1 . T. S. Eliot wrote of “Distracted from distraction by distraction /Filled with fancies and empty of meaning.” T. S. Eliot never had a smartphone.
Neither did I for a long time. No Facebook account; not even email. But according to my date of manufacture, I’m supposed to be a digital native. Perhaps it’s because by the age of 20 I was living in the Welsh countryside with no signal and no Wi-Fi.
When I finally fell into the digital world, I fell hard. Unlike my friends for whom social media and mobile technology had grown and flowered around them, for me it was a sudden immersion. I got Facebook, Twitter and Gmail accounts at the same time that I got an iPhone 4. I would check my phone; five minutes later I would check my phone again. I was addicted and it started to affect my relationships with friends and family
One night, without a word, I abandoned my iPhone and bought a Nokia 3310 and became the talk of the town. Soon I became aware that not only had I stolen secret time back from the hurried days, but somehow a secret space as well. I could stretch out, free to think again, to be wholly creative and to learn meaningfully.
But, wherever I went I got bloody lost. Wandering blindly around London, only to miss appointments, became a frequent pastime (消遣). What did we do before Google Maps? I was useless. The change was worth it, though. I’ll sound like an overstatement but I think it changed my life. My choices are broader and healthier because I’m not being screamed at all day.
I bought a new Samsung phone last week. I had been scared of the rate of progress, crying: “Stop the train! Stop the madness.” But I want to be part of building the future, and to do that, you’ve got to swim in contemporary waters. Rejecting the modern world doesn’t help anyone. It slows you down and I need to be efficient. Time will tell whether I’ve mastered the wisdom to reject constantly checking my phone.
1. What can be learned about the author when she lived in the Welsh countryside?| A．She read a lot of T. S. Eliot. | B．She had no friends to talk with. |
| C．She had no access to the Internet. | D．She was afraid of the digital world. |
| A．She thought she needed a spare phone. | B．She found her iPhone stopped working. |
| C．She wanted to attract people’s attention. | D．She hoped to break her smartphone addiction. |
| A．She led a simple and healthy life. | B．She found her life was in a mess. |
| C．She spent more time with her friends. | D．She became an example for other people. |
| A．To seek wisdom. | B．To stop her madness. |
| C．To keep pace with the times. | D．To get back to the real world. |
2 . ZHAO ZHIZHONG, a professor of geography at Hainan Normal University, recently proposed to make the law and forbid pupils below the age of 16 to use smartphones. Beijing Youth Daily comments:
With the prosperity of the economy, many families choose to buy a smartphone for their children at school to search for materials and assist in studying.
In and out of class, the pupils have smartphones in their hands.
It seems the heavy addiction to smartphones is affecting ever more pupils at young ages.
There are certain countries that limit pupils from using smartphones in class but allow them to use them after it.
| A．While walking, they hold them in their hands. |
| B．So a flexible ban can be considered to avoid the trouble. |
| C．They, just like their parents, have become enslaved by smartphones. |
| D．However, it remains doubtful whether a simple ban is proper. |
| E．Perhaps a child model for smartphones can also be introduced. |
| F．The actual effect remains to be seen. |
| G．In fact, when children get their smartphones, the situation is different. |
1.网络对教育的影响（利与弊）；
2.你的建议。
注意:1.词数80左右；
2.开头和结尾已给出，不计入总词数;
3.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯。
Dear Sir/Madam,
The Internet has transformed the world into a global village, altering all aspects of our life, especially education.
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4 . The current generation is not like any other generation I have seen in history. Due to the rise in technology, the world is evolving fast and changing the way most of us do things. Today’s young generation is so used to the technology which they learn very quickly. It could be considered as a benediction, but there are times when it is not appropriate.
In my generation, we met friends face to face to have real conversations rather than texting each other all the time. We walked everywhere, to the store or up the stairs instead of climbing into our car or on a motored skateboard each time we had to go two or three blocks away.
Most of the new generation expects things to be done for them. If something requires some extra effort or focus, they are easily discouraged. But if we want to reach success in this day and age, it is expected of us to work to achieve our dreams. The old generation knows that the world does not owe them squat. It understands that no one else than them can do it and that is their responsibility to make something of themselves.
Nowadays, there is no longer a sense of honor, because most people hide behind a computer screen. When you handle issues or hate for no reason over social media, it just proves that you are a weak person. I just put an ad in one of my groups for teaching Kung Fu, and one hater wrote “Kung Fu clown.” And this is for no reason as I have never seen or met the guy before.
The new generation relies too much on social media for their lives and doing things. It is okay to use it but not to abuse it. My final word is that each generation has its own advantages and downsides, but what matters is that each generation, old or new, has to give lessons which are valuable for future generations.
1. What does the underlined word “benediction” in Paragraph 1 mean?| A．Drawback. | B．Blessing. | C．Prejudice. | D．Criterion. |
| A．By analyzing reasons. | B．By explaining concepts. |
| C．By criticizing young guys. | D．By comparing generations. |
| A．The rapid development of social media. | B．The tough situations for future generations. |
| C．New generation’s inappropriate behaviour. | D．Genuine strangers behind computer screens. |
| A．The balanced use of social media | B．Lessons for old generations |
| C．The growth of new technology | D．No reason for hating others |
5 . Digital assistants such as Siri are increasingly common on phones and computers. Developing an emotional relationship with a piece of software can, however, bring discomfort to some people.
As a study published in Psychological Science by Park Daeun, of Chungbuk National University in South Korea, and her colleagues, shows, one emotion sometimes involved in machine-human interaction is embarrassment.
Dr Park and her team recruited 187 participants into their study. To start with, each was presented with a series of statements like “you have a certain amount of intelligence, and you can’t really do much to change it”, and “you can always substantially change how intelligent you are”. Participants rated their responses to these statements on a six-point scale, on which one meant “strongly disagree” and six meant “strongly agree”. The reason for this initial test was that Dr. Park knew from previous work that, in academic settings, those who believe intelligence to be changeable are comfortable asking for assistance while those who believe it to be fixed often feel ashamed to do so.
The initial test done, the researchers presented their volunteers with a second test, which involved looking at 16 sets of three words and trying to think of a fourth word that linked them. For example, when offered “room, blood, salts” , a correct answer would be “bath”. Sometimes the first three words were accompanied by an unrequested hint (in the example given, this was “tub”). Sometimes they were not.
Hints appeared as the written form of the word in question,accompanied bya computer-shaped icon (图形). For half of participants this icon had a humanlike face, and the hint was placed inside a speech bubble originating from that face, thus anthropomorphising (赋予人性) the presentation to some degree. For the other half the icon lacked a face and there was no speech bubble. After the final set of words had been displayed, participants were asked to agree or disagree with follow-up statements about their experience, such as “it was embarrassing to receive help during the task”, and “others might think I am incompetent (无能的) because I received help during the task.” This time, they quantified their feelings on a seven-point scale, with high scores representing greater feelings of unease.
The researchers found that participants who believed intelligence to be unchangeable (the top sixth of the sample) felt more embarrassed and more incompetent after the tests. They averaged 3.2 when measured for feelings of shame and embarrassment if the computer icons they had seen giving the hints had had faces and speech bubbles. But only 2.7 if not. In contrast, people who strongly believed that intelligence could be changed over time (the bottom sixth of the sample) felt the same level of discomfort (around 2.5) whether or not the icons had been anthropomorphised.
1. The initial test is meant to classify the participants according to ________.| A．how intelligent they are in academic settings |
| B．how familiar they are with previous research |
| C．how much they agree with Dr Park’s viewpoint |
| D．how much they believe intelligence is unchangeable |
| A．request a useful hint at a proper time |
| B．link the four words given with a key word |
| C．tell computer-shaped icons from face-shaped ones |
| D．answer whether they feel comfortable to receive help |
| A．Those who believe intelligence can change are more likely to refuse computers’ assistance. |
| B．Those regarding intelligence as fixed may feel less at ease when turning to computers. |
| C．Those regarding intelligence as fixed are more likely to feel embarrassed in real life. |
| D．Those who believe intelligence can change are more capable than those who don’t. |
| A．How machine-human interaction will develop remains to be seen. |
| B．People need to change their understanding of artificial intelligence. |
| C．Sometimes, computer programs seem too human for their own good. |
| D．So far, the digital assistants have not taken human emotion into account. |
6 . For Italy, part of the challenge is to transform places like Colle di Tora, a small town outside Rome, which are not so much cut off from the modern world, as a little behind.
At the moment the post office-which the town’s 360 residents rely on to withdraw cash, as there is no bank-sometimes closes down because its Internet fails. Bad weather can interrupt the signal, and is also a problem for mobile phone reception and streaming TV services.
The last time a customer tried to pay by card in Anna Rita Pani’s grocery store, things got a bit awkward. They had to wait 15 minutes for the card reader to work.
Simona Cardella said her teenage daughter struggled with online lessons while schools were closed. Sometimes the audio was off, sometimes the video was off, and if the weather was bad, the signal was cut off completely.
Mayor Pandolfi notes that taking latest generation broadband（光纤宽带）to isolated（隔绝的）areas like Colle Di Tora could make them attractive locations for remote working. For other residents, it would just bring them into the 21st century. Pani’s 22-year-old son Nicolas is a keen gamer, but he complains it can take “four-five days” to download a game that his friends in Rome can get in a couple of hours.
Fortunately, Colle di Tora is on a government list of 200 cities for building the fibre optic broadband. This week, workers were laying fibre optic cables in one of the main squares, and telecoms company Open Fiber said super-fast Internet would be operational by the year’s end.
Nearly a quarter of Italians do not use the Internet, and one third of households have no fixed connection, according to figures by national statistics agency Istat. The government wants every Italian to have access to super-fast Internet by 2026-but it has a long way to go.
1. What does the author think of towns like Colle di Tora?| A．Places in imagination. | B．Places everyone wants to visit. |
| C．Places falling behind. | D．Places with unique cultures. |
| A．To present their lifestyles. | B．To make a comparison. |
| C．To clarify a concept. | D．To show the bad network. |
| A．Make it fit for telework. | B．Attract many more visitors. |
| C．Bring peace to the residents. | D．Allow the government to manage the town. |
| A．Tolerant. | B．Negative. | C．Optimistic. | D．Cautious. |
The advantages of social networking
Why do most people sign up to social networking sites? The main reason is to stay in touch with other people. These sites also help people to find their childhood friends that they have lost touch with. Renewing these long-lost friendships is just a click away. It is very exciting to be able to catch up with friends and keep up with their news on an almost daily basis thanks to frequent updates.
Keeping up-to-date, however, doesn’t have to be restricted to friends and acquaintances (相识的人). What many people tend to forget is that they can also use networking sites for professional reasons. It is actually a great way of finding out about upcoming job opportunities. Friends might know about job vacancies that may not be advertised elsewhere or they can even recommend their friends for certain jobs. Even people already employed can promote their business online. This is particularly important for artists, actors and musicians who can create pages devoted to their band or theatre company, and inform fans about their gigs (现场演唱会) or latest exhibitions. In addition, the sites can be used to allow the public to give instant feedback on the artists’ work and to interact with their favorite artist.
Another great advantage of social networking sites is how easy it is to organize an event with your friends. Thanks to different settings people can organize their friends by different criteria (标准). These criteria could be how close friends they are, common interests and hobbies or where they live. This means if a certain event takes place, for example, an open-air concert or a football match, all they have to do is invite the right group of friends to attend. Some networking sites offer a range of quizzes and games, so friends living on opposite sides of the globe can invite each other to participate and compete in a variety of games without leaving their homes.
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Hitting the right button
It has been found that in some countries, achievement in some subjects at school is not always good for boys as it is girls. It is possible that using computers may be a way to solve this problem.
Many boys seem to have a natural liking for computers, but it can often be hard to leave the screen and concentrate on the work the teacher wants them to do.
As computers are becoming more and more important in the world of education today, it is natural to assume that computers can help greatly with boys who do not do too well at school and need to raise their general educational standards. Many boys appear to be more confident than girls in using it, and they need to use computers more frequently, especially at home.
Researchers at universities now think that it could be a really good way of re-engaging under-achieving boys in the learning process, and teachers have indicated that it does work. They have found that, although lots of boys do not seem to like writing in the classroom, when they use a computer, they are more willing to compose longer pieces of writing and use different styles. The issue of unintelligible handwriting is no longer a problem, either, as the neatness and presentation standards rise when boys use a computer to print out their work.
Many boys welcome the “hands on” approach of computer. However, researchers and teachers need to be careful that boys don’t just “cut and paste” things that they have found on the internet, but haven’t read, and hand it in as a completed assignment. Some boys overestimate how good they are and think they can do things without any effort. They need to develop proper research skills and make their written work more structured. Other boys take short cuts, or look at internet sites they haven’t been asked to look at. They may not plan or think carefully about their work, or they may try to finish their work quickly. This tendency is not going to be completely cured by using computers. One way to get boys to concentrate properly on the work they have been asked to do may be to encourage them to use their computers at home. However, they also need to be set tasks that are interesting and relevant to them.
As in all things, the interaction between the pupil, the teacher and the computer is crucial.
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________9 . Screen time includes all those hours you spend in front of your computer at work, and the time you spend playing with your cell phone or watching TV.
It's bad for your health. Being in front of a screen is almost always sedentary (久坐的) behavior, which relates to things like lower fitness levels. Turn this around by choosing something active. You do not have to do exercise at the gym.
It messes up your sleep. When teenagers have more than four hours of screen time per day, and especially when they use their screens before going to bed, they have trouble falling asleep. If you're not sleeping well, it will not only make you feel tired the next day, but it can also affect your performance at work or in school.
It hinders (妨碍) your brain’s performance.
| A．It all adds up. |
| B．Here comes a solution. |
| C．If you should use a screen, try to do just that. |
| D．It’s not good for developing communication skills. |
| E．You can take a walk, or work on a project at home. |
| F．Kids do better in school when they have less screen time. |
| G．So it’s worth the effort to use your screen less and get more rest. |
Losing a parent is one of the most painful parts of life. No matter how old we are when they leave us, it can be a heartbroken experience. Our memories are all that is left of them and happy reminders of their love turn into our most valuable treasures. That's how Mara Soriano feels about the teddy bear that she tragically lost in her recent move to a new apartment.
Diagnosed with cancer, Mara Soriano's mother, Marilyn, gave her daughter the bear as a gift in 2017. After her mother's death last June, the gift became even more special. "That bear was basically the last reminder of my mom. It was her voice that accompanied me," she said in an interview.
The plush (长毛制的) toy didn't cost a lot, but it contained a recording of her mother's voice telling her that she loved her and was proud of her. The bear, called Mama Bear, was in the backpack that contained electronics like an iPad and a Nintendo Switch. When the bag was stolen last week during the move, the 28 -year-old was heartbroken-- not for the gadgets(小装置), but for Mama Bear.
Mara posted a photo of her and her Mama Bear on Instagram, explaining the importance of the bear. Millions of users were touched by the story. More and more people were talking about the bear, but there was no good news for Mara. So again and again she posted online about the item and the story behind it, hoping it could catch more viewers' attention in a big way.
Actor Ryan Reynolds was moved by Mara's story and then posted an appeal(请求)for Mama Bear's safe return. "I think we all need this bear to come home," he wrote. Along with the message, he also offered a 
reward for the people who found the bear.
1. 所续短文词数应为150词左右；
2. 至少使用5个短文中标有下划线的关键词；
3. 续写部分分为两段，每段开头已为你写好；
4. 续写完成后，请用下划线标出你所使用的关键词语。
Paragraph 1: Luckily, the Internet did its thing.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________Paragraph 2: The email was from the woman who sent the bear back.
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