单选题The concert was ______ start at eight o' clock, but the conductor did not come until a quarter past.

单选题{{B}}Text 2{{/B}} In the next century we'll be able to alter our DNA radically, encoding our visions and vanities while concocting new life-forms. When Dr. Frankenstein made his monster, he wrestled with the moral issue of whether he should allow it to reproduce, "Had I the right, for my own benefit, to inflict the curse upon everlasting generations?" Will such questions require us to develop new moral philosophies? Probably not. Instead, we'll reach again for a time-tested moral concept; one sometimes called the Golden Rule and which Kant, the millennium's most prudent moralist, conjured up into a categorical imperative, Do unto others as you would have them do unto you; treat each person as an individual rather than as a means to some end. Under this moral precept we should recoil at human cloning, because it inevitably entails using humans as means to other humans' ends and valuing them as copies of others we loved or as collections of body parts, not as individuals in their own right. We should also draw a line, however fuzzy, that would permit using genetic engineering to cure diseases and disabilities but not to change the personal attributes that make someone an individual (IQ, physical appearance, gender and sexuality). The biotech age will also give us more reason to guard our personal privacy. Aldous Huxley in Brave New World, got it wrong: rather than centralizing power in the hands of the state, DNA technology has empowered individuals and families. But the state will have an important role, making sure that no one, including insurance companies, can look at our genetic data without our permission or use it to discriminate against us. Then we can get ready for the breakthroughs that could come at the end of the next century and the technology is comparable to mapping our genes: plotting the 10 billion or more neurons of our brain. With that information we might someday be able to create artificial intelligences that think and experience consciousness in ways that are indistinguishable from a human brain. Eventually we might be able to replicate our own minds in a "dry-ware" machine, so that we could live on without the "wet-ware" of a biological brain and body. The 20th century's revolution in infotechnology will thereby merge with the 21st century's revolution in biotechnology. But this is science fiction. Let's turn the page now and get back to real science.

单选题 It is said that in England death is pressing, in Canada inevitable and in California optional Small wonder. Americans' life expectancy has nearly doubled over the past century. Failing hips can be replaced, clinical depression controlled, cataracts removed in a 30-minutes surgical procedure. Such advances offer the aging population a quality of life that was unimaginable when I entered medicine 50 years ago. But not even a great health-care system can cure death—and our failure to confront that reality now threatens this greatness of ours. Death is normal; we are genetically programmed to disintegrate and perish, even under ideal conditions. We all understand that at some level, yet as medical consumers we treat death as a problem to be solved. Shielded by third-party payers from the cost of our care, we demand everything that can possibly be done for us, even if it's useless. The most obvious example is late-stage cancer care. Physicians-frustrated by their inability to cure the disease and fearing loss of hope in the patient—too often offer aggressive treatment far beyond what is scientifically justified. In 1950, the U.S. spent $12.7 billion on health care. In 2002, the cost will be $1540 billion. Anyone can see this trend is unsustainable. Yet few seem willing to try to reverse it. Some scholars conclude that a government with finite resources should simply stop paying for medical care that sustains life beyond a certain age—say 83 or so. Former Colorado governor Richard Lamm has been quoted as saying that the old and infirm "have a duty todie and get out of the way" , so that younger, healthier people can realize their potential. I would not go that far. Energetic people now routinely work through their 60s and beyond, and remain dazzlingly productive. At 78, Viacom chairman Sumner Redstone jokingly claims to be 53. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor is in her 70s, and former surgeon general C. Everett Koop chairs an Internet start-up in his 80s. These leaders are living proof that prevention works and that we can manage the health problems that come naturally with age. As a mere 68-year-old, I wish to age as productively as they have. Yet there are limits to what a society can spend in this pursuit. Ask a physician, I know the most costly and dramatic measures may be ineffective and painful. I also know that people in Japan and Sweden, countries that spend far less on medical care, have achieved longer, healthier lives than we have. As a nation, we may be overfunding the quest for unlikely cures while underfunding research on humbler therapies that could improve people's lives.

单选题For many people today, reading is no longer relaxation. To keep up with their work, they must read letters, reports, trade publications, interoffice communications, not to mention newspapers and magazines: a never-ending flood of words. In 1 a job or advancing in one, the ability to read and comprehend 2 can mean the difference between success and failure. Yet the unfortunate fact is that most of us are 3 readers. Most of us develop poor reading 4 at an early age, and never get over them. The main deficiency 5 in the actual stuff of language itself—words. Taken individually, words have 6 meaning until they are strung together into phrases, sentences and paragraphs. 7 , however, the untrained reader does not read groups of words. He laboriously reads one word at a time, often regressing to 8 words or passages. Regression, the tendency to look back over 9 you have just read, is a common bad habit in reading. Another habit which 10 down the speed of reading is vocalization (发声) —sounding each word either orally or mentally as 11 reads. To overcome these bad habits, some reading clinics use a device called an 12 , which moves a bar (or curtain) down the page at a predetermined speed. The bar is set at a slightly faster rate 13 the reader finds comfortable, in order to "stretch" him. The accelerator forces the reader to read fast, 14 word-by-word reading, regression and subvocalization practically impossible. At first 15 is sacrificed for speed. But when you learn to read ideas and concepts, you will not only read faster, 16 your comprehension will improve. Many people have found 17 reading skill drastically improved after some training. 18 Chalice Au, a business manager, for instance, his reading rate was a reasonably good 172 words a minute 19 the training, now it is an excellent 1,378 words a minute. He is delighted that now he can 20 a lot more reading material in a short period of time.

单选题He was______by the army because of his poor eye-sight.

单选题Which of the following pairs of characters does not form a contrast of ideas between them?______

单选题He expressed his gratitude to her for her favorable help with the experiment.

单选题Cheap coal ______ a lot of smoke.

单选题Their attempts to evade taxes turned out to be futile.

单选题Once you have started a job, you should do it______.

单选题Several trial efforts in the 1980s proved that it was financially ______ to restore old buildings.(2003年北京大学考博试题)

单选题With the debt crisis and the weakening economy fresh on their minds, most Americans have probably concluded that government, as a rule, cannot manage money responsibly. But it can. Just look at Montana. For six years it has been one of the only states in America with a budget surplus: this year it is a record of $433 million, proportionally equivalent to a federal surplus of $858 billion. Thus we"ve been able to cut taxes, invest in education and infrastructure and keep essential services intact. We recently got our first bond rating upgrade in 26 years. How do we accomplish what most states and the federal government cannot? I like to say we run government like a ranch. In ranching, you either pinch pennies or go bankrupt. We do the same in government. For one thing, we challenge every expense. If it isn"t absolutely necessary, we eliminate it. Little things added up: we renegotiated state contracts, cut our energy consumption by 20 percent, auctioned off state vehicles and canceled building projects and computer upgrades. The federal budget contains thousands of similar line items. A government serious about tightening its belt would eliminate them all. But we don"t just cut costs. Like good ranchers, we also leave some grain in the barn in case of drought. When times were good, we stored away cash in a special savings account. The account proved to be a big help in getting us through the recession in solid financial shape. I cannot recall the federal government"s ever banking surplus funds in a protected account, even during the surplus-laden 1990s. If Washington ever digs out of the current hole and runs a cash balance, Congress should likewise put some grain in the barn. And even as we"ve cut costs and stored away money, we"ve followed another ranching principle: treat your ranch hands with respect. Like other states, we"ve had to freeze employee pay and reduce the work force. But as in any good organization, many of the best solutions for cutting costs come from state employees. Some look at payroll as a burden; we look at it as human capital, and we work hard to keep up morale in tough times. So when we cut the state payroll, I cut my own salary. Sadly, many politicians, especially in Washington, seem to take advantage of the opportunity to trash government workers. This is just cheap and ugly scapegoating. More to the point, it does nothing to produce bottom-line results. Finally, we don"t spend money until we"ve found the lowest price. When the real estate market softened, we told commercial landlords who rented space to the state that if we didn"t see rent reductions, we"d move to cheaper premises when our leases were up. There are savings to be found everywhere in government. Now that federal spending is the country"s top issue, Washington should try doing what any rancher or family household does.

单选题Three people______to help decorate the gym for the dance.

单选题In the third paragraph, Dr Laragh implies that ______.

单选题______ Is there any possible way to help them get rid of such a bad habit? --To tell the truth, it' s very hard. But we ______ on this problem. A. worked B. had worked C. are working D. had been working

单选题When you are making a speech, always remember to keep it short and ______. A. to the point B. in a sense C. by all means D. in other words

单选题Unlike Keynesianism, monetarism eschews direct government control by means of taxation and spending ______ imposing limits on the nation"s money supply.