1、The Origi ns of Writ ingWords & Phrases1. The Egyptia ns were not far beh ind in develop ing writi ng, but we cannot followthe history of their writingin detail because they used a perishable writingmaterial寫出以下單詞的意思：Perishable :2. and from the papyrus reeds the Egyptiansmade a form of paper, it

2、 wasexcelle nt in quality but, like any paper, fragile寫出以下單詞的意思：a form of paper :in the form of :fragile :3. Mesopotamia ' s riversboasted no such useful reeds, but its land did providegood clay, and as a consequenee the clay tablet became the |standard material.寫出以下單詞的意思：Boast :As a consequenee

3、:4. So whe n a conq ueror set a Mesopotamia n palace ablaze, he helped en sure the survival of any clay tablets in it寫出以下單詞的意思：Conq uerorConquer : v.Conquest : n.clay tablets :5. in evitably, literacy was largely limited to a small professi onal class, the scribes 寫出以下單詞的意思：in evitably :literacy :sc

4、ribe : n.6. primitive form of bookkeep ing7. to be available for reference8. Now and the nSyn tax1. The batches, some of which con tain thousa nds of tablets, con sist for the most part of documentsof the types just mentioned:bills, deliveries,inven tories, loa ns, marriage con tracts, divorce settl

5、eme nts, court judgme nts, and so on.Which指代對象的確定；固定搭配的短語出現開端consist就要期待后文Soil Fertilizati on (較簡單)Words & Phrases1. Fertilizers partially restore plant nutrients lost by erosion, crop harvesting, and leach ing.寫出以下單詞的意思Fertilizers : n.Fertile : adj.Restore : v.Erosion : n.Erode : v.Leaching : n

6、.2. stimulates ben eficial soil bacteria and fungi寫出以下單詞的意思stimulate : v.ben eficial: adj.bacteria and fun gi:3. Green manure is fresh or growing green vegetation plowed into in crease the orga nic matter and humus (degraded orga nic matter) availableto the next crop寫出以下單詞的意思Plow : v.Available to:4.

7、 It is produced whe n microorga ni sms in soil (mostly fungi and aerobic bacteria) break dow n orga nic matter such as leaves, food wastes, paper, and wood in the prese nee of oxyge n.寫出以下單詞的意思Microorga nism: n.ofreceipts,the soil toOrga ni sm: an : anic : adj.tissue : bic bacteria :

8、break dow n orga nic matter5. Compost is a rich naturalfertilizer and soil conditionerthat aerates soil,improves its ability to retain water and nutrients, helps prevent erosion, and prevents nutrients from being wasted by being dumped in Iandfills.寫出以下單詞的意思aerates soil :reta in water and nu trie nt

9、s6. decompose pla nt and manure layers:寫出以下單詞的意思decompose : pose : v.7. Corn, tobacco, and cottoncan deplete the topsoil of nutrients, especiallyn itroge n, if pla nted on the same land several years in a row.寫出以下單詞的意思Deplete of ：8. crop rotati on9. The result ingpla nt nu trie nten richme ntca

10、uses algae blooms that use upoxygen dissolved in the water, thereby killing fish.寫出以下單詞的意思Algae : n.Bloom: v.Dissolve : v.The Collapse of the MayasWords & Phrases1. populati ons un precede nted both in their size and den sity寫出以下單詞的意思un precede nted: adj.2. societies developed variousinten sivea

11、gricultural methods,in cludi nglarge-scale irrigati on and hill-slope terraci ng (the cutt ing of horiz on tal ridgesinto hillsides so they can be farmed)寫出以下單詞的意思inten sive agricultural methods :hill-slope terraci ng3. in crease yields from a give n area:寫出以下單詞的意思：yield :4. Thus, the argumentis tha

12、t because of their size and everagriculture, the Maya n and other an cie nt state societies were fun dame ntally un susta in able.寫出以下單詞的意思fun dame ntally un susta in able5. came upon the Maya n cities:6. they were struck by the sight of tall pyramids and elaborately carved stonesamong luxuria nt fo

13、rest growth寫出以下單詞的意思were struck by :elaborately carved stonesluxuriant :7. the archetypal picture of a great lost civilizati on 寫出以下單詞的意思archetypal: adj.8. In terstate rivalry :9. These exerted a powerful mediat ing effect on the way the Maya en deavored to cope with their difficulties.寫出以下單詞的意思exer

14、ted a powerful mediati ng effect onexert : v.mediate: v. en deavor: v.10. subsistenee capacitySyn taxmore inten sivecity-states but1. It was not just the nu mber of people that lived in the Maya n also the relatively small area into which they were concen trated. 介詞+which , which指代介詞前面的名詞，對該名詞做修飾diggi ngfields for2. The raised-field system of inten sivecultivati on(created bysurroundingcanalsand using the soil removed to elevate thepla nti ng) allows year-r ound food product ion through the con sta nt supply of soil nu trie nts that erode in