素材段落

　　Established in 1964, the Shinkansen, a network of high-speed railway lines in Japan, has expanded to link most of the cities on the islands of Honshu and Kyushu. Carrying over ten billion passengers per year, it has transported more passengers than any other high-speed line in the world. Between Tokyo and Osaka, the two largest metropolises in Japan, up to thirteen trains per hour with sixteen cars each (1,323-seat capacity) run in each direction with a minimum headway of three minutes between trains. More importantly, the Shinkansen has a significant impact on Japan’s economy. Switching from a conventional to a high-speed network has been estimated to save 400 million travel hours annually, which equals an economic influence of 500 billion yen per year. In terms of environmental benefits, travelling by the Tokyo-Osaka Shinkansen line produces only around 16% of the carbon dioxide that a car would produce on an equivalent journey. This adds up to 15,000 tons of carbon dioxide each year which is no longer dispersed into the atmosphere.

　　单词和词组

　　expand 扩展、延伸=develop, extend

　　expand one’s scope of knowledge

　　in terms of 鉴于

　　=with regards to, with respect to

　　In terms of budget allocation, some people advocate that more support should be given to young children’s education rather than to universities.

　　句型结构

　　…, a network of high-speed railway lines in Japan, … 插入语结构

　　The Forbidden City, the biggest palace complex in the world, offers visitors a look at what it was like to live in historical China.

　　话题词汇

　　基础建设 infrastructure

　　公共交通系统 public transportation system

　　交通方式 means/mode of transportation

　　高铁 high-speed train

　　高峰时段 rush hour

　　交通拥堵 traffic congestion

　　过度拥挤 overcrowding