Question

【题目】Answer the questions.

For millions of people, the American dream of owning a home seemed to be slipping out of reach.

“Maybe young couples can no longer afford to buy a ready-made house as their parents did,’’ says 40-year-old building instructor Pat Hennin. “But they can still have a home. Like their pioneer ancestors, they can build it themselves, and at less than half the cost of a ready-made house.”

The owner-builders came from every occupational group, although surprisingly few are professional building workers. Many take the plunge with little or no experience. “I learned how to build my house from reading books,” says John Brown, who built a six-room home for $25,000 in High Falls, New Jersey. “If you have patience and the carpentry（木工）skill to make a bookcase, you can build a house.”

An astonishing 50 percent of these owner builders hammer every nail, 1ay every pipe, and wire every switch with their own hands. The rest contract （ 承 包 ） for some parts of the task. But even those who just act as contractors and finish the insides of their homes can save from 30 percent to 45 percent of what a ready-made home would cost.

One survey revealed that 60 percent of owner-builders also design their homes. Many others buy commercial house plans for less than $100 or use plans available from the U. S. Department of Agriculture.

【1】Maybe American young people can’t afford to buy a ready-made house, can they?

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【2】How can American young couples have a home?

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【3】Are all the owner-builders experienced?

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【4】Why do the owner-builders build houses with their own hands?

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【5】How many percent of the owner-builders design their homes?

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【6】How much does a commercial house plan cost?

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Answer 1

【答案】

【1】No, they can’t

【2】By building it themselves

【3】No, they aren’t

【4】Because it’s cheaper

【5】60 percent

【6】Less than $100

【解析】

对于现在的美国年轻人来说，拥有住房的梦想更加难以实现，他们不能像他们的父母那样买得起现成的房子。他们该怎样拥有一个家呢？答案是自己建造，这样花费的成本可以节省一半。

【1】根据短文第二段“Maybe young couples can no longer afford to buy a ready-made house as their parents did,’’ says 40-year-old building instructor Pat Hennin.可知，或许年轻的夫妇不能再像他们的父母那样买一套现成的房子。故应回答No, they can’t.“是的，他们不能。”

【2】根据短文第二段“But they can still have a home. Like their pioneer ancestors, they can build it themselves, and at less than half the cost of a ready-made house.”可知，年轻人们可以自己建造房子，这样可以节约一半的成本。故答案为By building it themselves.

【3】根据短文第三段The owner-builders came from every occupational group, although surprisingly few are professional building workers. Many take the plunge with little or no experience.可知,很多业主建筑师来自各个职业群体，很多人都没有经验。由此可知答案是否定的，故回答No, they aren’t.

【4】根据短文第四段的内容But even those who just act as contractors and finish the insides of their homes can save from 30 percent to 45 percent of what a ready-made home would cost.可知，自己建造房子并装修，可以节省30%-45%的成本。由此可知答案为Because it’s cheaper.

【5】根据短文最后一段One survey revealed that 60 percent of owner-builders also design their homes可知，60%的业主和建筑商也会设计自己的房子。由此可知答案为60 percent.

【6】根据短文最后一句话Many others buy commercial house plans for less than $100 or use plans available from the U. S. Department of Agriculture.可知，许多人以不到100美元的价格购买商品房。由此可知答案为Less than $100.

这是一篇说明文，讲述了现在美国年轻人因为买现房需要花费太多，因此他们选择自己建造房子。文章主题明确，叙述清晰，逻辑性强，比较容易理解。题型是任务型阅读，后面的题目设置都是回答问题，以考查对文章事实信息的理解为主。做题时，应先通读短文，了解文章大意；然后根据题目所问，锁定文章相关段落或语句，并用简洁、正确的英语表达出来。例如第1小题，根据短文第二段“Maybe young couples can no longer afford to buy a ready-made house as their parents did,’’ says 40-year-old building instructor Pat Hennin.可知，或许年轻的夫妇不能再像他们的父母那样买一套现成的房子。故应回答No, they can’t.“是的，他们不能。”再如第6小题，根据短文最后一句话Many others buy commercial house plans for less than $100 or use plans available from the U. S. Department of Agriculture.可知，许多人以不到100美元的价格购买商品房。由此可知答案为Less than $100.