托福阅读背景知识：印刷

 　　托福阅读真题再现：

　　印刷

　　第二段说某个国家好像是印度。。。他们的造纸很脆弱但比欧洲便宜，用的是old rag之后进行工艺(这有考题)第三段是印刷术是由中国传到欧洲的

　　后面几段就一直在说活字印刷对出版的方便性

　　举例说了一家法国最开始的公司之前雇人手抄各种书籍(有数字列举)之后用了这种活字印刷产量大增 最初发行的七百多本圣经成为了最贵的书籍相关背景：

　　Movable type

　　Movable type is the system of printing and typography that uses movable components¹ to reproduce the elements of a document (usually individual letters or punctuation).

　　The world's first known movable type system for printing was created in China around 1040 A.D. by Bi Sheng (990-1051) during the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127); When this technology spread to Korea during the Goryeo Dynasty in 1234, they made the metal movable-type system for printing. This led to the printing of the Jikji in 1377, the oldest extant movable metal print book. The diffusion² of both movable-type systems was, however, limited: They were expensive, and required an enormous amount of labour involved in manipulating the thousands of ceramic³ tablets, or in the case of Korea, metal tablets required for scripts based on the Chinese writing system, which have thousands of characters.

　　Around 1450, Johannes Gutenberg invented an improved movable type mechanical printing system in Europe, along with innovations in casting the type based on a matrix and hand mould. The more limited number of characters needed for European languages was an important factor. Gutenberg was the first to create his type pieces from an alloy⁴ of lead, tin, and antimony-the same components still used today.

　　For alphabetic⁵ scripts, movable-type page setting was quicker and more durable⁶ than woodblock printing. The metal type pieces were more durable and the lettering was more uniform, leading to typography and fonts. The printing press was especially efficient for limited alphabets. The high quality and relatively⁷ low price of the Gutenberg Bible (1455) established the superiority of movable type in Europe and the use of printing presses spread rapidly. The printing press may be regarded as one of the key factors fostering the Renaissance⁸ and due to its effectiveness, its use spread around the globe.

　　The 19th-century invention of hot metal typesetting and its successors caused movable type to decline in the 20th century.

 

1 components   

（机器、设备等的）构成要素，零件，成分； 成分( component的名词复数 )； [物理化学]组分； [数学]分量； （混合物的）组成部分

参考例句：

• the components of a machine 机器部件
• Our chemistry teacher often reduces a compound to its components in lab. 在实验室中化学老师常把化合物分解为各种成分。

2 diffusion   

n.流布；普及；散漫

参考例句：

• The invention of printing helped the diffusion of learning.印刷术的发明有助于知识的传播。
• The effect of the diffusion capacitance can be troublesome.扩散电容会引起麻烦。

3 ceramic   

n.制陶业，陶器，陶瓷工艺

参考例句：

• The order for ceramic tiles has been booked in.瓷砖的订单已登记下来了。
• Some ceramic works of art are shown in this exhibition.这次展览会上展出了一些陶瓷艺术品。

4 alloy   

n.合金，(金属的)成色

参考例句：

• The company produces titanium alloy.该公司生产钛合金。
• Bronze is an alloy of copper and tin.青铜是铜和锡的合金。

5 alphabetic   

adj.照字母次序的，字母的

参考例句：

• A generic name for a device that can store and process numeric and alphabetic in formation. 能存储和处理数字与字母信息的设备的总称。 来自辞典例句
• A coded character set whose character set is an alphabetic character set. 一种编码字符集，它的字符集是一种字母字符集。 来自互联网

6 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。

7 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

8 renaissance   

n.复活，复兴，文艺复兴

参考例句：

• The Renaissance was an epoch of unparalleled cultural achievement.文艺复兴是一个文化上取得空前成就的时代。
• The theme of the conference is renaissance Europe.大会的主题是文艺复兴时期的欧洲。