高中英语课标3000词40篇40小时通关(27版)passage 14

Week 7

Passage 14

个性笔记

Around 2,200 miles west of Chile, in the southeastern Pacific Ocean, the remote island Rapa Nui, or Easter Island, known for its large stone statues called moai, is made entirely of volcanic rock, but eruptions ceased hundreds of thousands of years ago, and mineral nutrients brought up by lava have long since eroded from soils.

With limited soil productivity and few freshwater sources, its residents, whose ancestors likely set foot on shore more than a thousand years ago and were good at sculpture turned to rock gardening. This consists of scattering rocks over areas at least partly protected from the salty air and wind. In the spaces between rocks, they planted crops like sweet potatoes.

This disrupts air flow in a way that keeps the land cooler during the day and warmer at night, and it preserves soil moisture. Smaller stones, broken up by hand, add mineral nutrients into the soil as they weather.

Upon European first contact in the 18th century, only around 3,000 people lived on Rapa Nui. At the time roughly 2.5 to 19 percent of the land could have been covered with rock gardens. Based on this amount of farming land, researchers assumed that the island once supported 17,500 or 25,000 people. This led to the idea that its population had experienced a sharp crash perhaps by overfarming prior to the arrival of Europeans.

But new research finds Rapa Nui had less land for farming than previously thought. The authors of the new study published recently write that past work overestimated the extent of rock gardens by misidentifying roads and lava flows for farming land. By using satellite imagery and machine learning they estimate that less than 1/3 of a square mile was used for rock gardening - only a fifth of the most conservative former estimates. Even if residents also ate fish and other crops, the team argues Rapa Nui couldn’t have hosted large populations.

As such, scientists suggest the study confirms that the island didn’t experience a dramatic population drop-off because people were unable to adapt to the limitations of the land and caused ecological destruction. 

“Overall, although the Rapa Nui are often portrayed as a collapsed culture bounded by socio-political competition, ecological overexploitation and statue overproduction, it can now be recognized as an island culture of adaptation and survival that has thrived for almost a millennium,” says anthropological archaeologist Dale F. Simpson.

Still, other researchers say the new study significantly underestimates the coverage of rock gardens and how many people could have lived there. They think the situation is quite more complex than this one line of study alone can resolve.

1. Pacific 

2. remote 

3. statue 

4. volcano 

5. erupt 

6. mineral 

7. limited 

8. resident 

9. shore

10. sculpture 

11. consist 

12. salty 

13. flow 

14. contact 

15. assume 

16. crash 

17. prior

18. author 

19. extent 

20. satellite 

21. image

22. conservation

23. former 

24. argue 

25. confirm 

26. adapt 

27. ecology 

28. overall 

29. collapse 

30. bound 

31. political 

32. adaptation 

33. coverage 

34. resolve

目标达成情况

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Sat.

1. Pacific /pəˈsɪfɪk/ adj./n.太平洋的；太平洋                    【搭配】the Pacific Ocean 太平洋

Pacific Rim 环太平洋地区

2. remote /rɪˈməʊt/ adj. 遥远的；远程的；细微的                    【搭配】remote area 偏远地区

remote control 遥控器remote access 远程访问【同义词】distant, isolated, faraway                    【反义词】close, near

3. statue /ˈstætʃuː/ n. 雕像；塑像                    【搭配】bronze statue 铜像；marble statue 大理石雕像

the Statue of Liberty 自由女神像                    【同义词】sculpture, figure

4. volcano /vɒlˈkeɪnəʊ/ n. 火山                    【搭配】active volcano 活火山；extinct volcano 死火山

dormant volcano 休眠火山

volcano eruption 火山爆发                    【变形】volcanic adj. 火山的；火山般的

5. erupt /ɪˈrʌpt/ v. (火山)喷发；(冲突)爆发；突然发生                    【搭配】erupt from 从…喷出；erupt into 爆发成

【变形】eruption n. 喷发；爆发                    【同义词】explode, burst out

6. mineral /ˈmɪnərəl/ n./adj. 

矿物；矿物质；矿物的；含矿物的                    【搭配】mineral water 矿泉水

mineral resources 矿产资源

7. limited /ˈlɪmɪtɪd/ adj. 有限的；不多的；有限责任的                    【搭配】limited resources 有限资源

limited time 有限时间

limited company 有限公司                    【变形】limit n. 限制 v. 限制；limitation n. 局限

8. resident /ˈrezɪdənt/ n./adj. 居民；住户；居住的                    【搭配】local resident 当地居民

permanent resident 永久居民

resident physician 住院医师

【变形】reside v. 居住；residence n. 住宅；居住

residential adj. 住宅的                    【同义词】inhabitant, dweller

9. shore /ʃɔː(r)/ n. 岸；滨；海岸；湖岸                    【搭配】on shore 在岸上；off shore 离岸

【同义词】coast, beach, bank

10. sculpture /ˈskʌlptʃə(r)/ n./v. 雕塑；雕刻品；雕刻

【搭配】sculpture a statue 雕刻雕像                    【变形】sculptor n. 雕塑家；sculptural adj. 雕塑的

20. satellite /ˈsætəlaɪt/ n. 卫星；人造卫星；卫星国

【搭配】communications satellite 通信卫星

satellite imagery 卫星图像

artificial satellite 人造卫星

21. image /ˈɪmɪdʒ/ n. 形象；图像；影像；意象；印象

【搭配】public image 公众形象brand image 品牌形象

mirror image 镜像

【变形】imagine v. 想象；imagery n. 意象；画像

【同义词】picture, impression

22. conservation /ˌkɒnsəˈveɪʃən/ n. 保护；保存；节约

【搭配】wildlife conservation 野生动物保护

nature conservation 自然保护

energy conservation 节能

【变形】conserve v. 保护；保存

conservative adj. 保守的 n. 保守派                    【同义词】preservation, protection

23. former /ˈfɔːmə(r)/ adj./pron. 以前的；从前的；前者

【搭配】former president 前总统

the former ... the latter 前者…后者…                    【变形】formerly adv. 以前；从前                    【同义词】previous, prior                    【反义词】current, present

24. argue /ˈɑːɡjuː/v. 争论；辩论；主张；说服

【搭配】argue with sb. about sth. 与某人争论某事

argue for/against 赞成/反对

【变形】argument n. 争论；论点

argumentative adj. 好争论的                    【同义词】debate, dispute, contend

25. confirm /kənˈfɜːm/ v. 确认；证实；批准；巩固

【搭配】confirm a booking 确认预订

confirm one's suspicion 证实某人的怀疑

【变形】confirmation n. 确认；证实

confirmed adj. 确认的；坚定的                    【同义词】verify, validate, prove                    【反义词】deny, contradict

26. adapt /əˈdæpt/ v. 适应；改编；使适应

【搭配】adapt to 适应；adapt oneself to 使自己适应adapt for 为…改编；adapt from 根据…改编

【变形】adaptation n. 适应；改编本

【同义词】adjust, accommodate, modify

11. consist /kənˈsɪst/v. 由…组成；在于；一致                    【搭配】consist of 由…组成；consist in 在于

consist with 与…一致                    【变形】consistent adj. 一致的；连贯的

consistency n. 连贯性；浓度                    【同义词】comprise, be composed of

12. salty /ˈsɔːlti/ adj. 咸的；含盐的

【变形】salt n. 盐；saltiness n. 咸味                    【反义词】fresh, sweet

13. flow /fləʊ/ v./n. 流动；流出；流畅；流量；流向                    【搭配】flow into 流入；flow out 流出

flow of traffic 车流；cash flow 现金流

【同义词】stream, run, move

14. contact /ˈkɒntækt/; /kənˈtækt/                    n./v. 接触；联系；联络人；联系；接触

【搭配】in contact with 与…有联系

come into contact with 接触到

contact lens 隐形眼镜                    【同义词】touch, connection; reach, get in touch

15. assume /əˈsjuːm/ v. 假定；假设；承担；呈现                    【搭配】assume responsibility 承担责任

assume an air of 摆出…的样子                    【变形】assumption n. 假定；承担                    【同义词】presume, suppose, undertake

16. crash /kræʃ/ v./n. 碰撞；坠毁；崩溃；撞击声

【搭配】car crash 车祸；plane crash 飞机失事

crash into 撞上；crash down 倒塌；坠落

【同义词】collide, smash, collapse

17. prior /ˈpraɪə(r)/ adj./adv.在先的；优先的；在…之前

【搭配】prior to 在…之前

prior knowledge 先前的知识

【变形】priority n. 优先权；重点                    【同义词】previous, earlier                    【反义词】subsequent

18. author /ˈɔːθə(r)/ n. 作者；作家；创始人                    【搭配】best-selling author 畅销书作家

【变形】authorship n. 作者身份

【同义词】writer, creator

19. extent /ɪkˈstent/ n. 程度；范围；广度；长度

【搭配】to some extent 在某种程度上

to a large extent 在很大程度上

extent of damage 损害程度                    【同义词】degree, scope, range

27. ecology /iˈkɒlədʒi/ n. 生态学；生态环境

【搭配】ecology system 生态系统

【变形】ecological adj. 生态的；ecologist n. 生态学家

28. overall /ˌəʊvərˈɔːl/; /ˈəʊvərɔːl/                    adj./adv./n. (n.) 全面的；总体上；工作服

【搭配】overall performance 整体表现

overall cost 总成本

【同义词】adj. total, general; adv. generally

29. collapse /kəˈlæps/ v./n. 倒塌；崩溃；失败；倒下

【搭配】collapse under pressure 在压力下崩溃

economic collapse 经济崩溃

【同义词】fall down, break down, fai

30. bound /baʊnd/ v./adj./n. 

跳跃；弹回；受约束的；必定的；界限

【搭配】be bound to do 必定做 be bound for 开往

bound up with 与…密切相关

within bounds 在限度内                    【变形】boundary n. 边界；界限；boundless adj. 无限的                    【同义词】adj. certain, obliged

31. political /pəˈlɪtɪkl/ adj. 政治的；政治上的；政党的

【搭配】political system 政治制度

political views 政治观点

【变形】politics n. 政治；politician n. 政治家

32. adaptation /ˌædæpˈteɪʃən/ n. 适应；改编；改编本

【搭配】adaptation to 对…的适应

film adaptation 电影改编

33. coverage /ˈkʌvərɪdʒ/ n. 覆盖范围；新闻报道

【搭配】news coverage 新闻报道

insurance coverage 保险范围

【变形】cover v. 覆盖；涉及；报道

34. resolve /rɪˈzɒlv/ v./n. 解决；决心；决定；决议

【搭配】resolve to do sth. 决心做某事

resolve on/upon 决定

resolve a problem 解决问题

【变形】resolution n. 决心；解决；resolute adj. 坚决的

【同义词】solve, decide, determine