Most of us now have more than one online social media platform that we often use. They all have a place for you to show your best face in the form of a profile(简介) photo. A satisfying photo can make any visitor to your social media pages feel good about you at first sight. But, according to a new study, we may not be the best judge of our own profile pictures.
Researchers asked 100 university students to choose images that they would most likely use as profile pictures on social networks. They found that the participants picked the trait(特点) of attractiveness for a dating site and professionalism for a career site. They decided what to emphasize (强调) in this way. Next, the students were asked to perform the same task for a stranger in the group. At last, researchers showed these images to online viewers and asked them to rate how confident, trustworthy or able the person in them appeared.
The online viewers tended to favor the photos that were chosen by strangers rather than those chosen by the people themselves. Researchers suggested that strangers are better at choosing true images that show a person’s current appearance. One idea is that people tend to think themselves more positively than others do. This may affect their ability to distinguish(区分) when trying to select a satisfying photo. Moreover, it appears that people overemphasize the trait of attractiveness compared with other traits, such as trustworthiness and kindness, which are characters that strangers often focus on.
Still, there are a number of questions to be answered. Researchers have not yet begun to examine which photos can bring actual benefits in life or workplaces. But if you want to put your best face forward, you can ask someone else to choose your next profile picture.
【解题导语】 人们总是希望在社交网站上留下最吸引人的资料照片，但研究发现陌生人其实更擅长挑选这类照片。
1．People try to pick best online profile pictures of themselves to ________．
A．make themselves feel happy
B．show off their appearance
C．compete with their friends
D．leave others a good impression
D 解析：细节理解题。根据第一段A satisfying photo can make...feel good about you at first sight.可知，人们选择最好的简介照片是为了给别人留下良好的印象。
2．Students in the study chose pictures of themselves according to ________．
A．suggestions from their friends
B．characters that a site requires
C．whether their family like them
D．whether they seem goodlooking
B 解析：推理判断题。根据第二段They found that the participants picked the trait(特点)．..professionalism for a career site.可推断，在这个研究中，学生们根据每个网站对性格特点的要求来选择照片。
3．Why do strangers do better in choosing satisfying profile pictures?
A．They are less confident in themselves.
B．They think more highly of themselves than others.
C．They emphasize people’s positive qualities.
D．They choose pictures according to attractiveness.
C 解析：推理判断题。根据第三段．..trustworthiness and kindness, which are characters that strangers often focus on.可知，陌生人更擅长挑选资料照片是因为他们在挑选照片时更看重人们所传达的积极品质。
4．What can be the best title of this text?
A．Let Strangers Take Photos for You
B．How to Better Understand Yourself
C．Strangers Help Choose Better Profile Photos
D．How to Make Your Profile Photos Attractive
C 解析：标题归纳题。根据文章大意和第四段末句的建议可知，本文主要提出了陌生人更擅长挑选资料照片的观点。
