新概念英语第三册逐句精讲语言点 第38课 最早的日历 (3)

　　He has to deduce what hecan from the few scanty clues available. Even seemingly insignificant remains can shedinteresting light on the history of early man.

　　Up to now, historians have assumed that calendars came into being with the advent ofagriculture, for then man was faced with a real need to understand something aboutthe seasons.

　　7.He has to deduce what he can from the few scanty clues available.

　　他们必须根据现有的不充分的线索进行推理。

　　语言点:句子结构分析:what引导宾语从句，说明deduce的内容。

　　8.Even seemingly insignificant remains can shed interesting light on the history of earlyman.

　　即使看起来微不足道的遗物，也可能揭示人类早期历史的一些有趣的内容。

　　语言点1:句子结构分析:shed的本意是“使…流出”，在本句中引申为“揭示”，相当于reveal。

　　语言点2:shed light on的意思是“揭示…方面的事情，把…弄清楚”。

　　9.Up to now, historians have assumed that calendars came into being with the adventof agriculture, for then man was faced with a real need to understand something aboutthe seasons.

　　历史学家迄今认为日历是随农业的问世而出现的，因为当时人们面临着了解四季的实际需要。

　　语言点1:句子结构分析:up to now放在句首，后面谓语的时态一定是现在完成时，这是约定俗成的语法要求。That引导宾语从句，交代assumed的内容。For引导原因状语从句，说明历史学家为什么会这么认为。

　　语言点2:come into being是固定搭配，意为“产生，出现”。