One evening in February 2007 . a student named Paula Ceely brought her car to a
题型：不详难度：来源：
Ceely"s near miss made the news because she blamed it on her GPS device(导航仪).She had never driven the route before .It was dark and raining heavily . Ceely was relying on her GPS. But it made no mention of the crossing ."I put my complete trust in the device and it led me right into the path of a speeding train ,"she told the BBC.
W ho is to blame here ? Rick Stevenson ,who tells Ceely"s story in his book When Machines Fail US, finger at the limitations of technology. We put our faith in digital devices, he says,
but our digital helpers are too often not up to the job. They are filled with small problems. And it’s not just GPS devices: Stevenson takes us on a tour of digital disasters involving everything from mobile phones to wireless key boards.
The problem with his argument in the book is that it’s not clear why he only focuses digital technology,while there may be a number of other possible causes. A map-maker might have left the crossing off a paper map. Maybe we should blame Ceely for not paying attention. perhaps the railway authorities are at fault for poor signaling system. Or maybe someone has studied the relative dangers and worked out that there really is something specific wrong with the CPS equipment. But Stevenson doesn’t say.
It’s a problem that runs through the book. In a section on cars, Stevenson gives an accout of the advanced techniques that criminals use to defeat computer-based locking systems for cars. He offers two independent sets of figures on car theft; both show a small rise in some parts of the country. He says that once once again not all new locks have proved reliable. Perhaps, but maybe it’s also due to the shortage of policemen on the streets. Or changing social circumstances. Or some combination of these factors .
The game between humans and their smart devices is complex. It is shaped by economics and psychology and the cultures we live in. Somewhere in the mix of those forces there may be way a wiser use of technology.
If there is such a way, it should involve more than just an awareness of the shortcomings of our machines. After all, we have lived with them for thousands of years. They have probably been fooling us for just as long .
小题1:What did Paula Ceely think was the cause of her accident?
| A．Shewasnotfamiliarwiththeroad. |
| B．Itwasdarkandrainingheavilythen. |
| C．The railway works failed to give the signal. |
| D．Her GPS device didn’t tell her about the crossing |
| A．closebit | B．heavyloss | C．narrow escape | D．bigmistake |
| A．Moderntechnologyiswhatwe can’tlivewithout. |
| B．Digitaltechnologyoftenfalls shortofoutexpectation. |
| C．Digitaldevicesaremore reliablethantheyusedtobe. |
| D．GPSerrorisnottheonly causeforCelery’saccident. |
In the writer’s opinion, Stevenson’s argument is________.
| A．one-sided | B．reasonable | C．puzzling | D．well-based |
What is the real concern of the writer of this article?
| A．The major causes of traffic accidents and car thefts. |
| B．The relationship between humans and technology |
| C．Theshortcomingsofdigital devicesweuse. |
| D．Thehuman unawarenessoftechnicalproblems. |
答案
小题1:D
小题2:C
小题3:B
小题4:A
小题5:B
解析
小题3:细节理解题
小题4:推理判断题。由文章The problem with his argument in the book is that it’s not clear why he only focuses digital technology可知。
小题5:主旨大意题。本文讨论了人与现代科技的关系。
举一反三
Somehow the boys had slipped away to the back lot with their kites. Now, even at the risk of having Brother caught to beat carpets , they had sent him to the kitchen for string(线). It seemed there was no limit to the heights to which kites would fly today.
My mother looked at the sitting room ,its furniture disorderd for a thorough sweeping, Agun she cast a look toward the window. “Come on, girls ! Let’s take string to the boys and watch them
On the way we met Mrs. Patrick, laughing guiltily as if she were doing something
wrong, together with her girls.
There never was such a day for flying kited! We played all our fresh string into the boys’ kites and they went up higher and higher .We could hardly distinguish the orange-colored spots of the kites. Now and then we slowly pulled one kite back, watching it dancing up and down it the wind, and finally bringing it down to earth , just for the joy of sending it up again.
Even our fathers dropped their tools and joined us. Our mothers took their turn, laughing like schoolgirls. I think we were all beside ourselves. Parents forgot their duty and their dignity; children forgot their everyday fights and little jealousies. “Perhaps it’s like this in the kingdom of heaven,” I thought confusedly.
It was growing dark before we all walked sleepily back to house. I suppose we had some sort of supper. I suppose there must have been a surface tidying-up, for the house on Sunday looked clean and orderly enough. The strange thing was , we didn"t mention that day afterward. I flt a little embarrassed .Surely none of the others had been as excited as I. I locked the memory up in that deepest part of me where we keep“the things that cannot be and yet they are.”
The years went on, then one day I was hurrying about my kitchen in a city apartment, trying to get some work out of the way while my three-year-old insistently cried her desire to “go park ,see duck.”
“I can’t go!” I said. “I have this and this to do, and when I’m through I’ll be too tired to walk that for.”
My mother , who was visiting us , looked up from the peas she was shelling ,“It’s a wonderful day,”she offered，“Really warm , yet there’s a fine breczc . Do you remember that day we flew kites?”
I stopped in my dash between stove and sink . The looked door flew open and with it a rush of memories. “Come on.”I told my little girl. “You’re right , it’s too good a day to miss.”
Another decade passed. We were in the aftermath (余波)of a great war. All evening we had been asking our returned soldier, the youngest Patrick Boy, about his experiences as a prisoner of war. He had talked freely , but now for a long time he had been silent . What was he thinking of – what dark and horrible things?
“Say!” A smile slipped out from his lips . “Do you remember --- no, of course you wouldn’t . It probably didn’t make the impression on you as it did on me.”
I hardly dared speak.“Remember what ?”
“I used to think of that day a lot in POW camp(战俘营), when things weren’t too good. Do you remember the day we flew the kites?”
小题1:
Mrs. Patrick was laughing guiltily because she thought .
| A．she was too old to fly kites |
| B．her husband would make fun of her |
| C．she should have been doing her housework then |
| D．her girls weren’t supposed to play the boy’s game |
By“we were all beside ourselves”, the writer means that they all .
| A．felt confused | B．went wild with joy |
| C．looked on | D．forgot their fights |
What did the writer think after the kite-flying?
| A．The boys must have had more fun than the girls. |
| B．They should have finished their work before playing. |
| C．Her parents should spend more time with them. |
| D．All the others must have forgotten that day. |
Why did the writer finally agree to take her little girl for an outing?
| A．She suddenly remembered her duty as a mother. |
| B．She was reminded of the day they flew kites. |
| C．She had finished her work in the kitchen. |
| D．She thought it was a great day to play outside. |
The youngest Patrick Boy is mentioned to show that _____ .
| A．the writer was not alone in treasuring her fond memories |
| B．his experience in POW camp threw a shadow over his life |
| C．childhood friendship means so much to the writer |
| D．people like him really changed a lot after the war |
We went into a big shop,but Tony was very particular about 7 . Although I tried to show him toy after toy,he was not to be 8 . Then I saw he suddenly became 9 ; he had discovered something he really liked: a large tin dram. I was quite happy too 10 I thought what Tony’s mother would say when she saw it. Nobody would get any 11 for weeks! I led Tony away 12 , saying that the dram was too expensive.
Tony asked for permission to go off 13 and I made the most of my chance to sit down end 14 my aching feet. Fifteen minutes passed but there was still no sign of Tony. I began to get 15 and got up to look for him. I asked a young lady if she had seen a little boy in a grey suit. She looked 16 her helplessly and pointed out that there were so many 17
in grey suits. I was just going to call the police for help,when I saw a strange 18 dressed in strange orange clothes. He was wearing a false beard and had a caveman’s axe(斧子)in one hand,and a space gun in the other. It was, of course,Tony, who informed me 19 that he was the first 20 to fly into space.
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I argued,pointing to a very lage belly(肚子)of mine,”I am married. I am having a baby. Why should I have to have someone sign for me to drive?” He answered coldly, “It’s the law, madam?”
Henry encouraged me to calm down,just go ahead and get the license and be done with it “No.” I said. I refused to have him sign for me. So I left without a Maryland license.
I called the North Carolina Motor Vehicle Office and renewed my NC license by mail-using my name Susan Brown. And thus it was for the next twelve years. Since Henry was in the army I could drive under my home state license. By the time Henry left the army we were once again living in Maryland, and I had to take the Maryland driver’s exam. Since then I just go in and renew every four years-sign the name Susan Brown,have my new picture taken, and walk out with a license to drive.
小题1:
Susan got her first driver"s license .
| A．before she got married to Henry | B．when she was twenty years old |
| C．after she finished high school | D．when she just moved to Maryland |
Susan failed to renew her license the first time in Maryland because .
| A．she was forbidden to drive by Maryland law |
| B．she lacked driving experience in Maryland |
| C．she was to give birth to a baby soon |
| D．she insisted on signing for herself |
We can infer from the text that in the U.S. .
| A．American males should serve in the army |
| B．different states my have different laws |
| C．people have to renew their licenses in their home states |
| D．women should adopt their husbands" family names after marriage |
Instead, they receive their elementary(初等)and high school education by working at home on computers.The Center for Education Reform says the United States has 67 public “cyberschools.”and that is about twice as many as two years ago.
The money for students to attend a cyberschool comes from the governments of the states where they live. Some educators say cyberschools receive money that should support traditional public schools. They also say it is difficult to know if students are learning well.
Other educators praise this new form of education for letting students work at their own speed. These people say cyberschools help students who were unhappy or unsuccessful in traditional schools. They say learning at home by computer ends long bus rides for children who live far from school.
Whatever the judgement of cyberschools,they are getting more and more popular. For example, a new cyberschool called Commonwealth Connections Academy will take in students this fall. It will serve children in the state of Pennsylvania from ages five through thirteen.
Children get free equipment for their online education. This includes a computer,a printer,books and technical services. Parents and students talk with teachers by telephone or by sending emails through their computers when necessary.
Students at cyberschools usually do not know one another. But 56 such students who finished studies at Western Pennsylvania Cyber Charter School recently met for the first time. They were guests of honor at their graduation.
小题1:What do we know from the text about students of a cyberschool?
| A．They have to take long bus rides to school. |
| B．They study at home rather than in classrooms. |
| C．They receive money from traditional public schools. |
| D．They do well in traditional school programs. |
| A．Their equipment costs a lot of money. |
| B．They get little support from the state government. |
| C．It is hard to know students" progress in learning. |
| D．The students find it hard to make friends. |
| A．they are less expensive for students |
| B．their students can work at their own speed |
| C．their graduates are more successful in society |
| D．they serve students in a wider age range |
| A．unprejudiced in his description of cyberschools |
| B．excited about the future of cyberschools |
| C．doubtful about the quality of cyberschoois |
| D．disappointed at the development of cyberschools |
小题1:
The word “address” in the first line probably means .
| A．talk about | B．deal with | C．fight for | D．write to |
How many people are homeless in the U.S. according to the Coalition studies?
| A．39% of the population. | B．200 million people. |
| C．About 3 million people. | D．About one-fifth of the population. |
Homeless people often have difficulty finding a job because________.
| A．they have no home addresses |
| B．they mostly have a drinking problem |
| C．they aren"t supported by government programs |
| D．they often don"t have enough work experience |
What is the main cause of the rising number of the homeless in the U.S.?
| A．The passing of new housing laws. |
| B．The fast growth of family size. |
| C．The slow construction of houses. |
| D．The ever-rising price of housing. |
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