In your dreams, you may clearly see something or hear someone talking. But what about smells? Can you ever remember smells from your dreams?

A study published in 1896 looked at different sensory experiences in dreams. It found that visual(视觉的)experience mainly controls one's dreams. It takes up about 85 percent, while auditory(听觉的)experience makes up 69 percent and smell only 7 percent.

But why? Scientists from the University of Illinois, US, have a theory based on what is know about the brain.

In our brain, there is a special part called the cerebral cortex(大脑皮层). It is linked to our feelings. As much as two-thirds of the cerebral cortex works in vision(视觉). So vision appears often in dreams. Auditory experience is closely tied to , language, and language is processed entirely in the cerebral cortex.

Smell, on the other hand, has little to do with the cerebral cortex. It connects directly to the memory and emotional systems. That is why a smell can sometimes bring back a distant memory.

Another possibility is that perhaps smell is not easily affected by our imagination. For example, close your eyes and imagine your favorite dish. What do you get? It is easy to think about what it looks like. But it is not as easy to imagine its smell.

The vision and auditory senses arc part of a complex process inside the brain. But smell is a direct measurement of chemicals in the air. There is less imagination involved in smell. Therefore,smell might be less influenced by the brain activity that happens while dreaming. It is similar to taste and touch. That is why you don’t usually have the experience of taste and touch in your dreams.

1.Which experience mainly controls one's dreams, according to the 1896 study?

A.Smell. B.Vision. C.Hearing. D.Taste and touch.

2.Which of the following is TRUE about the US scientists’ brain theory?

A.Less than half of the cerebral cortex works in vision.

B.Auditory experience is not tied to language.

C.Smell has almost nothing to do with the cerebral cortex.

D.It’s difficult to imagine what things in your dreams look like.

3.According to paragraph 6 and 7, it’s easier to imagine a dish’s______.

A.look than its smell B.smell than its look C.taste than its smell D.smell than its taste

4.Why can we hear someone talking in our dreams?

A.Because auditory experience is closely tied to language which is processed entirely in the cerebral cortex.

B.Because auditory experience makes up 85 percent in controlling one’s dream.

C.Because auditory experience has little to do with the cerebral cortex.

D.Because auditory is not part of a complex process inside the brain.

5.What is the best tile for the story?

A.How does the cerebral cortex work B.Why can’t you smell in your dreams.

C.What experience happens most often in dreams. D.Why can’t you remember smells from your dreams.

1.People from north and south China have different habits. Do you know why?

The answer is in their genes (基因) according to USA Today. More people from north China have a Special gene. It helps them digest (消化) meat and fat. Few people in the south have this gene.The gene helps people live more easily in the north. There is more meat and fewer vegetables there.

2. Global warming is causing many problems. It is making insects (昆虫) eat more crops(庄稼), The Atlantic reported. Insects' body temperatures change with their environment. On warm days, their body temperature becomes higher than usual. So their metabolism(新陈代谢)becomes faster This means they need to eat more.They also breed (紧殖) more quickly on hot days.

3. Are babies carefree (无忧无虑) ? You might think so. But actually, 2-year- old babies care about what others think about them, according to a US study. Scientists used to think that this only happens in 4-year-old children. But a new study shows that the age is earlier. And 2-year-old children can change their behavior to get a more active response(反应)from others.

4. Mmm..chocolate smells So good. But do you know where chocolate comes from? Chocolate is made from cacao(可可豆). Scientists used to think cacao was first found in Central America and Mexico about 3,900 years ago. But a new study said it is not true, Scientists from Canada have found that people in Ecuador( 厄瓜多尔) grew cacao. They grew the plant over 5,000years ago.

1.What's the topic of passage one?

A.Different genes, different habits B.Hot and hungry insects. C.Where chocolate comes from.

2.What can we conclude from passage two?

A.Insects' body temperatures always stay the same, never unchanged.

B.On hot days, insects' metabolism becomes more slowly that usual.

C.Global warming can make insects eat more and breed more quickly.

3.Which of the following is true according to passage three?

A.No babies care about what others think about them.

B.Two-year-old babies care about what others think about them.

C.Only four-year-old babies care about what others think them.

4.What does the fourth passage tell us?

A.Chocolate smells so good.

B.Cacao was first found about 3,900 years ago.

C.A new study shows when and where people grew cacao.

5.What's the best title for all the four passages?

A.Babies Also Care. B.Unbelievable Facts. C.New Scientific Discoveries.

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