The Mandans
Before the 1500’s, the western plains of North America were dominated by farmers. one group, the Mandans, lived in the upper Missouri River country, primarily in present-day North Dakota. They had large villages of houses built close together. The tight arrangement enabled the Mandans to protect themselves more easily from the attacks of others who might seek to obtain some of food these highly capable farmers stored from one year to the next.
The women had primary responsibility for the fields. They had to exercise considerable skill to produce the desired results, for their northern location meant fleeting growing seasons. Winter often lingered; autumn could be ushered in by several frost. For good measure, during the spring and summer, drought, heat, hail, grasshoppers, and other frustrations might await the wary grower.
Under such conditions, Mandan women had to grow maize capable of weathering adversity. They began as early as it appeared feasible to do so in the spring, cleaning the land, using fire to clear stubble from the fields and then planting. From this point until the first green corn could be harvested, the crop required labor and vigilance.
Harvesting proceeded in two stages. In August the Mandans picked a smaller amount of crop before it had matured fully. This green corn was boiled, and shelled, with some of the maize slated for immediate consumption and the rest stored on animal-skin bags. Later in the fall, the people picked the rest of the corn. They saved the best of the harvest for seeds or for trade, with the remainder right away or stored for later use in underground reserves. With appropriate banking of the extra food, the Mandans protect themselves against the disaster of crop failure and accompanying hunger.
The women planted another staple, squash, about the first of June, and harvested it near the time of the green corn harvest. They picked it, dried it, and strung the slices before they stored them. once again, they saved the seed from the best of the year’s crop. The Mandans also grew sunflowers and tobacco; the latter was the particular task of the old men.
6. The Mandans build their houses close together in order to___.
A. guard their supplier of food.
B. protect themselves against the weather
C. allow more room for growing corn
D. share farming implements
7. Why does the author believe that the Mandans were skilled farmers?
A. They developed effective fertilizers.
B. They developed new varieties of corn.
C. They could grow crops in most types of soil.
D. They could grow crops despite adverse weather.
8. Which of the following processes does the author imply was done by both men and women? A. Clearing fields.
B. planting corn.
C. Harvesting corn.
D. Harvesting squash.
9. According to the passage, the Mandans preserve their food by ____.
A. smoking
B. drying
C. freezing
D. squash
10. Which of the following crops was cultivated primarily by men?
A. Corn.
B. Squash.
C. Sunflowers.
D. Tobacco.
解析：
6.A
文章的第一段的最后一句話告訴我們，曼丹人之所以把他們的房屋緊緊建在一起，是為了保護(hù)他們積攢的糧食免遭他人搶劫。利用群體的力量謀求生存和發(fā)展，這正是作者所說(shuō)的曼丹人能力的體現(xiàn)。
7.D
作者在文中多次提到了曼丹人是熟練的農(nóng)民。第二段提到，曼丹人居住在美國(guó)北部，這一位置意味著他們只有短暫的耕種季節(jié)。盡管一年四季的天氣條件惡劣，但是曼丹婦女采取的一些補(bǔ)救措施仍然可以使他們獲得較好的收成，如春天盡早耕種。作者認(rèn)為，曼丹人可以克服不利的天氣條件的影響耕作農(nóng)作物，體現(xiàn)了他們?cè)谵r(nóng)業(yè)生產(chǎn)中的熟練技能。
8. C
文章第二段告訴我們?cè)谇f稼主要由婦女耕種;第三段婦女負(fù)責(zé)清除農(nóng)田;最后一段中，婦女收割南瓜。可以排除A, B, D。文章的第四段，作者告訴我們：八月份曼丹人要在莊稼完全成熟之前收獲少量的莊稼，人們?cè)谏钋锛竟?jié)收割剩余的玉米。在收割玉米的描述中，作者使用了 the Mandans，they和the people等詞，通過(guò)這些詞，作者在向我們暗示了玉米的收割是由男性和女性共同完成的。
9. B
文章的第四段和第五段中提到了曼丹人在保存食物之前要經(jīng)過(guò)烘干或干燥這一步驟，曼丹人通過(guò)對(duì)食物進(jìn)行干燥來(lái)儲(chǔ)藏食物。
11. D
文章的結(jié)尾：The Mandans also grew sunflowers and tobacco; the latter was the particular task of the old men. 曼丹人也耕種向日葵和煙草;后者是老年男性的特定任務(wù)。
Before the 1500’s, the western plains of North America were dominated by farmers. one group, the Mandans, lived in the upper Missouri River country, primarily in present-day North Dakota. They had large villages of houses built close together. The tight arrangement enabled the Mandans to protect themselves more easily from the attacks of others who might seek to obtain some of food these highly capable farmers stored from one year to the next.
The women had primary responsibility for the fields. They had to exercise considerable skill to produce the desired results, for their northern location meant fleeting growing seasons. Winter often lingered; autumn could be ushered in by several frost. For good measure, during the spring and summer, drought, heat, hail, grasshoppers, and other frustrations might await the wary grower.
Under such conditions, Mandan women had to grow maize capable of weathering adversity. They began as early as it appeared feasible to do so in the spring, cleaning the land, using fire to clear stubble from the fields and then planting. From this point until the first green corn could be harvested, the crop required labor and vigilance.
Harvesting proceeded in two stages. In August the Mandans picked a smaller amount of crop before it had matured fully. This green corn was boiled, and shelled, with some of the maize slated for immediate consumption and the rest stored on animal-skin bags. Later in the fall, the people picked the rest of the corn. They saved the best of the harvest for seeds or for trade, with the remainder right away or stored for later use in underground reserves. With appropriate banking of the extra food, the Mandans protect themselves against the disaster of crop failure and accompanying hunger.
The women planted another staple, squash, about the first of June, and harvested it near the time of the green corn harvest. They picked it, dried it, and strung the slices before they stored them. once again, they saved the seed from the best of the year’s crop. The Mandans also grew sunflowers and tobacco; the latter was the particular task of the old men.
6. The Mandans build their houses close together in order to___.
A. guard their supplier of food.
B. protect themselves against the weather
C. allow more room for growing corn
D. share farming implements
7. Why does the author believe that the Mandans were skilled farmers?
A. They developed effective fertilizers.
B. They developed new varieties of corn.
C. They could grow crops in most types of soil.
D. They could grow crops despite adverse weather.
8. Which of the following processes does the author imply was done by both men and women? A. Clearing fields.
B. planting corn.
C. Harvesting corn.
D. Harvesting squash.
9. According to the passage, the Mandans preserve their food by ____.
A. smoking
B. drying
C. freezing
D. squash
10. Which of the following crops was cultivated primarily by men?
A. Corn.
B. Squash.
C. Sunflowers.
D. Tobacco.
解析：
6.A
文章的第一段的最后一句話告訴我們，曼丹人之所以把他們的房屋緊緊建在一起，是為了保護(hù)他們積攢的糧食免遭他人搶劫。利用群體的力量謀求生存和發(fā)展，這正是作者所說(shuō)的曼丹人能力的體現(xiàn)。
7.D
作者在文中多次提到了曼丹人是熟練的農(nóng)民。第二段提到，曼丹人居住在美國(guó)北部，這一位置意味著他們只有短暫的耕種季節(jié)。盡管一年四季的天氣條件惡劣，但是曼丹婦女采取的一些補(bǔ)救措施仍然可以使他們獲得較好的收成，如春天盡早耕種。作者認(rèn)為，曼丹人可以克服不利的天氣條件的影響耕作農(nóng)作物，體現(xiàn)了他們?cè)谵r(nóng)業(yè)生產(chǎn)中的熟練技能。
8. C
文章第二段告訴我們?cè)谇f稼主要由婦女耕種;第三段婦女負(fù)責(zé)清除農(nóng)田;最后一段中，婦女收割南瓜。可以排除A, B, D。文章的第四段，作者告訴我們：八月份曼丹人要在莊稼完全成熟之前收獲少量的莊稼，人們?cè)谏钋锛竟?jié)收割剩余的玉米。在收割玉米的描述中，作者使用了 the Mandans，they和the people等詞，通過(guò)這些詞，作者在向我們暗示了玉米的收割是由男性和女性共同完成的。
9. B
文章的第四段和第五段中提到了曼丹人在保存食物之前要經(jīng)過(guò)烘干或干燥這一步驟，曼丹人通過(guò)對(duì)食物進(jìn)行干燥來(lái)儲(chǔ)藏食物。
11. D
文章的結(jié)尾：The Mandans also grew sunflowers and tobacco; the latter was the particular task of the old men. 曼丹人也耕種向日葵和煙草;后者是老年男性的特定任務(wù)。