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it can kill people

Al Ossinger,an experienced mountain guide,knew it was time to leave Longs Peak in Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park,and get off'quickly.The sky had turned threatening dark,and his ice ax at times gave out upset sounds.Suddenly,as Ossinger was crossing a large mass of rock,both hands pressed against it for balance,there was a roar,a flash of light and an electric current charged through his arms. "In that second. I thought 1 was finished,"he said,"Then I realized 1 was still there--the jolt hadn't knocked me off.My body and legs were all right,but my arms were paralyzed from the shoulder down.''Fortunately Ossinger was able to continue down and soon the feeling began to return to his shoulders,upper arms,and,two hours later,his fingertips.Ossinger was a lucky man. A single stroke of lightning,which is usually three to four miles long,travels at speeds of up to 100,000 miles per second.In a single flash,it can carry 100 million volts of electricity and reach a temperature of 55,000 degrees Fahrenheit,five times hotter than the surface of the sun.During its brief life span,lightning carries enough energy to power a 100-watt light bulb for as long as three months.If you find yourself unlucky enough to be near lightning's path,you could suffer a direct hit,sending electrical current though your body for some 5 00 milli-seconds.Because of the short duration,severe burns aren't common and the resulting burns are usually superficial . According to the national Weather Service,more people have been killed by lightning in the United States during the past 30 years,an average of 87 a year-than by either tornadoes or hurricanes,484 people were injured in 1994 alone.These"swords from the sky" are also responsible for an estimated$100 million to$300 million of property damage a year.During the 1980s an average of 5502 wildfires a year were sparked by lightning on national forest lands alone. Earth is struck by at 1east 100 of these flashes every second-more than 8.6 million strikes a day.For all its destructive power,lightning has its good sides too.It's likely that humans discovered fire from some early lightning-sparked flames.And all that activity above the earth may help create ozone ,which protects us from the sun's harmful rays.Lightning dancing across a summer night sky is a force to be respected and appreciated-from a distance.

Electrical lightning is called"swords from the sky"to mean _ .

Supportive.

It was the end of the school term and my son Tom had less than three months left before he would finish his six years at high school. During this time he had developed a love for basketball. Sadly, because of my work over the last twelve months, I had only been able to attend a few of his games; however, I was determined to get to his last game for the school term. Tom's team came out in the first 10 minutes with a burst of goals that saw them leading by just over 20 points at the end of the first half. The second half changed as the other team quickly played themselves back into the game. Tom's team started to miss an increasing number of shots. It was at that point that the coach called his first time out. The noise of the spectators became quiet as the coach spoke to them. He had the team standing in a half circle, but he squatted down, looking up at them and fiving some very calm and clear instructions on what they needed to do in the last couple of minutes. As he stood up to allow the team to return to the court, I saw him give some further words of encouragement to all of them. You could see that he knew that the team was fighting to save the game and that he needed to lift them up. By squatting down he placed himself in a position where he was talking up to them, rather than down or at them, and as the players went back onto the court his words of encouragement served to lift their energy and spirits. Well, Tom's team went on to win the final by 5 points. As I drove away I thought about what can happen to us all in our everyday life. One of my favourite quotes is about the half filled glass of water --- "Is it half full or is it half empty?" Like the coach, the answer to this quote all depends on how you look at things.

What is the writer's attitude towards the coach?

By offering his love.

Stephen used to work in a company. Unfortunately , he got serious heart disease . He couldn't work for a long time. Thinking he could still do something for others, he decided to be a volunteer at a Children's Hospital. Stephen loved children very much. With his love, he did his job well. Sometimes he lost his children. They died. At that time, he would tell these sad parents that he would soon be with their children in heaven and he would take care of them. His words seemed to help those parents. There was a girl who could not walk because of a disease. She couldn't do anything and she was very sad. What was worse, the doctors said that they could do little for her. Stephen decided to try to help her. He started visiting her, bringing paints, brushes and paper. He put the brush in his mouth and began to draw. He didn't use his hands at all. Only his head would move. He always told her that she could do anything she wanted. At last she began to draw with her mouth. She and Stephen became friends. By and by, the little girl was getting better and better. She was allowed to leave the hospital. One day. to Stephen's great surprise, she walked to see him on her own feet! She gave him a picture she had drawn. At the top, it read: "Thank you for helping me walk. It's all because of your love." Love can sometimes be more powerful than doctors and medicines. Love makes our world more beautiful and colorful. Stephen died a few days after the girl gave him the picture.

How did Stephen help the little girl in the hospital?

something has happened to American honey bees

Last fall,beekeepers from states with warm climates began to report a sudden loss of honey bees.Losses were reported in twentyfour states and spread to Canada.Today,some beekeepers say thirty percent to ninety percent of their honey bees are gone.Food price could go up as a result.And some beekeeping businesses have failed. Many kinds of plants,trees and grasses need bees to pollinate them.Bees gather nectar from flowers during this process.The liquid gives them food and material to make honey.As the bees land on flowers,their bodies pick up and drop off particles of pollen .Most flowering plants need pollination to reproduce. Honey bees can die during the winter.But few dead bees have been found this time.Instead,the bees seem to have disappeared.Experts call the condition "colony collapse disorder". Agriculture Department official Caird Rexroad said the colony collapse disorder threatens about fifteen billion dollars worth of the country's farm economy.Mr.Rexroad commented at a hearing of a House of Representatives agriculture subcommittee. Mr.Rexroad said the cause of the sudden loss of bees was not clear.The number of honey bees had already fallen before the colony collapse disorder began. Experts say the varroa mite is at least partly responsible for the earlier decrease in honey bees.The mite is a tiny creature that feeds on honey bees.It may play a part in colony collapse disorder by carrying bee viruses.Or the problem may be caused by other disease and weather conditions. Diana CoxFoster of Pennsylvania State University is part of the scientific group.Ms.CoxFoster says the nation needs honey bees that can defend themselves better against disease and insects.The recent mapping of most of the honey bees' genes offers the hope of a stronger honey bee some day.

The passage is mainly to tell us that _ .

People will probably have to pay to download music.

Having finished her homework, Ma Li wants some music for relaxation. As usual, she starts her computer and goes to Baidu.com to download music files. But this time she is surprised when an announcement about protecting songs' copyright appears on the screen. The age of free music and movie downloads may have come to an end as Web companies like Baidu are accused of pirating copyright. Lawsuits have been filed against four websites offering free downloads. In September 2005, a Beijing court ordered Baidu to pay the recording company Shanghai Push compensation for their losses. Baidu was also told to block the links to the pirated music on the websites. This caused a heated discussion on Interact file sharing. "Baidu's defeat in the lawsuit shows it is hot fight to get copyrighted songs without paying." Downloads may face lawsuits or fines," said an official. Like many teens, Huang Ruoru, an 18-year-old girl from Puning in prefix = st1 /GuangdongProvince, doesn't think that getting music from websites is wrong. She always shares her favorite songs downloaded from Baidu with her friends. When told about the lawsuit, she began to feel a little guilty about getting others' work without paying. However, other teenagers have different ideas. Wang Yafei, a senior 2 girl from Jinan, ShangdongProvincepointed out that file sharing is a good way to promote pop singers. " If I download a song and really like it, I will buy the CD," she said. "So what the recording companies really concentrate on is improving their music, rather than pursuing file-shares."

What can you learn from this passage?

Thomas and William Bowler.

Inventions named after people Many new things are invented each year. Interestingly, some inventions are named after the people who invented them, making the inventions and inventors easier to be remembered. The bowler hat is named after London hat-makers Thomas and William Bowler. The brothers received an order from Edward Coke, the younger brother of the 2ndEarl of Leicester. They were asked to design a hat for Coke's gamekeepers to protect _ heads from branches while on horseback. Later, the stylish hat became popular in Europe and the United States. Another invention that is named after its inventor is Braille, a writing system used by blind people. French educator Louis Braille developed a new system of reading and writing after learning the cryptography of French Captain Charles Barbier during the war. The captain had come up with a code of dots on paper that allowed soldiers to communicate in the dark. The diesel engine is also named after its inventor----German engineer Rudolf Diesel. After a few dangerous tests, he invented a new and more efficient engine in 1892 and the engine was later called the diesel engine. The engines were widely used in buses, trucks, trains and ships, and Rudolf Diesel became a millionaire.

Who invented the bowler hat?

before 11:30 p. m.

Sydney Tower Address:100 Market St. Sydney Phone:02 9333 9222 Fax :02 9333 9203 Open time: 9: 00 a. m. to 10:30 p.m. (Saturdays to 11:30 p. m.) Tickets: Y=60 (for an adult) Y=30(for a child) Website: www.sydneytower.com.au How to get there: train to Town Hall Station and a short walk along Market Street How to book tickets: By phone/fax or through the web Attraction: Sydney's best views are just the beginning! Sydney Tower takes you to the highest point above Sydney or exciting 360 views of our beautiful city.

Last Saturday, Johnson went to visit Sydney Tower. He had to get down the tower _ .

Academic degrees.

Dear Harry, You ask me whether you should spend the next three years at university,or get a job.I will give you three different answers. _ Answer A.You are ambitious.Your sights are set on going to the top,in business or the government.In today's high-tech times,big companies cannot be managed by uneducated amateurs.Even the middle managers are at a disadvantage unless they get a university degree and an MBA.Same thing in government. Anyway,you are too young to decide what you want to do for the rest of your life.If you spend the next few years at university,you will get to know the world--and yourself--before the time comes to choose your career. Answer B.Stop wasting your time on academia .Stop subjecting yourself to the boredom of textbooks and classrooms.Stop cramming for exams before you acquire a strong love for reading. The lack of a college degree will only be a slight influence on your career.In Britain,you can still get to the top without a degree.What industry and the government need at the top is not experts but leaders.The character traits which make people scholars in their youth are not the traits which make them leaders in later life.You put up with education for 12 boring years. Answer C.Don't judge the value of higher education in terms of careemanship.Judge it for what it is--a priceless opportunity to furnish your mind and enrich the quality of your life.My father was a failure in business,but he read Horace in the washroom until he died,poor but happy. If you enjoy being a scholar,and like the company of scholars,go to a university.Who knows,you may end your days as a Regius Professor.And bear in mind that British universities are still the best in the world.You have a first-class mind.Stretch it.If you have the opportunity to go to a university,don't pass it up.You would never forgive yourself. Tons of love, David

What did the author think play a key part in high-tech times?

the natural experience in their growing up

One of our biggest fears nowadays is that our kids might some day get lost in a "sea of technology"rather than experiencing the natural world.Fear-producing TV and computer games are leading to a serious disconnect between kids and the great outdoors,which will change the wild places of the world,its creatures and human health for the worse,unless adults get working on child's play. Each of us has a place in nature we go sometimes,even if it was torn down.We cannot be the last generation to have that place.At this rate,kids who miss the sense of wonder outdoors will not grow up to be protectors of natural landscapes."If the decline in parks use continues across North America,who will defend parks against encroachment ?"asks Richard Louv,author ofLast Child in the Woods. Without having a nature experience,kids can turn out just fine,but they are missing out a huge enrichment of their lives.That applies to everything from their physical health and mental health,to stress levels,creativity and cognitive skills.Experts predict modern kids will have poorer health than their parents--and they say a lack of outside play is surely part of it:research suggests that kids do better academically in schools with a nature component and that play in nature fosters leadership by the smartest,not by the toughest.Even a tiny outdoor experience can create wonder in a child.The three-year-old turning over his first rock realizes he is not alone in the world.A clump of trees on the roadside can be the whole universe in his eyes.We really need to value that more. Kids are not to blame.They are over-protected and frightened.It is dangerous out there from time to time,but repetitive stress from computers is replacing breaking an arm as a childhood rite of passage. Everyone from developers,to schools and outdoors' citizens,should help regain for our kids some of the freedom and joy of exploring,taking friendship in fields and woods that cement love,respect and need for the landscape.As parents,we should devote some of our energies to taking our kids into nature.This could yet be our greatest cause.

According to the author,children's breaking an arm is _ .

Paragraph 3 to Paragraph 5

In all one's lifetime it is oneself that one spends the most time being with or dealing with. But it is exactly oneself that one has the least understanding of. When you are going upwards in life you tend to overestimate yourself. It seems that everything you seek for is within your reach. When you are going downhill you tend to underestimate yourself, mistaking difficulties for your own incompetence. To get a thorough understanding of oneself is to gain a correct view of oneself-aware of both one's strengths and shortages. You may look forward hopefully to the future but be sure not to expect too much, for ideals can never be fully realized. You may be courageous to meet challenges but it should be clear to you where to direct your efforts. That's to say so long as you have a perfect knowledge of yourself there won't be difficulties you can't overcome. To get a thorough understanding of oneself needs self-appreciation. Whether you think you are a towering tree or a blade of grass, a high mountain or a small stone, you represent a state of nature that has its own value. If you earnestly admire yourself you'll have a real sense of self-appreciation, which will give you confidence. As soon as you gain full confidence in yourself, you'll be enabled to fight and overcome any adversity. To get a thorough understanding of oneself also requires doing oneself a favor when it's needed. In time of sadness, do yourself a favor by sharing it with your friends so as to change a gloomy mood into a cheerful one; in time of tiredness, do yourself a favor by getting a good sleep. As you are aware, what a person physically has is but a human body that's vulnerable when exposed to the elements. So if you fall ill, it's up to you to take a good care of yourself. In a word, to get a thorough understanding of oneself is to get a full control of one's life. Then one will find one's life full of color and flavor.

If this passage is divided into three parts, the second part should consist of _ .

No

American College of Education is a regionally accredited, online college based in Indianapolis, Indiana, delivering online master's, doctorate and specialist degree programs, a bachelor's degree completion program, and graduate-level certificates in Education, Healthcare, and Nursing.

is american college of education accredited in new york

the officers didn't allow them to sell anything there

What is the hottest topic at your school recently? In Taiyuan No.55 Middle School, it's money. The school held an activity called "making money" last weekend. About 200 Junior 1 and Junior 2 students were divided into 30 teams. They went out to make money by selling things. What did they choose to sell? Some sold newspapers; some chose bottled water; some sold environmentally friendly shopping bags and bamboo baskets. Hu Qing's team decided to sell some useful books in front of the Children Activity Center. They thought parents would like to buy the books for their children. But unfortunately, they met urban management officers . The officers asked them to leave. "We played hide-and-seek with the officers for the whole morning" said Hu. "Finally we had to give up." Wang Bing and her team sold ice cream in a square. They didn't meet any officers. But few people were interested in what they were selling. The team then put up a board saying "For Country Kids". It worked. More people came to their stall . A foreigner even gave them 100 yuan. "He didn't want any change. He said he wanted to help the children," said Wang. "We were touched." Later that day they gave the 100 yuan and more to the "Project Hope" office. Meng Zhaoxiang and his team were luckier. They sold all their cakes in four hours, spending 39.5 yuan and getting back 80 yuan. They made 40.5 yuan. "It was not easy to make the money," said Meng. "Some people just looked. Others just tasted but didn't buy. Now I know how hard it is for our parents to make the money we need to lead happy lives."

Hu Qing's team finally gave up because _ .

poor posture

Most children have heard their parents at one time or another yell "sit up straight!" or "don't slouch!" In the past, this was usually heard at the dinner table as children ate dinner. But these days, it is also heard around another activity-video games. Ten-year old Owaish Batliwala, from Mumbai, India, admits he spends three to four hours each day playing games on his tablet computer. His mother Mehzabin became concerned when her son started saying that his neck hurt. She said, "My son started having neck problems around June or July. The pain slowly spread to his hand and his back. He plays for hours on the iPad and mobile phone. This is what has caused the problem." Sadia Vanjara is a physical therapist. She says the number of young children with chronic pain in their necks, arms and shoulders is on the rise. Dr. Vanjara says the pain is not from aging, accidents or disease. It is from poor posture, or body position, while playing video games. "They are not aging, they haven't had an accident, their age is like, under 10, they are not complaining, the blood reports are fine, their x-rays are fine, their MRI's are fine, then where is the culprit ? And that is the very common thing that is happening amongst all children and that is smart phones and the gadgets ." This is a problem in many parts of the world. But there are more smartphone users in India than anywhere else in the world, except China. Networking equipment company Cisco estimates that the number of smartphone users in India will increase from 140 million today to 651 million by 2020. 19-year old student Nida Jameel says she feels pain in the finger which holds the weight of her smartphone most of the day. She says she uses her smartphone 24/7. This means 24 hours a day, seven days a week, or all the time. "As I use phone 24/7 (all day) like, so probably yeah, it was because of the phone, continuous usage and Snapchat, Whatsapp, more and more you know social media coming, so like phone is the center of everything." Dr. Vanjara says the best treatments for the pain are daily exercises. "And start stretching it in all the possible directions that you can." Correct posture can help prevent pain. Dr. Vanjara teaches children how to hold their gadgets correctly. She tells a patient to hold the gadget in front of the face. She says that bending the head down to look at the device, strains the neck and creates an unhealthy bend to the back. Sadia Vanjara predicts we will see not only physical but psychological and emotional problems resulting from overuse of gadgets. Experts advise taking breaks from using a computer or other device often. Stand up. Stretch your legs, back, shoulders and arms. And when your work or school work is done, unplug and exercise.

Accordingto Sadia Vanjara, the pain is from _ ?

Spend an Extra Minute

They crossed in front of me as I was driving out of the store parking lot.My first reaction was filled with anger at being delayed for a whole ten seconds.But I quickly became patient when I realized that this was an elderly couple. The man leaned on his wife who walked in front of him.He not only used her for support but it was obvious that he was blind.The two of them worked as one--each needing the other to function in this fast-changing world. That little example of true strength changed my whole personal perception of life that day.Suddenly I wasn't so mad about having to work a few extra hours on Saturdays.I had my strength,and I was still relatively young. That picture of those two elderly people walking with dignity and strength stayed with me the entire week.My life wasn't so bad after all.I had my health and a good job.I had a wonderful,supportive wife.I started to think--not only was I lucky to have these all, but also was that wonderful old couple,who,despite the trials and sufferings of a long life,still had the love and support of each other to carry them through this world. There are so many people out there just like that couple.My wife and I sometimes picture ourselves in our old age, walking arm in arm into the sunset.That image always gives us a warm feeling of comfort.Just remember,none of us would be here if it wasn't for our elders.We all should spend a little extra time and patience when it comes to helping our elder friends.

What would be the best title for this passage?

much earlier before her visit to the U.S.

Peng Liyuan, China's first lady, who has accompanied her husband to the United States, is no stranger to being in the spotlight. She has been praised by both mainland and international media for her sense of fashion on earlier state visits. Following her arrival in the U.S., she is set for a much-anticipated fashion face-off with her fellow, U.S. first lady Michelle Obama later this week. Here we take a look at four key differences between the two fashion icons. 1 Backgrounds Peng Liyuan Peng, a Yuncheng county, Shandong native, joined the People's Liberation Army when she was 18. She was one of the first people on the mainland to obtain a master's degree in ethnic music at the China Conservatory of Music. Her vocal talents made her a superstar as an army soprano , and she has given many singing performances at home and abroad. Michelle Obama Michelle grew up with her older brother, Craig, in Chicago. Her father was a water plant operator, and her mother was a full-time housewife until her daughter went to high school. She went to state school, and later graduated from Princeton University with a bachelor's degree in sociology. She then attended Harvard Law School in 1988, where she earned a doctorate in law. 2 Professions Peng Liyuan Aside from being the first lady of China and a singer, Peng is also the president of the People's Liberation Army's Academy of Art College. She has since stepped down from public performances, but continues with her charity work. Michelle Obama After working as a lawyer, Michelle began to work in public service and was the associate dean at the University of Chicago. She then became vice-president for community and external affairs at the University of Chicago Medical Center before her husband's inauguration. 3 Campaigns Peng Liyuan The World Health Organization appointed Peng as a goodwill ambassador in its campaign against tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS in 2012. In 2014, UNESCO named her as a special envoy to promote education for girls and women. She has also joined Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, in promoting World No Tobacco Day. Michelle Obama Michelle launched the"Let's Move!"campaign in 2010 to fight against childhood obesity. She has raised awareness of the need for higher education, and also spoken about empowering young women worldwide through a government initiative called"Let Girls Learn". 4 Styles Peng Liyuan China's first lady tends to wear tailored clothing, with clean lines on formal occasions. Internet users have praised her"elegant ensemble"and graceful outfits. The 54-year-old supports home-grown Chinese designers, such as Ma Ke, one of the founders of EXCEPTION de Mixmind, a largely unknown fashion brand until she sparked global headlines by wearing a fancy black overcoat and handbag on her first trip with Xi to Moscow in 2013. Michelle Obama Michelle is more experimental with her style -- her clothes range from casual dresses to off-the-shoulder ball gowns, and tailored trouser suits. The 52-year-old wears clothing mostly made by American designers, which include more affordable fashion retailers, such as J. Crew and Target, and the famous designer Alexander McQueen.

Peng Liyuan got her praise from both mainland and international media .

The pigeons.

The secret of carrier pigeons' unbelievable ability to find their way home has been discovered by scientists: _ follow the roads just like we do. Scientists now believe the phrase "as the crow flies" no longer means the shortest most direct route between two points. They say it is likely that crows and other day birds also choose AA-suggested routes, even though it makes their journeys longer. Scientists at Oxford University spent 10 years studying homing pigeons using global positioning satellite (GPS) and got a surprising result. The birds often don't use the sun to decide their directions. Instead they fly along motorways, turn at crossing and even go around roundabouts , adding miles to their journeys. "It really has knocked our research team sideways to find that after a decade-long international study, pigeons appear to ignore their inbuilt directional instincts and follow the road system," said Prof Tim Guilford, reader in animal behavior at Oxford University's Department of Zoology. Guilford said pigeons use their own navigational system when doing long distance trips or when a bird does a journey for the first time. "But once homing pigeons have flown a journey more than once, they can fly home on a habitual route, much as we do when we are driving or walking home from work," said Guilford. "In short, it looks like it is mentally easier for a bird to fly down a road. They are just making their journey as simple as possible."

What does the words " _ " refer to?

had no idea

Mr. Black gave his wife money every Friday evening, but she always spent it before the next Wednesday. For the next three days she had none. Every Tuesday evening Mr. Black asked her, "But what did you spend all that money on?" and she always answered, "I don't know." One Friday Mr. Black brought home an exercise book and a pencil and gave them to his wife along with the money. "Now look!" he said to her. "When you get money from me, write it down on this page, and on the next page write down what happens to the money." When Mr. Black came home the next Tuesday, his wife came to him and showed him the book. "I have done what you told me," she said happily. On the first page she had written "Friday, 28th June. I got PS18 from John," and on the next page, "Tuesday, 2nd July. I have spent it all."

Mrs. Black _ how she had spent the money.

Children should find part-time jobs when they get old enough.

"How should I give my children pocket money?" is one of the most common questions asked by parents. "Should kids receive pocket money when they get high marks at school, or lose pocket money if they don't help with the housework?" are also common questions. Giving pocket money is an excellent way to develop children's independence. Children should receive pocket money as their small share of the family wealth, and they should share in doing the housework as well. Here are some ideas to help you use pocket money to develop your children's independence. Give pocket money regularly. Like adults, children should have a payday every week or two. Link pocket money with ages and needs. Provide spending guidelines; don't be afraid to let them know what you expect them to buy, and what not to. A child in preschool and lower primary school is sure to spend money on candies and other such things. But older children can be expected to buy their own lunches or bus tickets. Teach kids to set their goals. Encouraging children to save money for big things like bikes can help them learn about planning ahead. When given wisely, pocket money is an excellent way to develop children's independence. But at some time, perhaps when a child turns fifteen, it needs to be reduced or eliminated in order to encourage the child to get a part-time job and begin to earn his own pocket money.

What do we learn from the passage?

it could happen to me, too

If you're a male and you're reading this,congratulations:you're a survivor.According to statistics,you're more than twice as likely to die of skin cancer as a woman,and nine times more likely to die of AIDS.Assuming you make it to the end of your natural term,about 78 years for men in Australia, you'll die on average five years before a woman. There're many reasons for this--typically,men take more risks than women and are more likely to drink and smoke--but perhaps more importantly,men don't go to the doctor. "Men aren't seeing doctors as often as they should."says Dr Gullotta."This is particularly so for the over-40s,when diseases tend to strike." Gullotta says a healthy man should visit the doctor every year or two.For those over 45,it should be at least once a year. According to a recent survey,95% of women aged between 15 and early 40s see a doctor once a year,compared to 70% of men in the same age group. "A lot of men think they're invincible ,",Gullotta says."They only come in when a friend drops dead on the golf course and they think,'Geez,if it could happen to him...'" "Then there's the ostrich approach.Some men are scared of what might be there and would rather not know,"says Dr Ross Cartmill. "Most men get their cars serviced more regularly than they service their bodies,"Cartmill says.He believes most diseases that commonly affect men could be addressed by preventive check-ups. "Regular check-ups for men would surely place strain on the public purse,"Cartmill says."But prevention is cheaper in the long run than having to treat the disease.Besides,the final cost is far greater:it's called premature death."

Which of the following best completes the sentence"Geez, if it could happen to him..." in Para6?

If you cease to struggle,you cease to live.

Two of the hardest things to accomplish in this world are to acquire wealth by honest effort and, having gained it, to learn how to use it properly. Recently 1 walked into the locker room of a rather well-known golf club after finishing a round.It was in the late afternoon and most of the members had left for their homes. But a half-dozen or so men past middle age were still seated at tables talking aimlessly and drinking more than was good for them. These same men can be found there day after day.and,strangely enough,each one of these men had been a man of affairs and wealth,successful in business and respected in the community.If material prosperity were the chief necessity for happiness, then each one should have been happy. Yet,it seemed to me,something very important was missing,else there would not have been the constant effort to escape the realities of life through scotch and soda. They knew, each one of them,that their productivity had ceased .When a fruit tree ceases to bear its fruit,it is dying.And it is even so with man. What 1s the answer to a long and happy existence in this world of ours? I think I found it long ago in a passage from the book of Genesis which caught my eye while I was looking through my Bible. The words were few,but they became memorably impressed on my mind:"In the sweat of the face shall you eat the bread." To me,that has been a challenge from my earliest recollections (memories).In fact,the battle of life,of existence,is a challenge to everyone.The immortal words of St.Paul,too,have been and always will be a great inspiration to me.At the end of the road 1 want to be able to feel that I have fought a good fight,I have finished the course,I have kept the faith.

What is implied in the passage by the writer?

ask people to protect wetlands and wildlife

Zhalong is a nature reserve in Heilongjiang in northeast China. It is one of the world's most important wetlands*. The reserve offers food and places to live in for wildlife. It is an _ home for different kinds of plants, fish and birds. Many birds live comfortably in Zhalong Nature Reserve all year round, but some only stay there for a short time. There are many fish in the wetlands, and the birds can easily catch them for food. Zhalong Nature Reserve is an important living area for red-crowned cranes*. There are not many red-crowned cranes in the world. Some of them live in Zhalong. Some people want to change the wetlands to make more space for farms and buildings. This means there will be less and less space for wildlife. More and more birds are in danger because they do not have enough living space. Many of them died. The Chinese government wants to protect these endangered* birds, and they can be safe in Zhalong. Every year, a lot of visitors go to Zhalong to watch birds. This year, members of our Birdwatching Club are going to study the different kinds of birds in Zhalong and the changes in their numbers. We do a bird count* once a year. We are now inviting middle school students to help. We need more people to help us count and do something to help the birds. Many people do not understand the importance* of the wetlands. We hope this information will help them understand and make them do something to protect wildlife.

The purpose of the article is to _ .

Because they want to log on to their microblogs.

It's the end of class. When the bell rings, students of Luohu Foreign Languages School in Shenzhen quickly take out their cell-phones. They want to log on to their microblogs to check the funny things that have happened in the last hour. Since last year, the trend of microblogging has swept the country. Recent surveys show that most students in middle schools have a microblog, and some even update their blogs over five times per day. "We learn many fresh and interesting things on microblogs and they have become popular topics in class," said Liang Jianmin, 14, a student at Harbin No 3 Middle School. "If you do not know about them, you are out of the loop ." It is also a great place for students to _ stress. "My parents always ask me to study hard, and encourage me before exams, but actually it adds pressure ," said Zhang Yazhe, 15, a student in Luohu Foreign Languages School. "When I share these feelings on my microblog, I get many replies from friends in the same situation, which makes me feel better." But parents are worried that microblogging could be a waste of time. Some misleading messages may even cause danger to kids, they said. Shen Mingde, a professor at the China Education Association, suggests parents not worry too much as long as kids are not crazy about microblogging. Instead, it can become a window for parents to understand their children. "If parents can read their children's microblogs, they'll know their thoughts, thus leading to better communication and solutions to problems," he said. Micro blogging tips for kids 1. Don't microblog for more than one hour a day. 2. Never microblog in class. 3. Try to talk face to face with people instead of just microblogging. 4. Be critical . Don't trust all the messages on a microblog.

Why do the students quickly take out their cellphones after class?

The robot teacher is about one meter high and is white, egg-shaped.

In order to make students become more interested in English studies,21 elementary schools in southeastern Korea have started to use robot teachers. The robot teacher is called Engkey. She was developed by the Korea Institute of Science and Technology. She is about one meter high and is white,egg-shaped. She takes a display panel as her face. She can move around the classroom while she speaks to students. She can also read books to students and dance to music by moving her head and arms. Now,21 robot teachers have been used to teach English. They are controlled by English teachers in the Philippines. There is a camera in each of the robot teachers. With the help of the cameras,English teachers in the Philippines can see and hear the students. At the same time,the facial expressions of these English teachers. This is very interesting. Besides helping students to become more interested in English,the robot teachers can also help children in poor areas without English teachers. Robot teachers have many good points. For example,they needn't have a rest because they don't get ill.

Which of the following is TRUE?

In Holland people give presents to unbirthday persons on their birthdays.

People celebrate birthdays in almost every country on earth. And they celebrate them in many different ways. In China and in Japan, for example, the arrival of New Year is more important than a person's birthday. So everyone adds a year to celebrate their ages on New Year's Day, instead of on their birthdays, In Brazil, the special birthday food isn't cake, but special candles. In China, it's long noodles--for long life. In Iceland, people have pancakes with candies rolled inside them on birthdays. In Britain, a birthday is an all-day celebration. At school, the birthday child is lifted up and "bumped" by his classmates. This means the child is lifted by the feet and arms and bumped to the ground, once for each year once for good growth. In Israel, the same custom is followed, except the birthday person is lifted and lowered while sitting in a chair. In Holland, children not only get presents, but also give things out. They give cakes, cookies and candles to their classmates and teachers on their birthdays. In Mexico, it's good luck to give birthday greetings as early in the day as possible. So it's usual for the birthday child to be woken up at midnight by fiends singing birthday songs. In India, birthday celebrations also begin before dawn. Prayers and blessings must be said before morning comes. In Thailand, two tall candles are lighted the night before the birthday. One is as tall as the birthday person. If it goes out early, it's bad luck. Another customs of Thailand is that they buy live fish and birds for the birthday person and then the birthday person frees the animals, and it brings good luck. In Nigeria, people in a certain age group celebrate their birthdays together, on a certain day. In many countries birthday customs are changing. Old customs are giving way to western style of birthdays, with candle topped cakes. But one thing never changes--birthdays are special days for everyone!

According to the passage, which of the following is TRUE?

you can get something valuable

If you want to be a volunteer, you have to answer the following typical questions. Do you want to work with people, animals or machines? Do you want to work indoors or outdoors, directly serve people in need or serve people behind the scenes? Every year, thousands of people in the west offer volunteer service. Volunteering greatly strengthens the community because it helps the old, the young, the weak, the sick, and the disabled and the injured to solve problems. Volunteers usually help in many different ways. They may give people advice, offer friendship to the young, drive the elderly to church (if up to the driving age), advise kids against drugs, work as assistants in schools or nursing homes, raise funds, plant trees, help out in local libraries and do many other things. Volunteering can be a few hours a week or a few hours a month. Anybody who wants to serve people in need can become a volunteer. In fact, the art of volunteering is a process of both giving and receiving. Volunteering allows volunteers to meet new people, make new friends and mix with people from all walks of life. Volunteering is an excellent way to experiment and try out new techniques and skills, discover your individual talents and explore career choice. Being a volunteer will take you on a wonderful journey and help you learn more than what you can get from books.

It can be inferred from the passage that to be a volunteer, _ .

couples share the burdens

One of the most striking findings of a recent questionnaire in the UK is that of the people interviewed, one in two believes that it is becoming more difficult to meet someone to start a family with. Why are many people finding it increasingly difficult to start and keep close relationships? Does modern life really make it harder to fall in love? Or are we making it harder for ourselves? It is certainly the case today that nowadays couples benefit in different ways from relationships. Women no longer rely upon partners for economic security or status. A man doesn't expect his wife to be in sole charge of running his household and raising his children. But perhaps the knowledge that we can live perfectly well without a partnership means that it takes much more to persuade people to abandon their independence. In theory, finding a partner should be much simpler these days. Only a few generations ago,your choice of soul mate was limited by geography, social convention and family tradition. Although it was never clear, many marriages were essentially arranged. Now those barriers have been broken down. You can approach a builder or a brain surgeon in any bar in any city on any given evening. When the world is your oyster , you surely have a better chance of finding a pearl. But it seems that the traditions have been replaced by an even tighter restriction:the limitation of choice. The expectations of partners are made greater to an unmanageable degree:good looks, impressive salary, kind to grandmother, and so on. There is no room for error in the first impression. We think that a relationship can be perfect. If it isn't,it is intended to be thrown away. We work to protect ourselves against future heartache and don't put in the hard emotional labor needed to build a strong relationship. Twelve-hour work at the office makes relaxed after-hours dating difficult. The cost of housing and child-raising creates pressure to have a stable income and career before a life partnership.

Nowadays, in a family, _ .

Discovery Trips in the Blue Mountains

Trip 1 Black Bear Count There have been fires in this area in the last few years and the Office of the National Park is not sure how many black bears are still living. Some bears have been seen since the fires, and the Office has asked for young people to help count them. The entire trip will last three hours. Bookings necessary. Cost: Free When: May 8 Trip 2 Garland Valley Bring your drink and lunch for this walk in a beautiful area of the Blue Mountains. Garland Valley is close to the town of Garland hut is part of the National Park. Many wild animals live in this area, including many rare birds. This is a great walk for bird-lovers. The trip lasts four hours. Bookings necessary. Cost: $ 15 When: May 8, May 15 Trip 3 Flashlight Adventure Put on your warm clothes, bring a flashlight and a pair of glasses, and come for a night walk along the Dungog Valley. A guide will lead the tour. Many of the animals you will see on this trip . The guide will tell you about the lives of the animals you see. Numbers are strictly limited on night trips, so be sure to book early. This walk lasts two and a half hours. Cost: $ 12 When: May 8, May 15, May22 Equipment to be needed: * Please bring enough water and food for all walks. * Wear good walking shoes--no high heels. * Wear a hat for day walks. * Dress warmly for night walks. * Children must be with an adult. * Make sure your flashlight works well and bring extra batteries for night walks. * Follow all instructions from guides during the walks. The mountains are a dangerous place. Bookings: * Bookings for the above trips can be trade by telephone(893 -- 4847)or on the Internet at

What is the best title for the passage?

Because she is popular.

Zhang Lili, a Chinese language teacher at No.19 Middle School of Jiamusi in Heilongjiang Province, has recently been considered to be "the Most Beautiful Teacher" in China. At 8:38 pm on Tuesday, May 8th, 2012, Zhang Lili and her several students were waiting for a bus at the school gate when suddenly a school bus lost control and rushed towards them. When she realized the danger, she pushed two students to safety, but she was hit and run over. The 29-year-old teacher lost her legs. "She is a backbone teacher in our school. She works very hard," said the headteacher. The heroic teacher was the most popular teacher among the students. "Her students love her a lot. Her room is always full of students when she is free," said another teacher. Zhang Lili was also very _ . "My son has lost his father. Every month, Zhang secretly put 100 yuan in his desk from her own salary to support his studies," said a boy's mother, who was waiting outside the emergency room for hours to express how grateful she felt towards Zhang. Two weeks later, Zhang Lili came out of her coma . She wrote a letter to her students, wishing them good luck on their entrance exams for high school. Her letter, 200 words long took her three days to write.

Why is her room is always full of students when she is free?

At 9:00 on Saturday in September.

This is Yoga! Experience this for yourself. How do you feel when you leave a yoga class? Do you feel relaxed, full of energy, prepared and ready to face anything and everything? Do you feel better than when you walked in? If you have answered "No"' to these questions then you are NOT doing yoga. After walking out of the class, do you feel that you have been pushed through, that theclass was hard,that you have less energy at the end of the class, that you have not got any energy, or that you are still tight and full of stress? If you answered "Yes" to any of these questions, you are NOT doing yoga. Are you forced into positions beyond what you can? Do you know why you are doing the actions in the "yoga" class you attend? Satyananda Yoga Center teaches YOGA. We know and understand yoga and YOU. We teach yoga with this knowledge and understanding. You are not forced into positions not suitable for you, or too early for you. You will leave Satyananda Yoga Center yoga classes feeing relaxed, free from stress, energized, and ready for whatever life brings to you. With regular attendance and practice, the quality of your life improves with betterhealth, and stress-free mind.Your family and friends will notice the difference. You will feel the difference forbetter. This is because you are doing yoga. Yoga for Everyone! Yoga is a science. You are the scientist, and you are the one in the science of yoga. New Saturday morning class from September -- 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. at the Asian American Cultural Center, 11713 Jollyville Road, Austin, Texas. To sign up, call:2669862, or email: [email protected]

At which time can people learn yoga according to this passage?

satisfied with the air hostess

A passenger told an air hostess that he needed a cup of water to take his medicine when the plane just took off. She told him that she would bring him the water in ten minutes. The air hostess was kept so busy that she forgot to give him the water. As a result, the passenger was held up to take his medicine. Thirty minutes later, when the passenger's ring for service sounded, she hurried over to him with a cup of water, but he refused. In the following hours on the plane, each time the air hostess passed by the passenger, she would ask him with a smile whether he needed help or not. But the passenger never answered a word. When he was going to get off the plane, the passenger asked the air hostess to hand him the passengers' booklet . She was very sad. She knew that he would write down sharp words, but with a smile she handed _ to him. Off the plane, she opened the booklet, and smiled, for the passenger put it. "On the flight, you asked me whether I needed help or not for twelve times in all. How can I refuse your twelve sincere smiles?" That's right! Who can refuse twelve sincere smiles from a person?

At last the passenger was _ .

these clothes are in fashion

If you ask someone why he or she wears clothes, the answer will probably be "to keep warm and to cover my body". These are the basic reasons why clothes are worn, but people also want to look attractive and appear successful to others. If people only wore clothes for warmth and to cover their bodies, most clothes would be simple and cheap. In most Western countries, however, clothes are sometimes very expensive. The main reason for this is not the cost of the cloth or the cost of making the clothes. The clothes are expensive because of fashion . Successful businessmen, for example, often wear very expensive suits, shirts and ties. Sometimes they pay thousands of dollars for a suit and hundreds of dollars for a tie. It's just a suit and a tie but they pay these prices because of the famous name of the designer. A suit costing much less would be just as warm and would cover the wearer's body just as well. Fashion is always changing, which means those who want to be fashionable have to buy new clothes every few months, even if last month's clothes have only been worn once or twice. Some people have wardrobes full of clothes that have hardly been worn but are no longer in fashion. Being fashionable, therefore, can be a very expensive pastime !

The main reason why clothes are sometimes very expensive is that _ .

Because the hairstyle can reflect one's inner self.

I learned a long time ago that hair has meanings--plenty of meanings. Growing up in the 1960s, my friends and I struggled without parents' control over the length and style of our hair. At the time, hair represented our need to break free from adults in our lives. Long hair represented our freed inner selves. My clients are often surprised when I asked them questions about their hairstyle--why they choose it, how else they've worn their hair, how they feel about it, and so on. However, while it may seem to be a simple topic, even today our hairstyles still have many psychological and emotional meanings. Understanding some of those meanings can lead to understanding of many different aspects of a person's mind. How we view our hair, for example, can show something about how we view ourselves. Our hair can show physical and emotional wellbeing, desirability, and even social and financial status. When it becomes dull or fragile, it can communicate emotional and physical diseases. But hair can also show unrecognized and often unspoken daydreams about oneself and one's world. One woman--a successful professional--wore her long hair in a thick bun . But one day she showed me that tangled hair was kept in the bun. She said that she never brushed out the tangles because the hair showed her secret image of herself as a helpless, disturbed woman, like Ophelia in the play Hamlet. Another woman came to therapy in a huge shirt and huge pants that she believed they could hide the weight she had put on since the birth of her child. She talked about how much she hated her body and how helpless she felt about doing anything about it. But her hair was always beautifully coloured and decorated. When I pointed out that she seemed to have a different relationship with her hair from she did with her body, she said that her hair had been thinning and that she was trying to make it look as good as she could. I pointed out that what she was doing with her hair and her body was kind of contradictory, and wondered if she had any thoughts about that. She was surprised. But as we talked about her contradictory attitudes towards different parts of her physical self, we began to open up all sorts of other thoughts and ideas about her inner self. And interestingly, as we continued opening those internal doors, changes started to happen. She started eating differently and exercising regularly. One day some months later, she appeared in my office in skinny jeans and a tight sweater, and her hair was pulled back in a ponytail. "I decided to see what would happen if I stopped trying to hide myself, " she said with a big smile. "And...? " I asked. "People keep smiling at me in the street. My husband hugged me this morning for the first time in ages. And I feel good! " Besides, selfrespect in both men and women can be damaged by thinning hair;they may feel alone even though they are really not. Given our cultural focus on physical appearance, youth, and health, hair loss can be unpleasant for both men and women. The market is filled with hairenhancing treatments, but there are those who have decided to be against the system and change to the "bald is beautiful" position. But it is much harder for women to take the "bald is beautiful" approach to hair loss. We tend to try to hide it in one way or another. But no matter what approach you use, it is important to remember that the thickness of your hair has nothing to do with your value in the world. Remember that you have nothing to be ashamed of if you have thinning hair. Thinning hair may not be something you can change, but it doesn't have to control how you represent the person who lives underneath it.

Why does the author ask clients questions about their hairstyle?

all kinds of things

What are your clothes made of? Are they made of cotton or wool? Some students in Shandong wear different things. Their clothes are made of discs or old clothes! On October 7th, 36 students in Linyi, Shandong Province, wore beautiful clothes in a show. Their clothes were made of all kinds of things. The show gave the students a chance to make things with their own hands. It also helped them learn to make good use of waste and not to throw everything away. Students had lots of good ideas. Some found used things, like old clothes, to make new dresses. "We hope to save energy. Our world is _ of energy. So I don't want to just throw old things away," said Xie Jing at Linyi Art School. Xie had more than 20 discs on her nice blue dress. She got them from her family and friends. "Though the discs are old, I look very cool in them!" she said. Song Dandan, a student from the school, looked like a farmer in her straw coat and hat. She picked the straw from the fields and put them all together. "I want to show what people wore in the past." she said. Du Yue made clothes for astronauts ! She had white cloth all over her. When she walked, she tried to be slow. It looked like she was walking on the moon. "I hope to wear it in space some day. I wish that I could walk on the moon!" she said.

The students' clothes were made of _ .

It will not be difficult for people to travel to other plants.

We don't know how different our life in the future. We can only try to imagine it. At first we think about human relationship. In the year 2050, we will use computers almost every day, we will be making new friends through the Internet--- even our husbands or wives will be met in this way. It will be much faster and easier for us. On the other hand, our relationships with people won't be as important as they are today--- we will feel a little lonely. Computers will also help us in many other activities in 2050. For example, they will be used by the children at school to make their learning easier. In addition, there will be more other machines which will play a similar role as computers, like robots which will do the housework for us. Spending holidays will also be completely different. Traveling to other planets or to the moon will be available for everyone. Means of transport will, of course, change, too. We will be using solar-powered cars, which will be much environmentally friendly. We could expect that the faster economic development would lead to a more polluted environment. But it isn't true. We will pay more attention to protecting the environment. Scientists will probably find cures for many dangerous diseases, like cancer or AIDS. Therefore, our surroundings as well as health will be in better condition. Although we cannot predict the exact changes which will be made in the world, we often think about them. We worry about our and our children's future; we have expectation, hopes as well as fears. But I think we should be rather _ about our future. We should be happy and believe good things will happen.

According to the passage, which of the following will happen in 2050?

No

All bilaterians have a gastrointestinal tract, also called a gut or an alimentary canal. This is a tube that transfers food to the organs of digestion. In large bilaterians, the gastrointestinal tract generally also has an exit, the anus, by which the animal disposes of feces (solid wastes). Some small bilaterians have no anus and dispose of solid wastes by other means (for example, through the mouth). The human gastrointestinal tract consists of the esophagus, stomach, and intestines, and is divided into the upper and lower gastrointestinal tracts. The GI tract includes all structures between the mouth and the anus, forming a continuous passageway that includes the main organs of digestion, namely, the stomach, small intestine, and large intestine. However, the complete human digestive system is made up of the gastrointestinal tract plus the accessory organs of digestion (the tongue, salivary glands, pancreas, liver and gallbladder). The tract may also be divided into foregut, midgut, and hindgut, reflecting the embryological origin of each segment. The whole human GI tract is about nine metres (30 feet) long at autopsy. It is considerably shorter in the living body because the intestines, which are tubes of smooth muscle tissue, maintain constant muscle tone in a halfway-tense state but can relax in spots to allow for local distention and peristalsis.

is the liver a part of the gi tract

Enjoy It; But Don't Believe Everything !

Different colours can affect us in many different ways, according to Verity Allen. In her new series ' Colour me Healthy', Verity looks at the ways that colours can influence how hard we work and the choices we make. They can even change our emotions and influence how healthy we are. "Have you ever noticed how people always use the same colours for the same things ?" says Verity. " Our toothpaste is always white or blue or maybe red. It's never green. For some reason we consider green products as being a bit unacceptable. It's the same for businesses. We respect a company writing its name in blue or black, but we don't respect one that uses pink or orange. People designing new products can use these ideas to influence what we buy." During the four-part series, Verity studies eight different colours, two colours in each programme. She meets people who work in all aspects of the colour industry, from people designing food packets , to people naming the colours of lipsticks . Some of the people she meets clearly have very little scientific knowledge to support their ideas, such as the American " Colour Doctor" who believes that serious diseases can be treated by the use of coloured lights. However, she also interviews real scientists who are studying the effects of green and red lights on mice, with some surprising results. In a word, it's an interesting show, and anyone who watches it will probably find out something new. But because Verity goes out of her way to be polite to everyone she meets on the series, it's up to the viewers to make their own decisions about how much they should believe.

Which of the following would be the best title for the text?

The reasons are far from clear and definite.

But what is teacher quality? How can one measure it reliably? An analysis is issued on a sample of data from a Texas school district. Experts argue convincingly that teacher effectiveness should be measured by students' gains on standardized tests: Mr. Smith is probably a better teacher than Ms. Brown if his students consistently improve their test scores more than hers do. Though this approach is appealing, there are tricky issues. For example, what if Ms. Brown teaches in a school where students score so high there is little room for improvement? The authors try to correct for this problem, as well as other sorts of measurement issues, to generate a measurement of teacher effectiveness. The paper is primarily concerned with how this measure is related to other observable characteristics. The first finding is that there is a large variation in teacher effectiveness: some teachers consistently have a larger impact on their students' achievement than others. Second, easily observable characteristics like having a master's degree or a passing score on the teacher certification exam are not correlated with teacher effectiveness. Then what does matter? The most important single influence is experience: first-year teachers are much less effective than others. The second year is significantly better, and by the fourth year, _ . It is not entirely clear whether this experience effect is learning by doing (the more you teach, the more effective you become) or survival of the fittest (those who are not good at teaching tend to drop out early.) From my reading of the paper, both effects appear important and there is no simple answer. The data do suggest, however, that teacher effectiveness is pretty clear by the end of the second year, so the information to make an informed decision is available at that time. The authors also investigate the contentious issue of racial matching of students and teachers. Here they find strong evidence that minority teachers tend to be more effective with minority students. Again, it is unclear whether this is because of a role model effect (students respond better to a teacher of their own race) or an empathy effect (teachers empathize better with students of their own race) or something else entirely. The authors also look at teacher mobility. There is some evidence that teachers who quit teaching or switch schools tend to be below average in effectiveness. This is consistent with the survival-of-the-fittest model.

Why do black teachers tend to be more effective with black students?

How English children celebrate their birthdays

In England, we look forward to our birthdays for 364 days a year! We invite special people to celebrate it with us. The Presents Presents are opened as soon as the children are awake. They can't wait for the birthday cake later in the day! The Cards Friends and family send birthday cards. Sending birthday cards is a custom that began in England about 100 years ago. The Party The birthday child will have a party to which friends and family are invited. Visitors to the party bring presents for the birthday child. The children play games such as musical chairs and pass the parcel . The Cake The birthday cake is decorated on a theme . A candle for each year is lit and placed on top and the child blows out the candles making a wish. We don't put objects inside the cake as stated on many websites. The Bumps It used to be traditional for the birthday child to have the bumps. Friends would hold the child by the legs and under the arms and lift the child up and down bumping them gently on the ground. The number of bumps given is the age of the child plus one for extra good luck. As this can be dangerous, clapping is often done instead. The Sweets Some children do take sweets to school to share with their classmates on their birthdays.

What would be the best title for this passage?

agriculture

Not all vegetables need lots of sunshine. Mark Hoffman and his wife own a bed-and-breakfast guesthouse in rural Kempton, Illinois. They often serve their guests fresh products from the garden. The Hoffmans have been growing food and flowers for twenty-five years. For almost ten of those years, Mr. Hoffman has been experimenting and working with shade plantings. He says, "The bottom line here is that most plants will produce more in full sun. But if you do not have full sun, there are other choices." For example, he grows tomatoes near oak trees. Oak trees can produce a lot of shade. But Mr. Hoffman says his tomato plants grow as long as they get five hours' direct sunshine a day, especially morning sun. Not only does this go against the traditional advice that tomatoes need six, eight, even twelve hours' full sun a day. It also shows how plants and tree roots can share nutrients and water. Mr. Hoffman says plants with wider leaves seem to do better in shady environments. He also found that his potatoes did better partly in shade than in full sun. Moving them out of the sun helped control an insect problem. Mr. Hoffman does not use pesticide . Instead, he planted the potatoes in the shade, especially on the east side of the tree. The potatoes get morning sun, but they are shaded during the hottest part of the day. Some insects dislike shade, and the hottest part day is when they do the worst of their damage. Time of day, sun intensity , shadows from trees, walls and buildings all influence how much sunlight falls on plants. And people interested in shade planting should also remember something else. The term "shade" can describe different amounts of darkness. It can even mean different things in different parts of the world.

We may read the passage on a website in the section of _ .

At 2:30 p.m.

Welcome to the National Museum of Mathematics(MoMath).it is in New York City.It is America's first math museum.It's also a fun place for both children and their parents. Open the door ,you will open a new world of numbers,shapes and colours,and you will find math is interesting.You can take part in many games and activities.They help you better understand math." We want to give people fun ways to learn math,"MoMath founder Glen Whitney said."Here you can try riding a tricycle with square wheels .You can hop from one point to another and join lines to get pictures." The museum is at 11 East 26th Street in Manhattan and is open from 1 0:00 a.m.to 5:00 P.m.,seven days a week,364 days a year(It is closed on Thanksgiving Day).MoMath closes early on the first Wednesday of every month,at 2:30 p.m.The ticket prices are$1 5 per adult and$9 per child,student,or the old people. MoMath also has a traveling museum-Math Midway.It runs around the country to schools and community centres .So you still can enjoy the fun of math even you live far from New York City.

When does the museum close on the first Wednesday in January?

six out of seven were wrong

Imagine that you are on a jury and you hear the testimony of an eyewitness who says that the accused person is guilty. You would probably vote to _ don't you think? Well, more often than not, you'd be wrong. A few years ago, an experiment was done on an evening news show on WNBC in prefix = st1 /New York. Viewers were shown a film of what seemed to be a mugging. In this simulation, a man snatched a woman's purse. He then knocked her down and ran face forward at the camera so that the viewers got a good look at him. Viewers were then shown a lineup of six men. They were asked to decide if the mugger was in the lineup and, if so, to tell which one he was. In effect, then, they had seven choices. The suspect was either one of the six or he wasn't even in the lineup. Of the 2,145 people who called up to respond, 1,843 were wrong. That means about one in seven was right. This is what you'd expect from random choice. Eyewitness accounts can be the most convincing evidence presented to a jury. Yet we are finding out that such accounts can be faulty. Something is just wrong. Why is this so? Recent findings have removed doubts on whether memory can last long. We also know that it can be changed by things such as leading questions. Mistaken eyewitness accounts are common. They are also the major cause of innocent persons being convicted in the United States.

Of the people who called up to respond, _ .

Hong Kong Disneyland can't meet the need of the large population.

HONG KONG -- Hong Kong Disneyland is too crowded, a senior Chinese tourism official said today, hinting that another Disney Park is necessary to accommodate demand from China's huge population. The comments by Shao Qiwei, director of China's State Administration of Tourism, came a day after Shanghai's mayor Han Zheng said the city was preparing to build China's second Disney theme park. "China has a very large population. We now have 1.3 billion people. The market is very large. As far as I know, Hong Kong Disneyland is now very crowded," said Shao, whose comments were broadcast on Hong Kong's Cable TV. The Hong Kong theme park, which opened in September, was widely criticized in January when it turned away hundreds of Lunar New Year holiday makers from mainland China because the park was full. Chaos erupted when angry crowds tried to force their way into the park. The embarrassing incident prompted a public apology from Hong Kong Disneyland Managing Director Bill Ernest and a dressing down from Hong Kong's leader Donald Tsang. Authorities are carefully studying the issue of overcrowding in preparation for the possible building of the Disney park in Shanghai, Shao said. The official Xinhua News Agency reported Tuesday that no agreement has been reached on the park in Shanghai, quoting senior vice president of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, Leslie Goodman. Hong Kong Disneyland is a joint venture between The Walt Disney Co. and the local government, which shouldered the bulk of the park's construction fees.

Why is it necessary to build a Disney park in Shanghai?

put forward proposals

Most earthquakes occur within the upper 15 miles of the earth's surface. But earthquakes can and do occur at all depths to about 460 miles. Their number decreases as the depth increases. At about 460 miles one earthquake occurs only every few years. Near the surface earthquakes may run as high as 100 in a month, but the yearly average does not vary much. In comparison with the total number of earthquakes each year, the number of disastrous earthquakes is very small.[JP] The extent of the disaster in an earthquake depends on many factors. If you carefully build a toy house with an erect set, it will still stand no matter how much you shake the table. But if you build a toy house with a pack of cards, a slight shake of the table will make it fall. An earthquake in prefix = st1 /Agadir,Morocco, was not strong enough to be recorded on distant instruments, but it completely destroyed the city. Many stronger earthquakes have done comparatively little damage. If a building is well constructed and built on solid ground, it will resist an earthquake. Most deaths in earthquakes have been due to faulty building construction or poor building sites. A third and very serious factor is panic. When people rush out into narrow streets, more deaths will result. The United Nations has played an important part in reducing the damage done by earthquakes. It has sent a team of experts to all countries known to be affected by earthquakes. Working with local geologists and engineers, the experts have studied the nature of the ground and the type of most practical building code for the local area. If followed, these suggestions will make disastrous earthquakes almost a thing of the past. There is one type of earthquake disaster that little can be done about. This is the disaster caused by seismic sea waves, or tsunamis. (These are often called tidal waves, but the name is incorrect. They have nothing to do with tides.) In certain areas, earthquakes take place beneath the sea. These submarine earthquakes sometimes give rise to seismic sea waves. The waves are not noticeable out at sea because of their long wave length. But when they roll into harbors, they pile up into walls of water 6 to 60 feet high. The Japanese call them "tsunamis", meaning "harbor waves", because they reach a sizable height only in harbors. Tsunamis travel fairly slowly, at speeds up to 500 miles an hour. An adequate warning system is in use to warn all shores likely to be reached by the waves. But this only enables people to leave the threatened shores for higher ground. There is no way to stop the oncoming wave.

The United Nations' experts are supposed to _ .

often following magazines

"Regardless of social class, race, age, men say they hate to shop," says Zukin, City University of New York sociology professor. " Yet when you ask them deeper questions, it turns out that they like to shop. Men generally like to shop for books , music and hardware. But if you ask them about the shopping they do for books or music, they'll say, ' Well , that's not shopping. That's research .'" In other words, what men and women call "buying things" and how they approach that task are different. Women will wander through several 1,000-square-meter stores in search of the perfect party dress. Men will wander through 100 Internet sites in search of the perfect digital camcorder. Women see shopping as a social event. Men see it as a special task or a game to be won. "Men are frequently shopping to win," says Ann, a marketing professor at Loyola University of Chicago. "They want to get the best deal. They want to get the best one, the latest one and if they manage to do that it makes them happy." "When women shop, they're doing it in a way that they want everybody to be very happy," says Ann. "They're kind of shopping for love." "Teenage girls learn to shop from their moms and older sisters, but they also learn to shop by examining articles in magazines like Seventeen." Zukin says. "And although men's magazines such as GQand Esquire have long had shopping articles, it's TV that has the eye of young male shoppers," says Ann and Zukin. "Of course, there are men who love to shop and are proud of it," Loyola's Ann says. And that is important no matter whether you buy a car or a frying pan. All men love to buy but they don't want to be cheated. Ann adds, "There actually are men who are interested, for example, in cooking or shopping or chinaware or things around their homes--they become kind of girl magnets. Women like it. "

As is known in this passage, teenage girls go shopping _ .

People haven't made the most of hemp.

You may never connect the words "good" and "eco-friendly"with plastic.It's time to do a rethink on that as we say hello to hemp plastic.Traditionally,plastics have been made from petrochemicals,which are mainly poisonous.Plants,on the other hand,are also a source of cellulose ,which can be used to make biodegradable plastic.As hemp happens to be one of the richest sources of cellulose,it is only natural that scientists will support its use,considering its ecological benefits. Hemp plastic is biodegradable and recyclable.If you thought being eco-friendly reduced its solidity,you couldn't be more wrong.The hard level of hemp plastic can match that of regular plastic.Hemp plastic is resistant to heat;however,the most outstanding feature of a few varieties of hemp plastic is that they are flame resistant too.Finally,if Henry Ford could imagine creating a car with this material,we can perhaps believe that it indeed is"ten times stronger than steel". It is a pity that with so many useful qualities,we don't see hemp plastic being used in our everyday life,the way it ought to be.Hemp plastic can easily take the place of the exiting plastic in products like cell phone chargers ,laptop covers,etc.Currently,hemp plastic is being used to produce audio ,video,toys,automobile parts and packaging materials. Hemp fiber is one of the strongest natural fibers known to us.As scientists keep looking for ways to solve the ecological damage that traditional plastics have caused,here is a material that can be produced to be 100% biodegradable.Hemp plastic is known to be several times _ as compared to polypropylene plastic,and it comes without all the health and safety threats,It really has long useful life. Plastics keep reminding us of the damage that we have done to our planet,all under the excuse of convenience.As hemp products have become a new choice into our daily life,Please take a green plan now and make your effort to protect the environment.

What can we know from the passage?

57 Cents

A sobbing little girl stood near a small church from which she had been turned away because it "was too crowded." "I can't go to Sunday School," she sobbed to the pastor as he walked by. Seeing her shabby appearance, the pastor guessed the reason, and, taking her by the hand, took her inside and found a place for her in the Sunday School class. The child was so touched that she went to bed that night thinking of the children who have no place to worship Jesus. Some years later, this child lay dead in one of the poor buildings and the parents called for the kindhearted pastor, who had befriended their daughter, to handle the final arrangements. As her poor little body was being moved, a worn purse was found which seemed to have been picked up from some trash dump. Inside was found 57 cents and a note scribbled in childish handwriting which read, "This is to help build the little church bigger so more children can go to Sunday School." For two years she had saved for this offering of love. When the pastor tearfully read that note, he knew instantly what he would do. Carrying this note, he told people the story of her unselfish love and devotion. A newspaper learned of the story and published it. It was read by a Realtor who offered them a parcel of land worth many thousands. When told that the church could not pay so much, he offered it for 57 cents. Church members made large donations. Checks came from far and wide. Within five years the little girl's gift had increased to $250,000, a huge sum for that time. When you are in the city of Philadelphia, look up Temple Baptist Church, with a seating capacity of 3,300 and Temple University, where hundreds of students are trained. Have a look, too, at the Good Samaritan Hospital and at a Sunday School building which houses hundreds of Sunday scholars, so that no child in the area will ever need to be left outside during Sunday school time.

. What's the best title of the passage?

is admired for his intelligence

The world's greatest detective, Sherlock Holmes, is back on our screens. The new BBC TV series of Sherlock was broadcast in the UK on Jan 1. But the history of Sherlock dates back 127 years. Since the creation of Holmes in 1887, he has been taking us on adventures one after another. The Sherlock series is a playful drama, covered in crimes and mystery. It gives us a modern Sherlock for a new generation, who solves cases with the help of the Internet, cell phones and GPS. People look to Sherlock for both adventure and inspiration . Each case sends us on a mysterious journey with Holmes. The stories give life and color to our imagination: as he checks the crime scene, we join him and become detectives too, looking out for hidden clues. Yet Holmes is no Superman. He cannot fly, or turn invisible . But his powers are within all of us: reason, logical thinking and paying attention to detail. While an artist's painting is his art, Sherlock's art is his intelligence . He is human, and this is what makes Holmes a true hero for all of us. In the new series of Sherlock, most people thought Holmes was dead. But he returns after two years of hiding in the shadows. Now the whole city of London is in danger. What can Holmes possibly do? Uncover the mystery yourself by watching the new series!

From the passage, we learn that Sherlock Holmes _ .

he doesn't think one system is enough

Clean your ears, because airport security might soon be scanning them. According to a recent discovery, the shape of ears could provide a reliable new way of identifying people at airports. Researchers discovered that ears of each person have a unique shape and they have created a system that can scan them. The ear scanning technique uses a technology called image ray transform that highlights all the tubular structures of the ear and measures them. Professor Mark Nixon, a computer scientist who led the team from the University of Southampton, believes ear scanning could take place as passengers walk through security gates, for example, by placing cameras on either side to record an image of their ears. Comparing the results against a database of ear shapes, the new system could help airport security workers instantly identify passengers. Nixon and his team tested 252 images of different ears and found the system was able to match each ear to a separate image held in its database with 99 percent accuracy. Besides ear scanning, there have been other systems developed for identity recognition. "With facial recognition, the systems are often confused by crows feet and other signs of ageing," Nixon said. "Your ears, however, age very gracefully. They grow proportionally and your lobe gets a bit larger, but otherwise your ears are fully formed from birth." What's more, facial recognition software is often confused by changes in expression so people need to control their faces and in some cases even avoid wearing make-up. An ear scan system would also offer a less _ alternative toretina scanning, which requires passengers to stare at scanners from a close range. Fingertip detection has long been the most effective way of identifying someone. Nixon expects there to be a combination of different techniques that can be used at the same time to identify a person."

Nixon has developed the ear scanning system while there's already the fingertip detection because _ .

To sleep at home all day.

We all need a vacation, whether with the entire family or your significant other. Unfortunately, many of us will not be able to follow through with vacation plans. But now, there is an alternative that is catching on rather quickly and it is called a "Staycation". A staycation is just what it sounds like, a vacation but you stay at home. It might not sound interesting, but you can turn it into a fun and relaxing getaway. Tell family and friends your plans. In their eyes you are truly on vacation and they only need to contact you in case of an emergency. Go outside; don't let the kids sleep all day. Go out and birdwatch, go fishing, explore the parks and nature, take in all you can of the outside world. You can even have a relaxing day at the beach, soak in some sun, and let the kids go swimming. Go on a picnic; have the kids fly kites. Bring some bubbles, and have a nice day with the wind blowing in your hair. Watch as the kids run and play and enjoy the beautiful outdoors. Camping is another fun way to have a staycation. If you have a camping ground in your area, you can go camping for a day or two and show the kids how it is to live right in the heart of Mother Nature. Just remember, it really doesn't matter where you decide to go, whether home or away. As long as you create quality time with your family you can strengthen the _ that may have been pushed aside during all the long stressful work hours. Time is the most important thing you can give to your husband, wife and kids, enjoying every moment together, and you will have lasting memories in your hearts.

Which of the following is NOT a good way to have a good staycation?

easily hurt emotionally

Big Brothers Big Sisters is based on the simplicity and power of friendship.It is a program which provides friendship and fun by matching _ (ages 7-17) with a volunteer adult who can be both a role model and a supportive friend. Volunteer tutors come from all walks of life--married, single, with or without children. Big Brothers and Big Sisters are not replacement parents or social workers. They are tutors: someone to trust, to have fun with, to talk and go to when needed. A Big Sister and Little Sister will generally spend between one and four hours together three or four times each month for at least twelve months. They enjoy simple activities such as a picnic at a park, cooking, doing sports or going to a football match. These activities improve the friendship and help the young person develop self-respect, confidence and life direction. Big Brothers Big Sisters organizations can be found throughout the world. It is the largest and most well-known provider of tutor services internationally and has been operating for 25 years. Emily and Sarah have been matched since 2008. Emily is a 15-year-old girl who has experienced some difficulties being accepted by her schoolmates at school. " I was pretty sure there was something wrong with me." Emily's mum came across Big Brothers Big Sisters and thought it would be of benefit to Emily by "providing different feedback about herself other than just depending on schoolmates to measure her self-worth. Sarah wanted to get involved in a volunteer program. "I googled it and found out how to be a part of it. I thought it would be fun for me to get involved in making time to do something because sometimes it is all work and no play." Big Brothers Big Sisters has been of great benefit and enjoyment to both Emily and Sarah. They love and look forward to their time together and the partnership has certainly helped Emily be more comfortable in being the wonderful and happy girl she is!

According to the passage, "vulnerable young people" are probably those who are _ .

Photo-taking

What is more important to a high school student than being popular? Anyone who has ever gone to high school or at least seen a John Hughes' movie knows the answer to that question. When Theresa Sommers first discovered MySpace three years ago, the teen from Minneapolis, St. Paul thought she had found the real high school popularity contest. She could spend hours a day creating an online picture, finding cool pictures and music to make her page look more beautiful, and looking for interesting-looking people to be her online friends. And along the way, she could compete with her friends to see who had the most friends or most-visited page. The more she used the site, however, the less interested she became in only being popular; she started using her time for more heartfelt conversations with friends and went more deeply into her personal interests. As a beginner in taking pictures, she put her best pictures on the site and looked for advice from people who are good at taking pictures. At the same time,she began to get in touch with the students of the colleges she wanted to go to. She opened up a new account on Facebook. And she even began to put some of her own creative writing on the website and would ask for advice on homework from her friends. She asked them," How long did you spend on your homework?" or "How would you write it?" Often she would put her homework online.

Which of the following is Theresa most interested in?

there was no driver in it.

A man was on the side of the road hitchhiking on a very dark night in the middle of a terrible rainstorm, with no cars on the road.The storm was so strong that the man could hardly see a few feet ahead of him.Suddenly, he saw a car come towards him and stop.The man, without thinking about it, got in the car and closed the door and only then did he realize that there was nobody behind the steering wheel ! The car started to move very slowly. The man looked at the road and saw a curve coming his way. Terrified, he started to pray, begging for his life. He had not come out of shock when, just before the car hit the curve, a hand suddenly appeared through the window and moved the wheel. The man, paralyzed with fear, watched how the hand appeared every time the car was drawing near a curve.Finally, although terrified, the man managed to open the door and jump out of the spooky car. Without looking back, the man ran through the storm all the way to the nearest town. In a state of complete horror, the man walked into a nearby bar and asked for two glasses of Scotch whisky. Then, still shaking with fright, he started telling everybody in the bar about the horrible experience he just went through in the spooky car. Everyone in the bar listened in silence and became frightened, with hair standing on end, when they realized the man was telling the truth because he was crying and he was certainly not drunk! About half an hour later, two other young men walked into the same bar and one said to the other, "Hey, there's a stupid man who jumped into the car while we were pushing it!"

After he entered the car, the man found _ .

were rich but unkind

Three rich ladies met every day by the river. They sat there and talked the whole day. Once the three ladies quarreled . One of them said. "Look, how white and beautiful my hands are!" Another one said, "My hands are more beautiful." The third one said, "Mine are the most beautiful ones." An old beggar woman came up to them. "Beautiful ladies," she said, "I'm hungry. Please give me something to eat." But the three ladies gave her nothing. They only asked, "Tell me, old woman, which one of us has the most beautiful hands?" A peasant woman was also sitting by the river. She was poor and her hands were rough because of hard work. The old woman came up to her and said, "I'm hungry. Please give me something to eat." The peasant woman took out her only cake she had and gave her a half. The old woman ate it and drank some water. Then she took the peasant woman by the hand, brought her before the rich ladies and said, "Now, I shall tell you whose hands are the most beautiful. The hands of the poor peasant woman are rough because of work, but they give us food; they are far more beautiful than your hands which have done nothing."

The three ladies _ .

friend

Mr. Jackson lives in a small town. He is a kind and funny man. And he is friendly to everyone. He likes talking with others very much. But he is always absent-minded . One day, Mr Jackson went to visit a friend. His friend works on a farm and lives not far from the market and often goes to the market to sell things. They had dinner together and then talked and talked. Mr Jackson was very excited to meet his friend. He told his friend a lot of things. Midnight came, and then one o'clock, two o'clock and still Mr Jackson kept on talking. But by this time his friend was feeling very tired and kept on looking at the clock on the wall. He didn't want to be impolite, but at last he said, "My dear friend, I don't want to put you out, but you see, it's too late now. I have to go to the market at six o'clock, and I must go to bed now." "Oh, my God!" said Mr Jackson in surprise, "I thought you were at my house."

Mr Jackson had dinner with his _ that day.

By balancing the energy in the relevant organ.

Tui Na and Your Emotional Health In Traditional Chinese Medicine the body, mind and spirit cannot be divided and so the unique whole-body treatment in Tui Na can also be a useful treatment correcting any imbalances in the body's energy before symptoms and disease can develop. It also works to restore emotional harmony as well as physical health. This is why after a Tui Na treatment many people "feel good". Many people in China use Tui Na regularly to keep healthy and to deal with some specific illnesses. Tui Na is performed on the clothed body and the patient is either lying on a couch or sitting on a chair. Therapists using a variety of strokes or movements will control the intensity and direction of pressure in an exact way. The unique rolling movement in Tui Na is one of the most difficult strokes to learn and students have to practice sometimes for many months on a rice bag before they are allowed to practice on the human body. Stress Tui Na is of course very useful for treating stress. It distributes the energy around the whole body. It is believed that Tui Na moves the strong energy in the tense muscles to the weaker areas, thus making a more balanced body. When your Qi (energy in the body) flow is balanced you feel relaxed and comfortable. Tui Na is especially useful for stiff shoulders and tense neck muscles. Emotions In Traditional Chinese Medicine each major organ is linked to an emotion. By balancing the energy in the organ, the relevant emotion will be calmed. When your emotions are out of control, you would usually turn to your doctor or perhaps a psychotherapist. But perhaps some people would not like to be seeing a psychotherapist or feel nervous about discussing their problems with others. With Tui Na one does not need to tell the therapist anything one does not want to. The treatment of Tui Na can deal with the problem itself -- although if one does need to talk, then the safe space is there to do so. An active dialogue between the therapist and the patient will help to get a better effect. How the major organs rule your emotions Each major organ -- the heart, the stomach, the spleen, the liver, the bladder, the kidneys, the lungs, etc. -- is linked to a relevant emotion. The heart is linked to joy, excitement and sadness. If the heart is out of balance, the patient may dream a lot at night and often forget something important in the day. The stomach and spleen are connected with too much thinking or worrying -- over anxiety. When the stomach is out of balance there is often a lack of energy. The patient often feels very tired and has no interest in doing anything at all. The liver and gall bladder are linked to anger. In Chinese Medicine the eyes are connected with the liver, and many people who suffer from anger often suffer from eye problems. The gall bladder rules decision-making and too much energy here can lead to rashness, while if there is too little it can bring about indecision. Where there is a history of depression, the therapist would look to the liver. The bladder and kidneys are linked to fear of all kinds, from simple anxieties and phobias to vague fears and worries. The lungs are connected with feelings of grief and sadness. When there is a history of grief, the therapist would look to the lungs. Tui Na is used in almost all the hospitals in China and very popular among Chinese people. It is a useful and valuable method of restoring Qi balance, when emotional and physical health is out of balance. Tui Na is one of the remaining secrets of Chinese Medicine.

How can the emotion be calmed?

One can borrow books from libraries at home.

Michael stays home on workdays. He plugs into his personal computer terminal in order to connect with the office. After work, he puts on his headphones, watches a movie on his home video recorder, or plays baseball on the computer. On many days, Michael doesn't talk to any other human beings, and he doesn't see any people except the ones on television. _ The inventions of modern technology seem to be cutting us off from contact with our fellow human beings. The world of business is one area in which technology is separating us. Experts say, for example, that many people will soon be able to work at home. With access to a large central computer, employees such as office clerks, insurance agents, and accountants could do their jobs at display terminals in their own homes. They would never have to actually see the people they're dealing with. In addition, the way employees are paid will change. Workers' salaries will be automatically paid into their bank accounts, making paper checks unnecessary. No workers will stand in line to receive their pay or cash their checks. Personal banking will change, too. Customers will deal with machines to put in or take out money from their accounts. Another area that technology is changing is entertainment. Music, for instance, was once a group experience. People listened to music at concert halls or in small social gatherings. For many people now, however, music is an individual experience. Walking along the street or sitting in their living rooms, they wear headphones to build a wall of music around them. Movie entertainment is changing, too. Movies used to be social events. Now, fewer people are going out to see a movie. Many more are choosing to wait for a film to appear on television or are borrowing videotapes to watch at home. Instead of laughing with others, viewers watch movies in their own living looms.

Which of the following is NOT mentioned in the passage?

Create Your Own Life

Sometimes people come into your life and you know at once that they were sure to be there. They serve some sort of purpose, teach you a lesson or help find out who you are or who you want to become. You never know who these people may be: your classmate, neighbor, teacher, long-lost friend or even a real stranger. But you know that every moment they will affect your life in some serious way. Sometimes things happen to you. At the time they may seem terrible, painful and unfair. But later you realize that without getting over those difficulties you would have never realized your further ability and strength. Everything happens for a reason and nothing happens by chance or with good or bad luck. The people you meet affect your life, and the successes and failure you experience, create who you are. Even the bad experiences can be learned from. In fact, they are probably the most _ and important ones. Enjoy every day even every moment and take from it everything that you possibly can, for you may never be able to experience it again. Talk to people you have never talked to before, and really listen. You should set your sights high, hold your head up, tell yourself you are a great one and believe in yourself. You can make your life anything you wish. Create your own life and then go out and live it. ,A, B, C, D.

Which is the best title for the passage?

decide whether to be polite or accurate according to the customs

"How far is the next village?" the American asks a man standing by the edge of the road. In some countries, because the man realizes that the traveler is tired and eager to reach his destination , he will politely say "Just down the road." He thinks this is more encouraging, gentler, and therefore the wanted answer. So the American drives through the night, getting more and more angry, feeling "being tricked". He thinks the man on purpose lied to him, for obviously he must have known the distance quite well. Had conditions been reversed , the American would have felt he was "cheating" the driver if he had said the next town was not too far, and if he would be sorry to the weary driver, he would say "You have a good way to go yet, it is at least fifteen miles." The driver might be disappointed, but he would know what to expect. Whether to be accurate or polite leads to many misunderstandings between people of different cultures. If you know the situation in advance, it is sometimes easier to recognize the problem.

The short passage advises us to _ .

On Sundays.

Many children like to watch TV. It's very interesting. The programs on TV tell us many things about the country and a lot of news about the world, Judy watches TV on Sundays. There is an English program getting to know America. It's her favorite program. It tells about the life of America, such as buildings, traffic, food, houses, movie stars. Why does she love the program? Because she likes English. She likes English best of all the subjects. When she is watching the program, she can remember every word she sees on TV. That helps a lot, because she learns many new words, English really interests her . She likes learning English. On weekdays, she doesn't watch TV, but reads English story books every night before she goes to bed. She can learn a lot from the TV program and the story books.

When does Judy often watch TV?

she uses her family name on her QQ

Jean is a bright young lady who comes from a rich and famous family. She goes to a good university and has everything that money can buy. Well, almost everything is good. But the problem is that Jean's family are so busy that they can hardly find time to be with her. So Jean spends a lot of time on her QQ. She likes being anonymous , talking to people who do not know about her famous family and her rich life. She uses the name Linda on QQ and has made a lot of friends who she keeps in touch with quite often. Last year Jean made a very special friend on QQ. His name was David and lived in San Francisco. David was full of stories and jokes. He and Jean had a common interest in rock music and modern dance. So it always took them hours to talk happily on QQ and sometimes they even forgot their time. Of course, they wanted to know more about each other. David sent a picture of himself: He was a tall, good looking young man with big, happy smile. As time went by, they became good friends and often sent cards and small things to each other. When Jean's father told her that he was going on a business trip to San Francisco, she asked him to let her go with him so that she could give David a surprise for his birthday. She would take him the latest DVD of their favorite rock singer. But when she knocked on David's door in San Francisco, she found that her special friend was a twelve-year-old boy named Jim!

The following states are true about Jean EXCEPT that _ according to the passage.

Their trip was satisfying at the beginning.

Fernando and I were arguing about why I never took any real vacations.When he suggested we go off somewhere for three entire weeks,"You decide,"I said. He chose a little fishing village off the coast and he planned out a schedule.Our trip was full of wormer and fun,but when we got there,the shabby hotel failed to satisfy us,so we left a day early for the beach.As we drove,we passed two orphanages .Christmas was only a few days away,and I felt that I should stop to do something for the children. Then Femando came up with a plan to help the poor children we saw.We made a list of names,and then we went into town to buy new clothes,toys,and school supplies.For the rest of the day,we filled backpacks.We were excited about the celebration we had plantted for the next day,December 26,when we'd invite the families to the beach in front of the hotel and hand out the presents. Fernando and I were still in bed at around 9:00 the next morning when we heard a cracking sound."What is that?"I asked.As if in response.water started pouring into our room.The children's backpacks we had arranged so neatly on the floor began floating around.The next thing I knew was that the roof was torn off.and Fernando and I were swept out. I thought I was going to die. Under the water, I forced myself to calm down and then I popped out.Suddenly I saw Fernando only four feet away. "What just happened?"I asked Fernando. "Tsunami !",he shouted to me."Just be strong.Whatever it was,"he told me,"It's all over now."But a few seconds later,another wave buried us.I tried to grab him as he reached out to me,but he fell back under the water,and I never saw him again.

What can we learn about the trip?

A look at beauty contests

The 1800s saw many firsts, including the invention of the bicycle and ready-to-eat cereal. Another interesting event also debuted in the 1800s. In 1888, the world's first beauty contest was held in Spa, Belgium. Though little is known about that first competition, the idea caught on. Today, beauty contests can be found in countries from Argentina to Zambia. Most people agree that the business of beauty contests began in America. In 1921, local businessmen in Atlantic City, New Jersey, wanted summer tourists to stay longer. So they came up with the idea of beauty pageant. The pageant was successful, and 100,000 tourists stayed to see the first "Miss America" crowned. After a few years, the annual event no longer focused only on girl's beauty. A talent competition was added in 1938. And not long after that, college scholarships became the official contest prize. These were just the beginning of the changes for the beauty contest industry. www.ks5u.com From the mid-to late-20th century, beauty contests began popping up everywhere. In 1951, the Miss World Pageant got its start in London. Over time, this contest has changed its focus from beauty alone to beauty and intelligence. Miss Universe began in 1952,Miss International in 1960 and Miss Earth in 2001. Today, these still are considered the four most famous international beauty contests. Through the years, controversy has surrounded beauty contests. Many people have objected to women competing in swimsuits as it only calls attention to one's looks. Outside pressure and changes in society, therefore, brought about changes in the beauty contest world. Today, women are judged on areas other than just appearance. These include intelligence, speaking ability, poise and talent. The women who compete in the pageants are often asked why they do it. Many say it's because the contests build their confidence and public speaking skills and offer scholarships. Today, millions of women worldwide compete for these very reasons.

What would be the best title for the passage? www.ks5u.com

Your order in a takeout restaurant can be sent to your home.

" Dining out", or " eating out ",is a phrase people use in Britain when they eat in a restaurant or a pub. Eating out is more popular in Britain today than ever before. However, eating out can be expensive. Restaurants are normally more expensive than pubs, though many pubs serve very good ,simple food. As British people don't dine out every night of the week ,eating in a restaurant is often seen as a special occasion. When going for the first date, or if celebrating an anniversary or a birthday, many people like to go to a restaurant. People often eat in a restaurant before going to the cinema or the theatre. As in all cultures, there are many rules of etiquette surrounding food and eating, and nowhere is this more _ than when eating in a smart restaurant. People are almost always expected to eat with a knife and fork and these should be held in the correct hand and used in the correct way. It is also impolite to have your elbows on the dining table when you are eating. There're many such "unspoken" rules -- they are normally only important when eating in a very elegant and expensive restaurant, and vary slightly from restaurant to restaurant and place to place. A recent nationwide survey showed that there was a divide in manners between the north and south of Britain ---the "worst" manners were in Scotland and the northeast, and the "best" in Wales and the southeast! However, this survey was almost certainly conducted by someone in the southeast, so it may not be entirely fair. Naturally, restaurants vary greatly in quality and price. However, almost all British cities have a vast range of food and cooking styles to choose from as well as traditional British food, from the very cheap to the very expensive -- French, Italian, Indian, Greek, Thai, Japanese and many more. In fact, when asked what their favorite food is, many British people say an Indian curry rather than any other dish! As well as dining in a restaurant ,when people are too tired to cook after work they often get a "takeaway". This means they order from a takeaway or takeout restaurant by phone, then go to collect it and take it home to eat. Many takeout restaurants also deliver to your house. While you can normally find a takeout restaurant for almost any cuisine, the most popular are Italian, Indian and Chinese -- and all you have to do is to open the door, pay and eat!

According to the passage, which of the following statements is true?

change the way we make many products

SEE a cell phone cover that you like on Taobao? Forget about placing an order, paying the bill online and waiting for days for it to be delivered to you. In the near future, you'll be able to get it in minutes just by hitting "print" on your computer. You might find it hard to believe that you could actually "print" an object like you would a picture. But it is not that hard to understand how it would work. Just as a traditional printer sprays ink onto paper line by line, modern 3-D printers spread material onto a surface layer by layer, from the bottom to the top, gradually building up a shape. Instead of ink, the materials the 3-D printer uses are mainly plastic, resin and certain metals. The thinner each layer is --- from a millimeter to less than the width of a hair --- the smoother and finer the object will be. This may sound like a completely new technology, but the truth is that 3-D printing has been around since the late 1980s. Back then, it was barely affordable for most people, so few knew about it. Last year, though, saw a big change in the 3-D printing industry--- printers became much cheaper. For example, 10 years ago a desktop 3-D printer might have cost PS20,000 (200,000 yuan), while now they cost only about PS 1,000, according to the BBC. Taken out of the factory and introduced to more diverse and common uses, 3-D printing can create just about anything you can think of ---flutes , bikinis, jewelry, aircraft parts and even human organs. In fact, scientists from Cornell University in New York have just made an artificial ear using a 3-D printer, according to Science Daily. The fake ear looks and acts exactly like a natural one. However, as 3-D printing becomes more commonplace, it may bring about certain problems --- such as piracy. "Once you can download a coffee maker, or print out a new set of kitchen utensils on your personal 3-D printer, who will visit a retail store again?" an expert in 3-D printing told Forbes News. Even more frightening, what if anyone in the world could use a 3-D printer to print out a fully functioning gun?

According to the article, in the future, the 3-D printing technology will _ .

Making School Buses Even Safer for Children

Every day 25 million U.S. children ride school buses. The safety record for these buses is much better than for passenger cars; but nevertheless, about 10 children are killed each year riding on large school buses, and nearly four times that number are killed outside buses in the loading zones. By and large, however, the nation's school children are transported to and from school safely. Even though the number of school bus accidents is not large, the safety of children is always of intense public concern. While everyone wants to see children transported safely, people are divided about what needs to be done-particularly whether seat belts should be compulsory. People in favor of seat belts on school buses-many of them parents and medical organizations-argue that seat belts are necessary not only to reduce fatality and injury, but also to teach children lessons about the importance of using them routinely in any moving vehicle. A side benefit, they point out, is that seat belts help keep children in their seats, away from the bus driver. People who object to seat belt installation suggest that children are already well protected by the school buses that follow the Nation Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) safety requirements set in 1977. They also believe that many children won't wear seat belts anyway, and that may damage the belts or use them as weapons to hurt other children. A new research council report on school bus safety suggest that there are alternate safety devices and procedures that may be more effective and less expensive. For example, the study committee suggested that raising seat backs four inches may have the same safety effectiveness as seat belts. The report sponsored by the Department of transportation at the request of Congress, reviews seat belts extensively while taking a broader look at safety in and around school buses.

The title below which best expresses the idea of the passage is" _ ".

Third person, unnamed

Phaethon stood impatiently at the heavy golden doors. He ordered the guards, Month and Year, to let him approach his father's throne. As the doors opened slowly, the sun's rays almost blinded him. Phaethon protected his eyes and felt his way toward Apollo's throne. "Come here, my son. Follow my voice," Apollo's voice echoed. "What is so urgent that you have my guards hurrying to do your bidding?" "Father, I have a problem. All of my friends have been teasing me. They don't believe that you're my father or that you make the sun rise and set," complained Phaethon. Apollo replied, "Oh? That problem again? Well, just to prove it to your friends once and for all, I will satisfy any wish you desire." "Really? Then I have only one wish," answered Phaethon. "I'd like to drive your chariot and make the sun rise tomorrow morning!" Apollo was horrified. "No, not that! No one but me can drive the chariot. The horses are too powerful!" "You said I could have anything," murmured Phaethon. Bound by his promise, Apollo had to agree. His heart was sick with worry as he ordered Dawn to prepare the horses, Hour and Day, to the Golden Chariot. Phaethon could hardly wait to jump in the driver's seat and take the reins . He hoped all his friends were watching the sky and waiting for him through the stars. "Wait, my son! There are things you need to know!" cried Apollo. "Oh, Father! You worry too much. I've often seen you drive. I know what to do," Phaethon answered. Apollo hurried to give directions. "You have never driven my chariot before. You must make the horses stay on the path. If you are too low, you will _ the earth and large land on it could be thrown into a world of fire." "I know, Father. Now watch me take off!" shouted Phaethon. Dawn stepped back and released the horses go. The horses were filled with excitement. The sky begged for Dawn's light, so she ran toward the horizon to make the darkness fade. As Phaethon was about to get on, Apollo took him by the arm and said, "Please listen to me! If you go too high, you will warm the cold depths of the heavens, and the Bear or Snake or the Scorpion will come alive!" Phaethon just laughed. "My friends are waiting. I've got to go!" he shouted. With that, the chariot was off. It was a wild ride. Hour and Day were difficult to control. Phaethon did not have his father's strong arms or years of experience. The horses wove from side to side and jumped up and down through the heavens, hitting everything in their way. The sun bounced along behind the chariot like a basketball. It scratched the stars and slipped along mountaintops, leaving burnt remains behind. Phaethon's friends ran for cover as they watched. Just as his father had warned him, the figures in the sky began to move. Suddenly the Scorpion appeared suddenly before him, but Phaethon dashed by in time. The Snake struck out and bit a wheel off the chariot. Apollo, seeing the destruction, rushed up toward the heavens, but he was too late! The Bear had waken up from his icy hibernation and seized Phaethon before his father could reach him. Apollo took hold of the reins and finally regained control of Hour and Day, but it was years before the earth's mountaintops were white with snow again. The scorched areas became deserts where very little would grow. Phaethon became a part of the stars alongside the Bear, where his father could regretfully keep an eye on him.

From what point of view is the passage told?

To improve her grades.

One of the most popular items in the school newspaper is the advice column. No one knows who writes it. The students think their teacher does, but it might be a student using a false name. The students enjoy thinking up problems for the advice column. Here are some of them and their answers. Ask the Wise Owl Q: I'm always late for school. I try not to be, but I can't help it. Please advise me what to do. Tommy. A: You are probably late for school because you don't really like school. My advice to you is to try and enjoy school more, then you won't be late so often. Q: I find it difficult to make friends. What do you think I should do? Sara. A: I can't advise you until I know more about you. Your problem may be that you are shy. On the other hand, it may be the opposite. You may be too bold . Write and tell me more about yourself. Q: I'm always at the bottom(,) of the class. What do you advise me to do? Molly. A: I advise you to concentrate on improving your grades in one subject to start with. If you can do this, you should move a little way up from the bottom. Next, try to improve your grades in another subject, and so on. If you concentrate on one subject at a time, by the end of the year you should be quite a long way up from the bottom in all your classes.

What does Molly want to do?

If someone puts a pair of stone lions in front of the gate, he must have a lot of babies.

Lion is a special animal to Chinese people. A couple of stone lions, a male and a female , can often be seen in front of the gates of old buildings. The male lion is on the left with his right paw on a ball, and the female on the right. And her left paw is touching a baby animal. The lion is the king in the animal world because he is powerful. The ball shows the country or the family will be together forever, and the baby animal with the female shows that you will have many children. The stone lions were also used to show the families were powerful. If you had no money or power, you couldn't put the stone lions in front of your houses. It was also popular to make bridges with stone lions. The best known of this is the Lugou Bridge (also as Marco Polo Bridge), built from 1189 to 1192. The stone lions on the bridge are most famous. Maybe there are 485 lions in all, maybe there are 498 or 501. A famous saying is that "the lions on the Lugou Bridge are uncountable ."

Which is NOT right below about the stone lions in front of the gates of the old houses?

there is a greater demand for things in a city

"Avoid the rush hour" must be the slogan of large cities all over the world. Wherever you look it's people, people, people. The trains which leave or arrive every few minutes are packed. The streets are so crowded; there is hardly room to move on the pavements. It takes ages for a bus to get to you because the traffic on the roads has almost come to a standstill. Even when a bus does at last arrive, it's so full, it can't take any more passengers. The smallest unexpected event can bring about conditions of complete chaos. The strange thing is not that people stand these conditions, but that they actually choose them in preference to anything else. Large modern cites are too big to control. People living there are forced by their environment to take a wholly unnatural way of life. They lost touch with the land and rhythm of nature. It is possible to live in such an air-conditioned existence in a large city that you can hardly tell the season. A few flowers in a public park may remind you that it is spring or summer. All the simple, good things of life like sunshine and fresh air are hard to find. Even the distinction between days and nights is lost. The funny thing about it all is that you pay dearly to live in a city. The demand for accommodation is so great that it is often impossible for ordinary people to buy a house of their own. The cost of living is also very high. Just about everything you buy is likely to be more expensive than it would be in the country. Besides, the crime rate in most cities is very high. If you think about it, they're not really fit to live in at all. Can anyone really doubt that the country is what man was born for and where he truly belongs?

The reason for things to be more expensive in a city than elsewhere is that _ .

China

The Winter Olympics is also called the White Olympics. At that time, many color1ful stamps are published to mark the great Games. The first stamp marking the opening of the White Olympics was issued on January 25th, 1932 in the United states to celebrate the 3rd White Olympics. From then on, issuing stamps during the White Olympics became a tradition. To observe the 4th Winter Olympic Games, a group of stamps were published in Germany in November, 1935. The five rings of the Olympics were printed on the front of the sportswear. It was the first time that the symbol appeared on stamps of the Winter Olympics. In the 1950s, the stamps of this kind became more color1ful. When the White Olympics came, the host countries as well as the non-host countries published stamps to mark those Games. China also published four stamps in February, 1980, when the Chinese sportsmen began to march into the area of the Winter Olympics. Japan is the only Asian country that has ever held the White Olympics. Altogether 14,500 million stamps were sold to raise funds for the sports meet. Different kinds of sports were represented on these small stamps. People can enjoy the beauty of the wonderful movements of the athletes.

The Winter Olympics has not been held in _ yet.

Enough time to buy souvenirs.

Mini Hoover Dam Tour ONLY $48 per person LIST PRICE $60 This tour begins with beautiful sights as you travel by coach through famous Las Vegas towards Boulder City, Nevada. As you leave Boulder City on your way to the famous Hoover Dam, you will see in the distance Lake Mead. Created by the Hoover Dam, it is one of the largest and most beautiful man-made lakes in America! When you arrive at Hoover Dam, you can visit the museum, watch a movie on the Dam's construction and see Oskar J.W. Hansen's famous sculptures on the Nevada side. Experience the excitement of this man-made wonder with great views that will create memories of a lifetime! Tour Highlights * Free hotel-to-hotel pick-up and drop-off * Coaches with windows for your viewing pleasure * Beautiful views of man-made Lake Mead * Experience the Hoover Dam from two states * Hoover Dam Discovery Tour * Time for souvenir shopping * Relax and enjoy our return journey by coach to Las Vegas

What can you enjoy during the Mini Hoover Dam Tour?

Zanjani created the world's first human-sheep to make the sheep grows faster

Scientists have made the world's first human-sheep----with the body of a sheep and half-human organs . Amazing, but true. The sheep is15percent human and 85 percent sheep. The breakthrough makes it possible to use animal organs in human bodies in the future. Professor Esmail Zanjani of University of Nevada, US, has spent seven years And over $9 million on the work. Zanjani took stem cells from the human body and put them into the sheep while it was still in its mother's body. The stem cells made other cells that grew into organs. Zanjani believe that in the future such sheep might be used to help humans. Two months later a human-sheep is born, it has a liver , heart, ling and brain that are part-human. These organs could be used to help people in need of them. There are different opinions about his work, however. Some say that scientists don't have the right to create new creature . Using animal organ might bring animal viruses into human bodies. Others are afraid that the work might change sheep. But Professor Anjani has said that this is impossible.

According to the passage, " _ " is not true.

the neighbours loved the cat PJ very much

They say that cats have nine lives but our lazy old cat,PJ,had concurrent lives and identities. He became well-known for sleeping around the neighbourhood and used to nap in the spare bedroom of elderly couple who lived three doors up from us.While I wasn't always aware of all his liaisons, it didn't matter as long as he always came home at mealtimes. One day we noticed he had gained weight. We guessed he was enjoying snacks at the local takeaway shop bins and so we began to reduce the amount of his food. He didn't seem to notice. Some months later. we invited some new neighbours in for drinks. Not long into the evening, our new neighbor saw PJ sitting proudly on the window ledge. "You've got my cat!" She exclaimed, laughing. We let her down gently, and learnt that at their house, PJ was known as Tiger. Thanks to them, he'd been receiving the royal treatment, including removing small insects from his body by spraying medicine. PJ continued living with us until a new cat and a new dog finally tested his patience. _ walked out and was missing for ten days before my husband spotted him near his work. He brought our wandering cat home, but it was clear that PJ wasn't happy. After shouting at him angrily, I let him out and he never returned. A few months later, our new neighbour told us she'd seen PJ. It seems that an elderly neighbour had welcomed him into her home, and since taking up residence he'd doubled in size and been given his own sitting - room chair to lie. The two had become very fond of each other, ever since he'd followed her home. What a smart cat.

It can be inferred from the passage that _ .

wanted to know the time

Mr. White was in bed and was trying to go to sleep when he heard the doorbell ring. He turned on the light and looked at the clock. It was half past twelve. "Who can be it at this time of night?" he wondered. He decided to go and find out. So he got out of bed, put on his jacket 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 jacket, got back into bed, turned off the light and tried to go to sleep. A few minutes later he heard the doorbell ring again. Mr. White jumped out of the bed very quickly and rushed to the door. He opened it, but again he found no one there. He closed the door and tried not to feel too nervous. Then he saw a piece of paper on the floor inside the door. He picked it up. There were some words on it: "Now it's after midnight, so it's April 1st. Happy April Fool's Day!" "Oh, it was the funny boy next door!" Mr. White smiled. ,.

At first Mr.White turnedonthelightand _ .

the child has great imagination

Children, especially at young ages, are very creative. And creativity can be a glorious thing. Look at all the amazing artists and architects that have created glorious pieces of history. Look at all the authors with the award winning books. Now I am not saying everyone is going to end up this way but creativity is an important part of growing up and becoming who you are. This should be encouraged in young children as well as the older children. Young children grow up playing with make-believe. And so many people try to make their young child see that their invisible friend isn't real or that talking when someone is not in the room is _ . To adults it is, but for small children it is them being creative. May it be them playing house, or chef, or playing with stuffed animals, it is their creative part coming out. Some kids can have fun playing with rocks and sticks and it's because of their creativeness that they can do this. The invisible friend part is another part of being imaginative, and is not a bad thing since they will grow out of that phase. So encourage this and play along with them, play house or stuffed animals or whatever they want to play. Help keep their imagination running. You can even make up games, like treasure hunts, dinosaurs, or super heroes; there is just so much you can choose from. For older children, talk to them. Help them see things through others' eyes, or help them see things from a different point of view. Helping children see things from other views helps them keep their minds open for new ideas and new things. All this can help your children's minds stay creative. The arts and music, even thoughts are an important part of life and important in our society. If we didn't have and encourage creative thinking, we wouldn't have had inventors, or philosophers, or as I said before, artists.

If a child plays with his invisible friend, it shows that _ .

Vacations Cost More Than You Think

What's your dream vacation? Watching wildlife in Kenya? Boating down the Amazon? Sunbathing in Malaysia? New chances are opening up all the time to explore the world. So we visit travel agents, compare packages and prices, and pay our money. We know what our vacation costs us. But do we know what it might cost someone else? It's true that many poorer countries now depend on tourism for foreign income. Unfortunately, though, tourism often harms the local people more than it helps them. It might cost their homes and lands. In Myanmar, 5,200 people were forced to leave their homes among the pagodas in Bagan so that tourists could visit the pagodas. Tourism might also cost the local people their livelihood and dignity. Local workers often find only menial jobs in the tourist industry. And most of the profits do not help the local economy. Instead, profits return to the tour operators in wealthier countries, When the Maasai people in Tanzania were driven from their lands, some moved to city slums. Others now make a little money selling souvenirs or posing for photos. Problems like these were observed more than 20 years ago. But now some non-government organizations, tour operators and local governments are working together to begin correcting them. Tourists, too, are putting on the pressure. The result is responsible tourism, or "ethical tourism." Ethical tourism has people at its heart. New international agreements and codes of conduct can help protect the people's lands, homes, economies and cultures. The beginnings are small, though, and the problems are complex. But take heart. The good news is that everyone, including us, can play a part to help the local people in the places we visit. Tour operators and companies can help by making sure that local people work in good conditions and earn reasonable wages. They can make it a point to use only locally owned hotel, restaurants and guide services. They can share profits fairly to help the local economy. And they can involve the local people in planning and managing tourism. What can tourists do? First, we can ask tour companies to provide information about the conditions of local citizens. We can then make our choices and tell them why. And while we're abroad, we can: Buy local foods and products, not imported ones. Pay a fair price for goods and services and not bargain for the cheapest price. Avoid flaunting wealth. Ask before taking photographs of people. They are not just part of the landscape! Let's enjoy our vacation and make sure others do, too.

What is probably the best title for the article?

cold-water swimming causes more heart attacks in summer than in winter

When did you last see a polar bear? On a trip to a zoo, perhaps? If you had attended a winter activity in New York a few years ago, you would have seen a whole polar bear club. These "Polar Bears" are people who meet frequently in winter to swim in freezing cold water. That day, air temperature was 3degC, and the water temperature was a bit higher. The members of the Polar Bear Club at Coney Island , New York are usually about the age of 60. Members must satisfy two requirements. First, they must get along well with everyone else in the group, this is very important because there are so many different kinds of people in the club. Polar Bears must also agree to swim outdoors at least twice a month from November through February. Doctors do not agree about the medical effects of cold-water swimming. Some are worried about the dangers of a condition in which the body's temperature drops so low that finally the heart stops. Other doctors, however, point out that there is more danger of a heart attack during summer swimming because the difference between the air temperature and water temperature is much greater in summer than in winter. The Polar Bears themselves are satisfied with the benefits(or advantages) of cold-water swimming. They say that their favorite form of exercise is very good for the circulatory system because it forces the blood to move fast to keep the body warm. Cold-water swimmers usually turn bright red after a few minutes in the water. A person who turns blue probably has a very poor circulatory system and should not try cold-water swimming. The main benefits(or advantages) of cold-water swimming are probably mental . The Polar Bears love to swim year-round; they find it fun and relaxing. As one 70-year-old woman says,"When I go into the water, I pour my troubles into the ocean and let them float away ."

According to the passage, some doctors believe it is true that _ .

peoples' fates can't be controlled by themselves

One night recently , I was driving down a two-lane highway at about 60 miles an hour . A car approached from the opposite direction at about the same speed . As we passed each other , I caught the other driver's eye for only a second . I wondered whether he might be thinking , as I was , how dependent we were on each other at that moment . I was relying on him not to fall asleep , not to be put off by a phone conversation, not to cross over into my lane and bring my life to a sudden end . Though we had never spoken a word to each other , he relied on me in just the same way . Multiplied a million times over, I believe that is the way the world works . At some level , we all depend upon one another . Sometimes that dependence requires us simply not to do something like crossing over the double yellow line . And sometimes it requires us to act cooperatively , with friends or even with strangers . As technology shrinks our world , the need increases for cooperative action among nations . In 2003, doctors in five nations were quickly organized to identify the SARS virus , which saved thousands of lives . The threat of international terrorism has shown itself to be a similar problem, one requiring coordinated action by police and intelligence forces across the world . We must recognize that our fates are not ours alone to control . In my own life , I've put great stock in personal responsibility . But , as the years have passed, I've also come to believe that there are moments when one must rely upon the good faith and judgment of others . so , while each of us faces the case of driving alone down a dark road , what we must learn is that the approaching light may not be a threat , but a shared moment of trust .

The need for cooperation increases because _ .

is addressed to the parents

Memo to: Parents Memo from: Administration Office, St. Augustine's Elementary School Topic: Lunch Program and School Information Date: Tuesday, November 23, 2010 We would like to thank all parents and guardians for your cooperation as we carry out a new method of delivering our lunch program. So far the month-long test of the new system has gone smoothly. For your convenience, we have included a copy of the envelope below to allow you to record the days you have ordered lunch for your child. You can keep this copy at home for your reference. Please note, lunches are prepared using the School Food Guidelines both in terms of items served and size. During the first two weeks some people wrote in additions to the menu, such as ordering extra items. Due to the logistics involved and our limited volunteer base we are unable to fulfill these requests. Ordering process: This year we will distribute a two week lunch envelope. If you decide to order the meal offered on a given day, simply check the box in front of that meal choice. For example, if you choose seven meals over the two weeks, then please enclose (7 x $2.00) fourteen dollars ($14.00) in the envelope. Seal it, and return it to your child's teacher. Please note that the cost for the lunch remains the same: $2.00 daily and includes fruit and milk. You will note that we have also reduced daily choices. For example on Fridays, we offered chicken burgers and hamburgers. This has been changed to chicken burgers on one week and hamburgers the following week. Food prepared according to special requests has also been changed. These items will now be prepared with the same ingredients. If your child does not like the lunch being served on a particular day please ensure that he/she has a packed lunch from home. Thank you for your attention on this matter and we look forward to working with you once again this year. Please return the attached envelopes by Thursday, December 2, 2011.

According to the passage, this Memo_.

was carried out online and offline

A latest national survey has found that over half of China's netizens are suffering from various mental problems although some 62 percent of them claim at the same time that they are happy on the whole anyway. This is the result of China's first White Paper on Netizens' Health Conditions issued on Wednesday by 39.net, China's largest authoritative website on health sciences. It is the first most comprehensive health survey on netizens' health situation ever conducted in China in ten years' time. The white paper came out after two months of online and offline research that involved over 150 thousand netizens, covering topics and questions on health knowledge, mental situation, sense of health, and living habits. According to the white paper, more than 70 percent of China's netizens say they are suffering from mental problems such as bad memory, anxiety, depression, and a lack of confidence. And a similar 72 percent of them also say they are often suffering from diseases like insomnia, dizziness, joint degeneration and achings. Meanwhile, another 53 percent of netizens believe that white collar employees who have bigger work pressures are more likely to catch mental problems. The white paper adds, doing almost no sports and spending long time surfing online lead to the above mentioned health problems among netizens. Only 9 percent of netizens take up sports on weekends while over 40 percent stay home, surfing. And only 16 percent netizens can assure more than eight hours' sleeping daily. At present, China has a netizen population of 162 million, with a monthly consumption of 186 yuan, or about 25 dollars, on Internet surfing.

The national survey on netizens' health situation _ .

A 14yearold girl.

Welcome to Pocono Whitewater There's something fun here at Pocono Whitewater for every level of adventurer! We have mild to wild whitewater rafting , family trips, and birdwatching boating. Choose one adventure now. It's up to you! We have trips available daily. Give us a call today! Dam Release Whitewater Rafting Experience the best whitewater on the Lehigh River! Surrounded by forests and mountains, you will enjoy 12 miles and 5 hours of Class III whitewater rafting and outstanding scenery. This is a fun and thrilling trip that everyone over the age of 12 can make. While paddling in the swift water, you'll shout and laugh. Dam Release Whitewater Rafting Rates: Individual (over the age of 12) : $61.00 Group (at least 8 persons) : $31.00 Rates Include: all necessary rafting equipment, life jackets, free parking, bus service to/from the river and professional river guides. Family Style Whitewater Rafting Bring along the whole family this summer and enjoy 8 miles and 5 hours of Class I whitewater rafting. Mild water of the Lehigh River is simply perfect for beginners, school groups, and kids aged 4 and older. This is just perfect for enjoying the passing scenery, kicking your feet over the edge of the raft, or taking a swim in the river! One of the most unique things about this trip is a free riverside barbeque ! Our workers will cook and serve you a picnic lunch -- hotdogs, potato salad, fruit, etc. The classic family picnic! Family Style Whitewater Rafting Rates: Adult: $39.00 Child (aged 4--14) : $33.00 Group (at least 8 persons) : $30.00 Rates Include: all necessary rafting equipment, life jackets, free parking, bus service to/from the river, and a barbeque lunch, river guides not included.

Which of the following persons is suitable for Dam Release Whitewater Rafting?

went red and could not return my grandfather's look

My grandfather was a teacher. He was the headmaster of a school for boys between thirteen and eighteen. I know that he was a kind and gentle man at heart, because when I was young, he gave me presents, and seated me on his knee, and told me stories. But I believe the boys at his school were afraid of him. At school, when he walked into a room full of noisy boys, there was silence at once. When he looked at a boy with a certain look in his eyes, the boy went red in the face, and looked down at his shoes. If a boy brought him poor, careless work that was not the best the boy could do, my grandfather would pick up the boy's book and throw it across the room, shouting, "Do it all again, and bring it back to me in the morning!" If the boy was late, or if he forgot to bring the work, he had to do it again, and again, and yet again. My grandfather never forgot. He was a very different man at school from the man I saw day by day in his own home.

When he looked at a boy in a certain way, the boy _

What to choose

On Saturday Patrick woke up with a little shock, knowing that this was a special day. For a moment he couldn't think exactly why, and then, with an excited flutter of his stomach, he remembered. At ten o'clock today he was going to find out the final result of the programme called Super Brain. He got dressed more carefully than usual, went downstairs and turned on the TV. Quickly he switched channels. Cartoons, cartoons, advertisements, man talking, snow, snow... and still nothing at all on Channel 8. "Patrick, turn it off, darling, if you're going to watch." Judith walked past with the newspaper under her arm and her eyes half closed. She headed for the kitchen. Patrick turned off the TV and followed. "What's for breakfast, Mum?" "We will see," Judith said in a low voice, turning on the electric kettle . She looked sleepily at him and smiled. "You look nice, darling," She said. "You're all ready. But we can't go till eight-thirty at the earliest, you know. Nothing will be open till then." Patrick's stomach seemed to feel a little sick. "We aren't going out, are we?" He asked. Judith began to make the tea. "Don't say you've forgotten!" she said, "I promised you, last Saturday. Your new trainers, remember?" "Oh--oh, but I can't go out this morning, Mum. There's something I've got to watch on TV. At ten o'clock. I've got to! My trainers will be all right for another week." Patrick said with excitement, looking quite worried. Judith faced him, hands on hips, "Patrick," she said with great dislike, "it's all organized."

What's the best title for the passage?

faced with the misfortune, you should be strong, and you'll make it

He lost his arms in an accident that claimed his father's life--who was the main source of support for the family. Since then, he has had to depend on the arms of his younger brother. For the sake of taking care of him, his younger brother became his shadow, never leaving him alone for years. Except for writing with his toes, he was completely unable to do anything in his life. One late night, he suffered from diarrhea and had to wake up his younger brother. His younger brother accompanied him into the toilet and then went back to dorm to wait. But being so tired, his younger brother fell asleep, leaving him on the toilet for two hours till the teacher on duty discovered him. As the two brothers grew up together, they had their share of problems and they would often quarrel. Then one day, his younger brother wanted to live separate from him, living his own life, as many normal people do. So he was heart-broken and didn't know what to do. A similar misfortune happened to a girl, too. One night her mother, who suffered from chronic mental illness, disappeared. So her father went out looking for her mother, leaving her alone at home. She tried to prepare meals for her parents, only to overturn the kerosene light on the stove, resulting in a fire which took her hands away. Though her elder sister, who was studying in another city, showed her willingness to take care of her, she was determined to be completely independent. At school, she always studied hard. Most of all she learned to be self-dependent. Once she wrote the following in her composition: "I am lucky. Though I lost my arms, I still have legs; I am lucky." Though my wings are broken, my heart can still fly." One day, the boy and the girl were both invited to appear on a television interview program. The boy told the TV host about his uncertain future at being left on his own, whereas the girl was full of enthusiasm for her life. They both were asked to write something on a piece of paper with their toes. The boy wrote: My younger brother's arms are my arms; while the girl wrote: Broken wings, flying heart. They had both endured the same misfortune, but their different attitudes determined the nature of their lives. It is true that life is unpredictable. Disasters can strike at any time. How you handle misfortune when confronted with it actually is the true test of your character. If you choose only to complain and escape from the misfortune, it will always follow you wherever you go. But if you decide to be strong, the hardship will turn out to be fortune on which new hopes will arise.

When the girl wrote the words: Broken wings, flying heart, she really meant _ .

Nobody Is a Nobody.

This is a true story about a boy who, the world might say, was a terrible underachiever. While in the eighth grade, he failed subjects repeatedly. High school wasn't much better; he _ Latin, algebra, English, and received a grade of zero in physics. The boy managed to make the school golf team, but he lost the most important golf match of the season. It's not that his peers disliked this boy; it's just that they never really seemed to notice him much. Even "Hellos" in the hall were a rarity. Out of all the failures in his life, there was something that did hold great importance to this boy, his love of drawing. Although in high school, the cartoons he submitted to the yearbook were rejected, once out of school, the boy was so sure of his artistic talent that he approached Walt Disney Studios with drawing works. I wish I could say the studios loved his work and immediately hired him, but such was not the case; another huge rejection. Despite his lack of successes, this boy did not give up. He then decided to write his own autobiography in cartoons, about a little boy who was regarded as a loser and a nobody. The name of this boy was Charles Schulz, the creator of the famous Charlie Brown and comic dog Snoopy. In life, it is sometimes easy to feel like a nobody. We pass hundreds of people on the street on our way to work, or walk through a faceless crowd in a mall, and no one seems to notice or care. Deep inside, we may know we are special and unique and have lots to offer, but unless someone takes the time to look our way and give us a chance, we may feel worthless, just like Charlie Brown who couldn't even manage to fly a kite or kick a football properly. Just as Charles Schulz had faith in his artistic talent, so too, we must realize that nobody is a nobody. We all have special gifts and talents, and every human being is deserving and capable of being loved and appreciated.

Which of the following is the best title of the passage?

there will be more problems relating to identity in the future

In the modern world more and more people meet the problem of identity.The most interesting example is that of a so - called " _ ", which refers to an American who has an Asian face but holds Western values. In Shanghai, there now live a group of people from abroad.They look no different from the locals and speak fluent Chinese or even Shanghai dialect, but when it comes to writing Chinese characters, they are almost illiterate .Jack is such an example.He never learned to read or write Chinese characters, which he finds mysterious and difficult.From time to time, he files to the US as he does not feel Shanghai is where he comes from."But when I am in the States, I feel that's not my home either," he said. At De Gaulle Airport in France, there is a Swiss man who has been living in the waiting - room for a long time because he lost h is passport during his travels.He was refused entry into several countries.But when he was eventually allowed to return to Swizerland, he refused to leave the airport.His reason was very simple--"I am sure who I am.I need no acknowledgement from others," he said during an interview.For th is reason he was honored by the Western media as "the Hero of identity." As the Internet becomes more and more popular, the problem of identity becomes more serious.In a virtual world, people can have different addresses registered with different names.In the Internet chat room, even one's gender is hard to determine.It seems that in the glohal village, people are saying hello every day to each other without knowing whom they are talking to. What will be the next crisis of identity? With the development of cloning technology, it might be: who is the real "I"?

We can infer from the passage that the author believes _ .

was quite sure of success

A man once said how useless it was to put advertisements in the newspaper. "Last week, " he said, "my umbrella was stolen from a London church. As it was a present, I spent twice its worth in advertising, but didn't get it back. " "How did you write your advertisement? " asked one of the listeners, a merchant. "Here it is, " said the man, taking out of his pocket a slip cut from a newspaper. The other man took it and read, "Lost from the City Church last Sunday evening, a black silk umbrella. The gentleman who finds it will receive ten shillings on leaving it at No. 10 Broad Street. " "Now, " said the merchant, "I often advertise, and find that it pays me well. But the way in which an advertisement is expressed is of extreme importance. Let us try for your umbrella again, and if it fails, I'll buy you a new one. " The merchant then took a slip of paper out of his pocket and wrote: "If the man who was seen to take an umbrella from the City Church last Sunday evening doesn't wish to get into trouble, he will return the umbrella to No. 10 Broad Street. He is well known. " This appeared in the newspaper, and on the following morning, the man was astonished when he opened the front door. In the doorway lay at least twelve umbrellas of all sizes and colors, and his own was among them. Many of them had notes fastened to them saying that they had been taken by mistake, and begging the loser not to say anything about the matter.

". . . if it fails, I'll buy you a new one" suggested that the merchant _ .

cannot accurately reflect the reality in the United States

The United States has always been a country of many cultures. Before Europeans came to North America, many groups of Native Americans lived here. Different Native American groups had different cultures. The first Europeans in the United States were from England and Holland, but immigrants came from all European countries. Many people also immigrated from Asia and Africa. Sadly, many Africans were brought to the United States as slaves. Many immigrants come from Latin America too. Today, the United States has people from more cultures than ever. In the 19th century, people spoke of the United States as a " _ ." People thought that all immigrates should forget their native cultures and languages and become English-speaking Americans. They felt that people should assimilate - join American culture. However, not everyone wanted to assimilate completely. Many people tried to keep parts of their cultures, such as foods, customs, and languages. However, their children often forgot their parents' or grandparents' language. But most Americans, even those whose families have been here a long time, can tell the countries their s came from. And of course, new immigrants take great pride in their curare and language. For all of these reasons, melting pot is no longer a good way to describe the United States. Instead, people now call the United States a " _ ." They say salad bowl because in a salad, you can still see all of the individual parts (lettuce, tomato, and so on), but all the different parts mixed together and begin to take on the flavor of one another.

The "melting pot" _ .

have to take a different road

When I lived in Spain, some Spanish friends of mine decided to visit England by car. Before they left, they asked me for advice about how to find accommodation . I suggested that they should stay at "bed and breakfast" houses, because this kind of accommodation gives a foreign visitor a good chance to speak English with the family. My friends listened to my advice, but they came back with some funny stories. "We didn't stay at bed and breakfast houses," they said, "because we found that most families were away on holiday." I thought this was strange. Finally I understood what had happened. My friends spoke little English, and they thought "VACANCIES" meant "holidays", because the Spanish word for 'holidays" is "vacaciones". So they did not go to house where the sign outside said 'VACANCLES', which in English means there are free rooms. Then my friends went to house where the sign said 'NO VACANCLES', because they thought this meant the people who owned the house were not away on holiday. But they found that these houses were all full. As a result, they stayed at hotels! We laughed about this and about mistakes my friends made in reading other signs. In Spanish, the word 'DIVERSION' means fun. In English, it means that workmen are repairing the road, and that you must take a different road. When my friends saw the word 'DIVERSION' on a road sign, they thought they were going to have fun. Instead, the road ended in a large hole . English people have problems too when they learn foreign languages. Once in Paris when someone offered me some more coffee, I said 'Thank you' in French. I meant that I would like some more. However, to my surprise, the coffee pot was taken away! Later I found out that 'Thank you' in French means 'No, thank you.'

If you see a road sign that says 'Diversion', you will _ .

Things to do in summer

A great way for teens to cool off during the summer is at water parks. If you live near a water park, you might think about getting a season pass. This way you can go as often as you like. Check to see if there are any water parks around you. Many are indoor facilities. So even if it isn't warm enough where you live to swim outdoors, you can enjoy swimming in a temperature controlled area. The prices are usually good. For example, one ticket to Water World, a water park, is only $5. Some teens like to get a part time job over the summer to make some pocket money. Older teens shouldn't have much trouble finding jobs. An idea is to get some teens together to form your own summer job business. You can walk dogs, bring in the newspapers, feed the cats, collect rubbish, water flowers, etc. Being that it's summer, many people go on vacation and could use someone to look after their houses while they're away. You can also think about other jobs you can do for them. Teens love freedom. Sure you would like to get to such places as the small, movie theaters, the zoo, the beach, picnic, bowling and local amusement park instead of staying home all summer. Then a summer bus pass will be helpful. Check to see if your area has one for you teens. Such a pass costs only $10 for the whole summer. The price is reasonable and also your parents don't have to always drive.

What's the text mainly about?

A nurse.

Barbara was driving her six-year-old son, Benjamin, to his piano lesson. They were late. There was always so much to do, and Barbara, a night-duty nurse at the local hospital, had recently worked extra hours. She was tired. "Mom!" Ben cried. "Look!" Just ahead, a car had lost control on the icy road and wildly rolled over, and then crashed into a telephone pole. Barbara went over. Thank goodness she was a nurse -- she might be able to help these unfortunate passengers. Then she stopped. What about Ben? She couldn't take him with her. Little boys shouldn't see scenes like this one. But was it safe to leave him alone? For a little moment Barbara thought of going on her way. Someone else was sure to come along. No! "Ben, honey, promise me you'll stay in the car!" "I will, Mommy," he said as she ran. Two girls of high school age were in the car. One was dead and the driver was still breathing. But if help came soon, the girl would live. A trucker had pulled up and was calling for help on his cell phone. Soon Barbara heard the ambulance sirens . Later, Barbara was able to meet the families of the victims . They expressed their gratitude for the help she had provided.

What did Barbara do? _

if there is some grass on the ground

(B) What are you going to do if you are in a burning house? Escaping a fire is a serious matter. Knowing what to do during a fire can save yourself. It is important to know the ways you can use and to show them to everyone in the family, such as stairways and fire escapes, but not lifts . From the lower floors of the building, escaping through windows is possible, learn the best way of leaving through windows with the least chance of serious injury . The second floor windows are usually not very high from the ground. An average person, hanging by the finger-tips will have a drop of about six feet to the ground. It is about the height of an average man. Of course, it is safer to jump a short way than to stay in a burning building. Windows are also useful when you are waiting for help. Be sure to keep the door closed, or smoke and fire may be drawn into the room. Keep your head low at the window to be sure you get fresh air rather than smoke that may have leaked into the room. On a second or third floor, the best windows for escaping are those which open onto a roof . From the roof a person can drop to the ground more safely, dropping onto stones might end in injury.

It is possible to escape through the windows _ .

are warned in a direct manner

The English expect each other to observe the rules of queuing, feel highly offended when these rules are broken, but lack the confidence or social skills to express their annoyance in a straightforward manner. In other countries, this is not a problem: in America, where a queue-jumper has committed a kind of rudeness rather than a sin, the response is a loud warning: the offender is simply told "Hey, you, get back in line!" or words to that effect. On the European continent, the reaction tends to be loud and argumentative; in some other parts of the world, queue-jumpers may simply be pushed back into line. Ironically , it is only in England, where queue-jumping is regarded as deeply immoral, that the queue-jumper is likely to get away with the offence. Only rarely do the English actually speak up and tell the jumper to go to the back of the queue. Queuing is almost a national pastime for the English, who automatically arrange themselves into orderly lines at bus stops, shop counters, ice-cream vans, entrances, exits, and lifts. In 1946, a Hungarian humorist described queuing as English "national passion". "On the continent," he said. "if people are waiting at a bus stop they walk around in a seemingly relaxed fashion. When the bus arrives they make a dash for it...An Englishman, even if he is alone, forms orderly queue of one." In an update over thirty years later in 1977 he confirmed that this was still the case. After nearly another thirty years nothing much seems to have changed. In many cases, queue-jumping is effectively prevented by non-verbal signals alone. When someone is considering jumping a queue, the queuers will start glancing at him sideways, through narrowed, suspicious eyes. Then they move a bit closer to the person in front of them, just in case the jumper might try to insert himself in the gap. Frowns, glares, and raised eyebrows -- accompanied by heavy sighs, pointed coughs -- are usually the worst that the person will suffer if he jumps a queue. Faced with all this, the jumper will think better of it and withdraw to the back of the queue.

In America and other European countries, queue-jumpers_.

The new name is Bombay.

Most people think that the capital of the movie world is Hollywood in the United States. However, the real movie capital is Mumbai, in India. Mumbai used to be known as Bombay, and so the film industry there is called "Bollywood." Bollywood makes twice as many movies each year as Hollywood--more than 800 films a year. The movies from Bollywood are very different from Hollywood movies. For one thing, Bollywood movies are much longer than most Hollywood movies. Most Bollywood movies are more than three hours long, and contain singing, dancing, action, adventure, mystery and romance (but usually no kissing). Because Bollywood films contain so many different features, this style of film is sometimes called a "masala" film. ("Masala" is an Indian word for a mixture of species.) Another big difference between Bollywood and Hollywood movies is the way movies are made. It takes much longer to make a movie in Hollywood than in Bollywood. In fact, filming may begin on a Bollywood movie before the script is finished. The director and writer can make up the story while the film is being made. Sometimes they will even write the script by hand instead of taking time to type it. Bollywood actors are very popular and some are in such high demand that they may work on several movies at the same time. They may even shoot scenes for several films on the same day using the same costumes and scenery. Since most Bollywood movies follow the same kind of story, shooting scenes for several films at the same time is not a big problem for actors or directors. This also helps keep the cost of Bollywood movies lower than the cost of Hollywood movies. The average Bollywood film, with a budget of only two million US dollars, seems very cheap compared to the average budget of sixty million US dollars for a Hollywood film, thirty times as much!

What is NOT true about Mumbai?

change the habit which will bring troubles

Whenever my dog, Barney, comes into the house after having been for a ride in the car, he runs to the pen we have set up for him by the back door. It's not something we intentionally trained him to do. The habit came simply because my husband tended to put him in his pen whenever they came in. After doing it a few times, Barney just figures that's what you do when you come inside after a car ride. It's the same with your thinking. You get into the habit of thinking a certain way and then you'll rarely question it after that. This is especially true when you were growing up. You developed habits that just made things easier for you. You probably didn't even think about them. That's just the way it was and that's what you did. Just like Barney thinks he has to go into his pen, you do things automatically as well. For example, when you were a kid, you may have been told not to "talk back" and to just keep quiet about things that were bothering you. These are habits that might have worked to keep you safe and out of trouble when you were young. Now that you're grown up, you may be finding that these previous strategies are actually causing you problems. In a relationship, not communicating isn't going to work as your partner can't read your mind. What works when you're a child may not work when you become an adult. When you decide you need to change your thoughts, your brain may at first feel that it's not a safe thing to do. Lots of practice and years of experience says it's not. Also, you don't know to question the thought. It's a truth for you. The trick is to look at your results and see if your thoughts are the cause. Be willing to question your thinking and ask yourself if there are thoughts that are hindering you. As you are now in a different phase of your life, different strategies may be needed.

In the writer's opinion, adults should _ .

To call our attention to the sports at school.

Recently we told you about a finding that more years of school could help students get higherscores on intelligence tests.That was the finding of a study of teenage males in Norway.Now,other research shows that physical activity may help students do better in their classes . The research comes as educators in some countries are reducing time for activities like physical education.They are using the time instead for academic subjects like maths and reading.The studies appeared between 2007 and 2013.They included more than 55,000 children,aged 6 to 18. Amika Singh:"Based on the results of our study,we can conclude that being physically active is beneficial for academic performance. There are,first,Physiological explanations,like more blood flow, and so more oxygen to the brain.Being physically active means there are more hormones produced like endorphins .And endorphins make your stress level lower and your mood improved, which means you also perform better." Also,students involved in organized sports learn rules and how to follow them.This could improve their classroom behavior and help them keep their mind on their work. The study leaves some questions unanswered,however.Ms.Stash says it is not possible to say whether the amount or kind of activity affected the level of academic improvement.This is because of differences among the studies . Also.they were mostly observational studies.An observational study is where researchers do not do controlled comparisons.They only describe what they observe.So they might observe a link that students who are more active often have better grades.But that does not necessarily mean being active was the cause of those higher grades. The researchers said they found only two high - quality studies.They called for more high- quality studies to confirm their findings.They also pointed out that " _ Still,the general finding was that physically active kids are more likely to do better in school.Ms.Singh says schools should consider that finding before they cut physical education programs.Her paper on "Physical Activity and Performance at School"is published in the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine.

What's the purpose of writing the passage?

Most people spend about 20 minutes making three calls a day.

A study found most people use their smart phones for an hour and 52 minutes a day. Most of this time is taken up with texting, emails and surfing the web, but only around 20 minutes is spent making three calls. The survey of 2,000 people found that social media apps, calculators , calendars and cameras were also seen as particularly important functions. Navigation apps such as Google Maps were popular too - with one in six people admitting they would feel unable to travel around an unfamiliar city without _ . The study also found checking Facebook and taking pictures of others are carried out more frequently than making calls. Also on the list were the calendar to remember appointments and birthdays, mobile banking and the news are apps that make day-to-day life a little easier. Tom Barr said: 'The functions on a mobile phone have developed and improved drastically over the past 10 years. With so many ways to keep in touch nowadays, people are using the functions that are convenient for them. As we get less and less time to ourselves, we need more convenience in our lives and less difficulty. While calling can be more personal, it doesn't always save your time.' Scientists at Rice University wanted to see if the latest mobile technology would be used by the students to improve their learning. But a year later, the researchers concluded that it's not enough to give students the right technology, but said they need guidance about how to use it.

Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage?

choose not to eat meat or fish

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.

According to the text, "vegetarians" refer to people who _ .

Saving Lives From the Jaws of Death

He was a hero that saved two children from the jaws of a cougar . Standing barely 1.7 meters, the 22-year-old with black-frame glasses might pass more for a Chinese Harry Potter. Yet Shen Huigang is now getting recognition for his bravery in fighting off a cougar on Vancouver Island, Canada, during a family outing. Shen, also known as Ian, was then an exchange student. With him was a friend, Myles Hagar, and Hagar's two grandchildren. Silently and suddenly a cougar appeared out of nowhere. By the time they spotted the cat, it already had the head of 18-month-old Julien in its mouth. "At first, my brain was nothing but blank," Shen recalled. "But I believed I could get the child back." He gestured as if he were ready for a fight, and tried to scare the beast off with his bag. Hearing the noise Shen made, the animal dropped the baby and Hagar rushed to grab his grandson. But the animal didn't run, instead turned toward 3-year-old Iris standing beside Shen. "Had Ian not been there, shouting at the cougar, remaining calm and standing firm, it would certainly have attacked Iris." Hagar recalled. They chased the animal back into the woods. "We moved slowly to our vehicle as we waved our fists and bags, pretending to wrestle it," Shen said. "The vehicle wasn't far away but it felt like it took us a century to travel the short journey." As Hagar drove for help, Shen held the heavily-bleeding boy in the passenger seat and calmly kept him awake by hugging and kissing him in case he would go into a coma . The boy was flown to a hospital nearby. Doctors later said his little skull had been punctured through to his brain in two places. Luckily, Julien made a full recovery. "Any hesitation, even a second delay, would have resulted in certain death for Julien, but Ian was there..." Hagar said. Following the incident, the story appeared on Canadian TV networks in every city, and in many small town newspapers---plus many US Internet news sites. The Royal Canadian Humane Association planned to give Shen a Canada Bravery Award, but it couldn't reach him because he had returned to China.

Which of the following can be the best title for this passage?

Show Mr Ford's works in the exhibition.

Until a few months ago, he was a butler in one of the more expensive residential buildings in Manhattan. But now, Nepal-born Indra Tamang is the owner of two multi-million dollar apartments in the same building. The former owner - his former employer, Ruth Ford - died last year and left the apartments to Mr Tamang in her will. Mr Tamang is happy but quickly points out that his good fortune did not come easily. "I am happy and have been touched by the generosity of the Ford family," he says. "I never expected that I will be given the ownership of these apartments. But I have been working for the family for the last 36 years, devotedly, with honesty and dedication . So my hard work has been rewarded." Mr Tamang was 21 when he was brought from Nepal by Charles Ford, a writer and a photographer. Mr Ford died in 2002; his sister, actress Ruth Ford, then took charge and told Mr Tamang that he was like a brother to her after Charles's death. Mrs Ford died aged 98. During the last five years of her life, she lost her eyesight and also developed speech problems. Mr Tamang looked after her most of the time and took care of her medicines and food. He also worked with Charles Ford on various photography projects, which he now wants to keep as the photographer's legacy . He hopes to organize exhibitions of Mr Ford's photographs and edit a book of his works. Mr Tamang plans to sell the bigger, three-bedroom apartment to pay the taxes he owes to the government on his legacy. He says: "The rules of the building might be a problem, as they require a minimum monthly income to qualify to live as owner of apartments. I have my small house here but I am happy with it," Mr Tamang has learnt his lesson from the life of his employers and plans to use his money with great caution. "I think one should save money for old age. That's when you need it the most to get care," he says.

What DIDN'T Mr Tamang do in the Ford family?