(C)

It is over 40 years since first atomic bomb was dropped on a major city in Japan. Yet even now its effects are showing themselves and may continue to do so for years to come. Much effort and human energy have been used to try to prevent such a terrifying thing from happening again. So far there is no guarantee that it will not. Countries which already possess nuclear knowledge and resources have bombs stored away which are powerful enough to wipe out all life on earth. But this is not all. Other countries, which previously were not so advanced in technology, are gradually buying materials that can be used for making atomic devices. This nuclear energy will naturally be of great value in helping the economy of poorer nations.

The generation of electricity through nuclear power came directly from the original work on the atom bomb. Because of the increase in demand for energy and the possibility of decreasing supplies of oil and natural gas, the interest in electricity has increased. One of the by-products of nuclear power stations is plutonium (钸) produced from unclear fuel: plutonium is ingredient (成分) in bomb-making. It means that there are far more opportunities for the manufacture of bombs.

This brings the problem to a full circle again. How can something so valuable and useful be controlled so that it works for the benefit and not the destruction of man? (from www.nmet168.com)

9. The effects of dropping the first atomic bomb ________.

A. are not over                               B. may go on forever    

C. could last much longer                D. will not be over in the near future

10. The writer says that enough atomic bombs have already been manufactured to ________.

A. wipe out Japan                             B. last forever    

C. act as a peace-keeping device         D. destroy all living things

11. The advantage of less developed countries being able to make atomic devices is that it ________.

A. gives them more opportunities for work

B. will help poor countries to become richer

C. will enable them to make better explosives

D. will be of great value to them

12. The second paragraph tells us that the increased demand for electricity today ________.

A. has led to the decrease in supplies of oil

B. means that more countries are interested in nuclear power

C. has increased the risk of accidental explosions

D. has increased the very means of producing more atomic bombs

(D)

The United States became a rich industrial nation toward the end of 1800s. There were more goods, more services, more jobs, and a higher standard of living. There was more of everything, including problems. One problem was monopoly, that is, to be the only seller of a certain line of products or a service. In some cases, several companies that manufactured the same product would agree not to compete with one another. They would all agree to charge the same price. These arrangements made it impossible for customers to shop around for lower prices for certain products.

Some people decided that huge corporations had too much power and controlled too many markets. Because of their wealth and power, they could see to it that governments passed laws favorable to them. Many people believed that monopoly and price fixing were bad for customers and bad for the country so that they should be broken up.

Finally the national government and some states passed laws that placed limits on corporations and big companies. These laws made it illegal for companies to make agreements to charge only a certain price. Later on the national government forced monopoly to be broken up.

Such laws and government action didn’t entirely do away with monopolies. Nor did they stop the growth of huge corporations. But they did show that American people had decided that some of the changes that had occurred were harmful. (from www.nmet168.com)

13. The underlined word “monopoly” in the first paragraph most probably means ________.

A. the production of certain kinds of goods

B. complete control and possession of trade

C. a big corporation of company          

D. an agreement on prices

14. Because of the agreements between big companies ________.

A. people had to buy things at certain shops

B. the prices of their goods were much lower

C. customers had no choice but to buy

D. there were fewer markets in some states

15. According to the laws, companies ________.

A. were not allowed to control the markets

B. could not force the customers to buy their products

C. should have fixed prices for their products

D. must produce the same kind of goods for the same markets

16. Which of the following is not true according to the passage?

A. Big companies could not influence the government.

B. A large number of markets were controlled by big companies.

C. Many Americans were worried about the changes in their country.

D. Some of the laws were in favor of customers.

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