单选题The author questions whether, in America, the "pursuit of happiness" ______.

单选题Speaker A: I'm dreadfully sorry, but I've burned a hole in the rug. Speaker B: ______ A. How did you burn it? With a cigarette end? B. Ok, why weren't you more careful? C. Oh, that's all right. D. I'm sorry to hear that. Is the rug very expensive?

单选题An American manufacturer of racing bikes reported a 1996 second-quarter gross income of $18 million, compared with $11.5 million in the second quarter of 1995. This increase was realized despite a drop in U.S. sales of racing bikes in 1996 compared with i995, which was partly attributable to the unusually high sales in 1995 as a result of the unprecedented success of an American cyclist in a high-profile international race. Which of the following, if true, would contribute most to an explanation of the increase in the manufacturer's gross income in 19967 A. Foreign manufacturers of racing bikes announced increased sales of their products in Europe in 1996 compared with 1995. B. In the first quarter of 1996, the American cyclist who won the high-profile international race in 1995 announced that he was switching to the racing bike made by the manufacturer in question. C. In the first quarter of 1995, the manufacturer in question first began selling its top-of-the-line "Titanium Extreme" model. D. In the second quarter of 1996, the manufacturer announced that it would begin production of skateboarding equipment in the following quarter. E. Intense competition in the racing bike market forced a competitor of the manufacturer to go out of business in the fourth quarter of 1996.

单选题From the context, the word "baloney" ( Line 3, Paragraph 6) is close in meaning to

单选题You could go ______ you want to in the world during the summer holidays. A. wherever B. whichever C. however D. whatever

单选题It seems to shine unchangingly, pouring out a constant light year after year. But the sun may not be nearly so stable as we suppose, It is now thought to move quickly and irregularly and change in long-term cycles, growing dimmer and then brighter with each passing year. Some even fear that its frequent changing behavior would have a great influence on the Earth's climate. The source of the sun's inconstancy is magnetism. Professor William Livingston has developed new theories about its magnetic nature. "We don't yet know what causes sun spots, "he says, "but we now think they're areas of high-level magnetism that come up from the sun's interior. So strong is their magnetic pull that the highly ionized gas nearby is not able to transmit energy out." As a result these areas send out less heat and light and thus appear from Earth to be almost dark irregular surface patches. Sun spot activity generally fluctuates in steady, 11-year cycled. Scientists have long formed the opinion that as the size and number of sun spots increased, the overall energy sent out by the sun would decrease. Indeed, recent studies confirmed it, revealing that during peak periods of sun spot activity, the Earth experiences a small drop that can be seen clearly in received solar energy. Could such a small drop in energy have an effect here on earth? Perhaps some scientists think the world temperature could fall by as much as 0.2 during periods of high solar magnetism... enough to cause significant fluctuations in weather patterns.

单选题Like the look of our website? Whatever the answer, the chances are you made your mind up within the first twentieth of a second. A study by researchers in Canada has shown that the snap decisions Internet users make about the quality of a web page have a lasting impact on their opinions. We all know that first impressions count, but this study shows that the brain can make flash judgments almost as fast as the eye can take in the information. "My colleagues believed it would be impossible to really see anything in less than 500 milliseconds," says Gitte Lindgaard of Carleton University in Ottawa. Instead they found that impressions were made in the first 50 milliseconds of viewing. Lindgaard and her team presented volunteers with the briefest glimpses of web pages previously rated as being either easy on the eye or particularly unpleasant, and asked them to rate the websites on a sliding scale of visual appeal. Even though the images flashed up for just 50 milliseconds, roughly the duration of a single frame of standard television shot, their decisions tallied well with judgments made after a longer period of examination. In the crowded and competitive world of the web, companies hoping to make millions from e-commerce should take notice." Unless the first impression is favorable, visitors will be out of your site before they even know that you might be offering more than your competitors," Lindgaard warns. For a typical commercial website, 60% of traffic comes from search engines such as Google. This makes a user's first impression even more critical. The lasting effect of first impressions is known to psychologists as the "halo effect": if you can snare people with an attractive design, they are more likely to overlook other minor faults with the site, and may rate its actual content more favorably. This is because of "cognitive bias". People enjoy being right, so continuing to use a website that gave a good first impression helps to "prove" to themselves that they made a good initial decision. "It's awfully scary stuff, but the tendency to jump to conclusions is far more widespread than we realize". These days, enlightened web users want to see a "puritan" approach. It's about getting information across in the quickest, simplest way possible. For this reason, many commercial websites now follow a fairly regular set of rules. For example, westerners tend to look at the top-left corner of a page first, so that's where the company logo should go. And most users also expect to see a search function in the top right. Of course, the other golden rule is to make sure that your web pages load quickly, otherwise your customers might not stick around long enough to make that coveted first impression. "That can be the difference between big business and no business".

单选题A. kilom_eterB. pr_ettyC. compl_eteD. sc_ene

单选题Pigeons are thought universally as ______ a of peace.

单选题The blue, mystic Lake Ellsinore lies in an inland California valley, which is teeming and steaming with hot springs. Rimmed by shaggy mountains whose forested crests are reflected in its clear waters, Lake Ellsinore is the very personification of peace—but on it rests the curse of Tondo. The lake had a colorful history. Much of it lies buried in legend, and it is difficult to separate fact from fiction. There have been stories of underground volcanoes on the lake bottom, erupting, killing fish and discoloring the water. There have been stories of a playful sea serpent that lived in its depths. Long noted for its scenic beauty and health-giving waters, the lake was a famous resort in the Nineties. But long before the first white man had set foot along the shore of the lake, this part of California had been the home of the Soboba Indians. Their chief was Ton-do, a stern and unforgiving man. He had a daughter, Morning Star, who was in love with Palo, son of the chief the Pales, a neighboring tribe. The Sobobas and Pales were sworn enemies. For a time the lovers met secretly. Then one day they were discovered by Tondo. His rage was terrible to behold. He forbade the lovers ever to meet again. Morning Star tried in every way to appease her father's anger, to soften his heart toward Palo. But in time she saw that it was useless; that he would never give his consent to their marriage. Vowing that they would never be separated, the Indian maid and her lover walked hand in hand into the lake, as the dreary November sun cast long shadows on the land. They were followed by a group of orphan children whom Morning Star had befriended. All walked into the lake, singing the mournful death song of their people, while Ton-do stood on the shore and cursed the lovers, cursed the blue water into which they all walked to their death. Ever since that day it would see that a jinx has been laid over Lake Ellsinore. Old-timers tell of a great upheaval in the lake which caused water to spout into the air like a geyser and turn blood-red. Later, it became known that three hundred springs of boiling mud and water were born in the valley during that upheaval. The springs reeked with sulphur. For many years after this phenomenon the lake remained peaceful. Then boats were overturned for an apparent reason, and few of their occupants ever returned to tell the story. This continued for several years. At the same time, strong swimmers dived into the lake never to reappear. In 1833 and again in 1846, fish in the lake suddenly died. In the spring of 1850 came the Battle of the Gnats. They bred in the water of the lake and swarmed over the land. They invaded the countryside until the harassed inhabitants called for help. And in July 1951, the sky-blue waters of the lake vanished like mist before a noonday sun. When the bottom was laid bare there was no trace of a volcano, the bottomless pits, or the other disturbances of legend or fact. The copious winter rains of 1951—1952 have replenished the lake. But what menace does its haunting beauty hold today? For tomorrow? The once mighty Sobobas are few now. But the old men swear that their ancestors still haunt the lake. They nod grizzled head and murmur that the Great Tondo's curse will forever remain upon the lake. Only Time, the wise and silent one, can tell.

单选题Experts advise that parents should develop a sense of______in their children.

单选题______ I'm very much mistaken, that's my watch you're wearing! A. If B. Unless C. Since D. Because

单选题It was a type of urban story that continues to ______ big-city dwellers forward each day, a tale of hard work and self-starting initiative, of taking matters into one's own hands to make dreams come true.(2004年四川大学考博试题)

单选题Perhaps all criminals should be required to carry cards which read: Fragile; Handle with Care. It will never do, these days, to go around referring to criminals as violent thugs. You must refer to them politely as "social misfits". The professional killer who wouldn"t think twice about using his club or knife to batter some harmless old lady to death in order to rob her of her meager life-savings must never be given a dose of his own medicine. He is in need of "hospital treatment". According to his misguided defenders, society is to blame. A wicked society breeds evil—or so the argument goes. When you listen to this kind of talk, it makes you wonder why we aren"t all criminals. We have done away with the absurdly harsh laws of the nineteenth century and this is only right. But surely enough is enough. The most senseless piece of criminal legislation in Britain and a number of other countries has been the suspension of capital punishment. The violent criminal has become a kind of hero-figure in our time. He is glorified on the screen; he is pursued by the press and paid vast sums of money for his "memoirs". Newspapers which specialize in crime reporting enjoy enormous circulations and the publishers of trashy cops and robbers stories or "murder mysteries" have never had it so good. When you read about the achievements of the great train robbers, it makes you wonder whether you are reading about the some glorious resistance movement. The hardened criminal is cuddled and cosseted by the sociologists on the one hand and adored as a hero by the masses on the other. It"s no wonder he is a privileged person who expects and receives VIP treatment wherever he goes. Capital punishment used to be a major deterrent. It made the violent robber think twice before pulling the trigger. It gave the cold-blooded prisoner something to ponder about while he was shaking up or serving his arsenic cocktail. It prevented unarmed policemen from being killed while pursuing their duty by killers armed with automatic weapons. Above all, it protected the most vulnerable members of society, young children, from brutal violence. It is horrifying to think that the criminal can literally get away with murder. We all know that "life sentence" does not mean what it says. After ten years or so of good conduct, the most desperate villain is free to return to society where he will live very comfortably, thank you, on the proceeds of his crime, or he will go on committing offences until he is caught again. People are always willing to hold liberal views at the expense of others. It"s always fashionable to pose as the defender of under-dog, so long as you, personally, remain unaffected. Did the defenders of crime, one wonders, in their desire for fair-play, consult the victims before they suspended capital punishment? Hardly. You see, they couldn"t, because all the victims were dead.

单选题What will make one man happy may not make another man happy. This sentence means ______.

单选题The obese body shook in an appreciative chuckle. A. synecdoche B. transferred epithet

单选题What ______ you do if you were me? A. do B. did C. would D. can