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  3. Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth’s surface. But earthquakes can and do occur at all depths to about

Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth’s surface. But earthquakes can and do occur at all depths to about

admin2016-12-06  61
问题     Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth’s surface. But earthquakes can and do occur at all depths to about 460 miles. Their number decreases as the depth increases. At about 460 miles one earthquake occurs only every few years. Near the surface earthquakes may run as high as 100 in a month, but the yearly average does not vary much. In comparison with the total number of earthquakes each year, the number of disastrous earthquakes is very small.
    The extent of the disaster in an earthquake depends on many factors. If you carefully build a toy house with an Erector set, it will still stand no matter how much you shake the table. But if you build a toy house with a pack of cards, a slight shake of the table will make it fall. An earthquake in Agadir, Morocco, was not strong enough to be recorded on distant instruments, but it completely destroyed the city. Many stronger earthquakes have done comparatively little damage. If a building is well constructed and built on solid ground, it will resist an earthquake. Most deaths in earthquakes have been due to faulty building construction or poor building sites. A third and very serious factor is panic. When people rush out into narrow streets, more deaths will result.
    The United Nations has played an important part in reducing the damage done by earthquakes. It has sent a team of experts to all countries known to be affected by earthquakes. Working with local geologists and engineers, the experts have studied the nature of the ground and the type of most practical building code for the local area. If followed, these suggestions will make disastrous earthquakes almost a thing of the past.
    There is one type of earthquake disaster that little can be done about. This is the disaster caused by seismic sea waves, or tsunamis.(These are often called tidal waves, but the name is incorrect. They have nothing to do with tides.)In certain areas, earthquakes take place beneath the sea. These submarine earthquakes sometimes give rise to seismic sea waves. The waves are not noticeable out at sea because of their long wave length. But when they roll into harbours, they pile up into walls of water 6 to 60 feet high. The Japanese call them "tsunamis", meaning "harbour waves", because they reach a sizable height only in harbours.
    Tsunamis travel fairly slowly, at speeds up to 500 miles an hour. An adequate warning system is in use to warn all shores likely to be reached by the waves. But this only enables people to leave the threatened shores for higher ground. There is no way to stop the oncoming wave.
What is the factor that is related to the extent of the damage of an earthquake, as it is exemplified by the earthquake in Agadir, Morocco?
选项
答案Whether buildings are well-constructed．／The construction of buildings．
解析 文章的第2段讨论了地震危害大小的决定因素，作者一开始以建造玩具房子为例来说明不同结构的房屋在地震中受危害程度的不同。接着作者说Agadir的地震并不强烈，仪器都没有记录下来，但整个城市都被毁了：而一些更强烈的地震造成的危害却很小。所以在这里作者是用Agadir的例子来说明地震造成危害的大小，和房屋是否建造得好有关，故本题可回答whether buildings are well—constructed，或者将其表达为名词形式the construction of buildings。
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