Passage 1
【主题分类】仔细阅读:自然环境和科技
【高级表达】
Distribution system:分配系统
New pumping practices: 新的抽水方法/技术
Compacted by:被......压缩、压实
Desalination plant:脱盐工厂
Undergo vt. 经历;忍受
【关键句型】
The problem is growing as:随着......问题变得严重
...may be triple ...:可能是......的三倍
Some desalination plants exist where feasible:在可行的情况下......有一些脱盐工厂存在
【答案解析】
46.How could California’s drought crisis be solved according to some researchers?
A) By building more reserves of groundwater.
B) By drawing water from the depths of the earth.
C) By developing more advanced drilling devices.
D) By upgrading its water distribution system.
由题干中的California’s drought crisis 和 some researchers定位到第一段第三句: New research has found deep water reserves under the state which could help solve their drought crisis.
由此可知,从地下深处取水是解决加利福尼亚州干旱危机的一个方法,因此答案为B)。
47.What can be inferred about extracting water from deep aquifers?
A) It was deemed vital to solving the water problem.
B) It was not considered worth the expense.
C) It may not provide quality freshwater.
D) It is bound to gain support from the local people.
由题干中的 extracting water from deep aquifers定位到第二段一、二句:It is profitable to drill to depths more than 1,000 feet for oil and gas extraction, but only recently in California has it become profitable to pump water from this depth. The aquifers range from 1,000 to 3,000 feet below the ground, which means that pumping will be expensive and there are other concerns.
由此可知,从深层地下蓄水层抽水在之前不被认为是物超所值的,因此答案为B)。
48. What is mentioned as a consequence of extracting water from deep underground?
A) The sinking of land surface. C) The damage to aquifers.
B) The harm to the ecosystem. D) The change of the climate.
由题干中的 a consequence of extracting water from deep underground定位到第二段三、四句:The biggest concern of pumping out water from this deep is the gradual settling down of the land surface. As the water is pumped out, the vacant space left is compacted by the weight of the earth above
因此,地下水被抽走而引发的后果就是地表下沉,答案为A)。
49. What does the author say about deep wells?
A) They run without any need for repairs.
B) They are entirely free from pollutants.
C) They are the ultimate solution to droughts.
D) They provide a steady supply of freshwater.
由题干中的deep wells定位到第三段最后一句:Wells are much more reliable sources of freshwater, and California is hoping that these deep wells may be the answer to their severe water shortage.
由此可知,深层地下井可以提供稳定的淡水资源,因此答案为D)。
50. What may happen when deep aquifers are used as water sources?
A) People’s health may improve with cleaner water.
B) People’s water bills may be lowered considerably.
C) The cost may go up due to desalination.
D) They may be exhausted sooner or later.
由题干中的when deep aquifers are used as water sources定位到最后一段一、二句:One problem with these sources is that the deep water also has a higher level of salt than shallower aquifers. This means that some wells may even need to undergo desalination after extraction, thus increasing the cost.
由此而知,一旦这些地下水作为淡水资源,可能会出现高盐度的情况,那么需要进行脱盐从而增加了成本,答案为C)。
Passage 2
【主题分类】本仔细阅读:科技--人工智能的话题
【高级表达】
Ethically:adv.伦理上
Driverless:a. 无人驾驶的
Triumph:n. 成功;胜利
Racist:a. 种族主义的
Unpredictability:n. 不可预测性,不可预知性
Bring to the surface sth:把......带到表面;让......浮出水面
【关键句型】
It is not too soon to...:做......不算太早
It is one thing to... It is something very different to...做......是一回事,做......又是一回事
...whatever the outcome:......不管结果如何
【答案解析】
51.What does the author want to show with the example of AlphaGo’s victory?
A)Computers will prevail over human beings.
B)Computers have unmatched potential.
C)Computers are man’s potential rivals.
D)Computers can become highly intelligent.
由题干中的the author want to show with the example of AlphaGo’s victory定位到第一段:The AlphaGo program’s victory is an example of how smart computers have become.
换句话说,阿尔法狗围棋程序曾战胜了人类诸多优秀的围棋手,所以它的成功说明电脑已经高度智能化,因此答案为D)。
52.What does the author mean by AI machines acting ethically?
A)They are capable of predicting possible risks.
B)They weigh the gains and losses before reaching a decision.
C)They make sensible decisions when facing moral dilemmas.
D)They sacrifice everything to save human lives.
由题干中的the author mean by AI machines acting ethically定位到第三段五至八句:Sometimes, however, they will face a choice between lives. Should the cars be programmed to avoid hitting a child running across the road, even if that will put their passengers at risk? What about making a sudden turn to avoid a dog? What if the only risk is damage to the car itself, not to the passengers?
根据该段意思可以判断,让人工智能机器恪守伦理道德是指,当它们面临道德上进退两难的窘境时,它们能够做出明智的选择,因此答案为C)。
53.What is said to be the bigger challenge facing humans in the AI age?
A)How to make super-intelligent AI machines share human feelings.
B)How to ensure that super-intelligent AI machines act ethically.
C)How to prevent AI machines doing harm to humans.
D)How to avoid being over-dependent on AI machines
由题干中的 the bigger challenge facing humans in the AI age定位到第四段第二句:Teaching ethics to a machine even more intelligent than we are will be the bigger challenge.
该句意思说,如何确保那些超级聪明的人工智能机器恪守伦理道德对我们人类而言是一个更大的挑战,因此答案为B)。
54.What do we learn about Microsoft’s “chatbot” Taylor?
A)She could not distinguish good from bad.
B)She could turn herself off when necessary.
C)She was not made to handle novel situations.
D)She was good at performing routine tasks.
由题干中的Microsoft’s “chatbot” Taylor定位到第五段四、五句:She was designed to slowly improve her ability to handle conversations, but some people were teaching Taylor racist ideas. When she started saying nice things about Hitler, Microsoft turned her off and deleted her ugliest messages.
由此可见,泰勒这个聊天程序只会按照自己的程序设置学习信息中心的一切内容,却没有辨别是非的能力,所以答案为A)
55. What does Eric Schmidt think of artificial intelligence?
A) It will be far superior to human beings.
B) It will keep improving as time goes by.
C) It will prove to be an asset to human beings.
D) It will be here to stay whatever the outcome.
由题干中的Eric Schmidt think of artificial intelligence定位到文章最后一段二至四句:He thinks AI will be positive for humans. He said people will be the winner, whatever the outcome. Advances in AI will make human beings smarter, more able and “just better human beings.”
由此可见,Eric Schmidt认为人工智能对于人类并不是坏事,而是可以为人类所用,服务于人类,所以答案为C)。