高危真题篇托福阅读真题套：Sumerian Coibutions.pdfVIP

第6套

SumerianContributions（17年3月4日考过）

Paragraph1：Beforeabout4500B.C.,lowerMesopotamia,theregionweenthe

TigrisandEuphratesriversjustnorthofthePersianGulf,wasmuchsdensely

populatedthanotherinhabitedregionsoftheNearandMiddleEast.Itsmarshysoil,

subjecttoannualinundationsfloodsfromtherivers,wasnotsuitedtotheprimitivehoe

cultureofearlyagriculture,inwhichlandwascultivatedwithoutdomesticanimalsor

beasts.Moreover,thelandwasvirtuallytreesandlackedbuildingstoneandmineral

resources.Duringthenextthousandyears,however,this(unpromising)areabecame

theseatofSumer,thefirstgreatcivilizationknowntohistory,withlargeconcentrations

ofpeople,bustlingcities,monumentalarchitecture,and(awealthof)religious,artistic,

andliterarytraditionsthatinfluencedotherancientcivilizationsforthousandsofyears.

Theexactsequenceofeventsthatledtothisculminationisunknown,butitisclearthat

theeconomicbasisofthisfirstcivilizationlayinitshighlyproductiveagriculture.

1..Thewordunpromisinginthepassageisclosestinmeaningto

○unfavorable

○underdeveloped

○distant

○expansive

2..Thephraseawealthofinthepassageisclosestinmeaningto

○astrongcompetitionamong

○avaluablesourceof

○adeeprespectfor

○anabundanceof

3..Accordingtoparagraph1,whichofthefollowingwasNOTtrueoflower

Mesopotamiabefore4500B.C.

○Itwasfloodedeveryyearbyrivers.

○ItssoilwasunsuitableforStoneAgehoecultureagriculture.

○Itwascomparativelydenseinpopulation.

○Ithadfewtrees.

Paragraph2：Thenaturalfertili