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Climbing to the top of my nearest hill in San Francisco, my purpose is not to enjoy the view but to experience a bit of fresh ai

admin2014-01-07  64
问题     Climbing to the top of my nearest hill in San Francisco, my purpose is not to enjoy the view but to experience a bit of fresh air and nature. Some birds dwell in these urban islands of trees, bushes and soil. So few people are there, but they are happy, relaxed and friendly(unless insane and out to rob). I find the view of San Francisco Bay and the metropolis most disturbing, seeing in all directions the industrial activity and oil-fueled trade of questionable imported products. Massive port facilities dwarf the human scale of sustainable import/export. A very small number of sailboats for pleasure can’t quite offer a vision of renewable-energy travel and exchange. Passenger planes take off, military jets show off their ear-splitting capabilities, all against the backdrop of polluted air that is warming in general thanks to commercial activity and the mindless consumption by the individual. The hills are full of roads and energy-wasting houses. It’s not like this everywhere; the hills around Kyoto are pitch black at night, for they consist of forest, trails and small, outdoor temples.
    Seven million people surround me in this metropolitan area. Those among them who really care whether Barry Bonds used steroids to hit baseballs, or what pregnant celebrity has checked into a drug rehabilitation facility, are not likely to be trying to live lightly on the planet. Normal citizens under the spell of mass media want to consume, and be given answers and easy fixes. They may get what they want tonight, and again, and again, but it will come to an abrupt end, and will people pick up a shovel to plant food or pick up the gun to take others’ food? That depends on the area affected, the culture(urban U.S. or otherwise), and population size.
    Why should I be disturbed by what I see now, when all is basically calm? Or feel uneasy as I stroll about in the safety of my comfortable home? Is not San Francisco and the surrounding area a great city, with many wonderful people and activities to appreciate? What about the noble struggles of valiant, compromised hard-working people, or the dysfunctional and disabled folk who are really kind? The social injustice that is still pervasive, in our boastful age of scientific and technological power, is outrageous and occupies many of the best hearts and minds in the world who live in our very midst. Much of what ails people, it is thought, is that they do not have enough cheap, affordable energy or material things that are supposed to both satisfy and uplift. More public funds for health care, through an end to costly, imperialist wars, would be the ticket to a healthy society, in the eyes of more and more.
    Except, that selfless aspiration is becoming clouded with the uncertainty and fright growing around our awakening to climate change. In the buzzing Bay Area and every other large and small city, we are behaving as if there is no threat to the climate and thus our future survival as a species. Just looking around at the unceasing traffic, it is clear that basic, radical but easy solutions are being kept on the shelf or buried. Tiny changes, usually just initiatives that don’t threaten the current life style(e.g., different engines), are called "green". Green this and green that. But the big "greening" will be the rediscovery of community and working with others as if our survival depends on our collaboration as equals. Our bosses and political leaders have been as useful in the needed transition as—to borrow an expression from my late father—tits on a bull.
What does the author feel about the hills around Kyoto?
选项 A、They are worth appreciating.
B、They are not well-lit at night.
C、They provide us with the best living environment.
D、They have scenes different from all the other hills.
答案A
解析 作者在第1段倒数第2句批评三藩市附近的山路多，房子也多，风景不好；末句以Kyoto为例说明别处的山并非如此。由此可见，作者对京都的山抱着正面、赞赏的态度，故本题应选A。第1段末句的pitchblack at night旨在说明京都的山自然风貌保持良好，将其理解为照明不够是断章取义，B不能选；作者显然反对破坏自然环境在山上修建房屋。而且作者本段没有讨论the best living environment，他只是通过描述山上看到的景色强调应注重可持续发展，故C不正确；虽然本段末句有提到京都的山与三藩市的山不一样，但两者风景的不同并不是焦点，作者的焦点仍然是可持续发展，D太肤浅，不能选。
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