迷你“豆荚屋”，有房不是梦！
An engineer is trying to solve housing crisis by creating £21,000 pods inspired by the traditional British playground pastime. He claimed to have found the perfect solution for young people returning home after university with his design. The pods can be installed in parents’ back garden in just one day and function as an independent living space for young adults as they try to jump on the housing ladder.
The structures, called Conkers, measure almost 13ft (3.9m) in diameter and are made entirely out of materials sourced in Britain. Several of them can be fitted together to create space for a double bed, storage for clothes, a kitchen and even a bathroom with a toilet and shower.
The father-of-two, from Wistaston, Cheshire, said, “I believe that people will look to live in The Conker as their home. The prices start from £21,000 and then you can choose how you want it equipped. For an office, we have designed a three-metre long desk with drawers and a table. I currently use one as my office and for when people come and see me. You can have it as a conference room with seats, a round table and a projector.”
Mr Virdie, who began his career in engineering design at Rolls Royce, said, “The independent living idea came to me following a discussion with my friends. Their daughter is at the university in her home town and she has decided to stay at home for financial reasons. They want her to have a real taste of independence—to come and go as she pleases, which isn’t easy when they’re sharing more than a front door. Years ago I designed a tree-house for my children—a perfect sphere we hung from a large tree in our garden which we called ‘The Conker’. I wondered if something similar could be created to serve as a self-sufficient living space for a student or first-jobber, so I created a new one.”
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1.Who will be interested in the pods?
A The people who like playing on traditional British playground.
B The young people who just have difficulty in buying their own houses.
C The students who are learning in the universities.
D The people who want to live in the garden.
解析：选B。推理判断题。根据第一段最后两句的内容可知这个发明是为没有房子的年轻人而设计的，因此那些存在购房困难的年轻人会感兴趣，故选B。
2.How can people make larger living space with Conkers?
A They use materials sourced in Britain.
B They try to store clothes in the pods.
C They just fit several of them together.
D They are made 13 feet in diameter.
解析：选C。推理判断题。根据第二段第二句Several of them can be fitted together to create space for a double bed, storage for clothes, a kitchen and even a bathroom with a toilet and shower.可推知是要把几个这样的结构拼接起来才能创造更大的生活空间，故选C。
3.What is the main idea of Paragraph 3?
A The pods can fit different needs.
B People can have meetings in the pods.
C The pods can be fitted with tables.
D People want to use pods as offices.
解析：选A。主旨大意题。根据第三段第二句的then you can choose how you want it equipped可知人们可以根据自己的需要来进行配置，即这种豆荚屋可满足不同的需求，故选A。
4.How did Mr Virdie get the idea of living independently?
A When he needed independent living place.
B When he had a real taste of independence.
C After he designed a tree-house for children.
D After he had a conversation with his friends.
解析：选D。细节理解题。根据最后一段第一句The independent living idea came to me following a discussion with friends可知他是在和朋友的一次交谈后产生这种想法的，故选D。