考研英语阅读理解精读100篇【社会文化类】

考研英语阅读理解精读100篇unit25
Unit 25
Jim Boon is a hybrid kind of guy. He drives a Toyota hybrid to work, a Honda hybrid on weekends and, as a manager for Seattle public transit he recently placed the world's largest order for hybrid electric buses.

Now, with the biggest hybrid-bus fleet in the world, Seattle has become the main testing ground for a technology that claims it can drastically cut air pollution and fuel consumption. In the 1990s, demo fleets of 35 buses or fewer started cropping up in cities such as Tempe, Ariz. Sixteen of these early hybrids still service Genoa, Italy, where drivers switch from diesel to electric power when passing the city's downtown architectural treasures. But no city has gone as far as Seattle, which last year bought 235 GM hybrid buses at $645,000 a pop. When the final one rolls out this December, the region's bus system will be 15 percent hybrid.

But why Seattle, and why now? The Pacific Northwest has long been a hotbed of both Green politics and cutting-edge technology. Fourteen years ago the Seattle area bought 236 Italian-made Breda buses to service a mile-long downtown tunnel. They were supposed to operate as clean electric trolleys underground, but the switching mechanism often failed and "the bus drove through the tunnel as a diesel," says Boon. "It was pretty loud and smoky."

When the Bredas hit retirement age in 2002, Boon went shopping. He chose the GM buses because they use an automatic transmission and diesel boosters that provide power to scale inclines without strain. In hilly Seattle, the prospect of a hybrid that could climb like a diesel but accelerate without belching black fumes helped justify a price $200,000 higher than that of a regular bus. "The days of seeing a diesel pull away and pour out smoke are over," says Boon. "After we drove these hybrid buses across the country, I wiped a handkerchief inside the tailpipe. It came out spotless."

Experts say buses are critical to realizing the hybrid dream of greater efficiency and cleaner air. It would take thousands of hybrid cars to save as many gallons of gas (750,000) as Boon expects his buses to save Seattle each year. GM claims that compared with conventional diesels, its new buses also churn out 90 percent less particulate matter--a known carcinogen. "Buses are a major source of pollution in any city," says Dave Kircher of the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency. "They operate where people are breathing this exhaust, so this is a major step forward in terms of emissions."

And a major step forward in the marketplace: Philadelphia; Honolulu; Long Beach, Calif., and Albuquerque, N.M., have all bought the GM buses in recent months. GM is now touting itself in ads as the top hybrid-bus innovator, but Siemens is among the global giants dueling GM for new business, and New York plans to deploy 325 BAE Systems hybrids by 2006. "There's room for competition," says James Cannon, editor of Hybrid Vehicles newsletter. Seems Seattle isn't the only city trying to leave grunge behind.

注（1）：本文选自Newsweek; 9/20/2004；
注（2）：本文习题命题模仿对象2004年Text 1.

1． How does Genoa protect its architectural treasures?

[A]Following Seattle’s steps to reduce pollution.
[B]Using electric power of the car when crossing.
[C]Shifting the power of the hybrids when crossing.
[D]Reducing the number of the buses crossing there.

2． Which of the following can be the main advantage of hybrid bus?

[A]Cutting air pollution and fuel consumption
[B]Producing less smoke and noise.
[C]Owning strong switching mechanism.
[D]Producing less dangerous matter.

3． The expression “churn out”(Line 4, Paragraph 5) most probably means ______.

[A]increase
[B]destroy
[C]reduce
[D]produce

4． Why buses are critical to realizing the hybrid dream of higher efficiency?

[A]Buses are a major source of pollution.
[B]A single bus saves much more gas than a single car.
[C]Buses carry more passengers.
[D]New buses produce less harmful material.

5． Which of the following is true according to the text?

[A]Many cities plan to buy GM buses.
[B]GM buses have the incomparable advantages over other buses.
[C]There is severe competition in the field of hybrid vehicles.
[D]The best way to keep the city clean is to buy hybrid buses.

答案：CADBC

篇章剖析
本文采用的是提出问题——分析问题的模式，指出混合动力公交车的优点，并分析了西雅图为什么会成为世界上拥有这种汽车最多的城市。第一段介绍了西雅图公共交通系统经理吉姆•布恩；第二段指出西雅图是世界上拥有混合动力公交车最多的城市；第三段和第四段分析了为什么会是西雅图这座城市，而且又是现在购买这么多GM公交车的原因；第五段介绍了同柴油机相比，混合动力公交车的性能优点；第七段介绍了其市场经营情况。

词汇注释
hybrid[]n.杂种, 混血儿, 混合物adj.混合的, 杂种的
place an order for sth. with  v.向...定购某物
drastically adv.激烈地, 彻底地
demo[]n.演示, 民主党员, 样本唱片
crop up  v.突然出现
diesel[]n.柴油机
a pop每个，各
roll out  v.铺开, 低沉地讲出, 离开, 动身, 大量生产, 滚出
hotbed[]n.温床
cutting-edge  尖端的，先进的
trolley[]n.电车
accelerate[]v.加速, 促进
belch[]v.打嗝, (火山、炮等)冒烟、喷出
tailpipe[]n.[汽]排气管
churn out 大量产出；以一种丰富的和自动的方式产生
carcinogen[]n.致癌物质
exhaust[]n.废气
tout[]v.吹捧
duel[]v.决斗
deploy[]v.展开, 配置
grunge[]n.<美俚>蹩脚货,难看的东西,乏味的东西

难句突破
1．In hilly Seattle, the prospect of a hybrid that could climb like a diesel but accelerate without belching black fumes helped justify a price $200,000 higher than that of a regular bus.
主体句式：… the prospect … helped justify a price …
结构分析：这句话的主语是“the prospect of a hybrid”，之后跟的是由that引导的定语从句来修饰“a hybrid”。在这个定语从句中，“climb”和“accelerate”都是谓语动词。“help”是谓语，后面经常跟“to do sth”， 其中“to”常被省略。“$200,000 higher than that of a regular bus”修饰“a price”，其中 “that”指代的是“price”。
句子译文：在多山的西雅图，能够像柴油机那样上下行驶，加速时又不冒黑烟这样的混合动力车比普通汽车高出200，000美元的价位还是合理的。

题目分析
1.答案为C, 属事实细节题。原文对应信息是：“Sixteen of these early hybrids still service Genoa, Italy, where drivers switch from diesel to electric power when passing the city's downtown architectural treasures.”
2.答案为A，属事实细节题。原文对应信息是第二段第一句话“a technology that claims it can drastically cut air pollution and fuel consumption”。第五段第一句话“Experts say buses are critical to realizing the hybrid dream of greater efficiency and cleaner air.”又进一步印证了这一点。
3.答案为D，属猜词题。本段的主题句是“Experts say buses are critical to realizing the hybrid dream of greater efficiency and cleaner air.”其中已经介绍过了高功效，接下来要介绍高清洁。 “churn out”所在的句子是在说明这种新型公交车在减少大气污染方面的优良性能，根据语境可猜出词组的含义。
4.答案为B，属事实细节题。原文对应信息是“It would take thousands of hybrid cars to save as many gallons of gas (750,000) as Boon expects his buses to save Seattle each year.”作对本题的关键是对此句的正确理解。参照“难句突破”部分的解释。
5.答案为C，属推理判断题。本段指出虽然美国通用汽车公司自诩是最棒的混合动力公共汽车的改革者，但是GM在这一市场中做的并不是独家生意，也还存在着激烈的竞争，其中主要竞争对手是劲敌西门子公司，而且纽约作为一大客户，准备订购的是BAE系统混合动力车，而不是GM公司的车。由此我们可作出判断。

参考译文
吉姆•布恩是个混血儿。他上班开丰田混合动力车，周末开本田混合动力车。作为西雅图公共交通系统经理，他最近订购了世界上最大一批混合电力公交车。

现在，拥有世界上最大的混合动力公交车车队的西雅图已经成为一项技术的主要试验地。这项技术据说能大幅度降低空气污染和燃料消耗。在二十世纪九十年代，就有35辆或再少几辆这样的示范车突然出现在诸如亚利桑那州滕比这样的城市里。这些早年的混合动力车至今仍有16辆服务于意大利的热那亚。在热那亚，途经城市市区的建筑瑰宝时，司机就会把柴油动力转换成电力动力。但是没有哪座城市的做法赶得上西雅图，去年它以每辆645，000美元的价格购买了235辆美国通用汽车公司生产的混合动力公共汽车。今年十一月，当最后一辆车生产出来的时候，这个地区的公交汽车系统中混合动力车将占到15%。

可为什么是西雅图？为什么又是现在呢？美国太平洋西北部长期以来一直是绿色政治和尖端科技产生的摇篮。十四年前，西雅图地区曾购买了236辆意大利制造的布雷达（Breda）公共汽车用于一英里长的市区隧道的使用。本指望能把它们当作洁净的电力有轨电车在地下使用，但是车上的转换装置经常出毛病，“而且汽车在穿越隧道时就像是辆柴油机，”布恩说，“噪音太大，烟雾太多。”

2002年，当布雷达汽车到了“退休”的年龄时，由布恩进行新的采购。他之所以选择美国通用汽车是因为他们使用的是自动转换装置和能够提供动力来测量没有张力的斜坡的柴油推进器。在多山的西雅图，能够像柴油机那样上下行驶，加速时又不冒黑烟这样的混合动力车比普通汽车高出200，000美元的价位还是合理的。“看着柴油机冒着黑烟开走的日子终于结束了，”布恩说，“我们开车驶过乡村，我拿出手绢擦拭排气管的内部。手绢洁白无暇。”

专家认为汽车是实现高功效和高清洁梦想的关键。上千辆混合动力小汽车节省下来的汽油（750，000加仑）才和布恩预计他的汽车每年为西雅图节省的石油一样多。美国通用汽车公司声称，同传统柴油机相比，他们的这种新型汽车还能把产生的某种物质—— 一种已知的致癌物减少90%。“公共汽车在任何一座城市里都是主要的污染源，”普吉特海湾清洁空气监测站（the Puget Sound Clean Air Agency）的戴夫•奇瑟说，“汽车一开动，人们就开始在呼吸这种废气。因此这是在汽车排放物方面迈出的重大一步。”

在市场方面也向前迈出了重大一步：最近几个月，费城、火奴鲁鲁、长堤、加州和新墨西哥州的阿尔伯克基都购买了美国通用公共汽车。现在，美国通用汽车公司在广告中把自己吹嘘成最棒的混合动力公共汽车的改革者，但是与通用公司竞争这一新生意的还有全球性的大公司西门子公司；纽约计划到2006年配备325辆BAE系统的混合动力车。“这大有竞争的余地。”《动力机动车时事通讯》的编辑詹姆士•坎农是这样说的。看来好象不只西雅图一座城市想要把肮脏抛在身后。

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