Survey
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
* Your assessment is very important for improving the workof artificial intelligence, which forms the content of this project
Level 3 Reading I’ve got rhythm Do animals respond to music? Modern science has evidence over the centuries that they can, and is finding that certain animals are quite good at rhythm and melody. Adapted from an article by Rym Ghazal “The National” newspaper Thursday October 22nd 2009 A Much has been written about the influence of music on humans. In particular, it is noted that music affects heart rate and breathing, as well as its ability to change moods and produce certain hormones in the body. While most people consider that music is a uniquely human creation, growing evidence indicates that the mysterious powers of music can affect the animal world as much as the human one. B This impact of music on animals has been shown by various intellectuals starting with Arab polymaths in the 11th and 12th centuries, followed by researchers using science in the 19th century and by those using the Backstreet Boys in the 21st. More recent research shows that animals are highly responsive to rhythm and melody and that they can often create their own. C Interest in this subject has now come to university laboratories in the field of “music science” which studies the role of music and communication. As a topic of evolutionary development, it has become a popular study. In order to understand how communication developed, scientists have tried to find clues through the role of music in the animal world. In “The Origins of Music”, a study published by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 2000, there is a chapter “Vocal Communication in Animals”, which studies the communication sounds in the behavior of birds, whales and primates. A central distinction between the role of music and the animal compared to the human world. Basically, for animals music is an external stimulus, while for humans it is much more than that: it is something which can be appreciated and enjoyed. Scientists at the University of Michigan have similarly shown the differences between human and animal communication. Human language is “voluntary, learned and symbolic”, while animals’ sounds appear to be “reflexive” and Unit 6 Angela Kent Level 3 Reading genetically determined”. However, they agree that primate vocalizations are more voluntary than they previously thought. D Understanding the role of music in the animal world has not increased very much since Ibn al Haytham, who was a Muslim-Persian polymath of the 11th century. He was the first to write a scientific document about this subject. His contemporary, Al Ghazali, another Muslim-Persian scholar, believed that music had a practical as well as an artistic purpose. This philosopher believed the role and appreciation for music was a characteristic that certain animals shared with humans. In “The Alchemy of Happiness”, Al Ghazali wrote that “camels are sometimes so affected by the Arab songs of their drivers that they will run rapidly, with heavy burdens, till they fall down in a state of exhaustion”. Although these may seem accurate observations, they are not scientifically acceptable in the modern world. E One of the most famous examples of animal response to music happened shortly before the end of the Cold War. American newspapers in 1985 wrote about Russian submarines and boats which used music to rescue 3,000 white beluga whales that were trapped in an area near the Bering Sea. Although the Russians had cleared away the ice to let them escape, the whales stayed probably because they were frightened and confused. A Russian boat captain decided to play very loud classical music from the ship. When the whales heard this, in particular the music of Beethoven, “they were as happy as children, jumping, spreading out all over the ice field” it was reported. When the music stopped, the whales followed its sound through the narrow channel to the sea and were saved. F The YouTube age has its own musical animals that have become subjects of scientific study as well as internet celebrities. A cockatoo (a type of parrot) named Snowball was tested to see if this species of bird had a sense of rhythm and melody. Dr Aniruddh Patel, a researcher at the Neurosciences Institute in San Diego, California, visited Snowball and played the song “Everybody” by the Backstreet Boys at different tempos. He found some surprising results “When the tempo of a song is increased or decreased … Snowball adjusts his movements and stays synchronized with the music” Dr Patel wrote in a 2008 paper. G However, according to Dr Oliver Sacks, the author of “Musicophilia”, it remains unclear what is going on inside the animal’s brain when listening to music. He explained that: “it is not clear if the animals are responding to clues from the humans around them. It is easy to think that the animals are, on some level, enjoying the music and responding to it in a rhythmic way”. Unit 6 Angela Kent Level 3 Reading 1) Main Idea Circle the letter of the best main idea of this article: a) b) c) d) The influence of music on people Interesting reports on camels, whales and other animals. Evidence of animals’ response to music over the centuries The history of animals, music and communication 2) Matching headings and paragraphs Match the letters of the paragraphs to these topics _____ 1) Historical overview of research on animals and music _____ 2) One modern example of a study with a single animal. _____ 3) Recent studies on the role of music and communication _____ 4) The mystery of the animal brain 3) Match the people or institutes with what they did/believed/reported: Massachusetts Institute of Technology = MIT University of Michigan = UM Ibn Al Haytham = AH Al Ghazali = AG the Russian ship captain =R Dr Aniruddh Patel = DAP Dr Oliver Sacks = DOS 1) ____ Animals may be influenced by the people in their environment when they hear music 2) ____ A study was done which included at least 3 species of animals 3) ____These animals reacted in a playful, excited way to music 4) ____This scientist produced the earliest known study of animals affected by music Unit 6 Angela Kent Level 3 Reading Pronoun Reference Paragraph A one _____________________ Paragraph B those ______________________ Paragraph B they ______________________ Paragraph D His ______________________ Paragraph E them _____________________ Paragraph G it _____________________ Dictionary Definitions Look at the underlined words in the text and choose the correct definition for that word in context: Paragraph C field a) (n) an area of grass, land etc for growing food or keeping animals b) (n) an area of human activity or knowledge eg the field of physics c) (n) a place out of the laboratory or classroom where practical data is collected Paragraph C chapter a) (n) a branch of a society or club eg the Al Ain chapter of the History Club b) (n) a period in somebody’s life or history eg In the final chapter of his career as a pilot c) (n) part of a book, study or project eg Chapter 3 is about his travels Paragraph C sound a) (adj) free from damage, injury; in good condition b) (n) anything that can be heard; noise c) (v) to measure how deep something is eg the sea, a well Unit 6 Angela Kent Level 3 Reading Answers to “I’ve got rhythm” 1) Main Idea Circle the letter of the best main idea of this article: a) b) c) d) The influence of music on people Interesting reports on camels, whales and other animals. Evidence of animals’ response to music over the centuries The history of animals, music and communication 2) Matching headings and paragraphs Match the letters of the paragraphs to these topics __B___ 1) Historical overview of research on animals and music __F___ 2) One modern example of a study with a single animal. __C__ 3) Recent studies on the role of music and communication __G_ 4) The mystery of the animal brain 3) Match the people or institutes with what they did/believed/reported: 1) _DOS__ Animals may be influenced by the people in their environment when they hear music 2) _MIT___ animals 3) _R_ A study was done which included at least 3 species of These animals reacted in a playful, excited way to music 4) _IAH_ This scientist produced the earliest known study of animals affected by music Unit 6 Angela Kent Level 3 Reading Pronoun Reference Paragraph A one _____world___________ Paragraph B those _____researchers______ Paragraph B they ______animals_________ Paragraph D His _____Ibn Al Haytham____ Paragraph E them ___(white beluga) whales_ Paragraph G it ___music____________ Dictionary Definitions field b chapter c sound b Unit 6 Angela Kent