大學(xué)英語(yǔ)六級(jí)考試2023年 3 月真題（共3套）

大學(xué)英語(yǔ)六級(jí)考試2023年3月真題（第一套）

PartIWriting(30minutes)

Directions:Forthispart,youareallowed30minutestowriteanessaythatbeginswiththesentencePeople

arenowincreasinglyawareofthedangerof'appearanceanxiety'orbeingobsessedwithoneslooks.,rYoucan

makecomments,citeexamplesoruseyourpersonalexperiencestodevelopyouressay.Youshouldwriteatleast

150wordsbutnomorethan200words.

PartIIListeningComprehension(30minutes)

SectionA

Directions:Inthissection,youwillheartwolongconversations.Attheendofeachconversation,youwillhear

fourquestions.Boththeconversationandthequestionswillbespokenonlyonce.Afteryouhearaquestion,you

mustchoosethebestanswerfromthefourchoicesmarkedA),B),C)andD).Thenmarkthecorrespondingletter

onAnswerSheet1withasinglelinethroughthecentre.

Questions1to4arebasedontheconversationyouhavejustheard.

1.A)Inafoodstore.C)Inakitchen.

B)Inarestaurant.D)Inasupermarket.

2.A)Sheeatsmeatoccasionally.C)Sheisapartialvegetarian.

B)Sheenjoyscheeseburgers.D)Sheisallergictoseafood.

3.A)Changingone'seatinghabit.C)Followingthesamedietforyears.

B)Dealingwithone'scolleagues.D)Keepingawakeatmorningmeetings.

4.A)Theyarebothanimallovers.C)Theyonlyeatorganicfood.

B)Theyenjoyperfecthealth.D)Theyarecuttingbackoncoffee.

Questions5to8arebasedontheconversationyouhavejustheard.

5.A)Themanhadanattitudeproblem.C)Themanpaidattentiontotrivialthings.

B)Themanmadelittlecontributiontothecompany.D)Themangotapoorevaluationfromhiscolleagues.

6.A)Theyrejectemployees'reasonableargumentsforworkefficiency.

B)Theymakeunhelpfuldecisionsfbrsolvingproblems.

C)Theyfavorsomeemployees?suggestionsoverothers\

D)Theyusemanipulativelanguagetomasktheirirrationalchoices.

7.A)Itisagoodqualityintheworkplace.C)Itisamustfbrrationaljudgment.

B)Itismoreimportantnowthanever.D)Itismoreofasinthanavirtue.

8.A)Makingrationalandproductivedecisions.C)Preservingtheirpowerandprestige.

B)Focusingonemployees'careergrowth.D)Smoothingrelationshipsintheworkplace.

SectionB

Directions:Inthissection,youwillheartwopassages.Attheendofeachpassage,youwillhearthreeorfour

questions.Boththepassageandthequestionswillbespokenonlyonce.Afteryouhearaquestion,youmust

編者注：2023年3月六級(jí)考試共考了一套聽(tīng)力、一套閱讀、三篇寫作和三篇翻譯，請(qǐng)讀者知悉,

1?2023年3月六級(jí)真題（第一套）?

choosethebestanswerfromtheJourchoicesmarkedA),B),C)andD).Thenmarkthecorrespondingletteron

AnswerSheet1withasinglelinethroughthecentre.

Questions9to11arebasedonthepassageyouhavejustheard.

9.A)Theybringgreathonortotheircountry.C)Theyaccomplishfeatsmanyofuscannot.

B)Theycreateveryhighcommercialvalue.D)Theyshowgeniuswhichdefiesdescription.

10.A)Theytrytobepositiverolemodelstochildren.C)Theytakepartinkids'extra-curricularactivities.

B)Theyworkinsparetimetoteachchildrensports.D)Theyserveasspokespersonsforluxurygoods.

11.A)Beingsupersportsstarswithoutappearingarrogant.

B)Keepingathletesawayfromdrugoralcoholproblems.

C)Preventingcertainathletesfromgettingintroublewiththelaw.

D)Separatinganathlete'sprofessionallifefromtheirpersonallife.

Questions12to15arebasedonthepassageyouhavejustheard.

12.A)Theyaredreamscomingtruetothebrides.C)Theyarejoyousandexcitingoccasions.

B)Theyshouldbepaidupbytheattendees.D)Theyalwayscostmorethanexpected.

13.A)Itwascancelled.C)Itcost$60,000.

B)Ithadeightguestsonly.D)ItwasheldinLasVegas.

14.A)Askherfriendsfbrhelp.C)Keeptoherbudget.

B)Postponeherwedding.D)Invitemoreguests.

15.A)Shecalleditromantic.C)Shesaidshewouldthinkaboutit.

B)Sherejecteditflatly.D)Shewelcomeditwithopenarms.

SectionC

Directions:Inthissection,youwillhearthreerecordingsoflecturesortalksfollowedbythreeorfourquestions.

Therecordingswillbeplayedonlyonce.Afteryouhearaquestion,youmustchoosethebestanswerfromthe

fourchoicesmarkedA),B),C)andD).ThenmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet1withasingleline

throughthecentre.

Questions16to18arebasedontherecordingyouhavejustheard.

16.A)Itdeterminespeople'smoods.C)Itcaninfluencepeople'spersonalities.

B)Itcanimpactpeople'swellbeing.D)Itiscloselyrelatedtopeople'semotions.

17.A)Theymakepeoplemorereproductive.C)Theyincreasepeople'slifeexpectancy.

B)Theytendtoproducepositivefeelings.D)Theymayalterpeople'sgenesgradually.

18.A)TheAmericansareapparentlymoreoutgoingthantheChinese.

B)Peopleinthesamegeographicalareamaydifferinpersonality.

C)Peoplesharemanypersonalitytraitsdespitetheirnationalities.

D)Thelinkbetweentemperatureandpersonalityisfairlyweak.

Questions19to21arebasedontherecordingyouhavejustheard.

19.A)AgrowingnumberofUSseniorsfacetheriskofearlymortality.

B)Correlationshavebeenfoundbetweenlonelinessandillhealth.

C)Chroniclonelinessdoesharmtoseniorcitizensinparticular.

D)ThenumberofolderAmericanslivingaloneisontherise.

?2023年3月六級(jí)真題（第一套）?2

20.A)Lonelinessisprobablyreversible.C)Lonelinessrarelyresultsfromlivingalone.

B)Beingbusyhelpsfightloneliness.D)Medicationisavailablefbrtreatingloneliness.

21.A)Livingwithone'schildren.C)Meetingsocialexpectations.

B)Meaningfulsocialcontact.D)Timelymedicalintervention.

Questions22to25arebasedontherecordingyouhavejustheard.

22.A)Shehadasuccessfulcareerinfinance.C)Sheinvestedinseveralprivatecompanies.

B)Shewrotestoriesaboutwomentravelers.D)ShemaderegulartripstoAsiancountries.

23.A)Travelroundtheworld.C)Buyaranch.

B)Setupatravelagency.D)Startablog.

24.A)Createsomethinguniquetoentertheindustry.C)Trytofindafill1-tiinejobinthetravelbusiness.

B)Gainsupportfromtraveladvertisingcompanies.D)Workhardtoattractattentionfrompublishers.

25.A)Refrainingfrompromotingsimilarproducts.C)Creatinganexoticcorporateculture.

B)Avoidingtoomuchadvertisingearlyon.D)Attractingsufficientinvestment.

PartIIIReadingComprehension(40minutes)

SectionA

Directions:Inthissection,thereisapassagewithtenblanks.Youarerequiredtoselectonewordforeachblank

fromalistofchoicesgiveninawordbankfollowingthepassage.Readthepassagethroughcarefullybefore

makingyourchoices.Eachchoiceinthebankisidentifiedbyaletter.Pleasemarkthecorrespondingletterfar

eachitemonAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecentre.Youmaynotuseanyofthewordsinthehank

morethanonce.

Unthinkableasitmaybe,humanity,everylastperson,couldsomedaybewipedfromthefaceoftheEarth.

Wehavelearnedtoworryaboutasteroids(小行星)andsupervolcanoes,butthemorelikely26.according

toNickBostrom,aprofessorofphilosophyatOxford,isthatwehumanswilldestroyourselves.

ProfessorBostrom,whodirectsOxford^FutureofHumanityInstitute,hasarguedoverthecourseofseveral

papersthathuman27risksarepoorlyunderstoodand,worsestill,28underestimatedbysociety.Some

oftheseexistentialrisksarefairlywellknown,especiallythenaturalones.Butothersare29orevenexotic.

MostworryingtoBostromisthesubsetofexistentialrisksthat30fromhumantechnology,asubsetthathe

expectstogrowinnumberandpotencyoverthenextcentury.

Despitehisconcernsabouttherisks31tohumansbytechnologicalprogress,Bostromisnoluddite(科

技進(jìn)步反對(duì)者).Infact,heisalongtime32oftrans-humanism——theefYbrttoimprovethehumancondition,

andevenhumannatureitself,throughtechnologicalmeans.Inthelongrunheseestechnologyasabridge,a

bridgewehumansmustcrosswithgreatcare,inordertoreachnewandbettermodesofbeing.Inhiswork,

Bostromusesthetoolsofphilosophyandmathematics,in33.probabilitytheory,totryanddeterminehow

weasa34mightachievethissafepassage.WhatfollowsismyconversationwithBostromaboutsomeofthe

mostinterestingandworryingexistentialrisksthathumanitymight35inthedecadesandcenturiestocome,

andaboutwhatwecandotomakesureweoutlastthem.

3?2023年3月六級(jí)真題（第一套）?

A)advocateI)particular

B)ariseJ)posed

C)emphasizedK)scenario

D)encounterL)severely

E)essentialM)shrewdly

F)evaporationN)species

G)extinctionO)variety

H)obscure

SectionB

Directions:Inthissection,youaregoingtoreadapassagewithtenstatementsattachedtoit.Eachstatement

containsinformationgiveninoneoftheparagraphs.Identifytheparagraphfromwhichtheinformationis

derived.Youmaychooseaparagraphmorethanonce.Eachparagraphismarkedwithaletter.Answerthe

questionsbymarkingthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2.

SanFranciscoHasBecomeOneHugeMetaphorforEconomicInequalityinAmerica

A)Thefbgstillchillsthemorningairandthecablecarsstillclimbhalfwaytothestars.Yetontheground,the

BayareahaschangedgreatlysincesingerTonyBennetlefthishearthere.SiliconValleyandthetechindustry

haveledtheregionintoaperiodofunprecedentedwealthandinnovation.Butexistingpoliticalandland

limitshavecausedanalarminghousingcrisisandastronomicalriseinsocialandeconomicdifference.

B)Whiletheresidentsofmostcitiesdisplayprideandsupportfortheirhomeindustries,drasticmarket

distortionsintheSanFranciscoBayAreahavecreatedboilingresentmentintheregiontowardsthetech

industry.Avocalminorityisevencallingonofficialstopunishthosewhoarebenefittingfromtheeconomic

andhousingboom.Ifthisboomanditsconsequencesarenotresolved,adrasticincreaseinsocialand

economicdifferencemayhaveaprofoundimpactontheregionforgenerations.Ahistoryandanalysisofthis

transformationmayholdinvaluableinsightsabouttheopportunities.Perilsoftechcitiesarecurrentlybeing

cultivatedacrosstheUS,andindeedaroundtheworld.

C)Accordingtoarecentstudy,SanFranciscoranksfirstinCaliforniafbreconomicdifference.Theaverage

incomeofthetop1%ofhouseholdsinthecityaverages$3.6million.Thisis44timestheaverageincome

ofthoseatthebottom,whichstandsat$81,094.Thetop1%oftheSanFranciscopeninsula'sshareoftotal

incomenowextendsto30.8%oftheregion'sincome.Thiswasadramaticjumpfrom1989,whereitstoodat

15.8%.

D)Theregion'seconomyhasbeenfundamentallytransformedbythetechnologyindustryspringingfromSilicon

Valley.PoliciespushedbyMayorEdLeeprovidedtaxbreaksfbrtechcompaniestosetupshopalongthe

city'slong-neglectedMid-Marketarea.ThecityisnowhometoTwitter,Uber,Airbnb,Pinterest,Dropbox

andothers.Inshort,theBayAreahasbecomeaglobalmagnetfbrthosewithspecializedskills,whichhas

inturnhelpedfueleconomicenthusiasm,andthiseconomicgrowthhasreducedunemploymentto3.4%,an

admirablefeat.

E)Inspiteofallthat,thestrengthoftherecentjobgrowth,combinedwithpoliciesthathavetraditionallylimited

housingdevelopmentinthecityandthroughoutthepeninsula,didnothelpeasetheaffordabilitycrisis.In

2015alone,theBayAreaadded64,000injobs.Inthesameyear,only5,000newhomeswerebuilt.

F)Withtheaveragehouseinthecitycostingover$1.25millionandaverageflatpricesover$1.11million,the

minimumqualifyingincometopurchaseahousehasincreasedto$254,000.Consideringthattheaverage

?2023年3月六級(jí)真題（第一套）?4

householdincomeinthecitycurrentlystandsataround$80,000,itisnotanexaggerationtosaythatthe

drcamofhomeownershipisnowbeyondthegraspofthevastmajorityoftoday'speoplewhorent.

G)Forgenerations,thestabilityandprosperityoftheAmericanmiddleclasshasbeenanchoredbyhome

ownership.Studieshaveconsistentlyshownthatthevalueoflandhasovertakenoverallincomegrowth,thus

providingahugeadvantagetopropertyownersasavehicleofwealthbuilding.Whenhomepricessoarabove

thereachofmosthouseholds,thegapbetweentherichandthepoordramaticallyincreases.

H)Ifcontributingfactorsleadingtohousingbecominglessthanaffordablearenotresolvedovermultiple

generations,asmallelitewillcontrolavastshareofthecountry'stotalwealth.Theresult?Asocietywhere

thethreatofclasswarfarewouldloomlarge.Asociety'slevelofhappinessistiedlesstomeasuresof

quantitativewealthandmoretomeasuresofqualitativewealth.Thismeansthathowapersonjudgestheir

securityincomparisontotheirneighbors'hasmoreofanimpactontheirhappinessthantheirobjective

standardofliving.Atthesametime,whenasystemnolongerprovidesopportunitiesforthemajorityto

participateinwealthbuilding,itnotonlyrobsthosewhoareexcludedfromopportunities,butalsodeprives

themoftheirdignity.

I)SanFranciscoandtheBayAreahavelongbeencommittedtovalueswhichembraceinclusionandrejection

ofmainstreamculture.Toseethesevaluescomingapartsopubliclyaddsinsulttoinjuryforaregion

oncedefinedbyitsprogressivesocialfabric.Inthefaceofresentment,itishumantowantrevenge.But

deterioratingpoliciessuchasheavilytaxingtechnologycompaniesorrealestatedevelopersarenotlikelyto

shiftthebalance.

J)Thehousingcrisisiscausedbytwoprimaryfactors:thegrowingdesirabilityoftheBayAreaasaplace

toliveduetoitsexcellenteconomy,andourlimitedhousingstock.Althoughthecityisexperiencingan

unprecedentedboominnewhousing,moreunitsaresorelyneeded.Protectionpolicieswereoriginally

designedtosuppressbaddevelopmentandboosthistoricpreservationinoururbanareas.Now,toomany

developersareexperiencingexcessivedelays.Meanwhile,therearethelandlimitationsoftheBayAreato

consider.Theregionissurroundedbywaterandmountains.Localgovernmentsneedtoaiddevelopmentas

well.Thismeansincreasinghousingdensitythroughouttheregionandbuildingupwardswhilestreamlining

theapprovalprocess.

K)Realestatealonewillnotsolvetheproblem,ofcourse.Transportation,too,needstobeupdatedand

infrastructureextendedtolinkdistantregionstoSiliconValleyandthecity.Weneedtobuildaneffective

high-speedcommutingsystemlinkingthehigh-pricedandcrowdedBayAreawiththelow-pricedandlow-

densityCentralValley.Thiswoulddramaticallyreducetraveltimes.Andbasedontheoperatingspeedsof

hoveringtrainsusedincountriessuchasJapanorSpain,high-speedrailcouldshortenthetimetotravel

betweenSanFranciscoandCalifornia'scapital,Sacramento,orfromStocktontoSanJose,tounder30

minutes.Thissystemwouldbringoncedistantregionswithinreasonablecommutetoheavyjobcenters.

Thecityalsoneedstoupdateexistingtransportationroutescombinedwithsmarthome-buildingpolicies

thatdramaticallyincreasehousingdensityinareassurroundinghigh-speedrailstations.Bydoingso,we

willbeabletobuildaffordablehousingwithinacceptablecommutingdistancesforasignificantbulkofthe

workforce.

L)Ourthreateninghousingcrisisforcesthedifficultquestionofwhattypeofsocietywewouldliketobe.Will

itbeonewheretheelitecommandthevastbulkofwealthandregionalcultureisdefinedbyanaggressive

businessworld?Wewererecentlytreatedtoatasteofthelatter,whenlocaltechemployeeJustinKellerwrote

anopenlettertothecitycomplainingabouthavingtoseehomelesspeopleonhiswaytowork.

5?2023年3月六級(jí)真題（第一套）?

M)Itdoesn'thavetobethisway.Butsolutionsneedtobeimplementednow,beforeangrycrowdsgrowfroma

nuisancetoseriousconcern.Itmaytakelessthanyoumightthink.Andinfact,thesolutionstoourhousing

crisisarealreadyfairlyclear.Weneedtoincreasethedensityofhousingunits.Weneedtouseexisting

technologytoshortentraveltimesandbreakthelandlimits.Thereisawaytosolvecomplexsocialand

economicproblemswithoutabandoningsocialresponsibility.ThisistheBayArea'sopportunitytoprovethat

itcaninnovatemorethanjusttechnology.

36.SanFranciscocitygovernmentofferedtaxbenefitstoattracttechcompaniestoestablishoperationsinaless

developedarea.

37.Thefastriseinthepricesoflandandhousesincreasestheeconomicinequalityamongpeople.

38.SanFranciscohasbeenfoundtohavethebiggestincomegapinCaliforniabetweentherichandthepoor.

39.Thehigherrateofemployment,combinedwithlimitedhousingsupply,didnotmakeitanyeasiertobuya

bouse.

40.Whenpeoplecomparetheirownlivingstandardwithothers',ithasagreaterimpactontheirsenseof

contentment.

41.Improvedtransportnetworksconnectingthecitytodistantoutlyingareaswillalsohelpsolvethehousing

crisis.

42.AverageincomesintheBayAreamakeitvirtuallyimpossibleformosttenantfamiliestobuyahome.

43.Innovativesolutionstosocialandeconomicproblemsshouldbeintroducedbeforeitistoolate.

44.ResidentsoftheSanFranciscoBayAreastronglyresentthetechindustrybecauseoftheeconomicinequality

ithascontributedto.

45.Onewaytodealwiththehousingcrisisisforthegovernmenttosimplifyapprovalproceduresfbrhousing

projects.

SectionC

Directions:Thereare2passagesinthissection.Eachpassageisfollowedbysomequestionsorunfinished

statements.ForeachofthemtherearefourchoicesmarkedA),B),C)andD).Youshoulddecideonthebest

choiceandmarkthecorrespondingletteronAnswerSheet2withasinglelinethroughthecentre.

PassageOne

Questions46to50arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Thesuggestionthatpeopleshouldaimfbrdietarydiversitybytryingtoeatavarietyoffoodshasbeena

basicpublichealthrecommendationfbrdecadesintheUnitedStatesandelsewhere.Now,however,expertsare

warningthataimingfbradiversedietmayactuallyleadtojusteatingmorecalories,and,thus,toobesity.One

issueisthatpeoplemaynotinterpret“variety”thewaynutritionistsintend.Thisproblemishighlightedbynew

researchconductedbytheAmericanHeartAssociation.Researchersreviewedalltheevidencepublishedrelated

todietarydiversityandsawacorrelationbetweendietarydiversityandagreaterintakeofbothhealthyand

unhealthyfoods.Thishadimplicationsfbrobesity,asresearchersfoundagreaterprevalenceofobesityamongst

peoplewithagreaterdietarydiversity.

Oneauthorofthenewstudyexplainedthattheirfindingscontradictstandarddietaryadvice,asmostdietary

guidelinesaroundtheworldincludeastatementofeatingavarietyoffoods.Butthisadvicedoesnotseemtobe

supportedbyscience,possiblybecausethereislittleagreementaboutthemeaningof“dietarydiversity/'which

?2023年3月六級(jí)真題（第一套）?6

isnotclearlyandconsistentlydefined.Someexpertsmeasuredietarydiversitybycountingthenumberoffood

groupseaten,whileotherslookatthedistributionofcaloriesacrossindividualfoods,andstillothersmeasure

howdifferentthefoodseatenarefromeachother.

Althoughthefindingsofthisnewstudycontradictstandarddietaryadvice,theydonotcomeasasurprise

toalloftheresearchersinvolved.Dr.Rao,oneofthestudyauthors,notedthat,after20yearsofexperiencein

thefieldofobesity,hehasobservedthatpeoplewhohavearegimentedlifestyleanddiettendtobethinnerand

healthierthanpeoplewithawidevarietyofconsumption.Thisanecdotalevidencematchestheconclusionsofthe

study,whichfoundnoevidencethatdietarydiversitypromoteshealthybodyweightoroptimaleatingpatterns,

andlimitedevidenceshowsthateatingavarietyoffoodsisactuallyassociatedwithconsumingmorecalories,

pooreatingpatternsandweightgain.Further,thereissomeevidencethatagreatervarietyoffoodoptionsina

singlemealmaydelaypeople'sfeelingoffullnessandactuallyincreasehowmuchtheyeat.

Basedontheirfindings,theresearchersendorseadietconsistingofalimitednumberofhealthyfoodssuch

asvegetables,fruits,grains,andpoultry.Theyalsorecommendthatpeoplesimultaneouslyendeavortorestrict

consumptionofsweets,sugarandredmeat.Theresearchersstress,however,thattheirdietaryrecommendations

donotimplydietarydiversityisneverpositive,andthat,inthepast,diversityindietsofwhole,unprocessed

foodmayhaveactuallybeenverybeneficial.

46.Whathasbeenastandardpieceofdietaryadvicefbrdecades?

A)Peopleshoulddiversifywhattheyeat.

B)Peopleshouldhaveawell-balanceddiet.

C)Peopleshouldcultivateahealthyeatinghabit.

D)Peopleshouldlimitcalorieintaketoavoidobesity.

47.WhatdidthenewresearchbytheAmericanHeartAssociationfind?

A)Unhealthyfoodmakespeoplegainweightmoreeasily.

B)Dietarydiversityispositivelyrelatedtogoodhealth.

C)Peopleseekingdietarydiversitytendtoeatmore.

D)Bigeatersaremorelikelytobecomeoverweight.

48.Whatcouldhelptoexplainthecontradictionbetweenthenewfindingsandthecommonpublichealth

recommendation?

A)Thereislittleconsensusonthedefinitionofdietarydiversity.

B)Themethodsresearchersusetomeasurenutritionvarygreatly.

C)Conventionalwisdomaboutdietisseldomsupportedbyscience.

D)Mostdietaryguidelinesaroundtheworldcontradictoneanother.

49.WhatdidDr.Raofindafter20yearsofresearchonobesity?

A)Thereisnocleardefinitionofoptimaleatingpatterns.

B)Diversifiedfoodintakemaynotcontributetohealth.

C)Eatingpatternsandweightgaingohandinhand.

D)Dietarydiversitypromoteshealthybodyweight.

50.Whatdoesthepassagesayaboutpeoplewhoeatagreatvarietyoffood?

A)Theyaremorelikelytoeatfoodsbeneficialtotheirhealth.

B)Theydon'thaveanyproblemsgettingsufficientnutrition.

C)Theydon'tfeeltheyhavehadenoughuntiltheyovereat.

D)Theytendtoconsumemoresweets,sugarandredmeat.

7?2023年3月六級(jí)真題（第一套）?

PassageTwo

Questions51to55arebasedonthefollowingpassage.

Theabilitytomakeinferencesfromsameanddifferent,oncethoughttobeuniquetohumans,isviewedasa

cornerstoneofabstractintelligentthought.Anewstudy,however,hasshownthatwhatpsychologistscallsame-

difterentdiscriminationispresentincreaturesgenerallyseenasunintelligent:newbornducklings(小鴨).

Thestudy,publishedThursdayinScience,challengesourideaofwhatitmeanstohaveabirdbrain,said

EdwardWasserman,anexperimentalpsychologistattheUniversityofIowawhowroteanindependentreviewof

thestudy.

“Infact,birdsareextremelyintelligentandourproblemprettymuchliesinfiguringouthowtogetthemto

'talk'tous,ortellushowsmarttheyreallyare,“hesaid.

AntoneMartinhoandAlexKacelnik,co-authorsofthenewpaper,devisedacleverexperimenttobettertest

birdintelligence.

First,theytook1-day-oldducklingsandexposedthemtoapairofmovingobjects.Thetwoobjectswere

eitherthesameordifferentinshapeorcolor.Thentheyexposedeachducklingtotwoentirelynewpairsof

movingobjects.

Theresearchersfoundthatabout70%oftheducklingspreferredtomovetowardthepairofobjectsthat

hadthesameshapeorcolorrelationshipasthefirstobjectstheysaw.Aducklingthatwasfirstshowntwogreen

spheres,inotherwords,wasmorelikelytomovetowardapairofbluespheresthanamismatchedpairoforange

andpurplespheres.

Ducklingsgothrougharapidlearningprocesscalledimprintingshortlyafterbirth—it'swhatallowsthemto

identifyandfollowtheirmothers.

Thesefindingssuggestthatducklingsuseabstractrelationshipsbetweensensoryinputslikecolor,shape,

soundsandodortorecognizetheirmothers,saidDr.Kacelnik.

Bystudyingimprinting,theauthorsofthisstudyhaveshownforthefirsttimethatananimalcanlearn

relationshipsbetweenconceptswithouttraining,saidJeffreyKatz,anexperimentalpsychologistatAuburn

Universitywhowasnotinvolvedinthestudy.

Previousstudieshavesuggestedthatotheranimals,includingpigeons,dolphins,honeybeesandsome

primates(靈長(zhǎng)類動(dòng)物),candiscernsamefromdifferent,butonlyafterextensivetraining.

Addingducklingstothelist-particularlyuntrainednewbornducklings-suggeststhattheabilityto

compareabstractconcepts“isfarmorenecessarytoawidervarietyofanimals'survivalthanwepreviously

thought,Dr.Martinhosaid.Hebelievestheabilityissocrucialbecauseithelpsanimalsconsidercontextwhen

identifyingobjectsintheirenvi