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专题06 阅读理解C篇（16区二模新题速递）
目 录
2023·上海秋考·真题 2024·上海虹口·二模
2024·上海杨浦·二模 2024·上海宝山·二模
2024·上海浦东·二模 2024·上海奉贤·二模
2024·上海青浦·二模 2024·上海闵行·二模
2024·上海黄浦·二模 2024·上海金山·二模
2024·上海普陀·二模 2024·上海嘉定·二模
2024·上海徐汇·二模 2024·上海长宁·二模
2024·上海松江·二模 2024·上海崇明·二模
2024·上海静安·二模
2023·上海秋考·真题
(C)
The universe expands with every passing second, stretching the space between galaxies like dough rising in an oven. But just how fast is this expansion happening As telescopes like Hubble strive to answer this fundamental question, they encounter a perplexing gap between theoretical predictions and observed data.
Hubble's measurements indicate a faster rate of expansion in the modern universe compared to what was expected based on observations of the universe more than 13 billion years ago by the European Space Agency's Planck satellite. This inconsistency has been a subject of scientific inquiry for several years. However, it remains uncertain whether differences in measurement techniques or chance variations are responsible for this disparity.
Recent data from the Hubble telescope have significantly reduced the possibility that this discrepancy is merely a statistical fluke, with the chances now estimated at only 1 in 100,000. This marks a substantial improvement from previous estimates, which placed the odds at 1 in 3,000 less than a year ago. These precise measurements from Hubble lend weight to the hypothesis that new physics may be necessary to reconcile the observed mismatch.
Lead researcher Adam Riess, a Nobel laureate from the Space Telescope Science Institute and Johns Hopkins University, describes the tension between the early and late universe as one of the most exciting developments in cosmology in decades. He emphasizes that the growing disparity cannot be dismissed as a random occurrence and suggests that it may signal the need for a deeper understanding of the cosmos.
To determine distances in the universe, scientists rely on a "cosmic distance ladder" method. This involves accurately measuring distances to nearby galaxies and then using progressively distant galaxies as reference points. By observing stars like Cepheid variables, astronomers can calibrate this distance ladder. Riess and his team have been refining these measurements since 2005, aiming to improve our understanding of cosmic distances.
In their latest study, astronomers used Hubble to observe 70 Cepheid variables in the Large Magellanic Cloud. By comparing these stars with their more distant counterparts in galaxies hosting supernovae, they refined their measurement of the Hubble constant, reducing its uncertainty from 2.2% to 1.9%. Despite this increased precision, their calculated Hubble constant remains at odds with the value predicted by observations of the early universe conducted by Planck.
The Planck satellite, which maps the cosmic microwave background – a remnant of the universe's early stages – provides crucial data for understanding the universe's expansion. However, the discrepancy between these measurements and those from Hubble underscores the need for further investigation and the potential for new discoveries in cosmology.
Where do measurements of the early universe come from
A. The space between galaxies.
B.Measurements from Hubble and other telescopes
C. European Space Agency's Planck satellite.
D. The latest Hubble data.
64. Which of the following statements is in line with Adam Riess’ opinion
A. The expansion speed of the modern universe is faster than expected
B. New physics may be needed to explain this mismatch.
C, It is unlikely that this discrepancy occurred by chance.
D. Hubble's tension is the most exciting development in cosmology in decades.
65. What do scientists use to determine the distance of things in the universe
A. A cosmic distance ladder.
B. Accurate measurements of distances.
C.Milepost markers.
D. The Hubble constant.
66. What did Riess’ team do
A. They used the Hubble Space Telescope to observe pulsating stars
B. They improved the comparison between
C.They raised the uncertainty of the Hubble constant to 2.2%
D. They reduced the uncertainty in their Hubble constant value to 1.9.
【答案】63-66 CCAD
【导读】这篇文章探讨了宇宙膨胀的速度以及科学家在测量中遇到的矛盾。哈勃望远镜的最新数据表明，现代宇宙的膨胀速度比早期宇宙的预期要快，这与之前从欧洲空间局的普朗克卫星获得的数据不符。研究人员使用哈勃望远镜观察了大麦哲伦星云中的70颗脉动星，并通过比较它们与更遥远的超新星宿主星系中的脉动星，改进了距离测量方法。这一研究结果强化了一种新物理可能需要解释这种不匹配的观点。
C【解析】根据文章第一段第六句 These measurements of the early universe come from the European Space Agency's Planck satellite.可知,这些早期宇宙的测量数据来自欧洲航天局的普朗克卫星。A项(星系之间的空间)、B项(哈和其他望远镜的测量结果)、D项(最新的哈勃数掘)都说法错误。C项(欧洲航天局的普朗克卫星)正确，故选C。
C【解析】阅读文章可知Adam Riess出现在第二段，所以答案应定位在第二段。根据第二第一句中的 The Hubble tension between the early and late universe may be the most exciting development In cosmology in decades 可知,早期宇宙和晚期宇宙之间的哈勃张力可能是几十年来宇古学中最令人兴合的发展.D项(哈勃的张力是几十年来宇宙学中最令人兴面的发展)说法错误。根据该段最后一句 This disparity could not plausibly occur just by chance.可知，这种差异不可能是偶然出现的。C项(这种差异不太可能是偶然发生的)正确。A(现代字宙的膨胀速度比预测的要快)和B项(可能需新的物理学来解释这种不匹配)属于第一段的内容，与Adam Riess 无关，所以A项、B 项错误。故选 C。
A【解折】根据文章第三段第一句 Scientists use a "cosmic distance ladder" to determine how far away things are in the universe,可知，科学家们使用“字宙距离阶梯”来确定字宙中事物的距高。A项(宇宙距离阶梯)正确。B项(精确测量距离)、C项(里程碑标记)、D项(哈勃常数)都错误。故选A。
66.D 【解析】根据文章第四段第三句 Riess' team reduced the uncertainty in their Hubble constant value to 1.9% from an earlier estimate of 2.2%,可知, 里斯的团队将哈勃常数的不确定性从之前估计的 2.2%降低到1.9%。C项(他们把哈勃常数的不确定度提高到2.2%)说法错误; D项(他们把哈勃常数的不确定性降低到1.9%)正确。根据该段第一句In this new study,astronomers used Hubble to observe 70 pulsating stars called Cepheid variables in the Large Magellanic Cloud.可知,天文学家使用哈勃望远镜观察了大麦哲伦星云中70颗被称为造父变星的脉动恒是，这不是里斯的团队做的事，故A项(他们用哈勃太空望远镜观察脉动恒星)说法错误;根据该段第二句 The observations helped the astronomers“rebuild” the distance ladder by improving the comparison between those Cepheids and their more distant cousins in the galactic hosts of supernovas,可知，这些观测帮助天文学家“重建”了距离阶梯，改善了造父变星和它们在超新星宿主星系中更遥远的表亲之间的比较，这也不是里斯的团队做的事，故B项(他们改进了造父变星和更远的表亲之间的比较)说法错误。故选D。
2024·上海杨浦·二模
C
A forest in Staffordshire (in the UK) transformed into a hi-tech laboratory. Researchers here are investigating how the trees use carbon, and it’s difficult to find out. In an unusual experiment, extra carbon dioxide is piped to the trees, to create the kind of atmospheric conditions expected in the middle of the century. And instruments measure how the forest reacts.
The scientist in charge says there’s still a lot to learn. And he worries that governments and companies are rushing to plant trees as an easy answer to climate change. “If you try and use trees to tidy up the mess that we’re making through emissions, you are putting those trees into a very rapidly changing climate and they will struggle to adapt,” said Professor Rob MacKenzie, University of Birmingham.
This device tracks the movement of carbon dioxide. In a healthy forest, the gas is not only absorbed by the trees but some is released as well. What scientists here are finding out is the way carbon flows into a forest and out of it is a lot more complicated than you might think. So, if mass tree planting is meant to be a solution to tackling climate change, the trees are going to have to be monitored and cared for, over not just decades, but may be centuries as well.
Of all the challenges, the task of planting is the simplest. Shelby Barber from Canada can do an amazing 4,000 trees in a day. “People talking about planting millions billions of trees around the world. Is it possible do you think, physically ” asked BBC.
“It’s definitely possible with the right amount of people, the right group of people. I’ve personally, in three years, planted just over half a million trees.” said Professor Rob MacKenzie.
Once planted, the trees need to survive, and experts are mixing different types to minimize the risk of disease. “It’s a bit like making sure you don’t put all your eggs in one basket, you’re spreading out your risk. And then if one part of that woodland fails, for whatever reason, it gets a disease or it can’t tolerate future climatic conditions, there are other parts of the forest that are healthy and able to fill in those gaps.” said Eleanor Tew of Forestry England.
Suddenly there’s momentum to plant trees on a scale never seen before. So what matters is doing it in a way that ensures the forests thrive — so they really do help with climate change.
43. Why is extra carbon dioxide piped to the trees in the experiment
A. To predict the future atmospheric conditions.
B. To imitate the possible air condition in the future.
C. To create an instrument to measure atmospheric conditions.
D. To investigate the quality of air condition in the future.
44. The underlined word “some” in the second paragraph refers to __________.
A. oxygen B. carbon dioxide C. mess D. purified gas
45. What will Eleanor Tew suggest concerning the survival of the forest
A. Minimizing the area of the woodland.
B. Studying future climatic conditions.
C. Planting different types of trees.
D. Avoiding mixing different species.
46. Which statement concerning mass tree planting will Professor Rob Mackenzie mostly likely agree with
A. It should be advocated in terms of efficiency and convenience.
B. It is the most effective solution to fighting climate changes.
C. It will do more harm than good to the health of the environment.
D. It needs to be studied further as a measure against climate change.
【答案】43. B 44. B 45. C 46. D
【解析】
【导语】这是一篇新闻报道。文章主要讲述了在英国斯塔福郡的森林，研究人员利用高科技手段探究树木如何利用碳，并通过向树木输送额外的二氧化碳模拟未来气候条件。尽管种植树木是简单的，但科学家警告政府和公司不要过度依赖此举应对气候变化，强调需谨慎植树以确保森林的健康并适应未来气候。
【43题详解】
细节理解题。根据第一段的“In an unusual experiment, extra carbon dioxide is piped to the trees, to create the kind of atmospheric conditions expected in the middle of the century.(在一项不同寻常的实验中，额外的二氧化碳通过管道输送到树木中，以创造出预计在本世纪中叶出现的那种大气条件。)”可知，实验中多余的二氧化碳会通过管道输送到树木中是为了模拟未来可能出现的空气状况。故选B。
【44题详解】
指代猜测题。根据第三段的“This device tracks the movement of carbon dioxide. In a healthy forest, the gas is not only absorbed by the trees but some is released as well. What scientists here are finding out is the way carbon flows into a forest and out of it is a lot more complicated than you might think.(这个装置追踪二氧化碳的运动。在一个健康的森林里，气体不仅被树木吸收，而且一些也被释放出来。科学家们在这里发现的是碳流入和流出森林的方式比你想象的要复杂得多。) ”可知，二氧化碳既被树木吸入又被排出，则some一词指代的是二氧化碳。故选B。
【45题详解】
细节理解题。根据倒数第二段的““It’s a bit like making sure you don’t put all your eggs in one basket, you’re spreading out your risk. And then if one part of that woodland fails, for whatever reason, it gets a disease or it can’t tolerate future climatic conditions, there are other parts of the forest that are healthy and able to fill in those gaps.” said Eleanor Tew of Forestry England.(“这有点像确保你不要把所有的鸡蛋放在一个篮子里，你是在分散风险。然后，如果森林的一部分因为某种原因，生病了，或者无法忍受未来的气候条件，那么森林的其他部分是健康的，能够填补这些空白。英国林业部门的埃莉诺·图说。)”可知，关于森林的生存，埃莉诺·图会提出了种植不同类型的树木来降低风险。故选C。
【46题详解】
推理判断题。根据第二段的“The scientist in charge says there’s still a lot to learn. And he worries that governments and companies are rushing to plant trees as an easy answer to climate change. “If you try and use trees to tidy up the mess that we’re making through emissions, you are putting those trees into a very rapidly changing climate and they will struggle to adapt,” said Professor Rob MacKenzie, University of Birmingham.(负责这项研究的科学家表示，还有很多东西需要学习。他还担心，政府和企业急于种树，作为应对气候变化的简单办法。伯明翰大学的罗布·麦肯齐教授说：“如果你试图用树木来清理我们通过排放造成的混乱，你就是把这些树木放进了一个非常迅速变化的气候中，它们将很难适应。”)”可知，罗布·麦肯齐教授认为需要进一步研究和监测树木的种植，以确保它们真正有助于应对气候变化。因此罗伯·麦肯齐教授认为作为应对气候变化的一项措施，需要进一步对其进行研究。故选D。
2024·上海浦东·二模
(C)
Those who had the pleasure of watching Benny Goodman at work saw a rather ordinary-looking man in rimless glasses and a conservative business suit; but they also saw a human being who could play the clarinet(单簧管) like no one before or since. This made Benny Goodman a unique individual.
Other Americans who have stood out from the flock include Joe DiMaggio, Beverly Sill, Ernest Hemingway and Jonas Salk. They, like Benny Goodman, were recognized and honored for no other reason than excellence.
It is doing something better than other people that makes us unique. Yet a surprising number of people still see individuality as a surface thing. They wear garish clothes, dye their hair strange colors and decorate their skin with tattoos to make some kind of social statement. But an ordinary guy who has dyed his hair purple or orange is nothing more than the same person with a funny-looking head.
The whole purpose of individuality is excellence. Those who invent, who improvise(即兴发挥), who know more about a subject than other people do, and who take something that doesn’t work and make it work––these people are the very soul of capitalism.
Charles Kettering didn’t like the idea of cranking a car to make it start, so he invented the electric starter. Henry Ford figured out the assembly-line technique and made it possible to mass-produce automobiles, and Elisha Otis, inventor of the elevator, indirectly created the city sky-line. These people understood that individualism means working at the top of one’s capacity.
The ones with the purple hair and the funky jewelry are just along for the ride, trying to be “different” and not knowing how to go about it.
The student who earns straight A’s on his report card has grasped the idea and has found the real meaning of individuality. So has the youngster who has designed his own spaceship, who gives piano recitals, who paints pictures of the world around him.
Benny Goodman understood it too. This is why he was at his best, blowing his clarinet, in a blue suit and black shoes.
43. The author mentions the appearance of Benny Goodman to _________.
A. show what a talented musician should look like
B. introduce an important figure in the musical world
C. contrast with his talent in music performance
D. indicate that he can’t stand out from the flock
44. The author would most probably agree that _________.
A. an individualist tends to seek difference both in character and appearance
B. the essence of individualism lies in pursuing excellence to the full
C. being different in appearance is the very first step to being individual
D. those who strive to win the recognition of others are real individualists
45. According to the passage, which individual’s actions may not truly embody the essence of individualism
A. A scientist who conducts research solely advancing knowledge for the greater good rather than for personal recognition.
B. A social media influencer who conforms to popular opinions to maintain a large following.
C. An artist who creates unique works but fail to gain fame and recognition from others.
D. An entrepreneur who prioritizes ethical considerations over profit in his business practices.
46. For the main thread, the article is organized by way of __________.
A. specific to general B. cause and effect
C. examples and conclusion D. comparison and contrast
【答案】43. C 44. B 45. B 46. D
【解析】
【导语】本文为一篇说明文。文章介绍了什么是个人主义，个人主义有什么特点。
【43题详解】
细节理解题。根据文章第一段“Those who had the pleasure of watching Benny Goodman at work saw a rather ordinary-looking man in rimless glasses and a conservative business suit; but they also saw a human being who could play the clarinet(单簧管) like no one before or since. This made Benny Goodman a unique individual. (那些有幸观看本尼·古德曼工作的人看到的是一个相当普通的人，戴着无框眼镜，穿着保守的西装;但他们也看到了一个能演奏单簧管的人，在这之前和之后都没有人能做到。这使本尼·古德曼成为一个独特的个体。)”可知，作者提到本尼·古德曼的外表与他在音乐表演方面的天赋形成对比。故选C。
【44题详解】
推理判断题。根据文章第四段“The whole purpose of individuality is excellence. Those who invent, who improvise(即兴发挥), who know more about a subject than other people do, and who take something that doesn’t work and make it work—these people are the very soul of capitalism. (个性的全部目的就是追求卓越。那些发明创造，即兴发挥，比别人更了解一个主题，并采取无效的东西，并使其发挥作用的人-这些人是资本主义的灵魂。)”可知，作者可能同意个人主义的本质在于追求卓越。故选B。
【45题详解】
推理判断题。根据文章第五段“Charles Kettering didn’t like the idea of cranking a car to make it start, so he invented the electric starter. Henry Ford figured out the assembly-line technique and made it possible to mass-produce automobiles, and Elisha Otis, inventor of the elevator, indirectly created the city sky-line. These people understood that individualism means working at the top of one’s capacity. (查尔斯·凯特林不喜欢用曲棍发动汽车，所以他发明了电动启动器。亨利·福特发明了装配线技术，使大规模生产汽车成为可能，而电梯的发明者伊莱沙·奥蒂斯间接地创造了城市的天际线。这些人明白，个人主义意味着尽自己最大的努力工作。)”可知，一个符合大众观点保持大量追随者的社交媒体影响者不能真正体现个人主义的本质。故选B。
【46题详解】
推理判断题。根据文章第一段“Those who had the pleasure of watching Benny Goodman at work saw a rather ordinary-looking man in rimless glasses and a conservative business suit; but they also saw a human being who could play the clarinet(单簧管) like no one before or since. This made Benny Goodman a unique individual. (那些有幸观看本尼·古德曼工作的人看到的是一个相当普通的人，戴着无框眼镜，穿着保守的西装;但他们也看到了一个能演奏单簧管的人，在这之前和之后都没有人能做到。这使本尼·古德曼成为一个独特的个体。)”和第三段“It is doing something better than other people that makes us unique. Yet a surprising number of people still see individuality as a surface thing. They wear garish clothes, dye their hair strange colors and decorate their skin with tattoos to make some kind of social statement. But an ordinary guy who has dyed his hair purple or orange is nothing more than the same person with a funny-looking head. (比别人做得更好让我们与众不同。然而，令人惊讶的是，仍有相当多的人认为个性只是表面现象。他们穿着花哨的衣服，把头发染成奇怪的颜色，用纹身装饰自己的皮肤，以表达某种社会声明。但是一个把头发染成紫色或橙色的普通人只不过是一个长着滑稽脑袋的人。)”可知，本文主要采用比较和对比的方式进行组织。故选D。
2024·上海黄浦·二模
(C)
In the past, jobs were about muscles. Now they’re about brains, but in the future, they’ll be about the heart. – Minouche Shafik, the president of Columbia University
LinkedIn researchers recently looked at which skills any given job requires and then identified over 500 likely to be affected by generative A.I. technologies. They then estimated that 96 percent of a software engineer’s current skills — mainly in programming languages — can eventually be possessed by A.I. Skills associated with jobs like legal associates and finance officers will also be highly exposed. In fact, given the broad impact A.I. is set to have, it is quite likely to affect all of our work to some degree or another.
Circling around this research is the big question emerging across so many conversations about A.I. and work, namely: What are our core capabilities as humans
If we answer this question from a place of fear about what’s left for people in the age of A.I., we can end up admitting a diminished view of human capability. Instead, it’s critical for us all to start from a place that imagines what’s possible for humans in the age of A.I. When we do that, we find ourselves focusing quickly on people skills that allow us to cooperate and innovate in ways technology can intensify but never replace.
A recent Jobs for the Future survey found that 78 percent of the 10 top-employing occupations classified uniquely human skills and tasks as “important” or “very important.” These, commonly referred to as soft skills, include building interpersonal relationships, negotiating between parties and guiding and motivating teams.
Now is the time for leaders, across departments, to develop new ways for students to learn that are more directly tied to where our economy is going, not where it has been. Critically, that involves bringing the same level of preciseness to training around people skills that we have brought to technical skills.
Ultimately, for our society, this comes down to whether we believe in the potential of humans with as much belief as we believe in the potential of A.I. If we do, it is entirely possible to build a world of work that not only is more human but also is a place where all people are valued for the unique skills we have, enabling us to deliver new levels of human achievement across so many areas that affect all of our lives.
63. According to LinkedIn’s recent research, __________.
A. soft engineers are required to identify 500 languages
B. A.I. will replace humans in jobs requiring certain skills
C. we humans underestimate the impact A.I. is set to have
D. A.I. technologies are to influence research to some degree
64. Which of the following is “a diminished view of human capability” (paragraph 3)
A. Humans are losing control of the world.
B. Technology intensifies humans’ cooperation.
C. Humans outsmart A.I in terms of critical thinking.
D. A.I. and humans are similar in their ability to innovate.
65. Leaders in different departments are advised to __________.
A. teach students unique technical skills
B. develop students’ soft skills for their future
C. remind students where our economy is going
D. build healthy interpersonal relationships with students
66. According to the writer, what is the core factor of human development
A. Practical value set on skills. B. Firm belief about A.I. technologies.
C. Decisive effects brought by A.I. D. Confidence in our potential.
参考答案：BABD
2024·上海普陀·二模
(C)
The emergence of black holes undoubtedly marks the beginning of a revolution. Black holes have many peculiar properties, such as the alteration of space and time, the radiation of gravitational waves and so on. Scientists are still trying to study the properties and evolution of black holes in order to better understand the origin and evolution of the universe.
Recently, a team of astronomers may have found a solo-wandering black hole using a strange trick of gravity called microlensing(微透镜效应), but the results still have to be confirmed.
Sometimes it’s tough being an astronomer. Nature likes to hide the most interesting things from easy observation. Take, for example, black holes. Except for the strange quantum(量子) phenomenon of Hawking radiation, black holes are completely black. They don’t emit a single bit of radiation – they only absorb, hence their name.
To date, the only way astronomers have been able to spot black holes is through their influence on their environments. For example, if an orbiting star gets a little too close, the black hole can absorb the gas from that star, causing it to heat up as it falls. We can watch as stars dance around the giant black hole at the center of the Milky Way.
Even the famed pictures of the black holes in the center of the Milky Way and the M87 galaxy(星系) aren’t photographs of the black holes themselves. Instead, they are radio images of everything around them.
But surely not all black holes have other light-emitting objects around them to help us find them. To find these wanderers, astronomers have tried their luck with microlensing. We know that heavy objects can bend the path of light around them. This is a prediction of Einstein’s general theory of relativity, and the slight bending of starlight around our own sun was one of the first successful tests of the theory.
Microlensing is pretty much what the name suggests. When astronomers get extremely lucky, a wandering black hole and pass between us and a random distant star. The light from that star bends around the black hole because of its gravity, and from our point of view, the star will appear to temporarily flare in brightness.
And when I say “extremely lucky” I mean it. Despite trying this technique for over a decade, it is only now that astronomers have found a candidate black hole through microlensing. Two teams used the same data, a microlensing event recorded from both the OGLE (Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment) telescope in Chile and the MOA (Microlensing Observations in Astrophysics) telescope in New Zealand. One team found that the mass was somewhere around seven times the mass of the sun – definitely black hole territory. But the other team estimated a much smaller mass, around 2-4 times the mass of the Sun. If the true mass of the object is at the lower end of that spectrum(光谱), then the wanderer is probably not a black hole.
63. Why does the author say it is hard to be an astronomer
A. Einstein’s theory is hard to understand.
B. Many things in nature are not easy to observe.
C. Understanding the evolution of the universe is not easy.
D. Whether the black hole has been found remains to be seen.
64. What is the example in Para. 4 trying to prove
A. Stars’ wandering in black holes.
B. Black holes’ absorbing the star’s gas.
C. The relationship between stars’ heating and black holes.
D. Finding black holes by observing environmental changes.
65. What does the author tell us about the discovery of black holes
A. People can often find black holes with glowing objects.
B. Research groups can work together to find black holes.
C. Glowing objects around black holes help us find them sometimes.
D. Understanding the properties of black holes helps find them.
66. What conclusion can we draw from the last paragraph
A. To persevere in the end is to win.
B. Facts speak louder than words.
C. Failure is the mother of success.
D. Things are not always what they seem.
63-66 B D C D
2024·上海徐汇·二模
C
Both my parents worked for 30-plus years for their employers – they had lifelong careers at a single company. Growing up, they taught me the importance of “loyalty” and “commitment”.
But in a rapidly changing world, the concept of a job for life has become as rare as a dial-up internet connection. This shift from stable, long-term employment and single-employer careers to a world where frequent job changes are the norm comes directly from globalisation, rapid technological advancements and the changing ideas about work.
Globalisation has turned the world economy into a giant, interconnected web. This has made job markets fiercely competitive and talent and opportunities in the labour market more diverse and digitally accessible.
Jobs can be widely publicised and explored online and are no longer tied to your city of birth. Add to this the rapid technological progress. We now live in a world where the skills you learned yesterday might not be enough for today’s job market.
The job market is transforming, with new careers emerging as automation and artificial intelligence (AI) advances. Risks and price policies can be efficiently assessed using AI, making insurance underwriters redundant while advanced software in banking and finance mean data analysis can be automated.
Online booking has reduced demand for travel agents and desktop publishers are being replaced by user-friendly software, which allows people to create their own materials. These changes highlight the need for professionals to update their skills and adapt to a technologically evolving job market.
As a result, career paths have become fluid and multi-directional. It’s no longer just about climbing the corporate ladder and getting a regular paycheck; it’s about exploring different paths, switching jobs and industries and sometimes even venturing into freelancing and the gig economy.
Loyalty is defined as an employee’s commitment to their organisation and its goals. It means a willingness to put in extra effort and to uphold the company’s values and objectives. Loyal workers often identify strongly with their workplace, are reliable and view the organisation positively, even during tough times.
When long-term employees change workplaces, it does not mean they are disloyal. It signifies a change in priorities and a redefined loyalty bond. Employees are loyal to their employer and its interests while working there. But they also seek mutual growth and expect to be recognised and rewarded.
Career paths are now a kaleidoscope (万花筒) of experiences and opportunities. Instead of a career identity being about a company brand, it is about skills, experiences and the meaningfulness of the work. This transformation means career decision-making is more intricate, considering personal aspirations, market trends and family considerations.
What factors have contributed to the shift in job market dynamics
A. Increased reliance on desktop publishing software.
B. Changing ideas about loyalty and commitment.
C. The decreasing demand for travel agents due to online booking systems.
D. Globalization, rapid technological advancements, and evolving work concepts.
What skills are highlighted as essential for professionals in the evolving job market
A. Skills related to desktop publishing.
B. Skills that were relevant yesterday.
C. Skills in data analysis and adaptability.
D. Skills in insurance underwriting.
How does the passage suggest employees should approach loyalty in the modern workplace
A. By remaining with a single employer for their entire career.
B. By prioritizing personal growth and recognition.
C. By relying on traditional definitions of loyalty.
D. By avoiding job changes to maintain loyalty.
The best title for the passage is _______.
A. Forget About a Job for Life.
B. Learn More as Much as You Can
C. Benefit from Long-term Employment.
D. The Impact of Globalization.
63-66 DCBA
2024·上海松江·二模
（C）
Precognitive dreams are dreams that seemingly predict the future which cannot be inferred from actually available information. Former US President Abraham Lincoln once revealed the frightening dream to his law partner and friend Ward Hill Lamon, “…Then I heard people weep… ‘Who is dead in the White House ’ I demanded. ‘The President,’ ‘he was killed!’…” The killing did happen later.
Christopher French, Professor in the Department of Psychology at Goldsmiths, stated the most likely explanation for such a phenomenon was coincidence （巧合）. “In addition to pure coincidences we must also consider the unreliability of memory”, he added. Asked what criteria would have to be met for him to accept that precognitive dreams were a reality, he said, “The primary problem with tests of the claim is that the subjects are unable to tell when the event（s）they’ve dreamed about will happen.”
However, some claimed to make such tests practicable. Professor Caroline Watt at the University of Edinburgh, has conducted studies into precognitive dreaming. She stated that knowing future through dreams challenged the basic assumption of science — causality （relationship of cause and effect）.
Dick Bierman, a retired physicist and psychologist, who has worked at the Universities of Amsterdam, Utrecht and Groningen, has put forward a theory that may explain precognitive dreams. It is based on the fact that when scientists use certain mathematical descriptions to talk about things like electromagnetism（电磁学）, these descriptions favour the belief that time only moves in one direction. However, in practice the wave that is running backwards in time does exist. This concept is called the time symmetry, meaning that the laws of physics look the same when time runs forward or backward. But he believes that time symmetry breaks down due to external conditions. “The key of the theory is that it assumes that there is a special context that restores the broken time-symmetry, if the waves running backwards are ‘absorbed’ by a consistent multi-particle（多粒子） system. The brain under a dream state may be such a system where broken time-symmetry is partially restored. This is still not a full explanation for precognitive dreams but it shows where physics might be adjusted to accommodate the phenomenon,” he explains.
Although Bierman’s explanation is still based on guesses and has not accepted by mainstream science, Watt does think it is worth considering. For now, believing that it’s possible to predict future with dreams remains an act of faith. Yet, it’s possible that one day we’ll wake up to a true understanding of this fascinating phenomenon.
63．According to French, what makes it difficult to test precognitive dreams
A．Unavailability of people’s dreams.
B．That coincidences happen a lot in reality.
C．That criteria for dream reliability are not trustworthy.
D．People’s inability to tell when dreamt events will happen.
64．Believers in precognitive dreams may question the truth of ______.
A．the assumption of causality B．the time symmetry
C．memories of ordinary people D．modern scientific tests
65．We can infer from the passage that ______.
A．Lincoln was warned of the killing by his friend
B．Watt carried out several experiments on causality
C．researches on electromagnetism are based on the time symmetry
D．time’s moving in two directions may justify precognitive dreams
66．Which might be the best title of the passage
A．Should Dreams Be Assessed
B．Can Dreams Predict the Future
C．How Can Physics Be Changed to Explain Dreams
D．Why Should Scientists Study Precognitive Dreams
63-66 DADB
2024·上海静安·二模
(C)
Flinging brightly coloured objects around a screen at high speed is not what computers’ central processing units were designed for. So manufacturers of arcade machines invented the graphics-processing unit (GPU), a set of circuits to handle video games’ visuals in parallel to the work done by the central processor. The GPU’s ability to speed up complex tasks has since found wider uses: video editing, cryptocurrency mining and most recently, the training of artificial intelligence.
AI is now disrupting the industry that helped bring it into being. Every part of entertainment stands to be affected by generative AI, which digests inputs of text, image, audio or video to create new outputs of the same. But the games business will change the most, argues Andreessen Horowitz, a venture-capital (VC) firm. Games interactivity requires them to be stuffed with laboriously designed content: consider the 30 square miles of landscape or 60 hours of music in “Red Dead Redemption 2”, a recent cowboy adventure. Enlisting AI assistants to churn it out could drastically shrink timescales and budgets.
AI represents an “explosion of opportunity” and could drastically change the landscape of game development. Making a game is already easier than it was: nearly 13,000 titles were published last year on Steam, a games platform, almost double the number in 2017. Gaming may soon resemble the music and video industries in which most new content on Spotify or YouTube is user-generated. One games executive predicts that small firms will be the quickest to work out what new genres are made possible by AI. Last month Raja Koduri, an executive at Intel, left the chip maker to found an AI-gaming startup.
Don’t count the big studios out, though. If they can release half a dozen high-quality titles a year instead of a couple, it might chip away at the hit-driven nature of their business, says Josh Chapman of Konvoy, a gaming focused VC firm. A world of more choices also favors those with big marketing budgets. And the giants may have better answers to the mounting copyright questions around AI. If generative models have to be trained on data to which the developer has the rights, those with big back-catalogues will be better placed than startups. Trent Kaniuga, an artist who has worked on games like “Fortnite”, said last month that several clients had updated their contracts to ban AI-generated art.
If the lawyers don’t intervene, unions might. Studios diplomatically refer to AI assistants as “co-pilots”, not replacements for humans.
43. The original purpose behind the invention of the graphics-processing unit (GPU) was to ________.
A. speed up complex tasks in video editing and cryptocurrency mining
B. assist in the developing and training of artificial intelligence
C. disrupt the industry and create new outputs using generative AI
D. offload game visual tasks from the central processor
44. How might the rise of AI-gaming startups affect the development of the gaming industry
A. It contributes to the growth of user-generated content.
B. It facilitates blockbuster dependency on big studios.
C. It decreases collaboration between different stakeholders in the industry.
D. It may help to consolidate the gaming market under major corporations.
45. What can be inferred about the role of artificial intelligence in gaming
A. AI favors the businesses with small marketing budgets.
B. AI is expected to simplify game development processes.
C. AI allows startups to gain an edge over big firms with authorized data.
D. AI assistants may serve as human substitutes for studios.
46. What is this passage mainly about
A. The evolution of graphics-processing units (GPUs).
B. The impact of generative AI on the gaming industry.
C. The societal significance of graphics-processing units (GPUs).
D. The challenges generative AI presents to gaming studios.
【答案】43. D 44. A 45. B 46. B
【解析】
【导语】本文是一篇说明文。文章主要介绍了人工智能对游戏产业带来的影响，人工智能有望简化游戏开发过程，可以被用来创造新的游戏内容，并且可能改变游戏开发的格局。小型公司可能会更快地意识到人工智能可能带来的新机遇，但大型工作室也能够利用人工智能技术来增强他们的业务。
【43题详解】
细节理解题。根据第一段中“Flinging brightly coloured objects around a screen at high speed is not what computers’ central processing units were designed for. So manufacturers of arcade machines invented the graphics-processing unit (GPU), a set of circuits to handle video games’ visuals in parallel to the work done by the central processor. (在屏幕上高速抛出色彩鲜艳的物体并不是计算机中央处理器的设计目的。因此，大型机台制造商发明了图形处理器(GPU)，这是一组电路，可以在中央处理器完成工作的同时处理视频游戏的视觉效果)”可知，发明图形处理器最初的目的是将游戏视觉任务从中央处理器中转移出来。故选D项。
【44题详解】
细节理解题。根据第三段中“Gaming may soon resemble the music and video industries in which most new content on Spotify or YouTube is user-generated. One games executive predicts that small firms will be the quickest to work out what new genres are made possible by AI. (游戏行业可能很快就会像音乐和视频行业一样，Spotify或YouTube上的大多数新内容都是用户生成的。一位游戏行业高管预测，小型公司将最快发现人工智能可能带来的新类型)”可知，人工智能游戏初创公司的崛起可能会促进用户生成内容的增长。故选A项。
【45题详解】
推理判断题。根据第二段中“Every part of entertainment stands to be affected by generative AI, which digests inputs of text, image, audio or video to create new outputs of the same. (娱乐的每个部分都将受到生成式人工智能的影响，它可以消化文本、图像、音频或视频的输入，以创造相同的新输出)”和“Games interactivity requires them to be stuffed with laboriously designed content: consider the 30 square miles of landscape or 60 hours of music in “Red Dead Redemption 2”, a recent cowboy adventure. Enlisting AI assistants to churn it out could drastically shrink timescales and budgets. (游戏的互动性要求它们充满精心设计的内容：想想最近的牛仔冒险游戏《荒野大镖客2》中30平方英里的风景或60小时的音乐。招募人工智能助手来制作它可以大大缩短时间和预算)”可推知，游戏领域的人工智能有望简化游戏开发过程，节省大量的的时间和投入。故选B项。
【46题详解】
主旨大意题。通读全文，尤其是第二段中“AI is now disrupting the industry that helped bring it into being. Every part of entertainment stands to be affected by generative AI, which digests inputs of text, image, audio or video to create new outputs of the same. But the games business will change the most (人工智能现在正在颠覆帮助它诞生的行业。娱乐的每个部分都将受到生成式人工智能的影响，它可以消化文本、图像、音频或视频的输入，以创造相同的新输出。但变化最大的将是游戏行业)”可知，文章主要围绕生成式人工智能对游戏行业的影响展开，介绍了人工智能有望简化游戏开发过程，可以被用来创造新的游戏内容，并且可能改变游戏开发的格局。小型公司可能会更快地意识到人工智能可能带来的新机遇，但大型工作室也能够利用人工智能技术来增强他们的业务。故选B项。
2024·上海虹口·二模
(C)
Pricing is managers’ biggest marketing headache. It’s where they feel the most pressure to perform and the least certain that they are doing a good job. All successful pricing efforts share two qualities: The policy combines well with the company’s overall marketing strategy, and the process is well-organized as a whole.
A company’s pricing policy sends a message to the market—it gives customers an important sense of a company’s philosophy. Consider Saturn Corporation (a wholly owned company of General Motors). Saturn wants to let consumers know that it is friendly and easy to do business with. Part of this concept is conveyed through initiatives such as inviting customers to the factory to see where the cars are made and sponsoring evenings at the dealership that combine a social event with training on car maintenance. But Saturn’s pricing policy sends a strong message as well. Can a friendly, trusting relationship be established with customers if a salesperson uses all the negotiating tricks in the book to try to separate them from that last $100 Of course not. Saturn has a “no hassle, no haggle” policy which removes the possibility of conflicts between dealer and potential customer. Customers have an easier time buying a car knowing that the next person in the door won’t negotiate a better deal.
Of course, there are typically many participants in the pricing process: Accounting provides cost estimates; marketing communicates the pricing strategy; sales provides specific customer input; production sets supply boundaries; and finance establishes the requirements for the entire company’s financial health. Input from diverse sources is necessary. However, problems arise when the philosophy of wide participation is carried over to the price-setting process without strong coordinating mechanisms (协调机制). For example, if the marketing department sets list prices, the salespeople negotiate discounts in the field, the legal department adjusts prices if necessary to prevent breaking the laws or contractual agreements, and the people filling orders negotiate price adjustments for delays in shipment, everybody’s best intentions usually end up bringing about less than the best results. In fact, the company may actually lose money on some orders.
63. Why is it essential for a company’s pricing policy to combine with its overall marketing strategy
A. To maximize possible returns and profits.
B. To maintain consistency in business operations.
C. To eliminate the need for diverse sales inputs.
D. To attract customers to social events and trainings.
64. What does Saturn’s “no hassle, no haggle” policy (paragraph 2) most probably mean
A. Saturn trains its dealers to treat customers sincerely.
B. Saturn offers discounts to some loyal customers.
C. Saturn cars are at least $100 cheaper than other cars.
D. Saturn cars are sold at fixed, non-negotiable prices.
65. What can be inferred from the wide participation in the pricing process
A. Decision making requires gathering comprehensive information.
B. The coordinating mechanism won’t work without a lot of input.
C. Potential customers are easily upset at any stage of the process.
D. The company loses money unless everyone intends for the best.
66. Which of the following is the best title for this passage
A. The art of coordinating pricing processes
B. The best sales negotiation techniques
C. Getting one step closer toward better pricing
D. Maximizing profits through pricing policies
63-66: BDAC
2024·上海宝山·二模
(C)
Pretty much everyone has, at some point, made excuses to avoid working on a task they fear. But some people do this more often than others, which can result in disastrous consequences. Regularly putting off difficult or unpleasant tasks can lead to low grades at school, poor performance at work and financial consequences, such as late fees. Procrastination can also harm relationships and even affect your health, as it increases stress levels, sometimes resulting in illness.
It's possible to procrastinate by binge-watching (大量观看) your favorite show or doing other mindless activities, but procrastination doesn't always look like laziness. Some people procrastinate to avoid difficult tasks by working on easier but less important tasks. This can make them feel productive even as they neglect the most important items on their to-do lists.
In order to overcome procrastination, you must first understand why you procrastinate. Perhaps you are a perfectionist, so you find not completing a task less upsetting than doing it badly. Perhaps the task is complicated or confusing, and you don't know where to begin. Or perhaps you are waiting to feel inspired to complete the task or believe that you become better under pressure.
Correcting your thinking can aid you in overcoming procrastination. You probably tend to overestimate how quickly you can finish tasks and how motivated you will feel later. Most work does not need to wait until you feel inspired, and if you begin the task, feelings of inspiration may follow. Further, research shows that despite some people's perceptions (感知), most individuals do not actually produce better work under pressure.
If you are procrastinating because a task seems too overwhelming or too complicated, break it up into smaller pieces that feel more manageable. This can mean doing a part of the task, or dedicating a set amount of time - say, 15 minutes - to working on it.
It may help to think about why the task is important. How will it contribute to your goals How will it affect other people What negative consequences could come from not doing it in a timely manner
Scheduling when you will work on tasks can be helpful as well, and so can ruthlessly eliminating distractions. You may need to put away your phone or go to a quiet room.
Overcoming procrastination is a challenge, but doing so leads to benefits in many areas of life.
The word procrastinate in the second paragraph most probably means ______.
keep off B. get off C. put off D. take off
According to the passage, how many kinds of consequences may result from
procrastination
5. B. 2. C. 6. D. 7.
What can we conclude from the passage
Nobody can entirely avoid procrastination in his personal life.
Doing easier or unimportant tasks can make us more productive.
The more pressure we have, the more productive we will become.
It's generally more subjective than objective to procrastinate in life.
The best title for the passage may be ______.
The challenges of procrastination and strategies to solve it
The reasons of procrastination and the ways of avoiding it
The advantages and disadvantages of procrastination in life
The causes and process of procrastination in communication
63-66 CADB
2024·上海奉贤·二模
(C)
With its bright colors, easy-to-learn rules and familiar music, the video game Tetris has endured as a pop culture symbol over the past 40 years. Many people, like me, have been playing the game for decades, and it has been updated to adapt to new technologies like game systems, phones and tablets.
However, Tetris is much more than winning. The game, in which players must control blocks of different shapes as they slide down a screen, is based on a fundamental element of geometry, called dynamic spatial reasoning（动态空间推理）. It is taught by mathematics educators and used by architects, engineers, animators, and many others. Players employ these geometric skills to progress in Tetris, so playing it both tests and improves a player's dynamic spatial reasoning.
Spatial reasoning is the ability to visualize geometric figures and how they will move in space. So, dynamic spatial reasoning is the ability to visualize actively moving figures. The Tetris player must quickly decide where the falling game piece will best fit and then move it there. This movement involves both translation — moving a shape right and left, and rotation —turning its shape by 90 degrees at a time.
Spatial visualization is a key element of a mathematics discipline called transformation al geometry, which is usually first taught in middle school. In a typical transformational geometry exercise, students might be asked to represent a figure by its x and y coordinates（坐标） on a coordinate graph and then identify the transformations, such as translation and rotations, necessary to move it from one position to another while keeping the piece the same shape and size.
While it may seem simple, transformation al geometry is the foundation for several advanced topics in mathematics. Architects and engineers both use transformations to draw up blueprints, which represent the real world in scale drawings. Animators use concepts of transformations as well. While animators today use computer programs that automatically move figures around, they are all based on this kind of transformation.
63. Which is NOT a key reason for Tetris's lasting popularity
A. Its pleasure of winning the game. B. Its bright colors and catchy music.
C. Its link to complex math and geometry. D. Its simple rules and tech adaptability.
64. According to the passage, what fundamental skill docs playing Tetris help improve
A. Logical reasoning. B. Mathematical calculation.
C. Memory maintaining. D. Spatial visualization.
65. Move the sample block on the right using both translation and rotation. Which image below can we get
A.(a) B.(b) C.(c) D.(d)
66. Which of the following statements does the author most probably agree with
A. Tetris is a particularly useful tool for animation and architecture designs.
B. Spatial visualization is based on the constant change of a figure's position.
C. Transformation al geometry behind Tetris can be applied to various fields.
D. Spatial reasoning is too difficult for middle school students to master.
63-66 CDDC
2024·上海青浦·二模
(C)
At first the question was how quickly people would get back to the office. Then it was whether they would ever return. The last three years has introduced in a major change in white-collar working patterns. The office is not dead but many professionals have settled into a hybrid (混合的) arrangement of some office days and some remote days.
Hybrid working has much to recommend: flexibility for employees, periods of concentration at home, bursts of cooperation in the office. A new paper from Harvard Business School describes an experiment in which workers at BRAC, a non-profit organisation in Britain, were randomly assigned to three groups, each spending different amounts of time working from home. The intermediate (中等的) group, who spent between 23% and 40% of their time in the office, performed best on various performance measures.
But a shift on this large scale is bound to raise tricky issues. In workplaces that have moved to hybrid work, there are still plenty of open questions. One is how to handle the impact of less time in the office for new joiners and younger workers. Research by Emma Harrington of the University of Iowa shows that software engineers receive more feedback on their code when the team sits next to each other in the office, especially new engineers. According to Nicholas Bloom of Stanford University, making new employees spend more time in the office can be a good way of integrating them into company culture and improving their competence. And these younger employees were most likely to quit when everyone was forced to go remote.
A second question concerns how strictly to enforce attendance on days when teams are meant to be in the office. An agreement holds that there should be agreed “anchor days” on which all the people come to work in the office; since the idea is to spend time together, as many people as possible should be there. But one person on the team might have moved somewhere else; someone else might have asked to stay home to let the repairer in. In practice, therefore, hybrid working still often means a mixture of people on screen and people in the office.
Other questions exist. How to define performance measures so managers do not spend time worrying about lazy workers at home Do you require company-wide anchor days or team-level ones The era of hybrid working is only just beginning, so it will take time for answers to emerge. But if there is a message from this first full year of hybrid working, it is that flexibility does not mean a free-for-all.
63. How can in-office work help new employees
A. Giving them more feedback from senior employees.
B. Getting them to catch up with the work schedule.
C. Saving them the cost of staying at home.
D. Helping them feel part of the company.
64. What makes it difficult to enforce attendance on anchor days
A. Young workers prefer working on screen.
B. Engineers object to the idea of anchor days.
C. Office workers can’t take a day off as expected.
D. Employees have various private matters to address.
65. Which of the following statements is the author most likely to agree with
A. It is necessary to grant employees full autonomous rights.
B. Employers should go with the flow because new questions will emerge.
C. Allowing flexibility in work arrangements does not mean having no rules.
D. It is no easy job to arrange either company-wide or team-level anchor days.
What does the passage mainly talk about
A. Hybrid working is outdated after workers’ return.
B. There are some open questions of hybrid working.
C. A shift of working patterns calls for hybrid working.
D. Fixed restrictions should be applied to hybrid working.
63-66 DDCB
2024·上海闵行·二模
(C)
Hundreds of people die at sea every year due to ship and airplane accidents. Emergency teams have little time to rescue those in the water because the probability of finding a person alive falls dramatically after six hours. Beyond tides and challenging weather conditions, unsteady coastal currents often make search and rescue operations extremely difficult.
New insight into coastal flows gained by an international research team led by George Haller, Professor of Nonlinear Dynamics at ETH Zurich, promises to enhance the search and rescue techniques currently in use. Using tools from dynamical systems theory and ocean data, the team has developed an algorithm (算法) to predict where objects and people floating in water will go. “Our work has a clear potential to save lives,” says Mattia Serra, the first author of a study recently published in Nature Communications.
In today’s rescue operations at sea, complicated models of ocean dynamics and weather forecasting are used to predict the path of floating objects. For fast-changing coastal waters, however, such predictions are often inaccurate due to uncertain boundaries and missing data. As a result, a search may be launched in the wrong location, causing a loss of precious time.
Haller’s research team obtained mathematical results predicting that objects floating on the ocean’s surface should gather along a few special curves (曲线) which they call TRansient Attracting Profiles (TRAPs). These curves can’t be seen with our eyes but can be tracked from instant ocean surface current data using recent mathematical methods developed by the ETH team. This enables quick and precise planning of search paths that are less sensitive to uncertainties in the time and place of the accident.
In cooperation with a team from MIT, the ETH team tested their new, TRAP-based search algorithm in two separate ocean experiments near Martha’s Vineyard, which is on the northeastern coast of the United States. Working from the same real-time data available to the Coast Guard, the team successfully identified TRAPs in the region in real-time. They found that buoys and manikins (浮标和人体模型) thrown in the water indeed quickly gathered along these emerging curves. “Of several competing approaches tested in this project, this was the only algorithm that consistently found the right location”, says Haller.
“Our results are rapidly obtained, easy to interpret, and cheap to perform,” points out Serra. Haller stresses: “Our hope is that this method will become a standard part of the tool kit of coast guards everywhere.”
63. In a search and rescue operation, ________.
A. the survival rate drops to almost zero after six hours
B. the use of dynamics leads to the wrong location
C. weather conditions are a determining factor
D. changing currents present a challenge
64. The main significance of the new algorithm is ________.
A. accurately predicting weather conditions during rescue operations
B. dependence on satellite technology to locate distressed individuals at sea
C. cost-effective, efficient tracking of objects and individuals in coastal waters
D. predicting the exact time and location of ocean accidents
65. Paragraph 5 mainly talks about ________.
A. the collection of data
B. the testing of the algorithm
C. the identification of the TRAPs
D. the cooperation of two research teams
66. Which of the following is the best title for the passage
A. How Mathematics Can Save Lives at Sea
B. How Coastal Waters Affect Saving Lives
C. Why Algorithms Are Popular in Rescue Operations
D. Why Success Rates of Rescue Operations Have Fallen
【答案】63. D 64. C 65. B 66. A
【解析】
【导语】本文是新闻报道。文章主要介绍苏黎世联邦理工学院非线性动力学教授George Haller领导的一个国际研究小组利用动力系统理论和海洋数据中的工具，开发了一种算法以预测漂浮在水中的物体和人将去哪里，有望增强目前使用的海上搜救技术。
【63题详解】
推理判断题。根据第三段“In today’s rescue operations at sea, complicated models of ocean dynamics and weather forecasting are used to predict the path of floating objects. For fast-changing coastal waters, however, such predictions are often inaccurate due to uncertain boundaries and missing data. As a result, a search may be launched in the wrong location, causing a loss of precious time. (在当今的海上救援行动中，复杂的海洋动力学和天气预报模型被用来预测漂浮物体的路径。然而，对于快速变化的沿海水域，由于边界不确定和数据缺失，这种预测往往不准确。因此，搜索可能会在错误的位置启动，从而造成宝贵的时间损失。)”可知，在搜救行动中，不断变化的洋流是一个很大的挑战。故选D。
【64题详解】
推理判断题。根据第四段“This enables quick and precise planning of search paths that are less sensitive to uncertainties in the time and place of the accident. (这使得能够快速准确地规划搜索路径，而搜索路径对事故发生时间和地点的不确定性不太敏感。)”和最后一段““Our results are rapidly obtained, easy to interpret, and cheap to perform,” points out Serra. (Serra指出：“我们的结果获得得很快，易于解释，而且执行成本低廉。”)”可知，新算法可以对沿海水域中的物体和个人进行成本低但却高效的跟踪。故选C。
【65题详解】
主旨大意题。根据第五段“In cooperation with a team from MIT, the ETH team tested their new, TRAP-based search algorithm in two separate ocean experiments near Martha’s Vineyard, which is on the northeastern coast of the United States. Working from the same real-time data available to the Coast Guard, the team successfully identified TRAPs in the region in real-time. They found that buoys and manikins (浮标和人体模型) thrown in the water indeed quickly gathered along these emerging curves. “Of several competing approaches tested in this project, this was the only algorithm that consistently found the right location”, says Haller. (ETH团队与麻省理工学院的一个团队合作，在美国东北海岸玛莎葡萄园附近的两个独立海洋实验中测试了他们新的基于TRAP的搜索算法。该团队利用海岸警卫队可用的相同实时数据，成功地实时识别了该地区的TRAP。他们发现，扔到水中的浮标和人体模型确实很快沿着这些新出现的曲线聚集起来。Haller说：“在这个项目中测试的几种竞争方法中，这是唯一一种始终找到正确位置的算法。”)”可知，这一段主要介绍这项算法的测试。故选B。
【66题详解】
主旨大意题。根据第二段“New insight into coastal flows gained by an international research team led by George Haller, Professor of Nonlinear Dynamics at ETH Zurich, promises to enhance the search and rescue techniques currently in use. Using tools from dynamical systems theory and ocean data, the team has developed an algorithm (算法) to predict where objects and people floating in water will go. “Our work has a clear potential to save lives,” says Mattia Serra, the first author of a study recently published in Nature Communications. (苏黎世联邦理工学院非线性动力学教授George Haller领导的一个国际研究小组对海岸流的新见解有望增强目前使用的搜救技术。该团队利用动力系统理论和海洋数据中的工具，开发了一种算法来预测漂浮在水中的物体和人的去向。最近发表在《自然通讯》上的一项研究的第一作者Mattia Serra说：“我们的工作显然有可能挽救生命。”)”可知，这篇文章主要介绍苏黎世联邦理工学院非线性动力学教授George Haller领导的一个国际研究小组利用动力系统理论和海洋数据中的工具，开发了一种算法以预测漂浮在水中的物体和人将去哪里，有望增强目前使用的海上搜救技术。故选A。
2024·上海金山·二模
(C)
The phrase “coin toss” is a classic equivalent to randomness. But since at least the 18th century, mathematicians have suspected that even fair coins tend to land on one side slightly more often than the other. Proving this tiny bias (偏见), however, would require hundreds of thousands of carefully recorded coin tosses, making laboratory tests a nightmare.
Franti ek Barto , currently a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Amsterdam, became fascinated by this challenge four years ago. He couldn’t round up enough volunteers to investigate it at first. “Nobody was stupid enough to spend a couple of weekends tossing coins,” he says. But after he began his Ph.D. studies, he tried again, recruiting 47 volunteers (many of them friends and fellow students) from six countries. Multiple weekends of coin tossing later, the team had performed 350,757 tosses, breaking the previous record of 40,000.
The tossed coins, according to previous findings, landed with the same side facing upward as before the toss 50.8 percent of the time. The large number of throws allows statisticians to conclude that the nearly one percent bias isn’t a fluke. “We can be quite sure there is a bias in coin tosses after this data set,” Barto says.
The leading theory explaining the subtle advantage comes from a 2007 physics study by statistician Persi Diaconis and his colleagues, whose calculations predicted a same-side bias of 51 percent. From the moment a coin is launched into the air, its entire path in the air — including whether it lands on heads or tails — can be calculated by the laws of mechanics. The researchers determined that coins in the air barely turn around their symmetrical axis (对称轴); instead they tend to move off-center unsteadily, which causes them to spend a little more time in the air with their initial “up” side on top.
For day-to-day decisions, coin tosses are as good as random because a one percent bias isn’t perceptible with just a few coin tosses, says another statistician who wasn’t involved in the new research. Still, the study’s conclusions should eliminate any doubt that still exists regarding the coin toss’s slim bias.
It isn’t difficult to prevent this bias from influencing your coin-toss matches; simply concealing the coin’s starting position before tossing it should do the trick. Alternatively, you can do away with tossing altogether by shaking the coin between your palms. But if your friends are unaware of the tiny bias, you may as well benefit from your slight advantage. After all, 51 percent odds beat a lot.
63. Why was it difficult to prove the tiny bias in coin tosses
A. Because it required a large number of trials and loads of tests.
B. Because few scientists a专题06 阅读理解C篇（16区二模新题速递）
目 录
2023·上海秋考·真题 2024·上海虹口·二模
2024·上海杨浦·二模 2024·上海宝山·二模
2024·上海浦东·二模 2024·上海奉贤·二模
2024·上海青浦·二模 2024·上海闵行·二模
2024·上海黄浦·二模 2024·上海金山·二模
2024·上海普陀·二模 2024·上海嘉定·二模
2024·上海徐汇·二模 2024·上海长宁·二模
2024·上海松江·二模 2024·上海崇明·二模
2024·上海静安·二模
2023·上海秋考·真题
(C)
The universe expands with every passing second, stretching the space between galaxies like dough rising in an oven. But just how fast is this expansion happening As telescopes like Hubble strive to answer this fundamental question, they encounter a perplexing gap between theoretical predictions and observed data.
Hubble's measurements indicate a faster rate of expansion in the modern universe compared to what was expected based on observations of the universe more than 13 billion years ago by the European Space Agency's Planck satellite. This inconsistency has been a subject of scientific inquiry for several years. However, it remains uncertain whether differences in measurement techniques or chance variations are responsible for this disparity.
Recent data from the Hubble telescope have significantly reduced the possibility that this discrepancy is merely a statistical fluke, with the chances now estimated at only 1 in 100,000. This marks a substantial improvement from previous estimates, which placed the odds at 1 in 3,000 less than a year ago. These precise measurements from Hubble lend weight to the hypothesis that new physics may be necessary to reconcile the observed mismatch.
Lead researcher Adam Riess, a Nobel laureate from the Space Telescope Science Institute and Johns Hopkins University, describes the tension between the early and late universe as one of the most exciting developments in cosmology in decades. He emphasizes that the growing disparity cannot be dismissed as a random occurrence and suggests that it may signal the need for a deeper understanding of the cosmos.
To determine distances in the universe, scientists rely on a "cosmic distance ladder" method. This involves accurately measuring distances to nearby galaxies and then using progressively distant galaxies as reference points. By observing stars like Cepheid variables, astronomers can calibrate this distance ladder. Riess and his team have been refining these measurements since 2005, aiming to improve our understanding of cosmic distances.
In their latest study, astronomers used Hubble to observe 70 Cepheid variables in the Large Magellanic Cloud. By comparing these stars with their more distant counterparts in galaxies hosting supernovae, they refined their measurement of the Hubble constant, reducing its uncertainty from 2.2% to 1.9%. Despite this increased precision, their calculated Hubble constant remains at odds with the value predicted by observations of the early universe conducted by Planck.
The Planck satellite, which maps the cosmic microwave background – a remnant of the universe's early stages – provides crucial data for understanding the universe's expansion. However, the discrepancy between these measurements and those from Hubble underscores the need for further investigation and the potential for new discoveries in cosmology.
Where do measurements of the early universe come from
A. The space between galaxies.
B.Measurements from Hubble and other telescopes
C. European Space Agency's Planck satellite.
D. The latest Hubble data.
64. Which of the following statements is in line with Adam Riess’ opinion
A. The expansion speed of the modern universe is faster than expected
B. New physics may be needed to explain this mismatch.
C, It is unlikely that this discrepancy occurred by chance.
D. Hubble's tension is the most exciting development in cosmology in decades.
65. What do scientists use to determine the distance of things in the universe
A. A cosmic distance ladder.
B. Accurate measurements of distances.
C.Milepost markers.
D. The Hubble constant.
66. What did Riess’ team do
A. They used the Hubble Space Telescope to observe pulsating stars
B. They improved the comparison between
C.They raised the uncertainty of the Hubble constant to 2.2%
D. They reduced the uncertainty in their Hubble constant value to 1.9.
2024·上海杨浦·二模
C
A forest in Staffordshire (in the UK) transformed into a hi-tech laboratory. Researchers here are investigating how the trees use carbon, and it’s difficult to find out. In an unusual experiment, extra carbon dioxide is piped to the trees, to create the kind of atmospheric conditions expected in the middle of the century. And instruments measure how the forest reacts.
The scientist in charge says there’s still a lot to learn. And he worries that governments and companies are rushing to plant trees as an easy answer to climate change. “If you try and use trees to tidy up the mess that we’re making through emissions, you are putting those trees into a very rapidly changing climate and they will struggle to adapt,” said Professor Rob MacKenzie, University of Birmingham.
This device tracks the movement of carbon dioxide. In a healthy forest, the gas is not only absorbed by the trees but some is released as well. What scientists here are finding out is the way carbon flows into a forest and out of it is a lot more complicated than you might think. So, if mass tree planting is meant to be a solution to tackling climate change, the trees are going to have to be monitored and cared for, over not just decades, but may be centuries as well.
Of all the challenges, the task of planting is the simplest. Shelby Barber from Canada can do an amazing 4,000 trees in a day. “People talking about planting millions billions of trees around the world. Is it possible do you think, physically ” asked BBC.
“It’s definitely possible with the right amount of people, the right group of people. I’ve personally, in three years, planted just over half a million trees.” said Professor Rob MacKenzie.
Once planted, the trees need to survive, and experts are mixing different types to minimize the risk of disease. “It’s a bit like making sure you don’t put all your eggs in one basket, you’re spreading out your risk. And then if one part of that woodland fails, for whatever reason, it gets a disease or it can’t tolerate future climatic conditions, there are other parts of the forest that are healthy and able to fill in those gaps.” said Eleanor Tew of Forestry England.
Suddenly there’s momentum to plant trees on a scale never seen before. So what matters is doing it in a way that ensures the forests thrive — so they really do help with climate change.
43. Why is extra carbon dioxide piped to the trees in the experiment
A. To predict the future atmospheric conditions.
B. To imitate the possible air condition in the future.
C. To create an instrument to measure atmospheric conditions.
D. To investigate the quality of air condition in the future.
44. The underlined word “some” in the second paragraph refers to __________.
A. oxygen B. carbon dioxide C. mess D. purified gas
45. What will Eleanor Tew suggest concerning the survival of the forest
A. Minimizing the area of the woodland.
B. Studying future climatic conditions.
C. Planting different types of trees.
D. Avoiding mixing different species.
46. Which statement concerning mass tree planting will Professor Rob Mackenzie mostly likely agree with
A. It should be advocated in terms of efficiency and convenience.
B. It is the most effective solution to fighting climate changes.
C. It will do more harm than good to the health of the environment.
D. It needs to be studied further as a measure against climate change.
2024·上海浦东·二模
(C)
Those who had the pleasure of watching Benny Goodman at work saw a rather ordinary-looking man in rimless glasses and a conservative business suit; but they also saw a human being who could play the clarinet(单簧管) like no one before or since. This made Benny Goodman a unique individual.
Other Americans who have stood out from the flock include Joe DiMaggio, Beverly Sill, Ernest Hemingway and Jonas Salk. They, like Benny Goodman, were recognized and honored for no other reason than excellence.
It is doing something better than other people that makes us unique. Yet a surprising number of people still see individuality as a surface thing. They wear garish clothes, dye their hair strange colors and decorate their skin with tattoos to make some kind of social statement. But an ordinary guy who has dyed his hair purple or orange is nothing more than the same person with a funny-looking head.
The whole purpose of individuality is excellence. Those who invent, who improvise(即兴发挥), who know more about a subject than other people do, and who take something that doesn’t work and make it work––these people are the very soul of capitalism.
Charles Kettering didn’t like the idea of cranking a car to make it start, so he invented the electric starter. Henry Ford figured out the assembly-line technique and made it possible to mass-produce automobiles, and Elisha Otis, inventor of the elevator, indirectly created the city sky-line. These people understood that individualism means working at the top of one’s capacity.
The ones with the purple hair and the funky jewelry are just along for the ride, trying to be “different” and not knowing how to go about it.
The student who earns straight A’s on his report card has grasped the idea and has found the real meaning of individuality. So has the youngster who has designed his own spaceship, who gives piano recitals, who paints pictures of the world around him.
Benny Goodman understood it too. This is why he was at his best, blowing his clarinet, in a blue suit and black shoes.
43. The author mentions the appearance of Benny Goodman to _________.
A. show what a talented musician should look like
B. introduce an important figure in the musical world
C. contrast with his talent in music performance
D. indicate that he can’t stand out from the flock
44. The author would most probably agree that _________.
A. an individualist tends to seek difference both in character and appearance
B. the essence of individualism lies in pursuing excellence to the full
C. being different in appearance is the very first step to being individual
D. those who strive to win the recognition of others are real individualists
45. According to the passage, which individual’s actions may not truly embody the essence of individualism
A. A scientist who conducts research solely advancing knowledge for the greater good rather than for personal recognition.
B. A social media influencer who conforms to popular opinions to maintain a large following.
C. An artist who creates unique works but fail to gain fame and recognition from others.
D. An entrepreneur who prioritizes ethical considerations over profit in his business practices.
46. For the main thread, the article is organized by way of __________.
A. specific to general B. cause and effect
C. examples and conclusion D. comparison and contrast
2024·上海黄浦·二模
(C)
In the past, jobs were about muscles. Now they’re about brains, but in the future, they’ll be about the heart. – Minouche Shafik, the president of Columbia University
LinkedIn researchers recently looked at which skills any given job requires and then identified over 500 likely to be affected by generative A.I. technologies. They then estimated that 96 percent of a software engineer’s current skills — mainly in programming languages — can eventually be possessed by A.I. Skills associated with jobs like legal associates and finance officers will also be highly exposed. In fact, given the broad impact A.I. is set to have, it is quite likely to affect all of our work to some degree or another.
Circling around this research is the big question emerging across so many conversations about A.I. and work, namely: What are our core capabilities as humans
If we answer this question from a place of fear about what’s left for people in the age of A.I., we can end up admitting a diminished view of human capability. Instead, it’s critical for us all to start from a place that imagines what’s possible for humans in the age of A.I. When we do that, we find ourselves focusing quickly on people skills that allow us to cooperate and innovate in ways technology can intensify but never replace.
A recent Jobs for the Future survey found that 78 percent of the 10 top-employing occupations classified uniquely human skills and tasks as “important” or “very important.” These, commonly referred to as soft skills, include building interpersonal relationships, negotiating between parties and guiding and motivating teams.
Now is the time for leaders, across departments, to develop new ways for students to learn that are more directly tied to where our economy is going, not where it has been. Critically, that involves bringing the same level of preciseness to training around people skills that we have brought to technical skills.
Ultimately, for our society, this comes down to whether we believe in the potential of humans with as much belief as we believe in the potential of A.I. If we do, it is entirely possible to build a world of work that not only is more human but also is a place where all people are valued for the unique skills we have, enabling us to deliver new levels of human achievement across so many areas that affect all of our lives.
63. According to LinkedIn’s recent research, __________.
A. soft engineers are required to identify 500 languages
B. A.I. will replace humans in jobs requiring certain skills
C. we humans underestimate the impact A.I. is set to have
D. A.I. technologies are to influence research to some degree
64. Which of the following is “a diminished view of human capability” (paragraph 3)
A. Humans are losing control of the world.
B. Technology intensifies humans’ cooperation.
C. Humans outsmart A.I in terms of critical thinking.
D. A.I. and humans are similar in their ability to innovate.
65. Leaders in different departments are advised to __________.
A. teach students unique technical skills
B. develop students’ soft skills for their future
C. remind students where our economy is going
D. build healthy interpersonal relationships with students
66. According to the writer, what is the core factor of human development
A. Practical value set on skills. B. Firm belief about A.I. technologies.
C. Decisive effects brought by A.I. D. Confidence in our potential.
2024·上海普陀·二模
(C)
The emergence of black holes undoubtedly marks the beginning of a revolution. Black holes have many peculiar properties, such as the alteration of space and time, the radiation of gravitational waves and so on. Scientists are still trying to study the properties and evolution of black holes in order to better understand the origin and evolution of the universe.
Recently, a team of astronomers may have found a solo-wandering black hole using a strange trick of gravity called microlensing(微透镜效应), but the results still have to be confirmed.
Sometimes it’s tough being an astronomer. Nature likes to hide the most interesting things from easy observation. Take, for example, black holes. Except for the strange quantum(量子) phenomenon of Hawking radiation, black holes are completely black. They don’t emit a single bit of radiation – they only absorb, hence their name.
To date, the only way astronomers have been able to spot black holes is through their influence on their environments. For example, if an orbiting star gets a little too close, the black hole can absorb the gas from that star, causing it to heat up as it falls. We can watch as stars dance around the giant black hole at the center of the Milky Way.
Even the famed pictures of the black holes in the center of the Milky Way and the M87 galaxy(星系) aren’t photographs of the black holes themselves. Instead, they are radio images of everything around them.
But surely not all black holes have other light-emitting objects around them to help us find them. To find these wanderers, astronomers have tried their luck with microlensing. We know that heavy objects can bend the path of light around them. This is a prediction of Einstein’s general theory of relativity, and the slight bending of starlight around our own sun was one of the first successful tests of the theory.
Microlensing is pretty much what the name suggests. When astronomers get extremely lucky, a wandering black hole and pass between us and a random distant star. The light from that star bends around the black hole because of its gravity, and from our point of view, the star will appear to temporarily flare in brightness.
And when I say “extremely lucky” I mean it. Despite trying this technique for over a decade, it is only now that astronomers have found a candidate black hole through microlensing. Two teams used the same data, a microlensing event recorded from both the OGLE (Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment) telescope in Chile and the MOA (Microlensing Observations in Astrophysics) telescope in New Zealand. One team found that the mass was somewhere around seven times the mass of the sun – definitely black hole territory. But the other team estimated a much smaller mass, around 2-4 times the mass of the Sun. If the true mass of the object is at the lower end of that spectrum(光谱), then the wanderer is probably not a black hole.
63. Why does the author say it is hard to be an astronomer
A. Einstein’s theory is hard to understand.
B. Many things in nature are not easy to observe.
C. Understanding the evolution of the universe is not easy.
D. Whether the black hole has been found remains to be seen.
64. What is the example in Para. 4 trying to prove
A. Stars’ wandering in black holes.
B. Black holes’ absorbing the star’s gas.
C. The relationship between stars’ heating and black holes.
D. Finding black holes by observing environmental changes.
65. What does the author tell us about the discovery of black holes
A. People can often find black holes with glowing objects.
B. Research groups can work together to find black holes.
C. Glowing objects around black holes help us find them sometimes.
D. Understanding the properties of black holes helps find them.
66. What conclusion can we draw from the last paragraph
A. To persevere in the end is to win.
B. Facts speak louder than words.
C. Failure is the mother of success.
D. Things are not always what they seem.
2024·上海徐汇·二模
C
Both my parents worked for 30-plus years for their employers – they had lifelong careers at a single company. Growing up, they taught me the importance of “loyalty” and “commitment”.
But in a rapidly changing world, the concept of a job for life has become as rare as a dial-up internet connection. This shift from stable, long-term employment and single-employer careers to a world where frequent job changes are the norm comes directly from globalisation, rapid technological advancements and the changing ideas about work.
Globalisation has turned the world economy into a giant, interconnected web. This has made job markets fiercely competitive and talent and opportunities in the labour market more diverse and digitally accessible.
Jobs can be widely publicised and explored online and are no longer tied to your city of birth. Add to this the rapid technological progress. We now live in a world where the skills you learned yesterday might not be enough for today’s job market.
The job market is transforming, with new careers emerging as automation and artificial intelligence (AI) advances. Risks and price policies can be efficiently assessed using AI, making insurance underwriters redundant while advanced software in banking and finance mean data analysis can be automated.
Online booking has reduced demand for travel agents and desktop publishers are being replaced by user-friendly software, which allows people to create their own materials. These changes highlight the need for professionals to update their skills and adapt to a technologically evolving job market.
As a result, career paths have become fluid and multi-directional. It’s no longer just about climbing the corporate ladder and getting a regular paycheck; it’s about exploring different paths, switching jobs and industries and sometimes even venturing into freelancing and the gig economy.
Loyalty is defined as an employee’s commitment to their organisation and its goals. It means a willingness to put in extra effort and to uphold the company’s values and objectives. Loyal workers often identify strongly with their workplace, are reliable and view the organisation positively, even during tough times.
When long-term employees change workplaces, it does not mean they are disloyal. It signifies a change in priorities and a redefined loyalty bond. Employees are loyal to their employer and its interests while working there. But they also seek mutual growth and expect to be recognised and rewarded.
Career paths are now a kaleidoscope (万花筒) of experiences and opportunities. Instead of a career identity being about a company brand, it is about skills, experiences and the meaningfulness of the work. This transformation means career decision-making is more intricate, considering personal aspirations, market trends and family considerations.
What factors have contributed to the shift in job market dynamics
A. Increased reliance on desktop publishing software.
B. Changing ideas about loyalty and commitment.
C. The decreasing demand for travel agents due to online booking systems.
D. Globalization, rapid technological advancements, and evolving work concepts.
What skills are highlighted as essential for professionals in the evolving job market
A. Skills related to desktop publishing.
B. Skills that were relevant yesterday.
C. Skills in data analysis and adaptability.
D. Skills in insurance underwriting.
How does the passage suggest employees should approach loyalty in the modern workplace
A. By remaining with a single employer for their entire career.
B. By prioritizing personal growth and recognition.
C. By relying on traditional definitions of loyalty.
D. By avoiding job changes to maintain loyalty.
The best title for the passage is _______.
A. Forget About a Job for Life.
B. Learn More as Much as You Can
C. Benefit from Long-term Employment.
D. The Impact of Globalization.
2024·上海松江·二模
（C）
Precognitive dreams are dreams that seemingly predict the future which cannot be inferred from actually available information. Former US President Abraham Lincoln once revealed the frightening dream to his law partner and friend Ward Hill Lamon, “…Then I heard people weep… ‘Who is dead in the White House ’ I demanded. ‘The President,’ ‘he was killed!’…” The killing did happen later.
Christopher French, Professor in the Department of Psychology at Goldsmiths, stated the most likely explanation for such a phenomenon was coincidence （巧合）. “In addition to pure coincidences we must also consider the unreliability of memory”, he added. Asked what criteria would have to be met for him to accept that precognitive dreams were a reality, he said, “The primary problem with tests of the claim is that the subjects are unable to tell when the event（s）they’ve dreamed about will happen.”
However, some claimed to make such tests practicable. Professor Caroline Watt at the University of Edinburgh, has conducted studies into precognitive dreaming. She stated that knowing future through dreams challenged the basic assumption of science — causality （relationship of cause and effect）.
Dick Bierman, a retired physicist and psychologist, who has worked at the Universities of Amsterdam, Utrecht and Groningen, has put forward a theory that may explain precognitive dreams. It is based on the fact that when scientists use certain mathematical descriptions to talk about things like electromagnetism（电磁学）, these descriptions favour the belief that time only moves in one direction. However, in practice the wave that is running backwards in time does exist. This concept is called the time symmetry, meaning that the laws of physics look the same when time runs forward or backward. But he believes that time symmetry breaks down due to external conditions. “The key of the theory is that it assumes that there is a special context that restores the broken time-symmetry, if the waves running backwards are ‘absorbed’ by a consistent multi-particle（多粒子） system. The brain under a dream state may be such a system where broken time-symmetry is partially restored. This is still not a full explanation for precognitive dreams but it shows where physics might be adjusted to accommodate the phenomenon,” he explains.
Although Bierman’s explanation is still based on guesses and has not accepted by mainstream science, Watt does think it is worth considering. For now, believing that it’s possible to predict future with dreams remains an act of faith. Yet, it’s possible that one day we’ll wake up to a true understanding of this fascinating phenomenon.
63．According to French, what makes it difficult to test precognitive dreams
A．Unavailability of people’s dreams.
B．That coincidences happen a lot in reality.
C．That criteria for dream reliability are not trustworthy.
D．People’s inability to tell when dreamt events will happen.
64．Believers in precognitive dreams may question the truth of ______.
A．the assumption of causality B．the time symmetry
C．memories of ordinary people D．modern scientific tests
65．We can infer from the passage that ______.
A．Lincoln was warned of the killing by his friend
B．Watt carried out several experiments on causality
C．researches on electromagnetism are based on the time symmetry
D．time’s moving in two directions may justify precognitive dreams
66．Which might be the best title of the passage
A．Should Dreams Be Assessed
B．Can Dreams Predict the Future
C．How Can Physics Be Changed to Explain Dreams
D．Why Should Scientists Study Precognitive Dreams
2024·上海静安·二模
(C)
Flinging brightly coloured objects around a screen at high speed is not what computers’ central processing units were designed for. So manufacturers of arcade machines invented the graphics-processing unit (GPU), a set of circuits to handle video games’ visuals in parallel to the work done by the central processor. The GPU’s ability to speed up complex tasks has since found wider uses: video editing, cryptocurrency mining and most recently, the training of artificial intelligence.
AI is now disrupting the industry that helped bring it into being. Every part of entertainment stands to be affected by generative AI, which digests inputs of text, image, audio or video to create new outputs of the same. But the games business will change the most, argues Andreessen Horowitz, a venture-capital (VC) firm. Games interactivity requires them to be stuffed with laboriously designed content: consider the 30 square miles of landscape or 60 hours of music in “Red Dead Redemption 2”, a recent cowboy adventure. Enlisting AI assistants to churn it out could drastically shrink timescales and budgets.
AI represents an “explosion of opportunity” and could drastically change the landscape of game development. Making a game is already easier than it was: nearly 13,000 titles were published last year on Steam, a games platform, almost double the number in 2017. Gaming may soon resemble the music and video industries in which most new content on Spotify or YouTube is user-generated. One games executive predicts that small firms will be the quickest to work out what new genres are made possible by AI. Last month Raja Koduri, an executive at Intel, left the chip maker to found an AI-gaming startup.
Don’t count the big studios out, though. If they can release half a dozen high-quality titles a year instead of a couple, it might chip away at the hit-driven nature of their business, says Josh Chapman of Konvoy, a gaming focused VC firm. A world of more choices also favors those with big marketing budgets. And the giants may have better answers to the mounting copyright questions around AI. If generative models have to be trained on data to which the developer has the rights, those with big back-catalogues will be better placed than startups. Trent Kaniuga, an artist who has worked on games like “Fortnite”, said last month that several clients had updated their contracts to ban AI-generated art.
If the lawyers don’t intervene, unions might. Studios diplomatically refer to AI assistants as “co-pilots”, not replacements for humans.
43. The original purpose behind the invention of the graphics-processing unit (GPU) was to ________.
A. speed up complex tasks in video editing and cryptocurrency mining
B. assist in the developing and training of artificial intelligence
C. disrupt the industry and create new outputs using generative AI
D. offload game visual tasks from the central processor
44. How might the rise of AI-gaming startups affect the development of the gaming industry
A. It contributes to the growth of user-generated content.
B. It facilitates blockbuster dependency on big studios.
C. It decreases collaboration between different stakeholders in the industry.
D. It may help to consolidate the gaming market under major corporations.
45. What can be inferred about the role of artificial intelligence in gaming
A. AI favors the businesses with small marketing budgets.
B. AI is expected to simplify game development processes.
C. AI allows startups to gain an edge over big firms with authorized data.
D. AI assistants may serve as human substitutes for studios.
46. What is this passage mainly about
A. The evolution of graphics-processing units (GPUs).
B. The impact of generative AI on the gaming industry.
C. The societal significance of graphics-processing units (GPUs).
D. The challenges generative AI presents to gaming studios.
2024·上海虹口·二模
(C)
Pricing is managers’ biggest marketing headache. It’s where they feel the most pressure to perform and the least certain that they are doing a good job. All successful pricing efforts share two qualities: The policy combines well with the company’s overall marketing strategy, and the process is well-organized as a whole.
A company’s pricing policy sends a message to the market—it gives customers an important sense of a company’s philosophy. Consider Saturn Corporation (a wholly owned company of General Motors). Saturn wants to let consumers know that it is friendly and easy to do business with. Part of this concept is conveyed through initiatives such as inviting customers to the factory to see where the cars are made and sponsoring evenings at the dealership that combine a social event with training on car maintenance. But Saturn’s pricing policy sends a strong message as well. Can a friendly, trusting relationship be established with customers if a salesperson uses all the negotiating tricks in the book to try to separate them from that last $100 Of course not. Saturn has a “no hassle, no haggle” policy which removes the possibility of conflicts between dealer and potential customer. Customers have an easier time buying a car knowing that the next person in the door won’t negotiate a better deal.
Of course, there are typically many participants in the pricing process: Accounting provides cost estimates; marketing communicates the pricing strategy; sales provides specific customer input; production sets supply boundaries; and finance establishes the requirements for the entire company’s financial health. Input from diverse sources is necessary. However, problems arise when the philosophy of wide participation is carried over to the price-setting process without strong coordinating mechanisms (协调机制). For example, if the marketing department sets list prices, the salespeople negotiate discounts in the field, the legal department adjusts prices if necessary to prevent breaking the laws or contractual agreements, and the people filling orders negotiate price adjustments for delays in shipment, everybody’s best intentions usually end up bringing about less than the best results. In fact, the company may actually lose money on some orders.
63. Why is it essential for a company’s pricing policy to combine with its overall marketing strategy
A. To maximize possible returns and profits.
B. To maintain consistency in business operations.
C. To eliminate the need for diverse sales inputs.
D. To attract customers to social events and trainings.
64. What does Saturn’s “no hassle, no haggle” policy (paragraph 2) most probably mean
A. Saturn trains its dealers to treat customers sincerely.
B. Saturn offers discounts to some loyal customers.
C. Saturn cars are at least $100 cheaper than other cars.
D. Saturn cars are sold at fixed, non-negotiable prices.
65. What can be inferred from the wide participation in the pricing process
A. Decision making requires gathering comprehensive information.
B. The coordinating mechanism won’t work without a lot of input.
C. Potential customers are easily upset at any stage of the process.
D. The company loses money unless everyone intends for the best.
66. Which of the following is the best title for this passage
A. The art of coordinating pricing processes
B. The best sales negotiation techniques
C. Getting one step closer toward better pricing
D. Maximizing profits through pricing policies
2024·上海宝山·二模
(C)
Pretty much everyone has, at some point, made excuses to avoid working on a task they fear. But some people do this more often than others, which can result in disastrous consequences. Regularly putting off difficult or unpleasant tasks can lead to low grades at school, poor performance at work and financial consequences, such as late fees. Procrastination can also harm relationships and even affect your health, as it increases stress levels, sometimes resulting in illness.
It's possible to procrastinate by binge-watching (大量观看) your favorite show or doing other mindless activities, but procrastination doesn't always look like laziness. Some people procrastinate to avoid difficult tasks by working on easier but less important tasks. This can make them feel productive even as they neglect the most important items on their to-do lists.
In order to overcome procrastination, you must first understand why you procrastinate. Perhaps you are a perfectionist, so you find not completing a task less upsetting than doing it badly. Perhaps the task is complicated or confusing, and you don't know where to begin. Or perhaps you are waiting to feel inspired to complete the task or believe that you become better under pressure.
Correcting your thinking can aid you in overcoming procrastination. You probably tend to overestimate how quickly you can finish tasks and how motivated you will feel later. Most work does not need to wait until you feel inspired, and if you begin the task, feelings of inspiration may follow. Further, research shows that despite some people's perceptions (感知), most individuals do not actually produce better work under pressure.
If you are procrastinating because a task seems too overwhelming or too complicated, break it up into smaller pieces that feel more manageable. This can mean doing a part of the task, or dedicating a set amount of time - say, 15 minutes - to working on it.
It may help to think about why the task is important. How will it contribute to your goals How will it affect other people What negative consequences could come from not doing it in a timely manner
Scheduling when you will work on tasks can be helpful as well, and so can ruthlessly eliminating distractions. You may need to put away your phone or go to a quiet room.
Overcoming procrastination is a challenge, but doing so leads to benefits in many areas of life.
The word procrastinate in the second paragraph most probably means ______.
keep off B. get off C. put off D. take off
According to the passage, how many kinds of consequences may result from
procrastination
5. B. 2. C. 6. D. 7.
What can we conclude from the passage
Nobody can entirely avoid procrastination in his personal life.
Doing easier or unimportant tasks can make us more productive.
The more pressure we have, the more productive we will become.
It's generally more subjective than objective to procrastinate in life.
The best title for the passage may be ______.
The challenges of procrastination and strategies to solve it
The reasons of procrastination and the ways of avoiding it
The advantages and disadvantages of procrastination in life
The causes and process of procrastination in communication
2024·上海奉贤·二模
(C)
With its bright colors, easy-to-learn rules and familiar music, the video game Tetris has endured as a pop culture symbol over the past 40 years. Many people, like me, have been playing the game for decades, and it has been updated to adapt to new technologies like game systems, phones and tablets.
However, Tetris is much more than winning. The game, in which players must control blocks of different shapes as they slide down a screen, is based on a fundamental element of geometry, called dynamic spatial reasoning（动态空间推理）. It is taught by mathematics educators and used by architects, engineers, animators, and many others. Players employ these geometric skills to progress in Tetris, so playing it both tests and improves a player's dynamic spatial reasoning.
Spatial reasoning is the ability to visualize geometric figures and how they will move in space. So, dynamic spatial reasoning is the ability to visualize actively moving figures. The Tetris player must quickly decide where the falling game piece will best fit and then move it there. This movement involves both translation — moving a shape right and left, and rotation —turning its shape by 90 degrees at a time.
Spatial visualization is a key element of a mathematics discipline called transformation al geometry, which is usually first taught in middle school. In a typical transformational geometry exercise, students might be asked to represent a figure by its x and y coordinates（坐标） on a coordinate graph and then identify the transformations, such as translation and rotations, necessary to move it from one position to another while keeping the piece the same shape and size.
While it may seem simple, transformation al geometry is the foundation for several advanced topics in mathematics. Architects and engineers both use transformations to draw up blueprints, which represent the real world in scale drawings. Animators use concepts of transformations as well. While animators today use computer programs that automatically move figures around, they are all based on this kind of transformation.
63. Which is NOT a key reason for Tetris's lasting popularity
A. Its pleasure of winning the game. B. Its bright colors and catchy music.
C. Its link to complex math and geometry. D. Its simple rules and tech adaptability.
64. According to the passage, what fundamental skill docs playing Tetris help improve
A. Logical reasoning. B. Mathematical calculation.
C. Memory maintaining. D. Spatial visualization.
65. Move the sample block on the right using both translation and rotation. Which image below can we get
A.(a) B.(b) C.(c) D.(d)
66. Which of the following statements does the author most probably agree with
A. Tetris is a particularly useful tool for animation and architecture designs.
B. Spatial visualization is based on the constant change of a figure's position.
C. Transformation al geometry behind Tetris can be applied to various fields.
D. Spatial reasoning is too difficult for middle school students to master.
2024·上海青浦·二模
(C)
At first the question was how quickly people would get back to the office. Then it was whether they would ever return. The last three years has introduced in a major change in white-collar working patterns. The office is not dead but many professionals have settled into a hybrid (混合的) arrangement of some office days and some remote days.
Hybrid working has much to recommend: flexibility for employees, periods of concentration at home, bursts of cooperation in the office. A new paper from Harvard Business School describes an experiment in which workers at BRAC, a non-profit organisation in Britain, were randomly assigned to three groups, each spending different amounts of time working from home. The intermediate (中等的) group, who spent between 23% and 40% of their time in the office, performed best on various performance measures.
But a shift on this large scale is bound to raise tricky issues. In workplaces that have moved to hybrid work, there are still plenty of open questions. One is how to handle the impact of less time in the office for new joiners and younger workers. Research by Emma Harrington of the University of Iowa shows that software engineers receive more feedback on their code when the team sits next to each other in the office, especially new engineers. According to Nicholas Bloom of Stanford University, making new employees spend more time in the office can be a good way of integrating them into company culture and improving their competence. And these younger employees were most likely to quit when everyone was forced to go remote.
A second question concerns how strictly to enforce attendance on days when teams are meant to be in the office. An agreement holds that there should be agreed “anchor days” on which all the people come to work in the office; since the idea is to spend time together, as many people as possible should be there. But one person on the team might have moved somewhere else; someone else might have asked to stay home to let the repairer in. In practice, therefore, hybrid working still often means a mixture of people on screen and people in the office.
Other questions exist. How to define performance measures so managers do not spend time worrying about lazy workers at home Do you require company-wide anchor days or team-level ones The era of hybrid working is only just beginning, so it will take time for answers to emerge. But if there is a message from this first full year of hybrid working, it is that flexibility does not mean a free-for-all.
63. How can in-office work help new employees
A. Giving them more feedback from senior employees.
B. Getting them to catch up with the work schedule.
C. Saving them the cost of staying at home.
D. Helping them feel part of the company.
64. What makes it difficult to enforce attendance on anchor days
A. Young workers prefer working on screen.
B. Engineers object to the idea of anchor days.
C. Office workers can’t take a day off as expected.
D. Employees have various private matters to address.
65. Which of the following statements is the author most likely to agree with
A. It is necessary to grant employees full autonomous rights.
B. Employers should go with the flow because new questions will emerge.
C. Allowing flexibility in work arrangements does not mean having no rules.
D. It is no easy job to arrange either company-wide or team-level anchor days.
What does the passage mainly talk about
A. Hybrid working is outdated after workers’ return.
B. There are some open questions of hybrid working.
C. A shift of working patterns calls for hybrid working.
D. Fixed restrictions should be applied to hybrid working.
2024·上海闵行·二模
(C)
Hundreds of people die at sea every year due to ship and airplane accidents. Emergency teams have little time to rescue those in the water because the probability of finding a person alive falls dramatically after six hours. Beyond tides and challenging weather conditions, unsteady coastal currents often make search and rescue operations extremely difficult.
New insight into coastal flows gained by an international research team led by George Haller, Professor of Nonlinear Dynamics at ETH Zurich, promises to enhance the search and rescue techniques currently in use. Using tools from dynamical systems theory and ocean data, the team has developed an algorithm (算法) to predict where objects and people floating in water will go. “Our work has a clear potential to save lives,” says Mattia Serra, the first author of a study recently published in Nature Communications.
In today’s rescue operations at sea, complicated models of ocean dynamics and weather forecasting are used to predict the path of floating objects. For fast-changing coastal waters, however, such predictions are often inaccurate due to uncertain boundaries and missing data. As a result, a search may be launched in the wrong location, causing a loss of precious time.
Haller’s research team obtained mathematical results predicting that objects floating on the ocean’s surface should gather along a few special curves (曲线) which they call TRansient Attracting Profiles (TRAPs). These curves can’t be seen with our eyes but can be tracked from instant ocean surface current data using recent mathematical methods developed by the ETH team. This enables quick and precise planning of search paths that are less sensitive to uncertainties in the time and place of the accident.
In cooperation with a team from MIT, the ETH team tested their new, TRAP-based search algorithm in two separate ocean experiments near Martha’s Vineyard, which is on the northeastern coast of the United States. Working from the same real-time data available to the Coast Guard, the team successfully identified TRAPs in the region in real-time. They found that buoys and manikins (浮标和人体模型) thrown in the water indeed quickly gathered along these emerging curves. “Of several competing approaches tested in this project, this was the only algorithm that consistently found the right location”, says Haller.
“Our results are rapidly obtained, easy to interpret, and cheap to perform,” points out Serra. Haller stresses: “Our hope is that this method will become a standard part of the tool kit of coast guards everywhere.”
63. In a search and rescue operation, ________.
A. the survival rate drops to almost zero after six hours
B. the use of dynamics leads to the wrong location
C. weather conditions are a determining factor
D. changing currents present a challenge
64. The main significance of the new algorithm is ________.
A. accurately predicting weather conditions during rescue operations
B. dependence on satellite technology to locate distressed individuals at sea
C. cost-effective, efficient tracking of objects and individuals in coastal waters
D. predicting the exact time and location of ocean accidents
65. Paragraph 5 mainly talks about ________.
A. the collection of data
B. the testing of the algorithm
C. the identification of the TRAPs
D. the cooperation of two research teams
66. Which of the following is the best title for the passage
A. How Mathematics Can Save Lives at Sea
B. How Coastal Waters Affect Saving Lives
C. Why Algorithms Are Popular in Rescue Operations
D. Why Success Rates of Rescue Operations Have Fallen
2024·上海金山·二模
(C)
The phrase “coin toss” is a classic equivalent to randomness. But since at least the 18th century, mathematicians have suspected that even fair coins tend to land on one side slightly more often than the other. Proving this tiny bias (偏见), however, would require hundreds of thousands of carefully recorded coin tosses, making laboratory tests a nightmare.
Franti ek Barto , currently a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Amsterdam, became fascinated by this challenge four years ago. He couldn’t round up enough volunteers to investigate it at first. “Nobody was stupid enough to spend a couple of weekends tossing coins,” he says. But after he began his Ph.D. studies, he tried again, recruiting 47 volunteers (many of them friends and fellow students) from six countries. Multiple weekends of coin tossing later, the team had performed 350,757 tosses, breaking the previous record of 40,000.
The tossed coins, according to previous findings, landed with the same side facing upward as before the toss 50.8 percent of the time. The large number of throws allows statisticians to conclude that the nearly one percent bias isn’t a fluke. “We can be quite sure there is a bias in coin tosses after this data set,” Barto says.
The leading theory explaining the subtle advantage comes from a 2007 physics study by statistician Persi Diaconis and his colleagues, whose calculations predicted a same-side bias of 51 percent. From the moment a coin is launched into the air, its entire path in the air — including whether it lands on heads or tails — can be calculated by the laws of mechanics. The researchers determined that coins in the air barely turn around their symmetrical axis (对称轴); instead they tend to move off-center unsteadily, which causes them to spend a little more time in the air with their initial “up” side on top.
For day-to-day decisions, coin tosses are as good as random because a one percent bias isn’t perceptible with just a few coin tosses, says another statistician who wasn’t involved in the new research. Still, the study’s conclusions should eliminate any doubt that still exists regarding the coin toss’s slim bias.
It isn’t difficult to prevent this bias from influencing your coin-toss matches; simply concealing the coin’s starting position before tossing it should do the trick. Alternatively, you can do away with tossing altogether by shaking the coin between your palms. But if your friends are unaware of the tiny bias, you may as well benefit from your slight advantage. After all, 51 percent odds beat a lot.
63. Why was it difficult to prove the tiny bias in coin tosses
A. Because it required a large number of trials and loads of tests.
B. Because few scientists and researchers were interested in this topic.
C. Because scientists lacked the ability and technique to conduct this study.
D. Because previous researches failed many times and scientists lost confidence.
64. The meaning of the underlined word fluke in paragraph 3 most probably refers to something that ____________.
A. happens by accident B. can be planned in advance
C. occurs under specific conditions D. can be gained by practice
65. What can we imply from the last paragraph
A. This one percent bias matters little in real life.
B. We should rely on this one percent bias to help us.
C. Though unnoticeable, we may still take advantage of this bias.
D. Relying on the one percent bias to win a coin-toss match is unfair.
66. What is the best title of this passage
A. Risk-takers Experts recommend coin-toss matches.
B. Luck or Maths Here’re some tips on tossing coins.
C. Coin collectors There’re stories behind each coin.
D. Heads or Tails Research suggests it’s not 50-50.
2024·上海嘉定·二模
（C）
Imagine this. You need an image of a balloon for a work presentation and turn to an AI text-to- image generator, like Midjourney or DALL-E, to create a suitable image. You enter the prompt （提示词） "red balloon against a blue sky" but the generator returns an image of an egg instead.
What's going on The generator you're using may have been "poisoned". What does this mean Text-to-image generators work by being trained on large datasets that include millions or billions of images. Some of the generators have been trained by indiscriminately scraping online images, many of which may be under copyright. This has led to many copyright infringement （侵害） cases where artists have accused big tech companies of stealing and profiting from their work.
This is also where the idea of "poison" comes in. Researchers who want to empower individual artists have recently created a tool named "Nightshade" to fight back against unauthorised image scraping. The tool works by slightly altering an image's pixels （像素） in a way that confuses the computer vision system but leaves the image unaltered to a human's eyes. If an organization then scrapes one of these images to train a future AI model, its data pool becomes "poisoned". This can result in mistaken learning, which makes the generator return unintended results. As in our earlier example, a balloon might become an egg.
The higher the number of "poisoned" images in the training data, the greater the impact. Because of how generative AI works, the damage from "poisoned" images also affects related prompt keywords. For example, if a "poisoned" image of a Picasso work is used in training data, prompt results for masterpieces from other artists can also be affected.
Possibly, tools like Nightshade can be abused by some users to intentionally upload "poisoned" images in order to confuse AI generators. But the Nightshade's developer hopes the tool will make big tech companies more respectful of copyright. It does challenge a common belief among computer scientists that data found online can be used for any purpose they see fit.
Human rights activists, for example, have been concerned for some time about the indiscriminate use of machine vision in wider society. This concern is particularly serious concerning facial recognition. There is a clear connection between facial recognition cases and data poisoning, as both relate to larger questions around technological governance. It may be better to see data poisoning as an innovative solution to the denial of some fundamental human rights.
63. The underlined word "scraping" （para. 2） is closest in meaning to ____.
A. facilitating B. collecting C. damaging D. polishing
64. According to the passage, adding poisoned data might ____.
A. increase the accuracy of returned information
B. cause users to forget the prompt key words
C. interfere with the training of generative AI
D. discriminate against great masterpieces
65. What can be inferred from the last two paragraphs
A. Data poisoning is somehow justified to direct attention to human rights.
B. Computer scientists has learned to respect the copyright of most artists.
C. Nightshade is being abused by human rights activists to recognize faces.
D. The issue of technological governance has aroused the lawyers' interest.
66. Which of the following might be the best title of the passage
A. Data Poisoning: Government Empowering Citizens to Protect Themselves
B. Data Poisoning: Addressing Facial Recognition Issues Among Artists
C. Data Poisoning: Risks and Rewards of Generative AI Data Training
D. Data Poisoning: Restricting Innovation or Empowering Artists
2024·上海长宁·二模
C
THE GLOBAL WASTE TRADE IS ESSENTIALLY BROKEN
Cut into hillside in northern Malaysia stands a large, open-air warehouse. This is a recycling factory, which opened last November. On a very hot afternoon in January, Shahid Ali was working his very first week on the job. He stood knee-deep in soggy, white bits of plastic. Around him, more bits floated of the conveyor belt and fell to the ground like snowflakes.
Hour after hour, Ali sorts through the plastic jumble moving down the belt, picking out pieces that look off-color or soiled-rejects (废品) in the recycling process. Though it looks like backbreaking work, Ali says it is a great improvement over his previous job, folding bed-sheets in a nearby textile factory, for much lower pay. Now, if he eats simply, he can save money from his wages of just over $l an hour and send $250 a month to his parents and six brothers and sisters in Peshawar, Pakistan, 2,700 miles away, “As soon as I heard about this work, I asked for a job,” says Ali, 24, a bearded man with glasses and an easy smile. Still, he’s working 12 hours a day, seven days a week. “If I take a day off, I lose a day’s wages,” he says.
In the warehouse, hundreds of bags are stacked more than 60 feet high-each stuffed with plastic wrappers and bags thrown away weeks earlier by their original users in California. The fact that the waste has traveled to this distant corner of the planet in the first place shows how badly the global recycling economy has failed to keep pace with humanity’s plastics addiction. This is an ecosystem that is deeply dysfunctional, if not on the point of collapse: About 90% of the millions of tons of plastic the world produces every year will eventually end up not recycled, but burned, buried, or dumped.
Plastic recycling enjoys ever-wider support among consumers: Putting yogurt containers and juice bottles in a blue bin is an eco-friendly act of faith in millions of households. But faith goes only so far. The tidal wave of plastic items that enters the recycling stream each year is increasingly likely to fall right back out again, casualties of a broken market. Many products that consumers believe (and industries claim) are “recyclable" are in reality not, because of hard economics. With oil and gas prices near 20-year lows, so-called virgin plastic, a product of petroleum feed-stocks, is now far cheaper and easier to obtain than recycled material. That unforeseen shift has yanked the financial rug out from under what was until recently a practical recycling industry. “The global waste trade is essentially broken,” says the head of the global plastics campaign at Greenpeace. “We are sitting on vast amounts of plastic with nowhere to send it and nothing to do with it.”
43. What is the author’s attitude towards Shahid Ali
A. Critical. B. Merciless. C. Indifferent. D. Sympathetic.
44. What most probably causes the problem of global waste recycling
A. The prices of oil and gas have been increasing.
B. Tons of wastes travel so far before being recycled.
C. Recyclable products are not really recycled.
D. Governments don’t support the recycling industry.
45. What does the italicized word “dysfunctional” mean in the passage
A. Out of stock. B. Far from pleased. C. Full of energy. D. Out of order.
46. What is the author’s purpose of writing this article
A. To illustrate how plastic waste has been recycled in the world.
B. To warn people that the global waste trade is essentially broken.
C. To analyze the relationship between consumers and factories.
D. To solve the conflict between the recycling industry and governments.
2024·上海崇明·二模
(C)
For a long time, psychologists agreed with the findings of Roy Baumeister, whose research showed that willpower was a limited resource that could easily be exhausted through use. His book, Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, has long been seen as the typical handbook on this subject. Plus, hundreds of experiments showed that when people had to complete two back-to-back tasks which both required willpower, they would demonstrate less willpower on the second task.
From this research, willpower came to be understood as a “brain muscle” that would grow more tired the longer you used it. With adequate rest and recovery, the muscle’s energy would be restored, and willpower levels would return to normal. This made sense and even opened the door for an optimistic long-term approach to willpower: You could improve your willpower by using it regularly, just as you can strengthen a muscle through exercise.
However, just because an idea sounds good doesn’t mean it’s true. Later research failed to find Baumeister’s willpower exhaustion effect. And other research even showed that willpower exhaustion can be reversed if you have a positive belief about what hard work does for you. If you believe using willpower is draining, you’ll experience it as draining, but if you believe it energizes you, you’ll be energized. In other words, what you believe about willpower might be a self-fulfilling prophecy.
The trouble is that studying a psychological quality like willpower in the lab is very difficult. Willpower experiments greatly oversimplify the human experience and don’t reflect how willpower is used in the real world. Sample sizes are usually small because of limited funding, and it’s difficult to find diverse subjects. It almost certainly matters how meaningful the willpower-requiring task is to the person doing it, and laboratory experiments generally don’t ask participants to perform meaningful tasks.
Furthermore, there are a great many factors that can affect how much willpower an individual has. Willpower levels change from moment to moment and day to day. Someone who has excellent willpower in one situation might have terrible willpower in another. You might have high self-control one day and low self-control another.
So we just don’t know how willpower really works, and we might never know. People may or may not have a limited amount of willpower. Believing you have unlimited willpower might help you work harder than you otherwise would, or it might lead to overconfidence.
63. Roy Baumeister’s book, Willpower: Rediscovering the Greatest Human Strength, is mentioned at the beginning of the passage in order to show that _____.
A. willpower as a limited resource has been widely accepted
B. his book is very popular among people in various fields
C. willpower is essential in completing back-to-back tasks
D. a great many experiments has been done on willpower
64. By “a self-fulfilling prophecy” in paragraph 3, the author means that _____.
A. with enough rest, willpower can recover itself
B. with the right attitude, we can own our willpower
C. we can fulfil our dream as long as we have willpower
D. there is a fixed amount of willpower if we think positively
65. The author implies in the passage that we should _____.
A. view willpower as unlimited to fully cultivate our potential
B. try doing different tasks when our willpower levels change
C. stop doing research on willpower since it is too changeable
D. treat willpower critically as it’s hard to get a full picture of it
66. Which of the following is the best title for the passage
A. The Definition of Willpower B. The Great Willpower Debate
C. The Importance of Willpower D. Strategies to Increase Willpower

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