Mattew Shifrin has been building with Legos (乐高积木) since he was 5 with the help of his friends. When he turned 13, he got a _______ birthday present from his friend, Lilya Finkel. It was an 843-piece Middle Eastern Lego palace. And with it were_______that Finkel made specially for it. Finkel_______a unique name for every one of the more than 800 pieces in the palace set. Then she spent countless hours_______ building instructions in Braille (盲文) that spelled out how to_______ them all together.
His mind was blown. As a_______person, Shifrin had never before been able to complete a Lego set_______. Shifrin knew immediately that he had to help other blind children find the same_______ . Shifrin says, ''For blind people, Lego sets act as small 3D_______for real-life buildings instead of two-dimensional photographs. Lego bricks ________ me to see things that are ________ to explore by touch.'' For years after that incredible Lego________ , he together with Finkel created similar instructions for about 45 other Lego sets, all ________ on a website they created, ''Lego for the Blind.''
Shifrin began________the Lego company several years ago to discuss his work, but it was in 2017, when Finkel died of cancer, that he finally connected with the________person. His years-long efforts________ when the Lego company released its first audio and Braille building instructions. The project is a high-tech version of what Shifrin and Finkel did for their________. It couldn’t have been completed without Shifrin's________ – or without his determination.
He just ________ Finkel had been here to see it. ''I think she'd be very glad that we came this ________,'' Shifrin said.
1.A.time-saving B.life-changing C.world-shaking D.heart-breaking
2.A.instructions B.rules C.skills D.requirements
3.A.invented B.remembered C.mentioned D.knew
4.A.getting B.practicing C.ignoring D.typing
5.A.mix B.fix C.mend D.gather
6.A.blind B.deaf C.poor D.rich
7.A.in his favour B.in his turn C.on his own D.at his convenience
8.A.truth B.connection C.balance D.independence
9.A.patterns B.designs C.replacements D.arrangements
10.A.warn B.allow C.force D.trouble
11.A.impossible B.dangerous C.easy D.safe
12.A.experiment B.performance C.practice D.experience
13.A.published B.selected C.identified D.canceled
14.A.putting up with B.catching up with C.reaching out to D.keeping away from
15.A.previous B.missing C.smart D.right
16.A.spread out B.blew up C.faded away D.paid off
17.A.company B.website C.buildings D.children
18.A.encouragement B.preparation C.involvement D.recommendation
19.A.predicted B.wished C.assumed D.expected
20.A.long B.far C.deep D.fast
How to Active Brain Cells
Scientists used to think that your brain stopped growing new cells once you reached adulthood. Happily, current research shows that it isn’t true! As you get older, you can continue to grow new brain cells.
Get regular aerobic (有氧的) exercise.
Research shows that regular aerobic exercise over a long period of time can better stimulate brain cell growth than other forms of exercise. Add aerobic activities, such as swimming, power walking, or jogging, into your regular routine.1.
Do stress-relieving activities.
Activities that reduce stress and give you a sense of wellbeing can encourage the growth of new brain cells.2. You can do some yoga, read your favorite book, or listen to relaxing music.
3.
Antioxidant-rich foods can prevent damage to your current brain cells and promote the growth of new, healthy cells. Omega 3 fatty acids may also help improve your brain health. Add plenty of brain-boosting foods into your diet, such as vegetable oils, nuts, green tea, blueberries and fatty fish.
Maintain an active social life.
4. It’s also good for your brain. Socializing helps keep your brain cells active, preventing some of the loss of brain function. If you can’t socialize in person, reach out to your friends over the phone or on social media.
Get plenty of good-quality life.
If you’re an adult, try to get 7 – 9 hours of sleep each night. If you’re a teen, aim for 8 – 10.
Your brain heals itself from the day’s stresses while you sleep.5.You can improve your sleep by going to bed and waking up at the same time every day.
A.Spending time with friends isn’t just enjoyable.
B.Eat foods rich in antioxidants and omega 3 fatty acids.
C.Any kind of head injury may put you at risk for brain damage.
D.Try to do things that bring you pleasure and help you relax every day.
E.For example, you might aim for 30 minutes of jogging a day, 5 days a week.
F.Fortunately, there are treatments that can help you restore your brain’s health.
G.It also processes information you picked up during the day, helping you to learn and preserve new memories.
If you were like most children, you probably got upset when your mother called you by a brother’s or sister’s name. How could she not know you? Did it mean she loved you less?
Probably not. According to the first research to deal with this topic head-on, misnaming the most familiar people in our life is a common cognitive (认知的) error that has to do with how our memories classify and store familiar names.
The study, published online in April in the journal Memory and Cognition, found that the “wrong” name is not random but is always fished out from the same relationship pond: children, friends, brothers and sisters. The study did not examine the possibility of deep psychological significance to the mistake, says psychologist David Rubin, “but it does tell us who’s in and who’s out of the group.”
The study also found that within that group, misnamings occurred where the names shared initial or internal sounds, like Jimmy and Joanie or John and Bob. Physical resemblance between people was not a factor. Nor was gender.
The researchers conducted five separate surveys of more than 1,700 people. Some of the surveys included only college students; others were done with a mixed-age population. Some asked subjects about incidents where someone close to them – family or friend – had called them by another person’s name. The other surveys asked about times when subjects had themselves called someone close to them by the wrong name. All the surveys found that people mixed up names within relationship groups such as grandchildren, friends and brothers and sisters but hardly ever crossed these boundaries.
In general, the study found that undergraduates were almost as likely as old people to make this mistake and men as likely as women. Older people and women made the mistake slightly more often, but that may be because grandparents have more grandchildren to mix up than parents have children. Also, mothers may call on their children more often than fathers, given traditional gender norms. There was no evidence that errors occurred more when the misnamer was frustrated, tired or angry.
1.How might people often feel when they were misnamed?
A.Unwanted. B.Unhappy. C.Confused. D.Indifferent.
2.What did David Rubin’s research find about misnaming?
A.It is related to the way our memories work.
B.It is a possible indicator of a faulty memory.
C.It occurs mostly between kids and their friends.
D.It often causes misunderstandings among people.
3.What did the surveys of more than 1,700 subjects find about misnaming?
A.It more often than not hurts relationships.
B.It hardly occurs across gender boundaries.
C.It is most frequently found in extended families.
D.It most often occurs within a relationship group.
4.Why do mothers misname their children more often than fathers?
A.They suffer more frustrations.
B.They become worn out more often.
C.They communicate more with their children.
D.They generally take on more work at home.
In order to help cope with the vast number of student questions in the online class, Knowledge-Based Artificial Intelligence, Professor Ashok Goel of Georgia Tech developed an artificially intelligent teaching assistant. This online course is a core requirement of Georgia Tech’s online Master of Science in Computer Science program. Professor Goel already had eight teaching assistants, but that wasn’t enough to handle the vast number of daily questions from students.
Many students drop out of online courses because of the lack of teaching support. When students feel isolated or confused and reach out with questions that go unanswered, their motivation to continue begins to fade. Professor Goel decided to do something to remedy this situation and his solution was to create a virtual assistant named Jill Watson, which is based on the IBM Watson platform.
Goel and his team developed several versions of Jill Watson before releasing her to the online forums. At first, the virtual assistant wasn’t too great. But Goel and his team sourced the online discussion forum to find all the 40,000 questions that had ever been asked since the class was launched. Then they began to feed Jill with the questions and answers. After some adjustment and ample time, Jill was able to answer the students’ questions correctly 97% of the time. The virtual assistant became so advanced and realistic that the students didn’t know she was a computer. The students, who were studying artificial intelligence, were interacting with the virtual assistant and couldn’t tell it from a real human being. Goel didn’t inform them about Jill’s true identity until April 26. The students were actually very positive about the experience.
The goal of Professor Goel’s virtual assistant next year is to take over answering 40% of all the questions posed by students on the online forum. The name Jill Watson will, of course, change to something else next semester. Professor Goel has a much rosier forecast on the future of artificial intelligence than, say, Elon Musk, Stephen Hawking, Bill Gates or Steve Wozniak.
1.What do we learn about Knowledge-Based Artificial Intelligence?
A.It is a robot that can answer students’ questions.
B.It is a high-tech device that revolutionizes teaching.
C.It is a course designed for students to learn online.
D.It is a computer program that aids student learning.
2.What does the underlined word “remedy” in the paragraph 2 mean?
A.Boycott. B.Improve. C.Evaluate. D.Corrupt.
3.What do we learn about Jill Watson?
A.She was unwelcome to students at first.
B.She got along pretty well with students.
C.She turned out to be a great success.
D.She was released online as an experiment.
4.What does Professor Goel plan to do next with Jill Watson?
A.Assign her to answer more of students’ questions.
B.Upgrade her intelligence to the level of top scientists.
C.Launch different versions of her online.
D.Encourage students to interact with her more freely.
It is reported in the national press that a letter written by Charles Darwin in 1875 has been returned to the Smithsonian Institution Archives (档案馆) by the FBI after being stolen twice.
“We realized in the mid-1970s that it was missing,” says Effie Kapsalis, head of the Smithsonian Institution Archives. “It was noted as missing and likely taken by an intern (实习生), from what the FBI is telling us. Word got out that it was missing when someone asked to see the letter for research purposes,” and the intern put the letter back. “The intern likely took the letter again once nobody was watching it.”
Decades passed. Finally, the FBI received a tip that the stolen document was located very close to Washington, D.C. Their art crime team recovered the letter but were unable to press charges because the time of limitations had ended. The FBI worked closely with the Archives to determine that the letter was both authentic and definitely Smithsonian’s property.
The letter is in fairly good condition, in spite of being out of the care of trained museum staff for so long. “It was luckily in good shape,” says Kapsalis, “and we just have to do some minor things in order to be able to unfold it. It has some glue on it that has colored it slightly, but nothing that will prevent us from using it. After it is repaired, we will take digital photos of it and that will be available online. One of our goals is to get items of high research value or interest to the public online.”
It would now be difficult for an intern, visitor or a thief to steal a document like this. “Archiving practices have changed greatly since the 1970s,” says Kapsalis, “and we keep our high value documents in a safe that I don’t even have access to.”
1.What happened to Darwin’s letter in the 1970s?
A.It was recovered by the FBI.
B.It was put in the archives for research purposes.
C.It was stolen more than once.
D.It was purchased by the Smithsonian Archives.
2.What did the FBI do after the recovery of the letter?
A.They pressed criminal charges in vain. B.They kept it in a special safe.
C.They arrested the suspect immediately. D.They proved its authenticity.
3.What will the Smithsonian Institution Archives do with the letter according to Kapsalis?
A.Reserve it for research purposes only. B.Make it available online.
C.Keep it a permanent secret. D.Turn it into an object of high interest.
4.What can be a suitable title for the text?
A.A Letter by Charles Darwin Returns to the Smithsonian
B.The Smithsonian Tightens Security Measures
C.The Smithsonian Charges an Intern with Theft
D.The FBI Cracks a Criminal Case
After-hours events in 2020
Join us after hours for a special programme of unique events throughout 2020 at Shakespeare’s Birthplace. When the crowds have left and our beautiful buildings are quiet, we invite you to try something different.
The Art of Design with Lee Lapthorne – 9 March
Join artist Lee Lapthorne for a private evening when he will show two pieces of furniture inspired by our collections and discuss his process of reinventing pieces of furniture to create something new.
Venue (举办地点): The Shakespeare Centre
Poetry with Punch – 8 June
Come and meet Matt Windle, the “Poet with Punch” and Birmingham’s Poet Laureate 2016 – 2018 for a unique workshop, full of tips and advice to help you get your poetry moving. Suitable for beginners, this workshop will get you thinking about taking the next steps to create writing!
Tickets: £10 per adult
Venue: The Shakespeare Centre
Over Throne – 9 November
The frequent changing of rulers is nothing new. Join us for an evening of performance and discussion as we take a look at the bad rulers that were overthrown in Shakespeare’s plays. This is hosted by our Senior Lecturer in Shakespeare Studies, Dr. Anjna Chouhan.
Tickets: £10 per adult
Venue: The Shakespeare Centre
Herbs for Health – 12 October
Growing in the Hall’s Croft garden are the secret recipes to natural good health. Find out more about the medicine used by the Tudors that still influences our well-being ( 康 乐 ) today. Using herbs and sharing recipes, you will learn the theories behind natural medicine. Reserve your spot before availability.
Tickets: £10 per adult Venue: Hall’s Croft
1.When can you see the reinvented furniture?
A.On 12 October. B.On 8 June
C.On 9 November. D.On 9 March.
2.What can you do if you attend the event hosted by Chouhan?
A.Enjoy a performance. B.Learn to be a lecturer.
C.Visit the Hall’s Croft garden. D.Perform in Shakespeare’s plays.
3.Which event do you need to book in advance?
A.Poetry with Punch. B.Herbs for Health.
C.Over Throne. D.The Art of Design with Lee Lapthorne.
