Passage Three
Oceanography has been defined as "The application of all sciences to the study of the sea".
Before the nineteenth century, scientists with an interest in the sea were few and far between. Certainly Newton considered some theoretical aspects of it in his writings, but he was reluctant (不愿意) to go to sea to further his work.
For most people the sea was remote, and with the exception of early intercontinental travellers or others who earned a living from the sea, there was little reason to ask many questions about it, let alone to ask what lay beneath the surface. The first time that the question "What is at the bottom of the oceans" had to be answered with any commercial consequence was when the laying of a telegraph cable from Europe to America was proposed. The engineers had to know the depth profile (起伏形状) of the route to estimate the length of cable that had to be manufactured.
It was to Maury of the U. S.
A. to make some sound experiments in the oceans
B. to collect samples of sea plants animals
C. to estimate the length of cable that was to be made
D. to measure the depths of two oceans
Productivity is the yardstick by which socioeconomic revolutions are measured. Plows initiated the agrarian revolution by greatly improving the productivity of farmers. Engines, and (1) electricity, (2) the industrial revolutions by (3) improving the productivity of workers in manufacturing and transportation. If there is to be a true in formation revolution, then computers will have to (4) the pattern with information and information work.
Information technology has (5) begun to improve productivity, and it has even hurt it in some cases; it takes longer to wade (6) those endless automated phone answering menus (7) it does to talk to a human operator. (8) , productivity will rise (9) computers and communications are used in the Informa-tion Marketplace to relieve people of brain work (10) industrial machinery relieved us of physical work.
The Information Marketplace will give (11) to tw
A. slightly
B. considerably
C. completely
D. drastically
In a new book called Predictions, some of the world’s greatest thinkers present a vision of the future with overtones of a science fiction film. Futuristic author Arthur C Clarke and others suggest that a new life form will evolve from artificially intelligent machines. Humans vying for dominance will turn to genetics and cryogenics to compete.
Clarke, although he is seen as a visionary, has got it wrong before. There’s no sign of Hal the dominating computer from the film 2001: A Space Odyssey (written by Arthur C Clarke) appearing on the horizon next year to dominate human life. Even so, computers have changed the way that we work and play. The Internet is changing business, seemingly sweeping everything along on an e-tide. The Web will change the way we work -- more of us will work from home.
Futurist Ian Pearson sees a convergence between intelligent computers and biotechnology, the advent of implanted chips and enhanced intelligence. Both machines
A. the speed of computers is faster than ever
B. scientists encounter unprecedented difficulties
C. the intelligence of computers is more important than the speed
D. there is much room for the improvement of computer intelligence
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