Thanks to in-depth reporting by the Wall Street Journal, we now know that Facebook has long been aware its product Instagram has harmful effects on the mental health of many adolescent users. Young girls, in particular, struggle with their body image thanks to a constant stream of photos and videos showing beautiful bodies that users don’t think they can attain.
While the information the Journal covered is essential and instructive, it does not tell the whole story. Deep down, this is not an Instagram problem; it’s a people problem. Understanding that distinction can make the difference between a failed attempt to contain a teen’s interest in an addictive app and successfully addressing the underlying problem leading to mental distress induced (诱发) by Instagram.
Critics were quick to shame Facebook for sitting on the data and not releasing it to researchers or academics who asked for it. Others criticize the social media giant for not using the research to create a safer experience for its teen users. The anger, while understandable, is misplaced.
While I’m reluctant to defend Facebook, I’m not sure it’s reasonable to blame the company for withholding data that would hurt its business. Have you ever binge-watched (狂看) a Netflix series? I assure you it wasn’t a healthy endeavor. You were in active, likely did nothing productive, mindlessly snacked and didn’t go outside for fresh air. It is an objectively harmful use of time to stare at a TV or laptop for a full weekend. Should we respond by shaming Netflix for not alerting us to how damaging an addictive product can be?
While it’s reasonable to say Instagram makes esteem issues worse, it strains credulity (夸张到难以置信) to believe it causes them in the first place. You create your own experiences on social media. For the most part, you choose which accounts to follow and engage. If you’re already vulnerable to insecurities and self-sabotage (自损) — as many teens are — you will find accounts to obsess over. And this isn’t a new phenomenon.
Before social media, there were similar issues fueling self-esteem issues. Whether the target be magazines, movies or television shows depicting difficult-to-attain bodies, there has been a relatively steady chorus (异口同声) of experts nothing the damage new media could cause young viewers.
Self-esteem issues have an underlying cause — one that’s independent of social media use. Instagram merely enhances those feelings because it provides infinitely more access to triggers than older forms of media. It’s more worthwhile to address those underlying factors rather than to attack Facebook.
1．The author thinks the criticisms against Instagram __________.| A．are successful attempts to change teens’ interest in addictive apps |
| B．address the Instagram - induced mental pain |
| C．are only based on the data released by Facebook |
| D．are not directed at the fundamental problem |
| A．compare the criticisms against it and Facebook |
| B．defend why Facebook is to blame |
| C．suggest the critics’ remarks are not to point |
| D．show Netflix does more harm to teens |
| A．it is human nature to get addicted to social media |
| B．users decide on their experiences on social media |
| C．people have a tendency to feel insecure online |
| D．people are keen on fabricating their self - profile |
| A．the unprecedented criticism facing Facebook |
| B．the alarming online habits of teenagers worldwide |
| C．the root cause of Instagram - induced mental strains |
| D．the harmful impact of Instagram on teenagers |
A small boy was packing his school bag in his room, a room filled with books. Many were novels and some were short stories; many were new and some were yellowed with age; many were detective stories and some were fairy tales. Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. The small boy called Frank turned his wheelchair (轮椅) to his right and slowly opened the door. As usual it was his mom, who wanted Frank to get ready for school. Frank had his breakfast, said goodbye to his mom and started his travel to the school in his wheelchair. Frank had lost his leg when he was eight in an accident. He had to spend the rest of the life in the wheelchair. But the accident did not take away his trust in life, and he wanted to be a writer. His mother also supported his dream. Frank had not wanted to go to the school for the handicapped (残疾人). So he had joined an ordinary school.
On the way to school, he met his loving and kind-hearted friend, Lawrence. Lawrence wheeled his friend quickly and talked with him happily. He told Lawrence that there would be a story competition next week. Lawrence encouraged him to take part in it. Lawrence said, “Trust yourself. You can make it!” They reached the school in thirty minutes. Lawrence said bye to Frank and they both went to their classes.
Slowly days passed, and the Formative Exams started. They ended within a week. “Frank, the score is 100,”said the class teacher cheerfully. Frank was very happy because he had scored full marks. He wheeled his chair and again met Lawrence on the way. This time both stopped on the side and Lawrence said, “Try to take part in the story competition.” “OK, thank you, Lawrence,” said Frank excitedly. He rushed home, and wrote something on a piece of paper. His mom was very happy to see her son cheerful and excited. Actually he was going to write a short story to take part in the competition. But he didn’t know how to finish it.
Just then, his mother entered and told him that Lawrence was coming.
As all the judges (评判员) read Frank’s story, they were amazed by his brilliance (才华).
Wrapping paper flew everywhere as Cali opened her gift. The box had a picture of a pretty girl. She was wearing white ice skates and turning around a frozen pond.
Cali looked up at her aunt and uncle with her big brown eyes. “Figure skates? Wow! How nice of you! But,” the little girl hesitated, “… but I don’t know how to skate.” She looked embarrassed.
“Don’t worry,” said Aunt Lisa. “That’s the fun part — learning how to do it!”
“That’s right,” said Uncle George.“We will take you to the ice rink(冰场)and all go skating together.”
“I don’t know…” said Cali. She wasn’t too sure she was going to be able to do it. Sometimes she had a hard time learning new things. She looked again at the happy girl on the box. It did look like fun. Cali imagined herself moving and turning on the ice like a real figure skater. “Okay,” she agreed. “Let’s do it!”
The next day Cali went to the skating rink with her aunt and uncle. Her eyes twinkled and her face lit up with excitement as she looked at the other skaters around her. She sat down on the bench and slipped her feet into the skates. Holding the strings in her fingers, she could not figure out how to tie them up. “I don’t know how to do it,” she said. She felt sad that this was another thing she couldn’t do.
“Let me show you.” Her aunt bent down on one knee, explaining how to put the strings around the small hooks (钩子). Then she tied them into a tight bow. “Now, you do the other skate yourself. I’ll helpyou if you need it.” Cali bent over the skate and did what her aunt had showed her. Her tongue stuck out of the side of her mouth as she paid attention. After a few tries, she worked out how to cross the strings around the hooks. Her aunt helped make sure the strings were nice and tight. “You did it!” smiled her aunt, patting Cali on the back.
Yours,
Li Jin
A couple, Peter and Alice, had a nice home and two lovely children, a boy and a girl. Peter had a good job and had just been asked to go on a business trip to another city and would be gone for several days. It was decided that Alice needed an outing and would go along too. So they hired a reliable woman called Mary to care for their children and made the trip.
Days later, they returned home a little earlier than they had planned.
As they drove into their town feeling glad to be back, they noticed smoke, so they went off their usual route to see what it was. They found a house in flames. Alice said. “Oh, well, it isn’t our fire. Let’s go home.”
But Peter drove closer and screamed in surprise. “That house belongs to Fred Jones who works in the same company with me. He wouldn’t be off work yet, maybe there is something we can do.”
“It has nothing to do with us,” protested (抗议) Alice. “You have your good clothes on. Let’s not get any closer.”
But Peter drove up and stopped. They were both shocked to see the whole house in flames. A woman on the lawn was in hysterics screaming, “The children! Get the children!”
Peter seized her by the shoulder, saying, “Get a hold of yourself and tell us where the children are!”
“In the basement,” sobbed the woman, “down the hall and to the left.”
In spite of Alice’s protests, Peter turned on a tap, used the water to wet his clothes, put his wet handkerchief on his head and dashed into the basement which was full of smoke.
He got to the door and found two children. Holding one under each arm. Peter headed outside. As he left, he could hear some more whimpering (呜咽声). He delivered the two badly frightened children into his arms and started back asking how many more children were down there.
The woman told him there were two more.
At that moment, Peter seemed to feel something familiar in his arms.
It is 27 years since my last conversation with my mother,who didn’t finish school like many of her contemporary girls. She often told me，“I never got my
Pointing to a tree or cow，she asked me to
Turning seven.I
Research shows 70 percent of poor children don’t
Fortunately，I’ve made it. Whenever I see the sun rise, I am reminded of the
| A．degree | B．scholarship | C．recommendation | D．admission |
| A．recite | B．use | C．repeat | D．guess |
| A．anxious | B．cautious | C．disappointed | D．annoyed |
| A．sentences | B．languages | C．phrases | D．texts |
| A．encouraged | B．consulted | C．blamed | D．frightened |
| A．look | B．turn | C．hang | D．sail |
| A．traveled | B．drove | C．rode | D．climbed |
| A．relative | B．real | C．simple | D．technical |
| A．warm | B．early | C．bright | D．hot |
| A．work | B．school | C．lessons | D．my mom |
| A．seek for | B．make use of | C．look after | D．look out for |
| A．hot | B．cold | C．rainy | D．dry |
| A．damaged | B．repaired | C．blocked | D．flooded |
| A．hand | B．head | C．arm | D．finger |
| A．attend | B．enter | C．complete | D．continue |
| A．lists | B．periods | C．distances | D．experiments |
| A．measure | B．consider | C．judge | D．cover |
| A．love | B．support | C．wisdom | D．kindness |
| A．enabled | B．inspired | C．commanded | D．trained |
| A．value | B．power | C．symbol | D．length |
Yours,
Li Hua
Yours,
Li Hua
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