Thousands of birds die each spring and fall when they crash with Chicago’s high-rise buildings, which lie on a major migration path between Canada and Latin America. But the birds don’t die in vain. Since the 1970s, many of them have been collected from the street by the city’s Field Museum. They were classified and recorded in detail there. This unique and detailed set of data has been a scientific windfall, showing that North American migratory birds appear to become smaller in size.
A new study of this data has highlighted an important trend: birds that have bigger brains, relative to their body size, are not shrinking as much as the smaller-brained members of their species. The study is the first to identify a potential link between awareness and animal response to human-made climate change, according to the researchers from Washington University in St. Louis. “As temperatures warm, body sizes are decreasing.” said Justin Baldwin. “But larger-brained species are decreasing less strongly than small-brained species.”
Relative brain size is often considered an indicator of behavioral flexibility in birds, according to the research. “The idea is causing a lot of disagreements when it’s applied to some other animals”, Baldwin said, “but it works for birds.” “Relative brain size connects with increased learning ability, increased memory, longer lifespans and others.” Baldwin said. “In this case, a bigger-brained species of bird might be able to reduce its risk to warming temperatures by searching for habitats with cooler temperatures, for example.” he said.
Birds that had big brains, relative to their bodies, had body-size reductions that were only about one-third of those observed for birds with smaller brains, the study found.
1. Why do some birds die on the way of migration?| A．The spring and fall change quickly. | B．The weather becomes extremely cold. |
| C．They crash into the tall buildings. | D．Barriers are set up on the migration path. |
| A．They were kept and studied later on. | B．They were buried in the same streets. |
| C．They were taken away from the path. | D．They were used to show migratory way. |
| A．Increasing | B．Decreasing | C．Strengthening | D．weakening |
| A．By finding cooler homes. | B．By having longer lifespans. |
| C．By increasing their memory. | D．By changing their behavioral flexibility. |
相似题推荐
【推荐1】Scientists in Canada are really worried about a serious problem affecting an important animal: the bat. This problem is called white-nose syndrome (症状), and it comes from a harmful fungus (真菌) that attacks the nose, wings, and skin of bats when they sleep together in caves. It started in a cave in Russia in 2006 and has quickly spread to 19 countries, including Canada.
Researchers found that the fungus usually exists in very cold places like the poles. Even though they’re not totally sure exactly how it hurts the bats, one of the most accepted views is that it makes them uncomfortable. This makes the bats stay awake a little bit more and uses up their stored fat, leading to them not having enough food, which causes them to die. More than 5.5 million bats of nine types in Canada have already died from this sickness. If it reaches more bat groups in the Southeast and Midwest provinces, endangered bat s like the Tiger bat and Figgie big-eared bat might disappear forever.
Losing these animals is a big deal for Canadians, even for the whole world, because, in warm months, bats fly at night and eat a lot of insects. They help control the number of bugs that harm forests and spread diseases which can cause a whole bunch of problems. It’s quite an alarming thing, given that the reduction in the number of bats will almost certainly disrupt (扰乱) the harmony in the ecosystem and lead to disasters. The Canadian government is taking this seriously and is thinking about giving money for detailed research on the disease because the possible results could be really bad, like what one lawmaker called “an ecological and economic disaster.” Experts are hired to watch bat colonies (群) more closely, working with other countries and organizations, and making strict rules to limit the movement of things that might have the fungus.
Additionally, public awareness campaigns are being conducted to gain support for bat conservation efforts and promote responsible cave exploration practices to minimize the risk of disease transmission. The Canadian government remains committed to preserving its bat populations and the crucial ecological balance they bring to the environment.
1. What might be the reason of the bats’ death?| A．Their sleeping together | B．Lack of sleep |
| C．Starvation | D．Not feeling comfortable |
| A．The spread of the disease. |
| B．The destruction of the forests. |
| C．The imbalance of the ecosystem. |
| D．The increase of the insect population. |
| A．Engaging specialists to monitor bat colonies |
| B．Carrying out activities to enhance people’s consciousness |
| C．Collaborating with other nations |
| D．Prohibiting the movement of bats |
| A．objective | B．positive |
| C．indifferent | D．pessimistic |
【推荐2】Just like people, dogs tend to have distinct and unique personalities. Some of a dog’s personality traits (特点) are completely individual, but many traits are predictable based on the breed (品种). Knowing the common traits of certain dog breeds enables you to choose a dog whose personality matches well with your lifestyle.
 | Siberian Husky You may already know that Siberian Huskies have a historical role as sled dogs. This breeding makes them get along well with other animals and are great for families. Their breeding also gives them incredible tolerance, so you will have to ensure that they have enough space to run safely. Unlike some of the other working dogs, Siberian Huskies tend to be too friendly to be very good guard dogs. |
 | Bulldog The distinctive Bulldog is friendly and loyal. Bulldogs tend to be calm by nature, but they still enjoy getting out for walks. Moderate exercise is important for weight-management given their small but solid stature and the fact that their calm nature can make them come off as lazy. Bulldogs are great companions and are courageous and steady. |
 | Cocker Spaniel The Cocker Spaniel’s distinctive long ears and curly hair are a major outward sign of their sweet, friendly personalities. As sporting dogs, they were bred to help hunters find game and are, therefore, highly trainable. Cocker Spaniels love to exercise and play and are great with kids. If they don’t get enough energy out, though, they can become frustrated and destructive. |
 | Dachshund The Dachshund’s small physical size is no match for their big personality. Their short legs do not make Dachshunds great running or hiking buddies, but that does not mean they are low-energy. They are a unique mix of a great guard dog—brave, loyal, and a bit stubborn—while being friendly enough to win over just about anyone. |
| A．A Siberian Husky. | B．A Bulldog. |
| C．A Cocker Spaniel. | D．A Dachshund. |
| A．Every dog has its day. |
| B．Teach an old dog new tricks. |
| C．If you want a friend, get a dog. |
| D．A good dog deserves a good bone. |
| A．A pet clinic brochure. | B．A personality test book. |
| C．A biological research. | D．A dog breeding website. |
【推荐3】At least five wolves, including one female, have returned to Denmark for the first time in two centuries, a zoologist who has obtained DNA evidence said on Thursday.
The wolves came from Germany to settle in western Denmark's agricultural region, the least densely populated in the Scandinavian country. Peter Sunde, a scientist at the University of Aarhus, told AFP the wolves must have walked more than 500km. "We think these are young wolves rejected by their families who are looking for new hunting grounds," the researcher added. Scientists have established a genetic profile from the faeces(f粪便) of five wolves - four males and one female - but there could be more. Sunde said researchers had suspected since 2012 that wolves had entered Denmark. "Now we have evidence [including] that there's one female," signalling the possibility of giving birth this spring, he said.
Proof was also established through the wolves' fingerprints and video surveillance(监视,监督) showed their location, which scientists refuse to reveal out of fear that it will attract hunters."We're following that. The wolf is an animal we're not allowed to hunt so we must protect it," said Henrik Hagen Olesen, spokesperson at the Danish Environmental Protection Agency.Exterminated by hunters, wolves had been completely extinct in Denmark since the beginning of the nineteenth century.
In other Nordic countries with a higher wolf population, culling(选择性宰杀) the species, protected by the Bern Convention, is under a fierce debate between inhabitants, farmers, hunters, the government, the European Union and wildlife activists.
1. Why do the scientists refuse to show the video about the wolves?| A．They are not sure about the proof. |
| B．They need to do further research. |
| C．They fear it may frighten people. |
| D．They are afraid it may attract hunters. |
| A．Wolves entered Denmark in the spring of 2012. |
| B．Wolves will grow in large numbers in the near future in Denmark |
| C．People have different attitudes to wolves in other Nordic countries. |
| D．Wolves died out because of natural disasters 200 years ago in Denmark. |
| A．A science report | B．A magazine |
| C．A textbook | D．A newspaper |
【推荐1】Staying active and fit could help protect against some of the negative health influences resulting from low-quality sleep, according to a study of 380,055 middle-aged people involved in the UK Biobank research project.
We all know that a healthy life means getting both plenty of exercise and enough good-quality sleep, but reality often gets in the way. The new research suggests that doing enough exercise could make up for some of the unhealthy effects of bad sleep.
While the health benefits of exercise and sleep are nothing new, its the relationship between them that is interesting in this particular study. “We found those who had both the poorest sleep quality and who exercised the least were most at risk of death from heart disease, stroke, and cancer,” says Bo-Huei Huang, an epidemiologist from the University of Sydney.
Participants were grouped into three levels of physical activity (high, medium or low) and were also given a sleep quality score from 0-5 based on the amount of shut-eye they got, how late they stayed up, insomnia, snoring (打鼾) and daytime sleepiness. Those with the highest risk of dying from cancer or heart disease were those with the worst quality sleep and who didn’t have enough exercise. That risk went down for people with poor quality sleep but who exercise more.
“Levels of physical activity at or above the certain amount suggested by WHO seemed to get rid of most of the bad connections between poor sleep and death rate,” write the researchers in their paper.
“Both behaviors are important for health but, sadly, our society suffers from both a physical inactivity and a poor sleep, “says a population health researcher Emmanuel Stamatakis, from the University of Sydney. “Considering that physical activity is perhaps more controlled than sleep, our study offers people more health evidence to be physically active; and provides health professionals with more reasons to prescribe physical activity to patients with sleep problems.”
1. What is special discovery with regard to the research?| A．A healthy life is made up of enough exercise and sleep. |
| B．Plenty of exercise is important for health. |
| C．Sports can prevent some of the negative effects of low-quality sleep. |
| D．Poor sleep does great harm to health. |
| A．Health and sleep | B．Health and exercise |
| C．Sleep and exercise | D．Health, sleep and exercise. |
| A．A person who has a good-quality sleep and does enough sports. |
| B．A person who has a good-quality sleep and does little sports. |
| C．A person who has a bad-quality sleep and does little sports. |
| D．A person who has a bad-quality sleep but does enough sports. |
| A．Business. | B．Tech and science. |
| C．Sports and health. | D．Arts and Culture. |
【推荐2】The older you get, the more difficult it is to learn a new language. But no one knows exactly what the cutoff point is—at what age it becomes harder. In one of the largest studies, researchers from Boston-based universities found that children are good at learning a second language up until the age of 18, about 10 years later than earlier thought. But the study also showed that it is best to start by age 10 if you want to achieve the grammatical fluency of a native speaker.
To solve this problem, the research team collected data on a person’s age, language level and time studying English. They created a short online grammar quiz called “Which English?” that tested noun-verb agreement, pronouns, prepositions and relative clauses, among other linguistic elements. They wanted to find out when the “critical period” for achieving the highest levels of grammatical fluency ends.
Based on people’s grammar scores and information about their learning of English, the researchers developed models to find out how long it takes to become fluent in a language and the best age to start learning. They concluded that the ability to learn a new language, at least grammatically, is strongest until the age of 18. To become completely fluent, however, learning should start before the age of 10.
There are three main ideas as to why language-learning ability falls at 18: social changes, interference (干扰) from one’s primary language and continuing brain development. At 18, kids typically graduate from high school and start college or enter the work force full-time. Once they do, they may no longer have the time, opportunity to study a second language. Or it is possible that after one masters a first language, its rules interfere with the ability to learn a second language. Finally, changes in the brain that continue during the late teens and early 20s may somehow make learning harder.
This is not to say that we cannot learn a new language if we are over 20. There are many examples of people who pick up a language later in life.
Although the study was conducted only in English, the researchers believe the findings will transfer to other languages and they are developing similar tests for Spanish and Mandarin.
1. In Paragraph 2, “this problem” refers to ______.| A．at what age people can do the quiz |
| B．how people improve their language skills |
| C．why people find it hard to master grammar rules |
| D．in what period people can learn a new language well |
| A．Because they have no good learning environment. |
| B．Because they are busy developing other life skills. |
| C．Because they needn’t improve the language ability. |
| D．Because they focus more on their primary language. |
| A．To explain a finding. | B．To provide a solution. |
| C．To lead a discussion. | D．To support an opinion. |
【推荐3】Many people think that listening is a passive business. It is just the opposite. Listening well is an active exercise of our attention and hard work. It is because they do not realize this, or because they are not willing to do the work, that most people do not listen well.
Listening well also requires total concentration upon someone else. An essential part of listening well is the rule known as ‘bracketing’. Bracketing includes the temporary giving up or setting aside of your own prejudices and desires, to experience as far as possible someone else’s world from the inside, stepping into his or her shoes. Moreover, since listening well involves bracketing, it also involves a temporary acceptance of the other person. Sensing this acceptance, the speaker will seem quite willing to open up the inner part of his or her mind to the listener. True communication is under way and the energy required for listening well is so great that it can be accomplished only by the will to extend oneself for mutual growth.
Most of the time we lack this energy. Even though we may feel in our business dealings or social relationships that we are listening well, what we are usually doing is listening selectively. Often we have a prepared list in mind and wonder, as we listen, how we can achieve certain desired results to get the conversation over as quickly as possible or redirected in ways more satisfactory to us. Many of us are far more interested in talking than in listening, or we simply refuse to listen to what we don’t want to hear.
It wasn’t until toward the end of my doctor career that I have found the knowledge that one is being truly listened to is frequently therapeutic (有疗效的). In about a quarter of the patients I saw, surprising improvement was shown during the first few months of psychotherapy (心理疗法), before any of the roots of problems had been uncovered or explained. There are several reasons for this phenomenon, but chief among them, I believe, was the patient’s sense that he or she was being truly listened to, often for the first time in years, and for some, perhaps for the first time ever.
1. What is mainly discussed in Paragraph 2?| A．How to listen well. | B．What to listen to. |
| C．Benefits of listening. | D．Problems in listening. |
| A．listen actively | B．listen purposefully |
| C．set aside their prejudices | D．open up their inner mind |
| A．they were taken good care of. | B．they knew they were truly listened to. |
| C．they had partners to talk to. | D．they knew the roots of problems. |
| A．Science fiction | B．A news report. |
| C．A medical report. | D．Popular science |
【推荐1】Every year, Arctic terns migrate (迁徙) from the Arctic to the Antarctic- a round trip of about 80，000 kilometers. New research finds that these far-flying birds use just a few select routes for their travels.
“The Arctic tern is well-known to people as a record holder. It holds the world record for the longest migration of any animal, and therefore interacts with a variety of ecosystems along the way,” lead author Joanna Wong says.
“They are an indicator species that can tell us so much about the different ecosystems that they travel through,” Wong continues.“ If they don’t make it to their destination in one year, then you know there might be an environmental problem somewhere along their route. ”
Globally, Arctic terns are reducing. Their crossing such a long distance has made it hard for researchers to see where the problem is. “These birds are difficult to study because they are either living in polar environments, or on the go,” Wong says.
So in order to track them, Wong and her colleagues attached light-level geolocators to the legs of 53 Arctic terns. These geolocators are actually small computers that record surrounding light intensities (强度). “ The length of daylight can tell us the latitude (纬度)，while the time of solar noon can tell us the longitude. So we are able to judge positions of the birds,” Wong says.
Researchers compared the routes taken by the birds they followed and the migration timing to other Arctic terns that had previously been tracked. They determined terns in different areas all end up taking similar routes.
Some other seabirds also use the same paths, which suggests that the routes aren’t specific just to the Arctic terns and that protecting them may be beneficial to other species.
1. What are Arctic terns famous for according to the text?| A．Their long-distance migration. |
| B．Their influence on other species. |
| C．Their contribution to different ecosystems. |
| D．Their ability to survive in polar climates. |
| A．They prefer to travel individually. |
| B．They may cause environmental problems. |
| C．They change their final destinations |
| D．They help us learn about ecosystems along their route |
| A．They can’t find Arctic terns’ habitats. |
| B．They can hardly get access to Arctic terns. |
| C．They know very little about Arctic terns’ migration routes. |
| D．They live in different areas all over the world. |
| A．A novel. | B．A guidebook. | C．A scientific journal. | D．A health magazine. |
It is reported that conservation groups（自然环境保护小组）in North America have been arguing about the benefits and dangers of wolves.Some groups believe wolves should be killed．Other people believe wolves must be protected so that they will not disappear from the wilderness(荒野)
For Killing Wolves
In Alaska，the wolf almost disappeared a few years ago,because hunters were killing hundreds of them for sport.However, laws were established to protect the wolves from sportsmen and people who catch the animals for their fur.So the wolf population has greatly increased．Now there are so many wolves that they are destroying their own food supply.
A wolf naturally eats animals in the deer family.People in the wilderness also hunt deer for food．Many of the animals have been destroyed by the very cold winters recently and by changes in the wilderness plant life.When the deer can’t find enough food,they die.
If the wolves continue to kill large numbers of deer，their prey(猎物)will disappear some day．And the wolves will.too.So we must change the cycle of life in the wilderness to balance the ecology（生态学）.If we killed more wolves,we would save them and their prey from dying out.We’d also save some farm animals.
In another northern state,wolves attack cows and chickens for food.Farmers want the government to send biologists（生物学家） to study the problem.They believe it necessary to kill wolves in some areas and to protect them in places where there is a small wolf population.
Against Killing Wolves
If you had lived long ago,you would have heard many different stories about the dangerous wolf.According to most stories，hungry wolves often kill people for food.Even today,the stories of the “big bad wolf'＂will not disappear.
But the fact is that wolves are afraid of people．and they seldom travel in areas where there is a human smell.When wolves eat other animals,they usually kill the very young or the sick and injured.The strongest survive.No kind of animal would have survived through the centuries if the weak members had not lived.And has always been a law of nature.
Although some people say it is good sense to kill wolves,we say it is nonsense! Researchers have found wolves and their prey living in balance.The wolves keep the deer population from becoming too large, and that keeps a balance in the wilderness plant life.
The real problem is that the areas where wolves can live are being used by people.Even if wilderness land is not used directly for human needs, the wolves can’t always find enough food.So they travel to the nearest source, which is often a farm.Then there is danger.The “big bad wolf” has arrived! And everyone knows what happens next.
1. According to the passage,some people in North America favor killing wolves for all the following reasons EXCET that ．
| A．there are too many wolves |
| B．they kill large numbers of deer |
| C．they attack cows and chickens for food |
| D．they destroy the wilderness plant life |
| A．wolves help to keep the ecological balance in the wilderness |
| B．there is too small a wolf population in the wilderness |
| C．there are too many deer in the wilderness |
| D．wolves are afraid of people and never attack people |
| A．they never eat strong and healthy ones |
| B．they always go against the law of nature |
| C．they might help this kind of animals survive in nature |
| D．they disturb the ecological balance in the wilderness |
| A．farm animals will be in danger and have to be shipped away |
| B．wolves will kill people and people will in turn kill them |
| C．wolves will find enough food sources on farms |
| D．people will leave the areas where wolves can live |
【推荐3】Many schools now serve breakfast as well as lunch. A lot of kids who take part can end up eating two breakfasts—one at home and one at school. People are concerned that these kids may become overweight. In fact, Marlene Schwartz, a psychologist who studies the phenomenon of overweight, notes that's not what her data has shown in her new study.
Her group studied some 600 middle school students. Over three years, students in fifth, sixth and seventh grades were asked about their breakfast. Throughout the study about 34 to 44 percent of all students said they regularly ate breakfast at home. Up to 17 percent or almost one in every six kids regularly ate breakfast at school. Overall, about one in every 10 kids reported having breakfast both at home and at school. And eating habits changed somewhat as the kids got older.
Surprisingly, at every age, kids who ate breakfast were less likely to be overweight. This was true even for those who ate breakfast at home and at school. Indeed, the study found no evidence of greater weight gain among students who ate double breakfasts. Rather, it found that students who skipped breakfast were those most likely to be overweight.
Skipping breakfast may set people to be over hungry later in the day. Then someone may eat more food than their body needs. It might take the brain longer to realize “you have enough food and can stop eating now”. If true, skipping breakfast may actually lead a person to consume too many calories over the rest of the day.
“Earlier studies have shown this to be the case. The total calories taken in 24 hours are less when you eat a good breakfast,” says Diana Cutts, who works at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. “Eating healthily in the morning is really what you need to have energy. Skipping breakfast is not good for your body and brain.”
1. Which is true according to Marlene Schwartz's study?| A．One in every ten kids had breakfast at school. |
| B．Eating habits didn't change as kids got older. |
| C．Kids having breakfast were more likely to be overweight. |
| D．Having double breakfasts doesn't mean gaining greater weight. |
| A．The poor function of the body. | B．Eating too much later in the day. |
| C．Eating too much unhealthy food. | D．Lack of calory-burning exercise. |
| A．The importance of energy. | B．The harm of calory intake. |
| C．The harm of light breakfast. | D．The importance of breakfast. |
| A．Causes of childhood overweight. | B．Ways to keep a healthy weight. |
| C．Skipping breakfast may lead to overweight. | D．Eating double breakfasts is healthier. |
