12．Baby girls make their way directly for dolls as soon as they can crawl，while boys will head for the toy cars，a study has shown．The findings，the first to show differences in very young babies，suggest there is a biological basis to their preferences．
Psychologists Dr Brenda Todd from City University London carried out an experiment involving 90 infants aged nine months to 36 months．The babies were allowed to choose from seven toys．Some were stereotypically boys'toys-a car，a digger，a ball and a blue teddy．The rest were girls'toys：a pink teddy，a doll and a cooking set．They were placed a meter away from the toys，and could pick whichever toy they liked．Their choice and the amount of time they spent playing with each toy were recorded．
Of the youngest children （nine to 14 months），girls spent significantly longer playing with the doll than boys，and boys spent much more time with the car and ball than the girls did．Among the two-and three-year-olds，girls spent 50 percent of the time playing with the doll while only two boys briefly touched it．The boys spent almost 90 percent of their time playing with cars，which the girls barely touched．There was no link between the parents'view on which toys were more appropriate for boys or girls，and the children's choice．
Dr Brenda Todd said："Children of this age are already exposed to much socialization．Boys may be given‘toys that go'while girls get toys they can care for，which may help shape their preference．But these findings agree with the former idea that children show natural interests in particular kinds of toys．There could be a biological basis for their choices．Males through evolution have been adapted to prefer moving objects，probably through hunting instincts（本能），while girls prefer warmer colors such as pink，the color of a newborn baby．"
53．Baby boys and girls have different toy preferences probably becauseD．
A．baby boys are much more active
B．baby girls like bright colors more
C．their parents treat them differently
D．there is a natural difference between them
54．Both baby boys and baby girls like to play withBaccording to the study．
A．a ball B．a teddy C．a car D．a doll
55．What can we infer from Paragraph 3？C
A．Nine-month-old baby boys don't play with dolls at all．
B．Two-year-old baby girls sometimes play with cars and balls．
C．The older the babies are，the more obvious their preference is．
D．Parents should teach their babies to share each other's toys．
56．What conclusion did Dr．Brenda Todd draw from the results of the study？B
A．Adults purposely influence their babies preference．
B．Babies'preference isn't affected by social surroundings．
C．Baby boys preferring to moving toys will be good at hunting．
D．Baby girls preferring warmer colors will be warm-hearted．
57．We may read this article in aAsection of a newspaper．
A．science B．health C．education D．entertainment．
分析 本文属于说明文阅读，作者通过这篇文章向我们介绍了婴儿男孩和女孩的不同，一项研究显示婴儿男孩和女孩对于玩具的喜好是不同的，但是他们都喜欢泰迪熊，而随着年龄的增长，他们对玩具的偏好就越加突出．
解答 53．D 细节理解题，根据第一段The findings，the first to show differences in very young babies，suggest there is a biological basis to their preferences．可知婴儿男孩和女孩有不同的玩具偏好可能是因为这是他们天生的不同，故选D．
54．B 细节理解题，根据第二段Some were typically boys'toys：a car，a digger，a ball and a blue teddy． The rest were girls'toys：a pink teddy，a doll and a cooking set．可知男孩子和女孩子都喜欢玩泰迪熊，故选B．
55．C 推理判断题，根据第三段可知男孩和女孩随着年龄的增长，他们对玩具的偏好就越加突出，故选C．
56．B 推理判断题，根据最后一段Dr Brenda Todd said："Children of this age are already exposed to much socialization．Boys may be given‘toys that go'while girls get toys they can care for，which may help shape their preference．可知Brenda Todd博士从研究结果中得出婴儿的偏好不受社会环境的影响这一结论，故选B．
57．A 推理判断题，根据第一段Baby girls make their way directly for dolls as soon as they can crawl（爬），while boys will head for the toy cars，a study has shown．可知这是一篇研究报告类文章，属于报纸中的科学部分内容，故选A．
点评 考查学生的细节理解和推理判断能力．做细节理解题时一定要找到文章中的原句，和题干进行比较，再做出正确选择．在做推理判断题时不要以个人的主观想象代替文章的事实，要根据文章事实进行合乎逻辑的推理判断．
