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有证据表明，早期文明兴起背后的一个重要刺激因素是定居农业的发展，这引起了人类社群组织的一系列变化，这些变化在大型古代帝国崛起时到达了顶峰。

Evidence suggests that an important stimulus behind the rise of early civilizations was the development of settled agriculture, which unleashed a series of changes in the organization of human communities that culminated in the rise of large ancient empires.

目前尚不确定首次成功种植农作物的确切时间和地点。

The exact time and place that crops were first cultivated successfully is uncertain.

许多史前学家认为，在人口增加和食物减少这两个要素的驱动下，小的群落开始种植粮食来保证自己的生存，农业可能就随之出现在了世界的不同地方。

Many prehistorians believe that farming may have emerged independently in several different areas of the world when small communities, driven by increasing population and a decline in available food resources, began to plant seeds in the ground in an effort to guarantee their survival.

最早的农民可能生活在一万年前，毫无疑问，他们使用简单的技术，并仍然主要依靠其他形式的来获得食物，例如狩猎，觅食或放牧等。

The first farmers, who may have lived as long as 10,000 years ago, undoubtedly used simple techniques and still relied primarily on other forms of food production, such as hunting, foraging, or pastoralism.

当农民开始沿着河流系统的河漫滩平原进行种植的时候，真正的突破出现了。

The real breakthrough took place when farmers began to cultivate crops along the floodplains of river systems.

上述做法的好处是，在这些地区种植的农作物不那么依赖降雨，因此收获食物更为可靠。

The advantage was that crops grown in such areas were not as dependent on rainfall and therefore produced a more reliable harvest.

另一个好处是，河水携带的沉积物在土壤中沉积了养分，从而使农民可以在一个地方反复耕种，无需搬到新的地点。

An additional benefit was that the sediment carried by the river waters deposited nutrients in the soil, thus enabling the farmer to cultivate a single plot of ground for many years without moving to a new location.

因此，第一批真正定居（即非迁徙）的社会诞生了。

Thus, the first truly sedentary (that is, nonmigratory) societies were born.

随着时间的流逝，这些群落中的人们逐渐学会了如何引导水流以提高土地的生产能力，而铁犁的引入最终让人们可以在原本不适宜农业耕作的重土壤地区进行耕作。 

As time went on, such communities gradually learned how to direct the flow of water to enhance the productive capacity of the land, while the introduction of the iron plow eventually led to the cultivation of heavy soils not previously susceptible to agriculture.

这种河谷农业在亚洲和非洲各地的蔓延是第一批文明崛起的决定性因素。

The spread of this river valley agriculture in various parts of Asia and Africa was the decisive factor in the rise of the first civilizations.

这些地区的粮食产量增加导致了人口的显著增长，同时，为了最大限度地灌溉耕地并保护当地居民免受外部敌对势力的侵害，对水流的控制努力促使了大规模合作活动的最初步骤。

The increase in food production in these regions led to a significant growth in population, while efforts to control the flow of water to maximize the irrigation of cultivated areas and to protect the local inhabitants from hostile forces outside the community provoked the first steps toward cooperative activities on a large scale.

人们必须要监督整个合作过程，这种必要性让精英阶层最终出现，这个阶层最终进化成了政府。

The need to oversee the entire process brought about the emergence of an elite that was eventually transformed into a government.

最早的文明崛起的明确步骤发生在公元前四千纪和三千纪的美索不达米亚、北非、印度和中国。

The first clear steps in the rise of the first civilizations took place in the fourth and third millennia B.C. in Mesopotamia, northern Africa, India, and China.

这些地区最初的政府如何形成的仍是未解之谜，但是研究世界各地人类群落发展的人类学家发现，政府形成过程中的一个统一步骤是“大人物”在村落或者几个村落中的出现。

How the first governments took shape in these areas is not certain, but anthropologists studying the evolution of human communities in various parts of the world have discovered that one common stage in the process is the emergence of what are called “big men” within a single village or a collection of villages.

通过他们的军事才能、卓越的个性或政治才干，这些人逐渐成为那个社区的领导者。

By means of their military prowess, dominant personalities, or political talent, these people gradually emerge as the leaders of that community.

随着时间的流逝，“大人物”成为正式的权威象征，并将这种权威传给了自己家庭中的其他人。

In time, the “big men” become formal symbols of authority and pass on that authority to others within their own family.

随着社区规模和物质财富的不断增长，“大人物”开始世袭，他们的盟友和家庭成员转变为世袭君主。

As the communities continue to grow in size and material wealth, the “big men” assume hereditary status, and their allies and family members are transformed into a hereditary monarchy.

这些定居社会的出现对其领域内人们的社会组织、宗教信仰和生活方式都产生了巨大影响。

The appearance of these sedentary societies had a major impact on the social organizations, religious beliefs, and way of life of the peoples living within their boundaries.

随着人口增长和中央集权的发展，城市随之而来。

With the increase in population and the development of centralized authority came the emergence of the cities.

虽然这些城市中心中的一些因特定的经济功能而被识别，例如靠近金矿或铁矿床，或位于主要贸易路线的战略位置，但其他城市中心主要作为行政中心或官方宗教崇拜或其他仪式活动的场所。

While some of these urban centers were identified with a particular economic function, such as proximity to gold or iron deposits or a strategic location on a major trade route, others served primarily as administrative centers or the site of temples for the official cult or other ritual observances.

在这些城市中，新的生计形式出现来满足人们对社会服务和消费品日益增长的需求。

Within these cities, new forms of livelihood appeared to satisfy the growing need for social services and consumer goods.

有些人成为工匠或商人，而另一些人则成为战士、学者或牧师。

Some people became artisans or merchants, while others became warriors, scholars, or priests.

在某些情况下，最早的城市内部的物理分隔反映了整个社会的严格等级特征，皇宫被一堵宏伟的城墙包围，并与城市的其他居民分开。

In some cases, the physical division within the first cities reflected the strict hierarchical character of the society as a whole, with a royal palace surrounded by an imposing wall and separate from the remainder of the urban population.

在其他情况下，例如印度河流域，这些城市没有皇家区域和那些在其他地方标志着同时代的奢华宫殿。

In other instances, such as the Indus River Valley, the cities lacked a royal precinct and the ostentatious palaces that marked their contemporaries elsewhere.

The phrase “culminated in” in the passage is closest in meaning to

According to paragraph 2, what are TWO reasons why farmers chose river valleys for cultivation? To receive credit you must select TWO answer choices.

The word “provoked” in the passage is closest in meaning to

According to paragraph 3, which of the following is NOT a reason why governments first arose among agricultural communities?

What is the relationship between paragraphs 3 and 4 in the passage?

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.

Paragraph 5 suggests that which of the following was a consequence of the emergence of cities?

According to paragraph 5, why were huge walls built around early royal palaces?

Look at the four squares  that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage. This was accompanied by increased professional specialization.  Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a square  to add the sentence to the passage.

Directions: An introductory sentence for a brief summary of the passage is provided below. Complete the summary by selecting the THREE answer choices that express the most important ideas in the passage. Some sentences do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.

The First Civilizations Evidence suggests that an important stimulus behind the rise of early civilizations was the development of settled agriculture, which unleashed a series of changes in the organization of human communities that culminated in the rise of large ancient empires. The exact time and place that crops were first cultivated successfully is uncertain. Many prehistorians believe that farming may have emerged independently in several different areas of the world when small communities, driven by increasing population and a decline in available food resources, began to plant seeds in the ground in an effort to guarantee their survival. The first farmers, who may have lived as long as 10,000 years ago, undoubtedly used simple techniques and still relied primarily on other forms of food production, such as hunting, foraging, or pastoralism. The real breakthrough took place when farmers began to cultivate crops along the floodplains of river systems. The advantage was that crops grown in such areas were not as dependent on rainfall and therefore produced a more reliable harvest. An additional benefit was that the sediment carried by the river waters deposited nutrients in the soil, thus enabling the farmer to cultivate a single plot of ground for many years without moving to a new location. Thus, the first truly sedentary (that is, nonmigratory) societies were born. As time went on, such communities gradually learned how to direct the flow of water to enhance the productive capacity of the land, while the introduction of the iron plow eventually led to the cultivation of heavy soils not previously susceptible to agriculture. The spread of this river valley agriculture in various parts of Asia and Africa was the decisive factor in the rise of the first civilizations. The increase in food production in these regions led to a significant growth in population, while efforts to control the flow of water to maximize the irrigation of cultivated areas and to protect the local inhabitants from hostile forces outside the community provoked the first steps toward cooperative activities on a large scale. The need to oversee the entire process brought about the emergence of an elite that was eventually transformed into a government. The first clear steps in the rise of the first civilizations took place in the fourth and third millennia B.C. in Mesopotamia, northern Africa, India, and China. How the first governments took shape in these areas is not certain, but anthropologists studying the evolution of human communities in various parts of the world have discovered that one common stage in the process is the emergence of what are called “big men” within a single village or a collection of villages. By means of their military prowess, dominant personalities, or political talent, these people gradually emerge as the leaders of that community. In time, the “big men” become formal symbols of authority and pass on that authority to others within their own family. As the communities continue to grow in size and material wealth, the “big men” assume hereditary status, and their allies and family members are transformed into a hereditary monarchy. The appearance of these sedentary societies had a major impact on the social organizations, religious beliefs, and way of life of the peoples living within their boundaries.  With the increase in population and the development of centralized authority came the emergence of the cities.  While some of these urban centers were identified with a particular economic function, such as proximity to gold or iron deposits or a strategic location on a major trade route, others served primarily as administrative centers or the site of temples for the official cult or other ritual observances.  Within these cities, new forms of livelihood appeared to satisfy the growing need for social services and consumer goods.  Some people became artisans or merchants, while others became warriors, scholars, or priests. In some cases, the physical division within the first cities reflected the strict hierarchical character of the society as a whole, with a royal palace surrounded by an imposing wall and separate from the remainder of the urban population. In other instances, such as the Indus River Valley, the cities lacked a royal precinct and the ostentatious palaces that marked their contemporaries elsewhere.