As a result, songs sound like noise to an amusic. Many amuics compare the sound of music to pieces of metal hitting each other. Life can be hard for amusics. In fact, most people cannot understand what it feel like be amusic. Just going to a restaurant or a shopping center can be uncomfortable or even painful. That is why many amusics have to stay away from places where there is music. However, this can result in social loneliness. "I used to hate parties,"says Margaret, a seventy-year-old woman who only recently discovered that she was amusic. By studying people like Margaret, scientists are finally learning how to identify(辨别) this unusual condition.

  Scientists say that the brains of amusics are different for those of people who can enjoy music. The difference is complex(复杂的), and it is not connected with poor hearing. Amusics can understand other non-musical sounds well. They also have no problems understanding common speech. Scientists compare amusics to people who just can't see certain colors.

Many amusics are happy when their condition is finally diagnosed(诊断). For years, Margaret felt embarrassed about her problem music. Now she knows that she is not alone. That makes it easier for her to explain. "When people invite me to a concert, I just say "No, thanks. I'm amusic." says Margret.

阅读下面短文, 根据短文内容, 从短文后各题所给的A、B、C、D四个选项中, 选择最佳选项。

C

    A desert is a difficult place for animals to live, and some have unusual ways of making a living. The Texas lizard has a strange way to keep itself safe. When a predator(掠食动物) gets too close, blood goes out from the lizard's eyes. Then it breathes in much air to make its body look bigger. Another interesting desert animal is the javelina. To make a predator afraid and run away, the javelina bravely faces the animal. It makes a big noise with its teeth. It raises the hard hairs on its back to make itself look bigger. The javelina also gives off a strong smell as a warning when it is afraid. This smell is so strong that javelinas are also called "smelly pigs". Javelinas keep safe by staying close to their family, so there's a good chance they can make a predator change its mind!

    You might think a rain forest would be easier to live in than a desert. After all, there's plenty of food and water in a rain forest. But that also means a lot of animals live there. Being able to climb trees is a useful skill in the rain forest. It allows an animal to keep away from predators. The sloth spends most of its life in the treetops. Its strong, curved claws(爪子) help it climb and hang upside down from branches. The sloth also moves very slowly. It does this so it's not noticed. The aye-aye lives only in the rain forest of Madagascar, near Africa. The aye-aye is a night animal. This helps it to stay safe from daytime predators. However, the number of the aye-aye keeps going down and they may die out. People have hunted it because they think it brings bad luck. Also, much of the rain forest in Madagascar has been cut down, which has destroyed the aye-aye's home. Today there are laws(法律) to keep people from killing it.

C

    In England, people often talk about the weather because they can experience (经历) four seasons in one day. In the morning the weather is warm just like in spring. An hour later black clouds come and then it rains hard. The weather gets a little cold. In the late afternoon the sky will be sunny, the sun will begin to shine, and it will be like in summer at this time of a day.

    In England, people can also have summer in winter, or have winter in summer. So in winter they can swim sometimes, and in summer sometimes they should take warm clothes.

    When you go to England, you will see that some English people usually take an umbrella (伞) or a raincoat with them on a sunny morning, but you should not laugh at them. If you don't take an umbrella or a raincoat, you will probably regret (后悔).

B

    Language students often think they have memory problems. They worry because they can't remember words. In fact, the problem usually isn't with their memory. The problem is with how they study.

    To remember words better, you need to understand how memory works. There are two kinds of memory: short-term and long-term. When you see, hear, or read something, it goes first into short-term memory. But short-term memory lasts for only a few seconds. You will only remember something longer if it goes into long-term memory. Your long-term memory is like a very big library with many, many books. And like a library, it's organized (有条理的). When you put away a book – or memory – you can't just leave it anywhere. You have to choose a place where you can find it again.

    How can you do this with vocabulary? The answer is to work with the word and think about the word in new ways. You can do this by writing new sentences that include it. Even better, you can invent a little story about the word, with people or places that you know. Another way is to make a picture in your mind with the word. For example, if the word is height, you can think of the tallest person you know and try to guess his or her height. All of these activities are good ways to think about words. They make the meaning of words stronger in your long-term memory. And they give a way to find a word when you need it.

    Many people may sometimes wish it could be summer all year round. However, as nice as summer is, we really need the other seasons as well.

    Then why do we have different seasons? We know that the Earth spins on its own axis (轴线). This makes day and night. In 24 hours the Earth turns round once. When we are facing the sun, it is day. When we face away, it is night. Simple!

    We travel around the sun in a circle. So why does it get colder in winter and hotter in summer? It's because the axis of the Earth is tilted (倾斜的). It means that in summer some places, such as the UK, are leaning towards the ssun. The temperature rises. As the Earth travels around the sun, these places begin to tilt away and the temperature drops. It becomes winter.

    This is why when the UK has winter, Australia has summer. Imagine having Christmas dinner on the beach! But not all countries have seasons. Countries near the equator (赤道), the line which goes round the middle of the Earth, don't have different seasons. The weather stays almost the same temperature all the year round. Can you think why this is? The middle doesn't tilt very much, does it? This means the seasons don't change much.

    Then what about the North and South Pole? What are the seasons like there? Because they get very far away from the Sun, their seasons are very extreme. There are only two seasons near the North and South Pole: winter and summer. What's more, they only have one sunrise and one sunset a year. It is dark for six months of the year and light for six months of the year. What problems would there be if you had to live somewhere that was dark for six months of the year and light for six months of the year?