40.至43.題為題組
         Belgium is famous for its chocolate, enjoyed by visitors to Brussels. This very popular and widelyconsumed delicacy nowadays is worth more than we can ever imagine. In fact, cocoa beans were served asa means of payment for the Maya and the Aztecs. After The Aztecs seized the Mayan people’s land andtheir economy, they inherited such a trading system with the help of cocoa beans. This commodity moneybecame an integral part of the day-to-day transaction in the empire. As an example, a rabbit could be tradedfor ten cocoa beans, while a hundred were needed to buy a slave.
         In order to be used as money, an object must meet certain criteria such as sufficient rarity orpreciousness. The value of cocoa is largely determined by the difficulties inherent in planting the cacaotrees and its low yield, both of which make cocoa an expensive commodity and important means of paymentin primitive societies. However, like any well-trusted currency, cocoa beans also fell victim to counterfeitingin various forms. For instance, they are often emptied by sneaky defrauders and then filled up with mud orstones so that they can gain equivalent weight as genuine ones.
        Cocoa was without a doubt the main currency in the history of Central and South America. It remainedthe mainstream currency there until the beginning of the 19th century. Even though cocoa no longer has aplace in the monetary system, it is no less important and features prominently among the raw materialsquoted on the commodity exchanges. Moreover, chocolate established its new empire, notably in the“medical” field, where it acts as an anti-depressant. For centuries, chocolate has never failed to charm usfor being versatile, rising from a symbol of the rich and privileged to the cure for moodiness and depressionin the field of psychiatry.
【題組】40. What is mainly discussed in the essay regarding cocoa beans?
(A) The ups and downs of the production of cocoa beans.
(B) Their role in the daily transaction for the ancient native Americans.
(C) Medical breakthrough with the aid of chocolate.
(D) Profitable business of growing chocolate beans.