Digital Realm

　　In the digital realm, the next big advance will be voice recognition¹. The rudiments² are already here but in primitive form. Ask a computer to “recognize speech,” and it is likely to think you want it to “wreck a nice beach.”³ But in a decade or so we’ll be able to chat away⁴ and machines will soak it all in⁵. Microchips will be truly embedded in our lives when we can talk to them. Not only to our computers; we’ll also able to chat our automobile navigation systems, telephone consoles⁶, browsers, thermostats, VCRs, microwaves and any other devices we want to boss around⁷.
　　That will open the way to the next phase of the digital age: artificial intelligence⁸. By our providing so many thoughts and preferences to our machines each day, they’ll accumulate enough information about how we think so that they’ll be able to mimic our minds and act as our agents. Scary, huh⁹? But potentially quite useful. At least until they don’t need us anymore and start building even smarter machines they can boss around.
　　The law powering¹⁰ the digital age up until now has been Gordon Moore’s¹¹: that microchips will double in power and halve in price every 18 months or so. Bill Gates rules because early on he acted on the assumption that computing power—the capacity of microprocessors and memory chips—would become nearly free; his company kept churning out¹² more and more lines¹³ of complex software to make use of the cheap bounty¹⁴. The law that will power the next few decades is that the bandwidth (the capacity of fiber-optic and other pipelines to carry digital communications) will become nearly free.
　　Along with¹⁵ the recent advances in digital switching and storage technologies, this¹⁶ means a future in which all forms of content—movies, music, shows, books, data, magazines, newspapers, your aunt’s recipes and home videos—will be instantly available anywhere on demand. Anyone will be able to be a producer of any content; you’ll be able to create a movie or magazine, make it available to the world and charge for it, just like Time Warner¹⁷!
　　The result will be a transition from a mass-market¹⁸ world to a personalized one. Instead of centralized factories and studios that distribute or broadcast the same product to millions, technology is already allowing products to be tailored to each user. You can subscribe to news sources that serve up¹⁹ only topics and opinions that fit your fancy. Everything from shoes to steel can be customized to meet individual wishes.

词汇：

microchip / ˈmaɪkrə(ʊ)tʃɪp / n.微芯片；集成电路 bandwidth / "bændwɪdθ / n.（频）带宽
fiber-pitic  光纤

personalized / "pɜ:sənəlaɪz / v. 使个体化 

centralize / "sentrəlaɪz /  v. 集中；成为中心
customize / "kʌstəmaɪz /  v. 按顾客要求定做 

tailor / "teɪlə(r) /  v. 按要求制作
bounty / "baʊntɪ /  n. 慷慨；赠予物；奖金 

embed / ɪm"bed /  v.埋置；扎牢，扎人
browser / "braʊzə(r) /  n. 浏览器

scary / skeərɪ  / adj. 引起惊慌的；害怕的
thermostat / ˈθɜ:məstæt /  n. 恒温器 

churn out 机械地大量生产；粗制滥造

注释：

1. voice recognition:语音识别

2. rudiments:处于早期或未发展阶段的东西，常用复数形式。如： the rudiments of a plan of action （一个行动计划的雏形）。
3. Ask a computer to “ recognize speech.” and it is likely to think you want it to “ wreck It nice beach.”:你要求计算机“识别语音”，而它很可能认为你要它去“毁坏一个美丽的海滩”。这是一个翻译成中文后就无法反映的文字游戏。以较快的语速读“ recognize speech“，其声音效果很像“ wreck a nice”。使用这一文字游戏，旨在说明语音识别技术的难度。
4. chat away: 不停地聊。 away:意为“continuously”（连续地），如: It is raining away.雨不停地下着。
5. soak it all in:全部理解，这里的意思是 :能没有差错地识别语音，理解意思。
6. telephone consoles:电话机座。 console:意为“a cabinet for a radio, television set, or phonograph, designed to stand on the floor” (用来放置收音机、电视机或留声机的机箱或机柜；机座 )。
7. boss around:意为“ to give orders to, especially in a domineering manner”(发号施令 )。
8. artificial intelligence:人工智能
9. huh:语气词：用于表示疑问、吃惊、轻蔑或冷漠等，这里用于疑问。
10. power:动词，意为“激励”。
11. Gordon Moore：戈登·穆尔，英国英特尔公司创始人之一， Moore’s Law (穆尔定律)以他的名字命名。穆尔定律即是第三段中他的预言。
12. churning out:意为“to produce in an abundant and automatic manner”(大量产出 )，如: He churns out four novels a year.他一年出四本小说。

Which of the following statements is true of a personalized market?

A:The personalized market tends to be replaced by the mass market. B:The same product is distributed to millions of users. C:In a personalized market, products are tailored to each consumer. D:Individuals can control centralized factories and studios.

Which of the following is NOT included in the prescription of traditional free-market orthodoxy

A:Labor market B:Fiscal discipline C:Financial liberation D:Deregulation

The decline of PC market last year was triggered by______.

A:the collapse of chip market B:the bursting of IT bubble C:the 9. 11 terrorist attacks D:the barely recovered loss market

Questions from 36 to 40 are based on the following passage: There are a lot of “markets”. Some markets are local; you may be willing to compare prices for fruits and vegetables in a few shops in your local area, but you would be unwilling to go across the city to find out more information. Some markets are national. Many firms sell goods across the country. Some markets are global or international. Increasingly, more and more countries are involved in the world economy, whether they know about it or not. However, there are many other markets: labor markets for job seekers, supermarkets for grocery shopping, foreign exchange market, capital market, real estate markets and so on. And we must not overlook the fact that many services such as banking, insurance are also bought and sold on a worldwide scale. But what is a “market” Most people would say, “A market is a place where enough buyers and sellers meet face to face, so that a market price for goods and services can be determined.” However, with rapid growth of telecommunications, it is no longer necessary for buyers and sellers to physically meet to form a market. You may hear the terms “global market” or “global economy”. What do those terms mean to you What do they mean to business today Thanks to the Information Age we are seconds away from the rest of world. Business everywhere recognizes that they can expand their market to anywhere and do business at any time because of the Internet. Now, the Internet is the fastest growing market in the world today, yet buyers and sellers don’t even have to leave their own homes to transact business. In the modern world, a market can take many forms. Generally speaking, a market may be housed in a place, or it may exist only in people’s minds. And a market can be any place or process that brings together buyers and sellers with a view to agreeing to a price. Which of following markets is not mentioned in the passage （ ）

A:Asian market B:international market C:national market D:local market

Questions from 36 to 40 are based on the following passage: There are a lot of “markets”. Some markets are local; you may be willing to compare prices for fruits and vegetables in a few shops in your local area, but you would be unwilling to go across the city to find out more information. Some markets are national. Many firms sell goods across the country. Some markets are global or international. Increasingly, more and more countries are involved in the world economy, whether they know about it or not. However, there are many other markets: labor markets for job seekers, supermarkets for grocery shopping, foreign exchange market, capital market, real estate markets and so on. And we must not overlook the fact that many services such as banking, insurance are also bought and sold on a worldwide scale. But what is a “market” Most people would say, “A market is a place where enough buyers and sellers meet face to face, so that a market price for goods and services can be determined.” However, with rapid growth of telecommunications, it is no longer necessary for buyers and sellers to physically meet to form a market. You may hear the terms “global market” or “global economy”. What do those terms mean to you What do they mean to business today Thanks to the Information Age we are seconds away from the rest of world. Business everywhere recognizes that they can expand their market to anywhere and do business at any time because of the Internet. Now, the Internet is the fastest growing market in the world today, yet buyers and sellers don’t even have to leave their own homes to transact business. In the modern world, a market can take many forms. Generally speaking, a market may be housed in a place, or it may exist only in people’s minds. And a market can be any place or process that brings together buyers and sellers with a view to agreeing to a price. The stock market, banking services market and capital market can be described as（ ）.

A:supermarket B:financial market C:labor market D:real estate market

Questions from 36 to 40 are based on the following passage: There are a lot of “markets”. Some markets are local; you may be willing to compare prices for fruits and vegetables in a few shops in your local area, but you would be unwilling to go across the city to find out more information. Some markets are national. Many firms sell goods across the country. Some markets are global or international. Increasingly, more and more countries are involved in the world economy, whether they know about it or not. However, there are many other markets: labor markets for job seekers, supermarkets for grocery shopping, foreign exchange market, capital market, real estate markets and so on. And we must not overlook the fact that many services such as banking, insurance are also bought and sold on a worldwide scale. But what is a “market” Most people would say, “A market is a place where enough buyers and sellers meet face to face, so that a market price for goods and services can be determined.” However, with rapid growth of telecommunications, it is no longer necessary for buyers and sellers to physically meet to form a market. You may hear the terms “global market” or “global economy”. What do those terms mean to you What do they mean to business today Thanks to the Information Age we are seconds away from the rest of world. Business everywhere recognizes that they can expand their market to anywhere and do business at any time because of the Internet. Now, the Internet is the fastest growing market in the world today, yet buyers and sellers don’t even have to leave their own homes to transact business. In the modern world, a market can take many forms. Generally speaking, a market may be housed in a place, or it may exist only in people’s minds. And a market can be any place or process that brings together buyers and sellers with a view to agreeing to a price. Which of following is the fastest developing market according to the passage（ ）

A:home market B:labor market C:the Internet D:international trade market

Questions from 31 to 35 are based on the following passage: There are a lot of “markets”. Some markets are local; you may be willing to compare prices for fruits and vegetables in a few shops in your local area, but you would be unwilling to go across the city to find out more information. Some markets are national. Many firms sell goods across the country. Some markets are global or international. Increasingly, more and more countries are involved in the world economy, whether they know about it or not. However, there are many other markets: labor markets for job seekers, supermarkets for grocery shopping, foreign exchange market, capital market, real estate markets and so on. And we must not overlook the fact that many services such as banking, insurance are also bought and sold on a worldwide scale. But what is a “market” Most people would say, “A market is a place where enough buyers and sellers meet face to face, so that a market price for goods and services can be determined.” However, with rapid growth of telecommunications, it is no longer necessary for buyers and sellers to physically meet to form a market. You may hear the terms “global market” or “global economy”. What do those terms mean to you What do they mean to business today Thanks to the Information Age we are seconds away from the rest of world. Business everywhere recognizes that they can expand their market to anywhere and do business at any time because of the Internet. Now, the Internet is the fastest growing market in the world today, yet buyers and sellers don’t even have to leave their own homes to transact business. In the modern world, a market can take many forms. Generally speaking, a market may be housed in a place, or it may exist only in people’s minds. And a market can be any place or process that brings together buyers and sellers with a view to agreeing to a price. Which of following markets is not mentioned in the passage （ ）

A:Asian market B:international market C:national market D:local market

Questions from 31 to 35 are based on the following passage: There are a lot of “markets”. Some markets are local; you may be willing to compare prices for fruits and vegetables in a few shops in your local area, but you would be unwilling to go across the city to find out more information. Some markets are national. Many firms sell goods across the country. Some markets are global or international. Increasingly, more and more countries are involved in the world economy, whether they know about it or not. However, there are many other markets: labor markets for job seekers, supermarkets for grocery shopping, foreign exchange market, capital market, real estate markets and so on. And we must not overlook the fact that many services such as banking, insurance are also bought and sold on a worldwide scale. But what is a “market” Most people would say, “A market is a place where enough buyers and sellers meet face to face, so that a market price for goods and services can be determined.” However, with rapid growth of telecommunications, it is no longer necessary for buyers and sellers to physically meet to form a market. You may hear the terms “global market” or “global economy”. What do those terms mean to you What do they mean to business today Thanks to the Information Age we are seconds away from the rest of world. Business everywhere recognizes that they can expand their market to anywhere and do business at any time because of the Internet. Now, the Internet is the fastest growing market in the world today, yet buyers and sellers don’t even have to leave their own homes to transact business. In the modern world, a market can take many forms. Generally speaking, a market may be housed in a place, or it may exist only in people’s minds. And a market can be any place or process that brings together buyers and sellers with a view to agreeing to a price. The stock market, banking services market and capital market can be described as（ ）.

A:supermarket B:financial market C:labor market D:real estate market

Questions from 31 to 35 are based on the following passage: There are a lot of “markets”. Some markets are local; you may be willing to compare prices for fruits and vegetables in a few shops in your local area, but you would be unwilling to go across the city to find out more information. Some markets are national. Many firms sell goods across the country. Some markets are global or international. Increasingly, more and more countries are involved in the world economy, whether they know about it or not. However, there are many other markets: labor markets for job seekers, supermarkets for grocery shopping, foreign exchange market, capital market, real estate markets and so on. And we must not overlook the fact that many services such as banking, insurance are also bought and sold on a worldwide scale. But what is a “market” Most people would say, “A market is a place where enough buyers and sellers meet face to face, so that a market price for goods and services can be determined.” However, with rapid growth of telecommunications, it is no longer necessary for buyers and sellers to physically meet to form a market. You may hear the terms “global market” or “global economy”. What do those terms mean to you What do they mean to business today Thanks to the Information Age we are seconds away from the rest of world. Business everywhere recognizes that they can expand their market to anywhere and do business at any time because of the Internet. Now, the Internet is the fastest growing market in the world today, yet buyers and sellers don’t even have to leave their own homes to transact business. In the modern world, a market can take many forms. Generally speaking, a market may be housed in a place, or it may exist only in people’s minds. And a market can be any place or process that brings together buyers and sellers with a view to agreeing to a price. Which of following is the fastest developing market according to the passage（ ）

A:home market B:labor market C:the Internet D:international trade market