The procedure for licensing nuclear power plants is a bad dream. Any time during, or even after, construction, an objection by any group or individual can bring everything to a halt while the matter is investigated or taken to court. Meanwhile, the builder must add nice-but-not-necessary improvements, some of which force him to knock down walls and start over. In every case when a plant has been opposed, the Nuclear Regulation Commission has ultimately granted a license to construct or operate. But the victory often costs so much that the utility ends up abandoning the plant anyway.

　　A case in point is the Shoreham plant on New York's Long Island. Shoreham was a virtual twin to the Millstone plant in Connecticut, both ordered in the mid-60's. Millstone, completed for $ 101 million, has been generating electricity for two decades. Shoreham, however, was singled out by antinuclear activists who, by sending in endless protests, drove the cost over $ 5 billion and delayed its use for many years.

　　Shoreham finally won its operation license. But the plant has never produced a watt power. Governor Mario Cuomo, an opponent of a Shoreham start up, used his power to force New York's public-utilities commission to accept the following settlement: the power company could pass the cost of Shoreham along to its consumers only if it agreed not to operate the plant. I'oday, a perfectly good facility, capable of servicing hundreds of thousands of homes, sits rusting.

　　21.The author's attitude toward the development of nuclear power is______.

　　A. negative B. neutral

　　C. positive D. questioning

　　22.What has made the procedure for licensing nuclear power plants a bad dream?

　　A. The inefficiency of the Nuclear Regulation Commission. B. The enormous cost of construction and operation.

　　C. The length of time it takes to make investigations.

　　D. The objection of the opponents of nuclear power.

　　23.It can be inferred from Paragraph 2 that______.

　　A. there are not enough safety measures in the U. S. for running new nuclear power plants

　　B. it is not technical difficulties that prevent the building of nuclear power plants in the U. S.

　　C. there are already more nuclear power plants than necessary in the U. S.

　　D. the American government will not allow Japanese nuclear reactors to be installed in the U. S.

　　24. Governor Mario Cuomo's chief intention in proposing the settlement was to_______.

　　A. stop the Shoreham plant from going into operation

　　B. urge the power company to further increase its power supply

　　C. permit the Shoreham plant to operate under certain conditions

　　D. help the power company to solve its financial problems

　　25. The phrase "single out" is closest in meaning to_______.

　　A. delay B. end up

　　C. complete D. separate

　　21. C 22. D 23. B 24. A 25. D

　　Water problems in the future will become more intense and more complex. Our increasing population will tremendously increase urban wastes, primarily sewage. On the other hand, increasing demands for water will decrease substantially the amount of water available for diluting wastes. Rapidly expanding industries which involve more and more complex chemical processes will produce large volumes of liquid wastes, and many of these will contain chemicals which are poisonous. To feed our rapidly expanding population, agriculture will have to be intensified. This will involve ever-increasing quantities of agriculture chemicals. From this, it is apparent that drastic steps must be taken immediately to develop corrective measures for the pollution problem.

　　There are two ways by which this pollution problem can be lessened. The first relates to the treatment of wastes to decrease their pollution hazard. This involves the processing of solid wastes "prior to" disposal and the treatment of liquid wastes, or effluents (廢料) , to permit the reuse of the water or best reduce pollution upon final disposal.

　　A second approach is to develop an economic use for all or a part of the wastes. Farm manure is spread in fields as a nutrient (養(yǎng)料 ) or organic supplement. Effluents from sewage disposal plants are used in some areas both for irrigation and for the nutrients contained. Effluents from other processing plants may also be used as a supplemental source of water. Many industries, such as meat and poultry processing plants, are currently converting former waste production into marketable byproducts. Other industries have potential economic uses for their waste products.

　　26. The purpose of this passage is_______.

　　A. to warn the reader of the dwindling water supply

　　B. to explain industrial uses of water

　　C. to acquaint the reader with water pollution problems

　　D. to demonstrate various measures to solve the pollution problem Which of the following points is not included in the passage?

　　A. Industrial development includes the simplification of complex chemical processes.

　　B. Diluting wastes needs certain amount of water.

　　C. Demands for water will go up along with the expanding population.

　　D. Intensive cultivation of land requires more and more chemicals. The reader can conclude that_______.

　　A. countries of the world will work together on pollution problems

　　B. byproducts from wastes lead to a more prosperous marketplace

　　C. science is making great progress on increasing water supplies

　　D. some industries are now making economic use of wastes

　　The author gives substance to the passage through the use of_______.

　　A. interviews with authorities in the field of water controls

　　B. opinion and personal observations

　　C. definitions which clarify important terms

　　D. strong argument and persuasions

　　The words "prior to" (Para. 2) probably mean_______.

　　A. after B. during

　　C. before D. beyond

　　26. C 27. A 28. D 29. B 30. C