英语听力小短文走遍全世界54: 摩天大楼与环境

英语听力原文：

In the late 1960's, many people in North America turned their attention to environmental problems, and new steel-and-glass skyscrapers were widely criticized.

60年代后期，许多悲没人把注意力转向了环境问题，那些崭新的玻璃钢摩天大楼受到了广泛的批评。

Ecologists pointed out that a cluster of tall buildings in a city often overburdens public transportation and parking lot capacities. Skyscrapers are also lavish consumers, and wasters, of electirc power.

生态学家指出，城市中密集的高层建筑经常给公共交通与停车场的承载能力造成过重的负担。摩天大楼还是电能的过度消费者与浪费者。

In one recent year, the addition of 17 million square feet of skyscraper office space in New York City raised the peak daily demand for electricity by 120,000 kilowatts - enough to supply the entire city of Albany, New York, for a day.

最近的某一年，纽约市摩天写字楼1,700万英尺办公面积的增加使电能的最高日需求量提高了120,000千瓦。这些电能足以供纽约的整个奥尔巴尼市使用一天。

Glass-walled skyscrapers can be especially wasteful. The heat loss (or gain) through a wall of half-inch plate glass is more than ten times that through a typical masonry wall filled with insulation board.

玻璃表面的摩天大楼特别地浪费。通过半英寸的平板玻璃墙壁损失(或增加)的热量是典型的加入绝缘板的石墙所允许的热量损失(或增加)的十倍以上。

To lessen the strain on heating and air-conditioning equipment, builders of skyscrapers have begun to use double-glazed panels of glass, and reflective glasses coated with silver or gold mirror films that reduce glare as well as heat gain. However, mirror-walled skyscrapers raise the temperature of the surrounding air and affect neighboring buildings.

为了减轻取暖设备或空调设备的压力，摩天大楼的建造者们已经开始使用双面上釉的玻璃镶板和涂上了金色或银色反光薄膜的反光玻璃，来减少强光照射和热量的增加;但是，镜面的摩天大楼会提高周围空气的温度并会对附近的建筑物产生影响。

Skyscrapers put a severe strain on a city's sanitation facilities, too. If fully occupied, the two World Trade Center towers in New York City would alone generate 2.25 million gallons of raw sewage each year - as much as a city the size of Stanford, Connecticut, which has a population of more than 109,000.

摩天大楼也对城市的卫生设施造成了沉重的压力。单单纽约市的两个世界贸易中心大楼如果完全被占满的话，每年就会产生2,250,000加仑的污水。这相当于康涅狄格州的斯坦福市这样大的城市一年所产生的污水量，而康州的斯坦福市拥有109,000人口。

英语词汇整理：

1. skyscraper n. 摩天大楼

eg: A new skyscraper has been put up downtown.

市中心又建起了一座摩天大厦。

相关短语：

office skyscraper 摩天办公大楼

2. criticize vt. 批评，批判;评论，评价

eg: Would you like to read and criticize my new novel?

您愿意阅读并评论一下我的新小说吗?

相关短语：

criticize for 因……指责(某人)

criticize by name 点名批评

3. cluster n. 串，簇;群，组 vi. 群集，丛生 vt. 集中

eg: The students clustered their tents together.

学生们把帐篷集中搭在一起。

相关短语：

a cluster of 一群;一组;一串

cluster round 紧紧环绕

cluster together 集中

词语用法：

a cluster of表示“一串，一群……”时，要注意句中主谓语的一致性，如a cluster of flowers对应的谓语是is，而不是are，因cluster是主语，为单数。

词义辨析：

cluster, bunch, group这组词都可表示聚集在一起的人或物。其区别是：

1. bunch指同类的物件(生物)串或绑在一起，即“一束，一串”，强调不可分离性，在现代英语中也指一群人;group指同类的一群人(物)聚集在一起，即“群，组，批”，它可表示有意的也可表示无意的，量也可多可少。

2. cluster与bunch同义，可互换使用。

4. capacity n. 容量;才能，能力;身份，职位

eg: What is the capacity of this jug?

这个水壶的容积多大?

相关短语：

capacity as 作为……的资格

capacity for ……的能力

capacity of 具有……容量

beyond the capacity of 为……能力所不及

in the capacity of 作为，以……的资格

within one's capacity 在……能力之内

5. lavish adj. 大方的，丰富的，浪费的 vt. 浪费，慷慨给予

eg: It is a mistake to lavish kindness ungrateful people.

对于不领情的人来说浪费感情是一种错误。

相关短语：

lavish on 大肆花费

be lavish in someone's praise 极力称赞某人……

6. masonry n. 施工技术，石屋

eg: Masonry is a careful skill.

砖石工艺是一种精心的技艺

相关短语：

masonry structure 砖石建筑物;石工结构

masonry wall 砌石墙;砌筑墙

stone masonry 砌石;石圬工

7. insulation n. 绝缘，隔离，孤立

eg: High electricity bills point to a poor heating system or bad insulation.

高额的电费账单表明供暖系统较差或者是隔热材料不好。

相关短语：

thermal insulation 隔热;绝热;热绝缘

heat insulation 绝热

insulation material 绝缘材料

sound insulation 隔音;隔音材料

insulation layer 绝缘层

8. reflective adj. 反射的，反映的，沉思的

eg: I walked on in a reflective mood to the car, thinking about the poor honeymooners.

我若有所思地朝那辆汽车走去，心里想着那些可怜的度蜜月的人们。

相关短语：

reflective teaching 反映性教学

reflective mirror 反光镜

reflective glass 反光玻璃

reflective tape 反光带

9. sanitation n. 公共卫生，卫生设施

eg: They live in conditions of appalling sanitation.

他们在十分恶劣的卫生条件下生活。

相关短语：

environmental sanitation 环境卫生

food sanitation 食品卫生

sanitation worker 环卫工人

10. facility n. 设备，设施，才能，资质，灵巧，熟练

eg: He has great facility in learning languages.

他很有学习语言的才能。

相关短语:

facility for 用于……的设备

with facility 轻易地，熟练地

have great facility 很有才能

佳句采摘：

Ecologists pointed out that a cluster of tall buildings in a city often overburdens public transportation and parking lot capacities.

生态学家指出，城市中密集的高层建筑经常给公共交通与停车场的承载能力造成过重的负担。
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