『新东方在线托福听力』为托福考生准备了ETS托福TPO/Official 25 Lec 4听力练习：The professor discusses a study on the relationship between brain growth and play. What does that study conclude?原文题目答案解析，TPO/Official 25 Lec 4听力原文范文音频翻译。

托福TPO/Official 25 Lec 4听力原文The professor discusses a study on the relationship between brain growth and play. What does that study conclude?【新东方在线】

旁白：听一段动物行为学的演讲。

Narrator: Listen to part of a lecture in an animal behavior class.

教授：行。我希望大家有机会来完成指定的关于动物玩耍的阅读，因为我想花一些时间讨论这些文章中提出的不同观点。

Professor: All right. I hope you all had a chance to finish the assigned readings about animal play, because I want to spend some time discussing the different viewpoints presented in those articles.

让我们先从玩耍作为准备的假设开始。

Let's start with the play-as-preparation hypothesis.

男学生：好的，玩耍作为准备。

年轻的动物玩耍是为了获得当他们成年时所需要擅长做的某些特定的事情，比如追逐、猛扑、攀登。

Young animals play in order to get really good at certain specific things they will need to do when they are adults, things like chasing, pouncing, climbing.

换句话说，他们玩耍是为了练习生存技能，像狩猎和战斗使用的动作。

In other words, they play in order to practice survival skills, like movements used in hunting and fighting.

这个假设还是很有道理的，也许是所有我们读到过最讲得通的。

That hypothesis makes a lot of sense, like, maybe the most sense of all the theories we read about.

教授：是什么让你有这样的结论的？

Professor: And what leads you to that conclusion?

男学生：例如狼年幼的小狗，他们常打架和啃咬，你知道的，不是去伤害对方，而是......它似乎很明显，为什么那些狼幼崽这样玩耍。

Male student: Well, like wolves, the young pups, they fight a lot and bite, you know, not to hurt each other, but ... It just seems obvious why those wolf pups play like that.

这让他们实践技能，使他们成为更好的成年猎人。

It gives them practice with skills that will make them better hunters or fighters as adults.

Female student: Oh, I don't know about that.

我的意思是，有些年幼的动物做的事情和他们成年后要做的事情完全不同。

I mean, some of the things a young animal does while playing are totally different from the things they'll do as an adult.

在第二篇文章有一个很好的例子。

There was a really good example in the second article.

我不记得它确切叫什么，呃，自……

I can't remember what it is called exactly, uh, self-…

Female student: Right. Self-handicapping.

就像在一个假打中，一个打架游戏，如果动物之一赢了，赢的动物可能就停下来，放弃它的优势。

Like during a fake fight, a play fight, if one of the animals is winning, the winning animal might just stop and give up its advantage.

教授：是的。而且往往转换到一个顺从的姿势了。

Professor: Yes. And often it shifts to a submissive posture too.

当然，自我设限在真正的战斗中几乎没发生过。

Of course self-handicapping hardly ever happens in a real fight.

因为在真正的战斗中，关键是要赢。

Because in a real fight, well, the point is to win.

所以，这种自我设限，在赞同第一个解释之前，考虑到这一点是很重要的。

So, this self-handicapping, it is important to take this into account before just deciding to go with that first explanation.

而事实上，真的没有太多的可靠的实验证据，支持玩耍作为准备假设。

And in fact, there really isn't much in the way of solid experimental evidence to support the play-as-preparation hypothesis.

Female student: What about the other one?

教授：啊，是的。让我们来谈谈这一点。

Professor: Ah, yes. Let's talk about that.

正如你说的，玩耍远不止只是假装打架或者模仿成年动物的行为。

As you say, play is much more than just pretend fighting or practicing other adult behaviors.

显然，这也有助于一个灵活大脑的发展，这种大脑能够很快弄懂不熟悉的情况。

Apparently, it also contributes to the development of a brain that's flexible, a brain that's quickly able to get a handle on unfamiliar situations.

这个概念，灵活性的假设，我的很多同事觉得很具有说服力。

This notion, the flexibility hypothesis, well, many of my colleagues find it quite persuasive.

女学生：所以，像孩子，小孩子可能会与一个朋友玩一个游戏，然后他们可能你追我赶穿过田野。

Female student: So, like with kids, a little kid might play a game with a friend, and then they might race each other across the field.

因此，他们是从一种类型的游戏切换到另一个。

So they are switching from one type of play to another.

我的意思是，他们学习如何对发生的事情做出反应？

I mean, they are learning to respond to whatever happens?

Professor: Well, that's the general idea.

但是，让从现在开始，我们暂缓谈论人类行为。

But let's hold off on talking about human behaviors from now.

根据灵活的假设，是的，多元化，玩耍的种类可以导致更广泛的行为词汇。

OK. According to the flexibility hypothesis, yes, the diversity, the variety in play can lead to a broader behavioral vocabulary.

Male student: A broader behavioral vocabulary?

教授：嗯，有时候玩耍导致动物做一些它通常不会做的事情。

Professor: Well, sometimes playing results in an animal doing something it would not normally do.

这可能会导致动物学习适应，产生新的行为，帮助它应对以后的主要问题，比如待在安全的地方或寻找食物。

That can lead to the animal learning to adapt, to come up with new behaviors that can help it cope with major problems later on, like staying safe or finding food.

女学生：是的。你让我们读过那个大脑的研究。

Female student: Yeah. And there was that brain study you had us read about too.

教授：噢，那个关于玩耍是怎么影响大脑的发展的？

Professor: Oh, the one on how play affects development within the brain?

关于动物被饲养在一个没有机会玩耍的环境中？

About the animals raised in an environment where they did not get opportunities to play?

教授：是的。结论是不是很有意思？

Professor: Yes. Wasn't the conclusion interesting?

玩耍真的促进达到增长，创造了大脑内部的连接？

That playing literally stimulates growth, creates connections within the brain?

我们需要做进一步的研究，但……

男学生：对不起，我们可以回到打架游戏上吗？

Male student: Excuse me, can we go back to play fighting for a minute?

我想知道，灵活的假设真的可以解释那个吗？

I am wondering, can the flexibility hypothesis really explain that?

其实，灵活假设将这个解释地非常好。

Actually, that's something the flexibility hypothesis explains very well.

由于打架游戏包括变化的速度和强度，以及涉及到自我设限快速的角色转换。

Since play fighting includes variations in speed and intensity, and quick role reversals involved with self-handicapping.

大家游戏中的动物不断应对变化。

An animal that's play fighting is constantly responding to changes.

One of the students brings up the example of play fighting among wolf pups. What does this example lead him to believe?

Which statement best expresses the professor's opinion of the play-as-preparation hypothesis?

What does the professor imply about self-handicapping?

The professor discusses a study on the relationship between brain growth and play. What does that study conclude?

Listen again to part of the Lecture.Then answer the question: What does the student mean when she says this:

Narrator 
Listen to part of a lecture in an animal behavior class. 
Professor 
All right. I hope you all had a chance to finish the assigned readings about animal play, because I want to spend some time discussing the different viewpoints presented in those articles. Let's start with the play-as-preparation hypothesis. Jerry, can you explain it? 
Male Student 
Yeah, Play-as-preparation. Young animals play in order to get really good at certain specific things they will need to do when they are adults, things like chasing, pouncing, climbing. In other words, they play in order to practice survival skills, like movements used in hunting and fighting. That hypothesis makes a lot of sense, like, maybe the most sense of all the theories we read about. 
Professor 
And what leads you to that conclusion? 
Male Student 
Well, like wolves, the young pups, they fight a lot and bite, you know, not to hurt each other, but ... It just seems obvious why those wolf pups play like that. It gives them practice with skills that will make them better hunters or fighters as adults. 
Female Student 
Oh, I don't know about that. I mean, some of the things a young animal does while playing are totally different from the things they’ll do as an adult. There was a really good example in the second article. I can't remember what it is called exactly, uh, self-… 
Professor 
Self-handicapping. 
Female Student 
Right. Self-handicapping. Like during a fake fight, a play fight, if one of the animals is winning, the winning animal might just stop and give up its advantage. 
Professor 
Yes. And often it shifts to a submissive posture too. Of course self-handicapping hardly ever happens in a real fight. Because in a real fight, well, the point is to win. So, this self-handicapping, it is important to take this into account before just deciding to go with that first explanation. And in fact, there really isn't much in the way of solid experimental evidence to support the play-as-preparation hypothesis. 
Male Student 
Yeah, Play-as-preparation. Young animals play in order to get really good at certain specific things they will need to do when they are adults, things like chasing, pouncing, climbing. In other words, they play in order to practice survival skills, like movements used in hunting and fighting. That hypothesis makes a lot of sense, like, maybe the most sense of all the theories we read about. 
Professor 
And what leads you to that conclusion? 
Male Student 
Well, like wolves, the young pups, they fight a lot and bite, you know, not to hurt each other, but ... It just seems obvious why those wolf pups play like that. It gives them practice with skills that will make them better hunters or fighters as adults. 
Female Student 
Oh, I don't know about that. I mean, some of the things a young animal does while playing are totally different from the things they’ll do as an adult. There was a really good example in the second article. I can't remember what it is called exactly, uh, self-… 
Professor 
Self-handicapping. 
Female Student 
Right. Self-handicapping. Like during a fake fight, a play fight, if one of the animals is winning, the winning animal might just stop and give up its advantage. 
Professor 
Yes. And often it shifts to a submissive posture too. Of course self-handicapping hardly ever happens in a real fight. Because in a real fight, well, the point is to win. So, this self-handicapping, it is important to take this into account before just deciding to go with that first explanation. And in fact, there really isn't much in the way of solid experimental evidence to support the play-as-preparation hypothesis. 
Female Student 
What about the other one? The flexibility hypothesis? 
Professor 
Ah, yes. Let's talk about that. As you say, play is much more than just pretend fighting or practicing other adult behaviors. Apparently, it also contributes to the development of a brain that's flexible, a brain that's quickly able to get a handle on unfamiliar situations. This notion, the flexibility hypothesis, well, many of my colleagues find it quite persuasive. 
Female Student 
So, like with kids, a little kid might play a game with a friend, and then they might race each other across the field. So they are switching from one type of play to another. There's a lot of variety? I mean, they are learning to respond to whatever happens? 
Professor 
Well, that's the general idea. But let's hold off on talking about human behaviors from now. OK. According to the flexibility hypothesis, yes, the diversity, the variety in play can lead to a broader behavioral vocabulary. 
Male Student 
A broader behavioral vocabulary? Can you explain what that means? 
Professor 
Well, sometimes playing results in an animal doing something it would not normally do. That can lead to the animal learning to adapt, to come up with new behaviors that can help it cope with major problems later on, like staying safe or finding food. 
Female Student 
Yeah. And there was that brain study you had us read about too. 
Professor 
Oh, the one on how play affects development within the brain? 
Female Student 
Right. That’s it. About the animals raised in an environment where they did not get opportunities to play? 
Professor 
Yes. Wasn't the conclusion interesting? That playing literally stimulates growth, creates connections within the brain? We need to do further studies, but... 
Female Student 
Excuse me, can we go back to play fighting for a minute? I am wondering, can the flexibility hypothesis really explain that? 
Professor 
Play fighting? Actually, that's something the flexibility hypothesis explains very well. Since play fighting includes variations in speed and intensity, and quick role reversals involved with self-handicapping. An animal that's play fighting is constantly responding to changes. So it's earning to be flexible. 
Male Student 
Well, like wolves, the young pups, they fight a lot and bite, you know, not to hurt each other, but ... It just seems obvious why those wolf pups play like that. It gives them practice with skills that will make them better hunters or fighters as adults. 
Female Student 
Oh, I don't know about that. I mean, some of the things a young animal does while playing are totally different from the things they’ll do as an adult. There was a really good example in the second article. I can't remember what it is called exactly, uh, self-…

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