Somehousesaredesignedtobesmart.Othershavesmartdesigns.AnexampleofthesecondtypeofhousewontheAwardofExcellencefromtheAmericanInstituteofArchitects.LocatedontheshoreofSullivan’sIslandoffthecoastofSou

Question

Some houses are designed to be smart. Others have smart designs. An example of the second type of house won the Award of Excellence from the American Institute of Architects.

Located on the shore of Sullivan’s Island off the coast of South Carolina the award-winning cube-shaped beach house was built to replace one damaged by Hurricane Hugo years ago. In September 1989 Hugo struck South Carolina killing 18 people and damaging or destroying 36 000 homes in the state.

Before Hugo many new houses built along South Carolina’s shoreline were poorly constructed according to architect Ray Huff who created the cleverly-designed beach house. Now all new shoreline houses are required to meet stricter better-enforced codes. The new beach house on Sullivan’s Island should be strong enough not to be damaged by a Category 3 hurricane with peak winds of 179 to 209 kilometres per hour.

At first sight the house on Sullivan’s Island looks anything but(根本不) hurricane-proof. Its redwood shell makes it look like “a large party lantern” at night. But looks can be deceiving. The house’s wooden frame is strengthened with long steel rods(杆) to give it extra strength.

To further protect the house from hurricane damage Huff raised it 2.7 meters off the ground on timber pilings(木桩) buried deep in the sand. Pilings might appear insecure but they are strong enough to support the weight of the house. They also raise the house above storm waves. The pilings allow the waves to run under the house instead of running into it. “The waves of water come ashore at tremendous speeds and cause most of the damage done to beach-front buildings ” said Huff.

Huff designed the timber pilings to be partially concealed(隐藏) by the house’s ground-to-roof shell. “The shell masks the pilings so that the house doesn’t look like it’s standing with its legs pulled up ” said Huff. In the event of storm the shell should break apart and let the waves rush under the house the architect explained.

1.After Hurricane Hugo new houses built along South Carolina’s shore line are required

to         .

A. be easily pulled down                B. look smarter in design 

C. meet stricter building standards        D. be designed to be cube-shaped

2.The award-winning beach house is quite strong because      .

A. it is strengthened by steel rods        B. it is made of redwood

C. it is in the shape of a shell         D. it is built with timber and concrete

3.Huff raised the house 2.7 meters off the ground on timber pilings in order to      .

A. avoid peak winds of about 200 km/h

B. bury stronger pilings deep in the sand

C. break huge sea waves into smaller ones

D. prevent the waves from running into it

4.It can be inferred from the passage that the house’s shell should be      .

A. smooth     B. waterproof    C. easily broken    D. extremely hard

 

Answer 1

  1.C 2.A 3.D 4.C