英語 ( 工 経営情報 国際関係 人文 応用生物 生命健康科 現代教育学部 ) Dinosaurs are tremendously popular with children. One can buy children s clothes with pictures of them, huge numbers of toys showing different species of dinosaur, and books about dinosaurs, and see many films and TV programs about the age when giant reptiles ruled the Earth. So it seems remarkable that before the 1800s, we didn t even know that dinosaurs existed. And for those of us who are no longer children, it is equally remarkable how much our understanding of dinosaurs has changed even in the past twenty years. The first fossils recognized as belonging to giant prehistoric reptiles were discovered in England in the early 1800s. In 1818, the priest William Buckland obtained a jawbone containing several large teeth. He realized it was too big to belong to a living animal. He named this extinct creature megalosaurus, meaning great lizard. Only a few years later, and independently, amateur English naturalist Mary Ann Mantell found a large dinosaur tooth. She and her husband decided the tooth came from a large, iguana-like creature, and so named it iguanodon, meaning iguana tooth. In 1842, the English scientist Richard Owen coined the term dinosauria, meaning terrible lizards, to describe this group of long-dead giant reptiles. The word dinosaur was born. These discoveries were just the beginning. In the following two centuries, dinosaur fossils came to be found all over the worldin Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, and, most prominently in the present day, in China and South America. The number of dinosaur species multiplied. Even today, scientists discover an average of seven new species every year. And with these new discoveries, our understanding of dinosaurs is changing rapidly. Thirty years ago, very large dinosaurs known as sauropods (such as diplodocus) were portrayed as so heavy and awkward that we thought they needed to live in swamps to support their weight. However, we now believe that they lived on dry land. Their legs, similar to tree trunks, were perfectly able to carry their enormous weight. The image we once had of them as peaceful has also changed. Their tails, which we once thought were dragged along the ground, could be swung like a very fast whip. These animals could severely injure or even kill potential predators. 5
The way that dinosaurs stood and moved in general has also become clearer. We no longer believe that they were mostly slow moving giants. Dinosaurs such as stegosaurus and triceratops walked more straight-legged and upright like an elephant than like a lizard with bent legs, and as a result could move faster than we had thought. Tyrannosaurus rex walked with its tail in the air and its body horizontal, also making it able to run at greater speed. In addition, its eyes were front-facing, meaning that it could judge distances and depth much better. It was a much more dangerous animal than we had thought. In general, most dinosaurs were originally shown as hairless and scaly like lizards. However, we know now from recent fossil discoveries that many species of dinosaur were actually covered in feathers. This suggests that they were more colorful than previously imagined, as well as possibly being warm-blooded, like birds and mammals. Accordingly, dinosaur eyesight would have been more sensitive to color than we had thought before. It is the discovery that many species of dinosaur were feathered that has led us to rethink our view of the evolution of birds. We often think of archaeopteryx, discovered in 1861, as the first bird on the grounds that it had feathers and wings. However, we now understand it to have been not only very bird-like, but also very much a dinosaur. We often think of dinosaurs as having died out 65 million years ago, but in truth, they live on today in their descendantsthe birds. According to the passage, we have known about dinosaurs. for 65 million years since the early 1800s for the past twenty years since 1842 Dinosaur fossils were first recognized in. swamps China England America According to the passage, we now do NOT think that sauropods. had to live in swamps had thick strong legs used their tails as weapons were very big In paragraph 4, the word portrayed is closest in meaning to. pictured carried needed discovered 6
Stegosaurus and triceratops are compared to elephants because of. their gray color the food they ate their long noses how they moved We now think that Tyrannosaurus rex was much than we had previously thought. slower older bigger deadlier We have been surprised in recent years to discover that dinosaurs. could fly ate chicken had feathers are dead We now feel it is probable that dinosaurs could see color because. it helps to find food their eyes faced the front they had colorful feathers they were warm blooded The word grounds in paragraph 7 is closest in meaning to. land reasons powder circles According to the passage,. archaeopteryx couldn t fly birds are modern dinosaurs dinosaurs and birds are not related birds were discovered in 1861 7
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Kana and Joseph are having coffee. Kana: What a week. I m exhausted! Joseph: Has work been pretty busy? Kana: It sure has. We had a major deadline yesterday and overtime. Joseph: That sounds rough. Did on time? Kana: Yeah, somehow. So this weekend, I m not even going to. Joseph: Good idea. You deserve it! Do a movie or something this afternoon? Kana: Now you re talking! John said that new horror movie is really good. Joseph: Oh yeah, I want to see that. Let me check the times on my smart phone. Kana: You re such a show-off. Joseph: I can t help it, it s convenient! this afternoon? Kana: Perfect. We can get lunch first. you want to go and see go see some how about 3:20 you get everything done they leave at 3:00 I always watch we all had to work think about work 9
Kazuya and Steve are talking in the library. Kazuya: Wow, is it 10:00 already? We ve been here for hours! Steve: We really this project sooner. Kazuya: I guess. We re pretty much done, though, and it s not due until the day after tomorrow. Steve: Wouldn t it have been better to be done already and not so late? Kazuya: Maybe. I just have a bad habit of. Steve: Well, so do I. That s why we re still here instead of at the party with the other guys. Kazuya: You re just upset because Aya is. Steve: Of course! She s much cuter than you are. Kazuya: Very funny. How about we work here for another half an hour and in time to meet them? Steve: Sounds good. waiting until the last minute always start my homework get a good grade going to the party should have started get back to the dormitory have to be in the library shouldn t wake upsoearly 10
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