Parroting Humans|鹦鹉学人说话

Parroting Humans

by Leigh Goldberg

Are talking birds like parrots really talking or just imitating humans?

Anyone who has ever come across a parrot in a pet store can attest to the fact that they not only imitate what humans say but that they can actually produce human speech. Many people think this is a debatable point since they believe that birds can't really talk, much less hold conversations. _(1)_ Parrots are language learning animals and are physically able to recreate sounds in the human language.

Humans have a larynx or voice box at the top of their trachea. _(2)_ In addition, just like humans, these talking birds have tongues that enable them to make human speech sounds. _(3)_ In fact, they use it to express thoughts and emotions, including fear, anger, and happiness, in order to survive. In the wild, parrots develop calls to distinguish members of their own group from rival ones. _(4)_ By extension of this theory, parrots raised as pets imitate their human owners as a means of getting accepted as part of the family.

Not only are parrots capable of speech, but some have also shown signs of higher intelligence. _(5)_ Overall, he had the intelligence of a five-year-old human. This means that parrots having conversations with humans is no longer a dream that is strictly for the birds.

(A) Similarly, parrots have a syrinx at the bottom of their trachea that produces sounds.

(B) Along with humans, whales, dolphins, bats, and other primates, parrots use verbal language to socially interact with other members of their group.

(C) For others, including some experts, parrots and a handful of other birds are capable of verbal communication.

(D) An African Gray Parrot named Alex had a vocabulary of some 150 words, could do simple math, could distinguish seven colors and five shapes, and understood the concept of zero.

(E) They only respond to those that speak their language as a means of protecting their clan from unwanted newcomers.

鹦鹉学人说话

像鹦鹉这样会说话的鸟类是真的在说话，或者只是在模仿人类呢？

任何曾在宠物店偶然看见鹦鹉的人都能证明以下这个事实，那就是鹦鹉不但能模仿人类说话的内容，实际上牠们也能产生人类的说话能力。很多人认为这是一个受争议的论点，因为他们认为鸟并不是真的会说话，更别提进行对谈了。对于包括一些专家在内的其他人而言，鹦鹉和少数其他鸟类具有语言交流的能力。鹦鹉是会学习语言的动物，就生理构造而言牠们能重制人类语言的声音。

人类在气管顶端有喉头（larynx，亦称 voice box）。同样地，鹦鹉在气管底部也有能发出声音的鸣管。此外，如同人类一般，这些会说话的鸟类有舌头，这使得牠们能够发出人类语言的声音。和人类、鲸鱼、海豚、蝙蝠及其他灵长类动物一样，鹦鹉会使用口语与团体中其他成员社交。事实上，为求生存，鹦鹉还会使用口语来表达思想以及包含恐惧、愤怒和快乐等的情绪。野生的鹦鹉会发展出不同的叫声来区分自身团体及敌对团体的成员。牠们只对讲共同语言的生物做出回应，藉此保护家族免于受到不受欢迎的新成员所扰。藉由该理论的延伸，那些被当作宠物饲养的鹦鹉会模仿人类饲主的声音，以此当作被接纳为家庭一份子的手段。

鹦鹉不仅会说话，还有一些鹦鹉也表现出了较高智力的迹象。一只名为艾力克斯的非洲灰鹦鹉具有 150 个左右的词汇、可以做简单的运算、会区分 7种颜色和 5 种形状，也能了解零的概念。总体而言，牠具备了 5 岁孩童的智慧。这代表鹦鹉能和人类对话已经不再是无聊愚蠢的梦想了。

答案：  1.  C   2.  A   3.  B   4.  E   5.  D