1 . Individuals tend to befriend others similar to them for a range of physical factors (e. g. age, gender).To test whether friendship is connected with increased similarity of real-time mental responding, researchers used fMRI (功能性磁共振成像) to scan subjects’ brains during free viewing of naturalistic movies.

Forty-two students participated in the study by Professor Carolyn Parkinson of the University of California, Los Angeles. During the fMRI study, each subject watched the same collection of video parts. The videos covered a variety of topics and genres (e.g. comedies, documentaries, and debates).

The current results suggest that nerve responses when viewing audiovisual (视听的) movies are exceptionally similar among friends, and they are quite alike to one another in terms of how they perceive, interpret, and react to the world around them. These data also demonstrate that it is possible to predict whether two individuals are friends based only on the similarity of temporary patterns in their nerve responses during free viewing of complex, real-world scenes.

A follow-up study analyzing the social relationships of 1,186 children in 49 classrooms showed that similarity of the social brain varied by friendship distance: shared friends showed greater similarity in social brain networks compared with friends-of-friends and even more remotely connected peers.

“Although the results of the current study suggest that friends have incredibly similar nerve responses to naturalistic stimulation, due to this study’s cross-sectional nature, we cannot figure out, based on these results alone, whether nerve response similarity is a cause or consequence of friendship,” Dr Anna Machin, an evolutionary anthropologist(人类学家)said. She described how two tightly bonded people mirror each other’s behavior. Best friends may have similar heart beats, body temperature and hormonal responses.“ It’s as if every part of your body is engaged in having a relationship with that person,” said Machin. “That for me sums up how important best friends are. We wouldn’t have developed this way if those relationships weren’t critical for survival.”

1. Why did the researchers carry out the fMRI study?

A．To find out the effects of fMRI.

B．To help the students analyze videos.

C．To test whether the students are true friends.

D．To check if friendship goes with nerve responses.

2. What does the underlined word “genres” in paragraph 2 mean?

A．Subjects.

B．Types.

C．Results.

D．Responses.

3. What can be learned about the findings of the studies?

A．Friends have the same mental responses.

B．It is impossible to tell whether two are friends.

C．Friendship distance affects similarity of the social brain.

D．Stronger relationships bring about more similar appearance.

4. What can we infer from Machin’s words?

A．Friendship is of great significance in our life.

B．Nerve response similarity is a cause of friendship.

C．Naturalistic stimulation leads to friends’ similar responses.

D．We develop because relationships are unimportant for survival.

2 . A March 2023 report from Goldman Sachs estimated that AI could do a quarter of all the work currently done by humans.     1     It would not just happen to individuals, but it could be pretty systemic.

    2     There are still things AI isn’t capable of. There are generally three categories that are probably going to be relatively secure in the foreseeable future.     3     That means you’re not doing formulaic work, but generating new ideas. For example, in science, medicine and law, where your job is coming up with a new legal strategy or business strategy, there’s going to continue to be a place for human beings.

The second category is jobs that require complicated interpersonal relationships like nurses, business consultants and investigative journalists. These are jobs where you need a very deep understanding of people.     4    

The third safe zone are jobs that really require lots of mobility and problem-solving ability in unpredictable environments. Electricians, plumbers, and the like all fall under this umbrella, where you’re dealing with a new situation all the time. They are probably the hardest of anything to automate.

It’s important to note that an advanced education is not a defence against AI takeover. In many cases, more educated workers are going to be more threatened than then even the least educated workers.     5     It’s really hard to automate that job.

In short, seeking roles in dynamic, shifting environments that include unpredictable tasks is good way to avoid job loss to AI.

A．And that could be terrible.

B．Thankfully, it’s not all bad news.

C．The robots really are coming for some jobs.

D．The first would be jobs that are genuinely creative.

E．Think of the person that works cleaning hotel rooms.

F．That doesn’t necessarily mean all jobs that are considered ”creative” are safe.

G．It’ll be a long time before AI has the ability to really build relationships and interact.