6 . Having studied more than 400 groups of honeybees in Brazil for two years, a group of biologists led by Viviana Di Pietro report that, like humans, honeybees are capable of learning new traditions which are then handed down over generations.

“The most obvious example is that honeybees can build their homes according to different architectural traditions which are then handed down over generations,” they write. “We found that around 95% of the honeybees built their homes in a horizontal (与地面平行的) style, while 5% of them preferred a spiral (螺旋形的) structure. In each case, the tradition was passed down to the next generations.”

Since honeybees showed a strong preference for a horizontal structure, it was surprising that spiral structures occurred at all. “With the help of video cameras, we found that there was a noticeable difference in average building rate between the two styles.” the researchers add.

In order to rule out a genetic (遗传的) explanation for the different styles, the researchers took honeybees from the groups that built in spiral tradition close to the groups that built in horizontal tradition. The imported honeybees soon learned to build their homes in the local style, which was then passed down to their children as they eventually grew up. “It is very likely that the imported honeybees might have changed the style as a way of correcting the construction errors made by their ancestors.” the researchers suggest.

The findings have surprised observers of animal culture, as they suggest that honeybees can learn and hand down different building traditions over generations. This has changed the way of thinking about culture, which is often strictly defined as behaviour directly handed down from human parents to their children until it becomes a tradition in a group.

“Insect culture was thought impossible. Less than a century ago, culture was thought to be uniquely human,” says biologist Andrew Whiten of the University of St Andrews, who was not involved in the research. “But the new research has offered strong evidence pointing to the opposite.”

8 . Can you imagine a five-year-old boy writing and playing music on a child-sized violin? This was true of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart，a gifted boy who grew up to be one of the most creative composers (作曲家) of all time. Then you might think that the life of this child was easy all the time. Read on. Decide for yourself.

Mozart was born in January of 1756 into a musical family. His father, Leopold Mozart, knew the talent of his child and carefully taught him. Later, Mozart toured Europe, putting on concerts for the people of high social positions. He could listen to any piece of music once and then play it from memory. He could play the piano or the violin with his eyes covered. What’s more, music that Mozart wrote at the age of five was as good as works by many adult composers.

Mozart earned a living by selling his compositions, giving concerts and providing music lessons for the wealthy. Some of the operas Mozart wrote, such as The Marriage of Figaro, The Magic Flute and Don Giovanni, are still performed today. He composed 41 symphonies (交响乐). However, none of them earned him much money, and he spent far more than he was able to earn. Mozart often waited until the last moment to work on pieces that had been asked for.

By the spring of 1791, Mozart was ill and sad. He was deeply in debt (债务). His health, which had never been good, was becoming even worse. A stranger asked Mozart to write a musical piece for a funeral (葬礼). Mozart agreed, but then began to fear that it was being written for his own death. His fears turned out to be true. Mozart died in December of 1791, at the age of 35.

9 . My grandparents’ tiny farm is surrounded with rolling hills in Brazil. That’s where they work and _________ coffee fruit. At my grandparents’ home, coffee is usually served sickly sweet and never _________ even in the middle of summer. And we drink the coffee out of little glass cups _________ by the wood stove(炉子).

Although I have _________ the coffee fruit on the trees and watched firsthand as my grandparents spread the fruit onto big, wavy multicolored sheets under the sun to _________, there isn’t a coffee culture there.

I first heard the _________ when I started to work at a cafe that served the tourists, students and professors in Harvard Square, in New York City. I was told that my grandparents’ process for _________ coffee is just one of the many ways to do it. For example, the fruit can be dried in the sun or in a big machine, or washed first. All these _________ can change the way the coffee tastes. I also learned that the fruit from different _________ have different tastes. Mexican coffee tends to be lighter while Vietnamese coffee is __________.

Since then, when I __________ and make my first cup of coffee in the morning, I do it like __________ a sacred ceremony. I know that the fruit has traveled far, and been __________. Someone has probably lost sleep over them when bad __________ was in the forecast(预报). It only feels right for me to make sure to let my brain go blank(空白)and see where it takes me, when I __________ it.

10 . When I am reading a newspaper at home, my friends call me. “Will you _________here and give us some help?” I throw the _________ away and run to them.

My friends are playing a _________ game. And the ball goes right into Mrs. White’s   _________ . They know I live next to her,   _________   they want me to get the ball for them. I am afraid (害怕) of my neighbor, Mrs. White. She looks unfriendly. Everyone says that she doesn’t like the children. And   _________   knows Mrs. White well, because she _________ comes out of her house or speaks. I walk   _________ her garden slowly. I am nervous (紧张的). Suddenly I see a tall   _________ walking to me. It is Mrs. White. I feel worried when I see   _________ . “Is this your basketball?” she asks. I say, “Yes, and we’ll never do it again.” To my   _________   , Mrs. White says, “Why don’t you kids   _________   here? This hoop (球架) here is better than        _________ .” Wow! We are so glad to hear that! Mrs. White is   _________ us to play in her garden! We all learn an important lesson: what many people _________ isn’t always true.