Text 2 Nowadays, a standard for measuring power has changed. These changes foretell a new standard for measuring power. No longer will a nation’s political influence be based solely on the strength of its military forces. Of course, military effectiveness will remain a primary measure of power. But political influence is also closely tied to industrial competitiveness. It’s often said that without its military the Soviet Union would really be a third-world nation. The new standard of power and influence that is evolving now places more emphasis on the ability of a country to compete effectively in the economic markets of the world. America must recognize this new course of events. Our success in shaping world events over the past 40 years has been the direct result of our ability to adapt technology and to take advantage of the capabilities of our people for the purpose of maintaining peace. Our industrial prowess(威力)over most of this period was unchallenged. It is ironic(有讽刺性的) that it is just this prowess that has enabled other countries to prosper and in turn to threaten our industrial leadership. The competitiveness of America’s industrial base is an issue bigger than the department of defense and is going to require the efforts of the major institutional forces in our society, government, industry, and education. That is not to say that the defense department will not be a strong force in the process. But we simply cannot be, nor should we be, looked upon by others as the savior(救星) of American industry. America succeeded in shaping world events over the past 40 years probably because of______.
A. its ability to adapt technology
B. its ability to take advantage of the capabilities of its people
C. its ability to compete in the word markets
D. both A and B
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Text 3 Increasingly, over the past ten years, people—especially young people—have become aware of the need to change their eating habit, because much of the food they eat, particularly processed foods, is not good for health. Consequently, there has been a growing interest in natural foods: foods which do not contain chemical additives and which have not been affected by chemical fertilizers, widely used in farming today. Natural foods, for example, are vegetable, fruit and grain which have been grown in soil and are rich in organic matter. In simple terms, this means that the soil has been nourished by unused vegetable matter, which provides it with essential vitamins and minerals. This in itself is a natural process compared with the use of chemicals and fertilizers, the main purpose of which is to increase the amount— but not the quality—of foods grown in commercial fanning areas. Natural foods also include animals which have been allowed to feed and move freely in healthy pastures. Compare this with what happens in the mass production of poultry: there are battery farm, for example, where thousands of chickens live crowded together in one building and are fed on food which is little better than rubbish. Chickens kept in this way are not only tasteless as food; they also produce eggs which lack important vitamins. There are other aspects of healthy eating which are now receiving increasing attention from experts on diet. Take, for example, the question of sugar. This is actually a nonessential food ! Although a natural alternative, such as honey, can be used to sweeten food if it is necessary, we can in fact do without it. It is not that sugar is harmful in itself. But it does seem to be addictive: the quantity we use has grown steadily over the last two centuries and in Britain today each person consumes an average of 200 pounds a year! Yet all it does is to provide us with energy, in the form of calories. There are no vitamins in it ,no minerals ,and no fibre. It is significant that nowadays fibre is considered to be an important part of a healthy diet. In white bread, for example, the fibre has been removed. But it is present in unrefined flour and of course in vegetables. It is interesting to note that in countries where the national diet contains large quantities of unrefined flour and vegetables, certain diseases are comparatively rare. Hence the emphasis is placed on the eating of whole meal bread and more vegetables by modem experts in "healthy eating". The passage tells us that______.
A. sugar is bad for the health
B. the use of sugar is habit forming
C. people need sugar to give them energy
D. sugar provides us with nothing useful
Text 2 Nowadays, a standard for measuring power has changed. These changes foretell a new standard for measuring power. No longer will a nation’s political influence be based solely on the strength of its military forces. Of course, military effectiveness will remain a primary measure of power. But political influence is also closely tied to industrial competitiveness. It’s often said that without its military the Soviet Union would really be a third-world nation. The new standard of power and influence that is evolving now places more emphasis on the ability of a country to compete effectively in the economic markets of the world. America must recognize this new course of events. Our success in shaping world events over the past 40 years has been the direct result of our ability to adapt technology and to take advantage of the capabilities of our people for the purpose of maintaining peace. Our industrial prowess(威力)over most of this period was unchallenged. It is ironic(有讽刺性的) that it is just this prowess that has enabled other countries to prosper and in turn to threaten our industrial leadership. The competitiveness of America’s industrial base is an issue bigger than the department of defense and is going to require the efforts of the major institutional forces in our society, government, industry, and education. That is not to say that the defense department will not be a strong force in the process. But we simply cannot be, nor should we be, looked upon by others as the savior(救星) of American industry. The author indicates that______is threatening American political power.
A. other countries
B. the declining U.S. industrial base
C. a new standard for measuring power
D. less advanced technology
Text 3 Increasingly, over the past ten years, people—especially young people—have become aware of the need to change their eating habit, because much of the food they eat, particularly processed foods, is not good for health. Consequently, there has been a growing interest in natural foods: foods which do not contain chemical additives and which have not been affected by chemical fertilizers, widely used in farming today. Natural foods, for example, are vegetable, fruit and grain which have been grown in soil and are rich in organic matter. In simple terms, this means that the soil has been nourished by unused vegetable matter, which provides it with essential vitamins and minerals. This in itself is a natural process compared with the use of chemicals and fertilizers, the main purpose of which is to increase the amount— but not the quality—of foods grown in commercial fanning areas. Natural foods also include animals which have been allowed to feed and move freely in healthy pastures. Compare this with what happens in the mass production of poultry: there are battery farm, for example, where thousands of chickens live crowded together in one building and are fed on food which is little better than rubbish. Chickens kept in this way are not only tasteless as food; they also produce eggs which lack important vitamins. There are other aspects of healthy eating which are now receiving increasing attention from experts on diet. Take, for example, the question of sugar. This is actually a nonessential food ! Although a natural alternative, such as honey, can be used to sweeten food if it is necessary, we can in fact do without it. It is not that sugar is harmful in itself. But it does seem to be addictive: the quantity we use has grown steadily over the last two centuries and in Britain today each person consumes an average of 200 pounds a year! Yet all it does is to provide us with energy, in the form of calories. There are no vitamins in it ,no minerals ,and no fibre. It is significant that nowadays fibre is considered to be an important part of a healthy diet. In white bread, for example, the fibre has been removed. But it is present in unrefined flour and of course in vegetables. It is interesting to note that in countries where the national diet contains large quantities of unrefined flour and vegetables, certain diseases are comparatively rare. Hence the emphasis is placed on the eating of whole meal bread and more vegetables by modem experts in "healthy eating". This passage is mainly concerned with______.
A. people’s growing interest in natural foods
B. natural food and healthy diet
C. the importance of fibre in foods
D. harmful effects of sugar
Text 1 Play is the principal business of childhood, and more and more in recent years research has shown the great importance of play in the development of a human being. From earliest infancy, every child needs opportunity and the right material for play, and the main tools of play are toys. Their main function is to suggest, encourage and assist play. To succeed in this they must be good toys, which children will play often, and will come back to again and again. Therefore it is important to choose suitable toys for different stages of a child’ s development. In recent years’ research on infant development has shown the standard a child is likely to reach, within the range of his inherited abilities, is largely determined in the first three years of his life. So a baby’s ability to profit from the right play materials should not be underestimated. A baby who is encouraged and stimulated, talked to and shown things and played with, has the best chance of growing up successfully. The next stage, from three to five years old, curiosity knows no bounds. Every type of suitable toys should be made available to the child, for trying out, experimenting and learning, for discovering his own particular ability. Bricks and jigsaws and construction toys; painting, scribbling and making things; sand and water play; toys for imaginative and pretending play; the first social games for leaning to play and get on with others. By the third stage of play development—from five to seven or eight years—the child is at school. But for a few more years play is still the best way of learning, at home or at school. It is easier to see which type of toys the child most enjoys. Until the age of seven or eight, play and work mean much the same thing to a child. But once reading has been mastered, then books and school become the main source of learning. Toys are still interesting and valuable, they lead on to new hobbies, but their significance has changed—to a child of nine or ten years, toys and games mean, as to adults, relaxation and fun. The passage tells us that children are the most curious when they are about______.
A. fours years old
B. six years old
C. one year old
D. two years old