新世紀(jì)研究生公共英語(yǔ)教材B-11-13單元

B:第九單元AnimalEmotionsLauraTangleySheerjoy.Romanticlove.Thepainofmourning.

Scientistssaypetsandwildcreatureshavefeelings,too.1.SwimmingoffthecoastofArgentina,afemalerightwhalesinglesoutjustoneofthesuitorsthatarehotlypursuingher.Aftermating,thetwocetaceanslingersidebyside,strokingoneanotherwiththeirflippersandfinallyrollingtogetherinwhatlookslikeanembrace.Thewhalesthendepart,flipperstouching,andswimslowlysidebyside,divingandsurfacinginperfectunisonuntiltheydisappearfromsight.2.InTanzania,primatologistsstudyingchimpanzeebehaviorrecordedthedeathofFlo,atroop’s50-year-oldmatriarch.Throughoutthefollowingday,Flo’sson,Flint,sitsbesidehismother’slifelessbody,occasionallytakingherhandandwhimpering.Overthenextfewweeks,Flintgrowsincreasinglylistless,withdrawingfromthetroop—despitehissiblings’effortstobringhimback–andrefusingfood.ThreeweeksafterFlo’sdeath,theformerlyhealthyyoungchimpisdead,too.3.Agrief-strickenchimpanzee?Leviathansinlove?Mostpeople,raisedonDisneyversionsofsentientandpassionatebeasts,wouldsaythatthesetales,bothtrue,simplyconfirmtheirsuspicionsthatanimalscanfeelintense,humanlikeemotions.Fortheirpart,thenation’s61millionpetownersneednoconvincingatallthatpetdogsandcatscanfeelangry,morose,elated—evenjealousorembarrassed.Recentstudies,infieldsasdistantasethologyandneurobiology,aresupportingthispopularbelief.Otherevidenceismerelyanecdotal,especiallyforpets—dogsthatbecomedepressed,orevendie,afterlosingabelovedcompanion,forinstance.Buttheanecdote—orcasestudyinscientificparlance—hasnowachievedsomerespectabilityamongresearcherswhostudyanimalbehavior.AsUniversityofColoradobiologistMarcBekoffsays,“Thepluralofanecdoteisdata.”4.Still,theideaofanimalsfeelingemotionsremainscontroversialamongmanyscientists.Researchers’skepticismisfueledinpartbytheirprofessionalaversiontoanthropomorphism,theverynonscientifictendencytoattributehumanqualitiestonon-humans.Manyscientistsalsosaythatitisimpossibletoproveanimalshaveemotionsusingstandardscientificmethods—repeatableobservationsthatcanbemanipulatedincontrolledexperiments—leadingthemtoconcludethatsuchfeelingsmustnotexist.Today,however,amidmountingevidencetothecontrary,“thetideisturningradicallyandrapidly,”saysBekoff,whoisattheforefrontofthismovement.5.Eventhemoststridentskepticsofanimalpassionagreethatmanycreaturesexperiencefear—whichsomescientistsdefineasa“primary”emotionthatcontrastswith“secondary”emotionssuchasloveandgrief.Unlikethesemorecomplexfeelings,fearisinstinctive,theysay,andrequiresnoconsciousthought.Essentialtoescapepredatorsandotherdangers,fear—anditspredictableflight,fight,orfreezeresponses—seemstobehard-wiredintomanyspecies.Younggeesethathaveneverbeforeseenapredator,forexample,willrunforcoverifahawk-shapedsilhouettepassesoverhead.Theshapeofanonpredatorybird,ontheotherhand,elicitsnosuchresponse.6.Butbeyondsuchinstinctualemotionsandtheirpredictablebehavioralresponses,thepossibilityofmorecomplexanimalfeelings—thosethatentailmentalprocessing—isdifficulttodemonstrate.“Ican’tevenprovethatanotherhumanbeingisfeelinghappyorsad,”saysBekoff,“butIcandeducehowthey’refeelingthroughbodylanguageandfacialexpression.”Asascientistwhohasconductedfieldstudiesofcoyotes,foxes,andothercaninesforthepastthreedecades,Bekoffalsobelieveshecanaccuratelytellwhattheseanimalsarefeelingbyobservingtheirbehavior.Headdsthatanimalemotionsmayactuallybemoreknowablethanthoseofhumans,becausetheydon’t“filter”theirfeelingsthewaywedo.7.Yetbecausefeelingsareintangible,andsotoughtostudyscientifically,“mostresearchersdon’tevenwanttotalkaboutanimalemotions,”saysJaakPanksepp,aneuroscientistatBowlingGreenStateUniversityinOhioandauthorofAffectiveNeuroscience.Withinhisfield,Pankseppisarareexception,whobelievesthatsimilaritiesbetweenthebrainsofhumansandotheranimalssuggestthatatleastsomecreatureshavetruefeelings.“Imaginewherewe’dbeinphysicsifwehadn’tinferredwhat’sinsidetheatom,”saysPanksepp.“Mostofwhatgoesoninnatureisinvisible,yetwedon’tdenythatitexists.”8.Thenewcaseforanimalemotionscomesinpartfromthegrowingacceptabilityoffieldobservations,particularlywhentheyaretakeninaggregate.Thelatestcontributiontothisbodyofknowledgeisanewbook,TheSmileofaDolphin,whichpresentspersonalreportsfrommorethan50researcherswhohavespenttheircareersstudyinganimals—fromcats,dogs,bears,andchimpstobirds,iguanas,andfish.EditedbyBekoff,whosaysitwillfinally“l(fā)egitimize”researchonanimalemotions,thevolumehasalreadygarneredscientificattention,includingaSmithsonianInstitutionsymposiumonthesubject.9.Oneofthemostobviousanimalemotionsispleasure.Anyonewhohaseverheldapurringcatorbeengreetedbyabounding,barking,tail-waggingdogknowsthatanimalsoftenappeartobehappy.Beastlyjoyseemsparticularlyapparentwhentheanimalsareplayingwithoneanotherorsometimes,inthecaseofpets,withpeople.10.Virtuallyallyoungmammals,aswellassomebirds,play,asdoadultsofmanyspeciessuchasourown.Youngdolphins,forinstance,routinelychaseeachotherthroughthewaterlikefrolicsomepuppiesandhavebeenobservedridingthewakesofboatslikesurfers.PrimatologistJaneGoodall,whohasstudiedchimpanzeesinTanzaniaforfourdecades,saysthatchimps“chase,somersault,andpirouettearoundoneanotherwiththeabandonofchildren.”InColorado,Bekoffoncewatchedanelkracebackandforthacrossapatchofsnow—eventhoughtherewasplentyofbaregrassnearby—leapingandtwistingitsbodyinmidaironeachpass.Thoughrecentresearchsuggeststhatplaymayhelpyoungstersdevelopskillsneededinadulthood,Bekoffsaysthere’snoquestionthatit’salsofun.“Animalsatplayaresymbolsoftheunfetteredjoyoflife,”hesays11.Griefalsoseemstobecommoninthewild,particularlyfollowingthedeathofamate,parent,offspring,orevenclosecompanion.Femalesealionswitnessingtheirpupsbeingeatenbykillerwhalesareknowntoactuallywail.Whenagoose,whichmatesforlife,losesitspartner,thebird’sheadandbodydroopdejectedly.Goodall,whosawtheyoungchimpFlintstarveafterhismotherdied,maintainsthattheanimal“diedofgrief.”12.Elephantsmaybenature’sbest-knownmourners.Scientistsstudyingthesebehemothshavereportedcountlesscasesofelephantstryingtorevivedeadordyingfamilymembers,aswellasstandingquietlybesideananimal’sremainsformanydays,periodicallyreachingoutandtouchingthebodywiththeirtrunks.KenyanbiologistJoycePoole,whohasstudiedAfricanelephantssince1976,saystheseanimals’behaviortowardtheirdead“l(fā)eavesmewithlittledoubtthattheyexperiencedeepemotionsandhavesomeunderstandingaboutdeath.”13.Butthere’s“hard”scientificevidenceforanimalfeelingsaswell.Scientistswhostudythebiologyofemotions,afieldstillinitsinfancy,arediscoveringmanysimilaritiesbetweenthebrainsofhumansandotheranimals.Inanimalsstudiedsofar,includinghumans,emotionsseemtoarisefromancientpartsofthebrainthatarelocatedbelowthecortex,regionsthathavebeenconservedacrossmanyspeciesthroughoutevolution.14.Themostimportantemotionalsiteidentifiedsofaristheamygdala,analmond-shapestructureinthecenterofthebrain.Workingwithrats,neuroscientistshavediscoveredthatstimulatingacertainpartoftheamygdalainducesastateofintensefear.Ratswithdamagedamygdalas,ontheotherhand,donotshownormalbehavioralresponsestodanger(suchasfreezingorrunning)orthephysiologicalchangesassociatedwithfear—higherheartrateandbloodpressure,forexample.15.Inhumans,brain-imagingstudiesshowthatwhenpeopleexperiencefear,theiramygdalas,too,areactivated.Andjustliketherats,peoplewhoseamygdalasaredamagedbyaccidentordiseaseseemunabletobeafraidwhenthesituationwarrantsit.Inhumansandrats,atleast,amygdalasare“basicallywiredthesameway,”saysNewYorkUniversityneuroscientistJosephLeDoux,whoselabconductedmuchoftheratresearch.Headdsthatbeyondfear,“theevidenceislessclear,buttheamygdalaisimplicatedinotheremotionsaswell.”16.Thecaseforanimalemotionsisalsobolsteredbyrecentstudiesofbrainchemistry.StevenSiviy,abehavioralneuroscientistatGettysburgCollegeinPennsylvania,hasfoundthatwhenratsplay,theirbrainsreleasecopiousamountsofdopamine,aneurochemicalthatisassociatedwithpleasureandexcitementinhumans.Inoneexperiment,Siviyplacedpairsofratsinadistinctiveplexiglasschamberandallowedthemtoplay.Afteraweek,hecouldputoneanimalaloneinthechamberand,anticipatingitsupcomingplaysession,itwouldbecome“veryactive,vocalizing,andpacingbackandforthwithexcitement.”ButwhenSiviygavethesameanimaladrugthatblocksdopamine,allsuchactivitycametoahalt.NeuroscientistPanksepphasfoundevidencethatratsatplayalsoproduceopiates–chemicalsthat,likedopamine,arethoughttobeinvolvedwithpleasureinpeople.17.Anotherchemical,thehormoneoxytocin,isassociatedwithbothsexualactivityandmaternalbondinginpeople.Itisreleased,forexample,whenmothersarenursingtheirinfants.Nowitlooksasthoughthesamehormoneaffectsattachmentamonganimals,atleastinthecaseofamouselikerodentcalledtheprairievole.Toinvestigateoxytocin’sroleinsocialbonding,UniversityofMarylandneuroscientistC.SueCartertargetedthevolebecauseitisoneofthefewmammalspeciesknowntobemonogamous.Shefoundthatfemales,whonormallyspendaboutadayselectingamatefromapoolofeagermales,willchooseonewithinanhour—oftenthefirstmaletheysee—iftheyhavefirstreceivedaninjectionofoxytocin.Volesgivenadrugthatblocksoxytocin,however,willnotselectamate,nomatterhowmuchtimetheyhave.Carterconcludesthatpairbondinginvolesreliesatleastinpartonoxytocin,whichproducesbehaviorthatlooksmuchlikepeoplewhoare“fallinginlove.”18.Butisitlove,really?BerndWelsig,theTexasA&MUniversitybiologistwhoobservedamorousrightwhalesoffthecoastofArgentina,believesthat,asascientist,“Ishouldprobablycallthiseventamereexampleofan‘a(chǎn)lternativematingstrategy.’“ButWelsigstillentertainsthepossibilitythatthecetaceansbehavedthewaytheydidbecause“theywerethe‘right’rightwhalesforeachother.”19.Skepticsremainunconvinced.“Awhalemaybehaveasifit’sinlove,butyoucan’tprovewhatit’sfeeling,ifanything,”saysneuroscientistLeDoux,authorofTheEmotionalBrain.Hemaintainsthatthequestionoffeelingsboilsdowntowhetherornotanimalsareconscious.Andthoughanimals“mayhavesnapshotsofself-awareness,”hesays,“themoviewecallconsciousnessisnotthere.”RichardDavidson,aneuroscientistattheUniversityofWisconsin-Madison,agreesthathigherprimates,includingapesandchimps,aretheonlyanimalsthathavedemonstratedself-consciousnesssofar.Still,hebelievesthatthereareothercreaturesthat“mayatleasthaveantecedentsoffeelings.”20.Orprobablymore,sayBekoffandhiscolleagues.Theirmostconvincingargument,perhaps,comesfromthetheoryofevolution,widelyacceptedbybiologistsofallstripes.Citingsimilaritiesinthebrainanatomyandchemistryofhumansandotheranimals,neuroscientistSiviyasks:“Ifyoubelieveinevolutionbynaturalselection,howcanyoubelievethatfeelingssuddenlyappeared,outoftheblue,withhumanbeings?”Goodallsaysscientistswhouseanimalstostudythehumanbrain,thendenythatanimalshavefeelings,are“illogical.”21.Intheend,whatdifferencedoesitreallymake?Accordingtomanyscientists,resolvingthedebateoveranimalemotionscouldturnouttobemuchmorethananintellectualexercise.Ifanimalsdoindeedexperienceawiderangeoffeelings,ithasprofoundimplicationsforhowhumansandanimalswillinteractinthefuture.Bekoff,forone,hopesthatgreaterunderstandingofwhatanimalsarefeelingwillspurmorestringentrulesonhowanimalsshouldbetreated,everywherefromzoosandcircusestofarmsandbackyards.22.Butifthereiscontinuitybetweentheemotionallivesofhumansandotheranimals,whereshouldscientistsdrawtheline?MichelCabanac,aphysiologistatLavalUniversityinQuebec,believesthatconsciousnessarosewhenanimalsbegantoexperiencephysicalpleasureanddispleasure.Inexperimentswithiguanas,hediscoveredthattheanimalsshowphysiologicalchangesthatareassociatedwithpleasureinmammals—ariseinbodytemperatureandheartrate—whereasfrogsandfishdonot.Heproposesthatemotionsevolvedsomewherebetweenthefirstamphibiansandreptiles.Yetevenenthusiastsdon’tascribeemotionstotheverybottomendofthefoodchain.SaysBekoff:“We’renotgoingtotalkaboutjealousspongesandembarrassedmosquitoes.”

動(dòng)物的情感勞拉·坦利非常的開心。浪漫的愛情。悲慟的哀悼?？茖W(xué)家說(shuō)寵物和野生動(dòng)物也有情感。1.一只在阿根廷海岸附近的水域中游動(dòng)的露脊鯨，在眾多熱烈追求她的求偶者中只選出一名幸運(yùn)兒?！巴昊椤敝?，兩頭露脊鯨并排在水中徜徉，它們用鰭肢相互撫摩，最后又一起在水中滾動(dòng)，看上去就像在互相擁抱。然后，兩頭露脊鯨開始游向遠(yuǎn)方，鰭肢相互觸摸，慢慢并排游動(dòng)，一會(huì)潛入水中，一會(huì)又浮出水面，它們動(dòng)作完美和諧，直至最終在視線中消失。2.在坦桑尼亞，致力于研究黑猩猩行為的靈長(zhǎng)類動(dòng)物學(xué)家記錄了一個(gè)黑猩猩群落中享年50歲的“女族長(zhǎng)”弗洛死后發(fā)生的一些事情。弗洛的兒子弗林特第二天一整天都坐在母親的尸體旁邊，有時(shí)還會(huì)抓住她的手發(fā)出幾聲嗚咽。在此后的幾個(gè)星期里，弗林特的情緒越來(lái)越低落，他離群索居并且不再進(jìn)食，盡管他的兄弟姐妹設(shè)法想讓他回到群體中來(lái)。終于，在弗洛死后的第3個(gè)星期，原本年輕健康的黑猩猩弗林特也死了。3.悲傷過(guò)度的黑猩猩？墜入情網(wǎng)的海洋巨獸？很多人，由于深受迪斯尼卡通片中感性多情的動(dòng)物形象的影響，會(huì)說(shuō)這兩個(gè)真實(shí)的故事更加證實(shí)了他們認(rèn)為動(dòng)物有人類般強(qiáng)烈情感的看法。從他們的角度來(lái)看，全國(guó)六千一百萬(wàn)擁有寵物的人完全不需要提供什么證據(jù)來(lái)證實(shí)寵物狗和寵物貓會(huì)生氣、郁悶、得意洋洋——甚至?xí)刀驶蚶Ь?。最近在?dòng)物行為學(xué)和神經(jīng)生物學(xué)之類的邊緣學(xué)科的研究證實(shí)了這種普遍看法。其他的證據(jù)只是些軼事趣聞，特別是一些有關(guān)寵物的事，例如狗會(huì)在失去心愛的同伴后，變得沮喪，甚至死去。但是軼事趣聞——或用科學(xué)的術(shù)語(yǔ)稱之為案例研究——現(xiàn)在已經(jīng)獲得了研究動(dòng)物行為的研究人員的重視。正如科羅拉多大學(xué)的生物學(xué)家馬克·貝科夫所說(shuō)：“大量的軼事趣聞就是數(shù)據(jù)?！?.但是，許多科學(xué)家仍然對(duì)動(dòng)物也有情感的觀點(diǎn)持有異議。研究人員之所以會(huì)表示疑心，局部原因是他們出于職業(yè)習(xí)慣討厭擬人論，因?yàn)樗麄冋J(rèn)為這是一種將人類的特性強(qiáng)加在非人類生物身上的毫無(wú)科學(xué)根據(jù)的主觀傾向。許多科學(xué)家還認(rèn)為用標(biāo)準(zhǔn)的科學(xué)方法〔在受控實(shí)驗(yàn)環(huán)境下可進(jìn)行重復(fù)觀察〕是無(wú)法證明動(dòng)物是有情感的——這使他們得出結(jié)論，認(rèn)為這些所謂的動(dòng)物情感一定不存在。但是動(dòng)物情感論的積極倡導(dǎo)者貝科夫指出，如今面對(duì)越來(lái)越多的相反證據(jù)，“這場(chǎng)運(yùn)動(dòng)的潮流正在根本性地迅速轉(zhuǎn)向”。5.甚至連那些對(duì)動(dòng)物情感論持絕對(duì)疑心態(tài)度的人也成認(rèn)，許多動(dòng)物有恐懼感——一些科學(xué)家認(rèn)為，恐懼是與愛和悲傷等“中級(jí)”情感相對(duì)的“初級(jí)”情感。他們認(rèn)為，與較為復(fù)雜的“中級(jí)”情感相比，恐懼是一種本能，它不需要任何有意識(shí)的思維?？謶旨捌淇梢灶A(yù)見的逃跑、搏斗或者呆住不動(dòng)的反響，是逃避食肉動(dòng)物和其他危險(xiǎn)所必需的，它看起來(lái)好似是許多動(dòng)物與生俱來(lái)的本領(lǐng)。例如，以前從未見過(guò)食肉動(dòng)物的小鵝如果看到形狀像老鷹一樣的黑影從頭頂掠過(guò)就會(huì)馬上跑去尋找藏身處。而另一方面，非食肉鳥的形狀就不會(huì)引發(fā)這樣的反響。6.但是，除了這些具有本能性質(zhì)的情感及其可以預(yù)見的行為反響之外，科學(xué)家很難證明動(dòng)物可能擁有更為復(fù)雜的情感，即那些必需有心理活動(dòng)過(guò)程的情感。貝科夫說(shuō)：“我甚至不能證實(shí)另一個(gè)人是快樂(lè)還是悲傷，但我可以通過(guò)肢體語(yǔ)言和臉部表情推論出他〔們〕的情感?！弊鳛閷?duì)叢林狼、狐貍及其他犬科動(dòng)物進(jìn)行長(zhǎng)達(dá)30年實(shí)地研究的科學(xué)家，貝科夫還認(rèn)為自己可以通過(guò)觀察這些動(dòng)物的行為準(zhǔn)確地說(shuō)出他們的感受。他又指出，了解動(dòng)物的感情事實(shí)上可能比了解人類的感情更容易，因?yàn)樗鼈儾粫?huì)像人類那樣對(duì)情感進(jìn)行“過(guò)濾”。7.但是《情感神經(jīng)學(xué)》一書的作者、俄亥俄州立堡林·格林大學(xué)神經(jīng)學(xué)學(xué)家雅克·潘克塞普指出，因?yàn)楦星槭且环N無(wú)形的東西，而且很難用科學(xué)手段進(jìn)行研究，“所以大多數(shù)研究人員甚至不愿意談?wù)搫?dòng)物情感問(wèn)題”。而潘克塞普在他的研究領(lǐng)域里是一個(gè)非常少見的例外，他認(rèn)為，人類大腦和其他動(dòng)物大腦之間的相似之處說(shuō)明，至少某些動(dòng)物擁有真正的感情。潘克塞普說(shuō)：“想象一下，如果我們沒(méi)有推測(cè)出原子中的物質(zhì)，那我們的物理學(xué)會(huì)是什么樣的。在自然中大局部事物的進(jìn)展是看不見的，然而我們并不否認(rèn)它的存在。”8.對(duì)動(dòng)物情感的接受之所以會(huì)出現(xiàn)新的局面，局部原因是有越來(lái)越多的人愿意接受研究人員取得的實(shí)地觀察結(jié)果，特別是當(dāng)從總體角度看待這些結(jié)果時(shí)。一本名為《海豚的微笑》的新書為增加動(dòng)物情感方面的知識(shí)做出了新的奉獻(xiàn)，該書收錄了50多名研究人員撰寫的個(gè)人報(bào)告。這些研究人員將自己的整個(gè)職業(yè)生涯都傾注在對(duì)貓、狗、熊、黑猩猩、鳥、鬣蜥和魚等動(dòng)物的研究。該書的編輯貝科夫認(rèn)為，這本書最終會(huì)使動(dòng)物情感的研究變得“合法”。而這本新書也確實(shí)引起了科學(xué)界的關(guān)注——其中，史密森氏學(xué)會(huì)就舉行了一次以動(dòng)物情感為主題的研討會(huì)。9.動(dòng)物最顯而易見的情感之一就是快樂(lè)。養(yǎng)過(guò)會(huì)發(fā)出咕嚕聲的小貓，或者受到過(guò)邊跳邊叫、搖著尾巴的小狗歡送的人，就知道動(dòng)物看起來(lái)常常十分快樂(lè)。動(dòng)物相互嬉戲的時(shí)候，或有時(shí)跟人一起玩耍時(shí)〔就寵物而言〕，它們的快樂(lè)好似會(huì)變得特別明顯。10.事實(shí)上，所有幼小的哺乳動(dòng)物和某些鳥類都會(huì)嬉戲玩耍，正如很多種類的成年動(dòng)物一樣，包括人類也是如此。例如，小海豚就像愛鬧著玩的小狗，常常在水中互相追逐。人們常常看到它們像沖浪運(yùn)發(fā)動(dòng)般追逐在船后的浪花上。靈長(zhǎng)類動(dòng)物學(xué)家簡(jiǎn)·古多爾曾經(jīng)在坦桑尼亞對(duì)黑猩猩進(jìn)行了40年的研究，他說(shuō)黑猩猩會(huì)“孩子般盡情地追逐、翻跟頭、踮著腳尖相互旋轉(zhuǎn)”。有一次，貝科夫在科羅拉多觀察到一只麋鹿來(lái)來(lái)回回地跑著穿越一小塊雪地，盡管邊上就有無(wú)雪的草地。它每次跨躍都要跳起來(lái)并在半空扭動(dòng)著軀體。貝科夫說(shuō)雖然近來(lái)的研究說(shuō)明嬉戲玩耍會(huì)幫助小動(dòng)物培養(yǎng)成年所需要的技巧，而毫無(wú)疑問(wèn)的是，它也會(huì)帶來(lái)快樂(lè)。他還說(shuō)：“玩耍的動(dòng)物是無(wú)拘無(wú)束生活快樂(lè)的象征?！?1.在野生動(dòng)物中，悲傷似乎也很常見，尤其是在失去了配偶、雙親、幼崽，甚至是親密同伴的時(shí)候。比方，當(dāng)母海獅目擊了自己的小海獅被逆戟鯨吃掉時(shí)，會(huì)發(fā)出哀號(hào)。一生只有一個(gè)配偶的天鵝失去配偶時(shí)，會(huì)沮喪地垂著頭和身體。古多爾親眼看到小黑猩猩弗林特在母親死后餓死，他堅(jiān)持說(shuō)小黑猩猩是“死于悲傷”。12.大象可能是大自然最著名的哀悼者了。研究這些龐然大物的科學(xué)家的報(bào)告中有大量的事實(shí)陳述了大象試圖使死去的或?qū)⒁廊サ募彝コ蓡T復(fù)活，還會(huì)很多天靜靜地站在尸體旁，不時(shí)地伸出長(zhǎng)鼻觸動(dòng)一下尸體。肯尼亞生物學(xué)家喬伊斯·普爾從1976年以來(lái)就研究非洲大象，他說(shuō)，這些動(dòng)物對(duì)待死去的動(dòng)物的行為“讓我?guī)缀鹾敛灰尚牡卣J(rèn)為，它們體驗(yàn)著深切的感情并對(duì)死亡有所理解?！?3.有一些“確鑿的”科學(xué)證據(jù)也可以證明動(dòng)物有感情。致力于情感生物學(xué)〔一個(gè)新生的科學(xué)領(lǐng)域〕研究的科學(xué)家發(fā)現(xiàn)，人腦與其它動(dòng)物的大腦之間存在著許多相似之處?？茖W(xué)家在到目前為止對(duì)動(dòng)物〔包括人類〕的研究發(fā)現(xiàn)，情感看起來(lái)好似是在大腦一些較為“古老”的區(qū)域中產(chǎn)生的，這些區(qū)域位于大腦皮層以下，它們?cè)谠S多物種的進(jìn)化過(guò)程中都得以保存下來(lái)。14.目前已經(jīng)被科學(xué)家識(shí)別出來(lái)的最重要的情感區(qū)域，是大腦中的扁桃體，這是一個(gè)位于大腦中央的杏仁狀結(jié)構(gòu)。神經(jīng)科學(xué)家通過(guò)在老鼠身上進(jìn)行的實(shí)驗(yàn)，發(fā)現(xiàn)刺激扁桃體某個(gè)特定的局部會(huì)導(dǎo)致實(shí)驗(yàn)鼠處于一種極度恐懼的狀態(tài)。在另一方面，扁桃體遭到破壞的實(shí)驗(yàn)鼠在遇到危險(xiǎn)時(shí)，既不會(huì)表現(xiàn)出正常的行為反響〔比方呆住或者逃跑〕，也不會(huì)出現(xiàn)與恐懼聯(lián)系在一起的生理變化——如心跳加快和血壓升高。15.利用成像技術(shù)對(duì)人腦進(jìn)行的研究說(shuō)明，當(dāng)人類感到恐懼時(shí)，大腦中的扁桃核也會(huì)被激活。與實(shí)驗(yàn)鼠一樣，由于意外事故或疾病而導(dǎo)致扁桃核受損的人似乎在面對(duì)危險(xiǎn)時(shí)也無(wú)法感到恐懼。在實(shí)驗(yàn)室進(jìn)行了大量鼠類研究的紐約大學(xué)神經(jīng)學(xué)學(xué)家約瑟夫·勒杜指出，至少人類和老鼠的扁桃核“根本上采用了相同的‘布線方式’”。他又補(bǔ)充說(shuō)，除恐懼外，“有證據(jù)說(shuō)明，扁桃核與其他情感也有關(guān)系，但是這些證據(jù)不像證明扁桃核與恐懼有關(guān)的證據(jù)那樣明確?！?6.動(dòng)物情感論還得到了最近進(jìn)行的大腦化學(xué)研究的支持。賓夕法尼亞葛底斯堡學(xué)院行為神經(jīng)科學(xué)家史蒂文·西維發(fā)現(xiàn)，老鼠在玩耍的時(shí)候，它的大腦會(huì)釋放出大量的多巴胺——人類的快樂(lè)和興奮等情感就與這種神經(jīng)化學(xué)物質(zhì)有關(guān)。在一項(xiàng)實(shí)驗(yàn)中，西維把一對(duì)對(duì)的實(shí)驗(yàn)鼠放在了特殊的樹脂玻璃“房子”中，然后讓它們盡情玩耍。一星期后，他又把一只實(shí)驗(yàn)鼠單獨(dú)放在“房子”里，期待著馬上就可以再好好地玩上一段時(shí)間的實(shí)驗(yàn)鼠變得“非?；顫?，它不斷地發(fā)出叫聲并且興奮地來(lái)回跑動(dòng)”。但是當(dāng)西維給這只實(shí)驗(yàn)鼠喂食了一種抑制多巴胺的藥物以后，所有的此類活動(dòng)都全部停止了。神經(jīng)科學(xué)家潘克塞普已經(jīng)找到證據(jù)證明，老鼠在玩耍的過(guò)程中體內(nèi)還會(huì)產(chǎn)生多種鴉片劑——科學(xué)家認(rèn)為這些化學(xué)物質(zhì)與多巴胺一樣，也與人類的快樂(lè)情緒有關(guān)。17.另一種化學(xué)物質(zhì)荷爾蒙催產(chǎn)素與人類的性活動(dòng)和母性有關(guān)。例如，母親培育嬰兒時(shí)體內(nèi)就會(huì)釋放出催產(chǎn)素?，F(xiàn)在看來(lái)這種激素好似對(duì)動(dòng)物之間的相互依戀也有影響，至少在一種與老鼠十分相似的嚙齒類動(dòng)物草原田鼠身上是這樣。為了研究催產(chǎn)素對(duì)社會(huì)依附關(guān)系的作用，馬里蘭大學(xué)神經(jīng)科學(xué)家C·休·卡特選擇了草原田鼠作為她的研究對(duì)象，因?yàn)椴菰锸笫侨藗兊膶?shí)行“一夫一妻制”的為數(shù)不多的幾種哺乳動(dòng)物之一。她發(fā)現(xiàn)母鼠一般會(huì)花一天的時(shí)間從一群熱切的公鼠中挑選出一只配偶，但是如果它們?cè)谶x擇配偶之前注射了催產(chǎn)素的話，母鼠的擇偶時(shí)間就會(huì)縮短為一小時(shí)——而且常常會(huì)選擇它們看見的第一只公鼠。然而，如果母鼠服食了催產(chǎn)素抑制藥物，那么不管有多少時(shí)間它們也不會(huì)選擇配偶?？ㄌ赜纱说贸鼋Y(jié)論認(rèn)為，雌雄田鼠之間親密關(guān)系的形成至少局部原因是催產(chǎn)素，這種激素可以導(dǎo)致田鼠做出與“墜入愛河”的人非常相似的舉動(dòng)。18.但這真是愛情嗎？曾經(jīng)對(duì)生活在阿根廷附近海域的“多情”露脊鯨進(jìn)行過(guò)觀察的得克薩斯農(nóng)業(yè)和機(jī)械大學(xué)生物學(xué)家貝恩德·伍爾西格指出，作為一名科學(xué)家，“我很可能應(yīng)該將露脊鯨的行為僅僅稱作是“選擇性的交配策略”的一個(gè)例子”。但是他仍然認(rèn)為，露脊鯨之所以會(huì)有這種行為表現(xiàn)也有可能是因?yàn)椤八鼈兿嗷ブg‘情投意合’”。19．對(duì)動(dòng)物情感論持疑心態(tài)度的人仍然堅(jiān)持自己的看法?！肚楦写竽X》一書的作者，神經(jīng)科學(xué)家勒杜指出：“鯨也許會(huì)做出好似他們正在戀愛的舉動(dòng)，但是你無(wú)法證明它的內(nèi)心感受，即使鯨有這種感受的話。”他認(rèn)為動(dòng)物情感問(wèn)題歸根到底就是動(dòng)物是否有意識(shí)的問(wèn)題。他說(shuō)，雖然動(dòng)物“會(huì)有點(diǎn)滴的自我意識(shí)，但是我們所稱的意識(shí)圖像是沒(méi)有的。”威斯康星大學(xué)麥迪遜分校的神經(jīng)科學(xué)家理查德·戴維森認(rèn)為，類人猿和黑猩猩等比擬高級(jí)的靈長(zhǎng)類動(dòng)物是迄今為止唯一已經(jīng)說(shuō)明出自我意識(shí)的動(dòng)物。但是，他仍然認(rèn)為還有其他一些動(dòng)物“也許至少擁有情感的前身”。20．貝科夫和他的同事認(rèn)為可能還不止如此。他們最令人信服的論點(diǎn)也許是從已經(jīng)為各學(xué)派的生物學(xué)家所普遍接受的進(jìn)化論中推導(dǎo)出來(lái)的。神經(jīng)科學(xué)家西維根據(jù)人腦與其他動(dòng)物大腦在解剖結(jié)構(gòu)和化學(xué)構(gòu)成方面存在的相似之處提出了這樣一個(gè)問(wèn)題：“如果你認(rèn)為生物可以通過(guò)自然選擇不斷進(jìn)化，那你怎么能夠相信人類在進(jìn)化的過(guò)程中其情感是突如其來(lái)的呢？”古多爾認(rèn)為，那些先通過(guò)動(dòng)物來(lái)研究人類的大腦，然后又否認(rèn)動(dòng)物有感情的科學(xué)家的想法是“不合邏輯的”。21．最后，動(dòng)物有沒(méi)有情感到底有什么重要性呢？許多科學(xué)家認(rèn)為解決動(dòng)物情感爭(zhēng)論的意義也許遠(yuǎn)比一種學(xué)術(shù)活動(dòng)重要得多。如果動(dòng)物確實(shí)有各種各樣的情感，那么它將對(duì)人與動(dòng)物今后會(huì)怎樣互動(dòng)產(chǎn)生意義深遠(yuǎn)的影響。舉例來(lái)說(shuō)，貝科夫就希望對(duì)動(dòng)物的感情了解更多能促使人類在對(duì)待動(dòng)物〔不管是在動(dòng)物園和馬戲團(tuán)還是在農(nóng)場(chǎng)和后院〕上有更嚴(yán)厲的規(guī)定。22．但是，如果人類和其他動(dòng)物的感情生活之間存在著延續(xù)性，那么科學(xué)家應(yīng)該把人與動(dòng)物的分界線劃在什么地方呢？魁北克拉瓦爾大學(xué)生理學(xué)家米歇爾·卡巴納克認(rèn)為，當(dāng)動(dòng)物開始體驗(yàn)身上的快樂(lè)和不快時(shí)，意識(shí)就產(chǎn)生了。在以鬣蜥為研究對(duì)象的實(shí)驗(yàn)中，他發(fā)現(xiàn)這種動(dòng)物表現(xiàn)出哺乳動(dòng)物快樂(lè)時(shí)的生理變化——體溫升高和心跳加快——但是青蛙和魚卻沒(méi)有類似的變化。他提出，情感的進(jìn)化發(fā)生在第一批兩棲動(dòng)物與爬行動(dòng)物出現(xiàn)之間的某個(gè)時(shí)期。但即使是非常熱衷于動(dòng)物情感的人，也不會(huì)把情感與處于食物鏈最末端的生物聯(lián)系起來(lái)。貝科夫指出：“我們不會(huì)談?wù)摷刀实暮＞d和為難的蚊子。”

B：第十二單元TechnologyRemakestheSchoolsHowardGardnerTechnologyhasrevolutionizedtheworldinwhichschoolsoperate.Nowit’stimeforeducatorstocatchuptochange.1.Ahumanbeingmiraculouslytransportedfrom1900toourtimewouldrecognizemuchofwhatgoesonintoday’sclassrooms—theprevalentlecturing,theemphasisondrill,thedecontextualizedmaterialsandactivitiesrangingfrombanalreaderstoweeklyspellingtests.Withthepossibleexceptionofthechurch,fewinstitutionshavechangedaslittleinfundamentalwaysasthosechargedwiththeformaleducationofthenextgeneration.2.Contrastthiscontinuitywithchildren’sexperiencesoutsidetheschoolwalls.Inmodernsocietychildrenhaveaccesstoarangeofmediathatwouldhaveseemedmiraculousinanearlierera(andthatstillastonishesmembersoflessindustrializedsocieties):television,cellularphones,personalcomputerswithCD-ROMs,faxmachines,videodiscs,personalstereos,andstillandvideocameras.3.Thevisitorfromthepastwhowouldreadilyrecognizetoday’sclassroomwouldhavetroublerelatingtotheout-of-schoolworldofamodern10-year-old.IconfessthatIoftenexperiencesuchdifficultiesmyself.4.Schools—ifnoteducationgenerally—areinherentlyconservativeinstitutions.Inlargemeasure,Iwoulddefendthisconservatism.Butchangesinourworldaresorapidandsodecisivethatitwillnotbepossibleforschoolstoremainastheywereorsimplytointroduceafewsuperficialadjustments.Indeed,ifschoolsdonotchangerapidlyandradically,theyarelikelytobereplacedbyother,moreresponsive(thoughperhapslesscomfortableandlesslegitimate)institutions.5.Themostimportanttechnologicaleventofourtimeistheascendancyofthecomputer.Computersalreadyplayaprominentroleinmanyaspectsofourlives,fromtransportationcommunicationtopersonalbookkeepingandentertainment.Scarcelyoblivioustothesetrends,manyschoolsnowhavecomputersandnetworkingcapabilities.Tosomeextent,thesetechnologicalappurtenanceshavebeenabsorbedintothelifeoftheschool,thoughoftentheysimplydelivertheoldlessonsinamoreconvenientandefficientformat.6.Inthefuture,however,educationwillbeorganizedlargelyaroundthecomputer.Computerswillpermitadegreeofindividualization—personalizedcoachingortutoring—whichinthepastwasavailableonlytotherich.Allstudentsmayreceiveacurriculumtailoredtotheirneeds,learningstyle,paceandprofileofmastery,andrecordofsuccesswithearliermaterialsandlessons.Indeed,computertechnologypermitsustorealize,forthefirsttime,progressiveeducationalideasof“personalization”and“active,hands-onlearning”forstudentsallovertheworld.7.Computertechnologyputsalltheinformationintheworldatone’sfingertips,quiteliterally.Thisisbothablessingandacurse.Nolongerdowehavetospendlongperiodsoftimehuntingdownasourceoraperson—thesecanbefoundinstantaneously.SoonwewillnotevenhavetotypeinaninstructioninordertolearnthecapitalofMontana,thepopulationofKorea,orOhm’slaw;wewillbeabletosimplyaskaquestionoutloudandthecomputerwillprintoutorspeaktheanswer.Thuspeoplewillachieveinstant“culturalliteracy”.8.Lesshappily,theinternethasnomeansofqualitycontrol;“anyonecanplay”.Informationanddisinformationcomminglecomfortablyand,asofyet,therearenoreliablewaystodistinguishsensefromdistortionsanddownrightnonsenseontheNet.EthnographerSherryTurkletellsabouttheyoungchildwhoinsiststhat“therearealwaysriotswhentaxesgoup”becausethatisthecommonwisdomembeddedinthewidelyavailablegameprogram,SimCity.Identifyingthetrue,thebeautiful,andthegood—andwhichofthesetruths,beauties,orgoodsareworthknowing—constitutesaformidablechallenge.9.Itmightbesaid,inresponse,thattheworldhasalwaysbeenfilledwithmisinformation.Trueenough,butinthepasteducationalauthoritiescouldatleastchoosetheirfavoritetexts(andproscribeothers).Today’ssituation,witheveryonehavinginstantaccesstomillionsofsources,isunprecedented.10.Artificialintelligenceandvirtualrealityaretwocomputer-relatedtechnologiesthatmaycastalargeshadowoneducation.Muchofschoolplanningmaybedonenotbyhumanagentsbutbyprogramscreatedbyhumanagents;andmuchofwhatwasonceaccomplishedbytextbooksandoccasionalfieldtripswillnowbeperformedinvirtualreality.Onecanask:whatisthetruthvalueofmaterialspreparedentirelybynonhumanentities?11.Inaturnaboutfromprevioustrends,theacquisitionofcredentialsfromaccreditedinstitutionsmaybecomelessimportant.Individualswillbeabletoeducatethemselves(largelyifnotwholly)andtoexhibittheirmasteryinasimulatedsetting.Whypay$120,000togotolawschool,ifonecan“readlaw”asinearliertimesandthendemonstrateone’slegalskillsviacomputersimulation?Orlearntoflyaplaneorconductneurosurgerybysimilarmeans,forthatmatter?12.Muchofeducationinthepastwascalibratedtomakesurethatindividualscouldcarryoutaregularjob,reliably,throughouttheirproductiveadultyears.Nowadays,thisassumptionisdoublyflawed.First,almosteverythingthatcanbehandledalgorithmicallywillbecarriedoutbyautomata.Second,fewpeoplewillremaininthesameoccupationalnichefortheirwholelives;manywillmovefrequently(eithervoluntarilyorbynecessity)fromoneniche,company,andsectoroftheeconomytoanother.13.Theexplosionofnewandrapidlychangingrolesintheworkplacecomplicateseducationinunprecedentedways.Mostadultteachersandparentswillnothaveexperiencesonwhichtheycandrawtoprepareyoungstersforaworldinwhichtheycanexpecttochangejobsregularly.Intheabsenceofprecedent,youthswillhavetopreparethemselvesforrapidlychanging“careerpaths”andlifesituations.14.Whilecomputer-basedteachingandcurriculafiguretobethedominanttechnologicalinfluenceoneducation,otherinnovationswillhaveimpactsaswell.Imagingtechnologieswillpermitstudyofstudents’brainactivityandbloodflowastheyengageinvariouskindsofproblem-solvingorcreativeactivities.Nolongerrestrictedtoresearch,thesefindingsaboutastudent’s“mentallife”arelikelytoinfluencepedagogicalapproachesaswellashisorherplacementinspecialormainstreameducationalsettings.15.Enhancedunderstandingofthegeneticbasisoflearningandofvarioustalentsisalsolikelytointrudeontheclassroom.Itmaybepossibletodeterminewhichyoungstersarelikelytoadvancequicklyandwhichonesseemdoomedto“uphill”schoolexperiences;someauthoritieswillinsistthatthesefindingsbeappliedinspecificcases,whileotherswillstrenuouslyobjecttoanydecisionsmadeonthebasisofgeneticinformation.Drugsthatpurporttoimprovelearning,memory,ormotivationwillbecomereadilyavailable.Teachersandparentsmayfaceethicaldilemmasthatwouldinearliertimeshavebeenrestrictedtosciencefiction.16.Finally,recentbreakthroughsinbiologyandmedicinemaychangeeducationinthemostradicalways.Ifindividualsseekto“design”offspringthroughgeneticengineering,ortoalterthegeneticendowmentofanalreadyexistingperson,orifhumancloningbecomesarealityaswellasapossibility,thenourdefinitionsofwhatitmeanstobeahumanbeing,andtobeapartofhumansociety,willbechangedforever.Eventhelawsofevolutionmayhavetobereconceived.17.Ihavenotedthateducationisconservative,andthatthisconserva