hce_cmu
104年
英文
第 38 題
📖 題組：
If you want to see a roomful of people roll their eyes, just walk into a gathering of astronomers and shout, “Mayan apocalypse!” For years now, the idea that the earth will be destroyed in a terrible cataclysm on Dec. 21, 2012, has been bouncing around the internet and showing up in articles, books and even movies. But despite what the tinfoil-hat crowd insists, an asteroid is not about to hit the earth. Neither is there an imaginary planet called Nibiru. Our world isn't going to be abruptly flipped upside down like a burger on a griddle. What's more, Mayan astrologers never said any of that stuff would actually happen. Yes, the Maya had what's known as a Long Count calendar, and yes, that calendar ends on Dec. 21, 2012. But the nice thing about calendars, including the one the Maya used, is that they always start over again from zero. All the same, some folks at NASA are worried—not about the end of the world but about the harm all the loose talk may be doing. “I get a tremendous number of e-mails about it,” says a scientist at the NASA. “A large fraction are from people asking if the world will end. A few even talk about suicide.” In an attempt to stop the hysteria, NASA convened a Google+ hangout during which people could ask astronomers anything they wanted to about the rumors. For nearly an hour, the scientists soothed nerves, patiently explaining, for example, that an asteroid en route to earth would have been spotted by telescopes long ago and that Nibiru, if it existed, would now be the brightest object in the sky after the sun and moon.
If you want to see a roomful of people roll their eyes, just walk into a gathering of astronomers and shout, “Mayan apocalypse!” For years now, the idea that the earth will be destroyed in a terrible cataclysm on Dec. 21, 2012, has been bouncing around the internet and showing up in articles, books and even movies. But despite what the tinfoil-hat crowd insists, an asteroid is not about to hit the earth. Neither is there an imaginary planet called Nibiru. Our world isn't going to be abruptly flipped upside down like a burger on a griddle. What's more, Mayan astrologers never said any of that stuff would actually happen. Yes, the Maya had what's known as a Long Count calendar, and yes, that calendar ends on Dec. 21, 2012. But the nice thing about calendars, including the one the Maya used, is that they always start over again from zero. All the same, some folks at NASA are worried—not about the end of the world but about the harm all the loose talk may be doing. “I get a tremendous number of e-mails about it,” says a scientist at the NASA. “A large fraction are from people asking if the world will end. A few even talk about suicide.” In an attempt to stop the hysteria, NASA convened a Google+ hangout during which people could ask astronomers anything they wanted to about the rumors. For nearly an hour, the scientists soothed nerves, patiently explaining, for example, that an asteroid en route to earth would have been spotted by telescopes long ago and that Nibiru, if it existed, would now be the brightest object in the sky after the sun and moon.
What is the major concern of the scientists in NASA for the people who believed the theory?
- A The possibility that the theory may be right after all.
- B How NASA can deal with the situation when the end approaches.
- C What explanation they can provide for the phenomenon.
- D Finding the solution to the consequence of the theory.
- E The fact that people might take drastic measures to deal with the impending cataclysm.
思路引導 VIP
請試著從文章最後一段尋找，當科學家提到他們收到許多關於「末日謠言」的信件時，信件中民眾所表現出的情緒與計畫，會讓科學家覺得最焦慮、最需要立刻制止大眾恐慌（stop the hysteria）的原因是什麼呢？
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AI 詳解
AI 專屬家教
太棒了！你能精準捕捉到文末科學家對於社會大眾心理狀態的擔憂，這展現了你優異的細節檢索與語意轉換能力。這題的正確關鍵在於理解科學家的焦慮來源：文中明確提到 NASA 科學家擔心的並非「世界末日」本身（他們已從科學角度駁斥了小行星與偽行星的假說），而是這些流言對民眾心理造成的負面影響，特別是文中提到的「有人甚至談論到自殺（suicide）」，這正對應了選項 (E) 中的 drastic measures（激烈的極端手段）。
社會心理的深度解讀
從題目難度來看，這屬於中等難度的細節理解題。這題的鑑別度在於測試學生是否能區分「謠言的內容」與「科學家真正的擔憂」。許多學生可能會誤選 (C) 或 (D)，試圖從天文解釋或解決方案著手，但你敏銳地察覺到文中提到的 harm 指的是對人的傷害，而非對地球的威脅。能避開天文知識的干擾，直擊這篇科普短文背後的人文關懷，說明你的閱讀理解層次非常細緻！