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强化练(十一) 说明文 (限时：25 分钟)
A
(2022·广东茂名一模)
A paper published on November 15 in Current Biology suggests that a patch(小块) of cells
developed for identifying human faces，the fusiform face area(FFA)，is up and running in
infants(婴儿) as young as two months old.
Rebecca Saxe，a professor of brain and cognitive sciences at the Massachusetts Institute of
Technology，and her colleagues scanned 42 infants ranging in age from two to nine months using
a special functional magnetic resonance(磁共振) imaging(fMRI) helmet designed specifically for
babies.Data from 16 of the infants had to be thrown out because it is extremely difficult to keep
them happy，still and awake for long.For the 26 remaining infants，the scientists compared
activity in visual areas of the brain while they watched 2.7-second video clips that described
faces，body parts，landscapes，and other objects.Results showed more activity in the areas of the
brain’s visual system that are specialized for recognizing faces，bodies and scenes than areas for
other observed objects.
“There’s every reason to think that babies are born expecting and looking for their most
important social partners，”Saxe says.“Something in their brain makes them interested in faces
actually before they’ve had any experience with faces at all.Babies look toward face-like images
from hours after birth.”
Other researchers are not convinced by Saxe’s conclusions.“I don’t believe that there are
face patches present at birth，” Livingstone says.He views that experience and learning are
essential for the development of the FFA.
To Kalanit Grill-Spector，a psychology professor at Stanford University，the most exciting
part of the new paper is not about this question of learned versus inborn development.“I think the
study is kind of attempting to address this question，but it doesn’t really provide a perfect answer
one way or another.What impressed me is the amount of babies that they’ve scanned and with a
lot of new innovations in baby fMRI，” she says.“That’s going to push the field forward.”
1．Why were the data from the 16 infants abandoned?
A．Because the infants didn’t watch the video clips.
B．Because the infants made no response to the objects.
C．Because the infants couldn’t focus on objects for some time.
D．Because the infants were unwilling to wear helmets for long.
2．How did the researchers get the results?
A．By listing figures.B．By asking questions.
C．By analyzing reasons.
D．By making comparisons.
3．Which statement would Rebecca Saxe probably agree with?
A．Infants can process facial patterns and give them meaning.
B．Specialized areas for recognizing faces are present at birth.
C．Some abilities of the visual system are gradually developed.
D．Experience and learning are essential for the development of the FFA.
4．Which word best describes Grill-Spector’s attitude to the way of the research?
A．Objective. B．Skeptical.
C．Favorable. D．Disapproving.
B
(2022·浙江宁波“十校”联考)
Every summer，the calls of thousands of swamp sparrows can be heard across North
America’s wetlands.These little brown birds know only a few songs，but they know them very
well.In fact，their musical set list probably hasn’t changed much for centuries.
Like humans，baby swamp sparrows learn to communicate by copying adults.From a young
age，they learn to copy，or mimic，songs sung by their elders.“Swamp sparrows very rarely
make mistakes when they learn their songs，” says biologist Robert Lachlan.In fact，their
mimicry is so accurate that the music changes little between generations.
Just like children ， the sparrows don’ t remember every song they hear.Lachlan
says，“They don’t just learn songs at random；they pick up commoner songs rather than rarer
songs.”In other words，they learn songs they hear most often.It’s an example of a strategy that
scientists call conformist bias.Until recently，this learning ability was thought to be special only to
humans.
Between 2008 and 2009，Lachlan’s research team recorded the calls of 615 male swamp
sparrows across the northeastern United States.The researchers used computer software to break
each song into a collection of notes，or syllables.They then measured the differences between the
tunes.
The research revealed that only 2 percent of male sparrows sang a different song from the
standard tune.The combination of accurate mimicry and conformist bias allows the birds to create
traditions that last for centuries.“With those two ingredients together，you end up with traditions
that are really stable，” says Lachlan.“The song-types that you hear in the marshes of North
America today may well have been there 1,000 years ago.”Lachlan’s study is also among the
first to measure the longevity of song traditions within a bird species.
The findings are really exciting，says scientist Andrew Farnsworth.He hopes that future
research will evolve from these studies.For example，scientists may be able to identify how otheranimals are able to preserve their cultural traditions.“Seeing the potential for it in other organisms
is super cool，” says Farnsworth.
5．What do we know about Lachlan’s research?
A．The calls of 615 female swamp sparrows were recorded.
B．Accurate mimicry allows the birds to create the centuries-long traditions.
C．It aimed to study swamp sparrows’ learning ability.
D．Computer technology helped a lot during the research.
6．Which of the following is an example of conformist bias?
A．A new slang word becomes popular with a group of teenagers.
B．A dog learns to do a trick because its owner rewards it regularly.
C．A student memorizes historical events for a history exam.
D．A student loves singing and joins the school chorus.
7．What is Andrew Farnsworth’s attitude towards the findings?
A．Indifferent. B．Negative.
C．Positive. D．Conservative.
8．Which of the following is the best title for the text?
A．The Amazing Lifespan of Swamp Sparrows
B．The Traditional Musical Set List of Swamp Sparrows
C．The Evolution of Swamp Sparrows in North America
D．The Great Learning Ability of Swamp Sparrows
C
In order to get rid of goldenrod from the city，the government of Wuhan is encouraging
residents to report any findings of the plant，which is classified as a harmful alien(外来的)
species.
Goldenrod is one of the most successful and widespread alien plant species.It is often referred
to as “the flower of the devil”， as it spreads extremely fast and causes other plants to die.
Besides Hubei Province，the plant has also been found expanding in other provinces such as
Jiangxi and Zhejiang.Although local authorities have tried to get rid of the plant，it is proving to
be a difficult task.Goldenrod represents just one of the alien species that are aggressive towards the
country’s native species.Statistics show that by 2020，nearly 800 kinds of alien species had
invaded the country，among which 638 species have invaded the country’s agricultural and
forestry ecosystems，causing direct economic losses of about 200 billion yuan ($31.36 billion)．
At the United Nations Biodiversity Conference held in Kunming，Yunnan Province，the
invasion of alien species was the subject of discussions，as it was regarded as one of the two most
important factors leading to the loss of biodiversity，the other being human-caused ecological
damage.
China passed its Biosecurity Law on April 15，2021，which provides the legal basis forpreventing the invasion of alien species and protecting biodiversity in the country.The relevant
departments also strictly carry out port inspections and quarantines so as to keep harmful organisms
out of the country，and they strengthen early warning and monitoring systems so as to address the
invasion as early as possible.
However，while government departments are making every effort to prevent and control the
situation，the participation of the people should not be ignored.It is also necessary，as Wuhan is
doing，to encourage people to pay attention to invasive species and actively play a role in keeping
them at bay.Preventing any invasion by an alien species and protecting biodiversity should not just
be the government departments fighting alone，but also a people’s war.
9．What can we learn about goldenrod from the text?
A．It originates in Wuhan.
B．It does harm to people’s health.
C．It is a great threat to the surrounding plants.
D．It causes an economic loss of about $31.36 billion.
10．What is paragraph 5 mainly about?
A．China’s efforts to stop the invasion of alien species.
B．Relevant departments’ warning of goldenrod.
C．The legal basis to protect biodiversity.
D．The importance of port inspections and quarantines.
11．What do the underlined words “keeping them at bay” mean?
A．Keeping the invasive species out of the country.
B．Building some barriers for the species.
C．Preventing the flowers from growing fast.
D．Keeping the alien species safe at the port.
12．In which section of a newspaper can this text be found?
A．Business. B．Culture.
C．Environment. D．Opinion.
