questions list | article stringlengths 9 6.44k | id stringlengths 9 14 |
|---|---|---|
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "didn't line up for the bus"
},
"options": [
"were foreigners",
"didn't have tickets",
"made a loud noise",
"didn't line up for the bus"
],
"question": "The British people tried to push the three gentlemen out of... | In England recently three foreign gentlemen came to a bus stop and waited. About five minutes later, the bus they wanted came along. They were just going to get on when suddenly there was a loud noise behind them. People rushed onto the bus and tried to push them out of the way. Someone shouted at them. The bus conductor came rushing down the stairs to see what all the trouble was about. The three foreigners seem all at sea and looked embarrassed . No one had told them about the British custom of lining up for a bus that the first person who arrives at the bus stop is the first person to get on the bus .
Learning the language of a country isn't enough. If you want to have a pleasant visit, find out as much as possible about the manners and customs of your host country. You will probably be surprised just how different they can be from your own. A visitor to India would do well to remember that people there consider it impolite to use the left hand for passing food at table. The left hand is supposed to be used for washing yourself. Also in India, you might see a man shaking his head at another to show that he doesn't agree. But in many parts of India a shake of the head means agreement. Nodding your head when you are given a drink in Bulgaria will most probably leave you thirsty. In that country, you shake your head to mean 'yes'-- a nod means 'no'. At a meal in countries on the Arabic Peninsula, you will find that your glass is repeated refilled as soon as you drink up. If you think that you have had enough, you should take the cup or glasses in your hand and give it a little shake from side to side or place your hand over the top.
In Europe it's quite usual to cross your legs when you are sitting talking to someone even at an important meeting. Doing this in Thailand, however, could bring about trouble. Also, you should try to avoid touching the head of an adult ----it's just not done in Thailand . | middle352.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "70"
},
"options": [
"60",
"65",
"70",
"75"
],
"question": "How old is Mrs. Clark?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "In the park."
... | Mr. and Mrs. Clark are 70 years old. They look young and they are very healthy. Why? Let me tell you. That's because they have a healthy lifestyle.
They exercise every day, and every morning they exercise in the park. After that they usually go to the supermarket. They walk there for about half an hour. They don't take buses. Because they think walking is good for their health. They often take a walk after dinner.
They also have a good eating habit. They drink milk every morning. They eat fruit and vegetables every day. As for meat, they only eat it twice a week. Besides (...) that, they never eat junk food. They don't drink coffee or cola at all. You see, they look after their health very well.
Mrs. Clark likes watching soap operas and reading books. She reads books every day. Mr. Clark likes Chinese paintings. They usually go to bed at 9:00 pm and sleep for eight hours every night. | middle6817.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "All above"
},
"options": [
"Tuhao",
"Hukou",
"Dama",
"All above"
],
"question": "_ may be adopted in the Oxford English Dictionary in 2014 according to the passage.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
... | The Oxford English Dictionary (OED, ) is thinking of adding the Chinese word tuhao to its 2014 edition .
The word has become popular in China during the past few months to describe newly rich people who spend money in extravagant(,)ways. Tuhao has
in Western countries, too, to describe similar people in their countries.
The adoption of the word by foreign countries is an example of China's spreading influence in the world not just economically, but also socially and culturally. People are paying attention to what is happening in China and are picking up some Chinese words in the process, especially those words that express unique Chinese ideas that cannot be easily translated into English.
The OED is also thinking of adding hukou and dama to the already 120 Chinese words in its dictionary. Hukou refers to China's system of residency permits and dama refers to middle-aged Chinese women whose gold buying habits influence the global gold markets. The news that the OED was adding these words has met with some criticism . Some people say the words embarrass China, but others insist that in a globalized society it's natural for words to spread and be adopted elsewhere. In fact, a word like tuhao expresses the humor of China. It's easy to pronounce and very accurate at poking fun at rich people who have more money than taste. | middle8185.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Parents and children of all ages."
},
"options": [
"Parents and other people.",
"Teachers and their students.",
"Parents and children of all ages.",
"Only school kids and their parents."
],
"question": "Accordin... | Somepeople think only school children do not agree with their parents, however, it is not true. Communication is a problem for parents and children of all ages. if it's hard for you to communicate with your parents, don't worry about it. Here is some advice for you to _ the generation gap .Don't argue with your parents. Don't get to your parents when you are angry.Your parents probably won't consider your ideas if you are shouting at them. And you can't express yourself well if you are angry. Go to someplace to cool off . Make sure you understand why you are unhappy. Then think about what you want to say to your parents. If you don't think you can speak to them at the moment, try writing a letter.
Try to reach a compromise . Perhaps you and your parents disagree on something. You can keep your disagreement and try your best to accept each other. Michael's mother didn't agree with him about buying a motorcycle. They argued over it. But they finally came to a compromise. Michael bought the motorcycle, but only drove it on certain days.
Of course, your parents might refuse to compromise on something . In these situations, it is especially important to show love and respect to them. Showing respect will keep your relationship strong.
Talk about your values. The values of your parents are probably different from those of your own. Tell your parents what you care about, and why. Understanding your values mighthelp them see your purposes in life.
A good relationship with your parents can make you a better and happier person .It is worth having a try! | middle4967.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "12"
},
"options": [
"12",
"13",
"15",
"14"
],
"question": "Li Chuang began to smoke when he was _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_tex... | Li Chuang is a 15-year-old boy, but he has been a smoker for three years. His teeth and fingers have turned a bit yellow.
"I first tried smoking after watching TV. It makes me feel excited and I think it looks cool," he said.
Not all students smoke as much as Li, but there are lots of child smokers.
A report says 32% of boys and 13% of girls in middle schools in China have smoked. Some are as young as 11 when they first try!
May 31stis _ . Health experts are asking young people not to smoke.
Doctors say smoking can make people get illnesses, like lung cancer .
Not only that, smoking costs a lot of money, too!
Stop smoking, children! It's bad for your health. | middle6816.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "her father is free"
},
"options": [
"her father has more money",
"her father is free",
"she likes father better",
"her father likes shopping"
],
"question": "Helen goes shopping with her father because _ .",
... | It's Saturday. Helen has no classes today. She wants to buy a new dress. Her mother is at work, so she is going to the shop with her father. They go there by car. But her father doesn't like going shopping, so Helen goes to the shop and her father sits in the car and waits for her.
There are a lot of people in the shop. It is very crowded . Helen looks at the clothes and chooses . Her father waits and waits. About an hour goes by. Helen doesn't come out. Her father is worried about her. "Why does she stay in the shop for so long?" He comes out of the car. Just then, a man comes up to him. "Excuse me. Are you Helen's father?" "Yes." "Helen is waiting for you. She doesn't have enough money." "Oh, I see."
Then he goes after the man into the shop. Helen is very happy to see her father. She chooses a nice green dress. After her father pays the money, they go home together. | middle6802.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "she was a long way from her mother ."
},
"options": [
"she didn't have a present",
"she was a long way from her mother .",
"she didn't know it was Mother 's Day",
"she wanted to have a trip ."
],
"question": "Th... | It was mother's Day, but the young mother was a little unhappy. Because she was 800 miles away from her parents. In the morning she phone her mother to wish her a happy mother's Day, And her mother told her about the beautiful lilacs in the garden.
Later that day, when she told her husband about the lilacs. He said. "I know where we can find all that you want. Get the children and come on."So they went, driving down the country roads. There on a small hill, they saw a lot of beautiful purple lilacs .The young woman ran quickly to enjoy the flowers .Carefully, she picked a few here and a few there. On their way home there was a smile on her face .When they were passing a nursing home ,the young woman saw an old granny sitting in a chair .She had no children with her .They stopped the car and the young woman walked to the old woman, put the flowers in her hands , and smiled at her .The old granny thanked her again and again . She smiled happily, too.
When the young mother came back to her car , her children asked her ,"Who is that old granny ? Why did you give flowers to her ?""I don't kown her ."Their mother said ,"But it's Mother's Day , and she has no children. I have all of you , and I still have my mother . Just think how much those flowers meant to her ." | middle421.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "food waste at school is very serious"
},
"options": [
"food waste at school is very serious",
"students should not eat more food",
"it is students' duty to eat less food",
"it's easy for schools to start a campaign"
... | It is reported by Chinese Xinhua News that students waste more food than the national average. So the campaign on school food waste is getting popular across the country. The move is part of a national campaign started by students at different schools.
At East China University of Science, students who finish their food in the school dining hall get a special card when they return their plates after meals. Students can collect cards and exchange them for small gifts, such as books, schoolbags, magazines and umbrellas. "It's been such a surprise," said Liang Zhaoyun, 19, a student in Shanghai. "It has given us one more motivation to eat up our food."
"The purpose of the campaign is not only to encourage students to finish their food. We hope it can also teach students to choose a more environment-friendly and healthy lifestyle," said Tao Siliang from University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.
Other schools also pay attention to the quantity of food. At Nanjing No.9 Middle School, rice is divided into three different-sized bowls that students can choose from according to their own need. "It's great because I can try different dishes at half price and don't waste so much food," said Fan Peng, 15, a student from this middle school.
What if you really can't finish all your food? At Changchun Normal College, they provide a take-away service. "If you can't finish all your food, you can get a box to take the left food home. Even if you feed the cat, it's not wasted," said Zhou Zeyong, a student who learns Chinese education.
"I'm happy that we've cut down waste since joining the school 'eat-up' meeting. But some food is poorly cooked, meaning that students are not willing to finish it all. Some schools have taken note of this. So if we hope students try to waste less food, we should also improve the service and keep an eye on the meal quality on weekdays at school. If not, you can't complain students for throwing away much food," said Wang Guangji, the head-teacher of Beijing No. 29 Middle School. | middle4973.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "he looked at his own feet"
},
"options": [
"he said hello to the writer",
"he seemed happy",
"he looked at his own feet",
"he smiled at the writer"
],
"question": "When David was brought into the writer's office... | One day, many years ago, when I was working as a psychologist in England, David was brought into my office. His face was pale and he looked at his own feet.
David lost his father when he was two years old and lived with his mother and grandfather ever since. But the year before he turned 13, his grandfather died and his mother was killed in a car accident. His teacher told me that he refused to talk to others from then on.
How could I help him?
David didn't say a word. As he was leaving, I put my hand on his shoulder."Come back next week if you like. "I said.
He came and I suggested we play a game of chess. He agreed. After that we played chess every Wednesday afternoon--in complete silence. Usually, he arrived earlier than agreed. It seemed that he liked to be with me. But why didn't he ever look at me?
"Perhaps he simply needs someone to share his pain with," I thought.
Months later, when I was looking at his head, he suddenly looked up at me. "It's your turn," he said. After that day, David started talking. He finally got friends in school and he even joined a bicycle club. He wrote to me a few times. Now he had re ally started to live his life.
Maybe I gave David something. But I learned a lot from him. I learned how time makes it possible to get over what seems to be painful. David showed me how to help people like him. All they need is a shoulder to cry on, a friendly touch and an ear that listens. | middle347.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "He can do what he wants to do."
},
"options": [
"His parents spend much time with him.",
"He has to do lots of housework.",
"He can do what he wants to do.",
"He does much more homework than other kids."
],
"que... | Born as the only child in the family, I am the "king" of the family. My parents are both businessmen and they come home every two weeks. Because they don't spend much time with me, they always feel guilty* and will buy me many expensive things and let me do whatever I want. My grandparents never let me do any chores because they want me to do my schoolwork.
I used to take everything for granted*. I never said "thank you" to people. As time went by, I found that my classmates didn't like me and my best friends left me. one day, I asked Leo, who used to be one of my best friends. He said that I was selfish, rude* and bad-tempered*. "No one wants to make friends with a person who always receives but never gives anything!" he said. I was shocked* at his words. "Oh, no! Please don't leave me. I need friends! I will be lonely and unhappy without friends!" I locked myself up in the room and cried. "I want my friends back. But how?"
Then I noticed that all the popular kids in the class friendly to others. They always smile and say "thank you" to others. They do whatever they can to help when others are in trouble. Other kids like them and always play with them. "I need to change! I will get my friends back," I said to myself. From then on, I started to change myself. I learned to say "thank you" to others. I smiled and volunteered to help other kids. I tried to be as nice as I could.
, I found that other kids liked to talk with me and they would ask me to play with them and even told me their secrets. My friends came back to me again.
Now I have more friends than I used to do and I am happier than I used to be. | middle8191.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "all people"
},
"options": [
"those who have large and beautiful house",
"those who have cars",
"those who have a lot of money",
"all people"
],
"question": "Happiness is for _",
"question_type": "cloze_ques... | Happiness is for everyone . You don't need to care about those people who have beautiful houses with large gardens and swimming pools or those who have nice cars and a lot of money and so on . Why? Because those who have big houses may often feel lonely .and those who have cars may want to work on the country roads at their free time .
In fact , happiness is always around you if you put your heart into it.When you are in trouble at school,your friends will help you;when you study hard at your lessons,your parents are always taking good care of your life and your health;when you get success,your friends will say"Cingratulations"to you;when you do something wrong,people around you will help you to correct it.And when you do something good to others,you notice them,and you can see that happiness is always around you.
Happiness is not the same as money.It is a feeling of your heart.When you are poor,you can also say you are happy,because you have something else that can't be bought with money.When you meet with difficulties,you can say loudly you are very happy,because you have more chances to challenge yourself.So you cannot always say you are poor and you have bad luck.As the saying goes,"Life is like a revolving door.When it closes,it also opens."If you take every chance to get, you can be a happy and lucky person. | middle4783.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "there is too much homework."
},
"options": [
"life is interesting",
"the sky seems bright",
"their studies are successful.",
"there is too much homework."
],
"question": "Students sometimes complain _ .",
... | Have you ever complained that life is so tiring or that there is too much homework? Does the sky sometimes seem dark to you? Are your studies sometimes not successful? Well, friends, cheer up and smile all the time. If you look at the world with a warm heart, you will find that the whole world smiles at you.
While in school, sometimes you are tired of your lessons, but have you noticed the happy smile on your teacher's face when you do a good job?
If one day it is fine, but just before you go out, it suddenly starts to rain. Maybe you would feel very sad and start complaining about the weather. Dear friends, why don't you sit down and listen to the free concert that the nature offers you? Also with the timely rain, crops in the fields will grow better and better and farmers will have a good harvest.
Although everyone wants to succeed in what he tries to do, sometimes failure can't be avoided. I think failure is not terrible. The terrible thing is that we are afraid of it and give up hope. When we face failure, we must be confident of ourselves, draw a useful lesson from it and try our best to finish what we have decided to do. As a popular saying goes, "Failure is the mother of the success."
Attitude decides everything, with an _ attitude life is easy and pleasant. Let's smile at whatever we meet and the whole world will smiles at us.
,. | middle1823.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "to improve children's abilities when living alone"
},
"options": [
"for children to live in a lonely place",
"to let children not watch TV at home",
"for parents not to disturb their children",
"to improve children's ab... | Have you heard about "Survival Holidays"?"Survival Holidays" is for children to go into the lonely place for exciting activities. Now about 1,100 companies are allowed to take children into the great outdoors without their parents.
The reason why people like "Survival Holidays" is that they think being close to nature is good for children. Many children in big cities spend all time watching TV and playing computer games. "Survival Holidays" gives them an important change.
Is "Survival Holidays" a wonderful idea? Maybe it is. Children need more free time to play. They need to be left on their own, without adults disturbing them. Parents care too much about their children. They like to see the children being busy with activities that are controlled by adults, which causes many problems. They don't know what to do when they are in danger. Even something like crossing a small river seems to be a hard _ . Children are not comfortable with danger. Even slight danger like getting their feet wet or falling down seems very terrible to them.
Many people think the survival activities are good for children. Even years later, they will still remember what they have learned. Some have learned to stay calm in different times. Some have learned how to keep safe. Others have learned how to work in a team. All these skills will help them a lot in their lives. | middle2494.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "they can make the sick happier"
},
"options": [
"they are ill and they need to see the doctor",
"they can make the sick happier",
"they can help the doctor find out the problems",
"all the doctors like them"
],
... | In America, when people say 'man's best friend', they don't mean another person. Instead, they are talking about a lovely animal--a dog! These words show the friendship between people and animals. Dogs and other pets can give joy to people's lives. _
Animals can help people, too. You can teach dogs to be the 'eyes' for blind people or 'ears' for deaf people. Scientists have found that pets help people live longer! They make people happier, too. Because of that, they bring animals into hospitals for 'visits'.
Americans have 'Be Kind to Animals Week' in the first week of May. There are many pet shows during the week. Even if you don't live in America, you can also show your love to animals. How? First think about how animals make your life richer . If you have a pet, take more time this week to play with it. Remember to give it nice food. If you don't have a pet, be kind to
animals around you. For example, if you see a street dog, don't kick it. Just leave it alone, or make friends with it. If others around you do bad things to animals, try to stop them. As people, we must protect animals because they can't speak for themselves. | middle2480.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "a police dog"
},
"options": [
"dogs",
"cats",
"people",
"a police dog"
],
"question": "The story is about _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"... | My friend has a big police dog named Kim. Police dogs are often very smart. Every Sunday afternoon my friend takes Kim for a long walk in the park. Kim likes walking very much.
One Sunday afternoon a man visited my friend.
He talked to my friend a long time. They talked and talked. Soon it was time for my friend to take Kim for his walk, but the man still stayed. Kim became very worried about his walk in the park. He walked around the living-room sometimes and at last sat down in front of the man and looked at him. But the man went on talking.
After thirty minutes, Kim couldn't stand it. He went out of the room and came back a few minutes later. He sat down in front of the man again but this time he held the man's hat in his mouth. | middle1189.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "He can't see clearly"
},
"options": [
"He has a black face.",
"He can't see clearly",
"He looks much older.",
"He has a little nose."
],
"question": "Which is one of the signs of being an albino?",
"question... | I was born an albino in Pennsylvania in 1945.No one in my family had ever known what an albino was and what it meant to be an albino.
My family and friends treated me as everybody else.That was just about the best thing they could have done.It helped me believe in myself, so when troubles came along, I could deal with them.
Like most albinos, I had the terrible eyesight, but the fact that I could hardly see didn't bother me that much .Kids would make fun of me, calling me"Whitey". People looked at me when I held the books right at the tip of my nose so that I could see it well enough.Even when I was eight, movie-theater workers started asking me to pay full prices because I"looked older".The worst thing for me was that because my eyesight was so bad, I couldn't play sports very well.I didn't give up trying, though.And I studied harder.Finally, I got better at school and loved it.When I got to university, I was double majoring , going to summer school and busying myself with every activity I could find.I had learned to be proud of being an albino.I did my best to make"albino"a good word.And I decided to make my living with my eyes--and in sports.
I couldn't see very well to play sports, but with a good education and a drive to do it, I could make a living in the area I loved.I've done it now for more than thirty years in video, and now in cyberspace .People make jokes about how I'm the only"blind editor"they know, but the jokes are of goodwill and some of them are signs of respect .
I was just a proud albino kid from the country of Pennsylvania.I now realize that being born an albino helped me to overcome difficulties, have confidence, and be proud of my personal achievement . | middle6180.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "about 59,000,000"
},
"options": [
"30% of",
"77,000,000",
"about 59,000,000",
"over 23,000,000"
],
"question": "From the passage, we know that _ Chinese traveled to foreign countries in 2013.",
"question... | More and more people are interested in traveling. Why do people travel? "To see more of the country and the world," many people would say. Of course it offers us good chances to meet people from other countries, learn about their culture.
In 2014, Chinese people traveled to other countries 30% more than in 2013. The number reached 77,000,000. Chinese people usually join large tourist groups and visit several countries in one trip.
Chinese people don't just travel for sights. They can also go shopping. For example, during Christmas, shops usually offer discounts. Then shopping in Europe and the United States is popular among Chinese travelers.
In winter, China goes through a cold season. So many people like going to some countries in Southeast Asia because the weather there is pleasant.
Now more Chinese can go traveling. But some of them don't have a sense of public manners. A report says some Chinese don't follow the traveling rules. Someone writes 'Ding x x has come here', someone litters, spits, snatches bus seats, takes off shoes in public, talks loudly and smokes in non-smoking areas. We should stop doing these. | middle4797.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Because he missed his mother"
},
"options": [
"Because he wanted to sleep.",
"Because he wanted to play outside.",
"Because he was hungry.",
"Because he missed his mother"
],
"question": "Why did the younger bro... | When I was ten, my mother worked all day so I had to take care of my younger brother. At that time my little brother was about four years old and he missed mum all the time.
One day, after I had given him his dinner, he started crying for mum. He was so young and really needed mum. So I dressed him, put on his shoes, carried him on my back and walked out. Soon he fell asleep. About half an hour late, I found that he had lost a shoe while sleeping. I took him off my back and put him down. I knew we needed to find that shoe, for our mother couldn`t afford new shoes. We had to go back to find it, so I told my brother to Wait right here. A man heard it and stopped me just before I walked off. He asked me, "You are leaving your brother here to find the shoe? What would you do if he is not here when you return?" I did not know how to answer that question. He continued,: It is OK if you can`t find the shoe, but it is not OK to lose your brother." Then he sent us to mum`s workplace by taxi.
I have depended on the kindness of many strangers in my whole life. I feel regretful that I cannot find them and say thank you. I don't even remember what the man`s face looked like, but he taught me a lesson--people are more important than things.
,,. | middle5489.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Students betweenl3andl8"
},
"options": [
"Allthestudents",
"Studentsaged13",
"Students betweenl3andl8",
"Students over18"
],
"question": "_ can take part in the English Summer Camp.",
"question_type": "cloz... | Join us for an English Summer Camp in English !
Students between l3 and l8 are welcome to the English Summer Camp.
It's a good chance to learn about British customs and improve your English.
Eleven experienced English teachers will give you English classes 4 hours a day on weekdays.
There are also weekend visits to London Eye, the Big Ben and London Bridge .
It begins on August 8th and ends on August 28th, with the fees: Y= 23,000.
If you are interested, please come to the Children's Palace to register You can also register by calling Jane Parks at 555 --2782.
Please register before August 3rd. | middle3013.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "climb up on the walls"
},
"options": [
"fix the bike",
"climb up on the walls",
"eat sandwiches",
"walk around the farm"
],
"question": "During his break every morning, the small boy would _ .",
"question... | Once a small boy lived on a farm which seemed so far away from everywhere.
He needed to get up before the sun rose every morning to help his father on the farm. After an hour he could take a break for a while. Then he climbed up on the walls along the side of the farm. He could see a house with gold windows. "If they could afford gold windows, then there must be other nice things inside the house." He imagined how great it would be to live there. Then he promised himself, "Some day I will go there and see this wonderful place."
One morning, his father would go to the town and told him to stay at home for a rest. Knowing that this was his chance, he took a sandwich and went across the field towards the house with the gold windows.
As the afternoon went on, he began to realize how wrong he was. The house was much farther than he had expected. As he went near the house, he saw no gold windows but instead a place in need of painting. A small girl very close to his age came out of the poor house and stood there. He asked her if she had seen the house with the gold windows.
The girl said, "Sure, I know." and invited him to sit on the porch . As he sat there, he looked back from where he just came. There he saw the sunset turned the windows of his house to gold! Now he understood that everyone had his own house with gold windows. | middle7275.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "to do their homework quickly and in the right way'"
},
"options": [
"not to look away while doing homework",
"to do homework by themselves",
"not to turn to teachers when doing homework",
"to do their homework quickly a... | Homework should be done as soon as you get home from school. If you have after-school activities, the homework should be done first. At the same time, it is fine to allow for a snack break and also to allow for stretching breaks.
Also, you should remember that it is your duty to do your homework. Next time, when you want to depend on Mom and Dad for help, please try to find the answer yourself, because you will learn much, much more that way.
When you have a question, especially something about a science or math, don't always turn to your teacher! It is a good idea to try to find the answer yourself. If this doesn't work, you can also look at the materials in the back of the book. They may guide you to the pages you should look at to help you understand the problem.
Finally, while doing homework, don't think about or do other things. Keep working. Setting a time limit often helps with this. Different ages decide different amounts of time. 10-15 minutes is good for a child that's aged 6-8. A time of 20-30 minutes is about right for a child aged 9-12. Kids can keep studying for 30-45 minutes from the ages of 13 to 15. This, of course, depends on your abilities to pay attention and stay on tasks. | middle390.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "winter"
},
"options": [
"spring",
"summer",
"autumn",
"winter"
],
"question": "From the passage, we learn that smog was a big problem in _ in London.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"an... | 500 years ago in Britain, the burning of coal was increasing in cities like London. Coal was used in factories and also used to heat homes. Coal, when burnt makes a lot of smoke, which makes the air very dirty.
About 200 years ago, the Industrial Revolution began in Britain. Factories were built, and even more coal was burnt. Air pollution was becoming a really big problem.
Smoke and fog together make smog . Smog was a big problem in London's winter. Because of the cold weather, more coal was burnt to warm houses and this made more smoke.
When smog stayed over a city, it became really hard to breathe and see clearly. In 1952, the Great London Smog happened and more than 4,000 people died because of the smog.
New laws were made in 1956 and 1968 to stop such sad things from happening again. These laws were called the Clean Air Acts.
These laws were made so that air would become cleaner. The laws encouraged people to use less coal or _ other fuels such as gas. Factories started using tall chimneys so that the smoke would go high up in the sky and no longer cover cities, and new factories were built in the countryside. Smog appeared less often and the air became cleaner. | middle1162.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "they are very big"
},
"options": [
"they are very big",
"they are quiet",
"they are very strong",
"they want to eat leaves along the way"
],
"question": "Elephants usually walk slowly because _ .",
"quest... | Elephants have very strong legs.Their legs are like trees.They usually walk slowly because they are so big,but they walk very quietly.
Wild elephants living in the jungle usually stay together in big families.Usually one old elephant leads them.The others follow their leader.They usually move about at night,looking for food.In the hot daytime,they go to sleep in the cool shade of the trees.Elephants are kind animals.When one of them is hurt and cannot pull itself to its feet,the other elephants lift it up and help it to walk.
Some people say that elephants never forget.They remember people who are kind or bad to them.There are many about this. | middle5304.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "watching sports matches"
},
"options": [
"reading comic books",
"writing sports news",
"watching sports matches",
"playing computer games."
],
"question": "Bob likes _ very much.",
"question_type": "cloze... | My cousin Bob likes watching sports matches very much . He goes to the stadium to watch football matches at the weekend. He is also good at playing football. Now he is in the Football Club. Beckham is his favourite football player. When Bob is free, he always buys newspapers about sports. He watches sports news on TV,too.
Bob's school is very big and beautiful. There is a football field, a tennis court and a swimming pool in it. He usually plays football with his friends after school. He wants to be a good football player. | middle3761.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "50%"
},
"options": [
"50%",
"45%",
"64.2%",
"38.9%"
],
"question": "About _ of Chinese students spend more than 2 hours doing their homework every day.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"... | You may feel interested in students in other countries. Do they have so much homework? What do they do in their free time? People did a survey in China, Japan, South Korea and the US last year. This is the result.
Who studies the hardest?
Chinese students spend the most time in studying. About half of Chinese students spend more than two hours on their homework every day.
Who sleeps most often in class?
Japanese students fall asleep in class more often. About 45% of them sometimes _ in class. It's 32% in South Korea, 21% in the US and 5% in China.
Who is the most distracted ?
American students are the most active in class, but also the most distracted. 64.2% of them chat with friends in class. 46.9% of them eat something in class, and 38.9 % of them send e-mails or read other books in class.
What do they do after school?
In their free time, most Chinese students study or surf the Internet. Most American students hang out with their friends. Most Japanese students do exercise. Most South Korean students watch TV. | middle1176.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "student"
},
"options": [
"teacher",
"parent",
"student",
"player"
],
"question": "\"You\" in this article is a _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
... | You can't look good if you are not healthy. And one way to be healthy is to do exercise.
Football, tennis, volleyball and swimming are all good for you. Muscle exercise is also important. You can exercise at school or at home. Boys can do push-ups and girls can do sit-ups .
But there are some don'ts here:
First, stay away from weight lifting . It's bad for you, because it gives too much stress to your body and you can't grow tall if you practise often. You should exercise for about an hour a day, and three days a week. On the other days, don't exercise too much. Exercising too much is not a good idea.
Don't go running for a long time. Running for a long time makes you tired.
Don't want fastresults . Your muscles will grow when you get older. If you want to be healthy and strong, exercise and healthy food are the best way. But don't think you can make it in one day. | middle6619.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "blue"
},
"options": [
"pink",
"green",
"blue",
"yellow"
],
"question": "If you see _ balloons on the front door of an American house, a boy is born.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"an... | How did your parents celebrate when you were born? Of course you can't remember, but they can. They have photos or videos from a ceremony of some kind.
In the United States, the proud parents of a new baby often put something on their front door. It's an exciting time for them, and they want to share the good news with their neighbors. For example, they put balloons on their door. Pink balloons mean the baby is a girl. Blue ones are for boys.
People around the world often celebrate a new baby's birth with some kinds of ceremonies, perhaps a religious ceremony. This perhaps takes place when a baby is a few days or weeks old. Take what people do in Mexico as an example, many new parents dress their babies in special clothes take them to church.In some African countries, the family plants a tree near the house. In Korea, there is a traditional ceremony on the baby's 100th day. And it's the same in China. On that day, all family members and friends get together to have a big meal, with all the best wishes that the baby will grow up happily and healthily.
The parents of new babies often receive presents. In the United States, friends send cards, flowers or baby clothes. In China, family members and friends give money or presents.
Presents, celebrations---these are great, but what do most new parents really need? More sleep! | middle7507.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Big."
},
"options": [
"Clean.",
"Small.",
"Big.",
"Quiet."
],
"question": "How is the supermarket near Michael's house?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0... | *My name is Michael. This is my neighborhood. There is a big supermarket near my house. The things there are cheap, so many people like shopping there. Across from the supermarket is a school. It's my school. There is a library next to my school. I like reading books there.
*I am Nick. My neighborhood is busy. There are a lot of stores and restaurants in my neighborhood. My house is on a street corner . There is a post office near it. And next to the post office is a pay phone.
*My name is Amy. In my neighborhood, there is a big park. Lots of people go there to have fun. I like to play there, too. There is a restaurant across from the park. A bank is next to the restaurant. And some clothes stores are near the bank.
,. | middle7261.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "bad dreams, scary movies or snakes"
},
"options": [
"the darkness, bad dreams or birds",
"voices, bad dreams or dogs",
"the darkness, scary movies or any sound",
"bad dreams, scary movies or snakes"
],
"question... | Everybody is afraid of something. More than 2500 children told us what they were afraid of. Some don't like the darkness. Some hate bad dreams and scary movies . And some of them want to run away from dogs and snakes.
Tom, 11, is afraid of the darkness because he worries that someone might
his house.
10-year-old Kathy said he was afraid of thunderstorms and the sound at night.
The worst thing about the afraid feeling is that we don't know how to deal with it. Here are three ways to help children feel better.
1. Do something interesting in your free time.
2. Talk to your parents about your feeling.
3. Talk to a close friend.
,. (5) | middle8152.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "they don't want or need to learn too much"
},
"options": [
"they are especially talented people",
"they don't want or need to learn too much",
"they have to spend a lot of time on it",
"they have a chance to go abroad"
... | Is learning a foreign language ever easy? Yes. If you are five and move to another country, you will quickly pick up the language. But what about for the rest of us who are no longer five, and need to be polite when traveling for business or for pleasure? I think that answer is also yes. Language learning can be easy if you don't want or need to learn too much.
The key to successful language learning in my mind is not to set the goal too high. It is rather like running. Even if you run twice a week, you don't necessarily want to be able to run a marathon . You might just want to keep a level of fitness. I think the same can be true for language learning.
Let's get back to the goal. If you decide to learn ten words in a foreign language before visiting the country, you know that you will be sure to do this. However, if you decide to talk to people with great fluency , unless you are quite a talented person, you will probably fail and give up in half-way.
It is also far easier to start learning a foreign language than to finish. In other words, the better you are, the slower it can be to improve, because you will not be able to move further because of grammar, making sentences, learning less common words, etc. If you are only trying to learn a few foreign words and sentences, you will enjoy faster progress, have more fun, and won't have to spend too much time.
The idea of learning only a few hundred words in a language, and then stopping, isn't the usual way to language learning, but it can be a very meaningful and enjoyable activity. | middle1610.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Gou Jian"
},
"options": [
"Gou Jian",
"Fu Chai",
"Gou Jian's father",
"Fu Chai's father"
],
"question": "Three years later _ was caught and taken to the state of Wu.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
... | In ancient China, the State of Wu made an attack on the State of Yue. The king of Wu was badly hurt and soon died. His son Fu Chai became the new king. Fu was very sad and angry and he decided to fight back for his father's death. He trained his army strictly until it was very strong. Three years later, he led his army against the State of Yue and caught its king Gou Jian, who was taken to the State of Wu.
Gou Jian was put into a small black stone house which was full of terrible smell and was made to raise horses. Gou worked hard and tried to keep himself quiet, but he never forgot his pain. Many years later, he was set free. Gou secretly trained his army after he went back to his own state. In order to make himself strong-minded he slept on firewood and ate a gall bladder before having dinner and going to bed every night. After a few years, his country became strong once more. Then Gou took hold of a golden chance to fight against Wu and won the war in the end.
If one voluntarily works very hard and voluntarily stands up to pains and difficulties in order to succeed, we might call him a"Gou Jian", and his story, a"Gou Jian's story". | middle384.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Sheep and birds"
},
"options": [
"Sheep and birds",
"Snow.",
"Many people.",
"Forests."
],
"question": "What can they see on the tops of the hills?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer... | Hello Sandy,
We have just returned form our holiday. We went with our friends,Edward Smith and his wife Tina, to the Yorkshire Moors. It is a beautiful natural park. There are lots of places to walk on the tops of the hills,miles of grassland with no people,just sheep and birds.
Edward had just come out of hospital and he could not walk as far as before. However, this meant that we walked in the mornings, and then stopped at a restaurant for lunch each day before returning to the place we lived in. Edward and I slept in front of the fire all afternoon, while the ladies went for another walk. Very pleasant!
I took lots of photos from the place we lived in, across the valley below us, of the morning sunrise, and the mist in the valley. Also, in England, the old steam-powered trains are very popular. I took many photos of the train.
Yesterday we had the first snow of this winter. It is very early. We usually have snow in January. It rained all day, then snowed in the evening .Today we have bright sunshine! Both Jenny and I are well. I don't know if I told you, in the last e-mail , that Jenny is now working in a hotel. Although she has to work hard, people there are nice, and she is enjoying the work.
Please write to us to tell us your news.
Yours, Victor | middle2319.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "On the street."
},
"options": [
"In the forest.",
"At a zoo.",
"On the street.",
"At a park."
],
"question": "Where did the American bump into the bear?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"a... | Today, an increasing number of people are always looking at their mobile phones with their heads down. These people are called the "Heads-down Tribe" . Are you a heads-down tribe member? Heads-down tribe members now can be seen everywhere.
Using mobile phones may cause accidents and even cost a lot of money. Also, more and more interesting and strange facts happen to the "Heads-down Tribe". Let's have a look at an interesting TV report. A man in America kept using his mobile phone on his way home. As a result, he bumped into a big lost bear on the street. When he lifted his eyes from the phone,he was so scared that he turned around and ran away as quickly as possible. Another fact is that we can often see people in the restaurant eating face to face but looking at their own mobile phones. It's strange that they don't talk to the ones who sit opposite to them during the meal. Some of them even have fun communicating with others on the phone.
Mobile phones are helpful and necessary tools for modern life. Are mobile phones good or bad? It depends on how people use them. Let's be "healthy" users and try to be the "Heads-up Tribe". | middle5476.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "air"
},
"options": [
"bus",
"air",
"train",
"taxi"
],
"question": "The Smiths are going to Hong Kong by _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"an... | The Smiths are going to visit Hong Kong next summer. They will fly there. They will spend about two weeks there.
First, they are going to visit all the places of interest in the city and also do some shopping. They can enjoy shopping until ten o'clock at night.
Second, they are going to eat delicious food there. There are many Chinese and western restaurants there. They can enjoy many kinds of food, for example, fish, meat and vegetables.
Last, they are going to visit Disneyland. There are lots of interesting things to do. They will take lots of photos there.
They are looking forward to their summer holidays. | middle4768.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "She blessed it to come alive."
},
"options": [
"She took the painting away.",
"She blessed it to come alive.",
"She drew another one like this painting.",
"She put the painting on the wall."
],
"question": "What... | Once upon a time there was a boy named Ankit. One day he made a painting and he loved it so much.
One night when he slept, an angel came and blessed his painting that it should come alive. He was always lonely. He always wanted a friend to talk to and share his work and secrets. Next morning when he woke up he heard some sounds near his painting. When he looked at the painting, he was surprised that it was talking! He thought that his wish had come true.
The man in the painting needed food, water and clothes. The news of the magic painting _ all over the world. It even came in newspapers and in the news on TV.
One night a thief came to steal the painting. The moment he came in front of the painting, the man in the picture shouted and said, "Help! Help, a thief!" The thief got scared and ran away.
One day the painting said to Ankit that it wanted to be married. Then Ankit had to paint a woman. He made both the paintings marry and live happily ever after. His loneliness was also cured forever. | middle7249.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Children's Day"
},
"options": [
"Children's Day",
"Teachers' Day",
"Christmas Day",
"Spring Festival"
],
"question": "Both the two theatres will celebrate _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{... | Look at the two posters about Sunshine Theatre and Moonlight Theatre:
Welcome to Sunshine Party!
Time: 1:30 p.m. -8:30p.m. , June 1st Happy Children's Day
Place: Sunshine Theatre
Activities: Singing, dancing, a magic show and a fashion show
Welcome to Moonlight Party!
Happy Children's D ay Time: 2:30 p.m. -10:30p.m. , June 1st
Place: Moonlight Theatre
Activities: 3 cartoon films and a fashion show | middle6157.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Five"
},
"options": [
"Three",
"Four",
"Five",
"six"
],
"question": "How many people are there in this passage?",
"question_type": null
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": ... | Sue and Linda usually go to school by car. They drive past a hospital, a supermarket and a food shop. The food shop is next to the supermarket.
. Jack and Michael usually go to school by bus. They go past a bank and a post office. The bank is next to the post office.
Mary usually goes to work by bike. She rides a bike past a police office, a park and a swimming pool. The park is between the police office and the swimming pool. | middle4998.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Forgetting things"
},
"options": [
"Important work",
"Working for a long time",
"Forgetting things",
"Bad condition"
],
"question": "_ made Mr. Clark work very difficult.",
"question_type": "cloze_question... | Mr. Clark worked in a newspaper, and he did a lot of important and difficult work, but then he began to forget things, and this made his work very difficult. One day he said to himself, "I'm going to go and see Dr. Martin about this."
He waited in the doctor's waiting room with the other patients, and then the nurse said to him, "You can go in and see Dr. Martin now".
"Oh, doctor," said Mr. Clark, 'it's terrible, I can't remember anything for longer than half a minute, and it's making my work very difficult. What can I do? Can you help me?"
The doctor said, "When did this start, Mr. Clark?"
"When did what start?" Mr. Clark said. | middle2331.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "every day in a year"
},
"options": [
"every day in a year",
"for most of the month",
"for only a few days",
"late at night"
],
"question": "If people want to do well in an exam, they have to work hard _ .",
... | A good way to pass an exam is to work hard every day in a year. You may fail in an exam if you are lazy for most of the year and then work hard only a few days before the exam. If you want to be good at English, you have to read stories in English, and to speak English as much as possible. A few days before the exam you should go to bed early. Do not go to bed late at night studying. Before you start answering in the exam, read carefully over the question papers, and try to understand the meaning of each question. When you have finished your exam, read over your answers. Correct the mistakes if there are any and be sure that you don't miss anything out.
A. B.C.D,. (5,2,10) | middle4740.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "impress people"
},
"options": [
"write travel stories",
"learn the skills",
"help the kids there",
"impress people"
],
"question": "At first, Grennan simply wanted to _ by volunteering in Nepal.",
"questi... | Conor Grennan was unwilling to be a volunteer . The 29-year-old American was not sure if he had the skills or a strong feeling for it.
However, he went to work at an orphanage in Nepal. His first thought was to make people impressed.
"I thought that if I volunteered just once. I could retell the story over and over," Grennan said in a Huffington Post article.
However, his three-month stay it the orphanage turned into in unusual experience. It was 2004 and Grennan had given up his job to begin a year-long around-the-world trip, His first three months were spent in Nepal.
When he arrived in the village, he knew nothing about the children or the local culture. When he opened the gate of the Little Princes Children's Home, he was faced by the excited children.
The young American ended up caring for 18 children. He later discovered that they were trafficked children. So he walked through the mountains with great difficulty to find the kids' families, "I started walking with photos of the kids." he told the Reuters reporter. "I would show up in villages and show photographs around. I went with 24 photos, and I found 24 families."
At the same time, he put his heart into Nepalese culture.
Grennan said, "Volunteering is the single best way to see how the rest of the world lives."
He also encouraged others to do what he had done. He believes that volunteering needs only making decisions to show up.
Grennan's fight against child-trafficking has changed him. His book, Little Prince, came out last week. | middle3749.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "12"
},
"options": [
"5",
"12",
"11",
"14"
],
"question": "Sue will be _ years old.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "In November.... | My name is Sue. I want to have a special party to celebrate my 12th birthday. After discussing it with my family, I decided to have a Hello Kitty theme birthday party.
Hello Kitty Birthday Invitations
An invitation in the shape of a skirt is a fun way to invite my friends to the party. My sister, Lisa, will help me make the invitations. My mom tells me to send out the invitations 3~5 weeks before the date of the party. My birthday party is on December 21, so I will send out the invitations before November 24.
Hello Kitty Theme Decorations
The party will be held in our garden. I plan to put some white and pink balloons around the garden. There will be a vase which is full of pink flowers on each table and a small Hello Kitty on each chair.
Hello Kitty Birthday Party Menu
My parents will cook some delicious food. All of them will be named after Hello Kitty's friends, such as Rory and Fifi. I will _ a birthday cake in the shape of a Hello Kitty at Mrs Green'S Cake Store at the beginning of December.
I hope my friends will enjoy themselves at the special party. | middle4026.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "to help his brother on business"
},
"options": [
"to look for gold",
"to sell canvas",
"to visit his brother",
"to help his brother on business"
],
"question": "Levi Strauss went to San Francisco _ .",
"qu... | Perhaps the most famous clothing brand name in the world is Levi's.Levi Strauss & Co.is the producer of blue denim jeans.Here's how it happened.
In the mid 1800s many people went to California to look for gold.A young German named Levi Strauss traveled to San Francisco to help his brother on business.He sold canvas to the workers for tents.But the workers said they needed pants more,because their pants were easy to wear out.Instead of selling his canvas for tent-making,he turned it into pants.These kinds of pants were very popular with workers.He was very happy and named the kind of pants"denims".And in 1853 he founded Levi Strauss & Co.
Twenty years later the company began using a design with pockets.During the working,Strauss _ the process for putting metal rivets in the eans for strength.
On May 20,1873,they received the U.S.Patent No.139,121 for the process and that date is now considered the official birthday of"blue jeans".
Today the company still has its factories in San Francisco,California.Over 11,000 people work in them and bring in over $4 billion a year. | middle5338.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Nobody can read them"
},
"options": [
"only their parents can read them",
"only their teacher can read them",
"Nobody can read them",
"Their teacher can read them"
],
"question": "The students' diaries and lette... | Enjoying a better life at school, with shorter class hours, greater privacy and more rights is all you dream of, right?
For students in Shanghai, they are no longer just dreams. This week experts and law-makers in Shanghai had a meeting to talk about a new law . It is called the "Shanghai Underage Protection Law ".
The law says students' diaries and letters are their secrets and "Nobody can read them if they don't agree."
Do your teachers sometimes say something bad to you? Maybe they send you out of the classroom because you fail to finish doing your homework. If this happens in Shanghai, you can stand up and say "No".
Shanghai students may have less homework because of the law. Class hours may become shorter for juniors next year, down from 45 minutes to 40 minutes in some schools.
The law also talks about students' health. According to the rules,"Smoking in these places full of kids is not allowed."That means you can ask your teacher to stop if he smokes in a classroom.
The law makes schools safer for students. "No dancing halls, Internet bars or computer game bars are allowed within(......)200 meters of a school gate." the law says.
The law is great, right? Many students like it.
"My mom reads my diaries sometimes. I think she will be afraid if I tell her she is doing something against the law." said Luo Jia, 13, at Shanghai Fuxing Junior School.
If you want to know more about the law, go to "www.spcsc.sh.cn".
,. | middle3991.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Stories."
},
"options": [
"Stories.",
"Newspapers.",
"Basketballs.",
"Pianos."
],
"question": "What do writers use to share their life experiences?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer... | We all have our own ways of sharing our life experiences with others.
Photographers use cameras, artists use brushes, musicians use songs and writers use stories.
Spencer Johnson's story Who Moved My Cheese? shows changes exist in our life. Life changes and so we do. We must change ourselves to face the changing environment, or we will fail.
Just look at the cycle of the seasons. Trees bud in spring and in summer their leaves turn green. In autumn, their leaves start to fall onto the ground. When winter comes, there are no leaves on trees. Next spring the cycle begins again. Since we know there are cycles in nature, we can prepare for them. We know it is colder in winter and hotter in summer, so we can dress properly.
Since we accept the cycles of nature, we should also accept the changes in our life.
We can prepare ourselves for changes by becoming more flexible . We can regard the changes in our life as chances. As we keep changing ourselves, we can keep up with the changes in our life. | middle2457.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "four"
},
"options": [
"three",
"four",
"five",
"six"
],
"question": "There are _ children in Lin Xiao's family.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
... | Lin Xiao, 21, a student at Guangdong University, has a big family - her two parents, a younger brother and two younger sisters. Lin took her role as the "big sister" seriously. When her first sister was born, Lin took turns with her mom holding the baby late into the night. "I almost did everything that was supposed to be a parent's job, but I felt proud of myself," she said.
Not all of Lin's classmates shared her experiences because of the family planning policy , a law that was carried out in China about forty years ago. But the situation is about to change. A new policy made on October 29 said all couples can now have two children.
The new policy is expected to help raise the population of China. Recently, China has been facing an aging population and labor shortages because of the low birth rate .
The two-child policy may also be the gift for every only child. Researchers found that growing up with a brother or sister can have good influence on one's mental health.
"Brothers and sisters do matter in unique ways. They give kids something that parents don't." Laura Walker, a professor from Beijing University, told China Daily. She noted that having a brother or a sister protects teenagers against loneliness, fear and so on.
Liu Fang, 20, from Shenzhen University, has a 2-year-younger sister. When her sister disagreed with parents over choosing a college major, she helped her to communicate with parents. "If necessary, I would always have her back," said Liu. "The best part of having a sister is that you have a partner, friend and supporter throughout your life."
But children with brothers or sisters also have to learn to understand and look after each other, said Laura. | middle6631.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "stupid"
},
"options": [
"clever",
"stupid",
"headache",
"angry"
],
"question": "In England, if people point to their heads it means they think someone is _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
... | We are always using body language in our daily life. When we have a conversation with someone, we may be using more body language than words. However, the same body language may mean different things in different countries. That's why people sometimes do not understand each other correctly. Pointing to one part of the body can mean differently in different cultures. For example, in the USA people point to their heads when they think someone is clever. However, in Europe it means 'He or she is stupid or something is wrong with his or her head'. In our Chinese culture, nodding our head up and down means 'yes' and shaking our head from side to side means 'no'. However, in parts of India, Greece and Turkey, it means just the opposite . In England or the USA, when you raise your hand and make a circle with the thumb and the second finger, it means 'You're all right or Everything is OK'. However, if we do this in France or Belgium, it means 'You're worth zero'. In Greece or Turkey, we should not make this gesture . Or we are thought to be very rude.
The meaning of gestures can also change over time. In the 1960s, the V sign meant 'peace'. However, during World War II, it meant 'victory'. In Greece, it is a very insulting sign. Though the meaning of body language is different, there are some expressions having the same meaning throughout the world, such as smiling and crying. | middle6625.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "find food more easily"
},
"options": [
"give birth",
"enjoy warmer weather",
"find food more easily",
"find beautiful places"
],
"question": "Most animals move from one place to another at a certain time to _ ... | We know that many animals do not stay ill one place. Birds, fish and other animals move from one place to another at a certain time. They move for different reasons: most of them move to find food more easily, but others move to get away from places that are too crowed.
When cold weather comes, many birds move to warmer places to find food. Some fishes give birth in warm water and move to cold water to feed. The most famous migration is probably the migration of the fish, which is called "salmon" . This fish is born in fresh water but it travels many miles to salt water. There it spends its life. When it is cold, it returns to its birthplace in fresh water. Then it gives birth and dies there. In northern Europe, there is a kind of mouse. They leave their mountain homes when they become too crowded. They move down to the low land. Sometimes they move all the way to the seaside, and many of them are killed when they fall into the sea.
Recently, scientists have studied the migration of a kind lobster . Every year, when the season of bad weather arrives, the lobster get into a long time and start to walk across tile floor of the ocean. Nobody knows why they do this, and nobody knows where they go.
So, sometimes we know why humans and animals move from one place to another, but at other times we don't. Maybe living things just like to travel.
,. | middle3985.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "After a serious illness."
},
"options": [
"After he came back from work.",
"After a serious illness.",
"After seeing a doctor.",
"After being a doctor."
],
"question": "When was Jack deaf of both ears?",
"qu... | A Deaf Person's Joke
Something was wrong with Jack's ears after he was much better from a serious illness. Several months later he went to a doctor. The doctor told him that he was deaf of both ears. Jack was sad. He was afraid to lose his work. So he did not like people to know this.
One evening he asked some friends to dinner. While they were sitting at the table, one of his friends told an interesting joke. Everyone laughed and Jack laughed louder than anyone else. He said, "That was a very interesting joke, but I know a more interesting one. Would you like to hear it?" All his friends said OK to him, so Jack began to tell his joke. All his friends were listening to him with smiles. When the joke ended, everyone laughed louder than before and Jack laughed happily, too. He was very glad because he thought that his must be more interesting than his friend's. But he didn't know that he had made a fool of himself(;) because his joke was the same as the first one. | middle2443.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "secrets are hard to keep"
},
"options": [
"It's difficult to move away",
"girls don't like to talk to boys",
"student's report to the teacher",
"secrets are hard to keep"
],
"question": "The story wants to tell ... | "We're going to move," Jimmy said to Mr. James,her teacher, with tears in her eyes. "Dad lost his job and now we don't have enough money to live in our house." Pam was walking by and just heard Jimmy's talk with Mr.James.
In the lunchroom Pam met Carol and said, "I've got something to tell you about Jimmy." As she started to tell Carol about Jimmy's dad, several other classmates stopped to listen. Pam felt bad telling what she had heard but she went on anyway.
After school, Pam saw some of her classmates talking to Jimmy. "Where does your dad work?" one of the boys asked. Jimmy's face turned red. She left without answering. Pam felt terrible, because she didn't mean to hurt Jimmy. And she hadn't thought that some of the classmates would make jokes and laugh at Jimmy about her father's losing the job. Pam didn't know what she could do to help Jimmy. | middle2325.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "different"
},
"options": [
"same",
"different",
"many",
"good"
],
"question": "Different countries have _ food.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
... | Each country has its favourite food. In some countries, people eat rice every day. They often eat it with meat, fish and vegetables. Japanese eat a lot of fish, and they eat a lot of rice , too. In England , the favourite food is fried fish and French fries. In the USA people like hamburgers a lot. And they like to have cold drinks. In Canada, people eat bread with butter on it. In India, people like to eat hot food. Some people eat only fruit and vegetables. They don't like to eat meat and fish. They think green food is good for them. | middle4754.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "They keep good habits."
},
"options": [
"They eat healthy food.",
"They keep good habits.",
"They meet good friends.",
"They have successful parents."
],
"question": "What makes some people successful?",
"qu... | One of the secrets of successful people is that they have good habits. The good habits help them to be successful. What are good habits? How can you get into good habits? Here is some advice for you.
First, everyone has his merits . You should always look for the good points in people and learn from them.
Second, you should try to learn new things and new skills every day. Reading a few pages of a book or a newspaper every day also helps you.
Third, start the day the right way. When you get up in the morning, look at yourself in the mirror and tell yourself you must keep your good habits today.
I think the last one is the most important. No matter what good habits you decide to have, you should try to keep them. Then you can live a successful and happy life.
,. | middle6143.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Planting trees will help the world."
},
"options": [
"The Sahara Desert is in Africa .",
"Farming too much makes the soil weak.",
"Big problem are caused by the growing Sahara desert.",
"Planting trees will help the w... | Deserts do not stay the same size .Sometimes they grow bigger. Sometimes they get smaller. The world's biggest desert, Sahara, is in Africa. Right now, the Sahara desert is growing fast.
Why is the Sahara growing ? In some places , People farm too much. In other places ,animals eat all the grass. or people cut down the trees. This makes the soil weak. Weak soil lets the desert grow.
Why is it a problem? people can not grow food in the desert. people can not build houses, hospitals , or schools in the desert . so people must leave their homes .They must live somewhere else.
What can people do ? They can plant trees. They can also farm less. These things make soil stronger. maybe the Sahara will stop growing . It's a big problem. Many people must work together to solve it? | middle637.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "in the southeast of England"
},
"options": [
"near the city",
"in the city",
"in the southeast of England",
"in a large tall building"
],
"question": "The old farmer lived _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_qu... | An old farmer spent all his life on his farm in the country in the southeast of England. One day he decided to visit the big city. Everything was new and strange to him, because he had never traveled to the city before.
The old farmer visited a lot of interesting places in the city.
He rushed into a large tall building and saw a lift. When he was watching, an old woman got into the lift and closed the door. After a while, the door opened again and a very perfect young girl came out.
The old farmer was very surprised, "What a funny little room!" He said to himself, "It's magic. It can change an old woman into a young girl. The next time I come here, I'm going to bring my wife to take the lift. " | middle2872.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "He is always late for school."
},
"options": [
"He needs help with his homework.",
"He finds it difficult to make friends.",
"He is always late for school.",
"He is always at the bottom of his class."
],
"questi... | One of the most popular items in the school newspaper is the advice column. No one knows who writes it. The students think their teacher does, but it might be a student using a false name.
The students enjoy thinking up problems for the advice column. Here are some of them and their answers.
Ask the Wise Owl
Q: I'm always late for school. I try not to be, but I can't help it. Please advise me what to do. Tommy.
A: You are probably late for school because you don't really like school. My advice to you is to try and enjoy school more, then you won't be late so often.
Q: I find it difficult to make friends. What do you think I should do? Sara.
A: I can't advise you until I know more about you. Your problem may be that you are shy. On the other hand, it may be the opposite. You may be too bold . Write and tell me more about yourself.
Q: I'm always at the bottom(,) of the class. What do you advise me to do? Molly.
A: I advise you to concentrate on improving your grades in one subject to start with. If you can do this, you should move a little way up from the bottom. Next, try to improve your grades in another subject, and so on. If you concentrate on one subject at a time, by the end of the year you should be quite a long way up from the bottom in all your classes. | middle151.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "10."
},
"options": [
"4.",
"6.",
"10.",
"14."
],
"question": "How old is the youngest interpreter according to the passage?",
"question_type": null
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"an... | Alexia Sloane is from Cambridge. She was told by the doctor she had a brain tumor when she was on holiday "with her parents in France. After that the two-year-old girl became blind.
Though the little girl can't see anything, she has great talent for languages and at the age of 10 she is already fluent in English, French, Spanish and Chinese-and is learning German.
Now her dream of working as an interpreter has come true. East of England MEP Robert Sturdy invited her to the European Parliament . "Usually a person who enters the European Parliament should be 14 at least. So it was amazing for Alexia to work there at the age of 10. " said Alexia's mother Isabelle. Alexia can speak three languages since birth. As her mum is hah" French and half Spanish and her dad Richard is English. " She has always been very good at languages and shown an interest from a very young age. " added Isabelle, who also has a four-year-old daughter Melissa.
Alexia has dreamed of becoming an interpreter since she was six and chose to go to the European Parliament as her prize when she won the Young Achiever Community Award of the Year . She asked if she could learn from the interpreters and HEP Robert Sturdy agreed to take her along as his guest. " It was fantastic and I decided to become an interpreter, "said Alexia. "Nothing can stop me. " | middle145.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "met an old lady"
},
"options": [
"played with pigeons",
"fed pigeons",
"met an old lady",
"saw a friend of his grandmother's"
],
"question": "Little Mike went to the park and _ .",
"question_type": "cloze... | Little Mike's grandmother died weeks ago. He missed her very much. One afternoon Mike went to the city park where his grandmother used to go. There he saw an old lady. She looked very kind. She was sitting there, watching pigeons . Little Mike went up and sat next to her. He took out his food and drinks and gave some to her. She smiled at him. Her smile was very sweet and Mike wanted to see it again. She seemed to understand him, so once again she smiled. Mike was very happy.
They sat there all the afternoon, eating and talking. As it was dark, Mike got up to leave. Before he left, he hugged the old lady and she gave him her sweetest smile.
When Mike got home, his mother was surprised by the happy look on his face. " I met an old lady in the park. Her smile was like the smile I used to see on Grandmother's face."
The old lady also returned to her home happily. She told her son she had food and drinks with a little boy. " He was as lovely as Bill." She said. Her son was surprised, because he had never been so happy since Bill, her grandson, died weeks ago. | middle2866.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "knew nothing about tea"
},
"options": [
"drank tea every day",
"knew everything about tea",
"knew nothing about tea",
"liked to eat the tea-leaves"
],
"question": "Most of the people in Europe _ 300 years ago... | We drink tea every day. But more than three hundred years ago most of the people in Europe did not know anything about tea. Some people heard about it, but very few of them know what to do with it.
There is a story about an English sailor who went to countries in the east, the west and the south. He went to India and China. One day he came home and brought some tea as a present for his mother. She told her friends about the present and asked them to a "tea party". When her friends came to the "tea party", the old woman gave them brown tea-leaves. The old woman's friends began to eat them. Of course, nobody liked the tea-leaves.
At that time the sailor came in. He looked at the table and said, "Mother,what did you do with the tea?"
"I boiled it,as you said."
"And what did you do with the water?"
"I threw it away ,of course." answered the old woman.
"Now you may throw away the leaves,too," said her son. | middle623.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "on the highway"
},
"options": [
"on the highway",
"at home",
"in a shopping center",
"in a hospital"
],
"question": "When the father became seriously ill, he and his son were _ .",
"question_type": "cloze... | Kindergartens( ) may teach you very important things you need to know.Dancy, a 5-year-old boy, saved his father's life with the skills he learned.
The boy's father became seriously ill on the way home from a father-son shopping.He couldn't speak and could hardly move, but he tried hard to stop the car safely.At that point, Dancy used his father's phone to call his mother for help.The 5-year-old boy tried his best to give her useful information and he was able to tell where they were.Just as he had learned in the kindergarten, Dancy read the letters he saw on a nearby store sign: "F,U,R,N,I,T,U,R,E." But that wasn't enough for his mother to find them.Then he added that they were near a bridge.Finally, his mother understood he was talking about a store called Furniture 22 on New Jersey's Route22.The mother called 911 and the father was saved in time.
"He just thought his dad needed help," Dancy's mother told the reporter.She also pointed out that her husband was a hero, too." It is surprising for him to get off the highway ( ) and get himself and his child to safety even when he was so sick," she said.
Shine, head of the kindergarten, felt proud of his pupil." Dancy's spelling skills helped him _ the moment," he said."And that's the real value of education." | middle2696.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "8 p.m."
},
"options": [
"8 a.m.",
"10 a.m.",
"8 p.m.",
"10 p.m."
],
"question": "The model shop closes at _",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answ... | My favourite shop is called' Model World'. It is on the second floor of Happy Plaza, near to Pizza Club. It is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. every day.
Model World' sells all kinds of models. It has model soldiers, cars, boats, airplanes, space shuttles and even dinosaurs. It has models for young children and models for adults . Some models have just about twenty pieces, and others have over 2,000 pieces. You can also buy paints and glue and other things there.
The staff at ' Model World' is very nice. They are very interested in making models. They will give you advice, and answer all of your questions. The prices are not low but they are not high. My best buy was a model of a helicopter. It cost $ 30 but it had over 400 pieces. It was really fun to make. If you are interested in models, you should visit this shop. | middle7936.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "it was very hot , dry and windy"
},
"options": [
"lightening spread the fire",
"there was much fuel for fires",
"there were not enough firefighters",
"it was very hot , dry and windy"
],
"question": "Russia had ... | Today there are more fires than in the past . Over 100,000 wildfires burn each year in America . Russia has 20,000 to 35,000 wildfires and Australia has about 60,000 each year. These fires destroy huge areas of forests and burn hundreds of homes .
Many experts believe there are several reasons for this sudden increase in fires. The first reason is climate change . In 2010, Russia had the hottest and driest summer with strong winds in a century. In just one month, 500 fires destroyed over 2,000 homes. Some people lost their lives .
Traditional fire-fighting practices are another reason for the increase in fires. In America, firefighters used to quickly put out every fire as quickly as they could. They didn't allow the grass and trees to burn. As a result , today many forests have thicker vegetation which provides more fuel for fires . So surprisingly, America has many more fires today partly because of its past fire-fighting practices.
Scientists now understand that a fire can be a natural part of a healthy forest. As a result, countries like Australia allow some fires to burn naturally. The fire makes old trees thinner. This allows sunlight to reach the ground. As a result, fires help new trees to grow. Therefore , if a fire is not a serious threat to people , firefighters may let it burn naturally . | middle6396.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Animals"
},
"options": [
"Doctors",
"Animals",
"parents",
"Nurses"
],
"question": "_ help sick children to feel better.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2... | An interesting experiment is being done at the Children's Hospital I in London. Animals, such as dogs, cats, and even horses help sick children to get better.
There are many reasons why this treatment is important. Dr. Marcus Finch of the Children's Hospital said, "Children and teenagers have many changes as they are growing up. When they have problems, it is not easy for them to open up any talk. However, when they are with a pet animal, they calm down, relax, and smile. Animals do not speak and so they do not criticize . They listen and they do not stop the children. Children can talk to animals because they can trust them. Animals know how to keep a secret! Also, the children feel needed because they help to feed the animals and look after them."
At the Children's Hospital, you can find children playing with cats, dogs, goats, and riding horses. The doctors just watch and take notes and wonder at the power of pets! | middle5847.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "three"
},
"options": [
"Two",
"three",
"Four",
"Five"
],
"question": "_ students are talking.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Kat... | Jack and Hob are going to high school now . Jack wants to be an engineer .He is going to build roads ,bridges and house. Hob is interested in math and science, but he is going to study medicine , He wants to be a doctor.
Kate is good at music .She wants to be an artist .She is going to sing and dance for people .Joan wants to be a woman astronaut .She says ,"I am going to explore space some day ."" What do you want to be ,Alice ?" Joan asks me ,"Oh ,I want to be a teacher .When I grow up ,I'm going to teacher in the countryside ."
Each of us is doing our best at school .I am sure we will do something good for our country . | middle4581.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "China"
},
"options": [
"America",
"China",
"England",
"Canada"
],
"question": "Bill is in _ now.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text"... | Hello! My name is Bill. I am twelve years old. I am from America. Now I am in a junior high school in Xiamen.
We have 20 boys and 25 girls in our class. My favorite teacher is Miss White. She is from Canada. She is 27 years old. She is tall. She has long brown hair. Her face is round and she has big eyes. She is a good teacher. She can speak English and Chinese.
I have a good friend here. His name is Mike. He is an English boy. We have the same age. My classmates are kind to me. We often help each other.
,A, B, C, D. (5) | middle4595.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Li Nan"
},
"options": [
"Yang Jun",
"Zhang Hui",
"Liu Hong",
"Li Nan"
],
"question": "We can learn English from _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
... | Huaihua Foreign Language School
Lin Nan, Teacher of English
Yingfeng Street, Huaihua, China
Tel:0745-2709348 Fax:0745-2709756
E-mail: Linan@21cn.com
Bp:1240822018Zip code:418000
Daqing Children's Hospital
Liu Hong, Doctor
12 Xingling Road, Changchun, Jilin 130027
Tel:0431-5645972
13704358529(mobile)
Fax:0431-5768904 E-mail:cclh@163.com
Red Star Farm
Zhang Hui, Farmer
Shangping Village, Zhejiang, 419100
Tel: 0745-6826194
13973098479(mobile)
Bp:1270803706
Tiantai Taxi Company
Yang Jun, Driver
235St. Tongzhi, Hangzhou, Zhejiang 31007
Tel:0571-7038385 Fax:0571-7065834
E-mail:hzyi@163.com Bp:1992301636 | middle179.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "It helps repair the body."
},
"options": [
"It helps people rest well.",
"It helps repair the body.",
"It helps answer problems.",
"It helps slow the body down."
],
"question": "What does \"human growth hormone\... | During the day, you spend a lot of time running, jumping, laughing, eating, and talking. You use up a lot of energy , and by the end of the day you're tired. Sleep gives your body a chance to rest.
But your brain and body are not completely at rest during sleep. While you sleep, your mind may think of the things that happened during the day. It keeps the important things in mind as memories . It also thinks about things you were worrying about, and you may wake up with answers to some of your problems.
You also grow while you sleep. The thing called "human growth hormone " in the body helps you grow during sleep. This growth hormone also helps the body to repair itself.
Sleep helps your body to conserve energy too. You use up a lot of energy during your daily activities. But when you sleep, your body temperature falls, and your "metabolism" slows down. You are still using some energy, but much less than when you are awake and active.
Have you ever stayed up past your bedtime? Did you have difficulty getting up the next morning? Maybe you had problems seeing clearly or you cannot think clearly. That was your body's way of saying, "I need sleep!" A lack ( ) of sleep can stop your body and mind from working correctly. | middle87.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "lying wheat"
},
"options": [
"broken wheat",
"lying wheat",
"harvested wheat",
"growing wheat"
],
"question": "\"Flattened wheat\" means _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | In the summer of 1978 an English man named Steven was driving his tractor through a field of wheat when he discovered something strange. Some of his wheat was lying on the ground. The flattened wheat formed a circle about six meters across . Around this circle were four smaller circles of flattened wheat.
Three years later a farmer who lived nearby discovered almost the same circles in one of his fields. These circles were larger--nearly 15 meters across . That same year , another English farmer discovered three circles of flattened wheat on his land--one large circle between two small circles. During the following years, farmers in England found circles in their fields more and more often.
The circles are called "crop circles" because they usually appear in fields of wheat or corn. The wheat in the circles lies on the ground but is never broken; it keeps on growing, and the farmers can later harvest it. Farmers always discover the crop circles in the morning, so the circles probably form at night. They appear only in the months from May to September. What causes the crop circles?
At first, people thought that some kids were making them as a joke, or that farmers were making them to attract tourists.(In fact, in 1991, two men said they made the circles themselves, but many scientists don't believe them.) People tried to copy them: They tried to make circles exactly like the ones the farmers had found. They couldn't do it. They couldn't enter a field of wheat without leaving tracks, and they couldn't flatten the wheat without breaking it.
Several times people reported seeing stranger objects near the fields where crop circles later appeared. Many people believe that these crop circles are the messages sent by living things from outer space or the marks left by their spaceships.
Scientists who have studied the crop circles try to find out what causes them. In the summer of 1990 some scientists spent three weeks in the part of England where many circles have appeared. They had all the latest high-tech equipment . The equipment--worth 1.8 million dollars--got nothing. But one night, as the scientists were watching a field, crop circles formed in the field behind them, which were quite different from the others. The scientists had neither seen nor heard anything.
When Steven discovered the crop circles on his land in 1978, he said, "It was just like something that had landed in the field from the air and gone back up again. I don't know what to make of these things."
Crop circles have appeared in England, Japan, the United States and Russia. Experts from all over the world have studied them, and they say what Steven said: They don't know what to make of these things. | middle7922.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "in China"
},
"options": [
"in China",
"abroad",
"in Cambridge",
"in England"
],
"question": "Hua Luogeng was _ in 1937. Which of the following cannot be chosen?",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
... | The famous Chinese mathematician Hua Luogeng was born in Jintan County, Jiangsu province in 1910. When he was young, life was very difficult for his family. Still, the boy took great interest in math.
In the summer of 1931, he was fortunate enough to become an assistant in the Math Department of Qinghua University, where he spent every moment he could find working and studying, and he finished his compulsory math course all by himself in only 13 months!
Between the years of 1936 and 1938, he was further studying in Cambridge University in the U.K. In 1950, together with his family, he returned to China from the USA. He said, "I'm Chinese, and I'll do my best for my motherland."
So he did. He devoted all his life to the math study and won the great fame for our country.
He died for heart trouble in 1985 while lecturing in Japan. People will always remember him as a great scientist. | middle2669.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "She's hardworking and optimistic ."
},
"options": [
"She's the youngest contestants of America's Got Talent.",
"She was accepted by America's Got Talent the first time she auditioned.",
"She's hardworking and optimistic .",... | Here, a reporter is interviewing the 12-year-old singer, Mara Justine, who's one of the youngest contestants of America's Got Talent.
Reporter: Why did you choose to compete on America's Got Talent instead of one of the other singing competitions?
Mara: Well, America's Got Talent actually called me because I had auditioned before, when I was 9 or 10 . I guess they looked over those videos. They asked me to audition again.
Reporter: How does it feel to be one of the youngest people on the show?
Mara: There are a lot of other people with more experience .,but I just try to do my best .I always go on to the stage thinking good thoughts, never bad thoughts.
Reporter: Who is your role model or idol ? What inspires you?
Mara: For singing, my idols are Aretha Franklin and Christina Aguilera, but a role model to me would be my mom. I love her with all my heart--she encourages me to believe in my dreams.
Reporter: What are your other hobbies?
Mara: I love playing video games, and I usually go to the park with my family. We usually play basketball. We also like to play tennis! | middle5106.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "The English words with Chinese grammar."
},
"options": [
"The English words easy to pronounce.",
"The Chinese words difficult to translate.",
"The English words with Chinese grammar.",
"The Chinese words that foreigners... | Can you understand the following words?
"Long time no see."
"Good good study, day day up."
"I like your smile, but unlike you put your shoes on my face."
Yes, we call these examples Chinglish, like "people mountain, people sea".
Chinglish usually means English vocabulary with Chinese grammar on street signs or products. However, many English speaking tourists love them. Tom has been living in Beijing for years. "I think many Chinese people dislike Chinglish. But I love it. It's quite interesting. I think if the translations of English in China are all perfect, something will be lost from Chinese culture." However, Chinglish will probably become a part of history in future. Beijing has made a plan to correct Chinglish within five years. "It is so funny to see Chinglish on the signs. And they are a kind of trouble for communication between the Chinese and foreigners," a Beijinger said.
However, some people in China like Chinglish. They think that English has "borrowed" a lot from other languages such as German, French and Spanish in the past, and now as Chinese's turn. | middle3577.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Four."
},
"options": [
"Five.",
"Four.",
"Six.",
"Three."
],
"question": "How old is Nancy's brother?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_te... | Nancy is an English school girl. She studies in a middle school. She has a little brother. His name is John. John is only four. Nancy likes him very much.
Today is Sunday. Nancy wants to do her homework. She takes out her pencil-box and opens it. "Oh, dear! Where's my pen?" She can't find her pen. She goes to ask her brother in his bedroom.
"John! I can't find my pen. Can you see it? Oh, what are you doing with my pen? "
"I'm writing to my friend, Peter." John answers.
"But how can you? You don't know how to write! "
"It doesn't matter. Peter can't read. " John says.
,. | middle7711.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "They were waiting for their babies to be born."
},
"options": [
"They were waiting for their wives.",
"They were seeing doctors.",
"They were waiting for their babies to be born.",
"They were working at men nurses there... | Four men who would become fathers were in a hospital waiting room while their wives were going to give birth to their babies. The nurse arrived and proudly said to the first man, "Congratulations, sir. You're the father of twins!"
"What a surprise! Believe it or not! I work for the Minnesota Twins Baseball teams!"
Later the nurse returned and congratulated the second father on the birth of his triplets .
"Wow! That's unbelievable! I work for the 3M Company."
An hour later, the nurse returned to congratulate the third man on the birth of his quadruplets . Surprised, he only could answer, "I don't believe it! I work for the Four Seasons Hotel!"
After this, everyone turned to the fourth man who had just fallen down. The nurse ran fast to his side. As he slowly came to himself, they could hear him speak in a very low voice over and over, "I should never have taken that job at 7-Eleven. I should never have taken that job at 7-Eleven. I should never have taken that job at 7-Eleven." | middle1360.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "nearly the same age as his horse"
},
"options": [
"nearly the same age as his horse",
"almost always older than his horse",
"not quite as old as his horse",
"a little older than his horse"
],
"question": "The fa... | Once there was an old farmer. He had a horse and the horse was almost as old as himself. One morning he set out with his young son to sell the horse before it died. The father and the son walked because the farmer did not want the horse to be too tired . They met two men on the road. They said, "Why are you walking, farmer? You have a horse. It's a long way to get to the market. "The farmer knew that this was true, so he rode on the horse while his son walked. Then they met two old ladies. "What are you doing up there, farmer? Can't you see how tired your son is? "So the farmer got down, and let his son ride on it. Twenty minutes later, three old men stopped them. One said, "Why are you walking, farmer? Get up; it's too hot for an old man like you to walk today. "So the farmer got up behind his son and they went on riding. Some time later, a young woman passed them. "Why aren't you walking?"She asked, "It isn't far to the market. Give your poor old horse a rest. " So the farmer and his son got down once again. It is a fact that you cannot please all the people all the time. | middle192.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "English"
},
"options": [
"English",
"History",
"Geography",
"Maths"
],
"question": "What is Liang Bin's favourite subject ?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index... | Hello. My name is Liang Bin and I'm 13 year sold. I come from Wuhan. In the morning I get up at half past six, and then I run near my home. At twenty past seven, I have breakfast with my parents. Usually I have eggs and milk. Sometimes I have bread and fruit juice. but I don't eat meat. I go to school at twenty to eight. My favourite subject is English and I like talking with my friends in English.
Hi , I'm Zhao Li and I'm 13 years old. I'm from Xi'an and I'm a student in Grade 7. There are four people in my family and my sister and I share the same room. Every morning my sister and I get up at half past six, and then we read our Chinese or English books after we walk near my home for twenty minutes. At half past seven, we go to school. We are in the same school but we are not in the same class. I'm in Class 1 and my sister is in Class 2. There is a black computer in our room. We do our homework and talk with our friends on it. | middle6369.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Because it gives people weather information in time"
},
"options": [
"Because it has the greatest advertisement",
"Becaue it has the most advertisements",
"Because it gives people weather information in time",
"Because ... | Most of people watch the weather report on TV to get their newest weather information. So the weather report becomes one of the most popular TV programs.
Now, most TV stations play soft music pieces to relax their audience . The weather report words are getting close to our real life. And there are some warm reminds for people to travel. They are really great pros . So most people think they are fantastic improvements.
"In the old days, there were lots of advertisements during the weather report. It seemed advertisements are the most important part." an old man said. "And we could see no people but advertisements. " added another old woman.
"When I listened to the weather report, I was afraid to see the advertisements. Those colorful advertisements always made me crazy. So I never watched weather report on TV." said a young man.
Now the audience enjoy their favorite songs and enjoy the warm reminds while listening to the weather report. Audience can have more fun with weather report and at the same time with the advertisements, too. That's a wonderful idea. | middle7077.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Green house of the future."
},
"options": [
"Green house of the future.",
"The greener, the better.",
"How to build green houses.",
"Changes of the houses."
],
"question": "What is the best title of the passag... | What will the house of the future look like? Could it have gardens on its walls, or a pool with fish for dinner? Architects believe that they are all possibilities. The only thing for sure is that the houses will be as green as possible.
The tree house
Many architects in the world would like to build a "tree house." Like a leaf, the surface of the house collects sunlight during the day. The energy can be used to heat water, produce electricity, and even create fresh air for the home. The "root" of the house is deep under the ground. It uses the soil to the home's temperature.
The Lizard house
Like a lizard , changing color with the weather is the most important design of a lizard house. When it's in the bright sun, the cover of the house will turn dark to protect it from strong heat. During dark days, it turns white and takes in as much light and heat as possible to produce energy.
Meals at home
This design is perhaps as much about the future of food production as architecture . It has gardens on the outside wall of the house. People can plant tomatoes, carrots and green tea on them. So every day in the morning, you just need to walk outside and collect your meals.
Learning from the past
Looking to the future isn't the only way to be green. Sometimes, ancient techniques can also help cut down energy use. For example, a chimney can be a useful air conditioner because it is easier of hot air to flow out at the chimney.
,A, B, C, D. | middle3211.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "a charity group from France"
},
"options": [
"a mobile phone company from France",
"a charity group from France",
"a mobile phone company from Thailand",
"a charity group from Thailand"
],
"question": "Telecoms ... | When trouble comes, what do we usually do? We pick up our mobile phones and call for help. That's easy, right? But in an emergency, many people are unable to call for help. Floods and earthquakes come suddenly. Wars can hurt or kill. Successful communication can sometimes mean the difference between life and death.
Meet French NGO Telecoms Sans Frontiers (Telecommunications Without Borders ). Its goal is to use mobile communication technology to help people in need. TSF began in 1998. First, they opened their main base in France. Then in 2003, they started another base in Nicaragua. The next year they opened their Thailand base. Now if a disaster hits anywhere in the world, TSF is ready. They can send workers to a disaster area to set up communication systems within 24 hours.
Once TSF arrives at a disaster area, they set up telephone connections and Internet service. They share these services with other international helpers on the scene such as the UN or UNICEF. Mobile communication helps other volunteers do their jobs better.
TSF also offers three-minute phone calls to local people who need to contact their loved ones. These communications can allow people to get together again after being separated . Often the callers are moved to tears after speaking to a relative found to be still alive. Then the families can decide on a safe course of action for their family members.
Since 1998, TSF has helped thousands of people in many countries. Most of the TSF workers does not get paid with money, but the satisfaction of helping others and changing lives is often a great reward. | middle5660.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Do not share any news on social media"
},
"options": [
"Do not share any news on social media",
"Do not use the locating function on social media",
"Do not give your name on social media",
"Do not post the photos of y... | To many students, joining social media "circles" is now more important than making new friends in real life.
And it's easy. If you have a cell phone, you can download apps such as Sina Weibo, WeChat and QQ.
"I love to check my friends' updates . I also enjoy news and humor shared on social media," Said Ou Wei, 14, from Hongling Middle School in Shenzhen. Because of enjoying these, Ou _ himself from real life. "I love playing the plane-shooting game on WeChat, but have no interest in playing flying chess with my classmates," said Ou.
Deng Yunyun, 14, from Jianfeng Middle School in Shanghai, said that social media had influenced their life. Recently his school held a basketball match, and a student hurt his leg. Instead of giving him some help, students were busy with updating micro blogs about the accident.
"I think they need to learn to balance their real and online lives," said Deng,
What makes parents and teachers worried is safety. "Many students are happy to tell their interests and personal information to their social media "friends". Such information could bring them danger," said Han Songjun, a teacher at Hongling Middle School.
For example, WeChat's shake-shake function allows users to connect to other users close by. But the police warn about the danger of socializing in this way.
"Be careful. Do not use the locating function in any app, do not give your name, and do not post the photos of your residential area ," said the police. | middle3205.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "welcomed"
},
"options": [
"surprising",
"exciting",
"expensive",
"welcomed"
],
"question": "From the passage, we know that bicycling is becoming more and more _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
... | More and more people like bicycling and it is no surprise. It's fun, healthy and good for the environment. Maybe that's why there are 1.4 billion bicycles and only 400 million cars on roads worldwide today. Bikes can take you almost anywhere, and there is no oil cost!
If you get on a bicycle and ride it, you may discover something new all around you. Stopping and getting off a bike is easier than stopping and getting out of your cars. You can bike to work and benefit from the enjoyable exercise without polluting the environment. You don't even have to ride all the way.
Folding bikes work well for people who ride the train. Just fold the bike and take it with you. You can do the same on an airplane. A folding bike can be packed in a suitcase. You can also take a common bike with you when you fly. But be sure to look for information by getting on airline websites. Not all airlines are bicycle-friendly to travelers.
Here are some of Health Benefits of Bicycling:
2 Bicycling helps to prevent heart diseases.
2 Bicycling helps to control your weight.
A 15-minute bike ride to and from work three times a week burns off five kilos of fat in a year.
2 Bicycling can improve your mood.
Exercise like bicycling has been shown to make people feel better, more relaxed and self-confident.
2 Bicycling is healthier than driving. | middle186.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "He didn't study hard at school."
},
"options": [
"He liked his school.",
"He worked hard at school.",
"He didn't study hard at school.",
"He tried to do much work at school."
],
"question": "How was Jack doing a... | Jack was ten years old and he was a very lazy boy. He didn't like doing any work. He had to go to school, of course, but he didn't study hard there and tried to do little work. His father and mother were both doctors and they hoped that their son would become one too when he grew up. But one day Jack said to his mother, "When I finish school, I want to be a dustman ."
"A dustman?" his mother asked. She was very surprised. "That's not a good job. Why do you want to become a dustman?"
"Because I would only have to work one day a week," Jack answered at once.
"Only one day a week?" his mother said. "What do you mean? And how do you know?"
"Well," Jack answered, "I know that the dustman came to work on Thursday every week, because I only see them on that day." | middle1412.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "cat"
},
"options": [
"cat",
"student",
"boy",
"girl"
],
"question": "Lucy is a _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "five; four;... | My cat's name is Lucy. She is a very pretty cat. Her hair is _ . She has four children. She is very happy with her young babies.
The four children are not all like Lucy very much. The biggest child is quite black. It is black with white feet and white ears. Two children are like their mother. They are black. My daughter says, "Aren't they pretty ? Can' t I have the black and white one? Isn't he a tomcat ?"
I say, "I don't know, but I know the yellow and black ones are female ." "Are they? How do you know?" "For they are yellow and black. Tomcats never have that colour. I' ll tell you something about that. Listen---" | middle838.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Her two nieces would come."
},
"options": [
"My parents moved to live with her.",
"The writer did the crossword puzzle with her.",
"Her two nieces would come.",
"We tried to make her live comfortably."
],
"quest... | I grew up in New Hampshire, a small town in South Canada, where in my father's words for the seasons were "Spring, Summer, Fairtime and Winter!" At that time, a week-long fair was held in the town every autumn. Thousands of people from other towns came to sell and buy things. It was the busiest time of the year.
When "Fairtime" came, my grandma became the most "useful" and busiest person of the family. Grandma was a kind, well-educated old lady. She was good at cooking. All her relatives liked the food she cooked. During "Fairtime", they would come to live in her house and have meals there. Grandma was always happy to look after them.
Year after year, many people moved to big cities. There was no longer "Fairtime". Grandma became very old and was gradually going blind. My parents and I moved to live with Grandma in her house. We did our best to make her day-to-day life as comfortable as possible. I was at high school then.
What I often did at home was to help Grandma with the daily newspaper's crossword puzzle. However, she didn't look happy. She often sat in her room for hours, without saying a word.
To attract people to move back, the Town Hall decided to reopen the fair. One day, when I came back from school, I saw Grandma wearing her glasses, washing the dishes in the kitchen. With a big smile on her face, she looked a lot much younger. She told me that her two nieces would come. "They said the food I cooked was very delicious and they want to stay in my house again," Grandma said happily. "They will stay here for one week and we can have a big party. That must be the busiest week I've had in years!"
I suddenly realized that Grandma didn't want to be looked after. She wanted to be "useful", _ and helpful. | middle7705.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "In a friendly way"
},
"options": [
"In a rough way",
"In a friendly way",
"I n French",
"Slowly"
],
"question": "How did the waiter speak to Paul and Mr. Jackson?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
... | One day , Mr. Jackson took Paul to his favorite restaurant. It was a French restaurant. The waiter was from France, but he didn't speak to them in French. "Would you like to see menu?" , he asked in a kind way. "Yes, please," Mr. Jackson said.
The waiter gave them a menu each. They studied them. " You can spend only twenty-five dollars," Mr. Jackson told his son. The waiter asked Paul," What would you like, young man?"
"How much is the tomato soup?" Paul asked.
" Six dollars," the waiter said." It's very good."
"How much is the duck with orange?" Paul asked next.
"Fifteen dollars," the waiter said.
"How much is the chocolate ice cream?"
"Six dollars," the waiter said.
Paul added it up quickly. Six plus fifteen plus six is twenty-seven. He thought he could have the duck and the soup, or the duck and ice cream." I'll have the duck and the chocolate ice cream, please," he said to the waiter.
Paul said to his father, "My meal will cost only twenty-one dollars. Can I keep the other four dollars? His father laughed."No, Paul," he said ,"leave it for the waiter." | middle78.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "an English tutor"
},
"options": [
"a babysitter",
"a good book",
"an English tutor",
"a math tutor"
],
"question": "Mrs Yang wants _ for her daughter.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"ans... | Wanted: an English tutor
Do you like kids? Are you outgoing ? Do you have three years' experience as an English teacher? Do you have free time on Saturday and Sunday? We need a woman teacher for our daughter. She is twelve and she is not good at English.
For the job, you will.
Teach from 3:00pm to 6:00 pm.
Teach our daughter English.
Tell her stories in English.
You will work at our house. We live in Beihai Road, Garden District. The pay is Y=30 each hour.
If you want to know more information , please call Mrs Yang at 82569876. | middle1374.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "There weren't enough bedrooms."
},
"options": [
"It was on the north side of town.",
"There weren't enough bedrooms.",
"There was no dining room.",
"The garden was too big."
],
"question": "Why did n't the Brown... | Comfortable family home with a large garden on north side of town.Three bedrooms,
Living-room,kitchens,dining-room,bathroom.Offers over$35,000.
2.ASSISTANT WANTED FOR BUSH RESTAURANT
Some evening and weekend work.All meals free.Ring 33201 78.
3.JOIN OUR FOOTBALL TEAM
Boys and girls wanted to play in local football team.Aged 9-1 3.Meet in Green Park on Friday at 3P.m.
4.ROOM TO RENT
Small room to rent in city centre flat above restaurant.Newly painted with modern furniture.Near main railway station.Buses pass front door.Phone 3322108.
Mr.Brown wants to Live near his workplace.Mrs.Brown wants a house with four bedrooms.The Brown children don't care what the house is like.They just want a big garden.Ann,their daughter, has always wanted to work in a restaurant.She thinks it is an exciting place.It's hard work but she is n't lazy.You have to work on Saturdays and Sundays,but you get other days off.It's not very well paid.But who cares about money?
Tom is a middle school student.He is twelve years old.He stops school at half past three,so he has plenty of time to finish his homework.
Jack.Mr.Brown's brother ,is looking for a room to rent.He doesn't care what colour the walls are or how old the furniture is.He is getting ready for his drawing.So the house must be quiet. | middle5112.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "8:00 in the moming"
},
"options": [
"10:00 in the morning",
"8:00 in the moming",
"6:00 in the afternoon",
"8:00 in the aftemoon"
],
"question": "On Sunday the zoo opens at _",
"question_type": "cloze_ques... | Welcome to the zoo
Day open : Fees :
Monday to Friday Adults : $ 8. 00
10:00 am~6:00 pm Ages 8~14: $ 3. 00
Saturday to Sunday Ages 15~18 : $ 6. 00
8 :00 am~8 :00 pm Under 8 : Free
Try our train ride for $ 2. 00 per person!
,. | middle3563.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "by bus"
},
"options": [
"on foot",
"by bike",
"by bus",
"by plane"
],
"question": "They got to the campground _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
... | I had a summer camp with my classmates last year. Early in the morning. We gathered at the bus station. After saying goodbye to our parents,we got on the buses. It took us more than two hours to arrive at the campground. We got off the buses cheerfully. Laughing and shouting. We jumped and ran all over the place. It was the first time for us to be away from the parents .Some of us started to feel homesick . However, when the night party and dances began, the homesickness was gone. The next day, everybody rushed to the boating class, hoping to be at the head of the others. At first ,my friends and I worked hard, but the boat wouldn't listen to us and kept going round and round. Then the teacher taught us how to work together. After many tries, we did much better. Swimming class was my favorite. It was about the hottest time of a day and the best time to stay in the cool water. The swimming teacher was a funny man, and during the class he often made us laugh happily. During the week I learned a lot of new things and made many new friends. I also learned how to take care of myself. | middle810.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "In the park"
},
"options": [
"In the garden",
"On the chair",
"In the park",
"Next to the road."
],
"question": "Where are Mr. Brown and Mr. Black?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer... | Two men are working in the park. One is Mr. Brown, a worker, and the other is Mr. Black. Mr. Brown is going to a chair. It is next to the road. Mr. Black is after him. Mr. Brown finds Mr. Black. Now Mr. Black begins to walk faster. Because he wants to get to the chair before Mr. Brown. Now Mr. Brown begins to walk faster because he also wants to get to the chair first. Then they both run. Mr. Black runs faster than Mr. Brown. So he gets to the chair first and sits down on it. Mr. Brown runs after Mr. Black. When he gets to the chair. He sees Mr. Black sitting on it. He is sorry to show a notice with the words. "Wet Paint" to Mr. Black. Now Mr. Black knows Why Mr. Brown is going to the chair. | middle50.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "afraid of the man"
},
"options": [
"in great danger",
"a policeman",
"afraid of the man",
"too tired to move"
],
"question": "Mr. Brown was really _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"ans... | Mr. Brown was on his way home from the railway station. It was very late, and he was alone on the dark road. Suddenly he heard someone behind him. He began to walk faster. The man behind him walked faster, too. He walked more slowly, and the man moved more slowly, too. He began to run, and the man was following him and he was really scared.
There was a wall on one side of the road, and he quickly climbed up on it and jumped down on the other side. "If he passes and doesn't stop," Mr. Brown thought, "everything will be all right." But the man didn't pass. He climbed up on the wall and jumped down, too. Mr. Brown's only thought was, "I'm in great danger!" He stood up and shouted, "What do you want? Why are you following me?"
The man was so tired that at first it was difficult for him to speak. "I didn't know that you were a very good runner," he said at last, "I have to go to Mr. White's house, but I don't know the way. A man at the station told me that you lived next to Mr. White's and he told me to follow you. I'm too tired to go any farther." | middle2655.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "she is with Jack"
},
"options": [
"she studies at school",
"she is at home",
"she goes shopping with her mother",
"she is with Jack"
],
"question": "Amy doesn't wears glasses when _ .",
"question_type": "c... | Amy is short-sighted, so she wears glasses. But she doesn't wears glasses when she is with her fried, Jack. When Jack comes to her house to take her out, she takes her glasses off. When she gets bake ,she puts on the glasses.
One day, Amy's mother asks her ,"Why don't you wear your glasses when you are with Jack? He takes you to see many ;lovely places in his car, but you can't see anything clearly."Amy says, "He thinks I look more lovely when I'm not wearing my glasses and I think he looks better, too." | middle4224.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "drinking some water; medicine"
},
"options": [
"drinking some hot soup; medicine",
"drinking some porridge; breakfast",
"drinking some water; medicine",
"Drinking some soft drinks; medicine"
],
"question": "Acco... | Drinking water is good for your health. There are some scientific ways of drinking water.
1. It is the best medicine to drink two glasses of water in the morning.
2. Drink clean water.
3. Drink the water that has not been boiled.
Many people think boiled water is safe and good to people's health. In fact, it is not true. The boiling point of water is 100degC. By boiling it, most bacteria in water can be killed. In the past, the water was less polluted. So boiling was a good way to make clean water. But heavy metals and other dangerous things in today's water are much more terrible than bacteria. Boiling doesn't fix that problem. And boiling water may give us more of the dangerous things in our glass.
4. Never use soft drinks to take the place of water.
5. Water is also needed in winter.
6. Drink water at the right time.
1) After getting up in the morning, you have less water in your body, because you weren't drinking for the whole night. So you should drink some water to keep your health after getting up in the morning. That can prevent high blood pressure, cerebral hemorrhages and so on.
2) Drinking water at about 10 am helps your body keep enough water.
3) Drinking water at about 3 pm can clean out the wastes in your body.
4) About eight o'clock in the evening is the best time to drink water. Your blood gets thicker when you sleep. Water will make your blood less thick.
Besides, we should drink 2L of water every day. Water is so important for our life. We should drink water often. | middle2.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "clear"
},
"options": [
"clear",
"beautiful",
"funny",
"interesting"
],
"question": "First, a good sign should be _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
... | Do you see many signs around you? Do you know the signs are an important part of our daily life? They can be in pictures or in words to give people information. What do people think are good signs? If you are thinking about making signs for others, what should you know?
The most important thing is that signs should be simple and easy to understand. It is important to use clear language. On the other hand, the words should be easy to write and you just need to write down what you want to do. "Keep off the grass" is a very good example. It means "Don't touch or walk on the grass".
Nowadays, there is a saying that "A picture paints a thousand words". Perhaps that's why we are seeing more and more signs in pictures, or a combination of pictures and words. However, that's the difficult part, because picture signs may have different meanings in different countries. | middle5884.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "about a million times faster than"
},
"options": [
"as fast as",
"a million times slower than",
"about millions of times faster than",
"about a million times faster than"
],
"question": "Light speed is _ sou... | Light travels at a speed which is about a million times faster than the speed of sound. You can get some idea of this difference by watching the start of a race. If you stand some distance away from the starter, you can see smoke from his gun before the sound reaches your ears.
This great speed of light produces some strange facts. Sunlight takes about 8 minutes to reach us. If you look at the light of the moon tonight, remember that the light rays left the moon 1.3 seconds before they reached you. The nearest star is so far away that the light that you can see from it tonight started to travel towards you four years ago at a speed of nearly 2 million km. per minute. In some cases, the light from one of tonight's stars had started on its journey to you before you were born.
Thus, if we want to be honest, we can't say, "The stars are shining tonight." We have to say instead, "The stars look pretty. They were shining four years ago, but their light has only just reached the earth." | middle2133.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "stay where you are"
},
"options": [
"try to find your friends",
"stay where you are",
"walk around the forest",
"try to find a house"
],
"question": "If you get lost in the forest, you should _ .",
"questi... | If you go into the forest with your friends, stay with them. If you don't, you may get lost. What should you do if you really get lost? You should sit down and stay where you are. You mustn't try to find your friends. Let them find you. If you want your friends to find you, you need to stay in one place. You can also shout three times. Then stop. Then shout three times again. Keep up shouting. Always three times together. When people hear you, they will know you need help and where you are.
If you don't think that you can get help before night comes, you should make a little house with some small trees or branches or something else. And make yourself a bed with leaves or grass. When you need some water and you have to leave your little house to look for it, don't just walk away. Leave small branches or something else on the way and then you can find your way back easily. | middle6341.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "six"
},
"options": [
"seven",
"six",
"eight",
"five"
],
"question": "Mary is _ years old.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Her ... | Mary is an English girl. She's six years old . Her mother takes her to school in the morning and brings her home in the afternoon. She likes her nice school. She likes her teachers, too.
One day, she says to her mother, " Mom, we have a new girl in our class today, Her name is Kim. She's six years old , too. She's very nice, but she isn't English. She is German ".
"Does she speak English "?
"No, but she laughs in English ", Mary says happily . | middle5890.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Greece"
},
"options": [
"Greece",
"China.",
"Australia,",
"France."
],
"question": "In which country was the first modern Olympics held?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | In 1896, the first modern Olympic Games was held in Athens. Since then many countries have successfully held the Olympics, such as England, France, Germany, Canada, the USA, Spain and Australia. After more than a century the Games returns to its hometown.
When people hold the Olympic Games, they always make an emblem . The emblem of the Athens Olympic Games this year is a white circle of olive branches in the sky.
" Athens is developing a spirit of peace ." An officer said, "While in Athens, the world should be at peace. We hope the peace is not just for a short time. We would like the message from the Athens Games to help countries come together and solve their problems."
Four years from then, the Olympic Games will be held in Beijing ,China. And China has already made a seal as the emblem of the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games. The emblem has a single Chinese character on a red seal and means "Chinese Seal, Dancing Beijing(.)". Below it, there are the words "Beijing 2008". The character in the emblem is "Jing". It means "capital'' of China and it is also like a runner or a dancer. The running figure on the emblem shows the spirit of the Olympics--faster, higher and stronger. | middle4556.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Fast food chains"
},
"options": [
"Fast food consumers",
"Kinds of fast food",
"Fast food prizes",
"Fast food chains"
],
"question": "_ are increasing quickly all over the world.",
"question_type": "cloze_q... | There are more and more fast food chains all over the world now. Most of these places work on a similar principle .There is a long counter ,above which hangs a list(often with pictures)of the items they sell,and behind which several people (often students working for the lowest pay) are working. Buyers form queues in front of each assistant. You receive what you order and take it on a tray to a table. If you can't see any knives and forks, this means you should eat with your hands. If you can't see any straws ,that's because they are hiding in the straw machine and you have to press the button to get a straw. When you have finished, you yourself throw away everything except the tray. It seems that you should do almost everything while you are having food in this kind of restaurant.
Many fast food places have drive-in facilities You place your order from your car through a microphone and then drive to a special window to pay and pick it up. You may even find places where a waitress brings your meal out, and you sit and eat it in the car from a tray hooked over the door through the open window. What do you think about this king of food-serving? Everything happens in seconds as well as your lunch or supper. You have no time to enjoy your meal because you are eating fast food. | middle5648.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "You have a red face when you're asked to answer a question in class."
},
"options": [
"You find it hard to enjoy yourself at a party.",
"You feel a little nervous when you go to a new place.",
"You seldom go outside, afraid o... | How do you feel when you have to make a speech in front of class? What about when you go to a birthday party? Do you get really shy?
Shyness means feeling nervous or afraid when you're around other people. Experts have found that more than 80% of middle school students feel afraid to be the center of attention. Some kids are born shy. Some become shy later because of their life experiences .
It's OK if it takes you a while _ when you go to a new place or meet new people. In fact, everybody gets a little shy sometimes. It's just a case of how much.
Most people have red faces and talk in broken sentences when they get shy. But some become so shy that they won't go to a restaurant because they are too nervous to order and pay for their food. Some are afraid of meeting new people, so they seldom go outside. This kind of shyness can be bad for a person.
If shyness doesn't stop you from doing something you want to do, being shy isn't a very big problem. Some experts say shy people are cleverer because they think more and talk less. Shy people are also good at working with others because they think more for other people. Some great people in history were shy, too.
You see, being shy isn't all bad. But remember not to let good opportunities pass by just because of it! If you have to sing a song at a birthday party or practice your spoken English in front of others, just do it! There's nothing to be afraid of. | middle2127.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "headache"
},
"options": [
"headache",
"earache",
"toothache",
"A, B and C"
],
"question": "A heavy bag may make students _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_inde... | Do you have to carry a heavy bag to school? Does it make your back hurt? Well, students at a high school in Kansas , America, have a meeting with their city's mayor to complain about their heavy bags. They say their bags are giving them headaches , and making their necks and backs hurt. The mayor says he is very sorry. He says students may do more of their homework on the Internet. | middle2641.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "From 12-year-old people to people in their 80s."
},
"options": [
"Only children.",
"From 12-year-old people to people in their 80s.",
"Only old people.",
"Only students and teachers."
],
"question": "What kind o... | Are you looking for something fun and would you like to help other people in your spare time? Then join us to be a volunteer .
We are a non-profit organization . We have volunteer jobs for people of all ages. Anyone, from twelve-year-old children to people in their 80s, can become a volunteer.
You can help people in many ways. Schools need help with taking care of children when their parents are working. Hospitals need volunteers to look after children when their parents see a doctor. Animal lovers can help take care of those dogs and cats without homes. There is something for everyone.
"As a volunteer, I don't want to get anything. Seeing the children's happy faces, I am happy, too."says Carlos Domingo, an old woman of 62.
If everyone helps a bit, we'll have a better world to live in.
Interested in?Call us on 1-800-555-5756, or visit our website:www. activol. com.
,. | middle4230.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "in an office in a city"
},
"options": [
"on a farm",
"at a school",
"in a restaurant",
"in an office in a city"
],
"question": "Where did Alan work? He worked _ . '",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
... | Alan worked in an office in the city. He worked very hard and really wanted to take a
holiday. He usually went to the seaside, but one day he saw an ad in a newspaper. "Enjoy
country life. Spend a few weeks at Willow Farm. Good food, fresh air, horse riding, walking,
fishing. Good prices ." "This sounds like a good idea," he thought. "I'll spend a month at
Willow Farm. I'll enjoy horse riding, walking and fishing. They'll make a change from sitting by
the seaside."
Four days later he returned home.
"What's wrong with Willow Farm?" his friend Jack asked him. "Didn't you enjoy country
life?"
"Country life was fine," Alan said, "but there was another problem ."
"Oh, what?"
"Well, the first day I was there a sheep died, and we had roast mutton for dinner."
"Fresh meat is the best."
"I know, but on the second day a cow died, and we had roast beef for dinner."
"Lucky you!"
"You don't understand," Alan said. "On the third day a pig died and we had roast pork for
dinner." '
"A different roast every day," Jack said.
"Let me finish," Alan said, "on the fourth day the farmer died and I didn't dare to stay for
dinner!" | middle7739.txt |
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