Question

【题目】C

Not enough American students want to be engineers, mathematicians, or scientists. The Obama administration wants to change that. They are spending money to do it. The government will invest three billion dollars in the education of young Americans in science, technology, engineering, and math. The four areas together are known as STEM.

Many jobs in the STEM fields will open in the coming years. The U.S. government's investment aims to increase the number of Americans who can take those jobs.

Yet girls appear far less interested in STEM subjects than boys. Only 25 percent of STEM students are girls.

Camsie McAdams is at the U.S. Education Department. She says girls simply do not feel welcomed in STEM subjects. Ms. McAdams says young women look at industries such as engineering and computer science and see most of the leaders are men.

Debbie Sterling is an engineer. She invented a construction toy for girls. The name of the toy is "Goldie Blox." Ms. Sterling hopes Goldie Blox will help girls develop spatial skills. Spatial skills help engineers and builders to think about objects in three dimensions.

To interest girls, Sterling created the character "Goldie." Goldie does not care about beauty or clothes. Goldie tells stories, solves difficult problems and creates pretend worlds.

Experts say parents should do more than just buy toys to interest their girls in STEM subjects. They should also provide a good education. At school, girls should participate in projects that require teamwork and creative thinking.

Women in scientific and technical jobs are also working to encourage young women to explore STEM. One is Anu Tewary. She studied Applied Physics and worked for technology companies. After she had a daughter, she started Technovation Challenge. The challenge is an international competition for young women from 10 to 18 years old.

Technovation offers girls the opportunity to learn how to start a company and become high-tech entrepreneurs. Since 2009, over 2,500 girls from 28 countries have developed 650 mobile phone applications. They learned to launch start-up companies through Technovation.

There's a good chance that soon, more young women using mobile phones will also be developing programs for them.

【1】Why don’t the girls take jobs related to STEM subjects?

A. Because they are less intelligent than boys.

B. Because they are forbidden to.

C. Because they lack interest and certain skills.

D. Because they are not welcomed.

【2】What should parents do to interest girls to enter STEM field?

A. Just buy some toys for them.

B. Encourage them to take these subjects.

C. Explain to them the advantages of these subjects.

D. Attract them by giving them some rewards.

【3】The character "Goldie" can help _____.

A. to improve the ability of telling stories

B. to develop spatial skills

C. to learn some knowledge of dressing up

D. to enlarge vocabulary

【4】Which statement is the writer likely to agree with?

A. Girls are as intelligent as boys.

B. Jobs in the STEM fields aren’t available for girls.

C. The government is satisfied with the current situation in STEM.

D. Girls are looked down upon in jobs related to STEM.

【5】Which of the following is right about Technovation Challenge?

A. It was founded by the government.

B. It is intended for girls of all ages.

C. It helps girl to overcome difficulties in their life.

D. It gives girls chances to learn knowledge about technology companies.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】C

【2】B

【3】B

【4】A

【5】D

【解析】

文章大意：想成为工程师、数学家或科学家的美国学生并不多，奥巴马政府希望能改变这一现状，并将投入30亿美元用于美国年轻一代在科学、技术、工程和数学方面的教育。而女孩们对STEM科目的兴趣远不如男孩，本文介绍了美国这一现状。

【1】C推理判断题。根据第三、四段内容可知女孩子不喜欢这种工作是由于缺少兴趣，选C。

【2】B细节理解题。根据第七段内容可知家长不仅仅给孩子买玩具，还要鼓励她们参加一些相关课程，选B。

【3】B细节理解题。根据第五、六段内容可知这款为女孩子研制的玩具Goldie 可以帮助提高女孩子的spatial skills（空间技能），选B。

【4】A推理判断题。根据文章末段内容可知作者对年轻女性满怀希望，由此判断作者认为她们会和男性同样出色，选A。

【5】细节理解题。根据倒数第二、三段内容可知Technovation Challenge是帮助年轻女性培养技术能力的，选D。