to those who serve them. |
A.She felt it unfair to be treated as a servant. |
B.She found it natural for professionals to treat her as inferior. |
C.She was embarrassed each time her customers joked with her. |
D.She felt badly hurt when her customers regarded her as a peon. |
A.see what kind of person they are |
B.experience the feeling of being served |
C.share her working experience with her customers |
D.help them realize the difference between server and servant |
7 . We suppose it makes sense that, after humans, connected dogs are the next big thing. Link AKC, backed by the American Kennel Club (hence the AKC), has just announced a smart collar
The collar does a few different things, from tracking your dogs’ location to
Like any wearable worth its salt (名副其实), the collar also
One of the best features, we think, is the temperature sensor that will
Finally, the collar has a
A lot of
The collar will cost $199, however you’ll also need to
The collar will be shipping by December 28, the company says, however right now it can only be ordered to the US. You can
A.enabled | B.designed | C.faced | D.inspected |
A.monitoring | B.committing | C.concerning | D.avoiding |
A.reality | B.reach | C.location | D.experiment |
A.magic | B.virtual | C.realistic | D.powerful |
A.for sure | B.in case | C.so that | D.in spite of |
A.appears | B.distinguishes | C.manufactures | D.functions |
A.account | B.step | C.concern | D.thrill |
A.delight | B.criticize | C.alert | D.inspect |
A.thanks to | B.due to | C.owing to | D.despite |
A.effectively | B.harmlessly | C.potentially | D.currently |
A.performance | B.feature | C.condition | D.technology |
A.share | B.solve | C.create | D.measure |
A.emphasis | B.effect | C.foundation | D.consideration |
A.enter | B.add | C.sign | D.enroll |
A.preserve | B.conserve | C.maintain | D.reserve |
A. equipment;B. exposing;C. entertainment;D. interact;E. reality;F. eventually G. proved; H. dramatically;I. significant;J. applications;K. virtual |
Most people associate virtual reality with the world of gaming or
Virtual reality, or VR, is a computer-generated technology that creates a three-dimensional digital world that you can not only see and observe, but explore and
VR now has serious
In the world of work too, VR may change our lives
Some VR developers predict that the impact of VR could be as
Many drivers dream of the day
Google was one of the first
But the driverless car is only a “fair weather friend”, the Daily Mail
According to the MIT Technology Review, the current driverless cars can’t react like a human driver. They can’t drive in heavy rain or snow.
Chris Urmson, director of the Google car team, said that this is because the detection technology is not yet good enough to separate certain objects from weather conditions. In the cars’eyes, raindrops and snowflakes are the same
But even at that time, driverless cars won’t be truly “driverless”.
In the US, only
European countries, Mexico, Chile, Brazil and Russian follow the United Nations Convention on Road Traffic. The convention used to say: “Every driver
10 . Self-driving cars raise fears over "weaponisation"
Autonomous vehicles are in danger of being turned into "weapons", leading governments around the world to block cars operated by foreign companies, the head of Baidu's self-driving car programme has warned.
Qi Lu, chief operating officer at the Chinese internet group, said security concerns could become a problem for global car-makers and technology companies, including the US and China.
"It has nothing to do with any particular government -- has to do with the very nature of autonomy," he said on the sidelines of the Consumer Electronics Show last week. "You have an object that is capable of moving by itself. By definition, it is a weapon."
Increasingly, self-driving technology is seen as advancing faster than regulators can keep up with. Regional and national governments are struggling with the issue of when to allow autonomous cars on to their roads and under what conditions.
Multinational companies will have a "high bar" to meet local policy requirements for autonomous driving," Mr. Lu said. "The days of building a vehicle in one place and it runs everywhere are over. Because a vehicle that can more by itself by definition it is a weapon."
Baidu is investing heavily in Apollo, its open-source autonomous car software, as it looks to shift away from its core business of internet advertising into artificial intelligence. At CES, it unveiled Apollo 2.0, which offers improved security, alongside a new $200m fund to invest in south-east Asian efforts to improve autonomous driving.
Mr. Lu, who joined Baidu from Microsoft a year ago, said autonomous vehicles should reduce fatalities on the road, whether caused accidentally or intentionally as an act of terrorism. Pointing to incidents in London and Charlottesville where cars were used intentionally to run down pedestrians, he said: "In the future, these cars won't move if they see a human in front of them -- it doesn't matter who controls the car."
Despite the "overwhelming benefits" of autonomous driving. Mr. Lu said it would not happen without a "log of dialogue" between companies, regulators and politicians. "How we ensure safety, in my view, is going to be journey," he said.
Mr. Lu also said the open nature of Apollo, to which any company can contribute new software coding, would help Baidu navigate regulatory challenges.
"Apollo is created by Baidu but not owned by Baidu," he said. "We fundamentally believe that an open system that cultivates an environment where the best of breed can participate is better than one single company that does it alone."
1. Which of the following is banned by governments all over the world?A.Self-driving cars used as offensive weapons. |
B.Vehicles that are capable of moving by itself. |
C.Undocumented self-driving car programme. |
D.Autonomous cars owned by foreign companies. |
A.self-driving cars can be seen as weapons because they are autonomous |
B.some government have strong hostility towards self-driving technology. |
C.autonomous technology is advancing faster than regulators can understand. |
D.customers can only buy and drive self-driving cars from domestic brands. |
A.Baidu's artificial intelligence project |
B.Baidu's electric self-driving car. |
C.Baidu's autonomous car software. |
D.Baidu's core business of the future. |
A.They can change direction in accordance with the operator |
B.They can avoid any obstacle ahead of them. |
C.They can give priority to cars rather than pedestrians. |
D.They can stop automatically when detecting a living creature. |