题型：阅读选择 题类： 难易度：普通
浙江省杭州市春蕾中学2023-2024学年九年级上学期12月月考英语试题
Have you noticed that people speak differently to babies compared to adults? Caregivers, especially mothers, change their speech when talking to young children. How? Their speech includes higher pitch (音高) and a wider pitch range (范围). They use shorter sentences and repeat words more often. You can think of it as baby talk. Researchers have recently discovered that dolphins also use baby talk with their babies.
The research team recorded sounds of 19 mother dolphins living in the Sarasota Bay area. The sounds of the same female dolphins were compared when they were with and without their babies. Chart 1 shows the sound of a female dolphin without her baby. The researchers found that when dolphins were with their babies, dolphin mothers had a wider range of frequencies (频率) of the sound-the maximum (最高 ) frequencies were higher and the lowest frequencies were lower.
The findings mirror the way that humans change the speech when speaking to babies. Dolphin baby talk may have a similar purpose to human"baby talk" it may help babies learn how to phonate. We humans don't only use baby talk with little babies, but with the children who are still learning to speak. As a result, our children are able to talk. That's exactly what happens to dolphins. The changes in speech don't just happen when dolphin mothers stay with very young babies, but also between mothers and babies that are closer to"toddler (学步的幼儿)" age. Another possible reason for using specific pitch is to catch the children's attention. It's really important for a young dolphin to know"Oh, Mom is talking to me now."
The research about baby talk in dolphins reminds us how important it is in humans. Whenever we speak with a young child, how we say things could be as important as what we say.
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What is your dream job, a pilot or a policeman? What do you hope your job is like? Read the following stories and find more at www.cambridge,org/aw/cambridgeenglish.
The sweetest job
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Desert Island Blogger
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Sleeping on the job
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试题篮
Harry is only 12, but he is working for a sweet company. His job is probably the best in the company—the sweet tester. When the company invents a new sweet, Harry eats it, writes are port about it and sends his report to the factory. And then the company will make a decision about whether to make the sweet or not. As a child, he's too young to work for money. But he gets free sweets!
Do you wish to live on an island and get paid? Ben got such a job, but it was hard work! He had to live alone in a house (with a swimming pool) on Hamilton Island and spend every day swimming, exploring and relaxing. Then he had to write a blog to show his findings and feelings.
Usually, sleeping on the job is a big problem — if you fall asleep, you'll lose the job! But Roisin was paid to sleep on the job. She slept in designer beds eight hours a day, every day for a month, and tested them to see what makes"a good night's sleep". In the end, Roisin had to write a report about the beds.
