狗真的能“识人”吗
🤔️小作业:
1. What is implied by the researchers' suggestion to include free-ranging, service, and police dogs in future studies?
A. Some dogs might have greater capacity for social judgment due to their life experience
B. Pet dogs are the most suitable population for cognitive studies on humans
C. Including other types of dogs can reduce the cost of behavioral experiments
D. Dogs with training are less likely to form emotional attachments to humans
无注释原文:
Do dogs know who's kind? Scientists put it to the test—and got a surprise
From: Science Daily
Many people tend to trust dogs' instincts regarding humans. If dogs gravitate towards you, dog lovers will likely see you as safe and trustworthy, but if dogs are apprehensive around you, some may begin to question your character. Yet how and even if dogs socially evaluate people remains a mystery.
Studies have demonstrated that cognitively complex and social animal species -- such as chimpanzees -- can form reputations of humans either through direct interaction or by observing third-party interactions. The historically intimate relationship dogs have with humans has also made them the focus of considerable research, but findings have proven inconsistent.
Previous research conducted at the Wolf Science Center in Austria found that pack-living dogs and wolves did not form reputations of individual humans after both direct and indirect experience with them. This nonjudgmental attitude may be due to the animals' limited experience interacting with humans, so further study required the participation of more experienced dogs.
In a new study, a research team observed 40 pet dog participants to investigate whether age and development influences how they form reputations of humans. They first arranged for the dogs to eavesdrop on another dog's interactions with two humans, one of whom was generous and fed the dog demonstrator, while the other did not feed the dog.
After observing another dog's experience, the dogs interacted with the two humans directly while the researchers analyzed their behavior, taking note of who the dogs approached first, along with behaviors like jumping up and their proximity to each person.
The results revealed that dogs across all age groups did not significantly prefer the generous person who fed the dog compared to the selfish person who refused to feed the dog. Their behavior toward the two humans did not exceed chance levels following indirect eavesdropping or direct experience with them.
"It's clear that reputation formation may be more complex than previously thought, even for animals like dogs that closely cooperate with humans," says corresponding researcher Hoi-Lam Jim, who recently joined the faculty at Kyoto University.
"It is possible that methodological challenges in the experimental design, particularly the use of a two-choice test, may explain our negative findings, rather than an absence of capacity," says Jim.
To better understand what influences dogs' sociocognitive abilities, the research team says future research should systematically compare dogs of all ages from different populations and life experiences, expanding to include free-ranging dogs, service dogs, and police dogs.
To many of us, it seems reasonable to believe that dogs socially evaluate people, but for now we simply do not know.
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注:完整题目见本文开头;中文文本为机器翻译并非一一对应,仅供参考
含注释全文:
Do dogs know who's kind? Scientists put it to the test—and got a surprise
From: Science Daily
Many people tend to trust dogs' instincts regarding humans. If dogs gravitate towards you, dog lovers will likely see you as safe and trustworthy, but if dogs are apprehensive around you, some may begin to question your character. Yet how and even if dogs socially evaluate people remains a mystery.
许多人认为狗能“识人”。如果狗愿意靠近你,爱狗人士往往会认为你值得信赖;而如果狗对你表现出回避或不安,有些人可能会怀疑你的人格。然而,狗是否真的能社会性地判断人类,至今仍无定论。
instinct
instinct /ˈɪn.stɪŋkt/ 表示“本能,直觉”,英文解释为“the way people or animals naturally react or behave, without having to think or learn about it”举个🌰:All his instincts told him to stay near the car and wait for help. 他的直觉告诉他要呆在车旁、等待救援。
gravitate
gravitate /ˈɡræv.ɪ.teɪt/ towards/to sth/sb表示“吸引到;受吸引而转到”,英文解释为“to be attracted by or to move in the direction of something or someone”举个🌰:She always gravitates towards the older children in her playgroup. 她在幼儿游戏组里总是爱跟比她大的孩子玩。
apprehensive
apprehensive /ˌæp.rɪˈhen.sɪv/ 表示“(对将要做的事情)担忧的,担心的”,英文解释为“feeling worried about something that you are going to do or that is going to happen”举个🌰:I'm very apprehensive about tomorrow's meeting. 想到明天的会议,我就有些惴惴不安。
Studies have demonstrated that cognitively complex and social animal species -- such as chimpanzees -- can form reputations of humans either through direct interaction or by observing third-party interactions. The historically intimate relationship dogs have with humans has also made them the focus of considerable research, but findings have proven inconsistent.
研究发现,具有较高认知能力和社交性的动物,比如黑猩猩,能够通过与人类的直接接触,或观察人类的互动来判断人类的“声誉”。狗与人类长期以来建立的亲密关系也让它们成为研究重点,但目前所得结果仍不一致。
cognitively
表示“认知地”,英文解释为“in a way that is connected with thinking, or with conscious mental processes”
chimpanzee
chimpanzee /ˌtʃɪm.pænˈziː/ 表示“黑猩猩”,英文解释为“a small, very intelligent African ape with black or brown fur”
intimate
intimate /ˈɪn.tɪ.mət/ 表示“亲密的;有性关系的;宜于密切关系的”,英文解释为“having, or being likely to cause, a very close friendship or personal or sexual relationship”如:intimate relationships 亲密关系,举个🌰:The restaurant has a very intimate atmosphere. 这家餐厅的氛围很怡人。
Previous research conducted at the Wolf Science Center in Austria found that pack-living dogs and wolves did not form reputations of individual humans after both direct and indirect experience with them. This nonjudgmental attitude may be due to the animals' limited experience interacting with humans, so further study required the participation of more experienced dogs.
奥地利狼科学中心此前的研究发现,群居的狗和狼在与人类有过直接和间接的接触后,并不会形成对特定人的明确印象。这种不加判断的态度可能是由于这些动物与人类接触经验有限,因此后续研究需要招募更具人类接触经验的狗参与。
In a new study, a research team observed 40 pet dog participants to investigate whether age and development influences how they form reputations of humans. They first arranged for the dogs to eavesdrop on another dog's interactions with two humans, one of whom was generous and fed the dog demonstrator, while the other did not feed the dog.
在一项新研究中,研究人员观察了40只宠物狗,探索它们是否会因年龄或发育阶段不同而形成对人类的不同印象。首先,研究人员让它们“旁观”另一只狗与两位人类的互动:其中一人喂狗,另一人则没有喂。
eavesdrop
eavesdrop /ˈiːvz.drɒp/ 表示“偷听”,英文解释为“to listen to someone's private conversation without them knowing”举个🌰:He was eavesdropping on our conversation. 他在偷听我们谈话。
demonstrator
demonstrator /ˈdem.ən.streɪ.tər/ 表示“展示者,演示者,示范者”,英文解释为“a person who explains how something works or how to do something”举个🌰:A demonstrator was showing customers how the food processor worked. 一个人在向顾客演示如何使用食品加工器。
After observing another dog's experience, the dogs interacted with the two humans directly while the researchers analyzed their behavior, taking note of who the dogs approached first, along with behaviors like jumping up and their proximity to each person.
在观察了另一只狗的经历后,这些狗随后与两位人类进行了直接互动,研究人员分析它们的行为,记录了狗首先接近的是谁、是否跳跃、以及与每个人的距离等。
proximity
proximity /prɒkˈsɪm.ə.ti/ 表示“接近,邻近;临近”,英文解释为“the state of being near in space or time”举个🌰:The best thing about the location of the house is its proximity to the town centre. 这座房子在地理位置方面最好的一点就是邻近市中心。
📍《经济学人》(The Economist)一篇讲述量子计算的文章中提到:Their proximity to markets makes such judgments easier. 他们靠近市场,因而更容易做出这类判断。
The results revealed that dogs across all age groups did not significantly prefer the generous person who fed the dog compared to the selfish person who refused to feed the dog. Their behavior toward the two humans did not exceed chance levels following indirect eavesdropping or direct experience with them.
实验结果显示,各年龄段的狗在面对曾喂食和未喂食的人时并无明显偏好。在旁观或亲身互动之后,狗对两人的反应几乎没有差别。
exceed
exceed /ɪkˈsiːd/ 表示“超过,超出(数量);超越(规定的范围)”,英文解释为“to be greater than a number or amount, or to go past an allowed limit”举个🌰:The final cost should not exceed ¥100. 最终的花费不应超出100元。
📍词根“-ceed”表示"走,去",前缀“ex-”表示"出,超出"。近义词:surpass(超过),同根词:proceed(进行),succeed(成功)
chance
chance /tʃɑːns/ 表示“偶然,碰巧;巧合”,英文解释为“the force that causes things to happen without any known cause or reason for doing so”举个🌰:Roulette is a game of chance. 轮盘赌是碰运气的游戏。
"It's clear that reputation formation may be more complex than previously thought, even for animals like dogs that closely cooperate with humans," says corresponding researcher Hoi-Lam Jim, who recently joined the faculty at Kyoto University.
“很明显,印象的形成可能比之前想象的更复杂,即使是像狗这样与人类密切协作的动物也是如此,”来自京都大学新任研究员詹凯琳(Hoi-Lam Jim)表示。
"It is possible that methodological challenges in the experimental design, particularly the use of a two-choice test, may explain our negative findings, rather than an absence of capacity," says Jim.
詹凯琳指出:“研究结果偏向负面,也许并非因为狗缺乏判断力,而是实验设计上,特别是二选一模式,本身存在一定局限。”
methodological
methodological /ˌmeθ.ə.dəlˈɒdʒ.ɪ.kəl/ 表示“方法论的,(研究)方法的”,英文解释为“relating to the method used for doing, teaching, or studying something”举个🌰:The research uses many methodological approaches. 这项研究使用很多种研究方法。
To better understand what influences dogs' sociocognitive abilities, the research team says future research should systematically compare dogs of all ages from different populations and life experiences, expanding to include free-ranging dogs, service dogs, and police dogs.
为了更好地了解影响狗社会认知能力的因素,研究团队表示,未来的研究应系统性地比较不同年龄、群体和生活经历的狗,扩大范围以涵盖流浪狗、服务犬和警犬等。
To many of us, it seems reasonable to believe that dogs socially evaluate people, but for now we simply do not know.
大多数人相信狗有“识人”的本能,这听起来合情合理,但目前我们还没有确凿的科学依据。
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