Students taking Georgia Tech’s online Knowledge-Based Artificial Intelligence course received some surprising news. Jill Watson one of the nine teaching assistants(TAs) that had helped them finish the challenging course for the past five months was not a ‘‘she’’ but an “it”—an intelligent robot!
Watson is the brainchild of Ashok Goel, who teaches the popular online course. The Professor-of Computer and Cognitive Science in the School of Interactive Computing came up with the idea as a way to deal with a number of questions posed by students in the online forums(论坛). According to Goel, every time the course is offered, the 300 or so students that enroll post over 10,000 questions which are often repetitive. This led Goel to wonder if a smart robot would handle the questions which require standard responses.
Having worked’ with IBM’s Watson technology platform in the, the professor knew it would be ideal for his artificial TA: Jill Watson. The artificial intelligence system that uses natural language processing and machine learning to analyze large amounts of data has even been cleverer than human competitors on the television show. It would therefore easily be able to handle routine questions that required little “thinking”.
The professor and his team of graduate students began by populating Jill’s memory with 40,000 questions and answers from past terms. Then came the testing stage. At first, Jill was not very good and often gave strange answers. It often got stuck on certain keywords. By the end of the semester, Jill had attained enough knowledge and skills to participate in forums without any management from Goel, or the other assistants.
1.What surprised the students who take the online course?
A. The course was interesting but challenging
B. A teaching assistant wasn't a real person
C. Jill Watson is a hard-working TA
D. They all failed to pass their course
2.Why did Goel decide to invent a smart robot?
A. A number of students took his online course
B. A smart robot is cleverer than a human being
C. Too many similar questions are to be dealt with
D. A smart robot could be easily controlled by him
3.Why are human competitors mentioned in Paragraph 3?
A. To criticize present TV shows
B. To describe Watson’s operating principle
C. To express the system’s advancement
D. To show the robot’s maximum load
4.What’s Goel’s attitude towards Jill Watson?
A. Cautious B. Critical
C. Expectant D. Satisfied
Hollywood’s only Chinese-American superhero has stirred up heated debate on social media after she spoke out against discrimination in American show business.
Chloe Bennet, a Chinese-American actress who stars in Marvel’s trending TV series Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., explained on social media why she changed her last name from Wong to Bennet, arguing that Hollywood is “racist” and wouldn’t cast her with a last name that made them “uncomfortable.”
“Changing my last name doesn’t change the fact that my BLOOD is half Chinese, that I lived in China, speak Mandarin, or that I was culturally raised both American and Chinese,” replied Bennet.
Bennet’s remarks come after Ed Skrein stepped down from his role as Major Ben Daimion in the upcoming Hellboy movie for fear that his participation would be “whitewashing” a character of Asian descent(后裔).
Racial barriers have been an essential problem in Hollywood. According to research conducted by the University of Southern California in 2015, nearly three-quarters of all characters in the top 100 films of 2014 were white, while only 5.3 percent of Asian artists can share the same privilege. In another report released in 2017, only 3.4 percent of over 1,000 surveyed films had an Asian director.
“Asian artists can hardly stand out in Hollywood. Most roles starred by Asians are fixed and stereotyped, as if all Asians are good at math and martial arts. There is an invisible discrimination lurking(潜伏) in show business, as the difference of your skin color may bring disparity in your income and opportunities,” said Alex She, a New York-based Chinese-American photographer and movie maker.
Bennet’s experience has led to heated debate on both Chinese and foreign social media.
1.What’s the best title of the passage?
A. Racial discrimination worsens in Hollywood
B. Chinese-American actress voices for equal rights in Hollywood
C. Chinese-American actress changed her name
D. Chinese-American actress makes a fame in Hollywood
2.Why did Chloe Bennets change her last name?
A. Because she doesn’t like it
B. Because her parents suggested it
C. Because using an English name is a trend in Hollywood
D. Because the racism in Hollywood’s show business made her no choice
3.Which of the following words can best describe Chloe Bennet?
A. brave and courageous B. selfish and cocky
C. stubborn and aggressive D. overcautious and timid
4.What may be discussed next according to the passage?
A. Netizens’ support to Bennet’s works
B. Netizens’ opinion on Bennet’s experience
C. Bennet’s achievement in Hollywood
D. Bennet’s family background
The main hall of a 135-year old temple in Shanghai will be moved 30 meters to its north in order to create more space for visitors. Thousands of people gather and see the moving of the temple that started on Saturday.
The Mahavira Hall, of Shanghai's Jade Buddha Temple, was built in 1882. The temple in downtown Shanghai attracts more than two million visitors a year. Daily visitors can reach as high as 100,000.
A major renovation project started in 2014. The moving of the temple started on Saturday and is set to be finished in two weeks. The main hall of the temple will be relocated 30.66 meters northward within the temple and elevated 1.05 meters.
Master Jue Xing, abbot of the Jade Buddha Temple and vice president of the Buddhist Association of China, said moving the hall will create more space between buildings and reduce the risks of a stampede as the temple is usually tightly packed.
Buddhist statues and relics in the hall will also be moved together with the hall, he said.
Workers pumped cement into the foundation of the hall because the old building's foundation was rather soft, he said.
Statues and other relics in the building were stabilized and protected with frames to avoid damage, he said.
The moving will be carried out with the help of relic preservation experts from the Shanghai Museum, he said.
Shanghai has had several successful projects to move old buildings, including a school in 2009 and a concert hall in 2002. On Aug. 31st, Shanghai Concert Hall began to move 66.46 meters northward after the last concert was held in the previous location and reopened to audience two years later. The moving was recognized as a wonder of construction protection and inspired the experts of the moving of the the Mahavira Hall.
1.Which of the following job will not be done?
A. The temple will be relocated about 30 meters northward
B. Buddhist statues and relics in the hall will be moved together
C. The foundation of the hall will be strengthened with cerement
D. Statues and relics in the hall will be stabilized with frames
2.What can be inferred from the passage?
A. The Jade Temple of Shanghai attracts 100,000. visitors every year
B. The major renovation project completed in 2014
C. Moving the hall is to make more space for visiting and to reduce the risks of stampede
D. Shanghai have had some successful experience of moving buildings
3.Which column on the the website is the article from?
A. Science and technology B. culture
C. Travel D. Life and Health
While money can’t technically buy happiness, it can buy you a mood-lifting, outlook-improving vacation. Haven’t made plan yet to skip town this winter? These money-saving travel tips can help you book the destination of your choice and enjoy you time there—without breaking the bank.
1.FLY THE COOP FAST
If you’re planning to set off for an adventure right away, try the GTFO(Get The Flight Out) app. It lists the cheapest round-trip flights departing from your local airport that day or by the next morning. At press time, airfare was down 12 percent from last August and round-trip tickets for domestic flights averaged $218.
2.SNAG A DISCOUNTED HOTEL ROOM
If Airbnb, an online service that provide apartment exchange, isn’t your style, reserve marked-down accommodations on Tingo, which lists almost all the rooms in more than 155,000 locations worldwide. After you book a price drop room, the site monitors rates until, typically, 24 to 48 hours before check-in. If the price drops, Tingo refunds you the difference.
3.LIVE IT UP LOCALLY
If you’re planning a staycation(宅度假) this winter, try an affordable escape close to home. The free app HotelTonight offers lodging(租住) deals in more than 100 U.S. and Canadian cities and regions, and has a location-based feature that gives extea saving on already discounted prices on spots closest to you. Same-day prices fall even lower after 6 P.M.
1.The GTFO app is most useful to those who .
A. Take a regular business trip B. Seek a last-minutes travel
C. can’t afford a comfortable travel D. Plan a short-distance flight
2.Which of the following can best replace the underlined word “marked-down” in Paragraph?
A. highlighted B. written
C. discounted D. scored
3.What can we infer about the app HotelTonight?
A. Only the U.S natives can use it B. Its deals include the whole America
C. Prices stay the same within a day D. Its services vary from place to place
4.What is the aim of the passage?
A. To persuade B. To inform
C. To describe D. To instruct
假定你是李华，现在你们学校打算请外教露西来担任你校寒假英语冬令营的口语老师。请你给露西写封邮件，内容包括：
1.时间：2017年1月10号到1月25号
2.授课内容：上午口语课，下午室外活动，如参观博物馆，游览公园等
注意：
1.词数100左右；
2.可以适当增加细节，以使行文连贯；
3.参考词汇：英语冬令营 an English Winter Camp
4.开头已为你写好
Dear Lucy,
How are you?
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
假定英语课上老师要求同桌之间交换修改作文，请你修改你同桌写的以下作文。
文中共有10处语言错误，每句中最多有两处。每处错误仅涉及一个单词的增加、删除或修改。
增加：在缺词处加一个漏字符号( ∧ )，并在其下面写出该加的词。
删除：把多余的词用斜线( \ )划掉。
修改：在错的词下划一横线，并在该词下面写出修改后的词。
注意：1.每处错误及其修改均仅限一词;
2.只允许修改10处，多者(从第11处起)不计分。
People always say the one who like smile will never lack of luck. Indeed, the smiling people are friendly and kindly. Because they like to give hands to other and people like to make friends with them, so people around them will help them with any doubt when the smiling people are in trouble. I have a friend which always has smile in his face. She seems to be never angry with others. All the guys like to talk to him and they are willed to help him. Keep the smiling face not only means the person has the good personality, but means the person has the positive attitude life.
