前幾天，託福官方發布了最新的考試安排：為滿足考生報考需求，2021年將增加8場託福考試，考試日期分別為：
2021年4月21日、2021年5月26日、2021年6月9日、2021年7月14日、2021年9月29日、2021年10月13日、2021年11月17日、2021年12月22日。
鑑於疫情的不確定因素的影響，年前有部分考場被迫取消了相關的考試，（詳情點擊這裡查看）雖然昨天託福公布將新增8場考試，但是此前的部分考點依然未全面開放，考生在進行備考準備的時候需要密切關注考試公告以及帳號通知。
根據目前的情況看，為了應對疫情帶來的考試取消和延後的影響，在未來或許託福會繼續新增部分考試日期或下午考場。
為了方便大家合理安排考試時間，建議大家直接收藏或者保存下面這張 2021年全年託福考試時間安排 圖。
託福場次越來越多，留給咱們的機會也越來越多，所以我們更要趕緊抓住，好好備考啊。
今天再來給大家講一篇咱們ZTO題庫裡面的真題解析。
按照慣例，開篇先給大家介紹一下什麼是ZTO（全程班的孩紙應該很熟悉來了）。
ZTO=Zhen Ti Online=維夕獨家真題，即考場的原題，題型和難度相對於TPO較大，但是與考試基本一致，有很強的時效性。很多同學平時刷TPO閱讀正確率100%，但是一上考場，卻接二連三出錯，原因就是平時練習TPO過於簡單了。
真題題庫會根據近年來的考試趨勢不斷更新，在考試中遇到原文原題的機率也非常大，因此參考價值特別高。
一句話總結就是：TPO是讓你習慣考試形式的一手好資料；而真題則是一劑猛藥！！
所以ZTO真題你是一定要練習和掌握的重要性這下知道了吧？但是有很多同學刷了真題，沒有詳細的題目解析，依舊一場空。
為了幫助大家更好地提升閱讀水平，咱們為大家帶來了託福閱讀ZTO的文章解析系列，題目全部來自託福閱讀考場絕密真題，每道題都給大家詳細的解析，希望通過這些內容的整理，能夠幫助大家更好地備考託福閱讀考試。
千萬不要平時刷題119分，上了考場卻是99分。那可真是事倍功半啊！！下面讓我們一起來看看吧！
【ZTO 06】
Passage 1-Sumerian Contributions
【正文】
Paragraph 1：Before about 4500 B.C., lower Mesopotamia, the region between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers just north of the Persian Gulf, was much less densely populated than other inhabited regions of the Near and Middle East. Its marshy soil, subject to annual inundations (floods) from the rivers, was not suited to the primitive hoe culture of early agriculture, in which land was cultivated without domestic animals or beasts. Moreover, the land was virtually treeless and lacked building stone and mineral resources. During the next thousand years, however, this unpromising area became the seat of Sumer, the first great civilization known to history, with large concentrations of people, bustling cities, monumental architecture, and a wealth of religious, artistic, and literary traditions that influenced other ancient civilizations for thousands of years. The exact sequence of events that led to this culmination is unknown, but it is clear that the economic basis of this first civilization lay in its highly productive agriculture.
Paragraph 2：The natural fertility of the rich black soil was renewed annually by the silt left from the spring floods of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Harnessing its full productive power, however, required an elaborate system of drainage and irrigation, which in turn required a large and well-disciplined workforce as well as skilled management and supervision. The latter were supplied by a class of priests and warriors who ruled a large population of peasants and artisans. Through taxation and other means the rulers extracted wealth from the population and then used it to construct temples and other public buildings and to create works of art. That gave them (or some of them) the leisure to perfect the other refinements of civilization.
Paragraph 3：The rise of civilization brought with it a far more complex division of labor and system of economic organization. [■]Full-time artisans specialized in the manufacture of textiles and pottery, metalworking, and other crafts.[■] The professions of architecture, engineering, and medicine, among others, were born. [■]Weights and measures were systematized, mathematics was invented, and primitive forms of science emerged. [■]Since Sumer was virtually devoid of natural resources other than its rich soil, it traded with other people, thereby contributing to the diffusion of Sumerian civilization. The scarcity of stone, for tools as well as for buildings, probably hastened the adoption of copper and bronze. Copper, at least, was already known before the rise of Sumerian civilization, but lack of demand for it among the Stone Age peasant villages inhibited its widespread use. In Sumerian cities, on the other hand, stone imported by sea through the Persian Gulf from Oman and downriver from the mountains of Anatolia and the Caucasus had to compete with imported copper, and the latter proved more economical and effective for a variety of uses. Thereafter metallurgy, the technology of separating metals from their ores and purifying them, was regarded as one of the hallmarks of civilization.
Paragraph 4：Sumer’s greatest contribution to subsequent civilizations, the invention of writing, likewise grew out of economic necessity. The early cities—Eridu, Ur, Uruk, and Lagash—were temple cities: both economic and religious organizations centered on the temple of the local patron deity, represented by a priestly hierarchy. Members of the hierarchy directed the construction and maintenance of irrigation and drainage systems, oversaw agricultural activities, and supervised the collection of produce as taxation or tribute (money or other wealth given as a sign of submission or in return for protection). The need to keep records of the sources and uses of this tribute led to the use of simple pictographs on clay tablets sometime before 3000 B.C. By about 2800 B.C. the pictographs had been stylized into the system of writing known as cuneiform (using wedge-shaped marks on clay), a distinctive characteristic of Mesopotamian civilization. It is one of the few examples in history of a significant innovation issuing from a bureaucratic organization.
Paragraph 5：Although writing originated in response to the need for administrative bookkeeping, it soon found multiple religious, literary, and economic uses. In a later phase of development, after the strict temple-centered organization of the economy had given way to greater freedom of enterprise, clay tablets were used for recording the details of contracts, debts, and other commercial and financial transactions.
【翻譯】
在大約公元前4500年前，位于波斯灣北部底格裡斯河和幼發拉底河之間的地區，美索不達米亞下遊地區的人口密度遠遠低於近東和中東其他居住區。該地區的沼澤土壤，受到河流一年一度的泛濫（洪水）的影響，並不適合早期農業原始的鋤耕文化，且該地區沒有家養動物或野獸。此外，這片土地幾乎沒有樹木，缺乏建築石材和礦產資源。然而，在接下來的一千年中，這個死氣沉沉的地區成了蘇美爾人的家園，蘇美爾是人們所熟知的歷史上第一個偉大的文明，人口密度大，城市繁華，擁有不朽的建築和許多宗教，藝術和文學傳統，使得蘇美爾對其他古代文明造成了數千年的影響。雖無法得知這種文明是如何走向巔峰的，但很顯然，這種高度文明的經濟基礎在於其高度發達的農業生產力。
每年，由底格裡斯河和幼發拉底河春汛所留下的淤泥提高了肥沃黑土地的自然肥力。然而，利用其全部生產力，需要一個精心設計的排水和灌溉系統，而這又需要一支規模龐大且訓練有素的工作人員以及熟練的管理和監督。後者是由一群統治著大量農民和工匠的牧師和戰士提供的。通過稅收和其他手段，統治者從人口中提取財富，然後用它來建造寺廟和其他公共建築物，並創造藝術作品。這給了他們（或他們中的一些人）休閒去完善文明的其他優化。
文明的興起引發了更為複雜的勞動分工和經濟組織體系。全職手工業者專門從事紡織品和陶器，金屬加工和其他工藝品的製造工作。誕生了建築，工程和醫學等行業。系統化規範了度量衡，創造了數學，出現了原始的科學。由於蘇美爾地區除了有肥沃的土地外, 幾乎沒有其他自然資源，因而蘇美爾人與其他地方的人展開貿易往來，從而促進了蘇美爾文明的傳播。由於缺乏製成工具和建築物的石器，因而蘇美爾地區可能會更多的使用銅和青銅。至少，人們在蘇美爾文明興起之前就對銅器有所了解，但在石器時代的農村，人們對銅的需求小，從而限制了銅的廣泛使用。另一方面，在蘇美爾的城市，從阿曼從波斯灣通過海運進口的石器，以及從安納託利亞和高加索山脈的下遊地區進口的石器，使得人們對石器的進口與銅的進口產生對比，結果表明銅的進口更經濟實惠，且用途也更為廣泛。此後，人們認為冶金術，即從礦石中分離金屬並將其淨化，是文明的標誌之一。
蘇美爾對後來的文明做出的最大貢獻就是發明了文字，文字的發明同樣也源於經濟發展的需要。早期的城市埃利都，烏爾，烏魯克和拉格什是寺廟城市：經濟和宗教組織都以當地的守護神神廟為中心，以祭司階層為代表。該階層的成員負責建設和維護灌溉和排水系統，管理農業活動，並監督農產品的徵收，以作為稅收或貢品（金錢或其他財富作為上交的標誌或作為保護的回報）。需要對貢品的來源和用途進行記錄，促使人們在3000年前的某個時候在粘土泥板上使用簡單的象形文字。到公元前2800年左右。這些象形文字已轉化為楔形文字（在粘土上使用楔形標記），這是美索不達米亞文明的一個顯著特徵。這是歷史上官僚組織所進行的一項重大創新。
雖然文字的發明是源於對行政簿記的需求，但文字很快就便運用於宗教，文學和經濟等多種用途。在經濟發展的後期，在絕對以寺廟為中心的經濟組織已經由高度自由的企業所代替，泥版被用於記錄合同，債務以及其他商業和金融交易的細節。
1.According to paragraph 1, which of the following was NOT true of lower Mesopotamia before 4500 B.C.?
A. It was flooded every year by rivers.
B. Its soil was unsuitable for Stone Age hoe culture agriculture.
C. It was comparatively dense in population.
D. It had few trees.
1.except排除題，定位到第二句以及第三句。
A.同義替換 flooded = inundations, every year = annual。
B.not suited to = unsuitable， Stone Age = primitive。
C.定位到第一句，less densely populated，選項錯誤。
D.在Moreover後面，treeless = few trees。
2.According to paragraph 2, which of the following was true of the soil in lower Mesopotamia?
A. It was relatively unfertile until humans added other, richer types of soil to it.
B. It reached full productivity only when elaborate drainage and irrigation systems were added.
C. Its most valuable nutrients were washed away by the spring floods of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
D. Its silt was removed by a large, well-disciplined workforce.
2.定位到第二句however後面，只有精細的排水以及灌溉系統才能使土壤肥沃，產量高，對應B選項。
A.unfertile = unproductive，選項意思是人為加入其他種類土壤才使土壤肥沃，與原文的排水灌溉系統不符。
C.原文說的是土壤被renewed by flood，選項說春汛為負作用，與原文相反。
D.並未提到workforce對silt產生的影響。
3.According to paragraph 2, which of the following was true of priests and warriors in Sumerian society?
A. Their technical expertise was essential in the development of new irrigation and drainage systems.
B. They encouraged peasants and artisans to perfect the refinements of civilization.
C. They were responsible for managing and supervising the workforce.
D. They alone paid the taxes that funded the construction of temples.
3.以關鍵詞priests 和warriors定位到第三句，看到牧師和戰士提供了the latter，這裡the latter是指代前面的and並列結構的後面一個，即skilled management & supervision，因此對應C選項。
A.technical expertise屬於技術人員，即農民和工匠，而不是戰士和牧師。
B.encourage錯誤，兩者關係是rule，supervise。
D.是population納稅而非僅僅戰士和牧師。
4.The word 」 diffusion」 in the passage is closet in meaning to
A. stability
B. spread
C. prosperity
D. productivity
4.diffusion: To diffuse or be diffused through something means to move and spread through it.
B.Diffusion擴散 = spread 蔓延
A.stability穩定
C.prosperity繁榮
D.productivity豐富
5.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.
A. Sumeriancities developed a trade in copper and stone that extended as far as Oman in the Persian Gulf and the mountains of Anatolia and the Caucasus.
B. Sumerian cities competed with traders elsewhere to produce copper that was more economical and useful than stone.
C. In Sumerian cities, imported copper often proved more economical and useful than imported stone.
D. The copper and stone imported from Oman, Anatolia, and the Caucasus proved more economical and effective than the copper and stone found in Sumerian cities.
5.提取關鍵信息，抓住主要成分，修飾stone的一長串「by sea through the Persian Gulf from Oman and downriver from the mountains of Anatolia and the Caucasus」全部不用看，只要知道：1.stone compete with imported copper；2.imported copper is more economical and effective.很顯然對應C。
A. stone和copper屬於競爭關係，而不是共存的貿易。
B.不是Sumerian cities produce copper，主謂搭配錯誤。
D.對比對象是copper和stone，而不是產地的比較。
6.In paragraph 4, why does the author point out that the economic and religious organizations of early Sumerian cities centered on local temples?
A. To identify the bureaucratic needs that led to the development of writing.
B. To identify factors responsible for the significant influence of Sumerian writing on subsequent civilizations.
C. To explain why few examples of significant innovations have issued from a bureaucratic organization.
D. To explain why the use of simple pictographs eventually became stylized into the system of writing known as cuneiform.
6.這題需要理解原文。首先開頭提及greatest contribution是發明了writing，為topic sentence.而以local temples定位到第二句話，hierarchy是階級的意思，後面列舉了階級成員的負責建設，記錄貢品的來源用途，才孕育了象形文字。這裡hierarchy = bureaucratic，他們推動了writing的發展，對應A選項。
B.文字對subsequent的影響未提及。
C.定位到最後一句，是單純的講writing，但是題幹問的是local temples。
D.只是描述現象，並未解釋轉化的原因。
7.Paragraph 4 implies all the following about cuneiform EXCEPT:
A. It arose after 3000 B.C.
B. It involved stylized pictographs.
C. It was designed to further the purposes of the priestly bureaucracy.
D. It was developed outside of the early temple cities.
7.排除題，看選項定位原文.注意區分幾個概念，pictographs = 象形文字，cuneiform = wedge-shaped楔形文字，公元前3k年左右有了象形文字，公元前2k8年左右有了楔形文字，楔形文字晚於象形文字。
A.正確，公元前2k8年才有。
B.正確，是象形文字轉化而來。
C.定位到The need 一句，作為記錄貢品信息，達到官僚組織的目的，正確。
D.楔形文字作為distinctive的文明特徵，是在寺廟城市發生的，錯誤。
8.According to paragraph 5, which of the following was true of Sumerian writing during the period of greater freedom of enterprise?
A. Knowledge of it was limited to the temple-centered administration.
B. It was used for purposes beyond those for which it was first created.
C. It was used primarily to help keep the traditional leadership in power.
D. It led to further technological developments by 2800 B.C.
8.定位到greater freedom，看到上一句，儘管文字最開始源於行政記錄的需求，後來運用到宗教，文學，經濟多用途了.後面的later phase三個並列細節舉例是對應第一句的topic sentence，因此選擇B，強調後來的多用途。
9.Look at the four squares [■] that indicate where the following sentence can be added to the passage.Where would the sentence best fit?
For example, the Sumerians learned to use the position of the stars and planets to predict weather and for traveling at night.
9.句子插入題，題幹是for example，也就是說前面肯定提到了某一觀點，看例子具體信息，通過星球位置來預測天氣與行程，看到
A後面提到的製造業，紡織，
B後面是建築工程醫藥，
C後面是測量估計，原始科學，
D後面開始講土壤了，天文方面無疑和C後面內容最匹配，有科學的影子。
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 answer choices do not belong in the summary because they express ideas that are not presented inthe passage or are minor ideas in the passage. This question is worth 2 points.
A. Originally, Sumerians cultivated the lower Mesopotamia region using primitive hoes and domesticated animals.
B. The flooding of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers caused peasants to look to religion for explanations, resulting in the development of a large class of priests.
C. Priests and warriors managed and supervised the workforce that operated the elaborate drainage and irrigation system required to maximize agricultural production.
D. The emergence of new professions, sciences, and techniques and the development of trade resulting from Sumer's lack of natural resources led to a complex labor and economic system.
E. The need on the part of the priestly hierarchy to keep track of who had paid taxes and tribute and how those were spent resulted in the invention of writing.
F. As writing became more complex, priests increasingly put ordinary people in charge of running day-to-day operations within the Sumer economy.
10.A.第一段第一二句，lower Mesopotamia其實是不適合耕種和動物的，錯誤。
B.注意選項的cause有因果邏輯，與原文完全不符合。
C.對第二段正確的概述，前面的選擇題也做過。
D.定位到第三段開頭，新興的技術，科學是歸功於自然資源的匱乏而導致的文化傳播。
E.定位到倒數第二段，greatest contribution就是文字，前面的10題也做過。
F.只是說了從population徵收稅務，並未提到讓普通人在日以繼夜的工作中繳費。
喜歡這個系列的小夥伴可以給咱們點個讚和在看鴨