Exercise
Directions: Listen to the dialogue and choose the best answer to each of the following questions.
1.A 2.B 3.D 4.B 5.C 6.A 7.A 8.D
Part 2 Passage
Windmills
1. Now, windmills are poised to break into a new frontier: the modern city center,
often fused into building designs and barely noticeable from a distance. 2. Lighter, quieter, and often more efficient than their rural counterparts, they take
advantage of the extreme turbulence and rapid shifts in direction that characterize urban wind patterns.
3. But so far, the current models are being designed more for public or commercial
buildings than for private homes, and the smallest weigh roughly 200 kilograms. 4. The recent liberalization of European energy markets also has allowed customers
to choose what kind of sustainable energy they want to purchase, with wind energy among the most popular.
5. In the classrooms down below, there's no palpable sign that a steel windmill up
above is continually feeding kilowatts to the local power grid.
The graceful wooden windmills that have broken up the flat Dutch landscape for centuries a national symbol like wooden shoes and tulips - yielded long ago to ungainly metal-pole wind turbines.*
Now, windmills are poised to break into a new frontier: the modem city center, often fused* into building designs and barely noticeable from a distance.
Though still in its teething stages, the \designed to generate energy from the rooftops of bustling cities.
Lighter, quieter, and often more efficient than their rural counterparts, they take advantage of the extreme turbulence* and rapid shifts in direction that characterize urban wind patterns.
Prototypes* have been successfully tested in several Dutch cities, and the city government in the Hague has recently agreed to begin a large-scale deployment in 2003.
These very visible projects also improve the public profile of wind power, making energy companies look environmentally correct.
Current models cost US$8,000 to US$12,000, and can generate between 3,000 and 7,000-kilowatt hours of electricity per year. A typical Dutch household uses 3,500 kilowatt hours per year, while in the United States, this figure jumps to around 10,000 kilowatt hours.
But so far, they are being designed more for public or commercial buildings than for private homes. The smallest of the current models weigh roughly 200 kilograms
and can be installed on a roof in a few hours without using a crane.
Germany, Finland and Denmark have also been experimenting with the technology, but the ever-practical Dutch are natural pioneers in urban wind power, mainly because of the lack of space there.
The Netherlands, with 16 million people crowded into a country twice the size of Slovenia, is the most densely populated in Europe.
The scarcity of land also is felt in the countryside, forcing traditional wind farms to seek new locations. Offshore wind farms are more common, but remain pricey and difficult to service.
Various European initiatives to increase the viability* of sustainable energy also have given the urban turbine a boost, leading to heightened interest in \buildings that generate their own power.
The recent liberalization of European energy markets also has allowed customers to choose what kind of sustainable energy they want to purchase, with wind energy among the most popular.
Windmills are usually noisy, though the latest models are considered quiet enough to blend into the background noise that already exists in the urban environment.
In the Dutch town of Ede, whose old wooden mill now generates more tourism than energy, the new windmill on the roof of the ROVC Technical School hardly makes a whisper as its blades spin in a brisk winter breeze. If the wind is blowing really hard, you can usually hear it a little bit on the roof.
But in the classrooms down below, there's no palpable* sign that a steel windmill up above is continually feeding kilowatts to the local power grid. Nor is there the kind of visual blight* often associated with modern windmills.
But in the classrooms down below, there’s no palpable sign that a steel windmill up above is continually feeding kilowatts to the local power grid. Nor is the kind of visual blight often associated with modern windmills.
Meanwhile, projects are under way to use the windmills to generate power for lifeboats, streetlights, and portable generators.
A: Pre-listening Question Have you ever seen the windmill? And which country is noted for its windmills? Holland, I think, is the country noted for windmills. We seldom have the chances to see the real ones, but sometimes we can find them in some amusement parks. B: Sentence Dictation Directions: Listen to some sentences and write them down. You will hear each sentence three times.
C: Detailed Listening Directions: Listen to the passage and choose the best answer to complete each of the following sentences.
1.D 2.C 3.A 4.A 5.D 6.C 7.A 8.B
D: After-listening Discussion
Directions: listen to the passage again and discuss the following questions. 1. Though still in its teething stages, the \designed to generate energy from the rooftops of bustling cities. Lighter, quieter, and often more efficient than their rural counterparts, they take advantage of the extreme turbulence* and rapid shifts in direction that characterize urban wind patterns. These very visible projects also improve the public profile of wind power, making energy companies look environmentally correct. Various European initiatives to increase the viability* of sustainable energy also have given the urban turbine a boost, leading to heightened interest in \2.(open)
Section Three NEWS
News Item 1
News of Michael Jackson's sudden death spread quickly. In his hometown of Gary, Indiana fans held a candlelight vigil and created a makeshift shrine outside his childhood home.
In other communities around the U.S., people gathered in groups to sing Jackson songs, dance and recount the pop icon's high-profile life. Images of Michael Jackson singing and dancing were broadcast around the world. Newspapers also covered their front pages with headlines of the singer's death.
In Japan, where the pop star was hugely popular, fans were looking forward to
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