2014高考英语上海卷阅读部分解析.docxVIP

III. Reading Comprehension Section A Directions: For each blank in the following passage there are four words or phrases marked A, B, C and D. Fill in each blank with the word or phrase that best fits the context. Research has shown that two-thirds of human conversation is taken up not with discussion of the cultural or political problems of the day, not heated debates about films weve just watched or books weve just finished reading, but plain and simple __51__. Language is our greatest treasure as a species, and what do we __52__ do with it? We gossip. About others behaviour and private lives, such as whos doing what with whom, whos in and whos out-and why; how to deal with difficult __53__ situations involving children, lovers, and colleagues. So why are we keen on gossiping? Are we just natural __54__, of both time and words? Or do we talk a lot about nothing in particular simply to avoid facing up to the really important issues of life? Its not the case according to Professor Robin Dunbar. In fact, in his latest book, Grooming, Gossip and the Evolution of Language, the psychologist says gossip is one of these really__55__issues. Dunbar __56__ the traditional view that language was developed by the men at the early stage of social development in order to organize their manly hunting activities more effectively, or even to promote the exchange of poetic stories about their origins and the supernatural. Instead he suggests that language evolved among women. We dont spend two-thirds of our time gossiping just because we can talk, argues Dunbar—__57__, he goes on to say, language evolved specifically to allow us to gossip. Dunbar arrived at his cheery theory by studying the __58__ of the higher primates（灵长类动物）like monkeys. By means of grooming--cleaning the fur by brushing it, monkeys form groups with other individuals on whom they can rely for support in the event of some kind of conflict within the group or__59__ from outside it. As we human beings evolve from a p