Go ahead，talk to your dog.
As many a dog owner will prove, our furry friends are listening. Now, for the doubters, there is scientific proof that they understand much of what they hear. A border collie called Rico can fetch at least 200 objects by name， researchers in Germany say. The dog also appears to learn words for new objects as easily as a 3-year-old child would. Its word-learning skill is as good as that of a parrot or chimpanzee.
In one experiment, the researchers took all 200 items that Rico is supposed to know and divided them randomly into 20 sets of 10 objects each. The dog waited with one of his owners in one room, while an experimenter put a set of 10 objects into another room. Then, the owner told the dog to fetch one of the items. The dog had to go to the other room and bring the object back.
In four trials, Rico got 37 out of 40 commands right. Because the dog couldn't see anyone to get visual clues about what to bring back, the scientists concluded that he must understand the meanings of certain words.
In another experiment, the scientists took one toy that Rico had never seen before and put it in a room with seven toys whose names he already knew. The dog's owner then told him to fetch the object, using a word Rico had never heard.
In 7 out of 10 trials, Rico picked the right object, suggesting that he figured out the answer by process of elimination. A month later, he remembered half of the new names, which further impressed the researchers.
Rico is probably smarter than the average dog, the scientists say. For one thing, he's a border collie, a breed known for its mental abilities. In addition, the 9-year-old dog has been trained to retrieve toys by their names since he was 9 months old.
It's hard to know if all dogs understand at least some of the words we say. Even if they do, they can't talk back. Still, it wouldn't hurt to sweet-talk your pup every now and then. You might just get a big, wet kiss in return!
48．The passage is probably taken from a book on _____
A．pets B．environment    C．culture     D．nutrition
49．It is implied that ____
A．Rico is probably cleverer than the average dog
B．Only a few dogs can talk back to its owner
C．if a chimpanzee is trained ,it can also recognize the names of objects
D．All dogs can understand words
50．How long is it since Rico’s owner began to train him?
A．nine months  B．3years    C．over nine years      D．more than eight years
51．Rico can do all the following except _____
A．understanding the meanings of certain words.
B．picking the right object by process of elimination
C．remembering all of the new names he learned    D．retrieving toys by their names

         Do dogs understand us?

         Be careful what you say around your dog．It might understand more than you think．

         A border collie named Rico recognizes the names of about 200 objects, say researchers in Germany．The dog also appears to be able to learn new words as easily as a 3-year-old child．Its word-learning skills are as good as those of a parrot or chimpanzee．

         In one experiment, the researchers took all 200 items that Rico is supposed to know and divided them into 20 groups of 10 objects．Then the owner told the dog to go and fetch one of the items and bring it back．In four tests, Rico got 37 out of 40 commands right．As the dog couldn't see anyone to get clues, the scientists believe Rico must understand the meanings of certain words．

         In another experiment, the scientists took one toy that Rico had never seen before and put it in a room with seven toys whose names the dog already knew．The owner then told Rico to fetch the object, using a word the dog had never heard before．

         The correct object was chosen in seven out of ten tests, suggesting that the dog had worked

         out the answer by process of elimination（排除法）．A month later, Rico remembered half of the new names, which is even more impressive．

         Rico is thought to be smarter than the average dog．For one thing, Rico is a border collie, a breed （品种）known for its mental abilities．In addition, the 9-year-old dog has been trained to fetch toys by their names since the age of nine months．

         It's hard to know if all dogs understand at least some of the words we say．Even if they do, they can't talk back．Still, it wouldn't hurt to sweet-talk your dog every now and then．You might just get a big, wet kiss in return!

1．From paragraph 2 we know that __________．

         A．animals are as clever as human beings

         B．chimpanzees have very good word-learning skills

         C．dogs are smarter than parrots and chimpanzees

         D．dogs have similar learning abilities as 3-year-old children

2．Both experiments show that_____________．

         A．Rico is smart enough to get all commands right

         B．Rico can recognize different things including toys

         C．Rico has developed the ability of learning mathematics

         D．Rico won't forget the names of objects once recognizing them

3．Which of the following statements is true?

         A．Rico has a better memory partly because of its proper early training．

         B．The purpose of the experiments is to show the border collie's mental abilities．

         C．The border collie is world-famous for recognizing objects．

         D．Rico is born to understand its owner's commands．

4．What does the writer want to tell us?

         A．To train your dog．                   B．To talk to your dog．

         C．To be careful with your dog．           D．To be friendly to your dog．

Do dogs understand us?
Be careful what you say around your dog．It might understand more than you think．
A border collie named Rico recognizes the names of about 200 objects, say researchers in Germany．The dog also appears to be able to learn new words as easily as a 3-year-old child．Its word-learning skills are as good as those of a parrot or chimpanzee．
In one experiment, the researchers took all 200 items that Rico is supposed to know and divided them into 20 groups of 10 objects．Then the owner told the dog to go and fetch one of the items and bring it back．In four tests, Rico got 37 out of 40 commands right．As the dog couldn't see anyone to get clues, the scientists believe Rico must understand the meanings of certain words．
In another experiment, the scientists took one toy that Rico had never seen before and put it in a room with seven toys whose names the dog already knew．The owner then told Rico to fetch the object, using a word the dog had never heard before．
The correct object was chosen in seven out of ten tests, suggesting that the dog had worked
out the answer by process of elimination（排除法）．A month later, Rico remembered half of the new names, which is even more impressive．
Rico is thought to be smarter than the average dog．For one thing, Rico is a border collie, a breed （品种）known for its mental abilities．In addition, the 9-year-old dog has been trained to fetch toys by their names since the age of nine months．
It's hard to know if all dogs understand at least some of the words we say．Even if they do, they can't talk back．Still, it wouldn't hurt to sweet-talk your dog every now and then．You might just get a big, wet kiss in return!
1．From paragraph 2 we know that __________．
A．animals are as clever as human beings
B．chimpanzees have very good word-learning skills
C．dogs are smarter than parrots and chimpanzees
D．dogs have similar learning abilities as 3-year-old children
2．Both experiments show that_____________．
A．Rico is smart enough to get all commands right
B．Rico can recognize different things including toys
C．Rico has developed the ability of learning mathematics
D．Rico won't forget the names of objects once recognizing them
3．Which of the following statements is true?
A．Rico has a better memory partly because of its proper early training．
B．The purpose of the experiments is to show the border collie's mental abilities．
C．The border collie is world-famous for recognizing objects．
D．Rico is born to understand its owner's commands．
4．What does the writer want to tell us?
A．To train your dog．                B．To talk to your dog．
C．To be careful with your dog．              D．To be friendly to your dog．

When an official at the U. S. Open Pocket Pool(台球)Championship saw a 9-year-old girl playing at one of the tournament tables, he told her that spectators(观众)were not allowed to play. But much to his surprise, the girl was actually a competitor. That was nine years ago, and today, with five U. S. Open Women’s titles behind her and a recently won world championship, no one is likely to mistake Jean Balukas for a spectator again.
It doesn’t seem too surprising that Jean became caught up in pool——her father owns a pool hall within walking distance of the family’s home in Brooklyn. When she was just tall enough to see over the table, she fell in love with the game soon. Five years later Jean was ready to enter her first U. S. Open. She still remembers the letter the officials sent her reminding her that she wouldn’t be allowed to stand on a box to play.

As Jean improved, she found it increasingly difficult to play games at her father’s pool hall. “If I’d beat one of the guys, his friends would laugh at them about losing to me,” she says. Now Jean comes to the hall only weeks before a tournament when she plays Johnny Goon, her father’s pool manager.
That Johnny can beat her shows the gap that now exists in pool — as in other sports — between the top men and women competitors. “I’m supposedly the top woman player, but I’d have a hard time beating the number 50 man,” says Jean. “If I was a boy and played pool, I’d be a nobody.”
Jean thinks that women pool players still have a long way to go because pool has been a man’s game for so long. “When they think of pool players, people have this picture in their head of gambling(赌博) and smoke,” she says.
Jean won four of the seven games in these two years. She was as surprised as anyone else at her performance, even though she was a New York City tennis champion and center for her high-school basketball team. Jean does not take full credit for her achievements, saying, “I think what I have in sports is a gift from God, and that’s why I can get out there and do so well.”
【小题1】We can learn from the first passage that Jean Balukas_____.

Do dogs understand us?

Be careful what you say around your dog. It might understand more than you think.

A border collie博德牧羊犬 named Rico recognizes the names of about 200 objects, say researchers in Germany. The dog also appears to be able to learn new words as easily as a 3-year-old child. Its word-learning skills are as good as those of a parrot or chimpanzee(黑猩猩).

In one experiment, the researchers took all 200 items that Rico is supposed to know and divided them into 20 groups of 10 objects. Then the owner told the dog to go and fetch one of the items and bring it back. In four tests, Rico got 37 out of 40 commands right. As the dog couldn't see anyone to get clues, the scientists believe Rico must understand the meanings of certain words.

In another experiment, the scientists took one toy that Rico had never seen before and put it in a room with seven toys whose names the dog already knew. The owner then told Rico to fetch the object, using a word the dog had never heard before.

The correct object was chosen in seven out of l0 tests, suggesting that the dog had worked out the answer by the process of elimination(排除法). A month later, Rico remembered half of the new names, which is even more impressive.          

Rico is thought to be smarter than the average dog. For one thing, Rico is a border collie, a breed (品种)known for its mental abilities. In addition, the 9-year-old dog has been trained to fetch toys by their names since the age of nine months.

It's hard to know if all dogs understand at least some of the words we say. Even if they do, they can't talk back. Still, it wouldn't hurt to sweet-talk your dog every now and then. You might just get a big, wet kiss in return!

1.From paragraph 2 we know that ____________..

A．animals are as clever as human beings

B．dogs are smarter than parrots and chimpanzees

C．chimpanzees have very good word-learning skills

D．dogs have similar 'learning abilities as 3-year-old children

2.Both experiments show that             .

A．Rico is smart enough to get all commands right

B．Rico can recognize different things including toys

C．Rico has developed the ability of learning mathematics

D．Rico won't forget the names of objects once recognizing them

3.Which of the following statements is true?

A．The purpose of the experiments is to show the border collie's mental abilities.

B．Rico has a better memory partly because of its proper early training.

C．The border collie is world-famous for recognizing objects.

D．Rico is born to understand its owner's commands.

4.What does the writer want to tell us?

A．To train your dog.

B．To talk with your dog.

C．To be friendly to your dog.

D．To be careful with your dog.