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188 Actual Test I

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1. Reading
An ancient civilization thrived in central Mexico between the second and fifth centuries. Its
people even built some of the worlds most elaborate pyramids in the capital city,
Teotihuacan.
However, some time later, people stopped living in the great city. We dont know how or why
it collapsed, but there are some plausible theories.
Issue: Teotihuacan collapse theories

Thesis: plausible

One theory is that the collapse ultimately resulted from foreign invasion. There is
archaeological evidence that the center of the city burned sometime after the fifth century.
Many archaeologists believe that the city was conquered and then burned by foreign invaders.
1: foreign invasion

1: city burned

Although parts of the city were occupied after that, the central city was not repaired. So the
whole city slowly declined around the ruins.
1: foreign invasion

1: city burned
not repaired slowly declined

A second theory is that a severe drought occurred, and as a result, people starved to death.
Studies of lake basins in the area show that lake levels were very low in the sixth century. This
suggests that it was a period of low rainfall.
2: severe drought starved

2: lakes low, low rainfall






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Without rain, farmers would not be able to produce enough crops to feed all the people.
Supporting evidence for this hypothesis comes from sixth century juvenile skeletons that show
signs of severe malnutrition.
2: severe drought starved

2: lakes low, low rainfall
few crops could not feed ppl

Lastly, some researchers say that Teotihuacan citizens cut down too many trees. It is
estimated that the domestic need for wood in Teotihuacan was tens of thousands of tons
annually.
3: cut too many trees

This demand caused rapid deforestation around the city, which led to soil erosion and mineral
depletion. Because the forests were depleted locally, people had to abandon the city and
migrate to areas with more plentiful natural resources.
3: cut too many trees

3: deforestation soil erosion, mineral depletion
ppl migrated

2. Listening
Ok, lets get started. Today well discuss the decline of one of the worlds great ancient
cities, Teotihuacan. Well, you might be wondering, what happened? Well, the truth is that
nobody knows. Some theories have been proposed, but frankly, _______ of them are
very ______________.
Issue: decline of Teotihuacan

Thesis: not convincing






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First, there are indeed some proportions of the city that burned, but these areas were just
a ________ _____________ of the entire city complex. The damage is not, well, what one
would expect from a ____________ foreign _______________.
1: small portion burned

1: no foreign invasion

And you know what else? Archeologists have found many _________ ________, crafts,
and other items that were ________ __________ the fire. This tells us that people were
still actively ___________ there ___________ he incident.
1: small portion burned

1: no foreign invasion
local arts, crafts after the fire

Second, drought was a __________ ______ ____ ____________ in this arid region of
Mexico. So the people were very ________________ in dealing with limited rainfall. How
did they cope with drought? ____________ they built canals to irrigate the fields.
2: drought regular in region

2: experienced with limited rainfall
irrigation

You see, since there had been many droughts before, it doesnt make sense that drought
could have caused the downfall of such a complex civilization.
2: drought regular in region

2: experienced with limited rainfall
irrigation






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Finally, the deforestation around Teotihuacan occurred over hundreds of years. Whats
more, the forests had been ____________ _______ __________ the people vanished. But
guess how they overcame that challenge: they ___________.
3: deforestation over 100s of yrs

3: cleared long b4 ppl vanished
traded

Thats right, they imported the things they needed, such as wood, to meet domestic
demand. In fact, isnt that what most large cities do? Deforestation may have created
challenges, but it could not have led to the collapse itself.
3: deforestation over 100s of yrs

3: cleared long b4 ppl vanished
traded to get wood

3.
~ be considered/regarded/thought of as

devastating

collapse

postdate

overcome
~ experienced in ~ing
, handle/manage/cope with/deal with
/ cause/lead to/result in/bring about/give rise to

be cleared

decline/demise/fall

4. Summary
The reading passage discusses
_________________________________________________________________________





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_______
In contrast, the lecturer mentions several points that counter this argument

1 First, the speaker asserts that the burnt area is __________
__________ to be considered a devastating invasion by foreigners.
If there was a major invasion, the city would have been more
significantly damaged. On top of that, _____________ _______ __________ _____
_________ have been found, and these provide evidence that civilization continued after
the fire.
1 These points contradict the reading passages claim that ___________
________________ caused the collapse.

2 The second point of the lecture is that drought was ________ _____
_____________.
Because the people were ___________ ____ ___________ dry
conditions, drought could not have been the cause of the collapse. More specifically, they
used __________________ to cope with the problem.
2 This counters the reading passages assertion that drought caused
people to starve.

3 Finally, the lecturer stipulates that the Teotihuacan people had found a
way to ____________ ______ _________________.
Actually, the trees around the city had already been ______________
_____ ____ ______________ ____________, but the people overcame this challenge by
trading for the wood they needed.
3 This refutes the reading passages argument that deforestation was a
direct cause of the civilizations decline.