Babies understand what their mothers say, even when they speak a language their children have never heard before, scientists claim. The researchers found that one-year-olds reacted in exactly same way to their mothers' voices regardless of whether they were speaking English or Greek, showing what mothers have long known - that babies pick up on tone of voice rather than the words themselves. The researchers, from Cardiff University's School of Psychology, observed babies as they watched their mothers perform actions with toys using the English words "whoops" and "there". The scientists studied reactions from one-year-old babies to their mums' voices even when they were speaking both English and Greek, and keeping the same tone of voice. The academics found that babies reproduced the same reactions regardless of whether they knew the language. Study leader Dr Merideth Gattis of Cardiff University's School of Psychology says, "What this work showed was that children could have access to understanding simply through tone of voice. We did 'whoops' and 'there' in two languages and got exactly the same results." The research, published in the journal Cognitive Development, was conducted on 84 babies aged between 14 and 18 months, over the course of a year, with none of the babies having any previous exposure to Greek. Dr Gattis says that children respond to tone clues in their parents' voices from an early age. She says, "Tone of voice is a really useful signal of what someone is thinking. We never have direct access to other people's minds, except the signals in language that they give out." She says the study shows that it is less important what parents say than how they say it. Dr Gattis adds, "A child may ask if you like his / her drawing, for example. You might say yes, but if you don't sound enthusiastic, the meaning may not get across." Before children begin to speak, parents should use exaggerated tone when speaking to them. What's the text mainly about? A) The content of the journal Cognitive Development. B) The famous works of Dr. Gattis. C) Babies understanding their mothers through tone. D) Babies having the potential to learn language well.
C
(Question)
Most parents love the Internet and want their kids to use it. But a new survey in America finds almost as many also fear the online world--especially social networking sites such as My Space--and worry their kids will get in trouble with people they meet. "The parents see the web's incredible potential , and they know their kids have to be there." says James Steyer, CEO of Common Sense Media, which released results from a survey that looked into parental attitudes toward the Internet. " is also what they are scared of most." The study was conducted online May 5-10 by Insight Research Group. It says 80% of parents are concerned about kids meeting bad people online. That's because young people who largely have grown up with the Net think of it as a social outlet , say the researchers. To young people, the benefits of giving out some personal information to reach out to friends outweigh the risks. And the study shows they are so comfortable with the medium that 78% have a personal website or blog. Parents also recognize the importance of the Internet. The survey shows 91% think the Net helps their children explore their passions, and 77% think the Internet is one of the most valuable education tools teens have. But 88% think it's important to know what their kids are doing online. Findings suggest both parents and teens need more education about using online media, Steyer says. Internet safety has become an increasing concern for parents in America. Organizations like the Non-profit Common Sense have been trying to reach and help parents pay attention to the problem. Most parents think it is important to know _ . A) where their children give out the information B) what kind of websites they have C) how often they go online D) what their children are doing online
(Answer)
D
Ques: It is generally believed that we are getting cleaned when we step under a shower. We are, but we're also giving a home to lots of tiny little creatures we didn't even know about. A showerhead carries thousands of bacteria called Mycobacterium.These can cause problems like coughs and tiredness, and a general feeling of poorliness . When you turn on the water, the bacteria go from the showerhead onto and into your body. This is a finding of Norman R. Pace and his team at the University of Colorado, in the US. The scientists investigated bacteria in all kinds of human environment, including showers.Pace's team looked at 45 showerheads in nine American cities. They discovered that 30 percent of them had large amounts of flying Mycobacterium. But Pace said that they _ few threats to the health.Only those with a weak immune system might need to worry.He told the New York Times that the bacteria are not as unpleasant as might be thought.He said that having a shower is no more dangerous than anything else we do in the morning. But for those who feel sick about the idea of all those microorganisms , he had some advice. Let the water run for 30 seconds before getting into the shower. Why? The number of bacteria is smaller than that when the water is just turned on. If that seems like a waste of water, he added that you could also change your showerhead every few months. However, Pace had good news too. He has also been testing the air in US subways. Apart from iron particles , which are ground off the track by the wheels of trains, subway air is fresh. The reason is that a train's movement pumps fresh outdoor air into the tunnels. Pace explained that he wanted to understand the natural microbial environments of public places. This kind of knowledge might help discover the microbes to be used in a bioterrorist attack. From the finding of Norman R. Pace, after taking a shower, we might cough or feel tired because _ . A) it's easy to get a cold when taking a bath B) the showerhead carries many bacteria causing illness C) we don't get cleaned while showering D) we don't get a weak immune system
Ans: B
Ques: Water runs downhill from mountaintops to streams to rivers to oceans. But downhill isn't the only way that water moves .A new study measures how water travels from country to country for human consumption. This flow isn't the type we usually think about .These scientists looked at the water used to grow and make the products which get shipped from nation to nation as imports or exports. They call this a flow of"virtual water ". We typically think about water as the liquid that flows from a tap. However,92%of the water used by people goes into growing crops,according to water researcher Arjen Hoekstra. He recently studied the hidden travels of virtual water used in products made from things like crops and meats .These products are shipped around the world. For example.consider a sugary soft drink. Hoekstra estimated that to produce one half-liter of the drink requires between 170 and 310litersofthewater--about 95%--is used to grow and process the ingredients .Another 4%goes into the packaging and labeling. In Hoekstra's calculation, when one country produces a half-liter of soda and sells it abroad,it exports as much virtual water as would fill a large refrigerator. According to Hoekstra's new report,dry countries like Israel and Kuwait,both in the Middle East, get the majority of their virtual water from other countries,through imported products. More surprisingly, some wetter countries,like the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, also get the majority of their virtual water from other places. That means that most of the water used to grow or produce the products and food consumed in those countries came from other countries. In the United States most of the virtual water used comes from American sources .In China even less of the water associated with its products The passage is most probably a _ . A) science news report B) book review C) newspaper advertisement D) science fiction story
Ans:
A