【2014】高考英语阅读理解巩固精品题练习(46)及答案

2014高考英语阅读理解巩固练习精品题（46）及答案

【江苏省常州市安家中学2013模拟】C

As China becomes increasingly urbanized (城市化), it has to find space for its urban and rural citizens as both groups become increasingly integrated. Experts suggest a possible model way may be “re-inventing” a “garden city”.

China’s mega-cities are bursting at the borders and the country is now undergoing the quickest and biggest urbanization in the history of mankind. It is estimated that by 2025, China will have 400 million more people living in its cities, raising its urban population to 900 million. Besides, new satellite towns are mushrooming on the urban fringes while city ring roads are rippling outwards into the countryside at amazing speed. Satellite maps collected by Professor Joshua Bolchover at the University of Hong Kong bring the problem sharply into focus. They track the changing rural-urban framework in the past 30 years, and suggest that cities are cruelly destroying surrounding rural land and rapidly reducing the amount of arable（可耕种的）land, which gives way to new residential blocks, new industrial zones, new financial centers and the other inevitable signs and signatures of economic growth.

This, however, is not sustainable growth pattern, especially when China has the world’s largest population to feed. So concerned urban planners are starting to note the social and physical effects of diaspora（大移居）when replaced rural communities are forced into the cities.

On the other hand, a trend of thought is gradually taking shape and this is the concept of the “garden city”, a combination of country and city that is being proposed by architects and city planners. Hua Li, from Tao Architects, is among the many professionals with such a voice. His argument is supported by a long-term study on this subject. As Hua says, the answer is to preserve patches of productive farmland within urban boundaries. Less transportation means we have fresh agricultural products at lower costs and less carbon emission in the city. And urban farmland can also be showcased for agricultural tourism and education.

The concept is already practiced at the grassroot level. Agriculture has gone into the air, up to roof and balcony in some communities in the cities. It’s common to see organic “hanging garden” on the roof of some traditional courtyard home. According to some people, the rooftop project