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Cambridge 13 Academic Reading Test One Passage Three
Artificial Artists
Choose the correct letter, A, B, C, or D.
27. What is the writer suggesting about computer-produced works in the first paragraph?
The answer is B. > A great deal of progress has already been attained in this field.
In paragraph one, classical music by an artificial composer has had audiences enraptured, and even tricked them into believing a human was behind the score. Artworks painted by a robot have sold for thousands of dollars and been hung in prestigious galleries.
28. According to Geraint Wiggins, why are many people worried by computer art?
The answer is C. > It undermines a fundamental human quality.
In paragraph two, ‘This is a question at the very core of humanity,‘ says Geraint Wiggins, a computational creativity researcher at Goldsmiths, University of London.
29. What is a key difference between Aaron and the Painting Fool?
The answer is C. > the source of its subject matter
In paragraph three, impressive perhaps, but it is still little more than a tool to realize the programmer’s own creative ideas. In paragraph four, unlike earlier ‘artists such as Aaron, the Painting Fool only needs minimal direction and can come up with its own concepts by going online for material.
30. What point does Simon Colton make in the fourth paragraph?
The answer is D. > People tend to judge computer art and human art according to different criteria.
In paragraph four, while some might say they have a mechanical look, Colton argues that such reactions arise from people’s double standards towards software-produced and human-produced art.
31. The writer refers to the paintings of a chair as an example of computer art which
The answer is A. > achieves a particularly striking effect.
In paragraph four, this gives the work an eerie, ghostlike quality.
Complete each sentence with the correct ending, A–G.
32. Simon Colton says it is important to consider the long-term view when
The answer is D. > comparing whether it was the work of humans or software.
In paragraph five, researchers like Colton don’t believe it is right to measure machine creativity directly to that of humans who ‘have had millennia to develop our skills’.
33. David Cope’s EMI software surprised people by
The answer is A. > generating work that was virtually indistinguishable from that of humans.
In paragraph five, audiences were moved to tears, and EMI even fooled classical music experts into thinking they were hearing genuine Bach.
34. Geraint Wiggins criticised Cope for not
The answer is E. > revealing the technical details of his program.
In paragraph five, some, such as Wiggins, have blasted Cope’s work as pseudoscience, and condemned him for his deliberately vague explanation of how the software worked.
35. Douglas Hofstadter claimed that EMI was
The answer is C. > producing work entirely dependent on the imagination of its creator.
In paragraph five, meanwhile, Douglas Hofstadter of Indiana University said EMI created replicas which is still rely completely on the original artist’s creative impulses.
36. Audiences who had listened to EMI’s music became angry after
The answer is G. > discovering that it was the product of a computer program.
In paragraph five, when audiences found out the truth they were often outraged with Cope, and one music lover even tried to punch him.
37. The participants in David Moffat’s study had to assess music without
The answer is B. > knowing whether it was the work of humans or software.
In paragraph six, the participants weren’t told beforehand whether the tunes were composed by humans or computers, but were asked to guess, and then rate how much they liked each one.
Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage 3?
Write YES, NO, or NOT GIVEN.
38. Moffat’s research may help explain people’s reactions to EMI.
The answer is YES.
In paragraph six, people who thought the composer was a computer tended to dislike the piece more than those who believed it was human.
39. The non-experts in Moffat’s study all responded in a predictable way.
The answer is NOT GIVEN.
In paragraph six, this was true even among the experts, who might have been expected to be more objective in their analyses.
40. Justin Kruger’s findings cast doubt on Paul Bloom’s theory about people’s prejudice towards computer art.
The answer is NO.
In paragraph seven, Paul Bloom of Yale University has a suggestion: he reckons part of the pleasure we get from art stems from the creative process behind the work.… Meanwhile, experiments by Justin Kruger of New York University have shown that people’s enjoyment of an artwork increases if they think more time and effort was needed to create it.