Could goats become our new best friends?
In a new paper in the journal Biology Letters, researchers from QMUL's School of Biological and Chemical Sciences found that goats respond to people by gazing at them when facing a problem they cannot solve alone, and their responses change depending on the person's behaviour.
To investigate, the team trained goats to remove a lid from a box to receive a reward. They made the reward inaccessible and recorded their reaction. In the test, the goats redirected their gaze frequently between the inaccessible reward and human experimenters. They also gazed towards a forward facing person earlier, more often and for longer compared to when the person was facing away.
The results provide strong evidence for complex communication between humans and goats, which were domesticated primarily for agricultural production, and show similarities with animals bred to become pets or working animals, such as dogs and horses.
The research indicates that the domestication of animals has a much broader impact on our knowledge about human-animal relationship than previously believed. For example, it's thought that the capacity of dogs to be aware of information from humans is the result of changes to the brain from becoming a companion animal through domestication.
“Goats were the first livestock species to be domesticated, about 10,000 years ago,” said lead author Dr Alan McElligott from the School's Department of Biological and Experimental Psychology.
From our research, we know that many domesticated animals for agricultural production are smarter than their reputation suggests, and these results show how they can communicate and interact with their human handlers just as pets or working animals.
The researchers hope the study will lead to a better understanding of how skilled livestock are in their ability to solve problems and interact with humans. They also wish that an improvement in animal welfare would be reached ultimately.
One morning on my way to school, noticed an elderly woman dressed in a yellow vest (马 甲)carrying a garbage bag and one of those rubbish claws (爪形器具)."What's that lady doing?" I asked mum. "Vest Lady. She just picks up rubbish around here for fun," mum said. "Why would someone think picking up rubbish looking like a construction worker is fun?" I puzzled.
For several years I'd witness this mysterious Vest Lady—rain or shine — on my way to school. I had thought she was crazy for picking up rubbish. Eventually I smiled and waved at her each time I saw her. Later, I moved to high school. The time I saw rubbish here and there I felt really annoyed. Then I'd think, "Why isn't anyone picking up this rubbish? People are so inconsiderate I" However, shortly after, I realized picking up the rubbish was not someone ease's problem.
Now I couldn't walk past litter without feeling guilty. I volunteered to clean up rubbish around our school. Strange as it might sound, picking up litter was kind of a thrill for me! In fact, I was so determined that for my 17th birthday I bought myself a rubbish claw, reusable gloves and a reflective safety yellow vest with my own name on it.
During my first attempt in my stylish equipment, met with unfriendly looks from others as if I were a criminal doing community service. One day,I had an epiphany(顿悟):"I'm acting just like Vest Lady!"
But there was too much rubbish around, cigarette ends littered about, cans rolling on the street,pieces of paper hidden in the grass and plastic. alone was too weak J How would I get more volunteers involved in rubbish removal? A smart idea flashed into my mind.
注意:
1.续写词数应为150左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Soon I created my website go picking up com.
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More and more people on vests with their own names.
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My son and I like to go to my parents’ home in the countryside. There are my warm memories, in which I was brought up with my parents caring and loving me without asking for anything in return. It’s also a paradise (乐园) for my son, whose curiosity, observation and exploration are met greatly. Everything in his grandparents’ yard, either from tiny flowers to big trees, or from tiny ants to big dogs attracts Tom.
Last month I took my son Tom to see his grandparents. When we arrived, my father and mother were so happy to see us. Tom’s grandma hugged and kissed Tom excitedly. Then his grandpa took him to the yard to play. My mom went to her kitchen to prepare our meal.
At lunch table, Tom told me, proudly, “Dad, I saw a hen flying.”
“You’re kidding me!” I said without thinking, “How can a hen fly?”
“Dad, to see is to believe. In the yard, the dog ran after the hen. Finally the hen was forced to a corner. When the panicked hen found no other way out, her wings suddenly beat wildly. She flew off the ground and screamed up to the roof. The hen escaped successfully. Dad, I didn’t know a hen could fly before. Why can a hen fly?”
I thought for a while and said, “Maybe because of love. The hen loves her own life. Although she was scared by the dog, she was still aware that she must spare no effort to save herself from the big enemy. It is the love for herself that stirs (激起) her inner power and she flies!”
Tom nodded. He seemed to have understood.
Last weekend we visited Tom’s grandparents again. This time I heard Tom shouting from the yard, “Dad! The dog is chasing (追赶) the hen again! Come to see!”
I ran out of the house quickly.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Being chased by the dog, the hen was running to a group of chickens.
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“Dad, why didn't the hen fly away this time?”
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Bears and humans often meet in National Parks. Although campers and hikers are warned not to fed the bears, many people ignore these warning and feed the beasts anyway. When bears are used to people's food, problems soon arise.
Bears like to cat a large variety of things, both meat and vegetable. Without human assistance, bears live nicely on roots, twigs, leaves of trees, insects and small animals. With people around, the bears’ tastes quickly expand to in-chide sandwiches, hot dogs, hamburgers, and anything else they can temp humans into giving up.
Bears often develop clever strategics for getting people to let go their food supplies. More often than not, an unsuspecting hiker has taken off his or her pack for a rest only to have a bear charge out of the woods, grab the pack and quickly disappear into the underbrush with it. Hanging the pack on a tree branch won't help. Bears have been known to climb up, jump off, and catch the pack on the way down. One mother bear stretched up with her baby on her shoulders to reach a pack stored on a pole. Many bears threaten people into giving up their supplies. Although a bear is unlikely to attack a person and would probably run away if screamed at, few people are willing to do so. Most people drop the pack and run the other way. This, of course, delights the bear.
In some places, the Park Service installed some metal barrels with lids to help campers keep their supplies safe from bears. Although the bears were unable to open these containers, the effort was less than successful. Most campers, unable to tell the metal drums from rubbish cans, never used them for the intended purpose.
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Just as many families do at a point, Catherine chose to add a new family member by adopting a pet. Shortly after her daughter Kate’s birth, Catherine decided she wanted a close bond with a dog for Kate. Thus, Catherine called the dog shelter close by to inquire about adoption. After hearing about the available animals, she chose a Doberman Pinscher. Once they signed adoption papers, they named the dog Khan.
Catherine was hopeful this would provide valuable lessons for her baby, such as sharing, learning to love and responsibility to care for animals. She was looking forward to having the dog join the family.
Hearing of Khan’s rough background, Catherine immediately loved the dog. She was overjoyed to bring this special dog back to her family. Of course, she realized there were risks involved. Well, the obvious risks from bringing a large, potentially dangerous animal to her young baby, Catherine pushed them aside. If she had not adopted Khan, he would have been killed just a week later. So, this was his new life and second chance, and the family was hoping for the best.
Everything began smoothly. They trained Khan during the first few days. However, everything changed on that fourth day when the dog acted completely out of character.
The fateful day began with the usual playtime in the yard. Although baby Kate had her parents watching from a distance, they did not notice anything out of the ordinary. Kate and the new dog had been making a habit of playing out back like this. However, things were different this day.
So what was actually happening out there? The two were not being loud or crazy. They began running through the backyard grass together. Again, Catherine watched the two closely. Surprisingly, things had changed within an instant!
注意：
1.续写词数应为150词左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
Khan began acting wildly all of a sudden,
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Obviously, it was Khan who saved her baby but he barked weakly and then fell down with dying eyes.
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BPWD is a startup company, where my workmates and I work our heads off, seeking solutions to various environmental problems. We are what people consider a group of promising young talents working in a promising industry. We are from different backgrounds but we all fit in well with the high— paced life and enjoy all the convenience that Salt Lake City can offer. We pride ourselves on all the differences we are making to this planet but our best subject for lunch break chat is what we do as volunteers to protect a lake called Lake Purilence.
We first heard about the lake from my workmate, Bluto, who referred to it as his childhood paradise, where he used to fish, swim and cast pebbles (鹅卵石) with his friends. He described the lake area as one of the few places of wildness that had not been ruined by modern tourism. He had left the place for years since his parents sold their farm near the lake and moved to the city, but he still kept dreaming of going back. In his own words, he was “nature starved”. Attracted by Bluto's description, the five of us working in the same office got on our way to it in October, 2019, taking advantage of a federal holiday.
It was a place not only lesser known but also out of the way. We took a flight first and then rented two cars at the airport. We had to travel along backroads in rental cars to finally get there but the scenery was absolutely stunning. No wonder it was loved so dearly by Bluto. All the beautiful trees and the grass were covered with red and orange leaves and the quiet lake is like a mirror reflecting the golden rays of the sun. A short distance away, we could see a few other tourists taking pictures by the lake and some white birds flying up from the water and the patches of reed marshes (芦苇荡). Amazed by the scene, our hearts longed for a closer encounter with the lake.
注意:
1.续写的词数应为150左右;
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
As we got closer to the lake, however, we saw something strikingly inharmonious to the beautiful view.
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Looking at my workmates, I put forward a plan, which met their immediate approval.
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Ellen Kalish runs the Ravensbeard Wildlife Center in New York. She is used to getting calls about taking in wild animals. When a man called asking if she could rescue an owl（猫头鹰）, she was happy to help. Then, the caller told her where this tiny owl was hiding out. It was found inside the Christmas tree in the Rockefeller Center, where it is a yearly tradition to decorate trees. But this year，the tree looked a little worse. Many people made fun of its sagging（低垂的）branches. They called the tree a “symbol of 2020”, meaning its sad look reminded them how tough the past year was.
The tale of the owl's rescue quickly became the highlight of this year's tree. Before the tree was put up to decorate, one of the workers spotted the creature. It was buried in the base of the tree. The owl most likely traveled with the tree on its journey to Manhattan. So, how did it end up stuck in the tree in the first place?
Kalish offered a few possibilities. The owl could have flown to the tree to hide there because it was injured and then got trapped later. Or maybe once the tree was loaded onto a truck, the branches squeezed it into the trunk. The bird may have just been too scared to move. Actually, there is no proof about where it came from. “That would be the last place it would want to go. Why would it pick that tree if it had a choice not to? It's smart and it wouldn't do that. ,” she explained.
In that case, the worker had to bring the owl home. He decided to find a place that rescues wildlife animals. That was why he called the Center. After Kalish got the full story about the bird. she met the man at a gas station. Then the man handed her a box with the owl inside.
Paragraph 1:
Kalish opened the box gently.
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Paragraph 2:
Several days passing, the owl looked in good shape.
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Back in 1990,a pair of endangered gorillas (大猩猩) lived at the Pittsburgh Zoo. The female gorilla was named Zakula. The male was named Mimbo. Everyone at the Pittsburgh Zoo was excited when Zakula gave birth to a baby. The zo0 caregivers named him Mirithi, which means “prince” in Swahili, an African language.
The three gorillas lived in a part of the zoo that was made just for them. It was very big. There was a small pool, a heated rock, natural trees, and lots of grass to roll around in! There was also plenty of room for more gorillas to live in.
Zakula and Mimbo were perfect parents. So, the animal caregivers at the Pittsburgh Zoo invited other zoos to send their gorillas to live with the family. That way they would learn how to be a gorilla. take care of their young, have friends, and live the way that gorillas live in Africa.
Instead of finding adult gorillas to join Mirithi's parents, the z00 was offered four adorable young gorillas, ranging in age from six months to one and a half years! The baby gorillas came because their own mothers could not take care of them. They needed new parents. The caregivers had prepared well for them. They bought jungle gyms, slides, milk cartons, and other items that young gorillas love to play with.
After the gorilla babies got used to the Pittsburgh Zoo, it was time for them to meet Zakula, Mimbo, and baby Mirithi. The animal team spent weeks discussing which gorilla to introduce first. Finally, the team decided to try Mimbo, since he was so kind and patient with Mirithi, even though the baby pulled his hair and crawled (爬) all over him.
The baby gorillas were put in a bedroom next to Mimbo, They were scared and nervous, and so they huddled (挤在一起) together in a corner. The people who worked at the zoo were nervous, too. They didn't know what Mimbo would do. Would he be just as kind and gentle as he was with his own son, Mirithi? Finally, the caregivers decided to open the door between the rooms.
注意：
1.续写的词数应为150 左右；
2.请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
When the door was opened, Mimbo ran into the room pounding on his chest.
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However, Mimbo stuck his foot in the door and wouldn't let the humans close it!
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1.漫画的主要内容。
2对漫画主题的思考。
注意：词数100左右。
参考词汇：polar bear, panda, penguin
One cloudy afternoon, a seven-year-old girl went for a walk. She crossed a large area of grassland into the woods before she realized that she was lost.
The woods are remnants(残余) of a huge forest which once covered the whole area, which were designated an area of outstanding natural beauty.
Sitting on a rock and wondering what to do, she began crying. A slight breeze was stirring the branches. The flowers were gently swaying in the breeze. It is quiet around her and she listened to the nice chirping(鸣叫) of insects, which is waving and faint, just like a Buddhist melody. After a while, she decided to walk along a wide path lined with tall trees and thick bushes.
When it was getting dark, she saw a small, dark wooden house. Above the cottage the fir-trees gently swayed and rustled in the breeze.
She opened the door and cautiously stepped in. Suddenly, she heard a strange noise, and she ran out the door and back to the woods . She was seized with panic.
She had wandered about long enough to feel too tired to wander any farther. Cold and tired, she fell asleep near a stream.
The girl’s parents were out and her dog, Laddy, was at home. Laddy sensed that his mistress was in danger. He jumped through a window, breaking the glass. He looked in the fields, but he couldn't find his mistress anywhere.
注意：
1. 续写词数应为150左右；
2. 请按如下格式在答题卡的相应位置作答。
However, from the ground came a familiar scent (气味) as he lowered his head.
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When she opened her eyes, she saw her dog standing beside her.
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