2.Are we getting more stupid?According to Gerald Crabtree,a scientist at Stanford University in the US,we are.
You may not want to hear this,but Crabtree believes that human intelligence reached its peak more than 2,000 years ago and ever since then has been going downhill."If an average Greek from 1,000 BC were transported to modern times,he or she would be one of the brightest among us,"Crabtree told The Guardian.
At the heart of Crabtree's thinking is a simple idea.In the past,intelligence was critical for survival when our ancestors had to avoid dangerous animals and hunt for food.The difference of being smart or stupid is often life or death.However,after the spread of agriculture,when our ancestors began to live in dense farming communities,the need to keep their intelligence in peak condition gradually reduced.
This is not hard to understand.Most of the time,pressure is what keeps us going-you need the pressure from your teachers to finish your homework; the pressure of looking pretty prompts(促使) you to lose weight when summer comes.And the same is also true of our intelligence-if we think less,we become less smart.
These mutations(變異) are harmful to our intelligence and they were all developed in the past 3,000 years.The other evidence that Crabtree holds is in our genes.He found that among the 2,000 to 5,000 genes that we have that determine human intelligence,there are two or more mutations in each of us.
However,Crabtree's theory has been criticized by some who say that early humans may have better hunting and surviving abilities,but people today have developed a more diverse intelligence.For example,spearing a tiger doesn't necessarily require more brainpower than playing chess or writing a poem.Moreover,the power of modern education means a lot more people have the opportunity to learn nowadays.
"You wouldn't get Stephen Hawking 2,000 years ago.He just wouldn't exist,"Thomas Hills of the University of Warwick,UK,told Live Science."But now we have people of his intellectual capacity doing things and making insights(洞察力) that we would never have achieved in our environment of evolutionary adaptation."
61.What is Crabtree's recent finding according to the article?D
A.The Greeks from 1,000 BC could have been the smartest in human history.
B.Our ancient ancestors had no better surviving abilities than we do nowadays.
C.Humans have been getting steadily more intelligent since the invention of farming.
D.Mutations in genes that decide human intelligence have affected the development of intelligence.
62.According to Crabtree,ancient humansB
A.had much more genes that determine human intelligence
B.were forced to be smart due to natural selection pressures
C.relied more on group intelligence than individual intelligence
D.developed a diverse intelligence to adapt to the hard realities
63.Some argue that Crabtree's theory is false because they thinkD.
A.people today are under much more pressure than early humans
B.it's ridiculous to compare a hunter's and a poet's intelligence
C.modern education is far more advanced than ancient education
D.human intelligence nowadays is different from that of the distant past
64.What is Thomas Hills'attitude toward Crabtree's theory?B
A.Supportive          B.Unfavorable           C.Worried            D.Confused.

分析 文章介紹了Crabtree最近的研究發(fā)現(xiàn),現(xiàn)在的人類沒有以前聰明了,因為決定人們基因的變異影響了智力的發(fā)展.但是這個觀點引起了爭論.

解答 DBDB
61:D.推理判斷題.從第五段的句子:These mutations(變異) are harmful to our intelligence and they were all developed in the past 3,000 years.The other evidence that Crabtree holds is in our genes.He found that among the 2,000 to 5,000 genes that we have that determine human intelligence,there are two or more mutations in each of us.可知 Crabtree最近的研究發(fā)現(xiàn),決定人們基因的變異影響了智力的發(fā)展.選D
62:B.細節(jié)理解題.從第三段的句子:In the past,intelligence was critical for survival when our ancestors had to avoid dangerous animals and hunt for food.The difference of being smart or stupid is often life or death.可知Crabtree古代的人是因為自然選擇的壓力被迫聰明,選 B
63:D.細節(jié)理解題.從倒數(shù)第二段的句子:However,Crabtree's theory has been criticized by some who say that early humans may have better hunting and surviving abilities,but people today have developed a more diverse intelligence.可知現(xiàn)在人們的智力和遙遠的過去是不一樣的,選D
64:B.推理判斷題.從最后一段的句子:Thomas Hills of the University of Warwick,UK,told Live Science."But now we have people of his intellectual capacity doing things and making insights(洞察力) that we would never have achieved in our environment of evolutionary adaptation."可知 Thomas Hills 對Crabtree 的理論的態(tài)度是不支持的,選B

點評 解答細節(jié)理解題時,一個常用的方法就是運用定位法,即根據(jù)題干和選項中的關鍵詞從原文中找到相關的句子,與選項進行比較從而確定答案;推理判斷題既要求學生透過文章表面文字信息推測文章隱含意思,又要求學生對作者的態(tài)度、意圖及文章細節(jié)的發(fā)展作正確的推理判斷,力求從作者的角度去考慮,不要固守自己的看法或觀點.

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