Technology or tradition?科技還是傳統(tǒng)？

蔣建平

眾所周知，科技發(fā)展可以為人類和社會帶來各種便利，但新技術(shù)的使用是否會對一些歷史傳統(tǒng)造成沖擊？

主題語境：科技進步 篇幅：368詞 建議用時：7分鐘

1 Everyone looks forward to progress， whether in ones personal life or in the generalsociety. Progress indicates （象征） a person's ability to change the way he is living at the mo?ment. Progress must lead to a better life and a better way of doing things. All these， how?ever， remain true only in so far as people want to accept technology and move forward byfinding new and more efficient ways of doing things.

2 However， at the back of the minds of many people， especially those who miss the“good old days”， efficiency comes with a price. When communication becomes more effi?cient， people are able to contact one another no matter where they are and at whatever timethey wish to. The click of a button allows people miles apart to talk or see each other with?out even leaving their homes. With the communication gadgets， such as mobile phones andtablets （平板電腦）， people often do not take the effort to visit one another personally.

3 With efficiency also comes mass production. Factories have improved efficiency. Un?skillful tasks are left to machines and products are better made and produced with greateraccuracy than any human hand could ever have done. However， with the improvements inefficiency also comes the loss of the personal touch when making these products. For ex?ample， many handicrafts are now produced in a factory. Although this means that supply isbetter able to increase demand， now that the supply is quick and efficient， the demand?might fall because mass production lowers the quality of the handicraft and it is difficult tofind unique designs on each item.

4 Nevertheless， progress has allowed tradition to keep up. It is only with progress andthe invention of new technology that many old products can be brought back to their oldstate. New technology is required for old products to stay old.

5 It is peoples attitude towards progress that causes the type of influence that tech?nology has on society. Technology is flexible. There is no fixed way of making use of it.Everything depends on peoples attitude. When we accept progress and adapt it to suit ourneeds， a new“past”is created.

Reading

Check

1. How does the author explain“efficiency comes with a price”in paragraph 2？

A. By describing a process.

B. By using examples.

C. By following time order.

D. By making classification.

2. What does the underlined word“gadgets”in paragraph 2 mean？

A. Tools. B. Messages.

C. Barriers. D. Skills.

3. What can be learned about technology from paragraph 4？

A. It can destroy old traditions.

B. It can sometimes slow social progress.

C. It can be used to correct mistakes.

D. It can be used to protect old products.

4. What can be concluded from the last paragraph？

A. Progress can suit the needs of daily life.

B. People review the past with great regret.

C. Peoples attitude decides the use of technology.

D. Technology should be introduced in a fixed way.

Language

Study

Ⅰ. Useful expressions

look forward to 期待；盼望

lead to 導致；通往

move forward 前行

take the effort to do 費力去做……

now that 既然

have an influence on 對……有影響

make use of 利用

depend on 取決于

suit ones needs 滿足某人的需求

Ⅱ. 熟詞生義

However， at the back of the minds of many people， especially those who miss the“good old days”， efficiency comes with a price. 然而，在許多人的心中，尤其是那些懷念“過去的美好日子”的人，效率是有代價的。

price n. 代價

e.g. Giving up his job was a small price to pay for his childrens happiness. 放棄工作是他為子女幸福所付出的小小代價。