Question

【题目】

Some apps highlight (凸显)when a person is online—and then share the information with the followers. Researchers at the University of Washington say that people could have more control over whether to show their online status (状态)in this case.

To find out whether people realize the apps are sharing this information and whether these indicators (标识)change how people behave online, the research team carried out a study among users of different apps.

The team asked participants if the apps they used showed their online status to their network. Almost 90% of the participants correctly named at least one of the apps they used that had online status indicators. But for at least one app they used, 62. 5% answered “not sure” and 35. 5% answered "no.” (Actually the app did.) The researchers also asked participants whether they noticed when others were online, whether they thought others noticed when they were online, and whether they had changed their own behavior because they did or didn't want to appear online.

The answers show that many people misunderstand online status indicators but still carefully shape their behavior to control how they are displayed to others. More than half of the participants reported that they had suspected ('怀疑有)that someone had noticed their status. Meanwhile, over half reported that they had logged on to an app just to check someone else5s status. And 43% of the participants mentioned changing their settings or behavior because they were trying to avoid one specific person.

“We see this repeated way of people changing their behavior to meet the demands of technology一as opposed to technology adapting to us and meeting our needs,” said Lucy Simko, a UW doctoral student in the Allen School That means people are choosing to go online not because they want to do something there but because it's important that their status indicator is projecting the right thing at the right time.

“Now, many people are working from home and socializing only online to fight the coronavirus pandemic (新冠疫情)，and some employees use their online status to indicate that they are working and available for meetings," the team says. So there's an opportunity to think about how future development of this technology could change how people use online status indicators.

Your comfort zone is a place, activity, situation or psychological state in which you feel free from anxiety and things are within your ability or control. But stepping out of it also has positive results.

When you break free and try new things, you'll be more productive and get more unexpected changes. That's because by living outside your comfort zone when you choose to, you can experience uncertainty in a controlled, manageable environment, which can prepare you for future life changes that force you out of it. Besides, as you step out of your comfort zone, productive discomfort becomes more normal to you, and you'll be willing to push further before your performance falls off.

Here are some ways to break out of your comfort zone without going too far:

Do everyday things differently. Ride your bike instead of taking the bus to school. Try a different diet. Use a new operating system. Don't be upset if things don't work out the way you planned.

Break the activity down into small steps. If you're frightened or overwhelmed (难以承受的)by the challenge you\e picked for yourself, don't do it at once. You can make it a multi-step process that will let you slowly climb that mountain.

Trust yourself and make snap decisions. Perhaps you are more comfortable weighing all of the possible choices several times, but sometimes making a snap call is in order, just to get things moving. Doing so can help you kickstart your personal projects and teach you to trust your judgment.

Yet, with all its possible benefits, you can't live outside of your comfort zone all the time. You need to come back from time to time to review your experiences. Take time to reflect on your experiences so you can apply the benefits you've got to your day-to-day activities.

Your comfort zone is neither a good or bad thing. It's a natural state that most people trend towards (倾向于). Leaving it means increased risk and anxiety, which can have positive and negative results, but don't demonize (妖魔化)your comfort zone as something holding you hack. We all need that headspace where we're least anxious and stressed so we can process the benefits we get when we leave it.

【1】The word "snap” in Paragraph 6 probably means "______________" .

A.quickB.clearC.balancedD.thoughtful

【2】Which might be the best example of breaking out of your comfort zone without going too far?

A.You went shopping when you were bored or upset.

B.You decided to watch a movie before the final exam.

C.You tried on all the shirts in a store to find the one you wanted.

D.You walked to school today although you prefer riding your bike.

【3】The writer probably agrees that ______________.

A.experiencing uncertainty in a controlled way has negative effects

B.making a change to our routine helps to increase our productivity

C.reducing stress and risk is what we need to bring out the best in us

D.breaking activities down into small steps leads to greater achievements

【4】What is the writer's main purpose in writing this passage?

A.To explain the reasons to step out of the comfort zone.

B.To advise people to treat the comfort zone in a proper way.

C.To introduce some ways of improving day-to-day performance.

D.To stress the importance of dealing with uncomfortable moments.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】A

【2】D

【3】B

【4】B

【解析】

文章讲述了华盛顿大学的一项关于在线状态标识的的研究发现，期待将来技术发展改变人们在线状态标识的使用方式，以及如何能够在不走的太远的情况下突破自己的舒适区的方法。

【1】

词义猜测题。根据文中Perhaps you are more comfortable weighing all of the possible choices several times, but sometimes making a snap call is in order, just to get things moving. Doing so can help you kickstart your personal projects and teach you to trust your judgment. 也许你更愿意多次权衡所有可能的选择，但有时打个电话是为了让事情顺利进行。这样做可以帮助你启动你的个人项目，教你相信自己的判断。可知这里说的是要相信自己，快速做决定，所以snap指的是“快速的”，故选A。

【2】

细节理解题。根据文中Do everyday things differently. Ride your bike instead of taking the bus to school. Try a different diet. Use a new operating system. Don’t be upset if things don’t work out the way you planned. 以不同的方式做日常的事情。骑自行车而不是坐公共汽车去学校。尝试不同的饮食。使用新的操作系统。如果事情没有按你计划的那样发展，不要难过。可知要想打破你的舒适区而不走太远，你也可以步行步上学，虽然你更喜欢骑自行车，故选D。

【3】

推理判断题。根据文中When you break free and try new things, you'll be more productive and get more unexpected changes. That's because by living outside your comfort zone when you choose to, you can experience uncertainty in a controlled, manageable environment, which can prepare you for future life changes that force you out of it. Besides, as you step out of your comfort zone, productive discomfort becomes more normal to you, and you'll be willing to push further before your performance falls off. 当你挣脱束缚，尝试新事物时，你会更有效率，得到更多意想不到的变化。这是因为当你选择在舒适区之外生活时，你可以在一个可控的、可管理的环境中体验不确定性，这可以让你为未来的生活改变做好准备，这些改变迫使你离开。此外，当你走出你的舒适区，具有创造性的不适对你来说变得更正常，你会愿意在你的表现下降之前更进一步。可知改变我们的日常工作有助于提高我们的工作效率，故选B。

【4】

主旨大意题。根据文章的理解以及文中Your comfort zone is a place, activity, situation or psychological state in which you feel free from anxiety and things are within your ability or control. But stepping out of it also has positive results.以及后面的介绍可知，文章主要是介绍我们对待舒适区要有正确的态度和方法，所以B选项比较合适，故选B。