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  3. The technology of the North American colonies did not differ strikingly from that of Europe, but in one respect, the colonists e

The technology of the North American colonies did not differ strikingly from that of Europe, but in one respect, the colonists e

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问题     The technology of the North American colonies did not differ strikingly from that of Europe, but in one respect, the colonists enjoyed a great advantage．Especially by comparison with Britain，Americans had a wonderfully plentiful supply of wood．
    The first colonists did not, as many people imagine, find an entire continent covered by a continuous forest．Even along the Atlantic seaboard, the forest was broken at many points．Nevertheless, all sorts of fine trees abounded, and through the early colonial period, those who pushed westward encountered new forests．By the end of the colonial era, the price of wood had risen slightly in eastern cities, but wood was still extremely abundant．
    The availability of wood brought advantages that have seldom been appreciated． Wood was a foundation of the economy．Houses and all manner of buildings were made of wood to a degree unknown in Britain．Secondly, wood was used as a fuel for heating and cooking．Thirdly, it was used as the source of important industrial compounds, such as potash, an industrial alkali; charcoal, a component of gunpowder, and tannic acid, used for tanning leather．
    The supply of wood conferred advantages but had some negative aspects as well． Iron at that time was produced by heating iron ore with charcoal．Because Britain was so stripped of trees，she was unable to exploit her rich iron mines．But the American colonies had both iron ore and wood；iron production was encouraged and becamesuccessful. However, when Britain developed coke smelting, the colonies did not follow suit because they had plenty of wood and besides, charcoal iron was stronger than coke iron．Coke smelting led to technological innovations and was linked to the emergence of the Industrial Revolution．In the early nineteenth century, the former colonies lagged behind Britain in industrial development because their supply of wood led them to cling to charcoal iron．
Which of t11e following is a common assumption about the forests in North America during the colonial period?
选项 A、Their economic value was little known．
B、They contained only a few types of trees．
C、They covered almost the entire continent．
D、They existed only along the Atlantic seaboard．
答案C
解析 细节题。根据文章第二段第一句话“The first colonists did not, as many people imagine, find an entire continent covered by a continuous forest.”可 知，许多人认为，整个北美大陆为连绵不断的森林所覆盖，因此应选择 [C] 。本题的解题关键是题干中的“common assumption”，即提问大家的普 遍看法，不是既定事实。其他选项的1人内容均在描述事实时有所提及，但与 文章中的内容均有一定出入。[B] 与文章中“all sorts of fine trees abounded (大量存在)”相矛盾；第三段第一句捉到，木材带来的优势被忽略，而不是 [A] 经济价值不为人所知。[D] 与文章中“Even along the Atlantic seaboard， the forest was broken at many points．”不符。
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