单选题
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 county'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 favorable climate; other regions possess perhaps only one
of these things, and some regions possess none of them. The USA is one of the
wealthiest regions of the world because she had 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. China is perhaps as well off as
the USA in natural resources, but suffered for many years from civil and
external wars, and for this and other reasons was unable to develop her
resources. Sound 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 turn out more goods in their working day.
单选题
A country's wealth depends upon______.
A. its standard of living
B. its money
C. its ability to provide goods and services
D. its ability to provide transport and entertainment