Question

The extraordinary Eastgate Building in Harare, Zimbabwe’s capital city, is said to be the only one in the world to use the same cooling and heating principles as the termite mound(白蚁堆).

Architect Mick Pearce used precisely the same strategy when designing the Eastgate Building, which has no air-conditioning and almost no heating. The building—the country’s largest commercial and shopping complex—uses less than 10% of the energy of a conventional building of its size. The Eastgate’s owners saved $3.5 million on a $36 million building because an air-conditioning equipment didn’t have to be imported.

The complex is actually two buildings linked by bridges across a shady, glass-roofed atrium(天井) open to the air. Fans suck fresh air in from the atrium, blow it upstairs through hollow spaces under the floors and from there into each office through baseboard vents(通风口). As it rises and warms, it is drawn out via ceiling vents and finally exists through forty-eight brick chimneys.

During summer’s cool nights, big fans blow air through the building seven times an hour to cool the empty floors. By day, smaller fans blow two changes of air an hour through the building, to circulate the air which has been in contact with the cool floors. For winter days, there are small heaters in the vents.

This is all possible only because Harare is 1600 feet above sea level, has cloudless skies, little dampness and rapid temperature changes—days as warm as 31℃ commonly drop to 14℃ at night. “You couldn’t do this in New York, with its hot summers and cold winters,” Pearce said.

The engineering firm of Ove Arup&Partners monitors daily temperatures. It is found that the temperature of the building has generally stayed between 23℃ and 25℃, with the exception of the annual hot period just before the summer rains in October and three days in November, when a doorkeeper accidentally switched off the fans at night. And the air is fresh—far more so than in air-conditioned buildings, where up to 30% of the air is recycled.

1.Why was Eastgate cheaper to be built than a conventional building?

A. No air conditioners were fixed in.

B. It was designed in a smaller size.

C. Its heating system was less advanced.

D. It used rather different building materials.

2.What does “it” refer to in Paragraph 3?

A. Baseboard vent. B. Heat in the building.

C. Hollow space. D. Fresh air from outside.

3.Why would a building like Eastgate Not work efficiently in New York?

A. Its temperature changes seasonally rather than daily.

B. New York has less clear skies as Harare.

C. Its dampness affects the circulation of air.

D. New York covers a larger area than Harare.

4.The data in the last paragraph suggests Eastgate’s temperature control system_____.

A. allows a wide range of temperatures

B. can recycle up to 30% of the air

C. functions well for most of the year

D. works better in hot seasons

Answer 1

1.A

2.D

3.A

4.C

【解析】

试题解析：这篇文章讲解了津巴布韦首都哈拉雷一座特别的楼房东门大厦，它利用了和白蚁堆一样冷热交替的原则，整栋楼房没有安装一架空调，给它的建造者节省了3.5百万的美金。接着作者简单地阐述了这栋楼房温控系统工作的原理。但是同样的方式在纽约却行不通，这与当地的气候变化息息相关。

1. 考查细节理解题。根据第二段最后一句话“The Eastgate’s owners saved $3.5 million on a $36 million building because an air-conditioning equipment didn’t have to be imported.”东门大厦的所有者节省了3.5百万美金在一个价值36百万美金的楼房上，因为这栋楼房不需要引入空调。故选A。

2. 考查推理判断题。根据第三段第二句话“ Fans suck fresh air in from the atrium, blow it upstairs through hollow spaces under the floors and from there into each office through baseboard vents(通风口).”风扇将新鲜空气从天井下沉，通过通风口将这股空气从地下向楼上吹到每一个办公室。可以推测这里指这股新鲜空气的上升和下降。故选D。

3. 考查细节理解题。根据倒数第二段最后一句话““You couldn’t do this in New York, with its hot summers and cold winters,” Pearce said. ”你不能在纽约这样做，因为纽约有很热的夏天和很冷的冬天。可知，纽约的温度四季变化较大，不适合这样的建筑。故选A。

4. 考查细节理解题。根据最后一段第二句话“ It is found that the temperature of the building has generally stayed between 23℃ and 25℃, with the exception of the annual hot period just before the summer rains in October and three days in November, when a doorkeeper accidentally switched off the fans at night. ”据观察，这栋楼房的温度通常能保持在23到25摄氏度，除了每年十月份夏雨之前的一段热天以及十一月的三天，这几天看门者会在夜间关掉风扇。据此可知这栋楼房的温控系统在全年的大部分时间都可以很好的工作。故选C。

考点：考查说明文阅读。