题目

Archaeologists using a remote-controlled submarine to excavate an ancient shipwreck deep in the Mediterranean have been able to recover several objects from the site of the wreck. By chemically dating the ship's timbers and examining other objects, such as coins, the archaeologists estimated that the ship was wrecked in the fifth century A.D. However, the submarine has also recovered from the site some large olive oil jars that cannot be from before the eighth century A.D.

Which of the following, if true, provides the strongest basis for explaining the apparent discrepancy in the dates cited?

选项

A.

The dating procedure used on the ship's timbers is accurate only to within about 50 years before or after the date the procedure identifies.

B.

Cameras on the submarine that have enabled archaeologists to map the site of the wreck have provided no evidence of other wrecks in the immediate vicinity.

C.

Chemical dating indicated that the timbers from which the ship was constructed were all about the same age.

D.

Since the beginning of maritime trade on the Mediterranean, sailors on ships endangered by storms there have lightened their ships by jettisoning cargo.

E.

Seals on the olive oil jars indicate that the jars came from the same region as that from which the coins originated.

解析

考古学家使用遥控潜水艇挖掘地中海深处的一艘古代沉船,已从沉船遗址中回收了几件物品。通过对船的木材进行化学测年并检查其他物品(如硬币),考古学家估计这艘船在**公元5世纪失事**。然而,潜水艇还从该遗址中回收了一些大型橄榄油罐,这些罐子**不可能早于公元8世纪**(即罐子的年代晚于船的失事时间)。 - **矛盾点**:船的木材、硬币等证据显示船在**5世纪失事**,但遗址中的橄榄油罐却来自**8世纪**(年代晚于5世纪)。 - **正确答案方向**:需提供一个合理情境,解释“5世纪失事的船中为何会出现8世纪的罐子”(即说明罐子的来源与沉船本身无关,或通过某种机制被“混入”沉船遗址)。 - **选项A**:用于船木的测年程序的准确性仅在其确定的日期前后约50年内。 分析:船的测年为5世纪,即使有50年误差,最多到5世纪中期/晚期(如550年左右),但橄榄油罐来自8世纪(比5世纪晚至少300年)。50年的误差无法解释“5世纪的船为何有8世纪的罐子”,排除。 - **选项B**:潜水艇上的摄像头使考古学家能够绘制沉船遗址的地图,但未发现附近有其他沉船的证据。 分析:若附近无其他沉船,“8世纪的罐子来自其他沉船”的可能性被排除,反而加深了矛盾(5世纪的船为何有8世纪的罐子?),无法解释,排除。 - **选项C**:化学测年表明,建造船只的木材年龄都大致相同。 分析:木材年龄相同仅能说明船的建造时间,与“为何有8世纪的罐子”无关,无法解释矛盾,排除。 - **选项D**:自地中海海上贸易开始以来,遭遇风暴的船只上的水手会通过**抛弃货物**来减轻船的重量。 分析:该选项提供了关键机制:**8世纪的某艘船遭遇风暴时,水手抛弃了8世纪的橄榄油罐**,这些罐子被水流(或其他因素)带到了5世纪的沉船遗址。因此,考古学家在挖掘5世纪的沉船时,会同时发现“原船的5世纪物品”和“后来被抛弃的8世纪罐子”。该选项合理解释了矛盾,当选。 - **选项E**:橄榄油罐上的封条表明罐子与硬币来自同一地区。 分析:“来源地区相同”仅说明罐子和硬币的产地一致,但无法解释“8世纪的罐子为何出现在5世纪的沉船中”(产地相同≠时间逻辑合理),排除。 综上,正确答案为**D**。
在线客服
官方微信
公众号