2025届全国高考真题英语专项训练:阅读理解C篇
一、阅读理解
(2024·北京·高考真题试卷)Thenotionthatweliveinsomeoneelse’svideogameisirresistibletomany.
Searchingtheterm“simulationhypothesis”(假说)returnsnumerousresultsthatdebatewhethertheuniverse
isacomputersimulation—aconceptthatsomescientistsactuallytakeseriously.Unfortunately,thisisnota
scientificquestion.Wewillprobablyneverknowwhetherit’strue.Wecan,instead,usethisideatoadvance
scientificknowledge.
The18th-centuryphilosopherKantarguedthattheuniverseultimatelyconsistsofthings-in-themselvesthat
areunknowable.Whileheheldthenotionthatobjectiverealityexists,hesaidourmindplaysanecessary
roleinstructuringandshapingourperceptions.Modernscienceshaverevealedthatourperceptual
experienceoftheworldistheresultofmanystagesofprocessingbysensorysystemsandcognitive(认知的)
functionsinthebrain.Nooneknowsexactlywhathappenswithinthisblackbox.Ifempirical(实证的)
experiencefailstorevealreality,reasoningwon’trevealrealityeithersinceitreliesonconceptsandwords
thatarecontingentonoursocial,culturalandpsychologicalhistories.Again,ablackbox.
So,ifweacceptthattheuniverseisunknowable,wealsoacceptwewillneverknowifweliveinacomputer
simulation.Andthen,wecanshiftourinquiryfrom“Istheuniverseacomputersimulation?”to“Canwe
modeltheuniverseasacomputersimulation?”Modellingrealityiswhatwedo.Tofacilitateour
comprehensionoftheworld,webuildmodelsbasedonconceptualmetaphors(隐喻)thatarefamiliartous.
InNewton’sera,weimaginedtheuniverseasaclock.InEinstein’s,weuncoveredthestandardmodelof
particle(粒子)physics.
Nowthatweareintheinformationage,wehavenewconceptssuchasthecomputer,informationprocessing,
virtualreality,andsimulation.Unsurprisingly,thesenewconceptsinspireustobuildnewmodelsofthe