What is the central idea of this text? Some anthropologists theorize that it wasn't the creation and use of tools that marked the emergence of early humans from their more animal-like ancestors, but the beginning of genuine

oral, and later pictorial communication. The development of a genuine

system of writing, thoug

came much later, as some societies transitioned from hunter-gatherer to permanent agrarian

communities. This nelifestyrequired counting property - like parcels of land, livestock or

measures of crops - and also the ability to transfer ownership of things from one individual or

settlement to another. Early such record-keeping was done with "counting tokens" about 9,000

years ago. But these tokens eventually were replaced by symbols that could be pressed or

inscribed into clay, and this marked the beginning of a written language. These symbols began

as pictures that represented what they pictured, but over time pictures also began to represent

concepts and, eventually sounds. Thus, written language was a natural outgrowth of an

increasingly agrarian society.

Read this passage: many manufacturers prefer plastic as a material for containers because it can be molded into many shapes. but plastic is not very strong. it must be fused with glass or steel for strength. it is also not very durable. even the strongest plastic can break under enough pressure. the biggest disadvantage to using plastic is that it does not decompose. while plastic can be recycled, doing so is tedious and difficult. while it may be more expensive and difficult to work with, aluminum is a much stronger building material with far greater tensile strength. it conducts electricity because it is metal. best of all, aluminum is very easy to recycle. even if it is thrown away, it decomposes much more quickly than most manufacturing materials. how does the compare-and-contrast organizational pattern of the passage support the author's purpose? a. the passage gradually leads up to the point about decomposition to inform the reader about the importance of recycling plastics. b. the passage lists the advantages and disadvantages of each material to make a case for the use of plastic and not aluminum in containers. c. the passage begins with a description of plastic's problems in order to call attention to the good qualities of aluminum. d. the passage shows the superiority of aluminum in order to make a case for the production of stronger plastics.