9.16 考研英语阅读题源外刊模拟试题【难度7.0】

Section II Reading Comprehension 

Part A 

Directions: Read the following four texts. Answer the questions below each text by choosing A, B, C or D. Mark your answers on the ANSWER SHEET. 

Text 1

As a child, Jorg Massen often looked up at birds sweeping across the sky and wondered whether flying was merely useful to them, or also enjoyable. Now a behavioral biologist at Utrecht University in the Netherlands, Massen has had an unusual chance to examine that childhood question in a more scientific way.

The opportunity came from Avifauna Bird Park, where, for several months each year, some birds are allowed to leave their aviaries at fixed times each day. Once the gates are opened, the choice is entirely theirs: they may fly into the open air, or remain inside. No food reward is offered for leaving, and no punishment follows if they stay.

Among the birds observed by Massen and his colleagues were 17 Galah Cockatoos, pink-and-gray parrots that in the wild travel long distances in search of seeds. During the study, the Galahs chose to fly in almost every 20-minute session made available to them. The researchers reported the results in the journal Behaviour.

That pattern, says Michael Mendl, an animal-behavior researcher at the University of Bristol who was not involved in the work, is consistent with the idea that flight itself was rewarding for the birds. The only exception, Massen notes, involved a pair that skipped one flying period after receiving new nest boxes. They appeared to have other matters to occupy them, including courtship and mating, activities that may also be rewarding.

The researchers looked for further clues after the birds returned. Following free-flight sessions, the Galahs foraged more, scratched more and raised their crests more often. Massen’s team interpreted these behaviors as signs of positive excitement. In another test, designed to measure what researchers call optimism, the birds were more likely to expect a favorite treat, a walnut, after several days of free flight. After several days without flying, they became less hopeful about finding it.

The hormonal evidence was less clear. The researchers had expected cortisol, a stress hormone, to fall after flight. It did not. Massen suggests that any such decline may have been hidden by the physical demands of flying, which can itself raise cortisol levels.

For Mendl, the findings are suggestive but not conclusive. Scientists who study animal cognition have long been cautious about attributing feelings or desires to animals simply on the basis of behavior. In recent years, however, many have become more willing to discuss animal experiences when the evidence points in that direction. If birds are capable of conscious experience, Mendl says, the study does suggest that the Galahs enjoyed flying.

For Massen, the broader lesson concerns animal welfare. Flight, he argues, appears to be an ethological need for Galahs: a behavior they are naturally driven to perform. His study reflects a wider shift in welfare science, away from merely preventing suffering and toward designing environments in which animals can do the things that seem to make their lives go well.

[A] receive food rewards for outdoor activities.[B] decide freely whether to leave their aviaries.[C] be trained to fly at fixed times every day.[D] return to the wild during several months each year.

[A] needed more exercise than other birds.[B] were trying to search for seeds outside.[C] may have found flying rewarding.[D] had grown tired of their nest boxes.

[A] some birds were unwilling to take part in the study.[B] flight was less attractive when other rewarding activities were available.[C] new nest boxes could reduce birds’ natural desire to fly.[D] courtship behavior made the research results unreliable.

[A] expectation of a pleasant outcome.[B] ability to locate food quickly.[C] preference for different kinds of treats.[D] response to physical tiredness.

[A] reducing the cost of keeping animals in captivity.[B] proving that all birds have conscious feelings.[C] replacing behavioral evidence with hormonal data.[D] improving animal welfare through natural behaviors.

附注：根据历年考研英语真题阅读题源外刊等，摘选最新文章，模拟仿真出题。

参考答案见以下。

Quick look: BCBAD

21.【正确答案】B

【解析】题型：细节理解题

定位：第二段“Once the gates are opened, the choice is entirely theirs: they may fly into the open air, or remain inside.”

分析：研究成立的关键条件是鸟可以自由选择飞出或留在鸟舍内，且没有奖惩。选项B准确概括这一实验设置。

干扰项：[A]“获得食物奖励”与原文“No food reward”相反；[C]“被训练在固定时间飞行”偷换概念，固定的是开门时间，不是训练飞行；[D]“回归野外”无中生有，鸟只是暂时飞到开放空间。

22.【正确答案】C

【解析】题型：推理判断题

定位：第三段“The Galahs chose to fly in almost every 20-minute session...”以及第四段“is consistent with the idea that flight itself was rewarding for the birds.”

分析：Galahs几乎每次都有机会就选择飞行，这与“飞行本身对它们具有奖赏性”这一判断一致。选项C中的may保留了科学研究的谨慎语气。

干扰项：[A]“比其他鸟更需要锻炼”无比较依据；[B]“外出寻找种子”混淆野外习性和园区实验；[D]“厌倦巢箱”与原文例外情况相反。

23.【正确答案】B

【解析】题型：例证作用题

定位：第四段“The only exception...after receiving new nest boxes...including courtship and mating, activities that may also be rewarding.”

分析：这对鸟没有飞，并非否定飞行有吸引力，而是因为当时有筑巢、求偶等其他可能同样愉悦的活动。选项B准确说明该例子的作用。

干扰项：[A]“不愿参与研究”过度推断；[C]“巢箱削弱自然飞行欲望”扩大结论；[D]“使研究结果不可靠”与专家引用意图相反。

24.【正确答案】A

【解析】题型：细节理解题

定位：第五段“In another test, designed to measure what researchers call optimism...”

分析：所谓“乐观测试”考察的是鸟在经历自由飞行或被限制飞行后，对获得喜欢食物的期待是否变化。选项A“对愉快结果的期待”是对optimism test的准确改写。

干扰项：[B]“快速定位食物”偏离测试目的；[C]“不同食物偏好”无中生有；[D]“对疲劳的反应”混淆了后文激素解释。

25.【正确答案】D

【解析】题型：主旨大意题

定位：末段“a wider shift in welfare science, away from merely preventing suffering and toward designing environments...”

分析：文章最后将研究意义上升到动物福利：不仅避免痛苦，还要让动物表达使其生活更好的自然行为。选项D准确概括全文落点。

干扰项：[A]“降低圈养成本”无中生有；[B]“证明所有鸟都有意识感受”程度绝对化；[C]“用激素数据替代行为证据”与原文不符，激素证据反而并不明确。

【词汇注释】

aviary: 鸟舍；大型鸟笼

forage: 觅食；搜寻食物

crest: 鸟冠；冠羽

cortisol: 皮质醇，一种与压力相关的激素

animal cognition: 动物认知

ascribe: 把……归因于；认为……具有某种特征

conscious experience: 有意识的体验

ethological: 动物行为学的；与动物自然行为有关的

grounded: 被限制飞行的；停飞的

rewarding: 令人愉快的；具有奖赏性的

【长难句】

Scientists who study animal cognition have long been cautious about attributing feelings or desires to animals simply on the basis of behavior, but in recent years many have become more willing to discuss animal experiences when the evidence points in that direction.

Scientists为主句主语；who study animal cognition为定语从句，修饰Scientists；have long been cautious about...为第一分句谓语结构；attributing feelings or desires to animals为介词about后的动名词结构；simply on the basis of behavior说明判断依据过于单一；but连接转折分句；many指代许多研究者；when the evidence points in that direction为时间/条件状语从句，表示“当证据支持这种方向时”。

研究动物认知的科学家长期以来一直谨慎，不愿仅凭动物行为就认定它们具有感受或欲望；但近年来，当证据指向这种解释时，越来越多研究者开始愿意讨论动物的主观体验。

【参考译文】

小时候，约尔格·马森常常仰望天空，看着鸟儿俯冲、盘旋，并想知道它们飞翔是否只是为了实用，还是也会从中获得乐趣。如今，马森已是荷兰乌得勒支大学的一名行为生物学家。借助附近一家鸟类公园的特殊条件，他终于有机会以更科学的方式检验这个童年疑问。

这一机会来自阿维法纳鸟类公园。每年有几个月，园中的一些鸟每天会在固定时间被允许离开鸟舍。一旦门打开，选择完全由它们自己决定：可以飞向开放天空，也可以留在原处。无论是否飞出，都不会得到食物奖励，也不会受到惩罚。

马森及其同事观察的鸟中包括17只粉灰相间的粉红凤头鹦鹉。它们在野外通常会长距离飞行以寻找种子。在研究期间，只要有20分钟的飞行机会，这些凤头鹦鹉几乎每次都会选择飞行。研究人员将这一结果发表在《Behaviour》期刊上。

英国布里斯托大学动物行为研究者迈克尔·门德尔并未参与这项研究。他表示，这种模式与“飞行本身对鸟具有奖赏性”这一看法相一致。马森指出，唯一的例外是一对鸟在刚获得新巢箱后跳过了一次飞行。它们似乎有其他事情要忙，包括求偶和交配，而这些活动也可能带来愉悦。

研究人员还在鸟飞回后寻找进一步线索。自由飞行之后，这些凤头鹦鹉觅食更多、抓挠更多，也更常竖起冠羽。马森团队将这些行为解释为积极兴奋的表现。在另一项旨在测量“乐观程度”的测试中，经历数天自由飞行后，鸟更倾向于期待找到自己喜欢的食物——核桃；而在数天不能飞行后，它们对找到核桃的期待则降低了。

激素证据并不那么明确。研究人员原本预计，飞行后压力激素皮质醇会下降，但结果并非如此。马森认为，即便皮质醇有所下降，也可能被飞行带来的体力消耗所掩盖，因为身体活动本身也会提高皮质醇水平。

在门德尔看来，这些发现具有启发性，但还不能算作定论。研究动物认知的科学家长期以来一直谨慎，不愿仅凭行为就将感受或欲望归属于动物。然而近年来，当证据支持时，许多研究者已越来越愿意讨论动物的主观体验。门德尔说，如果鸟类确实具有有意识的体验，那么这项研究的确表明，这些粉红凤头鹦鹉享受飞行。

对马森而言，这项研究更大的启示在于动物福利。他认为，对粉红凤头鹦鹉来说，飞行似乎是一种动物行为学意义上的需要，即它们天生受到驱动去完成的行为。他的研究也体现了动物福利科学的一个更广泛转向：不再只是防止动物受苦，而是设计环境，让动物能够表现那些似乎会让它们生活得更好的自然行为。

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