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Enough ＂meaningless drivel＂. That’s the message from a group of members of the UK government who have been examining how social media firms like LinkedIn gather and use social media data.
The House of Commons Science and Technology Committee’s report, released last week, has blamed firms for making people sign up to long incomprehensible legal contracts and calls for an international standard or kitemark (认证标记) to identify sites that have clear terms and conditions.
＂The term and conditions statement that we all carelessly agree to is meaningless drivel to anyone,＂ says Andrew Miller, the chair of the committee. Instead, he says, firms should provide a plain-English version of their terms. The simplified version would be checked by a third party and awarded a kitemark if it is an accurate reflection of the original.
It is not yet clear who would administer the scheme, but the UK government is looking at introducing it on a voluntary basis. ＂we need to think through how we make that work in practice,＂ says Miller.
Would we pay any more attention to a kitemark? ＂I think if you went and did the survey, people would like to think they would,＂ says Nigel Shadbolt at the University of Southampton, UK, who studies open data. ＂We do know people worry a lot about the inappropriate use of their information.＂ But what would happen in practice is another matter, he says.
Other organisations such as banks ask customers to sign long contracts they may not read or understand, but Miller believes social media requires special attention because it is so new. ＂We still don’t know how significant the long-term impact is going to be of unwise things that kids put on social media that come back and bite them in 20 years’ time,＂ he says.
Shadbolt, who gave evidence to the committee, says the problem is that we don’t know how companies will use our data because their business models and uses of data are still evolving. Large collections of personal information have become valuable only recently, he says.
The shock and anger when a social media firm does something with data that people don’t expect, even if users have apparently permission, show that the current situation isn’t working. If properly administered, a kitemark on terms and conditions could help people know what exactly they are signing up to. Although they would still have to actually read them.
1.What does the phrase ＂ meaningless drivel＂ in paragraphs 1 and 3 refer to?
A.Legal contracts that social media firms make people sign up to.
B.Warnings from the UK government against unsafe websites.
C.Guidelines on how to use social media websites properly.
D.Insignificant data collected by social media firms.
2.It can be inferred from the passage that Nigel Shadbolt doubts whether _______.
A.social media firms would conduct a survey on the kitemark scheme
B.people would pay as much attention to a kitemark as they think
C.a kitemark scheme would be workable on a nationwide scale
D.the kitemark would help companies develop their business models
3.Andrew Miller thinks social media needs more attention than banks mainly because _______.
A.their users consist largely of kids under 20 years old
B.the language in their contracts is usually harder to understand
C.the information they collected could become more valuable in future
D.it remains unknown how users’ data will be taken advantage of
4.The writer advises users of social media to _______.
A.think carefully before posting anything onto such websites
B.read the terms and conditions even if there is a kitemark
C.take no further action if they can find a kitemark
D.avoid providing too much personal information
5.Which of the following is the best title of the passage?
A.Say no to social media?
B.New security rules in operation?
C.Accept without reading?
D.Administration matters!
1.It can be concluded from paragraph 1 that _______.
A.the problem of global warming will have been quite solved by 2020
B.gas emissions have been effectively reduced in developed countries
C.the Paris Agreements is more influential than the Kyoto Protocol
D.humans have made continuous efforts to slow down global warming
2.If nations could only keep the initial promises of the Paris Agreement, what would happen by the year 2100?
A.The human population would increase by one third.
B.Little over 50% of all species would still exist.
C.Nations would not need to tighten their emissions targets.
D.The Agreement’s minimum goal would not be reached.
3.If those island nations not far above sea level are to survive, the maximum temperature rise, since the start of the industrial age, should be_______.
A.0.8℃ B.1.5℃
C.2℃ D.3.5℃
Section B
Direction：Read the following three passages. Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished sattments. For each of them there are four choices markedA, B, C and D. Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage you have just read.
(A)
One early morning, I went into the living room to find my mother reading a thick book called Best Loved Poems to Read Again and Again. My interest was aroused only by the fact that the word “Poems” appeared in big, hot pink letters.
“Is it good?” I asked her.
“Yeah,” she answered. “There’s one I really like and you’ll like it, too.” I leaned forward.
“‘Patty Poem,’” she read the title. Who is Patty? I wondered. The poem began:
She never puts her toys away,
The poem was just three short sections. The final one came quickly:
And I’ll be sad.
A terrible sorrow washed over me. Whoever Patty was, she was a mean girl. Then, the shock.
“It’s you, honey,” My mother said sadly.
To my mother, the poem revealed a parent’s affection when her child grows up and leaves. To me, the “she” in the poem was horror. It was my mama who would be sad. It was so terrible I burst out crying.
“What’s wrong?” my mother asked.
“Oh Mama,” I cried. “I don’t want to grow up ever!”
She smiled. “Honey, it’s okay. You’re not growing up anytime soon. And when you do, I’ll still love you, okay?”
“Okay,” I was still weeping. My panic has gone. But I could not help thinking about that silly poem. After what seemed like a safe amount of time, I read the poem again and was confused. It all fit so well together, like a puzzle. The language was simple, so simple I could plainly understand its meaning, yet it was still beautiful. I was now fascinated by the idea of poetry, words that had the power to make or break a person’s world.
I have since fallen in love with other poems, but “Patty Poem” remains my poem. After all, “Patty Poem” gave me my love for poetry not because it was the poem that lifted my spirits, but because it was the one that hurt me the most.
1.Why was the writer attracted by the book Best Loved Poems to Read Again and Again?
A.It was a thick enough book.
B.Something on its cover caught her eye.
C.Her mother was reading it with interest.
D.It has a meaningful title.
2.After her mother read the poem to her, the writer felt ______ at first.
A.sad B.excited
C.horrified D.confused
3.The writer’s mother liked to read “Patty Poem” probably because______.
A.it reflected her own childhood
B.it was written in simple language
C.it was composed by a famous poet
D.it gave her a hint of what would happen
4.It can be concluded from the passage that“Patty Poem”leads the writer to _______.
A.discover the power of poetry
B.recognize her love for puzzles
C.find her eagerness to grow up
D.experience great homesickness
Failure is probably the most exhausting experience a person ever has. There is nothing more tiring than not succeeding.
We experience this tiredness in two ways: as start-up fatigue(疲惫) and performance fatigue. In the former case, we keep putting off a task because it has either too boring or too difficult. And the longer we delay it, the more tired we feel.
Such start-up fatigue is very real, even if not actually physical, not something in our muscles and bones. The solution is obvious though perhaps not easy to apply: always handle the most difficult job first.
Years ago, I was asked to write 102 essays on the great ideas of some famous authors. Applying my own rule, I determined to write them in alphabetical(按字母顺序), never letting myself leave out a tough idea. And I always started the day’s work with the difficult task of essay-writing. Experience proved that the rule works.
Performance fatigue is more difficult to handle. Though willing to get started, we cannot seem to do the job right. Its difficulties appear so great that, however hard we work, we fail again and again. In such a situation, I work as hard as I can-then let the unconscious take over.
When planning Encyclopaedia Britannica (《大英百科全书》), I had to create a table of contents based on the topics of its articles. Nothing like this had ever been done before, and day after day I kept coming up with solutions, but none of them worked. My fatigue became almost unbearable.
One day, mentally exhausted, I wrote down all the reasons why this problem could not be solved. I tried to convince myself that the trouble was with the problem itself, not with me. Relived, I sat back in an easy chair and fell asleep.
An hour later, I woke up suddenly with the solution clearly in mind. In the weeks that followed, the solution which had come up in my unconscious mind provided correct at every step. Though I worked as hard as before, I felt no fatigue. Success was now as exciting as failure had been depressing.
Human beings, I believe must try to succeed. Success, then, means never feeling tired.
1.People with start-up fatigue are most likely to ________.
A.delay tasks B.work hard
C.seek help D.accept failure
2.What does the author recommend doing to prevent start-up fatigue?
A.Writing essays in strict order.
B.Building up physical strength.
C.Leaving out the toughest ideas.
D.Dealing with the hardest task first.
3.On what occasion does a person probably suffer from performance fatigue?
A.Before starting a difficult task.
B.When all the solutions fail.
C.If the job is rather boring.
D.After finding a way out.
4.According to the author, the unconscious mind may help us ________.
A.ignore mental problems B.get some nice sleep
C.gain complete relief D.find the right solution
5.What could be the best title for the passage?
A.Success Is Built upon Failure
B.How to Handle Performance Fatigue
C.Getting over Fatigue: A Way to Success
D.Fatigue: An Early Sign of Health Problems
When John was growing up, other kids felt sorry for him. His parents always had him weeding the garden, carrying out the garbage and delivering newspapers. But when John reached adulthood, he was better off than his childhood playmates. He had more job satisfaction, a better marriage and was healthier. Most of all, he was happier. Far happier.
These are the findings of a 40-year study that followed the lives of 456 teenage boys from Boston. The study showed that those who had worked as boys enjoyed happier and more productive lives than those who had not. ＂Boys who worked in the home or community gained competence(能力) and came to feel they were worthwhile members of society,＂ said George Vaillant, the psychologist(心理学家) who made the discovery. ＂And because they felt good about themselves, others felt good about them.＂
Vaillant’s study followed these males in great detail. Interviews were repeated at ages 25,31 and 47. Under Vaillant, the researchers compared the men’s mental-health scores with their boyhood-activity scores. Points were awarded for part-time jobs, housework, effort in school, and ability to deal with problems.
The link between what the men had done as boys and how they turned out as adults was surprisingly sharp. Those who had done the most boyhood activities were twice as likely to have warm relations with a wide variety of people, five times as likely to be well paid and 16 times less likely to have been unemployed. The researchers also found that IQ and family social and economic class made no real difference in how the boys turned out.
Working — at any age — is important. Childhood activities help a child develop responsibility, independence, confidence and competence — the underpinnings(基础) of emotional health. They also help him understand that people must cooperate and work toward common goals. The most competent adults are those who know how to do this. Yet work isn’t everything. As Tolstoy once said, ＂One can live magnificently in this world if one knows how to work and how to love, to work for the person one loves and to love one’s work.＂
1.What do we know about John?
A.He enjoyed his career and marriage.
B.He had few childhood playmates.
C.He received little love from his family.
D.He was envied by others in his childhood.
2.Vaillant’s words in Paragraph 2 serve as .
A.a description of personal values and social values
B.an analysis of how work was related to competence
C.an example for parents’ expectations of their children
D.an explanation why some boys grew into happy men
3.Vaillant’s team obtained their findings by .
A.recording the boys’ effort in school
B.evaluating the men’s mental health
C.comparing different sets of scores
D.measuring the men’s problem solving ability
4.What does the underlined word ＂sharp＂ probably mean in Paragraph 4?
A.Quick to react. B.Having a thin edge.
C.Clear and definite. D.Sudden and rapid.
5.What can be inferred from the last paragraph?
A.Competent adults know more about love than work.
B.Emotional health is essential to a wonderful adult life.
C.Love brings more joy to people than work does.
D.Independence is the key to one’s success.
Why College Is Not Home
The college years are supposed to be a time for important growth in autonomy(自主性) and the development of adult identity. However, now they are becoming an extended period of adolescence, during which many of today’s students are not shouldered with adult responsibilities.
For previous generations, college was a decisive break from parental control; guidance and support needed to come from people of the same age and from within. In the past two decades, however, continued connection with and dependence on family, thanks to cell phones, email and social media, have increased significantly. Some parents go so far as to help with coursework. Instead of promoting the idea of college as a passage from the shelter of the family to autonomy and adult responsibility, universities have given in to the idea that they should provide the same environment as that of the home.
To prepare for increased autonomy and responsibility, college needs to be a time of exploration and experimentation. This process involves ＂trying on＂ new ways of thinking about oneself both intellectually(在思维方面)and personally. While we should provide ＂safe spaces＂ within colleges, we must also make it safe to express opinions and challenge majority views. Intellectual growth and flexibility are fostered by strict debate and questioning.
Learning to deal with the social world is equally important. Because a college community(群体) differs from the family, many students will struggle to find a sense of belonging. If students rely on administrators to regulate their social behavior and thinking pattern, they are not facing the challenge of finding an identity within a larger and complex community.
Moreover, the tendency for universities to monitor and shape student behavior runs up against another characteristic of young adults: the response to being controlled by their elders. If acceptable social behavior is too strictly defined(规定) and controlled, the insensitive or aggressive behavior that administrators are seeking to minimize may actually be encouraged.
It is not surprising that young people are likely to burst out, particularly when there are reasons to do so. Our generation once joined hands and stood firm at times of national emergency. What is lacking today is the conflict between adolescents’ desire for autonomy and their understanding of an unsafe world. Therefore, there is the desire for their dorms to be replacement homes and not places to experience intellectual growth.
Every college discussion about community values, social climate and behavior should include recognition of the developmental importance of student autonomy and self-regulation, of the necessary tension between safety and self-discovery.
1.What’s the author’s attitude toward continued parental guidance to college students?
A.Sympathetic. B.Disapproving.
C.Supportive. D.Neutral.
2.The underlined word ＂passage＂ in Paragraph 2 means___________.
A.change B.choice
C.text D.extension
3.According to the author, what role should college play?
A.To develop a shared identity among students.
B.To define and regulate students’ social behavior.
C.To provide a safe world without tension for students.
D.To foster students’ intellectual and personal development.
4.Which of the following shows the development of ideas in the passage?
A.
B.
C.
D.
