Home
Listening
Listen to an Academic Talk Test #081
Listen to an Academic Talk
1. What is the lecture mainly about?
A) The social structure of monkey groups
B) The evolution of human language
C) A complex form of animal communication
D) How predators hunt different types of monkeys
2. According to the professor, how do vervet monkeys react to the alarm call for an eagle?
A) They climb to the top of a tree
B) They look for cover in bushes
C) They stand up and search the ground
D) They make loud noises to scare the predator
3. What can be inferred about the vervet monkeys' responses?
A) They are learned by observing humans
B) They are identical regardless of the predator
C) They are tailored to the type of threat
D) They are not always effective at avoiding danger
4. Why does the professor mention different predators?
A) To question the accuracy of scientific observations
B) To show that the alarm calls are specific
C) To argue that the monkeys' habitat is dangerous
D) To compare the monkeys to other animal species
Professor: We know animals communicate, but some signals are surprisingly complex. Take the alarm calls of vervet monkeys in Africa. They don't just have one generic "danger!" call. Instead, they produce distinct calls for different predators.
For a leopard, they give a call that sends other monkeys scrambling up a tree. For an eagle, a different call makes them look up and hide in dense bushes. And for a snake, yet another call causes them to stand up and scan the ground.
This behavior, called referential signaling, means the calls refer to specific objects in the environment. It's a key feature of human language, and finding it in monkeys challenges our ideas about the sophistication of animal minds. It implies they're not just reacting emotionally, but conveying specific information.
For a leopard, they give a call that sends other monkeys scrambling up a tree. For an eagle, a different call makes them look up and hide in dense bushes. And for a snake, yet another call causes them to stand up and scan the ground.
This behavior, called referential signaling, means the calls refer to specific objects in the environment. It's a key feature of human language, and finding it in monkeys challenges our ideas about the sophistication of animal minds. It implies they're not just reacting emotionally, but conveying specific information.
Highlights
| ID: | #io5895291163 |
Tags
New TOEFL