On a summer day at Brookfield Zoo,near Chicago,a three-year-old leaned over the fence at the gorilla(大猩猩)exhibit. He leaned too far. Before anyone could grab him the boy fell 18 feet into the exhibit. He hit the hard ground and did not move. Suddenly,a gorilla named Binti Hua ran in the direction of the little boy.     1    .

Would the huge gorilla hurt the boy？Would the boy lose his life？No,Binti Jua gently picked up the little boy. She carried him to a door where zookeepers stood. The boy lived.

This story would not surprise some people. They believe that certain animals can think and feel almost the same as humans can. What makes animals act this way in times of danger and conflict？Can we thus conclude that animals and people are more alike than different？

    2    .One possible proof is seen in elephant behavior. Elephants have been known to feel dying relatives in an effort to save them. Also,when relatives die,elephants may bury them and gather around the grave.

Some scientist believe that wild animals can think,too. One of the most intelligent animals is the crow(乌鸦). In one experiment,a crow picked up a straight piece of wire and bent it into a hook. It used the hook to lift food from a tube that was too deep.

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But do animals sincerely care about humans？This is a challenging questions.     4    . These researchers argue that if animals were actually programmed to act this way,all gorillas would save humans and all dogs would alert people to dangers. Why do some animals act this way while others do not？Animal researchers are still trying to answer this question.

【推荐3】If a cat or a dog shares your home, I’ll take a wild guess that you don’t refer to the four-footed family member who licks your face, naps in your lap, sleeps on your bed as “it”. You probably call them by a name; and refer to them as “he” or “she” and various nicknames inspired by their personality and habits.

A group of more than 80 people with an interest in animal welfare, including Dr Jane Goodall, have signed a letter calling on the editors of the Associated Press Stylebook to change their guidance so that animals in news stories would be identified as “she/her/hers and he/him/his when their sex is known, regardless of species, and the gender-neutral they, or he/she, or his/hers when their sex is unknown. ”

News organizations often follow the guidance of the AP Stylebook. The signatories of this letter hope that when we write about animals in zoos, shelters, fields, farms, forests, seas and labs, they are recognized as living beings who feel: hunger, fear, happiness and pain. It would mean writing sentences like, “The rat was injected with the virus ... ” or, “The deer was struck by the car ... ” and “he, she or they died”-not it.

The proposed change might seem difficult to imagine right now. But consider how the care we take with personal pronouns for humans has changed over the past several years. Ben Dreyer, copy chief at Random House and author of the bestseller Dreyer’s English. An Utterly Correct Guide to Clarity and Style, says these changes remind us that thoughtful adjustments to our language don’t have to wait for a stylebook.

Laura Hillenbrand, author of Seabiscuit and other bestselling books, told us that if we don’t refer to animals in personal terms, “we open ourselves to abusing, neglecting, and exploiting creatures whose capacity (能力) for suffering is no less than our own. Referring to animals in personal terms may help us recognize how much of life we share. ”

【推荐2】One morning Oral Lee Brown stopped by a local store to make her usual shopping. A little girl came up to her, asking for 25 cents. Because all she had was a $5 bill (纸币), Brown invited the little girl to go with her to the store. Inside the store, Brown told the little girl she could pick out anything she wanted.

Instead of choosing candy or a toy, which would have been the first choice for most kids, the little girl immediately ran for a bag of bread. And she shyly thanked Brown and quickly disappeared around the comer.

That night, Brown couldn't sleep, deciding that she had to find the little girl to help her. She went to the school the girl would most likely attend, but she never found her. Instead, she found many other children, in less than ideal (理想的) conditions. Brown decided to “adopt (领养)” a class of 23 East Oakland, California, first-graders. She told them, “Stay in school, and I’ll send you to college.” To achieve this goal, Brown began saving money, putting aside $10000 per year from her $45000 salary.

Starting that day, Brown became a benefactor, mentor (导师) and second mother to those 23 first-graders, beginning with regular visits, Saturday tutorials and parent meetings. She tracked each child's attendance and grades, bought them Christmas gifts and bought supplies. Nineteen of the students in that first class attended college, and three others went into trade schools. Those students all graduated from college in 2003 and 2004.

Brown is now on her sixth class of “adopted” students. In total, more than 125 young people have gained her help. Some of these students—now in college—report that if it hadn't been for Brown, they would never have been given an opportunity for this kind of education.