Question

    Last summer, two nineteenth-century cottages were rescued from remote farm fields in Montana, to be moved to  an  Art Deco  building  in San  Francisco.  The  houses were  made of wood. These  cottages once housed early settlers as they worked the dry Montana soil; now they hold Twitter engineers.

The cottages could be an example of the industry’s odd love affair with “low technology,” a concept associated with the natural world, and with old-school craftsmanship ( 手 艺 ) that exists long before the Internet era. Low technology is not virtual (虚拟的) --- so, to take advantage of it, Internet companies have had to get creative. The rescued wood cottages, fitted by hand in the late eighteen-hundreds, are an obvious example, but Twitter’s designs lie on the extreme end. Other companies are using a broader interpretation (阐释) of low technology that focuseson nature.

Amazon is building three glass spheres filled with trees, so that employees can “work and socialize in a more natural, park-like setting.” At Google’s office, an entire floor is carpeted in glass. Facebook’s second Menlo Park campus will have a rooftop park with a walking trail.

Olle Lundberg, the founder of Lundberg Design, has worked with many tech companies over the years. “We have lost the connection to the maker in our lives, and our tech engineers are the ones who feel impoverished (贫乏的) , because they’re surrounded by the digital world,” he says. “They’re looking for a way to regain their individual identity, and we’ve found that introducing real crafts is one way to do that.”

This craft based theory is rooted in history,  William Morris, the English artist and writer, turned back to pre-industrial arts in the eighteen-sixties, just after the  Industrial  Revolution.  The  Arts  and  Crafts movement defined itself against machines. “Without  creative  human  occupation,  people  became disconnected from life,” Morris said.

Research has shown that natural environments can restore (恢复) our mental capacities. In Japan, patients are encouraged to “forest-bathe,” taking walks through woods to lower their blood pressure.

These health benefits apply to the workplace as well. Rachel Kaplvin, a  professor  of  environmental psychology,  has spent years researching the restorative effects of natural environment. Her research found that workers with access to nature at the office  --- even simple views of trees and flowers  --- felt their jobs    were less stressful and more satisfying. If low-tech offices can potentially nourish the brains and improve the mental health of employees then, fine, bring on the cottages.

1.Low technology is regarded as something that _____.

A.is related to nature B.is out of date today

C.consumes too much energy D.exists in the virtual world

2.The writer’s attitude to “low technology” can best be described as _____.

A.positive B.defensive

C.cautious D.doubtful

3.What might be the best title for the passage?

A.Past Glories, Future Dreams

B.The Virtual World, the Real Challenge

C.High-tech Companies, Low-tech Offices

D.The More Craftsmanship, the Less Creativity

Answer

1.A

2.A

3.C

【解析】

本文为说明文。本文讲述的是关于现代科技公司运用“大自然对人们创造力产生作用”的理念，积极创设原生态的办公环境。这里提到的低科技指的是工业化之前的建造技术，它更贴近自然。在自然的办公环境下，职员们不会感到有压力，对他们的健康是有好处的。

1.推理判断题。第二段中的“The cottages could be an example of the industry’s odd love affair with “low technology,” a concept associated with the natural world（“低技术”是一个与自然世界相关的概念）”第三中作者给出的例子“Amazon is building three glass spheres filled with trees, so that employees can “work and socialize in a more natural park-like setting（在一个更自然、公园般的环境中工作和社交）”以及最后一段中“Her research found that workers with access to nature at the office --- even simple views of trees and flowers --- felt their jobs were less stressful and more satisfying（能够在办公室接触大自然的员工——哪怕只是看到树木和鲜花——都觉得自己的工作压力更小，更令人满意）”可以判断出，“低科技”跟大自然有关，即在一个天然的环境下，故选A。

2.推理判断题。第二段中的“he cottages could be an example of the industry’s odd love affair with “low technology,” a concept associated with the natural world”。可知，“low technology”就与自然界有关。最后一段“Her research found that workers with access to nature at the office --- even simple views of trees and flowers --- felt their jobs were less stressful and more satisfying”可知，“low technology”使得能够在办公室接触大自然的员工——哪怕只是看到树木和鲜花——都觉得自己的工作压力更小，更令人满意...”。作者给出的这些例子可以看出，利用低科技建造的原生态办公室对职员们的工作的积极性是有好处的。并且作者还引用了一项研究“Research has shown that natural environments can restore(恢复) our mental capacities”来说明自然环境对我们精神上的有利影响。分析选项A.积极的；B.辩护的；C.谨慎的；D.怀疑的。故选A。

3.主旨大意题。这篇文章中作者告诉我们，现代的高科技公司需要有创造力，要充分的利用以前的低科技技术，创设更加原生态的办公环境。文中第三段与第四段举例，现代高科技的办公室运用“low technology”。且“low technology”是文章的中心词。故用C项（High-tech Companies Low-tech Offices）作为题目是最合适的。故选C。