The Origins of Agriculture
Paragraph 1：How did it come about that farming developed independently in a number of world centers (the Southeast Asian mainland, Southwest Asia, Central America, lowland and highland South America, and equatorial Africa) at more or less the same time? Agriculture developed slowly among populations that had an extensive knowledge of plants and animals. Changing from hunting and gathering to agriculture had no immediate advantages. To start with, it forced the population to abandon the nomad's life and became sedentary, to develop methods of storage and, often, systems of irrigation. While hunter-gatherers always had the option of moving elsewhere when the resources were exhausted, this became more difficult with farming. Furthermore, as the archaeological record shows, the state of health of agriculturalists was worse than that of their contemporary hunter-gatherers.
1.The word “option” in the passage is closest in meaning to
O choice
O benefit
O idea
O experience
题型：词汇题
解题思路： option是一个简单词汇，意思为“选择”，所以A项正确。
重点句子翻译：
While hunter-gatherers always had the option of moving elsewhere when the resources were exhausted, this became more difficult with farming.
然而，当自然资源枯竭的时候，狩猎者永远可以选择搬到别处去，这使得种地变得更加困难。
2. According to paragraph 1, all of the following are advantages of hunting and gathering over agriculture EXCEPT:
O It is a healthier lifestyle.
O It requires less knowledge of plants and animals.
O It does not need storage capabilities.
O It is not tied to any specific location.
题型：排除列举题
定位词： advantages of hunting and gathering over agriculture
解 题思路： 根据定位词定位回原文，A项对应 “the state of health of agriculturalists was worse than that of their contemporary hunter-gatherers”; C项对应“to develop methods of storage”; D项对应” hunter-gatherers always had the option of moving elsewhere”, B项原文未提及，为正确选项。
Paragraph 2：Traditionally, it was believed that the transition to agriculture was the result of a worldwide population crisis. It was argued that once hunter-gatherers had occupied the whole world, the population started to grow everywhere and food became scarce; agriculture would have been a solution to this problem. We know, however, that contemporary hunter-gatherer societies control their population in a variety of ways. The idea of a world population crisis is therefore unlikely, although population pressure might have arisen in some areas.
3. The word “therefore” in the passage is closest in meaning to
O in theory
O obviously
O frequently
O as a result
题型：词汇题
解题思路： therefore是一个简单词汇，表示一种结果。所以D项正确。
4. Which of the following best describes the way paragraph 2 is organized?
O A possible explanation for a phenomenon is presented and then criticized.
O Two similar ways of accounting for a puzzling fact are considered.
O Early societies' response to a problem is contrasted with contemporary societies' response.
O A prehistoric development is first explained in traditional terms and then in contemporary terms.
题型：修辞目的题
解 题思路： 在本段中，文章开头引入了一个社会向农业方向转变的原因－ population crisis, 中间 however 一词说明作者的态度发生了转变，结尾说到这个理论是 unlikely的，所以本段结构是先为一种现象提供了一种解释，随后反驳。A项正确。
Paragraph 3：Climatic changes at the end of the glacial period 13,000 years ago have been proposed to account for the emergence of farming. The temperature increased dramatically in a short period of time (years rather than centuries), allowing for a growth of the hunting-gathering population due to the abundance of resources. There were, however, fluctuations in the climatic conditions, with the consequences that wet conditions were followed by dry ones, so that the availability of plants and animals oscillated brusquely.
5. 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.
O The resources needed by the growing hunting and gathering population increased rapidly once temperatures rose.
O Dramatic temperature increases and the simultaneous growth of the hunting and gathering population led to the need for more resources.
O Higher temperatures led to the existence of increased resources, thus enabling the hunting and gathering population to grow.
O The dramatic temperature increase occurred during the few years when abundant resources allowed the hunting and gathering population to grow.
题型：句子简化题
解题思路： 原句中没有明显的逻辑关系，抓住句子的主干：升高的温度使自然资源更加丰富，导致了捕猎人口数量的增加。选项C抓住了原句主干，所以C项正确。
重点句子翻译：
The temperature increased dramatically in a short period of time (years rather than centuries), allowing for a growth of the hunting-gathering population due to the abundance of resources.
气温在一个很短的时间急剧增加（年，而不是世纪），由于自然资源充足使得狩猎人口大量增长。
6. According to paragraph 3, the abundance of resources fluctuated sharply after the end of the glacial period because
O locally abundant resources were quickly exhausted by hunter-gatherers
O the temperature became much higher in some areas over others
O different types of plants and animals became available as the climate changed
O the amount of rainfall varied radically from one period to the next
题型：细节题
定位词： the abundance of resources fluctuated sharply after the end of the glacial period
解题思路：最后一句中“the availability of plants and animals oscillated brusquely” 是定位词的同义改写，所以答案就是这句话中说的雨季、旱季的更替使得动植物剧烈波动。所以选项D正确。
重点句子翻译：
There were, however, fluctuations in the climatic conditions, with the consequences that wet conditions were followed by dry ones, so that the availability of plants and animals oscillated brusquely.
然而，气候条件的波动带来的潮湿、干旱的更替，使得动植物资源剧烈波动。
