After the violent earthquake that shook Los Angeles in 1994, earthqua ke scientists had good news to report: the damage and death toll could have been much worse.
More than 60 people died in this earthquake. By comparison, an earthquake of sim ilar intensity that shook America in 1988 claimed 25,000 victims.
Injuries and deaths were relatively less in Los Angeles because the quake occurred at 4:31 a.m. on a holiday, when traffic was light on the city’s highways. In addition, changes made to the constrction codes in Los Angeles during the last 2 0 years have strengthened the city’s buildings and highways, making them more re sistant to quakes.
Despite the good news, civil engineers aren’t resting on their successness. Pinned to their drawing boards are blueprints for improved quake瞨esistant building s . The new designs should offer even greater security to cities where earthquakes often take place.
In the past, making structures quake瞨esistant meant firm yet flexible material s , such as steel and wood, that bend without breaking. Later, people tried to lif t a building off its foundation, and rubber and steel between the buildin g and its foundation to reduce the impact of ground vibrations. The most recent designs give buildings brains as well as concrete and steel supports. Called sma rt buildings, the structures respond like living organisms to an earthquake’s vib ration. When the ground shakes and the building tips forward, the computer would force the building to shift in the opposite direction.
The new smart structures could be very expensive to build. However, they would s ave many lives and would be less likely to be damaged during earthquakes.
1. The function of the computer mentioned in the passage is to ___ ___.
A. counterbalance an earthquake’s action on the building
B. predict the coming of an earthquake with accuracy
C. help strengthen the foundation of the building
D. measure the impact of an earthquake’s vibrations
2. The smart buildings discussed in the passage ______
A. would cause serious financial problems
B. would be worthwhile though costly
C. would increase the complexity of architectural design
D. can reduce the ground vibrations caused by earthquakes
3. It can be inferred from the passage that in minimizing the damage cau sed by earthquakes attention should be focused on ______.
A. the increasing use of rubber and steel in capital construction
B. the development of flexible building materials
C. the reduction of the impact of ground vibrations
D. early forecasts of earthquakes
4. The author’s main purpose in writing the passage is to ___ ___.
A. compare the consequences of the earthquakes that occurred in the U.S
B. encourage civil engineers to make more extensive use of computers
C. outline the history of the development of quake瞨esistant building materials
D. report new developments in constructing quake瞨esistant buildings
1. A) 此題為細節題。根據第五段中 “When the ground shakes and th e building tips forward, the computer would force the building to shift in the o pposite direction.”可知計算機的作用，故A為正確答案。選項B與原文資訊不符，C和D在 文中沒有提到。
2. B) 這也是一道細節題。根據文章最後一段可知選項B為正確答案。選項 A是錯誤陳述；選項C的內容在文中沒有提及；選項D之所以錯誤是因為計算機只能減少地震 擺動對建築的影響而不可能減輕大地的'擺動。
3. C) 此題為推斷題。通過閱讀文章我們可以得出這樣的結論：要減少地 震所帶來的危害，就應當把重點放在減少地震搖擺給建築物造成的影響上。而選項A和B都只 是減少地震給建築物造成破壞的方法之一，D在文中沒有提及，故只有選項C為正確答案。
4. D) 此題為推斷題。通讀全文可知，作者從歷史、今天和未來的時間角 度介紹了防震建築的發展歷史，但是文章重點不是要介紹防震建築材料的發展史，而是要介 紹、宣傳現代防震建築材料的現狀與發展前景，由此可見D為正確答案。
學識谷
