4 . “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

2. According to the passage, in which situation is deep learning the least successful?

A．Reconstructing facial data.	B．Predicting a word in a sentence.
C．Classifying images of cats.	D．Diagnosing rare diseases.

3. What can be inferred from the passage?

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.

4. Neil Lawrence compared data to coal to indicate that________.

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

5 . Self-control may be the secret to success, according to a persuasive new study that followed 1,000 children from birth to age 32. Children who showed early signs of self-control were not only less likely to have developed addictions or to have committed a crime by adulthood, but were also healthier and _________ than their more impulsive peers.

For the new study, called the Dunedin Multidisciplinary Health and Development Study, researchers led by Duke University psychologist Terrie Moffitt followed 1,000 children in New Zealand for more than three decades.

In previous research, researchers found that _________ and out-of-control behavior were more common in children who had experienced loss or violence. If children have bad experiences, the _________ may affect the proper development of the frontal cortex (前额叶) in children’s brains, which is responsible for self-control. If children have lower self-control, they will have a(n) _________ time in school. They won’t learn as efficiently and they are more likely to act out because of their frustrations, which means the potential for more _________ problems and, in later life, the potential for legal problems.

Although Moffitt’s study found some “concentration of low self-control children in homes with low income,” the author says, “The link was _________. There were plenty of well-to-do children with very low self-control.” _________, poor children who scored best on measures of self-control were more likely than others to become wealthy in later life. “One _________ of the findings is that children with high self-control who began life in low-income homes ended up as adults with higher incomes,” says Moffitt.

_________, the period of time in which many of the mistakes in self-discipline would potentially lead to the worst life outcomes occurred during the teenage years. Teens who had scored lowest in measures of __________ in early childhood were the most likely to make mistakes in the first place. And even those low self-control teens who managed to __________ smoking, alcohol or other drug-related problems, and who stayed in school, still did worse later in life than their more disciplined peers. This suggests that there might be a better __________ on investment from early childhood interventions.

“Trial and error is a __________ part of teenage life”，says Moffitt, “But teens with good self-control __________ trial and error more strategically, and they understand the difference between a useful learning experiment and real danger. I am convinced that teenagers can be taught to recognize this __________.”

1.

A．prettier

B．wealthier

C．cleverer

D．freer

2.

A．impulsiveness

B．interruption

C．miscomprehension

D．addiction

3.

A．anger

B．environment

C．confusion

D．misery

4.

A．unexpected

B．hard

C．important

D．happy

5.

A．cultural

B．financial

C．physical

D．social

6.

A．strong

B．stable

C．weak

D．flexible

7.

A．For example

B．Without doubt

C．After all

D．In fact

8.

A．interpretation

B．precondition

C．outcome

D．significance

9.

A．Fortunately

B．Contrarily

C．Unsurprisingly

D．Doubtfully

10.

A．self-education

B．self-control

C．self-deception

D．self-negation

11.

A．forget

B．miss

C．ban

D．avoid

12.

A．effect

B．expectation

C．restriction

D．return

13.

A．rare

B．spiritual

C．healthy

D．feasible

14.

A．look for

B．engage in

C．go over

D．apply to

15.

A．ambition

B．distinction

C．evolution

D．suggestion

7 . 回到祖国母亲怀抱，她抑制不住内心的激动，说道，“有五星红旗的地方，就有信念的灯塔，如果信念有颜色，那一定是中国红！”（where）(汉译英）

8 . Directions: Read the following passage. Summarize the main idea and the main point(s) of the passage in no more than 60 words. Use your own words as far as possible.

Can Birdsong Make You Happier?

If you are able to step outside and hear many types of birds, you might also have a greater feeling of well-being. Two studies show that hearing diverse birdsongs may help increase our happiness.

One study was done by the researchers at California Polytechnic State University. The team studied the effects of birdsong on people walking through a park in the U.S. state of Colorado. Danielle Ferraro, who led the Cal Poly study, says that there could be an evolutionary reason why we like birdsong. The idea is that when we hear birdsong it could signal safety to us. There could be many other reasons too Ferraro states that in some areas around the world birdsong can also signal the arrival of spring and nice weather. Bird diversity, she adds, can also mean a healthy environment.

Similarly, scientists in Germany examined for the first time whether a diverse nature also increases human well-being across Europe. The researchers looked at the European Quality of Life Survey to study the connection between the different kinds of birds in their surroundings and life satisfaction. They looked at more than 26,000 adults from 26 European countries. “Europeans are particularly satisfied with their lives if their surroundings have a high species diversity,” explains the study’s lead author, Joel Methorst, a researcher at the Goethe University in Frankfurt. He and his team found that the happiest Europeans are those who can experience many different kinds of birds in their daily life, or who live in near-natural surroundings that are home to many species.

So, if birdsong is good for our mental health, how can we increase the different types of birdsongs we hear? Scientists also mentioned, “We would recommend planting native trees and flowers because we have a lot of pretty decorative plants in our cities. And they might look nice to us, but birds can’t necessarily use them. So, we think it important to have species that are native to the area to increase bird diversity.”

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

9 . Motivating Employees under Unfavourable Conditions

It is a great deal easier to motivate employees in a growing organization than a declining one. When organizations are expanding, promotional opportunities, pay rises, and the excitement of being associated with a dynamic organization create feelings of optimism. When an organization is shrinking, the best and mobile workers are likely to leave voluntarily.     1     The minor employees remain because their job options are limited.

Morale (士气) also suffers during decline. People fear they may be the next to be made unnecessary. Productivity often Suffers, as employees spend their time sharing rumours and providing one another with moral support rather than focusing on their jobs.     2     Pay cuts, unheard of during times of growth, may even be imposed. The challenge to management is how to motivate employees under such special conditions.

    3     For example, if the job is running a small business or an autonomous unit within a larger business, high achievers should be sought. High achievers will do best when the job provides moderately challenging goats and where there is independence and feedback.

The literature on goal-setting theory suggests that managers should ensure that all employees have specific goals and receive comments on how well they are doing in those goals. Regardless of whether goals are achievable or well within management’s perceptions of the employee’s ability, if employees see them as unachievable they will reduce their effort.     4    

Since employees have different needs, managers should use their knowledge of each employee to personalize the rewards over which they have control. Some of the more obvious rewards that managers allocate include pay, promotions and the opportunity to participate in goal-setting and decision-making.

A．There is enough evidence to support the motivational benefits that result from carefully matching people to jobs.

B．For those whose jobs are secure, pay increases are rarely possible.

C．High achievers are motivated by jobs that are high in independence and responsibility.

D．Unfortunately, they are the ones the organization can least afford to lose—those with the highest skills and experience.

E．The answer to that depends on perceptions of goal acceptance and the organization’s culture.

F．Managers must be sure, therefore, that employees feel confident that their efforts can lead to performance goals.

10 . Directions: Fill in each blank with a proper word chosen from the box. Each word can be used only once. Note that there is one word more than you need.

A. displaced                    B. feature                 C. grouped          D. headlines        E. house          F. inevitable G. neutral                       H. projected             I. solution            J. sustainable          K. withstand

Floating Cities: The Wave of the Future?

Rainwater pouring into the New York City subway. Towns and roads in Pennsylvania overtaken by floodwater. These dramatic scenes made     1     in September 2021. As many as 40.5 million people have already been     2     by the effects of the climate crisis. Rising sea levels, along with extreme flooding, are putting more and more coastal residents and others at risk. By 2050, more than 1 billion people will live in countries that lack the basic systems and services to     3     sea-level rise, according to the Institute for Economics and Peace. And all these climate refugees will need to seek out new homes on dry land.

One     4     architects and others have been exploring with more urgency in recent years is to build floating cities. In 2019, the United Nations brought together a group of innovators, scientists, and marine engineers to discuss the future of     5     sea-based communities. "As our climate and water ecosystems are changing, the way our cities retake to water needs to change, too." said U.N. Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed. "Floating cities are a means of ensuring climate adaption, as buildings can rise along with the sea."

These cities can be designed as climate     6     . They can take advantage of plentiful wind and water power for electricity, and grow food using hydroponics（水耕法）. "From traditional houseboat communities to high-tech experiments, there are many examples to learn from," she added.

Some of these experimental floating cities are already in development. Another planned community that's attracting a lot of attention is Oceanix City, which is     7     to have one-third of its 118 islands below sea level within 60 years.

Plans for Oceanix City     8     groups of hexagon-shaped（六边形）islands powered by solar and water energy. Tied to the seafloor, each human-made island would     9     around 300 people; the islands would be     10     together in communities of about 10,000 residents. Oceanix citizens would drink processed ocean water and extracted humidity from the air, and dine on a ready supply of seafood.