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  3. After the violent earthquake that shook Los Angeles in 1994, earthquake scientists had good news to report: The damage and death

After the violent earthquake that shook Los Angeles in 1994, earthquake scientists had good news to report: The damage and death

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问题     After the violent earthquake that shook Los Angeles in 1994, earthquake scientists had good news to report: The damage and death toll (死亡人数) could have been much worse.
    More than 60 people died in this earthquake. By comparison, an earthquake of similar intensity that shook America in 1988 claimed 25,000 victims.
    Injuries and deaths were relatively less in Los Angeles because the quake occurred at 4:31 a.m. on a holiday, when traffic was light on the city’s highways. In addition, changes made to the construction codes in Los Angeles during the last 20 years have strengthened the city’s buildings and highways, making them more resistant to quakes.
    Despite the good news, civil engineers aren’t resting on their successes. Pinned to their drawing boards are blueprints (蓝图) for improved quake-resistant buildings. The new designs should offer even greater security to cities where earthquakes often take place.
    In the past, making structures quake-resistant meant firm yet flexible materials, such as steel and wood, that bend without breaking. Later, people tried to lift a building off its foundation, and insert rubber and steel between the building and its foundation to reduce the impact of ground vibrations. The most recent designs give buildings brains as well as concrete and steel supports. Called smart buildings, the structures respond like living organisms to an earthquake’s vibrations. When the ground shakes and the building tips forward, the computer would force the building to shift in the opposite direction.
    The new smart structures could be very expensive to build. However, they would save many lives and would be less likely to be damaged during earthquakes.
The author’s main purpose in writing the passage is to ______.
选项 A、compare the consequences of the earthquakes that occurred in the U. S.
B、encourage civil engineers to make more extensive use of computers
C、outline the history of the development of quake-resistant building materials
D、report new developments in constructing quake-resistant buildings
答案D
解析 作者的目的显然不是报告发生在洛杉矶的地震，它只是服务于阐述的事例。本题属于综合理解题，应结合全文综合考虑。A项说的是地震结果的比较，并不是文章的重点。B、C项显然与文章的叙述不符。作者的目的是借助那场地震来说明抗震技术的提高，故D选项是正确的。
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