1．One of the strangest features of motherhood is that the vast majority of mothers prefer to cradle their babies in the left arm．Why should this be？The obvious explanation is that the majority of mothers are right handed and they wish to keep their right handed and they wish to keep their right hand free．Unfortunately，this explanation cannot apply，because left-handed mothers also favor their left arm for holding their babies．The precise figures arc 83 percent for right-handed mothers and 73 percent for left-handed mothers．
The most likely explanation is that the mother's heart is on the left side and，by holding the baby in her left arm，she is unconsciously bringing her baby closer to the sound of the heart beat．This is the sound the baby heard when it was inside the mother's womb and which is therefore an association with peace，comfort and security．
Tests were carried out in nurseries where some babies were played the recorded sound of a human heart beat，and，sure enough，went to sleep twice as quickly as the others．We also know that the sound of mother's heart is quite audible inside the womb and that the unborn baby has a well-developed hearing．
It is interesting that fathers show less of this left-side bias （偏愛） than mothers，suggesting that the human female is better programmed than her partner for carrying a baby．Alternatively，she may unconsciously adjust her holding behavior to make baby fell more secure．Some new observations on our closest animals'relatives，the chimpanzees and gorillas，have revealed that they too show a strong bias for holding their babies on the left side．The precise figures were 84 percent for chimpanzees and 82percent for gorillas，remarkably close to the human percentages．
Recently a possible additional value in cradling babies on the left side has been suggested．It has been pointed out that，because，the two sides of the brain are concerned with different aspects of behavior，it is possible that the mother，in cradling the baby to her left，is showing the baby her"best side"．It is claimed that the emotions are expressed more strongly on the left side of the human face and that she therefore gives the baby a better chance to read her emotional mood changes as it gazes up at her．Furthermore，the mother's left eye and ear are more tuned into emotional changes in her baby than her right eye and ear would be．So in addition to the baby's seeing the more expressive parts of its mother，there is further advantage that the mother is herself more sensitive to the left-held baby．This may sound far-fetched，but just possibly，it could provide a slight extra benefit for those mothers displaying the strange one-sided bias when cradling their infants．
How does a bias occur？Do the mothers have an instinctive preference for it，or do they learn it by trial and error，unconsciously adjusting the position of the babies until the babies are calmer？The surprising answer is that it seems to be the baby not the mother who controls the bias．Observation of new born infants when they were only a few hours old revealed that they come into the world with a pre-programmed tendency to turn their head to the right．If the new born baby is gently held in a dead central position and then released，it naturally swings to the right far more often than to the left．This happens in nearly 70percent of babies．This may be only a part of explanation，because the holding bias is 80percent not 70percent，but it adds a further intriguing chapter to the story．
61．How does the author develop Paragraph 1？C
A．By giving an example as a hook．
B．By giving a general statement and narrowing it down．
C．By asking a question and showing an answer．
D．By explaining the importance of understanding a phenomenon．
62．The underlined word"audible"in Paragraph 3meansB．
A．soft
B．clear
C．weak
D．distant
63．What's the main idea of Paragraph 5？D
A．The left side of the human face expresses emotions more strongly than the right．
B．A mother's left eye and ear are more sensitive to the emotional changes in her baby．
C．A baby may be more able to"read"its mother's emotions than was previously believed．
D．Holding her baby in the left arm may improve a mother's emotional communication with it．
64．What is the author's tone when he discusses why most mothers cradle their babies in the left arm？A
A．Cautious．
B．Disapproving．
C．Subjective．
D．Favorable．
分析 文章圍繞"為什么大多數(shù)母親喜歡左手抱小孩"這個問題而展開，給出了許多的解釋和實驗的結(jié)果．
解答 61-64 CBDA
61、C 細(xì)節(jié)理解題．定位到第一段．第一句說明一個現(xiàn)象，并對此提出疑問，然后進而給出解釋．符合這種展開方式的只有 C 選項．
62、B 詞意猜測題．本段共兩句話．前一句講在嬰兒室里面，給一些嬰兒播放人類心跳的錄音，他們?nèi)胨俣仁瞧渌麐雰旱膬杀叮笠痪溆种v到在子宮內(nèi)未出生的嬰兒有著發(fā)育健全的聽力系統(tǒng)，因此在子宮內(nèi)，母親的心跳聲對于嬰兒來說是很清晰的，因此，正確答案是 B選項．
63、D 細(xì)節(jié)理解題．定位到第五段．根據(jù)"It is claimed that the emotions are expressed more strongly on the left side of the human face and that she therefore give the baby a better chance to read her emotional mood changes as it gazes up at her．"以及后面"more tuned into emotion changes"，"seeing more expressive parts"，"more sensitive"可知，本段重點是在說明母親左手抱嬰兒對他們之間的交流（communication）的促進作用．因此，D 選項為正確答案．A、B、C 選項是個別的 idea，并不是 main idea．
64、A 態(tài)度判斷題．根據(jù)第二段"…most likely explanation…"，第五段"…a possible additional value…"，"It is possible that…．"，"…but just possibly…"，第六段"This may be only a part of explanation…"，不難發(fā)現(xiàn)作者說話語氣相對比較謹(jǐn)慎，沒有提及"不贊成"或者"贊成"，只是敘述已有的實驗的解釋，未加入個人的主觀意思．故答案選A．
點評 閱讀理解題測試考生在閱讀基礎(chǔ)上的邏輯推理能力，要求考生根據(jù)文章所述事件的邏輯關(guān)系，對未說明的趨勢或結(jié)局作出合理的推斷；或根據(jù)作者所闡述的觀點理論，對文章未涉及的現(xiàn)象、事例給以解釋．考生首先要仔細(xì)閱讀短文，完整了解信息，準(zhǔn)確把握作者觀點．
