Born to Trade

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题目与答案

1. 14 Paragraph A
   • the desire to make expensive jewellery
   • the clues that indicate ancient items were decorative
   • querying the changes in the value of traded items
   • a natural human talent
   • how status can be gained from ownership of goods
   • recent finds alter theories about when consumerism started

   答案：a natural human talent

   原文定位：Humans are born to trade and we don’t need shops or money to do it – the heart of commerce is an instinctive ability for what anthropologists call reciprocity;the exchange of food and favours is innate

   同义替换：「natural human talent」↔「instinctive ability」

2. 15 Paragraph B
   • the desire to make expensive jewellery
   • the clues that indicate ancient items were decorative
   • querying the changes in the value of traded items
   • a natural human talent
   • how status can be gained from ownership of goods
   • recent finds alter theories about when consumerism started

   答案：querying the changes in the value of traded items

   原文定位：But exchanging tools, food and other essentials of life in a barter economy is a far cry from the shopping mall. Modem consumerism goes way beyond subsistence and utilitarianism to encompass everything from Gucci handbags and BMW convertibles to valuable paintings dearly, the worth of such goods is not inherent but resides in certain intangible qualities that we invest in them. When did humans start holding these goods in such high esteem

3. 16 Paragraph C
   • the desire to make expensive jewellery
   • the clues that indicate ancient items were decorative
   • querying the changes in the value of traded items
   • a natural human talent
   • how status can be gained from ownership of goods
   • recent finds alter theories about when consumerism started

   答案：recent finds alter theories about when consumerism started

   原文定位：All the archaeological evidence for the flowering of consumer culture has up to now pointed to a date of around 40,000 years ago;However, discoveries in Africa are pushing the origins of consumerism much further back into human prehistory. A few years ago, reports began to emerge of discoveries made at the Blombos cave;many of them proved to be more than 100,000 years old

   同义替换：「finds」↔「discoveries」，「started」↔「origins」

4. 17 Paragraph D
   • the desire to make expensive jewellery
   • the clues that indicate ancient items were decorative
   • querying the changes in the value of traded items
   • a natural human talent
   • how status can be gained from ownership of goods
   • recent finds alter theories about when consumerism started

   答案：the clues that indicate ancient items were decorative

   原文定位：These cannot be natural deposits, argue the researchers, as each cluster contains shells of a similar size and colour with consistently placed holes. What's more, all the beads display a pattern of wear suggesting friction from rubbing against thread, clothes or other beads

   同义替换：「clues」↔「pattern of wear」，「items」↔「fragments」

5. 18 Paragraph E
   • the desire to make expensive jewellery
   • the clues that indicate ancient items were decorative
   • querying the changes in the value of traded items
   • a natural human talent
   • how status can be gained from ownership of goods
   • recent finds alter theories about when consumerism started

   答案：how status can be gained from ownership of goods

   原文定位：Among our ancestors, superior skills;would have brought respect – in other words, prestige. And because prestige brings social benefits, people would want to show off their talents. The best way to do this would be through demonstrating possession of material items that are hard to fake

   同义替换：「status」↔「prestige」，「be gained from ownership of goods」↔「possession of material items」

6. 19 In section A 'reciprocity' refers to our ancestors ability to
   • keep written records of different goods traded
   • monitor the balance between goods given and received
   • produce more materials for trading purposes
   • make money from trading goods and services

   答案：monitor the balance between goods given and received

   原文定位：This is an ability to exchange goods of equal worth and it evolved as the brains of our ancient ancestors grew and societies became more complex, allowing individuals to keep a running tally of their interactions with others. Evidence from modem hunter – gatherers leaves little doubt that the exchange of food and favours is innate, as is the ability to keep track of the credits and debits that accrue as a result

   同义替换：「reciprocity」↔「exchange of goods of equal worth」，「ancestors」↔「innate」，「monitor the balance between goods given and received」↔「keep track of the credits and debits」

7. 20 What is said about the ochre found around Blombos?
   • It is of a type only found in this particular area
   • It has all been dyed to give the same shade of red
   • It has been perfectly preserved despite its age
   • It appears it was selected for its colour

   答案：It appears it was selected for its colour

   原文定位：Although ochre can be used to dry and preserver cure's animal hides, the researchers are convinced the Blombos ochre had a symbolic purpose. For a start, it is predominantly red – any of the other colours available would have done for curing – and the surfaces of the clay had been scraped in a way that indicates they were used to yield pigment for dyes

8. 21 What made the researchers realise the purpose of the beads found at the Blombos caves?
   • They are a great variety of shapes and sizes
   • They were found in large numbers all grouped around each other
   • They have patterns in many different colours
   • They have holes and markings suggesting they were joined together

   答案：They have holes and markings suggesting they were joined together

   原文定位：What's more, all the beads display a pattern of wear suggesting friction from rubbing against thread, clothes or other beads;each cluster contains shells of a similar size and colour with consistently placed holes

   同义替换：「made researchers realise the purpose」↔「evidence proving they were worn as ornaments」

9. Why certain objects are valued?

   Some researchers argue that we may use ownership of desirable goods to demonstrate our strength and fitness as other 22_____ use their attractive physical features.

   答案：species

   原文定位：In many animal species, individuals signal their genetic fitness by showing off with attention-grabbing adornment. Some researchers think that in humans, consumer products play a similar role

   同义替换：「use ownership of desirable goods to demonstrate our strength and fitness」↔「signal their genetic fitness by showing off with attention-grabbing adornment」

10. Showing off one’s superiority is not a new phenomenon, and even in ancient times, successful people would have gained 23_____ from this.

    答案：prestige

    原文定位：Among our ancestors, superior skills in areas such as hunting, crafts, environmental knowledge and contact with neighbouring groups would have brought respect – in other words, prestige. And because prestige brings social benefits, people would want to show off their talents

    同义替换：「successful people would have gained」↔「brought respect」

11. A desire for status could have led to an increase in the worth of prestige goods and to 24_____ among people wishing to achieve this status.

    答案：competition

    原文定位：The benefits of prestige would also lead to competition to acquire it. As a result, the value and variety of prestige goods would spiral and there would be a parallel increase in the ranking of social systems

    同义替换：「desire for status」↔「benefits of prestige」，「increase in worth of prestige goods」↔「value of prestige goods would spiral」，「competition among people」↔「lead to competition to acquire it」

12. It is thought that our natural desire to trade provided a basis for organized farming and 25_____ and finally resulted in the complex societies which can be seen today.

    答案：urbanisation

    原文定位：They are arguably the first step on the road to modern civilisation, paving the way for agriculture and urbanisation

    同义替换：「provided a basis for」↔「paving the way for」，「farming」↔「agriculture」

13. Whilst we do not value things such as beads nowadays, other items act as a symbol of social 26_____ in the same way that beads once did for our ancestors.

    答案：status

    原文定位：We may not be impressed by beads any more, but their modern equivalents have the same fascination. Nobody believes the guy who spends €670,000 on a Bugatti Veyron car does so because he needs to travel at 250mph. We all know in today’s consumer society he’s buying an exclusive status symbol

    同义替换：「in the same way」↔「the same fascination」