新版大學英語綜合教程第一冊章節(jié)6課文解讀

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新版大學英語綜合教程第一冊章節(jié)6課文解讀

　　一、Animal Intelligence

　　Part I Pre-reading Task

　　Listen to the recording two or three times and then think over the following questions:

　　1. What do you know about Michael Jackson?

　　2. How does he feel about Ben? Why?

　　3. Do you think the song Ben reveals something about the relationship between man and animals? If so, what is it?

　　4. Is the song related to the theme of the unit — animal intelligence? How?

　　Part II

　　Text

　　Food, warmth, sleep? Their thoughts may be much deeper than that.

　　WHAT ANIMALS REALLY THINK

　　Euqene Linden

　　Over the years, I have written extensively about animal-intelligence experiments and the controversy that surrounds them. Do animals really have thoughts, what we call consciousness? Wondering whether there might be better ways to explore animal intelligence than experiments designed to teach human signs, I realized what now seems obvious: if animals can think, they will probably do their best thinking when it serves their own purposes, not when scientists ask them to.

　　And so I started talking to vets, animal researchers, zoo keepers. Most do not study animal intelligence, but they encounter it, and the lack of it, every day. The stories they tell us reveal what I'm convinced is a new window on animal intelligence: the kind of mental feats animals perform when dealing with captivity and the dominant species on the planet — humans.

　　Let's Make a Deal

　　Consider the time Charlene Jendry, a conservationist at the Columbus Zoo, learned that a female gorilla named Colo was handling a suspicious object. Arriving on the scene, Jendry offered Colo some peanuts, only to be met with a blank stare. Realizing they were negotiating, Jendry raised the stakes and offered a piece of pineapple. At this point, while maintaining eye contact, Colo opened her hand and revealed a key chain.

　　Relieved it was not anything dangerous or valuable, Jendry gave Colo the pineapple. Careful bargainer that she was, Colo then broke the key chain and gave Jendry a link, perhaps figuring. Why give her the whole thing if I can get a bit of pineapple for each piece?

　　If an animal can show skill in trading one thing for another, why not in handling money? One orangutan named Chantek did just that in a sign-language study undertaken by anthropologist Lyn Miles at the University of Tennessee. Chantek figured out that if he did tasks like cleaning his room, he'd earn coins to spend on treats and rides in Miles's car. But the orangutan's understanding of money seemed to extend far beyond simple dealings. Miles first used plastic chips as coins, but Chantek decided he could expand the money supply by breaking chips in two. When Miles switched to metal chips, Chantek found pieces of tin foil and tried to make copies.

　　Miles also tried to teach Chantek more virtuous habits such as saving and sharing. Indeed, when I caught up with the orangutan at Zoo Atlanta, where he now lives, I saw an example of sharing that anyone might envy. When Miles gave Chantek some grapes and asked him to share them, Chantek promptly ate all the fruit. Then, as if he'd just remembered he'd been asked to share, he handed Miles the stem.

　　Tale of a Whale

　　Why would an animal want to cooperate with a human? Behaviorists would say that animals cooperate when they learn it is in their interest to do so. This is true, but I don't think it goes far enough.

　　Gail Laule, a consultant on animal behavior, speaks of Orky, a killer whale, she knew. "Of all the animals I've worked with, he was the most intelligent," she says. "He would assess a situation and then do something based on the judgments he made."

　　Like the time he helped save a family member. When Orky's mate, Corky, gave birth, the baby did not thrive at first, and keepers took the little whale out of the tank by stretcher for emergency care. Things began to go wrong when they returned the baby whale to the tank. As the workers halted the stretcher a few meters above the water, the baby suddenly began throwing up through its mouth. The keepers feared it would choke, but they could not reach the baby to help it.

　　Apparently sizing up the problem, Orky swam under the stretcher and allowed one of the men to stand on his head, something he'd never been trained to do. Then, using his tail to keep steady, Orky let the keeper reach up and release the 420-pound baby so that it could slide into the water within reach of help.

　　Primate Shell Game

　　Sometimes evidence of intelligence can be seen in attempts to deceive. Zoo keeper Helen Shewman of Seattle's Woodland Park Zoo recalls that one day she dropped an orange through a feeding hole for Melati, an orangutan. Instead of moving away to get it, Melati looked Shewman in the eye and held out her hand. Thinking the orange must have rolled off somewhere inaccessible, Shewman gave her another one. But when Melati moved off, Shewman noticed the original orange was hidden in her other hand.

　　Towan, the colony's dominant male, watched this whole trick, and the next day he, too, looked Shewman in the eye and pretended that he had not yet received an orange. "Are you sure you don't have one?" Shewman asked. He continued to hold her gaze steadily and held out his hand. Giving in, she gave him another one, then saw that he had been hiding his orange underneath his foot.

　　What is intelligence anyway? If life is about survival of a species — and intelligence is meant to serve that survival — then we can't compare with pea-brained sea turtles, which were here long before us and survived the disaster that wiped out the dinosaurs. Still, it is comforting to realize that other species besides our own can stand back and assess the world around them, even if their horizons are more limited than ours.

　　二、New Words and Expressions

　　extensively

　　ad. to a large extent, or in a large amount 廣泛地;大量地

　　intelligence

　　n. 智力

　　intelligent

　　a. 聰明的，有才智的

　　controversy

　　n. 爭論，爭議

　　surround

　　vt. be or go all around (sth. or sb.) 圍繞;包圍

　　consciousness

　　n. 意識

　　explore

　　vt. examine thoroughly, learn about 探究，探索

　　obvious

　　a. easy to see and understand; clear 明顯的

　　vet

　　n. 獸醫(yī)

　　encounter

　　vt. meet, esp. unexpectedly 遇到，遭遇

　　reveal

　　vt. make (sth.) known 展示;揭露

　　convince

　　vt. make (sb.) feel sure by the use of argument or evidence 使確信，使信服

　　feat▲

　　n. 技藝;業(yè)績，功績

　　captivity

　　n. 被俘;監(jiān)禁;束縛

　　dominant

　　a. ruling; most important or strongest 統(tǒng)治的;占優(yōu)勢的

　　species

　　n. (單復同)物種

　　make a deal

　　reach an agreement or arrangement, esp. in business or politics 達成交易

　　conservationist

　　n. 自然資源保護論者

　　female

　　a. 雌的;女(性)的

　　n. 雌性的動物或植物;女人

　　gorilla

　　n. 大猩猩

　　suspicious▲

　　a. causing or showing a feeling that sth. is wrong 可疑的;猜疑的

　　peanut▲

　　n. 花生

　　blank

　　a. without expression; without writing, or other marks 沒有表情的;空白

　　negotiate

　　vi. discuss in order to come to an agreement 談判，協(xié)商

　　stake

　　n. (usu.pl) 獎品;獎金;賭注

　　pineapple

　　n. 鳳梨，菠蘿

　　maintain

　　vt. continue to do or have (sth.) 保持;繼續(xù)

　　relieve

　　vt. free (sb.) from pain, anxiety, etc.; ease (pain, anxiety, etc.) 使減輕痛苦或焦慮等;減輕(痛苦或焦慮等)

　　link

　　n. 鏈環(huán);環(huán)節(jié);聯(lián)系

　　v. join or connect 聯(lián)系，連接

　　orangutan

　　n. 猩猩

　　undertake

　　vt. (undertook, undertaken) carry out; take upon oneself (a task, etc.) 從事;承擔(任務(wù)等)

　　anthropologist

　　n. 人類學者

　　figure out

　　understand; reason out 理解;推斷出

　　extend

　　v. (cause to) stretch or reach; make larger or longer 延伸，伸展;擴大;加長

　　dealing

　　n. (usu.pl) business relations 交易，買賣

　　plastic

　　a. 塑料的

　　chip

　　n. 薄片;碎片;集成電路片

　　expand

　　v. (cause to) grow larger 擴大，擴展

　　switch

　　v. change; shift 轉(zhuǎn)換，變換

　　foil▲

　　n. 金屬薄片，箔

　　virtuous

　　a. showing moral goodness 有道德的;善良的

　　envy

　　vt., n. 妒忌;羨慕

　　grape

　　n. 葡萄

　　promptly

　　ad. immediately 立即地

　　stem

　　n. 莖，(樹)干，(葉)梗

　　whale

　　n. 鯨

　　cooperate

　　vi. act or work together 合作，協(xié)作

　　behaviorist

　　n. 行為主義者

　　in sb.'s interest(s)

　　to sb.'s advantage 為了某人的利益

　　go far

　　help very much; achieve much success 幫助很大;很有成效

　　consultant

　　n. 顧問

　　behavior

　　n. the way one acts or behaves 舉止，行為

　　assess

　　vt. judge the quality, importance or worth of 評估，估量

　　judgment

　　n. 判斷;意見，看法

　　mate

　　n. 配偶;伙伴，同事

　　thrive

　　vi. grow strong and healthy; develop well 茁壯成長;興旺

　　at first

　　at the beginning 起先

　　stretcher

　　n. 擔架

　　emergency

　　n. an unexpected and dangerous happening which must be dealt with at once 緊急情況;突然事件

　　go wrong

　　stop developing well 有毛病，出故障

　　halt

　　v. (cause to) stop 停住，停止

　　throw up

　　(infml) vomit 嘔吐

　　apparently

　　ad. it is clear (that) 明顯地

　　size up

　　carefully examine (a situation or person) in order to make a judgement 估量，判斷

　　release

　　vt. set free 釋放

　　slide

　　v. (cause to) move smoothly along a surface (使)滑動

　　primate

　　n. 靈長目動物

　　evidence

　　n. sth. that gives a reason for believing sth.; trace 證據(jù);跡象

　　deceive

　　v. try to make(sb.) believe sth. that is false 欺騙

　　inaccessible

　　a. very difficult or impossible to reach 達不到的;難得到的

　　original

　　a. first or earliest 最初的;原始的

　　colony

　　n. (生長在同一地方的動物或植物)群，群體;殖民地

　　male

　　n. 雄性動物或植物;男子

　　a. 雄的;男(性)的

　　gaze

　　n., v. 凝視，注視

　　give in

　　讓步;屈服;投降

　　underneath

　　prep., ad. under or below 在…下面，在…底下

　　pea-brained

　　a. 笨的

　　turtle

　　n. (海)龜

　　survive

　　v. remain alive in spite of; continue to live or exist after 幸免于;繼續(xù)存在，幸存

　　survival n.

　　disaster

　　n. an event causing great suffering and damage 災(zāi)難

　　wipe out

　　get rid of or destroy 消滅，消除

　　dinosaur

　　n. 恐龍

　　horizon

　　n. 眼界，見識;地平線

　　三、Proper Names

　　Ugene Linden

　　尤金·林登

　　Charlene Jendry

　　查倫·延德里

　　Columbus Zoo

　　哥倫布動物園

　　Colo

　　科洛(文中指動物名)

　　Chantek

　　夏特克(文中指動物名)

　　Lyn Miles

　　琳·邁爾斯

　　University of Tennessee

　　田納西大學

　　Zoo Atlanta

　　亞特蘭大動物園

　　Gail Laule

　　蓋爾·勞爾

　　Orky

　　奧基(文中指動物名)

　　Corky

　　科基(文中指動物名)

　　Helen Shewman

　　海倫·休曼

　　Seattle

　　西雅圖(美國華盛頓州西部港市)

　　Woodland Park Zoo

　　伍德蘭公園動物園

　　Melati

　　梅拉蒂(文中指動物名)

　　Towan

　　托溫(文中指動物名)

　　四、拓展資料：課后練習題

　　一、選擇題：

　　1、He ______ in the army for ten years, and he retired last year.

　　A) has served

　　B) had served

　　C) served

　　D) had been serving

　　2、I don t think this room will be big enough to ______ all the guests.

　　A) contain

　　B) hold

　　C) keep

　　D) swallow

　　3、An iron and steel works, with several satellite factories, ______ in that city now.

　　A) is built

　　B) is being built

　　C) were built

　　D) are being built

　　4、Hospital doctors don t go out very often as the work takes ______ their time.

　　A) away

　　B) over

　　C) in

　　D) up

　　5、The teacher doesnt permit ______ in class.

　　A) smoke

　　B) smokes

　　C) to have a smoke

　　D) smoking

　　二、填空題：

　　6、What a (self) ______ girl you are; let the other children share your toys.

　　7、A few simple (modify) ______ to this work would greatly improve it.

　　8、I ve been reading a mystery story. Many (mystery) ______ events took place in it.

　　9、He looks rather (elder) ______ with grey hair.

　　10、By the end of 20xx, she (be) ______ in Beijing for 4 years.

　　三、閱讀題：

　　Thus far, there is little evidence to suggest that technology will reduce inequality; indeed it may only intensify inequality. Technology is costly and it is generally impossible to introduce advances to everyone at the same time. So who gets this access first? As we travel further and further along the electronic frontier through advances such as telecommuting (在家辦公) and the Intemet, the poor may be isolated from mainstream society in an "information ghetto (貧民窟) ".

　　Drawing on a survey, the Census Bureau (國家調(diào)查局) estimated that only 6.8 percent of households earning less than $ 10,000 had home computers, compared to 61.7 percent of those with incomes of $ 75,000 or more. This issue goes beyond individual interest or lack of interest in computers.

　　The technological advances of the present and future may not be equally beneficial to men and women. Many studies have shown that computer games, which serve as an important means of early socialization to computers, typically involve sports or skills associated with the traditional male role. As a result computers camps have become mainly male settings.

　　Like money, food, and other resources, technology is unevenly distributed within societies and throughout the world. The technology gap is widening rather than narrowing. Although nations are exchanging technical data more freely than before, critical technology transfer is often kept back. The technology exported to developing countries may be poorly suited to the conditions of their economies and workplaces.

　　11、According to the writer, "information ghetto" is caused by ______.

　　A.the strict control of information

　　B.the rapid technological advances

　　C.the complete isolation of the poor

　　D.the existence of mainstream society

　　12、The data the Census Bureau collected indicates that ______.

　　A.technology has widened the gap between the rich and the poor

　　B.individual interest in computers might be a significant reason

　　C.the survey has covered more than enough investigation samples

　　D.the estimation by the Census Bureau is subject to correction

　　13、According to the writer, one supposed function of computer games is ______.

　　A.to divide social roles between boys and girls