Collective bargaining is a good strategy when looking to get the best price on a given product or service. Solar power is no exception, and dozens of neighborhood-wide installations in the U.S. and Canada have created a new model whereby going solar can actually start to pencil out for individual home owners.
One of the first neighborhood-wide solar installations in the world was at the master-planned community of Drake Landing in the town of Okotoks in Alberta, Canada. The entire community, now with more than 4 homes built and occupied, is heated by an neighborhood-wide “borehole（钻孔）thermal energy” system designed to store abundant solar energy underground during the summer and distribute it to each home as needed for space heating throughout the winter. The system, which launched in June 2007, now fulfills some 90 percent of each home’s space heating needs, with any slack（煤屑）taken up by fossil fuels.
While some planned communities like Drake Landing incorporated neighborhood solar power from the get-go, others decided it made sense after they were first built. One example is the deal that homeowners in Martin County, California can get in on, thanks to the hard work of the nonprofit GoSolarMarin. The group negotiated discounted group rates with several photovoltaic（光电的）solar panel providers, and eventually signed on with SolarCity, a Silicon Valley based solar provider that operates some 30 different “community solar programs” across California, Arizona and Oregon.
GoSolarMartin was able to negotiate a rate some 25 percent lower than what a typical solar installation would cost for Marin County residents willing to participate. And best of all, homeowners can lease from SolarCity instead of having to pay tens of thousands of dollars out of pocket to buy equipment that may become obsolete in a few years. SolarCity monitors all clients’ installations online to ensure that they are running at peak performance, and also makes house calls for maintenance as needed.
While California is no doubt a leader in residential solar power, the concept is spreading. Neighborhood Solar, for instance, is a Colorado-based nonprofit formed to accelerate the adoption of residential solar power in the Denver Metro area. The group organizes homeowners’ into collective solar purchasing groups, and negotiates significant discounts accordingly. “We act as an independent buyer’s agent,” the group reports on its website, “with the goal of providing the best value to residential solar purchasers while helping installers put up more solar at reduced overhead costs.”
1. What can we learn about the solar installation in Okotoks?
2. We can learn from the third paragraph that ______.
3. What is the most important reason for the residents to choose SolarCity?
4. What can we learn about the implement of solar power?
问题1选项
A.It’s only useful in winter.
B.It can meet all the heating needs.
C.It can reserve spare energy in summer.
D.It’s takes fossil fuels to provide thermal energy.
问题2选项
A.most communities installed the solar system before they were built
B.the solar system in Marin County was installed by itself
C.the solar system in Marin County came from several providers
D.SolarCity has granted a discount to the homeowners in Marin County
问题3选项
A.Because it offers a great discount.
B.Because it rents out equipment.
C.Because it supplies free repair.
D.Because it provides monitor equipment.
问题4选项
A.Only in California the solar power bas a market.
B.The use of solar power is still a rare thing in many states.
C.Group purchasing is a beneficial way for the homeowners.
D.Some nonprofit groups are paying the role of independent buyers.
第1题:
【选项释义】
What can we learn about the solar installation in Okotoks? 关于Okotoks的太阳能装置，我们能了解到什么？
A. It’s only useful in winter. A. 它只在冬天有用。
B. It can meet all the heating needs. B. 它可以满足所有的加热需求。
C. It can reserve spare energy in summer. C. 它可以在夏天储存多余的能量。
D. It’s takes fossil fuels to provide thermal energy. D. 它需要化石燃料来提供热能。
【答案】C
【考查点】细节理解题
【解题思路】根据题干词汇Okotoks可定位到Para.2，第四行to store abundant solar energy…throughout the winter.意为：夏季将丰富的太阳能储存在地下，并在整个冬季将其分配到每个家庭，作为空间供暖的需要。因此，对应选项C更符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A选项关键词only useful in winter，文章讲的是太阳能能从夏天储存到冬天用，而不是只能在冬天使用，属于曲解原文；
B选项meet all needs对应原文fulfills some 90 percent of each home’s space heating needs，属于曲解原文；
D选项属于偷换概念，本文主要讲的是太阳能供能，而不是化石燃料。
第2题:
【选项释义】
We can learn from the third paragraph that_____. 我们可以从第三段得知______。
A. most communities installed the solar system before they were built A. 大多数社区在建成之前就安装了太阳能系统。
B. the solar system in Marin County was installed by itself B. 马林县的太阳能系统是自己建成的。
C. the solar system in Marin County came from several providers C. 马林县的太阳能系统来自几个供应商。
D. SolarCity has granted a discount to the homeowners in Marin County D. SolarCity为马林县的房主提供了折扣。
【答案】D
【考查点】细节理解题
【解题思路】根据题干可定位到Para.3第四行he group negotiated discounted group rates with several photovoltaic solar panel providers, and eventually signed on with SolarCity，意为：该组织与几家光伏太阳能电池板供应商协商了折扣团费，并最终与SolarCity签约。因此可得出，D选项马林县的太阳能安装有折扣，符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A选项可定位到第三段第一句some planned communities…, others decided it made sense after they were first built，文意为一些社区，而非most，属于曲解原文；
B选项对应原文thanks to the hard work of the nonprofit GosolarMarin，可知马林县的太阳能系统是在于组织的努力，而不是他们自己，属于张冠李戴；
C选项可定位原文The group negotiated discounted group rates with several photovoltaic solar panel providers, eventually signed on with SolarCity，可知之前是与几个供应商一起协商过折扣，但最终只与一个供应商签订合同，属于曲解原文。
第3题:
【选项释义】
What is the most important reason for the residents to choose SolarCity? 居民选择SolarCity最重要的原因是什么？
A. Because it offers a great discount.A. 因为它提供很大的折扣。
B. Because it rents out equipment. B. 因为它出租设备。
C. Because it supplies free repair. C. 因为它提供免费维修。
D. Because it provides monitor equipment. D. 因为它提供了监控设备。
【答案】B
【考查点】细节理解题
【解题思路】根据题干关键信息可定位到Para.4，most important可相应对应原文best of all…，意为：最好的是，房主可以从SolarCity租赁设备，而不必自掏腰包支付数万美元购买几年后可能会过时的设备。因此，B选项符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A选项可定位到第四段第一句，SolarCity确实会有折扣，但不是最吸引人的；
C选项可定位原文also makes house calls for maintenance as needed.，可知会根据需要上门维修，但并非免费，属于曲解原文；
D选项可定位原文SolarCity monitors all clients’ installatons online to…意为公司会有监控设备去观察用户的使用情况，而不是会为用户提供监控设备，属于曲解原文。
第4题:
【选项释义】
What can we learn about the implement of solar power? 关于太阳能的使用，我们可以了解到什么？
A. Only in California the solar power has a market. A. 只有在加州太阳能有市场。
B. The use of solar power is still a rare thing in many states. B. 在许多州，使用太阳能仍然是一件罕见的事情。
C. Group purchasing is a beneficial way for the homeowners. C. 团购对房主来说是一种有益的方式。
D. Some nonprofit groups are playing the role of independent buyers. D. 一些非盈利组织正在扮演独立买家的角色。
【答案】C
【考查点】推理判断题
【解题思路】根据题干关键信息可定位到最后一段第三行：The group organizes homeowners’ into collective solar purchasing groups, and negotiates significant discounts accordingly. “We act as an independent buyer’s agent”, the group reports on its website, “with the goal of providing the best value to residential solar purchasers while helping installers put up more solar at reduced overhead costs.”，意为：该组织将业主组织成集体购买太阳能产品的小组，并据此协商大幅折扣。“我们作为一个独立的买家代理，”该组织在其网站上写道，“我们的目标是为住宅太阳能购买者提供最好的价值，同时帮助安装者以更低的间接成本安装更多的太阳能”。可知，这个组织通过团购的方式让用户节约成本。因此，C选项符合题意。
【干扰项排除】
A选项可定位到最后一段第一句：“加州无疑是住宅太阳能发电的领先者”，但并不是只有加州有，属于曲解原文。
B选项对应原文the concept is spreading，可知太阳能系统正在传播开来，属于曲解原文。
D选项可定位原文最后一段第四句：Neighborhood Solar…We act as an independent buyer’s agent意为这个组织充当着独立买家的角色，并没有提及其他组织，属于无中生有。
