【時事聚焦】章魚保羅，全名保羅愛倫，2008年出生于英國的多塞特，持英國護照，現生活于德國的奧博豪森海洋館，世界著名先知，偉大的動物預言家，最愛食物為貽貝。保羅在剛結束不久的南非世界杯期間走紅全球，7次預言德國隊賽績，全部猜中，最后又成功預測了西班牙1：0戰勝荷蘭奪得世界杯冠軍，100%的預測準確率使其成為眼下最負盛名的足球神算子的同時，也給他帶來了不少死亡威脅。詳見以下原版資訊：

　　Paul: The psychic octopus

　　Paul, the psychic octopus, finished the 2010 FIFA World Cup with a flawless record as Spains 1-0 win over the Netherlands in Sundays final left him with eight perfect predictions.

　　The eight-legged oracle has become a FIFA World Cup sensation by correctly forecasting all seven Germany games in South Africa and he finished the tournament in style by predicting a Spanish victory in the Soccer City sign-off. No one knows how he does it, but for a while it made him the most popular invertebrate in Germany, stealing headlines even from the coalition government.

　　As Paul foretold last week, Spain won their first world title after Andres Iniestas 116th-minute strike broke the Netherlands hearts. The tentacled tipster also correctly predicted Germany would beat Uruguay in Saturdays third place play-off.

　　In the now familiar routine, two boxes were lowered into his tank last week, each containing a mussel and the flags of the two opposing teams. Paul went straight to the correct box both times, wrenched open the lid and gobbled the tasty morsel.

　　But the art of football predicting has become a dangerous job for the English-born clairvoyant. He fell offside with bitter German fans who threatened to turn him into sushi after he predicted a semi-final defeat for the Mannschaft against Spain.

　　Pauls home, an aquarium in western Germany, has received death-threat emails saying we want Paul for the pan, said entertainment supervisor Daniel Fey. No less an authority than Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luiz Rodriguez Zapatero has called for octopus bodyguards. Spanish Industry Minister Miguel Sebastian has called for the creature to be given an immediate free transfer to Spain to ensure his protection.

　　Stung by Pauls treachery at picking Spain over Germany in last Wednesdays semi-final, some sections of the 350,000-strong crowd watching the game on giant screens in Berlin sang anti-octopus songs.

　　His prediction of a Spanish victory is expected to be the last for Paul, who in octopus terms is a pensioner, at the grand old age of two-and-a-half. Octopuses generally live three years at the latest.

　　【熱點話題】章魚保羅的出現讓全世界奇也罷、嘆也罷、喜也罷、恨也罷，各位烤鴨可是要多留個心眼，因為在雅思聽力的Section2和Section4部分，經常會考到介紹動物或者植物的語段，尤其是在Section4的學術類講座中，動物更是經久不衰的話題之一。

　　單在劍橋雅思考試真題系列中出現的介紹動物的篇目就有：劍6-Test4-Section4: Asiatic lions;劍4-Test4-Section4: Sharks in Australia;劍3-Test3-Section4: Ostrich。如果大家每次收集和整理的雅思聽力考題回顧后就會發現，動物話題的出現頻率是很高的。

　　在動物話題中，常見的考查內容有：

　　通識性介紹

　　講述某動物的身體結構與生活習性，比如數量，身長或身高，體重，骨骼，皮膚，毛皮，血液、大腦，活動范圍，遷徙模式，食物，速度，棲息地，生長階段，進化等。

　　專項性介紹

　　介紹某動物的一個具體特點及其對于人類的啟示，比如蜜蜂的視力、鯨魚和海豚的集體擱淺現象等。

　　比較性介紹

　　比較的內容有一種動物的優、缺點比較;幾種相似動物的優、缺點或特點比較;動物與人類的比較。

　　實驗性介紹

　　為了更好地了解動物，人們通常會在不傷害他們的前提下對其開展實驗研究，比如在某種鳥類的腿部固定身份識別環以便跟蹤研究。

　　【背景常識】保羅神奇的預測能力一直為人們所津津樂道，其命運也牽動著世界各國球迷的心。據奧博豪森水族館宣布，隨著本屆世界杯的結束，保羅即將光榮退休。退休后的章魚，將做它最喜歡做的事，取悅來拜訪它的小朋友們。摘掉預言家的光環，躲開聚光燈的追捧，做回一條普通的章魚，自由自在地度過余生也許就是保羅最希望的吧。那么什么才是一條普通的章魚，它到底是一種什么樣的生物呢?讓我們一起來了解一下：

　　The octopus is a cephalopod mollusk in the order Octopoda. Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms, and like other cephalopods they are bilaterally symmetric. An octopus has a hard beak, with its mouth at the center point of the arms. Most octopuses have no internal or external skeleton, allowing them to squeeze through tight places. Octopuses are highly intelligent, probably the most intelligent of all invertebrates.

　　The octopus inhabits many diverse regions of the ocean, especially coral reefs. For defense against predators, they hide, flee quickly, expel ink, or use color-changing camouflage. An octopus trails its eight arms behind it as it swims. All octopuses are venomous, but only the small blue-ringed octopuses are deadly to humans.

　　In the larger sense, there are around 300 recognized octopus species, which is over one-third of the total number of known cephalopod species. The term octopus may also be used to refer only to those creatures in the genus Octopus.

　　【必殺詞匯】分析認為，一旦雅思聽力考到有關動物的話題，以下詞匯極有可能落入出題者的考察范圍之內：

　　mollusk 軟體動物

　　symmetric 對稱的，均勻的

　　beak 鳥喙，某種嘴

　　internal 內部的，體內的

　　external 外部的，體外的

　　skeleton 骨骼

　　intelligent 有才智的

　　region 范圍，區域

　　inhabit 居住于，棲息于

　　camouflage 偽裝，掩飾

　　coral reef 珊瑚礁

　　predator 捕食者

　　species 物種

　　creature 生物，動物

　　【時事聚焦】章魚保羅，全名保羅愛倫，2008年出生于英國的多塞特，持英國護照，現生活于德國的奧博豪森海洋館，世界著名先知，偉大的動物預言家，最愛食物為貽貝。保羅在剛結束不久的南非世界杯期間走紅全球，7次預言德國隊賽績，全部猜中，最后又成功預測了西班牙1：0戰勝荷蘭奪得世界杯冠軍，100%的預測準確率使其成為眼下最負盛名的足球神算子的同時，也給他帶來了不少死亡威脅。詳見以下原版資訊：

　　Paul: The psychic octopus

　　Paul, the psychic octopus, finished the 2010 FIFA World Cup with a flawless record as Spains 1-0 win over the Netherlands in Sundays final left him with eight perfect predictions.

　　The eight-legged oracle has become a FIFA World Cup sensation by correctly forecasting all seven Germany games in South Africa and he finished the tournament in style by predicting a Spanish victory in the Soccer City sign-off. No one knows how he does it, but for a while it made him the most popular invertebrate in Germany, stealing headlines even from the coalition government.

　　As Paul foretold last week, Spain won their first world title after Andres Iniestas 116th-minute strike broke the Netherlands hearts. The tentacled tipster also correctly predicted Germany would beat Uruguay in Saturdays third place play-off.

　　In the now familiar routine, two boxes were lowered into his tank last week, each containing a mussel and the flags of the two opposing teams. Paul went straight to the correct box both times, wrenched open the lid and gobbled the tasty morsel.

　　But the art of football predicting has become a dangerous job for the English-born clairvoyant. He fell offside with bitter German fans who threatened to turn him into sushi after he predicted a semi-final defeat for the Mannschaft against Spain.

　　Pauls home, an aquarium in western Germany, has received death-threat emails saying we want Paul for the pan, said entertainment supervisor Daniel Fey. No less an authority than Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luiz Rodriguez Zapatero has called for octopus bodyguards. Spanish Industry Minister Miguel Sebastian has called for the creature to be given an immediate free transfer to Spain to ensure his protection.

　　Stung by Pauls treachery at picking Spain over Germany in last Wednesdays semi-final, some sections of the 350,000-strong crowd watching the game on giant screens in Berlin sang anti-octopus songs.

　　His prediction of a Spanish victory is expected to be the last for Paul, who in octopus terms is a pensioner, at the grand old age of two-and-a-half. Octopuses generally live three years at the latest.

　　【熱點話題】章魚保羅的出現讓全世界奇也罷、嘆也罷、喜也罷、恨也罷，各位烤鴨可是要多留個心眼，因為在雅思聽力的Section2和Section4部分，經常會考到介紹動物或者植物的語段，尤其是在Section4的學術類講座中，動物更是經久不衰的話題之一。

　　單在劍橋雅思考試真題系列中出現的介紹動物的篇目就有：劍6-Test4-Section4: Asiatic lions;劍4-Test4-Section4: Sharks in Australia;劍3-Test3-Section4: Ostrich。如果大家每次收集和整理的雅思聽力考題回顧后就會發現，動物話題的出現頻率是很高的。

　　在動物話題中，常見的考查內容有：

　　通識性介紹

　　講述某動物的身體結構與生活習性，比如數量，身長或身高，體重，骨骼，皮膚，毛皮，血液、大腦，活動范圍，遷徙模式，食物，速度，棲息地，生長階段，進化等。

　　專項性介紹

　　介紹某動物的一個具體特點及其對于人類的啟示，比如蜜蜂的視力、鯨魚和海豚的集體擱淺現象等。

　　比較性介紹

　　比較的內容有一種動物的優、缺點比較;幾種相似動物的優、缺點或特點比較;動物與人類的比較。

　　實驗性介紹

　　為了更好地了解動物，人們通常會在不傷害他們的前提下對其開展實驗研究，比如在某種鳥類的腿部固定身份識別環以便跟蹤研究。

　　【背景常識】保羅神奇的預測能力一直為人們所津津樂道，其命運也牽動著世界各國球迷的心。據奧博豪森水族館宣布，隨著本屆世界杯的結束，保羅即將光榮退休。退休后的章魚，將做它最喜歡做的事，取悅來拜訪它的小朋友們。摘掉預言家的光環，躲開聚光燈的追捧，做回一條普通的章魚，自由自在地度過余生也許就是保羅最希望的吧。那么什么才是一條普通的章魚，它到底是一種什么樣的生物呢?讓我們一起來了解一下：

　　The octopus is a cephalopod mollusk in the order Octopoda. Octopuses have two eyes and four pairs of arms, and like other cephalopods they are bilaterally symmetric. An octopus has a hard beak, with its mouth at the center point of the arms. Most octopuses have no internal or external skeleton, allowing them to squeeze through tight places. Octopuses are highly intelligent, probably the most intelligent of all invertebrates.

　　The octopus inhabits many diverse regions of the ocean, especially coral reefs. For defense against predators, they hide, flee quickly, expel ink, or use color-changing camouflage. An octopus trails its eight arms behind it as it swims. All octopuses are venomous, but only the small blue-ringed octopuses are deadly to humans.

　　In the larger sense, there are around 300 recognized octopus species, which is over one-third of the total number of known cephalopod species. The term octopus may also be used to refer only to those creatures in the genus Octopus.

　　【必殺詞匯】分析認為，一旦雅思聽力考到有關動物的話題，以下詞匯極有可能落入出題者的考察范圍之內：

　　mollusk 軟體動物

　　symmetric 對稱的，均勻的

　　beak 鳥喙，某種嘴

　　internal 內部的，體內的

　　external 外部的，體外的

　　skeleton 骨骼

　　intelligent 有才智的

　　region 范圍，區域

　　inhabit 居住于，棲息于

　　camouflage 偽裝，掩飾

　　coral reef 珊瑚礁

　　predator 捕食者

　　species 物種

　　creature 生物，動物