People have been making maps for thousands of years. Long before there were cameras, airplanes, or satellites, humans wanted to record where things were and how to travel from one place to another. The earliest maps were very simple. Some were scratched onto stone or clay, showing nearby rivers, mountains, or the way to a good hunting ground.
Many early maps were not very accurate. Mapmakers often drew the parts of the world they knew well in great detail, while distant lands were left empty or filled with imaginary creatures. Some old maps even placed a particular country or city right in the center of the world, simply because the people who made the map happened to live there.
As travel and trade grew, maps became more important and far more exact. Sailors needed good maps in order to cross the open seas safely, so mapmakers worked hard to show coastlines and distances correctly. The invention of printing also helped a great deal, because it allowed the very same map to be copied many times and shared with people in distant places.
Later, new tools made maps better still. Explorers measured the land carefully, and ships used special instruments to find their exact position at sea. Slowly, the blank spaces on world maps were filled in, and the maps came to show the real shape of the continents and oceans.
Today, most people use digital maps on their phones, which can show their exact position and give them directions in just a few seconds. Yet these modern tools are based on the very same simple idea as the first maps: helping people understand the world around them and find their way safely through it. It is interesting to remember that maps do far more than just show roads and rivers. Throughout history, they have also shaped the way people see the world and their own place within it. A good map can make a faraway country feel close, or remind us how small our own town is compared with the whole planet.
（1） 正解 2. They were simple and sometimes scratched onto stone.
第1段落に「最初の地図は簡単で、石などに引っかいたものもあった」とある。選択肢2。
（2） 正解 1. Because mapmakers did not know them well.
第2段落に「よく知る地域は詳しく、遠い土地は空白にした」＝よく知らなかったから。選択肢1。
（3） 正解 2. Because sailors needed good maps to cross the seas safely.
第3段落に「船乗りが海を安全に渡るためによい地図を必要とした」とある。選択肢2。
（4） 正解 1. By explorers measuring the land and ships finding their position.
第4段落に「探検家が土地を測り、船が位置を求めて空白を埋めた」とある。選択肢1。
（5） 正解 3. They help people understand the world and find their way.
第5段落に「現代の地図も最初の地図と同じ考え＝世界を理解し道を見つける助け」とある。選択肢3。
sense：感覚
a power such as sight, hearing, or smell（視覚・聴覚・嗅覚などの力）
particle：粒子
a very small piece of something（とても小さなかけら）
emotion：感情
a strong feeling such as joy or fear（喜びや恐れなどの強い気持ち）
inspire：着想を与える
to give someone an idea for doing something（何かをするための考えを与える）
efficient：効率的な
working well without wasting energy or time（エネルギーや時間をむだにせずよく働く）
discount：割引
a lower price than usual（ふだんより安い値段）
accurate：正確な
correct and without mistakes（正しく間違いがない）
coast：海岸
the land next to the sea（海に接する陸地）