职称英语综合类考试考前每日一练(5)

　　职称英语综合类考试考前每日一练

　　Building Renovation

　　In cities across the United States, old factories,warehouses,schools, railroad stations and other buildings are being renovated for new uses. City planners and private investors are finding that good buildings, no matter how old, can be remodeled for new purposes. If youd asked someone four or five years ago whether hed rent an apartment in an abandoned piano factory or clothing warehouse, he d have thought you were crazy, says a New York architect. Today, many people are eager to do it. The, renovating may include a former city hall or courthouse changed into offices;a bank or church changed into a restaurant; or, as in Plains, Georgia, a railroad station used as a center for a presidential campaign.

　　Only a few decades ago, renovation was unpopular and generally far more expensive than taking down abandoned buildings, and starting from the beginning.A change began in the 1960s with a number of well-advertised projects, They included Ghirardelli Square in San Francisco,where an old chocolate factory was restored and made into shops and restaurants; Trolley Square in Salt Lake City, where abandoned car warehouses became a shopping mall;the Soho District of New York City, where unused warehouses were made into artists studios and apartments.

　　What caused the change? One reason is nostalgia,a San Francisco builder suggests.Maybe old is better than new, many people are saying, Feelings about preserving attractive or historic buildings have changed a great deal. A second cause is economy. The cost of tearing down an old building and constructing a new one from nothing now has risen to the point where it is often less expensive to fix a solid older structure. Also builders realize that fixing up an existing building often requires no new permits, sewer lines, or water connections.

　　Even when the costs of restoration are the same as or a bit more than the costs of putting up a new building, fixing the old building may be better. A Boston architect says,The advantage comes when you can develop a final project that is more desirable than a new building one with the right location, more space, more floor area, a special character, materials of a particular quality. Gradually, architects and builders are developing knowledge about renovation and preservation, bringing imagination and creativity to the job.

　　31. In the United States, renovating old buildings

　　A. has had a long history

　　B. is becoming increasingly popular

　　C. is still unpopular

　　D. has just caught the fancy of architects and builders

　　32. Ghirardelli Square, Trolley Square, and the Soho District are projects that A. have been given much publicity

　　B. are little known to the public

　　C. have been widely discussed among builders and city planners

　　D. have changed the building business

　　33. Nostalgia in the 3rd paragraph most probably means

　　A. being conservative

　　B. being keen on saving money

　　C. being fond of things new

　　D. being fond of things of the remote past

　　34. Which of the following statements is true?

　　A. Every old building can be renovated for new uses.

　　B. Renovating old buildings is always less costly than putting up new ones. C. Renovation does not require imagination and creativity.

　　D. Fixing the old building may have advantages even when it costs a little more. 35. The main idea of the passage is

　　A. the increasing popularity of renovation

　　B. nostalgia

　　C. changes in the building business

　　D. preservation of attractive or historic buildings

　　参考译文

　　房屋翻新

　　在全美国的各个城市，人们都在对旧T厂、仓库、学校、火车站等许多建筑物进行翻修以作新用。城市规划师和私人投资者发现，好的建筑无论多么陈旧，都能为实现新的用途而被重新改造。纽约的一位建筑师说，如果四、五年前你问别人他会不会在废弃的钢琴工厂或衣物仓库里租间屋子，他一定会觉得你是个疯子。但是现在，许多人都渴望这么做。这种旧屋翻新包括把以前的市政大厅或法院改造成办公室，把银行或教堂改造成饭馆，或者就像在乔治亚州普兰斯那样，把火车站用作总统竞选的中心场所。

　　就在几十年以前，房屋翻新还不流行，而且总的来说翻修所花的钱比把废弃的建筑推倒重建的花费还要多。然而，20世纪60年代几个广告效果极佳的项目的出现，使这种状况发生了改变。这些项目包括：在旧金山的吉拉德里广场，一个原先生产巧克力的工厂被改建为商店和餐厅;在盐湖城的特罗利广场，废弃的汽车库变成了购物广场;在纽约市休南区，荒置的仓库变成了艺术家们的工作室和寓所。

　　这种转变的原因何在?其中之一就是怀旧情绪，旧金山的一位建筑商说，许多人会说，也许旧的就是比新的好。人们对保存美好建筑物或历史场所的态度已经发生了很大改变。再者就是经济方面的原因。现在，拆除旧建筑、从头盖新房所需要的费用大大增加，相比之下修葺一栋陈旧但结构还算坚实的房屋往往还要更便宜些。另外，建筑商也意识到，在现存建筑物的基础上进行翻修通常不需要再去申请新的许可证，不需要在下水管道、供水系统方面再费工夫。

　　即便当翻新的费用与建造新房的费用相同甚至稍高时，也许还是翻新更为可取。波士顿一位建筑师说，如果你设计的最终方案比建造新房更好，那么翻新的优势就显而易见位置好、周围空间更多、房屋面积更大、有个性、材料特别。久而久之，建筑师和建筑商们对建筑物的翻新和保存逐渐更加了解，也在工作中发挥了更多的想象力和创造性。