Scotland：A Land of Wisdom

In the 1740s,the famous French philosopher Voltaire said "We look to Scotland for all our ideas of civilization." That's not a bad advertisement for any country when it comes to attracting people to search for a first-class education.

According to the American author Arthur Herman,the Scots invented the modern world itself.He argues that Scottish thinkers and intellectuals worked out many of the most important ideas on which modern life depends-everything from the scientific method to market economics.Their ideas did not just spread among intellectuals,but to those people in business,government and the sciences who actually shaped the Western world.

It all started during the period that historians call the Scottish Enlightenment（启蒙运动），which is usually seen as taking place between the years 1740 and 1800.Before that,philosophy was mainly concerned with religion.For the thinkers of the Scottish Enlightenment,the proper study of humanity was mankind itself.

Their reasoning was practical.For the philosopher David Hume,humanity was the right subject for philosophy because we can examine human behavior and so find real evidence of how people think and feel.And from that we can make judgments about the societies we live in and make concrete suggestions about how they can be improved,for universal benefit.

Hume's enquiry into the nature of knowledge laid the foundations for the scientific method-the pursuit of truth through experiment.His friend and fellow resident of Edinburgh,Adam Smith,famously applied the study of mankind to the ways in which mankind does business.Trade,he argued,was a form of information.In pursuing our own interests through trading in markets,we all come to benefit each other.

Smith's idea has dominated modern views of economics.It also has wide applications.He was one of the philosophers to point out that nations can become rich,free and powerful through peace,trade and invention.

Although the Scottish Enlightenment ended a long time ago,the ideas which evolved at that time still underpin（构成……的基础）our theories of human exchange and enquiry.It also exists in Scotland itself in an educational tradition that combines academic excellence with orientation（方向）。

1.Scotland is the right place to receive a first-class education.

A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

2.According to Arthur Herman,the Scots developed many important ideas which modern life depends on.

A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

3.Philosophers had come to know the importance of studying humanity even before the Scottish Enlightenment took place.

A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

4.David Hume was the first philosopher to study mankind.

A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

5.Smith's idea has extensive applications.

A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

6.Our current theories of human exchange and enquiry have nothing to do with the ideas developed during the Scottish Enlightenment.

A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

7.Smith died in 1800.

A.Right B.Wrong C.Not mentioned

参考答案： A A B C A B C

答案解析：

1.第一题的关键词是"a first-class education"，所以答案在第一段中找。在第一段中，作者提到苏格兰是文明的发源地，所以也吸引了各国的人们来这里寻找一流的教育。所以苏格兰是获得一流教育的地方，这句话是正确的。故答案选择A.

2.Arthur Herman的观点是在第二段中提出来的，所以本题的答案在第二段中寻找。第二段的第一句话就已经指出，"According to the American author Arthur Herman,the Scots invented the modern world itself.He argues that Scottish thinkers and intellectuals worked out many of the most important ideas on which modern life depends-everything from the scientific method to market economics."从这句话中的关键词中可以看出，本题的陈述是正确的，故答案选A.

3.在第三段中，"Before that,philosophy was mainly concerned with religion.For the thinkers of the Scottish Enlightenment,the proper study of humanity was mankind itself."，这句话指出，在这之前，哲学家主要关注的是宗教，苏格兰的启蒙运动思想家们才正确研究了（proper study）人文。所以说对于人文的研究不是在苏格兰启蒙运动之前，故答案选择B.

4.David Hume出现在文章的第四段。整个第四段的内容都没有提到他是研究人文的第一个哲学家（first philosopher）。

5.根据第五段中，"Adam Smith,famously applied the study of mankind to the ways in which mankind does business."这句话，可以推断出Smith扩大了人文研究的应用领域，故答案选择A.

6.在本文的最后一段中，"Although the Scottish Enlightenment ended a long time ago,the ideas which evolved at that time still underpin（构成……的基础）our theories of human exchange and enquiry."说明苏格兰启蒙运动时期的思想是构成现代人文理论的基础，并非一点关系也没有（nothing to do with）。

7.纵观整篇文章，都没有提到Smith的去世时间，所以本题选择C.

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