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Business strategist Michael Goldhaber began predicting about the attention economy more than 20 years ago, claiming, “No one would put anything on the Internet without obtaining some attention.”
A recent survey in the New Statesman attempted to explore the relationship between what makes us “like our likes” and what fuels our desire for followers. One response from a 17yearold girl provided an alarming image of modern affairs. “Likes are always an indicator of social standing. As someone who gets anxious and occasionally struggles with selfesteem (自尊), the amount of likes on my posts can be either hugely uplifting or depressing，” said the teenager.
And that applies to everyone. An extraordinary 89% of those taking part in the survey admitted the number of likes connected with making them happy.
However, here comes the down curve (曲线): 40% admitted this happiness only lasts as long as the likes keep coming in. Tellingly, you could also be one of the 70% of people who are given a “sympathy like”. But regardless of intention, the likes act as encouragement which makes you want more and more.
Addiction expert Judson Brewer, and Associate Professor at University of Massachusetts Medical School, wrote in the Huffington Post that when we talk to someone face to face, our brains have to try to add together such factors as context, nonverbal facial and body cues (暗示), and tone of voice, which leaves plenty of room for ambiguity and subjective understanding. In real life, there is no simple, quantifiable point system (the “likes” on Instagram): we can't assign one like for a smile, another for tone of voice.
To put it bluntly, the Mark Zuckerbergs of this world need you for as long as possible to make their business models work. They don't care that you've just liked your best friend's wedding pictures. It's the ads around those pictures that make Facebook tick. It goes deeper, too. Your viewing history is taken into account, thus making ads which may interest you be displayed. The aim is to stop you from closing your news feed. The engineers want your attention.
语篇解读：本文是一篇说明文。文章主要介绍了随着互联网的发展，网民的注意力逐渐成为商家争夺的重要资源。
1.According to the 17yearold teenager, to get likes ________.
A．cheers us up effectively
B．has negative effects on us
C．is to seek social recognition
D．is to influence people around us
解析：选C 推理判断题。根据第二段最后两句可知，这名青少年强调：社交网络上获得赞的数量意味着一个人的社会地位。也就是说，人们获取赞是为了寻求社会认同。
2．What is the major problem with seeking likes according to the text?
A．Its effect is temporary.
B．Its intention isn't good.
C．It makes us feel anxious.
D．It produces unreal effects.
解析：选A 推理判断题。第三段指出获得赞的好处是让人们高兴。根据第四段第一句可推知，问题在于这种幸福很短暂。
3．What does Judson Brewer think of facetoface communication?
A．Ideas can be got across more quickly.
B．It can be understood more easily.
C．It contributes to selfesteem.
D．Deeper meaning is involved.
解析：选D 推理判断题。根据倒数第二段可知，Judson Brewer认为，面对面的交流包含更多的附加因素和信息，如肢体语言、语音强调等。即这种交流包含更深层的含义。
4．Why is our viewing history taken into account by the Mark Zuckerbergs?
A．To offer us better service.
B．To sell some products to us.
C．To send information we need.
D．To encourage facetoface communication.
解析：选B 细节理解题。根据最后一段可知，作者指出，那些互联网公司之所以关注我们的浏览记录是为了给我们推送我们可能感兴趣的广告，也就是为了推销产品。
