主題二 世界的語言

本刊試題研究中心

Ⅰ.閱讀理解

If you were to move to a new country with a different language and bring along the family dog, your pet would likely have a hard time understanding commands from the locals,according to a new study looking at how dogs'brains react to different languages.

The new study was conducted by lead author Laura Cuaya, a neurobiologist at Eotvos Lordnd University in Hungary,who recently moved from Mexico to Tokyo alongside her dog Kun-kun.

Cuaya and her team trained 18 dogs, including Kun-kun, to lie motionless in an MRI machine so the researchers could scan their brains.As the dogs were being scanned,the researchers played the dogs three different recordings: a Spanish reading from the famous children's bookThe Little Prince; a Japanese reading from the same book; and a series of human noises that did not resemble speech at all.All of the dogs had been exposed to only one of the two languages, meaning one was familiar to them and the other was unfamiliar.MRI scans revealed that dogs' brains can distinguish between familiar and unfamiliar languages,making them the first-known,and so far only,non-human animals to be able to tell the difference between human languages.

During the experiments,the researchers also found that older dogs showed more activity in the secondary auditory cortex of the brain, suggesting they were better at differentiating familiar and unfamiliar languages than younger dogs.“I think that the main reason that older dogs are better at differentiating languages is the amount of exposure to the language,” Cuaya said.“Older dogs have had more opportunities to listen to humans while they talk.”

What makes dogs unique is that they do not need to be trained to distinguish between human languages.“Their brains detected the difference naturally, perhaps due to the domestication process,”Cuaya said.“While it is possible that many species can distinguish between human languages,dogs are one of the few that are interested in hearing us.”

1.What does the new study find?

A.Dogs may settle into a new environment easily.

B.Dogs can face language barriers in a foreign country.

C.Dogs are more sensitive to languages than other non-human animals.

D.Dogs fail to understand their owners in a new environment.

2.What does paragraph 3 mainly tell us about the study?

A.Its background.B.Its benefit.

C.Its process.D.Its purpose.

3.What does Cuaya intend to convey in the last paragraph?

A.Domestication helps dogs better live with humans.

B.Dogs are closely related to humans.

C.Humans should be more friendly to dogs.

D.Training plays an important role in raising dogs.

4.What can be the best title for the text?

A.Dogs can bring surprising health benefits

B.Dogs are good translators in a new environment

C.Dogs often exposed to humans are more intelligent

D.Dogs can distinguish between familiar and unfamiliar human languages

Ⅱ.補全信息

How to learn a language in just weeks

When you are willing to study abroad, you need to learn the language; otherwise you will miss out on the best part! ________1__.Therefore,I want to give you some tips on how to learn a language in just weeks,and have fun while doing it.

Free Podcasts(播客)

Search for free language podcasts and listen to them whereever you go,in the car or in the bus,while you exercise,do dishes and in bed before you are going to sleep.________2__.Instead,just get used to the pronunciation and try to remember the words without any pressure.

KISS—Keep it Simple,Stupid

__________3__.Yeah, that's right—no grammar! Always remember, when a foreigner comes up to you and asks you something like:Where find toilet I?You will still understand what he or she means,right?Grammar does matter,but it is more important that people will understand the basic meaning of what you are saying than perfect grammar use.Don't you agree?

________4__

Make a list of 150 very important words and expressions that are essential for everyday communication.Write them on flash cards and put them into categories,such as:which expressions to use on the road,at home,in class,with friends,etc.________5__.I always put some in the kitchen and bathroom over the sink and read them,while I was doing dishes or brushing my teeth.

I hope these tips on how to learn a language in just weeks in an interesting,interactive and practical way were helpful to you.

A.You can also write these words on sticky notes and put them up all over your room

B.Try not to focus too much on grammar rules,pronunciation and exceptions

C.Focus on important words

D.But you can speak the language whenever possible and try not to be afraid of mistakes

E.Use the language for everyday communication

F.But studying vocabulary lists and grammar rules is boring

G.You don't have to memorize them

Ⅲ.完形填空

When I moved to Australia at the age of eight,I learned the worst part of crossing language lines was adjusting to live ________1__—to the rapid rhythms and many language barriers.Once puzzled, the best I could do was wait for a topic change or a long pause to________2__a foothold (立足點).Tripping over loose words and ________3__sentences, I never got far.

This was a problem because there were many things I did not ________4__about my new home—why strangers were called“mates”, why none of the food was spiced, etc.Unable to ask questions in fluent English, let alone to raise ________5__, I began to wear a__________6__smile and withdraw into the private corners of my mind.I struggled to________7__, but the differences between my peers and me seemed to pose a distance too great to ________8__.

Things ________9__for me when I joined my primary school debate team.I had been attracted to the activity by the promise of ________10__—a few minutes in which I could speak uninterruptedly.But I also ________11__a trove of wisdom (智慧寶庫), including a new way of thinking about empathy.

I chased these __________12__for 15 years, winning two world championships and________13__the Harvard and Australian national debate teams along the way.The________14__led me to become a newspaper reporter and now a law student who can speak local English fluently.It left me convinced that ________15__can help us learn a new language better and improve our lives in these hard times.

1.A.performances B.conversations C.interviews D.broadcasts

2.A.regain B.lose C.maintain D.provide

3.A.proper B.long C.complex D.broken

4.A.forget B.promote C.understand D.expect

5.A.objections B.confidence C.awareness D.incomes

6.A.broad B.cheerful C.distant D.mysterious

7.A.come down B.turn up C.drop out D.fit in

8.A.judge B.bridge C.keep D.calculate

9.A.changed B.ended C.worsened D.continued

10.A.praise B.instruction C.comfort D.attention

11.A.accepted B.discovered C.proved D.challenged

12.A.fortunes B.honors C.insights D.dreams

13.A.coaching B.introducing C.cheating D.amusing

14.A.freedom B.kindness C.appearance D.experience

15.A.volunteering B.planning C.debate D.reflection

Ⅳ.語法填空

Armenian musician Astrid Poghosyan takes great pride in the Chinese name she picked for 1.________(her), Ma Xingxing.“Xingxing” literally meaning stars 2.________(inspire)by her Armenian first name,while“Ma”is taken from Ma Chao,a famous warrior from China's Three Kingdoms Period.

Poghosyan always puts all her energy into the projects in 3.________she is involved,because she believes that every little effort will help her realize her music-related dreams.“Music knows no borders,and cultural exchanges via music are 4.________(extreme)important during the pandemic,”she said.

Having worked in China for 12 years, Poghosyan has now become a real China hand,5.________(experience) in the country's language and culture.Such 6.________multicultural background has greatly helped her stand out at her present job.

Her love for Chinese culture, 7.________(include) Jackie Chan's movies and stories of Mulan, helped her go through the difficult language-learning process.As she gradually adapted herself 8.________the Chinese language and culture, she also started to explore the colorful city life of Shanghai.

“Since I first came to Shanghai, I 9.________(be) impressed by the kindness and friendliness of the people here.Everyone I met gave me a big smile, whether sanitation workers (環衛工人) on the streets or cashiers in 10.________(convenient) stores.Their smiles have made me feel the warmth of the city,”she said.

Ⅴ.書面表達

假定你是李華，你校英語翻譯愛好者協會成功舉辦了中華詩詞英譯大賽，請你代表協會在本次活動的頒獎儀式上進行總結發言。內容包括：

1.表示祝賀；2.回顧本次活動；3.表達希望。

注意：

1.詞數80左右；

2.可以適當增加細節，以使行文連貫。

Dear schoolmates,

It's my great honor to make a concluding statement here._________________________

_______________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

That's all.Thank you!

Ⅵ.讀后續寫

閱讀下面材料，根據其內容和所給段落開頭語續寫兩段，使之構成一篇完整的短文。

Magen double-checked the words on her spelling test.If she got 100 percent today,she'd win her class'First-Quarter Spelling Challenge and a brand-new dictionary that came with videos and other cool stuff.Plus, Ms McCormack had promised to do a handstand (手倒立)if anyone got a perfect score.

Three more words to go.N-i-c-e-l-y.Q-u-i-c-k-l-y.H-o-n-e-s-t-y.Wait!She'd spelled honesty, not honestly! She erased“-ty”and wrote“-ly”before handing in her paper.Ms McCormack graded the papers while the students were at rest.

After a break, Magen hurried into the classroom, sitting in her seat nervously.Ms Mc-Cormack walked to the front of the room and cleared her throat.“Congratulations, Magen!You did it!”Then, as if she were an Olympic gymnast, Ms McCormack's feet flipped into the air.The whole class erupted!

Ms McCormack presented Magen with her prize.A big smile spread across Magen's face as she read the label on the box:To Magen Carter,for her perfect first-quarter score in spelling.

“Everything OK?”Mom asked as Magen burst through the front door after school.

“Everything's perfect!”Magen shouted,showing Mom her spelling test and prize.

Mom hugged her.“Well done,Magen.”

Magen scooped up (抱 起) her cat.“Can you spell nicely, Casper? And quickly and honestly, and...”It suddenly occurred to her that she had misspelled the word.Rooted to the spot, Magen reflected on how she could tell the whole class she shouldn't have earned the prize at all.She dashed into her room and pulled out the test paper.“If I put the missing‘t'back in,no one would ever know,”she thought.Recalling the joyful moment,a mixture of guilt and unwillingness overwhelmed her.

注意：續寫詞數應為150左右。

Paragraph 1:

Aware that there was something wrong with Magen,Mom knocked on the door and entered her room.______________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________

Paragraph 2:

The next day,arriving early at school,Magen pushed open the door of Ms McCormack's office._____________________________________________________________________

_______________________________________________________