单选题Under the Bush administration America has gone from a policy of "dual containment" of Iran and Iraq to one approaching dual failure. It removed the iron rule of Saddam Hussein, but created an anarchic void in Iraq into which Iran has extended its influence. Exhausted by the insurgency in Iraq, America now struggle to deal with the more acute threat of weapons of mass destruction posed by Iran's nuclear programme. America's Arab allies may be terrified by the strengthening of Iran, but they are even more terrified by the prospect of American military action to destroy Iran's nuclear facilities. In Europe there is a degree of acceptance that, sooner or later, the world may have to deal with a nuclear-armed Iran. Some in the Bush administration though, regard that prospect as even more horrendous than the consequences of attacking Iran, which may include more instability in Iraq and elsewhere, more terrorism and the disruption of oil from the Persian Gulf. There is no certainty, moreover, about how far military strikes can set back the nuclear programme, if at all. George Bush has repeatedly said that "all opinions" remain on his table, by which he means the use of military force. But the one option he has seemed less keen on is the idea, advocated by many of seeking a "grand bargain" with Iran on a whole range of disputes, from the nuclear question to peace with Israel. When America was strong, it felt it did not need to deal with Iran. Now it is worried by the prospect of looking weak. Nevertheless, there has been a real change of policy since the days when Mr. Bush said Iran was part of the "axis of evil". His administration has offered to join nuclear talks if Iran suspends uranium enrichment. Ray Takeyh, an expert on Iran, argues in the latest issue of Foreign Affairs says: better to deal with the pragmatists, and strengthen them, rather than give free rein to the radicals. He may or may not be right.

单选题3 The Greek's lofty attitude toward scientific research—and the scientists' contempt of utility—was a long time dying. For a millennium after Archimedes, this separation of me chanics from geometry inhibited fundamental technological progress and in some areas re pressed it altogether. But there was a still greater obstacle to change until the very end of the middle ages: the organization of society. The social system of fixed class relationships that prevailed through the Middle Ages (and in some areas much longer) itself hampered improvement. Under this system, the laboring masses, in exchange for the bare necessi ties of life, did all the productive work, while the privileged few—priests, nobles, and kings concerned themselves only with ownership and maintenance of their own posi tion. In the interest of their privileges they did achieve considerable progress in defense, in warmaking, in government, in trade, in the arts of leisure, and in the extraction of labor from their dependents, but they had no familiarity with the process of production. On the other hand, the laborers, who were familiar with manufacturing techniques, had no in centive to improve or increase production to the advantage of their masters. Thus, with one class possessing the requisite knowledge and experience, but lacking incentive and leis ure, and the other class lacking the knowledge and experience, there was no means by which technical progress could be achieved. The whole ancient world was built upon this relationship—a relationship as sterile as it was inhuman. The availability of slaves nullified the need for more efficient machinery. In many of the commonplace fields of human endeavor, actual stagnation prevailed for thou sands of years. Not all the glory that was Greece and the grandeur that was Rome could de velop the windmill or contrive so simple an instrument as the wheelbarrow—products of the tenth and thirteenth centuries respectively. For about twenty-five centuries, two-thirds of the power of the horse was lost because he wasn't shod, and much of the strength of the ox was wasted because his harness wasn't modified to fit his shoulders. For more than five thousand years, sailors were confined to rivers and coasts by a primitive steering mechanism which required remarkably little altera tion (in the thirteenth century) to become a rudder. With any ingenuity at all, the ancient plough could have been put on wheels and the ploughshare shaped to bite and turn the sod instead of merely scratching it—but the inge nuity wasn't forthcoming. And the villager of the Middle Ages, like the men who first had fire, had a smoke hole in the center of the straw and reed thatched roof of his one-room dwelling (which he shared with his animals), while the medieval charcoal burner (like his Stone Age ancestor) made himself a hut of small branches.

单选题Don't do anything against law again, otherwise, you and your ______ will be caught by the police.

单选题_____that everyone couldn't help laughing at the sight of him.

单选题On an average of six times a day, a doctor in Holland practices "active" euthanasia: intentionally administering a lethal (致死的) drug to a terminally ill patient who has asked to be relieved of suffering. Twenty times a day, life-prolonging treatment is withheld or withdrawn when there is no hope that it can effect an ultimate cure. "Active" euthanasia remains a crime on the Dutch statute books, punishable by 12 years in prison. But a series of court cases over the past 15 years has made it clear that a competent physician who carries it out will not be prosecuted. Euthanasia, often called "mercy killing" is a crime everywhere in Western Europe. But more and more doctors and nurses readily admit to practicing it, most often in the "passive" form of withholding or withdrawing treatment. The long simmering euthanasia issue has lately boiled over into a, sometimes, fierce public debate, with both sides claiming the mantle of ultimate righteousness. Those opposed to the practice see themselves upholding sacred principles of respect for life, while those in favor raise the banner of humane treatment. After years on the defensive, the advocates now seem to be gaining ground. Recent polls in Britain show that 72 percent of British subjects favor euthanasia in some circumstances. An astonishing 76 percent of respondents to a poll taken last year in France said they would like the law changed to decriminalize mercy killings. Euthanasia has been a topic of controversy in Europe since at least 1936, when a bill was introduced in the House of Lords that would have legalized mercy killing under very tightly supervised conditions. That bill failed, as have three others introduced in the House of Lords since then. Reasons for the latest surge of interest in euthanasia are not hard to find. Europeans, like Americans, are now living longer. Therefore, lingering chronic diseases have replaced critical illnesses as the primary cause of death. And the euthanasists argue that every human being should have the right to "die with dignity," by which they usually mean the right to escape the horrors of a painful or degrading hospitalization (住院治疗). Most experts believe that euthanasia will continue to be practiced no matter what the law says.

单选题The ______ emphasis on exams is by far the worst form of competition in schools.

单选题______ all the members of the commission present here who are here tonight, I would like to thank Professor Clinton for his informative talk.

单选题Life is never just ______.

单选题She _______ some salt on her food to make it taste better.

单选题The professor gave ______ instruction to the whole class so as to make every student understand how to conduct the experiment in the lab.(2004年武汉大学考博试题)

单选题It is also because new technologies that have improved industrial productivity have made ______ and layoffs possible as well.

单选题I certainly got stuck when I bought this raincoat; every time I go out in the rain, it shrinks some more.

单选题Why did the writer cry eventually when she looked at the skirts again?

单选题The department is fortunate in having the most______ equipment with which to complete its research.

单选题 Astronaut Jim Voss has enjoyed many memorable moments in his career, including three space flights and one space walk. But he recalls with special fondness a decidedly earthbound (为地球引力所束缚的) experience in the summer of 1980, when he participated in the NASA-ASEE Summer Faculty Fellowship Program. Voss, then a science teacher at West Point, was assigned to the Marshall Space Flight Center's propulsion (推进) lab in Alabama to analyze why a hydraulic fuel pump seal on the space shuttle was working so well when previous seals had failed. It was a seemingly tiny problem among the vast complexities of running the space program. Yet it was important to NASA because any crack in the seal could have led to destructive results for the astronauts who relied on them. "I worked a bit with NASA engineers," says Voss, "but I did it mostly by analysis". I used a handheld calculator, not a computer, to do a thermodynamic(热力学的)analysis." At the end of the summer, he, like the other NASA-ASEE fellows working at Marshall, summarized his findings in a formal presentation and detailed paper. It was a valuable moment for Voss because the ASEE program gave him added understanding of NASA, deepened his desire to fly in space, and intensified his application for astronaut status." It was not an easy process. Voss was actually passed over when he first applied for the astronaut program in 1978. Over the next nine years he reapplied repeatedly, and was finally accepted in 1987. Since then he has participated in three space missions. The 50-year-old Army officer, who lives in Houston, is now in training for a four-month mission as a crew member on the International Space Station starting in July 2000. Voss says the ASEE program is wonderful for all involved. "It brings in people from the academic world and gives NASA a special property for a particular period of time. It brings some fresh eyes and fresh ideas to NASA, and establishes a link with our colleges and universities," Voss explains. "There's an exchange of information and an exchange of perspectives that is very important." For the academic side, Voss says, the ASEE program also "brings institutions of higher learning more insight into new technology. We give them an opportunity to work on real-world problems and take it back to the classroom".

单选题Movies are often held up as either the paragons or pariahs of our society at large; towering achievements on the one hand and endless ______ on the other. A. wallows B. accomplishments C. awards D. extravagance

单选题Cardiologists divide us into two types, according to how our personality affects our heart. Type A individuals are highly competitive, innately hostile, fast eating and rapid talking, whilst B types drown in the milk of human kindness and are sublimely indifferent to the passage of time. It is an uncomfortable fact that A"s die twice as frequently from heart disease as B"s even when the risks of cigarettes, alcohol and cream buns are taken into account. Personality is to a large extent genetically endowed—A-type parents usually beget A-type offspring. But the environment must also have a profound effect, since if competition is important to the parents, it is likely to become a major factor in the lives of their children. One place where children soak up A traits is school, which is, by its very nature, a highly competitive institution. Too many schools adopt the "win at all costs" ethic and measure their success by sporting achievements. The current mania for making Children compete against their peers or against the clock produces a two-tier system, in which competitive A types seem in some way better than their B type fellows. Addiction to winning can have dangerous consequences: remember that Pheidippides, the first marathon runner, dropped dead seconds after croaking: "Rejoice, we conquer!" By far the worst form of competition in schools is the disproportionate emphasis on examinations. It is a rare school that allows pupils to concentrate on those things they do well. The merits of competition by examination are dubious enough, but competition in the certain knowledge of failure is positively harmful. Obviously, it is neither practical nor desirable that all A youngsters change into B"s. The world needs both types, and schools have an important duty to try to fit a child"s personality to his possible future employment. It is a fallacy, for instance, that people successful in business are full of competitive zeal; there are many B types in top management. If the preoccupation of schools with academic work was lessened, more time might be spent teaching children surer values. Perhaps selection for the earing professions, especially medicine could be made less by good grades in chemistry and more by such considerations as sensitivity, altruism and compassion. It is surely a mistake to choose our doctors exclusively from A type stock. B"s are important and should be encouraged.

单选题So much of modern fiction in the United States is autobiographical, and so much of the autobiography fictionalized, that the______sometimes seem largely interchangeable.