阅读理解

Directions: In this section, there is a short passage followed by 5 questions. Read the passage carefully and then give brief answers to the questions below in the fewest words possible.

Passage 8

The newborn can see the difference between various shapes and patterns from birth. He prefers patterns to dull or bright solid colors and looks longer at stripes and angles than at circular patterns. Within three weeks, however, his preference shifts dramatically to the human face. 

Why should a baby with so little visual experience attend more to a human face than to any other kind of pattern? Some scientists think this preference represents a built in advantage for the human species. The object of prime importance to the physically helpless infant is a human being. Babies seem to have a natural tendency to the human face as potentially rewarding. Researchers also point out that the newborn wisely relies more on pattern than on outline, size, or color. Pattern remains stable, while outline changes with point of view; size, with distance from an object; and brightness and color, with lighting. 

Mothers have always claimed that they could see their newborns looking at them as they held them, despite what they have been told. The experts who thought that perception (知觉) had to await physical development and the consequence of action were wrong for several reasons. Earlier research techniques were less sophisticated than they are today. Physical skills were once used to indicate perception of objects-skills like visual tracking and reaching for an object, both of which the newborn does poorly. Then, too, assumptions that the newborn’ s eye and brain were too immature for anything as sophisticated as pattern recognition caused opposing data to be thrown away. Since perception of form was widely believed to follow perception of more “basic” qualities such as color and brightness, the possibility of its presence from birth was rejected. 

问答题 What does a newborn baby like to see most?
【正确答案】A newborn baby like to see stripes and angles patterns most.
【答案解析】由第一段第二句话可知, 比起纯色, 新生儿更喜欢看图案, 而且看条纹和三角形的时间比看圆 形图案时间长。
问答题 Why do the newborn pays more attention to a human face than any other kind of objects?
【正确答案】Because he has an inherent ability to regard a human being as helpful.
【答案解析】第二段中说到, 对于身体上没有能力的婴儿来说, 最重要的就是人类。 婴儿这么做的原因可能是“Babies seem to have a natural tendency to the human face as potentially rewarding. ”
问答题 Contrary to what they believe, what have mothers been told about newborns?
【正确答案】Mothers have been told that newborns can’ t see their faces.
【答案解析】第三段第一句说到, 妈妈们可以感受到婴儿在看着她们,“despite what they have been told” , 由此可见她们被告知的内容应该与她们所感受到的相反。
问答题 According to earlier researches on the newborn’ s perception, what happened to scientists?
【正确答案】Scientists ignored evidence contrary to their assumptions.
【答案解析】最后一段中说到, 科学家们假设新生儿的眼睛和大脑对任何东西都是不成熟的, 由此导致“opposing data to be thrown away” , 也就是忽略了有效的证据。
问答题 What is the main idea of the passage?
【正确答案】Newborns can perceive forms from birth.
【答案解析】本文主要说到新生儿刚出生时喜欢看各种形状, 后来喜欢看的是人脸, 然后说到这种现象的原因, 最后说到早期研究的失误。 因此这篇文章的中心思想是新生儿从出生就可以感知形态。