摘要：I want to make clear that I don’t want the price.

网址：http://m.1010jiajiao.com/timu3_id_3148188[举报]

People are being lured (引诱)onto Facebook with the promise of a fun, free service without realizing they’re paying for it by giving up large amounts of personal information. Facebook then attempts to make money by selling their data to advertisers that want to send targeted messages.
　　Most Facebook users don’t realize this is happening. Even if they know what the company is up to, they still have no idea what they’re paying for Facebook because people don’t really know what their personal data is worth.
　　The biggest problem, however, is that the company keeps changing the rules. Early on, you keep everything private. That was the great thing about facebook—you could create your own little private network. Last year, the company changed its privacy rules so that many things— your city, your photo, your friends' names—were set, by default (默认)to be shared with everyone on the Internet.
　　According to Facebook’s vice-president Elliot Schrage, the company is simply making changes to improve its service, and if people don’t share information, they have a “less satisfying experience”.
　　Some critics think this is more about Facebook looking to make more money. Its original business model， which involved selling ads and putting them at the side of the page， totally failed.  Who wants to look at ads when they’re online connecting with their friends?
　　The privacy issue has already landed Facebook in hot water in Washington. In April. Senator Charles Schumer called on Facebook to change its privacy policy. He also urged the Federal Trade Commission to set guidelines for social-networking sites.“I think the senator rightly communicated that we had not been clear about what the new products were and how people could choose to use them or not to use them,” Schrage admits.
I suspect that whatever Facebook has done so far to invade our privacy, it’s only the beginning, which is why I’m considering deactivating(撤销)my account. Facebook is a handy site, but I’m upset by the idea that my information is in the hands of people I don’t know. That’s too high a price to pay.
【小题1】What do we learn about Facebook from the first paragraph?

A．It is a website that sends messages to targeted users.
B．It makes money by putting on advertisements.
C．It profits by selling its users’ personal data.
D．It provides loads of information to its users.
【小题2】What does the author say about most Facebook users?
A．They are reluctant to give up their personal information.
B．They don’t know their personal data enriches Facebook.
C．They don’t identify themselves when using the website.
D．They care very little about their personal information.
【小题3】Why does Senator Charles Schumer propose?
A．Setting guidelines for advertising on websites.
B．Banning the sharing of users’ personal information.
C．Working out regulations for social-networking sites.
D．Removing ads from all social-networking sites.
【小题4】Why does the author plan to cancel his Facebook account?
A．He is dissatisfied with its current service.
B．He finds many of its users untrustworthy.
C．He doesn’t want his personal data to be used in a wrong way.
D．He is upset by its frequent rule changes.

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People are being lured (引诱)onto Facebook with the promise of a fun, free service without realizing they’re paying for it by giving up large amounts of personal information. Facebook then attempts to make money by selling their data to advertisers that want to send targeted messages.

　　Most Facebook users don’t realize this is happening. Even if they know what the company is up to, they still have no idea what they’re paying for Facebook because people don’t really know what their personal data is worth.

　　The biggest problem, however, is that the company keeps changing the rules. Early on, you keep everything private. That was the great thing about facebook—you could create your own little private network. Last year, the company changed its privacy rules so that many things— your city, your photo, your friends' names—were set, by default (默认)to be shared with everyone on the Internet.

　　According to Facebook’s vice-president Elliot Schrage, the company is simply making changes to improve its service, and if people don’t share information, they have a “less satisfying experience”.

　　Some critics think this is more about Facebook looking to make more money. Its original business model， which involved selling ads and putting them at the side of the page， totally failed.  Who wants to look at ads when they’re online connecting with their friends?

　　The privacy issue has already landed Facebook in hot water in Washington. In April. Senator Charles Schumer called on Facebook to change its privacy policy. He also urged the Federal Trade Commission to set guidelines for social-networking sites.“I think the senator rightly communicated that we had not been clear about what the new products were and how people could choose to use them or not to use them,” Schrage admits.

I suspect that whatever Facebook has done so far to invade our privacy, it’s only the beginning, which is why I’m considering deactivating(撤销)my account. Facebook is a handy site, but I’m upset by the idea that my information is in the hands of people I don’t know. That’s too high a price to pay.

1.What do we learn about Facebook from the first paragraph?

A．It is a website that sends messages to targeted users.

B．It makes money by putting on advertisements.

C．It profits by selling its users’ personal data.

D．It provides loads of information to its users.

2.What does the author say about most Facebook users?

A．They are reluctant to give up their personal information.

B．They don’t know their personal data enriches Facebook.

C．They don’t identify themselves when using the website.

D．They care very little about their personal information.

3.Why does Senator Charles Schumer propose?

A．Setting guidelines for advertising on websites.

B．Banning the sharing of users’ personal information.

C．Working out regulations for social-networking sites.

D．Removing ads from all social-networking sites.

4.Why does the author plan to cancel his Facebook account?

A．He is dissatisfied with its current service.

B．He finds many of its users untrustworthy.

C．He doesn’t want his personal data to be used in a wrong way.

D．He is upset by its frequent rule changes.

 

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阅读理解。

      Gadgets (小装置) can be wildly expensive and quickly out-of-date, but Steven Poole is still the
first to buy them. Technological innovations (创新) are often quite stupid. The idea that you might
want to walk down the street holding a mobile phone in front of your face, just to experience the
wonders of video calling, is clearly ridiculous. Luckily for the tech companies, however, there are
some people who jump at the chance to buy into new gadgets before they are fully ready and cheap
enough for the mass-market. They are called early adopters, and their fate is a terrible one. I should
know, since I am one myself.
      Early adopters have a Mecca: it’s Tokyo’s Akihabara district, also known as “Electric City”.
There, in 1999, I bought a digital camera, a gizmo that few people in Britain had heard of. Over the
next few years I watched in great sadness as digital cameras became more popular, cheaper and more
powerful, until better models could be had for a quarter of the price I had paid. Did I feel stupid? What
I actually did was this: I splashed out more money last year for a new one, one that let me feel pleasantly
ahead of the curve once again. But I know that cannot last, and I’ll probably have to buy another in a
few years.
      Thus early adopters are betting on other people eventually feeling the same desires. And it’s worse
if that future never arrives. Early adopters of the Betamax home-video format in the 1970s could only
look on in sadness when their investment was nullified（使无效）by the success of VHS. All sorts of
apparently splendid inventions, such as videogame consoles like the Atari Jaguar have been abandoned
to the dustbin of history right after a few early adopters bought in. Those who invested thousands in a
Segway motorized scooter on the wave of ridiculous advertising campaigns that accompanied its launch
a couple of years ago can join the club.
      You might think we should just stop being so silly, save our money, and wait to see what really
catches on. But the logic of the industry is such that, if everyone did that, no innovation would become
popular. Imagine the third person to buy an ordinary telephone soon after Alexander Graham Bell had
invented it. Who was he going to call? Maybe he simply bought two phones, one for a special friend.
But still, the usefulness and eventual popularity of the device wasn’t clear at the time. Nobody dreamed
of the possibility of being able to speak to any one of millions of people. And yet if he, and the hundreds
and thousands of early adopters after him, had not bought into the idea, the vast communication networks
that we all take for granted today would never have been built.
     The same goes, indeed, for all new technologies. Those guys holding bricks to their ears that we
laughed at in the 1980s made the current mobile phone possible. People who bought DVD players
when they still cost a fortune, instead of today’s cheap one at the local supermarket, made sure that
the new format succeeded. Early adopters’ desire for desires supported the future financially. And
what did they get for their pains? They got a hole in their bank accounts and inferior, unperfected
technology. But still, they got it first. And today they are still at work, buying overpriced digital radios,
DVD recorders and LCD televisions, and even 3G phones, so that you will be eventually be able to
buy better and less expensive ones.
      So next time you see a gadget-festooned geek (满身新潮玩意的土包子) and feel tempted to
sneer (讥笑), think for a minute. Without early adopters, there would be no cheap mobile phones or
DVD players; there would be no telephone or television either. We are the tragic, unsung foot soldiers
of the technology revolution. We’re the desire-addicted pioneers, pure in heart, dreaming of a better
future. We make expensive mistakes so you don’t have to. Really, we are heroes.

1. Steven Poole is mentioned in the first paragraph to ________.
A. introduce the topic of the passage
B. present the main idea of the passage
C. prove the content of the passage is true
D. explain why modern technology is stupid
2. It can be inferred from the passage that ________.
A. the Segway motorized scooter (para. 3) was once quite popular
B. early adopters are probably welcomed by the tech companies
C. Mecca (para. 2) is a place where new digital cameras are designed
D. all the early adopters are very rich and enjoying buying anything new
3. According to the passage, what’s probably the worst result for an early adopter?
A. He is laughed at by his family and friends.
B. What he buys proves useless and expensive.
C. He finds himself no longer the most fashionable.
D. What he buys doesn’t eventually become popular.
4. Why did the writer buy a new digital camera last year?
A. Because he didn’t want to miss the cheap but better cameras.
B. Because he had to buy another new camera in several years anyway.
C. Because the old camera made him feel upset and out of fashion.
D. Because early digital cameras were of poor quality and couldn’t last long.
5. Which of the following best describe the writer’s attitude towards the early adopters?
A. Approving.
B. Doubtful.
C. Critical.
D. Ashamed.
6. By saying the last sentence “Really, we are heroes.” the writer wants to express that ________.
A. early adopters are likely to get addicted to modern technology
B. early adopters bravely spend much money buying new technology
C. early adopters are as a matter of fact clever investors of technology
D. early adopters help promote the development of technology
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情景对话
     Marry: Tom, I've just moved to a new house.
     Tom:    __6__  
     Marry: Thank you, and I'd like to buy a new television set.
     Tom:    __7__    
     Marry: A color TV set, of course.But I'm not sure about the size.Maybe we should buy a big one.If we buy a small one, we might have to change it in a few years' time for a big one.  __8___  
     Tom: In my opinion, I don't think it necessary to buy a very big one.
     Marry:    ___9__    
     Tom: Yes.As we know, your sitting room isn't very big.If you put in a very big television set, it will be
bad for your eyes.Besides, a smaller TV set can have clear pictures.
     Marry:     __10__   I'll think about it.
     Tom: You'd better make a quick decision because the price may go up soon.
A.Wow, how I envy you!
B.What is your opinion?
C.What kind of television do you want to buy?
D．Mm, that's quite true.
E.Why do you think so?
F.Is there any reason?
G.Really? Congratulations!
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The repairman told me, “No charge. Professor Pan! We’re friends.” “I’d rather pay.” I replied. “If it’s free I can’t afford it!”

Chinese often refuse payment for professional services, insisting, “We’re friends now!” But then they show up later to ask me to tutor them in English, or get them into an American university, and I wish I’d have just paid the 30 yuan I owed them in the first place!

According to the Americans “There’s no free lunch,” meaning, there’s a price for everything, and I’m always looking around to figure out what this means.

Many of our neighbors have given us fruit or flowers or costly teas, never asking anything in return. For years, a bicycle repairman has repeatedly refused to let me pay him. “Wait until you have something major to fix!” he insists.

I mentioned to a peasant friend that I wished I had a stone mill(磨)to grind flour for bread. A month later he showed up with a beautiful mill that he’d had his uncle in the countryside carve from a solid block of granite.

Chinese generosity is a real education for Americans like me, who would rather avoid social entanglements(纠缠)and just hand over the money. But cash can’t compensate (补偿) for the greatest gift—friendship.

When an American saw some of my friends sitting on bamboo stools under the trees, drinking tea, he said, “They must have nothing better to do.” “Actually,” I said, “they are professors, with plenty to do. But probably you’re right in saying that, at this moment, they have nothing better to do. And neither do I!”

And I joined the group. We chatted about tea and Chinese cooking and how much my boys have grown since we arrived. One man said, “They were pocket-sized when you came here. Now they’re taller than you. How time flies!”

How life flies. And Chinese are smart enough to share what they know. They cannot keep. They freely give off their time, never too busy to help a friend. And they are teaching me, slowly, to both give and receive.

So the next time someone says, “No charge. We’re friends!” I will thank them heartily. But if they show up later asking me to tutor them in English. I’ll make sure they tutor my son in Chinese as well, because there’s still no free lunch.

86. Why did the author insist paying the repairman when he was offered free repairs?

A. Because he was an upright man.

B. Because he didn’t know the repairman.

C. Because he thought it natural to pay for other’s service.

D. Because he didn’t want to help others in return.

87. The underlined word “figure out” in Paragraph 3 probably means____.

A. calculate　 B. think of　 C. know about　 D. make it clear

88. Generally, the author thinks that____.

A. Chinese are generous and always ready to help their friends

B. Chinese are good at exchange of equal values

C. Chinese are free enough to drink tea and chat with their friends

D. Chinese are helpful but don’t treasure time

89. The best title of the article should be____.

A. Still no free lunch

B. A good lesson from the Chinese

C. True help or not

D. Learn to both give and receive

90. Which of the following is true?

A. Chinese seldom refuse payment for professional services.

B. When a peasant knew the author needed a mill, he made one for the author himself.

C. The author thinks that Chinese are wise enough to enjoy their life.

D. Finally, the author changed his mind and decided to do as the Chinese do.

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