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答题时间：5月4日 17:00-17:15
正确率：7/10
The Famine of the Early Fourteenth Century in Northern Europe
Paragraph 1: In the spring of 1315, a famine began to affect northern Europe that was more devastating than anything that had occurred over the preceding millennium. The catastrophe began with spring rains that seemed never to stop, continuing all through the summer and well into autumn, only to be followed, so far as one can tell the evidence for weather patterns comes from contemporary chronicles and from tree-ring studies by one of the worst winters in the history of the Middle Ages (approximately 400-1400 C.E.). The year 1316 was even worse: 150 days of uninterrupted rain. Conditions continued to be bad until the end of 1322, with continuously wet summers succeeded by vicious, persistent winters only to be followed alternately by other abnormally wet summers or, equally bad, abnormally dry ones.
famine n.饥荒，饥馑；匮乏，短缺；<古>饥饿
devastating adj.毁灭性的，极具破坏力的；令人极为震惊的；令人印象深刻的，吸引人的；极有效的，强有力的
v.毁灭，破坏；使极度震惊，使伤心欲绝（devastate 的现在分词形式）
preceding adj.先前的，前面的
precede v.在……之前发生（或出现）；走在……前面
millennium n.一千年；千周年纪念日，千禧年（the millennium）；世界末日前基督治理世界的一千年（the millennium）；（作为乌托邦的）美满时期，太平盛世（the millennium）
chronicle n.编年史，大事记；（报纸名称）记事报；记事，叙述
v.把……载入编年史，按事件顺序记载；翔实记载
tree-ring 树木年轮
uninterrupted adj.不间断的；连续的
vicious adj.凶险的，会造成伤害的；严厉的，恶毒的，恶意的；剧烈的，恶劣的；<文>不道德的，罪恶的；<古>（语言，推理）不完善的，谬误的
alternately adv.交替地；轮流地
harsh adj.（环境）恶劣的，艰苦的；严厉的，残酷的；刺耳的，难听的；刺眼的，耀眼的；丑陋的；刺激性强的，太强力的
harsh=vicious
P1段落大意：毁灭性的饥荒影响北欧，灾难开始于春雨下个不停，到夏天再到秋天。中世纪时期最糟糕的冬天，1316-1322，夏天wet & dry 冬天vicious
翻译：1316年更糟:连续150天下雨。恶劣的气候一直持续到1322年底，先是持续潮湿的夏季，接着是恶劣的、持续的冬季，之后是异常潮湿的夏季，或者同样恶劣的、异常干燥的夏季。
1. According to paragraph 1, which of the following best describes the climate in northern Europe during the period between 1316 and 1322?
A. Each year, the winter became more vicious and persistent than the previous winter had been
B. Summers were unusually wet or dry and winters were often very harsh.
C. Summers were abnormally warm and winters were abnormally cold.
D. Rain that usually fell during winter came instead during the spring, summer, and autumn.
定位在文章斜体划线部分，主要是长难句的理解，确定定语成分修饰的对象。
错选A
正解B
Paragraph 2: The immediate consequence was a crisis in the production of crops and, soon after of work and food animals. The problems with production were compounded by a series of wars throughout the British Isles, northern Germany, Scandinavia, and northern France and Flanders——all accompanied by piracy on the seas——that initiated a prolonged distribution crisis. The effect on the production of all major cereals——wheat, barley, oats, and rye——as well as rapes and other crops was nothing short of catastrophic. Selective statistical material indicates a decline in grain production in parts of northern Europe of about one-third during the years of the disastrous weather cycle. Considering the population of northern Europe was at its medieval peak on the eve of the ecological catastrophe caused by the weather from 1315 to 1322, such a decline in crop yields put roughly 30 million inhabitants of northern Europe at considerable risk of malnutrition.
compound v.使加重，使恶化
piracy n.海上抢劫，海盗行为；盗版，非法复制（或销售）；（电视或广播节目的）非法播出，非法制作电视（或广播）节目；抢劫行为，劫持行为，劫机
on the eve of 在……的前夜
malnutrition n.营养不良
food animals 食用动物
rye n.黑麦；吉卜赛绅士 adj.用黑麦制成的
British Isles 不列颠群岛
northern Germany 德国北部
Scandinavia n.斯堪的纳维亚（半岛）
northern France 法国北部
Flanders n.佛兰德斯（中世纪欧洲一伯爵领地，包括现比利时 的以及法国各一地区）
P2段落大意：第一段叙述的famine对庄稼产量、工作、食用动物都产生了影响。还伴随一系列的战争恶化加剧不良影响。
北欧人的口在ecological catastrophe（1315-1322）的前夕达到了中世纪峰值——>B
2. According to paragraph 2, which of the following was true of northern Europe just before the beginning of the disastrous weather cycle?
A. It produced significantly more major cereals and other crops than its people needed.
B. It was experiencing a prolonged period of peace.
C. Its population was greater than at any other time during the Middle Ages
D. Roughly 30 million of its people were involved in farming
Paragraph 3: The estimated decline of crop yields by one-third is an aggregate figure the effects of the weather on various grains differed. Some could tolerate soggy soils better than dry soil; for others, the reverse was the case. Furthermore, effects varied over regions as well. Nevertheless, nearly everywhere one looks, the combination of weather extremes and the consequences for human labor (it is very hard to plow sodden fields and equally hard to plow very dry ones) reduced yields of grain by anywhere from 12 percent to 100 percent. There were farms where peasants sowed 100 bushels of seed corn at the beginning of the growing season and harvested less than that at the end.
aggregate n.总数，合计；骨料，混凝料 adj.总计的，合计的；（种群）聚生的 v.集合，聚集；总计达到；合计
soggy adj.浸水的；透湿的；沉闷的
plow v.耕，犁；（用犁）挖出
sodden adj.浸透的；浑身湿透的；浸过酒的 vt.使浸透；使迷糊
peasant n.（旧时或贫穷国家的）农民，佃农；<非正式>没教养的人，粗人
bushel n.蒲式耳 vt.修整（衣服等）
100 bushels of seed corn 100蒲式耳玉米种子
harvest n.收获；收获量，捕获量；成果，收获 v.收割，收获；采集，搜集；收采（人的器官、细胞等）
P3段落大意：作物产量下降1/3是一个总计的数值。有的谷物适宜生长在浸水湿润的环境中，有的适宜生存在干燥的环境中。完全浸透的土地和非常干燥的土地都不利于农民耕种。减少产量12%——>100%
灰色高亮部分：播种<收获——>D
3. Why does the author state that "There were farms where peasants sowed 100 bushels of seed corn at the beginning of the growing season and harvested less than that at the end"?
A. To compare the crop yield at the beginning of the famine with that at the end of the famine
B. To show how difficult it was for peasants to plow very wet fields
C. To support the claim that extreme weather did more damage to some crops than to others
D. To illustrate how much the extreme weather affected some grain yields
Paragraph 4: The ceaseless wet weather of the early years of the Great Famine corrupted the grape harvest to a similar degree. Grapes rotted on the vine or became diseased from the downy mildews associated with excessive dampness. Again, the statistical evidence points to grape production being roughly 80 percent below normal yields during the famine years. And contemporaries' comments about the small quantities and awful quality of the wine produced from these diseased and underdeveloped grapes are recorded in numerous texts.
ceaseless adj.不断的；不停的
corrupt adj.腐败的，贪污的；不道德的，堕落的；有缺陷的，有错误的；<古>腐坏的，腐烂的 v.使腐化，使堕落；<古>腐蚀，污染；损坏，破坏
rott adj.腐烂的
rotten adj.腐烂的，发臭的
vine n.葡萄属植物，葡萄藤；藤本植物，攀缘植物 v.长成藤蔓，爬藤
rotted on the vine 在葡萄藤上腐烂了
downy adj.柔和的；绒毛的；多丘岗的
mildew n.霉；霉病 vt.使发霉 vi.发霉；生霉
downy mildews 霜霉
excessive adj.过度的，过多的
dampness n.潮湿；湿气
contemporary adj.当代的，现代的；同时期的，同时代的n.同时代的人；同龄人，同辈
underdeveloped adj.（国家或地区）不发达的，经济落后的；发育不全的；
（胶卷）显影不足的
v.（使）发展不完全；（使）显影不足（underdevelop 的过去式和过去分词）
P4段落大意：不断的潮湿天气使葡萄腐烂，由于过度的潮湿，葡萄在葡萄藤上腐烂或者因霉霜死掉。数据证明葡萄产量大概比正常产量低80%，葡萄产量小和糟糕的葡萄品质在大量文本中被记载下来。
4. The word "ceaseless" in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. unusual
B. severe
C. unending
D. damaging
ceaseless adj.不断的；不停的=unending adj.（尤指不好的事情）无尽的，源源不断的
ceaseless=unending
severe adj.十分严重的，极为恶劣的；艰巨的，严峻的；（惩罚、批评）严厉的，重的；严厉的，苛刻的；不加装饰的，朴素的
damaging adj.有破坏性的，损害的；诽谤的 v.破坏（damage 的现在分词形式）；损害
C ✅
5. The word "excessive" in the passage is closest in meaning to
A. frequent
B. unhealthy
C. too much
D. unsuitable
excessive adj.过度的，过多的=too much
excessive=too much
unsuitable adj.不适合的；不适宜的；不相称的
frequent adj.频繁的，经常性的；<古>间隔很近的 v.常去，常出入于
C ✅
6. According to paragraph 4, all of the following statements are true of grapes harvested during the early famine years EXCEPT
A. They resulted in poor-quality wine. 【awful quality of the wine】
B. They often rotted while still on the vine. 【rotted on the vine】
C. They were often diseased as a result of damp weather. 【diseased from the downy mildews associated with excessive dampness】
D. They suffered as much during dry years as they did during wet years
细节题
他们在干旱的年份遭受的苦难和在潮湿的年份一样多——>葡萄死于潮湿环境
D ✅
Paragraph 5: The evidence for other kinds of fruit and crop production and what can be inferred from the effects of this kind of weather on modern farming suggests similar declines in yields. In provinces where the ordinary peasant beverage was a very nutritious fermented apple beverage called cider, a pathetic apple harvest, let alone the use of rotting apples in cider making, must have had disastrous consequences for human health. One can add to this list of catastrophes the severe effects of the weather on industrial crops. Many of these provided products that farmers and estates could sell to manufacturers. Flax, for example, was used for the production of linen cloth, and wood provided the raw material for a blue dye used in the cloth-making industry.
beverage n.饮料
fermented adj.酿造；已发酵的 v.使……发酵；动乱（ferment 的过去分词）
cider n.苹果酒；苹果汁
pathetic adj.令人怜悯的，可怜的；无用的，差劲的；感伤的
industrial crops 工业作物
estate n.财产，遗产；大片私有土地，庄园；<英>住宅区，工业区；<旧>社会阶层；（生活）状况，条件
flax n.亚麻；亚麻纤维；亚麻布；亚麻织品
linen cloth n.亚麻布；亚麻织物
翻译：One can add to this list of catastrophes the severe effects of the weather on industrial crops. 在这一系列灾难中，还可以加上天气对工业作物的严重影响。
P5段落大意：对饮料的影响，cider苹果汁如果用腐烂的苹果制作，会影响人体健康。
对工业作物的影响，flax亚麻用来制作linen cloth亚麻布；木材提供原材料用来蓝色染色在服装制造产业。
7. Why does the author discuss the uses of flax and wood in paragraph 5?
A. To illustrate how the weather negatively affected industry
B. To show that industrial crops were even more seriously affected by the disastrous weather cycle than fruit crops were
C. To provide an example of crops whose yields did not decline
D. To support the idea that the weather had disastrous consequences for human health
B 没有提到比较关系
C 产量也会降低
D human health 是cide的影响
A ✅
Paragraph 6: The effects on animal populations were equally severe, but they differed depending on the type of animal. Neither horses nor pigs seem to have suffered widespread disease during most of the famine, while sheep and cattle did. The supply of horses helped ease the effects of the mortality of oxen as beasts of burden. The prevalence of pigs helped lessen the effects of disease on the sheep flocks and cattle herds. Nonetheless, the effects were extraordinary, and flocks and herds were often reduced in size by as much as 90 parents from the devastating impact of disease.
neither... nor... 既不是……也不是……
mortality n.死亡人数，死亡率；必死性，终有一死；死亡
beasts of burden 牛马
prevalence n.流行，盛行
lessen v.（使）缩小，（使）减少
flocks n.短纤维，废毛铁；絮凝物，絮状沉淀
herds n.畜群；大量（herd 的复数）；人群
v.聚在一起；结交（herd 的三单形式）
P6段落大意：对动物数量的影响，但是会随着动物品种的不同而有着不同的影响。
马和猪不受影响，羊和牛会受到影响；
马代替公牛驮物品；——>A ✅
猪的prevalence减少了牛羊的影响。
8. Paragraph 6 supports the idea that farmers' use of horses was affected in which of the following ways during the famine?
A. Horses carried leads that had been carried by oxen before the famine.
B. Horses replaced pigs as a source of meat.
C. Farmers rode horses to herd cattle and sheep because the animals required larger land areas to feed on than they had before the famine.
D. Farmers relied less on horses because of widespread disease among horses.
Paragraph 2: ■ The immediate consequence was a crisis in the production of crops and, soon after, of work and food animals. ■ The problems with the production were compounded by a series of wars throughout the British Isles, northern Germany, Scandinavia, and northern France and Flanders——all accompanied by piracy on the seas——that initiated a prolonged distribution crisis. ■ The effect on the production of all major cereals——wheat, barley, oats, and rye——as well as rapes and other crops was nothing short of catastrophic. ■ Selective statistical material indicates a decline in grain production in parts of northern Europe of about one-third during the years of the disastrous weather cycle. Considering the population of northern Europe was at its medieval peak on the eve of the ecological catastrophe caused by the weather from 1315 to 1322, such a decline in crop yields put roughly 30 million inhabitants of northern Europe at considerable risk of malnutrition.
9. Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence could be added to the passage.
But the failure of farms to produce sufficient goods was only one aspect of the crisis.
Where would the sentence best fit? Click on a square to add the sentence to the passage.
But转折
可以得知插入位置的前面是描述没有produce很多的goods，后面是说crisis其他方面的影响
——>一系列战争 B ✅
10. 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 the express ideas that are not presented in the passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.
From 1315 to 1322, a disastrous weather cycle resulted in catastrophic famine throughout northern Europe.
A. Evidence for the catastrophic weather patterns comes from tree-ring studies contemporary chronicles and statistical materials concerning crop yields and human population sizes.
B. Evidence indicates that roughly 30 million inhabitants of northern Europe most likely died of malnutrition at the peak of the ecological catastrophe.
C. Disastrous consequences for human health resulted from a shift in peasants' diet to include fewer cereal crops and more cider, poor-quality wine, and meat from pigs and horses.
D. Crops differed in their ability to tolerate the ceaseless rain and extreme weather, but harvests of grain and fruits and industrial crops were all reduced
E. A series of wars resulted in a food distribution crisis that made the effects of crop losses even more serious and contributed to the risk of malnutrition.
F. Though the survival of pigs and horses helped reduce the effects of the loss of other farm animals, widespread diseases killed many animals during the period, especially sheep and cattle.
P1段落大意：毁灭性的饥荒影响北欧，灾难开始于春雨下个不停，到夏天再到秋天。中世纪时期最糟糕的冬天，1316-1322，夏天wet & dry 冬天vicious。
P2段落大意：第一段叙述的famine对庄稼产量、工作、食用动物都产生了影响。还伴随一系列的战争恶化加剧不良影响。
北欧人的口在ecological catastrophe（1315-1322）的前夕达到了中世纪峰值。
P3段落大意：作物产量下降1/3是一个总计的数值。有的谷物适宜生长在浸水湿润的环境中，有的适宜生存在干燥的环境中。完全浸透的土地和非常干燥的土地都不利于农民耕种。减少产量12%——>100%
灰色高亮部分：播种<收获
P4段落大意：不断的潮湿天气使葡萄腐烂，由于过度的潮湿，葡萄在葡萄藤上腐烂或者因霉霜死掉。数据证明葡萄产量大概比正常产量低80%，葡萄产量小和糟糕的葡萄品质在大量文本中被记载下来。
P5段落大意：对饮料的影响，cider苹果汁如果用腐烂的苹果制作，会影响人体健康。
对工业作物的影响，flax亚麻用来制作linen cloth亚麻布；木材提供原材料用来蓝色染色在服装制造产业。
P6段落大意：对动物数量的影响，但是会随着动物品种的不同而有着不同的影响。
马和猪不受影响，羊和牛会受到影响；
马代替公牛驮物品；——>A ✅
猪的prevalence减少了牛羊的影响。
没有描述对population sizes的影响——> A ❎
没有描述死于营养不良——>B ❎
pigs and horses 马用来负重——>C ❎meat fromDEF——> ✅
答案：
～
～
～
～
～～
BCDCC DAAD DEF
第1题（错选A）、第7题（错选D）、第10题1/3 （选错ADF）
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