Lesson 12
Apple Unveils New Diverse Emesis

Guidance

Apple has revealed 300 new emojis, some of which highlight different races and professions, but the new additions have been met with mixed reception. What do you think of it? 苹果更新emoji表情，却仍然难逃网友的“吐槽”。你怎么认为？

Apple Unveils New Diverse Emesis

1 You'll soon be able to say more in text messages without words. Following the criticism over a lack of racial diversity , Apple has revealed 300 new emojis, some of which highlight different races and professions.

2 There are six different options for hair and skin. The skin tone options will be accessible by tapping and holding the emoji. A pop-up menu (弹出式菜单) will then appear, giving the user six different skin color options.

3 Previously, the list of characters contained dozens of faces of people that appear to be white. ① However, only two of the symbols seem to be Asian and none is black.

4 Apple's new emojis also show a wider range of country flags under the Travel and Places tab, with this emoji set now including national flags from 32 countries.

5 A set of new emoji characters will also be unveiled, including racially diverse families and same-sex families. ② Some entirely new emojis will also join the emoji family, like the Apple Watch.

6 But the new additions have been met with mixed reception. People are already criticizing some of the new emojis, especially the yellow ones, with tweets questioning "whether Apple thinks Asian people have jaundice ." Some Apple users in China claim that the yellow tone is offensive to Asians.

7 Emojis were created in Japan in the 1990s, and younger generations increasingly communicating through text messaging has led to a global surge in use. ③ Now millions of people are using emojis in their daily life.

(261 words)

Word bank

Notes

① Previously, the list of characters contained dozens of faces of people that appear to be white. 以前，物列表中的数十张面孔都是白色人种。“thatappear to be white”是定语从句，修饰先行词faces.

② A set of new emoji characters will also be unveiled, including racially diverse families and same-sex families. 一套新的表情符号也将公布，包括种族多样化的家庭和同性家庭。主句为一般将来时态的被动语态。

③ Emojis were created in Japan in the 1990s, and younger generations increasingly communicating through text messaging has led to a global surge in use. 这些表情符号创建于20世纪90年代的日本，随着年轻一代越来越多地使用短信进行交流，表情符号的使用率全球暴增。“in + the +年代的复数”表达“在……世纪……年代”，也可以写作：in the 1990's。

Practice

Ⅰ. Comprehension

1. What do some of the new emojis highlight?

A. Action.

B. Size.

C. Different races and professions.

D. Colour.

2. Previously, how many symbols seem to be Asian?

A. None.

B. One.

C. Several.

D. Two.

3. How many countries are the national flags from?

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4. 请将第7自然段的画线句子译为汉语。

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Ⅱ. Writing practice

Do you often use emojis when chatting with friends? What do you think of them?

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