People want action on noise, a recent public meeting in Brisbane showed. Some want technical improvements such as quieter air conditioners or better sound barriers around major roads. Others want tougher laws to restrict noise from building sites or to require owners to take responsibility for barking dogs. But the highest priority was a noise complaints system that works.
Brisbane City Council receives more complaints about noise than all other problems put together. So it conducted a survey and found that about half its residents are upset by noise in one form or another—traffic, mowers, pool pumps, air conditioners or loud parties. This inspired the Council to bring together more than 100 citizens one evening to talk through a range of options.
The meeting found the present regulatory system bizarre. Depending on the problem, responsibility for noise can lie with the Council, the Environment Protection Authority, one of three government departments or even the police. So complainants often feel they are getting the run-round. When the people at the forum were asked to vote for changes, the strongest response was for a 24-hour, noise hotline to be the first port of call for all complaints.
The forum also favored regulatory measures, such as tougher minimum standards for noise in appliances like air conditioners. This even makes economic sense, as noise is a waste of energy—and money. Other measures the meeting supported were wider buffer zones around noisy activities and controls to keep heavy traffic away from residential areas.
But there are obvious conflicts. Many people like to have a bar within walking distance if they feel like a drink, but they don’t want a noisy pub keeping them awake when they want an early night. Most people want to live near a major road providing good access to other parts of the city, but they don’t want the problem of road noise.
I was most interested by the proposals aimed at behavioral change. There was strong support for measures to reduce traffic: better public transport, cycleways and footpaths, even charges for road use. Many people optimistically thought industry awards for better equipment would stimulate the production of quieter appliances. It was even suggested that noise from building sites could be alleviated if Brisbane adopted daylight saving, thus shifting the working day and providing longer, quieter evenings.
51. In the recent public meeting in Brisbane, people showed greatest dissatisfaction with ______.
52. By saying that the complainants feel that “they are getting the run-round”, the author means ______.
53. Which of the following measures is mentioned as not only beneficial environmentally but also economically?
54. What was the author’s attitude towards the industry awards for quieter equipment?
55. The passage points out daylight saving could be adopted in order to ______.
问题1选项
A.the technical flaws of the air conditioners
B.the poor noise barriers around major roads
C.the inefficient system for noise complaints
D.the late working time of the building sites
问题2选项
A.the complainants are unfairly treated by the government departments
B.the government departments seldom respond to the complaints
C.it is inexplicit which department is responsible for the complaints
D.complaints will be treated only after being approved by all three departments
问题3选项
A.Enforcing stricter noise control on electrical apparatus.
B.Prohibiting heavy traffic from entering residential areas.
C.Launching a 24-hour noise hotline.
D.Increasing the charges for road use.
问题4选项
A.Skeptical.
B.Disappointed.
C.Concerned.
D.Optimistic.
问题5选项
A.prolong the daytime
B.advance the working time
C.shorten the working time
D.save time and energy
第1题:C
第2题:C
第3题:A
第4题:C
第5题:B
第1题:
51.【选项释义】
51. In the recent public meeting in Brisbane, people showed greatest dissatisfaction with ______. 51. 在最近布里斯班的公开会议上，人们对______表现出了最大的不满。
A. the technical flaws of the air conditioners A. 空调的技术缺陷
B. the poor noise barriers around major roads B. 主要道路周围的隔音屏障差
C. the inefficient system for noise complaints C. 处理噪音投诉的低效系统
D. the late working time of the building sites D. 建筑工地的加班时间
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据题干定位至文章第一段，该段提到：有些人要求技术上的改进，如更安静的空调或主要道路周边更好的音障。另一些人则要求更严厉的法律来限制来自建筑工地的噪音或者让狗主人对吠叫的狗承担责任。但最为优先的则是一个行之有效的噪音投诉体系（But the highest priority was a noise complaints system that works.）。从中可知，在最近布里斯班的公开会议上，人们对噪音表示不满，其中包括空调缺陷、主要道路缺少音障、建筑工地噪音以及狗吠声，但最主要的还是缺少一个高效的噪音投诉系统。因此，该题选择C项正确。
【干扰项排除】A选项“空调的技术缺陷”、B选项“主要道路周围的隔音屏障差”和D选项“建筑工地的加班时间”都不是最主要的方面，属于本末倒置。
第2题:
52.【选项释义】
52. By saying that the complainants feel that “they are getting the run-round”, the author means ______. 52. 作者说，投诉者觉得“他们被搪塞了”，意思是______。
A. the complainants are unfairly treated by the government departments A. 投诉者受到上级部门的不公平对待
B. the government departments seldom respond to the complaints B. 部门很少对投诉做出反应
C. it is inexplicit which department is responsible for the complaints C.投诉该由哪个部门负责没有明确说明
D. complaints will be treated only after being approved by all three departments D. 投诉只有在得到所有三个部门的批准后才会被处理
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据题干定位至第三段第三句，从so可以知道，该句与上一句密切相关，第二句提到“依照具体问题，针对噪音的职责可以归议会、三个政府部门之一的环保部门或甚至是警察”，从中可推断，投诉者觉得“他们被搪塞了”的原因是政府机构对噪音问题的权责不清，使人们不知道该往哪个部门投诉，故C项正确。
【干扰项排除】A选项“投诉者受到上级部门的不公平对待”、B选项“部门很少对投诉做出反应”和D选项“投诉只有在得到所有三个部门的批准后才会被处理”都没提及，无中生有。
第3题:
53.【选项释义】
53. Which of the following measures is mentioned as not only beneficial environmentally but also economically? 53. 下列哪项措施不仅对环境有利，而且对经济有利？
A. Enforcing stricter noise control on electrical apparatus. A. 加强对电器的噪音控制。
B. Prohibiting heavy traffic from entering residential areas. B. 禁止车辆进入居民区。
C. Launching a 24-hour noise hotline. C. 开通24小时噪音热线。
D. Increasing the charges for road use. D. 提高道路使用费。
【考查点】事实细节题。
【解题思路】根据第四段第一句“会议还通过了规范性的措施，如对空调等家电实施更严格的最低噪音标准”，以及第二句“这甚至（even）在经济上是有意义的，因为噪音是一种能源和金钱的浪费”，综合理解，从even可知，对家电等电器实施严格的噪音控制不仅可以产生环保效益，还可以产生经济效益。因此，该题选择A项。
【干扰项排除】B选项“禁止车辆进入居民区”、C选项“开通24小时噪音热线”和D选项“提高道路使用费”在原文中并未表明它们与经济有关系，属于曲解原文。
第4题:
54.【选项释义】
54. What was the author’s attitude towards the industry awards for quieter equipment? 54. 作者对更安静的设备的行业奖励持什么态度？
A. Skeptical. A. 怀疑的。
B. Disappointed. B. 失望的。
C. Concerned. C. 关心的。
D. Optimistic. D. 乐观的。
【考查点】观点态度题。
【解题思路】在末段首句，作者指出对一些旨在改变人们行为的提议感到interested，接着举了一些例子，其中包括对生产更安静设备的行业实行行业奖励；由此可见，作者对行业奖励是感兴趣的，C选项“关心的”与之意思相近。故该题选择C项。
【干扰项排除】
A选项“怀疑的”和B选项“失望的”反向干扰；
D选项“乐观的”混淆了作者的态度和其他一些人的态度，张冠李戴。
第5题:
55.【选项释义】
55. The passage points out daylight saving could be adopted in order to ______. 55. 这篇文章指出，为了______，可以采用夏令时。
A. prolong the daytime A. 延长白天
B. advance the working time B. 提前工作时间
C. shorten the working time C. 缩短工作时间
D. save time and energy D. 节省时间和精力
【考查点】推理判断题。
【解题思路】根据daylight saving定位文章最后一句“有人甚至建议，如果布里斯班采用夏令时，从而改变工作时间（thus shifting the working day），提供更长的、更安静的晚上（providing longer, quieter evenings），建筑工地的噪音就可以得到缓解”，thus后的shifting表明采用夏令时可以改变工作时间，而且采用夏令时的另一个结果是providing longer, quieter evenings（提供更长的、更安静的晚上）；综合理解，可以推断采用夏令时的目的是将上班时间提前，这样就可以提早下班而没有改变工作时间的长度，晚上建筑工地不工作，噪音自然减少了。由此可见，B项正确。
【干扰项排除】A选项“延长白天”、C选项“缩短工作时间”和D选项“节省时间和精力”对原文解析不正确，属于曲解原文。
