问答题 Scientists at Johns Hopkins have discovered "striking" differences between men and women in a part of the brain linked with ability to estimate time, judge speed, visualize things three-dimensionally and solve mathematical problems.
47)The differences, the researchers say, may underlie well-known trends that vary by sex, such as the fact that more men than women are architects, mathematicians and race-car drivers.
In a study reported this week in the Journal Cerebral Cortex, the researchers show that a brain region called the inferior parietal lobule is significantly larger overall in men than in women. The area is part of the cerebral cortex and appears on both sides of the brain just above ear-level.
Also, there's a symmetry difference, with men having a larger left IPL than right. 48) In women in the study, it's the right IPL that's somewhat larger, though the difference between the two sides of the brain is less obvious than in men, says psychiatrist Godfrey Pearlson, M. D. who headed the project.
Researchers also compared IPL volumes on the left and the right sides of the brain. After allowances for men's larger overall head and brain size, men had roughly 6 percent more IPL tissue than women.
"The inferior parietal lobule is far more developed in people than in animals and has evolved relatively recently, "says Pearlson. 49)It allows the brain to process information from senses such as vision and touch, and enables the sort of thinking involved in selective attention and perception.
Studies link the right IPL with a working memory of spatial relationships, the ability to sense relationships between body parts and awareness of a person's own affect or feelings. The left IPL, Pearlson says, is more involved in perception, such as judging how fast something is moving, estimating time and having the ability to mentally rotate 3-D figures.
"To say this means men are automatically better at some things than women is a simplification, "says Pearlson. "It's easy to find women who are fantastic at math and physics and men who excel in language skills. Only when we look at very large populations and look for slight but significant trends do we see the generalizations. 50) There are plenty of exceptions, but there's also a grain of truth, revealed through the brain structure, that we think underlies some of the ways people characterize the sexes."

【正确答案】约翰·霍普金斯大学的科学家已发现在大脑中与估算时间、判断速度、想像三维的事物以及解答数学题等能力有关的部位，男女之间存在着“惊人的”差别。

【答案解析】[解析] 这是一个简单句，句子框架是主谓宾结构，即：Scientists．．．have discovered．． differences between．．。句中Johns Hopkins是美国的著名高校约翰·霍普金斯大学，striking是“惊人的、显著的”意思，Visualize是指“想像、形象化”， three-dimensionally是“三维地”。

【正确答案】研究人员指出，这种差异可能会形成众所周知的男女有别的现象，例如，事实上建筑师、数学家和赛车手中男性就多于女性。

【答案解析】[解析] 这是一个简单复合句，句子框架是The differences．．．，may underlie．．． trends．．．。句中宾语trends后that引导了一个定语从句，而在定语从句中又包含一个由that引导的同位语从句解释the fact。句中underlie的本义是“在……之下，成为……的基础”，在这里可以灵活处理译成“形成、发展成”。trend是“倾向、趋势”的意思。可以译为“现象”。

【正确答案】领导这项研究的精神病学家、医学博士戈弗雷·皮尔逊说，研究表明，女性的右下顶叶略微大一些，尽管女性大脑两侧的这种差异没有男性的那么明显。

【答案解析】[解析] 这是一个含有强调句式的主从复合句。句子框架是it's the right IPL that's somewhat larger．．．。句中though引导了一个状语从句，而says psychiatrist Godfrey Pearlson，M．D．是插入语部分，其后的who引导了一个非限定性定语从句修饰Godfrey Pearlson。

【正确答案】下顶叶使大脑能够处理从诸如视觉和触觉等感官传来的信息，并使涉及有选择性集中注意和知觉之类的思维活动得以进行。

【答案解析】[解析] 这是一个并列句，句架是hallows．．．to process．．．，and enables．．．。在第二个分句中involved是过去分词做后置定语，修饰其前面的动名词thinking。
It 指代上文中提到的下顶叶，在我们翻译时应该译出来。

【正确答案】当然有很多例外，但从大脑结构中揭露出不少的事实，这事实我们认为构成了人们在性别方面的某些特征。

【答案解析】[解析] 这是一个并列的there be句型，句架是There are．．．，but there's also．．．。在这个句型中又包含了被插入成分revealed through the brain structure分割开了的一个由that引导的定语从句，用以修饰前面的truth。