TOEFL READING 1993/10(5)
In 1868 Alfred Ely Beach, the 44-year-old publisher of Scientific American magazine and avid part-time inventor, built New
York's first subway . Its site was. 21 feet beneath Broadway, between Warren and Murray streets. The tunnel itself was 9 feet in
diameter, 312 feet long, and held one cylindrical car capable of going about 10 miles an hour. A giant 100-horsepower blower
propelled the vehicle along a track until it reached the far end, where the fan, reversed by a trip wire , slowed the car to a stop
and then pulled it back the other way.
The elegance of this first subway will probably never be surpassed . The decor of Beach's tunnel platform included finepaintings, frescoed walls, a gram piano, a fountain, and a goldfish tank bringing the total private expenditure for the tunnel to $350,000. Overshadowed by all this was Beach's substantial contribution to engineering, his method of tunnel
construction: a hydraulic shield that looked something like an open-ended tin can and was propelled by pistons that drove it through the earth. Dirt removal and bricklaying went on inside the shield, affording the workers complete protection against cave-ins. The shield would later be used for construction of London's Thames, Glasgow's Clyde, and New York's Hudson tunnels.
After the stock exchange collapse of 1873, the subway was sealed up and forgotten. From then on, Beach devoted himself to publishing and did not live to see New York achieve his dream. In 1912, workers digging a new subway tunnel unexpectedly broke into Beach's subway and found the little car sitting on its tracks, the whole tunnel still remarkably intact. Today the Beach tunnel is part of the City Hall subway station, where a plaque commemorates Beach's pioneering and maverick achievement.
重点单词：
scientific : a. 科学的,系统的,符合科学规律的
avid : a. 热望的,急切的,贪婪的
inventor : n. 发明家
subway : n. 地下铁道,地道;vi. 乘坐地下铁路
beneath : ad. 在...之下;prep. 在...之下
Broadway : n. 纵贯纽约市的大街道,百老汇
tunnel : n. 隧道,地下道;vi. 挖隧道;vt. 掘隧道于
diameter : n. 直径
cylindrical : a. 圆柱形的,圆柱体的,圆筒形的,柱面的
capable : a. 有能力的,能的,能干的
giant : n. 巨人,大力士,巨大的怪物;a. 庞大的,巨大的
horsepower : n. 马力
blower : n. 吹制工,送风机,吹风机
propel : vt. 推进,驱使
vehicle : n. 交通工具,车辆,传达媒介
reversed : a. 反面的,相反的,反向的,颠倒的
wire : n. 电线,电报,电信,铁丝网,金属丝;vt. 用金属丝卷起,拍电报;vi.
打电报
elegance : n. 高雅,典雅,优雅
surpass : vt. 超越,凌驾,胜过
decor : n. 装饰
platform : n. 月台,讲台,坛,平台
fresco : n. 在新涂灰泥的墙壁上作的水彩画,壁画;vt.
作壁画于
gram : n. 克, 绿豆
fountain : n. 水源,源,喷泉,泉水,本源
goldfish : n. 金鱼
private : a. 私人的,秘密的,私立的,隐蔽的;n. 士兵,阴部
expenditure : n. 开支,费用,消费额
overshadow : vt. 遮阴,使阴暗,使失色
substantial : n. 重要部分,本质;a. 实质上的,物质的,有内容的,结实的
contribution : n. 捐助,捐助之物,贡献
hydraulic : a. 水力的,水压的
shield : n. 盾,防卫物;vt. 保护,遮蔽,庇护,挡开,避开;vi.
起保护作用
open-ended : a. 末端开口的,自由回答的
piston : n. 活塞,瓣
dirt : n. 污垢,泥土
removal : n. 移动,移居,迁移,切除,除去,排除
bricklaying : n. 砌砖,砌砖工作
afford : vt. 提供,供应得起,给予
cave-in : n. 陷落
construction : n. 建筑,构造,建筑物
exchange : n. 交换,汇兑,交易所;vt. vi. 交换,交易,兑换
collapse : n. 崩溃,倒塌,虚脱;vi. 倒塌,崩溃,瓦解;vt. 使倒塌,折叠
sealed : a. 未知的,密封的 devoted : a. 投入的,深爱的
achieve : vt. 完成,达到;vi. 如愿以偿
remarkably : ad. 显著地,引人注目地,非常地
intact : a. 尚未被人碰过的,原封不动的,完整的
plaque : n. 匾,饰板,名牌,血小板
commemorate : vt. 纪念
pioneer : n. 先锋,拓荒者,开辟者;vt. 提倡,开辟;vi. 作先驱;a.
最早的,开拓的,先驱的
maverick : n. 未烙饲主印记的小牛,不服从的人;vi. 迷路
achievement : n. 成就,完成,功业
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