Someday a stranger will read your e-mail without your permission or scan the websites you've visited.Or perhaps someone will casually glance through your credit card purchases or cell phone bills to find out your shopping preferences or calling habits.
In fact, it's likely some of these things have already happened to you.Who would watch you without your permission?It might be a spouse, a girlfriend(配偶), a marketing company, a boss, a cop or a criminal, Whoever it is, they will see you in a way you never intended to be seen-the 21st century equivalent of being caught naked.
Psychologists tell us boundaries are healthy, that it's important to reveal yourself to friends, family and lovers in stages, at appropriate times.But few boundaries remain.The digital bread crumbs(面包屑)you leave everywhere make it easy for strangers to reconstruct who you are, where you are and what you like.In some cases, a simple Google search can reveal(泄露)what you think.Like it or not, increasingly we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret.
The key question is:Does that matter?
For many Americans, the answer apparently is“no.”
When opinion polls ask Americans about privacy, most say they are concerned about losing it A survey found an overwhelming pessimism(悲观)about privacy, with 60 percent of respondents saying they feel their privacy is“slipping away, and that bothers me.”
But people say one thing and do another.Only a tiny fraction of Americans change any behaviors in an effort to preserve their privacy.Few people turn down a discount at tollbooths(收费处)to avoid using the EZ-Pass system that can track automobile movements.And few turn down supermarket loyalty cards.Privacy economist Alessandro Acquisti has run a series of tests that reveal people will surrender personal information like Social Security numbers just to get their hands on a pitiful 50-cents-off coupon(优惠券).
But privacy does matter-at least sometimes.It's like health:When you have it, you don't notice it.Only when it's gone do you wish you'd done more to protect it.
(1)
What would psychologists advise on the relationships between friends?
[ ]
A.
Friends should open their hearts to each other.
B.
There should be a distance even between friends
C.
Friends should always be faithful to each other.
D.
There should be fewer disputes between friends.
(2)
Why does the author say“we live in a world where you simply cannot keep a secret”?
[ ]
A.
Modern society has finally evolved into an open society.
B.
People leave traces around when using modern technology.
C.
There are always people who are curious about others' affairs.
D.
Many search engines profit by revealing people's identities.
(3)
What do most Americans do with regard to privacy protections?
[ ]
A.
They change behaviors that might disclose their identity.
B.
They use various loyalty cards for business transactions.
C.
They rely more and more on electronic devices.
D.
They talk a lot but hardly do anything about it.
(4)
According to the passage, privacy is like health in that ________.
Our boat floated on, between walls of forest too thick to allow us a view of the land we were passing through, though we knew from the map that our river must from time to time be passing through chains of hills which crossed the jungle plains.Nowhere did we find a place where we could have landed:where the jungle did not actually spread right down into the river, banks of soft mud prevented us going ashore.In any case, what would we have sailed by landing?The country was full of snakes and other dangerous creatures, and the jungle was so thick that one would be able to advance only slowly, cutting one’s way with knives the whole way.So we stayed in the boat, hoping we reached the sea, a friendly fisherman would pick us up and take us to civilization.
We lived on fish, caught with home-made net of string(we had no hooks), and fruits and nuts we could pick up out of the water.As we had no fire, we had to eat everything, including the fish, raw I had never tasted raw fish before, and I must say I did not much enjoy the experience; perhaps sea fish which do not live in the mud are less tasteless.After eating my raw fish, I lay back and dreamed of such things as fried chicken and rice, and ice-cream.In the never-ending damp heat of the jungle, ice-cream was a particularly frequent dream.
As for water, there was a choice:we could drink the muddy river water, or die of thirst.We drank the water.Men who had just escaped what had appeared to be certain death lose all worries about such small things as diseases caused by dirty water.In fact, none of us suffered from any illness as a result.
One day we passed another village, but fortunately nobody saw us.We did not wish to risk being taken prisoners a second time:we might not be so lucky to escape in a stolen boat again.
(1)
What they could see in the boat was only ________.
[ ]
A.
high wall
B.
villagers from time to time
C.
vast land
D.
heavy woods
(2)
They couldn’t land because ________.
[ ]
A.
the mud on the shore was too soft
B.
the forest was too thick to let them go through
C.
they could not find the mark on the map
D.
they could not find anyone to lead them out of the forest
(3)
The passage infers that the forest was ________.
[ ]
A.
rich of fruits and animals to be served as food
B.
not very thick as they could advance slowly by cutting the branches
C.
full of various dangerous beings
D.
full of ancient trees
(4)
The most proper title for this passage might be ________.
[ ]
A.
Escape
B.
Scenes of a River
C.
How to Survive on a boat
D.
A New Experience
阅读理解:
Our boat floated on, between walls of forest too thick to allow us a view of the land we were passing through, though we knew from the map that our river must from time to time be passing through chains of hills which crossed the jungle plains.Nowhere did we find a place where we could have landed:where the jungle did not actually spread right down into the river, banks of soft mud prevented us going ashore.In any case, what would we have sailed by landing?The country was full of snakes and other dangerous creatures, and the jungle was so thick that one would be able to advance only slowly, cutting one’s way with knives the whole way.So we stayed in the boat, hoping we reached the sea, a friendly fisherman would pick us up and take us to civilization.
We lived on fish, caught with home-made net of string(we had no hooks), and fruits and nuts we could pick up out of the water.As we had no fire, we had to eat everything, including the fish, raw I had never tasted raw fish before, and I must say I did not much enjoy the experience; perhaps sea fish which do not live in the mud are less tasteless.After eating my raw fish, I lay back and dreamed of such things as fried chicken and rice, and ice-cream.In the never-ending damp heat of the jungle, ice-cream was a particularly frequent dream.
As for water, there was a choice:we could drink the muddy river water, or die of thirst.We drank the water.Men who had just escaped what had appeared to be certain death lose all worries about such small things as diseases caused by dirty water.In fact, none of us suffered from any illness as a result.
One day we passed another village, but fortunately nobody saw us.We did not wish to risk being taken prisoners a second time:we might not be so lucky to escape in a stolen boat again.
(1)
What they could see in the boat was only ________.
[ ]
A.
high wall
B.
villagers from time to time
C.
vast land
D.
heavy woods
(2)
They couldn’t land because ________.
[ ]
A.
the mud on the shore was too soft
B.
the forest was too thick to let them go through
C.
they could not find the mark on the map
D.
they could not find anyone to lead them out of the forest.
(3)
The passage infers that the forest was ________.
[ ]
A.
rich of fruits and animals to be served as food
B.
not very thick as they could advance slowly by cutting the branches
C.
full of various dangerous beings
D.
full of ancient trees
(4)
The most proper title for this passage might be ________.
[ ]
A.
Escape
B.
Scenes of a River
C.
How to Survive on a boat
D.
A New Experience
阅读理解:
It was at least two months before Christmas when nine-year-old Almie Rose told her father and me that she wanted a new bicycle.As Christmas drew near, her desire for a bicycle seemed to fade, or so we thought.We bought the latest rages.Baby-Sitter’s Club dolls, and a doll house.Then, much to our surprise, on December 23rd, she said that she “really wanted a bike more than anything else.”
It was just too late, what will all the details of preparing Christmas dinner and buying last-minute gifts, to take the time to select the “right bike” for our little girl.So here we were-Christmas Eve around 9∶00 p. m., with Almie and her six-year-old brother, Dylan, nested snug in their beds.Now we could only think of the bicycle and the disappointment of our child.“What if the bicycle out of clay(a kind of earth)and write a note that she could trade the clay model in for a real bike?” her dad asked.“This is an expensive item and she is ‘such a big girl,’ and it would be much better for her to pick it out.”So he spent the next four hours painstakingly working with clay to make a tiny bike.
On Christmas morning, we were excited for Almie to open the little heart-shaped package with the beautiful red and white clay bike and the note.Finally, she opened it and read the note aloud.“Does this mean that I trade in this bike that Daddy made me for a real one?”Beaming, I said,“Yes.”Almie had tears in her eyes when she replied,“I could never trade in this beautiful bicycle that Daddy made me.I’d rather keep this than get a real bike.”At that moment, we would have moved heaven and earth to buy every bicycle on the planet!
(1)
Which is the right time order of the following events?
a.The girl asked for a new bike
b.The girl opened the little heart-shaped package
c.The parents bought the girl a modern and popular doll.
d.The father made the girl a bike with clay.
e.The girl would rather keep the clay bike than get a real one.
[ ]
A.
b, c, e ,d
B.
a, c, d, b, e
C.
a, c, b, d, e
D.
a, b, d, c, e
(2)
Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
[ ]
A.
The parents wanted the girl to have the clay bike forever.
B.
Tears were in the girl’s eyes because she didn’t like the present at all.
C.
The girl never lost her desire for a bike.
D.
The parents paid little attention to the daughter’s desire for a bike.
(3)
Why did Dad make the clay bicycle?
[ ]
A.
Because he wanted to buy a real one, but he had no money.
B.
Because he didn’t want to disappoint his daughter.
C.
Because he thought his daughter would like it.
D.
Because he wanted to give his daughter a surprise.
(4)
What can be inferred from the last sentence of the text?
[ ]
A.
The parents were happy and encouraged.
B.
The parents felt comfortable and relaxed.
C.
The parents were moved and felt proud of the girl.
D.
The parents felt disappointed and sorry for the girl.