Question

    We say that technology is a double-edged sword -while it brings convenience, it also brings new problems. The sword of “social media” even has a gender preference in its damage: It cuts deeper into girls than boys.

Earlier studies have shown that spending too much time on social media is bad for teenagers’ mental health. Constantly watching their friends show off “perfect” lives can hurt their own self-esteem (自尊). That’s not to mention the problems caused by online shaming and bullying (霸凌).

Jean Twenge, a professor at San Diego State University in the US, recently discovered an alarming trend: Since 2010, the number of teenage girls who suffer from major depression – showing signs like self-harm and suicide (自杀) - has increased much faster than that of boys. In an article she wrote at The Conversation, Twenge said social media, again, was to blame.

For starters, girls use social media more than boys. Boys tend to spend their screen time on games, where they talk to their teammates through headphones. This counts as real human contact. Girls, however, simply type and browse through posts, which is a much more isolated (孤立的) experience. “They’re not having a real-time conversation with someone,” Mary Fristad, psychologist at The Ohio State University, told NPR.

And when it comes to online shaming, girls are also more vulnerable than boys. “Girls face more pressure about their appearance, which could be exacerbated (加重) by social media,” wrote Twenge.

Shannon McLaughlin, for example, is an 18-year-old from Blackburn College in the US. She shared with the Guardian how social media made her feel depressed. “I was constantly confronted (面对) by women with skinny bodies who were praised for the way they looked. This was only made worse by the diet fixes and skinny culture,” she said. But McLaughlin found a solution. She started volunteering with the National Citizen Service, where she made face-to-face contact with people. “It’s so easy to forget the importance of real connections when we have hundreds of people that we’re trying to impress at our fingertips,” she told the Guardian. And she hopes that others “look up from their phones and focus more on the world around them”.

1.What did Twenge find in her recent study?

A.Overuse of social media harms teenagers’ mental health.

B.Social media does more harm to girls than boys.

C.Girls suffered more from bullying than boys.

D.Online shaming and bullying are to blame for teenagers’ depression.

2.Why do girls tend to feel more isolated than boys online, according to Mary Fristad?

A.Girls have less real-time interaction with people.

B.Playing games allows boys to have more fun than girls.

C.Girls suffer more pressure on social media.

D.Girls usually desire more contact with others.

3.The underlined word “vulnerable” in Paragraph 5 is closest in meaning to“         ”.

A.adjusting oneself well B.fighting back bravely

C.being unconcerned about something D.being likely to be at risk of something

4.What does McLaughlin advise teenage girls to do?

A.Ignore social media and stop following a diet.

B.Connect more with the real world.

C.Constantly take part in volunteer work.

D.Make better use of phones for socializing.

Answer

1.A

2.A

3.D

4.B

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。文章主要讲述了在社交媒体方面，女孩子相对于男孩子而言面临更大的压力。研究人员发现自2010年以来，患有严重抑郁症的少女数量的增长速度远远快于男孩。文章分析了这一情况产生的原因以及呼吁青少年们更多地和真实的世界来接触。

1.推理判断题。根据第三段中Jean Twenge, a professor at San Diego State University in the US, recently discovered an alarming trend: Since 2010, the number of teenage girls who suffer from major depression – showing signs like self-harm and suicide - has increased much faster than that of boys. In an article she wrote at The Conversation, Twenge said social media, again, was to blame.美国圣地亚哥州立大学教授Jean Twenge最近发现了一个令人担忧的趋势：自2010年以来，患有严重抑郁症（表现出自残和自杀等症状）的少女数量的增长速度远远快于男孩，在她写的一篇文章中，Twenge说社交媒体也是罪魁祸首。可知由此可知，Twenge在她最近的研究中发现过度使用社交媒体会损害青少年的心理健康。故选A。

2.细节理解题。根据第四段中Girls, however, simply type and browse through posts, which is a much more isolated experience. “They’re not having a real-time conversation with someone,” Mary Fristad, psychologist at The Ohio State University, told NPR.可知然而，女孩们只是简单地输入和浏览帖子，这是一种更加孤立的体验。俄亥俄州立大学的心理学家Mary Fristad在接受美国国家公共电台采访时表示：“他们并没有和某人进行实时对话。”由此可知，在网上，女孩比男孩更容易感到孤立是因为女孩与人的实时互动较少。故选A。

3.词义猜测题。根据下文Girls face more pressure about their appearance, which could be exacerbated by social media可知女孩们在外貌方面面临更多压力，社交媒体可能会加剧这种压力。故可推知在网络羞辱方面，女孩也比男孩更容易受到伤害。故划线单词意思为“有可能面临某事的危险”。故选D。

4.细节理解题。根据最后一段中“It’s so easy to forget the importance of real connections when we have hundreds of people that we’re trying to impress at our fingertips,” she told the Guardian. And she hopes that others “look up from their phones and focus more on the world around them”.可知她在接受《卫报》采访时表示：“当我们试图用指尖去打动数百人的时候，很容易忘记现实联系的重要性。”她希望其他人“放下手机，更多关注身边的世界”。由此可知，McLaughlin建议主张女孩子们需要多走进真实的世界，面对面的和人打交道。故选B。