Reading passages

178 -The main advantage of container ships is that they are --- .
A) bigger than other ships
B) as comfortable as fast ocean liners
C) able to compete with fast ocean liners
D) loaded and unloaded extremely fast
E) the most recent invention of mankind
179 -It is stated in the passage that container ships ---- .
A) are the fastest ships in the world
B) can travel so fast because they are loaded with standard size containers
C) have virtually replaced passenger liners
D) are described as "monsters" because they are ugly
E) have recently begun sailing the oceans
180 -We learn from the passage that ------ .
A) container vessels come in all sizes
B) container vessels have been around for as long as passenger liners
C) passenger liners still have a number of important advantages over container
D) because containers are of a standard size, they can be used as building blocks
E) container vessels can only be loaded and unloaded at specially equipped ports

The word alphabet is made up from the first two letters of the Greek alphabet-alpha and beta-and describes any group of symbols intended to represent the sounds used in speech. The letters of an alphabet can be assembled in thousands of different combinations to form words, and are therefore much more flexible than other symbols, such as pictograms or ideograms each of which can only stand for one particular object or idea. The origin of alphabets is obscure. Some scholars believe that the first true alphabets developed from Egyptian Hieroglyphics; others contend that the cuneiform scripts of the Sumerians, Babylonians and Assyrians hold the key.

181 -The author tell us that an alphabet is ---- .
A) two Greek letters, alpha and beta
B) a group of meaningless symbols
C) a group of signs that stand for vocal sounds
D) the sounds used when we speak
E) a combination of pictograms and ideograms