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  3. A Though many distinct cultures are prevalent around the world today, those that are the most dominant have origins in one of a

A Though many distinct cultures are prevalent around the world today, those that are the most dominant have origins in one of a

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问题     A Though many distinct cultures are prevalent around the world today, those that are the most dominant have origins in one of a few areas called " culture hearths. " These are the heartlands of various cultures and historically, there are seven main locations from which the most dominant cultural ideas have spread. The seven original culture hearths are; 1) The Nile River Valley, 2) The Indus River Valley, 3) The Wei-Huang Valley, 4) The Ganges River Valley, 5) Mesopotamia, 6) Mesoamerica, and 7) West Africa. These regions are considered culture hearths because such things as religion, the use of iron tools and weapons, highly organized social structures, and the development agriculture started and spread from these areas. In terms of religion for example, the area around Mecca is considered the culture hearth for the Islamic religion and the area from which Muslims initially traveled to convert people to Islam. The spread of tools, social structures, and agriculture spread in a similar manner from the culture hearths.
    B Also important to the development of early culture centers are culture regions. These are areas that contain dominant cultural elements. Though not everyone in the culture region has the same culture traits, they are often influenced by it in some way. Within this system, there are four components of influence: 1) the Core , 2) the Domain, 3) the Sphere, and 4) the Outlier. The Core is the heart of the area and shows the most strongly expressed culture traits. It is usually the most heavily populated and, in the case of religion, features the most famous religious landmarks. The Domain surrounds the Core and though it has its own cultural values, it is still strongly influenced by the Core. The Sphere then surrounds the Domain and the Outlier surrounds the Sphere.
    C Cultural diffusion is the term used to describe the spread of cultural ideas from the Core (in the case of culture regions) and the culture hearth. Cultural diffusion was first used by Franz Boas (1858-1942), a German geographer and physicist. From his archaeological fieldwork in the American Northwest, Boas decided that the two concepts of diffusion and modification explained many cultural phenomena, such as how Native American culture and religion was affected by their location and proximity to other cultures. Alfred L. Kroeber, Boas’s student and the co-founder of Berkeley’s anthropology department in 1901, came up with the term and would later popularize it within a larger academic circle.
    D Theories that involve the concept of cultural diffusion often stir up controversy in anthropological circles. This is because they often contradict theories on mass migration. This opposition between cultural diffusion and mass migration can be found in theories regarding similar human burial sites involving the skulls of cave bears around the Arctic Circle on the continents of North America, Europe, and Asia. Nevertheless, many anthropologists prefer to consider theories based on cultural diffusion, or the borrowing of traits between cultures, as they commonly describe it. Scholars of cultural diffusion, including J. P. Mallory and Clark Wissler, developed distinctions between theories of cultural diffusion. Heliocentric diffusion proposes that all cultures originated from a single civilization. Anthropologist Peter J. Hugill proposed the theory of evolutionary diffusion when a specific innovation coincides across all cultures, to explain how an idea or innovation has somehow happened simultaneously in multiple cultures.
    E Throughout human and pre-human history, cultures have never been or remained completely isolated from each other. Even in the isolationist culture of feudal Japan, the religious philosophy of Buddhism was able to spread from India and China, where it originated by traveling monks. This is an example of how cultural diffusion can take place on a grand scale. This type of cultural diffusion happens today. When considering cultural diffusion, there are three major forms.
    F The first is called direct diffusion and occurs when two distinct cultures are very close together. Over time, direct contact between the two leads to an intermingling of the cultures. Historically this occurred through trade, intermarriage, and sometimes warfare became members of the various cultures interacted with each other for long periods. An example today would be the similar interest in soccer in some areas of the United States and Mexico.
    G Forced diffusion or expansion diffusion is the second method of cultural diffusion and takes place when one culture defeats another and forces its beliefs and customs onto the conquered people. An example here would be when the Spanish took over lands in the Americas and later forced the original inhabitants to convert to Roman Catholicism in the 16th and 17th Centuries. The term ethnocentrism is often applied to forced diffusion because it refers to the idea of looking at the world only from one’s own cultural vantage point. As a result, people participating in this form of diffusion often believe that their cultural beliefs are superior to those of other groups and in turn force their ideas upon those they conquer. In addition, cultural imperialism is usually placed into the category of forced diffusion as it is the practice of actively promoting cultural characteristics such as language, food, religion, etc. , of one nation in another. This practice is normally within forced diffusion because it frequently occurs through military or economic force.
    H The final form of cultural diffusion is indirect diffusion. This type happens when cultural ideas are spread through a middleman or even another culture. An example here would be the popularity of Italian food throughout North America. Technology, mass media, and the Internet are both playing a huge role in promoting this type of cultural diffusion around the world today. Another example would be when an African receives a Mickey Mouse T-shirt from a visitor and wears it even though he has never been to Disneyland.
    I Because cultures develop over time, new dominant areas of dominant culture have done so as well. Today’s modem culture hearths are places such as the United States and world cities like London and Tokyo. Areas such as these are considered modem culture hearths because of the prevalence of their cultural aspects now present throughout much of the world. Take for instance the popularity of sushi in Los Angeles, California and Vancouver, British Columbia or the presence of Starbucks in places like France, Germany, Moscow, and even in China’s Forbidden City.
    J Direct diffusion has certainly played a role in this new spread of cultural values and products, and people are now moving around frequently because of today’s ease of travel. Physical barriers such as mountain ranges also no longer hinder people’s movement and the resultant spread of cultural ideas. It is indirect diffusion though which has had the largest impact on the spread of ideas from places like the United States to the rest of the world. The Internet and advertising through the many forms of mass media have allowed people worldwide to see what is popular in the U. S. and as a result, blue jeans and Coca-Cola products can be found even in remote Himalayan villages.
    K However cultural diffusion occurs now or in the future, it has happened many times throughout history and will continue to do so as new areas grow in power and pass on their cultural traits to the world. The ease of travel and modern technology will only aid in speeding up the process of modern cultural diffusion.
    Summarize the information about cultural diffusion as discussed in the passage. Complete the table below by matching the appropriate statements to the three forms of cultural diffusion with which they are associated. TWO of the statements will NOT be used.
    Statements
    A. A native African may spend holidays in Disneyland.
    B. Indians were compelled to adopt the English language.
    C. People in two cultures are interested in the same sport.
    D. This occurs when cultures are situated close enough to interact.
    E. The Buddhist ideas spread from India to Japan in early period.
    F. This occurs when Americans enslaved Africans.
    G. This occurs when an artifact or item moves through an intermediary.
    H. Skulls of cave bears were found near the Arctic Circle.
    I. Starbucks can be found in many places outside America.  
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答案A
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