The autumn rains had come in with two angry storms, and Lazy River was waking up. In a week school (31) be closed for Easter vacation. Dick and Turkey planned to have a trip to the inland by boat, (32) they collected maps and statistics of the entire inland river system. Water levels down Lazy River; levels down the Namoi; along the Darling and the Murray; all were (33) their fingertips. They were very happy because now (34) , it appeared, except the joy of voyaging lay (35) them and the Southern Ocean or Central Queensland. It was clear to them (36) Australia’s early explorers had (37) a big mistake toiling overland when they (38) have opened up the continent rapidly and pleasantly with paddle and pole. It was at this stage (39) Dick’s father put his foot down. "Now listen, you chap," he said quietly. "It begins to look like a wet autumn and the river is already (40) wild. A few days’ rain or a wicked storm or two (41) it’ 11 flood. I’m not going to (42) your mother worrying herself sick about you, Dick. I know you’ re (43) on the trip but floods aren’t (44) anyone can fool with. You can go for a camp if you like, but no further (45) six miles from home; and of course you’ll camp (46) the flood level." It was (47) a blow to their inter-state dreams, (48) the boys had’ to concede, on reflection, that what their father said was reasonable. (49) they told their classmate Fred Ingleton at school on Monday about their father’s suggestion, he became suddenly cheerful. "That’s (50) my dad said, "he grinned. "Now he might let me go with you. He reckons you made a decent swimmer of me!\ 35().
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The "standard of living" of any country means the average person’s share of the goods and services which the country produces. A country’s standard of living, therefore, depends first and foremost on its capacity to produce wealth. "Wealth" in this sense is not money, for we do not live on money but on things that money can buy- "goods "such as food and clothing, and "services" such as transport and entertainment.A country’s capacity to produce wealth depends upon many factors, most of which have an effect on one another. Wealth depends to a great extent upon a country’s natural resources, such as coal, gold, and other minerals, water supply and so on. Some regions of the world are well supplied with coal and minerals, and have a fertile soil and a favourable climate; other regions possess none of them. The USA is one of the wealthiest regions of the world because she has vast natural resources within her borders, her soil is fertile, and her climate is varied. The Sahara Desert, on the other hand, is one of the least wealthy.Next to natural resources comes the ability to turn them to use. Sound and stable political conditions, and freedom from foreign invasion, enable a country to develop its natural resources peacefully and steadily, and to produce more wealth than another country equally well served by nature but less well ordered. Another important factor is the technical efficiency of a country’s people. Old countries that have, through many centuries, trained up numerous skilled craftsmen and technicians are better placed to produce wealth than countries whose workers are largely unskilled. Wealth also produces wealth. As a country becomes wealthier, its people have a large margin for saving, and can put their savings into factories and machines which will help workers to produce more goods in their working day.A country’s standard of living does not only depend upon the wealth that is produced and consumed within its own borders, but also upon what is indirectly produced through international trade. For example, Britain’s wealth in foodstuffs and other agricultural products would be much less if she had to depend only on those grown at home. Trade makes it possible for her surplus manufactured goods to be traded abroad for the agricultural product that would other wise be lacking. A country’s wealth is, therefore, much influenced by its manufacturing capacity, provided that other countries can be found ready to accept its manufactures. The word "foremost" most probably means ().
A. firstly
B. largely
C. for the most part
D. most importantly
This book is an attempt to introduce the reader to the United States. It intends to give a concise but fairly well rounded overview of present day American so dety; not only a picture of surface phenomena, but insights into American culture and insights about the American people.Various aspects of American life are presented through articles written mainly by Americans themselves, or by westerners familiar with the United States. Most were written by scholars or specialists on the topic of the field. A number of articles were written by sociologists. This gives a perspective that goes beyond the common articles written for the average tourist, for the person with passing curiosity, or for the ordinary man-in-the-street. A number of articles were also selected with the idea of presenting different, sometimes conflicting, points of view about the same topic. This it is hoped, will help the reader to gain better understanding and to help him draw his own conclusions.It should be stressed that the viewpoints of the various authors are not necessarily those of the compilers of this book. We may agree with all of some articles, only partially with others and possibly disagree considerably with a few of the selections. To allow the reader to use his own judgement, we have generally kept the articles in their original form. If changes were made they were to make the language easier or to make the articles more manageable for the reader.Most of the articles in this book were selected on the basis of the following criteria:1. Their suitability for giving accurate information about a topic or some aspect of the topic. These articles should help present a well-rounded picture of the whole. In this respect, we have sometimes given preference to an earlier article rather than a later one if the former gives a more insightful or more comprehensive treatment of the subject.2. Their appeal to the ordinary reader. These articles should be authoritative and reliable, yet not too elementary. The contents should be of interest to most readers.3. Their linguistic quality and degree of difficulty. The level for which these articles are intended is college students of English, other college students with a fairly good command of English, and the general reader interested in the U. S. and with fairly good comprehension of the language.4. Their general relevance to Chinese readers or Chinese society. These articles should have some general significance to China, either present or future, and not be totally irrelevant.Obviously no one book can give a completely comprehensive picture of description of such a vast and complex nation. Many readers may disagree with our choice of topics; most likely a number will say we have left out important ones. Many may feel we did not use our best judgment in selecting the articles. We must admit that we did not always agree among ourselves. We were further restricted by the limited amount of materials to choose from. Needless to say, we welcome suggestions and criticisms from our readers. And in spite of all its shortcomings, if the book has helped the reader to gain some insight and understanding about the United States and its people and has stimulated the reader to go further, and to study more, then in a modest way this book will have accomplished much of what if was intended to do. Who wrote most of the articles in the book
Do It Yourself Magazine organizes a competition every summer to elect the“Handyman of the year”. The winner of this year iS Mr.Roy Miller. a Sheffield postman. A journalist and a photographer have come to his house. The journalist is interviewing Mr. Miller for an article in the magazine.W:Well, I’m very impressed by all the work you’ve done on your house, Mr. Miller. How long have you been working on itM:I first became interested in Do-it-Yourself several years ago. You see, my son Paul is disabled. He’s in a wheel-chair and I just had to make alterations to the house. I couldn’t afford to pay workmen to do it. I had to learn to do it myself.W:Had you had any experience in this kind of workDid you have any practical skillsM:No. 1 got a few books from the library but they didn’t help very much. So I decided to go to evening classes so that I could learn basic carpentry and electrical wiring.W:What sort of changes did you make to the houseM:First of all, practical things to help Paul. You never really realize the problems handicapped people have until it attacks your own family. Most government buildings, for example, have steps up to the door. They don’t plan buildings so that disabled people can get in and out. We used to live in a flat, and of course, it was totally unsuitable. Just imagine the problems a disabled person would have in your house. We needed a larger house with wide corridors so that Paul could get from one room to another. We didn’t have much money and we had to buy this one. It’s over ninety years old and it was in a very bad state of repair.W:Where did you beginM:The electrical. I completely rewired the house so that Paul could reach all the switches. I had to lower the light switches and raise the power-points. I went on to do the whole house so that Paul could reach things and go where he needed.W:What else did you doM:By the time I’d altered everything for Paul, do-it-yourself had become a hobby. I really enjoyed doing things with my hands. Look, I even installed smoke-alarms.W:What was the purpose of thatM:I was very worried about fire. You see, Paul can’t move very fast. I fitted them so that we would have plenty of warning if there were a fire. I put in a complete burglar-alarm system. It took weeks.The front door opens automatically. and I’m going to put a device on Paul’s wheelchair so that he’ll be able to open and close it when he wants.W:What are you working on nowM:I’ve just finished the kitchen. I’ve designed it so that he can reach everything. Now I’m building an extension so that Paul will have a large room on the ground floor where he can work.W:There’s a $10,000 prize. How are you going to spend itM:I am going to start my own business so that I can convert ordinary houses for disabled people. I think I’ve become an expert on the subject. The front door to his home does not open automatically.
A. 对
B. 错
This book is an attempt to introduce the reader to the United States. It intends to give a concise but fairly well rounded overview of present day American so dety; not only a picture of surface phenomena, but insights into American culture and insights about the American people.Various aspects of American life are presented through articles written mainly by Americans themselves, or by westerners familiar with the United States. Most were written by scholars or specialists on the topic of the field. A number of articles were written by sociologists. This gives a perspective that goes beyond the common articles written for the average tourist, for the person with passing curiosity, or for the ordinary man-in-the-street. A number of articles were also selected with the idea of presenting different, sometimes conflicting, points of view about the same topic. This it is hoped, will help the reader to gain better understanding and to help him draw his own conclusions.It should be stressed that the viewpoints of the various authors are not necessarily those of the compilers of this book. We may agree with all of some articles, only partially with others and possibly disagree considerably with a few of the selections. To allow the reader to use his own judgement, we have generally kept the articles in their original form. If changes were made they were to make the language easier or to make the articles more manageable for the reader.Most of the articles in this book were selected on the basis of the following criteria:1. Their suitability for giving accurate information about a topic or some aspect of the topic. These articles should help present a well-rounded picture of the whole. In this respect, we have sometimes given preference to an earlier article rather than a later one if the former gives a more insightful or more comprehensive treatment of the subject.2. Their appeal to the ordinary reader. These articles should be authoritative and reliable, yet not too elementary. The contents should be of interest to most readers.3. Their linguistic quality and degree of difficulty. The level for which these articles are intended is college students of English, other college students with a fairly good command of English, and the general reader interested in the U. S. and with fairly good comprehension of the language.4. Their general relevance to Chinese readers or Chinese society. These articles should have some general significance to China, either present or future, and not be totally irrelevant.Obviously no one book can give a completely comprehensive picture of description of such a vast and complex nation. Many readers may disagree with our choice of topics; most likely a number will say we have left out important ones. Many may feel we did not use our best judgment in selecting the articles. We must admit that we did not always agree among ourselves. We were further restricted by the limited amount of materials to choose from. Needless to say, we welcome suggestions and criticisms from our readers. And in spite of all its shortcomings, if the book has helped the reader to gain some insight and understanding about the United States and its people and has stimulated the reader to go further, and to study more, then in a modest way this book will have accomplished much of what if was intended to do. What is said about the points of views of some articles on the same topic