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Unit 7Text A翻译(黑体字是课后填空题)What Animals Really Think动物到底想些什么Eugene Linden尤金林登1 Over the years, I have written extensively about animal-intelligence experiments and thecontroversythat surrounds them. Do animals really have thoughts, what we call consciousnes?s Wondering whether theremight be better ways to explore animal intelligence than experiments designed to teach human signs, I realizedwhat now seems obvious: if animals can think, they will probably do their best thinking when it serves theirown purposes, not when scientists ask them to.多年来, 我写了大量关于动物智能实验、 以及围绕这些实验所产生的争议的文章。 动物真的有思想, 即我们所说的意识吗?在考虑是否会有比设计教动物人类手势语的实验更好的方式探索动物智能时,我悟 出了现在看来是显而易见的一点:如果动物能思维,它们会在能为自己所用的时候,而不是在科学家让它 们思维的时候作出最佳思维。2 And so I started talking to vets, animal researchers, zoo keepers. Most do not study animal intelligence,but they encounter it, and the lack of it , every day. The stories they tell us reveal what Im convinced is a newwindow on animal intelligence: the kind of mental feats animals perform when dealing with captivity and thedominant species on the planet humans.于是我开始与兽医、动物研究人员以及动物园饲养员交谈。他们大都不研究动物智能,但他们每天 都碰到或碰不到动物智能。他们讲述的故事开启了我相信是研究动物智能的一扇新的窗口:即动物在对付 樊笼生活和地球上的主宰物种 人类 时所表现的高超的思维技能。Let s Make a Deal3 Consider the time Charlene Jendry, a conservationist at the Columbus Zoo, learned that a female gorilla named Colowas handling a suspicious object. Arriving on the scene, Jendry offered Colo some peanuts, only to be met with a blankstare. Realizing they were negotiating, Jendry raised the stakes and offered a piece of pineapple. At this point, whilemaintaining eye contact, Colo opened her hand and revealed a key chain.让我们做笔交易请考虑这一情况:哥伦布动物园的一位动物保护主义者查伦延德里觉察到一头叫做科洛的雌性大猩猩在 玩弄一件可疑的物品。延德里走过去,给了科洛一些花生,却被翻了个白眼。意识到这是在讨价还价,延 德里加大了筹码,又给了一片菠萝。这时候,科洛一边望着延德里,一边摊开手,露出了一根钥匙链。4 Relieved it was not anything dangerous or valuable, Jendry gave Colo the pineapple.Careful bargainer thatshe was, Colo then broke the key chain and gave Jendry a link, perhaps figuring, why give her the whole thing if I can geta bit of pineapple for each piece?见不是危险或珍贵物品,延德里松了一口气,把菠萝给了考勒。科洛真是个精明的还价者,它把钥 匙链拉断,给了延德里一段,或许在算计着,要是每一小段都能换片菠萝,我干嘛要全都给她?5 If an animal can show skill in trading one thing for another, why not in handling money? One orangutan namedChantek did just that in a sign-language study undertaken by anthropologist Lyn Miles at the University of Tennessee.Chantek figured out that if he did tasks like cleaning his room, hed earn coins to spend on treats and rides in Miless car.But the orangutans understanding of money seemed to extend far beyond simple dealings. Miles first used plastic chipsas coins, but Chantek decided he could expand the money supply by breaking chipsin two. When Miles switched to metal chips, Chantek found pieces of tin foil and tried to make copies.如果动物能在以物换物中显示技能,又何尝不会在使用钱币中再露一手?在田纳西大学人类学家 琳迈尔斯进行的一项手势语研究中,有头名叫夏特克的猩猩就这么做了。夏特克悟出,如果它干些诸如 清理房间的事,他就能挣些硬币,好用来买好吃的,还可以坐迈尔斯的车外出兜风。但这头猩猩对钱币的 理解似乎远远超出了简单的交易。迈尔斯一开始用塑料片充当硬币,而夏特克竟认定,它可以把塑料片拗 成两片,以此扩大钱币供应量。而当迈尔斯改用金属片时,夏特克找到了一些锡箔,试图复制。6 Miles also tried to teach Chantek more virtuous habits such as saving and sharing. Indeed, when I caught up withthe orangutan at Zoo Atlanta, where he now lives, I saw an example of sharing that anyone might envy. When Milesgave Chantek some grapes and asked him to share them, Chantek promptly ate all the fruit. Then, as if hed justremembered hed been asked to share, he handed Miles the stem.迈尔斯还试图教会夏特克一些好习惯,诸如节俭和与人分享。当我在它目前居住的亚特兰大动物园 见到这头猩猩时,我果然见到它与人分享的一例,足以令任何人羡慕。迈尔斯给了夏特克一些葡萄,要求 它与人分享,它很快吃完了所有的葡萄。随后,它似乎是想起了迈尔斯要它与人分享,便把梗儿递给了迈 尔斯。Tale of a Whale7 Why would an animal want to cooperate with a human? Behaviorists would say that animals cooperate when theylearn it is in their interest to do so. This is true, but I dont think it goes far enough.鲸鱼的故事 动物为什么会愿意与人合作?行为主义者会说,动物认识到合作于己有利时就会这么做。这没有错,但我 觉得这一解释尚不充分。8 Gail Laule, a consultant on animal behavior, speaks of Orky, a killer whale, she knew. Of all the animals Iveworked with, he was the most intelligent, she says. He would assess a situation and then do something based on thejudgments he made.动物行为顾问盖尔劳尔说起过她了解的一头虎鲸奥基。 “在我照管过的动物当中,它是最聪明的, ” 她说,“它会审时度势,再根据自己的判断采取行动。 ”9Like the time he helped save a family member. When Orkys mate, Corky, gave birth, the baby did not thrive at first,and keepers took the little whale out of the tank by stretcher for emergency care. Things began to go wrong when theyreturned the baby whale to the tank. As the workers halted the stretcher a few meters above the water, the babysuddenly began throwing up through its mouth. The keepers feared it would choke, but they could not reach the baby tohelp it.比如有次它救了一个家族成员。奥基的配偶科基生幼鲸时,那条幼鲸一开始情况不妙,饲养员把幼 鲸用担架抬出水糟,实施紧急护理。他们把幼鲸送回水槽时,出了事情。当工人把担架停在高出水面几英 尺处的时候,幼鲸开始呕吐。饲养员担心它会窒息,但他们无法接近幼鲸提供帮助。10 Apparently sizing up the problem, Orky swam under the stretcher and allowed one of the men to stand on hishead, something hed never been trained to do. Then, using his tail to keep steady, Orky let the keeper reach up andrelease the 420-pound baby so that it could slide into the water within reach of help.奥基显然看出了问题,它游到担架下,让其中一人站在它头上。这种事从来没有训练它做过。然后, 奥基用尾部保持平衡,让饲养员接近,并松开了那条420 磅重的幼鲸,以便让它滑入水中,获得帮助。Primate Shell Game11 Sometimes evidence of intelligence can be seen in attempts to deceive. Zoo keeper Helen Shewman of SeattlesWoodland Park Zoo recalls that one day she dropped an orange through a feeding hole for Melati, an orangutan. Insteadof moving away to get it, Melati looked Shewman in the eye and held out her hand. Thinking the orange must have rolledoff somewhere inaccessible, Shewman gave her another one. But when Melati moved off, Shewman noticed the originalorange was hidden in her other hand.灵长目动物的骗术有时动物的智能可以从其欺骗的企图中得以证明。西雅图伍德兰公园动物园饲养员海伦休曼回忆道,一 天她从喂食窗口给猩猩梅拉蒂扔了个桔子。梅拉蒂没有移动身体去接,而是眼睛直视休曼,伸出手来。休 曼以为桔子准是滚到一边拿不到了,就又给了它一个。可当梅拉蒂走开时,休曼却注意到原来那只桔子就 藏在它另一只手里。12 Towan, the colonys dominant male, watched this whole trick, and the next day he, too, looked Shewman in theeye and pretended that he had not yet received an orange. Are you sure you dont have one? Shewman asked. Hecontinued to hold her gaze steadily and held out his hand. Giving in, she gave him another one, then saw that he hadbeen hiding his orange underneath his foot.猩猩园的头领托温目睹了这个把戏。第二天,这头雄猩猩也是眼睛盯着休曼,装作没有接到桔子。 “你肯定没拿到吗?”休曼问道。它仍直视着她,同时把手伸了出来。她让步了,又给了它一个,随后却 看见它把桔子藏在脚下。13 What is intelligence anyway? If life is about survival of a species and intelligence is meant to serve that survival then we cant compare with pea-brained sea turtles, which were here long before us and survived the disaster thatwiped out the dinosaurs. Still, it is comforting to realize that other species besides our own can stand back and assessthe world around them, even if their horizons are more limited than ours.智能究竟是什么?如果生命就是讲物种的生存而智能是为了生存那么我们根本无法与大脑 只有豌豆大小的海龟相提并论,海龟早在人类出现很久之前便已存在,并经历了使恐龙灭绝的重大灾难而 生存下来。尽管如此,想到除了我们人类,尚有其它物种,即便它们的视野比我们还狭小,却也能退后一 步,清醒地审视周围的世界,不由人深感宽慰。Text A答案VocabularyI.1. 1)go (very) far2)has expanded3)in the interest(s) of4)only to5)encountered6)has cooperated7)assessed8) (had) switched9) horizons10) gaze11)disaster12)wiped out2. 1)a long/long running controversy over whether the book should be published or not2)felt relieved after her first meeting with Tom had gone smoothly3)suddenly went wrong with my computer when I was in the middle of writing the essay4)is obvious that our company is still maintaining its composition as market leader in software.5)give in until they give her a pay rise3. 1) have undertaken, original, to explore2) evidence convinced, underneath, extending to3) tonegotiate, encounter, to figure out, exploreII.1. firstly 2. first, first 3. At first 4. First/Firstly 5. first 6. First 7. at first 8. firstIII.1. animal intelligence whose2. zoo keeper where3. eye contactthrough what4. money supply of what5.killer whale what kind6. baby whale how old7. family member of what8. sea turtle what kind/whereComprehensive ExercisesI.1. (1) emergency (2) evidence (3) original (4) sizing up(5) negotiates (6) reveal (7) make a deal (8)dominant(9)in their interest(s) (10) deceiving(11)controversy (12) judgment (13) explore2.(1)protect(2)However(3)type(4)situation(5)sights(6)together(7)rang(8)associate(9)without(10)environmentII.1. 1) A local business undertook the project but went bankrupt before it was completed.2) Lets make a dealyou wash my car, and Ill let you use it tonight.3) We got to the village which we thought must have been wiped out in the severe earthquake, only tofind it slightly damaged.4) My garden is dry and shadyfew plants thrive in that condition5) Mystery still surrounds the exact truth behind the film starexactcircumstasncdeaotfht/hefilm stars death.2. When I was young I used to visit the zoo in my hometown. There what attracted me most was a coupleof tigers, especially the male. They were dept in a huge iron cage at first, but later were released from itand moved to a place called Tiger Hill. Twenty years later I revisited the zoo and was relieved to findTiger Hill was still there, but greatly extended. Moving around now were six tigers, old and young,instead of two!
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