Most dog owners are convinced that their four-legged friends know exactly what they mean when they use certain words like sit,stay or treat.However,researchers have always wondered whether dogs really understand human speech or if they rely on other information to get the meaning.For example,does the word“fetch”form a picture of a stick or ball in the dog’s mind,or does the dog bring back the object based on the owner’s voice or gesture? A new study by scientists at Atlanta’s Emory University seems to indicate that“man’s best friend”does indeed know what the owner is saying.
The researchers began by asking the owners of twelve dogs of various kinds to train their pets to identify two toys of different materials,such as a toy animal and a ball.Once the dogs had mastered the task,they took turns inside a special scanner.The owners then tested their dog’s language skill by first calling out the names of the toys they had been trained to recognize and then saying meaningless words such as“bobbu”and“bodmick”while holding up random objects the dogs hadn’t seen before.
The scans suggested that the parts of the dogs’ brains responsible for processing of sounds showed different brain patterns when they heard words they were familiar with,compared with the ones they had never heard before.While that was not enough to prove that the dogs were picturing their toys when they heard the word,it did indicate some sort of recognition.The researchers believe this is an important step forward in understanding how dogs process language.
Even more interesting was that the dog’s brains showed a higher level of neural(神经)activity at the sound of unknown words.This is the exact opposite of what happens in human brains,which get more active at the sound of familiar words.The researchers say the dogs may become cheerful at the sound of new words to try to understand them in the hope of delighting their masters.“Dogs want to please their owners,and perhaps also receive praise or food,”says Empty neuroscientist Gregory Burns,senior author of the study.
However,though your pet may understand human speech,the scientists recommend using visual signals and smell for training.“When people want to teach their dog a trick,they often use spoken command because that’s what humans prefer,”Prichard says.“From the dog’s view,however,a visual command might be more effective,helping the dog learn the trick faster.”
1. What’s the purpose of the new study?A.To convince dog owners to understand their dogs. |
B.To advise dog owners to treat their dogs kindly. |
C.To prove dogs follow owners’order by listening. |
D.To test out how dogs get information from owners. |
A.Inform the result of the research. | B.State the process of the research. |
C.Stress the importance of the research. | D.Introduce the subjects of the research. |
A.Human brains become active at unfamiliar words. |
B.Dog brains become delighted at unfamiliar words. |
C.Human brains are not sensitive to familiar words. |
D.Dog brains show no response to familiar words. |
A.Give dogs oral command. | B.Teach dog new tricks. |
C.Involve sight and smell. | D.Encourage faster learning. |
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【推荐1】Environmental stressors that push honeybees to begin searching food earlier in life can cause a domino effect on hives (蜂巢), quickening their sudden collapse, a new study suggests.
The study showed that too many young bees leaving the hive can cause a tipping point in the tight society of a hive, leading to colony (群体) collapse within weeks.
“There was a suggestion that there was some type of difference between precocious foragers (觅食者) and normal aged foragers,” said Perry, a molecular biologist Clint Perry of Queen Mary University.
So researchers set up experimental hives that would in effect force bees to begin foraging earlier. They also tracked bees in a normal hive, where social roles are regulated, keeping age groups in balance.
Colonies regularly protect against unexpected high loss of foragers by sending bees out earlier, but they rapidly return to stability. But if death rate roughly doubled, the model showed, the colony would be locked in a negative feedback circle of more young bees foraging at younger ages, leading to less stored food and fewer baby bees.
“Since the younger bees are not as good at it, they are going to die sooner, and they’re going to not be bringing back as much food, thereby causing more younger bees to go out, and more younger bees to not do as well, and that will cause continuous feedback that will destroy the colony in a short time,” said Perry.
The researchers are continuing their experiments and hope to come up with ways to identify a colony at risk of collapse. “The priority is finding ways that we can identify colonies at risk of failure as early as possible so you can intervene and do whatever you need to support them and to help heal themselves.” said Perry.
1. What cause a hive to collapse more quickly?A.Too tight a society of it. | B.Too many bees in it. |
C.High pressure from other bees. | D.High loss of young foragers. |
A.abnormal | B.uncommonly early | C.easily damaged | D.awkward |
A.The colony would heal itself. | B.The colony would get expanded. |
C.More young bees would be sent to seek food. | D.More young bees would be free of risk. |
A.To introduce a phenomenon. | B.To ask for joint efforts. |
C.To express his emotions. | D.To comment on a study. |
【推荐2】How do the world’s only flying mammals(哺乳动物) communicate? Researchers have observed young bats adopting new “dialects” simply by hearing them repeatedly, making them one of the few animals known to be capable of voice learning. “These bats may help us clarify the development of speech learning skills,” says Yosef Prat, a PhD at Tel AvivUniversity.
For one year, researchers raised 14 Egyptian fruit baby bats with their mothers in controlled area, surrounding each young bat with two different voices: the natural call of its mother and a distinct recording that varied in loudness or tone. They found that the baby bats in each group developed a dialect like the recording. “The general assumption in this field is that most animals develop their born voices in despite of what they hear, and that human voice learning abilities have developed as time goes by,” says Mr. Prat. “The finding that bats learn the common dialect in their rest place was unusual. ”
Scientists know little about the origin of spoken language, which is believed to have appeared in humans within the past 500,000 years. A diversity of theories attempts to give a detailed clarification of this skill, but none have done so conclusively.
“Studying voice communication and voice learning in animal models is a very useful way to approach the problem,” says Olga Feher, an assistant professor at the University of Warwick in England.
But animal voice s and human speech are very different things, says Jamin Pelkey, a professor at Ryerson University. “All species communicate. Unlike other animals, though, human beings are able to use sound patterns for functions that are far stranger—functions that are imaginative, theoretical, and critical. When speech is involved in these stranger functions, that is what we mean by spoken ‘language’. ‘‘
1. How do young bats pick up their “language” according to the research?A.By hearing it constantly. | B.By interacting with partners. |
C.By learning from researchers. | D.By repeating it with their mothers. |
A.It is distinct from the general assumption. |
B.It helps people understand human voice leaning. |
C.It proves animals only develop their inborn voices. |
D.It makes the previous assumption more convincing. |
A.Illustrating the origin of animal voices. |
B.Giving a full account of spoken language. |
C.Helping animals develop their born voices. |
D.Telling the differences between animal voices and human speech. |
A.It is not so relevant to understanding human speech. |
B.It promotes people to use imaginative sound patterns. |
C.It is essential for analyzing animal voice learning skills. |
D.It helps people explore more functions of spoken language. |
【推荐3】New research shows that removing black rhinos’ horns (犀牛角) to make them less attractive to illegal hunters is reducing their territory (领地) sizes and making them less sociable with each other.
The study, published in the journal PNAS, found that dehorned South African rhinos have home ranges that are 45 per cent smaller than those of complete animals, and that they were 37 percent less likely to engage in social interactions.
“The big, dominant bulls that used to have very large territories that overlapped with a lot of females may now have much less territory and much less reproductive (繁殖的) success,” says Vanessa Duthé, who led the work at Switzerland’s University of Neuchâtel.
“It’s really hard to predict the effects of this,” she says. “It doesn’t mean that population success will necessarily decline, because it might open up gaps for younger males that would not have had the space or the means before.” Indeed, a University of Bristol study published last year showed that dehorning (去角) does not negatively affect populations overall.
But such unintended behavioral consequences necessarily feed into judgments about whether this highly invasive procedure is worthwhile. Remarkably, perhaps, there is little hard evidence either way. “No one’s put all the data together to say whether it’s a really effective measure,” says Duthé.
“What is clear is that the introduction of dehorning and a decline in illegal hunting has occurred at the same time,” she adds. “But dehorning has been accompanied by other conservation measures that may be more effective.”
“It’s incredibly complicated,” says Lucy Chimes, a member of the Bristol team. “There are so many other factors involved. You have to consider what other security measures are being carried out — fencing, patrols, staff numbers — and poverty levels surrounding parks, their nearness to national borders and whether there is community engagement.” Chimes is currently planning a project that aims to separate these and other factors. In the meantime, Duthé believes that dehorning is a worthwhile tool of last course of action. “A rhino that is behaving a little bit strangely is better than a dead rhino.”
1. What is the purpose of removing the horns of black rhinos?A.To make them less sociable. | B.To protect them from being hunted. |
C.To reduce their home ranges. | D.To affect their reproductive success. |
A.The removal of rhino horns. | B.The loss of rhino territories. |
C.The impact on rhino population. | D.The change of rhino behavior. |
A.Supportive. | B.Opposed. | C.Unconcerned. | D.Uncertain. |
A.Dehorning rhinos shows satisfying effects. |
B.Various factors lead to the decline in illegal hunting. |
C.Dehorning is the last action researchers will take. |
D.Rhinos are supposed to behave a little bit strangely. |
【推荐1】Astronauts travelling in space experience forms of radiation (辐射) that are uncommon on Earth. Some of the radiation has been shown to be harmful to human health. It is linked to cancers and heart problems. Yet a new American study suggests the radiation does not shorten astronauts’ lives.
Researchers studied nearly 60 years of health records and other data about male astronauts from the United States. They then compared this to information about a group of men who are in good health, richer than most Americans and receive good health care: professional athletes. The study found that neither group has higher rate of dying at a young age. In fact, both groups generally live longer than other Americans. They found that astronauts are usually well-educated, earn more money and are in better physical condition than the average American.
Comparing astronauts to athletes
The researchers compared mortality rates (死亡率) for male US astronauts to active or former playersfrom Major League Baseball (MLB) and the National Basketball Association (NBA). These men played professionally between 1960 and the middle of 2018. The players as well as the astronauts experienced a lower risk of dying young than the general population, the study found. The results suggest that being in contact with radiation in space might not lead to an early death for astronauts due to heart problems or cancers. In fact, astronauts had a lower rate of death from heart disease than the NBA and MLB players, and had cancer death rates similar to those of the athletes. The study was not designed to prove whether or how space travel may directly affect human health.It also did not examine mortality rates among female astronauts or athletes.
Astronauts usually never smoked, leading to a lower risk of heart disease than the general population, said researcher Francis Cucinotta.Cucinotta is with the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. And diet and physical exercise also set astronauts and professional athletes apart from the rest of the population. Even for other people, said Michael Delp, a researcher from Florida State University, “Remaining or becoming physically active and maintaining a well-balanced diet greatly improves overall health, and can enhance successful aging.”
1. What does the underlined word “this” in the second paragraph refer to?A.The study about radiation in space. |
B.The cancer and heart problems in the US |
C.The data in health records of male astronauts. |
D.The opinions on being an astronaut in the US. |
a.no smoking habit b.a balanced diet
c.well-educated background d.adequate physical exercise
A.abe | B.abd | C.bed | D.acd |
A.It was intended to find out how space travel may directly affect human health. |
B.Radiation in space always leads to heart problems or cancers for astronauts. |
C.The study will continue on female astronauts and athletes in the near future. |
D.Both athletes and astronauts had a lower risk of dying young than the general population. |
A.The Numerous Benefits of Working as an Astronaut in America |
B.The Difficulties that Astronauts Face When Going into Space |
C.Working in Space Does Not Seem to Shorten Astronauts’Lives |
D.A Comparison Between Working as an Athlete and an Astronaut |
【推荐2】We’re all familiar (熟悉的) with songs getting stuck in our head (挥之不去) while we’re awake, but it turns out this can happen during sleep as well. A new study shows that earworms getting into our brains at night could cause problems in getting to sleep and staying asleep.
Neuroscientist Michael Scullin from Baylor University and his coworkers used surveys of 199 people, as well as a sleep lab test involving 50 volunteers, to measure the influence of listening to music before bedtime on sleep.
In the survey part of the study, those who regularly listened to music during the day were more likely to report lasting nighttime earworms, which then had a negative effect on sleep quality through the night. For the lab test, individuals were played instrumental or standard versions (版本) of Shake It Off by Taylor Swift, Call Me Maybe by Carly Rae Jepsen, and Don’t Stop Believin’ by Journey. Tests were used to measure their sleep quality.
Earworms were reported throughout the night by the people surveyed, with those taking longer to fall asleep, spending more time in the light stages of sleep, and waking up more times during the night. Surprisingly, the instrumental versions of the songs caused about twice as many earworms and more sleep problems than the standard ones.
Past studies have connected late-night music listening with better sleep in those with insomnia, perhaps because it can relax the body. The researchers behind the new study suggest that actually it might be worse for our sleep - even after the tunes (歌曲) stop, our brains continue to process them for several hours.
Scullin suggests avoiding listening to music right before bed to limit the chance of catching earworms. Doing some other cognitive (认知的) activity before sleeping, like making a list of jobs for the next day, might also help clear the mind, Scullin says.
1. Which description best explains earworms?A.Worms entering one’s ears. | B.Worms stuck in one’s brain. |
C.Problems caused by sleeplessness. | D.Tunes repeating in one’s mind. |
A.Different music has the same effect on sleep at night. |
B.Our brain stops processing music when we are asleep. |
C.Daytime music listening has a negative effect on sleep. |
D.Late-night music listening contributes to sleep at night. |
A.Unfamiliarity. | B.Annoyance. |
C.Confusion. | D.Sleeplessness. |
A.By working out a schedule for tomorrow. | B.By doing exercise to relax the body. |
C.By listening to music right before bed. | D.By doing nothing to clear the mind. |
【推荐3】In today’s society, language plays a key role in defining gender (性别) by vocabulary, and also their non-verbal vocabulary. Each one of these different types of ways of communicating is obviously different between men and women.
Many different studies show that men tend to talk much more than women. It has also been proven that women tend to speak faster than men; this is due to the fact that women tend to be interrupted more often than men are, and also have the ability to speak more clearly, precisely and quickly than men. In one study it was found that women spoke for an average of three minutes describing a painting, as opposed to the thirteen-minute average it took men to describe it.
Men and women also tend to have a very different non-verbal way of communicating, which can also make it very hard for one another to understand what the opposite sex is trying to say. Men’s body language is much more reserved when talking to women. Men tend not to make as much eye contact, and they generally stay farther away from women when talking to them. Men avoid other people’s body space while talking, and they also tend to sit back when talking. All of these have given off the impression of disinterest or boredom. Women are by far better listeners and much more enjoyable to talk with and they tend to raise more topics for conversation.
Women also make it clearer whether or not the conversation is going somewhere or just stuck in neutral(中立). After learning about our styles of communicating with each other, I have decided that although men have not quite mastered communicating, what fun would it be if we all spoke the same “language”? The little games men and women play with each other while conversing would be lost. The question everyone asks himself or herself after talking with someone of the opposite sex, “I wonder if there’s something there?” would no longer exist.
1. What does the underlined word “this” in Paragraph 2 refer to?A.The differences between men’s and women’s languages. |
B.The different speed of men’s and women’s speech. |
C.The ability of men’s and women’s spoken language. |
D.The non-verbal vocabulary of men and women. |
A.Speed of understanding. | B.Understanding of speech roles. |
C.Politeness of communication. | D.Application of body language. |
A.Cautious. | B.Favorable. | C.Uncertain. | D.Skeptical. |
A.Women, born excellent talkers | B.Men’s and women’s social roles |
C.Vocabulary and communication | D.Opposite gender, different languages |