1 . Could your dog be prone to a fatal disease? Is your new shelter pup part beagle or boxer? Many pet owners seek answers to these questions, and as a result, direct-to-consumer dog DNA testing is booming.
Human interfering with dog DNA has long been the driving factor behind dogs’ breed diversity — or lack thereof. But a dog’s DNA can also be used to confirm their lineage (血统) or identify their breed, a boon for pet owners on the lookout for breed-specific health or behavioral challenges or those looking to confirm their dog really has the heritage claimed by a breeder or seller. During DNA analysis, labs sequence the dog’s DNA and look for similarities with a dataset of identified dog breeds.
But breed identification isn’t as simple as it might seem. In a study published in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association last month, scientists looked into the accuracy of breed prediction in commercially available DNA tests that required a photo of the dog in addition to its DNA sample. The results were mixed, says Casey Greene, a professor who co-authored the study.
“Most tests could accurately distinguish the breed of purebred dogs,” says Greene. But the analysis suggested that some testing companies might rely on the photo more than the dog’s actual genetics — and revealed big differences between companies’ business practices and the genetic datasets they use to determine dog breeds.
The researchers submitted photos and DNA of 12 purebred dogs to a total of six commercial canine (犬的) ancestry identification services. Since each pup was purebred and possessed extensive American Kennel Club paperwork, the researchers knew their breed conclusively—but in some cases they provided a photo of a different dog to see if the photo influenced the DNA results. One of the companies misidentified a purebred Chinese crested dog — almost entirely hairless — as a long-haired Brittany spaniel, seemingly based on the photo alone. The other five did identify the registered breed correctly, but often gave different predictions for other “ancestor” breeds in dogs whose DNA suggested mixed breeding in prior generations. The researchers concluded that veterinarians and pet owners alike should “approach direct-to-consumer tests with caution” given the lack of industry standardization and at least one company’s reliance on photographs instead of DNA analysis.
Despite these concerns, though. dog DNA seems headed for a golden age — and the insights revealed through further study of Fido’s genome (基因组) have already reached far beyond the doghouse. Domesticated dogs have emerged as surprising superstars in medical research that benefits humans. According to researchers, that’s just the beginning. With implications ranging from entertaining to consequential, there’s no telling what dog DNA will continue to unleash.
1. The underlined word “boon” in paragraph two is closest in meaning to ________.A.blessing | B.substitute | C.duty | D.struggle |
A.it assists in accurately determining the breed a dog belongs to |
B.it helps to predict whether dogs are subject to certain diseases |
C.it provides pet owners with insights into dogs’ behavioral challenges |
D.it sequences the DNA of identified dog breeds to find their similarities |
A.Photos play a more significant role in identifying a dog’s breed than its actual genetics. |
B.It is a common phenomenon that the DNA analysis of dogs may yield mixed results. |
C.Commercial dog DNA tests still have limitations and should be dealt with cautiously. |
D.Direct-to-consumer tests overshadow DNA analysis in identifying purebred dogs. |
A.Controversies regarding its reliability are here to stay. |
B.It is bound to make breakthroughs in the fields of medicine and entertainment. |
C.It can step into a golden age as long as some research limitations are fixed. |
D.It may have far-reaching significance and be applied to a wider range of areas. |
2 . Maps, number lines, shapes, artwork and other materials tend to cover elementary classroom walls. However, too much of a good thing may end up
Psychology researchers Anna V. Fisher, Karrie E. Godwin and Howard Seltman of Carnegie Mellon University looked at whether classroom displays affected children’s ability to maintain
“Young children spend a lot of time — usually the whole day — in the same classroom, and we have shown that a classroom’s
Should teachers
“We do not suggest by any means that this is the answer to all
For the study, 24 kindergarten students were placed in
“We were also interested in finding out if the visual displays were removed, whether the children’s attention would
However, when the researchers totaled all of the time children spent off-task in both types of classrooms, the rate of off-task
The researchers hope these findings will lead to further studies into developing guidelines to help teachers design classrooms
A.attracting | B.distracting | C.holding | D.paying |
A.confidence | B.relationship | C.consistency | D.focus |
A.gains | B.opportunities | C.needs | D.disabilities |
A.social | B.natural | C.physical | D.visual |
A.turn over | B.take down | C.try out | D.look into |
A.athletic | B.environmental | C.educational | D.communicative |
A.additional | B.prior | C.national | D.independent |
A.However | B.Besides | C.Therefore | D.Meanwhile |
A.stretch | B.adapt | C.concentrate | D.explore |
A.decorated | B.empty | C.transitional | D.laboratory |
A.teaching | B.classroom | C.school | D.personality |
A.accuracy | B.emphasis | C.impact | D.perspective |
A.refer | B.listen | C.respond | D.shift |
A.questions | B.behaviors | C.incidents | D.tasks |
A.originally | B.innovatively | C.appropriately | D.exclusively |
A.Understanding how to cooperate. | B.The beginning of how to communicate |
C.Considering what others need. | D.The first day at the family day-care home |
A.Children should be taught to share as early as possible. |
B.By the age of four, most children are ready to share what they have. |
C.A care provider should never say the toy belongs to a certain child. |
D.Children can learn to share when playing with other children. |
A.In a group game, the care provider may decide who the toy belongs to. |
B.If a child wants a toy back, he will have to ask the care provider for it |
C.It's important for the care provider to explain the importance of sharing to children |
D.Care providers need to be patient and explain everything in a way children understand |
A.The advantages of reality TV shows. | B.The disadvantages of reality TV shows |
C.Their experiences in reality TV shows. | D.Their different views on reality TV shows. |
A.Ordinary people. | B.Famous people. |
C.Stupid people. | D.Popular people. |
A.Most of the situations are not real. | B.Some of them are too touching. |
C.They are full of tension and drama. | D.She will never get into such situations. |
A.They are amusing but sometimes harmful. |
B.They are a form of “gossip entertainment” |
C.They can entertain and sometimes educate people. |
D.They can make people know more about nature. |
5 . In Favour of Simple Writing
Do you edit text messages carefully before sending them? If so, you may be the kind of person who takes pride in
People are constantly receiving messages, from the mailbox to the inbox to the text-message alert. What to read, what to skim (略读) and what to ignore are decisions that nearly everyone has to make dozens of times a day. A new book titled All Readers are Busy Nowadays makes the argument for being the careful kind of
Take “less is more”. Most books on writing well advocate the advice to
Keeping messages to a
Syntax (句法) and
If everyone is a busy reader, everyone is a busy writer, too. That may make it tempting to sent as many messages as
A.conveying | B.understanding | C.crafting | D.sending |
A.care | B.quantity | C.simplicity | D.technology |
A.reader | B.poster | C.learner | D.writer |
A.structures | B.principles | C.aims | D.alternatives |
A.remove | B.ignore | C.reconsider | D.interpret |
A.conveyed | B.translated | C.tested | D.shaped |
A.lowered | B.affected | C.doubled | D.maintained |
A.basic | B.positive | C.definite | D.single |
A.Recording | B.Reducing | C.Counting | D.Estimating |
A.in comparison | B.after all | C.for instance | D.in particular |
A.word-choice | B.pattern-design | C.target-setting | D.platform-selection |
A.difficult | B.suitable | C.challenging | D.common |
A.carefully | B.often | C.politely | D.quickly |
A.outcomes | B.points | C.figures | D.benefits |
A.received | B.written | C.read | D.answered |
6 . Precognitive dreams are dreams that seemingly predict the future which cannot be inferred from actually available information. Former US President Abraham Lincoln once revealed the frightening dream to his law partner and friend Ward Hill Lamon, “…Then I heard people weep… ‘Who is dead in the White House?’ I demanded. ‘The President,’ ‘he was killed!’…” The killing did happen later.
Christopher French, Professor in the Department of Psychology at Goldsmiths, stated the most likely explanation for such a phenomenon was coincidence (巧合). “In addition to pure coincidences we must also consider the unreliability of memory”, he added. Asked what criteria would have to be met for him to accept that precognitive dreams were a reality, he said, “The primary problem with tests of the claim is that the subjects are unable to tell when the event(s)they’ve dreamed about will happen.”
However, some claimed to make such tests practicable. Professor Caroline Watt at the University of Edinburgh, has conducted studies into precognitive dreaming. She stated that knowing future through dreams challenged the basic assumption of science — causality (relationship of cause and effect).
Dick Bierman, a retired physicist and psychologist, who has worked at the Universities of Amsterdam, Utrecht and Groningen, has put forward a theory that may explain precognitive dreams. It is based on the fact that when scientists use certain mathematical descriptions to talk about things like electromagnetism (电磁学), these descriptions favour the belief that time only moves in one direction. However, in practice the wave that is running backwards in time does exist. This concept is called the time symmetry, meaning that the laws of physics look the same when time runs forward or backward. But he believes that time symmetry breaks down due to external conditions. “The key of the theory is that it assumes that there is a special context that restores the broken time-symmetry, if the waves running backwards are ‘absorbed’ by a consistent multi-particle (多粒子) system. The brain under a dream state may be such a system where broken time-symmetry is partially restored. This is still not a full explanation for precognitive dreams but it shows where physics might be adjusted to accommodate the phenomenon,” he explains.
Although Bierman’s explanation is still based on guesses and has not accepted by mainstream science, Watt does think it is worth considering. For now, believing that it’s possible to predict future with dreams remains an act of faith. Yet, it’s possible that one day we’ll wake up to a true understanding of this fascinating phenomenon.
1. According to French, what makes it difficult to test precognitive dreams?A.Unavailability of people’s dreams. |
B.That coincidences happen a lot in reality. |
C.That criteria for dream reliability are not trustworthy. |
D.People’s inability to tell when dreamt events will happen. |
A.the assumption of causality | B.the time symmetry |
C.memories of ordinary people | D.modern scientific tests |
A.Lincoln was warned of the killing by his friend |
B.Watt carried out several experiments on causality |
C.researches on electromagnetism are based on the time symmetry |
D.time’s moving in two directions may justify precognitive dreams |
A.Should Dreams Be Assessed? |
B.Can Dreams Predict the Future? |
C.How Can Physics Be Changed to Explain Dreams? |
D.Why Should Scientists Study Precognitive Dreams? |
A.Because she wants to buy some secondhand things. |
B.Because she thinks it amazing to eat and bargain there. |
C.Because she decides to buy some big-ticket items. |
D.Because she is too busy in the daytime on weekends. |
A.Flea markets are held in the daytime only. |
B.Flea markets only provide used things. |
C.Night markets only happen on weekends. |
D.Only night markets provide good deals. |
A.2. | B.4. | C.5. | D.6. |
A.Trash and treasure go hand in hand. | B.One’s trash is similar to his treasure. |
C.Trash is equal to treasure to a degree. | D.Different people have different needs. |
Remote Work Slows Senior Housing Market Recovery
With the rise of remote work, the market for senior housing has met with problems in its recovery. Only a few old people choose to live in senior-living communities
When more adults began working remotely during the pandemic (流行病), they were able to check in on aging parents easily — they
Experts have been analyzing the phenomenon in different ways. Some found that the greater flexibility to care for parents
The age at which people enter senior housing is also increasing,
Still, many senior-housing operators are optimistic. When