18.The fight is on to get rid of air pollution in our cities.While the best solution in the long-term would be to ban fossil-fueled cars,that won't help the millions who are dying in the meantime,and so some high-tech solutions are now on the cards.
In March 2016,10 London pigeons became famous.These pigeons took to the sky from Primrose Hill in north London,wearing backpacks monitoring air pollution.Once in the air,the backpacks sent live air-quality updates to the smartphones of the Londoners below.
The pigeons and their backpacks were just the latest in a series of increasingly desperate attempts to monitor and control air pollution.London's air pollution problem has been getting worse for years,and it often rises to more than three times the European Union's legal limit.
Another promising approach can be found in Beijing,after China declared a"war against pollution"in 2014.A seven-metre-high"Smog Free Tower",designed by a Dutch scientist,Daan Roosegaarde,opened in Beijing's 751D Park in September 2016.
It is a huge,outdoor air purifier.Airborne particles(颗粒)are sucked into the tower where they receive a positive charge.The particles are then caught by a negatively charged dust-removal plate and clean air is blown out of the other end."Changing smog particles does not take much current."Roosegaarde said.
As for what to do with the collected PM waste,he has currently set up a business making jewellery out of the waste.Prince Charles owns a set of"smog free"cufflinks (袖扣).If collected on at a big scale,Roosegaarde believes it could even be used as a building material.
Mexico City has an alternative solution.Looking to Nature to maximize the surface area of a building,Allison Dring,a Berlin-based architect,managed to catch light and wind from all sides.She is now making a building material by burning agricultural crop by-products in the absence of oxygen."It means that you are actually taking carbon(碳) out of the sky,transforming it into a material,and then using it to build,"says Dring.
The fight against outdoor air pollution is really just starting.Even if none of the ideas take off,at least Prince Charles'cufflinks,the special building surface and pigeons wearing back-packs will have brought the issue more to the public's attention.
29.The 10 pigeons in London were used toA.
A.monitor air pollution
B.warn Londoners
C.update weather forecast
D.promote backpacks
30.What can we learn about the Smog Free Tower?B
A.Its power consumption is high.
B.PM waste from it can be reused.
C.It is built of agricultural by-products.
D.It can attract light and wind from all sides.
31.What's the best title for the passage?C
A.When can humans get rid of smog?
B.Why is technology used to fight smog?
C.How are the world's cities fighting smog?
D.What makes smog a worldwide problem?
分析 本文属于说明文阅读,作者通过这篇文章主要向我们描述了在英国伦敦人们用鸽子来监测空气污染情况的故事.而全世界各地也是为了减轻空气污染提出了不同的有效方法,
解答 29.A.细节题.根据文章内容,In March 2016,10 London pigeons became famous.These pigeons took to the sky from Primrose Hill in north London,wearing backpacks monitoring air pollution.Once in the air,the backpacks sent live air-quality updates to the smartphones of the Londoners below.由此可知,10只鸽子是用来检测空气污染情况的,结合选项,故选A
30.B.细节题.根据文章内容,As for what to do with the collected PM waste,he has currently set up a business making jewellery out of the waste.从Smog Free Tower收集到的颗粒污染物是可以被用在珠宝制作行业的,结合选项,就是它可以被重新利用,故选B
31.C.主旨题.根据文章内容,作者通过这篇文章主要向我们描述了在英国伦敦人们用鸽子来监测空气污染情况的故事.而全世界各地也是为了减轻空气污染提出了不同的有效方法,结合选项,故选C
点评 考察学生的细节理解和推理判断能力,做细节理解题时一定要找到文章中的原句,和题干进行比较,再做出正确的选择.在做推理判断题不要以个人的主观想象代替文章的事实,要根据文章事实进行合乎逻辑的推理判断.