1 . On March 7, 1907, the English statistician Francis Galton published a paper which illustrated what has come to be known as the “wisdom of crowds” effect. The experiment of estimation he conducted showed that in some cases, the average of a large number of independent estimates could be quite accurate.
This effect capitalizes on the fact that when people make errors, those errors aren’t always the same. Some people will tend to overestimate, and some to underestimate. When enough of these errors are averaged together, they cancel each other out, resulting in a more accurate estimate. If people are similar and tend to make the same errors, then their errors won’t cancel each other out. In more technical terms, the wisdom of crowds requires that people’s estimates be independent. If for whatever reasons, people’s errors become correlated or dependent, the accuracy of the estimate will go down.
But a new study led by Joaquin Navajas offered an interesting twist (转折) on this classic phenomenon. The key finding of the study was that when crowds were further divided into smaller groups that were allowed to have a discussion, the averages from these groups were more accurate than those from an equal number of independent individuals. For instance, the average obtained from the estimates of four discussion groups of five was significantly more accurate than the average obtained from 20 independent individuals.
In a follow-up study with 100 university students, the researchers tried to get a better sense of what the group members actually did in their discussion. Did they tend to go with those most confident about their estimates? Did they follow those least willing to change their minds? This happened some of the time, but it wasn’t the dominant response. Most frequently, the groups reported that they “shared arguments and reasoned together”. Somehow, these arguments and reasoning resulted in a global reduction in error. Although the studies led by Navajas have limitations and many questions remain, the potential implications for group discussion and decision-making are enormous.
1. What is paragraph 2 of the text mainly about?A.The methods of estimation. | B.The underlying logic of the effect. |
C.The causes of people’s errors. | D.The design of Galton’s experiment. |
A.the crowds were relatively small | B.there were occasional underestimates |
C.individuals did not communicate | D.estimates were not fully independent |
A.The size of the groups. | B.The dominant members. |
C.The discussion process. | D.The individual estimates. |
A.Unclear. | B.Dismissive. | C.Doubtful. | D.Approving. |
2 . As cities balloon with growth, access to nature for people living in urban areas is becoming harder to find. If you’re lucky, there might be a pocket park near where you live, but it’s unusual to find places in a city that are relatively wild.
Past research has found health and wellness benefits of nature for humans, but a new study shows that wildness in urban areas is extremely important for human well-being.
The research team focused on a large urban park. They surveyed several hundred park-goers, asking them to submit a written summary online of a meaningful interaction they had with nature in the park. The researchers then examined these submissions, coding (编码) experiences into different categories. For example, one participant’s experience of “We sat and listened to the waves at the beach for a while” was assigned the categories “sitting at beach” and “listening to waves.”
Across the 320 submissions, a pattern of categories the researchers call a “nature language” began to emerge. After the coding of all submissions, half a dozen categories were noted most often as important to visitors. These include encountering wildlife, walking along the edge of water, and following an established trail.
Naming each nature experience creates a usable language, which helps people recognize and take part in the activities that are most satisfying and meaningful to them. For example, the experience of walking along the edge of water might be satisfying for a young professional on a weekend hike in the park. Back downtown during a workday, they can enjoy a more domestic form of this interaction by walking along a fountain on their lunch break.
“We’re trying to generate a language that helps bring the human-nature interactions back into our daily lives. And for that to happen, we also need to protect nature so that we can interact with it,” said Peter Kahn, a senior author of the study.
1. What phenomenon does the author describe at the beginning of the text?A.Pocket parks are now popular. | B.Wild nature is hard to find in cities. |
C.Many cities are overpopulated. | D.People enjoy living close to nature. |
A.To compare different types of park-goers. | B.To explain why the park attracts tourists. |
C.To analyze the main features of the park. | D.To find patterns in the visitors’ summaries. |
A.Walking is the best way to gain access to nature. |
B.Young people are too busy to interact with nature. |
C.The same nature experience takes different forms. |
D.The nature language enhances work performance. |
A.Language study. | B.Environmental conservation. |
C.Public education. | D.Intercultural communication. |
3 . Like many young people, Jessica wants to travel the globe. Unlike most of them, this 25-year-old is doing it
They’re part of a new form of the
It’s not all sightseeing. The two travelers carefully
The couple has a high
A.indoors | B.online | C.single-handed | D.full-time |
A.game | B.service | C.vacation | D.procedure |
A.safe | B.busy | C.helpful | D.affordable |
A.local | B.private | C.sharing | D.agricultural |
A.strangers’ | B.parents’ | C.co-workers’ | D.neighbors’ |
A.favor | B.defense | C.honor | D.absence |
A.plan | B.explain | C.compare | D.complete |
A.buy | B.transport | C.choose | D.please |
A.support | B.comfort | C.control | D.attention |
A.cooking | B.staying | C.waiting | D.studying |
A.success | B.survival | C.growth | D.unemployment |
A.budget | B.abilities | C.expectations | D.understanding |
A.admiring | B.donating | C.sending | D.borrowing |
A.clean | B.open | C.simple | D.empty |
A.guess | B.decision | C.response | D.impression |
4 . Over the last seven years, most states have banned texting by drivers, and public service campaigns have tried a wide range of methods to persuade people to put down their phones when they are behind the wheel.
Yet the problem, by just about any measure, appears to be getting worse. Americans are still texting while driving, as well as using social networks and taking photos. Road accidents, which had fallen for years, are now rising sharply.
That is partly because people are driving more, but Mark Rosekind, the chief of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, said distracted(分心)driving was "only increasing, unfortunately."
"Big change requires big ideas." he said in a speech last month, referring broadly to the need to improve road safety. So to try to change a distinctly modern behavior, lawmakers and public health experts are reaching back to an old approach: They want to treat distracted driving like drunk driving.
An idea from lawmakers in New York is to give police officers a new device called the Textalyzer. It would work like this: An officer arriving at the scene of a crash could ask for the phones of the drivers and use the Textalyzer to check in the operating system for recent activity. The technology could determine whether a driver had just texted, emailed or done anything else that is not allowed under New York's hands-free driving laws.
"We need something on the books that can change people's behavior,” said Félix W. Ortiz, who pushed for the state's 2001 ban on hand-held devices by drivers. If the Textalyzer bill becomes law, he said, "people are going to be more afraid to put their hands on the cell phone."
1. Which of the following best describes the ban on drivers' texting in the US?A.Ineffective. | B.Unnecessary. |
C.Inconsistent. | D.Unfair. |
A.Where a driver came from. | B.Whether a driver used their phone. |
C.How fast a driver was going. | D.When a driver arrived at the scene. |
A.Advice. | B.Data. | C.Tests. | D.Laws. |
A.To Drive or Not to Drive? Think Before You Start |
B.Texting and Driving? Watch Out for the Textalyzer |
C.New York Banning Hand-Held Devices by Drivers. |
D.The Next Generation Cell Phone: The Textalyzer- |
内容包括:
1. 海洋的重要性;
2. 保护海洋的倡议。
注意:1. 词数100左右;
2. 短文的题目和首句已为你写好。
Our oceans, our responsibility
June 8th was named by the UN in 2009 as World Oceans Day...____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
6 . When almost everyone has a mobile phone, why are more than half of Australian homes still paying for a landline (座机)?
These days you’d be hard pressed to find anyone in Australia over the age of 15 who doesn’t own a mobile phone. In fact plenty of younger kids have one in their pocket. Practically everyone can make and receive calls anywhere, anytime.
Still, 55 percent of Australians have a landline phone at home and only just over a quarter (29%) rely only on their smartphones according to a survey (调查). Of those Australians who still have a landline, a third concede that it’s not really necessary and they’re keeping it as a security blanket — 19 percent say they never use it while a further 13 percent keep it in case of emergencies. I think my home falls into that category.
More than half of Australian homes are still choosing to stick with their home phone. Age is naturally a factor (因素)— only 58 percent of Generation Ys still use landlines now and then, compared to 84 percent of Baby Boomers who’ve perhaps had the same home number for 50 years. Age isn’t the only factor; I’d say it’s also to do with the makeup of your household.
Generation Xers with young families, like my wife and I, can still find it convenient to have a home phone rather than providing a mobile phone for every family member. That said, to be honest the only people who ever ring our home phone are our Baby Boomers parents, to the point where we play a game and guess who is calling before we pick up the phone (using Caller ID would take the fun out of it).
How attached are you to your landline? How long until they go the way of gas street lamps and morning milk deliveries?
1. What does paragraph 2 mainly tell us about mobile phones?A.Their target users. | B.Their wide popularity. |
C.Their major functions. | D.Their complex design. |
A.Admit. | B.Argue. |
C.Remember. | D.Remark. |
A.They like smartphone games. | B.They enjoy guessing callers’ identity. |
C.They keep using landline phones. | D.They are attached to their family. |
A.It remains a family necessity. |
B.It will fall out of use some day. |
C.It may increase daily expenses. |
D.It is as important as the gas light. |
7 . The Biggest Stadiums in the World
People have been pouring into stadiums since the days of ancient Greece. In around 80 A.D., the Romans built the Colosseum, which remains the world’s best known stadium and continues to inform contemporary design. Rome’s Colosseum was 157 feet tall and had 80 entrances, seating 50,000 people. However, that was small fry compared with the city’s Circus Maximus, which accommodated around 250,000 people.
These days, safety regulations-not to mention the modern sports fan’s desire for a good view and comfortable seat — tend to keep stadium capacities (容量) slightly lower. Even soccer fans tend to have a seat each; gone are the days of thousands standing to watch the match.
For the biggest stadiums in the world, we have used data supplied by the World Atlas list so far, which ranks them by their stated permanent capacity, as well as updated information from official stadium websites.
All these stadiums are still functional, still open and still hosting the biggest events in world sport.
·Rungrado 1st of May Stadium, Pyongyang D.P.R. Korea. Capacity: 150,000. Opened: May 1,1989.
·Michigan Stadium, Ann Arbor, Michigan, U. S. Capacity: 107,601. Opened: October 1, 1927.
·Beaver Stadium, State College, Pennsylvania, U. S. Capacity: 106,572. Opened: September 17, 1960.
·Ohio Stadium, Columbus, Ohio, U. S. Capacity: 104,944. Opened: October 7,1922.
·Kyle Field, College Station, Texas, U. S. Capacity: 102,512. Opened: September 24, 1927.
1. How many people could the Circus Maximus hold?A.104,944. | B.107,601. | C.About 150,000. | D.About 250,000. |
A.Michigan Stadium. | B.Beaver Stadium. | C.Ohio Stadium. | D.Kyle Field. |
A.They host big games. | B.They have become tourist attractions. |
C.They were built by Americans. | D.They are favored by architects. |
8 . Over the past 38 years, Mr. Wang has pretended to be someone else many times,and has even learned to
The 60-year-old is not an actor, but a
In the 1990s, a group of thieves often sold stolen goods with the help of some beggars. To look into the
“I often
Wang, who is often in
Wang's
A.teach | B.compare | C.assess | D.speak |
A.lawyer | B.doctor | C.policeman | D.businessman |
A.role | B.study | C.family | D.audience |
A.minor | B.case | C.future | D.question |
A.interviewed | B.joined | C.arrested | D.assisted |
A.challenge | B.experience | C.appearance | D.freedom |
A.vote | B.sympathy | C.permission | D.trust |
A.invited | B.forced | C.helped | D.expected |
A.drunk | B.deserted | C.bored | D.lost |
A.guide | B.persuade | C.excuse | D.allow |
A.refer to | B.note down | C.ask about | D.miss out |
A.plan | B.agreement | C.direction | D.information |
A.awkward | B.dangerous | C.unfortunate | D.strange |
A.separate | B.recover | C.escape | D.hear |
A.courage | B.honesty | C.kindness | D.optimism |
The Meredith family lived in a small community. As the economy was in decline, some people in the town had lost their jobs. Many of their families were struggling to make ends meet. People were trying to help each other meet the challenges.
Mrs. Meredith was a most kind and thoughtful woman. She spent a great deal of time visiting the poor. She knew they had problems, and they needed all kinds of help. When she had time, she would bring food and medicine to them.
One morning she told her children about a family she had visited the day before. There was a man sick in bed, his wife, who took care of him and could not go out to work, and their little boy. The little boy -his name was Bernard-had interested her very much.
“I wish you could see him,” she said to her own children, John, Harry, and Clara. “He is such a help to his mother. He wants very much to earn some money, but I don't see what he can do.”
After their mother left the room, the children sat thinking about Bernard. “I wish we could help him to earn money,” said Clara. “His family is suffering so much.”
“So do I,” said Harry. “We really should do something to assist them.”
For some moments, John said nothing, but, suddenly, he sprang to his feet and cried, “I have a great idea! I have a solution that we can all help accomplish(完成).”
The other children also jumped up all attention. When John had an idea, it was sure to be a good one. “I tell you what we can do,” said John. “You know that big box of corn Uncle John sent us? Well, we can make popcorn(爆米花), and put it into paper bags, and Bernard can take it around to the houses and sell it.”
注意:1. 续写词数应为150左右:
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
When Mrs. Meredith heard of John's idea, she thought it was a good one, too.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
With everything ready, Bernard started out on his new business.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
10 . Train Information
All customers travelling on TransLink services must be in possession of a valid ticket before boarding. For ticket information,please ask at your local station or call 13 12 30.
While Queensland Rail makes every effort to ensure trains run as scheduled,there can be no guarantee of connections between trains or between train services and bus services.
Lost property(失物招领)
Call Lost Property on 13 16 17 during business hours for items lost on Queensland Rail services.
The lost property office is open Monday to Friday 7:30am to 5:00pm and is located(位于)at Roma Street station.
Public holidays
On public holidays, generally a Sunday timetable operates. On certain major event days,i.e.
Australia Day, Anzac Day, sporting and cultural days, special additional services may operate.
Christmas Day services operate to a Christmas Day timetable,Before travel please visit translink. com. au or call TransLink on 13 12 30 anytime.
Customers using mobility devices
Many stations have wheelchair access from the car park or entrance to the station platforms.
For assistance, please Queensland Rail on 13 16 17.
Guardian trains (outbound)
Depart | Origin | Destination | Arrive |
6:42pm | Altandi | Varsity Lakes | 7:37pm |
7:29pm | Central | Varsity Lakes | 8:52pm |
8:57pm | Fortitude Valley | Varsity Lakes | 9:52pm |
11:02pm | Roma Street | Varsity Lakes | 12:22am |
A.Call 13 16 17. | B.Visit translink .com.au. |
C.Ask at the local station. | D.Check the train schedule. |
A.Altandi. | B.Roma Street. | C.Varsity Lakes. | D.Fortitude Valley. |
A.6:42 pm. | B.7:29 pm. | C.8:57 pm. | D.11:02 pm. |