C(2026·江苏泰州海陵区期末)
According to a report in Nature in January 2026, 1 small group of very smart dogs has amazed researchers. These dogs can learn the names of new objects just by 2 (listen) to people talk—and this is something only young children usually do.

3 most dogs, who only understand simple orders like “sit” or “stay”, these gifted dogs can remember hundreds of toy names. Researchers tested ten such dogs. After they watched their owners chat with friends about new toys, seven 4 (ten) of the dogs could find the correct ones. This showed they could learn names just by listening 5 (quiet). Even more surprisingly, most of them still knew the toys even when they 6 (hide) in closed boxes that you couldn't see through.
But how do they do it? 7 (science) don't fully know yet. What they do know is that these dogs give us a special chance 8 (understand) how animals—not humans—can pick up language-like skills. And this discovery is important because it shows that animal thinking is much 9 (difficult) to understand than people thought before. In fact, dogs may understand words not just by training, 10 by paying close attention to human conversations—just like children do.
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On hot summer days, ice cream sounds like a better choice than a bowl of hot noodles. In the past, ancient Chinese people also enjoyed "ice cream" in summer. Let's look at some cool snacks they enjoyed.
Sushan(酥山) is a dish that looks like crushed(捣碎的) ice with milk and butter. Tang Dynasty poet Wang Lingran described 1 to make it in a poem: People added sugar to su and 2 (shape) it into different forms. Sometimes, sushan was beautifully decorated with flowers and leaves. "It is neither solid(固体的) nor watery, and will melt in your mouth," Wang wrote. At that time, the special snack was only worth 3 (enjoy) by royal families and rich nobles in summer. Many experts believe sushan was 4 early form of ice cream.
Although there were no fridges in the Tang Dynasty, it was very common for rich families to use iceboxes to store ice cubes(冰块) in summer. At that time, people either drank ice water 5 ate shaved ice(刨冰). Later, in the Song Dynasty, people could 6 (easy) buy iced drinks on the street. Some kind rich people even gave away ice water and medicine on the street. Ice water was often sold with mung beans or licorice(绿豆或甘草) to help people avoid 7 (get) sick from the heat.
At the same time, the weather in the Yellow River area during the Tang Dynasty was 8 (warm) and wetter than it is today. So many cherry trees 9 (plant) there at that time. The fruit was common in early summer, and people often added cheese and cane syrup(甘蔗糖浆) to the cherries. When rich nobles had this special snack, they often used plates or bowls 10 (make) of gold to make the snack look more mouth-watering.
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