Question

Our perception of hoe food tastes is influenced by cutlery like knives, forks, and spoons, research suggests.

“Size, weight, shape and color all have an effect on flavor,” says a University of Oxford team. Cheese tastes saltier when eaten from a knife rather than a fork; while white spoons make yoghurt taste better, experiments show.

The study in the journal Flavour suggests the brain makes judgments on food even before it goes in the mouth. More than 100 students took part in three experiments looking at the influence of weight, color and shape of cutlery on taste. The researchers found that when the weight of the cutlery is consistent with expectations, this had an influence on how the food tastes. For example, food tasted sweeter on the small spoons that are traditionally used to serve desserts.

Color contrast was also an important factor-white yoghurt eaten from a white spoon was rated sweeter than white yoghurt tasted on a black spoon. Similarly, when testers were offered cheese on a knife, spoon, fork or toothpick, they found that the cheese on a knife tasted saltiest.

“How we experience food is a multisensory experience involving taste, feel of the food in our mouths, pleasant smells, and the feasting of our eyes,” said Pro. Charles Spence and Dr. Vanessa Harrar. “Even before we put food into our mouths, our brains have made a judgment about it, which affects our overall experience.”

Past research has shown that china can change our perception of food and drink. For example, people generally eat less when food is served on smaller plates. “The new research into how the brain influences food perception could help dieters or improve gastronomic（美食的）experiences at restaurants,” said Pro. Spence. He told BBC News: “There’s a lot more to food than what’s on the plate. Many things we thought didn’t matter do. We’re going to see a lot more of neuroscience（神经科学）design around mealtimes.”

1.According to the text, we know that the cheese used in the experiment is ________.

A. salty    B. sour

C. sweet    D. bitter

2.What do we know about the weight of the cutlery in paragraph 3?

A. It is important for people.

B. People usually don’t care about it.

C. It affects how the food tastes.

D. It is always different from people’s expectation.

3.What does the underlined word “multisensory” in Paragraph 5 probably mean?

A. Coming from the senses.

B. Involving many different senses.

C. Able to feel or perceive.

D. Easily affected by other feelings.

4.What can we learn from the last paragraph?

A. Research on cutlery is of great importance.

B. Research on food will be continued in the future.

C. Research on the effect of nerves on the taste of food will be done.

D. Research on plates and food will be carried out in the near future.

Answer

1.A

2.C

3.B

4.C

【解析】

本文是一篇科普类短文阅读。英国牛津大学的研究人员发现，餐具的大小、重量、形状及颜色均会对食物的口感产生影响。

1.细节理解题。根据文章第二段Cheese tastes saltier when eaten from a knife rather than a fork用刀比用叉取食奶酪会让其咸味更明显，可知，实验中所用的奶酪是咸的。故选A。

2.细节理解题。根据文章第三段The researchers found that when the weight of the cutlery is consistent with expectations, this had an influence on how the food tastes.可知，刀叉的重量影响食物的味道。故选C。

3.词义猜测题。根据文章第五段How we experience food is a multisensory experience involving taste, feel of the food in our mouths, pleasant smells, and the feasting of our eyes可知我们对食物的品尝过程是一个多重感官体验的过程，包括味觉、食物的口感、香味以及眼睛的观感。从而可以推测出multisensory为“多种感觉（并用）的”之意。故选B。

4.细节理解题。根据文章最后一段We’re going to see a lot more of neuroscience（神经科学）design around mealtimes可知，研究人员将继续研究神经对食物风味的影响。故选C。