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Dogs are thought of as man’s best friends, devoted companions always aiming to please. But a recent study shows dogs are in it for themselves—at least when toys are involved. Researchers from the University of Portsmouth found dogs were more interested in playing games than helping humans, in one of two experiments published in a recent study.

The study involved two different experiments with family dogs. Researcher and vet Patrizia Piotti began by writing in a notepad while a pet dog watched her. In the first experiment, she left the room and the dog watched while either the notepad or a brush was hidden in one of three boxes and a toy was hidden in another. On most occasions, when the dogs were asked to find the object that was lost, they would find their own toy.

In a second experiment, the toys were removed. Ms Piotti left the room and the dog watched while only the notepad or a brush was hidden in one of three boxes, without any toy. In this case, the dogs were helpful to the person because they indicated the hidden objects without receiving any reward for it. The 48 dogs tested were more likely to draw her attention to the only box with an object inside. And they looked longer at the box holding the notebook than the one with the brush.

Ms Piotti said, “Dogs have outstanding abilities when it comes to communicating with humans. One theory is that they have adapted to life with humans by developing skills for communicating with people. There seems to be some evidence that dogs could be able to distinguish between objects based on a human’s need for them.” She added further work is needed to prove that the notebook-hunting dogs were actually trying to be helpful. So before you ask Fido to help you find your car keys or something like that, you should make sure none of his toys are nearby.

1.What did the researchers from the University of Portsmouth find?

A Dogs are man’s best friends.

B Dogs are devoted animals.

C Dogs are not very helpful.

D Dogs are very interesting.

解析：选C。推理判断题。根据文章第一段最后一句Researchers from the University of Portsmouth found dogs were more interested in playing games than helping humans...可以得知小狗并不是像人们想像的那样乐于帮助别人。故选C。

2.What did the dog do when the experiment began?

A It wrote in a notepad.

B It hid in a box.

C It kept watching.

D It looked for the toy.

解析：选C。细节理解题。根据第二段第三句...the dog watched while either the notepad...可以得知小狗在观察着。故选C。

3.When the toys were moved, the dog _____.

A preferred to find toys

B would like to help

C could receive reward

D played with the brush

解析：选B。推理判断题。根据第三段第三句In this case, the dogs were helpful to the person...可以得知如果没有了玩具，小狗还是愿意提供帮助的。故选B。

4.Why can dogs communicate with humans?

A Because they adapted to the environment.

B Because they were able to tell different things.

C Because they could write with the brush.

D Because they could sense the needs of people.

解析：选A。推理判断题。根据文章最后一段第一句One theory is that they have adapted to life with humans by developing skills for communicating with people可以得知小狗是在和人类的交往中学会了和人类交流的，因此小狗的交际能力的形成是适应环境的结果。故选A。