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Breeders(词养者）have long found that puppies become their cutest selves at the eight-week mark; any older, and some breeders offer a discount to arouse would-be owners’ weakened desire. Such preferences might seem arbitrary, even cruel. But recent research indicates that peak puppy cuteness serves important purposes—and might play a fundamental role in binding dog and owner together.
In a study published this spring, Wynne, the head of Arizona State University’s canine-science laboratory, and his colleagues sought to pin down, scientifically, the timeline of puppy cuteness. Their finding largely matched that of breeders: People consistently rated dogs most attractive when they were six to eight weeks old. This age, Wynne says, coincides with a crucial developmental milestone: Mother dogs stop nursing their young around the eighth week, after which pups rely on humans for survival. (Puppies without human caretakers face death rates of up to 95 percent in their first year of life.) Peak cuteness, then, is no accident--at exactly the moment when our involvement matters most, puppies become irresistible to us.
It doesn’t hurt that humans seem to be especially defenseless to cute things. Oxytocin, the so-called love hormone, has been found to rise in dogs and their owners after they look in each other’s eyes—setting off the same feedback loop(反馈回路）that exists between human mothers and their babies. In other words, the more dogs get us to look at them, the more tightly bonded to them we grow.
Born blind and basically deaf, puppies aren’t interactive in their first weeks of life, and Wynne notes that many people find animals in this stage alien and unappealing. A recent study focused on humans showed that, similar to six-week-old puppies, six-month-old babies are seen as significantly cuter than newborns. As the psychologists Gary Sherman and Jonathan Haidt have proposed, the delayed appearance of cuteness in human babies can also bring about a flood of social interactions, such as petting, playing, and baby-talking. These acts are developmentally crucial to puppies as well, but they can’t be carried out very effectively with the extremely young. And so “one is not born cute,” Sherman and Haidt conclude. “One becomes cute.”
1.What did Wynne find in his study?
A. Human care reduces puppies’ death rate compared with mother dogs’ nursing.
B. Mother dogs refuse to raise puppies as humans offer to help with the nursing.
C. Puppies1 attractiveness reaches its peak between six and eight weeks after birth.
D. Puppies present their cuteness to us because we participate in their survival.
2.The bond between dogs and humans builds up when .
A. oxytocin increases in both dogs and their owners
B. dogs give us more looks than we do to them
C. humans are able to feel dogs’ cuteness at first sight
D. dogs and humans receive negative responses
3.The conclusion “One becomes cute.” implies that .
A. newly born babies or puppies seldom show cuteness
B. cuteness serves for puppies’ survival and growth
C. even blind puppies can become cute through practice
D. it is a challenge for cuteness to be passed down
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What do babies, puppies and cartoon characters have in common? 1.
Cute animals and babies attract our attention and make us want to take care of them, which gives them an evolutionary advantage, according to Austrian zoologist Konrad Lorenz.
2.When we look at babies, we are attracted to certain facial features. These features make us want to take care of them so they can grow up healthily and pass their genes on to the next generation.
Looking at baby animals and cartoon characters also causes these feelings.
Childlike characteristics make babies sweet and lead us to build close ties with them. 3.
There are several features that can cause this feeling. 4.If a baby animal or human wobbles (摇摇摆摆) a bit when walking, that can make them seem even cuter.
Of course, we don’t raise baby animals the same way we raise human babies, and we don’t raise cartoon characters at all. 5.Cute cartoon characters become popular this way, and baby animals are more likely to be cared for properly.
Think about some of the things that you find cute, and you’re likely to see that they have some of the same characteristics as a human baby.
A. The science behind cuteness is still unclear.
B. The answer is that they all look cute.
C. This even works when we see things that remind us of a baby.
D. A large round head, large eyes, and soft skin are just some of these features.
E. However, babies get less cute as they get older.
F. Human babies are a good example.
G. But their cuteness does make us like them and want to take care of them.
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With their long histories, the United Kingdom’s universities have earned reputation and become favored destinations for many international students. However, while many people dream of attending these institutions, a growing number of the schools have fallen victim to cheating scandals (丑闻) in recent years.
The Telegraph reported that investigations for cheating have risen at Leeds University, from 127 in 2014/15 to 516 last year. Over the same period, cases at Queen Mary University of London increased from 104 to 248, and Nottingham University tripled to 514.
The increase has been linked to the rise of essay mills (论文作坊). These are companies that, for a fee, provide original essays, written by real people, for specific university assignments. Widely advertised on social media, these essay mills target those who struggle with their university workloads.
Even though many students have the ability to complete work on their own, it is believed that the pressure of too many deadlines and a lack of discipline encourage them to use essay mills.
In response, many universities have introduced new measures, such as oral exams to test students’ knowledge of assignments and subject areas. New software is also helping catch cheaters. Currently, most UK universities use Turnitin to check assignments for plagiarism (剽窃). Now it is being used to analyze students’ natural writing styles. This way, it may detect abnormal changes in their written assignments.
Despite the risks, essay mills seem like an easy ticket to a degree. However, a majority do not deliver the A+ essays they promise, and students are vulnerable to being cheated and blackmail (敲诈). According to the BBC, multiple Coventry University students were blackmailed up to $5,000 (35,190 yuan) after using an essay-writing service last year.
A Nottingham University spokesman told the Guardian, “The best way to deal with essay mills is for the government to legislate (立法) against them and block their webpages at a national level.”
Currently, these sites are legal in the UK, but other countries, including New Zealand and Australia, have banned them altogether. Students in Australia could even face two years in jail and a $210,000 fine if found guilty of cheating.
1.Why do many students turn to essay mills, according to the writer?
A.Because they want to pay for top marks.
B.Because essay mills are popular on social media.
C.Because they find college work is too difficult.
D.Because they have heavy workloads and they are undisciplined.
2.The underlined word “vulnerable” in Paragraph 6 is closest in meaning to “_______”.
A.knowing little about something
B.paying close attention to something
C.well prepared for something
D.likely to suffer from something
3.What is the best way to deal with essay mills, according to the Nottingham University spokesman?
A.The government should make laws to ban them.
B.Students found guilty of cheating should be put into jail.
C.Teachers should change the way of testing their students.
D.Universities should better manage their campus websites.
4.What is the main idea of the article?
A.The increase of cheating at UK universities.
B.The rise of essay mills in the UK.
C.Pressures faced by students in the UK.
D.Attitudes toward plagiarism in different countries.
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阅读理解
The Minions
These yellow creatures become a big hit for their cuteness of loving bananas, nonsense words and silly movements. When you watched Despicable Me (2010), did you predict the Minions would later become the main attraction? From background characters and then main characters, their success proves good animated creations can take on a life of their own spin-offs(续集)
The penguins
The penguins were originally just sidekicks in Madagascar(2005). But in 2008 they took leading roles in their own TV series, and in 2014 starred in the film Penguins of Madagascar. The penguins’ wit, sarcasm and crafty composure not only adds attraction to the kid-friendly franchise, but also serves adult audiences well. So it's not surprising that they got their own movie.
Scrat
A small and furry squirrel with a long tail from animated movie Ice Age(2002), Scrat has won people’s hearts with its persistence in acorns. It is a big part of its(Ice Age’s) enduring appeal. He demands a lot of nuts, but he is a superstar, and he does his own stunts. Scrat now has his own animated shorts, extended scenes and mini-movies.
Puss in Boots
Originally a fairy tale written by French author Charles Perraut, Puss in Boots features a cat that helps his low-born master gain wealth and power through trickery. The cat later appeared in the Shrek franchise. In 2011, he had his own movie fittingly titled Puss in Boots.
1.According to the text, an adult is more likely to enjoy the character ______.
A. the Minions B. the Penguins
C. Scrat D. Puss in Boots
2.Which is close in meaning to the underlined word ‘sidekicks’ in the second part?
A. assistants B. leading players
C. standers-by D. minor roles
3.What do the four characters have in common?
A. They have contributed most to the success of their original films.
B. They have proved that the audience usually favor cute animals
C. They have completely stolen the show with their own series.
D. They have shown their shared qualities of honesty, loyalty and unselfishness.
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Puppy love is _________．
A．there where Chinese parents have long been arguing
B．where Chinese parents have long been arguing
C．where do Chinese parents argue about
D．the place that Chinese parents argue about
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30． the people have become masters of their own country that science can really serve the people.
A．Only then B．It is only when C．Only when D．It is only then
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Now that newsrooms are becoming less popular in the US，young people have begun to tell their own stories．
GlobalGirl Media，a nonprofit organization that teaches teenage girls digital storytelling skills，was started by award-winning filmmakers Amie Williams and Meena Nanji in Los Angeles in 2010．
“By giving girls a voice，you introduce a different story，and change the existing one，”said Danny Glover，a member of the GlobalGirl Media advisory board．
“When the camera’s in my hands，I feel like I can’t lose，”Said Cheyenne Grisez，14．“It makes me happy and I feel like I can do anything．”
On the final day of the summer academy in California，Williams worked with Grisez and Camila Prado，15，on a short film about Prado’s fight against an eating disorder．In the film，Prado bravely interviewed her parents and sister about how she was able to beat her depression and eating disorder．This film and others the girls had made were shown to parents and friends on the last day of the academy，celebrating their hard work．
“It’s their story，and nobody knows how to tell it better than they do，”Williams said．
“These girls are from really difficult backgrounds．They feel trapped sometimes．They feel alone．”Williams said．“The camera gives them a way to look at their world in a different way and get out of that feeling．’’
Girls in the program practice their skills and build confidence by going out in the community and interviewing people for the short films．Many of them had no experience，but found they had good storytelling skills．
“I work with these girls．Every day I leave inspired and completely grateful，because I know that．due to the work we're doing with them，things will be better，”said GlobalGirl Media summer academy project director Heather Faison．
1.Why do many American girls like to tell stories using the camera?
A．Their parents hate to give them a hand．
B．The camera can help them out of their trouble．
C．They can make profits from their documentaries．
D．They desire to improve their photo skills．
2.What do we learn about GlobalGirl Media from the text?
A．It gives girls digital storytelling skills．
B．It gets much money from girl students．
C．It was founded by the government．
D．It has newsrooms in California．
3.What difficulty did Prado overcome by making her film?
A．Self-harm． B．An eating disorder.
C．Poor school scores． D．Teenage depression．
4.Who directed GlobalGirl Media summer academy project in California?
A．Meena Nanji． B．Amie Williams．
C．Danny Glover． D．Heather Faison.
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17．Puppy love is _________．
| A．there where Chinese parents have long been arguing |
| B．where Chinese parents have long been arguing |
| C．where do Chinese parents argue about |
| D．the place that Chinese parents argue about |
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I have learned that it’s taking _____ long time to become _____ person you want to be.
A. the; a B. a; the C. the; the D. 不填; a
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I have learned that it's taking ________ long time to become ________ person I want to be.
A．the; a B．a; the
C．the; the D．/; a