题目：
How Humans Became Food Producers
Present evidence indicates that the earliest plant domestication (the process of adapting wild plants for human use)took place gradually in the Fertile Crescent, the lands just east of the Mediterranean Sea. Archaeological data suggest the domestication and cultivation of rye as early as 13,000 years ago by people living at a site(Abu Hureyra) east of Aleppo, Syria, although wild plants and animals continued to be their major food sources. Over the next several millennia, they became full-fledged farmers, cultivating rye and wheat. By 10,300 years ago, others in the region were also growing crops.
The domestication process was a consequence of a chance convergence of independent natural events and other cultural developments. The Natufians illustrate this process. These people lived at a time of dramatically changing climates in Southwest Asia. With the end of the last glaciation, temperatures not only became significantly warmer but markedly seasonal as well. Between 12.000 and 6.000 years ago. the region experienced the most extreme seasonality in its history, with dry summers significantly longer and hotter than today. As a consequence of increased evaporation, many shallow lakes dried up. leaving just three in the Jordan River Valley. At the same time, the region’s plant cover changed dramatically. Those plants best adapted to environmental instability and seasonal dryness were annuals, including wild cereal grains and legumes (such as peas, lentils, and chickpeas) Because they complete their life cycle in a single year, annuals can evolve very quickly under unstable conditions. Moreover, they store their reproductive abilities for the next wet season in abundant seeds, which can remain dormant for prolonged periods.
The Natufians, who lived where these conditions were especially severe, adapted by modifying their subsistence practices in two ways. First, they probably regularly burned the landscape to promote browsing by red deer and grazing by gazelles, the main focus of their hunting activities. Second, they placed greater emphasis on the collection of wild seeds from the annual plants that could be effectively stored to see people through the dry season. The importance of stored foods, coupled with the scarcity of reliable water sources, promoted more settled living patterns. The reliance upon seeds in Natufian subsistence was made possible by the fact that the Natufians already used sickles (originally used to cut reeds and sedges for baskets) for harvesting grain, as well as grinding stones for processing a variety of wild foods.
The use of hand tools to harvest grain turned out to have important consequences, again unexpected, for the Natufians. In the course of harvesting, many easily dispersed seeds would naturally be lost at the harvest site, whereas those from plants that did not readily scatter their seeds would mostly be carried back to where people processed and stored them. The periodic burning of vegetation carried out to promote the browsing by deer and gazelle herds may have also affected the development of new genetic variation. Heat is known to affect mutation rates in plants. Also, fire removes individuals from a population, which drastically and quickly changes the genetic structure of a population. With seeds for nondispersing variants being carried back to settlements, it was inevitable that some lost seeds would germinate and grow there on dump heaps and other disturbed sites (latrines, areas cleared of trees, or burned-over terrain).
As it turns out, many of the plants that became domesticated were “colonizers,” variants that do particularly well in disturbed habitats. Moreover, with people becoming increasingly sedentary, disturbed habitats became more extensive as resources closer to settlements were depleted over time. Thus, variants of plants particularly susceptible to human manipulation had more opportunities to flourish where people were living. Under such circumstances, eventually people would begin to actively promote their growth, even by deliberately sowing them. Ultimately, people realized that they could play a more active role in the process by deliberately trying to breed the strains they preferred. With this, domestication may be said to have shifted from a process that was unintentional to one that was intentional.
1
Present evidence indicates that the earliest plant domestication (the process of adapting wild plants for human use)took place gradually in the Fertile Crescent, the lands just east of the Mediterranean Sea. Archaeological data suggest the domestication and cultivation of rye as early as 13,000 years ago by people living at a site(Abu Hureyra) east of Aleppo, Syria, although wild plants and animals continued to be their major food sources. Over the next several millennia, they became full-fledged farmers, cultivating rye and wheat. By 10,300 years ago, others in the region were also growing crops.
According to paragraph 1, which of the following is true of the people who lived at Abu Hureyra?
Factual Information Questions事实信息题
AThey became full-fledged farmers very rapidly about 13,000 years ago
BThey were among the first to domesticate wild animals for use as food.
CThey began purposely growing crops several thousand years before shifting completely to farming
DThey were able to spread throughout the Fertile Crescent region because of the crops they grew
2
The domestication process was a consequence of a chance convergence of independent natural events and other cultural developments. The Natufians illustrate this process. These people lived at a time of dramatically changing climates in Southwest Asia. With the end of the last glaciation, temperatures not only became significantly warmer but markedly seasonal as well. Between 12.000 and 6.000 years ago. the region experienced the most extreme seasonality in its history, with dry summers significantly longer and hotter than today. As a consequence of increased evaporation, many shallow lakes dried up. leaving just three in the Jordan River Valley. At the same time, the region’s plant cover changed dramatically. Those plants best adapted to environmental instability and seasonal dryness were annuals, including wild cereal grains and legumes (such as peas, lentils, and chickpeas) Because they complete their life cycle in a single year, annuals can evolve very quickly under unstable conditions. Moreover, they store their reproductive abilities for the next wet season in abundant seeds, which can remain dormant for prolonged periods.
According to paragraph 2, which of the following best characterizes the plant cover in the Fertile Crescent region where the Natufians settled?
Factual Information Questions事实信息题
AIt came to include more annuals as summers grew drier and hotter.
BIt consisted mainly of plants that thrived in prolonged wet seasons.
CIt grew mainly near shallow lakes in the Jordan River Valley.
DThe dormancy periods of the seeds it produced became increasingly unstable.
3
The Natufians, who lived where these conditions were especially severe, adapted by modifying their subsistence practices in two ways. First, they probably regularly burned the landscape to promote browsing by red deer and grazing by gazelles, the main focus of their hunting activities. Second, they placed greater emphasis on the collection of wild seeds from the annual plants that could be effectively stored to see people through the dry season. The importance of stored foods, coupled with the scarcity of reliable water sources, promoted more settled living patterns. The reliance upon seeds in Natufian subsistence was made possible by the fact that the Natufians already used sickles (originally used to cut reeds and sedges for baskets) for harvesting grain, as well as grinding stones for processing a variety of wild foods.
Which of the sentences below best expresses the essential information in the highlighted sentence in the passage? Incorrect choices change the meaning in important ways or leave out essential information
Sentence Simplification Questions句子简化题
AThe Natufians originally used sickles to make baskets, but they later used them to process wild foods.
BThe reliance upon seeds for subsistence encouraged Natufians to refine already existing equipment for harvesting and grinding.
CThe Natufians possessed both sickles that could be used for harvesting grain and grinding stones for processing a variety of wild foods.
DThe Natufians were able to rely on seeds for subsistence because they already had the tools needed to harvest and prepare them.
4
The Natufians, who lived where these conditions were especially severe, adapted by modifying their subsistence practices in two ways. First, they probably regularly burned the landscape to promote browsing by red deer and grazing by gazelles, the main focus of their hunting activities. Second, they placed greater emphasis on the collection of wild seeds from the annual plants that could be effectively stored to see people through the dry season. The importance of stored foods, coupled with the scarcity of reliable water sources, promoted more settled living patterns. The reliance upon seeds in Natufian subsistence was made possible by the fact that the Natufians already used sickles (originally used to cut reeds and sedges for baskets) for harvesting grain, as well as grinding stones for processing a variety of wild foods.
According to paragraph 3, the Natufians used fire for which of the following reasons?
Factual Information Questions事实信息题
ATo make the areas near them more attractive to deer and gazelles
BTo attract animals that were different from those they usually hunted
CTo make the collection of wild seeds from annual plants easier
DTo eliminate plants that could not be effectively stored
5
The use of hand tools to harvest grain turned out to have important consequences, again unexpected, for the Natufians. In the course of harvesting, many easily dispersed seeds would naturally be lost at the harvest site, whereas those from plants that did not readily scatter their seeds would mostly be carried back to where people processed and stored them. The periodic burning of vegetation carried out to promote the browsing by deer and gazelle herds may have also affected the development of new genetic variation. Heat is known to affect mutation rates in plants. Also, fire removes individuals from a population, which drastically and quickly changes the genetic structure of a population. With seeds for nondispersing variants being carried back to settlements, it was inevitable that some lost seeds would germinate and grow there on dump heaps and other disturbed sites (latrines, areas cleared of trees, or burned-over terrain).
Why does the author mention that fire removes individuals from a population?
Factual Information Questions事实信息题
ATo explain why efforts to promote the browsing of animals were not always successful
BTo explain how periodic burning caused genetic variation in plants
CTo emphasize the number of seeds lost at harvest sites
DTo emphasize the difference between plants that dispersed seeds and non-dispersing variants
6
The use of hand tools to harvest grain turned out to have important consequences, again unexpected, for the Natufians. In the course of harvesting, many easily dispersed seeds would naturally be lost at the harvest site, whereas those from plants that did not readily scatter their seeds would mostly be carried back to where people processed and stored them. The periodic burning of vegetation carried out to promote the browsing by deer and gazelle herds may have also affected the development of new genetic variation. Heat is known to affect mutation rates in plants. Also, fire removes individuals from a population, which drastically and quickly changes the genetic structure of a population. With seeds for nondispersing variants being carried back to settlements, it was inevitable that some lost seeds would germinate and grow there on dump heaps and other disturbed sites (latrines, areas cleared of trees, or burned-over terrain).
Paragraph 4 suggests that harvesting practices encouraged which of the following types of plants to grow near human settlements?
Inference Questions推理题
APlants that had low mutation rates
BPlants that did not easily lose seeds while being gathered
CPlants that produced a variety of different sized seeds
DPlants that would not grow on dump heaps
7
As it turns out, many of the plants that became domesticated were “colonizers,” variants that do particularly well in disturbed habitats. Moreover, with people becoming increasingly sedentary, disturbed habitats became more extensive as resources closer to settlements were depleted over time. Thus, variants of plants particularly susceptible to human manipulation had more opportunities to flourish where people were living. Under such circumstances, eventually people would begin to actively promote their growth, even by deliberately sowing them. Ultimately, people realized that they could play a more active role in the process by deliberately trying to breed the strains they preferred. With this, domestication may be said to have shifted from a process that was unintentional to one that was intentional.
The word “depleted” in the passage is closest in meaning to
Vocabulary Questions词汇题
Adestroyed
Bused up
Cdeveloped
Ddiscovered
8
As it turns out, many of the plants that became domesticated were “colonizers,” variants that do particularly well in disturbed habitats. Moreover, with people becoming increasingly sedentary, disturbed habitats became more extensive as resources closer to settlements were depleted over time. Thus, variants of plants particularly susceptible to human manipulation had more opportunities to flourish where people were living. Under such circumstances, eventually people would begin to actively promote their growth, even by deliberately sowing them. Ultimately, people realized that they could play a more active role in the process by deliberately trying to breed the strains they preferred. With this, domestication may be said to have shifted from a process that was unintentional to one that was intentional.
According to paragraph 5, which of the following is NOT a reason some plants tended to grow well near human settlements?
Negative Factual Information Questions否定事实信息题
APeople actively supported the growth of plants that had already begun to do well near their homes.
BPlants that resisted being changed by humans grew more easily near settlements than other types of plants did.
CMany domesticated plants were well-suited to growing in areas disturbed by people.
DDisturbed areas where plants could grow became larger when other resources near settlements decreased.
9
The Natufians, who lived where these conditions were especially severe, adapted by modifying their subsistence practices in two ways. ⬛First, they probably regularly burned the landscape to promote browsing by red deer and grazing by gazelles, the main focus of their hunting activities. ⬛Second, they placed greater emphasis on the collection of wild seeds from the annual plants that could be effectively stored to see people through the dry season. ⬛The importance of stored foods, coupled with the scarcity of reliable water sources, promoted more settled living patterns. ⬛The reliance upon seeds in Natufian subsistence was made possible by the fact that the Natufians already used sickles (originally used to cut reeds and sedges for baskets) for harvesting grain, as well as grinding stones for processing a variety of wild foods.
Look at the four squares ⬛that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage
The Natufians also had some technological advantages.Insert Text Questions句子插入题
Where would the sentence best fit？Click on a square sentence to the passage.
10
The earliest plant domestication and cultivation occurred in the Fertile Crescent as early as 13,000 years ago.
Prose Summary Questions概要小结题
Select 3 answers
AAbout 12,000 years ago, the region’s climate changed, drying up lakes and shifting the plant cover toward annuals, which produced a plentiful amount of seeds
BThe domestication process proceeded slowly at first because people needed to develop a range of specialized tools designed for use in harvesting and processing plants.
CThe plants that people could grow most easily were variations of wild cereal grains and legumes that were not easily eaten by browsing animals.
DWater scarcity and storage of wild seeds for food during dry seasons created more sedentary populations that often burned vegetation to stimulate plant growth and attract animals that could be hunted.
EPeople continued to depend on wild plants and animals for most of their food long after they began deliberately growing plants like wheat and rye
FSeeds of non-dispersing variants would mainly be brought home, where some lost seeds would grow on disturbed sites; then seeds would be deliberately sown, and finally favored strains would be bred.
