Part II Reading Comprehension (15 minutes)
9、　　Linguistic Ability of Children
A．　　Scientists may finally have an explanation for why children reign supreme when it comes to learning new language．Using MRI and animation technology to study the brains of children．researchers like Dr.Paul Thompson of UCLA have discovered that children are processing language information in a different region of the brain than adults．
B．　　There are different areas in the brain controlling different functions in our lives．When we brush our teeth，sign our names or drive a car，we don’t consciously think：“move the right hand up and down like this，”“capitalize this letter，”or“turn the wheel 30 degrees to the left．”These are examples of automatic brain function．When children acquire language，this same part of the brain， called the“deep motor area，”is what they use，so the language is like second nature．
C．　　But when adults learn a second or third language，their brains operate differently．The window of opportunity to imprint information and skills in the deep motor region of the brain is widest during early childhood and nearly shut by the time we reach about l 8．Therefore．adults have to store information elsewhere，in a more active brain region．As a consequence，adults usually think sentences through in a native tongue and then translate them word—by-word，instead of thinking automatically in another language as a child would．Even for people with extensive training in fl second language as an adult，who feel their speech is automatic，on a neurological level the brain is still operating differently from a child’s．
D．　　Research into the neurology of language acquisition is proving useful because understanding the“geographic”differences of language learning in children versus adults may influence teachers and their decisions about foreign language instruction. As an example, Thompson says simply teaching young children the sounds and accents of other languages at an earlier age may be valuable, even if they are not getting full instruction in the language. Learning those sounds later in life from a neurological perspective can be more difficult.
E.　　 There is no proof of any physiological change that fundamentally alters language learning between childhood and adulthood. Non-physiological explanations are available for every observation made thus far, and they are just as plausible as the physiological explanations. The notion that children are physiologically different from adults with respect to language learning is accepted linguistic dogma, not proven fact. The dogma is most readily accepted by linguists who can't learn other languages, and is considered the most questionable by people who have learned languages with native proficiency in adulthood.
F.　　 It is wrong to say that changes happen after a certain age, because it happens all the time. At early age, brains develop rapidly and it is important for a child to receive enough input to form and develop the language center in his bra
10、Even if adults receive much training in a second language their brains are still operating differently from children's on a__________.

11、Although young children use large areas of the brain for language processing early in life, they later utilize_________ as this enhances language-learning.