A. ample B. combinations C. directly D. disseminated E. generations F.genuinely G.instead H. lists I. promulgated J. publicized K. scant L. shaped M. sophisticated N. transplanted O.virtual Imagine a world without writing. Obviously there would be no books: no novels, no encyclopedias, no cookbooks, no telephone books, no scriptures, no diaries, no travel guides. There would be no ball-points, no typewriters, no computers, no Internet, no magazines, no movie credits, no shopping lists, no newspapers, no tax returns. But such ____(1) of objects almost miss the point. The world we live in has been indelibly marked by the written word, _____(2) by the technology of writing over thousands of years. Ancient kings proclaimed their authority and ____(3) their laws in writing. Scribes administered great empires by writing, their knowledge of recording and retrieving information essential to governing complex societies. Religious traditions were passed on through _____(4), and spread to others, in writing. Scientific and technological progress was achieved and _____(5) through writing. Accounts in trade and commerce could be kept because of writing. Nearly every step of civilization has been mediated through writing. A world without writing would bear _____(6) resemblance to the one we now live in. Writing is a ____(7) necessity to the societies anthropologists call civilizations. A civilization is distinguished from other societies by the complexity of its social organization, by its construction of cities and large public buildings, and by the economic specialization of its members, many of whom are not ____(8) involved in food procurement or production. A civilization, with its taxation and tribute systems, its trade, and its public works, requires a ____(9) system of record keeping. And so the early civilization of Egypt, China and (probably) India all developed a system of writing. Only the Peruvian civilization of the Incas and their predecessors did not use writing but ____(10) invented a system of keeping records on knotted color-coded strings known as quipu.