Part III 阅读理解

Passage One

It sounds like something straight out ofascience fiction movie orasilly cartoon: a futuristic traveling tube that can quickly shoot people wherever they want to go, insideatiny pod. But this may be just around the corner for people looking forafaster, easier, and cheaper-than-ever way to travel.

South African-American inventor and billionaire Elon Musk, who, in the past, has worked on both private space flight and electric cars, recently announced he has been working on the design of this traveling tube, which could forever change the way we travel the world. In an interview, Musk described the new tube asafifth kind of transportation.

"We have planes, trains, automobiles, and boats," he explained. "What if there wasafifth mode? I have a name for it. It's called the Hyperloop." "This system Ihave in mind...can never crash, is immune to weather, it goes three or four times faster than the bullet train...it goes at an average speed of twice what an aircraft would do.

You would go from downtown L.A. to downtown San Francisco in under 30 minutes." People using the Hyperloop would shoot around in pods, which are each just over six-and-a-half feet across, and the pods would travel through tubes located either above round or under water. The Hyperloop could even run 24/7, be cheap, and allow people to travel on their own schedule.

People could show up at the Hyperloop station whenever they want and be quickly sent on their way. Additionally Musk believes the Hyperloop could be completely powered by the sun—making it more environmentally friendly than cars, airplanes, or train systems. Someday it could possibly move people between the East and West Coasts of the United States in less than an hour.

Eventually the Hyperloop would be able to move people around the world. Musk is not the first person outside of science fiction novelists to dream up vacuum tube technology for moving people.The idea has been around for some time, and inventors in other countries, including China, are reportedly working on similar technology.

21. The phrase "just around the corner" (Para. 1) means " ".

    1. preferable
    2. forthcoming
    3. reliable
    4. available

    答案 B

    推断题。题目问的是just around the corner 的意思。just around the corner 字面意思是在转角处。根据第一段前文可知，这项技术虽然听着很 不切实际，但可能并不遥远，

22. The "pod" mentioned in the passage is a(n) .

    1. tube-shaped music player
    2. wireless earphone
    3. engine that providesadriving force
    4. vehicle that carries passengers

    答案 D

    词汇题。题目问的是pod的含义。根据第五段可知，人通过乘坐 pod再发射出去，

23. Which of the following is NOT true of Elon Musk?

    1. He draws insights from science fictions.
    2. He has tried his hand at space flight.
    3. He has manufactured electric cars.
    4. He cares for environmental protection.

    答案 A

    细节题。题目问的是针对马斯克的说法哪项不正确。文中第 二段提到马斯克研究过太空飞船和电动汽车，倒数第二段提到超级管道更加环 保，所以B、C、D选项正确。

24. What can be learned about the Hyperloop?

    1. It could be developed atalow cost.
    2. It would remind people of their schedule.
    3. It could operate round the clock.
    4. It would run at regular intervals.

    答案 C

    细节题。题目问的是文中可得出超级管道的哪项信息。24/7 表示一周7天24小时。所以定位句是说超级管道可以全天候运行，

25. China is mentioned in the last paragraph in order to .

    1. demonstrate that it is an innovative country
    2. give an example of those working on similar technology
    3. showasuccessful model of vacuum tube traveling
    4. indicateapotential for international cooperation

    答案 B

    推断题。题目问的是最后一段中提到中国的目的。根据定位可知，中 国的发明者也在研究此技术。所以提及中国只是作为一个研究该项技术的例 子。

Passage Two

How are you feeling today? I've gotafew aches and pains, but nothing serious. However, when things become more critical, I would normally book myself an appointment with my doctor—although by the time Iget to see him, the problem will have probably gone away. That's because in the UK at least, we usually have to waitafew days before the doctor can fit us in.

Luckily today, technology has come to our rescue. There are thousands of apps available on our smartphones that can offer first aid advice and allow us to self-diagnose our sickness—ranging fromasimple cold or flu to some exotic disease. And together with the Internet, we have an ocean of medical information at our fingertips.

But is too much knowledgeagood thing? By reading up on an illness, we discover its side-effects and what could happen inaworst-case situation. More worrying is that we give ourselves the wrong diagnosis, and then worry ourselves sick that we're going to die. This health anxiety, fueled by the Internet, is called "cyberchondria".

It gives sufferersadeep fear of diseases and, according to experts, it's on the rise. Professor Peter Tyrer from Imperial College London said, "We find that approximately four out of five of our patients with health anxiety spend literally hours on the Internet. One of the first things we do in treatment is to tell them to stop browsing the Internet." A studyafew years ago also found many doctors felt intimidated by the increasing numbers of web-wise patients arriving in surgeries.

One doctor admitted to not being very happy about patients using the Internet, saying: "They all seemed to come to me with things I'd never heard of and very often with things which seem rather bizarre or inappropriate." Of course there is no doubt, the world wide web has most of the information we need to diagnose our symptoms, but Doctor Tyrer points out, "it doesn't have any judgment associated with it." This is why havingaconsultation withadoctor face-to-face still has its benefits.

It would seem then thatavirtual online doctor can prescribeadose of useful advice, but technology hasn't replaced the human medical expert just yet.

26. What does the author try to emphasize in Paragraph 1?

    1. The low efficiency of the healthcare system.
    2. The tips for making appointments with doctors.
    3. The treatment for common health problems.
    4. The critical challenges for general hospitals.

    答案 A

    细节题。题目问的是作者第一段想要强调什么内容。第一段主要谈 论就医需要等候几天，就医效率低。

27. Cyberchondria ( Para.3) can be defined as .

    1. overdependence on the Internet for medical advice
    2. too much knowledge about health problems
    3. health concerns caused by online information
    4. incorrect diagnosis based on web knowledge

    答案 C

    词汇题。题目问的是cyberchondria的定义。根据定位句可知 cyberchondria是由互联网引发的健康焦虑，并且这种焦虑会导致患者对疾病产生 深深的恐惧。

28. According to the doctors, cyberchondria .

    1. can be prevented
    2. is not unusual
    3. is hard to predict
    4. may not last long

    答案 B

    细节题。题目问的是医生认为网络疑病症是 。通过定位句可知，这种 情况在不断上升，说明比较常见。

29. How do doctors in general feel about web-wise patients?

    1. They are surprised at patients' wise use of online information.
    2. They are frightened by patients' blind trust of Internet information.
    3. They are satisfied with patients' sufficient knowledge about diseases.
    4. They are troubled by patients' excessive search for health information.

    答案 B

    细节题。题目问的是医生对这种依靠网络判断病情的病人是这么看的。从 定位句可知，许多医生对这些病人感到害怕。选项B中的frightened就是原文 intimidated的同义替换。

30. According to Doctor Tyrer, what is the problem with online medical information?

    1. It is usually not sufficient.
    2. It is not always accurate.
    3. It fails to give judgment.
    4. It provides too much information.

    答案 C

    细节题。题目问的是泰勒医生认为网络的医疗信息有什么问题。从定位句 可知，他认为网络有关于疾病的大量医疗信息，但是不能做出相关的诊断。

Passage Three

Many of the major supermarket chains have come under fire with accusations of various unethical acts over the past decade. They've wasted tons of food. They've underpaid their suppliers and they've contributed to excessive plastic waste in their packaging, which has had its impact on our environment.

But supermarkets and grocers are starting to sit up and take notice. In response to growing consumer resentment against the huge amounts of plastic waste generated by plastic packaging, some of the largest UK supermarkets have signed up toapact promising to transform packaging and cut plastic wastage.

Inapledge to reuse, recycle or convert all plastic wastage by 2025, supermarkets are now beginning to take some responsibility for the part they play in contributing to the damage to our environment, with one major supermarket announcing their plan to eliminate all plastic packaging in their own-brand products by 2023.

In response to criticisms over food waste, some supermarkets are donating some of their food surplus. However, charities estimate that they are only accessing two per cent of supermarkets' total food surplus, so this hardly seems to be solving the problem. Some say that supermarkets are simply not doing enough.

Most supermarkets operate underaveil of secrecy when asked for exact figures of food wastage, and without more transparency it is hard to come up withasystematic approach to avoiding waste and to redistributing surplus food. Some smaller companies are now taking matters into their own hands and offering consumersagreener option.

Shops like Berlin's Original Unverpakt and London's Bulk Market are plastic-free shops that have opened in recent years, encouraging customers to use their own containers or convertible bags. Online grocer Farmdrop eliminates the need for large warehouses and the risk of huge food surplus by delivering fresh produce from local farmers to its customers onadaily basis via electric cars, offering farmers the lion's share of the retail price.

There is no doubt that we still havealong way to go in reducing food waste and plastic waste. But perhaps the major supermarkets might take inspiration from these smaller grocers and gradually move towardsamore sustainable future for us all.

31. Which is NOT mentioned as an unethical act of major supermarket chains?

    1. Wasting large amounts of food.
    2. Producing excessive plastic waste.
    3. Underpaying their suppliers.
    4. Selling goods of poor quality.

    答案 D

    细节题。题目问的是哪一项不属于文中提到大型连锁超市的不道 德行为。根据第一段内容可知，浪费食物，向供应商支付过低的费用，制造过多 的塑料包装垃圾是大型连锁超市的不道德行为。D项卖劣质商品未提及，

32. The word "pact" (Para. 2) is closest in meaning to " ".

    1. agreement
    2. organization
    3. campaign
    4. program

    答案 A

    词汇题。题目问的是pact的意思。根据前面的搭配sign up 可知，应 该是签署某项协议，

33. According to Paragraph 3, supermarkets' donation of their food surplus .

    1. receives high praises
    2. is considered asagood charity
    3. is regarded as not doing enough
    4. arouses more criticisms

    答案 C

    细节题。题目问的是第三段中大型超市捐赠剩余的食物 。根据定 位句可知，人们认为超市这样做还不够，

34. Farmdrop is mentioned as an example that provides .

    1. plastic-free bags and containers
    2. easier access to fresh produce
    3. a great variety of healthy foods
    4. goods at more competitive prices

    答案 B

    细节题。题目问的Farmdrop作为示例可以提供 。根据定位句可 知，它每天为顾客提供新鲜的农产品，

35. It can be inferred from the last paragraph that .

    1. some businesses are reluctant to reduce their waste
    2. major supermarkets refuse to do public good
    3. some small companies better protect the environment
    4. a more sustainable future for all is soon to come

    答案 C

    推断题。题目问的是通过最后一段可知什么内容。通过定位句可知， 小公司对环境的可持续性发展是有益的，

Passage Four

We all know people who say they have "no sense of direction." Yet for some people that description is true in all circumstances: If they takeasingle wrong turn on an established route they often become totally lost. This happens even when they are justafew miles from where they live.

This condition is called developmental topographic disorientation (DTD), the inability to orient within the environment. It didn't even haveaformal name until 2009, when Giuseppe Iaria reported his first case in the journal Neuropsychologia. Ellen Rose had beenapatient of mine for years before Irealized that she had this life-long learning disability.

Like other people with DTD, she can followaroute in pieces, but it never becomes part ofalarger spatial understanding. That's because she does not have a larger spatial understanding of her environment. I asked her to drawadiagram of the second floor of the house she shares with her daughter and son-in-law.

It wasadifficult task for her (she lives on the first floor but is very familiar with the second). She described her effort not asabird looking down from above, but asaspider crawling across the paper tracingaroute from one room to the next. Ellen has always wondered what was wrong with her.

She knew that when others ascribed her problems to simply not paying attention they were mistaken. She worried that her problems in traveling might beasign of something more serious than just getting lost easily, but Ihad no idea what that might be. Finding out that she had DTD wasarelief.

Knowing that something hasaname can be a liberating experience. All ofasudden it isathing, a concept with defining characteristics. It is, inaway, a kind of map.

36. What is the relation between Ellen and the author?

    1. Student and teacher
    2. Subject and researcher
    3. Employee and employer
    4. Patient and doctor

    答案 D

    细节题。题目问的是作者和埃伦的关系。根据定位句可知，埃 伦是作者的病人，

37. It can be learned that people with DTD .

    1. are unable to find their position in an environment
    2. find it difficult to remember where they have been
    3. dislike traveling toafaraway place on their own
    4. are characterized by their inability to concentrate

    答案 A

    细节题。题目问的是可以推断患有DTD的病人 。根据定位 句可知，患有DTD的人不能在环境中定位自己的位置，

38. From Ellen's difficulty in drawing her own house, we can infer that .

    1. observing from high above is more effective than from the bottom
    2. common people tend to perceiveaspace fromabird's eye view
    3. it is useful to get familiar with our living environment
    4. people with DTD haveapoor sense of vision

    答案 B

    推断题。题目问的是从埃伦无法画出自己房子这件事可以推断。 根据定位句可知，埃伦无法做到像鸟一样俯视，说明正常人的观察角度是像 鸟一样的，

39. How did Ellen feel about her DTD?

    1. She hadaclear idea what it was and how to deal with it .
    2. She worried that she might misunderstand people around her.
    3. She thought she could improve her condition by paying more attention.
    4. She was afraid that it might bring problems other than disorientation.

    答案 D

    细节题。题目问的是埃伦如何看待自己的DTD病情。根据定位 句可知，她担心除了迷路还会是一种更严重的病的征兆，

40. The word "map" in the last paragraph probably means " ".

    1. cure
    2. design
    3. proposal
    4. clue

    答案 D

    词汇题。题目问的是map 的含义。根据定位句可推断，当确诊 己患的是DTD,她松了口气，因为不用对未知的病感到担心，就像有线索可依，

Blog and Comments

The biog and comments arc followed by questions or unfinished statements, each with four suggested answers A, B, C and D. Choose the best answer and mark your answer on the Answer Sheet. Face masks are one of the best defenses against the spread of COVID-19, but their growing adoption is havingasecond, unintended effect: breaking facial recognition algorithms (算法).

Wearing face masks that adequately cover the mouth and nose causes the error rate of some of the most widely used facial recognition algorithms to rise to between5percent and 50 percent, a study by the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has found. Black masks were more likely to cause errors than blue masks, and the more of the nose covered by the mask, the harder the algorithms found it to identify the face.

"We need to understand how face recognition technology deals with masked faces," said the author of the report and NIST computer scientist. "We have begun by focusing on how an algorithm developed before the pandemic (大流行病) might be affected by subjects wearing face masks. Later this summer, we plan to test the accuracy of algorithms that were intentionally developed with masked faces in mind." Facial recognition algorithms such as those tested by NIST work by measuring the distances between features inatarget's face.

Masks reduce the accuracy of these algorithms by removing most of these features, although some still remain. This is slightly different from how facial recognition works on iPhones, for example, which use depth sensors for extra security, ensuring that the algorithms can't be fooled by showing the cameraapicture (a danger that is not present in the scenarios NIST is concerned with).

41. What is the passage mainly about?

    1. The best way to defend against COVID-19.
    2. Efforts to improve facial recognition technology.
    3. Methods to fool the facial recognition system.
    4. The impact of masks on facial recognition accuracy.

    答案 D

    主旨题。题目问的是文章的主要意思。根据全文内容可知，文章主要讨论的 是由于口罩的覆盖性，导致面部识别准确率的问题。

42. The NIST study found that compared with blue masks, black masks .

    1. were more widely used by the public
    2. caused more errors in facial recognition
    3. provided better protection against the virus
    4. required less complex algorithms

    答案 B

    细节题。题目问的是NIST发现与蓝色口罩相比，黑色口罩 。根据定 位句可知，黑色口罩更容易导致计算出错，

43. Comment1seems to be .

    1. in favor of the rules for wearing face masks
    2. in favor of the facial recognition technology
    3. against the wide use of facial recognition
    4. against the requirements for wearing face masks

    答案 C

    细节题。题目问的评论1似乎 。根据定位句可知，评论

44. Which comment views the current facial recognition technology with contempt?

    1. Comment 2.
    2. Comment 3.
    3. Comment 4.
    4. Comment 5.

    答案 A

    细节题。题目问的是哪个评论对目前的面部识别技术不屑一 顾。根据定位句可知，评论2认为面部识别技术是垃圾，

45. Which of the following is positive about the future technological advance?

    1. Comment2and Comment 3.
    2. Comment1and Comment 4.
    3. Comment3and Comment 5.
    4. Comment4and Comment 5.

    答案 D

    细节题。题目问的是哪些评论对于未来技术的进步持有积极 的观点。评论4认为随着人工智能的发展，会找到解决办法，评论5认为人工 智能在进步，