TEXT TEN

A boy or a girl? That is usually the first question asked when a woman gives birth. Remarkably, the answer varies with where the mother lives. In rich countries the chances of its being a boy are about 5% higher than in poor ones. Equally remarkably, that figure has been falling recently. Several theories have been put forward to explain these observations. Some argue that smoking plays a role, others that diet may be important. Neither of these ideas has been supported by evidence from large studies. But new research points to a different factor: stress.

Strange as it might seem, the terrorist attacks of September 11th 2001 shed light on the enigma. Studies noting the sex of babies conceived in New York during the week of the attacks found a drop in the ratio of males to females. That is consistent with earlier studies, which revealed a similar shift in women who became pregnant during floods and earthquakes and in time of war. Moreover, a study carried out eight years ago by researchers at the University of Aarhus, in Denmark, revealed that women who suffered the death of a child or spouse from some catastrophic illness around the time they conceived were much more likely to give birth to girls than to boys.

Taken together, these results suggest that acute stress to a woman at the time of conception shifts the sex ratio towards girls. However, Carsten Obel, a researcher at Aarhus who was not involved in the earlier study, wondered if the same might be true of chronic stress too. In a paper just published in Human Development, he shows that it is.

Dr Obel used a set of data collected between 1989 and 1992. During that period 8,719 expectant mothers were asked to fill in questionnaires that inquired, among other things, about their level of stress. Dr Obel found that the more stressed a mother had been, the less chance she had of having given birth to a boy. Only 47% of children born to women in the top quartile of stress were males. That compared with 52% for women in the bottom quartile. Dr Obel suspects the immediate cause is that male pregnancies are more likely to miscarry in response to stress than female pregnancies are, especially during the first three months. However, that is difficult to prove. More intriguing, though, is the ultimate cause, for he thinks it might be adaptive, rather than pathological.

That is because the chances are that a daughter who reaches adulthood will find a mate and thus produce grandchildren. A son is a different matter. Healthy, strapping sons are likely to produce lots of grandchildren, by several women—or would have done in the hunter-gatherer societies in which most human evolution took place. Weak ones would be marginalised and maybe even killed in the cut and thrust of male competition. If a mother's stress adversely affects the development of her fetus then selectively aborting boys, rather than wasting time and resources on bringing them to term, would make evolutionary sense.

That, in turn, would explain why women in rich countries, who are less likely to suffer from hunger and disease, are more likely to give birth to sons. That this likelihood is, nevertheless, falling suggests that rich women's lives may be more stressful than they used to be.

1. The author begins the passage by_____.

[A] presenting an argumentation

[B] explaining a phenomenon

[C] raising a question

[D] making a comparison

2. The ratio of giving birth to a boy is falling in rich countries because_____.

[A] the terrorist attacks of September 11th 2001 exerted huge negative impact

[B] women are facing greater pressure than past

[C] women are under new pressure now which they seldom faced in the past

[D] male pregnancies are more easily to miscarry

3. Which of the following can explain Dr Obel’s opinion that the ultimat cause is adaptive rather than pathological?

[A] 47% of children born to women in the top quartile of stress were males while 52% in the bottom quartile.

[B] Women in rich countries are more likely to give birth to boys

[C] Women selectively abort boys rather than waste time and resources on bringing them to term for fear of male competition.

[D] Women who suffer from calamity in conception are more likely to give birth to girls.

4. Women in the hunter-gatherer societies are more likely to give birth to daughters because_____.

[A] they agree that giving birth to daughters is beneficial in the evolutionary sense

[B] sons are likely to produce lots of grandchildren with several women

[C] they think it is a better practice for a daughter to produce grandchildren with only one mate

[D] they think bringing sons to term is wasting time and resources.

5.From this passage, we may draw a conclusion that_____.

[A] acute stress is more likely to cause women to choose aborting boys than chronic stress.

[B] stress to a woman at the time of conception, whether acute or chronic, will shift the sex ratio towards girls.

[C] more girls will be born in the future because today’s women, in both rich and poor countries, suffer from increasing pressure.

[D] chronic stress is more decisive in influencing the women’s pregnancies.

文章剖析：

這篇文章是介紹影響嬰兒出生性別原因的一個新的研究成果－－壓力。文章第一段提出以往人們對該問題的看法，然后引出新的研究結果；第二段用一些事例來證明突發壓力對于嬰兒性別的影響；第三段、第四段講述Obel博士調查研究表明慢性壓力在這方面的影響；第五段對Obel博士的研究結果作了一些論證；第六段是對第一段提到的現象用得出的結論做解釋。

詞匯注釋：

enigma n. 謎 chronic adj. 長期的，持續的

conception n. 受精 fetus n. 胎兒

questionnarie n. 調查表 quartile n. 四分位值

miscarry v. 流產 pathological adj. 病理的

strapping adj. 偉岸的，魁梧的

難句突破：

(1) Moreover, a study carried out eight years ago by researchers at the University of Aarhus, in Denmark, revealed that women who suffered the death of a child or spouse from some catastrophic illness around the time they conceived were much more likely to give birth to girls than to boys.

[主體句式] A study revealed that…

[結構分析]這是一個復合句，主語后面是一個過去分詞短語做定語；revealed后面的賓語從句比較復雜，從句的主體句式為women or spouse were likely to …，狀語中that 引導的定語從句用來修飾time, 第一個主語women后有一個以who引導的定語從句。

[句子譯文] 。而且，八年前奧爾胡斯大學研究者們做的一項研究也表明經過了第一個孩子死亡的婦女或在懷孕期間經歷過一些災難性疾病的夫婦更有可能生女孩。

(2) If a mother's stress adversely affects the development of her fetus then selectively aborting boys, rather than wasting time and resources on bringing them to term, would make evolutionary sense.

[主體句式] If… then selectively aborting boys…would make sense.

[結構分析] 這是一個帶有條件狀語從句的復合句，主語由現在分詞短語構成。

[句子譯文]如果母親的壓力對胎兒的發展起了相反的影響，選擇性地將男孩流產，而不是浪費時間和資源將他們養足月，那么就能說明進化的問題了。

題目分析:

1. The author begins the passage by_____.

1. 作者展開這篇文章一開始_____。

[A] presenting an argumentation

[A] 提出一個論點

[B] explaining a phenomenon

[B] 解釋一個現象

[C] raising a question

[C] 提出一個問題

[D] making a comparison

[D] 做了一個比較

[答案]A

[難度系數] ☆

[分析]推理題。作者在文章一開始就指出在富裕國家中婦女生男孩的比率比貧窮國家高出5%，但目前這個比率在下降，有許多人給出自己的解釋，但都不能被大型的研究所證明，而現在又有新的論點，就是壓力的作用。接下來的幾段就是對這個論點的證實。可見，作者是以提出一個論點的形式來開始這篇文章的。

2. The ratio of giving birth to a boy is falling in rich countries because_____.

2.在富裕國家中男孩的出生率下降了是因為_____。

[A] the terrorist attacks of September 11th 2001 exerted huge negative impact

[A] 2001年9月11日恐怖主義襲擊帶來了巨大的負面影響

[B] women are facing greater pressure than past

[B] 婦女現在面臨的壓力比以前大

[C] women are under new pressure now which they seldom faced in the past

[C] 婦女現在要面臨新的壓力，這是她們以前沒有遇到過的

[D] male pregnancies are more easily to miscarry

[D] 懷了男孩的女性更加容易流產

[答案]B

[難度系數] ☆☆☆

[分析]推理題。首先A選項明顯是錯誤的，因為這個影響只限于美國，并不包括所有的富裕國家。D也是錯誤選項，因為文章第四段中提到了這一點，但是選項中卻丟掉了一個重要前提，也就是在較大的壓力下，懷了男孩的女性才更加容易流產。題干要求找出富裕國家目前男孩出生率下降的原因，文章整篇都在討論壓力對于嬰兒性別的作用，而最后一段的最后一句話作者指出，目前這個比率下降可能是因為富裕國家婦女現在承受的壓力要比以前多，但是沒有說明有新的壓力。因此，答案為B。

3. Which of the following can explain Dr Obel’s opinion that the ultimat cause is adaptive rather than pathological?

3.以下那一項可以解釋Obel博士認為最根本的原因是適應性的而不是生理性的這個觀點？

[A] 47% of children born to women in the top quartile of stress were males while 52% in the bottom quartile.

[A]壓力最大的四成婦女47%生育的是男孩，而壓力最小的四成婦女52%生育的是男孩。

[B] Women in rich countries are more likely to give birth to boys because they are more stressful

[B]富裕國家的婦女生育男孩的幾率更大，因為她們所承受的壓力更大。

[C] Women selectively abort boys rather than waste time and resources on bringing them to term for fear of male competition.

[C]婦女因為害怕男性競爭而選擇將男嬰流產，而不是浪費時間和養料將他們發育完整。

[D] Women who suffer from calamity in conception are more likely to give birth to girls.

[D]受精期經歷了災難的婦女生育女孩的比率更大。

[答案]C

[難度系數] ☆☆☆

[分析]細節題。第四段中提到，Obel博士認為導致女性在面臨壓力時生女孩的幾率更大，其根本原因應該是適應性的原因而不是生理性原因。第四段提到，Obel懷疑是其直接原因是面臨壓力時如果懷孕的是男孩那么就更容易流產。緊接著第五段就給出了解釋，那就是在資源緊缺的男性競爭社會中，弱小的男性更容易被邊緣化，被淘汰，而女性則不存在這個問題，所以面對這種壓力，婦女生育孩子時會選擇將男嬰流產，這是一種適應環境的做法。因此，答案中C是可以說明他的這個觀點的，ABD只是一些表象。

4. Women in the hunter-gatherer societies are more likely to give birth to daughters because_____.

4.在原始狩獵社會中，婦女生育女兒的比率更大是因為_____。

[A] they agree that giving birth to daughters is beneficial in the evolutionary sense

[A] 他們一致認為在進化的意義上，生女兒在有利的。

[B] sons are likely to produce lots of grandchildren with several women

[B] 兒子會和幾位女性一起生育許多后代

[C] they think it is a better practice for a daughter to produce grandchildren with only one mate

[C]他們認為女兒只和一個配偶生兒育女是一個更好的做法

[D] they think bringing sons to term is wasting time and resources.

[D]他們認為將男嬰養至足月是浪費時間和資源的。

[答案]D

[難度系數] ☆☆☆

[分析]推理題。文章第五段指出在原始狩獵社會中，健康、強壯的男性可以和幾位女性一起繁殖許多后代，而弱小的則會被邊緣化甚至在男性競爭中被殺死。婦女在生育孩子時就會面臨這樣的壓力，她更情愿將男嬰流產，也不愿意花費了如此多的時間和精力后將男嬰生出來，卻面臨被淘汰的壓力。因此，在原始狩獵社會中，女孩出生率較高的原因是因為婦女生育時面臨的這種壓力。答案中，D為正確答案。A選項顯然是錯誤的，原始人不會以進化的觀點去思考問題。B選項的說法只是一個現象，并不是題干的原因。C選項的說法與原文相反。

5.From this passage, we may draw a conclusion that_____.

5.從這篇文章我們可以得出一個結論____。

[A] acute stress is more likely to cause women to choose aborting boys than chronic stress.

[A]突發的壓力比持續的壓力更能導致婦女選擇將男嬰流產。

[B] stress to a woman at the time of conception, whether acute or chronic, will shift the sex ratio towards girls.

[B]婦女懷孕期間經受壓力，無論是突發的還是持續的，都會導致嬰兒性別比例偏向女孩。

[C] more girls will be born in the future because today’s women, in both rich and poor countries, suffer from increasing pressure.

[C] 未來會有更多的女孩出生，因為現在不論是在富裕國家還是在貧窮國家，女性都面臨著越來越大的壓力。

[D] chronic stress is more decisive in influencing the women’s pregnancies.

[D]在影響女性懷孕方面慢性的壓力更具有決定性的作用。

[答案]B

[難度系數] ☆☆☆

[分析] 推理題。題干要求根據整篇文章推導出一個結論，本文主要講述了壓力對于嬰兒出生性別的影響，分別用一些數據和事實證明突發壓力和慢性壓力都有一定的影響，從中可以得出結論，就是突發與急性壓力都會使得女孩出生率高一些。答案A、D文中并沒有進行比較、缺少證據，C的內容也文中也沒有提到。因此，正確答案為B。

參考譯文：

男孩還是女孩？這通常是一個婦女生完孩子后問的第一個問題。很顯然的，因為這位母親所在的地方不同答案也就不同。在富裕國家中生男孩的比率要比貧窮國家高5%。同樣引人注目的是，最近這個數字卻降低了。人們提出了幾個理論來解釋這些現象。有人認為吸煙可能是原因所在，也有人認為節食在影響較大。但較大的研究的證據卻都不支持這兩個觀點，新的研究指出了另外一個因素：壓力。

雖然看起來很奇怪，但2001年911恐怖襲擊將這個謎顯示了出來。在恐怖襲擊的那一周在紐約進行的嬰兒性別研究發現男女性別比例下降了，這與早期的研究相一致。早期研究表明洪水、地震和戰爭期間懷孕婦女生育男女的比例也有相似的變化。而且，八年前奧爾胡斯大學研究者們做的一項研究也表明經過了第一個孩子死亡的婦女或在懷孕期間有一些災難性疾病的夫婦更有可能生女孩。

結合這些研究來看，這些結果表明女性在受精時如果有突然的壓力，那么生女孩的比例就會增大。但是，奧爾胡斯的一位研究者CarstenObel并沒有參與早期的研究，他在懷疑持續的壓力是否也會有同樣的影響。他剛剛在《人類發展》上發表的一篇論文中他表明事實確實如此。

Obel博士使用了1989年至1992年間的一組數字。在這個時期，8791名婦女被邀填寫了問卷調查，調查其中一項就是她們壓力的程度。Obel博士發現一個婦女承受的壓力越重，她生男孩的概率就越小。壓力最大的四成婦女只有47%生育的是男孩，而最小的四成婦女其比例為52%。Obel博士懷疑直接原因是有壓力的情況下懷孕的是男嬰的比懷孕女嬰的更容易流產，尤其是在前三個月。但是，這一點很難證實。更讓人迷惑的是最根本的原因，因為他認為是適應性的而不是生理性的。

因為可能的情況時女孩成年后就要找一位男性，然后生育后代。而男孩則不一樣。健康、魁梧的男性更有可能和幾位女性生育很多后代，或是在原始狩獵族社會中是這樣的，大多數人類進化是這樣進行的。弱小的將會被邊緣化，甚至有可能在男性的打殺競爭中被殺死。如果母親的壓力對胎兒的發展起了相反的影響，選擇性地將男孩流產，而不是浪費時間和資源將他們養足月，那么就能說明進化的問題了。

這反過來也可以解釋為什么在富裕國家中女性很少受到饑餓和疾病的威脅，更容易生育男孩。盡管這種可能存在，但是數據的下降說明富裕女性的生活目前所受的壓力要比以前多得多。

[責任編輯:oasisli]