Worried about the loss of rainforests and the ozone layer？Well，neither of those is doing any worse than a large majority of the 6，000 to 7，000 languages that remain in use on Earth.One half of the survivors will almost certainly be gone by 2050，while 40% more will probably be well on their way out.In their place，almost all humans will speak a small number of languages——Mandarin，English，Spanish.
Linguists（語言學(xué)家）know what causes languages to disappear，but what's less often remarked is what happens on the way to disappearance：languages' vocabularies，grammars and expressive potential all disappear. "Say a community goes over from speaking a traditional Aboriginal（土著的）language to speaking a Creole，" says Australian Nick Evans，a language experts， "you leave behind a language where there's very fine vocabulary for the landscape.All of that is gone in a Creole.As speakers become less able to express the wealth of knowledge that has filled ancestors' lives with meaning over thousands of years，it's no wonder that communities tend to become weakened."
Due to the huge losses，some linguists struggle against the situation，for example，training many documentary linguists in language-loss hotspots such as West Africa and South America.
However，not all approaches to the preservation of languages will be particularly helpful.Some linguists are boasting（自夸）of more and more complicated means of recording languages：digital recording and storage，the Internet and mobile phone technologies.But these are encouraging the quick style of recording trip：fly in，switch on digital recorder，fly home，download to hard drive，and store gathered material for future research.That's not quite what some endangered-language experts have been seeking.Michael Krauss from the University of Alaska complained openly that linguists are playing with technology research while most of their raw data is disappearing.
Who is to blame？Linguists who go out into communities to study，document and describe languages，argue that theoretical linguists，like Noam Chomsky，who draw conclusions about how languages work，have had so much influence that linguistics has largely ignored the continuing disappearance of languages.
（1）Why does the author mention rainforests and the ozone layer in Paragraph 1？ DD
A．To highlight they are of great importance.
B．To show their connection with language loss
C．To indicate anxiety about environmental issues.
D．To introduce the topic concerning language loss.
（2）What does Nick Evans say about the effects of language disappearance？ AA
A．People find it hard to describe their culture.
B．Vocabularies have to be changed.
C．People tend to turn to ancestors more
D．Focus is switched on new grammars.
（3）What has Michael Krauss pointed out？ BB
A．Digital age further promotes some endangered languages.
B．An instant approach to language recording may not work.
C．Linguists have made poor use of improvement in technology.
D．Linguists' quick style of recording trip should be encouraged.
（4）What can be concluded from the text？ CC
A．By 2050 only 600 to 700 languages will remain.
B．Local languages are preserved perfectly in West Africa.
C．Theoretical linguists may be responsible for the loss of languages.
D．Linguists have come a long way to save endangered languages.
【考點(diǎn)】文學(xué)與藝術(shù)；說明文．
【答案】D；A；B；C
【解答】
【點(diǎn)評】
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發(fā)布：2024/11/26 8:0:26組卷：17引用：1難度：0.5
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1．About 20 years ago，Daniel Hoffman，a classically trained violinist met a young musician playing in the town square in Marrakech，an ancient city in Morocco.They communicated in the little French they both knew，but their main common language was music.On the back of a motorbike of the fellow violinist，Hoffman weaved through the back streets of the city and then learned his first lessons in Andalusian music，the classical music of North Africa.
That experience gave birth to an idea：What would it be like to try to learn how to play different violin styles around the world in just one week？Oh，yes，and at the end of that week，play a concert.He even got a name for the concept "musical extreme sports".
It took him almost two decades to launch that dream with a friend，who introduced him to the wonders of Kickstarter，a funding platform for creative projects.Up to now，the dream has taken the form of a new documentary currently airing on American public television stations called "Otherwise，It's Just Firewood."
In the documentary，Hoffman travels to County Clare，Ireland，where he takes lessons with James Kelly，a master Irish violin player，for less than a week and then performs together with him in front of an audience，many of whom are star Irish musicians.
The film is what Hoffman hopes will be the first of an eventual series of short documentaries，showing him learning to play the violin in a variety of styles，including the folk music of south India，Sweden，Greece，Romania，and West Virginia.
That would add to his extensive repertoire（全部曲目），which already includes Balkan，Middle Eastern，and Turkish styles."The big joke is what's the difference between the fiddle and the violin？It's the person who plays it，" says Niall Keegan，a traditional flute player."It's the music you make on it that makes it Irish or English or French or classical or jazz or whatever else.It's how we imagine it and how we create through it that make it and give it character."
"Otherwise，it's just firewood，" he says，words that became the film's title.
（1）Where does Hoffman's idea of musical extreme sports come from？
A．His exploration of the local music.
B．His cooperation with the young violinist.
C．His sightseeing tour on a motorbike seat.
D．His constantly changing taste in violin styles.
（2）According to the passage，the series of documentaries.
A．help Hoffman to become a master violin player
B．a(chǎn)re funded by American public television stations
C．introduce different styles of musicians around the world
D．record Hoffman's experience in learning various violin styles
（3）The title of the documentary "Otherwise，It's Just Firewood" is used to emphasize.
A．the power of diversified artistic expression
B．the pleasure in learning traditional music
C．the technique of instrument playing
D．the importance of famous artists發(fā)布：2025/1/1 15:0:2組卷：28引用：4難度：0.5 -
2．The Mozart in the Machine Sometime in the coming decades，an external system that collects and analyzes biometric data （生物特征數(shù)據(jù)） will probably be able to understand what's going on in my body and in my brain much better than me.What will it do to art？Will art remain humanity's last line of defense against the rise of the all-knowing algorithms （算法）？
In the modern world art is usually associated with human emotions.We tend to think that artists are controlling internal psychological forces，and that the whole purpose of art is to connect us with our emotions or to inspire in us some new feeling.Consequently，when we come to evaluate art，we tend to judge it by its emotional impact and to believe that beauty is in the eye of the beholder.
In 1952，the composer John Cage composed a musical piece 4'33" This piece consists of 4 minutes and 33 seconds during which no instrument plays anything.The piece encourages the audience to observe their inner experiences in order to examine what music is and what we expect of it.The message is that it is our own expectations and emotions that define music.
If art is defined by human emotions，what might happen once external algorithms are able to understand and manipulate human emotions better than Shakespeare，Picasso or Lennon？After all，emotions are not some mysterious forces —they are a biochemical process.Therefore，given enough biometric data and enough computing power，it might be possible to hack （入侵） love，hate，boredom and joy.
Of all forms of art，music is probably the most sensitive to Big Data analysis，because the inputs are the mathematical patterns of soundwaves，and the outputs are the electrochemical signals.Allow a learning machine to go over millions of musical experiences，and it will learn how particular inputs result in particular outputs.
Therefore，in the long run，algorithms may learn how to compose entire tunes，playing on human emotions as if they were a piano keyboard.Using your personal biometric data，the algorithms could even produce personalized melodies，which you alone in the entire world would appreciate.
Will this result in great art？That depends on the definition of art.If beauty is indeed in the ears of their listener，then biometric algorithms stand a chance of producing the best art in history.If art is about something deeper than human emotions，biometric algorithms might not make very good artists.But nor would most humans.In order to enter the art market，algorithms won't have to begin by straight away beating Beethoven.It is enough if they outperform Justin Bieber.
（1）The author mentions the musical piece 4'33" to.
A．discuss the effect of silence in a musical piece
B．emphasize its emotional impact on the audience
C．show the significance of emotions in defining music
D．encourage the audience to observe their inner experiences
（2）What does the underlined word "manipulate" in Paragraph 4 mean？
A．Influence.
B．Cover.
C．Present.
D．Appreciate.
（3）What can we learn from this passage？
A．Computers will take the place of artists one day.
B．Human emotions are much more than biochemical signals.
C．Art is the final wall of humanity against the all-knowing algorithms.
D．Personalized music may be available for people to enjoy in the future.
（4）What is the author's attitude towards the future of algorithms music？
A．Uncertain.
B．Pessimistic.
C．Confused.
D．Positive.發(fā)布：2025/1/1 17:0:1組卷：17引用：3難度：0.6 -
3．How similar are language and music？ Language is part of our daily lives，no matter where we live in the world. （1）
Both language and music play a huge role in our culture and here are some of their similarities.
Both language and music have a writing system.
In English we record language using the alphabet，which is a collection of letters.Similarly，we use notes （音符） to keep a record of music.Musicians read notes and create meaning in the form of music. （2）By writing pieces of text or music，we are able to share experiences through time.We can read the ideas or hear the composition （作品） of someone who lived hundreds of years ago.
（3）
You can make a good guess at where someone is from by listening to the language he uses.In the same way，we know that styles of music are different around the world，giving us the opportunity to explore many different cultures through their music and providing us with music for every situation.
Both share emotion.
（4）Of course you may be able to see it in my face，but you will know for sure through my words.Similarly，music can sound angry，sad or happy.Music can show you exactly how the composer was or is feeling，and allows us to share that emotion.When you feel happy，you might want to sing and dance to a happy song to celebrate your happiness. （5）I think we have all used music to express or process our emotions，often combining it with language in the form of song lyrics （歌詞）.
A.Both are expressive.
B.Both vary with culture.
C.How do you know that I am angry？
D.We use language to express our thoughts.
E.Similarly，music is part of many people's lives.
F.So just as you read English，you can read music.
G.In contrast，you probably also listen to sad music when you are feeling down.發(fā)布：2025/1/1 16:30:1組卷：5引用：3難度：0.7
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