胡金瑩

美國密爾沃基市的一座25層木結構大樓，被認為是世界上最高的木結構建筑。

主題語境：建筑 篇幅：345詞 建議用時：7分鐘

1 Ascent， an 86.6?metre?tall mass?timber tower inMilwaukee， has been regarded as the world's tallest timberbuilding. Located in a neighbourhood near the lakefront， the25?storey tower is made almost entirely from timber exceptfor the base and elevators.

2 The structure took only two years to build. It has aconcrete?framed base that is six storeys tall and the19?storey timber tower rises from the podium （基座）. Thecore containing the elevator shaft and staircase is made of concrete to help thebuilding deal with wind and seismic （地震的） shifts， as well as for fire safety reasons.

3 The city required a three?hour fire rating for the columns， so the team worked withthe Forest Products Laboratory to optimise （優(yōu)化） the columns to meet this standard.“ Wethink it was the first three?hour fire testing on columns，” said the designer， adding that thefloor plates had a two?hour rating， meaning the components can burn for two hours withoutlosing structural integrity. Because of requirements preventing external wood exposure andthe developer's desire to capture the lake views， the exterior of the structure is made almostentirely of glass and metal panelling.

4 Both Korb and Fernandez agreed that many of the drivers behind the project wereeconomic—from the real estate perspective of the facade （建筑物的正面） to the costrestrictions of the timber. Much of the wood was sourced from Austria because sourcinghigh?quality supplies from North American manufacturers would have been too expensive.

5 Economic benefits were increased by labour usage of the project. Because of thepre?built panels， fewer workers are required on each floor， and because there is no settingtime—like with traditional concrete construction—finishes can be added much sooner.Korb estimated that the project used about 25 percent of the onsite labour required for aconcrete structure， and that it was completed in about half the time.

6 The tower will provide further proof of concept for developers who are looking tocreate innovative structures from timber. And mid?rise developments like these that attractpeople to the urban core are a good thing.

Reading Check

Detail

1. What can we know about the timber tower？

A. It is completely made of timber.

B. It took two years to finish building.

C. It is regarded as the tallest building.

Detail

2. Why did the building team work with the Forest Products Laboratory？

A. To keep the timber's standard integrity.

B. To choose the best timber for the building.

C. To enable the tower to bear various forces.

D. To make the columns meet fire rating standards.

Detail

3. What's the benefit of using glass to decorate the exterior of the timber tower？

A. Bringing down the cost.

B. Protecting the wood materials.

C. Obtaining the lake views easily.

D. Making sure it is bright enough.

Inference

4. Compared with concrete construction， the timber building ________.

A. takes more time

B. is more attractive

C. costs fewer labors

D. brings more economic benefits

Language Study

Ⅰ. Difficult sentence in the text

The core containing the elevator shaft and staircase is made of concrete to help thebuilding deal with wind and seismic shifts， as well as for fire safety reasons. 包含電梯井和樓梯的核心由混凝土制成，以幫助建筑物應對風和地震的變化，同時也是出于消防安全的考慮。

【點石成金】本句中，containing the elevator shaft and staircase為修飾core的后置定語，和被修飾詞構成主謂關系；to help the building deal with wind and seismic shifts， aswell as for fire safety reasons在句中作目的狀語。

Ⅱ. Fill in the blanks with the phrases in the box in proper forms.

deal with as well as meet this standard be sourced from be attracted to

1. To our delight， the menu contained traditional favorites ________more adventur?ous dishes.

2. Rescue teams are already hard at work trying to________the spilled oil.

3. In order to reduce the cost， most of the materials had to________a close?by supply.

4. You will________Beijing Opera even if you know nothing of the dramatic back?ground.

5. The Sierra Club was unable to________， so many people didnt want to join it.