[解析]
(1)细节理解题。根据第一段Any foreigner who has tried to learn Chinese can tell how hard it is to master the tones required to speak and understand.(任何一个尝试过学习汉语的外国人都可以看出,掌握说话和理解所需的音调是多么困难。)可知,学习汉语时,外国人很难掌握说话和理解所需的音调,故选C项。
(2)推理判断题。根据第二段Northwestern University say that both skills depend on the same parts of the brain that help people discover changes in pitch(西北大学表示,这两种技能都依赖于大脑中帮助人们发现音高变化的相同部分)可知,汉语学习与音乐训练有关的原因是因为学习两种技能的时候都利用了大脑的相同部分,故选B项。
(3)推理判断题。根据倒数第三段For this study,the researchers looked at 20 nonChinese speaking volunteers,half with no musical background and half who have studied an instrument for at least six years(在这项研究中,研究人员观察了20名非中文语志愿者,其中一半没有音乐背景,另一半学习乐器至少六年)以及倒数第二段As they were shown a movie,the volunteers also heard an audio tape of the Mandarin word "mi" in three of its meanings:squint(眯),bewilder(迷)and rice.The researchers recorded activities in their brain stems to see how well they were processing the sounds(当他们观看电影时,志愿者们还听到了一盘普通话拼音"mi"的录音带,它有三个含义:眯、迷和米。研究人员记录了他们脑干的活动,以观察他们对声音的处理情况。)可知,研究人员研究了20名志愿者对他们听到的汉语发音的处理情况,故选D项。
(4)标题归纳题。通读全文,并根据第二段Now researchers have found that people with musical training have an easier time learning Chinese.(现在研究人员发现,受过音乐训练的人学习汉语更容易。)和倒数第二段的Those with a music background showed much more brain activities in response to the Chinese sounds.(那些有音乐背景的人对中文声音的反应显示出更多的大脑活动)可知本文主要讲的是对音乐熟练可能有助于语言学习,故选B项。