Question

Around this time a few years ago, it was common to see videos of friends on social media having a bucket of icy water thrown on them. Known as the “ice bucket challenge”, it was created as a way to raise money for the medical condition ALS. But now, there’s a new challenge and this time, no water is involved.

What is it? Well, think of a fruit that you’d never normally sink your teeth into. Perhaps you’ve got it: a lemon. While we enjoy using lemons to add flavor to dishes, very few of us would actually eat one as we’d eat an apple or an orange.

But the horrible taste is the precise reason why the “lemon face challenge” is taking off. Participants bite into a lemon, taking a selfie as they do it before posting the photo online. The fun is all about expression people make as all that citric acid (柠檬酸) hits their taste buds (味蕾). Every expression seems to say, “This is worse than freezing water.”

The serious side to this trend is the good cause it’s all in aid of. The challenge aims to raise awareness of a rare brain cancer that affects young children. It was started by Aubregh Nicholas, an 11-year-old US kid. She was diagnosed with this rare brain cancer herself in September 2017, but has since raised almost $50000 to cover her medical expenses thanks to the challenge.

If a challenge is going to raise publicity and contributions from people, it has to be something interesting and original. That way the ice bucket challenge took off in 2014 and it explains why so many people are now sharing their lemon faces. There are a lot of stories about the downside of social media these days. The charity challenges, however, show how online culture can unite the world and bring help to the people who most need it.

1.Why is the icy bucket challenge mentioned in the article?

A. To show how charity gained its popularity online.

B. To introduce a similar challenge that raises money for charity.

C. To attract people’s attention to a rare disease.

D. To prove its popularity around the world.

2.Compared with the pre-Internet charity, what is the advantage of online charity?

A. It raises more money than ever before.

B. It is started by the people who suffer rare diseases.

C. It brings people together easily and quickly.

D. It causes little doubt among people.

3.What does the underlined phrase “take off’ in the last paragraph mean?

A. Go away suddenly.    B. Become successful and popular.

C. Remove your clothes.    D. Take a break.

4.What is the author’s attitude towards online charity?

A. Positive.    B. Indifferent.

C. Negative.    D. Ambiguous.

Answer

1.B

2.C

3.B

4.A

【解析】

本文是一篇议论文。继“冰桶挑战”之后，又一网红挑战“柠檬脸挑战”引发了全球关注。近年来有不少关于社交媒体的负面消息。然而这些慈善挑战却体现了网络文化如何能够联合世界各地的人，帮助那些最需要帮助的人。

1.推理判断题。根据第一段中it was common to see videos of friends on social media having a bucket of icy water thrown on them. Known as the “ice bucket challenge”, it was created as a way to raise money for the medical condition ALS. But now, there’s a new challenge and this time, no water is involved.可知，在文章中提到了“冰桶挑战”是为了引入一个类似的挑战，为慈善事业筹集资金。故选B。

2.推理判断题。根据最后一段中That way the ice bucket challenge took off in 2014 and it explains why so many people are now sharing their lemon faces. There are a lot of stories about the downside of social media these days. The charity challenges, however, show how online culture can unite the world and bring help to the people who most need it.可知，与互联网前的慈善机构相比，在线慈善的优势是它能让人们轻松快速地聚在一起。故选C。

3.词义猜测题。根据最后一段中If a challenge is going to raise publicity and contributions from people, it has to be something interesting and original. That way the ice bucket challenge took off in 2014 and it explains why so many people are now sharing their lemon faces.可知，如果一个挑战是要提高公众的知名度和贡献，那就必须是一些有趣和原创的东西。就是这样，“冰桶挑战”在2014年获得成功，这也解释了为什么现在有那么多人在分享他们的柠檬脸。由此推知划线词的意思是“获得成功”，故选B。

4.推理判断题。根据最后一段最后两句There are a lot of stories about the downside of social media these days. The charity challenges, however, show how online culture can unite the world and bring help to the people who most need it.可知，近年来有不少关于社交媒体的负面消息。然而这些慈善挑战却体现了网络文化如何能够联合世界各地的人，帮助那些最需要帮助的人。作者对在线慈善的态度是“肯定的”，故选A。