题目内容
The cars were honking (鸣叫) on the road one morning as I was walking to the park.I walked on and soon found the cause — a little taxi that had got stuck in the middle of the road.There was sweat on the driver's face as he tried to start the engine again and again — nothing happened."No petrol,"
I said to myself and then found myself getting angry."Why doesn't the fool move his taxi to the side?" I thought, so did all the others who honked and shouted.
He got up tiredly, and the passenger in the taxi got out.He was a young man in a white shirt, who watched the driver try to push it to the side."Stupid guy!" I said."Can't he lend a helping hand? "
I watched as the poor driver pushed it to the side.Cars, buses and trucks went past cursing (咒骂) the poor man.The young man took another taxi and went off.
The taxi driver began mending his taxi."Stupid passenger!" I said to him."He didn't help you!" The taxi driver slowly got up."Sir!" he asked, "Did you?" I looked at him guiltily, then looked away, and walked away fast, asking myself, "Did I help the poor man push his taxi?"
What had I been doing as the traffic jam took place? How had I helped deal with the problem? Did I help the poor man push his taxi? I’d done my bit, with my mouth.But never had I moved to solve the problem.I was shocked with guilt as I heard him asking, "Sir! Did you?"
- 1.
Why did a traffic jam happen on the road when the author was walking to the park?
- A.There was too much traffic in the street.
- B.Truck drivers attempted to go ahead of others.
- C.A taxi driver couldn't start his engine.
- D.A young man wasn't good at driving.
- A.
- 2.
The author's attitude toward the passenger is that of __________.
- A.anger
- B.respect
- C.sympathy
- D.guilt
- A.
- 3.
Why did the author feel guilty?
- A.Because he blamed the driver wrongly.
- B.Because he didn't help the driver, either.
- C.Because he tried to help but failed in the end.
- D.Because he didn't persuade the passenger to help.
- A.
- 4.
From the incident, the author learnt a lesson that we should _________.
- A.criticize those who don't help
- B.hurt the self-respect of others no more
- C.think more of those who are in need
- D.stop talking and start to help
- A.
One evening in February 2007 . a student named Paula Ceely brought her car to a stop on a remote in Wales . She got out to open a metal gate that blocked her path . That's when she heard the whistle sounded by the driver of a train.Her Renault Clio parked across a railway line. Second later,she watched the train drag her car almost a kilometre down the railway tracks.
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 |
The phrase”near miss” (paragraph 2 ) can best be replaced by _______.
A.closebit | B.heavyloss | C.narrow escape | D.bigmistake |
Which of the following would Rick Stevenson most probably agree with?
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. |
阅读下面对话,掌握其大意,并根据各题所给字母的提示,在标有题号的右边横线上写出一个英语单词的完整、正确的形式,使对话通顺。
J = Jackie L = Lisa J:Warm day, isn’t it? L:Yes, it's the (1) w ______winter we have ever had. J:In my childhood, we often had snow in winter, but these years, I (2) s ______ see it L:What do you think caused the (3) c ______to change so much? J:I think it is what we call green-house effect.Countries built factories to develop their economy, but they (4) p ______a lot of waste gas into the air without being (5) t ______. L:And the cars also have (6) c______ to the changes in the temperature all around the world. J:I couldn't agree more.If the temperature (7) c ______to go up, the sea level would rise and some (8) c ______cities would disappear. L:Sounds terrible.We must do something about it. J:Luckily, governments of many countries have (9) r ______that and are taking (10) m ______to prevent the pollution. L:I am happy to hear that. | (1) ______ (2) ______ (3) ______ (4) ______ (5) ______ (6) ______ (7) ______ (8) ______ (9) ______ (10) ______ |