单选题The Earth ______ three principal layers: the dense, iron-rich core, the mantle made of silicate rocks, and the thin, solid-surface crust.

单选题While some international couriers are showing signs of exhaustion, EMS (Express Mail Service), the generic name for the courier services of post offices, seems to be finding its stride . Known as Datapost in Britain, as Chronopost in France, and as A1-Barid al-Mumtaz in Saudi Arabia, EMS is now second in the international courier business (jointly with TNT Skypack). Last year it delivered 5.6 million items, weighing less than 20 kilograms each, across borders. That and its annual growth rate of around 5 percent have worried DHL, the market leader, enough for it to counter-attack in the Courts. On October 26, a Dutch judge ruled against DHL on all three counts filed against the Dutch post office: that the three-initial name was too close to DHL"s; that the orange lines in the EMS logo were too similar to DHL"s dark red ones; and that the claim to the widest route system in the world was unfounded. DHL has threatened the Swiss post office with similar action, but it may reconsider after the Dutch ruling. EMS has some advantages over the private couriers. One is a dense ready-made network of offices, especially in Europe, the avowed target area of the private couriers. Another advantage is a long tradition of working with customs authorities. In a business where minutes count, it pays to have good friends at customs. That advantage particularly irritates the private couriers because there is no legal way to combat such unquantifiable coziness. The private courier services are also annoyed because in countries like Switzerland and Italy, where the post office is officially a monopoly, they pay it a fee. In Switzerland DHL says it pays more than SFr lm ($ 708,000) "to the competition" each year. In France the couriers have won a battle for exoneration. Although governments are under little pressure to keep prices artificially low, EMS is often cheaper than the private couriers, but not always. A recent test in Britain (on a domestic route) showed Datapost about halfway between the least and the most expensive, but gave it full marks for speed and service. Each national EMS is free to set its rates and follow its own rules on things like bulk discounts. The Universal Postal Union, based in Berne, determines how costs and revenues are split between sending and receiving countries, and standardizes procedures. More than 100 postal administrations have linked into the system—and more are coming, including Russia"s. That makes the feisty EMS particularly happy since its rivals have not been allowed to serve anywhere in Russia.

单选题Human beings are superior to animals that they can use language as a tool of communication.

单选题A man has to make ______ for his old age by putting aside enough money to live on when old. A. supply B. assurance C. provision D. storage

单选题The guest turned upside down his glass as a signal that he would drink no more.

单选题Many photographers prefer to take pictures at twilight when they can take advantage of the special effects of the setting sun.

单选题Few people realize how rich that area is. It is a land of treasure ______ treasure. A. piled on B. derived from C. turned over D. increased by

单选题Most of that professor"s writings are either for the bird or a hodgepodge of thoughts and ideas coppied from other authors.

单选题While the delegate clearly sought to dampen the optimism that has emerged recently, she stopped short of suggesting that the conference was near collapse and might produce nothing of significance.

单选题A discussion of the interrelation between research and theory {{U}}suggests{{/U}} a precise understanding of what is meant by theory.

单选题In our philosophy of life we believe that in most cases what is sauce for the ______ is sauce for the gander. A. chicken B. pigs C. ducks D. goose

单选题Every day, many people come to visit the ______ of the old castle.

单选题Rumors, embroidered with detail, live on for years, neither denied nor confirmed, until they become accepted as fact even among people not known for their ______.

单选题Giving me a place to stand on, the living conditions of the farmers will be greatly improved .

单选题But for the poor weather our trip to the wild would be a very excitng one. A. would have been B. will be C. could be D. should be

单选题The engineers are going through with their highway project, in spite that the expenses have risen.

单选题The progress of civilization itself can be {{U}}measured{{/U}} by its range of mathematics.

单选题Our programs {{U}}come second to{{/U}} theirs.

单选题Once it is realized that oral literature is just as much literature as the more familiar written literature, it can be understood that there is no language ______ of its own literature.

单选题Success as ______ by economic output bears no close relationship to human achievement. A．decided B．achieved C．assured D．measured