The students in the Flatiron class probably won't drop out of high school and build the next Facebook. Programming languages have a quick turnover, so the "Ruby on Rails" language they learned may not even be relevant by the time they enter the job market. But the skills they learn - how to think logically through a problem and organize the results - apply to any coding language, said Deborah Seehorn, an education consultant for the state of North Carolina.
Indeed, the Flatiron students might not go into IT at all. But creating a future army of coders is not the sole purpose of the classes. These kids are going to be surrounded by computers-in their pockets ,in their offices, in their homes -for the rest of their lives, The younger they learn how computers think, how to coax the machine into producing what they want -the earlier they learn that they have the power to do that -the better.
21.Cortina holds that early exposure to computer science makes it easier to _______
[A] complete future job training
[B] remodel the way of thinking
[C] formulate logical hypotheses
[D] perfect artwork production
【答案】B
【解析】观点题。根据题干Cortina holds回文定位在第二段。第二段指出Cortina认为过早的接触电脑是有益的，紧接着指出当小孩子学习电脑科学，他们就学习了如何去开发手机应用程序，或者创作艺术，或者验证假设。对于他们来说与大孩子相比，改变思维并不难。综上所述，[B]remodel the way of thinking是对原文"transform their thought"的同义置换。
22.In delivering lessons for high - schoolers , Flatiron has considered their________
[A] experience
[B] interest
[C] career prospects
[D] academic backgrounds
【答案】B
【解析】事实细节题。根据题干关键信息"in delivering lessons for high-schoolers"、"Flatiron has considered"，定位到第三段。整个第三段在叙述Flatiron School。其中，第三行The high-schoolers get the same curriculum, but "we try to gear lessons toward things they're interested in"(高中生们上同样的课程，但是"我们力图以他们的兴趣来调整课程")，表明了该校开设课程的依据是"学生的兴趣"，故选[B] interest。
23.Deborah Seehorn believes that the skills learned at Flatiron will ________
[A] help students learn other computer languages
[B] have to be upgraded when new technologies come
24.According to the last paragraph, Flatiron students are expected to ______
[A] bring forth innovative computer technologies
[B] stay longer in the information technology industry
[C] become better prepared for the digitalized world
[D] compete with a future army of programmers
【答案】C
【解析】推理题。根据题干关键词"the last paragraph"和"Flatiron students"回文定位在最后一段。最后一段第一句指出Flatiron的学生不会全都进入IT界。紧接着第二句说明培养编码人员不是唯一目的，第三句进一步指出这些学生将会一生"被电脑包围"(生活在电脑时代)，对比四个所给选项，[C] become better prepared for the digitalized world与原文意思一致，故正确。
25.The word "coax"(Line4,Para.6) is closest in meaning to ________
[A] persuade
[B] frighten
[C] misguide
[D] challenge
【答案】A
【解析】词义题。根据题干关键信息"coax"(Line 4, Para.6)，定位到最后一段第四行how to coax the machine into producing what they want(如何…电脑生产他们想要的)，且该部分是与how computers think(电脑是如何思维的)并列的，都是学生学习的具体内容。正是因为两者并列，因此根据单词think可知coax同样含有一定比喻色彩，且coax指的是"让电脑生产他们想要的"一种手段或方式。persuade"劝说，劝诱"，即"劝诱电脑生产他们想要的"，语意恰当，是正确选项，本题正确答案为[A] persuade。
Text 2
Biologists estimate that as many as 2 million lesser prairie chickens---a kind of bird living on stretching grasslands-once lent red to the often grey landscape of the midwestern and southwestern United States. But just some 22,000 birds remain today, occupying about 16% of the species 'historic range.
