“If we can set it up so you can’t unlock your phone unless you’ve got the right fingerprint(指纹),” Barack Obama asked last Tuesday, “why can’t we do the same thing for our guns?” For this reasonable-sounding question, the president was applauded throughout the media.
As it happens, though, there is a good answer to this question: there is no market for guns that work just some of the time. Guns are simple things designed to operate as easily and reliably as possible. The introduction of electronics eats away this simplicity, and to a degree that is absolutely unacceptable to the consumer. As President Obama well knows, the fingerprint software on his phone works rather erratically: Often it takes a user two or three tries to log in; occasionally, it falls asleep deeply and obeys the password. When this happens on an phone, the user is mildly inconvenienced. If this were to happen on a gun, the user would be dead. There is a reason that modern smartphones put the camera function outside of the authentication(认证) process.
How could we possibly think that guns are the same as other commercial products? It is true that, say, cars have become considerably safer over the last few decades; true, too, that “research” has contributed to this improvement. But it matters enormously that a car is not intended to hurt people, and that in a perfect world nobody would ever be injured by one. Can we say the same of guns? Of course not. Guns are killing machines, designed explicitly to do damage to living things. In fact, they have no other purpose. As such, the salient question before any free people is not “are guns dangerous?”, they are, but “who gets them, and why?”
This is not to say that nothing at all can be done to improve public safety. On an individual level, gun owners should do everything to ensure that their guns are kept away from children, and, where possible, they should train themselves in case they are ever called upon to shoot in anger. At the national level, the combination of better policing and economic growth can help to reduce crime—and, indeed, it has. In 1993, gun crime was more than twice as common as it is now, and there were many fewer guns in circulation. Ugly as it is in its own right, that we have reached the point at which two-thirds of all guns-related deaths are deliberately self-inflicted is a small victory.
How to address those deaths that remain? That is a tricky one. I do not know the answer, and nor, frankly, does anybody else. But selling fantasies to the ignorant is not going to cut it.
1.What does the writer mainly argue in this passage?
A. Gun crime has been greatly reduced.
B. The idea of smart guns is not realistic.
C. Gun control will not succeed in America.
D. Guns-related deaths deserve public attention.
2.The underlined word “erratically” in Paragraph 2 probably means ________.
A. with effectiveness
B. with passion and energy
C. in an unpredictable manner
D. in a reasonable and fair way
3.The writer supports his ideas in Paragraphs 2 and 3 mainly by ________.
A. analyzing statistics
B. presenting problems and solutions
C. quoting the authorities
D. making comparisons and contrasts
4.Which of the following might the writer NOT agree with?
A. Few know how to deal with guns-related deaths.
B. Efforts to improve public safety have partly paid off.
C. The nature of guns distinguishes them from other products.
D. Guns using fingerprint software can risk the lives of the users.
The truth was written all over her face. The eyes are the window to the soul. From those sayings, you would think that we could read faces. In fact, people tend to overestimate their ability to do it.
Most of us can’t distinguish between certain expressions without contextual clues. In one study, participants were unable to tell whether faces in photos were showing pain or pleasure about a quarter of the time. In another, when people watched silent videos of the same person experiencing pain and faking pain, they couldn’t tell which was which.
And yet, as bad as we are at reading expressions, we jump to all kinds of conclusions based on people’s faces. We might scoff at the ancient physiognomy—assessing character on the basis of facial feature—but we unknowingly practice it daily. Recent research shows that while there’s practically no evidence that faces reveal character, we nonetheless behave as if certain features signal certain traits. People with typically “female” facial features seem more trustworthy; those with lower eyebrows appear more controlling. In another study, people were ready to decide whether an unfamiliar face should be trusted after looking at it for just 200 milliseconds. Even when given a chance to look longer, they rarely changed their mind.
Such judgments can defy logic. Subjects playing a trust game invested more money with a player who had a trustworthy face than with one who didn’t—even when the two players had the same fame. Another study reported that judges needed less evidence to sentence a person with an untrustworthy face. And a researcher focusing on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict found that a Palestinian peace offering was more likely to be accepted by Jewish Israeli if it was attributed to a politician with “babyfacedness”.
Which brings us to a contradiction. A person’s face may not reflect her nature, and yet research finds that specific facial features do seem to influence futures. U.S. Army War College graduates with controlling-looking faces are more likely than their peers to become generals; people with obvious cheekbones, appearing strong and competent, are more likely to become CEOs of successful companies. This makes a certain sense. If everyone assumes strong-chinned Daniel is an ambitious person, he’s more likely to become one. Perhaps by treating others as though their face reveals their character, we motivate them to become the people we assume them to be.
1.Miss Green wants to find a pet shop for her dog while she is on holiday. She is most likely to choose the shop’s owner with ________.
A. a strong chin B. “female” facial features
C. low eyebrows D. obvious cheekbones
2.Which of the following is TRUE according to the author?
A. People rush to judgments based on facial features.
B. People are better at telling “pain” than “delight” from faces.
C. People consider it instructive to study the ancient physiognomy.
D. People would change their first impression if given more chances.
3.In Paragraph 4, the examples are used to show ________.
A. facial features reveal minds
B. trust is essential in big issues
C. baby faces are more trustworthy
D. decisions are easily influenced by faces
4.According to the last paragraph, the author believes ________.
A. facial features mirror character
B. people’s behavior is contradictory
C. people won’t be judged by appearance
D. facial features can influence eventual character
The Wake-up Call
“What’s that?” my ten-year-old daughter, Genie, asked. She’d caught me laughing at a piece of mail I’d just opened. “Wake-up service; $2.50 per call.” At the bottom was a phone number and a drawing of a rotary phone, like the one my great-aunt Sara had owned 40 years ago.
“Is that mail funny?” Genie asked.
“Not really,” I admitted. “It’s just outdated.”
“What’s a wake-up call？” She frowned. I explained how, before smart-phones, people sometimes paid someone to wake them with a call.
“Who sent this flyer?” she pressed.
“Probably someone older,” I said, “and could use some money.”
Her eyes lit up. “Can we order a wake-up?” she asked.
“We don’t need it.” I picked it up and headed for the recycling bin.
“Wait!” she shrieked.
“I feel sorry for the wake-up man, if he needs some money,” she said, tearing up. “Can’t we order?”
I looked at the flyer with its drawing of a rotary phone. I remembered, again, my great-aunt Sara and her rotary phone. As a kid, I’d visited her over Labor Day, when Jerry Lewis would host his charity event for the disabled kids. Aunt Sara would squeeze my hand, then reach for the rotary phone, dialing the number on the screen. Holding the receiver between us, we’d announce to the operator, “We’d like to help those kids.”
Now here was my own child, showing the same big heart I’d once been encouraged to have, and how could I ignore her? I Googled the flyer’s return address. The address belonged to a man called Raymond. He was in his mid-60s. We called him and, holding the receiver between us, the way Aunt Sara and I used to, told him we needed his services. “Great!” Raymond said in a shaky but friendly voice, clearly amazed at receiving an order from a child. When I asked how to pay the $2.50, he answered, “Mail a check.”
Genie was happy all week. Friday night, I put the phone by her pillow so she could answer Raymond’s call. She bounded to my bedroom to tell me all about how he’d wished her a good morning and told her to have a great day, which she did.
Technology has made some things outdated. But there are still other things the world will always require. In the rush and hustle of my daily life, I’d temporarily forgotten that. I guess I just needed a wake-up call.
1.The author laughed at the mail because ________.
A. it was printed roughly
B. the drawing in it was poor
C. the wake-up call cost too much
D. the service it offered was outdated
2.What did the author want to do with the flyer at first?
A. Throw it away.
B. Let Genie read it.
C. Find out who sent it.
D. Keep it away from Genie.
3.What made the author finally decide to order a wake-up call?
A. Her own childhood experience.
B. The less fortunate wake-up man.
C. Genie’s curiosity about the service.
D. The information she found on Google.
4.What might “other things” in the last paragraph refer to?
A. Bravery and curiosity.
B. Confidence and patience.
C. Honesty and humor.
D. Generosity and kindness.
阅读下列短文，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
1.What is important to wear when riding?
A. Warm clothes. B. Loose jeans.
C. Hiking boots. D. Cowboy boots.
2.You’d better bring your own equipment for ________.
A. horseback riding B. fly fishing
C. cattle work D. mountain biking
3.Where can you possibly read this article?
A. In a novel . B. In a science magazine.
C. In a travelling guide. D. In a history textbook.
阅读下面短文，掌握其大意，从每题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中，选出最佳选项，并在答题卡上将该项涂黑。
My tenth Christmas was one I was not looking forward to. Money was tight. Mom said we were old enough not to count on . Just being together would be enough.
We weren’t the only family in our small community who would have a Christmas. But the knowledge that others were going through the same thing didn’t much.
One night we had a small pity party for each other.
“How can I even wear that same old dress one more time?” I .
“I know,” said my sister. “I think I might as well give up asking for a .”
The next day, Mom told us that she had been saving up and shopping around so that we could give the Walters family a Christmas basket.
“If anyone needs some , it’s the Walters.” Mom reminded us.
The Walters! They were the strangest people we knew. How could Mom be so with them when our own family didn’t have enough?
Mom was determined. She packed flour and sugar, a small turkey, some fruits in a basket and asked us to it to the Walters.
I really didn’t like to have anything to do with them. Not wanting to be , we left the basket on the doorstep and hid behind a nearby bush.
Seeing the Walters gather up their basket, I asked in whisper, “Did they look happy?”
“Well, yeah, happy, but mostly they looked like they were thinking, Maybe we do belong.”
Christmas morning arrived. To my great , I received a fabulous-looking dress. I couldn’t believe it’s for me. I was about to speak we noticed Dad ride up atop a new horse. My sister screamed and ran out. She couldn’t to meet her “gift”.
“Mom, how did you do all this?” I asked. “We were for a no-present Christmas.”
“Oh, not necessarily but just helping each other. Mrs. Olsen at the dress shop let me bring your gift home. Dad offered to hang up Mrs. Marshall’s tree lights. Mr. Jones had a horse and he was to know we had someone to love it.”
“I thought since you were giving away food to the Walters, we would never have enough. They really don’t have anything to give in .”
“We are like a big family. Never who can or who can’t give. The most important is that we should listen to our hearts. Perhaps the right gifts will end up with the right families.”
Mom always knew . Thinking about the expression on the Walters’s faces when they discovered the Christmas basket, I realized their “ ” feeling was more precious than any of the gifts.
That was the Christmas that I learned about the magic of .
1.A. games B. parties C. gifts D. trips
2.A. simple B. regular C. grand D. peaceful
3.A. judge B. help C. cover D. pay
4.A. begged B. insisted C. laughed D. complained
5.A. tree B. light C. dress D. horse
6.A. trust B. cheer C. praise D. courage
7.A. patient B. strict C. generous D. popular
8.A. deliver B. award C. show D. lend
9.A. excused B. caught C. realized D. recognized
10.A. relief B. alarm C. fear D. surprise
11.A. since B. when C. after D. before
12.A. expect B. intend C. wait D. decide
13.A. ready B. eager C. known D. responsible
14.A. checking B. trading C. hesitating D. quarreling
15.A. proud B. afraid C. happy D. worried
16.A. return B. store C. vain D. effect
17.A. tease B. forget C. mind D. ignore
18.A. truth B. duty C. dreams D. choices
19.A. inspiring B. relaxing C. satisfying D. belonging
20.A. believing B. giving C. forgiving D. communicating
About 10 million dolphins are said ________ in the past 15 years.
A. to have killed B. to kill
C. to have been killed D. to be killed
