We all know that many more people today are right-handed than left-handed. Can one trace this same pattern far back in prehistory? Much of the evidence about right-hand versus left-hand dominance comes from stencils and prints found in rock shelters in Australia and elsewhere, and in many Ice Age caves in France, Spain, and Tasmania. When a left hand has been stenciled, this implies that the artist was right-handed, and vice versa. Even though the paint was often sprayed on by month, one can assume that the dominant hand assisted in the operation. One also has to make the assumption that hands were stenciled palm downward—a left hand stenciled palm upward might of course look as if it were a right hand. Of 158 stencils in the French cave of Gargas, 136 have been identified as left, and only 22 as right; right-handedness was therefore heavily predominant.
Cave art furnishes other types of evidence of this phenomenon. Most engravings, for example, are best lit from the left, as befits the work of right-handed artists, who generally prefer to have the light source on the left so that the shadow of their hand does not fall on the tip of the engraving tool or brush. In the few cases where an Ice Age figure is depicted holding something, it is mostly, though not always, in the right hand.
Clues to right-handedness can also be found by other methods. Right-handers tend to have longer, stronger, and more muscular bones on the right side, and Marcellin Boule as long ago as 1911 noted the La Chapelle-aux-Saints Neanderthal skeleton had a right upper arm bone that was noticeably stronger than the left. Similar observations have been made on other Neanderthal skeletons such as La Ferrassie I and Neanderthal itself.
Fractures and other cut marks are another source of evidence. Right-handed soldiers tend to be wounded on the left. The skeleton of a 40- or 50-year-old Nabatean warrior, buried 2,000 years ago in the Negev Desert, Israel, had multiple healed fractures to the skull, the left arm, and the ribs.
Tools themselves can be revealing. Long-handed Neolithic spoons of yew wood preserved in Alpine villages dating to 3000 B.C. have survived; the signs of rubbing on their left side indicate that their users were right-handed. The late Ice Age rope found in the French cave of Lascaux consists of fibers spiraling to the right, and was therefore tressed by a right-hander.
Occasionally one can determine whether stone tools were used in the right hand or the left, and it is even possible to assess how far back this feature can be traced. In stone toolmaking experiments, Nick Toth, a right-hander, held the core (the stone that would become the tool) in his left hand and the hammer stone in his right. As the tool was made, the core was rotated clockwise, and the flakes, removed in sequence, had a little crescent of cortex (the core’s outer surface) on the side. Toth’s knapping produced 56 percent flakes with the cortex on the right, and 44 percent left-oriented flakes. A left-handed toolmaker would produce the opposite pattern Toth has applied these criteria to the similarly made pebble tools from a number of early sites (before 1.5 million years) at Koobi Fora, Kenya, probably made by Homo habilis. At seven sites he found that 57 percent of the flakes were right-oriented, and 43 percent left, a pattern almost identical to that produced today.
About 90 percent of modern humans are right-handed: we are the only mammal with a preferential use of one hand. The part of the brain responsible for fine control and movement is located in the left cerebral hemisphere,and the findings above suggest that the human brain was already asymmetrical in its structure and function not long after 2 million years ago. Among Neanderthalers of 70, 000-35, 000 years ago, Marcellin Boule noted that the La Chapelle-aux-Saints individual had a left hemisphere slightly bigger than the right,and the same was found for brains of specimens from Neanderthal, Gibraltar, and La Quina.
54. All of the following are mentioned in paragraphs 1 and 2 as evidence of right-handedness in art and artists EXCEPT ______.
55. The La Chapelle-aux-Saints Neanderthal skeleton can be identified as right-handed because ______.
56. Which of the following statements about fractures and cut marks can be inferred from the passage?
57. Why does the author mention the Ice Age rope found in the French cave of Lascaux?
问题1选项
A.the ideal source of lighting for most engravings
B.the fact that a left hand stenciled palm upward might look like a right hand
C.the prevalence of outlines of left hands
D.figures in prehistoric art holding objects with the right hand
问题2选项
A.other Neanderthal skeletons found nearby are also right-handed
B.the right arm bone is stronger than the left
C.it is similar to skeletons of La Ferrassie I and Neanderthal
D.the right side of the skeleton shows less evidence of fractures
问题3选项
A.Fractures and cut marks caused by right-handed soldiers tend to occur on the right side of the injured party’s body.
B.The right arm sustains more injuries because, as the dominant arm, it is used more actively.
C.In most people, the left side of the body is more vulnerable to injury since it is not defended effectively by the dominant arm.
D.Fractures and cut marks on fossil humans probably occurred after death.
问题4选项
A.As an example of an item on which the marks of wear imply that it was used by a right-handed person.
B.Because tressing is an activity that is easier for a right-handed person than for a left-handed person.
C.Because the cave of Lascaux is the site where researchers have found several prehistoric tools made for right-handed people.
D.As an example of an item whose construction shows that it was made by a right-handed person.
54.【试题答案】B
【试题解析】细节事实题。题干意思是“除……外,以下所有内容都在第1和第2段中提到,作为艺术和艺术家中惯用右手的证据”。根据第二段第二句Most engravings, for example, are best lit from the left, as befits the work of right-handed artists, who generally prefer to have the light source on the left so that the shadow of their hand does not fall on the tip of the engraving tool or brush.(例如,大多数雕刻作品的光线最好从左边照射,因为这很适合右手艺术家的作品,他们通常喜欢让光线照在左边,这样他们的手的影子就不会落在雕刻工具或刷子的顶端。)可知,A项“是大多数雕刻品的理想的照明光源”。根据第一段最后两句One also has to make the assumption that hands were stenciled palm downward—a left hand stenciled palm upward might of course look as if it were a right hand. Of 158 stencils in the French cave of Gargas, 136 have been identified as left, and only 22 as right; right-handedness was therefore heavily predominant.(我们不得不做出一种假设:双手是手掌朝下被印刷出来的,而手掌朝上印刷出来的左手当然看起来像一只右手。在法国加尔加斯洞穴的158张模板中,有136张被确定为左手,只有22张是右手,因此,惯用右手的人占主导地位。)可知,C项“左手轮廓的盛行”是正确的,B项“事实上,用模板绘制的左手掌心向上可能看起来像右手”中的fact(事实)与原文不符,原文提到的是assumption(假设),而不是“事实”。由第二段最后一句In the few cases where an Ice Age figure is depicted holding something, it is mostly, though not always, in the right hand.(在少数几个冰河时期的人物被描绘成拿着东西的例子中,虽然不全是但大多数都是用右手拿着东西。)可知,D项“史前艺术中的人物用右手拿着东西”也符合。因此,该题选择B项正确。
55.【试题答案】B
【试题解析】细节事实题。题干意思是“La Chapelle-au-saints的尼安德特人骨骼可以被确定为右撇子,因为……”。根据题干定位到第三段倒数第二句Right-handers tend to have longer, stronger, and more muscular bones on the right side, and Marcellin Boule as long ago as 1911 noted the La Chapelle-aux-Saints Neanderthal skeleton had a right upper arm bone that was noticeably stronger than the left.(右撇子的右侧骨骼更长,更强壮,肌肉更发达。Marcellin Boule早在1911年提到的一块名为La Chapelle-aux-Saints的尼安德特人的右上臂骨骼明显比左上臂强壮。)可知,B项“右臂骨头比左臂骨头强壮”符合原文。第三段最后一句指出Similar observations have been made on other Neanderthal skeletons such as La Ferrassie I and Neanderthal itself.(对其他尼安德特人的骨架的调查也得到了类似的结果,例如La Ferrassie I和尼安德特人本身。)可知,名为La Chapelle-au-saints的尼安德特人骨骼与其他尼安德特人、La Ferrassie I以及尼安德特人本身的骨骼都有类似的特点,即右臂骨头比左臂骨头强壮,并不是说他们的骨骼是相似的,C项“它与La Ferrassie I和尼安德特人的骨骼相似”偷换概念;A项“附近发现的其他尼安德特人骨骼也是右撇子”这是在发现名为La Chapelle-au-saints的尼安德特人骨骼被确定为右撇子之后法身的,A项不选。D项“右侧骨骼骨折的证据较少”,这是证明右撇子的另外一个证据,而不是证明名为La Chapelle-au-saints的尼安德特人骨骼是右撇子的证据。因此,该题选择B项正确。
56.【试题答案】C
【试题解析】推理判断题。题干意思是“下列关于骨折痕和割伤痕的陈述哪一个可以从文章中推断出来?”。根据题干可以定位到文章第四段Fractures and other cut marks are another source of evidence. Right-handed soldiers tend to be wounded on the left. The skeleton of a 40- or 50-year-old Nabatean warrior, buried 2,000 years ago in the Negev Desert, Israel, had multiple healed fractures to the skull, the left arm, and the ribs.(断裂痕与割伤痕也是论据的另一来源。右撇子勇士一般都是左侧容易受伤。在以色列的内盖夫的戈壁中被埋了2000多年的一个40-50岁之间的Nabatean勇士的骨架,在他的头部、左臂和肋骨上有多处已愈合的伤痕。),从中可知,习惯使用右撇子的人左侧受伤会更多,可以推断这是由于右撇子的人的右侧被占主导地位的右手保护,所以左侧受伤更多,A项“右撇子士兵造成的骨折和割伤往往发生在受伤方身体的右侧”和B项“右臂受伤更多,因为右臂作为主要的手臂,使用更积极”错误;C项“对于大多数人来说,身体的左半边更容易受伤,因为它没有被占主导地位的手臂有效地保护”符合题意。D项“人类化石上的骨折和割伤很可能是死后造成的”没有提到。因此,该题选择C项正确。
57.【试题答案】D
【试题解析】推理判断题。题干意思是“为什么作者提到在法国Lascaux洞穴中发现的冰河时期的绳子?”。根据题干定位到文章第五段Tools themselves can be revealing…The late Ice Age rope found in the French cave of Lascaux consists of fibers spiraling to the right, and was therefore tressed by a right-hander.(工具本身也会反映这一现象……在法国的Lascaux岩洞艺术找到的冰川时代末期的绳子是由向右旋转的纤维捆成的,当然也就证实了出自右撇子之手。),由此可以推断,作者提到法国Lascaux洞穴中发现的冰河时期的绳子是为了对第五段第一句提供关于通过物品判断右撇子的例证,D项“作为一件由右撇子制造的物品的例子”符合。A项“作为一件物品的例子,它的磨损痕迹表明它是由右撇子使用的”中的“磨损”并不属于绳子上的。B项“因为穿衣服对右撇子来说比左撇子更容易”在该段落并未提及。C项“因为在Lascaux洞穴,研究人员发现了一些为右撇子的人制作的史前工具”并不符合题干。因此,该题选择D项正确。