托福 新托福 33 - The First Civilizations
题目
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1.The phrase “culminated in” in the passage is closest in meaning to
  • A.reached a high point with
  • B.logically followed from
  • C.partly contributed to
  • D. marked
  • 正确答案:
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    Evidence suggests that an important stimulus behind the rise of early civilizations was the development of settled agriculture, which unleashed a series of changes in the organization of human communities that culminated in the rise of large ancient empires.

    The exact time and place that crops were first cultivated successfully is uncertain. Many prehistorians believe that farming may have emerged in dependently in several different areas of the world when small communities, driven by increasing population and a decline in available food resources, began to plant seeds in the ground in an effort to guarantee their survival. The first farmers, who may have lived as long as 10,000 years ago, undoubtedly used simple techniques and still relied primarily on other forms of food production, such as hunting, foraging, or pastoralism. The real breakthrough took place when farmers began to cultivate crops along the floodplains of river systems. The advantage was that crops grown in such areas were not as dependent on rainfall and therefore produced a more reliable harvest. An additional benefit was that the sediment carried by the river waters deposited nutrients in the soil, thus enabling the farmer to cultivate a single plot of ground for many years without moving to a new location. Thus, the first truly sedentary (that is, nonmigratory) societies were born. As time went on, such communities gradually learned how to direct the flow of water to enhance the productive capacity of the land, while the introduction of the iron plow eventually led to the cultivation of heavy soils not previously susceptible to agriculture.

    The spread of this river valley agriculture in various parts of Asia and Africa was the decisive factor in the rise of the first civilizations. The increase in food production in these regions led to a significant growth in population, while efforts to control the flow of water to maximize the irrigation of cultivated areas and to protect the local inhabitants from hostile forces outside the community provoked the first steps toward cooperative activities on a large scale. The need to oversee the entire process brought about the emergence of an elite that was eventually transformed into a government.

    The first clear steps in the rise of the first civilizations took place in the fourth and third millennia B.C. in Mesopotamia, northern Africa, India, and China. How the first governments took shape in these areas is not certain, but anthropologists studying the evolution of human communities in various parts of the world have discovered that one common stage in the process is the emergence of what are called “big men” within a single village or a collection of villages. By means of their military prowess, dominant personalities, or political talents, these people gradually emerge as the leaders of that community. In time, the “big men” become formal symbols of authority and pass on that authority to others within their own family. As the communities continue to grow in size and material wealth, the “big men” assume hereditary status, and their allies and family members are transformed into a hereditary monarchy.

    The appearance of these sedentary societies had a major impact on the social organizations, religious beliefs, and way of life of the peoples living within their boundaries. With the increase in population and the development of centralized authority came the emergence of the cities. While some of these urban centers were identified with a particular economic function, such as proximity to gold or iron deposits or a strategic location on a major trade route, others served primarily as administrative centers or the site of temples for the official cult or other ritual observances. Within these cities, new forms of livelihood appeared to satisfy the growing need for social services and consumer goods. Some people became artisans or merchants, while others became warriors, scholars, or priests. In some cases, the physical division within the first cities reflected the strict hierarchical character of the society as a whole, with a royal palace surrounded by an imposing wall and separate from the remainder of the urban population. In other instances, such as the Indus River Valley, the cities lacked a royal precinct and the ostentatious palaces that marked their contemporaries elsewhere.

    证据指出早期文明崛起的重要原因是定居农业的发展。农业的发展引发了人类社群组织结构的一系列变化并在古代帝国的崛起中发展到顶点。 虽然农作物首次成功培植的准确时间和地点还未确定,但是很多史前学家相信农业有可能是在世界不同地方独立发展起来的。因为人口增加,食物资源匮乏,一些小社群开始在土地上播下种子以确保它们的存活。最早的农民有可能生活在一万年前。可以确定的是他们使用简单的耕作技术,并且仍然主要依赖其他形式获得食物,比如说打猎、采集或放牧。当农民开始沿着河流的泛滥平原耕作的时候,农业史上才取得了真正的突破性进展。其优势在于,在这些地方种植的农作物不会那么依赖降水,因此收成更加有保障。另外一个优势在于,河水带来的沉积物给土壤增加了养料,因此农民可以很多年在同一块土地上耕作,从而不需要转移到新地方。这样一来,第一批真正意义上的农耕社会诞生了。再接下来,这些社群逐渐学会如何改变水的流向以提高土地的生产力,而铁犁的使用最终使农作物得以在原来不适宜耕种的粘重土壤上耕作。 这种河谷农业在亚洲和非洲各个地方的传播是最早文明崛起的关键因素。在这些地方食物产量增加导致人口显著增长。与此同时,社群努力控制水流,以便最大程度上确保耕作区的灌溉;社群还努力保护当地居民不受到社群外敌对力量的伤害。这些努力引发了社群内部更大规模的合作活动。对合作活动的监管产生了精英阶层,这些精英们最终转变成政府组织。 最早文明崛起中的第一步明显的发生在公元前4世纪和3世纪的美索不达米亚,北非,印度和中国。最早的政府在这些地方是如何形成的不得而知,但是研究世界各地人类社群发展演变的人类学家已经发现在政府形成过程中都存在一个共同的阶段,那就是在一个或几个村落中都出现了 “大个子”。“大个子”通过他们的军事力量,霸道的性格,或政治天赋,逐渐成为了那个群体的领导者。最终,“大个子”正式成为权威的象征并且能把权威传给他们家族的其他人。随着社群进一步发展繁荣,“大个子”就具有了世袭地位,他们的支持者和家庭成员也具有了世袭权利。 这些农耕社会的出现对社会组织、宗教信仰和社群内部的人们生活方式有重大的影响。因为人口增长和中央集权的发展,伴随而来的是城市的出现。某些城市中心具有特定的经济功能,比如说接近金矿或铁矿或处于主要贸易路线的战略地位。还有一些城市是主要是行政中心或是用来官方敬拜的寺庙或举行庆祝仪式的地方。在这些城市,新的谋生手段开始出现,以满足日益增长的对社会服务和消费品的需求:有些人成了工匠和商人,有些人成了战士,学者或牧师。在一些情况下,早期城市的地理区域划分反映了社会整体的严格等级制度,一堵威风凛凛的墙把皇宫和其余的城市居民隔开。然而,在另外一些地方,比如说印度河流域,城市则缺乏专门的皇家区和豪华的宫殿。  

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    最新提问
    • wx_6697
      觉得B C 意思一样,不知道选哪个
    • wx_5576
      这道题C为什么对,E为什么不对?
    • wx_5576
      B为什么不能选啊?
    • wx_6697
      TPO30 passage 2 Q5我选的 D,不明白为啥不对?
    • wx_6697
      鑫哥,TPO6passage3Q5 答案是给错了吗?好多人都选A
    • wx_6697
      这题也很容易选错选成了D
    • wx_6697
      这道题A为什么错了
    • 芊儿
      为什么这道题不选c??a中的variety不是应该对应文中的differentiating 吗??求解!
    • wx_1000
      这道题不选E是因为太细节了吗
    • 王金阁
      这个题为什么不选C啊。。。
    • 芊儿
      这道题的D选项不是和文中的better able to reproduce in open settings相对应么??
    • 风荨火
      有大佬解释一下这个为啥选D嘛?
    • 以沫
      请问这个D 在哪里提现?为什么D错?
    • 芊儿
      第六题 的C选择为什么不对,感觉A是明显驳斥啊...
    • wx_6697
      鑫哥,这道题D是从哪里看出来的
    • wx_6697
      这题选的A,根据是Joly’s calculations clearly supported those geologists who insisted on an age for Earth far in excess of a few million years.想问鑫哥为啥不选A
    • wx_6697
      这题我选的是C依据是into a new habitat outside of its natural range, it may adapt to the new environment and leave its enemies behind.C为啥错了呢?鑫哥
    • wx_8861
      F选项的weather-related destruction在哪里体现了呢?原文最后一段的开头Among the costs里的costs是不是打错了?应该是coast?
    • wx_6697
      求问这道题B为啥不选,原文依据:viable seeds of pioneer species can be found in large numbers on some forest floors.
    • 与托福的斗争史
      与托福的斗争史 去解答 去解答
      这题为什么选C?
    • 小雨淅沥哗啦的下
      小雨淅沥哗啦的下 去解答 去解答
      B哪里错了
    • 小雨淅沥哗啦的下
      小雨淅沥哗啦的下 去解答 去解答
      B为啥不对
    • 李浩然
      B选项错误,是因为残缺么?
    • wx_100
      请问在做题的时候如何排除c呢。看了答案,感觉是该选a的,但是当时做题脑子一热,就特别钟爱c,也没看其他选项。。求敲醒。。
    • wx xxxxx
      请问鑫哥,这段开头有写As one pesticide replaces another为什么不是对应a new pesticide is developed?
    • wx_7695
      鑫哥,从哪里看出来这个masks 不是use呀,原文说了wear呀
    • haiyuqiao
      @鑫哥,这题the damage will continue 不应该对应前面的 the target species evolves resistance to it,然后As one pesticide replaces another,不应该是结束了time cycle 吗
    • wx_2065
      鑫哥,想知道E错在哪里?
    • wx_7695
      鑫哥,B选项 cannot extended to earlier geological periods. 原文说的意思是后来的进化无法估计吧
    • wx_2163
      B为什么不选
    • wx_7780
      鑫哥,这个哪里看不use了。BD是修饰错,C是无中生有,怎么能直接选出A?
    • 100
      看到第一句话,以为是中心句就选了A... 为什么不能选A呢
    • 100
      为什么选b?
    • gu33
      请问下 这里选D的原因是 因为 evolutionary approach 对应着 原文的 Rates of evolution 嘛? 这里我选了C。。不是很懂 插入句和 D的关系 求解答
    • 我是啦啦啦
      我是啦啦啦 去解答 去解答
      这个题A哪里错了?是因为主语不对吗?这个C比A多一步推理啊
    • haiyuqiao
      鑫哥,D选项里的19世纪出现了很多假设,原文中并没有提到啊
    • wx_7060
      为什么选a 呢。我觉得a是细节。F哪错了?
    • wx_1105
      我想问一下,这道题为什么不能选A呢?
    • wx_8122
      D为什么不选
    • wx_1655
      f选项哪里说了
    • chaulaw
      鑫哥,原文是below经济损害水平,D是一触发经济损害就用,这也对吗?
    • chaulaw
      interclan婚姻是对的吗?不是只在自己的family结婚扩大家族吗?
    • wx_6697
      鑫哥,这道题答案是不是错了,好多人选D 我也选的D求解答
    • wx_6697
      这道题应该是一道易错题,每个选项的都有,然而我选的A错了,求解
    • wx_6697
      鑫哥,这题的C是怎么得到的?B也没有找到啊?难道不是应该选B
    • wx_6697
      鑫哥,还有这个,好多人选A答案是不是错了
    • wx_6697
      求问D是从哪里得出来的,我选的B呀哎呀
    • wx_4185
      it is difficult to say how far they were intended to be portraits rather than generalized images 这句话怎么理解呢
    • 此楠楠
      请问下这个插入题怎么选的呢?
    • 此楠楠
      求鑫哥讲解下A选项。。。 Even though in error, Joly’s calculations clearly supported those geologists who insisted on an age for Earth far in excess of a few million years.