We hear with our ears, right? Yes, but scientists have known for years that we also hear with our eyes. In a study published in 1976, researchers found that people combined both auditory cues(听力提示) and visual ones，like mouth and face movements, when they heard speech.

A new study that looks at a different set of sensory cues adds to a growing body of evidence that suggests such combination is natural. In a paper, Bryan Gick and Donald Derrick report that people can hear with their skin.

The researchers had volunteers listen to spoken syllables. Meanwhile, they connected the volunteers to a device that would blow a tiny puff (气流) of air onto the skin of their hands or necks. The syllables included “ba” and “pa”, which produce brief puffs from the mouth when spoken, and “da” and “ta,” which do not produce puffs. They found that when listeners heard “da” or “ta” while a puff of air was blown onto their skin, they considered the sounds as “ba” or “pa”.

Dr. Gick said the findings were similar to those from the 1976 study, in which visual cues defeated auditory ones — volunteers listened to one syllable but thought it another because they were watching a video of mouth movements corresponding to the second syllable. In his study，he said，cues from sensory receivers on the skin defeated the ears as well. “Our skin is doing the hearing for us,” he said.

Dr. Gick noted that it would normally be rare that someone actually sensed a puff of air produced by another, although people might occasionally sense their own puffs. “What’s so persuasive about this particular effect,” he added. “is that people are picking up on this information that they don’t know they are using.” That supports the idea that combining different sensory cues is natural.

Dr. Gick said the finding also suggested that other sensory cues might be at work in speech perception(知觉) — that, as he put it, “we are these fantastic perception machines that take in all the information available to us and combine it faultlessly.”

1.“Da” or “ta” were considered as “ba” or “pa” when __________.

A. they were spoken quickly

B. puffs of air were blown onto the listener’s skin

C. they were pronounced using a special device

D. they were made with face movements

2.Which of the following statements is TRUE?

A. Humans combine different sensory cues through experience.

B. Dr. Gick’s new study is more important than the one in 1976.

C. People sometimes can sense their own puffs when speaking

D. Only auditory and visual cues are at work in speech perception.

3.What is the best title of the text?

A. We Can Hear with Our Skin

B. Our Visual Cues Is Doing the Hearing for Us

C. Facial Expressions Are Important

D. We Are Fantastic Machines

 

  Some of the planet’s most precious animals and plants are disappearing, according to the World Conservation Union (IUCN). The group, based in Switzerland, works with governments and experts to protect threatened species. On September 12, the IUCN released its Red List, a list of species at greatest risk of extinction.

    The list includes 41,415 animals and plants. The IUCN says that habitat destruction, hunting and other causes threaten one in four mammals, one in eight birds and one in three amphibians(两栖动物).

    Who is to blame?

    Scientists believe that 99 percent of threatened species are at risk because of human activity. “We are losing animals and plants at a high rate,” says Julia Marton-LefEevre, director general of the IUCN. “We need to change our behavior.” Warmer oceans and over-fishing are changing sea life. This year for the first time corals(珊瑚) made their appearance on the list. The gharial, a crocodile living in India and Nepal, has lost almost 60 percent of its population in the last 10 years. It is a victim（受害者）of habitat destruction.

    Still, the news is not all bad. Thanks to efforts made to protect it, the Mauritius echo parakeet, a bird once endangered, has seen an increase in its population. “This shows that protection methods can work,” says Marton-LefEevre. “That’s the message we want to send to young people.”

    In China the new reserve（保护区）itself is part of green efforts that have seen more than 2,400 nature reserves of various kinds being set up, covering more than 15 percent of the nation's land area, official figures showed.

"The country's natural resources(资源) have benefited from conservation," said Lei Guangchun, director of the nature reserve department of Beijing Forestry University. "It is a big increase nowadays compared with other countries." Lei said.

The total areas of China’s natural reserves have covered 1.38 million km2, which accounts for 15.4% of China’s area, higher than both the world average（平均水平） of 11% and the rate in most developed countries.

    Li Zhong, an official in charge of the nature reserves office with the State Forestry Administration, thought it was important to increase investment（投资） in such reserves at all levels.

1.What do we know about the IUCN?

   A. A union for listing animals and plants on the earth

   B. A group of volunteers who are interested in wildlife

   C. An organization concerning the protection of rare species' survival

   D. A government made up officials, scientists and experts

2.What can be concluded from the passage?         

A. All the protection methods can’t work.   　   

B. The IUCN does most of the protection.

C. The efforts China makes has paid off.　  

D. Enough is done in wildlife protection.

3. Which of the following is not the cause of the disappearance of the animals?

   A. Bad weather     B. Over-hunting    C. Warmer oceans    D. Habitat destruction

4.Which of the sentence is NOT true?

       A. China has been paying great attention to protecting the natural resources.

       B. China has set up a lot of natural reserves.

       C. The natural reserves in China cover more than 15 percent of the nation's land area.

       D. The rate of China's natural reserves is lower than the average of the world.

 

Directions：For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A，B，C and D．Fill each blank with a word or phrase that best fits the context．

In the past, man didn’t have to think about the protection of his environment. There were few people on the earth, and natural resources seemed to be 36   .

Today things are 37  , and the world has become too  38  . We’re using up our natural resources too quickly, and at the same time we are   39   our environment with dangerous chemicals. If we continue to do this, human life on the earth will not survive.

Everyone 40   today that if too many fish are taken from the sea, there will soon be none left. Yet, with modern fishing 41   , more and more fish are caught. We know that if too many trees are cut down, forests will disappear and nothing will grow on the land. Yet, we   42  to use bigger and more powerful machines to cut down more and more trees.

We know that if rivers are polluted with waste products from factories, we’ll die.  43  , in most countries wastes are still put into rivers or into the sea, and there are 44   laws to stop this.

We know, too, that if the 45   of the world continues to rise at the present rate, in a few years there will not be enough food . What can we do to solve these problems? 

If we eat more vegetables and less meat there will be more food available for every one. Land that is used to grow crops   46   five times more people than land where animals are kept. Our natural resources will last longer if we learn to recycle them.

The world population will not rise so quickly if people use modern methods of birth control.

Finally, if we educate people to think about the problems, we shall have a better and cleaner 47    in the future.

1.A. beautiful       B. unlimited       C. rare              D. valuable

2.A. common       B. the same         C. changeable         D. different

3.A. crowded       B. small            C. dirty             D. busy

4.A. protecting      B. saving           C. polluting           D. fighting

5.A. wonders       B. realizes          C. considers          D. discovers

6.A. poles         B. boats            C. methods            D. ideas

7.A. continue       B. have             C. ought                 D. go on

8.A. Thus              B. However       C. Generally speaking    D. Therefore

9.A. too many      B. a few           C. some                 D. few

10.A. production     B. pollution           C. population             D. revolution

11.A. feeds          B. increases           C. supplies          D. helps

12.A. nature         B. sea             C. planet            D. forest

 

Experts say the American state of Hawaii has been invaded (入侵)by a small frog called the coqui (ko--kee). There may be millions of the small frogs in Hawaii. However, they do not belong there. They are normally found in the southeastern United States. The coqui frogs are harming Hawaii’s environment. And the extremely loud noise they make is causing problems for Hawaiian citizens and visitors.

The coqui invaders arrived in Hawaii about ten years ago. They were believed to have been brought in accidentally in shipments of plants from Florida. Their number has sharply increased. They have quickly spread around the Hawaii Islands hidden in plants.

The coqui is a brown frog about five centimeters long. During the day, the frogs hide in wet protected areas, such as under plant leaves. At night, the frogs move onto trees to feed, call to females and mates. The call of the male coqui sounds like. Ko kee! Ko kee!

In the southeastern United States, local people celebrate coqui frogs. But in Hawaii, the foreign frog has been considered as a harmful animal. The coqui frogs are a major danger to Hawaii’s environmental system. The frogs eat thousands of insects (昆虫)every night. These insects are important for the reproduction of plants. The insects also are important food for Hawaii’s native rare birds. The frogs also are affecting the tourism industry in Hawaii. Increasing numbers of hotels, visitors and local people have been annoyed by the loud calls made by male coqui frogs to female frogs. At night, the noise often makes it difficult for people to sleep.

The frogs do not have any natural enemies in Hawaii to reduce their population size. The warm weather permits them to lay eggs all year long. There are many efforts in Hawaii designed to stop the spread of the coqui. It is a crime to transport ,sell or release(释放)the frogs there.

The Hawaii Department of Agriculture is trying to find an effective chemical that can be safely used to kill the frogs. For now, the frogs may only be caught by hand. The Hawaii Department of Agriculture says the greatest danger to the economy and environment of the state is from harmful species, like the coqui.

1.The statement that can best summarize the main idea of the passage is         .

       A．the coqui invaders have seriously affected the tourism industry in Hawaii

       B．it is not permitted to transport, sell or release the coqui frogs in Hawaii

       C．the coqui invasion has serious effects on the economy and environment in Hawaii

       D．great efforts have been made by the Hawaii people to kill the coqui

2.The coqui frogs originally arrived in Hawaii            .

       A．by chance                                           B．at the request of all the local citizens

       C．as a gift                                              D．as goods demanded in the local market

3.Visitors to Hawaii don’t like the coqui frogs mainly because                 .

       A．they are a big danger to the environmental system there

       B．the loud noise made by the frogs bother their rest at night

       C．they affect the reproduction of the local plants and insects

       D．visitors could no longer see the native rare birds because of them

4.The two factors leading to the rapid spread of coqui frogs in Hawaii are           .

       A．the frogs’ habit and the environment in Hawaii

       B．the large number of the insects and the plants in Hawaii

       C．the geographic location of Hawaii and its tourism industry

       D．the warm weather there and the frogs’ lack of natural enemies

 

The village was badly struck by the rare flood last night. The villagers were badly ________ food and shelter.

    A. in time of　     B. in want of       C. in charge of     D. in possession of