You sometimes feel so close to your friends that they are like family to you. Why? A study by professor Diego has found you and your friends have more genes (基因) in common than strangers do. Maybe this gives you the answer.
Researchers looked at the genes of 1932 people and compared them in pairs of friends and strangers. They found that friends have one percent of genes that match.
“One percent may not sound like much to laypersons (外行), but to geneticists (遗传学家) it is a huge number,” Professor Nicholas said. “In fact, this is the same amount (量) of genes you share with your fourth cousins, those who have the same great-great-great grandparents as you.”
So is it a coincidence (巧合) that you become friends with people who share your genes? Not at all. “People who share certain genes also share skills and have similar likes and dislikes,” researchers said. In ancient times, it was important that people who were similar stayed together. For example, people who had a similar sensitivity (敏感性) to the cold were more likely to help each other. They would make a fire to give themselves a better chance to live. Researchers also found that among all the genes studied, those influencing the sense of smell were the most similar in friends. This is probably because people who smell things in the same way are more easily drawn to similar environments.
Based on the findings, the team has developed an interesting test called the “friendship score”. It can calculate how big the chances are that two people will be friends by studying their genes.
So, here is a question for you: Would you like to take this test to know who your friends are going to be?
【小题1】You sometimes feel close to your friends probably because ________.| A．they act like your family | B．you influence each other a lot |
| C．you spend much time together | D．you have more genes in common |
| A．Our friends are actually relatives of ours. |
| B．One percent sounds like much to laypersons. |
| C．We have one percent of genes that match our fourth cousins. |
| D．we share the same amount of genes as our great-great grandparents. |
| A．smell things in the same way | B．have similarities in the look |
| C．develop a similar taste in music | D．have a similar sensitivity to the cold |
| A．work out | B．depend on | C．set up | D．think out |
| A．Our Friends, Our Family | B．Good Friends, Different Genes |
| C．Genes Help Us Become Friends | D．“Friendship Score”, an Interesting Test |
