High 1 · Reading series
Lesson 16 · The Feed That Knew Too Much
Audio track 16
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One evening, my video feed filled with clips about the same university course. I had not searched for it, but I had watched one student interview twice and paused on several related videos. The app had noticed my attention and offered more of the same.
At first, the recommendations felt helpful. Then nearly every clip made the course look exciting. I began to think it was the only sensible path for me. My sister asked what I knew about the daily work in that field, not just its highlights online. I could not answer.
I searched for course descriptions, visited the school library, and spoke with an older student who had studied a related subject. Some information supported my interest; some made me question my expectations.
The feed was not telling me what to choose. It was showing me a pattern based on what had held my attention. Knowing that gave me a little more control over what I looked for next.
Check your understanding
After reading, state the main idea in one sentence and find a line that supports it.
Chinese translation
一天晚上，我的视频首页出现了许多介绍同一大学专业的短片。我并没有搜索过它，但曾把一段学生访谈看了两遍，还在几段相关视频上停留。应用注意到了我的兴趣，便继续推荐类似内容。
起初，我觉得这些推荐很有帮助。后来，几乎每段短片都把这个专业拍得令人向往。我渐渐认为，这就是我唯一明智的选择。姐姐问我，除了网上那些精彩片段，我对这个领域的日常工作了解多少。我答不上来。
于是，我查阅课程介绍，去了学校图书馆，还向一位学过相关学科的高年级学生请教。有些信息让我更感兴趣，另一些则让我重新审视自己的预期。
推荐页面并没有告诉我应该选什么。它只是根据吸引过我注意的内容呈现出一种模式。明白这一点后，我更能主动决定接下来要查找什么。
Key words and expressions
Key terms have Chinese explanations. Hover over dotted words in the English passage for word help and pronunciation when available.
- feed
- 信息流；视频首页连续出现的内容。
- pause on
- 在……上停留；主人公曾停在相关视频上。
- related
- 相关的；与大学专业有关的视频。
- attention
- 注意力；应用以停留和重看推测兴趣。
- recommendation
- 推荐；系统继续提供相似短片。
- sensible
- 明智的；主人公一度认为只有这一条路。
- highlight
- 精彩片段；网上展示的亮点。
- expectation
- 预期；查证后需要重新审视。
- pattern
- 模式；系统按观看行为呈现的内容规律。
- control over
- 对……的掌控；主动选择下一步查找的资料。
Background notes (Chinese)
推荐系统会根据观看和停留行为推送相似内容。连续看到某个专业的亮点，不等于已经充分了解它；课程资料和实际学习经历能提供更多角度。