New research has found that grey seals can simulate(模仿）human speech and songs. The study carried out by Dr Amanda Stansbury and Professor Vincent Janik,at the University of St Andrews,found that grey seals use the same sound production system as humans due to having similar vocal tracts(声道）。
Three young grey seals-Zola,Gandalf and Janice-were monitored from birth by Stansbury and Janik to determine their natural talents.Once this process was complete, the researchers began teaching the seals to simulate common seal sounds or noises a seal might normally hear from a herd mate in the wild.Fish was used to encourage the seals to come out of the water and sing a series of notes.Stansbury would record the seals'own sounds and play them back.The seals quickly learnt that if they sang back the same notes, they would be rewarded with fish.
Once the seals were familiar with this process and could easily copy these basic sounds,Stansbury and Janik used higher and longer tones and unfamiliar vowels from human speech.The seals were then rewarded for matching these new sounds.Stansbury even used some combinations to simulate songs that no seal would be expected to produce under natural circumstances.Zola had a gift for copying up to ten notes of songs such as Twinkle,Twinkle,Little Star and the theme song of Star Wars.Gandalf and Janice were better at accurately reproducing combinations of human vowel sounds.
Stansbury said,"I was amazed how well the seals copied the model sounds we played to them.Copies were not perfect,but given that these are not typical seal sounds,it is pretty impressive.Our study really shows how flexible seal voices are."
After one year of working with the researchers,the seal pups were released back into the wild."This study gives us a better understanding of the development of vocal learning,a skill that is important for human language development."Janik believes this knowledge can help to develop new methods to study speech problems.
1.What is the first paragraph mainly about?
A.Grey seals 'learning environments.
B.A research finding on grey seals.
C.Humans 'sound production system.
D.A comparison of humans and grey seals.
2.In the study,fish would be given when the seals
A.made funny noisesre B.came out of the water
C.repeated the same notes D.copied typical fish sounds
3.What can we find about Zola based on the research?
A.It can copy some musical sounds played to her.
B.It is good at copying human vowel sounds.
C.It is smarter than Gandalf and Janice.
D.It likes singing children's songs.
4.What does Janik think of the research result?
A.It shows the living environments of grey seals.
B.It leads to a better understanding of human vocal system.
C.It raises an awareness of the need to protect grey seals.
D.It brings inspirations for research on speech problems.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题
New research has found that grey seals can simulate(模仿）human speech and songs. The study carried out by Dr Amanda Stansbury and Professor Vincent Janik,at the University of St Andrews,found that grey seals use the same sound production system as humans due to having similar vocal tracts(声道）。
Three young grey seals-Zola,Gandalf and Janice-were monitored from birth by Stansbury and Janik to determine their natural talents.Once this process was complete, the researchers began teaching the seals to simulate common seal sounds or noises a seal might normally hear from a herd mate in the wild.Fish was used to encourage the seals to come out of the water and sing a series of notes.Stansbury would record the seals'own sounds and play them back.The seals quickly learnt that if they sang back the same notes, they would be rewarded with fish.
Once the seals were familiar with this process and could easily copy these basic sounds,Stansbury and Janik used higher and longer tones and unfamiliar vowels from human speech.The seals were then rewarded for matching these new sounds.Stansbury even used some combinations to simulate songs that no seal would be expected to produce under natural circumstances.Zola had a gift for copying up to ten notes of songs such as Twinkle,Twinkle,Little Star and the theme song of Star Wars.Gandalf and Janice were better at accurately reproducing combinations of human vowel sounds.
Stansbury said,"I was amazed how well the seals copied the model sounds we played to them.Copies were not perfect,but given that these are not typical seal sounds,it is pretty impressive.Our study really shows how flexible seal voices are."
After one year of working with the researchers,the seal pups were released back into the wild."This study gives us a better understanding of the development of vocal learning,a skill that is important for human language development."Janik believes this knowledge can help to develop new methods to study speech problems.
1.What is the first paragraph mainly about?
A.Grey seals 'learning environments.
B.A research finding on grey seals.
C.Humans 'sound production system.
D.A comparison of humans and grey seals.
2.In the study,fish would be given when the seals
A.made funny noisesre B.came out of the water
C.repeated the same notes D.copied typical fish sounds
3.What can we find about Zola based on the research?
A.It can copy some musical sounds played to her.
B.It is good at copying human vowel sounds.
C.It is smarter than Gandalf and Janice.
D.It likes singing children's songs.
4.What does Janik think of the research result?
A.It shows the living environments of grey seals.
B.It leads to a better understanding of human vocal system.
C.It raises an awareness of the need to protect grey seals.
D.It brings inspirations for research on speech problems.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
New research, attempting to throw light upon how male and female brains differ, has found that timing is everything. American Vanderbilt University researchers Stephen Camarata and Richard Woodcock discovered that females have a significant advantage over males in timed tests and tasks. The study involved more than 8,000 males and females ranging in age from 2 to 90 from across the US.
“We found hardly any differences in overall intelligence. But we discovered that females performed better than men in time limited situations,” Camarata said, “It is very important for teachers to understand this difference in males and females when it comes to assigning work and tests.”
Many males can do a better job without strict time limits, added Camarata.
“Consider that many classroom activities, including testing, are directly or indirectly related to processing speed,” the researchers wrote in their report. “The higher performance in females may contribute to a classroom culture that favors females, not because of teacher bias(偏见)but because of inherent(与生俱来的)differences in gender processing speeds.”
The researchers found that males scored lower than females in all age groups in tests measuring processing speed. However, the study also found that males consistently outperformed females in some language abilities, such as identifying objects and knowing antonyms(反义词)and synonyms(同义词). The research contradicts the popular belief that girls develop all communication skills earlier than boys.
The researchers found no significant overall intelligence differences between males and females in any age groups.
“We believe there are fundamental differences in how male and female brains end up getting organized,” Camarata said, “Our next studies will give us some insight into where these processing differences are occurring.”
1.The new research referred to in the passage is intended to ________.
A. find whether age has something to do with people's intelligence
B. help teachers to assign work and arrange tests for students
C. find what's the differences between male and female brains
D. prove the differences in processing speed between males and females
2.The underlined word “outperformed” in the fifth paragraph probably means “________”.
A. to achieve better results than someone
B. to perform worse in some aspect than someone
C. to do something as well as someone
D. to be not so good at something as someone
3.People usually believe that ________.
A. there're hardly any differences between males' and females' overall intelligence
B. teachers favor girl students instead of boy students in schools
C. girls develop their language skills earlier than boys
D. females have a significant advantage over males in all subjects
4.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the passage?
A. The researchers interviewed more than 8,000 males and females all over the world.
B. Generally speaking, males can do better jobs with strict time limits than females.
C. Females scored higher than males in any age groups in any situations.
D. The differences in gender processing speeds occur when people are born.
5.Which of the following can be inferred from the passage?
A. The researchers will continue to study how the gender differences in timing occur.
B. A female mathematician will make greater achievements than a male one.
C. School teachers have already known about these processing differences before.
D. If a girl has a higher processing speed than a boy, she must be more intelligent than him.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
New research has found that young adults who smoke both tobacco cigarettes and e-cigarettes appear to have a higher risk of stroke than those who only smoke tobacco.
Carried out by researchers at George Mason University, the new study looked at 161,529 participants aged 18 to 44 years of age, who were surveyed about their cigarette and e-cigarette use.
The researchers also calculated the participants’ risk of experiencing a stroke, taking into account factors such as how much participants smoked, high blood pressure, diabetes, cholesterol levels, body mass index and physical activity levels.
The findings, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, showed that the participants who smoked cigarettes and used e-cigarettes were nearly two times more likely to have a stroke compared to current cigarette — only smokers, and nearly three times more likely than non-smokers.
The team also found that participants who used only e-cigarettes had a lower risk of stroke than those who smoked only tobacco cigarettes. In fact, those who used e-cigarettes on their own did not have a significantly greater risk of stroke than non-smokers.
However, the researchers failed to find any clear benefit from switching from cigarette smoking to using e-cigarettes, even though many people believe that e-cigarettes are a “healthy” alternative to cigarettes, and a way to help smokers kick the habit. They also noted that the nicotine dependence and toxicity associated with e-cigarettes is worrying, particularly among young adults who smoke them for fun and the range of flavors.
“It’s long been known that smoking cigarettes is among the most significant risk factors for stroke. Our study shows that young smokers who also use e-cigarettes put themselves at an even greater risk,” explained lead investigator Tarang Parekh, MBBS, MSc. “This is an important message for young smokers who perceive e-cigarettes as less harmful ones and consider them a safer alternative.We have begun understanding the health impact of e-cigarettes and concomitant cigarette smoking, and it’s not good.”
“Our findings demonstrate an additive harmful effect of e-cigarettes on smokers’ blood vessels, hearts and brains,” explained Parekh.
“Consider this study as a wake-up call for young vapers, clinicians, and healthcare policymakers. There is an urgency to regulate such products to avoid economic and population heath consequences and a critical need to conduct further research on the benefits and risks of smoking cessation altermatives,” warned Parekh.
1.What does the text belong to?
A.A science fiction. B.A news report.
C.A short story. D.A public announcement.
2.What can we know about the participants?
A.A few elderly people were surveyed.
B.Some of them are non smokers .
C.All of them use cigarettes and e-cigarettes.
D.They have a lower risk of stroke than others .
3.What does the underlined word “perceive” in Paragraph 7 mean?
A.Think. B.Practise.
C.Predict. D.Receive.
4.What did the the new research find?
A.Smoking cigarettes is among the most significant risk factors for stroke.
B.E-cigarettes are a “healthy” alternative to cigarettes.
C.Smoking both tobacco and e-cigarettes can make young adults at an greater risk of stroke.
D.It is beneficial to switch from cigarette smoking to using e-cigarettes.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
New research has revealed that which song drivers listen to can influence how safe they are on the roads.Among the top ten safest songs to drive to are Come Away With Me by Norah Jones，I Don't Want to Miss a Thing by Aerosmith and Tiny Dancer by Elton John.Each of the songs has an optimum tempo(最佳节奏) for safe driving，imitating the human heartbeat at around 60 to 80 beats per minute.The Scientist by Coldplay and Justin Timberlake's Cry Me a River also appeared in the top 10.
The study，conducted at London Metropolitan University，also revealed the type of songs that cause motorists to drive dangerously.Unsurprisingly，music that is noisy increases a driver's heart rate，which can be deadly.Fast beats cause excitement that can lead people to concentrate more on the music than on the road and to speed up to match the beat of the song.Styles of music were also measured during the experiment and revealed differences between male and female drivers.Hiphop made a female driver drive far more aggressively，speeding up faster than male driver.The heavy metal music caused the fastest driving among males in the group while the dance music had the same effect among women.The male and female drivers who listened to the classical music drove the most irregularly.
The experiment involved eight people driving 500 miles each using the confused.com MotorMate app，which monitored driving behaviors through GPS technology.
1.What's the main idea of the whole passage?
A．Songs that drivers prefer to listen to on their way.
B．A study made by the confused.com MotorMate app.
C．What kind of songs the drivers should choose to listen to during driving.
D．Female drivers and male drives have different responses to the same music.
2.The underlined word “monitored” in the last paragraph means________．
A．controlled B．banned C．modeled D．showed
3.．Which of the following statements is NOT true?
A．Tiny Dancer by Elton John appeared in the top 10.
B．Usually human hearts beat at around 60 to 80 beats per minute.
C．The classical music makes most drivers drive comfortably and safely.
D．The passage reveals appropriate music and improper music for drivers.
4.If there is another paragraph in the end of the passage，the author may mention________．
A．female and male drivers' popular tastes of music
B．how did the study carry out
C．why fast beat music is harmful to drivers
D．some music with optimum tempo for driver to enjoy
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
A new study has found that cats can connect with people in the same way as dogs and children.The research, published in Current Biology, suggests the social abilities of cats to form human attachments has been greatly underestimated.The study notes that more cats live with humans than dogs do worldwide.But historically, more scientific research has centered on the social relationships between people and dogs.
The researchers designed experiments similar to methods used to measure human attachment behaviors.For example, other studies have observed how babies react to being reunited with caregivers after being separated for short periods.
About 70 cats were studied.The hehavior of the animals was observed by experts who divided them into two groups.64 percent were judged to be “securely attached”to caregivers, while 36 percent were found to be “insecurely attached.”The cats with secure attachments showed several signs of “reduced stress”levels, the study found.These cats were found to be more comfortable and effectively balanced their attention between the person and their surroundings.However, the cats with an insecure attachment showed clear signs of stress.These included shaking of the tail, repeated licking or staying completely away from the caregiver.
She added that the results showed that the level of secure and insecure attachments in cats is very close to those measured in human babies.In humans, research has found that 65 percent of babies are also securely attached to their caregivers.The researchers also were interested in finding out if socialization training would change the results.
But after a six-week training program for the cats, there were no major differences. “Once an attachment style has been established between the cat and its caregiver, it appears to remain relatively stable overtime, even after a training and socialization intervention(干预), ”Vitale said.
1.What does the study mentioned in this passage show?
A.Cats’social ability is little thought of.
B.Dogs have more sociable personalities than cats.
C.Historically, dog is much smarter than cats.
D.Cats have bad social relationships with dogs.
2.What will happen if the cats feel unsafe?
A.They tend to attack their caregivers.
B.They are going to shake their tails.
C.They will stay close to their caretakers.
D.They are likely to balance their attention.
3.What can we infer from the last two paragraphs?
A.Attachment level in babies is higher than in cats.
B.Training program plays an important role in the results.
C.Researchers feel insecure when experimenting with cats.
D.It’s hard to make changes to attachment styles between cats and caregivers.
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
Los Angeles Times reported that researchers may have found a way to ______ human life by changing certain genes, so that humans might expect to live twice as long.
A. extend B. preserve
C. multiply D. transform
高三英语单项填空简单题查看答案及解析
Los Angeles Times reported that researchers may have found a way to ______ human life by changing certain genes, so that humans might expect to live twice as long.
A. extend B. preserve
C. multiply D. transform
高三英语单项填空中等难度题查看答案及解析
E
New research at Yale University has provided the strongest evidence that humans are evolving（进化）- and suggests that women of the future will be shorter, heavier, and healthier, and will have children for longer.
As medicine has allowed people who would previously have died young to live to childbearing age and beyond, many have assumed that natural selection no longer works on our species. But Prof Stephen Stearns, the evolutionary biologist at Yale University behind the study, says: "That's just plain false." While survival to reproductive age（生育年龄） is no longer such a barrier（障碍） for humans, other evolutionary pressures – including sexual selection and reproductive fitness – are still working away in full force. If the trends the research detected are representative and continue for another 10 generations, Prof Stearns says that the average woman in 2409AD will be 2cm shorter and 1kg heavier, will bear her first child five months earlier.
Prof Stearns and his team studied the medical histories of 14,000 residents of the Massachusetts town of Framingham, using medical data from a study going back to 1948 and spanning three generations. It looked at 2,238 women past reproductive age – so that they had had all the children they were going to – and tested their height, weight, cholesterol（胆固醇）, blood pressure, and other traits, to see if there was a correlation with the number of children they had borne. It found that shorter, heavier women had more children than lighter, taller ones. Women with lower blood pressure and cholesterol were also more likely to have large families. Women who gave birth early or had a late menopause were likely to have more children as well. More importantly, however, these traits were then passed on to their daughters, who also, on average, had more children.
The study has not determined why these factors are linked to reproductive success, but it is likely that they indicate genetic, rather than environmental, effects. Prof Stearns’ team controlled for other factors, including social and cultural change.
Research suggesting humans are evolving has been carried out before, but this is believed to be the first that directly compares reproductive success of individuals with physiological changes（生理变化）.
72. What is the main idea of the passage?
A. Natural selection no longer works on our species, especially the woman.
B. Woman of the future will be shorter, heavier, and healthier, and will have children for longer
C. Some genetic, rather than environmental effects has more influence on the evolvement of the humans.
D. Evolutionary pressures are still working in full force on the evolvement of the humans.
73. Which of the following statements is False about the women’s evolvement according to the research?
A. women will shorter
B. women will be fatter
C. The time for the women to have baby will be longer
D. women will be cleverer
74. Which factor is the most promising related to reproductive success?
A. Genetic B. Social C. Environmental D. Cultural
75. This passage may most likely be taken from .
A. a geography magazine
B. a medicine and technology research journal
C. a daily newspaper
D. an entertainment book
高三英语阅读理解简单题查看答案及解析
Chinese scientists have found a new way to use cells found in human urine （尿液）that could aid in the treatment of a range of nerve disorders.That is a new technique for reprogramming cells in human urine into nerve progenitor cells that can grow into multi-functional nerve and brain cells.
The technique is expected to be used in the study and treatment of nerve disorders such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and other nerve disorders.
Pei Duanqing, a professor at Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health, Chinese Academy of Sciences, said his research team has combined an episomal system to deliver reprogramming factors with a chemically defined culture medium to reprogram kidney epithelial(肾表皮) cells in urine into NPCs.
These NPCs, normally only found in the human brain, were later proven to be transgene-free and self-renewing, he said.
"These nerve and brain cells can survive for up to one month when transplanted into the brain of a newborn rat," said Pei. "My team is working hard to understand why our experimental condition allowed the urine cells to become NPCs, because we want to improve the technique and make it more efficient".
Scientists have long searched to treat and study neural disorders by obtaining and transplanting neural stem cells. However, the previous method of getting and using cells from either fetal (胎儿)or adult human tissue remains challenging due to ethical concerns and immune system rejections, he said.
Pei hopes the discovery will be used to generate NPCs from patients with nerve disorders such as Parkinson's disease. "These NPCs from patients may help us discover new drugs for these diseases."
"It is a remarkable advance in the stem cell field. The results and methods obtained from this study will be of great value and significance to the field, " said Fred Gage,a professor with the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.
1.What is the passage mainly about?
A. NPCs are beneficial in treating human diseases.
B. Chinese scientists succeeded in making NPCs from human urine.
C. Chinese scientists have found cures for all diseases.
D. A new technique was used to study the use of human urine
2.Pei and his tean try their best to work hard in order to________.
A. make more contributions to medical study
B. discover another new technique
C. make the technique more perfect
D. treat more patients suffering from bad diseases
3.What is the challenge of making NPCs in the previous method?
A. The ethical comcerns and immune system refusal
B. The difificulties in getting cells from human.
C. The under-developed techniques in medical science.
D. The lack of financial support from the government.
4.From the last paragraph we can infer________.
A. the new technique will be developed in science
B. the results and methods will be applied to treating cancers
C. the study will give a major push to the stem cell field
D. the mew technique will bring great profis
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析
A research has shown that nearly 90 percent of traffic accidents are caused by human errors. So our aim is a fully autonomous (自动的) car that gets rid of the cause of most accidents: the driver. Researcher Hodgson points out, “For safety, the faster you can remove humans, the better, even if there are unfortunately a few accidents from new causes. It’s a question of balancing the number injured or killed by autonomous vehicles with the people whose lives are potentially saved.”
It’s an idea that Elon Musk, chief executive of electric car company Tesla Motors, has long believed. His company is determined to be the first to deliver a fully autonomous vehicle to consumers. Last year, Musk announced that Tesla’s 2019 goal was “to do an example drive of full autonomy all the way from L. A. to New York， and have the car park itself.
However, even Tesla admits that there are problems to overcome—the software needs further validation (批准生效) and the appropriate regulatory approval needs to be in place. Indeed, recent crashes of Tesla vehicles and Google cars confirm that the software isn’t ready yet.
The UK government appears committed encouraging the development of autonomous vehicles. It’s supporting four city trials, publishing the Modern Transport Bill to reduce red tape around their introduction and adapting the legal system to take into account problems such as insurance liability when a human isn’t in control of a vehicle.
The insurance industry is similarly eager to help increase autonomy in cars. As the Association of British Insurers points out, “Nearly 90 percent of road accidents are caused by human errors.” This costs motor insurers a shocking $20 million per day in claims.
1.What difficulty does the company Tesla Motors have?
A. The company lacks confidence to make new creations.
B. New inventions may cause more injuries and deaths.
C. The software should be made officially acceptable.
D. The traffic regulation has proved unreasonable.
2.What is the UK government’s attitude to autonomous cars?
A. Cautious. B. Positive.
C. Ambiguous. D. Disapproving.
3.What is the main idea of the last paragraph?
A. Insurance companies would like to support autonomous cars.
B. Human mistakes may be the key cause of traffic accidents.
C. Traffic accidents waste insurance companies quite a lot.
D. Motorists are surprised to hear about autonomous cars.
4.The purpose of writing the text is to ________.
A. amuse readers with funny examples
B. show his deep love for autonomous cars
C. introduce a new development in technology
D. provide a persuasive argument against autonomy
高三英语阅读理解中等难度题查看答案及解析