Respecting otherness

文章大意

文章讨论人类常误以为动物能计数、造句，但实验只证明它们能辨大小或为奖励按键，并非真正语言或数学能力。作者强调动物心智有 profound otherness，如狗靠气味、鸽子靠磁场导航，人类却以视觉标准评判动物智能，导致对老鼠等动物的误解。

题目与答案

1. 31 For the speaker, reports of animals performing human's mental tasks are
   • exciting
   • unconvincing
   • surprising

   答案：unconvincing

   原文定位：It hardly needs me to point out that an experiment like that might suggest the animals concerned can recognize size, but does not prove that they can count like humans do. Far from it

2. 32 Experiments in which apes made requests were questionable, because the apes were
   • usually very hungry
   • helped by computers
   • not really producing language

   答案：not really producing language

   原文定位：The problem, as I'm sure you are aware, is that simply labeling a button with a symbol and linking it closely to a reward does not add up to language production in any accepted sense

   同义替换：「questionable」↔「problem」，「not really producing language」↔「does not add up to language production」

3. 33 We tend to equate intelligence with good eyesight because
   • experiments have linked them
   • sight is so important to us
   • eyesight is easily tested

   答案：sight is so important to us

   原文定位：We human beings, by contrast, are visual animals, and it's because of this that we rate other animals with good eyesight as being intelligent

   同义替换：「equate intelligence with good eyesight」↔「rate animals with good eyesight as intelligent」，「sight is so important to us」↔「We human beings, by contrast, are visual animals」

4. 34 In experiments, rats did well on tests of
   • smell
   • colour
   • sight

   答案：smell

   原文定位：However, when the rats were given a second try, this time with the task of distinguishing and remembering different smells, they passed the tests with flying colors

   同义替换：「did well」↔「passed the tests with flying colors」，「tests of smell」↔「task of distinguishing and remembering different smells」

5. Horses can use 35_____ to find their way home.

   答案：landmarks

   原文定位：Horses, for instance, can find their way home by recognizing landmarks along a familiar trail

   同义替换：「to find」↔「by recognizing」

6. Sheep can recognise the faces of 36_____ .

   答案：people

   原文定位：Sheep can recognize large numbers of people by their faces

7. One skill which humans share with some birds is good 37_____ .

   答案：coordination

   原文定位：It's clear that animals can perform similar feats of coordination. You only have to think of the coordination necessary for a bird to catch an insect in midair

   同义替换：「skill」↔「feats」

8. Animals don't have thoughts about 38_____ .

   答案：thoughts

   原文定位：It makes possible what philosophers call meta-representation. In other words, thoughts about thoughts, ideas about ideas;Animals, believe me, cannot think in this way

   同义替换：「don't have」↔「cannot think in this way」

9. Some people claim that denying animals use of language is to regard them as 39_____ or robots .

   答案：machines

   原文定位：Nevertheless, there are researchers who argue that we shouldn't deny that animals can use language in more or less the same way as human beings because this reduces animals to the status of machines or robots

   同义替换：「regard them as」↔「reduces animals to the status of」

10. If we truly wish to understand animals, we should study what 40_____ .

    答案：they do well

    原文定位：Instead, we should realize that the key to appreciating animals for what they are is to study them in their own terms. In other words, to study what they do well

    同义替换：「wish to understand animals」↔「appreciating animals for what they are」