Have you ever wondered why birds sing? Maybe you thought that they were just happy．After all, you probably sing or whistle(吹口哨)when you are happy．
Some scientists believe that birds do sing some of the time just because they are happy．However, they sing most of the time for a very different reason．Their singing is actually a warning to other birds to stay out of their territory．
Do you know what a “territory” is? A territory is an area that an animal, usually the male, claims(声称)as its own．Only he and his family are welcome there．No other families of the same species(物种)are welcome．Your yard and house are your territory where only your family and friends are welcome．If a stranger should enter your territory and threaten you, you might shout．Probably this would be enough to frighten him away．
If so, you have actually scared the stranger away without having to fight him．A bird does the same thing．But he expects no outsiders almost any time, especially at nesting(筑巢)season．So he is screaming all the time, whether he can see an outsider or not．This screaming is what we call a bird's song, and it is usually enough to keep an outsider away．
Birds sing loudest in the spring when they are trying to attract a mate and warn others not to enter the territory of theirs．
You can see that birds have a language of their own．Most of it has to do with attracting mates and setting up territories．
(1)
Some scientists believe that most of the time birds' singing is actually ________．
[ ]
A．
an expression of happiness
B．
a way of warning
C．
an expression of anger
D．
a way of greeting
(2)
What is a bird's “territory”?
[ ]
A．
A place where families of other species are accepted．
B．
A place where a bird may shout at the top of its voice．
C．
An area for which birds fight against each other．
D．
An area which a bird considers to be its own．
(3)
Why do birds keep on singing at nesting season?
[ ]
A．
Because they want to invite more friends．
B．
Because their singing helps frighten outsiders away．
C．
Because they want to find outsiders around．
D．
Because their singing helps get rid of their fears．
The literal meaning of philosophy is “love of wisdom”．But this meaning does not tell us very much．Unlike the other discilines(学科), philosopjy cannot e defined by what you study , because it si actually unlimited．Anything can be the subject matter of philosophy：are, history, law, language, literature, mathematics, and in fact, the other academic disciplines are directly related to philosopkhy．For this reason you get a Doctorate(博士学位)of Philosoophy(Ph．D．)in biochemisty, or computer science, or psychology．
Two broad sub-fields of philosophy are logic and the history of philosophy．Logic is the science of argument and eritical thinkging．It provides sound methods for distinguishing good from bad reasonign．The history of philosopjy involives the study of major philosophers and perrsiad in the development of philosophy．
Of what use is philosophy? First it is useful in educational advancemet．It is necessary for undesrtanding other disciplines．Only philosopjy questiong the nature of the concepts used in a discipline, and its relatin to other disco[;omes．And throught the stdy of philosophy, one develops sound methods of research and analysis that can be applied to any field．
There are a number of gengral uses of philosophy．It strengthens one’s ability to solve problesm, to communieate, to organize ideas and issues, to presuade, and to takewhat is the most important form a large quamity of data．These general uses are of great benefit in the career firld, not necessarily ofr boutaining onej’s first job after graduation , but for preparing for posttions of responsibility, managemetn and leadershin later on．It is very shor sihte after all, to take a course of studies only for the purpose of getting one’s first job．The useful skills developed throught the study of philosophy hav significang long-term benefits in canreer advancement．No other discipline systematically follows the ideals of wisdom, leadership, and capacity to reasolve human conflict．
(1)
Accprdomg to Paragraph 1．philosophy can best be described as the study of ________．
[ ]
A．
social sciences
B．
natural sciences
C．
both social and natural sciences
D．
the subject matter of politics
(2)
With the study of philosophy, you can ________．
[ ]
A．
become a great leader
B．
succeed in everything
C．
find a good job soon after graduation
D．
make progress in your career development
(3)
According to the passage, which of the follwing statements is TRUE?
[ ]
A．
Philosophy is an independent discipline．
B．
Logic helps you to become a better thinker．
C．
The study of philosophy brings you immediate benefits．
D．
The meaning of philosophy is too limited to define．
(4)
From the passage, we can conclude ________
[ ]
A．
not all the subjects have to do with philosophy
B．
a person will get a Ph．D．if he/she studies philosophy
C．
philosophy can be helpful for the study of any other subjects
D．
philosophy is the only solution to all the probleras in the world
