[单项选择]Human language is the subject of endless scientific investigation, but the gestures that accompany speech are a surprisingly neglected area. It is sometimes jokingly said that the way to render an Italian speechless is to tie his wrists together, but almost everyone moves their hands in meaningful ways when they talk. Susan Goldin-Meadow of the University of Chicago, however, studies gestures carefully—and not out of idle curiosity. Introspection suggests that gesturing not only helps people communicate but also helps them to think. She set out to test this, and specifically to find out whether gestures might be used as an aid to children’s learning. It turns out, as she told the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), that they can.
The experiment she conducted involved balancing equations. Presented with an equation of the form 2+3+4=x+4, written on a blackboard, a child is asked to calculate the value of x. In the equations Dr. Goldin-Meadow always made the
A. Italians cannot talk with others if they don’t move their hands in meaningful ways
B. gesturing going with speech is rarely chosen as the subject of the scientific investigation
C. human language is much more important than meaningful gestures
D. meaningful gestures are considered to be of help to children’s learning