Animals can be remarkably devoted. What's less obvious is how smart they are. After studies over the past decade, they've shown abilities previously thought to exist only in humans. Take the scrub jays (a kind of bird). A few years ago, Cambridge University professor Nicky Clayton, PhD, found that these birds can be surprisingly devious (狡猾的), remembering not only what foods they've hidden but where, how long ago, and whether anyone else might have noticed. "If another bird was watching, they'd wait until that bird was gone and then move the food," Clayton says. Another recent experiment hints that monkeys experience regret when they make the wrong choice and miss out on a treat. Researchers say brain scans suggest the animals were having regretful thoughts. "I knew monkeys were smart, but I didn't think they were that smart," says Michael Platt, PhD, who led the study. But perhaps no animal has done more to change conventional notions than Alex, an African gray parrot. A 30-year research subject for scientist Irene Pepperberg, PhD, Alex altered the belief that parrots were simple mimics (模仿者). He was constantly being tested; when he was tired of it, he would tell Pepperberg, "Wanna go back"—to his cage. If the request annoyed her, Alex would say, "Sorry." The parrot toyed with her cruelly, and one afternoon, he showed an apparent grasp of something only humans and a few apes (类人猿)had been known to understand: the concept of zero. Which is true according to Paragraph 1? A. Animal study proved animals were devoted.B. Animals are obviously very smart.C. Some abilities of humans exist in animals.D. Animal study was slow in the past decade.
Animals can be remarkably devoted. What's less obvious is how smart they are. After studies over the past decade, they've shown abilities previously thought to exist only in humans.
Take the scrub jays (a kind of bird). A few years ago, Cambridge University professor Nicky Clayton, PhD, found that these birds can be surprisingly devious (狡猾的), remembering not only what foods they've hidden but where, how long ago, and whether anyone else might have noticed. "If another bird was watching, they'd wait until that bird was gone and then move the food," Clayton says.
Another recent experiment hints that monkeys experience regret when they make the wrong choice and miss out on a treat. Researchers say brain scans suggest the animals were having regretful thoughts.
"I knew monkeys were smart, but I didn't think they were that smart," says Michael Platt, PhD, who led the study.
But perhaps no animal has done more to change conventional notions than Alex, an African gray parrot. A 30-year research subject for scientist Irene Pepperberg, PhD, Alex altered the belief that parrots were simple mimics (模仿者). He was constantly being tested; when he was tired of it, he would tell Pepperberg, "Wanna go back"—to his cage. If the request annoyed her, Alex would say, "Sorry." The parrot toyed with her cruelly, and one afternoon, he showed an apparent grasp of something only humans and a few apes (类人猿)had been known to understand: the concept of zero.
Which is true according to Paragraph 1?
- A. Animal study proved animals were devoted.
- B. Animals are obviously very smart.
- C. Some abilities of humans exist in animals.
- D. Animal study was slow in the past decade.
题目解答
答案
解析
考查要点：本题考查学生对文章段落主旨的把握能力，需要根据第一段内容判断选项中哪一项符合原文观点。
解题核心：抓住第一段的核心结论，即“过去十年的研究表明，动物表现出了一些以前被认为仅人类才有的能力”。
破题关键：需明确选项是否与原文表述一致，尤其注意逻辑关系（如“存在”“明显”“过去十年缓慢”等关键词）。
第一步：定位原文关键句
第一段首句指出：“过去十年的研究表明，动物表现出了一些以前被认为仅人类才有的能力”（studies over the past decade, they've shown abilities previously thought to exist only in humans）。
第二步：逐一分析选项
- A. Animal study proved animals were devoted
原文第一句提到“动物可以非常忠诚”，但未说明“动物研究证明了这一点”，且“忠诚”是段落开头的背景信息，非研究结论。 - B. Animals are obviously very smart
原文明确指出“动物的智慧并不明显”（What's less obvious is how smart they are），“obvious”与原文矛盾。 - C. Some abilities of humans exist in animals
与原文核心句完全一致（abilities previously thought to exist only in humans），正确。 - D. Animal study was slow in the past decade
原文未提及研究进展速度，属于无中生有。