Question

【题目】There are a lot of reasons why people calling 911 might not be able to tell operators which floor they’re on in a high-rise building. They could be injured or simply confused. Yet precious minutes are wasted when emergency personnel have to search a building to find a person in need. With a new app called Sensory, emergency responders soon may be able to use a caller’s smartphone to locate his exact position in a building.

Columbia University researchers William Falcon and Henning Schulzrinne created Sensory using a two-step process. First, they used all existing smartphone features that help narrow down a caller’s location. All iPhones produced after 2014 already include GPS and altimeter（测高仪） that can help emergency responders determine if a person is outdoors or inside a building. But when it comes to tall buildings, just knowing a person’s altitude may not be enough，because the i distance between floors changes from one building to another.

So Falcon and Schulzrinne analysed the plans of figuring out the average distance between floors in residential（住宅的）buildings and office buildings among more than 1000 buildings in New York City. They tested their app in 63 experiments in five high-rise buildings and found that it could find a caller’s location within two floors with about a 91 percent accuracy.

In a survey conducted by Find Me 911 this year, dispatchers（调度员）said that they regularly received calls from people in need who often couldn’t share their location. They sometimes accidentally give the wrong address or floor number. Some callers are too young to know their address. Dispatchers also received calls from those who are deaf or have hearing problems and they often couldn’t hear the operator’s questions.

The new Sensory app could help shave precious minutes off the time it takes first responders to get to those calling for help. And it could make the difference between life and death.

【1】The new app Sensory can be used to .

A. provide emergency measures B. speed the connection to 911

C. locate emergency callers accurately D. improve the function of smartphones

【2】What can the Sensory’s first step help emergency responders do?

A. Make use of a smartphone’s sensors. B. Detect whether a caller is indoors.

C. Combine GPS and signal strength. D. Help callers speak clearly and accurately.

【3】What does Paragraph 4 really want to tell us?

A. The reasons for failing to get exact location.

B. The basic information about emergencies.

C. The potential danger of failing to rescue.

D. The different kinds of emergency callers.

【4】What is the author’s attitude to the new app?

A. Skeptical. B. Supportive. C. Unconcerned. D. Opposed.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】C

【2】B

【3】A

【4】B

【解析】

这是一篇应用文。本文主要讲了哥伦比亚大学的研究人员William Falcon和Henning Schulzrinne发明了一个新的应用程序Sensory，通过这个应用程序，急救人员很快就可以使用呼救者智能手机来确定他的确切位置，这样就减少了寻求呼救者位置的时间。

【1】细节理解题。由文中第一段的With a new app called Sensory, emergency responders soon may be able to use a caller’s smartphone to locate his exact position in a building.

可知，通过这个应用程序，人们可以准确的确定呼救者的确切位置，故C选项正确。

【2】细节理解题。由文中第二段的First, they used all existing smartphone features that help narrow down a caller’s location. All iPhones produced after 2014 already include GPS and altimeter（测高仪） that can help emergency responders determine if a person is outdoors or inside a building.可知，这个应用程序可以帮助急救人员决定一个人是否在室内。故B选项正确。

【3】段落大意题。第四段主要讲了没能获得确切位置的原因，包括给出错误的地址或者楼层号，听力不好的呼救者等。A选项正确。

【4】推理判断题。根据文中最后一段作者对这个应用程序的评价，The new Sensory app could help shave precious minutes off the time it takes first responders to get to those calling for help. And it could make the difference between life and death.可知，作者认为这个应用程序很有用处，甚至在生死之间也起着重要的作用，所以他对这个应用程序的态度是积极乐观的。故B选项正确。

在做细节理解题型，注意答题时需在文章找到对应的地方，用笔进行标记，这有利于后期有时间检查时可以立刻找到答案的位置。仔细理解作者所讲的意思，再结合选项，通过排除法和自己对全文的把握，选出正确答案。例如，本文的第1小题，本题要选出的是这个应用程序的用处，本文第一段就提到了这项应用程序，在第一段的最后指出了它的用处是用于准确定位的，所以C选项正确。