Researchers at Yale, Texas A&M and Boston University predict that by 2030 ur
题型：不详难度：来源：
Researchers at Yale, Texas A&M and Boston University predict that by 2030 urban areas will expand by more than 463,000 square miles, or l．2 million square kilometers． That is equal to 20,000 American football fields becoming urban every day for the first three decades of this century．
The growth in urban areas will go with the construction of roads and buildings, water and sanitation facilities, and energy and transport systems that will transform land cover and cities globally． Recent estimates suggest that between $25 trillion（万亿） and $30 trillion will be spent on infrastructure（基础设施） worldwide by 2030, with $100 billion a year in China alone．
"Considering the long life and near unavoidability of infrastructure investments, it will be critical for current urbanization-related policies to consider their lasting impacts," said Karen Seto, lead author of the study． "We have a huge opportunity to shape how cities develop and their environmental impacts．"
Nearly half of the increase in high-probability ----defined as greater than 75 percent ---- urban expansion is forecasted to occur in Asia, with China and India absorbing 55 percent of the regional total． In China, urban- expansion is expected to create a l,l00-mile coastal urban corridor from Hangzhou to Shenyang． In India, urban expansion will be gathered around seven state capital cities, with large areas of low-probability growth forecasted for the Himalaya region where many small villages and towns currently exist．
Africa"s urban land cover will grow the fastest, at 590 percent above the 2000 level of 16,000 square miles． Urban expansion win be concentrated in that continent"s five regions: the Nile River in Egypt; the coast of West Africa on the Gulf of Guinea; the northern shores of Lake Victoria in Kenya and Uganda and extending into Rwanda and Burundi; the Kano region in northern Nigeria; and greater Addis Ababa, Ethiopia．
"Urban expansion is concentrated in． only a few areas where there are large cities and industry," said Seto． "From the northern shore of Lake Victoria down to Rwanda is also a major hotspot of urban expansion．"
In North America, where 78 percent of the total population lives in urban areas, urban land cover will nearly double by 96,000 square miles by 2030．The study also forecasts that 48 of the 221 countries in the study will experience insignificant amounts of urban expansion． "
小题1:As for China, the expansion of urban area means ．| A．$ 100 billion will be spent on infrastructure a year | | B．creating a coastal urban corridor from Hangzhou to Qingdao | | C．it will become the fastest developing country in the next decade | | D．it will make up 55% of the increase in urban expansion in Asia |
小题2:According to the passage infrastructure doesn"t include ．| A．construction of roads | B．sanitation facilities | | C．energy systems | D．land cover transformation |
小题3:In paragraph three the underlined word “their lasting impacts” refers to the impacts of .| A．the development of cities | B．urbanization-related policies | | C．infrastructure in vestments | D．China’s expansion of urban area |
小题4:The best title for this passage should be .| A．The limitation of urban expansion | | B．More investment on infrastructure | | C．The fast development of the third world | | D．The future urban expansion of the world |
|
答案
小题1:A
小题2:D
小题3:C
小题4:D |
解析
试题分析：这篇文章讲的是世界上未来的城市建设的情况，基础建设包括哪些方面，要投资多少搞基础建设，各个国家不同的情况。
小题1:细节题：从第二段的句子：and $30 trillion will be spent on infrastructure（基础设施） worldwide by 2030, with $100 billion a year in China alone．可知中国要花1千亿在城市的基础建设上。选A。
小题2:细节题：从第二段的句子：The growth in urban areas will go with the construction of roads and buildings, water and sanitation facilities, and energy and transport systems that will transform land cover and cities globally．可知基础建设不包括D项。
小题3:从第三段的第一句话："Considering the long life and near unavoidability of infrastructure investments, 可知it指的是基础建设的投资。选C
小题4:主旨题：从第一段的内容：Researchers at Yale, Texas A&M and Boston University predict that by 2030 urban areas will expand by more than 463,000 square miles, or l．2 million square kilometers．可知这篇文章讲的是世界上未来的城市建设。选D
点评：本文是一篇议论文。话题对学生不是很熟悉，在解答这类问题时要求学生抓住题干文字信息，采用针对性方法进行阅读，答案在文章中可以直接找到。 |
举一反三
It is "one of the few bright spots in the Chinese economy," says Zeng Ming． He is talking about e-commerce． Mr Zeng, the chief strategy officer for Alibaba, a giant Chinese Internet firm, predicts that digital transactions on his firm"s platforms will top l trillion yuan （$159 billion） this year-more than Amazon"s and eBay"s combined． That is a bold claim, but consider what happened on Singles Sunday．
Invented a few years ago by students and seized upon by digital marketers, this festival for lonely hearts falls annually on the llth day of the llth month （since l is the loneliest number）．It is like St Valentine"s Day, only worse． Singletons shower each other with tender gifts: a barrage of pearls; a storm of sweets．
This November llth they spent a surprising 19 billion yuan on Alibaba"s online platforms-a fourfold increase on a year ago, and more than double what Americans spent online last Cyber Monday （the Monday after Thanksgiving, when retailers urge Americans to shop online）． About 100m purchases were logged, accounting for 80% of the packages shipped that day． Couriers（怏递员） were buried in parcels．
So life is good for China"s e-tailers, then? Not exactly． The number of digital marketers is increasing and online sales are booming． Consumers are enjoying lower prices, better service and more variety． The problem? The pressure on profits in Chinese e-commerce is worse than in America, reckons Elinor Leung of CLSA, a broker． "Almost no one makes money," she says．
The fiercest battles are being fought between online retailers and their bricks-and-mortar（实体的） rivals．Dangdang, a firm． that resembles Amazon,．and 360buy, another online retailer, have cut prices fiercely． Tencent, a cash-rich online giant known for its instant-messaging software, is splashing out to win market share． 360buy has also just raised $400m from investors to do the same． But it is unclear how much longer such firms can burn through capital．
小题1:What"s the best title of this passage?| A．The Ambition of Alibaba | | B．Fierce Competition between Retailers | | C．A Newly Sprung Festival for the Singles | | D．Chinese Booming and Developing E-commerce |
小题2:According to Zeng Ming, this year Alibaba will ．| A．outweigh Amazon and eBay in worldwide influence | | B．rank top among all the Internet firms | | C．have more than 159 billion dollars" sale | | D．create another sales miracle just like the one on Singles Day |
小题3:How many packages were shipped on November ll th from Alibaba"s online platforms?| A．About 80 million． | B．About 100 million． | | C．About 125 million． | D．About 180 million． |
小题4:What"s the author"s attitude towards online retailers in China?| A．Optimistic． | B．Concerned． | | C．Sympathetic． | D．Indifferent． |
|
Have you ever thought of taking a train and having an adventure？Riding the train can be a real adventure. That is how I feel every time I take Amtrak. I often take a four-hour trip to visit my children. Every time I take this trip I never know what will happen.
Last week when I was on the train, there was a man sitting by himself in the back of the train carrying on a mobile phone conversation—in another language. It was loud and disturbed most of the people on the train. I think it was annoying.
Fortunately I sat next to a wonderful old lady who was taking a two-day trip by train. She said her two daughters were worried at the thought of driving for three days to reach her home, although she had no trouble driving. The train ride was the only choice for her. She loved to look out of the window and watch the world go by on the train.
She was fun to talk to and asked me when my children started being parents. That is a very good question. Both of us are old and have children. She asked that same question from time to time.
There are always many people on the train from all walks of life, different countries, and many languages. Riding the train is a great way to increase your knowledge and learn all kinds of cultures. If you get hungry, you can buy food in the food car at any time. If you need to use the restroom, there is always one for you.
It surely beats driving the car, which has to stop for food and restrooms. And it is better than taking the bus.
小题1:According to the passage, the purpose of the author’s train ride was ______.| A．to do business | B．to see her children | | C．to visit places of interest | D．to see her old friends |
小题2:In the author’s opinion, on the train Amtrak ______.| A．the services are quite good | B．the food is terribly expensive | | C．all the passengers are polite | D．all the passengers are American |
小题3:What is the best title for this passage?| A．A painful experience on the train | B．A wonderful lady | | C．Train ride—a cultural experience | D．The history of Amtrak |
|
To American visitors, Iceland is a very interesting country, partly because it is different in so many ways from what he or she is used to seeing at home. There are quite a few things that are not done, or that do not exist on the island - quite a few "No"s".
There is no pollution, for instance. No dogs are permitted in Reykjavik, the capital. There is no television on Thursdays or during the entire month of July, and only three hours of black-and-white TV the rest of the time. There is no hard liquor on Wednesdays and no beer at any time. There are no handguns; only one jail of thirty-five cells（牢房） in the entire land – an admirable figure, even for a small country of 313,376 people.
There is no army, air force or navy. There is no tipping for anything. There are no large stores open on Saturdays or Sundays. Since Iceland is situated just under the Arctic Circle, there is no darkness in summer and do daylight in winter. But thanks to Gulf Stream, the climate is rather mild, with temperatures ranging from 34 degrees Fahrenheit to 52 degrees in July.
The rules on television, liquor, and guns are the result of governmental decision. But the absence of pollution is due in great part to the fact that Iceland gets its power from the enormous geyser（间歇泉）and the thousands of hot springs that come out of the ground. They provide all the energy needed by the country. In fact, Iceland uses only 3 percent of all its available power.
Iceland has been described as a democratic (民主的) independent country where more fish are caught and more books published per person than anywhere else in the world. The Icelanders have always felt a particular love for literature. They composed their first works in the ninth and tenth centuries AD. These works were poems and tales about the kings, heroes, and heroines of Iceland and Norway. At first the stories were memorized and passed from generation to generation. The Icelanders have never stopped writing ever since. “Rather shoeless than bookless," they proudly say.
小题1:American visitors enjoy visiting Iceland probably because .| A．no dogs are permitted in the capital | | B．the police do not carry handguns | | C．it is very different from America | | D．the climate is rather mild. |
小题2:The following statements are true EXCEPT .| A．there are no soldiers in Iceland | | B．the Icelanders don"t drink beer | | C．there is no service fee of any kind | | D．there are no crimes in Iceland |
小题3:There is no pollution in Iceland mainly because .| A．Iceland uses only 3 percent of all its available power | | B．the Icelanders use hot water from the ground below as their energy | | C．it is located just under the Arctic Circle | | D．it is a democratic independent country |
小题4:"Rather shoeless than bookless" means .| A．they regard books more important than shoes. | | B．they would rather have shoes on than write books | | C．they prefer traveling to reading | | D．they prefer not to have shoes or books |
|
The iPhone, the iPad: each of Apple’s products sounds cool and has become a fad (一度时髦的风尚). Apple has cleverly taken advantage of the power of the letter “i” — and many other brands are following suit. The BBC’s iPlayer — which allows Web users to watch TV programs on the Internet — adopted the title in 2008. A lovely bear — popular in the US and the UK — that plays music and video is called “iTeddy”. A slimmed-down version of The Independent newspaper was launched last week under the name “i”.
In general, single-letter prefixes have been popular since the 1990s, when terms such as e-mail and e-commerce first came into use.
Most “i” products are aimed at young people and considering the major readers of The Independent’s “i”, it’s no surprise that they’ve selected this fashionable name.
But it’s hard to see what’s so special about the letter “i”. Why not use “a”, “b”, or “c” instead? According to Tony Thorne, former head of the Language Center at King’s College London, “i” works because its meaning has become ambiguous. When Apple uses “i”, no one knows whether it means Internet, information, individual or interactive, Thorne told BBCMagazines. “Even when Apple created the iPod, it seems it didn’t have one clear definition,” he says.
“However, thanks to Apple, the term is now associated with portability (轻便).” Adds Thorne.
Clearly the letter “i” also agrees with the idea that the Western world is centered on the individual. Each person believes they have their own needs, and we love personalized products for this reason.
Along with “Google” and “blog”, readers of BBCMagazines voted “i” as one of the top 20 words that have come to define the last decade.
But as history shows, people grow tired of fads. From the 1900s to 1990s, products with “2000” in their names became fashionable as the year was associated with all things advanced and modern. However, as we entered the new century, the trend unavoidably disappeared.
小题1:People use iPlayer to _________.| A．listen to music | B．make a call | | C．watch TV programs online | D．read newspapers |
小题2:We can infer that The Independent’s “i” is aimed at _________.| A．young readers | B．old readers | | C．fashionable women | D．engineers |
小题3:Nowadays, the “i” term often reminds people of the products which are _________.| A．portable | B．environmentally friendly | | C．advanced | D．recyclable |
小题4:The writer suggests that _________.| A．“i” products are often of high quality | | B．iTeddy is a living bear | | C．the letter “b” replaces the letter “i” to name the products | | D．the popularity of “i” products may not last long |
|
As the railroads and the highways shaped the American West in the past centuries, a new electrical generating(发电)and transmission (输送) system for the 21st century will leave a lasting mark on the West, for better or worse. Much of the real significance of railroads and highways is not in their direct physical effect on the scenery, but in the ways that they affect the surrounding community. The same is true of big solar plants and the power lines that will be laid down to move electricity around.
The 19 th century saw land grants(政府拨地) offered to railroad companies to build the transcontinental railroads, leaving public land in between privately owned land. In much of the West, some of the railroad sections were developed while others remained undeveloped, and in both cases the landownership has presented unique challenges to land management. With the completion of the interstate highway system, many of the small towns, which sprang up as railway stops and developed well, have lost their lifeblood and died.
Big solar plants and their power lines will also have effects far beyond their direct footprint in the West. This is not an argument against building them. We need alternative energy badly, and to really take advantage of it we need to be able to move electricity around far more readily than we can now.
So trade-offs will have to be made. Some scenic spots will be sacrificed. Some species(物种) will be forced to move, or will be carefully moved to special accommodations. Deals will be struck to reduce the immediate effects.
The lasting effects of these trade-offs are another matter. The 21st century development of the American West as an ideal place for alternative energy is going to throw off a lot of power and money in the region. There are chances for that power and money to do a lot of good. But it is just as likely that they will be spent wastefully and will leave new problems behind, just like the railroads and the highways.
The money set aside in negotiated trade-offs and the institutions that control it will shape the West far beyond the immediate footprint of power plants and transmission lines. So let’s remember the effects of the railroads and the highways as we construct these new power plants in the West.
小题1:What was the problem caused by the construction of the railways?| A．Small towns along the railways became abandoned. | | B．Land in the West was hard to manage. | | C．Some railroad stops remained underused. | | D．Land grants went into private hands. |
小题2:What is the major concern in the development of alternative energy according to the last two paragraphs?| A．The use of money and power. | | B．The transmission of power. | | C．The conservation of solar energy. | | D．The selection of an ideal place. |
小题3:What is the author’s attitude towards building solar plants?| A．Disapproving. | B．Approving. | C．Doubtful. | D．Cautious. |
小题4:Which is the best title for the passage?| A．How the Railways Have Affected the West | | B．How the Effects of Power Plants Can Be Reduced | | C．How Solar Energy Could Reshape the West | | D．How the Problems of the Highways Have Been Settled |
|
最新试题
热门考点