One day in 1963, a dolphin named Elvar and a famous astronomer, Carl Sagan, were playing a little game. The astronomer was visiting an institute which was looking into the way dolphins communicate with each other. Sagan was standing on the edge of one of the tanks where several of these friendly, highly intelligent creatures were kept. Elvar had just swum up alongside him and had turned on his back.
The dolphin wanted Sagan to scratch his stomach again, as the astronomer had done twice before. Elvar looked up at Sagan, waiting. Then, after a minute or so, the dolphin leapt up through the water and made a sound just like the word more. The astonished astronomer went to the director of the institute and told him about the incident. Oh, yes. Thats one of the words he knows, the director said, showing no surprise at all.
Dolphins have bigger brains in proportion to their body size than humans have, and it has been known for a long time that they can make a number of sounds. What is more, these sounds seem to have different functions, such as warning each other of danger. Sound travels much faster and much further in water than it does in air. That is why the parts of the brain that deal with sound are much better developed in dolphins than in humans. But can it be said that dolphins have a language, in the real sense of the word?
Scientists dont agree on this.
A language is not just a collection of sounds, or even words. A language has a structure and what we call a grammar. The structure and grammar of a language help to give it meaning. For example, the two questions Who loves Mary? and Who does Mary love? mean very different things. If you stop to think about it, you will see that this difference doesnt come from the words in the question but from the difference in structure. That is why the question Can dolphins speak? cant be answered until we find out if dolphins not only make sounds but also arrange them in a grammatical order which affects their meaning.
1 The astronomer was not interested in the way dolphins communicate with each other.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
2 The dolphin leapt up into the air because Sagan was too near the water.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
3 Parts of the dolphins brain are particularly well developed to handle different kinds of sound.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
4 Dolphins are the most useful animals to humans.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
5 Dolphins travel faster in water than any other animals.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
6 Some scientists believe that dolphins have a language of their own.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
7 Sounds can be called a language only when they have a structure and a grammar.
A Right
B Wrong
C Not mentioned
【参考答案】1. B 2. B 3. A 4. C 5. C 6. A 7. A
精选英语美文阅读:爱会伴随着度过一生
被我们遗忘在生活中的哲理V
世界上最美丽的英文3
英语美文:生命这个奇迹
“母亲”这个伟大的职业(双语)
英语名篇名段背诵精华27
英语美文:一双丝袜(有声)
英语美文30篇系列之21
英语美文:艰难岁月也要满怀感恩之心(双语)
精选英语美文阅读:饶孟侃《呼唤》
精选英语美文阅读:生活的涟漪
生命可以是一座玫瑰花园
精选英语美文阅读:被忽略的爱 Helpless love
诗歌:在清晨许个愿
双语阅读:回家的感觉真好
英语名篇名段背诵精华22
精美散文:让我们撩起生命的波纹
人生哲理:多一点开心 少一点抱怨
精选英语美文阅读::朋友的祈祷
英语散文:If I were a Boy Again
英语晨读:金窗
浪漫英文情书精选:Don't Give Up不要放弃
双语阅读:美丽的微笑
英语名篇名段背诵精华20
双语:给你逃离“舒适区”的六个理由
英语美文:红色 Red (双语)
浪漫英文情书精选:I'm So Sorry, Baby对不起宝贝
英语美文:有良师乃人生之幸(双语)
英语晨读:雪夜星光
浪漫英文情书精选:Keep You Forever永远温存着你
不限 |
英语教案 |
英语课件 |
英语试题 |
不限 |
不限 |
上册 |
下册 |
不限 |