“Liquefaction” Key to Much of Japanese Earthquake Damage

The massive subduction zone¹ earthquake in Japan caused a significant level of soil "liquefaction"² that has surprised researchers with its    1    severity, a new analysis shows.

"We"ve seen localized³ examples of soil liquefaction as extreme as this before, but the distance and    2    of damage in Japan were unusually severe," said Scott Ashford, a professor of geotechnical engineering⁴ at Oregon State University⁵. "Entire structures were tilted and sinking into the sediments," Ashford said. "The shifts in soil destroyed water, drain and gas pipelines⁶, crippling the utilities and infrastructure these communities need to    3   . We saw some places that sank as much as four feet."

Some degree of soil liquefaction⁷ is common in almost any major earthquake. It"s a phenomenon in which soils soaked with water, particularly recent sediments or sand, can lose much of their    4    and flow during an earthquake. This can allow structures to shift or sink or    5   .
    But most earthquakes are much    6    than the recent event in Japan, Ashford said. The length of the Japanese earthquake, as much as five minutes, may force researchers to reconsider the extent of liquefaction damage possibly occurring in situations such as this⁸.

"With such a long-lasting earthquake, we saw    7    structures that might have been okay after 30 seconds just continued to sink and tilt as the shaking continued for several more minutes," he said. "And it was clear that younger sediments, and especially areas built on 8 filled ground, are much more vulnerable."

The data provided by analyzing the Japanese earthquake, researchers said, should make it possible to improve the understanding of this soil    9    and better prepare for it in the future. Ashford said it was critical for the team to collect the information quickly,  10   damage was removed in the recovery efforts⁹.

"There"s no doubt that we"ll learn things from what happened in Japan¹⁰ that¹¹ will help us to reduce risks in other similar    11   ," Ashford said. "Future construction in some places may make more use of techniques known to reduce liquefaction, such as better compaction to make soils dense, or use of reinforcing stone columns."

Ashford pointed out that northern California have younger soils vulnerable to liquefaction ---on the coast, near river deposits or in areas with filled ground. The "young" sediments, in geologic terms, may be those    12    within the past 10,000 years or more. In Oregon, for instance, that describes much of downtown Portland, the Portland International Airport and other cities.

Anything    13    a river and old flood plains is a suspect¹², and the Oregon Department of Transportation has already concluded that 1,100 bridges in the state are at risk from an earthquake. Fewer than 15 percent of them have been reinforced to    14    collapse. Japan has suffered tremendous losses in the March 11 earthquake, but Japanese construction  15   helped prevent many buildings from collapse ---even as they tilted and sank into the ground.

词汇：

subduction /sʌb"dʌkʃən/ n．俯冲        

sediment /"sedimənt/ n．沉积；沉淀物

liquefaction /likwi"fækʃən/ n．液化       

infrastructure /"Infrə,strʌktʃə/ n．基础设施

geotecnical /dʒiəu"teknikəl] adj．岩土技术    

compaction /kəm"pækʃən/ n．压紧的

vulnerable /"vʌlnərəbl/ ad]．易受伤害的

注释：

1. subduction zone：俯冲带。亦称下降带、潜没带、消亡带。板块构造说认为，当大洋板块移动并与大陆板块相遇时，由于大洋板块岩石密度较大，地位也低，便俯冲到大陆板块之下，这一俯冲部分叫做俯冲带。俯冲带两侧板块会聚边界称会聚边缘（convergent boundary)。俯冲带上面反映震源活动的地带称“贝尼奥夫地震带（Benioff seismic zone)"。

2. soil "liquefaction"：土壤液化。土壤液化现象是指由于孔隙水压力上升，有效应力减小所导致的土壤从固态到液态的变化，饱水的疏松的粉、细砂土在振动作用下突然破坏而呈现液态的现象。

3. localized：小范围的

4. geotechnical engineering：岩土工程。

5. Oregon State University：俄勒冈州立大学，建校于1858年，位于美国俄勒冈州科瓦利斯，全校设11个学院，80多个专业，尤以农科和工程最为突出。2008年俄勒冈州立大学的核能工程专业在全美大学中排名第9名。

6. water, drain and gas pipelines：自来水管道、排水管道和煤气管道。"water, drain and gaspipelines” 即“water pipelines, drain pipelines and gas pipelines"。

7. some degree of soil liquefaction：某种程度的土壤液化

8. to reconsider the extent of liquefaction damage possibly occurring in situations such as this：本句的意思是：重新审视类似这次（持续时间长的）地震中因土壤液化而可能造成的毁坏的规模。

9. recovery efforts：重建工作

10. that we"ll learn things from what happened in Japan：我们将从日本的地震中学到很多东西。该句是同位语从句，说出前半句no doubt的内容。

11. that：that引导的是定语从句，修辞前半句中的things。

12.suspect：被怀疑对象。文中指的是那些疑似危险的土壤。

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A:findings B:locations C: events D:sources

Animal’s “Sixth Sense”

A tsunami was triggered by an earthquake in the Indian Ocean in December, 2004. It killed tens of thousands of people in Asia and East Africa. Wild animals,    1   , seem to have escaped that terrible tsunami. This phenomenon adds weight to notions that¹ they possess a “sixth sense” for

   2   , experts said.

Sri Lankan wildlife officials have said the giant waves that killed over 24,000 people along the Indian Ocean island’s coast clearly    3   wild beasts, with no dead animals found.

“No elephants arc dead, not    4   a dead rabbit. I think animals can    5   disaster. They have a sixth sense. They know when things are happening,” H. D. Ratnayake, deputy director of Sri Lanka’s Wildlife Department, said about one month after the tsunami attack. The    6   washed floodwaters up to 2 miles inland at Yala National Park in the ravaged southeast, Sri Lanka’s biggest wildlife    7   and home to hundreds of wild elephants and several leopards.

“There has been a lot of    8   evidence about dogs barking or birds migrating before volcanic eruptions or earthquakes. But it has not been proven,” said Matthew van Lierop, an animal behavior

   9    at Johannesburg Zoo.

“There have been no＿ 10＿ studies because you can’t really test it in a lab or field setting²,” he told Reuters. Other authorities concurred with this    11   .

“Wildlife seem to be able to pick up certain    12   , especially birds … there are many reports of birds

detecting impending disasters,” said Clive Walker, who has written several books on African wildlife.

Animals   13   rely on the known senses such as smell or hearing to avoid danger slid as predators.

The notion of an animal “sixth sense” — or   14   other mythical power is an enduring one³ which the evidence on Sri Lanka’s ravaged coast is likely to add to.

The Romans saw owls    15   omens of impending disaster and many ancient cultures viewed elephants as sacred animals endowed with special power or attributes.

词汇：

tsunami / tsʊˈnɑmi / n．海啸
trigger / "trɪɡə(r) / v．引发，触发
ravaged / "rævidʒid / adj．被毁坏的
leopard / "lepəd / n．豹
eruption / ɪˈrʌpʃən / n．喷发
migrate / maɪ"ɡreɪt / v．迁移
volcanic / vɒlˈkænɪk / adj．火山的
concur / kən"kɜ:(r) / v．（with）同意，赞成
impending / ɪmˈpendɪŋ / adj．迫近的
predator / "predətə(r) / n．食肉动物
mythical / ˈmɪθɪkl / adj．神话般的
owl / aʊl / n．猫头鹰
omen / "əʊmən / n．预兆，征兆
endow / ɪn"daʊ / v．赋予

注释:

1. adds weight to notions that：更加相信……

2. field setting：field意为“实地，野外”， setting意为“环境”。 field setting可译为“野外环境”。

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A:modification  B:detection  C:assessment   D:value

Onec-daily Pill Could Simplify HIV¹ Treatment

　　Bristol-Myers Squibb and Gilead Sciences have combined many HIV drugs into a single pill. Sometimes the best medicine is more than one kind of medicine. Malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/ ADDS²，for example, are all treated with    1    of drugs. But that can mean a lot of pills to take. It would be    2    if drug companies combined all the medicines into a single pill, taken just once a day.
　　Now, two companies say they have done that for people just    3    treatment for HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. The companies are Bristol-Myers Squibb and Gilead Sciences. They have    4    a single pill that combines three drugs currently on the market. Bristol-Myers Squibb sells one of them    5    the name of Sustiva³. Gileadcombined the    6    Emtriva and Viread, into a single pill in two thousand four.
　　Combining drugs involves more than    7    issues. It also involves issues of competition    8    the drugs are made by different companies. The new once-daily pill is the result of    9    is described as the first joint venture agreement of its kind in the treatment of HIV.
　　In January the New England Journal of Medicine⁴ published a study of the new pill. Researchers compared its    10    to⁵ that of the widely used combination of Sustiva and Combivir. Combivir    11    two drugs, AZT⁶ and 3TC⁷. The researchers say that after one year of treatment, the new pill suppressed HIV levels in more patients and with

   12    side effects⁸.Gileadpaid for the study. Professor Joel Gallant at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine inBaltimore,Maryland, led the research. He is a paid adviser toGileadand Bristol-Meyers Squibb as well as the maker of Combivir, Glaxo Smith Kline.
　　Glaxo Smith Kline reacted    13    the findings by saying that a single study is of limited value. It says the effectiveness of Combivir has been shown in each of more than fifty studies.
　　The price of the new once-daily pill has not been announced. ButGileadand Bristol-Myers Squibb say they will provide it at reduced cost to developing countries. They plan in the next few months to ask the United States Food and Drug Administration⁹ to    14    the new pill.
　　There are limits to who could take it because of the different drugs it contains. For example,    15    women are told not to take Sustiva because of the risk of birth disorders¹⁰. Experts say more than forty million people around the world are living with HIV.

词汇：

pill / pɪl / n.药丸
simplify /"sɪmplɪfaɪ/ vt.简化
malaria / məˈleəriə / n.疱疾
tuberculosis / tʊˌbɜ:kjəˈləʊsɪs / n.结核（病)
joint / dʒɔɪnt / adj.联合的,共同的
virus / "vaɪrəs/ n.病毒
venture / "ventʃə(r) / n.工作项目或事业;企业
suppress / sə"pres / vt.抑制
approve / ə"pru:v / vt.批准
pregnant /ˈpregnənt / adj.妊娠的，有孕的
competition / ˌkɒmpəˈtɪʃn / n.竞争

注释：

1.HIV (human immunodeficiency virus):人体免疫缺陷病毒
2.AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome):获得性免疫缺陷综合症,艾滋病
3.Sustiva以后面出现的Emtriva, Viread和Combivir都是治疗艾滋病药物的商品名。
4.New England Journal of: 新英格兰医药杂志。New England是美国东北六州(Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island 和Connecticut)的总称。
5.英国英语中compare with是“与……相比较”的意思，compare to是“把……比作……”的意思,但在美国英语中compare to也有compare with的意思,这里就是“把……与……相比较”的意思。
6.AZT (Azidothymidine):叠氨胸苷（能抑制引起艾滋病的人体免疫缺陷病毒）
7.3TC:拉夫米定（一种胞嘧啶核苷衍生物,能抑制乙肝病毒和人体免疫缺陷病毒的逆转录酶的活性,改善肝脏组织的病变）
8.side effect:副作用
9.United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA):美国食品与药品管理局

10.birth disorder:先天性疾病

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Migrant Workers

　　In the past twenty years, there has been an increasing tendency for workers to move from one country to another.    1   some newly independent countries have understandably restricted most jobs to local people, others have attracted and welcomed migrant workers. This is particularly the case in the Middle East¹,    2     increased oil incomes have enabled many countries to    3    outsiders to improve local facilities.    4     the Middle East has attracted oil-workers from the USAandEurope. It has brought in construction workers and technicians from many countries,     5     SouthKoreaandJapan.
　　In view of the difficult living and working conditions in theMiddle East,²it is not   6     that the pay is high to attract suitable workers. Many engineers and technicians can earn at least     7    money in theMiddle Eastas they can in their own country, and this is a major attraction. An allied benefit is the low taxation or complete lack of it.³ This increases the net amount of pay received by visiting workers and is very popular with them.
　　Sometimes a disadvantage has a compensating advantage.     8    the difficult living conditions often lead to increased friendship when workers have to depend on each other     9    safety and comfort.     10    , many migrant workers can save large sums of money partly     11    the lack of entertainment facilities. The work is often complex and full of problems but this merely presents greater challenge engineers who prefer to find solutions     12    problems rather than do routine work in their home country.
　　One major problem which     13    migrant workers in theMiddle Eastis that their jobs are temporary ones. They are nearly always on contract, so it is not easy for them to plan ahead with great confidence. This is to be expected since no country welcomes a large number of foreign workers as permanent residents.     14    , migrant workers accept this disadvantage, along with others, because of the     15     financial benefits which they receive.

词汇：

migrant /"maɪgrənt/ adj.移民的

allied /"ælaɪd; ə"laɪd/ adj.与此相关的

taxation /tæk"seɪʃən/ n.税，税款

compensate /"kɒmpenseɪt/ v.补偿

routine /ruː"tiːn/ adj.日常的

注释：

1.This is particularly the case in the Middle East...：中东地区目的情况尤为如此……
2.In view of the difficult living and working conditions in the Middle East...：由于中东地区艰苦的生活和工作条件……in view of 是个短语，表示原因或理由。
3.An allied benefit is the low taxation or complete lack of it. 一个相关的好处是这里的税收低，或者根本就不收税。

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A:because of B:on C:because   D:with

                                   A Lucky Break

1.  ... plays the part of a middleweight boxer alongside ... :……与……并肩，扮演一个中量级拳击手……
2.  ... was reminded of the time ... :......想起……的时候……

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A:remembered B:reminded  C:recorded D:replayed

                                   A Lucky Break

1.  ... plays the part of a middleweight boxer alongside ... :……与……并肩，扮演一个中量级拳击手……
2.  ... was reminded of the time ... :......想起……的时候……

空11

A:remembered B:reminded  C:recorded D:replayed

                                   A Lucky Break

1.  ... plays the part of a middleweight boxer alongside ... :……与……并肩，扮演一个中量级拳击手……
2.  ... was reminded of the time ... :......想起……的时候……

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A:remembered B:reminded  C:recorded D:replayed