首页
外语
计算机
考研
公务员
职业资格
财经
工程
司法
医学
专升本
自考
实用职业技能
登录
外语
Do we need cities any more I don’t want to live in a city. Perhaps we divide naturally into two types: those for whom cities
Do we need cities any more I don’t want to live in a city. Perhaps we divide naturally into two types: those for whom cities
admin
2012-10-30
49
问题
Do we need cities any more
I don’t want to live in a city. Perhaps we divide naturally into two types: those for whom cities are vibrant and exciting, a focus for human activity; and those for whom they are dirty, noisy and dangerous. It may be unfashionable, but I’m in the latter camp. I do not believe that we are a species whose behavior improves in overcrowded conditions.
A new study proposes a significant increase in the capacity of towns and cities through a combination of increased housing densities, lower on-plot provision for cars and more on-street parking, and the re-use of marginal open space that is empty of any amenity value. The benefit of this approach is to reduce the loss of green fields and to help "move towards more sustainable patterns of development".
This study suggests that it would be possible to achieve a 25% increase in density in a typical provincial city without changing the traditional street scene, although it would be necessary to reduce the size of the houses and substitute parking spaces for garages. Therefore, the cost of this approach is to have more people living in smaller homes at higher densities, along streets that are lined with parked cars. Can we really accept the notion that space within dwellings may be reduced even further? In times when, we are told, living standards are rising in real terms, is it realistic to seek to reduce personal space standards?
The streets of many inner suburbs are already lined with cars on both sides, reducing movement to a single lane. Increasing densities means accepting urban streets that are designed as linear car parks, bounded by even smaller living units and modified only by occasional trees growing from the tarmac. Would the benefits of higher density be worth the disadvantages of increasing on-street parking? Can we achieve a satisfactory visual environment from such raw materials? Higher urban densities may be communally good for us, but they will fail to meet the desire of many prospective home owners.
Those without economic choice can be directed to live in this way, but if we are to continue to rely on the private sector to produce this urban housing, it will need to appeal to the private developers’ customers. Who will choose to live in these high-density developments of small dwellings, with minimal open space and a chance to park on the highway if you are lucky enough to find a space? The main consumers will be single people, couples without children, and perhaps some "empty nesters". These are people who can choose to spend much of their time outside their home, making the most of those urban cultural opportunities or getting away at weekends to a country cottage of sporting activities.
The combination of a young family and a mortgage restricts the mobility and spending power of many couples. Most people with a family will try to avoid bringing up their children in an overcrowded flat or house. Space for independent activity is important in developing the individual and in maintaining family balance. The garden is the secure place where the children can work off excess energy.
There is danger that planners may take a dispassionate, logical view of how we should live, and seek to force society into that shape. A few years ago a European Commission study provided a good example of this. It took the view, quite sensibly, that housing should not be under-occupied because this is a waste of resources. Therefore, it would be much better if the many thousands of old ladies who live alone in large detached houses would move into small urban flats, thus releasing the large houses for families. What the study failed to recognize was that many of those old ladies prefer to continue to live in their family home with their familiar surroundings and, most importantly, with their memories. What is good for us is not necessarily what we want.
The urban housing option may be technically sustainable, but individually unacceptable. There still seems to be a perception among planners that new housing investment can be forced into those areas that planners want to see developed, without proper consideration of where the prospective purchasers want to live. There is a fatal flaw in this premise. Housing developers run businesses. They are not unavoidably committed to building houses and they are not obliged to invest their resources in housing development. Unless there is a reasonable prospect of a profit on the capital at risk in a housing project, they may simply choose to invest in some other activity.
Most parents will try not to let their children grow up in an overcrowded flat or house.
选项
A、Y
B、N
C、NG
答案
A
解析
根据children grow up和overcrowded字眼,在文章倒数第三段第二句,找到类似内容,对比分析题目和原文,可以看出两者虽然用词和结构不一样,但内容一致。
转载请注明原文地址:https://kaotiyun.com/show/3757777K
0
大学英语四级
相关试题推荐
Ifyou’vekeptupwiththenewslately,you’veprobablyhearddirewarningsaboutavianflu,orbirdflu.It’sahighlyinfectio
Voluntarylearninginorganizedcoursesbymaturemenandwomeniscalledadulteducation.Sucheducationis【36】tomakepeoplea
A、Becausethequalityofwaterdecidesitsvolume.B、Becausehealthconditionsaffecttheamountofwaterneeded.C、Becausether
Manypeopleviewretirementasatimetostopworking.Butnewresearchshowsthatpeoplewhotakeonfull-orpart-timejobsaft
Generally,womendon’tcontentthemselveswiththechores.PerhapstherearefarmorewivesthanIimaginewhotakeitfor【67】th
Theyhave______forthecartopickthemupatthestation.
Janeistiredofdealingwithcustomercomplaintsandwishesthatshe______(能被分配做另一项工作).
Notonly______(这家工厂完成了生产任务)lastyear,butitalsodoubleditsoutput.
A、Domuchresearchinmanyfieldsofscience.B、Understandpeopleinothercountriesbetter.C、BothAandB.D、NeitherAnorB.
WhowontheWorldCup1994footballgame?WhathappenedattheUnitedNations?Howdidthecriticslikethenewplay?Justwhen
随机试题
男性,53岁,排解黑便伴头晕6小时,突然呕血1小时入院。黑便量约300g,呕鲜红色血液量约300ml,无血凝块。乙肝病史19年,无“呕血、黑便”病史。曾在某医院诊断为“肝硬化失代偿期”。查体:T36.9℃,P112次/分,R22次/分,BP95/75mmH
下列各项中.哪项是Ⅱ型糖尿病病人的主要死因
【2014年第45题】控制木材含水率的主要原因是:
跟单员进行原材料采购跟单工作的中心任务是确定()
风险隔离包括()的隔离。
货币的基本职能是()。
从所给的四个选项中,选择最合适的一个填入问号处,使之呈现一定的规律性:
下列命题正确的是().
请在【答题】菜单中单击【考生文件夹】按钮,并按照题目要求完成下面的操作。注意:以下的文件必须都保存在考生文件夹下。小李是东方公司的会计,利用自己所学的办公软件进行记账管理,为节省时间,同时又确保记账的准确性,她使用Excel编制了201
WhatisIsraelprobablytodoifPalestiniansattackitssoldiersduringthepullout?
最新回复
(
0
)