To the untrained eye it might seem like just a bit of a monkey trick. But when Milly the mandrill (山魈, 西非洲产的大狒狒) covers her face with her hand she is actually sending a serious message to her fellows: “Leave me alone!”
Experts believe the 15-year-old mandrill invented the gesture to warn other monkeys at Colchester Zoo to give her some space. And, surprisingly, the signal has been picked by other members of the group, who use it when they too require solitude.
Biologist Mark Laidre believes the behavior is evidence of social culture among the mandrills. Importantly, the sign language is unlikely to have been influenced by human activities because mandrills do not copy humans. Mr. Laidre expects further research will uncover other monkeys using cultural gestures — the ability to communicate with the hands in a meaningful way. “By covering their eyes with their hands, possibly conveyed to others that they wanted to be left alone and this message may have been respected as a ‘do not disturb’ sign,” said Mr. Laidre.
While the hand is in place, other monkeys are not likely to approach or touch the monkey. Those who rank lower in the social order also use the technique to avoid attacks from more powerful group members. As the discovery appears to be unique to Colchester Zoo, it suggests it is a local phenomenon that arose naturally in the community of 25 mandrills.
Curator （园长） Sarah Forsyth said: “We believe Milly made up the signal and over the past five years some of the younger mandrills have picked it up. We’re not sure why she started doing it but it could be as simple as ‘I can’t see them, so they can’t see me’. It really does show you how intelligent mandrills are.” What’s the text mainly about?
| A．How humans influenced monkeys. |
| B．A monkey invented a gesture. |
| C．A new social culture was discovered. |
| D．How experts made the new discovery. |
What does the underlined word “solitude” in the second paragraph mean?
| A．Aloneness. | B．Comfort. |
| C．Protection. | D．Respect. |
According to Mark Laidre, _____.
| A．human activities affect mandrills’ sign language |
| B．animals are slow in picking up information |
| C．mandrills’ social culture has nothing to do with humans |
| D．mandrills are the largest species of monkey in the world |
The monkeys can also use the “do not disturb” sign to _____.
A. protect themselves from being harmed
B. struggle against more powerful group members
C. show humans how intelligent they areWhat can be known from the text?
| A．Milly invented the gesture when she was 15. |
| B．Mandrills are best known for their social ability. |
| C．Why Milly first used the sign language is known to experts. |
| D．Only the mandrills in Colchester Zoo use the gesture. |
When I was a child, I often dreamed of the time when I could leave home and escape to the city. We lived on a farm, in the winter especially, we wear quite out off from the outside world. As soon as I left school, I packed my bags and moved to the capital. However, I soon discovered that my life has its, too.
One big disadvantage is money. It costs so much to go out, not to mention basics like food and housing. Another disadvantage is pollution. I suffer from asthma (哮喘), and the air is so that I am afraid to go outside. Then there is the problem of traveling round. Although I have a car, I seldom use it because of the traffic jams. One choice is to go by bicycle, but that can be quite dangerous.
Of course there are advantages. First, there is so much to do in the city, whatever you tastes in culture or entertainment. Besides, there are wonderful jobs and greater chances of moving to a more important job or position. Finally, if you like shopping, the variety of goods is very surprising --- and, what is more, shops are often only a short walk away.
Is life better then, in the city? Perhaps it is , when you are in your teens or twenties. However, as you get older, and especially if you have small children, the peace of the countryside may seem preferable. I certainly hope to move back there soon. What was the writer always thinking about when he was a child?
| A．Staying on the farm. | B．Moving to the countryside. |
| C．Leaving home for the city. | D．Running away from the school. |
Which of the following is true about the writer?
| A．He is very old now. | B．He is in good health. |
| C．He prefers driving a car. | D．He lives in the city now. |
In the passage, the writer tries to __________.
| A．express his opinions about way of life | B．describe his life in the countryside |
| C．an interest in the outside world | D．persuade the reader to live in the city |
How is the passage mainly developed?
| A．By inferring. | B．By comparing. | C．By listing examples. | D．By giving explanations. |
The city of Rome has passed a new law to prevent cruelty to animals. All goldfish bowls are no longer allowed and dog owners must walk their dogs.
This comes after a national law was passed to give prison sentences to people who desert cats or dogs.
“The civilization of a city can be measured by this,” said Monica Cirinna, the councilor (议员)behind the new law.
“It’s good to do whatever we can for our animals who in exchange for a little love fill our existence with their attention,” she told a Rome newspaper.
The newspaper reported that round bowls don’t give enough oxygen for fish and may make them go blind.
“Rome has tried to protect fish more than anywhere else in the world. It stands out for recognizing that fish are interesting animals who deserve our respect and compassion every bit as much as dogs and cats and other animals,” said Karin Robertson, a director of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.
Last year a law was passed in Italy that gives people who desert pets big fines and prison sentences. Since then local governments have added their own animal protection rules.
The northern city of Turin passed a law in April to give pet owners fines of up to $598 if they do not walk their dogs three times a day.
The new law in Rome also says that owners mustn’t leave their dogs in hot cars or cut their dogs’ tails to make them look lovelier. The law also gives legal recognition to the “cat ladies” who feed homeless cats. The cats live all over the city from ancient ruins to modern office car parks.The new law passed in Rome will ________.
| A．help improve fishing environment |
| B．guarantee better conditions for goldfish |
| C．stop people from catching goldfish |
| D．discourage keeping goldfish at home |
People in Rome believe that the civilization of a city can be judged by its ________.
| A．exchanges with other cities |
| B．protection for ancient ruins |
| C．awareness of animal protection |
| D．recognition of animal lovers |
The underlined word “compassion” in Paragraph 6 is the closest in meaning to ________.
| A．pity | B．praise | C．support | D．popularity |
People may break the law in Turin if they ________.
| A．keep their dogs or cats in cars |
| B．feed homeless animals in car parks |
| C．raise their cats near ancient ruins |
| D．shut their dogs home all day long |
Generations of Americans have been brought up to believe that a good breakfast is essential to one’s life. Eating breakfast at the start of the day, we have been told, and told again, is as necessary as putting gasoline in the family car before starting a trip.
But for many people, the thought of food as the first thing in the morning is never a pleasure. So in spite of all the efforts, they still take no breakfast. Between 1977 and 1983, the latest year for which figures could be obtained(可获得的), the number of people who didn’t have breakfast increased by 33%—from 8.8 million to 11.7 million—according to the Chicago-based Market Research Corporation of America.
For those who dislike eating breakfast, however, there is some good news. Several studies in the last few years have shown that, for grown-ups especially, there may be nothing wrong with omitting(省略) breakfast. “Going without breakfast does not affect work,” said Arnold E. Bender, former professor of nutrition at Queen Elizabeth College in London, “nor does giving people breakfast improve work.”
Scientific evidence linking breakfast to better health or better work is surprisingly inadequate(不适当), and most of the recent work involves(涉及) children, not grown-ups. “The literature,” says one researcher, Dr Earnest Polite at the University of Texas, “is poor.” The main idea of the passage is _______.
| A．breakfast has nothing to do with people’s health |
| B．a good breakfast used to be important to us |
| C．breakfast is not as important to us as gasoline to a car |
| D．breakfast is not as important as we thought before |
For those who do not take breakfast, the good news is that _______.
| A．several studies have been done in the past few years |
| B．the omission of breakfast does no harm to one’s health |
| C．grown-ups have especially made studies in this field |
| D．eating little in the morning is good for health |
The underlined part “nor does giving people breakfast improve work” means _______.
| A．people without breakfast can improve their work |
| B．not giving people breakfast improves work |
| C．having breakfast does not improve work, either |
| D．people having breakfast do improve their work, too |
The word "literature" in the last sentence refers to _______.
| A．stories, poems, play, etc |
| B．written works on a particular subject |
| C．any printed material |
| D．the modern literature of America |
What is implied but not stated by the author is that _______.
| A．breakfast does not affect work |
| B．Dr Polite works at an institution of higher learning |
| C．not eating breakfast might affect the health of children |
| D．Professor Bender once taught college courses in nutrition in London |
An old woman walked into a clothes shop. She asked the salesgirl to let her have a look at a new dress, but the girl stood still behind the counter(柜台), taking no notice of the request. The old woman spoke to the girl again, raising her voice a bit, but still received no answer. The old woman looked at the girl and nodded to herself, “I am too old to see well. I can’t even tell a plastic model from a real girl!”
On hearing this, the salesgirl shouted to the old woman, “What? Did you call me a plastic model?” The old woman was greatly surprised. “Oh, dear me,” she said. “The model can speak!”What did the old woman go to the shop to do?
| A．To choose a dress. | B．To buy a dress for herself. |
| C．To show off her dress. | D．To pick a quarrel with the salesgirl. |
The salesgirl did not make a reply ________.
| A．because she didn’t see the old woman |
| B．because she didn’t think the old woman had enough money for a new dress |
| C．because she was too busy to notice the old woman |
| D．for some reason unknown in this story |
It was not until that woman spoke for the _______ time that the salesgirl said something.
| A．first | B．second |
| C．third | D．fourth |
When the old woman said, “I am too old to see well,” she _______.
| A．meant to say that she really had poor eyesight |
| B．wanted the salesgirl to excuse her |
| C．was simply telling a lie |
| D．was, in face, trying to make the salesgirl open her mouth |
What do you think the salesgirl would do on hearing this? She would ______.
| A．be too angry to say a word for a moment |
| B．run and tell the shop-owner about it |
| C．apologize to the old woman and do what she had been asked to do |
| D．turn back and cry |
We do not know exactly how many whales there are in the sea because we can’t count them. But we believe at the beginning of the eighteenth century there were 105,000 humpback whales and 120,000 right whales. At the beginning of the twentieth century there were 75,000 humpbacks and 80,000 rights.
Since 1900 their numbers have fallen very quickly. Between 1935 and 1950 the number of humpbacks fell from 20,000 to 10,000 and since 1950 the number has fallen to only 6,000. The number of right whales has fallen even faster. In 1935 there were 25,000. The number fell to 6,000 in 1950 and since 1950 the number has fallen to 4,000. Men have always been hunters. Thousands of whales have become victims(牺牲品). It’s time to do something to protect whales.Which of the following is true?
| A．We know the exact number of whales in the sea. |
| B．It’s easy for us to count whales in the sea. |
| C．We find it impossible to count whales in the sea. |
| D．We don’t want to know how many whales there are in the sea. |
The number of right whales has fallen _______.
| A．more slowly than that of humpback whales |
| B．faster than that of humpback whales |
| C．as slowly as that of humpback whales |
| D．as fast as that of humpback whales |
The passage is mainly about _______.
| A．the number of humpback whales |
| B．the number of right whales |
| C．hunting whales |
| D．the necessity of protecting whales |
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