Question

    More than a billion people around the world have smartphones, almost all of which come with avigation (导航) apps such as Google or Apple Maps. This raises the questions we meet with any technology: What skills are we losing? What abilities are we gaining?

Talking with people who're good at finding their way around or using paper maps, I often hear lots of frustration with digital maps. North/South direction gets messed up, and you can see only a small section at a time.

But consider what digital navigation aids have meant for someone like me. Despite being a frequent traveler, I'm so terrible at finding my way that I still use Google Maps every day in the small town where I have lived for many years. What looks like an imperfect product to some has been a significant expansion of my own abilities.

Part of the problem is that reading paper maps requires specific skills. There is nothing natural about them. In many developed nations, including the U. S., one expects street names and house numbers to be meaningful references, and instructions such as "go north for three blocks and then west" make sense. In Istanbul, in contrast, where I grew up, none of those hold true. For one thing, the locals rarely use street names. Why bother when a government or a military group might change them again? Besides, the city is full of winding, ancient alleys that meet newer avenues at many angles. Instructions as simple as “go north" would require a helicopter or a bulldozer (推士机).

Let's come back to my original questions. While we often lose some skills after leaving the work to technology, it may also allow us to expand our abilities. Consider the calculator: I don't doubt that our arithmetic skills might have dropped a bit as the little machines became common, but calculations that were once boring and tricky are now much more straightforward and one can certainly do more complex calculations more confidently.

1.What is the drawback of digital maps?

A.They aren't connected to smartphones.

B.They cost too much to download.

C.They leave some users frustrated.

D.They mix up the south and the north.

2.What's the author’s attitude toward digital maps?

A.Doubtful B.Supportive

C.ambiguous D.Uncaring.

3.What's the fourth paragraph mainly about?

A.The differences between Istanbul and the U. S.

B.The miserable life of people in Istanbul.

C.The necessity of asking local people in Istanbul.

D.The ancient alleys and new avenues in Istanbul.

4.What does the author suggest in the last paragraph?

A.When technology closes a door, it opens one as well.

B.Two paper maps are better than a digital one.

C.Technology is not developed in a day.

D.No calculators, no digital maps.

Answer

1.C

2.B

3.C

4.A

【解析】

这是一篇说明文。作者在文章中赞成使用电子地图。作者认为虽然我们放弃了一些技能但同时我们也能扩展我们的能力，更加自信的处理一些复杂的问题。

1.

细节理解题。根据文章第二段Talking with people who're good at finding their way around or using paper maps, I often hear lots of frustration with digital maps（在与那些擅长找路或使用纸质地图的人交谈时，我经常听到人们对电子地图感到沮丧）可知，很多人觉得使用电子地图会让人感到沮丧。故选C项。

2.

推理判断题。根据第三段But consider what digital navigation aids have meant for someone like me. Despite being a frequent traveler, I'm so terrible at finding my way that I still use Google Maps every day in the small town where I have lived for many years. What looks like an imperfect product to some has been a significant expansion of my own abilities（但是想想数字导航对像我这样的人意味着什么。尽管我经常旅行，但我很不善于找路，所以在我居住多年的小镇上，我仍然每天使用谷歌地图。在某些人看来不完美的产品，其实是对自己能力的极大扩展）可知，作者对导航应用持支持态度。A. Doubtful 怀疑的；B. Supportive 支持的；C. ambiguous 模糊不清的；D. Uncaring 心不在焉的。故选B项。

3.

主旨大意题。根据第四段In Istanbul, in contrast, where I grew up, none of those hold true. For one thing, the locals rarely use street names.Besides, the city is full of winding, ancient alleys that meet newer avenues at many angles（相比之下，在伊斯坦布尔，在我成长的地方，这些都不成立。一方面，当地人很少使用街道名称。此外，这座城市到处都是蜿蜒而古老的小巷，从多个角度与新的街道交汇）可知，作者从小生活在伊斯但布尔。街道很少有名字，蜿蜒而古老的小巷与新建的达到纵横交叉，形成各种角度。由此可知，第四段主要在说在这样的地方最好向当地人问路。故选C项。

4.

推理判断题。根据最后一段Let's come back to my original questions. While we often lose some skills after leaving the work to technology, it may also allow us to expand our abilities. Consider the calculator: I don't doubt that our arithmetic skills might have dropped a bit as the little machines became common, but calculations that were once boring and tricky are now much more straightforward and one can certainly do more complex calculations more confidently（让我们回到我最初的问题上来。当我们把工作留给技术后，我们经常会失去一些技能，它也可以让我们扩展我们的能力。以计算器为例:我毫不怀疑，随着小型机器的普及，我们的算术技能可能有所下降，但曾经枯燥而棘手的计算现在变得更加简单明了，人们当然可以更加自信地进行更复杂的计算）可知，虽然我们放弃了一些技能但同时我们也能扩展我们的能力，更加自信的处理一些复杂的问题。y由此判断出当技术关闭了一扇门，它同时也打开了一扇门。故选A项。