In its early history, Chicago had floods frequently, especially in the spring, making the streets so
英语试题 01-19
In its early history, Chicago had floods frequently, especially in the spring, making the streets so muddy that people, horses, and carts got stuck. An old joke that was popular at the time went something like this: A man is stuck up to his waist in a muddy Chicago street. Asked if he needs help, he replies, “No, thanks. I’ve got a good horse under me.”
The city planners decided to build an underground drainage(排水) system, but there simply wasn’t enough difference between the height of the ground level and the water level. The only two options were to lower the Chicago River or raise the city.
An engineer named Ellis Chesbrough convinced the city that it had no choice but to build the pipes above ground and then cover them with dirt. This raised the level of the city’s streets by as much as 12 feet.
This of course created a new problem: dirt practically buried the first floors of every building in Chicago. Building owners were faced with a choice: either change the first floors of their buildings into basements, and the second stories into main floors, or hoist the entire buildings to meet the new street level. Small wood-frame buildings could be lifted fairly easily. But what about large, heavy structures like the Tremont Hotel, which was a six-story brick building?
That’s where George Pullman came in. He had developed some house-moving skills successfully. To lift a big structure like Tremont Hotel, Pullman would place thousands of jackscrews(螺旋千斤顶) beneath the building’s foundation. One man was assigned to operate each section of roughly 10 jackscrews. At Pullman’s signal each man turned his jackscrew the same amount at the same time, thereby raising the building slowly and evenly. Astonishingly, the Tremont Hotel stayed open during the entire operation, and many of its guests didn’t even notice anything was happening.
Some people like to say that every problem has a solution. But in Chicago’s early history, every engineering solution seemed to create a new problem. Now that Chicago’s waste water was draining efficiently into the Chicago River, the city’s next step was to clean the polluted river.
1.The author mentions the joke to show_________.
A.horses were fairly useful in Chicago
B.Chicago’ streets were extremely muddy
C.Chicago was very dangerous in the spring
D.the Chicago people were particularly humorous
2.The city planners were convinced by Elllis Chesbrough to__________.
A.get rid of the street dirt
B.lower the Chicago River
C. fight against heavy floods
D.build the pipes above ground
3.The underlined word “hoist” in Paragraph 4 means ___________.
A.change
B.lift
C.repair
D.decorate
4.What can we conclude about the moving operation of the Tremont Hotel?
A.It went on smoothly as intended.
B.It interrupted the business of the hotel.
C.It involved Pullman turning ten jackscrews.
D.It separated the building from its foundation.
5.The passage is mainly about the early Chicago’s_________.
A. popular life styles and their influences
B.environmental disasters and their causes
C. engineering problems and their solutions
D. successful businessmen and their achievements
答案：BDBAC
解析：1.B推理判断题. 文章的第一段讲的是芝加哥泥泞的街道。作者用这个笑话更加形象、生动地说明了这一 点。故选B。
2.D.细节理解题. 根据文章第三段的叙述An engineer convinced the city that it had no choice but to build the pipes above ground可知答案D正确。
3.B词义猜测题。根据本句的叙述：建筑物的主人要 么把第一层变成地下室，第二层变成第一层，要么就 是把整幢建筑物抬起来以迎合新的街道水平面”可 知. 选B。
4.A推理判断题。根据文章倒数第二段的叙述...the Tremont Hotel stayed open during the entire operation. and many of its guests didn't even notice anything was happening可知，此次移动进展得非常顺利。故选A。
5.C推理判断题. 本文主要讲述芝加哥早期的历史上 存在的engineer problems以及他们的解决方法。故选C。
The city planners decided to build an underground drainage(排水) system, but there simply wasn’t enough difference between the height of the ground level and the water level. The only two options were to lower the Chicago River or raise the city.
An engineer named Ellis Chesbrough convinced the city that it had no choice but to build the pipes above ground and then cover them with dirt. This raised the level of the city’s streets by as much as 12 feet.
This of course created a new problem: dirt practically buried the first floors of every building in Chicago. Building owners were faced with a choice: either change the first floors of their buildings into basements, and the second stories into main floors, or hoist the entire buildings to meet the new street level. Small wood-frame buildings could be lifted fairly easily. But what about large, heavy structures like the Tremont Hotel, which was a six-story brick building?
That’s where George Pullman came in. He had developed some house-moving skills successfully. To lift a big structure like Tremont Hotel, Pullman would place thousands of jackscrews(螺旋千斤顶) beneath the building’s foundation. One man was assigned to operate each section of roughly 10 jackscrews. At Pullman’s signal each man turned his jackscrew the same amount at the same time, thereby raising the building slowly and evenly. Astonishingly, the Tremont Hotel stayed open during the entire operation, and many of its guests didn’t even notice anything was happening.
Some people like to say that every problem has a solution. But in Chicago’s early history, every engineering solution seemed to create a new problem. Now that Chicago’s waste water was draining efficiently into the Chicago River, the city’s next step was to clean the polluted river.
1.The author mentions the joke to show_________.
A.horses were fairly useful in Chicago
B.Chicago’ streets were extremely muddy
C.Chicago was very dangerous in the spring
D.the Chicago people were particularly humorous
2.The city planners were convinced by Elllis Chesbrough to__________.
A.get rid of the street dirt
B.lower the Chicago River
C. fight against heavy floods
D.build the pipes above ground
3.The underlined word “hoist” in Paragraph 4 means ___________.
A.change
B.lift
C.repair
D.decorate
4.What can we conclude about the moving operation of the Tremont Hotel?
A.It went on smoothly as intended.
B.It interrupted the business of the hotel.
C.It involved Pullman turning ten jackscrews.
D.It separated the building from its foundation.
5.The passage is mainly about the early Chicago’s_________.
A. popular life styles and their influences
B.environmental disasters and their causes
C. engineering problems and their solutions
D. successful businessmen and their achievements
答案：BDBAC
解析：1.B推理判断题. 文章的第一段讲的是芝加哥泥泞的街道。作者用这个笑话更加形象、生动地说明了这一 点。故选B。
2.D.细节理解题. 根据文章第三段的叙述An engineer convinced the city that it had no choice but to build the pipes above ground可知答案D正确。
3.B词义猜测题。根据本句的叙述：建筑物的主人要 么把第一层变成地下室，第二层变成第一层，要么就 是把整幢建筑物抬起来以迎合新的街道水平面”可 知. 选B。
4.A推理判断题。根据文章倒数第二段的叙述...the Tremont Hotel stayed open during the entire operation. and many of its guests didn't even notice anything was happening可知，此次移动进展得非常顺利。故选A。
5.C推理判断题. 本文主要讲述芝加哥早期的历史上 存在的engineer problems以及他们的解决方法。故选C。
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