Question

17．By the mid-19^th century most of Europe was in the first stage of the demographic（人口的） transition．Death rate had decreased，as wars，famines（饑荒） and diseases had； local food shortages were rarer，thanks to better economic organization and transport； public health，medical care and the control of infectious diseases had improved．The population increased rapidly，as Malthus had predicted．Between 1800and 1900Europe's population doubled，to over 400million，whereas that of Asia，further behind in the demographic transition，increased by less than 50%，to about 950million．
But something else was happening there that would have taken Malthus by surprise：as people came to expect to live longer，and better，they started to have fewer children．They realised they no longer needed several babies just to ensure that two or three would survive．And as they moved from country to town，they also found that children were no longer an economic property that could be set to work at an early age，but a responsibility to be fed，housed and （some of them） educated，for years．Worse，with too many children，a mother would find it hard to take and keep a job，to add to the family income．Nor were the young any longer a guarantee against a poor old age：in the new industrial society，they were likelier to go their own way．
Thanks to Europe's newborn limitation，in the past 100years or so its population has risen only 80%，to 730million，and most countries'birth rate is now so low that numbers are unchanging or falling．But their composition is very different from the past：better living standards，health condition and medical treatment are multiplying old heads，even as the number of young ones shrinks．
In contrast，Asia's population over the same time has nearly increased four times，to more than 3.6billion．North America's too has grown almost as fast，but largely thanks to immigration．Africa's has multiplied 5times，and Latin America's nearly sevenfold．
Why these differences？From around 1950，death rate in developing countries also began to fall，and much faster than it ever had in Europe．The knowledge about how to avoid premature death of small children travelled so readily that life expectancy in many poor countries is now not far behind the rich world's．But the attitudes and values that persuade people to have fewer children are taking longer to adjust．
（Note：Answer the questions or complete the statements in NO MORE THAN TEN WORDS．）
78．What prediction did Malthus make？That the population would increase rapidly．
79．Give one reason to explain why people started to have fewer children according to paragraph 2．They no longer needed several babies to ensure their survival．/Children were no longer an economic property for working．/Children were a responsibility to be fed，housed and educated．/Having too many children made a mother hard to work．/The young were no longer a guarantee against the old．/…
80．Besides medical treatment，better living standards and health condition are the other two factors that contribute to the increasing number of old people．
81．Why has the population in developing countries increased faster than it has in Europe in the last century？Because the death rate in developing countries falls much faster．．

Answer 1

分析 本文是一篇說明文．19世紀中葉歐洲進入了人口轉變的第一階段．死亡率下降、戰(zhàn)爭、饑荒、疾病以及食物短缺減少，經濟發(fā)展、交通、公共醫(yī)療和傳染病的控制有了提高和改善，人口快速增長．隨之人們期望活得更長壽、生活質量更好，他們開始少生孩子，人們的"孩子很小就去做工養(yǎng)家糊口"和"養(yǎng)兒防老"等觀念也隨著變化．由于歐洲對新生人口的限制，人口總數并未多增長，但人口結構已有不同，良好的生活條件和醫(yī)療服務使得人口老年化，與歐洲人口變化相比較，亞洲人口增長了4倍，非洲人口增長了5倍，拉丁美洲增長了7倍，北美人口增長較快．

解答 78．That the population would increase rapidly．
79．They no longer needed several babies to ensure their survival．/Children were no longer an economic property for working．/Children were a responsibility to be fed，housed and educated．/Having too many children made a mother hard to work．/The young were no longer a guarantee against the old．/…
80．better living standards and health condition
81．Because the death rate in developing countries falls much faster．

78．That the population would increase rapidly．細節(jié)理解題． 根據第一段中的"The population increased rapidly，as Malthus had predicted"可知，正如‘Malthus'預測的，歐洲人口增長速度很快，故填That the population would increase rapidly．
79．They no longer needed several babies to ensure their survival．/Children were no longer an economic property for working．/Children were a responsibility to be fed，housed and educated．/Having too many children made a mother hard to work．/The young were no longer a guarantee against the old．/…推理判斷題．   根據第二段中的"as people came to expect to live longer，and better，they started to have fewer children"，"they also found that children were no longer an economic property"，"a mother would find it hard to take and keep a job"或"Nor were the youngany longer a guarantee against a poor old age"可知答案．
80．better living standards and health condition         細節(jié)理解題．  根據第三段中的"better living standards，health condition and medical treatment are multiplying old heads，even as the number of young ones shrinks"可知，良好的生活條件．健康狀況使得人口越發(fā)老年化，故填better living standards and health condition．
81．Because the death rate in developing countries falls much faster．      細節(jié)理解題．根據最后一段中的"From around 1950，death rate in developing countries also began to fall，and much faster than it ever had in Europe"可知，發(fā)展中國家的死亡率開始下降，致使人口增長比歐洲要快，故填Because the death rate in developing countries falls much faster．

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