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(B)
The Zebra Finch: An Owner’s Guide to a Happy Healthy Pet
The zebra finch, a native of Australia, is a popular domestic pet in the United States. The bird has many attributes (特性) which allow it to be kept at home, though there are also a few negative aspects. The attributes are nest-building, breeding and a lively attitude. The potential negatives are over-breeding and the wildness of the birds.
One of the main attributes of zebra finches is their ability to breed. They are the rabbits of the domestic bird world. Once you have two birds, male and female, you will soon have six, as they breed quite easily and have strong babies, usually f our at a time. An added attribute is their ability to build their own nests. You can place branch in their place along with some kind of structure, and they will create a nest on their own. It’s very pleasant to see the ways males and females divide some labors and share others, and the babies grow up quickly. Overall, zebra finches are energetic birds, and they can make every place where they live delightful lives.
On the negative side, they will breed and in-breed. Often, in-breeding does little harm and does not cause genetic defects (缺陷), as happens more often in other species. However, no one can tolerate just any population level. One has to either remove their nests altogether, which basically removes their personal living place, or check for eggs regularly once a week (the gestation period is 13 days, so even a one-we ek neglect can lead to births). Eggs can be replaced with false plastic eggs, and this prevents females from laying too many. If they do lay too many, they will die from mineral loss. Since these birds do not tame well, removing eggs can be an unpleasant process of repeatedly invading their personal space.
Overall, it is unfortunate that zebra finches are inexpensive birds due to their high level of breeding. They require considerable care to live happy lives. The best care-takers are true avian fanciers — people who have appropriate space for the nests and enough time to allow them to nest-build and breed without over-breeding.
70. What is the passage mainly about?
A. Zebra finches over-breed by nature and its consequent ill effects.
B. Only people who love birds can take care of Zebra finches.
C. Domestic zebra finches require a lot of care to live happy lives.
D. Zebra finches never become completely tame.
71.By saying “They are the rabbits of the domestic bird world”, the writer means that both rabbits and Zebra finches ______.
A. have good ability to breedB. are difficult to be raised
C. live delightful lives D. share responsibilities
72. In paragraph 3, the word “gestation” probably means ______.
A. the period when eggs remain fresh
B. the time when finches build u p their nest and lay eggs
C. the time required for the parents to create a nest
D. the time required for baby birds to develop and to be born
73. According to the passage, attributes of domestic zebra finches include ______.
A. their rareness and easiness to be tamed
B. their nest-building, sharing of responsibilities and delightful personalities
C. their in-breeding, which does not cause as much genetic harm as in other species
D. the fact that they are from Australia and have difficulty in adapting themselves
(C)
“Does my smile look big in this?” Future fitting-room mirrors in clothing stores could subtly adjust your reflection to make you look ─ and hence feel ─ happier, encouraging you to like what you see.
That’s the idea behind the Emotion Evoking System developed by Shigeo Yoshida and colleagues at the University of Tokyo in Japan. The system can manipulate, or in other word, control your emotions and personal preferences by presenting you with an image of your own smiling or frowning face.
The principle that physiological changes can drive emotional ones ─ that laughter comes before happiness, rather than the other way around ─ is a well-established idea.
The researchers wanted to see if this idea could be used to build a computer system that manipulates how you feel. The system works by presenting the user with a web-camera image of his or her face ─ as if they were looking in a mirror. The image is then subtly altered with software, turning the corners of the mouth up or down and changing the area around the eyes, so that the person appears to smile or frown (皱眉).
Without telling them the aim of the study, the team recruited (招募) 21 volunteers and asked them to sit in front of the screen while performing an unrelated task. When the task was complete the participants rated how they felt. When the faces on screen appeared to smile, people reported that they felt happier. On the other hand, when the image was given a sad expression, they reported feeling less happy.
Yoshida and his colleagues tested whether manipulating the volunteers’ emotional state would influence their preferences. Each person was given a scarf to wear and again presented with the altered webcam image. The volunteers that saw themselves smiling while wearing the scarf were more likely to report that they liked it, and those that saw themselves not smiling were less likely.
The system could be used to manipulate consumers’ impressions of products, say the researchers. For example, mirrors in clothing-store fitting rooms could be replaced with screens showing altered reflections. They also suggest people may be more likely to find clothes attractive if they see themselves looking happy while trying them on.
“It’s certainly an interesting area,” says Chris Creed at the University of Birmingham, UK. But he notes that using such technology in a shop would be harder than in the lab, because people will use a wide range of expressions. “Attempting to make slight differences to these and ensuring that the reflected image looks believable would be much more challenging,” he says.
Of course, there are also important moral questions surrounding such subtly manipulative technology. “You could argue that if it makes people happy what harm is it doing?” says Creed. “But I can imagine that many people may feel manipulated, uncomfortable and cheated if they found out.”
74.What’s the main purpose of the Emotion Evoking System?
A. To see whether one’s feeling can be unconsciously affected.
B. To see whether one’s facial expressions can be altered.
C. To see whether laughter comes before happiness.
D. To replace the mirrors in future clothing-store fitting rooms.
75.What can we learn about the web-camera image in the study?
A. It recorded the volunteers’ performance in the task.
B. It gave the volunteers a false image.
C. It attempted to make the volunteers feel happier.
D. It beautified the volunteers’ appearance in the mirror.
76.What does Creed mention as a limitation of the technology?
A. It only changes the areas around the mouth and the eyes.
B. It only works in clothing stores.
C. It only makes subtle changes to people’s expressions.
D. It only deals with a limited number of facial expressions.
77.What does Creed’s comment on the moral issues with this technology imply?
A. Nothing is more important than happiness.
B. Technology is unable to manipulate people.
C. People should make their decisions independently.
D. People should neglect the harm of the technology.
