资源描述:
《A chronicle of timekeeping》由会员上传分享,免费在线阅读,更多相关内容在行业资料-天天文库。
1、Youshouldspendabout 20 minutesonQuestions 1-13,whicharebasedonReadingPassagebelow.AChronicleofTimekeepingOurconceptionoftimedependsonthewaywemeasureit A Accordingtoarchaeologicalevidence,atleast5,000yearsago,andlongbeforetheadventoftheRomanEmpire,theBabyloniansbeg
2、antomeasuretime,introducingcalendarstoco-ordinatecommunalactivities,toplantheshipmentofgoodsand,inparticular,toregulateplantingandharvesting.Theybasedtheircalendarsonthreenaturalcycles:thesolarday,markedbythesuccessiveperiodsoflightanddarknessastheearthrotatesonitsaxis;
3、thelunarmonth,followingthephasesofthemoonasitorbitstheearth;andthesolaryear,definedbythechangingseasonsthataccompanyourplanet'srevolutionaroundthesun. B Beforetheinventionofartificiallight,themoonhadgreatersocialimpact.And,forthoselivingneartheequatorinparticular,itswa
4、xingandwaningwasmoreconspicuousthanthepassingoftheseasons.Hence,thecalendarsthatweredevelopedatthelowerlatitudeswereinfluencedmorebythelunarcyclethanbythesolaryear.Inmorenorthernclimes,however,whereseasonalagriculturewaspractised,thesolaryearbecamemorecrucial.AstheRoman
5、Empireexpandednorthward,itorganiseditsactivitychartforthemostpartaroundthesolaryear. C CenturiesbeforetheRomanEmpire,theEgyptianshadformulatedamunicipalcalendarhaving12monthsof30days,withfivedaysaddedtoapproximatethesolaryear.Eachperiodoftendayswasmarkedbytheappearance
6、ofspecialgroupsofstarscalleddecans.AttheriseofthestarSiriusjustbeforesunrise,whichoccurredaroundtheall-importantannualfloodingoftheNile,12decanscouldbeseenspanningtheheavens.ThecosmicsignificancetheEgyptiansplacedinthe12decansledthemtodevelopasysteminwhicheachintervalof
7、darkness(andlater,eachintervalofdaylight)wasdividedintoadozenequalparts.Theseperiodsbecameknownastemporalhoursbecausetheirdurationvariedaccordingtothechanginglengthofdaysandnightswiththepassingoftheseasons.Summerhourswerelong,winteronesshort;onlyatthespringandautumnequi
8、noxeswerethehoursofdaylightanddarknessequal.Temporalhours,whichwerefirstadoptedbytheGreeksandthentheRomans,who