The belief that new technologies are causing the death of work is the idea that never goes away. Despite evidence to the contrary, we still view technological change today as being more rapid and dramatic in its consequences for work than ever before. But this is nothing new. People have always viewed the technological changes that take place during their lives as the most dramatic and dangerous that ever happened in history.
In the 1930s, the British economist(经济学家) John Maynard Keynes predicted the widespread use of electricity would produce a world where people spend most of their time doing nothing. In the United States during the 1960s, the government repeatedly investigates fears that automatic machines would permanently reduce the amount of work available. In 1988, one Australian historian claimed that at least a quarter of the workforce would be without jobs within 10 years because of computers.
Of course, none of these disasters came to pass in the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia, or anywhere else.
Yet today, we are seeing the return of these predictions, with some experts claiming the world of work is once more undergoing radical and unprecedented change. They argue that robots and other workplace technologies are causing a reduction in the total amount of work available, or are bringing a more rapid pace of substitution of machines for humans than has been seen previously.
But there is a little evidence to support such beliefs. Statistics show that the percentage of people in work, the number of hours they work, and how frequently they change jobs have remained remarkably constant over the past 20 years.
This stability should not come as a surprise. There are good reasons why we should not expect new technologies to cause the death of work. New technologies always cause job losses, but that is only part of the story. What also needs to be understood is how they increase the amount of work available.
One way this happens is through the increases in incomes that accompany the use of new technologies. With the introduction of these technologies, good and services can be produced faster, which results in higher real incomes for workers. Higher incomes then increase demand for other products and consequently more workers are needed to make them. Additionally, while new technologies are likely to substitute for some types of workers, they will also increase demand for other types of workers, especially those with higher level skills and expertise.
So, the end of work is no closer today than at any time in the past. But there is still a need to keep disproving the prediction, to reduce people's fears.
1.What is the function of the second paragraph?
A.To explain the importance of developing new technology.
B.To show how technology affected employment in the past.
C.To argue that technological dangers are becoming more serious.
D.To give historical examples of unnecessary fear about new technology.
2.How can employment statistics over the past 20 years best be described?
A.Confusing B.Reliable
C.Stable D.Variable
3.According to paragraph 7, why does demand for products often increase after new technology is introduced?
A.There are more goods for people to choose from.
B.There is more demand for new skills in the economy.
C.Productivity improvements help raise workers’ salaries.
D.Higher quality goods at lower prices encourage consumption.
4.What is the author’s opinion about the introduction of new technology?
A.It does not have an effect on most people’s jobs.
B.Its benefits are usually not worth the introduction.
C.It usually leads to a significant increase in employment.
D.Its danger to peoples employment possibilities is overstated.
Supermarket shelves are filled with plant-based alternatives to cow milk, including soy, nut, and coconut milk. These products are popular with consumers who cannot drink cows’ milk for health reasons, as well as with those concerned about animal welfare and environmental sustainability. While the dairy-free(非乳制的) options work well with cereal or in coffee, they fail miserably when it comes to making milk-based products like cheese or yogurt. However, these shortcomings may soon be a thing of the past, thanks to a new company in California, which has figured out how to create animal-free milk in a laboratory!
Perumal Gandhi and Ryan Pandya founded the company in 2014 after becoming increasingly annoyed with the lack of cows’ milk-free alternatives, particularly for cheese. For Gandhi, who stopped consuming animal products five years earlier due to environmental and animal welfare concerns, the motivation to create a better alternative stemmed from his love of cheesy pizza. Pandya was spurred into taking action after being forced to eat some “really bad” dairy-free cream cheese on his sandwich.
The two MIT biomedical engineering scientists decided to join forces to create a more realistic alternative to dairy-based products. In their university lab, the pair spent nine months first isolating(分离) cow DNA then inserting it into yeast. This genetic modification enabled the yeast to produce the necessary milk proteins. The final step of the process involved mixing the proteins with some plant nutrients and fats.
The dairy-free milk not only tastes like the real thing but is also healthier, has a longer shelf life and, most important of all, is Earth friendly. According to the company’s website, when compared to conventional（传统的） milk production, their process uses 65% less energy, creates 84%o less greenhouse gas emissions and requires 91% less land and an amazing 98% less water! Best of all, since it contains real milk proteins, the product behaves like the cow-produced version, which means vegetarian consumers will no longer have to deal with soggy cheese on their sandwiches and pizzas.
The company plans to bring their creation to market later this year and their first product will most likely be cheese since there are already numerous good cows’ milk alternatives available to consumers.
1.The underlined word "those" in paragraph 1 refers to_______.
A. alternatives B. people
C. products D. reasons
2.What can be inferred from paragraph 4?
A. The dairy-free products cannot be stored for a long time.
B. The new products will taste better than dairy-based ones.
C. Cow farming causes considerable environmental damage.
D. The dairy-free milk will be more expensive than cow’s milk.
3.Which of the following can be the best title for the text?
A. Healthier Cheese B. New Milk Saves Planet
C. Fresher Milk, Better Future D. Making Milk without Cows
As is tradition, technology companies from around the world have flocked to Las Vegas for the annual Consumer Electronics Show. There are thousands of eye-catching items to swoon over, whether you’re a nerd or not. Here are a few of the most interesting, exciting and possibly life-changing products seen at the show, which runs from Tuesday to Friday.
Item 1 You thought your curved TV was cool? The LG Signature OLED TV R is a 65-inch 4K TV that is, unlike your lame and rigid screen, rollable, and can retract(收回) into its base when you’re not enjoying it. While you can control it using either Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa, the TV R also supports Apple’s AirPlay 2 and HomeKit. |
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Item 2 Gaming laptops aren’t new, but they usually lack power compared to their beefier desktop counterparts. Nvidia’s latest announcement changes that, and brings the desktop-class power found in its RTX line of graphics cards to laptops. More than 40 laptop models will turn up by the end of the month with RTX graphics cards inside, which can produce more realistic graphics and boost performance for the most gamers. |
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Item 3 If sleeping is harder than it should be, the Dreem band might be able to help you figure out what you’re doing wrong. The Dreem band is a fabric-covered headband that wraps around your head and uses a combination of sensors like the ones in your Apple Watch to detect various biometrics like your heart rate and respiration activity. It also uses bone conduction to communicate audio cues to you privately. |
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Item 4 Samsung’s shown off its Micro LED technology in the past, using it to build The Wall, a 146-inch TV. The company’s now showing off a smaller Micro LED TV. Using Samsung’s Micro LED panels, you can create a variety of display sizes supporting different aspect ratios, going from an ultra-wide 21:9 screen to a perfectly square 1:1 display without losing image quality. |
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1.If one likes doing things by himself, which of the items suits him best?
A.Item 1. B.Item 2.
C.Item 3. D.Item 4.
2.Which of the following technologies appeared for the first time in the show?
A.The TV R User’s controlling the TV by Google Assistant
B.Nvidia’s laptops’ solving the problem of power
C.The Dreem band’s detect your heart rate
D.Samsung’s Micro LED technology making a 146-inch TV possible
Autumn is a colorful season. It’s____with natural beauty. It’s breathtaking to see the reds, oranges and yellows ____ along highways, across mountain ranges, and in backyards. The air is fresh. The sun is brilliant. Many people go on ____ outings—not necessarily to swim, ____ just to be by the ocean in that cool, bright _____.
Autumn is also a transition season, a ____ to the quiet of winter. It is a time of ____, as leaves fall to the ground and ____to the earth.
This week, we’re celebrating Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Every year this ____offers us an opportunity to look back on the past and to ____our life in the direction we believe it should go. And every year, we ____the festival in autumn. Rosh Hashanah also feels to me like a powerful____that now is the time to make a fresh____just as the vibrancy(活力) of the year is winding down and to set a positive goal for the days, weeks and months____. For me, it feels profound, and almost courageous, to face the cold winter with fresh____and energy. The more____we are rooted in what matters during the autumn, the more we have to draw on when____winds blow.
That’s a lesson____us every day of the year, isn’t it? Today is the day to ____tomorrow’s happiness, tomorrow’s kindness, tomorrow’s health and tomorrow’s friendship. Whether it’s cold and windy outside, or warm and bright, we have the power to ____ the most of each day, to start fresh and to reorganize our life in the directions we believe we should go.
1.A.rich B.popular C.familiar D.satisfied
2.A.turn out B.go back C.come out D.fade away
3.A.mountain B.beach C.desert D.forest
4.A.and B.until C.when D.but
5.A.light B.water C.color D.wind
6.A.bridge B.barrier C.boundary D.breakthrough
7.A.meetings B.endings C.harvests D.memories
8.A.add B.belong C.adapt D.return
9.A.activity B.circumstance C.festival D.experience
10.A.recognize B.review C.reorganize D.repeat
11.A.establish B.observe C.foresee D.honor
12.A.warning B.guarantee C.statement D.reminder
13.A.start B.stop C.change D.move
14.A.alone B.ahead C.around D.abroad
15.A.guidance B.purpose C.decision D.imagination
16.A.skillfully B.secretly C.deeply D.vividly
17.A.soft B.bitter C.fresh D.seasonal
18.A.inspiring B.surprising C.confusing D.improving
19.A.look for B.allow for C.wait for D.prepare for
20.A.pass B.take C.spend D.make
The more he thought over the idea the more he came to realize that he wasn't able to_______.
A.see the handwriting on the wall B.live from hand to mouth
C.see the forest for the trees D.beat around the bush
More often than not, the enterprise around us are getting even richer, ________ recipe is don’t put all your eggs in one basket.
A.of which B.which
C.whose D.of whom
