泽熙美文Reading Comprehension
There’s a zaniness about bitcoin. The currency is built on a weird mix of the most old-fashioned kind of speculative greed, bolstered by a contemporary utopian cyberlibertarian ideology. Boosters say that bitcoin is the currency of the future. I’d argue that the phenomenon is a digital gold rush perfectly emblematic of the present.
Some of bitcoin’s appeal comes from the fact that it does not physically exist. Each bitcoin is just a string of numbers. Instead of a bank, a decentralized network of computers ensures the authenticity of bitcoin and issues new ones by doing complex calculations. This allows bitcoin to be traded peer to peer, bypassing credit card companies and payment processors. It’s digital cash, offering the same relative anonymity and freedom as a paper sack of bills.
The ideas behind bitcoin can be traced to a 1988 tract called the Crypto Anarchist Manifesto, which loftily predicted a future where anonymity-protecting technology made state control of the market impossible. Everything would be for sale to anyone all the time, 100 percent tax-free. Many of bitcoin’s hard-core fans see the currency as a revolutionary step toward this anarchocapitalist wonderland.
I’m skeptical. You can’t use bitcoin for much today besides gambling in online casinos and reserving seats on Virgin Galactic spaceflights, and a vast majority of it is held by speculators. Even with the imprimatur of government regulation, the promise of bitcoin seems to end with helping online retailers avoid credit-card processing fees. Bitcoin is mainly innovative in the way of credit default swaps: new ways to gamble with money.
Bitcoin is most interesting on an emotional level. Its sheen of technomagic has let uberrational geeks treat the casino-floor frenzy as a serious technological story. Tech blogs breathlessly track the price of bitcoin. Each new business that accepts bitcoin is heralded with the fanfare of a despot opening his country’s borders to a new, previously outlawed luxury. The drumbeat suggests that getting rich is as simple as being an early adopter.
So many have bought in because the Internet is very good at stoking the fear of missing out. There’s even a trendy acronym, FOMO, to describe the anxiety inspired by scrolling through the social media accounts of people having more fun than you. Bitcoin fosters a particularly potent brand of FOMO. Bitcoin holders have taken to posting screenshots of their swollen accounts. I know a guy who bought a few hundred dollars’ worth of bitcoin as a sort of joke years ago. Now he’s made enough to buy a nice car.
All I can say is that the crash is going to be great. Bitcoin is too dependent on speculative mania to be of practical use as a currency. But as a symbol of the misguided dream that one can tap into the global data stream and download riches like a pop song, it’s gold.
1. The word “bolster” underlined in Paragraph 1 is closest in meaning to ______.
A.hinder
B.block
C.defer
D.reinforce
正确答案：D
2. According to the author, the following psychologies contributed to the invention of bitcoin EXCEPT ______.
A.weird fantasy
B.speculation
C.greed
D.cyberlibertarian ideology
正确答案：A
3. Which of the following is NOT true about the features of bitcoin? ______
A.Lack of centralized authority.
B.Easy and fast payment.
C.Protection of personal identity.
D.Personal control of the market.
正确答案：D
4. The functions of bitcoin could be the following EXCEPT ______.
A.paying for gambling in Las Vegas casinos
B.reserving seats on Virgin Galactic spaceflights
C.helping online retailers avoid transaction fees
D.enabling gambling with money
正确答案：A
5. Which of the following statements is NOT true about bitcoin? ______
A.Bitcoin is a virtual currency with no intrinsic value.
B.Bitcoin is widely accepted by major online retailers.
C.Bitcoin may be used in illegal activities due to its relative anonymity.
D.The valuation of bitcoins fluctuates wildly and unpredictably.
正确答案：B
6. The word “stoke” underlined in Paragraph 6 is closest in meaning to ______.
A.stir up
B.exploit
C.deter
D.strike
正确答案：A
7. Many bitcoin holders are anxious because ______.
A.they fear that other people are having more fun than them
B.they fear the price of bitcoin will drop dramatically
C.they don’t have as many bitcoins as others
D.they didn’t buy bitcoins as early as others
正确答案：C
8. Bitcoin proponents believes the following EXCEPT ______
A.Bitcoin will become the predominant digital currency
B.with bitcoin, they could have money without the government
C.they can tap into the global data stream and download riches like a pop song
D.they can make a good fortune like in casinos
正确答案：D
9. The author believes the future for bitcoin is ______.
A.promising
B.ambiguous
C.gloomy
D.uncertain
正确答案：C
10. What is the author’s attitude toward bitcoin? ______
A.Approving.
B.Disapproving.
C.Neutral.
D.Indifferent.
正确答案：B
To Legalize Pot or Not
Legalizing pot is not now as radical a proposal as it might seem. All manner of “establishment” figures have supported similar plans: from a Presidential Commission in the US to the Principal of King’s College, London, who wanted to see the drug taxes and proceeds used for university research. There are, indeed, several unsatisfactory problems created by the present ban on cannabis: the law is widely disregarded and thus helps to bring other laws into disrespect; it can lead to unnecessary—and possibly illegal—police searches; and it increases friction between the police and minority groups. Finally, if drugs such as cigarettes and alcohol are permitted, then why not pot?
The last point is easy to counter: quasi-Government approval for two harmful drugs is no argument for permitting a third. Unlike drink and tobacco, there is still some doubt about the harmful effects of cannabis, but research here is in its early days. Already Columbia University scientists in New York have completed one project which suggests that the drug could open the door to metabolic diseases, including cancer, by affecting cellular immunity. The team found that white blood cells of cannabis users were 40 per cent less effective in fighting viruses than those of non-cannabis users. Any responsible Government would hold back in such circumstances; not least because the fad appears to be on the wane. To legalize it now might promote the drug just as its use was beginning to decline.
