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  3. The Biology of Music Humans use music as a powerful way to communicate. It may also play an important role in love. But what

The Biology of Music Humans use music as a powerful way to communicate. It may also play an important role in love. But what

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问题                         The Biology of Music
    Humans use music as a powerful way to communicate. It may also play an important role in love. But what is music, and how does it work its magic? Science does not yet have all the answers.
    What are two things that make humans different from animals? One is language, and the other is music. It is true that some animals can sing(and many birds sing better than a lot of people). However, the songs of animals, such as birds and whales, are very limited. It is also true that humans, not animals, have developed musical instruments.
    Music is strange stuff. It is clearly different from language. However, people can use music to communicate things—especially their emotions. When music is combined with speech in a song, it is a very powerful form of communication. But, biologically speaking, what is music?
    If music is truly different from speech, then we should process music and language in different parts of the brain. The scientific evidence suggests that this is true.
    Sometimes people who suffer brain damage lose their ability to process language. However, they don’t automatically(自动地)lose their musical abilities. For example, Vissarion Shebalin, a Russian composer, had a stroke(中风)in 1953. It injured the left side of his brain. He could no longer speak or understand speech. He could, however, still compose music until his death ten years later. On the other hand, sometimes strokes cause people to lose their musical ability, but they can still speak and understand speech. This shows that the brain processes music and language separately.
    By studying the physical effects of music on the body, scientists have also learned a lot about how music influences the emotions. But why does music have such a strong effect on us? That is a harder question to answer. Geoffrey Miller, a researcher at University College, London, thinks that music and love have a strong connection. Music requires special talent, practice, and physical ability. That’ s why it may be a way of showing your fitness to be someone’ s mate. For example, singing in tune or playing a musical instrument requires fine muscular control. You also need a good memory to remember the notes(音符). And playing or singing those notes correctly suggests that your hearing is in excellent condition. Finally, when a man sings to the woman he loves(or vice versa), it may be a way of showing off.
    However, Miller’ s theory still doesn’ t explain why certain combinations of sounds influence our emotions so deeply. For scientists, this is clearly an area that needs further research.
Which of the following statements is true?
选项 A、People who lose their ability to process language also lose their musical abilities.
B、People who injure the left sides of their brains can speak and understand music.
C、People who injure the left sides of their brains can’t compose music.
D、People use different parts of their brains to process music and language.
答案D
解析 根据第五段第一、二句可知，丧失处理语言能力的人不会自动丧失音乐才能，所以A项错误；根据第五段第三、四、五、六句可知，Vissarion Shebalin在1953年患了中风，中风损伤了他的左脑，他变得不能说活或理解话语，却依然能够作曲，可知B、C两项错误；根据第五段最后一句可知，人腑对音乐和语言分别进行处理，D项正确，故选D项。
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本试题收录于： 职称英语理工类B级题库职称英语分类
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