Robert Chmielewski has had quadriplegia (四肢瘫痪) since his teens. Sensors implanted (植入) in his brain read his thoughts to control two robotic arms, which helps him to perform daily tasks. Now he can use one robotic arm to control a knife and the other a fork.
Modern technology can reach inside someone’s head and pull out what he is thinking. Maybe he intends to move a robotic arm or type something on a computer screen. Such thought-controlled devices can help people who aren’t able to move or perform different tasks and promote the well-being of the disabled.
Decoding (解码) thought usually requires placing sensors directly on or in someone’s brain. Those implanted sensors can catch the electrical signals passing between the person’s brain cells, or neurons. Such signals carry messages that allow brains to think, feel and control the body.
Using brain implants, researchers have picked up electrical signals in the brain linked to certain words or letters. This has allowed brain implants to transform thoughts into text or speech on a computer. Likewise, brain implants have transformed imagined handwriting into text on a screen. Implanted sensors have even allowed scientists to turn the signals they caught that are associated with a song in someone’s head into real music.
In a recent study, scientists decoded full stories from people’s brains using MRI scans (磁共振成像扫描). This did not require any brain implants. But building the thought decoder did require many hours of brain scans for each person. What’s more, the system only worked on the person whose brain scans helped build it and only when that person was willing to have their mind read.
So devices that might let someone secretly read your mind from across the room are still a long, long way off. Still, it’s clear that mind-reading tech is getting more advanced. As it does, scientists are thinking hard about what it would mean to live in a world where not even the inside of your head is completely private.
1．What does the text begin with?| A．A suggestion. | B．A comparison. | C．An argument. | D．An example. |
| A．What principles a thought decoder should follow. |
| B．How MRI monitors the work of the implanted sensors. |
| C．What’s used to catch signals passing through the brain. |
| D．How robotic arms are designed to satisfy different needs. |
| A．Concerned. | B．Confident. | C．Doubtful. | D．Indifferent. |
| A．Mind Reading is Stealing Our Privacy | B．Mind Reading is Hard, but not Impossible |
| C．Mind Reading—Good News for Musicians | D．Mind Reading—a Brain-scanning Technology |
In the Pixar movie Up, a fun cartoon dog called Dug wears a magical collar which can detect and translate his barks and cries into fluent human speech. Humans have always been fascinated by the potential to communicate with the animals. This week, an article in the New York Times documented major efforts from a group of researchers using machine-learning algorithms (算法) to analyze the different calls of whales, chickens, bats, cats, and more.
There are several ways to train AI systems now. Typically, Al systems learn through training with labeled data of human language which can be well supplied by the Internet. But analyzing animal language is different. Scientists have to instruct software programs on what to look for, and how to organize the data. This process requires matching gained vocal (发声的) recordings with the visual social behaviors of animals. A group studying Egyptian fruit bats, for example, also used video cameras to record the bats themselves to provide context for the calls.
Many critics of this approach point out two weaknesses of current AI language models: being unable to truly understand the relationships between words and the objects in the real world, and scientists’ little understanding of animal societies. Al language models for humans rely on a computer mapping out the relationship between words and the contexts they could appear in. But these models have their own weak points, and can sometimes be a black box—researchers know what goes in and comes out, but don’t quite understand how the algorithm is arriving at the conclusion.
Another factor that researchers should take into account is that animal communications might not work at all like human communications. There might be unique elements to animal language due to physiological and behavioral differences.
Making a Translator for animals has been a popular project that’s been in the works for the last decade. Although some software has shown some success in identifying the basic vocabulary of certain animals, it’s still a far cry from understanding the complex animal languages.
1．Why do researchers use Al to analyze animals’ calls?| A．To tell the differences among animals. |
| B．To test Al’s ability of translating animal language. |
| C．To understand animal language better. |
| D．To explore the fun of communicating with animals. |
| A．The lack of labeled data for training Al systems. |
| B．The difficulty in relating human speech to real objects. |
| C．The need for sound recordings to provide context. |
| D．The matching of vocal recordings with their calls. |
| A．Al language models to study animal communication. |
| B．The researchers’ study on animal societies. |
| C．The relationship between words and context. |
| D．The method of Al algorithms to draw conclusions. |
| A．Al systems for animal language translation. |
| B．Limitations of current Al language models. |
| C．Unique aspects of detecting animal language. |
| D．Challenges in creating a translator for animals. |
One day, a friend of mine and I were walking down a deserted Mexican beach at sunset. When we walked along the beach and shot the bull, we saw a man occupying himself with something in the distance. Curiosity drove us to find out what he was doing.
As we grew nearer, we noticed that the man kept leaning down, picking something up and throwing it out into the water. Time and time again, he kept casting things into the ocean. We felt a little more confused about his odd action. So we decided to approach even closer, and then we knew that the man was picking up starfish that had been washed up on the beach and, one at a time, he was throwing them back into the water.
My friend was puzzled. He came up to the man and asked, “Good evening, friend. I was wondering what you’re doing.” Without stopping his work, the man answered, “I’m throwing these starfish back into the ocean. You see, it’s low tide right now and all of these starfish have been washed up onto the shore. If I don’t throw them back into the sea, they will die up here from lack of oxygen.” “I understand,” said my friend, “but there must be thousands of starfish on this beach. You can’t possibly get to all of them. There are simply too many. You are just wasting your time doing something meaningless. And don’t you realize this is probably happening on hundreds of beaches all up and down this coast? Can’t you see that you can’t possibly make a difference?”
The man smiled, bent down, and picked up another starfish, and as he threw it back into the sea, he replied in a firm voice, “Made a difference to that one!”
I knew what my friend would do when he looked at me.
We said goodbye to the man, tired but happy.
In a small town, there was a community talent show held every year in the local park. The event was a highlight for many, with performances from various local talents. Among the audience was a woman named Emily, a kind-hearted local librarian, along with her 12-year-old daughter Anna. Both of their eyes were filled with excitement.
As the show began, Emily and her daughter watched a young girl in amazement, about eight, confidently sing a song. Her voice was surprisingly powerful for her small body. Then a group of teenagers followed. Their hip-hop dance routine was full of energy, leading to cheers from the crowd. There was even an elderly gentleman who performed a series of magic tricks. However, as the sun began to set, many in the audience grew tired and the applause (掌声) after each act became less enthusiastic (热情的).
Then came the turn of a young boy, around ten years old, nervously holding his violin. As he started playing, it was clear that he was a beginner. His notes were shaky and he missed a few beats. The audience, already tired, responded with only a little polite applause. Emily noticed the boy’s frustrated face as he finished his performance.
It was at this moment that Emily recalled a powerful memory from her own childhood—the time when she had stood on a similar stage, her voice trembling (颤抖) through a song. But the kindness she had received from a stranger in the audience pushed her to carry on. Drawing from the lesson she had learned from the past experience, Emily stood up, clapping loudly and cheering for the boy. “Great job! Keep practicing, and you’re doing wonderfully!”she called out. Her enthusiasm inspired other members of the audience to join in the applause, their clap growing louder and more sincere.
Paul’s old clock was supposed to wake him up at six in the morning of August tenth, but, unfortunately, the hour hand stopped in the early hours again. Instead, Paul was awoken by the noisy breakfast-table talk of the Stephen brothers next door.
“Now. I’ve won the National Poetry Creative Award!” the older brother shouted loudly.
“You have to do the housework for the coming whole week!”
“Okay,” the younger responded unwillingly.
Paul rushed down the stairs of his apartment to the news kiosk (报刊亭) by the street in his pajamas. Among the crowd of the seven o’clock Los Angeles, he was unique, in a funny manner, like a clown escaped from a circus group. Despite that, he caught the eyes of nobody. He threw a few coins into the glass jar and then grabbed the newspaper from the old kiosk owner. His behavior didn’t frighten the old woman-he was the most loyal customer of her store for the past few years.
Paul liked to invent something, and he was fond of literature and had been dreaming of becoming an editor. He skimmed through the annual nomination (提名) on the front page of the newspaper, the brightness in his eyes turned less bright as he moved down the list of names, which eventually faded when he reached the end. He lifted his sight from the newspaper and started staring at the kiosk owner dully (无精打采地), an expression similar to that when he arrived. The old woman sighed-she was so accustomed to this lifeless look on his face but had prayed to see something new every August.
“Bad luck”, with this, Paul slid away rapidly. When approaching the corner of the street, he narrowly knocked down an old gentleman, the kiosk owner’s husband, Arthur, who once was a chief editor of a local famous magazine and now he was retired.
After hearing what his wife said about Paul, Arthur decided to give him a hand.
One morning of next year’s August, with the magazine he had edited in hand, Paul stood beside the news kiosk nervously to sell it.
If you think that running marathons will help you live a long and healthy life, new research may come as a shock. According to a recent scientific study, people who do a very strenuous workout are as likely to die as people who do no exercise at all.
Scientists in Denmark have been studying over 1,000 joggers (慢跑者) and non - joggers for 12 years. The death rates from the sample group indicate that people who jog at a proper pace two or three times a week for less than two and a half hours in total are least likely to die. The best speed to jog at was found to be about 5 miles per hour. The research suggests that people who jog more than three times a week or at higher speeds of over 7 mph die at the same rate as non - joggers. The scientists think that this is because strenuous exercise causes structural changes to the heart and arteries(动脉). Over time, this can cause serious effects.
Peter Schnohr, a researcher in Copenhagen, said, “If your goal is to decrease risk of death and improve life expectancy(寿命), jogging a few times a week at a proper pace is a good strategy. Anything more is not just unnecessary, and it may be harmful.”
The implications (暗示) of this are that moderate forms of exercise such as tai chi, yoga and walking may be better for us than “iron man events, triathlons and long - distance running and cycling. According to Jacob Louis Marott, another researcher involved in the study, “You don't actually have to do that much to have a good impact on your health. And perhaps you shouldn’t actually do too much”.
1．Which of the following words can replace “strenuous” in Paragraph 1?| A．regular | B．hard | C．practical | D．limited |
| A．To suggest giving up jogging | B．To show risks of doing sports |
| C．To provide supportive evidence | D．To introduce the research content |
| A．It may injure the heart and arteries. | B．It can make the body tired out. |
| C．It will bring much pressure. | D．It consumes too much energy. |
| A．No exercise at all is the best choice. | B．More exercise means a healthier life. |
| C．Marathons runners are least likely to die. | D．Too strenuous exercise is no better than none |
Sitting back in my seat, I can’t quite believe that I’m about to travel along the railway that many foreign experts claimed was “impossible”. The train has been racing along steadily since it left Xining. All this time, the song “Sky Railway” has been
I was one of the people who came from all parts of China to work on this railway.
The first
To prevent
The journey has been flying by, and before I know it, we have reached Tanggula Station.
As we pass Cuona Lake, I feel a sense of pride and achievement. Using thousands and thousands of sandbags, we built a twenty-kilometre wall along the lake to protect it from construction waste. Cuona Lake is so close to the railway that I want to
The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has been attracting people’s admiration for centuries. Now, thanks to our efforts, passengers from all over the country have been enjoying these magical landscapes. I am proud that we built our “impossible” railway, and did so with the care that the environment
| A．playing | B．expressing | C．viewing | D．singing |
| A．legal | B．cute | C．vivid | D．formal |
| A．Spending | B．Taking | C．Investing | D．Wasting |
| A．create | B．determine | C．suffer | D．overcome |
| A．protect | B．destroy | C．ignore | D．mix |
| A．entrance | B．landmark | C．impression | D．event |
| A．leisure | B．request | C．risk | D．expense |
| A．condition | B．habitat | C．state | D．common |
| A．bridges | B．railways | C．mountains | D．passages |
| A．grateful | B．guilty | C．unaware | D．happy |
| A．spread | B．infection | C．damage | D．panic |
| A．a long history of | B．a large area of | C．a high cost of | D．a total length of |
| A．Located | B．Started | C．Ended | D．Instructed |
| A．strongest | B．fastest | C．newest | D．highest |
| A．mild | B．warm | C．changeable | D．stable |
| A．challenge | B．talent | C．limit | D．opportunity |
| A．quiet | B．healthy | C．calm | D．open |
| A．commercial | B．regular | C．formal | D．casual |
| A．blow away | B．pay off | C．reach out | D．give in |
| A．influences | B．provides | C．collects | D．deserves |
| A．motivating | B．motivated | C．being motivated | D．to be motivated |
| A．Old people’s lives. | B．A supermarket chain. | C．Services for the elderly. |
| A．She lost her phone by accident. |
| B．She was cheated through phone. |
| C．She was unable to make calls. |
| A．True Call. | B．Safeway. | C．Red & Yellow Care. |
| A．Businessmen. | B．Sick people. | C．Senior customers. |
| A．$5. | B．$9. | C．$10. |
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