A
One of the first great intellectual achievements of a young child is learning how to talk, closely followed by learning how to count. From earliest childhood we are so associated with our system of numeration(计数)that it is hard to consider the problems faced by early humans who had not yet developed this ability. Rather than being an ability that comes naturally to a person, it is one of the great achievements of the human race.
It will never be known how and when this numeration ability developed, but it is certain that numeration was well developed by the time humans had formed even semi-permanent settlements. When early humans began to settle, grow plants and herd animals, the need for a complex number system became important.
Evidence of early stages of numeration can be readily found. The indigenous (土著的) peoples of Tasmania were only able to count one, two, and many. But in real situations the number and words are often accompanied by gestures to help smooth any confusion. For example, when using the one, two, many type of system, the word many would mean， look at my hands and how many fingers I am showing you. This approach is limited in the range of numbers that it can express, but generally enough.
The lack of ability of some cultures to deal with large numbers is not really surprising. The average person in the seventh century in Europe was not as familiar with numbers as we are today. In fact, to qualify as a witness in a court of law, a man had to be able to count to nine！
Counting is not directly related to the formation of a number concept because it is possible to count by matching the items being counted against a group of pebbles (鹅卵石)or fingers. Such aids, while different, are still used even by the most educated in today‘s society due to their convenience.
21. What can we infer from the first paragraph？
A. Talking is more important than counting.
B Numeration is of significance to humans.
C. Numeration system comes naturally to us.
D. Our early ancestors had problems surviving.
22. A complex number system was necessary for our early ancestors when they______.
A. lived in groups B. had a number sense
C. began farming D. gathered enough food
23. What do the underlined words “This approach” in paragraph 3 refer to？
A. Making additional hand signals. B. Combining words and numbers.
C. Using the Tasmanian language. D. Counting one, two and many.
24. In the seventh century, a man in Europe wasn’t accepted as a witness in court probably because _________.
A. he wasn’t familiar with law B. he didn’t have a good reputation
C. he wasn’t good at expressing himself D. he couldn’t count to certain number
