Question

We are often told to pay attention to what our mothers tell us. Most of us enjoy listening to our mothers speak. Scientists have found that compared(和……相比较) to other people's voices, our brains greatly prefer the voices of our own mothers.

Scientists at Stanford University, US, recently studied this. They scanned children's brains while they were listening to different sounds, including their mothers' voices. They found that 97 percent of the time, children could recognize(认出) their mothers' voices at once.

Hearing their mothers' voices makes children's brains more active. We usually just use one part of our brain to deal with sounds when we hear something. But when we hear our mothers' voices, many parts of the brain, including those in charge of(负责) reward(奖赏) and emotion(情感), start to work as well.

Why do we respond(作出反应) so strongly to our mothers' voices? It starts even before we're born. When children are still in the womb(子宫) or have just been born, they hear their mothers talking. This makes babies feel comfortable and teaches them language and social skills, even though they are still very young. The babies learn to recognize their mothers' voices as rewarding(奖励性的) sound. Later, when this sound is heard again, more attention is paid to it.

    Some sounds are necessary for our survival(生存) or bring us pleasure. These sounds are recognized by our brains as rewarding sounds. Most human voices are not recognized in this way, since we hear them so often. But mothers' voices are different. They bring us a lot of comfort.

1.What is the story mainly about?

A.Why we should listen carefully to our mothers. B.Why we prefer to hear our mothers’ voices.

C.How we recognize our mothers voices. D.How we respond to different kinds of sounds.

2.What will happen when children hear their mothers’ voices?

A.Many parts of their brains become active. B.They will need time to recognize the voices.

C.Their language skills start to improve. D.They will remember some bedtime stories.

3.According to Paragraph 4, why do children pay more attention to their mothers voices?

A.Because they can recognize their voices quickly.

B.Because their voices make them more comfortable.

C.Because they can get a reward for doing so.

D.Because they can get love from their mothers.

4.When can we respond to our mothers’ voices?

A.When we’re born. B.Before we’re born. C.When we grow up. D.When we’re young.

5.Where can we read the passage?

A.In a history book. B.In a fashion magazine. C.In a science magazine. D.In a morning newspaper.

Answer

1.B

2.A

3.B

4.B

5.C

【解析】

文章大意：本文是一篇关于科学方面的文章，主要讲述我们大多数人都喜欢听妈妈说话的原因，提到当我们听到妈妈的声音会让孩子们的大脑更活跃更积极。母亲的声音给我们带来了很多安慰。

1.主旨大意题。根据文章第一段“Most of us enjoy listening to our mothers speak. Scientists have found that compared to other people’s voices, our brains greatly prefer（更喜欢） the voices of our own mothers.”我们大多数都喜欢听我们母亲说话。科学家已经发现与其他人的声音相比，我们的大脑更喜欢自己母亲的声音。以及第四段介绍其原因。可知，故选B。

2.细节理解题。 根据文章第三段第一句“Hearing their mothers’ voices makes children’s brains more active.”可知，听到母亲声音会使孩子的大脑更活跃。故选A。

3.细节理解题。根据第四段中“When children are still in the womb (子宫) or have just been born, they hear their mothers talking. This makes babies feel comfortable and teaches them language and social skills,”当孩子还在子宫里或刚出生时，他们听到母亲的谈话，这使婴儿感到舒适，并教会他们语言和社交技能。可知，故选B。

4.句意理解题。根据上文第四段“It starts even before we're born.When children are still in the womb (子宫) or have just been born, they hear their mothers talking. This makes babies feel comfortable ”可知甚至在我们出生之前就开始了。听到母亲的谈话使婴儿感到舒适可知“The babies learn to recognize（辨别） their mothers’ voices as a rewarding (奖励性的，有益的) sound.”此句婴儿学会辨别母亲的声音作为一种有意的奖励型的声音，也就是使我们开心的声音。可知，我们在我们出生之前，回应母亲的声音了，故选B。

5.理解判断题。本文主要是讲述关于为什么我们更喜欢听妈妈的声音，可知本文主要关于科学方面的内容。我们最有可能在一本科学杂志上读这篇文章，故选C。