What Role Did Climate Play In The Shift From Foraging To Agriculture? — Reading Comprehension

For thousands of years, early humans lived by foraging. This means they found food by hunting wild animals and gathering wild plants. They were always on the move, following food sources. This lifestyle worked well during the last Ice Age, a very cold period that ended about 12,000 years ago. During the Ice Age, large parts of Earth were covered in ice, and the climate was unstable, meaning it changed often and suddenly.

As the Ice Age ended, Earth's climate began to warm up. This warming was a huge climate shift. The ice sheets melted, sea levels rose, and the weather became more stable and predictable. This new, warmer climate brought many changes to the environment. For example, some areas that were once too cold for certain plants became fertile. This allowed for the growth of new types of wild grasses, like wild wheat and barley, which grew in abundance in places like the Fertile Crescent in the Middle East.

The abundance of these wild grains was a major factor in the shift from foraging to agriculture. Agriculture is the practice of farming, including growing crops and raising animals. With so much wild grain available, people started to settle in one place for longer periods to harvest it. Over time, they learned to plant seeds intentionally and to domesticate animals. Domestication means taming animals and growing plants for human use.

This change from foraging to agriculture is known as the Neolithic Revolution. It wasn't a sudden event but a slow process that took thousands of years. The stable climate, with its reliable seasons and consistent rainfall in many regions, made agriculture possible. If the climate had remained as unstable as it was during the Ice Age, farming would have been much harder, as crops need predictable conditions to grow.

The impact of this climate-driven shift was enormous. Agriculture allowed humans to produce more food, which led to larger populations. People could build permanent settlements, develop new tools, and specialize in different jobs. This laid the foundation for villages, towns, and eventually, complex civilizations. Understanding this historical transition helps us see how deeply climate and environment influence human society, a connection that remains vital today as we face modern global warming challenges.

Interesting Fact: The earliest known evidence of agriculture comes from a site in the Fertile Crescent, where people began cultivating wild cereals around 9,000 BCE.

What was the main way early humans got food during the Ice Age?

The end of the Ice Age led to what kind of climate change?

Why was the new climate after the Ice Age important for agriculture?

How did the shift to agriculture affect human settlements?

The Neolithic Revolution describes the shift from foraging to farming. True or False?

How might an unstable climate make farming difficult?

What is the primary meaning of 'domestication' in the passage?

What can we infer about human population sizes during foraging, compared to agriculture?

If a region suddenly experienced very cold, short summers, how might this affect its ability to farm grains?

Which of these is most likely an 'impact' of stable climate on human society?