Section C Directions: There are 2 passages in this section. Each passage is followed by some questions or unfinished statements. For each of them there are four choices marked A), B), C) and D ). You should decide on the best choice and mark the corresponding letter on Answer Sheet 2 with a single line through the centre.57、Questions 57-66 are based on the following passage.
"Does my smile look big in this?" Future fitting-room mirrors in clothing stores could subtly adjust your reflection to make you look--and hence feel--happier, encouraging you to like what you see.
That's the idea behind the Emotion Evoking System developed by Shigeo Yoshida and colleagues at the University of Tokyo in Japan. The system can manipulate your emotions and personal preferences by presenting you with an image of your own smiling or frowning face.
The principle that physiological (生理的) changes can drive emotional ones-that laughter comes before happiness, rather than the other way around--is a well-established idea.
The researchers wanted to see if this idea could be used to build a computer system that manipulates how you feel. The system works by presenting the user with a webcam (网络摄像头) image of his or her face--as if they were looking in a mirror. The image is then subtly altered with software, turning the comers of the mouth up or down and changing the area around the eyes, so that the person appears to smile or frown.
Without telling them the aim of the study, the team recruited 21 volunteers and asked them to sit in front of the screen while performing an unrelated task. When the task was complete the participants rated how they felt. When the faces on screen appeared to smile, people reported that they felt happier.Conversely, when the image was given a sad expression, they reported feeling less happy.
Yoshida and his colleagues tested whether manipulating the volunteers' emotional state would influence their preferences. Each person was given a scarf to wear and again presented with the altered webcam image. The volunteers that saw themselves smiling while wearing the scarf were more likely to report that they liked it, and those that saw themselves not smiling were less likely.
The system could be used to manipulate consumers' impressions of products, say the researchers. For example, mirrors in clothing-store fitting rooms could be replaced with screens showing altered reflections. They also suggest people may be more likely to find clothes attractive if they see themselves looking happy while trying them on.
"It's certainly an interesting area," says Chris Creed at the University of Birmingham, UK. But he notes that using such technology in a shop would be harder than in the lab, because people will use a wide range of expressions. "Attempting to make slight differences to these and ensuring, that the reflected image looks believable would be much more challenging," he says.
Of course, there are also important ethical questions surrounding such subtly manipulative technology."You could argue that if it makes people happy what harm is it doing?" says Creed. "But I can imagine that many people may feel manipulated, uncomfortable and cheated if they found out."
What's the main purpose of the Emotion Evoking System?
A.To see whether one's feeling can be unconsciously affected.
B.To see whether one's facial expressions can be altered.
C.To see whether laughter comes before happiness.
D.To replace the mirrors in future clothing-store fitting rooms.
58、 What can we learn about the webcam image in the study?
A.It recorded the volunteers' performance in the task.
B.It gave the volunteers an illusion.
C.It attempted to make the volunteers feel happier.
D.It altered the volunteers' looks in the mirror.
59、 What would probably happen if the researchers' suggestions were to be taken?
A.People would totally change their personal preferences.
B.People would feel cheated and angry.
C.People would buy some clothes they don't like.
D.People would try on more clothes they like.
60、 What does Creed mention as a limitation of the technology?
A.It only changes the areas around the mouth and the eyes.
B.It only works in clothing stores.
C.It only makes subtle changes to people's expressions.
D.It only deals with a.limited number of facial expressions.
61、 What does Creed's comment on the ethical issues with this technology imply?
A.Nothing is more important than happiness.
B.People should make their decisions independently.
C.Technology is unable to manipulate people.
D.People should not base their happiness on technology.
62、Questions 62-71 are based on the following passage.
Recently, a controversial study on twins claims to provide evidence that the genes we inherit have a bigger impact on exam success than schooling and parenting.
The study was designed by Robert Plomin at King's College London and his colleagues, to make clear the impact of genes and the environment on educational achievement. The key objective was to see how exam scores varied from the national average depending on whether twins had the same genetic make-up, as identical twins do, or shared only half of their genes, which is true for non-identical twins. Each pair shared the same environment and schooling.
It seems that nature defeats nurture. The team looked at 5474 pairs of twins--2008 of them identical--and analyzed their achievement in GCSEs (普通中等教育证书) . They found that genetics accounted for 52 percent of the differences between exam scores. A shared upbringing accounted for 36 per cent of the differences, with the remainder influenced by other factors that weren't shared, such as having a different teacher.
What does this mean for children who haven't inherited academic genes? "Marginalization (边缘化) of the 'less gifted' does not follow from finding genetic influence on educational achievement," says Plomin."If anything the opposite is true--we need to provide more resources for those who need the most help."
Plomin also says that, although it is too early for these results to have an impact on our education system, the findings should inform debate on how education is delivered. "One strong implication of recognizing genetically driven differences between children is to personalize education as much as possible, rather than imposing a one-size-fits-all (一刀切) approach," he says.
Some researchers are suspicious, including Steven Rose of the UK's Open University. He says that twin studies are "subject to difficulties of interpretation". For instance, the unusual upbringings of identical twins---often wearing exactly the same clothes or being confused with one another---constitute an environmental impact that could be overlooked. But he agrees with Plomin that child-focused rather than rote (死记硬背) education is the way forward. "In an ideal school environment, individual aptitudes should be encouraged, but you don't need to, and nor would it be feasible to sequence a child's genome (基因组)to discover what these aptitudes might be," he says.
Even if it were possible to analyze every child's genetics, no single genes for intelligence have yet been identified, says Sarah Norcross of the UK Progress Educational Trust. Most studies so far have found that educational achievement is influenced by a combination of thousands of genes. "We don't even understand the genetics of height yet, which is very easy to measure," says Norcross. "So we are light years from applying this type of thing to education."
According to the study, which of the following pairs is most likely to have similar academic achievements?
A.Identical twins with a shared upbringing.
B.Non-identical twins with a shared upbringing.
C.Identical twins with different teachers.
D.Non-identical twins with the same teachers.
63、 What does Plomin think the results of the study indicate?
A.The results will have a huge impact on education system.
B.Children with no academic genes should be ignored.
C.Teaching should be based on genetic differences between children.
D.The results provide evidence against the present education system.
64、 What does Steven Rose point out as a problem of the study?
A.It is feasible only when personal aptitudes are discovered.
B.It doesn't identify specific genes for intelligence.
C.It fails to take other possible factors into account.
D.The upbringing plays a more important role in exam success.
65、 What can we learn from Plomin'.s and Rose's opinions about the present education system?
A.Those children who need the most help are likely to be ignored.
B.Individual differences are not paid enough attention to.
C.Resources are distributed according to whether a child is "gifted" or not.
D.Rote learning cannot contribute to academic achievements.
66、 What's Noreross's attitude toward applying the results of the study to education?
A.Optimisti
B.Pessimisti
C.Neutral.
D.Indifferent.