Elephants have four distinct personalities that help their herd survive in the African bush, scientists have found.
With their grey skin, mournful eyes and slow heavy pace, you could be forgiven for thinking elephants are uniformly melancholy(忧郁的) creatures. But scientists have now discovered the largest living land animals have personalities to match their size.
In a new study of African elephants, researchers have identified four distinct characters that are common in a herd – the leaders, the gentle giants, the playful rogues(小淘气) and the reliable plodders (辛勤工作的人).
Each of the types has developed to help the giant mammals survive in their harsh environment and is almost unique in the animal kingdom, according to the scientists.
Professor Phyllis Lee and her colleague Cynthia Moss studied a herd of elephants in the Amboseli National Park in Kenya known as the EB family — famous for their matriarch Echo before she died in 2009.
Using data collected over 38 years of watching this group, the researchers analyzed them for 26 types of behavior and found four personality features tended to emerge.
The strongest personality to emerge was that of the leader. Unlike other animals, where leadership tends to be won by the most dominant and aggressive individual, the elephants instead respected intelligence and problem solving in their leader. Echo, the matriarch and oldest in the group, her daughter Enid, and Ella, the second oldest female, all emerged as leaders.
The playful elephants tended to be younger but were more curious and active. Eudora, a 40-year-old female in the herd, seemed to be the most playful, consistently showing this feature throughout her life while playfulness in some of the other elephants declined with age.
Gentle elephants, which included two 27-year-old females Eleanor and Eliot, touched and rubbed against others more than the others.
Those that were reliable tended to be those that were most consistent at making good decisions, helped to care for infants in the herd and were calm when faced with threats. Echo and her youngest daughter Ebony seemed to be the most reliable.
Professor Lee said that elephants with these features tended to be the most socially integrated in the group while those who tended to be less reliable and pushy were more likely to split from the herd.From the passage we get to know that ________.
| A．the researchers reached their conclusion by analyzing the data |
| B．the research centered on the 26 types of behavior of the matriarch |
| C．the scientists conducted the research by comparing elephants with other animals |
| D．professor Phyllis Lee and her colleague spent nearly 38 years tracking the herd |
According to the new findings of the scientists, ________.
| A．playfulness of an elephant will always decline with age |
| B．those elephants which are caring and wise are most reliable |
| C．each elephant can be matched with only one of the four personalities |
| D．once becoming a member of a herd, an elephant will never split from it |
In the EB family Echo and Eudora are ________.
| A．mother and daughter | B．two oldest females |
| C．the gentlest ones | D．leader and member |
Katie always felt there had to be something more to life than just partying, buying clothes and driving a cool car. She finally discovered what she was missing out on when she traveled halfway around the world to help poor kids.
When she was 14, she discovered a club at school called Operation Smile, an organization that supports free operation for facially deformed kids in developing countries. At that time, she joined Operation Smile just to satisfy her school's community service requirement.
After working with Operation Smile for a while, she learned different countries have different deformities (畸形). The more she learned about what affects kids around the world, the more she wanted to go abroad with Operation Smile.
At 15, she was chosen to go abroad. She was so happy – even though she didn't realize what she was getting herself into. Before her trip, she attended a weekend "mission training". That's when she was told she'd be going to the Philippines. Although she was excited, one night during training, she broke down in tears. She didn't know if she was prepared to see all these unfortunate kids. She was put to work three days after her arrival in the Philippines. Her first day was at the hospital, where she met those kids waiting for operation, and they were running around and happy, it seemed normal. Her job was to play with the kids before their operation to help them feel more at ease. She also went to nearby schools to hand out toothbrushes and teach students how to brush their teeth.
When their operation was over, the kids were always overjoyed, but their parents were blown away. Sometimes they couldn't even recognize their kids because their appearances had improved so much. They'd cry and hug the doctors and nurses and give them presents--they were so grateful.Why did the author join the Operation Smile?
| A．To help poor kids in developing countries, | B．To satisfy her own curiosity. |
| C．To do what was required by the school. | D．To operate on those unfortunate kids. |
According to the passage, Operation Smile ____.
| A．is a club popular with students |
| B．is an organization founded by students |
| C．helps those unfortunate kids learn how to smile |
| D．offers operation for those unfortunate kids free of charge |
Why did the author play with those kids in hospital?
| A．To make them happy. |
| B．To learn more shout them. |
| C．To teach them how to brush their teeth. |
| D．To make them feel relaxed about the operation. |
After the operation, parents felt surprised for their kids' had improved so much.
| A．health condition | B．looks | C．smile | D．mood |
The secret of carrier pigeons' unbelievable ability to find their way home has been discovered by scientists: the feathered navigators follow the roads just like we do.
Scientists now believe the phrase "as the crow (乌鸦) flies" no longer means the shortest most direct route between two points. They say it is likely that crows and other day birds also choose AA-suggested routes, even though it makes their journeys longer.
Scientists at Oxford University spent 10 years studying homing pigeons using global positioning satellite (GPS) and got a surprising result. The birds often don't use the sun to decide their directions.
Instead they fly along motorways, turn at crossing and even go around roundabouts (绕道) , adding miles to their journeys.
"It really has knocked our research team sideways to find that after a decade-long international study, pigeons appear to ignore their inbuilt directional instincts (本能) and follow the road system," said Prof Tim Guilford, reader in animal behavior at Oxford University's Department of Zoology.
Guilford said pigeons use their own navigational system (导航系统) when doing long distance trips or when a bird does a journey for the first time.
"But once homing pigeons have flown a journey more than once, they can fly home on a habitual route, much as we do when we are driving or walking home from work," said Guilford.
"In short, it looks like it is mentally easier for a bird to fly down a road. They are just making their journey as simple as possible."What would be the best title of the passage?
| A．How Pigeons Find Their Ways Home? | B．Why Pigeons Can Fly long Distance? |
| C．Birds Follow Roads as We Do. | D．Why Crows Fly the Shortest D stance? |
What does the words "the feathered navigators" refer to?
| A．The crows. | B．The pigeons. | C．Day birds. | D．Animals that can fly. |
Scientists used to think that homing pigeons often find their directions ____.
| A．by global positioning satellite | B．by the sun |
| C．by the road system | D．by following other birds |
Why do homing pigeons tend to follow the road system daring the r journey?
| A．Because they don't have their inbuilt directional instincts now. |
| B．Because their own navigational system doesn't work. |
| C．Because it is too hard to use their own navigational system. |
| D．Because it is easier to make journey simple by following road system. |
We were a very motley (混杂的) crowd of people who took the bus every day many years ago. During the early morning ride from the suburb, we sat drowsily (昏昏欲睡地) with our collars up to our ears.
A small grey man took the bus to the center for senior citizens every morning. No one ever paid very much attention to him. Then one July morning he said good morning to the driver before he sat down. The driver nodded guardedly. The rest of us were silent.
The next day, the old man boarded the bus energetically, smiled and said in a loud voice: "And a very good morning to you all!" Some of us looked up, amazed, and murmured "Good morning!" in reply.
The following weeks we were more surprised. Our friend was now dressed in a nice old suit and a wide out-of-date tie. He said good morning to us every day and we gradually began to nod and talk to each other.
One morning he had a bunch of wild flowers in his hand. The driver turned around smilingly and asked: "Have you got yourself a girlfriend, Charlie?" The man nodded shyly and said yes. Every morning after that Charlie always brought a flower.
The summer went by when one morning Charlie wasn't waiting at his usual stop. When he wasn't there the new day and the day after that, we started wondering if he was sick or – hopefully – on holiday somewhere, Later we were told one of his very close friends had died at the weekend. How silent we were the rest of the way to work. The next Monday Charlie was waiting at the stop, a little bit more grey. Inside the bus was a silence similar to that in a church. Even though no one had talked about it, all those of us sat with our eyes filled with tears and a bunch of wild flowers in our hands.From the first paragraph we can inter that the passengers ____.
| A．had a cheerful trip every morning | B．didn't know each other |
| C．seldom talked to each other | D．talked and laughed on the way |
Why were some of the passengers amazed when the old man greeted them?
| A．Because he looked energetic. | B．Because he spoke in a loud voice. |
| C．Because he was holding some flowers. | D．Because they hardly greeted each other. |
How did the passengers feel when Charlie was not there the next day?
| A．Concerned. | B．Pleased. | C．Surprised. | D．Disappointed. |
The underlined word "it" in the last paragraph most probably refers to ____.
| A．the reach for his not taking the bus | B．the death of one of his very close friends |
| C．the reach for his looking more grey | D．the silence on the bus |
You maybe surprised to learn that one of the best steps you can take to protect your health is to step outside and spend some time in the grass, dirt and water．
Our ancestors enjoyed the healing power of na
ture，and now scientists are starting to catch up．According to research in recent years，just having a view of nature has been shown to improve hospital patients' recovery and reduce illness rates among office workers．Also，exposure(曝露) to wildlife，horseback riding，hiking，camping and farms can be helpful for a variety of health conditions in adults and children．
Much of this type of research is focusing on children，and in fact an entire movement has quickly developed to connect kids with the healing power of nature．
Obesity（肥胖）．Rates of childhood obesity have grown sharply in recent years，and this is partly because of reduced outdoor activity time．Increasing the time students spend learning about nature，both in and outside the classroom，would help solve this problem．Such lessons are often more attractive for students and often lead them to become more active outside．
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder（ADHD）（注意力缺失症）．Exposure to ordinary natural settings in the course of common afterschool and weekend activities may be effective in reducing attention deficit symptoms in children．Participation in green activities—such as nature walks—helped ADHD patients from a wide range of backgrounds to stay focused and complete tasks．
Stress．Access to nature，even houseplants，can help children cope with stress．
Depression and seasonal emotional disorder．Major depression requires medical treatment，but physical activity，especially outdoors，can help ease symptoms．For your average case of winter blues，experts suggest spending time outside every day and，if possible，taking the family to a sunny vacation spot in midwinter．
Experts emphasize that you needn't go to wilderness preserves to enjoy nature's benefits—simply walking in a city park or growing in a rooftop garden can make a difference
．It can be inferred from the first two paragraphs that .
| A．ancient people were not familiar with the healing power of nature. |
| B．modern people are not familiar with the healing power of nature． |
| C．the healing power of nature works better on children． |
| D．the healing power of nature works better on office workers． |
According to Para.4, lessons about nature .
| A．should engage parents in them |
| B．should take place outdoors |
C．are used widely at school s |
| D．are liked by students |
Exposure to green areas in neighborhoods can ．
| A．improve children's skills at learning |
| B．help reduce ADHD symptoms |
| C．treat major depression |
| D．cure winter blues |
What can be inferred from the last paragraph？
| A．You can only enjoy nature's benefits in the wilderness． |
| B．A common natural setting is beneficial to your health． |
| C．A city park and a rooftop garden have different benefits． |
| D．Too many people in the wilderness will reduce the benefits of nature． |
Do you think it is ever a good idea for a teenager to have a credit card?
My kids watch closely as I swipe the card through the register．They’ve seen me do it hundreds, thousands of times．Cool．They are itching to swipe it through the machine themselves． When we walk out of the store with our groceries or pet food, or whatever, it’s almost as though money has not changed hands, painless, easy．
So it shouldn’t be shocking to discover that teenagers are becoming card carrying consumers in their own right．The question is, should they?
While some argue it’s best to teach kids how to use a credit card while still living under the family roof, not everyone agrees． Dave Ramsey, financial expert says getting a credit card for your teenager is actually, “an excellent way to teach him or her to be financially irresponsible．”
Now parents are required to co-sign on credit cards for children under 21．“If their name is on the credit card, then the parent may say, ‘Hey, my name is on this．Don’t get me into trouble,” says Mary Beth Pinto, a marketing professor．“When parents were the co-obligors（共同借贷人），the children caused less debt．If the parents are the co-obligors, the tendency is that the parents were explaining how to use the cards．” Still, Pinto believes parents should start
the process much earlier．“Yes, there has to be teaching going on and it has to start when they’re younger． You’re not going to get rid of credit cards．They are here to stay． You have to have them． You can’t fight progress,” Pinto said．
Ramsey, however, disagrees．“Throwing teens into a pool of （credit）sharks is a sure way to guarantee a life-time of heartache,” he said．“You can make online purchases and rent a car with a credit card．Of course, you must have money in your bank account before you can make a purchase with a credit card．But paying for things with money is what you are supposed to do．”The author mentioned her experience in Para 2 mainly to______．
| A．prove the convenience of using credit cards |
B．tell what impression credit cards le ave on kids |
| C．give advice on using credit cards wisely |
| D．explain the pleasure credit cards bring to customers |
The underlined word in Para 2 can be replaced by __________．
| A．eager | B．afraid | C．embarrassed | D．thankful |
What’s Ramsey’s attitude towards teens’ using credit cards?
| A．He feels it is worth a try |
| B．He is very supportive |
| C．He is strongly against it |
| D．He considers it as a pleasant experience |
Pinto will most likely agree that __________．
| A．parents should let teens own their credit cards earlier |
| B．you shouldn’t be in control of credit cards |
| C．it is never good for anyone to get a credit card |
| D．learning to use credit cards is practical |
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