Question

【題目】 Shane Gero, a scientist at Aarhus University in Denmark, spent 6 years studying sperm whales (抹香鯨), which communicate through very loud clicks. He found that sperm whales in the Caribbean Sea had different clicks from those in the Pacific Ocean. He even “translated” the clicks from a group of Caribbean sperm whales, believing them to say, “I’m from the Caribbean, are you?”, reported National Geographic. As well as being used for communication, the clicks also allow whales to develop a relationship with one another, according to Gero.

Apart from sperm whales, other animals like wolves and apes also have different regional accents. Researchers analyzed the howls of different species of wolves. They found that red wolves, Arctic wolves and other wolves have howls that vary in pitch (音調(diào)). In other words, they have their own dialects.

According to Darcy Kelley from Columbia University, most animals learn their accents naturally. For example, macaques (獼猴) start speaking their dialect as soon as they are born. Scientists placed some macaques in a new environment where their playmates all spoke a different dialect. But the macaques still spoke their own dialect. Their environment had no influence on their communication, according to the Washington Post.

“In most species, communication appears to have a genetic basis,” Kelley explained in the Washington Post. “However, among a small number of species, animals can learn from others and develop their own accents.”

Fruit flies are a good example. According to Science Daily, they send messages through their wing movements. Scientists found that fruit flies can only communicate efficiently with others of the same species. However, they can learn new dialects by spending time around other species.

“A proper accent is vital to mating and warning the coming of enemies, which is the basis of protecting themselves,” Kelley told the Washington Post. A species can’t risk changing their own dialect and learning a new one.

【1】What does the author want to show by talking about the sperm whales at the beginning?

A.Animals have different dialects.

B.Sperm whales live in different oceans.

C.Animals can speak different local languages.

D.Whales communicate through clicking noises.

【2】Why do researchers believe that wolves have their own dialects?

A.Wolves are wild animals using language.

B.Wolves live in different areas of the world.

C.There are different kinds of wolves in the world.

D.Wolves of different kinds howl at different pitches.

【3】According to Kelley, what can dialects help animals to do?

A.Have a better chance of survival.

B.Fight with other species for food.

C.Communicate with other species better.

D.Pass on information to the next generation.

Answer 1

【答案】

【1】A

【2】D

【3】A

【解析】

本文是一篇說明文。新的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)動物也有不同的地方口音，它們可以通過與其他物種相處來學(xué)習(xí)新的方言。同時，正確的口音對于交配和警告敵人的到來至關(guān)重要，也是保護(hù)自己的基礎(chǔ)。因此，一個物種不能冒險改變自己的方言并學(xué)習(xí)新的方言。

【1】

推理判斷題。根據(jù)第一段中的He found that sperm whales in the Caribbean Sea had different clicks from those in the Pacific Ocean. (他發(fā)現(xiàn)加勒比海的抹香鯨與太平洋的抹香鯨有著不同的聲音)可推知，一開始，作者通過談?wù)撃ㄏ泠L想說明的是“動物有不同的方言”。故選A。

【2】

細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)第二段中的They found that red wolves, Arctic wolves and other wolves have howls that vary in pitch (音調(diào)). In other words, they have their own dialects. (他們發(fā)現(xiàn)紅狼、北極狼和其他狼的叫聲音調(diào)不同。換句話說，他們有自己的方言)可知，研究人員認(rèn)為，狼有自己的方言，因為不同種類的狼以不同的音調(diào)嚎叫。故選D。

【3】

細(xì)節(jié)理解題。根據(jù)最后一段中的“A proper accent is vital to mating and warning the coming of enemies, which is the basis of protecting themselves,” Kelley told the Washington Post. (“正確的口音對于交配和警告敵人的到來至關(guān)重要，也是保護(hù)自己的基礎(chǔ)，” 凱利在接受《華盛頓郵報》采訪時表示)可知，凱利認(rèn)為方言能幫助動物有更好的生存機(jī)會。故選A。