专题03科学与技术篇（一）-2022-2023学年下学期高一英语阅读理解名校好题100篇

专题03科学与技术篇（一） Text 21 （2022秋·山东东营·高一广饶一中校考阶段练习）Populations of humpback whales (座头鲸) that live in different places can learn long, complicated (复杂的) songs from one another. Scientists at the University of Queensland, in Australia, focused on two populations of humpback whales, one by Australia’s east coast and the other off New Caledonia—a group of islands in the Pacific Ocean about 900 miles away. These populations may share feeding grounds or come across one another while moving from one place to another. Only male whales sing. Their songs are known to be made up of a wide variety of different sounds arranged into patterns (模式) and can last for hours. The researchers listened to samples (样本) of male humpback songs from 2009 to 2015. They found out how complicated the songs were based on the number of sounds and how long the patterns lasted. “The team found that the whales from New Caledonia were able to sing the same songs as the Australian whales without simplifying or leaving anything out,” said lead researcher Jenny Allen. This was true no matter how complicated the songs were. The whales also sang a different song each year. “It means humpback whales can learn a whole song pattern from another population very quickly,” Allen said. It is not known for sure why male whales sing, but two possible reasons are to attract a mate or to warn other males to stay out of a private area. In addition to humpbacks, only a few other species of whales (blue, fifin, bowhead, and minke whales) sing. Humpback whale numbers have been badly affected by hunting, which was stopped by law in the 1980s. Today there are thought to be about 40,000 humpbacks swimming in Australia’s waters, although scientists warn that the species still faces a number of threats in the wild. Allen said the study’s findings will aid efforts to save and protect humpback whales. 1．Why did the researchers choose Australian whales and whales from New Caledonia? A．They are quick learners. B．They are good