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
考研
Science has few more controversial topics than human intelligence—in particular, whether variations in it are a result of nature
Science has few more controversial topics than human intelligence—in particular, whether variations in it are a result of nature
admin
2021-02-21
68
问题
Science has few more controversial topics than human intelligence—in particular, whether variations in it are a result of nature or nurture, and especially whether such variations differ between the sexes. The mines in this field can blow up an entire career, as Larry Summers found out in 2005 when he spoke of the hypothesis that the mathematical aptitude needed for physics and engineering, as well as for maths itself, is innately rarer in women than in men. He resigned as president of Harvard University shortly afterwards.
It is bold, therefore, of Jonathan Wai, Martha Putallaz and Matthew Makel, of Duke University in North Carolina, to enter the argument with a paper that addresses both questions. In this paper, they describe how they sifted through nearly three decades of standardised tests administered to American high-school students to see what had been happening to the country’s brightest sparks. They draw two conclusions. One is that a phenomenon called the Flynn effect applies in particular to the brightest of the bright. The other is that part, but not all, of the historic difference between the brainiest men and women has vanished.
The three researchers drew their data from Duke University’s Talent Identification Programme, TIP, which is designed to discover especially clever candidates early on: all the participants had scored in the top 5% of ability when confronted with exams designed for much older students. TIP, in turn, draws on three national exams: SAT, EXPLORE and ACT.
In the early 1980s, the ratio of males to females in the top 0.01% of maths scores in SAT, the Scholastic Aptitude Test, was around 13 to 1. By the early 1990s, it had fallen to four to one. After this, however, it remained unaltered.
It is clear that the rise itself must be "nurture" of some sort, but the subsequent stasis could have either explanation. A line of reasoning in favour of "nature" is that put forward by Simon Baron-Cohen, a psychologist at Cambridge University. This connects the extreme systematising patterns of thought which make a good mathematician with the advantage of men among those with Asperger’s syndrome, a form of autism that does not harm a person’s general intelligence. But the difference could equally well be the result of some as-yet-unclear difference between the ways girls and boys are brought up.
That such unclear environmental influences can have real effects on IQ is eloquently illustrated by the Flynn effect. This phenomenon, brought to the world’s attention in the 1980s by James Flynn of the University of Otago, in New Zealand, is that average IQs around the world have been rising at the rate of 0.3 points a year for the past eight decades. Using the TIP data, Dr Wai and his colleagues showed that this is as true of the brightest youngsters in American society as it is of lesser mortals, suggesting that even they can have their abilities boosted by whatever is causing the Flynn effect. Once again, the changes seem to be mainly in mathematics. Scores in the brightest children’s verbal-reasoning and reading abilities demonstrate no clear trend, but all three national tests show sustained improvements in their mathematical ability over the past three decades.
[A] aims to find out extraordinarily smart people based on three exams in America.
[B] shows, with colleagues, that general IQs of the cleverest youngsters have been rising.
[C] assumes that genetically, there is an inequality in mathematical ability between sexes.
[D] presents that there are some relationships between intelligence and Asperger’s syndrome.
[E] shows that IQ has been rising on average under environmental influences.
[F] finds an inequality in mathematical ability between sexes according to his research.
[G] concludes, with his colleagues, that intelligent difference between sexes doesn’t change.
Flynn Effect
选项
答案
E
解析
Flynn Effect出现在第二段和最后一段,解题句在最后一段。该段说,詹姆斯-弗林在20世纪80年代提出弗林效应,指出全世界的平均智商在过去八十年间以年均0.3个点的速度在增长。该效应解释了这种难以阐明的环境因素确实能影响智力水平。E中的has been rising和environmental influences是文中的原词复现,故确定E为本题的正确答案。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/i1Y4777K
0
考研英语二
相关试题推荐
ThewriterwarnsAmericansthat______.Whatistheconclusionofthispassage?
Thepost-WorldWarⅡbaby______resultedina43percentincreaseinthenumberofteenagersinthe1960sand1970s.
ManyAmericansregardthejurysystemasaconcreteexpressionofcrucialdemocraticvalues,includingtheprinciplesthatallc
Tensofthousandsof18-year-oldswillgraduatethisyearandbehandedmeaninglessdiplomas.Thesediplomaswon’tlookanydiff
Tensofthousandsof18-year-oldswillgraduatethisyearandbehandedmeaninglessdiplomas.Thesediplomaswon’tlookanydiff
RuthSimmonsjoinedGoldmanSachs’sboardasanoutsidedirectorinJanuary2000:ayearlatershebecamepresidentofBrownUni
KimiyukiSudashouldbeaperfectcustomerforJapan’scar-makers.He’sayoung,successfulexecutiveatanInternet-servicesco
Organizationsandsocietiesrelyonfinesandrewardstoharnesspeople’sself-interestintheserviceofthecommongood.Thet
Insomeplaces,ithashelpedcurbcorruption,encouragedmoregirlstogotoschoolandenabledcitizenstomonitorelectionvi
Whenitcomestosuingdoctors,Philadelphiaishardlythecityofbrotherlylove.Acombinationofsprightlylawyersandsympat
随机试题
A.柴胡疏肝散加减B.黄芪建中汤加减C.良附丸加减D.左金丸加减E.保和丸加减患者,男,33岁。胃痛暴作,喜温恶寒,得温痛减,口淡不渴;舌质淡、苔薄白,脉弦紧。应选用的方剂是
Stressmaybedefinedastheresponseofthebodytoanydemand.Wheneverpeopleexperiencesomethingpleasantorunpleasant,we
中结肠动脉
21岁,停经2个月,2天前在外自行坠胎,体温38.8℃,脉搏130次/分,血压正常,白细胞10×109/L,中性90%,子宫如孕2个月大小,软,有压痛,经抗感染治疗,感染未能控制,突然大量阴道出血。下列哪项处理为宜
A.15°B.60°C.70°D.80°E.140°上颌牙槽突与水平面构成的交角约为
在直径为d=50mm的水管上安装一个阀门,水管通过的流量是Q=4L/s。为测量阀门的局部阻力,在阀门的前后安有一个u形测压管,测压管中的水银柱压差△h=95mm,则水流通过阀门时的局部阻力系数是()。
货币性项目,是指企业持有的货币资金和将以固定或可确定的金额收取的资产。()
在快节奏生活的当下,不少事物的生产创造似乎也加速起来。比如各类技能培训,只要有钱,到处都是班,两三个月就能拿到一本证书。写书、拍电视剧等等,也无不可以速成。________________________________一些以次充好的假冒伪劣“速
TheMysteryoftheNazcaLines[A]IfyouvisitthePeruviancoastaldesertfromnorthtosouth,youwillnotethatsporadica
Pregnantwomenwhosufferlapses(忘却)inmemoryorconcentrationmaynolongerbeabletoblameiton"thebump".Theideathat
最新回复
(
0
)