《英语流行话题阅读:语境识词3500》Unit85:你的宠物有多聪明?

　　Unit 85
How Smart Is Your Pet?
Can the animal plan and understand a sequence of events that will lead to a specific outcome? Can animal think of things that are not in the here and now? If so, then it is proper to attribute intelligence to animals. The debate over the intelligence of dogs, cats and other animals may be as old as human attachment¹ to the lower species.  Some say you can't compare human intelligence and thought to other species. But others argue that you can, if you remember that each species has adapted to its environment and developed problem-solving skills.
Alan Beck, an expert on human-animal bonding, believes that it's egocentric to think only in terms of human intelligence. Humans now have e-mail, but other animals long have had "pee-mail". Marking territory with urine is another way of sending messages. Dr. Milani, an author of Catsmart, says humans have an opposable thumb and a larger brain, but it's pure prejudice to deny that other animals think. Rena Durr, a psychology² professor, believes that animal intelligence is essentially³ a problem-solving issue. Octopuses⁴ were added to the list of animals that require ethical⁵ treatment in labs after one was seen reaching out of his tank and pulling a string to switch off a light bulb above. He preferred the dark, like the bottom of the ocean.
But Durr also suggested that people tend to overestimate⁶ the intelligence of their pets in the same way they tend to overestimate the intelligence of their kids. Anyone who has ever owned a cat will know that there is no limit to the cat's charm. Cats are evolving into supercats that are better able to handle humans. Cats have learned what buttons to press to please their owner after 5,000 years of living with us. Apparently⁷, it is all down to the miaows they choose to get what they want. Many cats seem to have a set of miaows they use for different situations. For example, a cat might choose a particular noise to signal it wants to be let out and a different one to demand to be fed.
But when you compare cats, there is nothing in common between these miaows. This suggests that each cat learns how to get its owner's attention, something that is nothing to do with genetics. That is to say, cats learn to miaow in was that manipulate their owners but it's got nothing to do with evolution at all -- it's a learned response. Each cat tends in its own lifetime to learn the noises that interest its owner.
Cats and dogs learn from experiences. The one thing they cannot do is to take several thoughts and put them together in order to produce a third thought. This is actually a blessing⁸ since it means that animals don't get stuck into jealousy⁹ or hatred¹⁰. The ability to judge is a human trait (some say it is a human curse). So, our pets truly experience and give unconditional¹¹ love.

1 attachment   

n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附

参考例句：

• She has a great attachment to her sister.她十分依恋她的姐姐。
• She's on attachment to the Ministry of Defense.她现在隶属于国防部。

2 psychology   

n.心理，心理学，心理状态

参考例句：

• She has a background in child psychology.她受过儿童心理学的教育。
• He studied philosophy and psychology at Cambridge.他在剑桥大学学习哲学和心理学。

3 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

4 octopuses   

章鱼( octopus的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Snails and octopuses are molluscs. 蜗牛和章鱼是软体动物。
• Limpets, snails and octopuses are mollusks. 帽贝、蜗牛和章鱼都是软体动物。

5 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

6 overestimate   

v.估计过高，过高评价

参考例句：

• Don't overestimate seriousness of the problem.别把问题看重了。
• We overestimate our influence and our nuisance value.我们过高地估计了自己的影响力和破坏作用。

7 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

8 blessing   

n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿

参考例句：

• The blessing was said in Hebrew.祷告用了希伯来语。
• A double blessing has descended upon the house.双喜临门。

9 jealousy   

n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌

参考例句：

• Some women have a disposition to jealousy.有些女人生性爱妒忌。
• I can't support your jealousy any longer.我再也无法忍受你的嫉妒了。

10 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

11 unconditional   

adj.无条件的，无限制的，绝对的

参考例句：

• The victorious army demanded unconditional surrender.胜方要求敌人无条件投降。
• My love for all my children is unconditional.我对自己所有孩子的爱都是无条件的。