Passage 2
One evening in February 2007,a student named Paula Ceely brought her car to a stop on a remote road 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 was parked across a railway line.Seconds 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（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.
Who is to blame here?Rick Stevenson,who tells Ceely’s story in his book When Machines Fail Us,points the 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 keyboards.
The problem with his argument in the book is that it’s not clear why he only focuses on 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 singalling system.Or maybe someone has studied the relative dangers and worked out that there really is something specific wrong with the GPS equipment.But Stevenson doesn’t say.
It’s a problem that runs through the book.In a section on cars,Stevenson gives an account 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 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 amusing and complex.It is shaped by economics and psychology and the cultures we live in.Somewhere in the mix of those forces there may be a way for 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.
In the writer’s opinion,Stevenson’s argument is（ ）.
根据文章第4段可知他的争论只是单方的，他只聚焦于数字技术而忽视了很多其它方面的原因。故本题正确答案选A。
What should you think about in trying to find your career? You are probably better at some school subjects than others． These may show strengths that you can use in your work． A boy who is good at mathematics can use that in an engineering career． A girl who spells well and likes English may be good at office work． So it is important to know the subjects you do well in at school． On the other hand, you may not have any specially strong or weak subjects but your records show a general satisfactory standard． Although not all subjects can be used directly in a job, they may have indirect value． A knowledge of history is not required for most jobs but if history is one of your good subjects you will have learned to remember facts and details． This is an ability that can be useful in many jobs．
Your school may have taught you skills, such as typing or technical drawing, which you can use in your work． You may be good at metal work or cookery and look for a job where you can improve these skills．
If you have had a part-time job on Saturdays or in the summer, think what you gained from it．If nothing else, you may have learned how to get to work on time, to follow instructions and to get on with older workers． You may have learned to give correct change in a shop, for example． Just as important, you may become interested in a particular industry or career you see from the inside in a part-time job． Facing your weak points is also part of knowing yourself． You may be all thumbs when you handle tools; perhaps you are a poor speller or cannot add up a column of figures． It is bitter to face any weaknesses than to pretend they do not exist． Your school record, for instance, may not be too good, yet it is an important part of your background． You should not be apologetic about it but instead recognize that you will have a chance of a fresh start at work．
The whole passage centers on
What should you think about in trying to find your career? You are probably better at some school subjects than others． These may show strengths that you can use in your work． A boy who is good at mathematics can use that in an engineering career． A girl who spells well and likes English may be good at office work． So it is important to know the subjects you do well in at school． On the other hand, you may not have any specially strong or weak subjects but your records show a general satisfactory standard． Although not all subjects can be used directly in a job, they may have indirect value． A knowledge of history is not required for most jobs but if history is one of your good subjects you will have learned to remember facts and details． This is an ability that can be useful in many jobs．
Your school may have taught you skills, such as typing or technical drawing, which you can use in your work． You may be good at metal work or cookery and look for a job where you can improve these skills．
If you have had a part-time job on Saturdays or in the summer, think what you gained from it．If nothing else, you may have learned how to get to work on time, to follow instructions and to get on with older workers． You may have learned to give correct change in a shop, for example． Just as important, you may become interested in a particular industry or career you see from the inside in a part-time job． Facing your weak points is also part of knowing yourself． You may be all thumbs when you handle tools; perhaps you are a poor speller or cannot add up a column of figures． It is bitter to face any weaknesses than to pretend they do not exist． Your school record, for instance, may not be too good, yet it is an important part of your background． You should not be apologetic about it but instead recognize that you will have a chance of a fresh start at work．
Which subject is supposed to have no direct value for job hunting?
What should you think about in trying to find your career? You are probably better at some school subjects than others． These may show strengths that you can use in your work． A boy who is good at mathematics can use that in an engineering career． A girl who spells well and likes English may be good at office work． So it is important to know the subjects you do well in at school． On the other hand, you may not have any specially strong or weak subjects but your records show a general satisfactory standard． Although not all subjects can be used directly in a job, they may have indirect value． A knowledge of history is not required for most jobs but if history is one of your good subjects you will have learned to remember facts and details． This is an ability that can be useful in many jobs．
Your school may have taught you skills, such as typing or technical drawing, which you can use in your work． You may be good at metal work or cookery and look for a job where you can improve these skills．
If you have had a part-time job on Saturdays or in the summer, think what you gained from it．If nothing else, you may have learned how to get to work on time, to follow instructions and to get on with older workers． You may have learned to give correct change in a shop, for example． Just as important, you may become interested in a particular industry or career you see from the inside in a part-time job． Facing your weak points is also part of knowing yourself． You may be all thumbs when you handle tools; perhaps you are a poor speller or cannot add up a column of figures． It is bitter to face any weaknesses than to pretend they do not exist． Your school record, for instance, may not be too good, yet it is an important part of your background． You should not be apologetic about it but instead recognize that you will have a chance of a fresh start at work．
According to the passage, if a student's school record is not good, he ______
What should you think about in trying to find your career? You are probably better at some school subjects than others． These may show strengths that you can use in your work． A boy who is good at mathematics can use that in an engineering career． A girl who spells well and likes English may be good at office work． So it is important to know the subjects you do well in at school． On the other hand, you may not have any specially strong or weak subjects but your records show a general satisfactory standard． Although not all subjects can be used directly in a job, they may have indirect value． A knowledge of history is not required for most jobs but if history is one of your good subjects you will have learned to remember facts and details． This is an ability that can be useful in many jobs．
Your school may have taught you skills, such as typing or technical drawing, which you can use in your work． You may be good at metal work or cookery and look for a job where you can improve these skills．
If you have had a part-time job on Saturdays or in the summer, think what you gained from it．If nothing else, you may have learned how to get to work on time, to follow instructions and to get on with older workers． You may have learned to give correct change in a shop, for example． Just as important, you may become interested in a particular industry or career you see from the inside in a part-time job． Facing your weak points is also part of knowing yourself． You may be all thumbs when you handle tools; perhaps you are a poor speller or cannot add up a column of figures． It is bitter to face any weaknesses than to pretend they do not exist． Your school record, for instance, may not be too good, yet it is an important part of your background． You should not be apologetic about it but instead recognize that you will have a chance of a fresh start at work．
The writer thinks that for a student to have a part-time job is probably ______
What should you think about in trying to find your career? You are probably better at some school subjects than others． These may show strengths that you can use in your work． A boy who is good at mathematics can use that in an engineering career． A girl who spells well and likes English may be good at office work． So it is important to know the subjects you do well in at school． On the other hand, you may not have any specially strong or weak subjects but your records show a general satisfactory standard． Although not all subjects can be used directly in a job, they may have indirect value． A knowledge of history is not required for most jobs but if history is one of your good subjects you will have learned to remember facts and details． This is an ability that can be useful in many jobs．
Your school may have taught you skills, such as typing or technical drawing, which you can use in your work． You may be good at metal work or cookery and look for a job where you can improve these skills．
If you have had a part-time job on Saturdays or in the summer, think what you gained from it．If nothing else, you may have learned how to get to work on time, to follow instructions and to get on with older workers． You may have learned to give correct change in a shop, for example． Just as important, you may become interested in a particular industry or career you see from the inside in a part-time job． Facing your weak points is also part of knowing yourself． You may be all thumbs when you handle tools; perhaps you are a poor speller or cannot add up a column of figures． It is bitter to face any weaknesses than to pretend they do not exist． Your school record, for instance, may not be too good, yet it is an important part of your background． You should not be apologetic about it but instead recognize that you will have a chance of a fresh start at work．
Which of the following best sums up the first paragraph?
When we analyze the salt salinity (盐浓度) of ocean waters, we find that it varies only slightly from place to place． Nevertheless, some of these small changes are important． There are three basic processes that cause a change in oceanic salinity． One of these is the subtraction of water from the ocean by means of evaporation． In this manner, the salinity is increased, since the salt stays behind． If this is carried to the extreme, of course, white salt would be left behind ; this, by the way,is how much of the table salt we use is actually obtained．
The opposite of evaporation is precipitation, such as rain, by which water is added to the ocean． Here the ocean is being diluted so that the salinity is decreased． This may occur in areas of high rainfall or in coastal regions where rivers flow into the ocean． Thus salinity may be increased by the subtraction of water by evaporation, or decreased by the addition of fresh water by precipitation．
Normally, in hot regions where the sun is very strong, the ocean salinity is somewhat higher than it is in other parts of the world where there is not as much evaporation． similarly, in coastal．
Grandma, who used to live upstairs, is now the voice on long distance, and the working parent is far too beaten down each day to spend evening relaxation time listening to the sandbox experience of an eager four-year-old．
So family conversation is as extinct as my old toys and parental questions such as "What have you been doing, Bobby? " have been replaced by "I 'm busy, go watch television．
And watch TV they do; count them by the millions．
But it's usually not children's television that children watch． Saturday morning, the children's hour, amounts to only about 8 percent of their weekly viewing．
Where are they to be found?Watching adult television, of course, from the Match Game in the morning, to the afternoon at General Hospital, from the muggings and battles on the evening news right through the family hour and past into Starsky and Hutch． That's where you find our kids, over five million of them, at 10 p．m．, not fewer than a million until after midnight! All of this is done with parental permission．
Television, used well, can provide enriching experiences for our young people, but we must use it with some sense． When the carpet is clean, we turn off the vacuum cleaner． When the dishes are clean, the dishwasher turns itself off．
Not so the television, which is on from the sun in the morning to the moon at night and beyond!
Parents must exercise some control and show some concern about the cultural influence on the child when a program not intended for that child is viewed． Parents need to intervene． Nonintervention may be a wise policy in international affairs, but the results of parental nonintervention will not be wise at alL．
What is the main idea of the last paragraph?
When we analyze the salt salinity (盐浓度) of ocean waters, we find that it varies only slightly from place to place． Nevertheless, some of these small changes are important． There are three basic processes that cause a change in oceanic salinity． One of these is the subtraction of water from the ocean by means of evaporation． In this manner, the salinity is increased, since the salt stays behind． If this is carried to the extreme, of course, white salt would be left behind ; this, by the way,is how much of the table salt we use is actually obtained．
The opposite of evaporation is precipitation, such as rain, by which water is added to the ocean． Here the ocean is being diluted so that the salinity is decreased． This may occur in areas of high rainfall or in coastal regions where rivers flow into the ocean． Thus salinity may be increased by the subtraction of water by evaporation, or decreased by the addition of fresh water by precipitation．
Normally, in hot regions where the sun is very strong, the ocean salinity is somewhat higher than it is in other parts of the world where there is not as much evaporation． similarly, in coastal．
Grandma, who used to live upstairs, is now the voice on long distance, and the working parent is far too beaten down each day to spend evening relaxation time listening to the sandbox experience of an eager four-year-old．
So family conversation is as extinct as my old toys and parental questions such as "What have you been doing, Bobby? " have been replaced by "I 'm busy, go watch television．
And watch TV they do; count them by the millions．
But it's usually not children's television that children watch． Saturday morning, the children's hour, amounts to only about 8 percent of their weekly viewing．
Where are they to be found?Watching adult television, of course, from the Match Game in the morning, to the afternoon at General Hospital, from the muggings and battles on the evening news right through the family hour and past into Starsky and Hutch． That's where you find our kids, over five million of them, at 10 p．m．, not fewer than a million until after midnight! All of this is done with parental permission．
Television, used well, can provide enriching experiences for our young people, but we must use it with some sense． When the carpet is clean, we turn off the vacuum cleaner． When the dishes are clean, the dishwasher turns itself off．
Not so the television, which is on from the sun in the morning to the moon at night and beyond!
Parents must exercise some control and show some concern about the cultural influence on the child when a program not intended for that child is viewed． Parents need to intervene． Nonintervention may be a wise policy in international affairs, but the results of parental nonintervention will not be wise at alL．
If we use television with some _______, television can provide our young people with much knowledge．
When we analyze the salt salinity (盐浓度) of ocean waters, we find that it varies only slightly from place to place． Nevertheless, some of these small changes are important． There are three basic processes that cause a change in oceanic salinity． One of these is the subtraction of water from the ocean by means of evaporation． In this manner, the salinity is increased, since the salt stays behind． If this is carried to the extreme, of course, white salt would be left behind ; this, by the way,is how much of the table salt we use is actually obtained．
The opposite of evaporation is precipitation, such as rain, by which water is added to the ocean． Here the ocean is being diluted so that the salinity is decreased． This may occur in areas of high rainfall or in coastal regions where rivers flow into the ocean． Thus salinity may be increased by the subtraction of water by evaporation, or decreased by the addition of fresh water by precipitation．
Normally, in hot regions where the sun is very strong, the ocean salinity is somewhat higher than it is in other parts of the world where there is not as much evaporation． similarly, in coastal．
Grandma, who used to live upstairs, is now the voice on long distance, and the working parent is far too beaten down each day to spend evening relaxation time listening to the sandbox experience of an eager four-year-old．
So family conversation is as extinct as my old toys and parental questions such as "What have you been doing, Bobby? " have been replaced by "I 'm busy, go watch television．
And watch TV they do; count them by the millions．
But it's usually not children's television that children watch． Saturday morning, the children's hour, amounts to only about 8 percent of their weekly viewing．
Where are they to be found?Watching adult television, of course, from the Match Game in the morning, to the afternoon at General Hospital, from the muggings and battles on the evening news right through the family hour and past into Starsky and Hutch． That's where you find our kids, over five million of them, at 10 p．m．, not fewer than a million until after midnight! All of this is done with parental permission．
Television, used well, can provide enriching experiences for our young people, but we must use it with some sense． When the carpet is clean, we turn off the vacuum cleaner． When the dishes are clean, the dishwasher turns itself off．
Not so the television, which is on from the sun in the morning to the moon at night and beyond!
Parents must exercise some control and show some concern about the cultural influence on the child when a program not intended for that child is viewed． Parents need to intervene． Nonintervention may be a wise policy in international affairs, but the results of parental nonintervention will not be wise at alL．
According to the writer, the responsibility for the kid's watching adult television and watching it for a long time should be undertaken by _____
When we analyze the salt salinity (盐浓度) of ocean waters, we find that it varies only slightly from place to place． Nevertheless, some of these small changes are important． There are three basic processes that cause a change in oceanic salinity． One of these is the subtraction of water from the ocean by means of evaporation． In this manner, the salinity is increased, since the salt stays behind． If this is carried to the extreme, of course, white salt would be left behind ; this, by the way,is how much of the table salt we use is actually obtained．
The opposite of evaporation is precipitation, such as rain, by which water is added to the ocean． Here the ocean is being diluted so that the salinity is decreased． This may occur in areas of high rainfall or in coastal regions where rivers flow into the ocean． Thus salinity may be increased by the subtraction of water by evaporation, or decreased by the addition of fresh water by precipitation．
Normally, in hot regions where the sun is very strong, the ocean salinity is somewhat higher than it is in other parts of the world where there is not as much evaporation． similarly, in coastal．
Grandma, who used to live upstairs, is now the voice on long distance, and the working parent is far too beaten down each day to spend evening relaxation time listening to the sandbox experience of an eager four-year-old．
So family conversation is as extinct as my old toys and parental questions such as "What have you been doing, Bobby? " have been replaced by "I 'm busy, go watch television．
And watch TV they do; count them by the millions．
But it's usually not children's television that children watch． Saturday morning, the children's hour, amounts to only about 8 percent of their weekly viewing．
Where are they to be found?Watching adult television, of course, from the Match Game in the morning, to the afternoon at General Hospital, from the muggings and battles on the evening news right through the family hour and past into Starsky and Hutch． That's where you find our kids, over five million of them, at 10 p．m．, not fewer than a million until after midnight! All of this is done with parental permission．
Television, used well, can provide enriching experiences for our young people, but we must use it with some sense． When the carpet is clean, we turn off the vacuum cleaner． When the dishes are clean, the dishwasher turns itself off．
Not so the television, which is on from the sun in the morning to the moon at night and beyond!
Parents must exercise some control and show some concern about the cultural influence on the child when a program not intended for that child is viewed． Parents need to intervene． Nonintervention may be a wise policy in international affairs, but the results of parental nonintervention will not be wise at alL．
The working parent is not willing to listen to her (his) four-year-old child talking about his sandbox games because she (he) is _____
When we analyze the salt salinity (盐浓度) of ocean waters, we find that it varies only slightly from place to place． Nevertheless, some of these small changes are important． There are three basic processes that cause a change in oceanic salinity． One of these is the subtraction of water from the ocean by means of evaporation． In this manner, the salinity is increased, since the salt stays behind． If this is carried to the extreme, of course, white salt would be left behind ; this, by the way,is how much of the table salt we use is actually obtained．
The opposite of evaporation is precipitation, such as rain, by which water is added to the ocean． Here the ocean is being diluted so that the salinity is decreased． This may occur in areas of high rainfall or in coastal regions where rivers flow into the ocean． Thus salinity may be increased by the subtraction of water by evaporation, or decreased by the addition of fresh water by precipitation．
Normally, in hot regions where the sun is very strong, the ocean salinity is somewhat higher than it is in other parts of the world where there is not as much evaporation． similarly, in coastal．
Grandma, who used to live upstairs, is now the voice on long distance, and the working parent is far too beaten down each day to spend evening relaxation time listening to the sandbox experience of an eager four-year-old．
So family conversation is as extinct as my old toys and parental questions such as "What have you been doing, Bobby? " have been replaced by "I 'm busy, go watch television．
And watch TV they do; count them by the millions．
But it's usually not children's television that children watch． Saturday morning, the children's hour, amounts to only about 8 percent of their weekly viewing．
Where are they to be found?Watching adult television, of course, from the Match Game in the morning, to the afternoon at General Hospital, from the muggings and battles on the evening news right through the family hour and past into Starsky and Hutch． That's where you find our kids, over five million of them, at 10 p．m．, not fewer than a million until after midnight! All of this is done with parental permission．
Television, used well, can provide enriching experiences for our young people, but we must use it with some sense． When the carpet is clean, we turn off the vacuum cleaner． When the dishes are clean, the dishwasher turns itself off．
Not so the television, which is on from the sun in the morning to the moon at night and beyond!
Parents must exercise some control and show some concern about the cultural influence on the child when a program not intended for that child is viewed． Parents need to intervene． Nonintervention may be a wise policy in international affairs, but the results of parental nonintervention will not be wise at alL．
From the first two paragraphs one may infer that the writer's attitude towards
"the old days" is ______
