1 . Atomic shapes are so simple that they can’t be broken down any further. Mathematicians are trying to turn to artificial intelligence (AI) for help to build a periodic table of these shapes, hoping it will assist in finding yet-unknown atomic shapes.

Tom Coates at Imperial College London and his colleagues are working to classify atomic shapes known as Fano varieties, which are so simple that they can’t be broken down into smaller components. Just as chemists arranged element s in the periodic table by their atomic weight and group to reveal new insights, the researchers hope that organizing these atomic shapes by their various properties will help in understanding them.

The team has given each atomic shape a sequence of numbers based on its features such as the number of holes it has or the extent to which it bends around itself. This acts as a bar code (条形码) to identify it. Coates and his colleagues have now created an AI that can predict certain properties of these shapes from their bar code numbers alone, with an accuracy of 98 percent.

The team member Alexander Kasprzyk at the University of Nottingham, UK, says that the AI has let the team organize atomic shapes in a way that begins to follow the periodic table, so that when you read from left to right, or up and down, there seem to be general patterns in the geometry (几何) of the shapes.

Graham Nib lo at the University of Southampton, UK, stresses that humans will still need to understand the results provided by AI and create proofs of these ideas. “AI has definitely got unbelievable abilities. But in the same way that telescopes (望远镜) don’t put astronomers out of work, AI doesn’t put mathematicians out of work,” he says. “It just gives us new backing that allows us to explore parts of the mathematical landscape that are out of reach.”

The team hopes to improve the model to the point where missing spaces in its periodic table could point to the existence of unknown shapes.

1. What is the purpose of building a periodic table of shapes?

A．To gain deeper insights into the atomic shapes.

B．To create an AI to predict the unknown shapes.

C．To break down atomic shapes into smaller parts.

D．To arrange chemical elements in the periodic table.

2. What can the bar code of each atomic shape tell us?

A．Its holes.	B．Its bends.
C．Its atomic weight.	D．Its properties.

3. What does the underlined word “backing” in paragraph 5 mean?

A．Design.

B．Help.

C．Duty.

D．Threat.

4. What is the main idea of the text?

A．Thanks to AI, new atomic shapes have been discovered.

B．Mathematicians turn to AI to create more atomic shapes.

C．AI helps build a relationship between chemistry and maths.

D．A periodic table of shapes can be built with the help of AI.

2 . My students frequently ask me how I planned out my career to become president of Fidelity Investments. I always tell them, “There was no grand plan; I backed into my career one step at a time.” In this tough economy and ever-changing world, it is more important than ever to smartly evaluate each step in your career. To prepare for whatever surprises lie ahead, try to make choices today that will maximize your options in the future.     1    

Gaining transferable (可转移的) knowledge begins with the choices you make at school. You want your education to provide you with the necessary skills and expertise to succeed in a wide variety of jobs.     2     I favor those that involve extensive writing, rigorous analysis, or quantitative skills.

Once you have finished your formal education, search for jobs that will allow you to further expand your transferable knowledge—to help you find your next job. Let’s say you take a job putting together airplane leases. Within a few years, you could become the world’s expert on the subject.     3     By contrast, if you take a job that will expand your computer programming skills, you can greatly boost your options for later steps in your career.

Remember gaining transferable knowledge is only one piece of the puzzle.     4     As a saying goes, “Organizations don’t hire people. People hire people.” The more people you know, the more people will think of you when a job pops open—even when it is not publicly advertised.

Of course, you can build your network to some degree without changing jobs.     5     But this sort of event-driven networking pales in comparison with the deep bonds you can develop with your colleagues by working, communicating, and traveling with them.

A．You can make yourself more attractive.

B．Gain transferable expertise and form close bonds with your colleagues.

C．Your next step should help you expand your web of personal relationships.

D．This later helped me evaluate and start business units throughout the world.

E．You can attend conferences or participate in committees at trade associations.

F．This means that you need to make smart choices about the courses you will follow.

G．However, this narrow expertise probably won’t help you in any other line of work.

3 . How to Feel Connected

It's easy to feel disconnected from what is going on around you in today's fast-paced world.     1     You can get in touch and feel connected, however, by following the tips below:

Consider why you feel disconnected. Knowing what is making you feel disconnected can help you choose the best ways to address it.     2     Ask yourself these questions: Are you keeping yourself occupied with work too much? Do you rely on electronic communication instead of face to face communication? Do you lack friendships that are satisfying?

Interact with people in person. Technology is a great way to stay in touch, but sometimes you need to spend time with other people in person.     3     You can also take steps to feel more connected by making small-talk with strangers who are sharing parts of your day.

    4    

Your loved ones could feel shy, so you may never know how to improve your relationship unless you ask the right questions. Asking them to open the doors can give you some insight on what you can do. Learning this information can help to strengthen your bond.

Show your commitment to them. Simply showing up and being there for your loved ones says a lot about how much you value your relationships. Putting in the time shows them that you are committed and want to stay connected.     5    

Show appreciation. A simple “thank you” goes a very long way. Unfortunately, it is something that people who are close often take for granted. Telling someone you appreciate their time, love, and efforts can strengthen your bond and help you to become more connected.

A．Ask others what they need from you.

B．Sometimes you can feel isolated and distant from the ones you love.

C．Be brave to express your love.

D．Reach out to people to schedule a time to get together.

E．Attending family events, or simply visiting someone once a week can help to strengthen your relationship and keep it strong.

F．Targeting your efforts toward those issues allows you to close that distance more effectively.

G．You can have a gift delivered to friends on special occasions.