自考英語二電子版教材上冊(cè)

自考英語二電子版教材上冊(cè)自考英語二電子版教材上冊(cè)自考英語二電子版教材上冊(cè)xxx公司自考英語二電子版教材上冊(cè)文件編號(hào)：文件日期：修訂次數(shù)：第1.0次更改批準(zhǔn)審核制定方案設(shè)計(jì)，管理制度大學(xué)英語自學(xué)教程(上)01-A.Howtobeasuccessfullanguagelearner?“Learningalanguageiseasy,evenachildcandoit!”Mostadultswhoarelearningasecondlanguagewoulddisagreewiththisstatement.Forthem,learningalanguageisaverydifficulttask.Theyneedhundredsofhoursofstudyandpractice,andeventhiswillnotguaranteesuccessforeveryadultlanguagelearner.Languagelearningisdifferentfromotherkindsoflearning.Somepeoplewhoareveryintelligentandsuccessfulintheirfieldsfinditdifficulttosucceedinlanguagelearning.Conversely,somepeoplewhoaresuccessfullanguagelearnersfinditdifficulttosucceedinotherfields.Languageteachersoftenofferadvicetolanguagelearners:“Readasmuchasyoucaninthenewlanguage.”“Practicespeakingthelanguageeveryday.”“Livewithpeoplewhospeakthelanguage.”“Don’ttranslate-trytothinkinthenewlanguage.”“Learnasachildwouldlearn;playwiththelanguage.”ButwhatdoesasuccessfullanguagelearnerdoLanguagelearningresearchshowsthatsuccessfullanguagelearnersaresimilarinmanyways.Firstofall,successfullanguagelearnersareindependentlearners.Theydonotdependonthebookortheteacher;theydiscovertheirownwaytolearnthelanguage.Insteadofwaitingfortheteachertoexplain,theytrytofindthepatternsandtherulesforthemselves.Theyaregoodguesserswholookforcluesandformtheirownconclusions.Whentheyguesswrong,theyguessagain.Theytrytolearnfromtheirmistakes.Successfullanguagelearningisactivelearning.Therefore,successfullearnersdonotwaitforachancetousethelanguage;theylookforsuchachance.Theyfindpeoplewhospeakthelanguageandtheyaskthesepeopletocorrectthemwhentheymakeamistake.Theywilltryanythingtocommunicate.Theyarenotafraidtorepeatwhattheyhearortosaystrangethings;theyarewillingtomakemistakesandtryagain.Whencommunicationisdifficult,theycanacceptinformationthatisinexactorincomplete.Itismoreimportantforthemtolearntothinkinthelanguagethantoknowthemeaningofeveryword.Finally,successfullanguagelearnersarelearnerswithapurpose.Theywanttolearnthelanguagebecausetheyareinterestedinthelanguageandthepeoplewhospeakit.Itisnecessaryforthemtolearnthelanguageinordertocommunicatewiththesepeopleandtolearnfromthem.Theyfinditeasytopracticeusingthelanguageregularlybecausetheywanttolearnwithit.WhatkindoflanguagelearnerareyouIfyouareasuccessfullanguagelearner,youhaveprobablybeenlearningindependently,actively,andpurposefully.Ontheotherhand,ifyourlanguagelearninghasbeenlessthansuccessful,youmightdowelltotrysomeofthetechniquesoutlinedabove.01-B.LanguageWhenwewanttotellotherpeoplewhatwethink,wecandoitnotonlywiththehelpofwords,butalsoinmanyotherways.Forinstance,wesometimesmoveourheadsupanddownwhenwewanttosay"yes”andwemoveourheadsfromsidetosidewhenwewanttosay"no."Peoplewhocanneitherhearnorspeak(thatis,deafanddumbpeople)talktoeachotherwiththehelpoftheirfingers.Peoplewhodonotunderstandeachother'slanguagehavetodothesame.Thefollowingstoryshowshowtheysometimesdoit.AnEnglishmanwhocouldnotspeakItalianwasoncetravelinginItaly.Onedayheenteredarestaurantandsatdownatatable.Whenthewaitercame,theEnglishmanopenedhismouth,puthisfingersinit,tookthemoutagainandmovedhislips.Inthiswayhemeanttosay,"Bringmesomethingtoeat."Thewaitersoonbroughthimacupoftea.TheEnglishmanshookhisheadandthewaiterunderstoodthathedidn'twanttea,sohetookitawayandbroughthimsomecoffee.TheEnglishman,whowasveryhungrybythistimeandnotatallthirsty,lookedverysad.Heshookhisheadeachtimethewaiterbroughthimsomethingtodrink.Thewaiterbroughthimwine,thenbeer,thensoda-water,butthatwasn’tfood,ofcourse.Hewasjustgoingtoleavetherestaurantwhenanothertravelercamein.Whenthismansawthewaiter,heputhishandsonhisstomach.Thatwasenough:inafewminutestherewasalargeplateofmacaroniandmeatonthetablebeforehim.Asyousee,theprimitivelanguageofsignsisnotalwaysveryclear.Thelanguageofwordsismuchmoreexact.Wordsconsistofsounds,buttherearemanysoundswhichhaveameaningandyetarenotwords.Forexample,wemaysay"Sh-sh-sh”whenwemean"keepsilent.”Whenbabieslaugh,weknowtheyarehappy,andwhentheycry,weknowtheyareillorsimplywantsomething.Itisthesamewithanimals.Whenadogsays“G-r-r”oracatsays"F-f-f”weknowtheyareangry.Butthesesoundsarenotlanguage.Languageconsistsofwordswhichweputtogetherintosentences.Butanimalscannotdothis:adogcansay“G-r-r”whenhemeans"Iamangry,”buthecannotsayfirst"I”andthen"am”andthen"angry.”Aparrotcantalklikeaman;itcanrepeatwholesentencesandknowswhattheymean.Wemaysaythataparrottalks,butcannotsaythatitreallyspeaks,becauseitcannotformnewsentencesoutofthewordsitknows.Onlymanhasthepowertodothis.02-A.Taxes,Taxes,andMoreTaxesAmericansoftensaythatthereareonlytwothingsapersoncanbesureofinlife:deathandtaxes,Americansdonothaveacorneronthe"death"market,butmanypeoplefeelthattheUnitedStatesleadstheworldwiththeworsttaxes.Taxesconsistofthemoneywhichpeoplepaytosupporttheirgovernment.TherearegenerallythreelevelsofgovernmentintheUnitedStates:federal,state,andcity;therefore,therearethreetypesoftaxes.Salariedpeoplewhoearnmorethanafewthousanddollarsmustpayacertainpercentageoftheirsalariestothefederalgovernment.Thepercentagevariesfrompersontoperson.Itdependsontheirsalaries.Thefederalgovernmenthasagraduatedincometax,thatis,thepercentageofthetax(14to70percent)increasesasaperson'sincomeincreases.Withthehighcostoftaxes,peoplearenotveryhappyonApril15,whenthefederaltaxesaredue.Thesecondtaxisforthestategovernment:NewYork,California,NorthDakota,oranyoftheotherforty-sevenstates.Somestateshaveanincometaxsimilartothatofthefederalgovernment.Ofcourse,thepercentageforthestatetaxislower.Otherstateshaveasalestax,whichisapercentagechargedtoanyitemwhichyoubuyinthatstate.Forexample,apersonmightwanttobuyapacketofcigarettesfortwenty-fivecents.Ifthereisasalestaxofeightpercentinthatstate,thenthecostofthecigarettesistwenty-sevencents.Thisfigureincludesthesalestax.Somestatesuseincometaxinadditiontosalestaxtoraisetheirrevenues.Thestatetaxlawsarediverseandconfusing.Thethirdtaxisforthecity.Thistaxcomesintwoforms:propertytax(peoplewhoownahomehavetopaytaxesonit)andexcisetax,whichischargedoncarsinacity.Thecitiesusethesefundsforeducation,policeandfiredepartments,publicworksandmunicipalbuildings.SinceAmericanspaysuchhightaxes,theyoftenfeelthattheyareworkingonedayeachweekjusttopaytheirtaxes.Peoplealwayscomplainabouttaxes.Theyoftenprotestthatthegovernmentusestheirtaxdollarsinthewrongway.Theysaythatitspendstoomuchonuselessandimpracticalprograms.AlthoughAmericanshavedifferentviewsonmanyissues,theytendtoagreeononesubject:taxesaretoohigh.02-B.AdvertisingAdvertisingisonlypartofthetotalsaleseffort,butitisthepartthatattractsthemostattention.Thisisnaturalenoughbecauseadvertisingisdesignedforjustthatpurpose.Innewspapers,inmagazines,inthemail,onradioandtelevision,weconstantlyseeandhearthemessagesforhundredsofdifferentproductsandservices.Forthemostpart,theyarethekindsofthingsthatwecanbepersuadedtobuy–foodanddrinks,carsandtelevisionsets,furnitureandclothing,travelandleisuretimeactivities.Thesimplestkindofadvertisingistheclassifiedad.Everydaythenewspaperscarryafewpagesoftheseads;inthelargeSundayeditionstheremaybeseveralsectionsofthem.Aclassifiedadisusuallyonlyafewlineslong.Itisreallyanoticeorannouncementthatsomethingisavailable.Newspapersalsocarryalargeamountofdisplayadvertising.Mostofitisforstoresorforvariousformsofentertainment.Newspapersgenerallyreachanaudienceonlyinalimitedarea.Tobringtheirmessagetoalargeraudience,manywhowanttoputouttheiradsusenationalmagazines.Manyofthetechniquesofmodernadvertisingweredevelopedinmagazineads.Theuseofbrightcolors,attractivepictures,andshortmessagesisallcharacteristicofmagazineads.Themostimportantpurposeistocatchtheeye.Themessageitselfisusuallyshort,oftennomorethanasloganwhichthepublicidentifieswiththeproduct.Thesametechniqueshavebeencarriedoverintotelevisionadvertising.Voicesandmusichavebeenaddedtocolorandpicturestocatchtheearaswellastheeye.Televisionadsareshort–usuallyonly15,30,or60seconds,buttheyarerepeatedoverandoveragainsothattheaudienceseesandhearsthemmanytimes.Commercialtelevisionhasmixedentertainmentandadvertising.Ifyouwanttheentertainment,youhavetoputupwiththeadvertising-andmillionsofpeoplewanttheentertainment.Themenandwomeninthesalesdepartmentareresponsibleforthecompany’sadvertising,Theymustdecideontheaudiencetheywanttoreach.Theymustalsodecideonthebestwaytogettheirmessagetotheirparticularaudience.Theyalsomakeanestimateofthecostsbeforemanagementapprovestheplan.Inmostlargecompaniesmanagementisdirectlyinvolvedinplanningtheadvertising.03-A.TheAtlanticOceanTheAtlanticOceanisoneoftheoceansthatseparatetheOldWorldfromtheNew.ForcenturiesitkepttheAmericasfrombeingdiscoveredbythepeopleofEurope.ManywrongideasabouttheAtlanticmadeearlysailorsunwillingtosailfaroutintoit.Oneideawasthatitreachedoutto"theedgeoftheworld."Sailorswereafraidthattheymightsailrightofftheearth.Anotherideawasthatattheequatortheoceanwouldbeboilinghot.TheAtlanticOceanisonlyhalfasbigasthePacific,butitisstillverylarge.Itismorethan4,000miles(6,000km)widewhereColumbuscrossedit.Evenatitsnarrowestitisabout2,000miles(3,200km)wide.ThisnarrowestplaceisbetweenthebulgeofsouthAmericaandthebulgeofAfricaTwothingsmaketheAtlanticOceanratherunusual.Forsolargeanoceanithasveryfewislands.Also,itistheworld'ssaltiestocean.ThereissomuchwaterintheAtlanticthatitishardtoimaginehowmuchthereis.Butsupposenomorerainfellintoitandnomorewaterwasbroughttoitbyrivers.Itwouldtaketheoceanabout4,000yearstodryup.Ontheaveragethewaterisalittlemorethantwomiles(3.2km)deep,butinplacesitismuchdeeper.ThedeepestspotisnearPuertoRico.This"deep" 30,246feet-almostsixmiles(9.6km).OneofthelongestmountainrangesoftheworldrisestheflooroftheAtlantic.Thismountainrangerunsnorthandsouthdownthemiddleoftheocean.Thetopsofafewofthemountainsreachupabovetheseaandmakeislands.TheAzoresarethetopsofpeaksinthemid-Atlanticmountainrange.SeveralhundredmileseastwardfromFloridathereisapartoftheoceancalledtheSargassoSea.Herethewaterisquiet,forthereislittlewind.Inthedaysofsailingvesselsthecrewwereafraidtheywouldbebecalmedhere.Sometimestheywere.Oceancurrentsaresometimecalled"riversinthesea."Oneofthese"river"intheAtlanticiscalledtheGulfStream.Itisacurrentofwarmwater.AnotheristheLabradorCurrent-coldwatercomingdownfromtheArctic.Oceancurrentsaffecttheclimatesofthelandsnearwhichtheyflow.TheAtlanticfurnishesmuchfoodforthepeopleonitsshores.Oneofitsmostfamousfishingregions,theGrandBanks,isnearNewfoundland.TodaytheAtlanticWenowhavesuchfastwaysoftravelingthatthisbigoceanseemstohavegrownsmaller.Columbussailedformorethantwomonthstocrossit.Afastmodernsteamshipcanmakethetripinlessthanfourdays.AirplanesflyfromNewYorktoLondoninonlyeighthoursandfromSouthAmericatoAfricainfour!03-B.TheMoonWefindthatthemoonisabout239,000miles(384,551km)awayfromtheearth,and,towithinafewthousandmiles,itsdistancealwaysremainsthesame.Yetaverylittleobservationshowsthatthemoonisnotstandingstill.Itsdistancefromtheearthremainsthesame,butitsdirectioncontinuallychanges.Wefindthatitistravelinginacircle-orverynearlyacircle-roundtheearth,goingcompletelyroundonceamonth,or,moreexactly,onceevery271/3days.Itisournearestneighbourinspace,andlikeourselvesitiskepttiedtotheearthbytheearth'sgravitationalpull.Exceptforthesun,themoonlooksthebiggestobjectinthesky.Actuallyitisoneofthesmallest,andonlylooksbigbecauseitissoneartous.Itsdiameterisonly2,160miles(3,389km),oralittlemorethanaquarterofthediameteroftheearth.Onceamonth,or,moreexactly,onceevery291/2days,atthetimewecall"fullmoon,"itswholedisclooksbright.Atothertimesonlypartofitappearsbright,andwealwaysfindthatthisisthepartwhichfacestowardsthesun,whilethepartfacingawayfromthesunappearsdark.Artistscouldmaketheirpicturesbetteriftheykeptinmind--onlythosepartsofthemoonwhicharelightedupbythesunarebright.Thisshowsthatthemoongivesnolightofitsown.Itmerelyreflectsthelightofthesun,likeahugemirrorhunginthesky.Yetthedarkpartofthemoon’ssurfaceisnotabsolutelyblack;generallyitisjustlightenoughforustobeabletoseeitsoutline,sothatwespeakofseeing"theoldmooninthenewmoon'sarms."Thelightbywhichweseetheoldmoondoesnotcomefromthesun,butfromtheearth.weknowswellhowthesurfaceoftheseaorofsnow,orevenofawetroad,mayreflectuncomfortablymuchofthesun'slightontoourfaces.Inthesamewaythesurfaceofthewholeearthreflectsenoughofthesun'slightontothefaceofthemoonforustobeabletoseethepartsofitwhichwouldotherwisebedark.Iftherewereanyinhabitantsofthemoon,theywouldseeourearthreflectingthelightofthesun,againlikeahugemirrorhunginthesky.Theywouldspeakofearthlightjustaswespeakofmoonlight."Theoldmooninthenewmoon'sarms"isnothingbutthatpartofthemoon'ssurfaceonwhichitisnight,lightedupbyearthlight.Inthesameway,thelunarinhabitantswouldoccasionallyseepartofourearthinfullsunlight,andtherestlightedonlybymoonlight;theymightcallthis"theoldearthinthenewearth'sarms.”04-A.ImprovingYourMemoryPsychologicalresearchhasfocusedonanumberofbasicprinciplesthathelpmemory:meaningfulness,organization,association,andvisualization.Itisusefultoknowhowtheseprincipleswork.Meaningfulnessaffectsmemoryatalllevels.Informationthatdoesnotmakeanysensetoyouisdifficulttoremember.Thereareseveralwaysinwhichwecanmakematerialmoremeaningful.Manypeople,forinstance,learnarhymetohelpthemremember.Doyouknowtherhyme“ThirtydayshasSeptember,April,June,andNovember…”Ithelpsmanypeoplerememberwhichmonthsoftheyearhave30days.Organizationalsomakesadifferenceinourabilitytoremember.HowusefulwouldalibrarybeifthebookswerekeptinrandomorderMaterialthatisorganizedisbetterrememberedthanjumbledinformation.Oneexampleoforganizationischunking.Chunkingconsistsofgroupingseparatebitsofinformation.Forexample,thenumber4671363ismoreeasilyrememberedifitischunkedas467,13,63.Categorizingisanothermeansoforganization.Supposeyouareaskedtorememberthefollowinglistofwords:man,bench,dog,desk,woman,horse,child,cat,chair.Manypeoplewillgroupthewordsintosimilarcategoriesandrememberthemasfollows:man,woman,child;cat,dog,horse;bench,chair,desk.Needlesstosay,thesecondlistcanberememberedmoreeasilythanthefirstone.Associationreferstotakingthematerialwewanttorememberandrelatingittosomethingwerememberaccurately.Inmemorizinganumber,youmighttrytoassociateitwithfamiliarnumbersorevents.Forexample,theheightofMountFujiinJapan-12,389feet-mightberememberedusingthefollowingassociations:12isthenumberofmonthsintheyear,and389isthenumberofdaysinayear(365)addedtothenumberofmonthstwice(24).Thelastprincipleisvisualization.Researchhasshownstrikingimprovementsinmanytypesofmemorytaskswhenpeopleareaskedtovisualizetheitemstoberemembered.Inonestudy,subjectsinonegroupwereaskedtolearnsomewordsusingimagery,whilethesecondgroupusedrepetitiontolearnthewords.Thoseusingimageryremembered80to90percentofthewords,comparedwith30to40percentofthewordsforthosewhomemorizedbyrepetition.Thusforminganintegratedimagewithalltheinformationplacedinasinglementalpicturecanhelpustopreserveamemory.04-B.Short-termMemoryTherearetwokindsofmemory:shore-termandlong-term.Informationinlong-termmemorycanberecalledatalatertimewhenitisneeded.Theinformationmaybekeptfordaysorweeks.Sometimesinformationinthelong-termmemoryishardtoremember.Studentstakingexamoftenhavethisexperience.Incontrast,informationinshore-termmemoryiskeptforonlyafewseconds,usuallybyrepeatingtheinformationoverandover.Forexample,youlookupanumberinthetelephonebook,andbeforeyoudial,yourepeatthenumberoverandover.Ifsomeoneinterruptsyou,youwillprobablyforgetthenumber.Inlaboratorystudies,subjectsareunabletorememberthreelettersaftereighteensecondsiftheyarenotallowedtorepeattheletterstothemselves.Psychologistsstudymemoryandlearningwithbothanimalandhumansubjects.Thetwoexperimentshereshowhowshort-termmemoryhasbeenstudied.Dr.Hunterstudiedshort-termmemoryinrats.Heusedaspecialapparatuswhichhadacagefortheratandthreedoors,Therewasalightineachdoor.Firsttheratwasplacedintheclosedcage.Next,oneofthelightswasturnedonandthenoff.Therewasfoodfortheratonlyatthisdoor.Afterthelightwasturnedoff,therathadtowaitashorttimebeforeitwasreleasedfromitscage.Then,ifitwenttothecorrectdoor,itwasrewardedwiththefoodthatwasthere.Hunterdidthisexperimentmanytimes.Healwaysturnedonthelightsinarandomorder.Therathadtowaitdifferentintervalsbeforeitwasreleasefromthecage.Hunterfoundthatiftherathadtowaitmorethantenseconds,itcouldnotrememberthecorrectdoor.Hunter'sresultsshowthatratshaveashort-termmemoryofabouttenseconds.Later,Dr.HenningstudiedhowstudentswhoarelearningEnglishasasecondlanguageremembervocabulary.Thesubjectsinhisexperimentwere75studentsattheUniversityofCaliforniainLosAngeles.TheyrepresentedalllevelsofabilityinEnglish;beginning,intermediate,advanced,andnative-speakingstudents.Tobegin,thesubjectslistenedtoarecordingofanativespeakerreadingaparagraphinEnglish.Followingtherecording,thesubjectstooka15-questiontesttoseewhichwordstheyremembered.Eachquestionhadfourchoices.Thesubjectshadtocirclethewordtheyhadheardintherecording.Someofthequestionshadfourchoicesthatsoundalike.Forexample,weather,whether,wither,andwetterarefourwordsthatsoundalike.Someofthequestionshadfourchoicesthathavethesamemeaning.Method,way,manner,andsystemwouldbefourwordswiththesamemeaning.Someofthemhadfourunrelatedchoices.Forinstance,weather,method,love,andresultcouldbeusedasfourunrelatedwords.Finallythesubjectstookalanguageproficiencytest.HenningfoundthatstudentswithalowerproficiencyinEnglishmademoreoftheirmistakesonwordsthatsoundalike;studentswithahigherproficiencymademoreoftheirmistakesonwordsthathavethesamemeaning.Henning’sresultssuggestthatbeginningstudentsholdthesoundofwordsintheirshort-termmemory,whileadvancedstudentsholdthemeaningofwordsintheirshort-termmemory.05-A.FallaciesaboutFoodManyprimitivepeoplesbelievedthatbyeatingananimaltheycouldgetsomeofthegoodqualitiesofthatanimalforthemselves.Theythought,forexample,thateatingdeerwouldmakethemrunasfastasthedeer.Somesavagetribesbelievedthateatingenemiesthathadshownbraveryinbattlewouldmakethembrave.Man-eatingmayhavestartedbecausepeoplewereeagertobecomeasstrongandbraveastheirenemies.Amongcivilizedpeopleitwasoncethoughtthatgingerrootbysomemagicalpowercouldimprovethememory.Eggswerethoughttomakethevoicepretty.Tomatoesalsowerebelievedtohavemagicalpowers.Theywerecalledloveapplesandweresupposedtomakepeoplewhoatethemfallinlove.Lateranotherwrongideaabouttomatoesgrewup-theideathattheywerepoisonous.HowsurprisedthepeoplewhothoughttomatoespoisonouswouldbeiftheycouldknowthatmillionsofpoundsoftomatoesweresuppliedtosoldiersoverseasduringWorldWarII.Eventodaythereareagreatmanywrongideasaboutfood.Someofthemareverywidespread.Onesuchideaisthatfishisthebestbrainfood.Fishisgoodbrainfoodjustasitisgoodmusclefoodandskinfoodandbonefood.Butnoonehasbeenabletoprovethatfishisanybetterforthebrainthanmanyotherkindsoffood.Anothersuchideaisthatyoushouldnotdrinkwaterwithmeals.Washingfooddownwithwaterasasubstituteforchewingisnotagoodidea,butsomewaterwithmealshasbeenfoundtobehelpful.Itmakesthedigestivejuicesflowmorefreelyandhelpstodigestthefood.Manyoftheideaswhichscientiststellushavenofoundationhavetodowithmixturesoffoods.Afewyearsagothebeliefbecamegeneralthatorangejuiceandmilkshouldneverbedrunkatthesamemeal.Thereasongivenwasthattheacidintheorangejuicewouldmakethemilkcurdleandbecomeindigestible.Asamatteroffact,milkalwaysmeetsinthestomachadigestivejuicewhichcurdlesit;thecurdlingofthemilkisthefirststepinitsdigestion.Asimilarwrongideaisthatfishandicecreamwheneatenatthesamemealformapoisonouscombination.Stillanotherwrongideaaboutmixingfoodsisthatproteinsandcarbohydratesshouldneverbeeatenatthesamemeal.Manypeoplethinkofbread,forexample,asacarbohydratefood.Itischieflyacarbohydratefood,butitalsocontainsproteins.Inthesameway,milk,probablythebestsinglefood,containsbothproteinsandcarbohydrates.Itisjustasfoolishtosaythatoneshouldnevereatmeatandpotatoestogetherasitistosaythatoneshouldnevereatbreadordrinkmilk.05-B.DoAnimalsThink?Thequestionhasoftenbeenasked,DoanimalsthinkIbelievethatsomeofthemthinkagreatdeal.Manyofthemarelikechildrenintheirsports.Wenoticethistobetrueveryoftenwithdogsandcats;butitistruewithotheranimalsaswell.Somebirdsareverylivelyintheirsports;andthesameistruewithsomeinsects.Theants,hardworkingastheyare,havetheirtimesforplay.Theyrunraces;theywrestle;andsometimestheyhavemockfightstogether.Verybusymustbetheirthoughtswhileengagedinthesesports.Therearemanyanimals,however,thatneverplay;theirthoughtsseemtobeofthemoresoberkind.Weneverseefrogsengagedinsport.Theyallthetimeappeartobeverygrave.Thesameistrueoftheowl,whoalwayslooksasifhewereconsideringsomeimportantquestion.Animalsthinkmuchwhilebuildingtheirhouses.Thebirdsearchesforwhatitcanuseinbuildingitsnest,andindoingthisitthinks.Thebeaversthinkastheybuildtheirdamsandtheirhouses.Theythinkingettingtheirmaterials,andalsoinarrangingthem,andinplasteringthemtogetherwithmud.Somespidersbuildhouseswhichcouldscarcelyhavebeenmadeexceptbysomethinkingcreature.Asanimalsthink,theylearn.Somelearnmorethanothers.Theparrotlearnstotalk,thoughinsomeotherrespectsitisquitestupid.Themockingbirdlearnstoimitateagreatmanydifferentsounds.Thehorseisnotlonginlearningmanythingsconnectedwiththeworkwhichhehastodo.Theshepherddogdoesnotknowasmuchaboutmostthingsassomeotherdogs,andyetheunderstandsverywellhowtotakecareofsheep.Thoughanimalsthinkandlearn,theydonotmakeanyrealimprovementintheirwaysofdoingthings,asmendo.Eachkindofbirdhasitsownwayofbuildinganest,anditisalwaysthesameway.Andsoofotheranimals.Theyhavenonewfashions,andlearnnonefromeachother.Butmen,asyouknow,arealwaysfindingnewwaysofbuildinghouses,andimprovedmethodsofdoingalmostallkindsoflabor.Manyofthethingsthatanimalsknowhowtodotheyseemtoknoweitherwithoutlearning,orinsomewaywhichwecannotunderstand.Theyaresaidtodosuchthingsbyinstinct;butnoonecantellwhatinstinctis.Itisbythisinstinctthatbirdsbuildtheirnestsandbeaverstheirdamandhuts.Ifthesethingswereallplannedandthoughtoutjustasmenplannewhouses.therewouldbesomechangesinthefashionsofthem,andsomeimprovements.Ihavespokenofthebuildinginstinctofbeavers.AnEnglishgentlemancaughtayoungoneandputhimatfirstinacage.Afterawhilehelethimoutinaroomwheretherewasagreatvarietyofthings.Assoonashewasletouthebegantoexercisehisbuildinginstinct.Hegatheredtogetherwhateverhecouldfind,brushes,baskets,boots,clothes,sticks,bitsofcoal,etc.,andarrangedthemasiftobuildadam.Now,ifhehadhadhiswitsabouthim,hewouldhaveknownthattherewasnouseinbuildingadamwheretherewasnowater.Itisplainthat,whileanimalslearnaboutthingsbytheirsensesaswedo,theydonotthinknearlyasmuchaboutwhattheylearn,andthisisthereasonwhytheydonotimprovemorerapidly.Eventhewisestofthem,astheelephantandthedog,donotthink