1 . Concerns about the harm caused by “too much” screen time—particularly when it is spent on social media—are widespread. But working out what a “healthy” ___ might be is far from easy.

Some negative experiences on social media—like ____ how your appearance compares to others—do affect some children. However, this does not mean that technology use in ____ is harmful and it is difficult to make claims about how it will affect different people.

Consider the picture painted by a UNICEF review of existing research into the effects of digital technology on children’s ____ comfort, including happiness, mental health and social life. Rather than stating that social media was harmful, it suggested a more ____ effect.

The UNICEF report highlighted a 2017 study that examined 120,000 UK 15-year-olds. Among those teenagers who were the lightest users, it was found that increasing the time spent using technology was linked to ____ comfort—possibly because it was important for keeping up friendships. ____, among the heaviest users of technology, any increase in time was linked to lower levels of comfort. Overall, the UNICEF study suggested that some screen time could be good for children’s mental health.

A broader look at evidence provided by some other high quality studies again suggests the story is not ____. An early study in 2013 looked at how the television and video game habits of 11,000 UK five-year-olds affected them two years later. It is one of few studies actually ____ the effects of technology over time. It suggested that, compared with children who watched one hour of television or less on a weekday, a small increase in conduct problems was seen among those who watched more than three hours each day. Playing electronic games, however, was not seen as leading to a greater ____ of friendship or emotional problems.

So how much time should our children spend looking at screens? It is difficult to be ____ as different people spend time online in such different ways. A useful comparison might be with sugar. Broadly speaking, people ____ that too much sugar can be bad for your health. But the effect it might have can depend on many factors, from the type of sugar to the person and the amount. We would not ____ trust anyone who claims to predict how someone is affected by consuming one gram of sugar. The same could be said for ____ usage: the outcomes depend on so many factors that only very ___ predictions are possible.

1.

A．amount

B．comparison

C．experience

D．medium

2.

A．accounting for

B．boasting of

C．commenting on

D．worrying about

3.

A．general

B．particular

C．private

D．public

4.

A．domestic

B．material

C．physical

D．psychological

5.

A．complex

B．dramatic

C．harmless

D．predictable

6.

A．improved

B．maximum

C．relative

D．small

7.

A．As a rule

B．In contrast

C．On the whole

D．Worse still

8.

A．convincing

B．definite

C．probable

D．true

9.

A．estimating

B．experiencing

C．reducing

D．tracing

10.

A．connection

B．power

C．promotion

D．risk

11.

A．balanced

B．independent

C．precise

D．subjective

12.

A．agree

B．forget

C．object

D．remember

13.

A．equally

B．readily

C．reluctantly

D．weakly

14.

A．emotion therapy

B．social media

C．TV broadcasting

D．video game

15.

A．confident

B．optimistic

C．rough

D．wild

2 . Going to university is supposed to be a mind-broadening experience. That statement is probably made in comparison to training for work straight after school. But is it actually true? Jessika Golle of the University of Tubingen, in Germany reports in Psychological Science this week that those who have been to university indeed seem to leave with broader and more curious minds than those who have spent their immediate post-school years in vocational (职业的) training for work. However, it was not the case that university broadened minds. Rather, vocational training for work seemed to have narrowed them. The result is not quite what might be expected.

Dr. Golle came to this conclusion after she and a team of colleagues studied the early careers of 2,095 German youngsters. The team used two standardized tests to assess their volunteers’ personality traits (特点) including openness, conscientiousness (认真) and so on, and attitudes such as realistic, investigative and enterprising twice, once towards the end of each volunteer’s time at high school, and then again six years later. Of the original group, 382 had to make a choice between the academic and vocational routes, and it was on these that the researchers focused. University beckoned for 212 of them. The remaining 170 chose vocational training and a job.

When it came to the second round of tests, Dr. Golle found that the personalities of both groups had not changed significantly. As for changes in altitude, again, none were noticeable in the university group. However, those who had chosen the vocational route showed marked drops in interest in tasks that are investigative and enterprising in nature. And that might restrict their choice of careers.

The changes in attitude that the researchers recorded were more worrying. Vocational training has always been what Germany prides itself on. If Dr Golle is correct, and changes in attitude brought about by the very training are narrowing people’s choices that is indeed a matter worthy of serious consideration.

1. What does Dr. Colle’s research suggest?

A．Going to university is a mind-broadening experience.

B．College students pride themselves on their education.

C．Working straight after school narrows people’s minds.

D．Attending university has apparent effects on personalities.

2. What does the underlined phrase “beckoned for” in Paragraph 2 mean?

A．Examined.	B．Attracted.
C．Organized.	D．Recognized

3. What can we learn about vocational training?

A．it is essential to scientific research.

B．It leads to marked change in personality.

C．It helps to broaden the volunteers’ minds.

D．It causes less interest in investigative job.

4. What is the author’s attitude towards the finding?

A．Skeptical.	B．Optimistic.
C．Concerned.	D．Unclear.