There ems never to have been a civilization without toys, but when and how they developed is unknown. They probably came about just to give children something to do.
In the ancient world, as is today, most boys played with some kinds of toys and most girls with another. In societies where social roles are rigidly determined, boys pattern their play after the activities of their fathers and girls after the tasks of their mothers. This is true becau boys and girls are being prepared, even in play, to step into the roles and responsibilities of the adult world.
What is remarkable about the history of toys is not so much how they changed over the centuries but how much they have remained are same. The changes have been mostly in terms of craftsmanship, mechanics, and technology. It is the universality of toys with regard to their development in all parts of the world and their persistence to the prent that is amazing. In Egypt, the Americas, China, Japan and among the Arctic (北极的) peoples, generally the same kinds of toys appeared. Variations depended on local customs and ways of life becau toys imitate their surroundings. Nearly every civilization had dolls, little weapons, toy soldiers, tiny animals and vehicles.
Becau toys can be generally regarded as a kind of art form, they have not been subject to technological leaps that characterize inventions for adult u. The progress from the wheel to the oxcart to the automobile is a direct line of ascent (进步). The progress from a rattle (拨浪鼓) ud by a baby in 3000 BC to one ud by an infant today, however, is not characterized by inventiveness. Each rattle is the product of the artistic tastes of the times and subject to the limitations of available materials.
36. The reason why the toys most boys play with are different from tho that girls play with is that ________.
A) their social roles are rigidly determined
B) most boys would like to follow their fathers’ professions
火山最多的国家 C) boys like to play with their fathers while girls with their mothers
D) they like challenging activities
37. One aspect of “the universality of toys” lies in the fact that ________.
A) technological advances have greatly improved the durability of toys放灯
B) the improvement of craftsmanship in making toys depends on the efforts of universities
C) the exploration of the univer had led to the creation of new kinds of toys
D) the basic characteristics of toys are the same the world over
38. Which of the following is the author’s view on the historical development of toys?
A) The craftsmanship in toy-making has remained esntially unchanged.
B) Toys have remained basically the same all through the centuries.
C) The toy industry has witnesd great leaps in technology in recent years.
D) Toys are playing an increasingly important role in shaping a child’s character.
39. Regarded as a kind of art form, toys ________.
月光秒赞网 A) follow a direct line of ascent
B) also appeal greatly to adults
C) are not characterized by technological progress
D) reflect the pace of social progress
40. The author us the example of rattle to show that ________.
A) in toy-making there is a continuity in the sue of materials
B) even the simplest toys can reflect the progress of technology
C) even the simplest toys can reflect the progress of technology
幂函数性质 D) even a simple toy can mirror the artistic tastes of the time
36. A 37. D 38. B 39.C 40. D
黄瓜炒火腿肠的做法
Brazil has become one of the developing world’s great success at reducing population growth-but more by accident than design. While countries such as India have made joint efforts to reduce birth rates, Brazil has had better result without really trying, says George Martine at Harvard.
路灯安装 Brazil’s population growth rate has dropped from 2.99% a year between 1951 and 1960 to 1.93% a year between 1981 and 1990, and Brazilian women now have only 2.7 children on average. Martine says this figure may have fallen still further since 1990, an achievement that makes it the envy of many other Third World countries.
有趣的段子 Martine puts it down to, among other things, soap operas (通俗电视连续剧) and installment (分期付款) plans introduced in the 1970s. Both played an important, although indirect, role in lowering the birth rate. Brazil is one of the world’s biggest producers of soap operas. Globo, Brazil’s most popular television network, shows three hours of soaps six nights a week, while three others show at least one hour a night. Most soaps are ba
d on wealthy characters living the high life in big cities.
