首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
At some point in your life, you have likely heard a character on TV or in a book say something along the lines of, "The thing th
At some point in your life, you have likely heard a character on TV or in a book say something along the lines of, "The thing th
admin
2017-06-11
71
问题
At some point in your life, you have likely heard a character on TV or in a book say something along the lines of, "The thing that separates humans from the animals is..." You may have even heard such a sentiment completed in more than one way—some say it is our large brains, others our opposable thumbs, and still others claim it is our ability to use tools. While all of these attributes sound reasonable enough, none of them is truly unique to the human species. There are plenty of large mammals that have bigger brains than human beings, and we share our opposable thumbs and tool-using capabilities with several of our fellow primates. No, I would argue instead that the true thing that makes humans qualitatively different from other animals is our ability to use language.
Though there are people who claim that various phenomena from dolphin sounds to bird songs are " language" these arguments are typically confusions in terminology at best. There is no doubt that these noises serve to communicate ideas from animal to animal, but to most linguists the idea of language involves a means of communicating that is more complex, rule-based, and extensible—able to capture complicated ideas even with a relatively limited vocabulary.
Now, it seems reasonable to suppose that if human beings are several times more intelligent than these other creatures, our communications would be correspondingly more complex.
However, I believe that the converse is actually the case that the appearance of great intelligence in human beings is partly a product of our natural affinity for language. Language acquisition is not merely a function of our general reasoning capabilities; it is accomplished by particular and unique regions of our brains during the first seven or so years of childhood. Anyone studying a second language knows how difficult it really is to achieve fluency in a foreign tongue using only our general cognitive abilities, after this "language acquisition device" has shut itself off.
As much as we’d like to believe it, language is not mankind’s ingenious invention; it is our genetic birthright, and its acquisition is as instinctive and unconscious as salmon swimming upriver to spawn or geese flying south for the winter. Knowing this leads me to wonder: If other primates or dolphins could speak as we do, enabling them to share ideas and pass on their accumulated knowledge rather than learning it anew with each successive generation, would they really be so different from us?
The author of the passage would most probably agree that language is______.
选项
A、the primary distinguishing factor of humanity
B、a tool for preserving cultural identity
C、a useful adaptation for survival
D、an important topic for serious academic study
答案
C
解析
推断题。A“人类最显著的特点”,A已经在文章中出现,不是推断出的内容,故A错误:B和D不符合文章,也是错误的。文章列举了大雁南飞的例子,说明语言学习也是一种本能的和下意识的行为;既然动物的这些行为是为了生存,人类语言作为一种行为同样可以帮助人类求得生存,故选C。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/48FO777K
0
考博英语
相关试题推荐
Theriverisalready_____itsbanksbecauseofexcessiverainfallandthecityisthreatenedwithalikelyflood.
Whenmostpeoplethinkaboutchangingtheirbodyshape,theyusuallyfocusonjustlosingweight.Booksandmagazinesaboutdieti
OneofthegreatestmysteriesinthestudyofCetacea[aquaticmammals]hasalwaysbeenthatthecreaturesfoundinthestomachso
GeneralGeorgeWashingtonandhishungry,raggedtroopscrossedtheDelawareRiverfromPennsylvania,surprisedthegarrisonofG
democracyimaginationdifferentflexibilityovercomeonlineoffertraditionalmodern
Educationalpoliciesmade____thehoofbysuccessivesecretariesofstatearethemainreasonforlowteachermorale.
ResalePriceMaintenanceisthenameusedwhenaretaileriscompelledtosellatapricefixedbythemanufacturerinsteadofc
Theindomitablespiritdisplayedbyathletesembodiesthenewlookofthisnation.
Ahistoryoflongandeffortlesssuccesscanbeadreadfulhandicap,but,ifproperlyhandled,itmaybecomeadrivingforce.Whe
Internetisavastnetworkofcomputersthatconnectsmanyoftheworld’sbusinesses,institutions,andindividuals.Theinternet
随机试题
在中国,最大的市场调查机构为()
男,69岁,吸烟50年。反复咳嗽、咳痰30年,晨起排痰明显,呈白色泡沫状,近1周症状加重,伴急促、心悸。有糖尿病病史6年,用“药物”可控制。查体:T37.8℃,P97次/分,R25次/分,BP160,/90mmHg。桶状胸,双肺散在哮鸣音,少许湿哕音
丙烯酸树脂IV号为药用辅料,在片剂中的主要用途为
地籍管理档案的立卷一般应由国家及()以上土地管理机关内的地籍管理业务司、处(科)室来完成。
采用()系统,是地图表达地理要素的工具。使地图可以直观、准确地表达地理空间信息。
上市公司所确定的配股价格可以低于该公司配股前每股净资产。()
税收规划的方法和手段(或者内容)主要可以分为()。
以下属于理财顾问服务的有:()。
第一个以刑部作为中央主审机关的朝代是()。
Languagepervadessociallife.Itistheprincipalvehicleforthetransmissionofculturalknowledge,andtheprimarymeans
最新回复
(
0
)