Certain animals have an intuitive awareness of quantities. They know without analysis the difference between a number of objects ands a smaller number. In his book The Natural History of Selbourne (1786), the naturalist Gilbert White tells how he surreptitiously removed one egg a day to make up plovers nest, and how the mother laid another egg each day to make up for the missing one. He noted that other species of birds ignore the absence of a single egg but abandon their nest if more than one egg has been removed. It has also been noted by naturalist that a certain type of wasp always provides five-never four, never six-caterpillars for each of their eggs so that their young have something to eat when the eggs hatch. Research has also shown that both mice and pigeons can be taught to distinguish between odd and even numbers of food pieces.
公共英语考试报名时间 These and similar accounts have led some people to infer that creatures other than human can actually count. They also point to dogs that have been taught to respond to numerical questions with the correct number of barks, or to horses that seem to solve arithmetic problem by stomping their hooves number of times.
Animals respond to quantities only when they are connected to survive as a species-as in the case of the eggs-or survive as individuals -as in the case of food. There is on transfer to other situations or from concrete reality to the abstract notion of numbers. Animals can “count” only when the objects are present and only when the numbers involved are small-no more than seven or eight. In lab experiments, animals trained to count one kind of object were unable to count any other type. The objects, not the numbers, are what interest them. Animals admittedly remarkable achievements simply do not amount to evidence of counting, nor do they reveal more than innate instinct, refined by the genes of successive generations, or the results of clever, careful conditioning by trainers.
1.What is the main idea of the passage?
A. Careful training is required to teach animals to perform tricks involving numbers
B. Animas cannot count more than one kind of object
C. of all animals, dogs and horses can count best
D. Although some animals may be aware of quantities, they cannot actually count
2.The author refers to Gilberts book in paragraph 1 in order to___.
A. show how attitudes have changed since 1786
B. Contradict the idea that animals can count.
C. provide evidence that some birds are aware of quantities.
D. Indicate that more research is needed in this field.
3.The word “surreptitiously” in line 4 is closest in meaning to ___.
A. quickly
B. secretly
C. occasionally
D. stubbornly
4.The author mentions that all of the following are aware of quantities in some way EXCEpT___.
A. plovers
B. mice
C. caterpillars
D. wasps
5.According to the information in the passage, which of the following is LEAST likely to occur as a result of animals intuitive awareness of quantities?
A. A pigeon is more attracted by a box containing two pieces of food than by a box containing one piece.
B. When asked by its trainer how old it is, a monkey holds up five fingers.
C. When one of its four kittens crawls away, a mother cat misses it and searches for the missing kitten.
D. A lion follows one antelope instead of a herd of antelopes because it is easier to hunt a single prey.
解析：
1.D
2.C
举这个例子是为了证明他所提出的某些动物能够认知某些东西的数量。
3.B
依据上下文以及我们的常识，观看动物的习性是需要很长时间，而且应当是隐藏的。
4.C
It has also been noted by naturalist that a certain type of wasp always provides five-never four, never six-caterpillars for each of their eggs。
5.B
When asked by its trainer how old it is, a monkey holds up five fingers.无论猴子的反响是什么样子，都只是一种反复训练之后的一种本能的反映。而不是真正的说出他的年龄.
全国公共英语三级阅读考试经典试题 篇3
Sussex police ordered to search for a six-foot, dark-haired youth of about 20 who failed to mug a five-foot, 74-year-old grandmother. The youth rushed at Mrs West and tied to take her things and money when she was walking out of a church. The result should have been an expected conclusion.
Surprisedly, however, when Mrs West grasped the muggers wrist ，he cried, Oh, God!
Oh, no! Stop! Encouraged by these pleas, she put him in arm lock at which the mugger cried, Oh, no! Oh! God! and ran away. If I hadnt been carrying my shopping I would really have put him on his back. said Mrs
West who had practised judo when younger. When my husband was living. I used to pracise throwing him at Christmas, she explained.36.Why did the youth cry when grasped by the old lady? Because he ______.
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