Are we getting more stupid? According to Gerald Crabtree, a scientist at Stanford University in the US, we are.
You may not want to hear this, but Crabtree believes that human intelligence reached its peak more than 2,000 years ago and ever since then has been going downhill. “If an average Greek from 1,000 BC were transported to modern times, he or she would be one of the brightest among us,” Crabtree told The Guardian.
At the heart of Crabtree’s thinking is a simple idea. In the past, intelligence was critical for survival when our ancestors had to avoid dangerous animals and hunt for food. The difference of being smart or stupid is often life or death. However, after the spread of agriculture, when our ancestors began to live in dense farming communities, the need to keep their intelligence in peak condition gradually reduced.
This is not hard to understand. Most of the time, pressure is what keeps us going – you need the pressure from your teachers to finish your homework; the pressure of looking pretty prompts you to lose weight when summer comes. And the same is also true of our intelligence – if we think less, we become less smart.
These mutations(变异) are harmful to our intelligence and they were all developed in the past 3,000 years. The other evidence that Crabtree holds is in our genes. He found that among the 2,000 to 5,000 genes that we have that determine human intelligence, there are two or more mutations in each of us.
However, Crabtree’s theory has been criticized by some who say that early humans may have better hunting and surviving abilities, but people today have developed a more diverse intelligence. For example, spearing a tiger doesn’t necessarily require more brainpower than playing chess or writing a poem. Moreover, the power of modern education means a lot more people have the opportunity to learn nowadays.
“You wouldn’t get Stephen Hawking 2,000 years ago. He just wouldn’t exist,” Thomas Hills of the University of Warwick, UK, told Live Science. “But now we have people of his intellectual capacity doing things and making insights that we would never have achieved in our environment of evolutionary adaptation.”What is Crabtree’s recent finding according to the article?
| A．The Greeks from 1,000 BC could have been the smartest in human history. |
| B．Our ancient ancestors had no better surviving abilities than we do nowadays. |
| C．Humans have been getting steadily more intelligent since the invention of farming. |
| D．Mutations in genes that decide human intelligence have affected the development of intelligence. |
According to Crabtree, ancient humans _______.
| A．had much more genes that determine human intelligence |
| B．were forced to be smart due to natural selection pressures |
| C．relied more on group intelligence than individual intelligence |
| D．developed a diverse intelligence to adapt to the harsh realities |
Some argue that Crabtree’s theory is false because they think _______.
| A．people today are under much more pressure than early humans |
| B．it’s ridiculous to compare a hunter’s and a poet’s intelligence |
| C．modern education is far more advanced than ancient education |
| D．human intelligence nowadays is different from that of the distant past |
What is Thomas Hills’ attitude toward Crabtree’s theory?
| A．Supportive | B．Unfavorable |
| C．Worried | D．Confused. |
He is a real turtle（海龟）.
Someone who always moves very slowly.
She is such a sheep.
A follower; someone who can’t think for him or herself.
He’s being an ostrich（鸵鸟）.
Someone who hides his/her head in the sand and refuses to face problems or reality.
He’s a lamb.
A gentle, patient, understanding person. Nice and considerate.
What a crab（蟹） he is!
A grouchy（发牢骚的） person; someone who is often angry and in a bad mood.In which of the following situations are the people acting like sheep?
| A．A teenager tells a small child to stop bothering an animal. |
| B．A young man is driving fast because all his friends do. |
| C．Someone runs for monitor of the senior class in the school. |
| D．People are walking and singing together along the road. |
If a person is like a turtle, which of these is most likely to be a problem to him or her?
| A．Keeping the house clean. | B．Learning a new language. |
| C．Getting to school on time. | D．Saving money for future use. |
Buddy hates to wake up on Monday morning. He doesn’t speak to his wife or children, and he often shouts at the other drivers on his way to work. Everybody stays out of his way at least until noon time. After that he’s all right. Buddy’s boss says, “ Buddy is a good guy, but on Monday morning, he’s an absolute _________.”
| A．crab | B．lamb | C．turtle | D．ostrich |
Jerry has not been well for weeks. He knows he has a problem but he is afraid to see a doctor .If he is sick, he doesn’t want to know about it. His wife says, “ Jerry, don’t be a(n) __________. Go to the doctor. She can help you get of your illness.
| A．crab | B．lamb | C．sheep | D．ostrich |
Climate change，pollution，overuse of water and development are killing some of the world’s most famous rivers including China’s Yangtze．India’s Ganges and Africa’s Nile．WWF said on Tuesday．At the global launch of its report “World’s Top 10 Rivers at Risk”，the group said many rivers could dry out, affecting hundreds of millions of people and killing unique aquatic（水生的）life．
“If these rivers die，millions will lose their livelihoods，biodiversity（生物多样性）will be destroyed on a massive scale，there will be less fresh water and agriculture，resulting in less food security，”said．Rayi Singh，secretary—general of WWF—India．The report launched ahead of “World Water Day” today，also cited the Rio Grande in the United States，the Mekong and Indus in Asia，Europe’s Danube, La Plata in South America and Australia’s Murray—Darling as in need of greater protection．
Rivers are the world’s main source of fresh water and WWF says about half of the available supply is already being used up．Dams have destroyed habitats and cut rivers off from their flood plains．while climate change could affect the seasonal water flows that feed them，the report said．Fish populations，the top source of protein and overall life support for hundreds of thousands of communities worldwide，are also being threatened, it found．．The Yangtze basin is one of the most polluted rivers in the world because of decades of heavy industrialization，damming and huge influxes（流入）of sediment（积淀）from land conversion．
Climate change，including higher temperatures，also means serious consequences for fishery productivity，water supply and political security in Africa’s arid Nile basin．Tributaries（支流）flowing into the Ganges are drying up because of irrigation，WWF said．hat is the text mainly about?
| A．Saving fresh water in our life． | B．How to protect our rivers． |
| C．An important discovery． | D．World’s top 10 rivers are at risk． |
We can infer from the text that _____．
| A．rivers’ dying out could affect food security |
| B．there are four Asian rivers mentioned in the passage |
| C．the Yangtze is polluted thanks to the lack of enough tributaries |
| D．higher temperatures couldn’t affect fishery productivity |
The top 10 rivers are fast dying as a result of the following EXCEPT _____．
| A．climate change | B．wasting water | C．pollution | D．dams |
WWF is probably a name of _____．
| A．an organization | B．a newspaper | C．a magazine | D．a report |
Now, it’s time for some brief news items.
Teens Go Online
Some 13 million European children under 18 use the Internet for schoolwork, games and music according to research done by Nielsen’s “Net-rating”. The study covered Britain, Germany, France, Italy and Spain. Experts advised parents to limit the time their kids spend on line and keep them away from chat rooms.
Chat to the magic Mum
British author J. K. Rowling, mother of magic boy Harry Potter, will do an Internet interview about her new book “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” on June 26. Before the event, children are invited to send their questions about Harry to the website. The book will hit stores in the US and UK on June 21 and will arrive in China in August.
School Soldiers
Russian school students will have to do basic military training in their final year of school, the government has decided. The lesson will include learning to fire guns, marching drills and how to deal with a chemical, nuclear or biological attack. The activity is seen as part of a drive toward the education of their love for their country.
Is it hard for you to get up early and get ready for classes? Some students at Winter Park High School just roll out of bed in their pajamas (睡衣) and go to class in their own bedrooms, Of course, their teachers and classmates do not see them because all their class work is on the computer. The Florida High School, the state’s only online school, has 250 students who are taking classes at home by computer. Students in this first online program take classes in algebra (代数), American government, chemistry, computer, economics, and web-page design. They also have to go to regular school to attend other classes.In the first news item, which country is NOT covered in the research?
| A．Britain. | B．France. | C．Sweden. | D．Spain. |
What is the second news item mainly about?
| A．J. K. Rowling will have an Internet interview. |
| B．Children will meet Harry Potter’s mother. |
| C．The Harry Potter book will be available on the Internet. |
| D．The Harry Potter book will arrive in China in early June. |
Why will Russian school students have basic military training?
| A．To get ready for a military parade. |
| B．To learn to protect themselves. |
| C．To gain some military knowledge. |
| D．To develop their love for the country. |
The news from Florida can be given a title “____________”.
| A．Get up Late | B．Online School | C．Magical Computers | D．No Teachers |
“BANG!” the door caused a reverberation (回声)．It was just standing there, with Father standing on one side, and I on the other side．
We were both in great anger．“Never set foot in this house again!” stormed Father．With tears welling up in my eyes, I rushed out of the flat and ran along the street．
The street lights were shining rather desolately(凄凉的)．I wandered aimlessly．
A young father who held a child in his arms walked past me．I felt as if I saw my childhood from another space: happy and harmonious．
But now… I don’t know whether it is because I have grown up or because dad is getting old．We differ in our ways of thinking．He always imposes his opinions and codes of behavior on me．Whenever I do something wrong, he never admits it．We are just like two people coming from two different worlds．It feels like there is an iron door between us that can never be opened．
I wandered the streets, without a destination in mind．My heart was frozen on this hot summer night．As I walked on there were fewer and fewer people on the streets, until I had only the street lights to keep me company．When I finally reached the high-rise apartment block in which I lived, I saw that the light was still on．
In fact, it was nothing．Perhaps, dad was throwing away some of his old stamps．Perhaps he thought they were useless．I never had the courage to tell him that I liked collecting stamps．I can’t stand his outrageous(蛮横的) words: “ I can throw you away, let alone these old papers．”
All the lights were off except father’s．
Dad was always like this．Maybe he didn’t know how to express himself．After shouting at me, he never showed any mercy or any moments of regret．After an argument he has the habit of creeping up in my sleep and then tucking me underneath the covers．
This was how he always was．He has been a leader for so long that telling everyone else what to do has become his second nature．
The light was still on．“Am I wrong?” I whispered, maybe… With the key in hand, I was as nervous as I had ever been．At last, I decided to open the door．As soon as I opened the door, tears ran down my cheeks．I suddenly realized that the iron door that I had imagined between us did not exist at all．Love – is second to none．Decide which is the best order of the following according to what happened in the passage．
a．I opened the door and entered the house．
b．Sadly I ran out into the street．
c．I reached the place where I lived and saw my house still brightly lit．
d．I thought of my father’s kindness towards me．
e．I walked about in the street without any aim．
| A．b, e, d, c, a | B．b, e, c, d, a | C．b, e, a, c, d | D．b, e, c, a, d |
What made the writer think of his childhood?
| A．The sight of the desolate street lights． |
| B．The sight of the empty street． |
| C．The sight of a father with a child in his arms． |
| D．The sight of light in his own house． |
Why do you think the father often shouts at his son?
| A．Perhaps the father is getting older and older． |
| B．Perhaps the son has already grown up． |
| C．Perhaps they never agree with each other． |
| D．Perhaps the father has got used to doing that． |
What conclusion can you draw after reading the passage?
| A．The father is actually kind to his son． |
| B．The father treats his son in an unfair way． |
| C．The father is neither kind nor cruel to his son． |
| D．The father is always finding fault with his son． |
The year is 2094. It has been announced that a comet is heading towards the Earth. Most of it will miss our planet, but two pieces will probably hit the southern half of the Earth.
On 17 July, a piece four kilometers wide enters the Earth’s atmosphere with a massive explosion. About half of the piece is destroyed, but the remaining part hits the South Atlantic at 200 times the speed of sound. The sea boils and a huge hole is made in the sea bed. Huge waves are created and spread outwards from the hole. The wall of water, a kilometer high, rushes towards southern Africa at 800 kilometers an hour. Cities on the African coast are totally destroyed and millions of people drowned.
Before the waves reach South America, the second piece of the comet lands in Argentina. Earthquakes and volcanoes are set off in the Andes Mountains. The shock waves move north into California and all around the Pacific Ocean. The cities of Los Angeles, San Francisco and Tokyo are completely destroyed by earthquakes. Millions of people in the southern half of the Earth are already dead, but the north won’t escape for long. Because of the explosions, the sun is hidden by clouds of dust, temperatures around the world fall to almost zero. Crops are ruined. The sun won’t be seen again for many years. Wars break out as countries fight for food. A year later, no more than 10 million people remain alive.
Could it really happen? In fact, it has already happened more than once in the history of the Earth. The dinosaurs were on the Earth for over 160 million years. Then 65 million years ago they suddenly disappeared. Many scientists believe that the Earth was hit by a piece of object in space. The dinosaurs couldn’t live through the cold climate that followed and they died out. Will we meet the same end?What is mainly described in the passage?
| A．A historic discovery. | B．An event of imagination. |
| C．A research on space. | D．A scientific adventure. |
When the first piece hits the South Atlantic, it causes .
| A．an earthquake | B．damages to cities |
| C．an Earth explosion | D．huge waves |
Why can’t the northern half of the earth escape for long?
| A．Because the land is covered with water. |
| B．Because the light and heat from the sun can not reach the Earth. |
| C．Because people there can not live at the temperature of zero. |
| D．Because wars break out among countries. |
By giving the example of dinosaurs, the author tries to prove .
| A．animals could not live in the cold climate |
| B．what happened 65 million years ago was an invented story |
| C．the human beings will die out in 2094 |
| D．the Earth could be hit by other objects in space |
粤公网安备 44130202000953号