全国职称英语等级考试全真模拟题理工类

全国职称英语等级考试全真模拟题理工类A级（一）

第一部分：词汇选项(第1“5题，每题1分，共15分)

下面共有15个句子，每个句子中均有1个词或短语划有底横线，请从每个句子后面所

给的4个选项中选择1个与划线部分意义最相近的词或短语。答案一律涂在答题卡相应的位

置上。

1.Thatproblemissecondarytotheonenowfacingus.

A)lessimportantthan

B)laterthan

C)betterthan

D)moreexcitingthan

2.Itisdifficulttoassesstheimportanceofthedecision.

A)comment

B)report

C)discuss

D)evaluate

3.Youmusttrytowipeoutthememoryofthesehorribleevents.

A)unfair

B)strange

C)terrible

D)unusual

4.HespokeinsuchapleasantmannerthatIfeltateasewithhimatonce.

A)confident

B)relaxing

C)formal

D)comfortable

5.Heworkedsohardthateventuallyhefellill.

A)finally

B)recently

C)then

D)surely

6.Hethoughtitbettertobeginworkingimmediately.

A)recently

B)atonce

C)early

D)rapidly

7.Shealwaysfindsfaultwitheverything.

A)simplifies

B)examines

C)evaluates

D)criticizes

8.Shehasasteadyincome.

A)sharp

B)continuous

C)general

D)relative

9.,Sometimesitisadvisabletobookhotelsinadvance.

A)easy

B)profitable

C)wise

D)possible

10.Thereasonfortheirunusualbehaviorremainsapuzzle.

A)statement

B)game

C)mystery

D)fact

11.Theydepictedthethrillingsituationtousingreatdetail.

A)praises

B)writes

C)imitates

D)describes

12.WilliamFaulkner'sstoriesreflecthisMississippiupbringing.

A)show

B)cover

C)visit

D)appear

13.AccordingtotheAmericanRedCross,bloodandplasmadonorsareurgentlyneededafter

naturaldisastersorothercatastrophes.

A)typically

B)desperately

C)tentatively

D)conceivably

14.DumpedwastemightconlaminateWatersupplies.

A）delay

B）destroy

C）decrease

D）pollute

15.Afterlisteningtothetestimony,themembersofthejurydeliveredtheirverdict.

A）foreman

B）decision

C）crossexamination

D）sentence

第二部分：阅读判断（第16~22题，每题1分，共7分）

阅读下面这篇短文，短文后列出7个句子，请根据短文的内容对每个句子做出判断。如

果该句提供的是正确信息，请在答题卡上把A涂黑；如果该句提供的是错误信息，请在答

题卡上把B涂黑；如果该句的信息在文章中没有提及，请在答题卡上把C涂黑。

GreenRoofResearch

Theconceptofgreenroofsisbasicallyaboutgrowingplantsonroofs,thushelpingtoreplace

thegreenfootprintthathadbeendestroyedduetotheconstructionofthebuilding.Greenroofsare

themostprevalent（流行）inGermany,whichiswidelyregardedastheleaderingreenroof

research.

Thegreenroofsthatareusedthesedayscanbeclassifiedas'extensive'and

intensive1systems.Extensivegreenroofsusemosses,grassesandherbs,whicharetolerant

todroughts.TheseplantsdonotReedmuchmaintenance,canbegrowninalayerofsubstrate（土

层）thatcanbeasshallowas1.5inches,andgenerallyareinaccessibletothepublic.Incontrast,a

widerangeofspeciesofplantsaregrownonintensivegreenroofs,suchasshrubs（灌木）andeven

trees,whichrequiredeepersubstratelayers,andareusuallygrownonflatroofs.Theyneed

intensivemaintenance,andareusuallyareasthatresembleparkswhichareaccessibletopeople.

Thereareseveralbenefitsofadoptinggreenrooftechnologies.Apartfromtheobvious

psychologicalandaesthetic（美学的）benefitsofgarden-likeenvironmentssurroundingyou,some

ofthecommoneconomicandecologicalbenefitsare：areductionintheconsumptionofenergy；

airandwaterpurification；recoveringgreenspaces；andthemitigation（缓解）ofthehealisland

effectinurbanareas.

Thegreenroofresearchthatiscurrentlyongoingisfocusedonevaluatingthespeciesof

plantsthataresuitabletobegrownonroofs,themethodsofpropagation（繁殖）aswellas

establishment,nutrient（养料）andwaterrequirement,substrates,andthequantityandquality

ofwaterrunoff.Theevaluationcriteriaofplantspeciesare：atwhatratetheycanbeestablished：

theircapacitytowithstandinvasiveweeds：toleranceofcoldandheat:toleranceofdrought

conditions:capacityofpersistenceandsurvival.

Anumberofexperimentsarebeingconductedonroofplatformsimulationsatvarious

researchcenters.Thesesitesaregenerallyoutfittedwithequipment,whichareusedtomeasure

temperaturesatdifferentdepthsofthegrowingsubstrates,andtherateandvolumeoftherunoffof

stormwatersfromeachoftheplatforms.

Greenrooftechnologyisrepresentativeofacompletelynewmarketforlandscapecontractors.

Andallroofsthatcurrentlyexistandthefutureonestobeconstructedarethepotentialmarket-a

marketthatistoohugetobeoverlooked.

16Itisestimatedthataround10percentoftheflatroofsinGermanyaregreen.

ARightBWrongCNotmentioned

17Germanpeoplepreferextensivegreenroofsystemstointensiveones.

ARightBWrongCNotmentioned

18Smallplantslikegrassesandherbsaregrownwidelyonintensivegreenroofs.

ARightBWrongCNotmentioned

19Greenroofisanecologicallysoundstrategyofspreadinggreeninurbanareas.

ARightBWrongCNotmentioned

20Oneofthebenefitsofgreenroofsisthereductionoftheheatislandeffectincities.

ARightBWrongCNotmentioned

21Onefocus；nthegreenroofresearchistheevaluationofsuitableplantspecies.

ARightBWrongCNotmentioned

22Althoughgreenrooftechnologycancreateagarden-likeenvironment,itspotentialmarket

israthersmall.

ARightBWrongCNotmentioned

第三部分：概括大意与完成句子（第23~30题，每题1分，共8分）

阅读下面这篇短文，短文后有2项测试任务：（1）第23〜26题要求从所给的6个选项中

为第2,3,5,6段每段选择1个正确的小标题；（2）第27〜30题要求从所给的6个选项中

选择4个正确选项，分别完成每个句子。请将答案涂在答题卡相应的位置匕

MoreThan8HoursSleepTooMuchofaGoodThing

Althoughthedangersoftoolittlesleeparewidelyknown,newresearchsuggeststhatpeople

whosleeptoomuchmayalsosuffertheconsequences.

InvestigatorsattheUniversityofCaliforniainSanDiegofoundthatpeoplewhoclockup9

or10hourseachweeknightappeartohavemoretroublefallingandstayingasleep,aswellasa

numberofothersleepproblems,thanpeoplewhosleep8hoursanight.Peoplewhosleptonly7

hourseachnightalsosaidtheyhadmoretroublefallingasleepandfeelingrefreshedafteranight'

ssleepthan8-hoursleepers.

Thesefindings,whichDLDanielKripkereportedinthejournalPsychosomaticMedicine,

demonstratethatpeoplewhowanttogetagoodnight'srestmaynotneedtosetasideomorethan

8hoursanight.Headdedthat“itmightbeagoodidea"forpeoplewhosleepmorethan8hours

eachnighttoconsiderreducingtheamountoftimetheyspendinbed,butcautionedthatmore

researchisneededtoconfirmthis.

Previousstudieshaveshownthepotentialdangersofchronicshortagesofsleep一for

instance,onereportdemonstratedthatpeoplewhohabituallysleeplessthan7hourseachnight

haveahigherriskofdyingwithinafixedperiodthanpeoplewhosleepmore.

Forthecurrentreport,Kripkereviewedtheresponsesof1,004adultstosleep

questionnaires,inwhichparticipantsindicatedhowmuchtheysleptduringtheWeekandwhether

theyexperiencedanysleepproblems.Sleepproblemsincludedwakinginthemiddleofthenight,

arisingearlyinthemorningandbeingunabletofallbacktosleep,andhavingfatigueinterfere

withday-to-dayfunctioning.

KriDkefoundthatpeoplewhosleptbetween9and10hourseachnightweremorelikelyto

reportexperiencingeachsleepproblemthanpeoplewhoslept8hours.Inaninterview,Kripke

notedthatlongsleepersmaystruggletogetrestatnightsimplybecausetheyspendtoomuchtime

inbed.Asevidence,headdedthatonewaytohelpinsomniaistospendlesstimeinbed."It

standstoreasonthatifapersonspendstoolongatimeinbed,thenthey'11spendahigher

percentageoftimeawake."hesaid.

23.Paragraph2_.

24.Paragraph4_.

25.Paragraph5_.

26.Paragraph6_.

A.Keprike'sresearchtool

B.DangersofHabitualshortagesofsleep

C.CriticismonKripke'sreport

D.Awayofovercominginsomnia

E.Sleepproblemsoflongandshortsleepers

F.Classificationofsleepproblems

27.TogetagoodnightJsrest,peoplemaynotneedto_.

28.Longsleepersarereportedtobemorelikelyto_.

29.Oneofthesleepproblemsiswakinginthemiddleofthenight,unableto_.

30.Onesurveyshowedthatpeoplewhohabitually__eachnighthaveahigherriskof

dying.

Afallasleepagain.

Bbecomemoreenergeticthefollowingday

Csleeplessthan7hours

Dconfirmthoseseriousconsequences

Esuffersleepproblems

Fsleepmorethan8hours

第四部分：阅读理解（第31~45题，每题3分，共45分）

下面有3篇短文，每篇短文后有5道题，每题后面有4个选项。请仔细阅读短文并根据

短文回答其后面的问题，从4个选项中选择1个最佳答案涂在答题卡相应的位置上。

第一篇AntsHaveBigImpactonEnvironmentas“EcosystemEngineers”

ResearchbytheUniversityofExeter1hasrevealedthatantshaveabigimpactontheirlocal

environmentasaresultoftheiractivityas“ecosystemengineers”andpredators.Thestudy,

publishedintheJournalofAnimalEcology,foundthatantshavetwodistincteffectsontheirlocal

environment.

Firstly,throughmovingofsoilbynestbuilding2activityandbycollectingfoodtheyaffect

thelevelofnutrientsinthesoil.Thiscanindirectlyimpactthelocalpopulationsofmanyanimal

groups,fromdecomposerstospeciesmuchhigherupthefoodchain.

Secondly,theypreyonawiderangeofotheranimals,includinglargerpreywhichcanbe

attackedbyvastnumbersofantworkers.

DirkSanders,anauthorofthestudyfromtheuniversity'sCentreforEcologyand

Conservation,said:"Antsareveryeffectivepredatorswhichthriveinhugenumbers.They'realso

veryterritorialandveryaggressive,defendingtheirresourcesandterritoryagainstother

predators.Allofthismeanstheyhaveastronginfluenceontheirsurroundingarea.v

“Inthisresearch,westudiedforthefirsttimehowbigthisimpactisandthesubtletiesofit.

Whatwefoundisthatdespitebeingpredators,theirpresencecanalsoleadtoanincreasein

densityanddiversityofotheranimalgroups4.Theygenuinelyplayakeyroleinthelocal

environment,havingabiginfluenceonthegrasslandfoodweb,''Sanderssaid.

Thestudy,carriedoutinGermany,studiedtheimpactofthepresenceofdifferent

combinationsanddensitiesofblackgardenantsandcommonredants,bothspecieswhichcanbe

foundacrossEurope,includingintheUK.Itfoundthatalowdensityofantsinanareaincreased

thediversityanddensityofotheranimalsinthelocalarea,particularlythedensityofherbivores

anddecomposers.Athigherdensitiesantshadnoortheoppositeeffect,showingthatpredationis

counteractingthepositiveinfluence.

DrFrankvanVeen,anotherauthoronthestudy,said:"Whatwefindisthattheimpactofants

onsoilnutrientlevelshasapositiveeffectonanimalgroupsatlowlevels,butasthenumberof

antsincreases,theirpredatoryimpactshavethebiggereffect—therebycounteractingthepositive

influenceviaecosystemengineering.M

Antsareimportantcomponentsofecosystemsnotonlybecausetheyconstituteagreatpartof

theanimalbiomass5butalsobecausetheyactasecosystemengineers.Antbiodiversity6is

incrediblyhighandtheseorganismsarehighlyresponsivetohumanimpact,whichobviously

reducesitsrichness.However,itisnotclearhowsuchdisturbancedamagesthemaintenanceof

antservicestotheecosystem?.Antsareimportantinbelowgroundprocesses8throughthe

alterationofthephysicalandchemicalenvironmentandthroughtheireffectsonplants,

microorganisms,andothersoilorganisms.

31.Whyareantscomparedtoecosystemengineers?

ABecausetheybuildtheirownnests.

BBecausetheycollectfood.

CBecausetheiractivityaffectstheenvironment.

DBecausetheyarepredators.

32.Aspredators,ants

Apreyonsmallaswellaslargeanimals.

Bcollectnutritiousfoodfromthesoil

Ccollectfoodasdecomposers.

Dpreyonspeciesmuchhigherupthefoodchain.

33.DirSanders,studycenteredonhowants

Acanmanagetothriveinhugenumbers.

Bdefendtheirresourcesandterritoryagainstotherpredators.

Cattackthoseinvadinganimalsforsurvival.

Dproducesuchabigimpactontheenvironment.

34.Whatdoesparagraph6tellus?

AAntsbringaboutanegativeinfluencetoanareawhentheirpopulationissmall.

BAntsbringaboutapositiveinfluencetoanareawhentheirpopulationissmall.

CAnts'predationcounteractsthepositiveinfluencetheymayhaveonanarea.

DAthigherdensity,antsproduceapositiveinfluenceonanarea.

35.Whatstillremainsunclearaboutants,accordingtothelastparagraph?

AWhatrolesdoantsplayintheecosysteminwhichtheylive?

BHowdoantsaffecttheanimaldiversityinagivenecosystem?

CHowdohumanactivitiesaffectants1influenceonagivenecosystem?

DHowdoantsalterthephysicalandchemicalenvironment?

第二篇CellPhones:HangUporKeepTalking?

Millionsofpeopleareusingcellphonestoday.Inmanyplacesitisactuallyconsidered

unusualnottouseone.Inmanycountries,cellphonesareverypopularwithyoungpeople.They

findthatthephonesaremorethanameansofcommunication—havingamobilephoneshowsthat

theyarecoolandconnected.

Theexplosionsaroundtheworldinmobilephoneusemakesomehealthprofessionalworried.

Somedoctorsareconcernedthatinthefuturemanypeoplemaysufferhealthproblemsfromthe

useofmobilephones.InEngland,therehasbeenaserousdebateaboutthisissue.Mobilephone

companiesareworriedaboutthenegativepublicityofsuchideas.Theysaythatthereisnoproof

thatmobilephonesarebadforyourhealth.

Ontheotherhand,whydosomemedicalstudiesshowchangesinthebraincellsofsome

peoplewhousemobilephones?Signsofchangeintheissuesofthebrainandheadcanbe

detectedwithmodernscanning（扫描）equipment.Inonecase,atravelingsalesmanhadtoretire

atayoungagebecauseofseriousmemoryloss.Hecouldn'trememberevensimpletasks.He

wouldoftenforgetthenameofhisownson.Thismanusedtotalkonhismobilephoneforabout

sixhoursaday,everydayofhisworkingweek,foracoupleofyears.Hisfamilydoctorblamed

hismobilephoneuse,buthisemployer'sdoctordidn'tagree.

Whatisitthatmakesmobilephonespotentiallyharmful?Theanswerisradiation.High-tech

machinescandetectverysmallamountsofradiationfrommobilephones.Mobilephone

companiesagreethatthereissomeradiation,buttheysaytheamountistoosmalltoworryabout.

Asthediscussionabouttheirsafetycontinues,itappearsthatit'sbesttousemobilephones

lessoften.Useyourregularphoneifyouwanttotalkforalongtime.Useyourmobilephoneonly

whenyoureallyneedit.Mobilephonescanbeveryusefulandconvenient,especiallyin

emergencies.Inthefuture,mobilephonesmayhaveawarninglabelthatsaystheyarebadfor

yourhealth.Sofornow,ifswisenottouseyourmobilephonetoooften.

36.PeoplebuycellphonesforthefollowingreasonsEXCEPTthat

A.they'repopular.

B.they9recheap.

C.they're.useful

D.they'reconvenient.

37.Theword“detected”inparagraph3couldbebestreplacedby

A.cured.

B.removed.

C.discovered.

D.caused.

38.Thesalesmanretiredyoungbecause

A.hedislikedusingmobilephones.

B.hewastiredoftalkingonhismobilephone.

C.hecouldn'tremembersimpletasks.

D.hisemployer'sdoctorpersuadedhimto.

39.Onthesafetyissueofmobilephones,themanufacturingcompanies

A.denytheexistenceofmobilephoneradiation.

B.developnewtechnologytoreducemobilephoneradiation.

C.trytoprovethatmobilephonesarenotharmfultohealth.

D.holdthattheamountofradiationistoosmalltoworryabout.

40.Thewriter'spurposeofwritingthisarticleistoadvisepeople

A.tobuymobilephones.

B.toupdateregularphones.

C.tousemobilephoneslessoften.

D.tostopusingmobilephones.

第三篇TeachingMath,TeachingAnxiety

Inanewstudyaboutthewaykidslearnmathinelementaryschool,thepsychologistsatthe

UniversityofChicago1SianBeilockandSusanLevinefoundasurprisingrelationshipbetween

whatfemaleteachersthinkandwhatfemalestudentslearn:Ifafemaleteacherisuncomfortable

withherownmathskills,thenherfemalestudentsaremorelikelytobelievethatboysarebetter

thangirlsatmath.

"Ifthesegirlskeepgettingmath-anxiousfemaleteachers2inlatergrades,itmaycreatea

snowballeffectontheirmathachievement?,"saidLevine.Inotherwords,girlsmayendup

learningmathanxietyfromtheirteachers4.Thestudysuggeststhatifthesegirlsgrowup

believingthatboysarebetteratmaththangirlsare,thenthesegirlsmaynotdoaswellasthey

wouldhaveiftheyweremoreconfident.

Justasstudentsfindcertainsubjectstobedifficult,teacherscanfindcertainsubjectstobe

difficulttolearn-andteach.Thesubjectofmathcanbeparticularlydifficultforeveryone.

Researchersusetheword"anxiety"todescribesuchfeelings:anxietyisuneasinessorworry.

Thenewstudyfoundthatwhenateacherhasanxietyaboutmath,thatfeelingcaninlluence

howherfemalestudentsfeelaboutmath.Thestudyinvolved65girls,52boysand17first-and

second-gradeteachersinelementaryschoolsintheMidwest.Thestudentstookmathachievement

testsatthebeginningandendoftheschoolyear,andtheresearcherscomparedthescores.

Theresearchersalsogavethestudentsteststotellwhetherthestudentsbelievedthatamath

superstarhadtobeaboy.Thentheresearchersturnedtotheteachers:Tofindoutwhichteachers

wereanxiousaboutmath,theresearchersaskedtheteachershowtheyfeltattimeswhenthey

cameacrossmath,suchaswhenreadingasalesreceipts.Ateacherwhogotnervouslookingatthe

numbersonasalesreceipt,forexample,wasprobablyanxiousaboutmath.

Boys,onaverage,wereunaffectedbyateacher'sanxiety.Onaverage,girlswith

math-anxiousteachersscoredlowerontheend-of-the-yearmathteststhanothergirlsinthestudy

did.Plus,onthetestshowingwhethersomeonethoughtamathsuperstarhadtobeaboy,20girls

showedfeelingthatboyswouldbebetteratmath-andallofthesegirlshadbeentaughtbyfemale

teacherswhohadmathanxiety.

'Thisisaninterestingstudy,buttheresultsneedtobeinterpretedaspreliminaryandinneed

ofreplicationwithalargersample6,"saidDavidGeary,apsychologistattheUniversityof

Missouri7inColumbia.

41.WhatistheresultoftheresearchattheUniversityofChicago,accordingtothefirst

paragraph?

AGirlscomfortablewiththeirownmathskillsarebetterthanboysatmath.

BGirlsuncomfortablewiththeirownmathskillsarenotasgoodasboysatmath.

CFemaleBachers'mathskillshaveinfluenceovergirlstudents*mathskills.

DFemaleteachers*confidenceintheirmathskillsisrelatedtogirfsmathskills.

42.Whatisimpliedinthethirdparagraph?

AMathteachers,likemathlearners,donotlikethesubjectduetoitsdifficulty.

BAdifficultsubjectlikemathmayaffectteachers'confidenceinteachingthesubject.

CTeachersaremoreanxiousteachingmaththantheirstudentslearningmath.

DMathissodifficultthatnoteachersliketoteachit.

43.Accordingtotheexperiment,thoseteacherswereprobablyanxiousaboutmathwhenthey

felt

Anervousmemorizingthenumbersofasalesreceipt.

Bhelplesssavingthe,numbersofasalesreceipt.

Cuneasyreadingthenumbersofasalesreceipt.

Dhopelessfillinginthenumbersofasalesreport.

44.Thesixthparagraphtellsusthattheresearchfindings

Aproveastronglinkbetweenfemaleteachers'mathanxietyandtheirfemalestudents'

mathachievements.

Bshowthatmalestudentsarelesslikelytobeaffectedbytheirmathanxietythanfemale

students.

Cprovidestrongevidencethatmathsuperstarsaremorelikelytobemalesthanfemales.

Ddiscoverastronglinkbetweenteachers'mathanxietyandtheirstudents*math

achievements.

45.DavidGearythinksthat

Athestudyisinterestingbutitisbasedonunreliableresearchprocess.

Btheresearchresultsneedtoberetestedbasedonalargersample.

Ctheresearchresultsneedtobereinterpretedtobemeaningful.

Dthestudyiswellbasedandproducessignificantresults.

第五部分：补全短文（第46~50题，每题2分，共10分）

阅读下面的短文，文章中有5处空白，文章后面有6组文字，请根据文章的内容选择5

组文字，将其分别放回文章原有位置，以恢复文章原貌。请将答案涂在答题卡相应的位置上。

Garlic

Fromearlytimesmanhasusedgarlic（大蒜）.TheBiblespeaksofit.TheIsraelites（古以色

歹U人）wereoncefarfromhome.TheycriedouttoMoses,theirleader,forthefoodstheyloved:

leeks（韭菜），onions,andgarlic.TheRomans,liketheIsraelites,lovedtoeatgarlic.Andthey

hungbagsofgarlicaroundtheirnecks.（46）Theyalsothoughtitwouldkeepthemfrom

gettingsick.

Asimilarideaisstillheld.Manypeopletakegarlicthinkingitwillpreventorcuredisease.

Mostdoctorssayitdoesnosuchthing.（47）Itssmellmayforcepeopletostayfarapart.At

leastthentheycan'tpassgermsontoeachother.（48）Whatifyou'reinaplay,forinstance?

Actorshavebeenknowntoforgettheirlinesbecausetheycouldn'tstandthegarlicsmellona

fellowactor'sbreath.Somehaveevenmadeupnewlinesandactionsthatkeptthemfaraway

fromtheonewhohadeatengarlic.

Throughtheyearsmanhastriedtocopewiththesmellofgarlic.（49）Wenowknow

why.It'sbeenfoundthattheoilsofthegarlicdonotsticktotheteeth,Garlictongue,orgums（齿

龈）.Theygointothelungsinstead.Fromtheretheyarebreathedout.Theypassoutthroughthe

skintoo.

Strangeasitseems,foodmayhaveagreatdealofgarlicinitwithoutsmellingortasting

strong.Italldependsonhowitiscooked.Frenchcooksmakeagoodsoupwithwholecloves（瓣）

ofgarlic.Theyusemorethanthirtyclovesinonebowlofsoup.Buttheytakecarenottocrush

them.Andtheycookthemwhole.（50）Andastheclovescooktheychangeinsomestrange

way.Thesoupturnsouttobedelicious.It'snotstrongatall.

AButnomedicine,mouthwash,chewinggum,ortoothpasteseemstohelpmuch

BAsaresult,thestrongoilsstayinthecloves.

CTheysayitmayhelpinoneway,though.

DManypeopleeatgarlic.

EButkeepingyourdistancecanbehardattimes.

FTheyhopeditwouldkeepawaytheevileye.

第六部分：完形填空（第51~65题，每题1分，共15分）

阅读下面的短文，文中有15处空白，每处空白给出了4个选项，请根据短文的内容从

4个选项中选择1个最佳答案，涂在答题卡相应的位置上。

“Liquefaction”KeytoMuchofJapaneseEarthquakeDamage

ThemassivesubductionzoneearthquakeinJapancausedasignificantlevelofsoil

“liquefaction“thathassurprisedresearcherswithitswidespreadseverity,anewanalysis51.

“Weveseenlocalizedexamplesofsoilliquefactionasextremeasthisbefore,butthe

distanceand52ofdamageinJapanwere53severe,vsaidScottAshford,aprofessorof

geotechnicalengineeringatOregonStateUniversity.aEntirestructuresweretiltedandsinking

intothesediments,Ashfordsaid."Theshiftsinsoildestroyedwater,drainandgaspipelines,

cripplingtheutilitiesandinfrastructurethesecommunitiesneedtofunction.Wesawsomeplaces

thatsankas54asfourfeel.”

Somedegreeofsoilliquefactioniscommoninalmostanymajorearthquake.Itsa

phenomenoninwhichsoilssoakedwithwater,55recentsedimentsorsand,canlosemuchoftheir

56andflowduringanearthquake.Thiscanallowstructurestoshiftorsinkorcollapse.

ButmostearthquakesaremuchshorterthantherecenteventinJapan,Ashfordsaid.Thelength

oftheJapaneseearthquake,asmuchasfiveminutes,mayforceresearchersto57theextentof

liquefactiondamagepossiblyoccurringinsituationssuchasthis.

“Withsuchalonglastingearthquake,wesaw58structuresthatmighthavebeenokayafter

30secondsjustcontinuedtosinkandtiltastheshakingcontinuedforseveralmoreminutes,“he

said."Anditwasclearthatyoungersediments,andespeciallyareasbuiltonrecentlyfilled

ground,aremuchmore59.”

ThedataprovidedbyanalyzingtheJapaneseearthquake,researcherssaid,shouldmakeit

possibletoimprovetheunderstandingofthissoilphenomenonandbetterprepare60itinthe

future.Ashfordsaiditwascriticalfortheteamtocollecttheinformation61,beforedamagewas

removedintherecoveryefforts.

uTheresnodoubtthatwe11learnthingsfromwhathappenedinJapanthatwillhelpus

toreducerisksinothersimilar62,“Ash