questions list | article stringlengths 9 6.44k | id stringlengths 9 14 |
|---|---|---|
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "are accustomed to their life"
},
"options": [
"is extremely rich",
"is an unhappy one",
"are accustomed to their life",
"long for a change in their life"
],
"question": "The writer suggests that her family _ ... | They think they're lucky that they're living and it's Christmas again. They can't see that we live on a dirty street in a shabby house among people who aren't much good. Johnny and the children can't see how pitiful it is that our neighbors have to make happiness out of this filth and dirt. My children must get out of this. But how? The money that we've saved isn't nearly enough.
The McGaritys have money, but they are show-offs with it. The McGarity girl just yesterday stood out there in the street eating from a bag of cookies while a ring of hungry children watched her. I saw those children looking at her and crying in their hearts, and when she couldn't eat any more, she shrew the rest down the sewer .
Miss Jackson who teaches at the Settlement House isn't rich, but she knows things. She understands people. Her eyes look straight into yours when she talks with you. Everybody else here looks away because they're ashamed of their lives. I'd like to see the children be like Miss Jackson when they grew up. | high23395.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Avoiding using a phone for some time"
},
"options": [
"Avoiding using a phone for some time",
"Learning more about modern technology",
"Protecting one's phone against any damage",
"Not using a mobile phone in one's dail... | Kelly Reeves was getting ready for a trip when her phone slipped into a sink full of water. Panic moment! She quickly picked up the wet phone and tried to turn it on, but nothing worked. Her first reaction? She got dressed, drove to the nearest store, and bought a new mobile at full price.
A new study finds that fear of losing your phone is a common illness. About 66 percent of those surveyed suffer from _ or "no mobile phone phobia". Interestingly, more women worry about losing their phone than men.
Fortunately, there's a solution.
The first step is to figure out if you have nomophobia. Checking your phone too often is one thing, but the true sign of a problem is that you can't conduct business or go about your routine when the fear becomes so severe.
Do you go to unusual lengths to make sure you have your phone? That's another sign of a problem. If you find you check your phone plenty of times per hour, or a total of an hour per day, there may be a problem.
Some of the treatments are similar to those for treating anxiety attacks: leaving the phone behind and not checking e-mail or text messages, and then learning to tolerate the after anxiety. Even if this leads to a high level of worry and stress, the solution is to push through the fear and learn to deal with not having your phone.
Of course, there are also technological alternatives. Luis Levy, a co-founder at Novy PR, says he uses an application called Cerberus that can automatically track the location of his phone. To find it, he can just go to a website and see the phone's location.
He also insures his phone through a service called Asurion. The company's description of its product reads like a prescription for anxiety:"60 million phones are lost, stolen or damaged each year. You'll have complete peace of mind knowing that your phone is protected and you can quickly reconnect with family, friends and work, as soon as the very next day!" | high1711.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "the US is determined to improve energy efficiency in the whole America"
},
"options": [
"the US government office buildings have wasted the most energy",
"Obama has decided to take the lead to cut down the use of electricity",
... | The United States is the world's largest consumer of energy. We use electricity, gas and oil to light and heat our buildings and run our cars. The demand for power is growing. But we may not need to build new power plants or find more oil. The best way to increase our supply of energy is to be more efficient.
Did you know that when you leave your video-game console on, it consumes more electricity than two refrigerators? Or that those funny-looking, twisty bulbs use 75% less power than traditional light bulbs? We have the tools to save money, reduce pollution and even help our planet, simply by wasting less energy.
As President, Barack Obama plans to make energy efficiency in American a major goal. He has promised to cut 15% of all energy used by the Federal Government. In a speech, he called for 75% of government office buildings to be updated for better efficiency. He pointed out that energy-efficient buildings and homes will save consumers billions of dollars on energy bills. An "extra benefit", he added, will be "a cleaner, safer planet."
Gas, coal and oil are called fossil fuels. Fossil fuels have been the world's main source of energy for hundreds of years. But burning them releases dirty gases, which cause pollution.
There are two main ways to save energy. The first is to use more efficient machines. Hybrid cars use less gas. New appliances are designed to use less electricity. Today's refrigerators are three times more efficient than those before 1973. Laptop computers consume much less energy than desktop computers.
The second is to use machines more productively. According to the US Department of Energy, in the average home, 75% of the electricity used to power electronic equipment is standby power . That means power flowing to plugged-in appliances whether or not they are being used.
Homeowners can avoid wasting power by pulling the plug on appliances when they are not in use. Efficiency experts argue that today's best techniques could cut US oil and gas use in half, and reduce our electricity use by three-fourths. | high285.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "household air pollution from cooking is surprisingly harmful"
},
"options": [
"factories are the biggest killer worldwide nowadays",
"burning 400 cigarettes an hour is extremely dangerous",
"household air pollution from cooki... | Polluted airborne particles kill 7 million people a year, reports the World Health Organization.
That news may not come as a surprise to anyone who has seen images of chimneys in Beijing, Delhi or Mexico. But those factories-or even the jammed roadways of modern cities-are not the biggest killer. Each year, some 4.3 million people die earlier than they should because of polluted air inside their homes, says the WHO.
What's causing the air inside people's homes to be so poisonous that it kills around 11,000 people a day? Stoves. "Having an open fire in your kitchen is like burning 400 cigarettes an hour." says Kirk Smith, a professor at the University of California at Berkeley, whose research suggests that household air pollution from cooking killed between 3.5 million and 4 million people in 2013.
Not all stoves cause this kind of harm. The ones Smith's talking about are those that the 3 billion people in the developing world use for heat and cooking, which burn solid fuels such as wood, coal, or crop waste instead of gas. The smoke from those fires produces harmful fine particles and carbon monoxide into homes. Poor _ then prevents that smoke from escaping, raising fine particle levels 100 times higher than the limits that the WHO considers acceptable.
Breathing this air day in day out eventually causes a lot of diseases: more than a third of the 4.3 million die of a stroke, while a quarter die of heart disease. And around one-third of annual lung disease deaths worldwide are due to waste from coal stoves.
Exposure tends to be extremely harmful for the people who spend the most time around the fire-usually women and young children. In fact, the WHO reports that household air pollution almost doubles the risk for childhood lung disease. | high13256.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Two years."
},
"options": [
"Three years.",
"Six years.",
"Four years.",
"Two years."
],
"question": "How long does it take to build the Hong Kong Disneyland?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
... | HONG KONG,Sept .12,2005-Hong Kong Disneyland,the 11th theme park of Walt Disney Co.,opened here on Monday morning.Chinese Vice President Zeng Qinghong,Donald T&-mg Yam-kuen,chief executive of Hong Kong-Special Administrative Region(HKSAR),and Tung Chee-hwa,attended the opening.
The Hong Kong Disneyland project, worth 3.5 billion US dollars,was jointly funded by Walt Disney Co.and the HKSAR government.Some 16, 000 people attended the opening.The park estimates that it will attract 5.6 million visitors in its opening year and is expected to draw up to 7.4 million annually after 15 years.About 40 percent of the visitors are expected to come from the mainland,Disney has said.
Walt Disney officials claimed that choosing Hong Kong as the first place of China to build Disneyland bas three major reasons:Hong Kong people are wonderful,Hong Kong is a beautiful city and Hong Kong is the richest city in China*
"Hong Kong Disneyland is the first Disney theme park that,. modeled so c1osrly to the first Disneyland in California,"Jay Rasulo,president of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts,said.Hong Kong Disneyland is smaller than the other parks at only 121 hectaresa fact that Disney tries not to point out.Some of the thousands of guests who got a sneak peak at the park in the past month complained that it was too small,and Disney has plans to expand it.
the project was announced in 1999 and construction began in 2003.Disney, other part are Tokyo,Paris and. the U.S. states of prefix = st1 /Californiaand Florida.
The company confirmed that Disney had been talking to the government in Shanghai about opening a park that wouldn't open until at least 2010. | high22935.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "she refused the training and education during her childhood by her parents"
},
"options": [
"she didn't like living with her parents",
"she was brought up in a very poor family",
"she was often against her parents",
"sh... | Jessica Alba rebelled from her "strict" parents when she was just five. The 29-year-old actress admits her Catholic education made her want to "break away" from her mother Catherine and father Mark.
She explained: "It's always been weird because I grew up in a very traditional, Catholic household. My parents were very strict but I broke away from that at an early age. I was a feminist when I was five. These days, I am much more independent but I still respect their beliefs."
As Jessica has grown older she has learnt to accept her parents' views, but still considers herself an independent woman.
In her latest film 'Machete' Jessica gets to stab a love rival in the eye with her stiletto heels , something she thoroughly enjoyed.
She said: "Walking in 3in heels wasn't as much fun as putting one in someone's eye. It was 104 degrees where we were shooting in Texas and they were not comfortable."
Jessica - who has a two-year-old daughter Honor with husband Cash Warren - is regularly referred to as one of the world's most beautiful women, but she doesn't think of herself as "sexy".
She added in an interview with the Metro newspaper: "I don't really pay attention to that sexy image. It just goes with the character in the movie. At the end of the day, it's all a part of selling a product." | high1077.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "it can make your cold hands warm"
},
"options": [
"it can make your cold hands warm",
"it has been used for many years",
"it was used to treat kinds of illnesses",
"it is regarded as the healthiest drink"
],
"qu... | Winter is coming, and some parts of the world are already covered with deep snow. The best way to warm those cold hands is a cup of hot sweet chocolate. Hot chocolate has been used for many years to treat diseases and fight bad moods. It's known as a special healthy drink from the 16thto 19thcenturies, and sometimes was taken as a medicine. Nowadays people don't consider hot chocolate as a medicine, but drink even more than ever! There are plenty of tasty and healthy hot chocolate recipes you can try to enjoy the following health benefits of drinking hot chocolate.
It improves your brain power
The study shows that drinking hot chocolate can help improve your brain power and your brain health. The flavonoids in hot chocolate increase the blood flow and oxygen to your brain, helping you think better. If you want to improve your memory, try drinking two cups of hot chocolate a day. Not only will you improve your memory, but your mood as well. Just make sure you don't use too much sugar in your hot chocolate.[:Zxxk.Com]
It improves your mood
Chocolate, including hot chocolate, is well-known mood booster. This tasty drink helps fight stress, anxiety, and depression. But the problem is, hot chocolate may contain high amounts of sugar. Consider making sugar-free hot chocolate to get all its mood-improving properties .
It can help you lose weight
If you are trying to drop a few pounds, drinking hot chocolate can help you achieve your weight loss goal. When made correctly, hot chocolate is a delicious and low calorie drink that you can enjoy every time you have chocolate desire. Besides, drinking a cup of low calorie hot chocolate helps prevent the intake of high-calorie and sugar foods like cakes.
Now that you're aware of some of the best health benefits of drinking chocolate, what are you waiting for? Rush into your kitchen and make this fantastic winter drink. | high13530.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Valuable guitar found"
},
"options": [
"Careless guitarist surprised",
"Valuable guitar found",
"Coffeehouse owner rewarded",
"Taxi driver still unknown"
],
"question": "Which of the following would be the best ... | A guitarist was pleasantly surprised to hear from New York City police that his valuable guitar had been found.It disappeared almost a year ago when he got out of a taxi and forgot to take the guitar with him.Laurence Lennon,44,said he was running late that day.He was talking to his manager on his cellphone when he rushed out of the taxi.He said that he gave the driver $60 and told him to keep the change.He walked through the front doors of the concert hall,still talking on the phone to his manager.
Upon discovering his loss,Lennon used his cellphone to call the police.The policewoman asked him for the name of the taxi company,the number of the taxi,and the name of the driver.He said that she must have been joking.
She told Lennon that he could apply for a missing item report online. Lennon asked for address.
It was www.nypd.gov/toprotectandtoserve/haveaniceday.She told him that finding the guitar might take a couple of years for finding guitars was not as important as finding murderers and marijuana smokers.Then she told him to have a nice day.
"This year has been depressing,"said Lennon."I had to put off the recording of two new CDs.I've been using borrowed guitars.And I was losing hope of ever recovering my guitar."
Lennon was reunited with his $100,000 guitar yesterday.The guitar had been discovered in the corner of a coffeehouse only two blocks from where Lennon had lost it.Lennon had offered a $10,000 reward for its return.He said he would give the reward to the coffeehouse owner,who had informed the police. | high6718.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Climb a rope"
},
"options": [
"Lift weights",
"Climb a rope",
"Cycle",
"Have a balanced diet"
],
"question": "According to the passage, what is usually taught in the old gym class?",
"question_type": null
... | Phys ed (physical education) is making a comeback as a part of the school core curriculum ,but with a difference. While group sports are still part of the curriculum, the new way is to teach skills that are useful beyond gym class. Instead of learning how to climb a rope, children are taught to lift weights, balance their diets and build physical endurance . In this way,kids are given the tools and skills and experiences so they can lead a physically active life for the rest of their life.
Considering that 15 percent of American children aged 6 to 18 are overweight, supporters say more money and thought must be put into phys ed curriculum. In many cases, that may mean not just replacing the old gym-class model with fitness programs but also starting up phys ed programs because school boards often "put P.E. on the chopping block , cutting it entirely or decreasing its teachers or the days it is offered," says Alicia Moag-Stahlberg, the executive director of Action for Health Kids. The difference in phys ed programs is partly due to the lack of a national standard. "Physical education needs to be part of the core curriculum," she added.
The wisdom of the new approach has some scientific support. Researchers at the University of Wisconsin have showed how effective the fit-for-life model of gym class can be. They observed how 50 overweight children lost more weight when they cycled and skied cross-country than when they played sports. The researchers also found that teaching sports like football resulted in less overall movement, partly because some reluctant students were able to sit on the bench.
Another problem with simply teaching group sports in gym class is that only a small percentage of students continue playing them after graduating from high school. The new method teaches skills that translate to adulthood. | high15141.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "To let people know more about all the American states."
},
"options": [
"To excite the music talent in ordinary Americans.",
"To record an album of his own music.",
"To let people know more about all the American states.",
... | Most people know that the United States is made up of fifty states. However, few people know a lot about all fifty of them. Sufjan Stevens is a young American musician. He wants to change this situation.
Sufjan Stevens plans to make an album about each of the fifty American states. During college he played in several musical groups and recorded an album of his own music. However, he wanted to be a writer, not a musician. So after college he moved to New York City to study writing.
In New York. Stevens had trouble writing stories. He discovered that he missed music. He also discovered that most of the stories he did write were about his home state of Michigan. So, Sufjan Stevens decided to make an album of songs about Michigan.
Greetings from Michigan: The Great Lakes State was released in 2003. The album was a big success. Many young people and music critics liked it. Before long, Stevens announced that he wanted to make an album for every state. He called it his "fifty states project".
Stevens chose Illinois as his next state. He read many books about Illinois. He studied police documents and old newspapers. He talked to people who live in the state. The CD Illinois was released in 2005. Critics loved the album. It won many awards. Illinois became popular at colleges throughout the United States. People said the CD sounded different from anything else they had ever heard.
Sufjan Stevens is keeping his next state a secret from reporters. People have said that he is writing about Oregon, Rhode Island, or Minnesota. However, no one but Stevens knows for sure. | high8735.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "will be popular again"
},
"options": [
"will be more popular than TV",
"will be popular again",
"started in Wales",
"are in the hands of some old people"
],
"question": "Ambrose believes that the art of storytel... | CARDIFF, Wales Poets, singers and musicians from across the globe gathered in Wales to celebrate the tradition of storytelling.
"It might seem strange that people still want to listen in age of watching television, but this is an unusual art form whose time has come again," said David Ambrose, director of Beyond the Border, an international storytelling festival in Wales.
"Some of the tales, like those the Inuit from Canada, are thousands years old. So our storytellers have come from distant lands to connect us with the distance of time," he said early this month.
Two Inuit women, both in their mid 60s, are among the few remaining who can do Kntadjait, or throat singing, which has few words and much sound. Their art is governed by the cold of their surroundings, forcing them to say little but listen attentively.
Ambrose started the festival in 1993, after several years of working with those reviving (coming back into use or existence) storytelling in Wales.
"It came out of a group of people who wanted to reconnect with traditions. and as all the Welsh are storytellers, it was _ here." Ambrose said. | high7406.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "they bring in great profits"
},
"options": [
"they bring in great profits",
"they require a lot of money to make",
"they are not difficult to produce",
"they attract more viewers than other programs"
],
"questio... | Making an advertisement for television often costs more than a movie. For example, a two - hour movie costs $6 million to make. A TV commercial can cost more than $6 000 a second. And that does not include cost of paying for air time. Which is more valuable, the program or the ad? In terms of money - and making money is what television is all about - the commercial is by far the more important.
Research, market testing, talent, time and money ---- all come together to make us want to buy a product.
No matter how bad we think a commercial is, it works. The sales of Charm went up once the ads began. TV commercials actually buy their way into our head. We, in turn, buy the product.
And the ads work because so much time and attention are given to them. Here are some rules of commercial ad making. If you want to get the low middle - class buyer, make sure the announcer has a though, manly voice. Put some people in the ad who work with their hands. If you want to sell to upper - class audience, make sure that the house, the furniture, and the hair style are the types that the group identifies with. If you want the buyer feel superior to the character selling the product, then make that person so stupid or silly that everyone will feel great about himself or herself.
We laugh at commercials. We don't think we pay that much attention to them. But evidence shows we are kidding ourselves. The making of a commercial that costs so much money is not kid stuff. It's big, big business. And it's telling us what to think , what we need, and what to buy. To put simply, the TV commercial is a form of brainwashing. | high3660.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "To measure teenagers' moral development."
},
"options": [
"To develop teenagers' ability to communicate.",
"To enrich teenagers' awareness of social life.",
"To discuss how to save the life of a friend.",
"To measure te... | A study has found, spending hours playing violent video games prevents teenagers from their moral growth. It is thought that regular touch to violence and lack of contact with the outside world makes it harder for them to tell right from wrong.They also struggle to trust other people,and see the world from their viewpoints.
Researchers from Brock University in Ontario found that those who spend more than three hours each day in front of the screen are particularly unlikely to have developed the ability to empathize .
The Canadian researchers surveyed 109 boys and girls,aged 13 and 14,about whether they played video games,which games they liked,and how long they spent playing them.Their findings found that 88 percent of teens said they played games,and more than half admitted to playing games every day.Violent games were among the most popular.
The teenagers also filled in a questionnaire designed to measure their moral development.For example,they were asked how important it is to save the life of a friend.
Previous studies have suggested that a person's moral judgment goes through four phases as they grow from children and enter adulthood.By the age of 13 or 14,scientists claim young people should be entering the third stage,and be able to empathize with others and take their viewpoints into account.The research found that this stage appeared to be delayed in teenagers who regularly played violent video games.
It is also thought that teenagers who play games regularly did not spend enough time in the real world to learn to take others' thoughts into consideration.Researcher Mirjana Bajovic said:"The present results indicate that some teenagers, who spent three or more hours a day playing violent video games,are deprived of such opportunities." he added:"Touch to violence in video games may influence the development of moral reasoning because violence is not only presented as acceptable but is also justified and rewarded."
They concluded that rather than trying to enforce an 'unrealistic' ban on the games,parents and teachers should encourage teenagers to do charity work and take up after-school activities. | high16448.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "he can enjoy himself in his leisure time"
},
"options": [
"he is out of work",
"whatever he does makes no sense",
"he can enjoy himself in his leisure time",
"he is worried about his writing"
],
"question": "The... | Nowadays more and more people are trapped in too busy work to relax themselves. We have no time to tell a bed-time story to our children, or enjoy a nice dinner with our family, or take a break to think about how we live the precious life, or even meet friends. All we notice is that the distinctions that used to guide and steady us --between Sunday and Monday, public and private, here and there--are gone. We have more ways to communicate, but less and less to say. Partly because we're so busy communicating.
Maybe that's why more and more people I know, even if they have no religious belief, seem to be turning to yoga, or meditation, or tai chi. Some friends of mine try to go on long walks every Sunday, or to "forget" their cell phones at home. A series of tests in recent years has shown that their brains become both calmer and sharper after spending time in quiet rural settings.
In my own case, I often turn to extreme measures to try to keep my sanity and ensure that I have time to do nothing at all. I've not yet used a cell phone and I've never Tweeted or entered Face book. I try not to go online till my day's writing is finished, and I moved from Manhattan to rural Japan.
None of this is a matter of principle or asceticism : it's just pure selfishness. Nothing makes me feel better-----calmer, clearer and happier----than being in one place, absorbed in a book, a conversation, a piece of music. It's actually something deeper than mere happiness: it's joy, which David Steindl-Rast describes as "that kind of happiness that doesn't depend on what happens." That is the highest of the highest we have been longing for--The Joy of Quiet. | high5211.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "get new authors' books read quickly"
},
"options": [
"sell more books",
"make it fun to read",
"invent a new kind of book",
"get new authors' books read quickly"
],
"question": "The main purpose of publishing \"... | "The Book That Can't Wait" is a great new idea that seeks to strengthen bonds between first time writers and their readers by getting their books read quickly.
Argentinean independent publishers Eterna Cadencia are publishing a collection of short stories by new South American authors using special ink that slowly disappears once it comes in contact with sun and air, completely vanishing within 2 months after the book has been opened. This makes for an interesting approach to motivating book buyers to read books more quickly, giving first-time authors the attention they need to survive.
"The Book That Can't Wait" tackles an important problem for new authors: How to get readers. The creative independent publishers teamed up with DRAFTFCB in the city of Buenos Aires to develop this project.
"Books are very patient objects. We buy them, and then they wait for us to read them. Days, months, even years. That's OK for books, but not for new authors. If people don't read their first book, they'll never make it to a second," says the project coordinator Tito Santana.
That's why Etema Cadencia, which also runs its own bookstore, has decided to create something different to launch its new authors into the market. It presented its first "The Book That Can't Wait" for the critics and the press last month. The invention is a success. Hundreds of people came to the bookstore to pick up a copy. To help spread the word, they gave away the first edition to customers for free. The very same day it was released, the publishing house claimed that it received thousands of requests for more copies of the book. So it will print a new edition later this month to satisfy the demand. And the best result? This time they have the guarantee that their new authors will be read. The company plans to use the book as a platform for other titles, because they believe there is a lot of literature out there that doesn't deserve to wait on the shelf. And these books won't wait at all. | high17756.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "feed the fast growing population"
},
"options": [
"feed the fast growing population",
"make the foods much cheaper",
"make the foods much tastier",
"kill pests on the crops"
],
"question": "The chief purpose of ... | The world has a fast growing population and people need more land for houses, factories, highways, and so on. The farmland is decreasing with each passing day. How to meet the need of feeding the growing population? One way is to introduce some high-output gene into a crop to enable it to produce more. Biologists over the years have discovered genes which can raise output of the crops, resist pests, improve taste, etc.
However, in many western countries there is widespread concern over the safety of"Genetically Modified"(GM) foods, because they think there may be serious problems of environment, health, safety, morality and so on.
As a scientist I must admit GM foods involve great risks to humans. In fact in Europe they're called "Frankenstein foods" by many. Frankenstein is a character in a novel. He was a very clever scientist. He created a monster , which eventually killed him.
Soybeans can be made into many foods. However, it's hard to _ . Therefore, it's very important we have to make sure the soybean, if genetically modified, is free from any poisonous matter harmful to human beings. For this we need very good testing. We do have some testing on some animals, but no completely satisfactory testing has ever been made so far. They're entirely new, and their problems are entirely unknown. It takes time to develop persuasive tests to know whether they're harmful to us or not.
We may not be able to tell what may happen if we take GM foods. Some of them may be resistant to antibiotics . Then many of the medicines we have today will have no effect on people eating GM foods.
A more likely case is the GM foods may contain genes some people are allergic to.
GM products have already come into our lives but most people even know nothing about it.
At least we have to be clear about what we are eating. The China Consumers Association is calling for labeling on GM foods so that consumers will know before they buy them. | high10039.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "tell us his strange experiences"
},
"options": [
"tell us his strange experiences",
"tell us what happens in his bedroom",
"tell us an interesting story",
"tell us what happens in his apartment"
],
"question": "... | Back in 2003 I had a pet rabbit named Alaska.Due to the rules the landlord had set,he had to be kept in the basement .One night I went downstairs to feed him.Keep in mind I've always thought the basement was frightening.As I was facing his cage and putting the bowl of water inside,a big shadow appeared behind me,as if a big,tall man were standing behind me.I turned around and nobody was there,but I got the distinct feeling that I was being watched.I basically dropped the water bowl and ran upstairs shouting for my mom.Ever since then I can't go down there alone.
Once I was trying to get to sleep,and I slept with the lights off.All of sudden I wanted to leave the room eagerly,but I couldn't get out of my bed,I was too scared.The feeling of someone looking closely at me was so upset,I was physically afraid to move or breathe.I opened my curtains to let the street light in,thinking the light would help me feel better to move.That did nothing.I must have sat there on my bed for about fifteen minutes before I got up.I didn't sleep in there that night.I've never felt anything so upset!
Then there are all the little things,like seeing things in the comer of my eye,hearing doors open or close when I'm home alone,and the feeling of being watched.Once when my sister wasn't home(we share a room)I heard someone breathing from her bed and heard the sheets rustle .Last week,I felt someone patting me in the shoulder when I was alone in my room.Sometimes I'll be looking something and I'll see one or more contorted ,angry faces.
I realize that when one is looking for something to happen they can make things happen or imagine it.These are the moments in which I know nothing was imagined,so I wanted to share them and get your opinions.Thanks so much. | high11333.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "a long dress"
},
"options": [
"a long dress",
"a cocktail dress",
"a short dress",
"a dark suit"
],
"question": "If a lady receives an invitation marked with \"formal\", she should wear",
"question_type": "f... | If you are invited to a party by the Austrians and the suggested dress is "informal " (usually marked in the lower left-hand coner of the invitation) , it may mean dark suit and a white shirt for men and cocktail dress( ) for women. Or again, may mean something considerably less formal. "Formal" means a black tie and evening dress for men and a floor-length dress for women. If a man is in doubt about what to wear, he may come slightly overdressed and then take his coat and tie off when he sees that others are wearing sports shirts. National dress is always acceptable. | high3674.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Advertisers perform a useful service to communities."
},
"options": [
"Advertisements create mass markets for all products.",
"Advertisers perform a useful service to communities.",
"The criticisms for advertisements.",
... | Advertisers tend to think big and perhaps this is why they're always coming in for criticism. Their critics seem to resent them because they have a gift for self-promotion and because they have so much money to throw around. " It's unfair," they say, " that this entirely unproductive industry (if we can call it that) should absorb millions of pounds each year. It only goes to show how much profit the big companies are making. Why don't they stop advertising and reduce the price of their goods? After all, it's the consumer who pays."
The poor old consumer! He'd have to pay a great deal more if advertising didn't create mass markets for products. It is precisely because of the heavy advertising that consumer goods are so cheap. But we get the wrong idea that the only purpose of advertising is to sell goods. Another equally important function is to inform. A great deal of the knowledge we have about household goods comes largely from the advertisements we read.
Advertisements introduce us to new products or remind us of the existence of ones we already know about. Supposing you wanted to buy a washing machine, it is more likely that you would obtain details about performance, price, etc., from an advertisement.
Lots of people pretend that they never read advertisements, but this claim may be seriously doubted. It is hardly possible not to read advertisements these days. And what fun they often are, too! Just think what a railway station or a newspaper would be like without advertisements. Would you enjoy gazing at a blank wall or reading only closely-printed columns of news in your daily paper? A cheerful, witty advertisement makes such a difference to a dull wall or a newspaper full of the daily amount of great disasters.
We must not forget, either, that advertising makes a positive contribution to our pockets. Newspapers, commercial radio and television companies could not survive without this source of income. The fact that we pay so little for our daily paper, or can enjoy so many broadcast programs is due entirely to the money spent by advertisers. Just think what a newspaper would cost if we had to pay its full price!
Another thing we mustn't forget is the "small ads", which are virtually in every newspaper and magazine. What a tremendously useful service they perform for the community! Just about anything can be accomplished through these columns! For instance, you can find a job, buy or sell a house, announce a birth, marriage or death in what used to be called the "hatch, match and dispatch" column but so far the most fascinating section is the personal or "agony" column. No other item in a newspaper provides such entertaining reading or offers such a deep insight into human nature. It's the best advertisement for advertising there is. | high18471.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Kimchi is a cultural treasure for Koreans."
},
"options": [
"Kimchi contains something that can kill the H5N1 virus.",
"Kimchi is rated as the healthiest food in the world.",
"Kimchi is a cultural treasure for Koreans.",
... | Anyone for kimchi ? Around 2,000 women made the traditional dish last week in Seoul, the capital of the Republic of Korea(ROK).
More than 270 tons of kimchi were produced and handed out to needy neighbours.
In the ROK, kimchi is more than a dish to be eaten with every meal, even though Koreans are said to eat about 40 pounds(around 18kg) of kimchi per person each year.
According to Korean.net, the country's official multilingual website, kimchi represents
"the spirit" of the Koreans.
Kimchi traditionally has a rosy color. Korea.net says: "The color red wards off evil spirits. The color represents the spirit of the Korean people and kimchi is more than just a food. It's a culture."
A meal without kimchi is unthinkable. So what is kimchi?
Joan Raymond, food writer for US website health.com, writes: "It's a reddish, fermented cabbage dish , made with a mix of garlic salt, vinegar, chili peppers and other spices.
It is served at every meal, either along with or mixed with rice and noodles. It is part of a high-fiber, low fat diet, which has _ ."
Kimchi is used in everything from soups to pancakes and as a topping on pizza and burgers.
Health.com named kimchi in its list of the world's top five healthiest foods as it is rich in vitamins, aids digestion and may even reduce the risk of cancer.
A study conducted by Seoul National University claimed that chickens infected with the H5N1 virus (bird flu) recovered after eating food containing the same bacteria found in kimchi.
When Koreans pose for photos, they say "kimchi", instead of "cheese". | high5205.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "its safety"
},
"options": [
"its appearance",
"its size",
"its color1",
"its safety"
],
"question": "After borrowing the suitcase, the author was worried about _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
}... | My friend Kathy and I were going to Colorado Springs for holiday. The only problem was, I didn't have any luggage to pack my belongings in.
My friend Debbie offered to lend me a suitcase that belonged to her father, who had passed away long ago. "I don't know if you'll want to use it," she said so gently, "it's very old, worn out, and such an ugly yellow color1." I was so touched by her offer to lend something that belonged to her father, but I was also concerned about the possibility of it being damaged or lost. She insisted that I take it. So with the suitcase safely in hand, I boarded the train with Kathy.
We spent two days and one night on the train, sleeping in our seats. As we slept, we were awakened at times, by the noises of the train pulling in and out of the stations.
The next morning we eagerly awaited the announcement: Next stop, Colorado Springs. But suddenly, there came another announcement over the loud speaker. "During one of the overnight stops, many pieces of luggage were mistakenly removed from the train and left at the wrong location."
Kathy and I just looked at each other, as I felt the disappointment swell. Could my worst fear be coming true, was Debbie's suitcase lost?
Just then two train conductors passed our seats. One of them jokingly said to the other, "Did you ever see such an old, ugly, brighter yellow, piece of luggage in all of your life?"
Before the other conductor could answer, I screamed, "YES, MY SUITCASE MADE IT!"
The two conductors stopped in their tracks! and, very red in the face, couldn't seem to apologize enough for having insulted my suitcase.
When I returned it, I couldn't wait to get the suitcase back into Debbie's safe hands. She asked, "Did everything go well on the trip?" Somehow, I just couldn't resist telling her what had happened. She laughed heartily.
When I recall the golden suitcase, I'm reminded, that like the suitcase, we can see ourselves as too old, useless, worn out, and of little value. Or, we can take a closer look and realize that we are one of God's most valued creations -- unique, and holding inside our most valuable possessions -- that of love, faith, hope, and wisdom. | high17742.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "a legal document issued by a country to permit a foreigner to travel to the country and request to enter"
},
"options": [
"something that permits a foreign citizen to travel to the USA",
"a legal document issued by the USgovernment... | Every foreign student who has been accepted to study in this country must have a legal document called a visa from the prefix = st1 /United Statesgovernment. A visa permits a foreign citizen to travel to theUnited Statesand request permission to enter the country. The rules for getting a visa can be found on the State Department Web site. The address is unitedstatesvisas. gov. Unitedstatesvisas is all one word. Another State Department Web site for students from other countries is educationusa. gov.
If you are requesting a visa for the first time, you may have to appear at the American Embassy in your country to talk to an official. Each student should communicate with the Embassy to find out if such an interview is needed and when it can take place.
It is important to apply for the visa early. State Department officials say national security is the most important issue in deciding if a person will be permitted to enter the United States. Officials must find out if a student is on any list of people with possible links to terrorists.
Embassies can not issue a visa more than ninety days before the start of the educational program in the United States. If you are a student studying in theUnited Statesfor the first time, you will not be permitted to enter the country more than thirty days before the start of your classes.
Foreign students accepted at an American school will receive a document called a Certificate of Eligibility. The State Department says each student must enter the country using the certificate provided by the school he or she will be attending. It is a violation of the law to enter the country on one school's certificate but attend another school.
You are permitted to stay in the United Stateson a student visa for the length of your period of study. That means you can stay as long as you are a full-time student. Your college or university will provide the government with reports about your education as long as you continue to study there. We will have more information about that next week. | high22921.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "they wanted to experience more in their lives."
},
"options": [
"their children wanted to make friends of all nationalities.",
"they wanted to experience more in their lives.",
"their children wanted completed freedom.",
... | Phillida Eves and her husband Tedd Hamilton weren't unhappy living in the Galway countryside with their sons, Cian and Oisin, and their daughter, Soracha. "We had a lovely home , a car, lots of friends, and weekends sailing our boat", says Phillida. "But there's a line from a poem that goes: 'Tell me, what is it you plan to do with your one wild and precious life?' That says it all for me. We felt that there was more to life."
So they quit their jobs, took their sons, then aged six and nine, out of school and went to southern Spain where they bought a 15-meter yacht and headed up the coast to Barcelona. Soracah was not even three. And they brought along Poppy, the family dog. Now, two and a half years and 10,000 km later, they don't intend to stop. Tedd is a yacht engineer and can find work in ports. But, says Phillida, a supply teacher , "Any family could do this".
The children are home-schooled using a correspondence course . My son had a recent project on the weather. The weather is vital to us. My son knows more than most adults about weather systems, compasses, maps and directions. The weather, for him, means life or death.
Other subjects have become equally vivid. "They're living geography and history all the time. We've sailed round Italy, Sardinia, Sicily, and seen tiny islands we didn't know. The kids learned about ancient Romans by visiting Rome. One summer off the Italian coast we sailed past a volcano at 2am. We woke the kids. There it was, under the moon, with fire coming out the top--you don't get that in a textbook."
But what about social development? Again, Phillida is _ . "The children have become much more socially confident since we set out. They play with tones of families of all nationalities on other boats we meet."
Living for the moment, they believe, is a huge life lesson. "Our children never say they're bored." The other day they stopped mid-ocean and the kids swam, 110km from land. "That's the kind of freedom we want for them," says Phillida. "That's the kind of freedom they've got." | high13524.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "He wet his gloves by rubbing them across his T-shirt."
},
"options": [
"He refused to continue the game.",
"He angrily hit the referee with a ball.",
"He insisted that the referee was unfair.",
"He wet his gloves by rub... | "Tear them apart!" "Kill the fool!" "Murder the referee !"
These are common remarks one may hear at various sporting events. At the time they are made,they may seem innocent(,) enough. But let's not kid ourselves.They have been known to influence behavior in such a way as to lead to real violence. Books have been written about the way words affect us. It has been shown that words having certain meanings may cause us to react in ways quite foreign to what we consider to be our usual behavior. I see the term "opponent" as one of those words. Perhaps the time has come to delete it from sports terms.
The dictionary meaning of the term "opponent" is "enemy", or "one who opposes your interests." Thus, when a player meets an opponent, he or she may tend to treat that opponent as an enemy. I remember an incident in a handball game when a referee refused a player's request for a time out for a glove change because he did not consider them wet enough. The player went away to rub his gloves across his wet T-shirt and then screamed, "Are they wet enough now?"
In the heat of battle, players have been observed to throw themselves across the court without considering the effect that such a move might have on anyone in their way. I have also witnessed a player reacting to his opponent's intentional and illegal blocking by hitting him with the ball as hard as he could during the course of play. Off the court, they are good friends. Does that make any sense? It certainly gives proof of a court attitude which differs from normal behavior.
Therefore, I believe it is time we elevated the game to the level where it belongs, setting an example to the rest of the sporting world. Replacing the term "opponent" with "associate" could be a good way to start.
The dictionary meaning of the term "associate" is "friend" or "companion." You may soon see and possibly feel the difference in your reaction to the term "associate" rather than "opponent". | high8721.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "temperature changes"
},
"options": [
"floods",
"fronts",
"temperature changes",
"frosts"
],
"question": "One characteristic of weather maps NOT mentioned by the author in this passage is _ .",
"question_ty... | A weather map is an important tool for geographers. A succession of three or four maps presents continuous picture of weather changes. Weather forecasters are able to determine the speed of air masses and fronts to determine whether an individual pressure aroa is deepening or becoming shallow and whether a front is increasing or decreasing in intensity .They are also able to determine whether an air mass is retaining its original characteristics or taking on those of the surface over which it is moving. Thus, a most significant function of the map is to reveal a summary picture of conditions in the atmosphere at a given time.
All students of geography should be able to interpret a weather map accurately.Weather maps contain an enormous amount of information about weather conditions existing at the time of observation over a large geographical area. They reveal in a few minutes what otherwise would take hours to describe. The United States Weather Bureau issues information about approaching storms, floods, frosts and all climatic conditions in general. Twice a month it issues a 30-day"outlook" which is a rough guide to weather conditions likely to occur over broad areas of the United States. These 30-day outlooks are based upon an anaiysis of the upper air levels which often set the stage for development of air masses, fronts and storms.
Considerable effort is being exerted today to achieve more accurate weather
predictions, with identifying and tracking storms over regions which have but few meteorological stations. Extensive experiments are also in progress for weathef modification studies. | high15155.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "A punctual person does everything at the right time while an unpunctual person seldom does anything at the correct time."
},
"options": [
"A punctual person does everything ahead of time while an unpunctual person does everything behind ... | A punctual person is in the habit of doing a thing at the proper time and is never late in keeping an appointment.
The unpunctual man, on one hand, never does what he has to do at the proper time. He is always in a hurry and in the end loses both time and his good name. A lost thing may be found again, but lost time can never be regained. Time is more valuable than material things. In fact, time is life itself. The unpunctual man is for ever wasting and mismanaging his most valuable asset as well as other's. The unpunctual person is always complaining that he finds no time to answer letters, or return calls or keep appointments promptly. But the man who really has a great deal to do is very careful of his time and seldom complains of want of it. He knows that he can not get through his huge amount of work unless he faithfully keeps every piece of work when it has to be attended to.
Failure to be punctual in keeping one's appointments is the sign of disrespect towards others. If a person is invited to dinner and arrives later than the appointed time, he keeps all the other guests waiting for him. Usually this will be regarded as a great disrespect to the host and all other guests present.
Unpunctuality, moreover, is very harmful when it comes to do one's duty, whether public or private. Imagine how it would be if those who are put in charge of important tasks failed to be at their proper place at the appointed time. A man who is known to be habitually unpunctual is never trusted by his friends or fellow men. | high7412.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "The experience"
},
"options": [
"The police",
"The experience",
"Segaran",
"The visited friend"
],
"question": "_ taught the author never to carry a passenger on a bicycle again.",
"question_type": "cloze_... | Carrying a passenger on a bicycle is an offence punishable by law. Everyone knows that but still some of us do it.
I had done it many times before until something happened to teach me never to do it again. It was not the police. Rather it was an unforgettable, and unpleasant, experience.
It happened one evening when my friend Segaran and I wanted to go and visit another friend who lived some distance away. I had a bicycle. Segaran did not. So, as usual, he sat side-saddle on the horizontal bar of the bicycle while I pedalled. We had done it many times before, so it should not be any problem.
Near my friend's house, we got onto a gravel path made slippery by the recent rain. Still we managed to move along, thoroughly enjoying the rough ride.
As we passed by a stream, I made the mistake of going too near the bank. The rain had softened the soil and it could not hold our combined weight. One moment we were going along merrily, the next we were tumbling head over heels into the stream.
Splash! Splash! Splash! We plunged into the river bicycle first, followed by Segaran, then me. Normally the stream is only a few centimetres deep with clear water. When we fell in, it was a metre deep with smelly black water. The water prevented us from getting badly injured but we also had to pay the price of swallowing some of it. It tasted horrible. Segaran got the worst of it for being sandwiched between the bicycle and me. Our pride was far more hurt.
We walked all the way home. I had to push the bicycle because its front wheel was bent out of shape. From that moment I promised never to carry anyone on a bicycle again. | high8047.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "1et us understand old people better"
},
"options": [
"make the users more comfortable",
"1et us understand old people better",
"help old people move more quickly",
"produce new tools for the old-age business"
],
... | You've heard of the fat suit and the pregnancy suit;now meet AGNES--the old person suit.
AGNES stands for "Age Gain Now Empathy System" and was designed by researchers at MIT's AgeLab to let you know what it feels like--physically--to be 75 years old."The business of old age demands new tools,"said Joseph Coughlin,director of the AgeLab."While focus groups and observations and surveys can help you understand what the older consumer needs and wants,young marketers never get that'Ah ha!'moment of having difficulty opening a jar, or getting in and out of a car.That's what AGNES provides."
Coughlin and his team carefully adjusted the suit to make the wearer just as uncomfortable as an old person who has spent a lifetime eating poorly and not doing much exercise.Special shoes provide a feeling of imbalance,while braces on the knees and elbows limit joint mobility.Gloves give the feeling of decreased strength and mobility in the hands and wrists,and earplugs make it difficult to hear high--pitched sounds and soft tones.A helmet with straps attached to it presses the spine ,and more straps attached to the shoes decrease hamstring flexibility, and shortens the wearer's step.
AGNES has been used most recently by a group of students working on a design of
.By wearing the suit they could see for themselves what design and materials would make the most sense for a physically limited older person.Coughlin said the suit has also been used by clothing companies,car companies and retail goods companies to help them understand the limitations of an older consumer.
"AGNES is not the destiny of everybody," he said."She is a badly behaved lady who didn't eat and exercise very well.A secondary benefit we've found with AGNES is that it has become a powerful tool to get younger people to invest in their long-term health." | high15633.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "the whites would vote for a black mayor"
},
"options": [
"the whites would vote for a black mayor",
"a black mayor would be elected in such a large city",
"a black from a poor farmer's family could be elected mayor of Los Ang... | On May 29, 1973, Thomas Bradley, a black man, was elected mayor of Los Angeles. Los Angeles is the third largest city in the United States, with a population of three million. About sixteen percent of the city's population are black.
News of this election appeared on the front pages of newspapers everywhere in the United States. Here is how one major newspaper reported the event:
LOS ANGELES ELECTS BRADLEY MAYOR UNSEATING YORTYBLACK WINS 56% OF VOTES
Bradley called his victory over Yorty "the fulfillment of a dream". During his childhood and youth, people had kept telling him, "You can't do this, you can't go there, because you are a Negro." Nevertheless he had won a decisive victory over a man who had been won 43.7 percent.
Los Angeles voters have had many opportunities to judge. Thomas Bradley had to form an opinion of him. The son of a poor farmer Texas, he joined the Los Angeles police force in 1940. During his twenty-one years on the police force he earned a law degree by attending school at night. He was elected to the city council ten years ago.
At the time of the Los Angeles election, three other American cities already had black mayors, but none of those cities had as large a population as Los Angeles. Besides, the percentage of blacks in those other cities was much larger. Cleveland, Ohio, had thirty-six percent black when Carl Stokes was elected mayor of Cleveland in 1967. In the same year Richard Hatcher was elected mayor of Cary. In Newark, New Jersey, sixty percent of the population were black when Kenneth Gibson was elected in 1970. Thus election of a black mayor in those cities was not very surprising.
In Los Angeles thousands of white citizens voted for Thomas Bradley because they believed he would be a better mayor than the white candidate . Bradley had spent forty-eight of his fifty-five years in Los Angeles. Four years ago Bradley lost mayoral election to Yorty. This time Bradley won. | high7374.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "A christmas tree gives hope for a miracle"
},
"options": [
"A christmas tree gives hope for a miracle",
"Friends' help means a lot",
"A Christmas tree for a hospital",
"The best hope of Suzy Jordan"
],
"question... | Theangelshavefinallybeenconnectedtogether andthebowshaveallbeencarefully fixed across the branches.After three months of hard work, 16-year-old Suzy Jordan's tree is finally appearing at the yearly Festival of Trees in honor of her best friend, Emily Austin.
"All that's needed now is a real angel,"says Suzy,"to help 13-year-old Emily recover from a recent bone marrow transplant and finally remove the leukemia "
"Emily is the strongest person I know.There's always such brightness about her,"says Suzy,a student ar Orem High School.
Last year,when Emily's cancer was _ ,she helped Suzy and other students decorate a red-and-white Christmas tree for Primary Children's Medical Center at the Festival of Trees.
"It was so much fun for her,"says Emily's mother, Laurie,"she's seen the inside of the hospital more than a school since she was 5".
But the good conditions didn't last long.In August, Suzy learned that her friend's leukemia returned, becoming worse.And she knew exactly what to do show her support.
"Emily was so excited about helping out with the festival tree last year that I decided to surprise her by giving away a tree of my own,"she says.
Because of being in hospital, Emily won't be able to see the tree."But I'm taking pictures to surprise her,"says Suzy."I want her to know that she'll always be an angel to me."
Suzy's tree has given Emily's family hope for a miracle ."It has given Emily hope that she has a chance to be a normal girl and do all the things other girls do,"says Laurie Austin.
Suzy's greatest hope is that she'll be able to give away more trees to the festival, with one big difference."The best wish of all,"she says,"is that Emily will be there with me, putting on the decoration." | high9359.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "they found their soul mates in cities"
},
"options": [
"they don't like to live in the rural Kansas",
"there are not many girls in the rural Kansas",
"they found their soul mates in cities",
"the life in rural Kansas is... | Many rural areas in the United States have no doctor. Some medical schools are trying different ways to treat the problem . One idea is to educate doctors in smaller communities and hope they stay. Dr. William Cathcart-Rake heads a new program at the University of Kansas in the Midwest.
"We need more doctors. There's somewhere like a quarter of all of our physicians in Kansas who are sixty years of age or older. So we need to be replacing physicians, too."Says Dr. William Cathcart. He also says medical students from rural areas now typically study in Wichita or Kansas City, two of the biggest cities in Kansas. They say, "You know, I really have every intention of coming back to rural Kansas,"but they meet a soul mate, they get married, their soul mate happens to be from a big city and we never see them again. They get captured in the big city. Hopefully, if we train them in smaller communities, they can meet the future _ here , they can network here, and they have those connections which can hopefully be lifelong.
The program is based in Kansas' tenth largest city , Salina, home to about fifty thousand people. Salina is about a three-hour drive from Kansas City, past fields of corn, soybeans and cattle.
Student Claire Hinrichsen grew up in a town of about six hundred people. She attended the University of Kansas, or KU, as an undergraduate. One reason why the chose the Salina program is because of the size. There are only eight students--the smallest medical school in the country. Classes are taught by professors in Salina or on a video link from Kansas City or Wichita.
Students who complete the four year program will then do their residency training in a small community in the surrounding area. One place a resident might work is the Clay Center Clinic, where Dr. Kerry Murphy is a family physician.
Rural doctors generally serve older, poorer patients. Going into a specialty in a big city can mean better working hours and more money to pay off student loans.
The Salina program will pay tuition for each year that students practice in a rural area in Kansas. | high291.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Four."
},
"options": [
"Three.",
"Four.",
"Five.",
"Six."
],
"question": "How many main advantages of the Internet are talked about in the_passage?",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer":... | In the early 1990s,the word" Internet" was strange to most people. But today, Internet has become a useful tool for people all over the world. Maybe Internet has been the greatest invention in the field of communication in the history of mankind .
Communicating with others on the Internet is much faster. We can chat with a person who is sitting in the other part of the world. We can e-mail our friends and they can read the e-mails within a minute. Giving all kinds of information is probably the biggest advantage of the Internet. We can use search engines to find the information we need. Just type in a keyword or keywords and the search engine will give us a list of suitable websites to look at.
We can enjoy a lot on the Internet by downloading games, visiting chat rooms or surfing websites. There are some games for free. We can meet new and interesting people in the chat now. We can also listen to music and see films.
Now ,there is a lot of service on the Internet such as online banking ,job finding and ticket buying. We can also do shopping and find nearly all kinds of goods. Sometimes we can find something that is quite good but very cheap. | high1705.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Pets may not follow orders."
},
"options": [
"Pets may not follow orders.",
"Pets don't want to be bothered.",
"Pets may not like photographers.",
"Pets seldom change their expressions."
],
"question": "Why do s... | Animals are a favorite subject of many photographers. Cats, dogs, and other pets top the list, followed by zoo animals. However, because it's hard to get them to sit still and "perform on command," some professional photographers refuse to photograph pets.
One way to get an appealing portrait of a cat or dog is to hold a biscuit or treat above the camera. The animal's longing look toward the food will be captured by the camera, but the treat won't appear in the picture because it's out of the camera's range. When you show the picture to your friends afterwards, they'll be impressed by your pet's loving expression.
If you are using fast film, you can take some good, quick shots of a pet by simply snapping a picture right after calling its name. You'll get a different expression from your pet using this technique. Depending on your pet's mood, the picture will capture an interested, curious expression or possibly a look of annoyance, especially if you've awakened it from a nap.
Taking pictures of zoo animals requires a little more patience. After all, you can't wake up a lion! You may have to wait for a while until the animal does something interesting or moves into a position for you to get a good shot. When photographing zoo animals, don't get too close to the cages, and never tap on the glass or throw things between the bars of a cage. Concentrate on shooting some good pictures, and always respect the animals you are photographing. | high18317.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "He has as many as 5 billions fans in China."
},
"options": [
"He played in the Beijing Olympic opening ceremony last summer.",
"He has as many as 5 billions fans in China.",
"He is the first Chinese pianist to play with the w... | He is talent and charm have made him the No.1 Chinese classical artist in the world. He played in the grand Beijing Olympic opening ceremony last summer, watched by a TV audience of 5 billion.
Lang Lang, 26, is the first Chinese pianist to play with the world's top orchestras, making his _ at the Carnegie Hall in New York at 18, while still a student.
Lang Lang's charm and fondness for sharp clothes make him a natural fit to represent China's new international image. According to the British newspaper the Times, "The Lang Lang effect" is responsible for driving 36 million Chinese children to learn the piano.
Now in China children are learning Chopin and Western orchestras are touring Chinese cities, but can China ever export its own music to the west? Lang is trying. His cooperation with the London Symphony Orchestras this month includes a performance of Dragon Songs, an album of traditional Chinese classics.
Behind the international recognition, however, is a fascinating story of a gifted child. Lang grew up with his father's own musical ambition and high expectations. It is not hard to imagine how boring it must be to practice the piano every day. Lang said that he once hated his hands and the piano. He injured his right hand six years ago and had to rest. "That was the best month," he says, without hesitation. "I had a date. I saw a Broadway show and saw Britney Spears in concert." | high5563.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "There are no imposing doors and concrete walls in her new school."
},
"options": [
"There are no imposing doors and concrete walls in her new school.",
"The author's old classroom is a trailer.",
"The author's new school is a... | It was a very different school from those in China. You're not met by imposing doors and concrete walls, and the buildings were inviting. On the front of the main building was inscribed "Lee Elementary School, 1904." Wow! I knew it was an old school. Surrounding the main building were five trailers . One of them was my classroom, 5T. The "T" stood for Mrs. Toalson, my 5th grade teacher.
Mrs Toalson showed me to my seat. A girl sitting at my table greeted me. Her name was Regina, and she was a blonde girl from Ukraine. Her eyes were like diamonds, and we had met at a party two days before.
During my first morning, we had math class, PE and science. We didn't even have a break! I wondered why? Mrs Toalson said to us: "Guys, line up for the bathroom break please!" All the kids stood up and went outside.
I didn't know what "bathroom break" meant. Was it break time? Lunch time? I was confused. Nevertheless, we followed Mrs. Toalson to the main building. We sat in the hallway across from the bathroom. In Chinese, "bathroom" means the WC, and a "break" means having a rest! Gosh, I thought that was weird and why did we have to go to the bathroom together?
"Mary and Regina, you may go." When we heard Mrs. Toalson, we went into the bathroom. The bathroom was clean, and it smelled like perfume. I asked Regina what if someone wanted to go to the bathroom during class time. She told me that there was a special pass called a "bathroom pass." All you had to do was raise your hand with the pass to let Mrs. Toalson know you need to go to the bathroom. Then you would be permitted to go.
At 3:30pm, school ended for the day. Students put their textbooks in their cabinets and lined up in front of the change room, where they collected their backpacks and coats. As they walked out of the door, each student said "Good bye" and gave Mrs. Toalson a high five.
"Did you have a good day today?" Mrs. Toalson asked me as she hugged me goodbye.
"Sure!" I nodded. | high20688.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Arabs in America."
},
"options": [
"Arabs in America.",
"The Two Arab Immigration Waves to America.",
"Arab-Americans,Contributions to America.",
"Arab-Americans,Education and Income."
],
"question": "What would... | For many in the United States,Arab-Americans are an invisible part of the population.Though Arab-Americans as a community have made great contributions to American society in fields from literature to politics to medicine,many Americans know very little about Americans of Arab backgrounds.
Arab history in the United States goes back to the late 1800's when large numbers of Arab immigrants first began making their journey to a land known simply as"Amreeka".
Historians generally describe Arab immigration to America in two waves.The first wave took place between 1860 and 1924.The first wave consisted of Lebanese and Syrian,and some Egyptian immigrants.These new immigrants,who were mostly Christian,came to America in search of better opportunities.Even the doomed Titanic,which set sail for America in 1912,had close to a hundred Arab passengers aboard.The majority of Arab-Americans today are descendents of the first wave of immigrants;they are the third or more generation Americans.
The second wave of immigrants followed after World War II,caused by political unrest in the Middle East.This second wave of immigrants consists of mainly Arab Muslims and continues to this day.
Arab-Americans make up 3 million of the population in the United States,according to demographers.And quite different from popular belief,64 percent of them are American-born.Eighty-two percent of Arab-Americans are US citizens.
Arab-Americans are beyond the national average in both education and income.Education is important among Arab-Americans;82 percent have high school diplomas,36 percent have bachelor's degrees or higher,and 15 percent have graduate degrees.The-median average income among Arab-Americans is $39 580,which is higher than the US average. | high10993.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "give a hand to those in need of help"
},
"options": [
"ask for help from his neighbors",
"give a hand to those in need of help",
"require his neighbors to clear the snow",
"raise money for the old people in his communit... | Last Sunday, as soon as I walked into the house in the afternoon, my little brother placed a bunch of papers in my hands and asked me to fold them up so they could fit into an envelope as quickly as possible. He said it needed to get done quickly before it turned dark.
After I read what was on the papers, I smiled. It was a lovely letter to all the residents in my neighborhood. My brother was asking everyone to let him know if anyone needed help. He left his contact information and said that anyone that needed help should get in touch with him and he would try to help. He also asked people to get in touch if they were able to help out.
London received an unusual amount of snow last week, and the city was not prepared for it at all. So it was quite difficult to get anywhere. The major roads had been cleared, but the smaller roads and pavements hadn't, so they could be quite _ . There are a large number of old people in our little community. So my brother thought that the snow may have caused some difficulty for some of them, particularly because we live on a hill.
A few elderly people got in touch with him asking for help for things they needed. One of them was especially grateful because his caregiver couldn't make it. To our surprise, he got more responses from people offering to help. Then he received help from people who wanted to help. Everyone was really touched and wrote to my brother wonderful emails. One of our neighbors wrote an email saying that although she wasn't able to help, she was "very proud of having a neighbor like him who puts other people's interests first." | high21596.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "She was competitive."
},
"options": [
"She was brave.",
"She was competitive.",
"She was strong.",
"She was disabled."
],
"question": "What made Jean take part in sports?",
"question_type": "factiod_question... | Jean Driscoll can go faster in her wheelchair than the world's best marathoners can run!
In April, Jean finished the Boston Marathon in 1 hour 34 minutes 22 seconds. That's about 33 minutes faster than the winning male runner! She competed on the track, too. She was second in the 800 meter wheelchair race at the 1992 Olympics.
Jean doesn't like to be told she's brave. "I'm in sports because I'm a competitive person!" Jean was born with spina befida , a birth illness that damages the spine . She began to use a wheelchair to get around in high school. Then she tried wheelchair race and was amazed." Players crashed into each other and fell out of their chairs," she says, "It was fun."
Jean tried other wheelchair sports. At the University of Illinois, her wheelchair basketball team won two national titles.
Now Jean _ and teaches. She tries to get people to set goals. "When I sign my autograph , says Jean, "I write, dream big and work hard." | high11455.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Danger of Harmful Waste to Mankind"
},
"options": [
"Measures of Reducing Dangerous Waste",
"Danger of Harmful Waste to Mankind",
"Dangerous Waste and Water Pollution",
"Environmental Protection"
],
"question": ... | Besides giving off gases and dusts into the air, humans produce waste that is poured on the environment. Often, this waste produced by major industries and people is harmful to both nature and human life.
One of the main causes of the large amount of dangerous waste is that people do not realize how large a problem it is. Because it can be simply removed and sent to a landfill ,the problem is often believed to end there. In addition, industries have often shown an unwillingness to find ways to deal with dangerous waste because of the related expenses. Many industries and governments build simple landfills to store waste, and often just pour waste chemicals into nearby bodies of water. Often, chemicals used for industrial production cause dangerous forms of waste.The amount of these chemicals has increased greatly in the past, but it is often difficult and expensive to get rid of these chemicals or to store them in a way safe to human life and the environment.
Every year, major health problems result from dangerous waste. Sadly, it is often only after someone has died or become seriously ill that governments will take measures to reduce levels of harmful waste.
Some governments have realized how serious the dangerous waste problem is and are now trying to settle this problem. They are also trying to limit the amount of waste industries are allowed to produce.
Not only governments but ordinary people as well must work together to solve the problem. They can choose not to buy those products which require the production of dangerous waste, and produce less harmful waste themselves. Many scientists think that waste production can be cut. The waste can be reduced by at least one third using existing technologies and methods. | high3112.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Tui Na can bring back not only physical health but also emotional health."
},
"options": [
"Tui Na is a whole-body treatment and can't be divided into different parts.",
"Tui Na can be used to balance the diseases before they can d... | 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. | high4696.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Receiving vaccines will be effective to protect against it."
},
"options": [
"In fact it is not a kind of influenza virus.",
"It is quite possible to predict it in theory.",
"Old people are more likely to contract it than kid... | There is a joke among flu researchers: "If you've seen one flu season, you've seen one flu season." The joke is about the unpredictable nature of the flu virus. Every year it looks different, and everystrain follows its own pattern -- it's the reason why new strains like H1N1 are extremely difficult to predict.
Dr. Michael Osterholm is a former adviser to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. "I know less about influenza today than I did 10 years ago," he says in a joking way. "Every stone we've turned over, we get more questions."
The flu rectums every season and the world experiences terriblepandemics , but researchers still do not understand why some strains infect people and others do not; they are not entirely sure about how the flu is transmitted; nor do they understand why some patients become seriously ill while others develop mildsymptoms . As a result, when a new strain shows up -- like H1N1 -- they often have little information to _ , and the lessons of previous pandemics are only somewhat helpful. While researchers are still putting together a complete picture of H1N1, for example, its most striking difference with the seasonal flu is that the elder1y are not the mostvulnerable population.
Influenza's unpredictable nature makes it a moving target for researchers, says researcher Allison Aiello at the University of Michigan. "Even if we had complete seasonal flu data from the past, it wouldn't be much helpful for a new strain of influenza," she explains.
Whi1e researchers are frustrated by the holes in their knowledge, they say, however, that the pub1ic--health community is generally doing a very good job responding to H1N1 with seasonal flu data that do exist. Studying influenza, says Osterholm, is "like looking through the windows of a house you can't get into because the door is locked." Gathering the data researchers do have is like "looking through the windows to get a pretty good picture of what the inside looks like."
One thing researchers do know for sure: the best way for people to protect against H1N1 is to get the vaccine once it becomes available to them. | high10978.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "The places that the horrible disasters struck."
},
"options": [
"Some countries where he could set up clinics.",
"Some African countries where flu broke out.",
"The places where the earthquakes happened.",
"The places t... | My wife passed away a few years ago, and I went through the worst time in my life. I even wanted to kill myself. Just for kids, I had to continue to live and work as small-town doctor at my medical clinic in Hawaii. My kids had gone to live on the mainland, and I was alone. Then they asked me to have a family trip.
On our trip, we turned on the TV at the motel and saw the second plane crash into the World Trade Center. Seeing it falling down, I said to my kids: "I'm going to Afghanistan". And a few weeks later, international Medical Corps sent me to set up 20 clinics in provinces where people had no health care. In these field clinics surrounded by frightening shoots or deadly bombs, we were eventually serving 27,000 patients a month in a very busy schedule. Tired and nervous, I gradually had a sense of achievement, a sense of purpose, and my depression went away.
In the years to follow, I went to Indonesia after the tsunami, Pakistan after the earthquakes, Sudan after the civil warm and Iraq after more and more bombs. Each time after disasters one after another, hundreds of people were killed, wounded and many more had to flee. We once set up movable clinics in an area with 19,000 _ , and it was supposed to hold 13,000 originally. Flu broke out, one of the biggest killers of kids in refugee camps, and it spread like wildfire. Water and food were also serious problems. "Adventures or not?" I often asked myself.
When my wife passed away, I thought my life was done. But in reality, it was just getting started. At the end of her life, she went unconscious. I held her head in my hands and told her of all the places we would visit and the exciting adventures we would have.
I think about the moment many times during my "adventures". I didn't know how predictive those words would be.But I know that she is still with me. | high20663.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "It could advertise for his company for free."
},
"options": [
"He could become famous.",
"He liked to have a nickname.",
"It could make his workmates happy.",
"It could advertise for his company for free."
],
"q... | Albert was an ordinary worker in an oil company in America. His workmates gave a nickname "Four dollars a bucket " to him, for he was always used to leaving an advertisement of his company "Four dollars a bucket of oil" below his name whenever and wherever he wrote down his name.
As time went by, people forgot his real name. Later, when Rockefeller, the board chairman of the oil company, heard of it, he was very surprised, so he invited Albert to come to his office.
"Some people give you a nickname for 'Four dollars a bucket'. Why aren't you angry?" asked Rockefeller with some puzzlement in his eyes.
"Oh! Mr. Rockefeller! I like this nickname very much, because 'Four dollars a bucket' is our company's advertisement. As long as someone calls me 'Four dollars a bucket' once, I think it's a free advertisement for our company. I have no reason to get angry. Don't you think so, Mr. Rockefeller?"
"Oh! What a fantastic man!" Rockefeller said excitedly when hearing Albert's words. "Young man, work harder! You must succeed in the future! I believe in you!"
Five years later, Albert became the second board chairman after Rockefeller.
Later Albert said in one of his reports, "I don't think we should feel frustrated when we have no way to do the world-shaking things. We should treat every thing actively because maybe our future success will begin from a small thing!" | high5588.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "mental faculties"
},
"options": [
"logic",
"mental faculties",
"learning ability",
"working-memory capacity"
],
"question": "According to the text your academic success depends on your _ .",
"question_t... | If you ask Americans whether or not they think their former president George W. Bush is smart, most of them will probably tell you they don't think so. However, Bush's IQ score is estimated to be above 120, which puts him in the top ten percent of the population.
It doesn't seem to make sense. How come someone with such an IQ score is not considered smart? Researchers say: IQ does not tell the whole story. Some people have high IQ scores, but still they can be poor thinkers and decision-makers.
Keith Stanovich, a Canadian professor of human development and applied psychology, has been looking into the "clever fools" phenomenon for 15 years. He says IQ tests are very good at measuring certain mental faculties , including logic, learning ability, working-memory capacity (how much information you can hold in mind), etc. Those faculties play a part in one's academic success, but rational thinking is more important for us to make good judgments in real-life situations.
IQ tests fail to work when it comes to rational thinking. That's because they are unable to assess things such as a person's ability to weigh up information, or whether an individual can set aside the cognitive biases that may be misleading.
"A high IQ is like height in a basketball player," says David Perkins, who studies thinking and reasoning skills at Harvard University. "It is very important, all other things being equal. But all other things aren't equal. It takes a lot more to be a good basketball player than being tall, and it takes a lot more to be a good thinker than having a high IQ." | high15800.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Because they want others to know or think they are rich."
},
"options": [
"Because they feel proud to be taken for the Joneses.",
"Because they want others to know or think they are rich.",
"Because they are afraid that other... | It is said that in the United States much has been told about that anyone can become rich and successful if he works hard and has some good luck.
Yes, when one becomes rich he wants people to know it. And even though he does not become very rich, he wants people to think that he is. That's what "Keeping up with the Joneses " is about The expression was first used in 1913 by a young American called Arthur Momand looked around him and noticed that many people did things to keep up with their neighbours. He called it "Keeping up with the Joneses", because Jones is a very common name in the United States. "Keeping up with the Joneses" came to mean keeping up with the people around you. Momand's series appeared in different newspapers across the country for over 28 years.
People never seem to get tired of keeping up with the Joneses. That is one reason why they read "right" books, go to "right" universities and eat in "right" restaurants.
Every city has an area where people want to live because others will think better of them if they do. And there are Joneses in every city of the world. But one must get tired of trying to keep up with the Joneses, because no matter what one does, Mr Jones always seems to be ahead. | high22074.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Because two homeless men were also waiting in line, with a bad smell."
},
"options": [
"Because both men were poorly dressed and mentally ill.",
"Because the short gentleman was smiling to everyone around.",
"Because two home... | I am a mother of three children and have recently completed my college degree. The last class I had to take was social study. The last project of the term was called "Smile". The last class was asked to go out and smile at three people and document their reactions.
Soon after we were given the project, my husband, my youngest son, and I went out to McDonald's one cold March morning. It was just our way of sharing special playtime with our son.
We were standing in line, waiting to be served, when all of a sudden everyone around us began to back way. I turned around and found there standing behind me were two poor homeless men with a horrible "dirty body" smell. The short gentleman, close to me, was "smiling". His beautiful sky blue eyes were full of light as he searched for acceptance. The second man played with his hands uneasily as he stood behind his friend. I realized the second man was mentally challenged and the blue-eyed gentleman was his salvation . The short man just asked for a coffee because that was all they could afford.
I smiled and asked the young lady behind the counter to give me two more breakfast meals on a separate tray. I then walked around the corner to the men's table. I put the tray on the table and laid my hand on the blue-eyed gentleman's cold hand. He looked up at me with tears in his eyes and said "Thank you".
I started to cry as I walked away to join my husband and son. When I sat down my husband smiled at me and said, "That's why God gave you to me, Honey. To give me hope."
On the last evening of class, I turned in "my project" and the instructor read it. Then she looked up at me and said, "Can I share this?" I slowly nodded as she got the attention of the class. She began to read and we all knew that we need to heal people and to be healed.
I graduated with one of the biggest lessons I would ever learn: UNCONDITIONAL ACCEPTANCE. "LOVE PEOPLE AND USE THINGS---NOT LOVE THINGS AND USE PEOPLE." | high1936.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "sulfur"
},
"options": [
"water ice",
"carbon",
"sulfur",
"active glacier"
],
"question": "The main cause of the warm climate on Mars is _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | Even though orbiters have eyed it from space and landers have rumbled across its surface, Mars still has more secrets to reveal. Two findings emerged this week: the possibility of an active glacier far from the planet's poles and evidence that sulfur--rather than carbon--was the element driving the planet's warmer climate long ago. Both discoveries could force some rethinking about Martian evolution and dynamics--and maybe even provide insights about Earth's past.
The glacier discovery was announced Wednesday by the European Space Agency (ESA). A high-resolution stereo camera aboard ESA's Mars Express spacecraft spotted the feature in a region called Deuteronilus Mensae, located in the mid-north latitudes of the planet. The Mars Express science team drew the preliminary conclusion that the material in the feature is water ice and that it accumulated as recently as 10,000 years ago, probably from an underground source. Other deposits of water ice have been mapped at the martian poles, but they're much bigger and are millions of years old. The find is a surprise because the prevailing view is that any water reaching the martian surface from underground quickly evaporates and eventually drifts into space. Yet all of the physical characteristics of the feature are "consistent with that of a glacier," says geologist and team member Ronald Greeley of Arizona State University in prefix = st1 /Tempe.
Meanwhile, in the 21 December issue of Science, a team from HarvardUniversityand the Massachusetts Institute of Technology offers a possible solution for the curious absence of carbon-based minerals on Mars. A buildup of carbon dioxide in the ancient martian atmosphere supposedly produced enough of a greenhouse effect to allow liquid water to flow for a time on the surface. The problem is that such a process should have deposited ample carbon-containing minerals on the planet's surface--something that hasn't been found. So the researchers have come up with a new explanation: Large amounts of sulfur dioxide(SO2) in the atmosphere, the result of early volcanic activity, captured enough heat to allow water to flow. This would explain the plentiful distribution of sulfates among martian minerals. | high22712.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "the pyramids"
},
"options": [
"Golden Gate Bridge",
"Sydney Opera House",
"the Great Wall",
"the pyramids"
],
"question": ".The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World include _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_que... | Although most people know there are Seven Wonders in the Ancient world, only few people can name them. This is because most of them are no longer there except the pyramids. However, there is a growing list of wonders of the world today.
About nine years ago, UNESCO's World Cultural and Nature Heritage List had 411 places and 136 countries were responsible to protect them, and the list keeps on growing. Usually it is the task of a group of 21 experts to decide which places go on the list. The experts are chosen to work for six years. Their work is to examine and discuss the suggestions from different countries. They also manage the World Heritage Fund which can offer help to countries for protection work. Over the past centuries a lot of cultural or historic places have been destroyed by man or nature. Protecting our natural and cultural heritage is a long and difficult task. Earthquakes, floods, pollution, wars, or even tourism are some of the dangers that harm the heritage.
When a historic place is in great danger, it is put on the World Heritage in Danger List and necessary things will be done to protect it. Places which are on the danger list include Historic Bridges of Indiana, St. Elizabeth's Hospital, Rosenwald School in Southern U.S., etc. | high8912.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "let students learn something about other countries"
},
"options": [
"help teenagers in other countries know the real America",
"send students in America to travel in Germany",
"let students learn something about other count... | This year some twenty-three hundred teen-agers (young people aged from 13-19) from all over the world will spend about ten months in U.S. homes . They will attend U. S. schools , meet U.S. teenagers , and form impressions of the real America . At the same time , about thirteen hundred American teenagers will go to other countries to learn new languages and gain a new understanding of the rest of the world .
Here is a two-way student exchange in action . Fred , nineteen ,spent last year in Gemany with George's family . In turn , George's son Mike spent a year in Fred's home in America .
Fred , a lively young man , knew little German when he arrived , but after two months' study , the language began to come to him . School was completely different from what he had expected-much harder . Students rose respectfully when the teacher entered the room . They took fourteen subjects instead of the six that are usual in the United States . There were almost no outside activities .
Family life , too , was different . The father's word was law , and all activities were around the family rather than the individual. Fred found the food too simple at first . Also , he missed having a car .
"Back home ,you pick up some friends in a car and go out and have a good time . In Germany , you walk , but you soon learn to like it ."
At the same time , in America , Mike , a friendly German boy , was also forming his idea . "I suppose I should criticize American schools ." He says , "it is far too easy by our level . But I have to say that I like it very much . In Germany we do nothing but study . Here we take part in many outside activities . I think that maybe your schools are better in training for citizens . There ought to be some middle ground between the two ." | high1088.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "24."
},
"options": [
"51.",
"27.",
"48.",
"24."
],
"question": "At about what age did Confucius begin his teaching? _",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
... | Confucius (551BC~479BC), a Chinese philosopher,one of the most influential men in the history of China. Confucius was born in a noble family in the state of Lu. However,his parents were poor. His father died when Confucius was only three years old. In 527 BC he began his life as a teacher,usually traveling about and teaching the followers that were around him. Confucius worked as an official of the state of Lu. However,he soon left office to travel and teach. In 484 BC he returned to Lu,where he lived until his death.
Living in the turbulent period,Confucius believed that people must go back to the principles of the ancient wise men. He therefore lectured to his pupils on the classics and taught them how to behave properly in society. Confucius did not write down the principles of his philosophy. The Analects (<<>> ),a work written by some of his followers,is considered the most faithful source of information about his life and teachings.
The teachings of Confucius were practical and moral,rather than religious. He said that man's behavior should be based on five virtues:kindness, uprightness ,decorum ,wisdom and faithfulness .He asked everyone to fulfill their duties carefully toward the state. In the centuries after his death,his teachings,known as Confucianism,had a more powerful influence on the Chinese nation. | high3847.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "He studied it because it was a compulsory course."
},
"options": [
"He was interested in it.",
"He studied it because it was a compulsory course.",
"He thought it funny to study English.",
"He often recited something wh... | Learning English is one of the few things I have been doing consistently over the past 16 years.Like most Chinese students, I started learning English because it was a compulsory course in my middle school.More importantly, English was a central subject for the college entrance exam.
At that time, studying English was not a pleasant experience for me.There was no fun in the process of learning.The focus of our English education was getting a good mark in exams.And nobody told me that the real meaning of studying mother language was communication.
When I became a university student, I spent nearly half of my time on English.In fact , more than 90 percent of the job offer ads in Shanghai list " proficiency as a main requirement.
How did I improve my English? People told me that TOEFL was very helpful and useful.As a result, I took a TOEFL training course and studied like mad.After six months' preparation, I took part in the exam and got a high score.Later on, I had a chance to further my study in Britain.I soon discovered that all of my past English learning had been futile .When I first went shopping in a local supermarket, I really could not understand what the cashier was saying at all.
It was then that I realized I had totally missed the point.Instead of just passing exams, the main function of learning English or any other language is communication.What is more, language does not exist independent of culture.Hence, mechanical memorization helps very little in communication.That's why I was still unable to freely express myself after learning English for many years.By no means am I talented in any foreign language.I am still learning English.Why?
First and foremost, my job requires me to use English everyday.Secondly, English helps me to have access to more information.Thirdly, as a bookworm, English gives me a chance to dive into the huge pool of inspiring English books.Last but not least, it is such a great experience to write in another language.Indeed, English has become part of my life. | high20105.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "something bad might happen to Robby."
},
"options": [
"it was going to rain",
"Robby often surprised us with his whistle",
"something bad might happen to Robby.",
"Robby might find something special"
],
"questio... | Little Robby, our neighbour's nephew, carefully drew some water into a bowl and started for the door. How I hated this water rationing . We were forced to bathe in the deep little pond we shared with Jessie, our cow. Wells were dry, and crops transformed to dust.
I watched Robby sitting down onto the steps to my house. Bees buzzed circling his hair, and he buzzed with them. I remembered his aunt's words: I don't know what I was thinking when I took him in. The crash killed my sister, and he wasn't hurt, but he can't talk. He's in a world of all his own.
Why couldn't she see _ this boy possessed? He was blessed with a loving nature and a deep admiration for all living things, and I knew he could talk to animals. My heart ached for Robby, who was to stay with us for the summer, and had already been the dearest part of our world, eagerly tending the garden with me and my husband, Tom.
On a string around Robby's neck hung a whistle, in case he was ever lost or in danger. After all, he could not call out for help. But he knew perfectly well that the whistle was not a toy. Blowing on it would bring us both running. I had told him the story of the boy who cried wolf, and I knew he understood me.
I sighed as I cleared up the last supper dish. Every ounce of recycled water was saved for a tiny vegetable garden Robby had planted. Tom turned to me. "You know, honey, I've been thinking about..."
Before he could continue, a scream from the yard made us jump. My God! It's Robby's whistle! When we reached him, he was pointing excitedly to the sky. Looking up, we saw the most magnificent sight: Rain Clouds! "Robby! Quick! We need all the pots and pans!"
Robby raced with me to the house. A drop of water fell on my pot and then another. Soon the yard was enveloped in soaking, glorious rain. We all stood with faces held upward to feel the comfort of it. Tom picked up Robby and danced about the pots, shouting and whooping, "Rain for Robby!" Tom swung about to show me Robby's face: he was laughing right out loud, "W-W-Wobby's!" "Wobby's ... wain ... Mom," giggling , and stretching out one tiny hand in the shape of a cup to catch the rain.
I hugged them both, tears of joy mixing with the rain. | high2581.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "many measures have been taken to control price"
},
"options": [
"many measures have been taken to control price",
"as a major leader of the government, he had the confidence",
"he wanted to comfort them",
"China will in... | BEIJING --With a series of measures being adopted to control price rise, the Chinese government is confident of keeping prices at a reasonable level, Premier Wen Jiabao said Sunday morning, asking people to remain confident.
"I believe we can keep prices at a reasonable level through our efforts. As a major leader of the government, I have the responsibility and I have the confidence, too." He made the remarks while answering a listener's question during a radio broadcast by China National Radio.
Steps taken in the past month, including price controls to curb speculation and monetary tightening , had started to produce results, he said.
The government plans to build 10 million units of affordable housing in 2011, up from this year's target of 5.8 million.
China will also increase efforts to curb speculation in the housing market, mainly through monetary policies and stricter use of land, Wen said, without giving details.
Wen said the country had a good agricultural supply base which gave the government confidence that it could stabilize prices.
In a bid to control inflation, the government has also increased the bank reserve requirement ratio six times and lifted interest rate twice this year, he added.
Further, authorities have introduced many measures including cutting fees for transportation of agriculture products and controlling food price rise strictly.
The overall price level, especially of major consumer goods, has now begun to drop, Wen said.
"The fundamental way to stabilize pri ces is to achieve a balance of supply and demand, which requires continuous development of agriculture," said premier, adding that the central government has worked out measures to increase agricultural production. | high17971.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "The Internet."
},
"options": [
"Newspapers.",
"Radio and TV.",
"Mobile phones.",
"The Internet."
],
"question": "What do you think \"social media\" in this passage refers to?",
"question_type": null
},
{... | They found that young people who often use social media are more likely to suffer from sleep disorders than those who use social media less.
The researchers set out to examine the connection between social media use and sleep among young adults. Levenson, who led the study, noticed that these young adults are possibly the first "generation to grow up with social media."
The researchers wanted to find out how often young people used social media sites like Facebook, Twitter, Histogram, etc. For the study, they gave questionnaires to nearly 1,800 adults, aged 19 to 32. On average, members of the study group used social media sites one hour a day. They also "visited various social media accounts 30 times per week."
Thirty percent of the study's participants reported having serious problems with sleeping. Those people who used social media a lot were three times more likely to have a sleep disorder. And those who spent the most time on social media were two times as likely to suffer from sleep disorders.
Levenson said the number of times a person visits social media is a better predictor of sleep problems than overall time spent on social media. If this is true, she adds, then practices that stop such behaviors may be most effective. | high19784.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "fake cell-phones"
},
"options": [
"Spring Festival Gala",
"electronic products",
"fake cell-phones",
"Olympic buildings"
],
"question": "The Chinese word \"Shanzhai\" may have started with _ .",
"question... | The Chinese word "Shanzhai" means a small mountain village, but now it becomes an accepted name for fakes , after "Shanzhai Cell-phones" produced by small workshops in southern China became popular in the mainland market over the past two years.
Besides "Shanzhai" electronic products, there are "Shanzhai" movies, "Shanzhai" stars and even a "Shanzhai" Spring Festival Gala , a copy of the 25-year-old traditional show presented by CCTV on Chinese Lunar New Year's Eve.
"Shanzhai" has become a culture of its own, meaning anything that imitates something famous.
In Chongqing, "Shanzhai" version "Bird's Nest" and "Water Cube" woven by farmers with bamboo attract wide attention from tourists. Both are copies of the famous Olympic buildings in Beijing.
A literature critic said that taking the "Shanzhai" Gala as an example, when the traditional CCTV program becomes less and less attractive to the audience, the"Shanzhai" version appears timely to attract people. "Although it is often connected with poor techniques and operation, 'Shanzhai' culture meets the psychological needs of common people and could be a comfort to their minds," he said.
To the mainstream culture, the rise of "Shanzhai" culture is a challenge and a motivation . People believe different kinds of cultures developing together is a perfect situation and it is for the public to choose. | high3853.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "The price of taking a train there."
},
"options": [
"The position of Poteet Strawberry Festival.",
"The open time of Poteet Strawberry Festival.",
"The price of parking cars.",
"The price of taking a train there."
]... | Poteet Strawberry Festival
Poteet, Texas, USA
April 11 - April 13
Description:
The Poteet Strawberry Festival is one of the oldest, most popular events in the state and is recognized as the largest agricultural festival in Texas as well as one of the most exciting, dynamic festivals in the Greater Southwest. The 100-acre site, which is located on Hwy. 16, 20 minutes south of San Antonio, offers free parking, clean public restrooms, handicapped accessibility, complete RV facilities, and tent covered activities during the fun filled Festival Weekend.
The Poteet Strawberry Festival includes fourteen areas of continuous, family entertainment featuring concerts with nationally known Country Western and Tejano stars, dancers, gunslingers, clowns, puppets, regional bands, various contests, and rodeo performances. These activities are included in the price of a $10.00 admission ticket. Children aged 12 and under are admitted free of charge as well as active, reserve and retired military with proper ID.
Performers:
Craig Morgan, Pam Tillis, Rick Trevino
Location:
Poteet, Texas
Directions:
30 miles south of San Antonio on Hwy. 16
Times:
The Festival Grounds will open at 6:00 pm Fri. and at 10:00 am both Sat. & Sun.
Admission:
Adult $10.00
Children 12 & under / active, reserve, and retired military personnel with proper ID are admitted FREE
Website: http://www.strawberryfestival.com
Telephone: 830-276-3323
Email: nitaharvey@sbcglobal.net | high19948.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "he wanted to make a good expression on the children"
},
"options": [
"he wanted all the children to live a happy life",
"he wanted to make a good expression on the children",
"he liked paintings very much",
"he liked al... | It was several years since Adolf Hitler came into power inprefix = st1 /Germany. And now his army was marching into some parts of Europe. He must be in the prime of his career.
One day Hitler went to an exhibition where the works of school children were on show. He seemed to have great interest in the exhibits--inventions as well as carvings, drawings. After having walked around the hall and examined everything, he said he was ready to meet the young artists. And soon a group of children came into the room to salute (......) him.
"Well, well. You did very good work." Nodded Hitler in satisfaction. "I promise on my honor I'd satisfy you with whatever you want. What'd you wish to be if I were your father?"
"A sailor sailing the sea" one of the boys answered.
"Good. I'll have you join my navy and some day you will rule the oceans."
"Ask for anything? What'd you wish to be if I were your father?" he asked a second boy.
"A painter as great as Rembruant."
"Good. You are to be sent to the Fine Art School and surely you will make an even greater painter."
When Hitler caught sight of a sad-looking boy he frowned , then quickly forced a smile, "There my boy, in spite of my point of view towards the Jews , I'd do you a favor and your dream will come true. What'd you wish to be if I were your father?"
The boy looked straight at the man.
"An orphan ( a child who has no parents )." he murmured. | high17965.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "In 2002."
},
"options": [
"In 2004.",
"In 2002.",
"In 2006.",
"In 2000."
],
"question": "Which year did Li Na begin to study journalism?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | Her opponent was the defending champion whose childhood dream was to win the French Open. She was the underdog who never saw the tournament on TV as a girl in China and never thought she'd get far on the red clay of the French Open, one of the four tennis Grand Slams .
But it was Li Na who fell on her back in triumph on June 4. Nearly two hours' hitting gave Li a 2-0 victory over Francesca Schiavone of Italy and made her the only tennis player, man or woman, from Asia to take home a Grand Slam title.
Chinese media have been swept along by the praise. An editorial carried by Xinhua News Agency said "Li Na is the best PR (Public Relations) for China," and called her an "outstanding name card for the country" and a "brilliant diplomat". It compared Li to Chinese NBA star Yao Ming, noting that both "can speak very fluent English, and both of them have a kind of sense of humor that is appreciated by foreigners".
Success has come late for Li. She once gave up tennis for two years and studied journalism at Wuhan's Huazhong University of Science and Technology. But in 2004, she returned and continues to play the best tennis she could.
"Dream comes true," Li said after the match. "I am so happy that my efforts have paid off." Li has often been seen as a rebel , or at least a representative of a new generation. She has a tattoo , has dyed her hair many different color1s and has even been known to yell at her husband in public. "The plain-speaking, tattooed, individualist has the ability to transcendthe sport and become a global star", the BBC news reported.
No matter how important the French Open championship is, Li is not resting on her laurels -- she's already thinking about winning a second major title. "When you have the first one, naturally you will think about the second one. Now I have more confidence playing on other surfaces," Li told China Daily, as she prepares for the Wimbledon Championship, which will start on June 20. | high22706.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "he is always ready to help his friend."
},
"options": [
"he is always ready to help his friend.",
"he hardly spares time to help his friend.",
"he has no good excuse for refusing his friend.",
"he is not good at communi... | Without any hesitation, he said, "I'd be better off dead." Hearing those words come out of my best friend's mouth tore my heart apart. He has repeated that phrase more than once, and my mind continually plays it over like a voice recording.
I met him about three years ago. After knowing me for six months, he told me about his struggles with depression. Sadness was not the only emotion that came over me; I was shocked. He seemed so outgoing and happy all the time. I soon learned that he was physically and emotionally abused as a young child, causing him to have suicidal thoughts.
He refuses to talk to others about his depression because he now distrusts adults, especially those in his family. Nevertheless, he feels as if I understand him and that I know the right words to speak. Therefore, when it comes to helping him, _ . It does not matter where I am or what I am doing, for he always comes first.
Many students at his school laugh at him when they notice scars on his arms from cutting. As he sees it, other kids have every right to make fun of him. But no one holds such a right, so I encourage him to ignore the heartless kids who treat him badly. When he feels the weight of judging eyes or hateful voices, I always remind him that I care about him unconditionally. Just hearing me say I will always be his best friend seems to give him the security he needs to keep on going.
My best friend once told me that if he had not had me, he would not be alive. He said that my encouraging words convinced him not to take his life. Our friendship has taught me that a single kind word can influence someone's life. With the fragility of life as it is, I believe in the necessity of encouragement. | high508.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "True ability will always make itself known."
},
"options": [
"Fred Astaire was a famous dancer.",
"True ability will always make itself known.",
"Some people never get discouraged.",
"Albert Einstein prove his teachers ... | When the famous dancer Fred was interviewed for a job by a Hollywood producer , the movie Expert turned him down, saying,"Can't sing. Can't act. Dances a little." Here's another stupid mistake. When the great scientist Albert Einstein was at school, his teachers considered him rather dull. And a final story, the famous Polish pianist Paderewski was told by a teacher that he'd never be a success as a performer because the middle finger on each hand was too short.
What lessons can be drawn from these three experiences? First, true genius cann't be suppressed .For some reason or other it works its way out. Second, early judgments of a person's abilities may be unfair or just wrong. Third, when there is a real determination to succeed, obstacles fall by the wayside.
The famous motto "ad astra per aspera" can be translated as " To the stars through hardships". Astaire, Einstein and Paderewski proved their critics wrong. | high8906.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "To give a piece of advice to job interviewees."
},
"options": [
"To give a piece of advice to job interviewees.",
"To tell you how to deal with job interviews.",
"To advise you how to find a good job.",
"To describe an ... | The interview has been going on for about 20 minutes and everything seems to be going well.Then, suddenly, the interviewer asks an unexpected question, "Which is more important, law or love?"
Job applicants in the West increasingly find themselves asked strange questions like this.And the signs are that this is beginning to happen in China.
Employers want people who are skilled, enthusiastic and devoted.So these are the qualities that any reasonably intelligent job applicant will try to show no matter what his or her actual feelings are.In response, employers are increasingly using the questions which try and show the applicant's true personality.
The question in the first paragraph comes from a test called the Kiersey Temperament Sorter.It is an attempt to discover how people solve problems, rather than what they know.This is often called aptitude test.
According to Mark Baldwin of Alliance, many job applicants in China are finding this type of questions difficult."When a Chinese fills out an aptitude test, he or she will think there is a right answer but they may fail because they try to guess what the examiner wants to see."
This is sometimes called the prisoner's dilemma .Applicants are trying to act cleverly in their own interest, but they fail because they don't understand what the interviewer is looking for.Remember that in an aptitude test, the correct answer is the honest answer. | high6095.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "China"
},
"options": [
"China",
"Russia",
"Brazil",
"India"
],
"question": "According to the passage, which country will enjoy the biggest increase in 2009?",
"question_type": null
},
{
"answer": {
... | Is it time to kick Russia out of the BRICs ?If so, it may end up sounding like a famous ball-point pen maker--BIC. An argument is being made that Goldman Sach's famous marketing device , the BRICs, should really be the BICs.
"Is Russia really worth the name BRICs?" asks Anders Aslund, senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, in an article for Foreign Policy. Aslund, who is also co-author with Andrew Kuchins of "The Russian Balance Sheet", thinks the Russia of Putin and Medvedev is just not worthy of inclusion alongside Brazil, India and China in the list of future economic powerhouses. He writes:
"The country's economic performance has fallen to such a weak level that one must ask whether it has any say at all on the global economy, compared with the other members of its group. I have just returned from Moscow, which is always dull around this season. For the last seven years, Russia has taken very few measures to improve its economy. Instead, the state has been living on oil and gas."
Economically, Aslund has the numbers on his side. The International Monetary Fund figures that the Russian economy will fall by 6.7 percent in 2009, while China will grow 8.5 percent and India 5.4 percent. There is less of a case for Brazil, with a fall of 0.7 percent, but it is still doing far better than Russia.
But the BRICs are not just about economy. As is mentioned above, it is a marketing device to encourage investors to focus on the big promising players. From an investment standpoint, it could be argued that Russia is leading the BRICs. Its stock market is up 128 percent this year while around 80 percent is for the other three.
At very least, despite Russia's economic underperformance, its stock market outperformance does suggest it is indeed one of the group. | high15814.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "went to a new school"
},
"options": [
"did better in reading",
"began speech lessons",
"went to a new school",
"received a high award"
],
"question": "The writer _ when he was in the third grade.",
"ques... | Before I started school, people felt that I was not going to be successful. At the age of four I started speech lessons because basically I could not speak well enough for anyone to understand me. The story goes downhill from here.
The first grade was a struggle. I not only had difficulty speaking, but also felt nervous about the fact that I was expected to learn to read and I just couldn't do it. The second grade was not much better. I still struggled with the inability to read. It was in the third grade that the school district built a new school close to my home. I remember going there with my parents and helping to get the school ready so that we could move to the new one. However, things were still not much better as far as my schooling was concerned and did not get better for the next two years.
It was in the fifth grade. Mrs. Wakefield was my teacher, and if ever there was a teacher that deserved a gold star, it was her. She did not make me feel defeated. On the contrary, she did her best to let me know that I could be whatever I wanted to be. And that is just what I did.
For the past 22 years, I have been a fifth grade teacher. Because of Mrs. Wakefield's influence on my life, I am now encouraging students who have had difficulties in their lives to believe that they can overcome any difficulty and become someone. I have won numerous awards up to now, such as Teacher of the Year. I owe it all to one fifth grade teacher who believed in me and challenged me to be all that I could be. | high1922.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "For some new clothes."
},
"options": [
"getting some new trousers",
"for some new shirt.",
"To buy some new shoes",
"For some new clothes."
],
"question": "John went to a shop _",
"question_type": "cloze_q... | John wanted to buy some new clothes, so he went to a shop. First he asked for some trousers and put them on, but then he took them off and gave them back to the shopkeeper and said, "No, give me a coat instead of these trousers." The man gave him a coat and said "This one costs the same as the trousers." John took the coat and walked out of the shop. The shopkeeper ran after him and said, "You have not paid for the coat!"
"But I gave you the trousers for the coat," said John. "They cost the same as the coat, aren't they?"
"Yes," said the shopkeeper, "But you didn't pay for the trousers!"
"Of course I didn't!" answered John, "I didn't take them, I am not stupid! Nobody gives things back and then pays for them." | high21569.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "was cooked by the students"
},
"options": [
"was served as a lunch",
"was cooked by the students",
"was prepared to thank the kids",
"was entirely from the school garden"
],
"question": "According to the text, t... | Emilio and Michi spread the colorful tablecloth on the table. They made room for Drew, who was carrying a dish. "Watch out," Drew warned. "This is pretty hot."
A moment later, Kent and Alyssa added another hot dish to the table. "That smells so good!" said Michi. "Are most of the parents here yet? I'm hungry."
Kent looked through the doors that led into the hallway. "I think Ms. Milano and Mr.Hasselbach just finished giving _ the garden touring. They should be heading into the cafeteria next."
The students of Jefferson Middle School in Saint Louis, US had spent all afternoon preparing for the evening meal. They did their best to transform the lunchroom into a beautiful dining area for their families.
As the families found their seats, Ms. Milano asked Drew, Emilio, and Michi to join her at the front of the room. She said, "I just wanted to take a moment to congratulate Drew, Emilio and Michi for their wonderful idea. A year ago, they first came to me with the plan for starting a garden at Jefferson. I wondered whether it would work, but they had thought through everything. Any time I had a question about how we would make this work, they had an answer prepared. As you can see, they were absolutely correct. About three-quarters of the food you will be enjoying came from the school garden. The students prepared the entire meal themselves."
Ms. Milano handed Drew, Michi and Emilio a box each. They opened their box as Ms. Milano continued. "As a thank-you to these students for their creative idea and hard work, they have each received a stepping stone for the garden. Their names and date appear on the stones."
She turned to them. "Students for years to come will be enjoying the garden that you helped create," she said. "We thought it would be appropriate for them to have a reminder of our garden's founders."
They held up their stepping stones and smiled as the crowd clapped. "And now," said Ms Milano, "please help yourself to some of the mouthwatering food our young chefs have prepared. Dinner is served!" | high4682.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "The River Thames h as become a nursery ground now."
},
"options": [
"The River Thames h as become a nursery ground now.",
"The River Thames has been a well-known river in England.",
"Many agencies took part in the restoration... | Read the following three passages.Each passage is followed by several questions or unfinished statements.For each of them there are 4 choices marked A, B, C and D.Choose the one that fits best according to the information given in the passage.
The River Thames was once described as "biologically dead". A waterway polluted with so much industrial waste that no wildlife could survive in it.
But today it has become a thriving natural habitat and a team of conservationists restoring the famous river have been offered a top environment award for their work.
Ncarly 40 miles of the river have been improved in the last five years through almost 400 Environment Agency restoration projects. As a result, the river is now home to some 125 species of fish, while many others are returning. The river mouth supports shellfisheries and is a nursery ground for bass stocks, and the water quality of the Thames has improved.
Alastair Driver, the Environment Agency's national conservation manager, said that in the last 150 years, the Thames had been polluted seriously and that it had taken thousands of people decades to restore it to its current condition. "Strict regulations for polluting industries and our work with farmers, businesses and water companies to reduce pollution and improve water quality have helped to make the Thames a living river once again." But he warned that the river's recovery was still " _ ", since it was under the pressure from a growing population and climate change. He said advanced projects and cooperation with various people and organizations aim at dealing with the problems the Thames faces and ensuring it still a famous river for many centuries to come.
Actor, David Suchet, a skillful boater and chairman of the River Thames Alliance, said, "I am fortunate in my life to have traveled widely and enjoyed many other rivers worldwide. But the River Thames is priceless and it is one of the most glittering jewels in the crown of our English heritage."
Boris Johnson, Mayor of London, said, "The Thames is one of our most precious resources, so I am excited to see that efforts to improve and preserve its good health are being praised on the world stage."
The PS 220,000 prize, awarded at the International Rive Symposium in Australia, will go to the Thames Rivers Restoration Trust. | high20677.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "please his own wife"
},
"options": [
"please his own wife",
"satisfy his son",
"sell at a good price",
"honor his old father"
],
"question": "George IV reconstructed Buckingham House probably to _ .",
"que... | Buckingham Palace has a history that dates back over 500 years and has changed hands on numerous occasions, however, much of the building that remains standing today is from the original structure built in the early 1700's.
In the beginning Buckingham Palace was originally known as Buckingham House. However, in 1762 George III liked the house so much that he bought it for 28,000 and renamed it "The Queen's House". The reason for this was down to the fact that he bought the house to give to his wife Charlotte. Shortly after he did this, work soon began in order to remodel the house with the help of Sir William Chambers. This trend then continued with the accession of George IV in 1820 when he decided to reconstruct the house but he still used it for the same purpose that his father did.
One of the biggest physical changes to the house occurred several years later when the king had a change of mind. It was in 1826 that King George IV set about transforming the house into what it is known today, Buckingham Palace. He did this with the help of an architect known as John Nash.
The work that Nash carried out involved doubling the size of the main block through adding a new suite of rooms on the garden side facing the west. He then faced this with mellow Bath stone, which reflected the French neo-classical influence favored by George IV. Many of the rooms that Nash added still remain pretty much unchanged today.
The palace as it stands today acts as not only the London residence of Her Majesty the Queen but also the administrative headquarters of the Royal Household. It is in fact one of the few working royal palaces that remain in the world today. The state rooms are extensively used by the Queen as well as members of the royal family as a way of receiving and entertaining guests on state, ceremonial and official occasions. | high13295.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "seeing people laughing and talking made him feel bad"
},
"options": [
"a lot of money would be saved in this way",
"he didn't like to eat with other people around",
"he didn't wanted to be recognized by the waiters",
"s... | I travel a lot in my work, and what I dislike about my job is eating alone. It always makes me feel lonely to see others laughing and talking. So, room service for several nights was a better choice for me.
After having room service three nights at a hotel in Houston, however, I needed to get out of my room. Although the restaurant opened at 6:30, I arrived at 6:25. The waiter at the front desk made a comment about my "being there really early". I explained my dislike of eating alone in restaurants. He then seated me at a lovely table and asked me whether I would mind if he sat down with me for a while.
I was glad! He sat and talked with me about his career goals and the difficulty of being at work on nights, weekends and holidays. He said he hadn't enough time to be with his family. After 15 minutes, he saw some customers at the front desk and excused himself. I noticed that before he went to the front desk, he stopped in the kitchen for a moment.
Then another waiter came out of the kitchen and had a wonderful chat with me. Before I left that night, some other waiters, even the cook, had come out of the kitchen and sat with me!
When I asked for my bill about one hour later, all the people who had sat down with me came over in a big group to my table, and presented me with a red rose. And I cried! What had begun as a lonely night ended as a beautiful experience. | high8090.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "not very high."
},
"options": [
"not very high.",
"high.",
"scornful.",
"neutral"
],
"question": "It can be inferred from the passage that the author's opinion of nowadays' human beings is _",
"question_ty... | When you think of the tremendous technological progress we have made, it's amazing how little we have developed in other respects. We may speak scornfully of the poor old Romans because they enjoyed the seemingly excited killing that went on in their arenas . We may despise them because they mistook these goings on for entertainment. We may forgive them because they lived 2000 years ago and obviously knew no better. But are our feelings of superiority really justified? Are we any less blood-thirsty? Why do boxing matches, for instance, attract such universal interest? Don't the audience who attend them hope they will see some violence? Human beings remain as bloodthirsty as ever they were. The only difference between ourselves and the Romans is that while they were honest enough to admit that they enjoyed watching hungry lions tearing people apart and eating them alive, we find all sorts of arguments to defend sports which should have been banned long ago.
It really is incredible that in this day and age we should still allow hunting or bull-fighting, that we should be prepared to sit back and watch two men punch each other in a boxing ring, that we should be relatively unmoved by the sight of one or a number of racing cars crashing and bursting into flames. Any talk of 'the sporting spirit' is merely hypocrisy . People take part in violent sports because of the high rewards they bring. Audience are willing to pay vast sums of money to see violence. A world heavyweight championship match, for instance, is front page news. Millions of people are disappointed if a big fight is over in two rounds instead of fifteen. They feel disappointment because they haven't experienced the exquisite pleasure of witnessing continuous violence.
Why should we ban violent sports if people enjoy them so much? You may well ask. The answer is simple: they are uncivilized. For centuries man has been trying to improve himself spiritually and emotionally--though with little success. But at least we no longer tolerate the sight madmen imprisoned in cages, or public punishment of any of the countless other barbarous practices which were common in the past. Prisons are no longer the harsh forbidding places they used to be. Social welfare systems are in operation in many parts of the world. Big efforts are being made to distribute wealth fairly. These changes have come about not because human beings have suddenly improved, but because positive steps were taken to change the law. The law is the biggest instrument of social change that we have and it may exert great civilizing influence. If we banned dangerous and violent sports, we would be moving one step further to improving mankind. We would recognize that violence is unworthy of human beings. | high11482.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "anti aging creams"
},
"options": [
"anti aging creams",
"anti aging foods",
"anti wrinkle face",
"anti wrinkle skin"
],
"question": "This passage mainly tells us something about _ .",
"question_type": "cl... | One of today's hottest topics among women (and to an extent among men too now) is anti aging and how to reverse the signs of age.The beauty industry has responded to this by offering a wide collection of anti aging creams and other anti aging products aimed at all pocketbooks,ranging from economical to highly priced.
And the question is "do any of these often much-vaunted anti aging creams actually work?" And if they do,how precisely do they perform their miracles?
Well the appropriate response to that is that they do work - after a fashion.There certainly are anti aging creams available for a ly modest price that will reduce the appearance of wrinkles in a comparatively short period of regular application.But this really is the limit of their powers: they won't actually undo skin damage or eradicate all signs of age;they will simply modify them,some more effectively than others.
The way they work is like so: they remove upper layers of dead skin cells and make deeper layers absorb water,serving to plump them up and make them look fuller and healthier.But since such anti aging creams only go skin deep,as it were,skin damage will reappear once you stop using the anti aging wrinkle cream.
This means fairly heavy regular use,which might be costly depending on your choice of product.However,if you can afford it or think it's worth the cost,it won't be such an issue.After all,what woman wants to look older than her years when looking good is so tied up with many women's self-esteem and sense of identity.
A compromise solution for those _ is to use the cheaper creams.In addition,it's always wise to be a little experimental to make sure you end up with the one that suits your skin best.
So,to sum up: an anti wrinkle face cream will work within limits,depending on your objective. | high20887.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "almost everywhere"
},
"options": [
"mostly in homes",
"mostly on roads and highways",
"mostly in factories",
"almost everywhere"
],
"question": "Accidents take place _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_question... | Accidents happen almost every day. Some accidents are not serious and some are. We read about such accidents nearly every day in the newspapers. It is wrong for people to think that accidents take place only on the roads or highways, or even at work places. Home accidents are just as common. Because very few home accidents are reported, people come to think that there are few accidents which happen in homes.
There have been many cases where people fall to their deaths from high rise flats. Children often fall over while coming down the stairs. Old people may slip on wet floors if they are not careful.
Nowadays there are a lot of modern electrical appliances such as rice cookers which make life easy for the modern house wives. These appliances can kill if they are not used in the proper way. Gas stoves used for cooking are also dangerous if they are not properly used. They may cause burns or, in more serious cases, even fires.
But all such accidents can be stopped if we are careful and follow simple rules of safety. For example, it is unwise for people to try repairing their own electrical appliances if they do not know how to. It is safer to get them repaired by an electrician . | high4872.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "make the children worldwide develop their creativity and imagination"
},
"options": [
"attract many children worldwide",
"brought imagination to the children worldwide",
"have endless links that bring many imagination",
... | Lego,the inventor of those color1ful bricks that have inspired kids' imagination worldwide,has celebrated its 53rd anniversary.
In 1958,a man named Godtfred created the plastic building bricks that can now be found in almost every child's toy box. The simple building block has become one of the most well-known and popular toys around the world.
"The Lego brick continues to be very attractive,because it allows children,and others,to develop their creativity and imagination," said Charlotte Simonsen,a spokeswoman of Lego.
The company's building brick allows an endless number of links. With just two bricks there are 24 different links,and with six,there are 915 million possibilities,according to Lego.
A half century after its creation,more than 400 million children and adults spend five billion hours a year putting the bricks together and pulling them apart. Also,the bricks made today can still link with those made in 1958.
Lego bricks aren't just child's play: they also attract the interest of adults. South Korean adventurer,Heo Young Ho,who climbed Mount Everest in 1987,left a Lego toy behind in the snow during his climb.
After its great success Lego experienced a serious crisis at the end of the 1990s,hit hard by competition from electronic games. Lego then suffered a dark period that lasted several years.
With great efforts,the company began to be popular again,and in 2006 it earned about 1.5 billion dollars in 130 countries. Seven boxes of Lego are now sold every second around the world,and 19 billion bricks are produced each year: enough to encircle the Earth five times! | high17795.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "light-pot-bread-canoe-clothes"
},
"options": [
"clothes-canoe-bread-pot-light",
"light-canoe-bread-pot-clothes",
"light-pot-bread-canoe-clothes",
"light-bread-pot-canoe-clothes"
],
"question": "The man made many... | I also went out every day,and I always had my gun with me. Sometimes I killed a wild animal,and then _ 1 _ .
But when it got dark,I had to go to bed because I had no light. I couldn't read or write because I couldn't see. But in the end,I learnt how to use the fat of dead animals to make a light.
... And so my life went on. Every month I learnt to do or to make something new. But I had troubles and accidents too. Once there was a terrible storm with very heavy rain. The roof of my cave fell in,and nearly killed me!I had to build it up again with many pieces of wood.
_ 2 _ . I cooked it over a fire or dried it in the sun. So I always had meat during the rainy months when I could not go out with a gun. I learnt to make pots to keep my food in. But I wanted very much to make a harder,stronger pot--a pot that would not break in a fire. I tried many times,but I could not do it. Then one day I was lucky. I made some new pots and put them in a very hot fire. They changed colour,but did not break. I left them there for many hours,and when they were cold again,I found that they were hard and strong. That night I was very happy. I had hot water for the first time on the island.
By then,I also had my own bread. That was luck,too. One day I found a little bag. We used it on the ship,to keep the chickens' food in. There was still some of the food in the bag,and I dropped some of it onto the ground. A month later I saw something bright green there,and after six months I had a very small field of corn. I was very excited. Perhaps now I could make my own bread!
It was easy to say,but not so easy to do. It is a lot of work to make bread from corn. Many people eat bread,but how many people can take corn from a field and make bread out of it without help?I had to learn and to make many new things. _ 3 _ .
During all this time I never stopped thinking about escape. When I travelled across to the other side of the island,I could see the other islands,and I said to myself,'Perhaps I can get there with a boat. Perhaps I can get back to England one day. '
So I decided to make myself a boat. I cut down a big tree,and then began to make a long hole in it. It was hard work,but about six months later,I had a very fine canoe. Next,I had to get it down to the sea. How stupid I was!Why didn't I think before I began work?Of course,the canoe was too heavy. I couldn't move it!I pulled and pushed and tried everything,but it didn't move. _ 4 _ .
That happened in my fourth year on the island. In my sixth year I did make myself a smaller canoe,but I did not try to escape in it. The boat was too small for a long journey,and I did not want to die at sea. The island was my home now,not my prison,and I was just happy to be alive.
There were always things to do or to make. I learnt to make new clothes for myself from the skins of dead animals. They looked very strange,it is true,but they kept me dry in the rain... | high20139.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "She might think that I would get hurt"
},
"options": [
"She might think that I would get hurt",
"It was time for me to drink her milk",
"It was time for me to pull a carriage",
"The other horses were not friendly"
]... | Just after my birth I remember lying in the stable with my mother and looking out the door, I could see a lovely, big field with trees around the edge and a good-sized pond to drink from. And there in the stable, while all of the other horses ate grass, I remember drinking my mother's milk.
Usually, in the morning and afternoon, I would run with my mother or play with other young horses in the field. Sometimes, this play became too dangerous and my mother would come and take me away.
The farmer was a good horse owner. He took good care of us all, but he seemed to prefer my mother to the other horses. And because I was her baby, he started to like me as well. Pretty soon I was eating grass like all of the other horses. Because I no longer needed her milk, and because she was his favorite horse, the farmer quickly put my mother back to work, pulling his carriage to and from the market, always coming back in the early evening.
One evening I was playing with the other horses when my mother called me over to her. She told me that she never again wanted to see me playing so roughly with the others. I must grow up to be as wonderful as my ancestors, always working hard, walking proudly, and never hurting others. I promised her that I would do as she said. However, I had to admit that it was sometimes difficult to be kind to people like Dick, the worker-boy. He was always throwing rocks at us when he should have been picking fruit. We had to running around trying to avoid the rocks. Luckily, one day the farmer caught Dick behaving this way. The letter was given some money and then left the farm. That was the last time we ever saw the boy. | high19960.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "be in the same time zone as Australia"
},
"options": [
"trade with the United States",
"be the first place to see in each new day",
"follow the international dateline",
"be in the same time zone as Australia"
],
... | Friday, December 30, 2011has been cut for the tiny South Pacific island nation, Samoa as it moved its time zone 24 hours ahead to catch up with Asia, New Zealand and Australia.On New Year's Eve, Samoa will Slave jumped to the west of the international dateline, which runs through the Pacific Ocean and broadly follows the 180 degree line of longitude .
Its Prime Minister said it would make it easier for Samoa to trade with their key partners."No longer shall we have people ringing us up on Monday from New Zealand and Australia thinking it is Monday when we are closing our eyes and praying at churches.And in the same way, on our Fridays when we ring up and already our contacts are holidaying on their Saturdays," he told Radio New Zealand on Friday.
To help win public support, the government declared employers must still pay workers for the missing Friday, although banks will not be allowed to charge interest for the lost day.
Countries are free to choose whether the dateline passes to the east or west, and Samoa's decision means all new maps will need to change.But some tourism operators are worried Samoa will lose business by losing its position as the last place on earth to see the sunset each day, although it is now one of the first places to see in each new day.
Samoa, a country of about 180,000 people, used to be in the same time zone as New Zealand and Australia, but went back a day in 1892, celebrating July 4 twice and _ itself with the United States.The date change is not the first major change in Samoa in recent years.In 2009, the country switched to driving on the left hand side of the road from the right hand side, in line with New Zealand and Australia. | high21227.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Less fortunate members of our society"
},
"options": [
"Homeless and sick children",
"Less fortunate members of our society",
"Hungry people who have no beds to sleep in",
"Friendly members of our society to help others... | This is a time of year when we think about giving and receiving presents. Can you find a little extra to give? On this page we suggest a few organizations you might like to help.
Littleton Children's Home
We DON'T want your money, but children's toys, books and clothes IN GOOD CONDITION would be very welcome.
Also, we are looking for friendly families who would take our children into their homes for a few hours or days as guests. You have so much-will you share it?
Phone Sister Thomas on 55671
Children's Hospice
We look after a small number of very sick children. This important work needs skill and love. We cannot continue without gifts or money to pay for more nursing staff. We also need storybooks and toys suitable for quiet games.
Please contact the Secretary, Little Children's Hospice, Newby Road.
Street Food
In the winter weather, it's no fun being homeless. It's even worse if you're hungry. We give hot food to at least fifty people every night. It's hard work, but necessary. Can you come and help? If not, can you offer a little money? We use a very old kitchen, and we need some new saucepans . Money for new ones would be most welcome indeed.
Contact Street Food, c/o Mary's House, Elming Way. Littleton Phone 27713
Littleton Youth Club
Have you got an unwanted chair? - a record-player? - a pot of paint ? Because we can use them!
We want to get to work on our meeting room!
Please phone 66231 and we'll be happy to collect anything you can give us.
Thank you!
The Night Shelter
We offer a warm bed for the night to anyone who has nowhere to go. We rent the former Commercial Hotel on Green Street. Although it is not expensive, we never seem to have quite enough money. Can you let us have a few pounds? Any amount, however small, will be such a help.
Send it to us at 15, Green St, Littleton. Please make check payable to Night Shelter. | high520.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "four"
},
"options": [
"three",
"four",
"five",
"six"
],
"question": "There are _ types of restaurants here.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"a... | In the USA, there are many types of restaurants. Fast food restaurants are very famous. You can find McDonald's and Kentucky Fried Chicken in many countries around the world. You look at a menu above the counter, and say what you'd like to eat. You pay the person who serves you. You take your food and sit down or take it away. There's no need to leave a tip.
In a coffee shop you sit at the counter or at a table. You don't wait for the waitress to show you where to sit. She usually brings you coffee when you sit down. You tell her what you'd like to eat and she brings it to you. You pay the cashier as you leave. A diner is like a coffee shop but usually looks like a railway carriage.
In a family restaurant the atmosphere is casual, but the waitress shows you where to sit. Often the waitress tells you her name, but you don't need to tell her yours. If you don't eat everything, your waitress gives you a doggy bag to take your food home. You add an extra fifteen percent to the bill as a tip.
In top class restaurants, you need a reservation and you need to arrive on time. The waiter shows you where to sit. If you have wine, he may ask you to taste it. You can only refuse it if it tastes bad, not if you don't like it. When you get your bill, check it and then add fifteen to twenty percent to it as a tip for the waiter. | high23430.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "introduce a controversial topic"
},
"options": [
"express the author's curiosity",
"cause a heated discussion",
"introduce a controversial topic",
"solve a serious social problem"
],
"question": "The question at... | Should we say goodbye to chivalry in the age of sex equality?
Chivalry began as a response to the violence of the Middle Ages. PierMassimo Forni, the founder of the Civility Institute, says chivalry "as a form of treatment inspired by the sense that there was something special about women and that they deserve added respect."
Today "chivalry" is often used as a term for "gentlemanly" behavior, related to "fair sex", honor, courage and loyalty.
But we can hardly see chivalry nowadays with many women demanding to be treated equally in the workplace.
According to a 2013 survey carried out by the British Daily Mail, only one in seven men will offer their seat to a woman on a bus or train; over three-quarters of men don't offer to help carry a heavy bag or suitcase for women.
In many cases, it's not because these men are being insensitive, but on the contrary, they say they are unwilling to help women because they are worried about making them embarrassed.
These men may worry too much. According to the same survey, only seven percent of women view acts like holding open doors as unpleasant.
"Men seem confused by the modern 'sex equality' message", psychologist and relationship expert Donna Dawson told the Daily Mail.
"This message was meant for the workplace and was never meant to replace good manners. Men will always be the stronger sex physically, so it is natural for them to show consideration for women."
So, should the acts of chivalry be brought back? US writer Emily Smith says chivalry is what we should all long for. Many people are predicting the death of chivalry, but chivalry is not dead yet. Slowly but surely, chivalry is making a come-back. | high12835.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "an Australian city"
},
"options": [
"a famous doctor",
"a kind of disease",
"an Australian city",
"an Australian school"
],
"question": "Toowoomba is the name of _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
... | When Elizabeth Kenny was a little girl, she fell off a horse and hurt her arm. Mrs. Kenny took her to a doctor in Toowoomba, Queensland. In the doctor's, Elizabeth saw many bottles of medicine standing in a row. Since then, she wanted to be a nurse. As soon as she was old enough, Elizabeth was trained in a hospital. After working for some time, she made a surprising discovery. Among her patients were some children who had lost the use of their legs because of polio ( ) . Kenny tried putting hot cloth on their legs and washing them in a special way. The results were great. The children were able to use their legs again.
Most doctors would not believe that children could get well in such a simple way. Gradually, however, she became famous. From 1993 on people from many parts of the world brought their children to Australia to receive treatment by this wonderful nurse. She was invited to America where her methods were used in many hospitals. Money was collected to build Kenny foundations which were for polio patients. Kenny died in 1952, but she will long be remembered for her fight against polio. | high15196.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "They had expected that Haruki Murakami would win the prize."
},
"options": [
"They were waiting there to report who would win the 2013 Nobel Prize in 2013.",
"They had expected that Haruki Murakami would win the prize.",
"The... | More than a hundred reporters from around the world thronged and bustled in the Stock Exchange Building in Stockholm's Old Town for about an hour before the doors to the Swedish Academy swung open. Notably, there were many Japanese reporters present, hoping to break the news that Haruki Murakami had won the prize. Finally, the Swedish Academy's Permanent Secretary Peter Englund stepped out from the doors and said Canadian short story writer Alice Munro has won the 2013 Nobel Prize in Literature.
The following is a truncated Q&A with reporters and Englund. (The questions have been simplified and clarified.)
Why did Alice Munro win?
We gave her the Nobel Prize in Literature because she is a master of the contemporary short story.
Which book to begin with?
One of the amazing things about her is that she has no weak works in her writing. She has always worked to the best of her ability; she has always cultivated the short story to perfection. And she has never really written a weak or bad book. So you can take your pick. 'The Moons of Jupiter' was the first book I read by her and you can see both her different themes in that book and also her very special narrative mode, you can find it there. She tells her stories a bit like nobody else. She has a very economical language and sparse style. You can find that in 'The Moons of Jupiter.' You can take your pick. The latest one is obviously very interesting, 'Dear Life,' which contains a number of autobiographical sketches at the end that gives a key to the entire authorship of Alice Munro.
How was she informed?
Well, I left a message on her answering machine. I couldn't reach her and it was of course pretty early in the morning. But she will be notified by courier, by email to her both agents, by standard mail and so on.
What kind of message did you leave?
Basically, congratulations! You've won the Nobel Prize in literature.
What's the Importance of a woman winning?
Don't ask me. We picked her for excellence, nothing else. Of course it matters when you start doing the headcount. But she is no representative. She has received this prize just because of what she has done. Nothing else.
So the sexual balance doesn't count?
We don't have these kinds of quotas; thank god ... We don't have any quotas. We could, if we wanted to, award this prize four times in a row to a children's book writer working in the United States. If we wanted to. We can do as we please. We don't have to fill any quotes in any direction. We just give it to authors who show an extraordinary literary quality. One of these is Mrs. Alice Munro. | high6917.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "book your seats well in advance"
},
"options": [
"take little luggage",
"avoid traveling in holidays",
"book your seats well in advance",
"arrive early on the leaving date"
],
"question": "If you want to choose ... | Luggage
We ask you to keep a medium - sized suitcase per person, but a small holdall can also be taken onto the coach.
Seats
Requests for particular seats can be made on most coach breaks when booking, but since seats are booked on a first come, first serve basic, early booking is advisable. When bookings are made with us, you will be offered the best seats that are available on the coach at that time.
Travel Documents
When you have paid your deposit we will send you all the necessary documents, so that you receive them in good time before the coach break leaving date. Certain documents, for example, air or boat tickets, may have to be reserved and your guide will then give them to you during the break.
Special Diets
If you require a special diet, you must inform us at the time of booking with a copy of the diet. This will be told to the hotels on your coach break. The hotels for certain coach breaks are tourist class and they may not have the equipment to deal with special diets. Any extra costs must be paid by yourself before leaving the hotel.
Accommodation
On any coach break there are only a limited number of single rooms. When a single room is available, it may be subject to an extra charge and this will be shown on the brochure page.
Entertainment
Some of our hotels arrange extra entertainment which could include music, dancing, films, etc. The nature and frequency of the entertainment presented is decided by the hotel and therefore not guaranteed and could be withdrawn if there is a lack of demand or insufficient numbers in the hotel. | high534.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Concerned"
},
"options": [
"Relieved",
"Angry",
"Concerned",
"Calm"
],
"question": "How did the author feel when Drew stood beside the man?",
"question_type": null
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_inde... | "We are good mothers," I said to my friend, as we sat on our comfortable beach chairs under our beach umbrella and watched our children playing in the waves.
Out of nowhere, the children took off running. About fifty yards from us, a man--maybe in his fifties--was fishing. The children stood next to him and watched with their little mouths hanging open as he cast the fishing lines. He smiled at them. They ran back to us--all except my three-year-old daughter, Drew.
My heart beat fast with horror. "Drew! Come here! Play with your friends!" I shouted, very aware that my speeches about not talking to strangers weren't working. It seemed that many parents heard of horrible stories about children being taken away by strangers. Responsible mothers should teach their children that the world is a dangerous place. So I felt relieved when Drew ran towards me and took hold of a shovel . Then she looked me in the eye: "I want to be with the person."
Again, she approached the middle-aged man, and started digging next to him.
Several seconds later, she returned, waving something shiny.
"Look, Mommy! A toy fish!"
It was, indeed, a toy fish--yellow and rubber. This must have been what he was using to attract the fish. And he'd given it to Drew. The three other children were deeply impressed, and they didn't try to hide how jealous they were--clearly, they all wanted the fish.
"My friend gave me that fish!" Drew shouted loudly. The sand in front of the umbrella turned into a preschool cage match with a yellow rubber fish flying through the air. I felt like I might cry myself.
Unexpectedly, there he was: the man, standing right next to us with three more rubber fish in hand. He handed them to each of the children. By their faces, you would have thought he was actually the really kind big brother.
"Thank you," I said, realizing that there is good and kindness in strangers. | high14288.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "was greeted with smiles"
},
"options": [
"felt very proud",
"was greeted with smiles",
"received many gifts",
"bought some gifts for them"
],
"question": "When helping strangers with the money, the author _ ... | A few weeks ago, a friend of Smile Groups gifted me PS100 to do good deeds with. Since then I have used the money in the U.K. and the U.S and have helped some strangers, generally raising a lot of smiles. They have warmed my heart, but none so much as the gift I was able to give just an hour ago.
I was in a shop looking at the second-hand books. It just so happened that the bookshelves were next to the toy section. After a few minutes I became aware of a group of women standing behind me. They were poorly dressed and spoke in what sounded like an eastern European language.
As the little girl, about three years old, came over to the toy section, immediately her attention was caught by a toy. She spoke to her mother and in halting English her mother asked the shop assistant how much it cost. PS3 was the answer.
The mum looked down at her child, perhaps calculating what she still had to buy and how much money she would have left. Then she simply shook her head. The child didn't react badly as some children might. Being told no was obviously not a new experience for her. But she couldn't keep the disappointment from her face.
I had the total of four pounds in my pocket, two PS2 coins. A moment later, I tapped the mother on the shoulder, and pointed to the coins which I had left and said, "Buy her a dolly, too." I didn't hang about to see the end result. _ . I made my way out of the shop and into the sunshine.
The money my friend gave me was an investment in the happiness of the world. Was there any better way, I wondered, to get so much happiness with so little money than to buy a toy for a little girl? | high23424.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Bottled water may not be as good as we think."
},
"options": [
"Drinking tap water is the only choice for people.",
"Glass containers are better than plastic bottles.",
"Plastic bottles are harmful to the environment.",
... | Bottled water has become the choice for people who are healthy and thirsty. Bottled water is all over the world. But some say the planet's health, and people's health may be suffering from it.
The idea that bottled water is safer for humans may not be true. The Natural Resources Defense Council of America said, "There is no promise that because water comes out of a bottle, it is cleaner or safer than water from the tap." Another New York City-based action group added that some bottled water is "really just tap water in a bottle--sometimes more clean, sometimes not."
It is not proven that bottled water is better than tap water. Nick Reeves from the Chartered Institution of Water and Environmental Management said, "The high mineral content of some bottled water makes them not good for feeding babies and young children." Also, most bottled water doesn't have fluoride , which can make teeth stronger. Kids are drinking more bottled water and less fluoridated tap water, and some say that's behind the recent rise in bad teeth.
Storing is another problem. Placed near heat, the plastic bottles can produce bad chemicals into the water.
According to the Environmental Protection Agency, some 2.7 million tons of plastic are used worldwide to bottle water each year. The plastic can take between 400 and 1,000 years to break down.
In terms of energy use, plastic bottles are also not cheap. One report said that if water and soft drink bottlers had used 10 percent recycled materials in their plastic bottles, they would have saved about 72 million gallons of gas.
So, if you are worried about the effect of bottled water on the Earth, you can take the following steps.
*Drink from your tap. Unless your government warns against this, it should be fine.
*Get a container . Carry your tap water in a steel or a lined drinking container, and clean it between uses.
*Keep it cool. Don't drink from a bottle that has been sitting in the sun, don't store it near chemicals, and don't reuse plastic bottles.
*Choose glass containers over plastic if possible. When finished, recycle! | high12821.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "raising sheep is a big business in New Zealand"
},
"options": [
"raising sheep is a big business in New Zealand",
"New Zealanders each have more than 10 sheep",
"sheep are what New Zealanders live on",
"Pavlova was a sp... | Last Tuesday, a group of Washington, D.C. middle school students took a trip to New Zealand, learning, cooking and eating.
The students were part of A Taste of New Zealand at the Blair House, the President's guesthouse. The event was hosted by USA Chief of Protocol, Ambassador Capricia Marshall, and featured the New Zealand Ambassador to the United States, the Right Honorable Michael Moore.
Ambassador Moore was also previously the Prime Minister of New Zealand. New Zealand is an island in the South Pacific near Australia. It's composed of, as Ambassador Moore joked, around 4.5 million people and 40 million sheep. It also has nice multi-cultural food and traditions, which the students experienced firsthand.
The local students were joined by kids from the New Zealand embassy and they all got their hands messy cooking some of the favorite dishes in New Zealand. The menu included lamb chops, fish and chips, and a Kiwi-style vegetarian mini-pie.
The food was delicious and beautifully crafted with some help from the Blair House chief cooks and a special guest cooks from a New Zealand-style restaurant in Washington.
For dessert, there were several delicious things to choose from. But what stood out from the rest was the Pavlova, a treat made with fruit and others. Not only was the Pavlova nice to look at, but it's also a dish with some controversy.
Peter Macaulay, an adviser to the Embassy of New Zealand who attended with his two children, Brianna and Fraser, cheerfully explained why the Pavlova was so controversial.
Named after a Russian ballet dancer who visited the country in 1927, the Pavlova was created by the New Zealanders in honor of their special guest. The hullabaloo started when the dancer was honored with the same exact dish when she visited Australia. Ever since, a friendly competition has carried on over which country should take credit for originating the dessert.
"We say that we did. And I would stick with our story!" said Ambassador Moore, when asked about the dish.
A Taste of New Zealand was the fourth place in a series designed to highlight the unique cultures of select nations around the world. Like previous events, it was fun, enlightening, and delicious! | high17781.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Control your recovery rate and reach your personal best."
},
"options": [
"The recovery rate and health.",
"The Importance of your recovery rate.",
"Control your recovery rate and reach your personal best.",
"How to red... | What is your recovery rate? How long does it take you to recover from actions and behaviors that up- set you? Minutes? Hours? Days? Weeks? The longer it takes you to recover, the more influence that inci- dent has on your actions, and the less able you are to perform to your personal best.
You are well aware that the faster you let go of an issue that upsets you, the faster you return to an _ the healthier you willbe. The best example of this behavior is found with professional sports- people. They know that the faster they can forget an incident or missed opportunity and get on with the game, the better their performance. Imagine yourself to be an actor in a play on the stage. Your aim is toplay your part to the best of your ability. You have been given a script and at the end of each sen- tence is a full stop. Each time you get to the end of the sentence you start a new one and although the next sentence is related to the last, it is not affected by it. Your job is to deliver each sentence to the best of your ability.
Don't live your life in the past! Learn to live in the present, to overcome the past. Stop the past from influencing your daily life. Don't allow thoughts of the past to reduce your personal best. Stop the past from troubling your life. Learn to recover quickly.
Remember: Rome wasn't built in a day. Reflect on your recovery rate each day. Every day before you go to bed, look at your progress. This is a success. You are taking control of your life. Remember this is a step-by-step process. You are undertaking real change here. Your aim: reduce the time spent in recovery. | high21555.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "you got to the post-office to get your letters"
},
"options": [
"it is easier for you to write letters",
"you will have more letters than parcels",
"you get your letters in front of your house",
"you got to the post-off... | When you have a post-office box, the postman doesn't bring letters to you, but you go to the post-office and get your letters and parcels from your box. The box is locked, only you have the key, so the letters and parcels are safe.
One day the headmaster of a school wrote to the post-office and asked for a post-office box for his school. He soon got an answer. It said, "We will give you a post-office box in one month."
Three months later, the headmaster wrote to the post-office and said, "Why haven't we got a post-office box yet?"
This was the answer from the post-office:
"Dear sir,
We gave you a post-office box two months and wrote to you then to tell you. Here is the key to your box. You will find our letter to you in it." | high11496.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "From a stream."
},
"options": [
"From the tap.",
"From a stream.",
"From a spring.",
"From a well behind her house."
],
"question": "How did the woman get water?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
... | There's a story told about an elderly lady in Arkansas.The state voted to increase welfare payments to the poor.Hoping for a tear-jerker story,a television interviewer went into the back hills where many welfare recipients lived.
The old woman he chose to interview lived in a one-room shack :cold in winter;hot in summer.Her bed was a few rough planks nailed together,with a pine-needle mattress.A couple thin blankets,and a fireplace,did little to protect her from the cold.
Her furniture,a table and two chairs,were fashioned from the same rough wood as her bed.Some shelves held a few cans of food from the general store.a three mile walk down the road.Several jars of preserves and a few squash completed her larder .
She had no fridge or freezer.The fireplace provided heat for cooking.With no phone or television her only connection with the outside world was an old radio that pulled in two or three local stations on a good day.
The old woman had one convenience, running water.A crystal clear stream.flowed a short distance behind her home.
A small garden near her back door provided fresh vegetables during the summer,and some squash and turnips for the winter.A tidy flower garden brightened the front of her house.
The television crew arrived and set up their big expensive cameras.Their mobile station. broadcast pictures of the woman and the place she called home.
Eventually the interviewer asked the old woman,"If the government gave you $200 more each month,what would you do with it?"
Without hesitation the woman replied,"I'd give it to the poor." | high20893.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "One hundred dollars."
},
"options": [
"One hundred dollars.",
"Two hundred dollars.",
"Three hundred dollars.",
"Four hundred dollars."
],
"question": "How much did the lottery winner lose?",
"question_type"... | Do you know of anyone who uses the truth to deceive ? When someone tells you something that is true, but leaves out important information that should be included, he can give you a false picture.
For example, some might say, "I just won a hundred dollars on the lottery . It was great. I took that dollar ticket back to the store and turned it in for one hundred dollars!"
This guy's a winner, right? Maybe, maybe not. We then discover that he bought $200 worth of tickets, and only one was a winner. He's really a big loser! www. .com
He didn't say anything that was false, but he left out important information on purpose. That's called a half-truth. Half-truths are not technically lies, but they are just as dishonest.
Some politicians often use this trick. Let's say that during Governor Smith's last term, her state lost one million jobs and gained three million jobs. Then she seeked another term. One of her opponents said, "During Governor Smith's term, the state lost one million jobs!" That's true. However, an honest statement would have been, "During Governor Smith's term, the state had a net gain of two million jobs."
Advertisers will sometimes use half-truths. It's against the law to make false statements so they try to mislead you with the truth. An advertisement might say, "Nine out of ten doctors advised their patients to take Yucky Pills to cure toothache." It fails to mention that they only asked ten doctors and nine of them work for the Yucky Company.
This kind of deception happens too often. Lies are lies, and sometimes the truth can lie as well, which is a sad fact of life. | high4866.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Simple bags save the harvest."
},
"options": [
"Simple bags save the harvest.",
"Plastic bags kill the insects.",
"Bruchids do harm to the harvest.",
"Pesticides threaten food safety.."
],
"question": "What is t... | Airtight plastic bags can help farmers protect their harvests without the use of harmful chemicals. These bags are designed to keep air out of crops in storage. Using them is a simple way to fight insects and keep crops fresh.
Ten countries in West and Central Africa are involved in a project to improve the storage of cowpeas, also
known as black-eyed peas. Farmers can lose much of the harvest to insects called bruchids , which grow from egg to adult in a few weeks and then lay forty to sixty eggs. They can destroy the whole harvest within months.
Farmers can sell their crops immediately. But selling at harvest time means more competition and lower prices.Or they can use pesticides to kill the bugs. But a crop scientist Dieudonne Baributsa says, "They end up misusing or overusing the pesticide. In Nigeria, they have reported a lot of cases of death. They usually call cowpeas 'killer beans' in Nigeria."
Mr. Baributsa is a researcher at Purdue University in Indiana, America. The project is called PICS---Purdue Improved Cowpea Storage. He says the storage bags are thick enough that any insects already in the cowpeas willdie from a lack of oxygen. The lack of air will also help prevent the growth of bacteria that can ruin the harvest. The bags cost about two dollars each. Mr. Baributsa says that is not much, especially if it means farmers can wait long enough to get a better price for their crops. The bags are produced locally. Donors currently support the project, but the groups involved are working to build a lasting market for the bags because donation for the project will not lastforever.
A company based in the United States called GrainPro makes another kind of airtight bags. These are called SuperGrainbags. Phil Villers, the company's president, says storing a harvest safely not only helps farmers earn more money, but also reduces the amount of the harvest loss to insects, spoilage and mishandling. "What does not get wasted and eaten means it is possible to feed a hungry world," said Phil Villers. | high23342.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "a movement in the wrong direction will cause a mistake"
},
"options": [
"a mistake in the wrong direction is dangerous to the fingers",
"a wrong movement in a direction will cause no mistakes",
"a movement in the wrong direct... | There are two kinds of physical activity which require special training. The first demands exact careful movements of the muscles. This kind of activity must be strictly controlled because even a slight movement in the wrong direction will lead a mistake. To type quickly, for example, a person needs training; the slightest movement of a finger in the wrong direction may cause a spelling mistake. A dancer who has to dance on the point of her shoes or turn around on one foot must be trained for a long period of time before she can sense her own center and balance herself. You may have seen a girl walking on a rope across an empty space, which, too, requires a lot of practice.
The second kind of physical activity needs greater strength or extra effort. Most of us get tired if we try to run half a mile without stopping, but a specially-trained person can do this without much effort. Three years ago, some scientists carried out experiments, which produced meaningful and unexpected results. They wanted to find out whether a certain amount of physical exercise would injure those suffering from heart problems. They selected some male patients and trained them in continuous bicycle riding. They were surprised to find that the harmful effect of given amount of physical effort was actually less on the hearts of these trained patients than on those of the patients who were not similarly trained. This is important because it shows that regular physical exercise enables us to make better use of the oxygen we breathe in and that this training, in fact, reduces the amount of work our hearts do. Many tasks which are hard for untrained people are not hard at all for trained people. | high252.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "got a position on the death of the King"
},
"options": [
"did what she was trying to do",
"gained her purpose",
"got a position on the death of the King",
"completed an easy task"
],
"question": "\"She succeeded... | This hotel in the trees is famous in the world. Peop1e who know very little about Kenya, know of Treetops. When King George VI died, Princess Elizabeth was staying on the Treetops, and when she came down from there, "She succeeded him as the queen of the country". This hotel in the middle of the forest shows the pleasure of Africa. When you visit it, you will be sent into the heart of the forest by hotel buses, and then a guide, with a gun to protect you against big game, will go with you to the Treetops. Before and after dinner, for the whole night if you wish, you can sit on the corridor , watching animals come to the water pool. The earliest hotel Treetops was built round a large tree on the opposite side of the water, but that was destroyed by fire and the new hotel Treetops, which is built round several trees, is much bigger.
The dining room at Treetops is small, and the waiters cannot walk round to serve guests, a clever "railway service" has been invented. Guests take their food as it passes slowly in front of them, along a line in the center of the table.
There are many animals around the Treetops. When you visit them, you can see:
---Animals and their babies are waiting to greet the guests.
---Animals, enjoying the Treetops pool in the daylight.
---A long bodied, long ring tailed very active cat-like animal is a special one coming out at night. He hunts and eats anything he can overpower and is very destructive. He lives in the trees at Treetops .He comes for his food every evening. Do not get too near to him, as his teeth and claws can do you harm. These animals can be trained and become lovely pets.
---Some other animals who have a thick coating of fur to keep them warm in the cold forest nights.
---Many buffaloes coming to the Treetops for water and salt during the day or night. | high15828.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Lajmayin"
},
"options": [
"duck",
"dumplings",
"Lajmayin",
"pork"
],
"question": "On Chinese New Year's Day,Miang's aunt may cook all of the following EXCEPT _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
... | Miang
My name is Miang,I come from Thailand. I would like to tell you about my favorite holiday,which is Chinese Spring Festival,taking place in January or February every year. My family is Chinese,and we celebrate this day all together,too. My aunt prepares some traditional Chinese dishes,such as duck ,chicken,fish,pork and so on. We will have a get-together to enjoy all these delicious food,especially a kind of food--"dumplings".
Janine
My favorite holiday is Christmas. On Christmas,we dance,play music and sing. We have great fun on that day. We eat Christmas sweets and many special foods. We decorate our house with colorful lights. I love Christmas mainly because it is Jesus' birthday!
Zhenia
My favorite holiday is New Year. We celebrate the New Year on the 31st of December. Father Frost comes with his granddaughter Snegoorochka on this night. He comes at night and puts his presents under the New Year Tree. We have a party and stay up until midnight to see the New Year in and the Old Year off. We cook tasty food for parties.
Pat
My name is Pat,and I am from Thailand. My favorite holiday is Songkran. It is a Thai New Year celebration. It takes place from the 13th to 15th of April. People pour water on each other on this holiday. It is a lot of fun. People also buy new clothes and they have big parties.
Malena
I am Malena,and I'm from Argentina. My favorite holiday is New Year. We celebrate with fireworks at midnight. I go to Punta del Este with my family. We usually eat Arabian food(kibbe,Lajmayin and so on). | high13281.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "can stay alive for two months out of water"
},
"options": [
"likes eating nuts",
"prefers living in dry places",
"is the longest living fish on earth",
"can stay alive for two months out of water"
],
"question":... | GUATEMALA CITY(Reuters)---- A fish that lives in mangrove swamps across the Americas can live out of water for months at a time, similar to how animals adapted to land millions of years ago, a new study shows.
The Mangrove Rivulus, a type of small killifish, lives in small pools of water in a certain type of empty nut or even old beer cans in the mangrove swamps of Belize, the United States and Brazil. When their living place dries up, they live on the land in logs , said Scott Taylor, a researcher at the Brevard Endangered Lands Program in Florida .
The fish, whose scientific name is Rivulus marmoratus, can grow as large as three inches. They group together in logs and breathe air through their skin until they can find water again.
The new scientific discovery came after a trip to Belize.
"We kicked over a log and the fish just came crowding out," Taylor told Reuters in neighboring Guatemala by telephone. He said he will make his study on the fish known to the public in an American magazine early next year.
In lab tests, Taylor said he found the fish can live up to 66 days out of water without eating.
Some other fish can live out of water for a short period of time. The walking catfish found in Southeast Asia can stay on land for hours at a time, while lungfish found in Australia, Africa and South America can live out of water, but only in an inactive state. But no other known fish can be out of water as long as the Mangrove Rivulus and remain active, according to Patricia Wright, a biologist at Canada's University of Guelph.
Further studies of the fish may tell how animals changed over time.
"These animals live in conditions similar to those that existed millions of years ago, when animals began making the transition form water onto land, " Wright said. | high8084.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "the class made fun of her."
},
"options": [
"Reed Harrington didn't date her.",
"Carlos was too rude to her.",
"she had to carry many books.",
"the class made fun of her."
],
"question": "The author was angry be... | The first time I saw Carlos I would never have believed he was going to change my life. I had my arms full of books and I was walking into the classroom when I ran into something solid. It was Carlos.
"My God, you're tall" he said.
Of course, the class began to laugh. Angry, I walked to my seat without a word.
I glanced back to see if Reed Harrington was laughing with the rest. That would be the last straw. But Reed as studying chemistry and did not seem to be aware of anything else. I didn't know why I considered Reed my friend. Maybe just because he was a good two inches taller than I. Anyway, every time I blew out my birthday candles and make a wish, it was for a date with Reed Harrington.
"Take that seat." Mr. McCarthy told the cocky newcomer Carlos, pointing to the only empty one, in the back of the room.
Carlos laughed widely. "But I need a couple of dictionaries." Again the class laughed, but now they were laughing with Carlos, not at him. He had been here only 10 minutes and already he had them on his side."
The bell rang for classes. As I stood up to go, I saw Carlos coming toward me. " I'm sorry I embarrassed you," he said. I looked straight head over the top of his black hair. "That's all right."
"I ought to know better." He was still blocking my way." What's your name?" "Karen Forbes." "You probably heard me say I'm Carlos Herrera." He held out his hand. Unwillingly, I shook hands with him. He looked up at me seriously with his brown eyes." "I don't see why you're so touchy."
I brushed by him and said sharply, "You wouldn't understand."
He followed me a few steps. "I'm just the one who should, Karen," he said. "You and I have a lot in common."
It was the school elections that made me think of Carlos again. Reed Harrington was voted president and Carlos vice-president. "How come?" I kept asking myself," How come this shrimp who's only been in town for a little over a month gets to be so popular?"
So that morning, I stopped Carlos and said, " It doesn't seem to bother you ---being short." He looked up at me. "Of course I mind being short. But there isn't anything I can do about it. When I realized I was going to have to spend my life in this undersized skin, I just decided to make the best of it and concentrate on being myself." "You seem to get along great." "I admitted, "But what about me? Nobody wants to date a girl taller than he is." "The trouble with you is that you're afraid to be yourself. You're smart. And you could be pretty. In fact, you might be more than pretty." I felt myself turning red. | high23815.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "to draw more visitors in the summer of 2010"
},
"options": [
"to describe the beauty of SeaWorld San Diego",
"to draw more visitors in the summer of 2010",
"to tell of the most exciting activities",
"to introduce variou... | SeaWorld San Diego is one of the world's famous marine adventure parks with 200 acres of world-class shows, thrilling rides and unforgettable animal encounters. More than 80 million visitors have explored the mysteries of the sea here.and spent the day checking out all eleven shows including the performance of Shamu the killer whale. In between shows you can enjoy yourself on Shipwreck Rapids. When you find that the excitement has drained your energy you can take a break to watch Shamu close! Summer special SeaWorld San Diego 7-days pass
Adults at Kid's Price! Unlimited admission to SeaWorld San Diego for up to 7 consecutive days from date of first use.(available through September 30, 2010)
Adult (ages 13+) Gate Price $69.00 Your Price$56.50
Child (ages 3-12) Gate Price $59.00 Your Price $56.50
7-Day Pass FREE BONUS: SeaWorld San Diego
The Go San Diego Card is your ticket to the best San Diego has to offer. For one price you can enter over 55 attractions - including the San Diego Zoo, The U.S.S. Midway, Legoland, Whale Watching Excursions, and much more. The Go Card is the only ticket you need, saving you up to 55% compared to buying individual admissions. Plus, enjoy VIP access to some of San Diego's top attractions.(available April 1, 2010 - March 31, 2011)
Adult (ages 13+) Gate Price $284.00
Child (ages 3-12) Gate Price $210.00
Child's Ticket for Only $5.00
For nearly 50 years, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment has been rescuing and rehabilitating animals in need. We also work to support conservation efforts around the world. It's our passion and our duty. We would like to invite you to be a part of it.
Now through December 31, 2010, when U.S. residents purchase a full-price adult admission, children ages 3-12 receive a ticket to SeaWorld for only $5.00. (Limit of one $5.00 SeaWorld Cares child ticket with each adult ticket purchased - up to a maximum of 6 child tickets). If you require more child tickets, you'll need to purchase these from the 7-day child ticket listed above. 100% of the proceeds will be donated by SeaWorld to the SeaWorld/Busch Gardens Conservation Fund.
Adult (ages 13+) Gate Price $69.00 Your Price$69.
Child (ages 3-12) Gate Price $59.00 Your Price $5 | high12410.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "she was the subject of a study"
},
"options": [
"she was asked to do research on mice",
"she wanted to experience loneliness",
"she was the subject of a study",
"she needed to record her life"
],
"question": "St... | On May 23,1989, Stefania Follini came out from a cave at Carlsbad, New Mexico. She hadn't seen the sun for eighteen and a half weeks. Stefania was in a research program, and the scientists in the program were studying body rhythms . In this experiment Stefania had spent 130 days in a cave, 30 feet in depth.
During her time in the cave, Stefania had been completely alone except for two white mice. Her living place had been very comfortable, but there had been nothing to fell her the time. She'd had no clock or watches, no television or radio. There had been no natural light and the temperature had always been kept at 21degC.
The results were very interesting. Stefania had been in the cave for over four months, but she thought she had been there for only two. Her body clock had changed. She hadn't kept to a 24-hour day. She had stayed awake for 20-25 hours and then had slept for 10 hours. She had eaten fewer meals and had lost 17lbs in weight as a result! She had also become rather depressed .
How had she spent her time in the cave? As part of the experiment she'd done some physical and mental tests. She'd recorded her daily activities and the results of the tests on a computer. This computer had been specially programmed for the project. Whenever she was free, she'd played cards, read books and listened to music. She'd also learned French from tapes.
The experiment showed that our body clocks are affected by light and temperature, For example, the pattern of day and night makes us wake up and go to sleep. However, People are affected in different ways. Some people wake up naturally at 5:00 am, but others don't start to wake up till 9:00 or 10;00 am. This affects the whole daily rhythm. As a result, the early risers are at their best in the late morning. The late risers, on the other hand, are tired during the day and only come to life in the afternoon or evening! | high7638.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "The amount of salt consumed"
},
"options": [
"The amount of salt consumed",
"The number of deaths caused by high blood pressure.",
"The number of people with cardiovascular disease.",
"The number of people with high blo... | According to the Ministry of Health, 260 million Chinese people have chronic diseases, and 85 percent of all deaths in China are caused by such diseases. Among them, cardiovascular disease has bothered more people than any other kind of chronic disease.
According to the WHO(World Health Organization), salt consumption , one of the key causes of high blood pressure that can lead to cardiovascular disease, is much higher in China than in other countries.
Douglas Bettcher, the director of the WHO's Tobacco Free Initiative, says, "The average Chinese person consumes about 12 to 14 grams (of salt) per day, while the suggestion of the WHO is consumption of less than 5 grams per day. High salt consumption is a major cause of cardiovascular disease and high pressure in China.
Changing the way that food is prepared could reduce salt consumption in China.
Another major risk factor in China is smoking. Dr Michael O'Leary, a representative of the WHO, says, "We know already that one million deaths in China are related to smoking, This is an enormous number. It means that we are seeing nearly 3000 deaths a day in China, or two deaths every minute, related to smoking.
According to O'Leary, about 26 percent of men who die from smoking-related diseases in China die before the age of 60. People who can still contribute a great deal, in other words, are dying too young.
China has tried to ban smoking , but more efforts are needed.
More than half of chronic diseases are preventable by changing lifestyles and reducing risks. The four key risk factors are: smoking, diets high in fats, salt and sugar, environments that prevent physical activities, and alcohol consumption. These are the areas on which efforts to make changes need to concentrate. | high9615.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "the lights lit by a famous person"
},
"options": [
"the wonderful window dressing",
"the Europe's largest music shop",
"the lights lit by a famous person",
"many bargains to choose from"
],
"question": "Oxford S... | Hands-on experience is still attractive to many buyers, although online ordering is popular in the UK today.
Oxford Street
London is shoppers' paradise, and most visitors head for Oxford Street. Halfway along is Sel-fridges, one of the world's first department stores where the architecture and window dressing impress even before you go in. There are at least four other major stores on this street, plus Europe's largest music shop. In December the atmosphere is especially festive because of the Christmas lights which are always lighted by a politician, a great sportsman, or a super star.
Kensington High Street
A fashionable area for shopping is Kensington High Street. One of its department stores even has a roof garden--good for relaxing between purchases. There's also an organic food superstore.
Borough Market
You can't visit London and not go to a supermarket. One of the oldest and best for food is probably Borough Market on the south bank of the Thames. Get off the underground at London Bridge and wander among fresh fish stalls, bakeries, and fruit and vegetable sellers. You can also buy specialist food to take away, like cheeses, pork pies, mustard and chutney.
More places for bargains
Portobello Road on a Saturday is your best choice for jewelry or collector's items. It's a short walk from the subway station at Notting Hill Gate and you never know what you will find. For clothes, Camden Market is the place. It gets a little crowded at the weekends, though. Convent Garden offers great experience for the simple pleasure of looking at jewelry and gifts. | high14061.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "a city in Germany"
},
"options": [
"a kind of food",
"a round piece of beef",
"the name of a village",
"a city in Germany"
],
"question": "Hamburg is _",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"an... | Although English is not as old as Chinese , it is spoken by many people around the world every day. English speakers are always creating new words and we are often able to know where most words come from.
Sometimes, however, no one may really know where a word comes from. Did you ever think about why hamburgers are called hamburgers, especially when they are not made with ham? About a hundred years ago, some men went to America from Europe. They came from a big city in Germany called Hamburg. They didn't speak good English, but they ate good food. When some Americans saw them eating round piece of beef, they asked the Germans what it was. The Germans didn't understand the question and answered, "We come from Hamburg." One of these Americans owned a restaurant, and had an idea. He cooked some round piece of bread and started selling them. Such bread came to be called "hamburgers". Today, "hamburgers" are sold in many countries around the world.
Whether this story is true or not, it certainly is interesting. Knowing why any word has a certain meaning is interesting, too. This reason, for most English words, can be found in any large English dictionary. | high1249.txt |
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