Question

What do you think of black cats? Are they unluckier than cats of other colors? Many people in Western countries think so. Scientists at the University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley), did a study on cat colours and people’s understandings of cat personalities.

The study found that people do judge(判断) cat personalities by color. Scientists did a survey on the Internet. There were 49 statements (描述) matching five cat colorings with 10 personalities. People think orange and bi-coloured (双色的) cats are friendly, tri-coloured (三色的) cats are not generous, and white cats are calm, lazy and shy. As for black cats, people think they don’t have special personalities.

But why do so many people dislike keeping black cats as pets? People think black cats have less special personalities, which might be because of their bad reputation (口碑). They think black cats may bring bad luck, especially at Halloween. Movies and television shows also make people believe that.

Although people have these ideas, UC Berkeley scientists give another reason: people don’t think black cats are pretty enough. After all, nothing can show black cats are unluckier than other cats. “You can’t judge a cat by its colour, because it’s the personality of the cat, not the colour, that will let you know if the cat is right for you,” Cathy Marden, a scientist said.

1.Many people in Western countries may think black cats are              .

A. lovely animals      B. a sign of bad luck

C. a sign of good luck  D. unfriendly animals

2.The main idea of paragraph 2 is that               .

A. people often complain about black cats on the Internet

B. people think cats of different colours have different personalities

C. black cats are less popular than other cats

D. the study is a great success

3.According to the study, people think that               .

A. black cats have special personalities

B. orange and bi-coloured cats are generous

C. cats with three colours are friendly

D. white cats are calm, lazy and shy

4.People don’t like black cats for the following reasons EXCEPT              .

A. black cats often appear in TV shows

B. black cats bring bad luck to people

C. black cats have bad reputations

D. they don’t think black cats are beautiful

Answer

1.B

2.B

3.D

4.A

【解析】

试题分析：短文大意：这篇短文给我们讲述的是西方的人们不喜欢黑色的猫，他们认为黑色的猫会给他们带来坏运气。因此他们都不喜欢养黑色的猫当宠物。

1.B细节理解题。根据短文的开头What do you think of black cats? Are they unluckier than cats of other colors? Many people in Western countries think so.可知，在西方人的眼里，黑色的猫象征着倒霉，坏运气。故选B。

2.B细节理解题。第二段的开头第一句话是这一段的中心句，这一段作者告诉我们，人们通过猫的不同颜色来判断他们的个性。科学家们通过一个调查，发现了人们对不同颜色的猫的个性的判断。因此选B。

3.D细节理解题。根据短文第二段中white cats are calm, lazy and shy.可知，人们认为白色的猫是安静的、懒惰的、害羞的。故选D。

4.

考点：日常生活类短文阅读。