Name ______Core ______Date ______

China Reaching New Heights

BEIJING, ChinaIn China, city planning is definitely looking up. China is building skyscrapers at a furious pace, both in well-known urban areas and more obscure locales. At the current rate, China is on track to pass the U.S., which is the birthplace of the skyscraper, as the country with the most buildings among the world's 100 tallest.

The shift in skyscraper construction is drastic. North America's share of the 100 tallest buildings will fall from 80 percent in 1990 to 18 percent by 2012. That is according to Antony Wood, executive director of the Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. He says that by 2012, 34 of the tallest 100 buildings will be in China.

"So 34 percent of the 100 tallest buildings will be in a single country. That has only happened once before. And that was with the USA," Wood said. Part of China's wave of skyscraper construction includes the Shanghai Tower. The 2,074-foot tower will be China's tallest building. It will also be the second-tallest building in the world. Only the 163-story BurjKhalifa in Dubai will be taller.

The 121-story Shanghai Tower is due to be completed in 2014. It's far more than just a record-setting high-rise building. It will also be the most eco-friendly skyscraper in China. Facing pressure from the government to make buildings environmentally friendly and make them fit into already cramped business districts, builders are pushing design in new directions. The Shanghai Tower will showcase a sustainable design that developers say will set a new standard for "green" (environmentally friendly) communities. The building will be in 100,000 square feet of open green space. This space will be a public park and the front entry to the tower. Wind turbines will be placed on the roof to generate power. The building will also capture rainwater that will be used for heating and cooling. In addition, the outside glass on the building will allow sunlight in to support nine sky gardens.

The Shanghai Tower is one of many projects that is providing work for architects and engineers. Because it employs so many people and is so elaborate, the Shanghai skyscraper is considered a sign of vitality and wealth in the economy. The latest trend in skyscraper-building points to a change in global economics. The tallest buildings are no longer being constructed in America, where the economy is weak, but in China.

In the U.S., the high-rise market is "pretty much dead," said Dan Winey. Winey is a managing director for Gensler, the Shanghai Tower's San Francisco-based architectural firm. "For us, China in the next 10 to 15 years is going to be a huge market." He says the advanced environmental features being included in the Shanghai Tower might be rejected as too costly in the U.S. or other western markets. Financial gloom has shut down plans for new towers in Chicago, Moscow, Dubai, and other cities.

China, on the other hand, is experiencing economic growth forecast at 10 percent in 2011. This, along with demand for space in a crowded country, is driving the need to build fast and tall. Chinese leaders want to promote their cities as commercial centers. They hope to do this with structures that will draw more businesses and people to their cities.

"Governments [in China] are encouraging these [symbolic] buildings in order to give a very clear message to the outside world: Please pay attention to our city," said Dennis Poon. Poon is a manager at Thornton Tomasetti, the Shanghai Tower's structural engineering company.

Dictionary

drastic (adjective) serious or severe

financial (adjective) having to do with money

obscure (adjective) unknown; not famous

sustainable (adjective) able to be continued with little or no long-term effect on the environment

vitality (noun) The capacity to grow or develop

Multiple Choice: Circle the letter of the choice the best completes the statement. (2 points each)

1. According to the article, why is construction of the Shanghai Tower important?

  1. The building will help the economy of China, which has become very weak.
  2. The building is significantly taller than any other skyscraper in the world.
  3. The building represents economic stability and provides many jobs to Chinese workers.
  4. The building will provide jobs to workers from cities around the world.

2. What is this article mainly about?

  1. China's new skyscrapers will have wind turbines on the roof to generate power as part of an effort to make them sustainable.
  2. China is building skyscrapers, which is providing jobs and showing the world that China is doing well.
  3. Part of China's wave of construction includes the Shanghai Tower, which will be the second-tallest building in the world.
  4. Financial gloom has shut down plans for new skyscrapers in Chicago, Moscow, Dubai, and other cities.

3. Based on the article, the reader can predict that ______.

  1. The Shanghai Tower will create more pollution than most other buildings.
  2. The Shanghai Tower will be completed years earlier than planned.
  3. China's new Shanghai Tower will become a tourist attraction.
  4. China will start building more one-story buildings in business districts.

4. The article states: The Shanghai Tower is one of many projects that is providing work for architects and engineers. Because it employs so many people and is so elaborate, the Shanghai skyscraper is considered a sign of vitality and wealth in the economy. Which would be the closest synonym for the word elaborate?

  1. Reliable
  2. Fundamental
  3. Sophisticated
  4. Isolated

5. Which of these is a statement of opinion?

  1. The environmental features in the Shanghai Tower could be better.
  2. China's Shanghai Tower will be the second-tallest building in the world.
  3. The U.S. is the birthplace of the skyscraper.
  4. The BurjKhalifa is a skyscraper in Dubai.

6. The author probably wrote this article to ______.

  1. Describe the uses for a new skyscraper called Shanghai Tower
  2. Convince the reader that skyscrapers are environmentally friendly
  3. Inform the reader about wind turbines as a source of energy
  4. Illustrate that China is undergoing rapid development

7. Which is the closest synonym for the word drastic?

  1. Miraculous
  2. Basic
  3. Extreme
  4. Horrid

8. Which question is not answered by the article?

  1. Which cities have put off plans for new skyscrapers?
  2. What are some of the features planned for Shanghai Tower?
  1. Which company employs Dennis Poon as a manager?
  2. Where is the tallest skyscraper in the U.S.

Opinion Question:Do you think it's important for countries to build skyscrapers?

Math- China has 6 of the world's 15 tallest buildings, and the U.S. has 3 of the world's 15 tallest buildings. What percentage of the world's 15 tallest buildings are not found in the U.S. or in China?

  1. 60%
  2. 30%
  3. 50%
  4. 40%

Thought Question:Bar graphs are used to compare data amounts. The bar graph below shows some facts about skyscrapers in four countries:

Study the bar graph. Which country has the least number of skyscrapers? Which city has the most skyscrapers? Which cities seem to have about the same number of skyscrapers? About how many skyscrapers do these places have? How can you tell? Finally, how might this bar graph look different with data from 2015? Explain, using details from the article and your own ideas.