Computers monitor everything in Singapore from soil composition to location of manholes . At the airport , it took just 15 seconds for the computerized immigration system to scan and approve my passport . It takes only one minute to be checked into a public hospital . By 1998, almost every household will be wired for interactive cable TV and the Internet , the global computer network . Shoppers will be able to view and pay for products electronically . A 24- hour community telecomputing network will allow users to communicate with elected representatives and retrieve information about government services . It is all part of the government's plan to transform the nation into what it calls the " Intelligent Island ". In so many ways , Singapore has elevated the concept of efficiency to a kind of national ideology . For the past ten years , Singapore's work force was rated the best in the world - ahead of Japan and the U . S .- in terms of productivity , skill and attitude by the Business Environment Risk Intelligence service . Behind the " Singapore miracle " is a man Richard Nixon described as one of " the ablest leaders I have met ," one who , " in other times and other places , might have attained the world stature of a Churchill ." Lee Kuan Yew led Singapore's struggle for independence in the 1950 s , serving as Prime Minister from 1959 until 1990. Today (1995), at 71, he has nominally retired to the office of Senior Minister , where he continues to influence his country's future . Lee offered companies tax breaks , political stability , cheap labor and strike - free environment . Nearly 90 percent of Singaporean adults now own their own homes and thanks to strict adherence to the principle of merit , personal opportunities abound . " If you've got talent and work hard , you can be anything here ," says a Malaysian - born woman who holds a high - level civil - service position . Lee likes to boast that Singapore has avoided the " moral breakdown " of Western countries . He attributes his nation's success to strong family ties , a reliance on education as the engine of advancement and social philosophy that he claims is superior to America's . In an interview with Reader's Digest , he said that the United States has " lost its bearings " by emphasizing individual rights at the expense of society . " An ethical society ," he said , " is one which matches human rights with responsibilities ." 1. What characterizes Singapore's advancement is its ___. A . computer monitoring . B . work efficiency . C . high productivity . D . value on ethics . 2. From Nixon's perspective , Lee is ___. A . almost as great as Churchill . B . not as great as Churchill . C . only second to Churchill in being a leader . D . just as great as Churchill .