After World War Ⅱ the glorification of
an ever-larger GNP formed the basis of a new materialism, which became a sacred
obligation for all Japanese governments, businesses and trade unions. Anyone who
mentioned the undesirable by-products of rapid economic growth was treated as a
heretic. Consequently, everything possible was done to make conditions easy for
the manufacturers. Few dared question the wisdom of discharging untreated waste
into the nearest water body or untreated smoke into the atmosphere. This silence
was maintained by union leaders as well as by most of the country's radicals;
except for a few isolated voices, no one protested. An insistence on treatment
of the various effluents would have necessitated expenditures on treatment
equipment that in turn would have given rise to higher operating costs.
Obviously, this would have meant higher prices for Japanese goods, and
ultimately fewer sales and lower industrial growth and GNP. The
pursuit of nothing but economic growth is illustrated by the response of the
Japanese government to the American educational mission that visited Japan in
1947. After surveying Japan's educational program, the Americans suggested that
the Japanese fill in their curriculum gap by creating departments in chemical
and sanitary engineering. Immediately, chemical engineering departments were
established in all the country's universities and technical institutions. In
contrast, the recommendation to form sanitary engineering departments was more
or less ignored, because they could bring no profit. By 1960, only two
second-rate universities, Kyoto and Hokkaido, were interested enough to open
such departments. The reluctance to divert funds from production
to conservation is explanation enough for a certain degree of pollution, but the
situation was made worse by the type of technology the Japanese chose to adopt
for their industrial expansion. For the most part, they simply copied American
industrial methods. This meant that methods originally designed for use in a
country that stretched from the Atlantic to the Pacific with lots of air and
water to use as sewage receptacles were adopted for an area a fraction of the
size. Moreover, the Japanese diet was much more dependent on water as a source
of fish and as an input in the irrigation of rice; consequently discharged
wastes built up much more rapidly, in the food chain. (373
words)
{{B}}Notes:{{/B}} heretic 异教徒。sanitary 卫生的。for the most part
基本上。receptacle 储存地。
单选题
According to the text, no measures were resorted to in environmental protection after World War Ⅱ in Japan because
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】[注释] 细节归纳题。本题问：根据本文，二战以后日本在环保方面没有采取措施的原因何在?第1段最后两句写道：“An insistence on treatment of the various effluents would have necessitated expenditures on treatment equipment that in turn would have given rise to higher operating costs。Obviously，this would have meant higher prices for Japanese goods，and ultimately fewer sales and lower industrial growth and GNP．”(坚持认为处理各种污染流出物将必须花钱购买处理设备，而这笔开支又会使运行成本提高。显然，这就意味着日本货的价格更贵，因而最终使销量减少、工业增长率和国民生产总值降低。)归结起来，日本人认为，环保投资会妨碍经济发展。故应选[B]。
注意：GNP(gross national product)国民生产总值。resort to(=adopt)采取。check vt．妨害，制止，阻止。例如：We have checked the advance of the enemy．(我们制止了敌人的前进。)
单选题
According to the context, the word "effluents" in Para. 1 is closest in meaning to
【正确答案】
B
【答案解析】[注释] 词汇释义题。本题问：根据上下文，第1段中“effluents"在含义上最接近下面哪一个词?参阅第1段倒数第2句：An insistence on treatment of the various effluents would have necessitated expenditures on treatment equipment that in turn would have given rise to higher operating costs．本句中effluents前有treatment，后有 necessitated expenditures on treatment equipment。可见，effluents是从工厂里流出后要被处理的东西，即为drainage(排出的污水)。
注意：解这类题的技巧是注意并画出前后的隐含信息词，然后加以归纳和推理。
单选题
It can be learned from the text that soon after the Second World War
【正确答案】
A
【答案解析】[注释] 细节理解题。本题问：从本文中可以推理，二战刚结束时人们对污染的态度如何?第1段第4句写道：“Few dared question the wisdom of discharging untreated waste into the nearest water body or untreated smoke into the atmosphere．”上面的句意与[A]的表述相符。
单选题
According to the logical clue of the text, the second paragraph is an example to show that
【正确答案】
D
【答案解析】[注释] 逻辑结构题。本题问：根据本文的逻辑线索，第2段是用来说明什么的?第2段第1句是段落主题句，它反映本段的中心思想：The pursuit of nothing but economic growth is illustrated by the response of the Japanese government to the American educational mission that visited Japan in 1947．画线部分画龙点睛地指出日本政府的追求目标。故答案非[D]莫属。
单选题
Which of the following is not a reason for the rapidity and intensity of pollution in Japan?
【正确答案】
C
【答案解析】[注释] 细节辨认题。本题问：下面哪一点不是日本污染快速与严重的原因?[A]The Japanese were generally modeled on the American pattern of industrial development．(日本总的来说模仿美国工业发展的模式。)这一点第3段第2句已提到：For the most part，they simply copied American industrial methods．[B] Japan was unwilling to allocate funds for the solution to environmental problems．(日本不愿意拨款解决环境问题。)这一点第3段第1句已提到：The reluctance to divert funds from production to conservation is explanation enough for a certain degree of pollution,...[D]Japan placed too much emphasis on economic growth and neglected environment．(日本过分强调经济增长而忽视环境。) 这一点第2段第1句已说明。而[C]“在日本大学中没有设立卫生工程系”这不是日本污染快速与严重的原因。