Question

【题目】AlphaGo is a computer program that plays the board game Go.

In March, 2016, the pride of humankind was crushed (粉碎) by a computer. Google’s AlphaGo defeated the South Korean grandmaster (围棋大师) Lee Sedol four games to one, as the world looked on with shock and awe (敬畏). Artificial intelligence (AI, 人工智能) had suddenly reached a new and unexpected height.

But as smart as AlphaGo is, it’s no longer the best Go “player” in the world. Google’s artificial intelligence group, DeepMind, has created the next generation of its Go-playing program, called AlphaGo Zero. The new AI program is unique in the way it learned to play Go. Instead of learning from thousands of human matches, as its predecessor (前任) did, AlphaGo Zero mastered Go in just two days without any human knowledge of the game and defeated AlphaGo by day three, reported The Guardian. It then went on to defeat AlphaGo 100 games to zero.

To learn how to play Go, AlphaGo Zero played millions of matches against itself using only the basic rules of the game to rapidly create its own knowledge of it. Like the previous version, it used “reinforcement (增强) learning to become its own teacher,” according to DeepMind’s website.

“It’s more powerful than previous approaches,” David Silver, AlphaGo’s lead researcher, told The Guardian, “because by not using human data, or human expertise in any fashion, we’ve removed the constraints (约束) of human knowledge and it is able to create knowledge itself.”

AlphaGo Zero’s approach to self-learning is a significant advancement in AI that could be applied to help solve some of the world’s biggest problems, according to a recent research report published in the journal Nature. For example, DeepMind co-founder Demis Hassabis argues that AlphaGo Zero could probably find cures for a number of serious diseases within weeks, according to The Telegraph. Indeed, the AI is now being used to study protein folding, which is connected to diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.

So now that AI has exceeded (超过) the bounds of human knowledge, perhaps the question is not about what AI can learn from humans, but what humans can learn from AI. We can only wait and see.

【1】What can we learn from the first three paragraphs?

A. AlphaGo defeated Lee Sedol five games to zero.

B. AlphaGo Zero defeated AlphaGo within one day.

C. AlphaGo Zero is the first program to defeat a human at Go.

D. AlphaGo Zero has become the new best Go player.

【2】How is AlphaGo Zero different from previous Go-playing programs?

A. It can collect human knowledge automatically.

B. It can create knowledge without human limits.

C. It can become its own teacher in learning Go skills.

D. It can play many matches without a break.

【3】What’s the possible application of AI in the future according to the article?

A. Treating diseases. B. Making new Go rules.

C. Solving math problems. D. Creating new proteins.

【4】What is the author’s attitude towards AI?

A. Mixed. B. Hopeful. C. Doubtful. D. Worried.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】D

【2】B

【3】A

【4】B

【解析】文章介绍了人工智能的发展，对其未来进行了展望。

【1】D推理判断题。根据文章第三段内容可知，AlphaGo Zero已经成为了新的最佳围棋选手，它以100:0战胜了AlphaGo。结合选项。故选D。

【2】B细节理解题。根据文章第五段because by not using human data, or human expertise in any fashion, we’ve removed the constraints (约束) of human knowledge and it is able to create knowledge itself. 可知，它可以不受人类知识的限制创造知识。结合选项，故选B。

【3】A推理判断题。根据文章第六段For example, DeepMind co-founder Demis Hassabis argues that AlphaGo Zero could probably find cures for a number of serious diseases within weeks, according to The Telegraph. Indeed, the AI is now being used to study protein folding, which is connected to diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s.（例如，据《每日电讯报》报道，DeepMind的联合创始人杰米斯哈萨比斯认为，AlphaGo在几周内就能找到治疗多种严重疾病的方法。事实上，人工智能现在正被用于研究蛋白质折叠，它与帕金森症和阿尔茨海默症等疾病有关。）可知，未来人工智能会被用于医学治疗，结合选项，故选A。

【4】B观点态度题。根据文章最后So now that AI has exceeded (超过) the bounds of human knowledge, perhaps the question is not about what AI can learn from humans, but what humans can learn from AI. We can only wait and see.（现在人工智能已经超过人类知识的界限，也许问题不是什么AI可以学习人类，但人类可以从人工智能学习。我们只能等着瞧。）可知，我们对于人工智能的未来是充满希望的。结合选项，故选B。