Stephen Hawking’s final fear was that DNA manipulation would lead to a master race of superhumans. The physicist, who died aged 76 in March, 2018, thought the development could destroy the rest of human beings. His last prediction is revealed in a new book of his collected articles and essays called Brief Answers to Big Questions.
Hawking feared rich people would soon be able to edit their children’s DNA to improve attributes like memory and disease immunity. And he said that would pose a crisis for the rest of the world even if politicians tried to illegalize the practice. In an extract (摘录) published by The Sunday Times, he wrote: “I am sure that during this century people will discover how to modify both intelligence and instincts such as aggression. “Laws will probably be passed against genetic engineering with humans. But some people won’t be able to resist the temptation to improve human characteristics, such as memory, resistance to disease and length of life.” And he said that would cause huge problems for humans who have not undergone the same process, leaving them unable to compete. The professor even warned it could lead to the extinction of humanity as we know it. He said of normal humans: “Presumably they will die out, or become unimportant. Instead, there will be a race of self-designing beings who are improving at an ever-increasing rate.” The Brief History of Time author also refers to techniques like Crispr, which enables scientists to modify harmful genes and add in others. And although such procedures could be a boost for medical science, some critics are worried that they could cause a eugenics-style (优生方式) movement, where the weak are weeded out of society.
The new book, published by Hodder & Stoughton on Tuesday, also collects his writings on what he thought were the big questions facing science and wider society. In it, he examines whether aliens exist, colonize space and whether humans will ever go beyond our Solar System.
1.Stephen Hawking’s views don’t include _________.
A. DNA manipulation could lead to the extinction of human beings.
B. There exist techniques to modify harmful genes and add in good genes.
C. People cannot resist the temptation to improve human characteristics.
D. Humans who haven’t undergone genetic engineering may die out.
2.Which one is the hook published by Hodder & Stoughton?
A. Brief Answers to Questions. B. The Sunday Times.
C. The Brief History of Time. D. Solar System.
3.What’s Stephen Hawking’s attitude towards human genetic engineering?
A. Supportive. B. Impartial. C. Favorable. D. Concerned.
4.What does the text mainly want to tell us?
A. Crispr can enable scientists to get harmful genes changed.
B. DNA manipulation will create a master race of superhumans.
C. Humans will colonize space and go beyond our Solar System.
D. DNA manipulation may lead to the extinction of human beings.
That the success of humans as a species depends to a large extent on our ability to cooperate in groups is widely believed. Much more so than any other animal, people are able to coordinate and join their forces and actions to produce mutual benefits.
New research involving Dr Molleman, an expert at the University of Nottingham, suggests that successful cooperation in groups depends on how people gather information about their peers, and how they base their cooperative decisions on it.
Biologists wonder how cooperation could have developed by natural selection: it is puzzling how cooperation can be beneficial when it is possible to behave selfishly and take advantage of the cooperative efforts of your group. Psychologists and economists try hard to understand why many people are willing to sacrifice their own welfare to benefit their social environment. They asked questions like “How do people make decisions when their actions can affect the welfare of others?” “How people determine their behavior when they have to cooperate in groups?”.
Dr Pieter Van Den Berg from the University of Groningen said, “From previous research we know that some people are ‘majority-oriented (以……为中心)’ and tend to look at the behavior of the majority in their group, whereas others are ‘success-oriented’ and try to find out what kind of behavior pays off best for themselves.”
Dr Molleman, from the center of the Decision Research and Experimental Economics, said, “It turns out that behavior in groups of success-oriented people was much more selfish than it in groups of majority-oriented people. As a consequence, the people in the majority-oriented groups tended to cam more money in the experiment since they cooperated more.”
1.Compared with other animals, human beings are capable of ________.
A. communicating well with others B. working together with each other
C. surviving some natural disasters D. getting access to various information
2.What are the psychologists and economists most interested in?
A. Whether people’s personal efforts will pay off eventually.
B. How cooperation has developed over a long lime naturally.
C. Why people offer to affect those around them unselfishly.
D. What benefit that good cooperation can bring immediately.
3.We can infer that the success-oriented people________.
A. are careful to select a group to join
B. are likely to be successful in the future
C. pay more attention to the result of their effort
D. have some skills in collecting useful information
4.What is the new finding of the research?
A. Having good relationship gets us to live fullest life.
B. Focusing on individual success makes people selfish.
C. Being considerate can ensure our long-term benefit.
D. Mastering social skills help create harmonious society.
In Australia, the bilby (兔耳袋狸) project is seen as an important part in protecting the nation’s wildlife. Bilbies are known for their long ears and large back legs. They usually sleep during the day, and are awake at night. They look a lot like rabbits and grow to about 2.5 kilograms.
For the first time in 2018, bilbies are running wild in Southeastern Australia. The small animals were once widespread across much of Australia, but were last observed in the wild in New South Wales state in 1912. Every year bilby populations continue to decrease. Wildlife experts are afraid that the bilby, a small marsupial, could eventually disappear forever, either because of land clearing or fires. Another reason is a threat from cats and foxes, which hunt down and kill bilbies.
In northern New South Wales state, environmentalists are celebrating what they are calling a historic moment. Thirty bilbies from a captive breeding program have been released into a large predator-free enclosed area north of Sydney. Without the protection of a 32-kilometer fence, experts say the animals probably would not survive.
Tim Allard heads the Australian Wildlife Conservancy, which is involved in the project. He says the release of these beloved animals is a big deal. “There are some remaining wild bilby populations, but they get predated upon heavily by feral cats and foxes. Bilbies only really survive behind fenced areas.” Allard said the point of doing this project is to return the countryside to what it used to be before Europeans arrived. “So in the not-too-distant future, you will be able to go inside the fenced areas and it will be like stepping back before Europeans turned up,” he said.
1.What is the main idea of paragraph 1?
A. The shape of the bilby. B. The habit of the bilby.
C. The weight of the bilby. D. The characteristics of the bilby.
2.The followings are the reasons for Bilbies’ disappearance EXCEPT ________?
A. Trees’ clearing. B. Fires’ bursting. C. Cats’ hunting. D. Foxes’ killing.
3.What docs the underlined word “enclosed” in paragraph 3 probably mean?
A. Involved. B. Protected. C. Hunted. D. Enlarged.
4.From Allard’s words, what do we know?
A. The release of bilbies can make much money.
B. Cats and foxes cause the decrease of bilbies.
C. Nature reserves are needed to protect bilbies.
D. Europeans shouldn’t turn up in the countryside.
The critics’ top four books of 2018 are based on Christmas selections in national newspapers, the London Evening Standard, The TLS, The Spectator and the New Statesman.
Normal People by Sally Rooney Faber £14.99
Sally Rooney’s debut novel, Conversations with Friends, was one of last year’s most talked-about books. The response to the Irish writer’s follow-up has, if anything, been even more ecstatic. The 27-year-old was praised for her ability to convey subtle modulations of emotion. The novel was long listed for the Man Booker Prize — but many felt that it should have done better.
Vietnam by Max Hastings William Collins £30
This long-awaited historical blockbuster follows the Vietnam War over three decades. from the French “dirty war” of 1946—54 to America’s capitulation to the Vietcong in 1975. Hastings, who reported from the battlefield in Vietnam as a young British journalist, was praised for his encyclopedic knowledge of the conflict.
The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker Hamish Hamilton £18.99
Pat Barker’s novel is a retelling of The lliad — but with women at the heart of the action. The central character is Briseis, who appears only glancingly in Homers original. Best-known for her First World War Set Regeneration trilogy (1997). Barker, in her fifties, again focuses on the traumas of war. Reviewers praised the novel’s subversive energy even if it was judged conventional in places.
A Certain Idea of France by Julian Jackson Allen Lane £35
This door-stopping biography by British historian Julian Jackson — born in 1954 chronicles the life of Charles de Gaulle who is regarded as one of the greatest ever Frenchmen. While acknowledging that de Gaulle wasn’t very likeable, Jackson salutes his imagination and boldness- qualities that helped him steer France through its liberation from the Nazis and the war in Algeria. Critics suggested it would become the standard biography.
1.Which author of the four books is the youngest according to the text?
A. Sally Rooney B. Max Hastings C. Pat Barker D. Julian Jackson
2.Which book may people who are interested in a political leader’s life choose?
A. Normal People B. Vietnam
C. The Silence of the Girls D. A Certain Idea of France
3.What is the author’s purpose in writing the text?
A. To remember the four great novelists.
B. To introduce the yearly top four novels.
C. To encourage studies on the four novels
D. To promote the values of the four novelists
听下面一段独白，回答以下小题。
1.What can we know from the previous tests?
A. Chinese 15-year-olds have better math ability on average.
B. Math development is more advanced in China.
C. Chinese math teachers are better.
2.What will kids start practicing math exercise under the reform?
A. 4 years old. B. 5 years old. C. 6 years old.
3.How many primary schools are there in Britain?
A. About 4,000. B. About 8,000. C. About 16,000.
4.What does the “progressive” math-teaching style concentrate on?
A. Blending math into daily life. B. Practice and repetition. C. Teaching the basics of math.
听下面一段较长对话，回答以下小题。
1.What sport did the woman like to play in the past?
A. Yoga. B. Table tennis. C. Volleyball.
2.Which is NOT the reason for the woman choosing Tai Chi?
A. It requires less intensity.
B. It’s very popular nowadays.
C. It’s related to Chinese culture.
3.What is the essential concept of Tai Chi?
A. How to balance your life.
B. How to use the least to achieve the most.
C. How to defeat someone stronger than you.
4.What benefit docs Tai Chi bring to the woman?
A. She feels easier to concentrate.
B. She becomes more energetic.
C. She gets a good appetite.
