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[
"cheap but heavy",
"attractive but expensive",
"light and small",
"dear and not attractive"
] |
dear and not attractive
|
For many years, a small percentage of homeowners have fixed solar panels on their rooftops. Those panels collect some of the sun's energy and either change it into electricity or use it to heat water. Until recently, the panels were too expensive for average homeowners, and their designs were not attractive. Thanks to new advances, however, solar panels for homes are becoming cheaper and less large and heavy. Now more homeowners are considering using them.
Stores begin to sell Solar panels
Last fall furniture retailer IKEA began selling solar panels in its U.K. stores. IKEA has brought the DIY solar choice to the public. While shopping for furniture, shoppers could not add a box or two of solar panels to their shopping cart . IKEA is partnering with a company. The company deals with fixing and servcing of the solar panels on the roofs. So it is easy for customers to change from old energy system to solar system. If all goes well, IKEA plans to begin selling the panels in other countries soon.
Stylish solar panels
SolTech, a Swedish company, offers a really great solar-power solution. Instead of flat panels, SolTech covers the panels with a special glass tile. And the shape of the glass tile fits traditional tiled roof designs. SolTech recently offers solar systems that heat the home's air or water. And it also offers one solar system that produces electricity.
_
New technology has turned windows into solar panels. SolarWindow technology enables see-through windows to produce electricity after the glass surface is added with a special coating. Amazingly, SolarWindow can produce electricity in low-light conditons and can even turn indoor, man-made light into electricity! Since buildings are getting taller and about 60 percent of an office building's surface is covered with windows, solar window could become a very popular way for people to produce energy and save money.
Turning your home -business-into a solar-powered one is a choice that's becoming a lot more attractive these days!
|
The reason why only a few homeowners used solar panels is that they are _ .
|
[
"taking small planes",
"doing tricks in planes",
"reading books about planes",
"drawing pictures"
] |
doing tricks in planes
|
When George was thirty-five, he bought a small plane and learned to fly it. He soon became very good and made his plane do all kinds of flying tricks.
George had a friend. His name was Mark. One day, George took him up in his plane. Mark thought, "I travel in a big plane many times, but I didn't travel in a small one, so I'll go."
They went up, and George flew around for half an hour and did all kinds of tricks in the air.
When they came down again, Mark was very glad to be back safely, and he said to his friend in a shaking voice, "Well, George, thank you very much for those two trips in your plane." George was very surprised and said,"Two trips?" "Yes, my first and my last," answered Mark.
|
George was interested in _ .
|
[
"1",
"2",
"3",
"4"
] |
2
|
A recent research shows that most people while attending their very first or second interview face the problem of interview nerves. This interview nerves simply make them nervous and depressed. This mainly happens due to lack of confidence and belief in oneself. Most of them even suffer from sleepless nights.
They feel as if interviews are nothing but a questioning by an unknown person who will judge them by their answers. They simply can't understand or _ that the interviews are as beneficial for them as for the company.
To overcome these problems, people need to make their mind set for facing the interview full of confidence. This can be done by building up confidence that this job is for me only. They need to make preparations for the estimated questions to be asked in the interview. They also need to be familiar with a few details of the company like its products, vision, recent achievement, etc. This is just to have an upper hand in the interview so that you can explain that you are the right candidate for the company. One must be completely relaxed before the interview. Because stress is one of the major reasons which reduces one's performance ability.
Another way of getting over with your nerves is by a well known therapy called as hypnosis. Hypnosis is a very effective therapy which is generally used for curing nerves of Examinations, Interviews, Meetings, etc. Hypnosis mainly activates your subconscious mind so that you are extra alert and attentive what you are doing. Thus this gives you a lot more confidence to deal with.
Now here are some of the tips you must follow for your interview.
* You must be fully prepared for the interview and you must possess everything required.
* You must maintain a complete eye contact with the interviewer, because it will show your confidence.
* You must not do any nervous acts like being fidgety, fixing your tie or touching your clothes dress again and again.
* Be positive while talking and use your hands to express yourself.
* With hypnosis you can come in terms with such a situation and will be well prepared to face a barrage of questions that come your way.
|
How many ways does the author mention to overcome nerves _ ?
|
[
"children",
"parents",
"educators",
"teachers"
] |
parents
|
Visit New York City with your kids where there are numerous things to do which will entertain their spirits and feed their minds.
*The Whispering Gallery
Make your way to the Whispering Gallery. Kids can get a lot of fun there. Once inside the gallery, place one person facing the corner at one end of the room and then place another person facing the corner at the opposite end. Ask one of them to whisper a phrase or a quick sentence and the person at the opposite end will be able to hear every word that was said.
E.42nd St. New York, NY 10017
212-771-5322
grandcentralterminal.com
*American Museum of Natural History
The American Museum of Natural History was founded in 1869. In addition to its impressive exhibits, permanent attractions bring the cool feeling to kids. They can enter the Fossil Halls and take in the impressive dinosaur skeletons. And the Milstein Hall of Ocean Life educates kids on the fragility of the ocean.
Central Park West at 79th St. New York, NY 10024
212-769-5606
amnh.org
*The Scholastic Store
Most parents want their children to read, and moreover, to enjoy reading. The Scholastic Store helps to make that wish a reality by publishing well-written stories that appeal to children, such as Clifford the Big Red Dog, the Magic School Bus and Harry Potter, the Scholastic Store will delight your children.
557 Broadway. New York, NY 10012
212-343-6100
scholastic.com
*Ellen's Stardust Diner
The restaurant is a place where each person in your family can find something to eat. A diverse menu will satisfy every one's appetite. Arugula salads, grilled cheese burgers and meatloaf are all on this varied menu. The hall of beauty queens, a drive-in theatre can add to the unique dining experience.
1650 Broadway, corner of 51st St. New York, NY 10019
212-956-5151
ellensstardustdiner.com
|
The author has written this text probably for _ .
|
[
"a job he can deal with",
"his favorite thing",
"a difficult task for him",
"meaningful work for him"
] |
his favorite thing
|
It has been two years since I published my first article on Yahoo!Contributor Network.I was very excited when I saw that what I had written was published on the Internet.
I recognized that the content sites such as Associated Content can provide a fertile ground for learning how to become a writer.I was thrifty --I could see that this was an open door for systematically learning some basic writing skills without paying college tuition for classes,all to be finished at my own speed and without leaving the comfort of my own home.
During these past few years I gained enough experience and understanding of using Associated Content to try writing.I found writing for that site was not my cup of tea.However,my experience there was positive as I was rewarded with even more learning opportunities just by giving it a try.Through Associated Content I was introduced to the world of bolgs .I decided to learn how to set up a blog myself.Now I'm interested in blogs and continue to work as a writer.
Writing for the content site Yahoo!Contributor Network gives me a chance of trying creative writing--news,reviews and numerous lifestyle issues.And all of these topics are my own choices.Then there is an opportunity to meet other writers.Yahoo!Contributor Network has a wonderful in-house messaging system that allows its writers to communicate easily with one another.Not all your tries are satisfactory and easy when you write for a content site,but the benefits are many if you try it.
My teacher once said,"If you don't quit,you will win."I have no desire to quit writing as I really enjoy it.My thanks go out to Associated content and yahoo!Contributor Network for all my progress in writing!And to my fellow writers--thank you so much for your support and friendship.May we continue in our efforts of inspiration for many years to come!
|
In the author's eyes,writing for Associated Content was not _ .
|
[
"is the thing that troubles people",
"is of the short term or temporary",
"makes us learn more than success does",
"can make him unhappy from time to time"
] |
makes us learn more than success does
|
So many of us expect everything we do to be successful. We look forward to success to show us our value or to be the top of the group wherever we are. How many times in our schooling did we hope for a high mark? We want it and then feel like a failure when we don't achieve what we want. Even when we succeed we still pass that and go onto the next success and then the next. We are not often taught how to face failures.
For me, failure taught me more than success did. Success is of the moment and temporary but failure means we have ever done. It makes me stop and think. It opened my eyes and brain to different possibilities. Failure is just a choice in redoing not in giving up. Experiencing failure,I looked deeper and further.
I have a grandson who plays hockey and as all players do,he went through a _ . So I saw he was unhappy with himself. Then I said to him, "Why don't you think of it differently rather than being unhappy?" And I asked, "Scoring is your goal, right?" He answered,"Of course." "Why aren't you scoring now? Do you need a readjustment ?"All of a sudden he calmed down--he was thinking of what I had just said. So in the next game I saw him trying different things to do better. Later he started scoring. Now when something is wrong, he takes the time to think it over rather than just keeping the "failure" mode .
Look at failure differently. Failure is what gives us power to try a different way of doing things.
It teaches us to rethink, redo, and then success will come about. Don't give up but learn to use a different way.
|
According to the author,failure _ .
|
[
"a science report",
"a business magazine",
"an advertisement",
"a website on green life"
] |
a website on green life
|
Here's how you can take action and make sure you are doing what you can to reduce your personal carbon footprint when traveling this year.
Before you go
Turn off and unplug all of your non-essential electronic appliances. Experts say that 5-10 percent of the average family's electric bill is from electronic appliances that are plugged in 24 hours a day. Televisions, computers, coffeemakers, toasters and even lamps can suck up power. If you are gone for any extended period, consider turning down the temperature on your water heater since there is no sense in keeping that water hot if you are not going to be around to use it.
Choose a different way
If you have a little extras time to spare, driving or taking a train to your destination might be an option. And there are always the long-haul options like Megabus. If you do have to take a plane, fly non-stop. If you want to have a lower carbon footprint, avoid private jets even if you can afford them.
At the hotel
Utilize every conservation program that the hotel offers. Reuse your towels and turn off your air conditioning or heat before you leave for the day. Bring your own soap, shampoo and moisturizer, or at least take whatever is left of the hotel-supplied notions home with you to finish using there. Skip the morning printed newspaper and read it on your Tablet PC, phone or computer.
Drinking
Carry a water bottle with you so that you don't have to buy plastic bottles. Travel to certain parts of the world and you will understand why. There's nothing more disturbing than seeing something made up of plastic bottles and bags. Halong Bay in Vietnam is a great example where this kind man-made pollution is clearly visible.
|
The text is most probably from _ .
|
[
"to tell how bad teasing can make others feel",
"to encourage people to carry their heads high",
"to call on the public to treat everyone properly",
"to explain how brave Amy was by making her wish"
] |
to call on the public to treat everyone properly
|
Dear Santa Claus,
My name is Amy. I am 9 years old. I have a problem at school. Can you help me, Santa? Kids laugh at me because of the way I walk and run and talk. I have cerebral palsy. I just want one day when no one laughs at me or makes fun of me.
Love,
Amy
At radio station WJLT in Fort Wayne, Indiana, letters poured in for the Christmas Wish Contest. When Amy's letter arrived at the radio station, manager Lee Tobin read it carefully. He thought it would be good for the people in Fort Wayne to hear about this special third grader and her unusual wish. Mr. Tobin called up the local newspaper.
The next day, a picture of Amy and her letter to Santa made the front page of the "News Sentinel". The story spread quickly. All across the country, newspapers and radio and television stations reported the story of the little girl in Fort Wayne, Indiana, who asked for such a simple, yet remarkable, Christmas gift--just one day without teasing.
Suddenly the postman was a regular at the Hagadorn house. Envelopes of all sizes addressed to Amy arrived daily from children and adults all across the nation. They came filled with holiday greetings and words of encouragement. Some of the writers had disabilities; some had been teased as children. Each writer had a special message for Amy. Through the cards and letters from strangers, Amy glimpsed a world full of people who truly cared about each other.
Many people thanked Amy for being brave enough to speak up. Others encouraged her to ignore teasing and to carry her head high.
Amy did get her wish of a special day without teasing at South Wayne High School. Teachers and students talked together about how bad teasing can make others feel.
That year, the Fort Wayne mayor officially proclaimed December 21st as Amy Jo Hagadorn Day throughout the city. The mayor explained that by daring to make such a simple wish, Amy taught a universal lesson. "Everyone, "said the mayor, "wants and deserves to be treated with respect, dignity and warmth. "
|
The Fort Wayne mayor officially proclaimed Amy Jo Hagadorn Day _ .
|
[
"Intellectual.",
"Special.",
"Gentle.",
"Helpful."
] |
Helpful.
|
As a teacher, my daily life includes driving to a new school so I'm usually unable to anticipate the day's events, good or bad!
One day, I was teaching in a very difficult classroom. I was managing behavior all morning and by lunch time, I knew I needed coffee to even consider surviving the afternoon. So on my lunch break, I drove to a coffee shop nearby to get a cup of coffee. While returning to the car I realized I had locked my keys and my phone inside! I had about 15 minutes to get back to the school which was a good 4- or 5- minute drive away. I considered rushing back, but it being winter, I thought a fall on ice would only make the situation much worse.
So I ran into a McDonald's and asked the man at the counter who happened to be the manager to please call me a taxi. I explained my situation to him, and I could tell by the look in his eyes, that he took pity. He hurried to the back to use the phone while I walked in the restaurant. I had less than 10 minutes to get back to my school at this point.
The manager returned only to tell me that the taxi company had put him on hold and then the line got disconnected, and that he was now on hold again, but had not yet been able to ask for the taxi yet.
Without a thought, he caught his coat and offered to drive me to the school. Immediately I followed him into his car and made it back into my classroom with 2 minutes left before the bell!
While arriving at the school, I thanked this man endlessly. His calm behavior and kind nature made me think he was probably a wonderful manager to work for, and also a wonderful human being to have on his earth. This experience makes me realize that out of every hopeless situation, there is the chance for acts of kindness to happen, which can create an unimaginable impression to those who receive them.
|
What kind of person is the manager?
|
[
"was not good at dancing",
"began to star in her first movie when she was ten years old.",
"was unfriendly to her fan",
"encouraged the whole country during the Great Depression"
] |
encouraged the whole country during the Great Depression
|
(1)Shirley Temple, the once-famous child movie star, died at the age of 85 on February 10, 2014. She was born on April 23, 1928. She was good at acting and dancing. In 1934, she starred in the movie Bright Eyes. From then on she became famous around the world. Later she starred in other movies and won a Juvenile Oscar in February, 1935.
For many Americans born in the 1930s and 1940s, Temple was not just an on-screen star but also a close friend in their childhood. She was remembered by the world as the forever "little angle". An American movie star said, "Little Shirley Temple encouraged the whole country during the Great Depression ."
(2)Shi Li and Cui Jiping are husband and wife. They are disabled. They complete the first Chinese encyclopedic dictionary for deaf people and people with hearing problems.
The dictionary includes words on medicine, education, psychology, law, history and culture about deaf people's life. This book provides a learning tool for this special group of people and it helps them know about the world more easily.
They spent six years and over 1,000,000 yuan on the book. They first collected material for the book by themselves, then they invited a lot of experts across the country to write.
The book is warmly welcomed by the deaf. One of the readers said, "The book shows that we're not alone. We can have our own way to communicate with the world. "
|
From the passage we know that Temple _ .
|
[
"Self-centred.",
"Easy-going.",
"Generous.",
"Conservative."
] |
Self-centred.
|
I hated dinner parties. But I decided to give them another shot because I'm in London. And my friend Mallery invited me. And because dinner parties in London are very different from those back in New York. There, 'I'm having a dinner party' means: 'I'm booking a table for 12 at a restaurant you can't afford and we'll be sharing the checque evenly, no matter what you eat.' Worse, in Manhattan there is always someone who leaves before the bill arrives. They'll throw down cash, half of what they owe, and then people like me, who don't drink, end up paying even more. But if I try to use the same trick, the hostess will shout: "Where are you going?" And it's not like I can say I have somewhere to go: everyone knows I have nowhere to go.
But in London, dinner parties are in people's homes. Not only that, the guests are an interesting mix. The last time I went to one, the guests were from France, India, Denmark and Nigeria; it was like a gathering at the United Nations in New York. The mix is less striking. It's like a gathering at Bloomingdale's, a well-known department store.
For New Yorkers, talking about other parts of the world means Brooklyn and Queens in New York. But at Mallery's, when I said that I had been to Myanmar recently, people knew where it was. In New York people would think it was a usual new club
|
What is the author's opinion of some New Yorkers from her experience?
|
[
"(A)Evidence shows that the workings of the brain are guided, not by electrical signals, but by chemicals, and that subtle differences among the receptors for these chemicals may permit the selective treatment of certain brain disorders.",
"(B)Evidence shows that the workings of the brain are guided, not by electrical signals, but by chemicals, and that enough similarities exist among these chemicals to allow scientists to classify them as a family.",
"(C)Evidence shows that electrical impulses are transmitted between neurons chemically rather than electrically, and that enough similarities exist among these chemicals to allow scientists to classify them as a family.",
"(D)Evidence shows that electrical impulses are transmitted between neurons chemically rather than electrically, and that subtle differences among the receptors for these chemicals may permit the selective treatment of certain brain disorders.",
"(E)Evidence shows that receptor molecules in the brain differ subtly from one another, and that these differences can be exploited to treat certain brain disorders through the use of drugs that selectively affect particular parts of the brain."
] |
(D)Evidence shows that electrical impulses are transmitted between neurons chemically rather than electrically, and that subtle differences among the receptors for these chemicals may permit the selective treatment of certain brain disorders.
|
Neurobiologists once believed that the workings of the brain were guided exclusively by electrical signals; according to this theory, communication between neurons (brain cells) is possible because electrical impulses travel from one neuron to the next by literally leaping across the synapses (gaps between neurons). But many neurobiologists puzzled over how this leaping across synapses might be achieved, and as early as 1904 some speculated that electrical impulses are transmitted between neurons chemically rather than electrically. According to this alternative theory, the excited neuron secretes a chemical called a neurotransmitter that binds with its corresponding receptor molecule in the receiving neuron. This binding of the neurotransmitter renders the neuron permeable to ions, and as the ions move into the receiving neuron they generate an electrical impulse that runs through the cell; the electrical impulse is thereby transmitted to the receiving neuron. This theory has gradually won acceptance in the scientific community, but for a long time little was known about the mechanism by which neurotransmitters manage to render the receiving neuron permeable to ions. In fact, some scientists remained skeptical of the theory because they had trouble imagining how the binding of a chemical to a receptor at the cell surface could influence the flow of ions through the cell membrane. Recently, however, researchers have gathered enough evidence for a convincing explanation: that the structure of receptors plays the pivotal role in mediating the conversion of chemical signals into electrical activity. The new evidence shows that receptors for neurotransmitters contain both a neurotransmitter binding site and a separate region that functions as a channel for ions; attachment of the neurotransmitter to the binding site causes the receptor to change shape and so results in the opening of its channel component. Several types of receptors have been isolated that conform to this structure, among them the receptors for acetylcholine, gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA), glycine, and serotonin. These receptors display enough similarities to constitute a family, known collectively as neurotransmitter-gated ion channels. It has also been discovered that each of the receptors in this family comes in several varieties so that, for example, a GABA receptor in one part of the brain has slightly different properties than a GABA receptor in another part of the brain. This discovery is medically significant because it raises the possibility of the highly selective treatment of certain brain disorders. As the precise effect on behavior of every variety of each neurotransmitter-gated ion channel is deciphered, pharmacologists may be able to design drugs targeted to specific receptors on defined categories of neurons that will selectively impede or enhance these effects. Such drugs could potentially help ameliorate any number of debilitating conditions, including mood disorders, tissue damage associated with stroke, or Alzheimer's disease.
|
Which one of the following most completely and accurately states the main point of the passage?
|
[
"call for an end to use the smartphone while driving",
"express concern about the overuse of the smartphone",
"appeal to us to pay attention to communication skills",
"advise us to be cautious about the addiction to the smartphone"
] |
express concern about the overuse of the smartphone
|
Parties and social gatherings no longer excite us the same way they once did. This is not due to a lack of desire to socialize, but the smartphone.
At parties, more people are on their smartphones than on their drinks. According to a recent International Data Corporation study, well over half of all Americans have a smartphone and reach for it the moment they wake up, keeping it in hand all day. In addition, too much of society is using smartphones while driving and as a result getting into car crashes. 34 percent of teens admit to text while driving, and they confirm that text messaging is their number one driving interruption. People's attachment to their smartphones is unbelievably becoming more important than the lives of themselves and others.
Just as drivers dismiss the importance of focusing while on the road, many people also fail to recognize the significance of human interaction. When with their friends, some people pointlessly check or send text messages in the presence of a friend, which sends a message to that friend: the person I am texting is more important than you. In addition, relying on our smartphone to make friends does not give us the same advantage as being able to make new friendships in the real world. Face-to-face conversations will give us much stronger communication skills in the long run.
As many people risk their lives and the lives of people around them just to send a text or mindlessly check their massages, smartphones are in many ways more dangerous to people. The quality of this technology is de-advancing societal achievements and weakening the value of communication. Not only is the smartphone affecting our desire to interact face-to-face but it is also lowering society's ability to communicate.
|
The purpose of this text is to _ .
|
[
"a large park",
"a big church",
"a square",
"a shopping center"
] |
a shopping center
|
Malls are popular places for Americans to go. Some people spend so much time at malls that they are called "mall rats ". Mall rats shop until they drop in the hundreds of stores.
People like malls for many reasons. They feel safe because malls have police stations. Parking is usually free, and the weather inside is always fine. The newest malls have beautiful rest places with waterfalls and large green trees.
The largest mall in the United States is the Mall of America in Minnesota. It covers 4. 2 million square feet . It has 350 stores, eight nightclubs, and a large park! There are parking spaces for 12,750 cars. About 750,000 people shop there every week.
The first indoor mall in the United States was built in 1965 in Edina Minnesota. People love doing all their shopping in one place. More malls are built around the country. Now malls are like town centers where people come to do many things. They shop, of course, they also eat in food courts that have food from all over the world. They see films at theaters. Some people even get their exercise by doing the new sport of "mall walking". Others go to malls to meet friends.
In some malls, people can see a doctor and even go to the church. In other words, people can do just about everything in malls. Now people can live in their favorite shopping center in fact.
|
Here "mall" means " _ ".
|
[
"The Use of Garbage Dustbin",
"How to Save Water and Electricity",
"How to Save the Environment",
"Our Current Environmental Problems"
] |
How to Save the Environment
|
Our environment isn't as green and beautiful as it should be. There are steel monsters blocking out the sun, blowing out dangerous smoke, and letting out poisonous chemicals into rivers, cars producing harmful waste gas, people throwing out waste in a wrong way and all other kinds of sources that ruin the planet. Facing current environmental problems, people need to do their best to save the Earth.
You can see many big garbage dustbins in the streets. They're not there for a show, but for you to drop your waste. We should realize that what a little we do does count. So next time you get that urge to throw gum or a chocolate package out of the car window, or " accidentally" drop as you walk down the street, ask yourself how much waste you've been contributing to the environment with that bad habit going on for years.
At home, the first thing we can do to protect the environment is avoid letting water run continuously and make sure that taps are not leaky ,which would help greatly in _ Another is to use energy-saving lights, and turn them off before you leave the rooms. It's not only energy-saving, but also cuts down electricity costs.
Recycling is a method to make items reusable. Many things you want to throw out can be made into new products through the reproducing process. Use your imagination to come up with ways on things that you can use again.
Pass the message of simple ways to save the environment on to kids. Starting with kids is a good way of teaching the message early in their lives, in the hope that they can carry it forward as they grow older.
With environmental protection awareness in mind, we can do what we can, for the results are to have a big effect on the planet. As long as we do our part, the world is one small step closer to being saved.
|
Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?
|
[
"Dorms.",
"Dining halls.",
"Libraries.",
"Academic departments."
] |
Dining halls.
|
Visiting Harvard University
For All Visitors
Attend an hour-long group information meeting in the Admissions Office
Admissions officers give information and answer questions about the visit. No appointment or registration is required for families or groups of 20 people or less who wish to visit the university. Groups of more than 20 people should email tours @ fas. Harvard. Edu to plan a visit.
Take a tour
Take a student-led tour of the university. But the dorms , academic departments , athletic facilities and libraries are not included on any of our tours.
Attend a class
The Admissions Office provides a list of the meeting times and locations of courses held during the academic year that visitors are welcome to attend.
Speak with the Harvard teachers
Teachers and other staff members are often glad to talk to people who have questions about our programs. It is best to write ahead directly to the office to arrange an appointment.
For Seniors Only
Eat a meal with Harvard students
During the academic year, high school seniors are our guests for one meal in Annenberg Hall, the first-year dining hall, or in one of the House dining halls if accompanied by a House resident.
Stay overnight in one of the residence halls
Our office can arrange for high school seniors to stay with volunteer student hosts for one night, Monday through Thursday, from October 1st through early March. We need to hear from you by phone (617-495-1551) or by mail at least three weeks in advance for us to be able to confirm your stay with a host.
|
Which place can be visited according to the text?
|
[
"no dogs are permitted in the capital",
"the police do not carry handguns",
"it is very different from America",
"the climate is rather mild."
] |
it is very different from America
|
To American visitors, Iceland is a very interesting country, partly because it is different in so many ways from what he or she is used to seeing at home. There are quite a few things that are not done, or that do not exist on the island - quite a few "No's".
There is no pollution, for instance. No dogs are permitted in Reykjavik, the capital. There is no television on Thursdays or during the entire month of July, and only three hours of black-and-white TV the rest of the time. There is no hard liquor on Wednesdays and no beer at any time. There are no handguns; only one jail of thirty-five cells in the entire land - an admirable figure, even for a small country of 313,376 people.
There is no army, air force or navy. There is no tipping for anything. There are no large stores open on Saturdays or Sundays. Since Iceland is situated just under the Arctic Circle, there is no darkness in summer and do daylight in winter. But thanks to Gulf Stream, the climate is rather mild, with temperatures ranging from 34 degrees Fahrenheit to 52 degrees in July.
The rules on television, liquor, and guns are the result of governmental decision. But the absence of pollution is due in great part to the fact that Iceland gets its power from the enormous geyser and the thousands of hot springs that come out of the ground. They provide all the energy needed by the country. In fact, Iceland uses only 3 percent of all its available power.
Iceland has been described as a democratic independent country where more fish are caught and more books published per person than anywhere else in the world. The Icelanders have always felt a particular love for literature. They composed their first works in the ninth and tenth centuries AD. These works were poems and tales about the kings, heroes, and heroines of Iceland and Norway. At first the stories were memorized and passed from generation to generation. The Icelanders have never stopped writing ever since. "Rather shoeless than bookless," they proudly say.
|
American visitors enjoy visiting Iceland probably because _ .
|
[
"the brain structure as a whole",
"the functioning of part of the brain",
"the distinction between the sexes",
"the effects of the corpus callosum"
] |
the effects of the corpus callosum
|
Do women's minds work the same as men's? Absolutely not. At least, that is what most men are convinced of. Psychologists view the subject either as a matter or frustration or a joke. Now the biologists have moved into this minefield, and some of them have found that there are real differences between the brains of men and women. But being different, they point out hurriedly, is not the same as being better or worse.
There is, however, a definite structural variation between the male and female brain. The difference is in a part of the brain that is used in the most complex intellectual processes-the link between the two halves of the brain.
The two halves are linked by a trunkline of between 200 and 300 million nerves, the corpus callosum. Scientists have found quite recently that the corpus callosum in women is always larger and probably richer in nerve fibres than it is in men. This is the first time that a structural difference has been found between the brains of women and men and it must have some significance. The question is "What?", and, if this difference exists, are there others? Research shows that present-day women think differently and behave differently from men. Are some of these differences biological and inborn, a result of evolution? We tend to think that is the influence of society that produces these differences. But could we be wrong?
Research showed that these two halves of the brain had different functions, and that the corpus callosum enabled them to work together. For most people, the left half is used for word handing, analytical and logical activities; the right half works on pictures, patterns and forms. We need both halves working together. And the better the connections, the more harmoniously the two halves work. And, according to research findings, women have the better connections.
But it isn't all that easy to explain the actual differences between skills of men and women on this basis. In schools throughout the world girls tend to be better than boys at "language subjects" and boys better at maths and physics. If these differences correspond with the differences in the hemispheric trunkline, here is an unalterable distinction between the sexes.
We shan't know for a while, partly because we don't know of any precise relationship between abilities in school subject and the functioning of the two halves of the brain, and we cannot understand how the two halves interact via the corpus callosum. But this striking difference must have some effect and, because the difference is in the parts of the brain involved in intellect, we should be looking for differences in intellectual processing.
|
At the end of the passage the author proposes more work on _ .
|
[
"Three",
"Four",
"Five",
"Six"
] |
Six
|
March 28 is China's National School Safety Day. Earthquakes happen all the time all around the world. It is necessary to know safety tips for earthquakes. Here is the Drop, Cover and Hold ways for personal safety during an earthquake.
DROP: Drop down to the floor.
COVER: Take cover under or beside a piece of furniture . Protect your head and neck with your arms. Stay away from windows, mirrors and tall furniture.
HOLD: If you take cover under or beside a piece of furniture, hold on to it until the ground stops shaking.
School tips
Stand beside a wall. This will protect you from falling things. Don't stand near windows or under lights.
Public area tips
When you are in a bookstore or shopping mall, get down beside the counters or in the corner. Protect your head with your arms or bag.
Stay away from big billboards .
Home tips
If you're in the kitchen, move away from the fridge and lights. When you leave, don't use the lift; take the stairs.
|
How many ways to keep safe are mentioned in this passage?
|
[
"Textbook",
"Newspaper",
"Magazine",
"Guidebook"
] |
Newspaper
|
While the rest of his family was happily feasting during Spring Festival, Zu Xinming, a Senior 2 student in Shaanxi province, was frowning. "Every time my s leave after dinner, almost half of the dishes are unfinished," he said, and we throw away a lot of food.
Nowadays in China, food waste is a widespread problem. Each year, Chinese people throw away the equivalent of about 50 million tons of grain, an amount which could feed 200 million people, according to Xinhua News Agency.
One reason is that people are unaware of the issue.
"Some of my friends don't care at all when they can't finish the food on their plates," said Zu, "and they even throw it away if they don't like the taste."
Gong Tao, an official from the Communist Youth League of China Committee of Central South University in Hunan province, is worried about the decreasing awareness of food waste on his campus in recent years.
"Students don't know how much hard work others go through in order to provide their food," Gao told China Education Daily.
One deeper factor is the Chinese cultural value of "face". In a Chinese banquet setting, the host feels great shame when guests' plates are empty. "Serving lots of food is the Chinese way of showing respect to guests and displaying generosity," Yu Changjiang, a sociologist at Peking University, told Xinhua.
Huge public spending on government banquets is also worsening the situation. Government banquets at the taxpayer's expense have become "a major source of waste", commented People's Daily.
The good news is that people are already beginning to take action. On Jan 16, 10 restaurants with 749 outlets in Beijing joined an "eating up" campaign promoted by Xu Xiake, deputy director of China Land and Resources News. These restaurants have begun serving half-sized meals and small dishes.
So, how can you help reduce food waste? Discuss with your family regularly about your food preferences and how much you want to eat. Eat all of the food on your plate and in your bowl. And each week, help your parents clean the fridge so that all of the food gets eaten before it goes to waste.
|
Where is the passage most probably taken from?
|
[
"How the speaker translated a book.",
"How the speaker was injured in an accident.",
"How the speaker benefited from hi-tech.",
"How the speaker got over the injury."
] |
How the speaker benefited from hi-tech.
|
Dear friends, ladies and gentlemen,
It's my honor to attend this conference. I hope to tell you, with my own experience, how I benefit from the rapidly developing information technology.
I injured my neck and became disabled in a diving accident in May 1997. I was desperate then and even thought of killing myself. During that time, however, I met Ms. Yatani, a Japanese specialist, who was carrying out a teaching task there. She encouraged me and gave me an English copy of JONI before she returned to Japan.
The book is the autobiography of Ms. Joni Earckson. Her experience was similar to mine. She injured her neck and became disabled in a diving accident in 1967. With a strong will, she tried very hard. Finally, she became a famous artist. From her story I found enlightenment and felt hopeful.
My doctor, Dr. Guan, saw me reading the book. He suggested that I translate it into Chinese in order to benefit more disabled people in China. I agreed, and in one and a half months the translation was finished. Then I contacted Joni through the Internet for the copyright. It was then that I saw how useful modern information technology can be.
Highly developed information technology brings me hope and makes my dreams come true. I am really lucky to live in the Age of Information. I could not imagine what my life would be like without it. It makes my life color1ful and more meaningful. I would like to give special thanks to Dr. Guan, and thanks to all of my friends who love and care for me. It is their love and efforts that helped to make my dreams come true. I hope to send my love and thanks to everyone in the world through the Internet. Thanks again!
|
What is the speech mainly about?
|
[
"watch movies",
"see a doctor",
"take some useful actions",
"play sports"
] |
take some useful actions
|
Like stress, burnout has also become a favourite subject of everyday conversation . Many of us may feel "burn out" at times in our lives. It can be prevented, however, if you take action before you are in danger.
First, you must decide what is really important in your life. Make time for the people and the activities that are the most meaningful to you.
Second, you need to share your stories and feelings with others. Talk about your disappointments , sadness, and painful experiences, as well as your joys and successes. If you do not do this normally, you could " _ ". That will be worse for you. Good, healthy relationships with others will make you stronger and bring a greater balance to your life.
Third, make sure you have time off. Take short breaks as well as long holidays whether you feel you need them or not. Learn how to say "no" so that you can say "yes" to the things that are really important to you. Find activities to cheer you up, such as listening to music, dancing, playing sports, or watching movies. You should also make some time to be alone.
Finally, find a good doctor, like a psychologist, if you need help and all else has failed. There is no shame in this. Don't worry a lot. It may bring your spirit back and make you feel more powerful.
|
When you feel burnout, you should _ .
|
[
"red squirrels eat more nuts than gray squirrels",
"gray squirrels and red squirrels will have severe fights",
"nuts above the ground will not develop into plants",
"seeds can be traps for other animals in the forest"
] |
nuts above the ground will not develop into plants
|
Winter begins in the north on December 22nd. People and animals have been doing what they always do to prepare for the colder months. Squirrels , for example, have been busy gathering nuts from trees. Well, scientists have been busy gathering information about what the squirrels do with the food they collect.
They examined differences between red squirrels and gray squirrels in the American state of Indiana. The scientists wanted to know how these differences could affect the growth of black walnut trees. The black walnut is the nut of choice for both kinds of squirrels. The black walnut tree is also a central part of some hardwood forests.
Rob Swihart of Purdue University did the study with Jake Goheen, a former Purdue student now at the University of New Mexico. The two researchers estimate that several times as many walnuts grow when gathered by gray squirrels as compared to red squirrels. Gray squirrels and red squirrels do not store nuts and seeds in the same way. Gray squirrels bury nuts one at a time in a number of places. But they seldom remember where they buried every nut. So some nuts remain in the ground. Conditions are right for them to develop and grow the following spring. Red squirrels, however, store large groups of nuts above ground. Professor Swihart calls " _ ".
Gray squirrels are native to Indiana. But Professor Swihart says their numbers began to decrease as more forests were cut for agriculture. Red squirrels began to spread through the state during the past century.
The researchers say red squirrels are native to forests that stay green all year, unlike walnut trees. They say the cleaning of forest land for agriculture has helped red squirrels invade Indiana. Jake Goheen calls them a sign of an environmental problem more than a cause.
|
When Professor Swihart says "death traps for seeds", he actually means that _ .
|
[
"Sylvester Stallone taught boxing and bodybuilding and caused a fever in China.",
"Charlie Chaplin was China's close friend because he introduced comedy to China.",
"Audrey Hepburn's movie made the Mouth of Truth and the Spanish Steps popular.",
"Shirley Temple's works can only help Americans forget hardships and enjoy life better."
] |
Audrey Hepburn's movie made the Mouth of Truth and the Spanish Steps popular.
|
America's child movie star Shirley Temple Black died late Monday evening at the age of 85. Her fans in China are also deeply saddened. Temple is just one example of movie stars that China adored, and still adores. Here's our editor's pick of the top movie stars who have influenced China.
1. Sylvester Stallone
Oh, Rambo! The first strong American man that China knew. His accented English, easily recognizable even for someone who doesn't speak English, and his eyes that never seemed to smile, makes him someone whom cannot be forgotten. He represented the strong American image, and even stirred a boxing and bodybuilding fever in China.
2.Charlie Chaplin (April 16, 1889 - December 25, 1977)
In the 20th century, it is not too much to say that Einstein made the greatest contributions to science, and not many would disagree that Chaplin did the same for film. He was the first actor that introduced comedy to most Chinese viewers, and politically, he was also a close friend of China's. His silent films broke the barrier of language and his form of art was recognized by all. It will be a difficult task to find a person in China who does not recognize Chaplin, even today.
3. Shirley Temple ( April 23, 1928 - February 10, 2014)
When Chinese audiences saw this adorable child star for the first time on screen, Shirley Temple had already lived for more than half a century. In her movies, she was always alone or in trouble, but this adorable little blonde could always resolve anything with her kindness, push away the fogginess and bring about light. The brand "Shirley Temple" was a product of the Great Depression. People watched her act to forget their hardships as Temple entertained the poor, the rich, adults and children alike. Several decades later, when her films were screened in China, the effects were the same.
4. Audrey Hepburn( May 4, 1929 - January 20, 1993)
She will forever be the princess in Chinese people's hearts. Even to this day, a large number of tourists go to Rome to visit the Mouth of Truth with their lovers and eat ice cream on the Spanish Steps. Her sense of style seems to never go out of style. When she was alive, she was living perfection. Even after her death, she has remained an _ . That's something that only Audrey Hepburn is capable of.
|
What can we learn from the passage?
|
[
"Death of a Salesman Returns to Beijing",
"Arthur Miller--a master of American theatre",
"Willy Loman--winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Drama",
"Death of a Salesman--a milestone of 20th century theatre"
] |
Death of a Salesman Returns to Beijing
|
From March 29 to April 19, a new version of Death of a Salesman
was performedat tne Capital Theatre as the first in a series of
foreign classics to mark the 60th anniversary of the Beijing People's Art
Theatre.The last time this play was performed in Beijing was 29 years ago.
Death of a Salesman was created in 1949 by Arthur Miller, who used it to reveal the weakness of the "American Dream" .The main character, Willy Loman, believes wholeheartedly in American capitalism, and desires to "succeed" but his own greed _ him in the end.Death of a Salesman's first performance was a huge hit on Broadway, where it shocked the American theatre world, and strengthened the 33-year-old Miller's status as a master of American theatre.The play won the Pulitzer Prize for Drama, New York Drama Critics' Circle, and the Tony Award for Best Play.The New York Times praised Death of a Salesman as a milestone of 20th century theatre.In 1999, Death of a Salesman received another Tony Award for Best Revival, and the then 83-year-old Miller was given the National Medal of Arts.
The 1983 version of Death of a Salesman was directed personally by Arthur Miller on a visit to China, with Beijing director and actor Ying Ruocheng as the main character of Willy Loman.On May 7, 1983, the play was performed for the first time at the Capital Theatre, and the first series of performances lasted until August 18, with over 50 performances, some of which filled the house, and all of which had great influence.
When it was first performed here, China didn't have "salesman" , so the actors had to use their imagination to represent the characters and American society, and the audiences weren't entirely sure about some information.For example, they couldn't understand what "fixed payments" were, or why, if Willy was a lower-class member of American society, his family had a house, car, refrigerator, and television.But this didn't stop the play from becoming a widely-known page in Beijing's theatre history.
|
What would be the best title for the passage?
|
[
"make money through collecting stamps",
"develop stamp collection as a hobby",
"get something free from the club",
"find out where the club is located"
] |
develop stamp collection as a hobby
|
Have fun with Stamp collecting...Join the Collectors Club today!If you enjoy learning all about stamps, then the Royal Mail's Collectors Club is for you.Join the club and discover the fascinating world of stamps.There are over 70,000 members and it is one of the biggest clubs of its kind in the country.
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View a Flash presentation about our club (3.51MB)
|
This advertisement is written for people who want to _ .
|
[
"have a hard time using the language.",
"be too foolish to learn maths .",
"not understand what others are saying.",
"have a lot of trouble in remembering words."
] |
have a hard time using the language.
|
Kids who receive special education are, without doubt, the hardest working children in any school. When they are having difficulty learning basic literacy and number concepts, when they break rules, when they need more services, support and adult attention than their peers, then they are struggling the hardest. In psychology, we are trained to think that if we are feeling angry or confused when sitting with a patient, then we are probably feeling just what our patient is feeling. The same is true for students with disabilities. Whatever we feel when we work with them, they are probably feeling as they work with us.
If you have a disability that affects your education, then you have a brain disorder. Because education, even in mathematics, is largely verbal , most brain disorders responsible for educational disabilities affect language, and how you process words and ideas in written and oral form. To imagine how much effort a child with a language disability spends each school day, imagine yourself attending a school today taught in a language you had a basic understanding of. Imagine though, that while you seem fluent to others, you have trouble when people talk too fast, use idioms or expressions.
When adults and classmates blame, or criticize kids who receive special education, they are struggling with their own confusion. It is difficult to imagine the world as it is lived by someone with an educational disability. It is difficult to understand how someone who can be so "normal" can have so many problems. It is so easy to imagine that if they just tried harder... without understanding that just to do the ordinary, kids with disabilities are making an extraordinary effort.
|
If a kid has a disability affecting his education, he will _ .
|
[
"newspaper",
"health magazine",
"diary",
"textbook"
] |
newspaper
|
Women teachers are holding back boy students by blaming them for typically male behavior, according to a new study.
Women teachers are always saying that boys are "silly" in class. They refuse to "sit nicely like girls" and are more likely to be addicted to "schoolboy tricks".Women teachers may also keep low expectations of boys' academic achievement and encourage girls to work harder by letting them think they are cleverer than boys. The study suggests that under-performance among boys in most national exams could be linked to lower expectations of their women teachers.
The researchers did their research mainly on women teachers, since nearly 90 percent of primary school teachers are female. According to the research, women teachers said they often found boys' play in the classroom or in the playground, such as playing with toy guns. The researcher also found that boys were often punished and urged to follow a more feminine style of play instead of being taught how to play responsibly with their favorite toys by their women teachers.
Bonny Hartley, the study's lead author, said, "By seven or eight years old, children of both boys and girls believe that boys are less focused, less able, and less successful than girls -- and think that adults admit this idea. There are signs that these expectations have the potential to become self-fulfilling in influencing children's achievement. Boys are really held back by their women teachers."
|
The passage is probably taken from a _ .
|
[
"3.",
"4.",
"5.",
"6."
] |
3.
|
I was thirteen when my father got hurt.Looking back over the years, I sometimes wonder what I could have done differently that day.Spit twice over my shoulder when I saw the single magpie , maybe.But that's the thing about superstitions .You don't know how much power they have until you break them.
We lived in a dark shabby house in Bucks.Wood blocks laid over dirt on the floor.That part of England was full of cherry trees.Chalky soil.
The rice had caught in the bottom of the pot that morning at breakfast and all I could smell was burned rice.Even now when I think of that day I have the taste of burned rice in my mouth.
"I'm going to cut down the old cherry tree," my father announced.
"You've been saying that for years," said my mother lightly touching the end of her nose.Her nose ran all year long.Her arms rested on the table, a cup of tea placed between her hands, steam rising into the air."You'll never get round to it."
My stomach, balled into a tight little knot relaxed itself.
"Millie's going to cry if you cut it down," said my younger brother, Simon, his eyes bright as a fox."Silly Millie, silly Millie."
"Hold your noise," said my father patting Simon on the head."And put back that butter.That's a week's ration you've got on your plate."
"The war's over," said Simon in a low voice."We haven't had rationing for ages." Simon was right.Even sugar had come off points.However, we still occasionally received food parcels from distant cousins in Canada.
My father glared at him and then went on.
"Pigs.Burt says he'll come and help me take the tree down if he can have some of the wood."
"No," I said springing to my feet."You can't do it.That's my tree.Always has been.Always will be.I won't let you."
Tom, took a piece of toast, watching my reaction.My older brother, he knew what the tree meant to me.
"Now then, Millie," said my father softening his face."That tree's wild.It's in the way."
|
According to the passage, how many kids does the family have at least?
|
[
"how Yunte Huang discovered Charlie Chan",
"how Charlie Chan became famous in the US",
"what Yunte Huang thought of Charlie Chan",
"how a cowboy became a famous detective"
] |
what Yunte Huang thought of Charlie Chan
|
The fictional Chinese-American detective Charlie Chan was the subject of popular books and movies for many decades. In recent years, however, the character has been criticized as an ill image of Asian-Americans.
Yunte Huang, an English professor at the University of California, says that's not the case. He has been exploring the character and real-life policeman who inspired him.
Charlie Chan has been a familiar character to readers and film-goers, beginning in the 1920s. The detective solved crimes around the world in more than 40 films through the 1940s, and with the invention of television, found a new audience in the 1950s and 1960s.
Huang discovered Charlie Chan through books by American author Earl Derr Biggers, who created the character.
"One day, I happened to find two Charlie Chan novels. At that point I thought I knew that he was a negative character against Asians, but when I read the book," he says, "I was immediately attracted. Ever since then, I've been a fan of Charlie Chan."
As a fan of the books and films, Huang was surprised to learn that Charlie Chan was based on a real detective named Chang Apana, who was born to Chinese parents in Hawaii around 1871. Apana worked as a cowboy, and joined the Honolulu police force in 1898.
"He almost immediately became a local legend because as a former cowboy," says Huang, "he would walk the most dangerous areas in Chinatown carrying a bullwhip instead of a gun. He didn't need that."
Although some say the image of Charlie Chan, with his broken English, is embarrassing for Asian-Americans, Huang believes Chan's broken English and unusual ancient sayings were part of his charm .
"Let me just quote a few - 'Actions speak louder than French,' or 'Mind like parachute . Only function when open.' Charlie Chan always owes these instructive sayings to Confucius' eastern wisdom.
For Huang, the fictional Charlie Chan is highly entertaining, while the real-life policeman, Chang Apana, is a Chinese-American success, whose story is worth telling.
|
The passage mainly talks about _ .
|
[
"are in different areas",
"are in the same developing area",
"are of the same price",
"belong to the same developing company"
] |
are in different areas
|
The apartments for sales,40 minutes' walk to the gold coast beach, on the ground floor is a private patio , fully fitted kitchen, resting room with feature fireplace and a second reception room which could be used as a dinning room or third downstairs bedroom. On the first floor are two double bedrooms, one of which leads onto a sunny terrace , fully tiled bathroom with bath and shower. The property is in excellent condition throughout and is ready to move straight into Sky TV, telephone and broadband are connected.
Status: Available Price: EURC/115,000
Telephone: 00351-981888988 Location: Mollina Malaga Province Spain
Apartment furnished for sale at an unbelievable price. The apartment is part of a small complex with swimming pool and a public resting-room with TV, relaxing area, changing areas, etc. The apartment is on the market fully furnished, air conditioning, with good environment to all divisions of the apartment. If you are thinking _ the rental market while the property is empty during the year, this property could be your best bet at the best possible price.
Number of Bedrooms: 2
Status: Available Price: EURC/147,000
Telephone: 00331-961777017 Location: Sao Leiria Portugal
Nice villa for sale. The villa has 4 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms. Beach at walking distance. Outside there is a swimming pool. The villa is just outside inland coast in a small villa of 20 houses.
Status: Available Price: EURC/340,000
Telephone: 04811-961999018 Location: Inland Costal Area
|
From the advertisements we can know the apartments _ .
|
[
"They're a search engine used on the Internet.",
"They're a camera with recognition software.",
"They're software used in computers.",
"They're sunglasses protecting our eyes."
] |
They're a camera with recognition software.
|
You're rushing to get out of the door for a meeting, but you just can't seem to find your car keys. Or you've got tickets booked for a Caribbean cruise , but your passport disappeared. Or maybe you've just come back from a grocery store tour and realized...Hey, did I leave my baby in the checkout line?
Ok, you've probably never gone to the extremes of our last example (we hope), but most of us experience slip - ups like these on a daily basis. No matter how smart you may be, it doesn't mean your brain won't turn to Swiss cheese every so often, and no amount of e-mail reminders can help you remember where you left your TV remote or lucky penny.
But now, there is a new pair of eyeglasses that can help to find all those little things you know must be around somewhere : Let's call it Vision 2.0.
The new glasses, which are being developed in a Japanese lab under the code name Smart Goggles,are similar to a Google search engine for your eyes. The high - tech glasses come with a camera that records everything you see on a daily basis, and boast built - in object recognition software that allows them to keep track of whatever comes across their field of vision. If you've got a collection of art sculptures that the camera can't recognize immediately, no problem : Just say the name of each item, and the glasses will memorize them right away.
The Smart Goggles' superb tracking abilities mean that whenever you're looking for your keys, your overdue library book, or yes, even your baby, all you have to do is to say the word and the Goggles' camera will show you the last time your desired object appeared on screen, telling exactly where you'll be able to find it.
Though the glasses are still too big for general use, the research team in Japan believes that they'll be able to make the modem glasses smaller to the size of normal glasses in the near future, making them the perfect new accessory for yourself or any other absent - minded Professor you know.
With these intelligent designs, you'll never lose anything again. Except maybe your glasses.
|
Which of the following statement is true about Smart Goggles?
|
[
"have a cup of coffee",
"teach the author a lesson",
"make the author less nervous",
"make friends with the author"
] |
make the author less nervous
|
My life began much like most children before my father left us. I grew up without knowing what a father was and no one was there to teach me how to behave and how to tell right from wrong. Because of this, I developed problems with alcohol and spent seven years as a boy in the street, before ending up in a rehab clinic when I was 20.
Inside I met my counselor , Bill, and he taught me a lot of things. The main thing was the gift of giving. It was the night before an important test and I was very nervous. Bill saw this and suggested that we should go out for a walk. As we walked and talked, Bill suggested we should go for a coffee. I told him I was broke, and when I got paid, I would pay him back. He stopped then and looked at me in a serious but loving way and said, "No, you won't." He told me that I didn't owe him anything and he was doing this because he wanted to. He then told me something that has followed me to this day, "One day you'll be around someone and they'll need a coffee, and you'll be able to buy it for them. That's how you can pay me back."
I'm a primary school teacher now; far away from the life I had ten years ago. My job is simple and I buy young people coffee now. Bill taught me how to do that.
|
One night, Bill invited the author to go out for a walk to _ .
|
[
"An editor.",
"A teacher.",
"A book seller.",
"An adventurer."
] |
An editor.
|
When I was a kid, my only interest was watching television. But now, my interest is reading, thanks to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer s Stone, the first book I ever read that inspired me to read.
This wonderful book pulled me in with its adventure. It's about a boy, Harry Potter, who discovers he's a wizard . After this, his life becomes full of uncertainty. He starts his new school and makes two best friends. Then Voldemort, the man who killed Harry's parents, comes to steal the stone that will extend his life. The three bravely defeat the bad guy. This was a life-changing book for me. After finishing it, I really started to enjoy reading. Ever since then, I don't ever put a book down before I'm finished with it.
When I read a book, it inspires me and shows me a different world. It makes me excited. When I read, I never get bored. Books can also change my state of mind. Regardless of whether I'm angry, depressed, or stressed, a book will make me happy.
Books took me out of my comfort zone. Since I started reading, I have learned that even if I'm not comfortable with something, I should try it out. It might turn out to be something I love doing. It might even become another one of my interests.
Interest is a factor that can turn a job into a career. Hopefully, one day, I will get my dream job at a publishing house. Then, my interest would become my life, and I would have lived my life to its fullest.
|
What will the author most probably become in the future?
|
[
"Family and Relationships",
"How to Make Friends with Colleagues",
"What is a True Friendship",
"People and Relationship"
] |
People and Relationship
|
A relationship is defined as a state of connectedness between people. Although in today's society with its crazy rhythm of everyday life, when people tend to live in thickly populated cities, spending most of their time in the office and hardly knowing their neighbor's name, we still find ourselves in some kinds of relationships-with friends, family, or colleagues.
Family relationships are the first relationships people enter. Parents and relatives influence our emotional development by creating a model that we are sometimes bound to follow all our lives, often subconsciously . In day-care, at school, then in the office we spend a lot of time among fellow students and co-workers. We learn to keep business relationships, to work in a team environment, then form smaller groups of like-minded people and finally select some of them as our friends.
What is a true friendship? How does it start? Are we destined to become friends with certain people or can we actually plan whom to be friends with?
"Everybody's friend is nobody's." said Arthur Schopenhauer. Unlike a companionship based on belonging to the same team or group, friendship is a very personal and selective type of relationship. It calls for trust, sincerity, and emotional bonds.
Sociologists believe that most people are looking for similarities in views, social status, and interests when choosing friends. No wonder that our friends are often people of the same age, sex, and education. Another important factor is joint activity and solidarity. This is the reason why many of us befriend our colleagues and other people who work in the same field.
Most people would agree that a friend is someone who always listens and understands. Understanding in this context implies a lot of meanings-compassion, sympathy, and emotional closeness. It's a process in which your friend reads your emotional state, shares your feelings, identifies himself or herself with you.
|
What is the best title of this passage? _
|
[
"always prevent girls from becoming fat",
"can lower body fat in girls",
"are most favored by girls of Asian descent",
"contain more calcium than non-dairy foods"
] |
can lower body fat in girls
|
Girls who get enough dairy products in their diets may weigh less than other teens with the same age.
Girls who consumed more dairy products were found to have slimmer middles than girls of the same age and race who ate the same number of calories and got the same amount of exercise. Girls who drank more soda, but also ate the same total calories, tended to be heavier.
The newly reported study included 323 white and Asian girls between the ages of 9 and 14.
A number of studies, mostly in adults, have shown that calcium may be key in maintaining normal body weight and fat stores. One reason may be the nutrient's effects on hormones that help store calories as fat. In the new study, reported in the Journal of Nutrition, calcium from dairy sources, but not non-dairy foods, was related to lower weight and less abdominal fat--the link was particularly strong among girls of Asian decent , who made up 47 percent of the study group. This suggests that "the dairy ingredient of the calcium intake is the key factor," write the study authors, led by Dr. Rachel Novotny of the University of Hawaii in prefix = st1 /Honolulu. It's possible, they explain, that other nutrients in milk play an important role in weight balance.
For reasons that are unclear, the effect on body fat was stronger for Asian girls than for white girls, according to Novotny and her colleagues. They _ that ethnic differences in which dairy products are usually consumed, or in eating habits-having small amounts of dairy throughout the day, for instance, rather than a single large serving--may help explain the finding.
According to the researchers, soda may increase pounds by adding calories to kid's diets, or by replacing milk. Milk, they note, has a range of nutrients, including protein and fat, which means it is metabolized ly slowly. Soda contains only sugar, which is quickly metabolized, easily causing hunger.
|
According to this passage, dairy products_.
|
[
"Frank is Fee's son and Paddy is Fee's brother.",
"Frank is Fee's son and Paddy is Fee's husband.",
"Frank is Fee's brother and Paddy is Fee's lover.",
"Frank is Fee's lover and Paddy is Fee's husband."
] |
Frank is Fee's son and Paddy is Fee's husband.
|
Everyone gathered around and Paddy read out loud, slowly, his tone growing sadder and sadder. The little headline said: BOXER RECEIVES LIFF SENTENCE.
Frank Cleary, aged 26, professional boxer, was today found guilty of the murder of Albert Gumming, aged 32, laborer, last July. The jury reached its decision after only ten minutes, recommending the most severe punishment to the court. It was, said the Judge, a simple case. Cumming and Cleary had quarreled violently at the Harbour Hotel on July 23rd and police saw Cleary kicking at the head of the unconscious Gumming. When arrested, Cleary was drunk but clear-thinking.
Cleary was sentenced to life imprisonment with hard labour. Asked if he had anything to say, Cleary answered, "Just don't tell my mother."
"It happened over three years ago," Paddy said helplessly. No one answered him or moved, for no one knew what to do. "Just don't tell my mother," said Fee numbly . "And no one did! Oh, God! My poor, poor Frank!"
Paddy wiped the tears from his face and said. "Fee, pack your things. We'll go to see him."
_ "I can't go," she said without a hint of pain, yet making everyone feel that the pain was there. "It would kill him to see me. I know him so well--his pride, his ambition. Let him bear the shame alone, it's what he wants. We've got to help him keep his secret. What good will it do him to see us?"
Paddy was still weeping, not for Frank, but for the life which had gone from Fee's face, for the dying in her eyes. Frank had always brought bitterness and misfortune, always stood between Fee and himself. He was the cause of her withdrawal from his heart and the hearts of his children. Every time it looked as if there might be happiness for Fee, Frank took it away. But Paddy's love for her was as deep and impossible to wipe out as hers was for Frank.
So he said, "Well, Fee, we won't go. But we must make sure he is taken care of. How about if I write to Father Jones and ask him to look out for Frank?"
There was no excitement in the eyes, but a faint pink stole into her cheeks. "Yes, Paddy, do that. Only make sure he knows not to tell Frank we found out. Perhaps it would ease Frank to think for certain that we don't know."
|
What is Frank and Paddy's probable relationship with Fee?
|
[
"changeable",
"positive",
"forgettable",
"active"
] |
changeable
|
It does not have to be January 1st to give yourself a chance to make the most out of your day -- and your life. Every day is a new day and a fresh start to learn, grow, develop your strengths, heal yourself from past regrets or hurts, and move forward older and wiser. Every day gives you a chance to reinvent yourself, to fine-tune who you are, and build on lessons of what you have learned. It is never too late to change things that are not working in your life and switch gears, instead of thinking in the same old ways, hoping for a different outcome.
Be intelligent, be flexible, and keep and open mind to start each day anew! Flexibility is the key!
Ask yourself: How do you wake up each day? Do you start your day going already feeling pressured and rushed? Do you go through the morning routine without much thought at all, doing what you "have to do" to start your day?
How about starting each new day with a moment to stop, breathe and think of a positive intention for the day.
Think not just what you want to DO, but how you want to BE today?
Each day is a new beginning and a blank slate. How would you like to create your day? Think of it as a blank canvas -- what would you like to paint on it. What can you create? If you wake up in a negative mindset, you are more likely to paint a dark picture throughout the day, and your canvas will not reflect hope, happiness and joy.
If you take each day to think positively, and have a positive intention for how you would like to create your day, how would your life be different? What positive outcome can reflect your positive intention?
What can daily positive intentions do for you? Every day you will give yourself the gift of an "attitude of gratitude."
Visualizing how you would like your day will help release positive energy from within you and you will attract more positive energy from those around you. Instead of spinning your wheels in an old way of thinking, each day is a chance to reframe and re-look at things in a different way.
You can experience each day an awe in the beauty and creation of the world -- and the beauty of you who is in it!
You find yourself shifting from an "I can't mindset" to an "I can" mindset.
With a focus on positive intentions, you feel more empowered and more like a "victor" than a "victim."
You are more mindful of the present, and will be more likely to live fully in the present each moment of each day. After all, the past is a great place to visit, but you don't want to live there!
So how about starting each day taking a moment to think of a positive intention for the day? Each morning, write it down and reflect each evening on how you did!
Here are examples of Positive Intentions:
"Today I would like to replace my feelings of annoyance towards my co-worker to feelings of acceptance."
"I am looking forward today to focusing on what I am grateful for in my life, rather than what is missing, and express gratefulness to others."
"Today I want to slow my life down and take time to savor the moment, especially with my children"..
Using each day to recommit yourself to positive thinking and intention will help you create the life you want and that you deserve!
|
According to the writer, which is the most important?
|
[
"one",
"two",
"three",
"four"
] |
three
|
A Russian, a Cuban, an American businessman and an American lawyer were on a train traveling across England. The Russian took out a large bottle of vodka, gave each of the men a drink and then threw the rest half bottle of vodka out of the window. "Why did you do that?" asked the American businessman. "There's too much vodka in my country," said the Russian, "And really we have more than we will ever use." A little later, the Cuban passed around fine Havana Cigars. Then he threw his out of the window. "I thought Cuba is not a rich country," the businessman said. "But you threw that very good cigars out of the window!" "Cigars," the Cuban answered, "are the cheapest in my country. We have more of them than we know what to do with." The American businessman sat quietly for a moment. Then he got up, caught the lawyer by the arm and threw him of the window.
|
The people in the story are from _ countries.
|
[
"a lake",
"a town in Europe",
"a Kazakhstancity next to Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region",
"a tourism destination located in AltayPrefecture"
] |
a tourism destination located in AltayPrefecture
|
Environmental protection was stressed at Kanas, a growing tourism destination in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, famous for its attractive scenery and its "lake monster".
"All of the hotels and restaurants will _ from the scenic site to 30 kilometers away," said Jim Liquan, an official with the Kanas Environment and Tourism Bureau. The move aims to protect environment of Kanas, a scenic site that is part of the European ecosystem and bordersprefix = st1 /Kazakhstan,RussiaandMongolia. Meanwhile, construction of environmental facilities including sewage and rubbish treatment plants will be completed soon.
According to Mao Ken, chief of AltayPrefecturewhere Kanas is located, the government invested 1 billion yuan (US $ 120 million) on environmental facilities. "Education for tourists is also important," he said. An education center is being created to provide information on how to protect the environment in Kanas. But he vowed that the government would not interfere with the lives of traditional residents in Kanas.
It is expected that Kanas will receive more than 500,000 tourists this year, 4,000 more than last year, according to the official. "However, there are still few overseas visitors," he said. Statistics showed that only 2 percent of the total number of tourists is foreigners. "This is partly because the transportation facilities connecting Kanas are still not convenient enough," Mao said. At present, there is only one highway connecting Kanas.
"Upon request from tourists, construction of an airport will start this month and will be completed by the end of next year," the official said. A railway line connecting Kuitun and Altay will also open to traffic in 2008 to make it possible to travel to Kanas by train, probably bringing in more tourists.
|
We can learn from the passage that Kanas is _ .
|
[
"Yang Yang.",
"Yang Yang's father.",
"Yang Yang's mother.",
"Yang Yang's parents."
] |
Yang Yang's father.
|
There are three people in Yang Yang's family. They like different kinds of food. Yang Yang likes rice a lot. But she doesn't like chicken at all. Her father is from Shanxi. He doesn't like rice at all. He likes chicken and bread very much. Her mother is from Dalian. She doesn't like rice or bread at all. But she likes fish and vegetables a lot. They love each other and help each other.
|
Who likes chicken?
|
[
"small",
"big",
"blue",
"B and C"
] |
B and C
|
My name is Chen Lan. My home is in Gulangyu. Do you know it? It is in Xiamen. It is near the sea . Gulangyu is a small place,but it is very nice and clean. There are no cars,no buses. People only walk. So it is very quiet.
Our house is in the middle of Gulangyu. Behind our house there is a big old tree. My grandfather tells me that the tree is very,very old. There are many birds in the tree. We call it a "bird tree". Our house is near the sea. The sea is big and blue. There are a lot of fish in the sea. After school,I go there and catch fish with my friends. It is very interesting. I like fish and I like catching fish.
|
How is the sea?
|
[
"No",
"Yes"
] |
Yes
|
A split-phase or single-phase three-wire system is a type of single-phase electric power distribution. It is the AC equivalent of the original Edison three-wire direct-current system. Its primary advantage is that it saves conductor material over a single-ended single-phase system, while only requiring a single phase on the supply side of the distribution transformer.
|
is split phase the same as single phase
|
[
"The dentist filled all the writer's bad teeth.",
"The dentist didn't fill the writer's bad teeth.",
"The dentist pulled the writer's bad tooth out.",
"The dentist filled the writer's bad tooth."
] |
The dentist filled the writer's bad tooth.
|
One day, I had a bad toothache. I couldn't eat anything. So I went to see the dentist.
" What's wrong with your teeth? " asked the dentist.
" I have a toothache. " I told him.
" Let me see your teeth ...... Um, there's a hole in one of the teeth. Do you eat a lot of sweet food? " The dentist asked me.
" Yes, I do. I often eat ice cream, biscuits, chocolate and I often drink cola and milk with sugar, " I told him.
" All these are bad for your teeth. You must eat less sweet food and brush your teeth at least twice every day. Now let me fill your bad tooth. "
|
Which of the following is true ?
|
[
"The writer thinks it's something only people like Ruth can afford to do",
"The writer just wants to inform us of the different ways to practice charity",
"The writer thinks it's a virtue and admires the people who practice it",
"The writer doesn't make it clear in the story"
] |
The writer thinks it's a virtue and admires the people who practice it
|
No doubt that you know about Charities. Here it is another chance for you to know more. Difficult times often bring out the best in people. And this was the case for basketball star Yao Ming, who hosted a television show in Shanghai that raised US$300,000 to help researchers find a cure for SARS. Fundraising, or charity, is an act of goodwill towards others. Charities in the West have more flexible ways. Look at a typical day for Ruth, a wealthy woman in the UK, for example. Ruth wakes up in the morning and collects her post. There's a letter addressed to her with a picture of a half-dead, beaten horse. It's from a charity asking Ruth to donate money to save the animals. The door bell rings and there, on Ruth's doorstep, is an old woman asking for money to help the aged. She turns on the television, hears sad music and sees a picture of a wide-eyed child dying of hunger in Africa with an appeal for money to help the child. Ruth then goes shopping for a dress to wear to that evening's large party for the rich and famous. The ticket cost her a small fortune, but she doesn't mind because most of the money is going to a charity that fights AIDS. She feels good about going because she's helping the sick. Within five minutes of walking down the street, Ruth has passed a charity shop. She doesn't stop because she doesn't think she'd find a suitable dress there--it's full of old, secondhand clothes. But, many other people enter and but all sorts of bargains. Edna, a little old lady, looks after the shop. Any profit it has made goes to a cancer charity. Now that she has retired, she has plenty of spare time to offer her services for free.
For people like Yao Ming, Ruth and Edna, charity is a virtue that holds the same importance in life as faith and hope. "
" said Scottish author Henry Drummond.
|
What's the writer's attitude towards charity _ ?
|
[
"Antarctica tourism has a history of about 17 years",
"The number of tourists to the Antarctic is over 5 times as large as that of 17 years ago.",
"The tourism boom has caused holes in the floating ice in the Antarctic.",
"The Antarctica Treaty is responsible for the problem."
] |
The number of tourists to the Antarctic is over 5 times as large as that of 17 years ago.
|
Ship tourism to Antarctica is on the rise: More than 35,000 tourists are expected to visit Antarctic this summer. In 1992-1993, 6,750 visited Antarctica, according to the Antarctica Treaty. All of this tourism, however, is putting both tourists and the environment in great danger.
Among the tourist ships that visit the continent, the Explorer, a Canadian ship, was one of the first. Put to use in 1969, it was built to carry tourists to Antarctica. Last week, however, it became the first commercial passenger ship to sink beneath the waters. Fortunately, all of the passengers and crew members were rescued from the ship. However, the sunken ship endangered the Antarctic's fragile environment. The ship was estimated to be holding 48,000 gallons of fuel.
The accident was not unexpected. Both the US and UK had warned a conference of the Antarctic Treaty member countries in May that the tourism situation in this area was a potential disaster. The US said in a paper, people "should take a hard look at tourism issues now, especially those related to ship safety." Although the Antarctic seas are relatively calm, floating ice causes a potential threat to ships. The owner of the Explorer blamed the sinking on a fist-like hole in the ship created by ice.
Many of the other large ships now visiting Antarctica are not designed especially against thick ice. Such ships generally can only come to the continent in summer. But the tourist rush is pushing ships into dangerous situations. "The increasing number of ships operating in Antarctic means that the ship are under great pressure to get there in time for the key visiting sites," the British government wrote in a paper at the meeting of member countries.
As a natural frontier, Antarctica is in a messy legal situation. There are no obvious answers as to who is responsible for dealing with the threat that tourist may cause to human life and the environment.
There is no coast guard for Antarctica. Do we want it to become Disneyland, or do we need some controls?
|
Which of the following is true according to this passage?
|
[
"gave a lot of her legacy",
"said there might be wars in the future",
"explained it would help people in peacetime as well.",
"claimed it could save people from the France-Prussia war."
] |
explained it would help people in peacetime as well.
|
At the age of 16, Clara Barton was advised to become a teacher since she was quite shy. She taught in Massachusetts for ten years, and was invited to Bordentown, New Jersey to teach in a school. She saw that these communities needed _ education for their citizens, and she took action by creating a free school, one of the first in her state. But later, ignoring her, officials named a male instead as the head teacher. Disappointed, she left her job and moved to Washington D.C., becoming the first woman employed by the US Patent Office.
Clara Barton was forever changed by her experience with the army in the Civil War. She saw doctors use leaves when dealing with injuries since they had nothing else. The medical supplies were well behind the army, who were moving faster than their medical supply lines. She brought in a truck of medical supplies that she collected personally some years ago. Miss Barton continued to work on the battlefields throughout the war.
She helped in the identification of 13,000 dead Union soldiers. This non-stop work made her fully exhausted, and upon recommendation by her physicians, she traveled to Europe where she recovered energy and enriched herself.
While in Europe, and still in poor health, Miss Barton was moved by the hardship on people brought about by the France-Prussia war. She helped in their relief effort, which encouraged her to create the Red Cross, which served the whole army and common people under a neutral flag.
Clara Barton returned to America and then began the establishment of the American Red Cross. The US government did not think there would ever be another war after the Civil War. But she convinced them that the Red Cross would be valuable to serve in times of natural disasters as well. This was her lasting legacy , an agency that still provides aid to all people today.
|
The US government agreed to establish the Red Cross because Clara Barton _ .
|
[
"Making the contents interesting.",
"Getting the facts right.",
"Meeting the deadline.",
"Making the end ordinary."
] |
Making the end ordinary.
|
Write a winning story!
You could win PS1,000 in this year's Fiction Prize and have your story printed in Keep Writing magazine. Ten other lucky people will win a cheque for PS100.
Once again, we need people who can write good stories. The judges, who include Mary Littlejohn, the novelist, Michael Brown, the television reporter, and Susan Hitchins, the editor of Keep Writing, are looking for interesting and original stories. Detective fiction was extremely popular last year, although the competition winner produced a love story. You can write down about whatever you want but here's some advice to start your thinking:
Write about what you know
This is the advice which every writer should pay attention to and, last year, nearly everyone who wrote for us did exactly that. Love, family, problems with friends ---- these were the main subjects of the stories. However, you need to turn ordinary situations into something interesting that people will want to read about. Make the reader want to continue reading by writing about ordinary things in a new and surprising way.
Get your facts right
It's no good giving a description of a town or explaining how a jet engine works if you get it wrong. So avoid writing anything unless you're certain about it.
Hold the reader's attention
Make the beginning interesting and the ending a surprise. There is nothing worse than a poor ending. Develop the story carefully and try to think of something unusual happening at the end.
Think about the characters
Try to bring the people in your story alive for the reader by using well-chosen words to make them seem real.
Your story must be your own work, between 2,000 and 2,5000 words and typed, double-spaced, on one side only of each sheet of paper.
Even if you're in danger of missing the closing date, we are unable to accept stories by fax or email. You must include the application form with your story. Unfortunately your story cannot be returned, nor can we discuss our decisions.
You should not have had any fiction printed in any magazine or book in this country ---- a change in the rules by popular request ---- and the story must not have happened in print or in recorded form, for example on radio or TV, anywhere in the world.
Your fee of PS5 will go to the Writers' Association. Make your cheque payable to Keep Writing and send it with the application form and your story to:
Keep Writing
75 Broad Street Birmingham
B12 4TG
The closing date is 30 July and we will inform the winner within one month of this date. Please note that if you win, you must agree to have your story printed in our magazine.
|
What shouldn't a writer do?
|
[
"salt water",
"rivers",
"fresh water",
"its birthplace"
] |
salt water
|
We know that many animals do not stay ill one place. Birds, fish and other animals move from one place to another at a certain time. They move for different reasons: most of them move to find food more easily, but others move to get away from places that are too crowed.
When cold weather comes, many birds move to warmer places to find food. Some fishes give birth in warm water and move to cold water to feed. The most famous migration is probably the migration of the fish, which is called "salmon" . This fish is born in fresh water but it travels many miles to salt water. There it spends its life. When it is cold, it returns to its birthplace in fresh water. Then it gives birth and dies there. In northern Europe, there is a kind of mouse. They leave their mountain homes when they become too crowded. They move down to the low land. Sometimes they move all the way to the seaside, and many of them are killed when they fall into the sea.
Recently, scientists have studied the migration of a kind lobster . Every year, when the season of bad weather arrives, the lobster get into a long time and start to walk across tile floor of the ocean. Nobody knows why they do this, and nobody knows where they go.
So, sometimes we know why humans and animals move from one place to another, but at other times we don't. Maybe living things just like to travel.
,.
|
The fish called "salmon" spends a long life in _ .
|
[
"15.",
"14.",
"10.",
"13."
] |
13.
|
Children in England mustn't work until they are 13. They need to have a work permit to start working.
The jobs teenagers can do
Delivering newspapers
Many teenagers will get up early to deliver newspapers to houses in their local area before going to school. They are known as Paper-boys or Papergirls.
Babysitting: Looking after young children in their home while their parents have gone out for the evening is a popular job for teenagers, as they get money for watching children and television all at the same time!
Helping the Milkman: From the age of 14 some teenagers help the milkman deliver milk to houses.
Other popular jobs : Working in a shop; Office work; Washing cars ; In a cafe or restaurant. The hours teenagers (13 and 14 year olds )can work:
School Days
Not more than 2 hours in one day during the following periods:
Morning 7 a. m. --start of school or Evening
close of school-- 7 p. m.
Saturdays: Up to 5 hours between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m.
Sundays
Up to 2 hours between 7 a.m. and 11 a. m.
Term time
Up to 12 hours a week (Including weekends)
|
In England how old do children have to be before they can work?
|
[
"buy souvenirs",
"drink cocktails",
"enjoy sci-fi films",
"see the old harp"
] |
buy souvenirs
|
How cool can libraries be in an era of iPods and Kindles? More than you think.Only if you know where to go.
Central Library: Seattle, Washington, United States
The Central Library in Seattle is modern and fashionable and has tourists from around the world paying visits and taking tours.It was designed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas and American designer Joshua Ramus.Tours began in 2006, two years after its opening.The library holds various art exhibitions, book signings and other events, while visitors can stop by the Chocolate cart for a coffee and scan through the gift shop anytime
Trinity College Library: Dublin, Ireland
The Trinity College Library in Dublin is the oldest library in Ireland, founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I.It is the largest single library in the world, also known as the Long Room, which contains more than 200,000 0fthe library's oldest books.The Long Room houses one of the oldest harps in Ireland.Dating to the 15th century, the old harp is the model for the symbol foreland.
Geisel Library, University of California: San Diego, United States
At first glance, it looks like a spaceship.Architect William Pereira, who helped design actual space launch facilities at Cape Canaveral in Houston, Texas, designed the library in 1970.It has been featured in sci-fi films, short stories and novels.The library hosts "Dinner in the Library," which invites readers for cocktails, and also a special speech from distinguished authors.
TU Delft Library: The Netherlands
The library at the Delft University of Technology was constructed in 1997 and has more than 862,000 books, 16,000 magazine subscriptions and its own museum.The building itself exists beneath the ground, so you can't really see the actual Library.What makes it interesting is the roof, which is a grassy hill.The roof covers 5,500 square meters.And it has become one of the most striking and greenest structures in the area.[:]
|
In Central Library, you can
|
[
"the death rate can not be predicted",
"the death toll remained stable year after year",
"a quota for each type of death has not come into being",
"people lost their lives every year for this or that reason"
] |
the death toll remained stable year after year
|
The predictability of our death rates is something that has long puzzled social scientists. After all, there is no natural reason why 2,500 people should accidentally shoot themselves each year or why 7,000 should drown or 55,000 die in their cars. No one establishes a quota for each type of death. It just happens that they follow a consistent pattern year after year.
A few years ago a Canadian psychologist named Gerald Wilde became interested in this phenomenon. He noticed that mortality rates for violent and accidental deaths throughout the Western world have remained strangely static throughout the whole of the century, despite all the technological advances and increases in safety standards that have happened in that time. Wilde developed an interesting theory called "risk homeostasis". According to this theory, people naturally live with a certain level of risk. When something is made safer, people will get around the measure in some way to get back to the original level of danger. If, for instance, they are required to wear seat belts, they will feel safer and thus will drive a little faster and a little more recklessly, thereby statistically canceling out the benefits that the seat belt offers. Other studies have shown that where a crossing is made safer, the accident rate invariably falls there but rises elsewhere along the same stretch of road as if making up for the drop. It appears, then, that we have an inborn need for danger. In all events, it is becoming clearer and clearer to scientists that the factors influencing our lifespan are far more subtle and complex than had been previously thought. It now appears that if you wish to live a long life, it isn't simply a matter of paying attention to certain precautions such as eating the right foods, not smoking, and driving with care. You must also have the right attitude. Scientists at the Duke University Medical Center made a 15-year study of 500 persons personalities and found, somewhat to their surprise, that people with a suspicious or mistrustful nature die prematurely far more often than people with a sunny disposition. Looking on the bright side, it seems, can add years to your life span.
|
What social scientists have long felt puzzled about is why _ .
|
[
"adults should develop social skills",
"babies need warm physical contact",
"caregivers should be healthy adults",
"monkeys have social relationships"
] |
babies need warm physical contact
|
Next time a customer comes to your office, offer him a cup of coffee. And when you're doing your holiday shopping online, make sure you're holding a large glass of iced tea. The physical sensation of warmth encourages emotional warmth, while a cold drink in hand prevents you from making unwise decisions--those are the practical lesson being drawn from recent research by psychologist John A. Bargh.
Psychologists have known that one person's perception of another's "warmth" is a powerful determiner in social relationships. Judging someone to be either "warm" or "cold" is a primary consideration, even trumping evidence that a "cold" person may be more capable. Much of this is rooted in very early childhood experiences, Bargh argues, when babies' conceptual sense of the world around them is shaped by physical sensations, particularly warmth and coldness. Classic studies by Harry Harlow, published in 1958, showed monkeys preferred to stay close to a cloth "mother" rather than one made of wire, even when the wire "mother" carried a food bottle. Harlow's work and later studies have led psychologists to stress the need for warm physical contact from caregivers to help young children grow into healthy adults with normal social skills.
Feelings of "warmth" and "coldness" in social judgments appear to be universal. Although no worldwide study has been done, Bargh says that describing people as "warm" or "cold" is common to many cultures, and studies have found those perceptions influence judgment in dozens of countries.
To test the relationship between physical and psychological warmth, Bargh conducted an experiment which involved 41 college students. A research assistant who was unaware of the study's hypotheses , handed the students either a hot cup of coffee, or a cold drink, to hold while the researcher filled out a short information form. The drink was then handed back. After that, the students were asked to rate the personality of "Person A" based on a particular description. Those who had briefly held the warm drink regarded Person A as warmer than those who had held the iced drink.
"We are grounded in our physical experiences even when we think abstractly," says Bargh.
|
The author mentions Harlow's experiment to show that _ .
|
[
"do their schoolwork",
"have access to the Internet",
"send emails",
"connect them to libraries"
] |
do their schoolwork
|
Often people use laptops on trains and airplanes, in airports and hotels. These laptops connect people to their workplace. In the United States today, laptops also connect students to their classrooms.
Westlake College in Virginia will start a laptop computer program that allows students to do schoolwork anywhere they want. Within five years, each of the 1,500 students at the college will receive a laptop. The laptops are part of a $10 million computer program at Westlake, a 110yearold college. The students with laptops will also have connection with the Internet. Besides, they will be able to use email to "speak" with their teachers, their classmates, and their families. However, the most important part of the laptop program is that students will be able to use computers without going to computer labs. They can work with it at home, in a fast-food restaurant or under the trees--anywhere at all!
Because of the many changes in computer technology, laptop use in higher education, such as colleges and universities, is workable . As laptops become more powerful, they become more similar to desktop computers. Also, the portable computers can connect students to not only the Internet, but also libraries and other resources. State higher education officials are studying how laptops can help students. State officials are also testing laptop programs at other universities, too.
|
The main purpose of the laptop program is to give each student a laptop to _ .
|
[
"sent the pair of glasses to Africa on purpose",
"knew the glasses that belonged to Grandpa",
"thought the director had made a mistake",
"were not interested in the director's speech"
] |
thought the director had made a mistake
|
Grandpa was a carpenter . One day he was making some boxes for the clothes his church was sending to an orphanage in Egypt. On his way home, he reached into his shirt pocket to find his glasses, but they were gone. He drove back to the church, but his search turned out to be fruitless.
Suddenly, he realized what happened. The glasses had slipped out of his pocket and fallen into one of the boxes, which he had nailed shut. His new glasses were heading for Africa!
Grandpa had six children and he had paid twenty dollars for the glasses that morning. "It's not fair," he told God as he drove home. "I've been very faithful in giving my time and money to YOUR work."
Several months later, the director of the orphanage was on holiday in the United States. He wanted to visit all the churches that helped him in Egypt, so he came to speak on Sunday night at my grandfather's small church in Chicago.
"But most of all," he said, "I must thank you for the glasses you sent last year. You see, I had just broken my glasses. Then your boxes arrived. To my surprise, I found a pair of glasses in it and it fit me very well!"
The people listened, happy for the amazing glasses, but thought that the man must have confused their church with another. There were no glasses on their list of items to be sent overseas. Sitting quietly in the back, with tears in his eyes, Grandpa realized that God had played a big trick on him.
|
The people except the author's grandpa in the church _ .
|
[
"More and more newly married couples like it.",
"Honeymooning there is a standard for millions of newly married couples.",
"Many nobles got married there.",
"The natural setting, its unique history, and the various activities and attractions attract newlyweds."
] |
The natural setting, its unique history, and the various activities and attractions attract newlyweds.
|
Honeymooning at Niagara Falls has become a standard for millions of newly married couples. In fact, Niagara Falls is often fondly called the Honeymoon Capital of the World. This title, however, did not happen overnight. There are various reasons that explain why so many people choose to get married surrounded by a waterfall backdrop. These reasons often include the wonderful natural setting, its unique history, and the inclusion of various activities and attractions that please newlyweds.
The Niagara Falls is the waterfalls and twin cities of the same name located on the Niagara River. The waterfalls are situated in the international border between the United States and Canada and are part of both countries. The United States part of the waterfall is in New York state, while the Canadian section is part of Ontario. Both waterfalls are further divided into two major sections: the American Falls, located on the American side, and the Horseshoe Falls, which lies mostly on the Canadian side.
A number of tourists who have watched the rush of water falling down Niagara Falls have described the view using many terms, including magical, magnificent, and breathtaking. For many recently married couples, visiting the Canadian side of Niagara Falls is generally more popular, as it provides a better view of the rushing water of both waterfalls. Both sides, however, function as destination wedding sites and offer engaged couples the opportunity to exchange their vows at various churches and gardens located within the area. Some couples, however, may prefer to get married on the Canadian side to receive a honeymoon certificate signed by the city's mayor.
Another reason why couples state that they choose to celebrate their weddings at Niagara Falls is the sense of history and nostalgia associated with the area. The place first became connected with being a honeymoon destination in 1801, when Theodosia Burr, the daughter of Vice-president Aaron Burr, visited the region during her honeymoon. The French aristocracy is also believed to have been early fans of honeymooning at the falls. In fact, French prince Jerome Bonaparte supposedly traveled to the Ontario side of Niagara Falls after his own wedding in 1804 to an American heiress.
By the early 1900s, Niagara Falls had claimed itself as the Honeymoon Capital and began to advertise as such. In the 21st century, some young couples choosing to honeymoon in the spot have stated that doing so was a chance to visit the same location previously enjoyed by their parents or even their grandparents. The fact that the destination may also be less expensive than some more exotic wedding locations has also helped it attract a large number of visiting newlyweds each year.
Part of the charm of honeymooning at Niagara Falls might be the natural attraction's ability to combine old-fashioned romance with more contemporary attractions. Newlyweds seeking more private and separated activities may enjoy restaurants featuring candlelight dinners and dancing, quiet picnic areas surrounded by the signs and smells of nature, or a scenic lighthouse tour. On the other hand, couples seeking adventurous activities might find it appealing to visit a casino , take boat or air tours, or stay at a resort hotel.
|
Why is Niagara Falls called the Honeymoon Capital of the World?
|
[
"got out of bed",
"looked out of the window",
"looked at his watch",
"looked at his clock"
] |
looked at his clock
|
Mr. Li was in bed and was trying to go to sleep when he heard the bell ring . He turned on the light and looked at his clock. It was half past twelve. "Who can it be at this time of night?" he wondered. He decided to go and find out .So he got out of bed, put on his dressing gown and went to the door. When he opened the door, there was nobody there. "That's very strange." He thought. Then he went back to his bedroom, took off his dressing gown, got back into bed, turned off the light and tried to go to sleep.
A few minutes later he heard the bell ring again. Mr. Li jumped out of bed very quickly and rushed to the door. He opened it, but again he found no one there. He shut the door and found a piece of paper with some words on it: "It is now after midnight, so it is April 1st. April fool to you!"
"Oh, it was the English boy next door!" Mr. Li exclaimed, and almost smiled, He went back to bed and fell asleep immediately. The bell did not ring again.
|
He turned on the light and _ .
|
[
"coral reefs need sunlight to survive",
"the biggest enemies of reefs are weeds",
"the parrot fish feed on a kind of algae",
"it is easy to destroy coral reefs"
] |
it is easy to destroy coral reefs
|
Filmmakers Michele dive into an eerie world. The usually colorful corals are a ghostly white. Most of the fish, crabs, and other animals have disappeared. The reef is sick and dying.
Coral reefs are often called "the rainforests of the sea" because of their abundance of life forms. A great diversity of animals finds food and shelter in every crack and crevice.
Today's reefs are about 10,000 years old. Found in sunny, shallow water in warm seas all over the world, reefs are made up of the hard shells of millions of corals. As corals live and die, they create a giant, rocky honeycomb. Only a thin top layer is living coral.
A reef grows only about as fast as your fingernails--three-quarters of an inch a year. But coral reefs are huge, and in time a healthy reef can be thousands of miles long.
Millions of people around the world rely on reef fish and other animals for food. And reefs provide protection from storms at sea. Without thousands of miles of reefs surrounding coastal areas, many beaches and even whole islands could be destroyed by the pounding of powerful ocean waves.
"Let's say a grazing animal like the parrot fish is overfished," Michele explains. "Without them, the kind of algae that the fish feed on could grow like weeds and take over the reef. The competition for space and sunlight could then starve the coral."
Nearly 27 percent of the world's coral reefs have been lost or damaged. But there is hope. Many reefs around the world--including the Great Barrier Reef in Australia and the reefs off the Florida Keys in the United States--are now protected areas where scientists study how to keep reefs healthy. They determine how many and which kinds of fish can be taken for food without hurting the reef's delicate balance.
There is hope, too, that people will learn to be good partners to the reefs. "We want our film to inspire people to help coral reefs," says Michele. "For me, even though I may not go back to the South Pacific, just knowing the reefs are there and thriving brings a sense of contentment to my spirit."
|
By mentioning the parrot fish, Michel wants to tell us _ .
|
[
"The past Paralympics.",
"The Paralympian's self-respect.",
"The voluntary work.",
"The public services."
] |
The past Paralympics.
|
What a great Paralympic Games this has been. An outstanding Opening Ceremony, splendid athletic performances in perfect stadiums, the best-ever Paralympic Villages, amazing high definition television coverage, a never ending and self-generating supply of passion and emotion, superb organization, wonderful volunteers, millions of new Paralympic sports lovers both here in China and around the world. These are the greatest Paralympic Games ever.
--Philip Craven, president of the International Paralympic Committee
It was another spectacular show. Perhaps it's not quite as sublimely beautiful as the opening, but a fitting end to what has been a memorable 12 days in the Chinese capital.
The Paralympics were inspiring. Not only the Paralympians themselves, but also the warmth of people in Beijing and the sense of self-respect among the disabled in China that these Games seem to have inspired, as well as a new attitude in general from the government and form Chinese society as a whole.
-- Jeff Z. prefix = st1 /Klein,New YorkTimes
It doesn't get any better for disabled persons living in Beijingthan September 2008, with increased access for them in public areas.
But there are still problems. Some taxi drivers are not willing to pick up wheelchair users. Some companies deliberately break employment laws that ask them to employ a percentage of disabled persons. Many schools haven't opened their door to disabled students.
During the past Paralympics, Chinese society has witnessed firsthand the abilities of disabled persons in sporting. And the next step will be for the abilities of disabled people on the Paralympics to be translated into a realization of their abilities to study, work and go about daily life in a barrier-free society.
-- Eric Roeder, China Daily
|
What is highly praised in all the three comments?
|
[
"go to bed",
"see a movie",
"go to the hospital",
"take part in a musical festival"
] |
take part in a musical festival
|
It was a sunny night. Jim was having a drink with his friend. He drank too much, and he had to leave at half past eight because he had a ticket for a music festival, which would start at nine o'clock.
It was half past an hour's walk from the pub to the theatre. Jim knew a _ that would only take ten minutes, but it meant crossing rails , and was dangerous. He took the shorter way, however, and when he reached the rails, he tripped and fell over. Then he fell asleep with his face down. After a while, a train came. When the driver saw a body lying on the track, he tried hard to stop the train. When it finally stopped, it was several meters before the body. The driver quickly got off and checked. Luckily, he found the man was still alive, but sleeping. Though the driver tried hard to wake him, Jim just kept sleeping. The driver took Jim to the hospital, where he woke up at last.
When Jim was told what had happened, he decided to give up drinking. "I'm so lucky that I have a chance to turn my life around,' he said.
|
Jim wanted to _ after drinking with his friends.
|
[
"disapproved of all the changes that had taken place",
"felt sorry for the children in the school",
"was glad that the school was still the same",
"felt that conditions at the school had improved a lot"
] |
felt that conditions at the school had improved a lot
|
After an absence of thirty years, I decided to visit my old school again. I had expected to find changes, but not a completely different building. As I walked up the school drive, I wondered for a moment if I had come to the right address. The dirty red brick houses had been swept away. In its place stood a bright, modern block. A huge expanse of glass extended across the face of the building, and in front, there was a well-kept lawn where previously there had been "an untidy gravel yard".
I was pleased to find that it was bread time and that the children were all in the playground. This would enable me to meet some members of staff . On entering the building, I was surprised to hear loud laughter coming from what appeared to be the masters' common room. I could not help remembering the teachers in my time, all dressed in black gowns and high collars . And above all, I recalled Mr Garston whom we had nicknamed "Mr Ghastly", the headmaster who had iron discipline on staff and pupils alike. I knocked at the common room door and was welcomed by a smiling young man who introduced himself to me as the headmaster. He was dressed casually in a sports jacket, and his cheerful manner, quickly dispelled the image of Mr Ghastly. After I had explained who I was, the headmaster presented me to the teachers all of whom were a little younger than himself, and said he would take me round the school.
Here the biggest surprise of all was _ me. Gone were the heavy desks of old with their deeply carved names; gone too, were the dark classrooms with their ink stained, dark brown walls, and their raised platforms for the teachers. The rooms now were painted in bright colors, and the children, far from sitting straight in their places, seemed almost free to do as they liked. I looked with envy as I remembered how, as a child, I had looked at the blackboard hardly daring to whisper to my neighbor.
|
From what is said in the passage, it seems clear that the writer _ .
|
[
"People should stop using computers.",
"Hackers should be heavily punished.",
"Better computer programs are needed.",
"Program developers are to blame."
] |
Better computer programs are needed.
|
Passwords are no safeguards
Typing your password or credit card number into a computer is a moment's work. But if you think your personal details disappear as soon as you hit the Return key, think again: they can sit on the computer's hard disk for years waiting for a hacker to take them.
As people spend more time on the web and hackers become more experienced, the dangers of storing personal information on computers are growing by the day, security experts say. There are some safe-guards, such as never allowing your computer to store your passwords. But even that in no guarantee of security.
When you type in a password, it is stored in random access memory (RAM), where it is held temporarily until other data overwrites it or the computer is switched off.
But every so often , the computer copies the contents of its RAM onto hard disk, where it is easy to prey for a hacker, who can read it directly or design a worm to e-mail it back. The longer sensitive data stays in RAM, the more likely it is to be copied onto the disk, where it stays until it is overwritten-which might not happen for years.
Tal Garfinkel and colleagues from Stanford University have created a software tool which simulates the workings of a complete computer system. Within the simulation, sensitive data can be tagged and then tracked as it passes through the system. Next, Garfinkel and his team simulated computers running common software that regularly handles passwords or secret personal information, such as Internet Explorer, the Windows login script and Apache server software.
In a paper to be presented, they conclude that the programs took no measures to limit the length of time the information is kept. Some of the tested software even copied the sensitive information, obviously without restraint .
|
Talking about computer safety, which of the following the writer would probably suggest?
|
[
"price",
"colour",
"shape",
"size"
] |
size
|
The disadvantage you usually find about MP3 players like the iPod is that they are too big. But get ready for the MP3 player in your hand to get much smaller--the size of a Band-Aid .
It's called the Skinny Player, and it's being designed by industrial designers Chih-Wei Wang and Shou-His Fu. Unlike the current types of iPod Shuffles and iPod Nanos, the Skinny Player does not need to be fixed onto your clothes or put into your pocket. It could stick to your skin like you would attach a Band-Aid. But unlike Band-Aids, this tiny MP3 player will not lose its stickiness as you pull it off for the hundredth time.
The Skinny Player features flexible speakers allowing the user to enjoy music conveniently. When it gets dirty, the user can simply clean it using a damp cloth. No batteries either. The Skinny Player's designers say it will be powered by body heat, using a flexible battery charging device that is in contact with skin whenever the player is being used.
The design only include an on/off button and flexible speakers, no word yet on arranging the volume. Besides, the memory capacity won't be the best, as it is designed to only store one album.
The small size and the ability to stick it onto your skin like a Band-Aid should make the Skinny Player perfect for runners who now depend on their iPod to keep them energized on the running path.
|
According to the writer, the disadvantage about the iPod is mostly about its _ .
|
[
"Public Libraries in Britain",
"The British Library",
"The Richest Libraries",
"A Famous Library"
] |
A Famous Library
|
There are a lot of public libraries in Britain. These libraries have more than one hundred and fifteen million books, not including those libraries of public schools.
Public libraries not only lend books, music records but also help children, patients in hospitals and others to get special play readings, film shows and so on.
The first public libraries were founded in about the year 1850. Today's public libraries usually have a reading-room, a lending room and a reference room.
The greatest and most famous library in Britain is that of the British Library in London. It was founded in 1973 and has over 10, 000, 000 books. It has nearly every magazine, newspaper and book published in Britain and other parts across the world.
|
Which is the best title?
|
[
"It offers you an opportunity to experience a part of paperless future.",
"This new technology fits well into the digital age.",
"A substitute for paper might someday be a reality.",
"For now the world will continue to stick with what works."
] |
A substitute for paper might someday be a reality.
|
Publishing on paper will draw up to an end in the next 30 years. That's what some high-tech experts have said ever since computers began appearing in everyone's workplace. If you have ever read a newspaper online, you have experienced a tiny part of what paperless future look like.
New technology will certainly continue to revolutionize written communication. But will the use of paper in our everyday lives really disappear anytime soon? Well, don't give up on paper just yet.
Paper, an ancient Chinese invention, has dominated written communication for centuries. Cai Lun, an official in the prefix = st1 /Chinese Imperial Court, is well-known for inventing paper in A.D. 105. This invention changed the world forever.
Today, surprisingly, it seems the digital age has actually strengthened the importance of paper. Studies show that paper use has doubled in the last 20 years. People still like to print their longer documents and e-mails. But today's technology is rapidly improving. And efforts toward a paperless world continue.
The Internet is clearly one giant step. Many of the publications have created Web sites that offer everything in their paper editions--and even more. Their Web sites can be continually updated as news happens. Other types of material have also fit well into the digital age. Dictionaries and other reference books actually work better in a paperless format. Information published on a Web site or CD-ROM can be kept more current.
In addition publishers have begun to produce e-book version of their best sellers. New e-book readers---a simple computer about the size of a paperback book--can store nearly a hundred books. But e-books haven't gained a large following.Readingfrom a computer is simply uncomfortable and paperback books are easier to carry around.
|
"The Internet is clearly one giant step" implies that _ .
|
[
"walked",
"drove his own car",
"ran",
"drove a police car"
] |
drove a police car
|
Just then the police radio says there was a robbery in a supermarket nearby. The police told Mr. Brown to stay there and they would be back soon. Then the police ran to the supermarket.
Mr. Brown didn't wait but drove home. When he got home, he was tired and went to bed. Mrs. Brown found a police car in front of their house and the lights were still on.
.
|
At last, Mr. Brown _ to go home.
|
[
"Adam will be better if he stops drinking coffee.",
"More and more people will give up coffee.",
"Aspirin can stop us thinking coffee",
"Coffee can never cause headaches."
] |
Adam will be better if he stops drinking coffee.
|
On Thursday October 3, Adam Harper decided to stop drinking coffee. Adam is a MBA student at Harvard University. He studies long hours, gets very little sleep and as a result, he drinks a lot of coffee---anywhere from five to six cups a day. Recently, Adam felt that drinking thus much coffee was making it hard for him to sleep at all. He also began having problems with his concentration , and complained of stomachaches. Adam's doctor made this suggestions: stop drinking coffee altogether.
When Adam got up on October 3, he began his day without his morning coffee. By 11:00 a.m., Adam was in a terrible mood . He was tired and had a headache. At 11:30, he had a meeting with his student advisor. In the meeting, he found it almost impossible to continue. What was going on?
Caffeine, a chemical found in coffee, was most likely the reason for how Adam felt. Caffeine is a stimulant that boosts energy levels and improves concentration- but only for a short time. Lowering caffeine consumption often causes a drop in blood pressure and the result is a "coffee headache", People who stop drinking coffee often say they feel tired and moody, and find it hard to focus.
The good news is that these feeling usually pass after four and five days. During this time, doctors suggested taking some aspirin for the headache. So, if Adam can wait, in less than a week, he may be feeling much better.
|
The good news shows that _ .
|
[
"Surprised.",
"Terrified.",
"Amazed.",
"Puzzled."
] |
Terrified.
|
Where was I? The room was dark and quiet. My head hurt really badly. I shouted, "Help! Help! Can anybody help me?"
After a while somebody came in. The room was so dark that I couldn't see his face clearly. The man turned on the light and said with a sharp voice, "Ah! Sweetie, do you still remember who I am?" I was shocked. Oh, my God! I cried, "You are Michael Zey, the man I charged with murder! Why are you here? You should be in prison!"
"You never thought about the result of charging a gang leader, did you? Because of you, I was in prison for 15 years. You ruined my life!" His voice was very cold. My face was pale with fear. He was here to take revenge !
"Please, let me go! Don't hurt me! Please!" I asked him. "Dr. Calment, you are smart enough to know it is impossible. Now, I give you two choices. One is shooting your head. It is the quickest way. The other is cremation . Your husband and you will be together forever. It's quite romantic. Don't you think?" He spoke angrily. "What? My husband? He is innocent!" I shouted at him.
Suddenly, he took hold of my head and said, "You will pay for what you have done to me." He took out a gun from his bag.
"Help! Help! Can anybody help me?"
|
Which of the following words can best describe how the writer felt when the story happened?
|
[
"Because he was in a hurry.",
"Because he didn't want to be in other people's way.",
"Because the escalator was very crowded.",
"Because he was as heavy as a rock."
] |
Because he didn't want to be in other people's way.
|
I was on the escalator in a market. There was an old man who was about five or six people in the front of me. People behind him were all in a hurry and saw him as a rock. The old man knew these clearly and tried hard to step aside.
I remember...Sometimes when walking or driving behind an older person, I've gotten impatient and upset.
"I'm sorry. Please forgive me!" said the old man, "I don't mean to hold you up." He then tried his best to get off the escalator.
I suddenly saw this in a whole new light. I felt sick to my stomach. The old man was apologizing to everyone, when we should have helped him to calm his fears.
One by one, people went around him quickly. By the time I got to him, I asked, "Sir, can I help you?"
The man thought for a while, then said, "Well, yes, thank you!"
I placed my hand under his left arm and walked away from the rush of people quickly.
"So what are you shopping for, sir?"
"Oh, today is Mother's Day. I want to buy something for my neighbor. She's a single mother and she is always so nice to me." he said, stopping suddenly as he searched his pocket.
"Oh, it's here! I always carry them with me," he said. Then he took out some business cards and handed me one which read:
"John Smith.
Friend to all...enemy to no one!
I said a prayer today and you were the answer.
Thank you!"
"That's for you," he said. "Thanks for stopping to help an old man."
"My friend, you helped me. I discovered why I was unhappy with the world. Now I know how to solve the problem. No more with me!"
|
Why did the old man try hard to step aside?
|
[
"There is a lot of shade there",
"all the activities there are cheap",
"the park is very busy before 6: 00 p. m.",
"there aren't many people after 6:00 p. m. there."
] |
There is a lot of shade there
|
A week ago, Columbus Middle School asked the parents of their school to choose a sport for their child to play. Here's some information about the sports.
Sports 1: Basketball
We expect that this will be the most popular of the four sports. So students should sign up as soon as possible. Students will take a private bus to and from Kwun Tong Sports Park. Each student will have to pay $ 10 each time for the cost of the bus. There will be four basketball courts available for our use with one teacher watching over each game.
Sports 2: Gym
We will use St. Peter's Park. There are two reasons for choosing this park. First, it is not very busy and crowded before 6:00 p.m. Second, it has lots of trees with plenty of shade. Students must bring along two bottles of water to prevent from being thirsty. All the activities here are free. And there will be a teacher on duty for each activity.
Sports 3: Hiking
Hiking will be at Kowloon Peak. The activity will start at 2:30 p.m. and finish 90 minutes later. There will be 15 students in each group. And three teachers will be with the students. This sport will cost $ 75 per hour. Students should take plenty of water and sunglasses.
Sports 4: Swimming
The Kowloon City Swimming Centre is a 10-minute walk from our school. Four teachers will go to the pool and watch the students from the poolside. We will only be able to use the pool for one hour (2: 45 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.). Only students skillful at swimming can take up this activity. The pool will have two lifeguards on watch. Girls must wear swimming suits. The cost is $ 15 per visit.
|
One of the reasons for choosing St. Peter's Park is that _ .
|
[
"She fought with a boy in her class.",
"She didn't get along with boys.",
"She had a big argument with a boy.",
"A boy tried to teach her a lesson."
] |
She had a big argument with a boy.
|
When I was in primary school, I got into a big argument with a boy in my class. I forgot what the argument was about, but I will never forget the lesson I learned that day.
I thought that I was right and he was wrong - and he thought that I was wrong and he was right. The teacher decided to teach us a very important lesson.
In the middle of her desk was a large, round ball. I could clearly see that it was black. She asked the boy what color the ball was. "White," he answered.uShe brought us to the front of the class and asked him to stand on one side of her desk and me on the other.
I couldn't believe he said the ball was white, when it was obviously black! Another argument started between us, this time about the color of the ball.
The teacher told us to change places and then asked me what color the ball was. I answered: "White."
It was a ball with two differently colored sides, and from his side it was white. Only from my side it was black.
Sometimes we need to look at problems from the other person's view in order to truly understand his or her perspective .
|
What happened to the writer in the beginning?
|
[
"is an English teacher",
"is busy and strict",
"doesn't like his students",
"is Mary's Chinese teacher"
] |
is Mary's Chinese teacher
|
Mary has a room. It's a big and nice room. It's bright and clean . There are some pictures on the front wall. On the back wall there is a map of China.
There is a desk and a chair in her room. Her backpack is behind the chair. Some books and her pencil-case are on the desk. There are some color pencils, a pen, a ruler, and a knife in the pencil-case. Mary's bed is near the desk. Her shoes and a volleyball are under the bed.
Mary and her friends are often in her room. They usually listen to music there. Mary likes English and Chinese very much. But she doesn't like math. It's to difficult for her. Mary's Chinese teacher is Mr. Wang. The students all love him, he is very strict, but sometimes very funny.
|
Mr. Wang------- _ .
|
[
"The Cabin.",
"The UFO.",
"The Nest.",
"The Blue Cone."
] |
The Cabin.
|
Located in the forests near the village of Harads in northern Sweden, the Treehotel opened its doors in the summer of 2010 and offers six guest rooms.Owners, Britta and Kent Lindvall, invited designers and architects to create a series of unique tree houses that reflect the growing popularity of ecologically-themed
holidays.
There's the Mirrorcube, a 4x4x4 meter aluminum box in mirrored glass.Accessed via a footbridge, the Cabin is suspended from the surrounding pines on a steep bank, affording views of the Lulea River.Both these rooms sleep two people while the Nest (covered in branches), the Blue Cone (which is actually painted red) and the UFO (a spaceship skewered by pines) all have enough room to sleep a family of four.
The Treehotel was built after they saw a 2008 Swedish documentary called "Tradalskaren" (The Tree Lover) that tells the story of three men who build a tree house near Harads in an attempt to rediscover their rural roots after years of living in a city.
The Lindvalls, who already owned and ran a nearby guesthouse, saw the chance to create a different kind of holiday experience."When the film was over, interest in the original tree house grew so we decided to build our own, closer to our place," Kent Lindvall said."The plan for next year is five new rooms.We also plan to build a chapel so people can get married up there."
Open all year round, the Treehotel might attract only _ during the winter as temperatures typically dip to around minus 15 degrees Celsius.But brave travelers will be rewarded with stunning snowy landscapes as well as a "Three Sauna" and under-floor heating in every room delivered by renewable energy.
|
Which of the following rooms suits a couple most?
|
[
"To improve its launching ability.",
"To show off its space progress.",
"To set up a permanent space station.",
"To replace the space lab Tiankong-2."
] |
To set up a permanent space station.
|
BEIJING -- The launch of a new manned space mission brings China closer to the establishment of a permanent space station, international experts say.
Chinese taikonauts, Jing Haipeng, 50, and Chen Dong, 37, were _ into space onboard Shenzhou-11 at 7:30 am Monday and will spend 30 days in the Chinese space laboratory Tiangong-2.The launch marks a key step toward China's plan to eventually operate a permanent space station. The successful launch of the Shenzhou-11 spacecraft is another step forward to put China among leading players in space technology, said Alexander Zheleznyakov, a Russian expert on history of space flights. China's experimental space lab will help provide solutions for spacecraft of different functions to approach and anchor, and for a long-term operation of life support system, said Zheleznyakov. Shenzhou-11 is scheduled to anchor on Wednesday with Tiangong-2, which is part of China's plan to build a permanent space station by 2022.
China can now test technologies for cargo spacecraft anchoring, life support system operation and water recycling to ensure a long-term continuous operation of its space station in the future with less dependence on renewal from the Earth, he said. If all goes well, China will launch the unpiloted Tianzhou-1 cargo ship next spring to autonomously tie up with Tiangong-2. Tianzhou-1 will be capable of automatically transferring rocket fuels, a vital requirement for space station grouping and maintenance, according to a report by Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS).
"That will further their anchoring abilities needed for the larger space station," Johnson Freese was quoted." Tiangong-2 is supposed to be able to stay in orbit for two years or longer, so that's taking them (Chinese) really close to 2019 or so. I think this will be their last big technology test phase before going to their large space station," said Freese.
|
Why did China launch Shenzhou-11 into space?
|
[
"the highest honor in the world",
"one of the highest international honors",
"a higher honor than others",
"as high as any other honor"
] |
one of the highest international honors
|
A Nobel Prize is considered by most people one of the highest international honors a person can receive. As you know, the prizes were started by a Sweden called Sweden Alfred Nobel. Alfred Nobel was born in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, and lived from 1833 to 1896.
Alfred Nobel was a chemist and inventor. He made two important inventions, so he became very rich. Although he was rich, Nobel was not a happy man. He never married or had children. Also, he was a sick man in large part of his life. Nobel died at the age of sixty-three. When he died, he left a fund of $9,000,000. The money was to be used in giving prizes to those who made outstanding achievement in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and the promotion of the world peace.
The first Nobel Prize were given on December 10th,1901, five years after Nobel's death. Many famous people all over the world have been given Nobel Prizes for their achievements. Albert Einstein was one of them.
Each prize has three parts. The first part is a gold medal. Second, a winner of a Nobel Prize is given a diploma saying that he has been given the prize. The third part of the prize is a large amount of money---about $40,000.
Often a prize is given to just one person, but not always. Sometimes a prize is shared. It might be given to two or more people who have worked together. It is also sometimes true that a prize is not given at all if there is no outstanding achievement. In 1972, for example, not a Nobel Prize was given. It is the Nobel Foundation in Stockholm that decides whether to give the prize or not.
|
Most people think that Nobel Prize is _ a person can receive.
|
[
"Like humans, dogs are good at decision making.",
"Dog owners should train dogs to find food.",
"Emotional state works sometimes when humans make decision.",
"Dogs can always find the bowl with food quickly."
] |
Emotional state works sometimes when humans make decision.
|
Dogs can be worried and pessimistic just like people, researchers report in a new study in Current Biology. And they aren't talking about basset hounds : those dogs just look as if they expect the worst.
What the scientists say is that dogs that exhibit anxiety when left home alone by their owners may have bigger problems -- they may be in a permanent bad mood.
This pessimistic outlook may not otherwise be easily apparent in a dog's other characteristics, like running speed or learning ability, the study reports.
Dogs are similar to humans in the role that emotional state plays in decision making, said Michael Mendel, a veterinary scientist at the University of Bristol and the study's lead author. The study's researchers looked at 24 dogs in shelters in Britain.
They placed the dogs in isolated settings and observed their reactions -- many barked, jumped on furniture and scratched at the door.
Then they placed bowls in two rooms. One bowl contained food, while another was empty. After training the dogs to understand that bowls can sometimes be empty, and sometimes full, they began to place bowls in ambiguous locations.
Dogs that quickly raced to the locations were more optimistic, and in search of food. Those that did not were deemed pessimistic.
The more separation anxiety a dog expressed while in isolation, the more likely the dog was to have a pessimistic reaction, the researchers found.
The study carries an important message for dog owners, Dr. Mendel said.
Dogs that express serious anxiety when alone may need treatment, as it could be a sign of unhappiness and instability.
|
According to Dr. Mendel, which statement is true?
|
[
"1,000",
"7,000",
"21,000",
"28,000"
] |
7,000
|
Four hundred years ago, an Italian scientist named Galileo Galilei became the first person to see the craters on the moon. Galileo was one of the first people to use a telescope to study the sky. Since then, telescopes have become the most important tool used by astronomers. Scientists never stop finding new ways to make these instruments more powerful. In the next several years, two new telescopes with different purposes are to be used.
One of the telescopes, called Pan-STARRS, could save humans from dying out. Nick Kaiser, a scientist who works on the project, says the Pan-STARRS telescope has been designed to find "90 percent of all killer asteroids near Earth".
Pan-STARRS, like most telescopes, uses mirrors and lenses to provide pictures of outer space. Giant mirrors are used to "gather" light. They reflect the light onto the lens of a camera, which can then record the image.
When completed, Pan-STARRS will include four telescopes which will be put on top of a mountain on the Hawaiian island of Maui. Only one telescope is in place and working now. Each telescope will take pictures of one patch of sky for about 30 seconds, and then move on to another patch. Every night, each telescope will take pictures of about 1,000 patches. Every week, each telescope will have photographed the whole sky.
Each of the four telescopes will take pictures of the same patches of sky. One telescope, working alone, may sometimes incorrectly show an asteroid. If there are three other telescopes working, astronomers can use them to see if there really is an asteroid coming our way. By using four telescopes instead of one, scientists hope to get a better picture of space. If a giant asteroid was identified, astronomers would try to break it up long before it reached Earth.
|
How many patches is the whole sky divided into when Pan-STARRS is working?
|
[
"To show the right way of dealing with weight problems.",
"To describe a familiar scenario in life.",
"To give support to the author's viewpoint.",
"To compare the consequences of different choices."
] |
To give support to the author's viewpoint.
|
Imagine the following scenario : A woman buys her lunch every day from a fast food outlet near her job. After some years, she finds herself 30 pounds overweight, and feeling unhealthy. So what does she do? She chooses to bring a lawsuit against the fast food outlet, claiming that the food served there was the cause of her being overweight and in poor health.
Sounds ridiculous, doesn't? The only thing more absurd than the story itself is the fact that is not fiction. There are people who have sued fast food chains for causing their weight problems.
This is an example of one of the ways in which many of us spend enormous amounts of energy trying to deny the undeniable and universal fact that we are all ultimately responsible for our own choices and our own lives.
How much easier would we make it for ourselves if we could accept this fact rather than resist it? But how can we embrace the truth, that we are living the lives we choose to live, that we are enjoying or suffering the consequences of our own choices, and that blaming others for our problems and shortcomings is nothing more than a comfortable fantasy?
We must acknowledge the truth of our lives, however unpleasant this may be. If we are overweight, in a bad relationship, in a dead end, we need to accept that this is where we are, at this moment in time.
Imagine that woman decided that she was unhappy with the extra pounds she'd gained after many years of eating fast food on a regular basis. Imagine that this woman took the time to really understand and accept that she and no one else was responsible for her eating choices. Having acknowledged this fact, she then decides to make the changes in her lifestyle to become the healthier, slimmer person she wants to be.
|
Why is the woman mentioned twice in the passage?
|
[
"vegans",
"vegetarians",
"fruitarians",
"researchers"
] |
vegetarians
|
Most Chinese people don't understand why some westerners don't eat meat. In China, to eat meat is a sign of wealth. If a westerner doesn't take a bite of their Peking duck, there is something wrong.
But many people in Europe and America choose not to eat meat or fish -- they are known as vegetarians. In the US alone there are 12 million vegetarians and 19,000 more people stop eating meat every week.
People often become vegetarians in order to lose weight or eat more healthily. A lot of research has shown that vegetarian diets are healthier than the average western diet. Fried chicken may be delicious to eat, but all that extra fat can damage your heart.
There are many other reasons for "turning veggie". It could be that you cannot afford to buy meat. Or maybe you just don't like the taste of it.
A large number of vegetarians choose to give up meat because they believe it is cruel to kill animals for food. They believe many animals are not allowed to live in comfort and, when they are killed, it is carried out in a very painful way.
While some vegetarians are happy not to eat animals, others take it one step further and refuse to eat any animal product. They are known as vegans and will not eat cheese, yoghurt and eggs, or drink milk. Neither will they wear clothes or shoes made from animal skin, such as leather. They say that if it is wrong to kill an animal for food, it is worse to kill it for clothing.
But there are some groups that go even further. Fruitarians believe it is wrong to kill any living plant or animal. Besides refusing to eat meat, they will only eat fruit and vegetables that have not been killed when harvested. This means they cannot take an apple from a tree: they must wait until the apple falls to the ground. Only then can it be considered dead.
|
A lot of _ choose to give up meat because they believe it is cruel to kill animals for food.
|
[
"It killed large numbers of people.",
"It resulted from lack of vitamins.",
"It was transmitted by milled rice.",
"It was caused by diseased chickens."
] |
It resulted from lack of vitamins.
|
The vitamins necessary for a healthy body are normally supplied by a good mixed diet, including a variety of fruits and green vegetables. It is only when people try to live on a very _ diet, say that when trying to lose weight, that it is necessary to make special provisions to supply the missing vitamins.
An example of the dangers of a restricted diet may be seen in the disease known as "beri-beri", which used to make large numbers of Eastern people who lived mainly on rice suffer. In the early years of last century, a Dutch scientist named Eijkman was trying to discover the cause of beri-beri. At first he thought it was transmitted by a germ . He was working in a Japanese hospital, where the patients were fed on polished rice which had had the outer coverings removed from the grain, it was thought this would be easier for weak and sick people to digest.
Eijkman thought his germ theory was proved when he noticed the chickens in the hospital yard, which were fed on remains from the patients' plates, were also showing signs of the disease. He then tried to separate the germ, which he thought was causing the disease, but his experiments were interrupted by a hospital official, who ordered that the rice without coverings, even though left over by the patients, was too good for chickens. It should be recooked for the patients, and the chickens should be fed on cheap, rough rice with the outer coverings still on the grain.
Eijkman noticed that the chickens began to recover on the new diet. He began to consider the possibility that eating unmilled rice somehow prevented or cured beri-beri--even that a lack of some ingredient in the coverings may be the cause of the disease. Indeed this was the case. The element needed to prevent beri-beri was shortly afterwards separated from rice coverings and is now known as vitamin B. The milled rice, though more expensive, was in fact causing the disease the hospital was trying to cure. Nowadays, this terrible disease is much less common thanks to our knowledge of vitamins.
|
What do we know about the disease beri-beri?
|
[
"Scotland",
"England",
"Ireland",
"Wales"
] |
Wales
|
More than seven hundred years ago, the Prince of Wales had a very big and brave dog called Gelert. One day the Prince wanted to go hunt-ing with his men. He told his dog to stay at home and look after his baby son. The baby was in a wooden cradle, which was like a small bed. When the Prince came back from hunt-ing, Gelert ran out to meet his master. He wagged his tail and jumped up to put his paws on the Prince's chest. Then the Prince saw the blood on Gelert's jaws and head.
"What have you done?" the Prince said. He rushed into his house and looked for his baby son. The cradle was lying on its side on the floor. The clothes were torn and there was blood on them.
"So you have killed my son?" the Prince said angrily. "You unfaithful dog!" He took out his sword and killed the dog. Just as Gelert was dying, he managed to bark. Then the Prince heard a baby call to the dog.
The Prince ran out of the house and saw his son lying on the ground unhurt. Near him was a dead wolf. Then the Prince knew that Gelert had defended the baby and killed the wolf.
The Prince ran back into the house but he was too late. Gelert was dead. The Prince was very sad indeed. Tears ran down his face when he realized 'he had killed his faith-ful friend. The Prince carried the body of his brave dog to the top of a mountain and buried him there. After this, the Prince never smiled again. Every morning at dawn, he walked up the mountain and stood by the dog's grave for a few minutes.
If you go to Mount Snowdon in Wales, people will show you where Gelert is buried. There is a sign by his grave. It reminds peo-ple of a brave and faithful dog.
|
Gelert was the dog of the Prince of _ .
|
[
"He told her not to pay any attention to what her \"enemy\" had said.",
"He criticized her and told her to overcome her shortcomings.",
"He told her to write down all that her \"enemy\" had said about her and pay attention only to the things that were true.",
"He refused to take the list and have a look at it."
] |
He told her to write down all that her "enemy" had said about her and pay attention only to the things that were true.
|
When I was about 12, I had an enemy, a girl who liked to point out my shortcomings. Week by week her list grew: I was very thin, I wasn't a good student, I talked too much, I was too proud, and so on. I tried to hear all this as long as I could. At last, I became very angry. I ran to my father with tears in my eyes.
He listened to me quietly, then he asked. "Are the things she says true or not? Janet, didn't you ever wonder what you're really like ? Well, you now have that girl's opinion. Go and make a list of everything she said and mark the points that are true. Pay no attention to the other things she said."
I did as he told me. To my great surprise, I discovered that about half the things were true. Some of them I couldn't change (like being very thin), but a good number I could--and suddenly I wanted to change. For the first time I go to fairly clear picture of myself.
I brought the list back to Daddy. He refused to take it."That's just for you," he said."You know better than anyone else the truth about yourself. But you have to learn to listen, not just close your ears in anger and feeling hurt. When something said about you is true, you'll find it will be of help to you. Our world is full of people who think they know your duty. Don't shut your ears. Listen to them all, but hear the truth and do what you know is the right thing to do."
Daddy's advice has returned to me at many important moments. In my life, I've never had a better piece of advice.
|
What did the father do after he had heard his daughter's complaint?
|
[
"advertising products",
"selling newspapers",
"publishing stories",
"reporting news"
] |
advertising products
|
Newspapers in the United States earn most of their money from selling space for advertising. The rates they charge are tied to the number of readers. But the number of people who buy newspapers has been falling for years. And this traditional business model had not worked very well on the Internet, especially in a bad economy.
Many newspaper companies have large debts from buying other papers. Some papers have recently closed or declared bankruptcy or reduced their operations.
Newspapers are looking for new ways to reinvent themselves and new ways to earn money. That includes giving new consideration to an old idea-charging for at least some of the material that most papers now publish online for free.
Internet access to newspapers means that more people may read the news, which is good for society. But good reporting costs money. The question is how much people are willing to pay for news that they have got used to receiving for free.
The look of American newspapers changed after USA Today arrived in 1982. Most of the stories were short. There was heavy use of color1 and images. People who compared it to television did not necessarily mean that as praise. But the new design succeeded and influenced many other papers.
Now newspapers are looking to redesign themselves for an increasingly online world. Millions of people would rather read papers like USA Today and The New York Times for free on the Web than pay for a printed version. Publishers who chose that business plan might regret it now, but they might not have had much choice. Survival means changing as conditions change. Like any other business, newspapers have to balance their needs with the need of their customers.
|
American newspapers earn most money from _ .
|
[
"a story book",
"a novel",
"a newspaper",
"an advertisement"
] |
a newspaper
|
Most American students have to say goodbye to fancy fruits these days. In school restaurants across the country, cheaper fruits like apples and oranges have taken their place.
"People are afraid to spend now." said Linda Morrow, who owns a shoe and handbag store. "They don't know what the future will bring". During the financial crisis , several of the country's biggest banks have been forced to sell or close. This has made lots of Americans afraid to buy expensive things.
The crisis began last year. Experts think it was because US banks lend money too easily. Last year a lot of people and companies, who borrowed money, found themselves unable to pay it back. This left the banks, as well as the people who put their money in the banks, without money. Since the banks borrowed money between themselves and even across borders , the whole world was in trouble.
This month the US government agreed on a $700 billion plan to try to save the financial market. But no one is sure whether it will help or not. Last week presidents from 20 countries promised to work together to find a way out of the money trouble.
|
This passage is probably taken from _ .
|
[
"A college freshman should be careful when choosing a credit card.",
"Students should take a lesson about how to use a credit card wisely.",
"A credit card will be the only help for students in emergency situations.",
"The author doesn't appreciate the idea of having a credit card on campus."
] |
A college freshman should be careful when choosing a credit card.
|
The moment a college student arrives on campus, he or she _ credit card offers. Advertisements for student credit cards are everywhere: in bags at the bookstore, in the campus newspaper, in your regular mailbox, in the residence halls.
With so many college students graduating with large amounts of credit card debt (figures vary, but most are at least in the thousands), learning how to manage a student credit card can be an important lesson for any student. While using a card wisely can be an important part of building credit and making it through a difficult time, knowing how to use a card wisely can be the hard part.
Stick to the following rules when, and if, you need to use a credit card:
You can repay the charge(s) within the card's next billing cycle.
You must meet your basic needs, like food, clothing and shelter, but set rules and be aware that you will need to repay those charges at the end of the month.
You can talk to the financial aid office in your school for an alternative in "emergency" situations.
If you do want a credit card, just be smart about it. (They let you in to that school because of your brain, right?) Don't automatically get the first one you find. Shop around for a card that has the lowest interest rate possible, and consider places that may not be advertising on campus. Additionally, be aware of any card's repayment options: When will payments be due? How much will they be? A credit card is not like a loan that comes with a grace period after you graduate and waits until you are done with school. That new sweater and nice dinner out will need to be paid back right away.
|
Which of the following statements is TRUE?
|
[
"solo, rhymes,beats and pops",
"speaking, rhythms,beats and solo",
"repeating, speaking, pops and chorus",
"speaking, rhymes, beats and chorus"
] |
speaking, rhymes, beats and chorus
|
It may seem to be a hard task to trace back the history of rap music, though you often see the informal music associated with highly informal dance style. As far as the origin of rap music is concerned, most people agree that it is from Afro-American and Latino Street culture of New York City. Not only in this city but in the surrounding areas there is the influence of African people and their culture.
Rap is a vocal style in which the performer speaks rhythmically and in rhyme, generally to a beat. The term of rap music is the same with hip-hop music typically-consisting of a rhythmic vocal style called rap. If we see it carefully, then we will definitely notice that the music usually is sung at higher pitches . Most of the time rap music is associated with chorus. Though rap music was primarily an American music style with African influence over its music and lyrics, recently it has been spread to almost the entire world.
There is hardly any country or nation where rap music cannot be seen in some form or another, and it is one of the most popular music styles among the youngsters. However, when it comes to its history, it is believed that hip-hop or rap music started in the early 1970s,and gained much popularity throughout the world during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
The history of rap music and hip-hop music is full of controversies and bans, as the lyrics sometimes relate to drugs and crime; even most famous pop stars and hip-hop musicians and singers were found to be associated with the controversies in their life. For that reason, no matter how popular this music style was or still is, it has always had a bad reputation in the eyes of mainstream society.
|
The characteristics of rap music are _ .
|
[
"Affordable Houses",
"A House is a Dream First",
"Housing Bubble",
"Homes Too Expensive"
] |
Homes Too Expensive
|
Attempt a guess at the following question: In the English-speaking world, which country has the least affordable homes? You are wrong if you guessed the US, even with the housing bubble and main sadness. Nor is it the UK, where prices have risen because demand is far from supply. According to a recent survey of 227 cities around the globe, you must go south of the equator to Australia to find the priciest homes.
The report measured a city's housing market along the following guidelines. An "affordable" home required three times or less of the average family's income to purchase. At four times earnings, a home fell into the "unaffordable" category. And a "seriously unaffordable" home needed five times a family's income. In Australia, homes in the least affordable city cost just about 9.5 times the average income. Sydney, Perth, and Melbourne were only a little under this figure.
Australian officials offered little comment, apart from a general statement on the _ findings. These prices make the possibility that many Australians will one day own a home largely unbelievable. Land rationing and excessive development charges have raised prices, and the problem will only be solved through urgent action by the Rudd government.
Some American cities were also included on the least affordable list, four of which were in California. America is still involved in a mortgage crisis, though, affecting the affordability of homes. Yet a number of US cities garnered "affordable" status, namely Dallas and Kansas. Australia had no cities listed in the top fifty places with affordable homes.
The survey suggests that you can find affordable homes in most places, just not if you're Australian and choose to live down under.
|
What might be the most suitable title for the passage?
|
[
"many dogs are waiting to be adopted",
"dogs can become very friendly in the end",
"high-quality canned food is very important",
"the donations can improve some dogs' lives"
] |
the donations can improve some dogs' lives
|
Most young boys like spending time on things like video games, superhero movies and sports, but Ken, a 9-year-old boy from the Philippines, is spending his free time trying to start an animal shelter for at-risk dogs.
In February, photos of Ken feeding dogs on the street circled the Internet and immediately attracted many people who wanted to help. "I feel sorry for the dogs with no owners while other dogs around the world are being pampered ," Ken tells Pet360 in an email. "It really wasn't fair. And they are really thin."
When Ken began feeding the dogs which had health problems, they would not let the boy come close. But after several feedings, the dogs warmed up to Ken and allowed the boy to help them. When animal lovers found out what Ken was doing, donations started to roll in, and Ken and his father were able to start a non-profit animal shelter called Happy Animals Club. The donations helped three dogs, Blackie, Brownie and White Puppy, receive high-quality canned food and treatment. After two months with Ken at Happy Animals Club, the dogs look like completely different animals and will be adopted soon.
In May, Ken and his father hiring a 10,000-square-foot lot , where Ken hopes to build a no-kill animal shelter to help more dogs in need. "I want the dogs to have a home, where they can have shelter, eat and have fun," says Ken.
Ken wants to save dogs from the city pound where most animals are put down. Right now, Ken doesn't have enough money to start the shelter. If you also want to save homeless dogs, you can visit the Happy Animals Club's website and offer some help.
|
Blackie, Brownie and White Puppy are given as examples to show that
|
[
"Few people",
"Hundreds of different people",
"Millions of people",
"No one at all"
] |
Millions of people
|
What do you like? Different people like different things. Some people like loud music, other people don't. They think it is too noisy. They like soft music. Many people like sports, but they do not like the same sports.
In some countries, cricket is a very popular sport. In others, it is not popular at all. No one plays it and few people watch it on TV. The World Cup is very popular. Millions of people watch the games on TV. Some people don't like doing sports. They just like to watch other people playing.
Different people like different foods. Some people do not like meat. They eat most kinds of fruits and vegetables. Some people do not like potatoes and bread. They prefer rice or corn.
Not everyone like the same colors. Most people have a favorite color. Some people like bright colors. Others prefer pale colors. The world is an interesting place because we all like different things.
|
How many people like to watch the World Cup on TV?
|
[
"a farm",
"a bakery",
"a businessman",
"a government department"
] |
a bakery
|
Dear residents of Molten,
We can't keep silent in the current wild situation when prices for all existing products are skyrocketing unbelievably. The enormous figures on price tags for food products have caused a real panic. We've perfectly realized that, and that's why we have kept bread prices affordable for all this time.
At the moment all our reserves are exhausted. Stocks of bread-baking ingredients such as flour, sugar, butter and the like are running out. To buy what we need at reasonable prices is virtually impossible today.
However, we all need bread every day, which means we will be forced to buy everything we need at much higher prices.
The cost of bread closely depends on ingredients. Another financial crisis has led to a 300-percent increase of prices for butter, vegetable oil and others as of September 1. All these prices continue to grow every hour.
We have to take any possible measures which will help Figaro contain the growth of prices for its products. Despite of our SOS signal, no measures have been taken as yet. We have found ourselves in the same situation as any of you. We see the situation changing steadily for the worse. We will not cope with that alone.
Because of this, Figaro came to the critical point where it is necessary to raise prices of its products. We see one recourse (way): raise the bread price minimally and cancel our free plastic bag service. But what is next? This is the concern of all the 700 employees and the board of Figaro.
Every extra cent in the cost of bread upsets you and us very much. Making our sincere apologies for a forced increase of the bread price, we hope for your understanding and support. Today and tomorrow we are with you, as usual.
The staff and board of Figaro
|
Figaro is _ .
|
[
"disappointing",
"funny",
"satisfying",
"careless"
] |
satisfying
|
I found a new job that meant a move from Florida to California. We got a date from the moving company to move our belongings, but we weren't sure what to do about the car. We had moved before, but never so far. We thought driving our car across the country wouldn't be good for us or the car, and we were pretty nervous about entrusting our new SUV to anyone.
A friend suggested Mountainside Auto Transport. Moving day arrived, and Mountainside's driver showed up right on time. We had agreed to meet early in a shopping mall parking lot right down the street from us. When I saw the truck I realized why. It was huge! We watched as the driver skillfully guided our car onto the truck and waited while he secured it in place. Then he was off, and we were free to spend some time saying good-bye to our families before enjoying a relaxing flight across the country and settling into our new home.
Just over a week later, we were pleasantly surprised when Mountainside called us to say they were able to deliver the car the next day -- 4 days earlier than we expected. The delivery was more smooth than expected.
We have to say that it certainly was a wise decision to use Mountainside Auto Transport to move our car. They were very nice people who were a pleasure to do business with.
They were the right people to deliver the car. Instead of a _ , they turned our moving experience into a very moving story!
|
The service of the moving company can be described as _ .
|
[
"the new snowfall will reach 32 inches around Washington",
"the snowstorm will hit more big cities along the West Coast",
"the snowstorm will make 80,000 people live in darkness",
"Washington hasn't suffered such a big snow for scores of years"
] |
Washington hasn't suffered such a big snow for scores of years
|
WASHINGTON(Reuters)--Federal Government Agencies in the capital region will remain closed for a second day on Tuesday as residents trying to clean up the weekend storm that shocked the area with two feet of snow.
Another big winter storm was expected to hit the U.S. mid--Atlantic on Tuesday and last through Wednesday, the National Weather Service forecast on Monday. _ snowfall is ranged from 10 to 20 inches, it said. The new storm was expected to hit other big cities along the East Coast, including Baltimore and Philadelphia, which is still extending into New Jersey and New York. It would pile on to the 32 inches of snow that fell in suburban Washington in the biggest snowfall to hit the city in decades.
The Office of Personnel Management announced on Monday evening that Federal Government Offices in the Washington area would be closed on Tuesday. Emergency employees were expected to report for work in time, but non--emergency employees were excused. The Federal Government was closed on Monday, though President Barack Obama still held meetings at the White House. Schools and most businesses in the region also were shut.
In the county, about 80,000 people lost power on Saturday, and some customers still had no electricity or heat on Monday. Many schools said classes would be canceled through Tuesday, even before the latest storm warning.
On Monday, winter sunshine bathed the nation's capital and the surrounding region, where people dug out their driveways and sidewalks to finally start to clear streets in some residential neighborhoods. Bus service on Monday was limited to just a small number of routes in the Washington, D.C.
Cold and snow blanketed much of the central United States this winter, slowing weight gain in cattle and pigs, delaying livestock sales, and increasing feed costs for producers.
The new storm might also hit the Northeast, the nation's largest market for heating fuel. The weekend blast largely bypassed that region.
|
According to the National Weather Service forecast, _ .
|
[
"phantom vibrations could probably result in obsessive behavior",
"the use of smart phones has completely changed the way our minds work",
"most people feel uncomfortable when they experience phantom vibrations",
"hospital workers are more likely to suffer from phantom vibrations than students"
] |
phantom vibrations could probably result in obsessive behavior
|
Phantom vibrations-the phenomenon where you think your phone is vibrating but it's not-have been around since the mobile age. Today, they're so common that researchers have devoted studies to them.
For Valerie Kusler, who works on a cattle farm, the feeling is complicated by the cows"The cows'moo is very muffled, it kinda sounds like...errrr,"she says."So that's very similar to what my phone sounds like when it vibrates on my desk or in my purse."
Other people may not confuse cows for their phones, but research shows phantom vibration symptom is a near-universal experience for people with smartphones.
Nearly 90 percent of college undergraduates in a 2012 study said they felt phantom vibrations. The number was just as high for a survey of hospital workers, who reported feeling phantom vibrations on either a weekly or monthly basis.
"Something in your brain is being triggered that's different than what was triggered just a few short years ago," says Dr Larry Rosen, a research psychologist who studies how technology affects our minds.
"If you'd asked me 10 years ago, or maybe even five years ago if I- felt an itch beneath where my pocket of my jeans was, and asked me what I would do, I'd reach down and scratch it because it was probably a little itch caused by the neurons firing ,"he says. Now, of course, the itch triggers him to reach for his phone. Rosen says it's an example of how our devices are changing how our brains process information.
"we're seeing a lot of what looks like obsessive behavior. People who are constantly picking up their phone look like they have an obsession. They don't look much different from someone who's constantly washing their hands. I'm not saying that it is an obsession, but I'm saying that it could turn into one, very easily," Rosen says.
While 9 out of 10 participants in the study of college students said the vibration feeling bothered them only a little or not at all, Rosen still recommends backing away from our phones every once in a while to keep our anxiety levels down.
"One of the things I'm really _ about in spite of being very pro-technology, is just away from the technology for short periods," Rosen says."And by short periods. I mean; maybe just 30 minutes or an hour."
|
It can be concluded from Larry Rosen's research that _ .
|
[
"have a strong desire to reduce costs",
"use the same logo in their marketing",
"gain advantages by taking early action",
"attract more shoppers by storing goods"
] |
gain advantages by taking early action
|
Businesses are witnessing a difficult time,which has in turn produced influence on consumers' desire to go green.However,shoppers are still laying stress on environmental concerns.
Two thirds of customers say that environmental considerations _ their purchases to the same degree as they did a year ago,while more than a quarter say that they are now even better aware of the environmental effect on what they buy.
This may help to influence how shops store goods on their shelves.And the companies should still make efforts to become more environmentally friendly.Two out of three people think it is important to buy from environmentally responsible companies,with about one in seven saying that they had even decided to take their custom elsewhere if they felt a company's environmental reputation was not good enough.
Harry Morrison,chief executive of the Carbon Trust,sympathizes:"I understand this situation where survival is very important now.But from environmental considerations,the clock is ticking--we don't have much time.In addition,cutting carbon has an immediate effect as costs drop and a mediumterm benefit for the brand."
Larger companies have an extra motivation to look at reducing their carbon footprint,as new rules next year will require businesses to buy carbon allowances to make up for their emissions .Those that have taken early action will have a head start.More than two thirds of consumers are not clear about which companies are environmentally responsible.This suggests that firms that are able to relay clearly their message to the public will be in a pole position to attract shoppers.
The Carbon Trust believes that it can help by informing customers about the good work companies are doing."When companies are granted the standard,they can use a logo in all their marketing which makes it clear that they are working towards cutting emissions," Mr.Morrison said. (2010*,C)
|
We can learn from the passage that businesses will _ .
|
[
"visit many historical sites",
"see lions and tigers",
"eat at local people's home",
"live in a tree house"
] |
visit many historical sites
|
Are you a bit bored with your nine-to-five routine? Have a look at our exciting range of holidays and decide what type of adventure you'd like.
Activity holidays Our activity holidays are for everyone who loves danger. We have a huge of water, snow and desert holidays. We'll take you scuba diving in the Red Sea of kayaking and white water rafting in Canada.
If you prefer snow, you can try skiing or snowboarding in the Alps or even igloo-building( ).For those who like warm weather, we also have sand boarding(the desert version of skateboarding) or camel safaris.
Polar expeditions Take a cruise to the Antarctic or the Arctic; explore a land of white nature beauty or wonderful wildlife. Our experts will explain everything about the two poles as you watch penguins or whales in the Antarctic and polar bears in the Arctic. There's no greater adventure than traveling to the two ends of the earth.
Culture journeys Our culture journeys will help you discover the secrets of distant places such as India, Thailand or Egypt. Explore their history by visiting temples, palaces and ancient ruins. You can also get to know how people live in the modem world by exploring markets, eating exotic foods and meeting local people.
Hiking tours We have hiking holidays to famous places, such as Machu Picchu or the Everest Base Camp Trek,as well as some nearer to home, for example in the highlands of Scotland. You don't need to be too sporty, just fairly fit.
You'll have a great time enjoying nature with a group of new friends. Some of the holidays need camping, but we'll transport the tents for you!
Wildlife holidays We organize small group tours to get closer to nature in Africa, Asia or South Africa. Go on safari in Africa and watch lions and giraffes.
Meet the famous turtles of Galapagos Islands. Look for tigers in India, or take an elephant safari in Sri Lanka. We use local guides and stay in a range of accommodation, from tents to tree houses.
|
Tom prefers to choose a culture holiday, and he may.
|
[
"warn people against the population explosion in the near future",
"find out the cause of rapid increase in population in recent years",
"present us a brief and clear picture of the demographic growth",
"compare the demographic growth pattern in the past with that after 1650"
] |
present us a brief and clear picture of the demographic growth
|
Though the facts that too many people on earth and a too rapid increase in the number added each year are not in argument, we always begin the discussion of "population as global issue" with what most persons mean like this. It was quite right to compare demographic growth to "a long, thin powder fuse that bums steadily and hesitatingly until it finally reaches the charge and explodes".
To understand the current situation, which is characterized by rapid increases in population, it is necessary to understand the history of population trends. Rapid growth is a comparatively recent phenomenon. Looking back at the 8,000 years of demographic history, we find that populations have been virtually stable or growing very slightly for most of human history. For most of our ancestors, life was hard, often nasty, and very short. There was high fertility in most places, but this was usually balanced by high mortality. For most of human history, it was seldom the case that one in ten persons would live past forty, while infancy and childhood were especially risky periods. Often, societies were in clear danger of extinction because death rates could exceed their birthrates. Thus, the population problem throughout most of history was how to prevent extinction of the human race.
This pattern is important to notice. Not only does it put the current problems of demographic growth into a historical perspective, but it suggests that the cause of rapid increase in population in recent years is not a sudden
enthusiasm for more children, but an improvement in the conditions that traditionally have caused high mortality.
Demographic history can be divided into two major periods: a time of long, slow growth which extended from about 8000 B.C. till approximately 1650 A.D. In the first period of some 9,600 years, the population increased from some 8 million to 500 million in 1650. Between 1650 and 1975, the population has increased from 500 million to more than 4 billion. And the population reached 6.2 billion throughout the world by the year 2000, One way to appreciate this dramatic difference in such abstract numbers is to reduce the time frame to something that is more manageable. Between 8000 B.C. and 1650, an average of only 50,000 persons was being added annually to the world's population, At present, this number is added every six hours. The increase is about 800000,000 persons annually.
|
The author of the passage intends to _ .
|
[
"he always sends Mark something on his birthday",
"he does not forget Mark's seventeenth birthday",
"he always sends a Christmas card on Mark's birthday",
"he sends Mark something on his seventeenth birthday"
] |
he always sends Mark something on his birthday
|
The Man Who Never Puts a Foot Wrong
Some people do not like anything to be out of place. They are never late for work; they return their books to the library on time; they remember people's birthdays; they pay their bills as soon as they arrive. Mr. Dodds is such a person.
Mr. Dodds works in a bank, and lives on his own. The only family he has is in the next town: his sister lives there with her husband, and her son, Mark. Mr. Dodds does not visit his sister, or her family, from one year to the next, but he sends them Christmas cards, and he has not forgotten one of Mark's seventeen birthdays.
Last week Mr. Dodds had quite a surprise. He drove home from the bank at the usual time, driving neither too slowly nor too fast. He parked his car where he always parked it, out of the way of other cars, and he went inside to make his evening meal. Straight away, there was a knock at the door. Mr. Dodds opened the door to find a policeman standing on the doorstep.
"What have I done wrong?" Mr. Dodds asked himself. "Have I driven on the wrong side of the road? Has there been some trouble at the bank? Have I forgotten to pay an important bill?" "Hello, uncle," said the policeman, "my name is Mark."
|
"He has not forgotten one of Mark's seventeen birthdays" means _ .
|
[
"have Chinese classes to help students learn Chinese.",
"ask students to communicate in Chinese.",
"carry out the uniform sweater policy.",
"build a paintable field."
] |
have Chinese classes to help students learn Chinese.
|
Recently, I took part in the first strategic planning meeting at school. I didn't know what strategic planning meant when I was invited. So I set about trying to find out what it was. Later, I learnt it meant setting short and long term goals .
The meeting took place in Ms Gallup's room on Tuesday after school. I really didn't know what to expect. I was very nervous ,but I felt very lucky to have been included. I really wanted to do the best I could.
The desks in the room were laid out into two circles so that the upper school and lower school could be divided. There were fifteen students in the room. We were directed to discuss how to _ the school, what we'd like to be taught, and what we thought could be improved upon. I felt this was a very important responsibility as I was representing the fourth grade. So I tried to do the best I could.
There were a lot of suggestions on how to improve our school. One student felt that the uniform sweater policy was really important and another student felt that building a paintable field would help improve the school greatly. I suggested that we should have Chinese classes because China is the most highly populated place on Earth with a growing industrial power. We should learn how to communicate with the Chinese .
We discussed a lot and sometimes the discussion became heated, but they were interesting. I think it is amazing that the teacher asked the students about their opinions and gave us a voice. It is exciting if they adopt any of our suggestions.
|
The writer suggests that the school should _ .
|
[
"It's on Main Avenue.",
"It's near the Sports Center.",
"It's near the City Fountain.",
"It's on the left of the police station."
] |
It's near the Sports Center.
|
Dear Sammy,
I'm sorry I can't go to the Sports Center with you today.I have to see a doctor. Here are the directions to the Sports Center.
From our house, go right ahead on Main Avenue. Walk past the police station and the City Fountain. Then cross the bridge. At the other side of the river, turn right. The Sports Center is on your left. You can't miss it. The basketball game starts at 1:00 p.m. so don't be late. By the way, let's have some ice-cream after you finish playing. We can meet at Choco's Ice-Cream Shop. It's right around the corner from the Sports Center. Your game should be over at 3:00 p.m. so I'll meet you there 10 minutes later.
Have fun!
Mom
|
Where is Choco's Ice-Cream Shop?
|
[
"five",
"four",
"three",
"two"
] |
three
|
At 9 a.m. on October 15, 2003, our country launched its first manned space-ship, Shenzhou V, into space at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu Province. It took Yang Liwei and his spaceship about 21 hours to circle the earth 14 times. Yang Liwei is China's first astronaut. He comes from Liaoning Province, and he has been an air force pilot since 1983. He was chosen from 14 pilots after many difficult tests.
The life of an astronaut is hard to imagine for many people. To put on a space suit takes 15 minutes with the help of others. Sleeping in space is not easy, either. He has to sleep in a special sleeping bag on the wall because there is no gravity. Yang can eat chicken and rice. It's especially made to eat in space but it doesn't taste nice.
"I'm feeling very good in space, and it looks wonderful here," said Yang, "I have looked at our beautiful earth and I have recorded all that I have seen here."
China has become the third country in the world to send a person into space after the former Soviet Union and the United States. China is now planning its next launch. Shenzhou VI will be into space within(......) the next years, it may take three astronauts. We are all proud of our motherland.
|
We can know there are _ countries in the world which can send man into space.
|
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