(C)
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!
（B）
Is there link between humans and climate change or not? This question was first studied in the early 1900s. Since then, many scientists have thought that our actions do make a difference. In 1997, the Kyoto Protocol explained our role in the Earth’s changing atmosphere and set international limits for gas emissions(排放) from 2008 to 2012. Some countries have decided to continue these reductions until 2020. More recently, the Paris Agreement, stuck by nearly 200 countries, also aims to limit global warming. But just now how much warmer it will get depends on how deeply countries cut carbon emissions.
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
Section A
Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context.
In the 1960s, Douglas McGregor, one of the key thinkers in the art of management, developed the mow famous Theory X and Theory Y. Theory X is the idea that people instinctively work and will do anything to avoid it. Theory Y is the view that everyone has the potential to find satisfaction in work.
In any case, despite so much evidence to the , many managers still agree to Theory X. They believe, , that their employees need constant supervision if they are to work effectively, or that decisions must be imposed from without consultation. This, of course, makes for authoritarian (专制的) managers.
Different cultures have different ways of people. Unlike authoritarian management, some cultures, particularly in Asia, are well known for the consultative nature of decision-making—all members of the department or work group are asked to to this process. This is management by the collective opinion. Many western companies have tried to imitate such Asian ways of doing things, which are based on general . Some experts say that women will become more effective managers than men because they have the power to reach common goals in a way that traditional managers cannot.
A recent trend has been to encourage employees to use their own initiative, to make decisions on their own without managers first. This empowerment (授权) has been part of the trend towards downsizing: the number of management layers in companies. After de-layering in this way, a company may be with just a top level of senior managers, front-line managers and employees with direct contact with the public. Empowerment takes the idea of delegation (委托) much further than has been the case. Empowerment and delegation mean new forms of management control to that the overall business plan is being followed, and that operations become more profitable under the new organization, rather than less.
Another trend is off-site or management, where teams of people linked by e-mail and the Internet work on projects from their own houses. Project managers evaluate the of the team members in terms of what they produce for projects, rather than the amount of time they spend on them.
1.A. desire B. seek C. lose D. dislike
2.A. contrary B. expectation C. degree D. extreme
3.A. vice versa B. for example C. however D. otherwise
4.A. outside B. inside C. below D. above
5.A. replacing B. assessing C. managing D. encouraging
6.A. refer B. contribute C. object D. apply
7.A. agreement B. practice C. election D. impression
8.A. bossy B. experienced C. western D. male
9.A. asking B. training C. warning D. firing
10.A. doubling B. maintaining C. reducing D. estimating
11.A. honored B. left C. crowded D. compared
12.A. economically B. traditionally C. inadequately D. occasionally
13.A. deny B. admit C. assume D. ensure
14.A. virtual B. ineffective C. day-to-day D. on-the-scene
15.A. opinion B. risk C. performance D. attractiveness
Section B
Directions: Complete the following passage by using the words in the box. Each word can only be used once. Note that there is one word more than you need.
A. account B. adjustable C. appliances D. capture E. decorations F. direct G. experiment H. intended I. operated J. soulless K. squeeze |
Golden Rules of Good Design
What makes good design? Over the years, designers and artists have been trying to 1. the essentials of good design. They have found that some sayings can help people understand the ideas of good design. There are four as follows.
Less is more. This saying is associated with the German-born architect Mies van der Rohe. In his Modernist view, beauty lies in simplicity and elegance, and the aim of the designer is to create solutions to problems through the most efficient means. Design should avoid unnecessary 2.
More is not a bore. The American-born architect Robert Venturi concluded that if simplicity is done badly, the result is 3. design. Post-Modernist designers began to 4. with decoration and color again. Product design was heavily influenced by this view and can be seen in kitchen 5. such as ovens and kettles.
Fitness for purpose. Successful product design takes into consideration a product’s function, purpose, shape, form, color, and so on. The most important result for the user is that the product does what is 6. . For example, think of a(n) 7. desk lamp. It needs to be constructed from materials that will stand the heat of the lamp and regular adjustments by the user. It also needs to be stable. Most importantly, it needs to 8. light where it is needed.
From follows emotion. This phrase is associated with the German designer Hartmut Esslinger. He believes design must take into 9. device that allows us to easily 10. the toothpaste onto our brush.
(B)
Stress: Good or Bad?
Stress used to be an almost unknown word, but now that we are used to talking about it, I have found that people are beginning to get stressed about being stressed.
In recent years, stress1._____(regard) as a cause of a whole range of medical problems, from high blood pressure to mental illness. But like so many other things, it is only too much stress2.____ does you harm. It is time you considered that if there were no stress in your life, you would achieve a little. If you are stuck at home with no stress, then your level of performance will be low. Up to a certain point, the more stress you are under, the 3.____(good) your performance will be. Beyond a certain point, though , further stress will only lead to exhaustion, illness and finally a breakdown. You can tell when you are over the top and on the downward slope, by asking yourself 4.______ number of questions. Do you, for instance, feel that too much is being expected of 5._____, and yet find it impossible to say no? Do you find yourself getting impatient or6.____(annoy) with people over unimportant things?... If the answer to all those questions is yes, you had better7._____(control ) your stress, as you probably are under more stress than is good for you.
To some extent you can control the amount of stress in your life. Doctors have worked out a chart showing how much stress is involved in various events. Getting married is 50, pregnancy 40, moving house 20, Christmas 12,etc. If the total stress in your life is over 150, you are twice as likely 8.______ (get )ill.
