Play is easier to define with examples than with concepts. In any case, in animals it consists of leaping, running, climbing, throwing, wrestling, and other movements, either along, with objects, or with other animals. Depending on the species, play may be primarily for social interaction, exercise, or exploration. One of the problems in providing a clear definition of play is that it involves the same behaviors that take place in other circumstance--dominance, predation, competition, and real fighting. Thus, whether play occurs or not depends on the intention of the animals, and the intentions are not always clear from behaviors alone.
Play appears to be a developmental characteristic of animals with fairly sophisticated nervous systems, mainly birds and mammals. Play has been studied most extensively in primates and canids (dogs). Exactly why animals play is still a matter debated in the research literature, and the reasons may not be the same for every species that plays. Determining the functions of play is difficult because the functions may be long-term, with beneficial effects not showing up until the animal's adulthood.
Play is not without considerable costs to the individual animal. Play is usually very active, involving movement in space and, at times, noisemaking. Therefore, it results in the loss of fuel or energy that might better be used for growth or for building up fat stores in a young animal. Another potential cost of this activity is greater exposure to predators since play is attention-getting behavior. Great activities also increase the risk of injury in slipping or falling.
The benefits of play must outweigh costs, or play would not have evolved, according to Darwin' s theory. Some of the potential benefits relate directly to the healthy development of the brain and nervous system. In one research study, two groups of young rats were raised under different conditions. One group developed in an "enriched" environment, which allowed the rats to interact with other rats, play with toys, and receive maze training. The other group lived in an "impoverished" environment in individual cages in a dimly lit room with little stimulation. At the end of the experiments, the results showed that the actual weight of the brains of the impoverished rats was less than that of those raised in the enriched environment (though they were fed the same diets). Other studies have shown that greater stimulation not only affects the size of the brain but also increase the number of connections between the nerve cells. Thus, active play may provide necessary stimulation to the growth of synaptic connections in the brain, especially the cerebellum, which is responsible for motor functioning and movements.
Play also stimulates the development of the muscle tissues themselves and may provide the opportunities to practice those movements needed for survival. Prey species, like young deer or goats, for example, typically play by performing sudden flight movements and turns, whereas predator species, such as cats, practice stalking, pouncing, and biting.
Play allows a young animal to explore its environment and practice skill in comparative safety since the surrounding adults generally do not expect the young to deal with threats or predators. Play can also provide practice in social behaviors needed for courtship and mating. Learning appropriate social behaviors is especially important for species that live in groups, like young monkeys that needed to learn to control selfishness and aggression and to understand the give-and-take involved in social groups. They need to learn how to be dominant and submissive because each monkey might have to play either role in the future. Most of these things are learned in the long developmental periods that primates have, during which they engage in countless play experiences with their peers.
There is a danger, of course, that play may be misinterpreted or not recognized as play by others, potentially leading to aggression. This is especially true when play consists of practicing normal aggressive or predator behaviors. Thus, many species have evolved clear signals to delineate playfulness. Dogs, for example, will wag their tails, get down their front legs, and stick their behinds in the air to indicate "what follows is just for play."
Paragraph 1: Play is easier to define with examples than with concepts. In any case, in animals it consists of leaping, running, climbing, throwing, wrestling, and other movements, either along, with objects, or with other animals. Depending on the species, play may be primarily for social interaction, exercise, or exploration. One of the problems in providing a clear definition of play is that it involves the same behaviors that take place in other circumstance--dominance, predation, competition, and real fighting. Thus, whether play occurs or not depends on the intention of the animals, and the intentions are not always clear from behaviors alone.
1.According to paragraph 1, why is play difficult to define?
O Play must be defined with concepts, not examples.
O Play behavior often looks like nonplay behavior
O Play often occurs in the presence of animals that are not playing
O Play occurs independently of an animal’s intentions
Paragraph 2: Play appears to be a developmental characteristic of animals with fairly sophisticated nervous systems, mainly birds and mammals. Play has been studied most extensively in primates and canids (dogs). Exactly why animals play is still a matter debated in the research literature, and the reasons may not be the same for every species that plays. Determining the functions of play is difficult because the functions may be long-term, with beneficial effects not showing up until the animal's adulthood.
2.According to paragraph 2, which of the following presents a particular challenge to researchers who study play behavior in animals
O The delay between activities and the benefits the animal derives from them.
O The difficulty in determining which animal species play and which do not.
O The fact that for most animals, there is no clear transition from youth to full adulthood.
O The lack of research on the play behavior of animals other than canids and primates.
Paragraph 3: Play is not without considerable costs to the individual animal. Play is usually very active, involving movement in space and, at times, noisemaking. Therefore, it results in the loss of fuel or energy that might better be used for growth or for building up fat stores in a young animal. Another potential cost of this activity is greater exposure to predators since play is attention-getting behavior. Great activities also increase the risk of injury in slipping or falling.
3.The word “considerable” in the passage is closest in the meaning to
O Initial
O Practical
O Eventually
O Significant
4.According to paragraph 3, each of the following is a cost to animals that engage in play EXCEPT
O exposure to predators
O a buildup of fat stores
O a loss of fuel that could be used for growth
O risk of injury from slipping or falling
Paragraph 4: The benefits of play must outweigh costs, or play would not have evolved, according to Darwin' s theory. Some of the potential benefits relate directly to the healthy development of the brain and nervous system. In one research study, two groups of young rats were raised under different conditions. One group developed in an "enriched" environment, which allowed the rats to interact with other rats, play with toys, and receive maze training. The other group lived in an "impoverished" environment in individual cages in a dimly lit room with little stimulation. At the end of the experiments, the results showed that the actual weight of the brains of the impoverished rats was less than that of those raised in the enriched environment (though they were fed the same diets). Other studies have shown that greater stimulation not only affects the size of the brain but also increase the number of connections between the nerve cells. Thus, active play may provide necessary stimulation to the growth of synaptic connections in the brain, especially the cerebellum, which is responsible for motor functioning and movements.
5.Why does the author include the comment “though they were fed the same diets”?
O To show why rats living in impoverished environments need less food than those living in enriched environments
O To eliminate the possibility that differences in diet were responsibly for observed differences in brain weight
O To emphasize the point that rats were fed only the amount of food needed to keep them alive
O To suggest that rats fed the same diet have smaller brains than those fed a varied food
6.Paragraph 4 supports which of the following statements about an animal’s brain.
O The heavier the brain, the richer the environment in which the animal was raised.
O The younger the animal, the harder it is to develop new connections between nerve cells.
O The larger the animal, the harder it is to develop new connections between nerve cells.
O The larger the animal’s cerebellum, the larger will be the animal’s nerve cells.
Paragraph 5: Play also stimulates the development of the muscle tissues themselves and may provide the opportunities to practice those movements needed for survival. Prey species, like young deer or goats, for example, typically play by performing sudden flight movements and turns, whereas predator species, such as cats, practice stalking, pouncing, and biting.
7.According to paragraph 5, why might play behavior of prey species be different from those of predator species?
O Unlike predator species, prey species use play to prevent inappropriate social behaviors, such as biting.
O Some prey species are physically incapable of certain types of predator movements.
O The survival of each species type is linked to particular sets of muscular movements.
O Predator species have more opportunities to practice play behaviors than prey species.
Paragraph 6: Play allows a young animal to explore its environment and practice skill in comparative safety since the surrounding adults generally do not expect the young to deal with threats or predators. Play can also provide practice in social behaviors needed for courtship and mating. Learning appropriate social behaviors is especially important for species that live in groups, like young monkeys that needed to learn to control selfishness and aggression and to understand the give-and-take involved in social groups. They need to learn how to be dominant and submissive because each monkey might have to play either role in the future. Most of these things are learned in the long developmental periods that primates have, during which they engage in countless play experiences with their peers.
8.The word “comparative” in the passage is closest in meaning to
O relative
O temporary
O sufficient
O complete
9. Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information.
O Only monkeys that have learned to control their selfish and aggressive behaviors can be involved in social groups.
O Selfish and aggressive animals like monkeys live in groups in order to practice appropriate social behaviors.
O Monkeys and other social animals need to learn behaviors appropriate for their social groups.
O Some monkeys are naturally too selfish and aggressive to understand the give-and-take of social groups, so they learn such important behaviors while young.
10. What can be inferred from paragraph 6 about the role of adults in play activities of the young?
O Adults help their young learn to become dominant within the social group.
O Young animals learn how to play from the adults within their social group.
O Adults allow the young to engage in play behaviors within a protected, sage environment.
O The long developmental period of some animals allows adults more time to teach their young how to deal with the threats of predators.
Paragraph 7: There is a danger, of course, that play may be misinterpreted or not recognized as play by others, potentially leading to aggression. ■This is especially true when play consists of practicing normal aggressive or predator behaviors. ■Thus, many species have evolved clear signals to delineate playfulness. ■Dogs, for example, will wag their tails, get down their front legs, and stick their behinds in the air to indicate "what follows is just for play." ■
11. The word “potentially” in the passage is closest in meaning to
O undoubtedly
O possibly
O unfortunately
O quickly
12. According to paragraph 7, how do some animals ensure that other animals understand that they are just playing?
O By playing only with animals who are not predator
O By avoiding any aspects of the play behavior that are dangerous
O By practicing nonaggressive and non-predatory behaviors
O By using a set of signals that occurs only in play
13. Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence can be added to the passage.
With messages such as those, even dogs that are strangers to each other can be playing within a few minutes.
Where would the sentence best fit?
14.Directions: an introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary be selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.
Play appears to be a developmental characteristic of animals with fairly sophisticated nervous systems, mainly birds and mammals.
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Answer Choices
O Although play often resembles aggression, flight, or other purposeful activities, researchers do not degree on the reasons for and functions of play
O Although many animals develop physically from play, too many young animals become victims of their natural predators while playing.
O Animals such as rats, dogs, deer, goats and monkeys learn how to be both dominant and submissive during play activities so that they will fit in better with their adult social groups.
O The function of play is still debated in the research literature primarily because each animal species uses so few of the many available types of play behavior.
O Energy expenditure and security risks are some of the costs to animals of play behavior, but the costs are not so great that they outweigh the long-term benefits of play to the species.
O As experiments and observations have shown, animals that play at some stages of their development obtain neurological, muscular, or social benefits from the play behaviors.
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14. Although play often resembles …
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用例證來定義玩耍要比用概念簡單得多。在任何情況下，動物間的玩耍都包括跳躍，奔跑，攀登，投擲，格斗和另外的一些動作，而玩耍的對象可能有其它物品或者動物。根據(jù)物種的不同，玩耍的目的主要包括社交，鍛煉，或探索。定義“玩耍”的難點之一是，玩耍過程中常常包含一些與其它情況下相似的行為，例如統(tǒng)治，捕食，競爭和搏斗。因此，判斷其是否玩耍，要根據(jù)動物的目的來確認，而常常通過行為本身很難分析其目的。
玩耍似乎是那些有著相對復雜的神經(jīng)系統(tǒng)的動物，主要是鳥類和哺乳動物，的一個發(fā)育，發(fā)展的特征。玩耍的大量研究主要在靈長類和犬類中進行。動物到底為什么要玩耍仍然在文獻中存在爭議，并且每種物種玩耍的原因也不盡相同。確定玩耍的功能很難，因為它的功能是長期的，伴隨著一些直到動物成年才會顯現(xiàn)出來的有利影響。
玩耍對于動物個體并非沒有一定的代價。玩耍通常是非常活躍的，包括一些動作，有時也會發(fā)出聲音。所以，這些都會導致一些年幼的動物的本來可以用來生長或者儲存脂肪的能量流失。另一個潛在的代價是玩耍增加了動物暴漏給天敵的幾率，因為這些多動是吸引注意的行為。大量的運動也會增加摔倒滑倒導致受傷的危險。
根據(jù)達爾文理論，玩耍的好處一定超過其損失，不然玩耍就不會得以進化。其中一些潛在的好處就是直接關于動物的大腦和神經(jīng)系統(tǒng)的健康發(fā)展。在一項研究中，兩組小鼠被養(yǎng)在不同的環(huán)境中。第一組成長在一個比較“富裕”的環(huán)境中，這樣的環(huán)境使其可以與其他老鼠接觸，和玩具玩兒，并且接受迷宮訓練。另一組生活在“窮困”的環(huán)境中，它們被養(yǎng)在獨立籠子里，只有微弱的光照和極少的刺激。最后，結果表明生活在單一環(huán)境中的老鼠的大腦重量要比生活在復雜情況下的老鼠的大腦輕（即使它們被喂養(yǎng)的食物一樣的）。另外一些研究表明，較大的刺激不僅會影響大腦的大小，而且也會增加神經(jīng)細胞間連接的數(shù)量。因此，活躍的玩�？梢詾榇竽X中的突觸連接提供必要的刺激，特別是負責運動機能的小腦。
玩耍也會刺激肌肉組織的生長，并能提供練習生存技能的機會。被捕食者，比如小鹿或者山羊，其典型的玩耍動作就是突然快速跳躍和轉(zhuǎn)彎，相反捕食者，比如貓科動物，則練習潛行追蹤，猛撲和撕咬。
玩耍有助于幼年動物探索其生存環(huán)境，并且由于周圍的成年動物一般不期望孩子去處理威脅和捕食者，所以它們可以在相對安全的環(huán)境中練習技能。玩耍也可以練習求愛和交配的社交行為。學習適當?shù)纳缃恍袨樘貏e重要，尤其是對于群居動物，比如猴子，它們需要學會控制自己的自私和攻擊性，學著去懂得付出和收獲的關系以融入群體。它們要學習怎么去統(tǒng)治和順從因為每只猴子都會在將來扮演其中某個角色。大部分這類事情都在靈長類的長期的幼齡時期學習，期間它們有數(shù)不清的玩耍經(jīng)驗。
當然玩耍也有危險。玩�？赡軙粍e的動物誤會，或者不被當做玩耍而潛在地造成攻擊。這個情況尤其在扮演練習正常的侵略性或捕食行為過程中。因此，許多物種都有其明確的表明玩耍的信號。比如狗，它們用會搖尾巴，前腿趴下，撅著屁股來表示“以下行為都是逗你玩兒的！”
