Question

    Parrots have been known to imitate words, but have you ever thought how they communicate? The sounds they make may sound meaningless to us, but new research has found that wild parrots are actually given names by their parents.

According to a study led by Karl Berg of Cornell University in the US, baby birds are given a unique sound of their own, which stays with them for their entire lives.

In the study, the team placed hidden cameras in the nests of 17 different wild parrots. After studying their sounds, the team identified slight differences in the calls parents used to communicate with each chick. And even before the baby birds had learned to communicate properly, the baby birds seemed to recognize and imitate their calls.

Sounds very similar to humans, doesn’t it?

The study also proved that these signature calls are acquired socially not genetically. To do this, scientists switched the eggs in nine of the 17 nests, so that half of the parrots were raising baby birds that weren’t theirs. Using the recordings, the scientists concluded the baby birds all used names similar to those the parents (whether biological or nonbiological) called them for the first weeks of their lives.

Lucie McNeil, from National Geographic, said, “this would be the first [proven] example of a non-human species teaching acoustical (声学的) communication.”

Lead scientist for the study, Karl Berg told National Public Radio of the US, “Most people say, ‘Well, all those calls are just noise,’ but I think they’re having conversations.”

Fox News also asked Berg what else the parrots might be saying? He replied, “The theory is that these birds are deciding where the food is, ‘Do we want to go 3 km North-Northwest?’ “Do we want to go to that field?’ They are sort of arguing or discussing.”

Natural science author, Virginia Morell, wrote: “Very gradually, scientists are learning to decode the conversations of very different animals that live lives rich with plans, quarrels, and romance.”

You never know, if the science of animal translation keeps advancing, we might one day be watching a reality series about parrots.

1.What did the new research find about wild parrots?

A.They can talk by learning from people.

B.The sounds they make are meaningless.

C.They have names given by their parents.

D.They have a unique way of making sounds.

2.What does the study suggest?

A.Different parrots are called differently by their parents.

B.Baby parrots can tell who their biological parents are.

C.Baby parrots can mimic their biological parents’ calls better.

D.Parrots are the most skilled animals in acoustical communication.

3.Why did the scientists switch the eggs in the study?

A.To see whether the parents could recognize their own babies.

B.To see whether the parrots made the same sounds all their lives.

C.To see whether the signature calls were acquired socially or genetically.

D.To see whether biological and nonbiological parents named babies differently.

4.The underlined word “decode” in the second-to-last paragraph is closest in meaning to “_____”.

A.imitate B.understand

C.practice D.create

Answer

1.C

2.A

3.C

4.B

【解析】

本文是一篇说明文，介绍了科学家对鹦鹉的交流方式展开了研究，发现野生鹦鹉出生的时候父母就给它们起了名字。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段中的“but new research has found that wild parrots are actually given names by their parents.”可知，新的研究发现，野生鹦鹉出生的时候父母就给它们起了名字，故C项正确。

2.细节理解题。根据第三段中的“After studying their sounds, the team identified slight differences in the calls parents used to communicate with each chick.”可知，在研究了它们的叫声后，研究小组发现，父母们与每只小鹦鹉交流时所用的叫声略有不同，也就是说对不同的小鹦鹉父母的叫法是不同的，故A项正确。

3.细节理解题。根据第五段中的“Using the recordings, the scientists concluded the baby birds all used names similar to those the parents (whether biological or nonbiological) called them for the first weeks of their lives.”可知，科学家在研究中变换了鹦鹉蛋是想看这些标志性的叫声是通过社交还是基因获得的，故C项正确。

4.词义猜测题。根据上文 “The theory is that these birds are deciding where the food is, ‘Do we want to go 3 km North-Northwest?’ “Do we want to go to that field?’ They are sort of arguing or discussing.”可知，科学家是对鹦鹉的交流方式展开的研究，目的自然是破译动物之间的对话，由此可知画线词词义为“理解”，故B项正确。