听力原文： BARCELONA

A new study in the journal of Experimental Psychology suggested that it's not just humans that can tell the difference between languages. It turns out that rats can distinguish between Japanese and Dutch. That's what researchers at the Park Scientific Barcelona found. When they trained rats to press a little lever in response to a specific language, some rats were given Japanese while others heard Dutch. When the rats later listened to both languages they ignored the unfamiliar one. Human babies easily pick up on the distinctive rhythm of a language as they are learning to talk. Rats obviously don't use language. So this finding suggests that some of the skills that make human language possible probably evolved for other reasons.

AMERICA

An examination of old bones in America has led scientists to suggest that sperm whales diving deep beneath the surface of the ocean can suffer from decompression sickness or the bends just as human divers do. Researchers found evidence of damage in the bones of whales dating back over a period of more than 100 years. The pitting and erosion of the bones matched the conditions associated with the bends in which too rapid ascent from the ocean depth can cause agonizing pain or death.

JAPAN

Another powerful earthquake has struck Japan's northwestern Niigata Prefecture, site of the quake, Saturday. That was the nation's most deadly earthquake in 9 years. The latest temblor measuring 5.6 on the open-ended Richter Scale occurred early Monday local time. There were no immediate damage reports. On Sunday, Japan's Prime Minister announced he asked parliament for emergency funding to help people recover from Saturday's earthquake which left at least 23 people dead and thousands more injured. The quake forced about 65,000 people to evacuate their homes and cut off power, communications and transportation. It was the worst in Japan since the 1995 earthquake in the city of Kobe.

CHINA

The American Secretary of State is in China for talks expected to focus on the deadlock over North Korea's nuclear program. China has hosted previous six-nation talks aimed at resolving the crisis over what North Korea describes as its nuclear deterrent. Pyongyang has refused to resume negotiation and says US-led international naval exercise due to begin on Monday off the Japanese coast are evidence of Washington's hostile intent. Speaking earlier in Tokyo, Mr. Secretary denied the accusation and said it was urgent to resume the multilateral talks with North Korea.

EUROPE

The US dollar has continued to fall on international currency markets, hitting the lowest level it's reached against the Euro since the European single currency began trading in 1999. It slipped to 1 dollar 34.6 cents against the Euro. That's down more than a third from its highest point in 2002. The head of the European Central Bank described the plunge as brutal and financial analysts say the dollar could soon lose its status as the world's dominant currency. But the United States Treasury Secretary insists that the government is addressing the issue.

Questions:

6. What does this news item mainly suggest？

7.What can sperm whales suffer from when diving deep？

8.Which of the following statements is NOT a feature of the earthquake？

9.What can we infer from the news？

10.Which of the following statements is TRUE according to the news？

(26)

A．Only humans can tell the difference between languages.

B．Rats can use language.

C．Rats can distinguish between English and Chinese.

D．The distinction of linguistic rhythm is a skill owned not only by humans.