Leif Erickson reached North America around the year 1000, but the attempt to explore was started slowly. It would be five centuries __1__ other Europeans landed on that continent.
Why were Europeans the ones to __2__ to the American? The Chinese and Arabs had the __3__ and technology to sail across the seas. __4__ of them tool regular voyages in the Indian Ocean and the Asian Pacific for trade. But exploration? By the mid-15
th century China had followed the closed-door policy to __5__ itself from the rest of the world. The Arabs, with access to the minerals and
spices (香料) of Africa and the Far East, saw no __6__ to journey into the unknown.
Europe, on the other hand, needed gold and silver; its mines could not __7__ the demand for
coinage (铸币). Ottoman Turks blocked the routes across the land to Asia. Only the sea held the promise of new wealth.
__8__ the return of Magellan’s ships in 1522 from its voyage around the world, the belief was __9__ that the oceans were interconnected, promising the age of discovery. The English, as well as the Spanish, Portuguese and French, __10__ themselves to finding the “river of the west” through North America to the east.
| 小题1: | | A．after | B．since | C．before | D．when |
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| 小题2: | | A．push | B．pull | C．draw | D．drive |
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| 小题3: | | A．sources | B．resources | C．substances | D．matters |
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| 小题4: | | A．Neither | B．Both | C．Any | D．None |
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| 小题5: | | A．prevent | B．protect | C．isolate | D．differ |
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| 小题6: | | A．need | B．chance | C．choice | D．regret |
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| 小题7: | | A．create | B．meet | C．raise | D．develop |
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| 小题9: | | A．extended | B．estimated | C．accepted | D．made |
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| 小题10: | | A．contributed | B．referred | C．devoted | D．connected |
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