Question

Eco-friendly Vauban, lied in the southwest part of Germany, has everything－tree-lined streets, perfect houses－but it’s missing one urban feature of the last 100 years or so: the car. And Vauban residents(居民) don’t mind one bit. Vauban doesn’t ban cars entirely. Rather, it just tries to reduce the use of cars by creating “parking-free” and “car-free” living. In Vauban, parking spots are a no-no private property(私人财产). Cars can only be parked in public parking lots, so living without a car saves residents the cost of parking in the public lot. Cars also are prevented from using certain roads and must stick to strict speed limits. With these limitations, fewer than 20 percent of residents own cars. Without cars, bikes are almost religion in this small town. Kids pick them up even before they can ride one. Vauban is about much more than just using two wheels instead of four. In Vauban , residents ride bikes and even receive money from the electric company for selling electricity back to the power grid (电网系统). It’s an environmentally-friendly city of the future, with organically grown food, renewable energy, and carbon-neutral homes. And now, with a population of 5,500, it’s attracting attention from around the world. Can an eco-friendly city like Vauban be a model for Americans to stop their over-reliance on the cars?

Sometimes when I watch a news report what’s in the back of my mind is what isn’t being reported or stressed. While this eco-friendly city is inspiring in that it shows residents getting exercise and fresh air through the majority use of bicycles, as well as good old fashioned walking, common sense would tell you that even for a place like Vauban, Germany, it owes its existence to the cars.

Do you think that bicycles were able to transport all the construction materials that were needed to build and maintain the eco-friendly homes and businesses in Vauban? It took cars to help build this utopia. It’s one of the paradoxes of life that sometimes in order to get away from relying on something like the car, you actually have to rely on that very thing at the beginning and into the foreseeable future to some degree.

I myself haven’t owned a car for more than 14 years, and mostly get around town running, walking, or using public transportation. There are times I wish I had one, since it would make many things easier, but overall I’m glad not to have to deal with the headaches of owning a car, which caused me to get rid of it in the first place. And all the walking and running has helped to keep me fit and healthy.

To get even close to being like eco-friendly Vauban, Americans will need to absolutely change the way they live. Commuting( 乘车上下班) patterns will have to change, public transportation will have to be invested in, and so on. And though ending our love affair with the car will be impossible during my lifetime, we may at least start to see more Vauban-like areas in the USA.

We can hope that Americans will consider using their feet more to get around, cutting down on pollution , and giving themselves some more exercise.

1.Why don’t over 80% of the residents in Vauban own car?

A. The streets there are very narrow    B. There are many limitations on the use of cars.

C. The government limits the number of cars.    D. Most cars belong to their public property

2.The underlined word “paradoxes” in Paragraph 3 probably means_____.

A. opposite things    B. big shortcomings    C. great strengths    D. firm bases

3.How does the writer feel of not owning a car?

A. Curious    B. Proud    C. Grateful    D. Regretful

Answer

1. B

2. A

3. C

【解析】

本文是一篇夹叙夹议文，在德国的沃班，由于一些严格的限制，只有不到五分之一的居民拥有汽车，这让沃班成为生态环保之城，作者由此认为美国人应该改变生活和交通方式，希望美国也有沃班这样的绿色之都。

1.细节理解题。根据第一段中的“Cars also are prevented from using certain roads and must stick to strict speed limits. With these limitations, fewer than 20 percent of residents own cars. ”可知，在沃班，汽车禁止在某些道路上行驶，而且还有严格的速度限制，正是由于这些限制，只有不到五分之一的居民拥有汽车，故B项正确。

2.词义猜测题。根据画线词前的“Do you think that bicycles were able to transport all the construction materials that were needed to build and maintain the eco-friendly homes and businesses in Vauban? It took cars to help build this utopia.”可知，自行车不能运输建设和维护沃班生态环保型住宅所需要的建筑材料，它们是靠汽车运输的，此处是说这是生活中的矛盾之一，有时为了摆脱对汽车的依赖，你必须在开始时依赖它，由此可知，画线词词义为“矛盾、对立物”，故A项正确。

3.观点态度题。根据倒数第二段中的“but overall I’m glad not to have to deal with the headaches of owning a car, which caused me to get rid of it in the first place. And all the walking and running has helped to keep me fit and healthy.”可知，作者很高兴不必处理拥有一辆车带来的麻烦，而且步行和跑步让他保持健康，由此可知作者很感激没有车给自己带来的好处，故C项正确。