questions list | article stringlengths 9 6.44k | id stringlengths 9 14 |
|---|---|---|
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Maybe 11years old"
},
"options": [
"Maybe 11years old",
"Maybe 13years old",
"Maybe 14years old",
"Maybe 15years old"
],
"question": "How old is Phoebe?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"a... | Microsoft founder Bill Gates has talked about to be a good parent, saying that 13 is a right age for a child's first mobile phone. The 57-year-old father of three said on the Today show that his children Jennifer and Rory were not allowed phones until their thirteen birthday and his youngest daughter Phoebe is still waiting for one.
"We've made a rule in our family that it's 13 when you get a phone." He also said as a resulthischild often returned homefromschool complaining, "All the other kids have it, I'm the only without it, it's so embarrassing."
Asked if he keeps passwords to his son and daughters' e-mail and Facebook accounts . Mr Gates said that he doesn't for Jennifer, 16, who he says is "old enough".
Besides their wealth Mr and Mrs Gates ,who live in Lake Medina, have said they want to raise
their three children as usually as possible. It is said that their kids have to do housework at home after school and aren't given much pocket money.
And in 2010Mr Gates said that he wanted to give most of his $61 billion away rather than hand it down. "That wouldn't be good either for my kids or society," he said.
Mr Gates left Microsoft in 2008 to put his heart to charity. During the Today interview with host Matt Lauer, he said that helping others made him feel happy as creating software.
" What you really feel is what you've achieved. If a piece of software gets out there and lots of people love it--it lets them get their work down in better ways--that's exciting." he replied. | middle5105.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "is a pop music star"
},
"options": [
"is very handsome",
"has a bright smile",
"often makes too much noise",
"is a pop music star"
],
"question": "From this passage,we know that Jay Chou _ .",
"question_t... | He is quiet and shy. He likes to hide his eyes behind his hair. He doesn't smile very often. However, if you talk to him about music, he'll have a lot to say.
This is Jay Chou,the 24-year-old Taiwanese pop king . His fans are so excited because he will sing songs in Beijing on September 12. Those songs are from his new album , "Ye Huimei", and the album was released in July and was named after his mother.
Chou grew up just with his mother. He did not talk much and did badly in many school subjects.
His mother noticed the boy's special interest in music and sent him to learn piano when he was only three years old. He loved it and kept on practicing.
Chou is not very handsome. He does not speak clearly when he sings or talks. But the singer has huge crowds of fans. "He is really good at music. It makes him attractive to me," said Liu Jiajun, a Junior 2 student in No.101 Middle School in Beijing.
"He is true to himself. He never follows others," said Zhang Yujie, a Junior 1 girl at Huaibei Middle School in Sihong,Jiangsu Province.
,. | middle3574.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "key"
},
"options": [
"ruler",
"quilt",
"key",
"jacket"
],
"question": "The _ is not in my room.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text":... | This is my room. What's this? It's a blue pen. What's that? It's a ruler. And it is blue, too. What's this in English? It's a quilt. It's red. It's my quilt. And this is my jacket. What color is it? It's black and white. What's that on the wall? It's a map.
,. | middle7712.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "money"
},
"options": [
"everything",
"money",
"some presents",
"a job"
],
"question": "Volunteers don't want to get _ when they help others.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | Volunteering means that you work to help people without being paid. There are many different volunteers. They help people who really need help. There are many places where you can be volunteers. Here are just a few places for you.
Hospital---ask if you can go and visit people who are really sick. Sometimes what they need is someone to talk to, or someone to give them hope
Orphanage ---the children living there really need someone to play with them.
Food Shelter ---many food shelters need people to clean up the shelters and help give out food or water to those who need it.
Seniors' Home ---help the elderly people clean up their homes.
Community Center ---a lot of community centers are very well run. However, some of them really need extra help, especially cleaning and repairs.
As a student you can also do a lot of things to help others at school. Maybe you could start a support group. Here is some advice:
Help students give up smoking, drinking or other bad habits.
Help students who come from poor families.
Help new students get used to their school life soon.
Provide graduating students with information on future studies. | middle1363.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Next week."
},
"options": [
"Tomorrow.",
"Next week.",
"Next month.",
"Next year."
],
"question": "When are Tim and Li Fang not going to have any classes?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
... | Tim and Li Fang are not going to have any classes next week. They're going to work on a farm. They are going to leave at about seven thirty on Monday morning. They are going to travel to the farm by bus. They are going to wear old clothes because they are going to grow rice. They are going to have fish for lunch. They are also going to have a swim at the farm.
Tim and Li Fang are excited about going to the farm. Not only are they going to help around the farm, they are going to learn about farming.
Li Fang is worried that Tim won't arrive on time to catch the bus because he is nearly always late. Li Fang often has to say to him, "Don't be late, Tim." | middle2642.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "About fifty years."
},
"options": [
"More than eighty years.",
"About one hundred years.",
"Less than ten years.",
"About fifty years."
],
"question": "How many years of history do Barbie Dolls have?",
"ques... | Collecting Barbie Dolls is a favorite hobby of many women and girls throughout the world. Since Barbie first appeared at the American International Toy Fair in 1959, she has become the most popular doll in the world.
Many collectors of Barbie Dolls collect the dolls just for fun. They often collect some dolls they like or think are special. However, there are some serious collectors. They have hundreds of dolls, and spend almost thousands of dollars each year.
Many Barbie collectors not only collect the dolls, but also collect items of the dolls. Many collections include different items of Barbie's fashion clothes. If you become a serious collector of Barbie Dolls, you will be likely to want to join a Barbie collectors' club. The more you know about Barbie and her history, the more you want to grow your collections.
No matter which kind of collector you are, casual or serious, Barbie dolls can be a fun and interesting hobby for girls and women of all ages. | middle47.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "space with the sun, the moon, the earth and many other stars"
},
"options": [
"a star round the earth",
"a big ball with air",
"full of dust",
"space with the sun, the moon, the earth and many other stars"
],
"q... | If someone asks you, "What colour is the sky?" I think you will answer "blue". I'm afraid that you will be wrong. The sky has no colour. It looks blue because we are looking at the blue sunlight. The sunlight is shining on little bits of dust in the air.
Is the sky full of air? I'm sure that you have asked this question, too. We know that there is air all around the world, but we couldn't fly very high because as we go high, the air gets thinner. If we go far enough away from the earth, we find there is no air.
Maybe we can answer some questions now. What is the sky? Where is it? It is all round the world. The sky is space . In space there is nothing, but only the sun, the moon, the earth and all the other stars. | middle6424.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "students' mistakes"
},
"options": [
"students' college life",
"college environment",
"students' mistakes",
"students' future career"
],
"question": "The articles published on Converge Magazine are about _ .",... | What do you think about mistakes? Maybe you say no one likes making mistakes. But mistakes lead to growth.
Converge Magazine recently published articles about mistakes students should make. It suggests students need to live a balanced life, even in the college environment.
According to the topic of the article, there are four mistakes students should make. The mistakes include:
Think they pick the wrong major
A student should explore any possibility that interests him, and future careers might just be around the corner. Remember, if you don't know what to do, it's OK!
Think their teachers know everything
Students may think of their teachers as gods who know everything, but that really is not the case. Students should know teachers are the ones who can help us understand better. Students can research answers on their own and get their own opinions instead of having their teachers tell them the answers.
Think they get too involved
Getting good grades is very important, but it's only a part of the life. Joining clubs and learning about social situations are all good for teenagers' growth. It will not only make the students more knowledgeable but also create interest in their education.
Think taking a day off is a waste of time
Now, students are under too much pressure. It's necessary for them to relax now and then. But they always keep in mind how that might influence their schoolwork. Take a day off to relax, and you may get an energetic student the next day. Just don't do it too often. | middle6342.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "seeing films"
},
"options": [
"watching TV",
"going shopping",
"doing homework",
"seeing films"
],
"question": "Ben and Kate always spend their Sundays _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
... | How do most students spend their weekends? Do they have time to do the things they like? Let's see what some students do during their weekends.
Ben is eleven. He has a sister, Kate. Both of them like going to the cinema. Every Sunday morning, they go to the town by train and then they go to the cinema because they live in a village and there is no cinema there.
They get to the town at noon. They usually have a big lunch in their favourite restaurant first, and then they buy some food in the supermarket before they go to their favourite cinema called Star Cinema. They like it because the seats there are _ and the films in the cinema are always the newest. They always have a good time on Sundays. But when the weather is bad or they are busy with their homework or someone visits them, they can't go to the cinema. | middle5893.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "often have sports activities after school"
},
"options": [
"don't go home until 7 or 8 o'clock at night",
"often have sports activities after school",
"often do part-time work after school",
"have meals with their paren... | In north America people are always in a hurry.Children have special lessons or sports activities after school.Parents often work late and don't get home until 7 or 8 o'clock at night.More than 50% of women work at full-time jobs,and many people do part-time work.Most North American families don't have time to eat many meals together.
When a family takes the time to eat a meal together,often there isn't enough time to prepare the food That is why "fast food "is so popular in North America.People spend about 40% of their dollars on fast food.
Fast food is food such as pizza, sandwiches or fried chicken.People usually buy the food from a restaurant chain such as Pizza Hut,McDonald's,or Kentucky Fried Chicken.Fast food saves time,but it is not very nutritious .
Fast food is popular in many countries.American fast-food companies now have restaurants all over the world.But not everyone is happy about the spread( of North American fast food.A group of people in Italy want to fight against it.They do not want any more fast-food chains to open restaurants in their country.They also want to fight against the spread of fast food everywhere in the world. | middle4555.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "a disease"
},
"options": [
"a book",
"a man",
"a pet",
"a disease"
],
"question": "Rabies is the name of _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"a... | Do you often play with your pet dog or cat? Do you like touching animals like rabbits? They are cute. But someimes they may bite you. Then you could get a terrible disease--rabies.
In China, 2,245 people got rabies in the first nine months of 2007. In September, 318 people died of rabies.
Dogs, cats, rabbits and bats may have rabies. If they bite or scratch someone, the virus of rabies could go into the person's body. The person could even die. It's important to get the right _ very soon. Every year, more than 50,000 people aound the world die of rabies. Most of them are from poor countries. India has the most death . China is the second.
,. | middle2124.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "English"
},
"options": [
"Chinese",
"English",
"a girl",
"Japanese"
],
"question": "Jim is _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "N... | I'm a boy. My name is Bill. I'm thirteen. I'm in Class Two, Grade One. I have a good friend. His name is Jim. He is an English boy. He is in Class 3,Grade 1.Mr Wang is our English teacher. He is 27. Miss Zhang is our Chinese teacher. She is 30. We are good friends, too. | middle5887.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Cleaners."
},
"options": [
"Soldiers.",
"Drivers.",
"Farmers.",
"Cleaners."
],
"question": "What were Joe and Jeff?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
... | When this story happened, they were working around a very large house. Their job was to do the cleaning. It was not a difficult job, but sometimes it was a little dangerous, because they had to walk below where workmen were working. Often these workmen dropped something from the top of the house many meters high to the ground.
One morning Joe was working near the house with a cigarette behind one of his ears. Suddenly somebody on the top shouted, "Look out!" But Joe did not "look out". He looked up. And as he did so, a long knife missed Joe's head, but it cut off one of his ears. At once he put his hand to one side of his head and cried out, "I've lost an ear. Help! Help!"
Jeff ran up to help his friend. "Look for my ear," Joe told him. "It must be on the ground somewhere." Jeff looked everywhere for the missing ear. At last he found an ear on the ground. He picked it up and carried it to Joe. "Here you are," he said, "I've found it." Joe looked at it. "No, that's not my ear." he said, "Mine had a cigarette behind it." | middle2130.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "make rules for Internet use with parents."
},
"options": [
"send their own photos to him.",
"make rules for Internet use with parents.",
"believe everything they read on the Internet",
"give out their personal informati... | Many children use the Internet to get useful knowledge and information, and to relax in their free time. But some of them are not using it in a good way. Here are some rules to make sure you are safe and have fun on the Internet.
Make rules for Internet use with your parents. For example, when you can go online, for how long and what activities you can do online.
Don't give your password to anyone else, and never give out the following information: your real name ,home address, age, school, phone number or other personal information.
Check with your parents before giving out a credit card number.
Never send a photo of yourself to someone in e-mail unless your parents say it's OK.
Check with your parents before going into a chat room. Different chat rooms have different rules and attract different kinds of people. You and your parents will want to make sure it's a right place for you.
Never agree to meet someone you met on the Internet without your parent's permission. Never meet anyone you met online alone.
Always remember that people online may not be who they say they are. Treat everyone online as if they were strangers.
If something you see or read online makes you uncomfortable, leave the site. Tell a parent or a teacher right away.
Treat other people as you'd like to be treated. Never use bad language.
Remember that not everything you read on the Internet is true. | middle1439.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "build good values"
},
"options": [
"get good grades",
"become leaders",
"build good values",
"improve football skills"
],
"question": "Schools build football teams mainly to help students _ .",
"question_... | A team is a group of people with a common goal. A school's football team has two goals. One goal is to win. That is what the team wants to do. The other goal is to build character. Character is what a person values, how a person gets along with others. That is why schools have football teams. They want to help students build good values.
Each team member builds character. They learn to cooperate . They learn to make good decisions. They work hard. They practice every day. They learn to follow the rules.
Each team member has a position . Each position is part of winning. No one player has the ability to win the game for the team. Only if the team works together does a team win. People often say, " _ "
Whether the team wins or loses, at the end of the game they congratulate the other team. That is called sportsmanship. While they fight to win during the game, it is just a game. They cannot be angry with the other team. If they are, they'll hear from their coach.
_ makes sure the team reaches the school's goal. The coach cares about the whole team. The coach gives each player advice. When the team wins, everyone celebrates. And the coach is glad. But after the season is over, the coach is still happy. The coach gets to see the players as they go to school every day. The character they have built is part of their success in school, too.[:Zxxk.Com]
Some coaches say that if you go into a classroom at their school you'll be able to tell the players. It is not that they are bigger than the other students. It is the ones who are helping other students work. Teamwork is part of their lives. | middle7048.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "It has no school buildings."
},
"options": [
"It has no teachers.",
"It has no school buildings.",
"It has only girl students.",
"It is the only school in the city."
],
"question": "What can we learn about\"City... | Now, there is a new-type school in New York, which has no everyday lessons, no class teachers and even no school buildings. It is called "City-as-School". The name just means the city itself is the place where students learn their lessons. They are from the age of 15 to 18. The students choose areas of work which interest them. Then they help to do that work. One girl spends her week in a government office helping the public with problems like housing. Then she goes to help in a theatre for a day and she spends a week for first-year courses at college.
Well, students have to pass Maths and science exams before they enter the "school". These subjects are not easy to provide in"City-as-School". Teachers watch the progress of the students. The success rate is high. 80% of the students go to college after the "City-as-School".
The students like the duty of their work. They have the sense of purpose. They know a lot about different kinds of work in the city. One of the students, Lizette Martinez, writes " I want to say that I do not know where I would be right now if I had never become part of City-as-School. Leaving my regular high school and going to City-as-School was the best decision I have ever made. The way the school works to get you to go out there and learn different fields instead of sitting in a classroom is wonderful. For all those who are in between school and dropping out, go to CAS and it will change your life forever."
City-as-School High School is the nation's leading external learning or experiential learning model for high school students. | middle813.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Very nervous."
},
"options": [
"A little moved.",
"A little afraid.",
"Very nervous.",
"Very excited."
],
"question": "How did the writer feel when he went to school on the first day in the US?",
"question_t... | When I arrived in the US, I felt very sad because life in the US was different from life in my country. My first day of school was at Takoma Park Middle School in March last year. I was very nervous in that morning and I didn't want to get up. When I went to my first class, I didn't know what to do because I didn't know what the teacher said. But there were many people who spoke the same language as me, while some of them were laughing at me, because they came before me and they understood the language better than me.
But there were three girls who helped me. Their names are Maryori, Jezabel and Beverly. As the days passed, I had some new friends and Beverly became my best friend. She always helped me with my study.
Three months later, the school year ended and I had to come to Blair High School. On my first day of school at Blair, I felt it was different from my first day in middle school because it was a beginning of a new school year and there were many new students. I felt better because I knew that I wasn't the only new student.
That day I met new friends. For some of them it was their first time at school in the US, so I tried to help them because I knew how new students feel when they go to a new school. | middle6430.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "the man of a man"
},
"options": [
"the name of a holiday",
"the name of a tree",
"the man of a man",
"the name of some presents"
],
"question": "The word Christmas comes from_.",
"question_type": "cloze_ques... | If you look at the word Christmas, you can see the word Christ in it. On Christmas, people celebrate the birthday of Jesus Christ.
Of course not everyone in America thinks Christ a great man, but Christmas is a holiday for all the people. It's on December 25. Shops and schools are not open. Almost every family has a Christmas tree in the house. People make their Christmas trees very beautiful. They put many colored bulbs on the trees. The bulbs make the trees more beautiful at night. They also put some dolls, balls and small animals on the trees. On Christmas day almost everyone gives gifts to others and also gets gifts from others. | middle53.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "She didn't know how to start jumping with a long rope."
},
"options": [
"She didn't have any friends in her class.",
"She felt sad because Nick made fun of her.",
"She didn't know the cheers that the other kids knew.",
... | It was another day to jump rope in gym class. Lynn and Mike turned the long rope in big, slow circles. The whole class hurried to get in line to wait for their turn to jump. Millie stood at the back of the line and _ .
Nick went first. He watched the rope and ran in at just the right time. Everyone counted. He made it all the way to 30 jumps. One after another, the kids watched the rope, ran in, and jumped. Then it was Millie's turn. She watched the rope go around and around, but she didn't move. She felt like everyone was looking at her.
Millie's friends cheered. "Go, Millie, go!"
Millie's face turned red. At last, she gave it a try, but she failed.
The truth was that Millie had been jumping rope at home every day. With a short rope, she could jump 100 times without missing. She just didn't know how to run in and start jumping with a long rope. Since she was the only kid on her street, there was no one to help turn the long rope.
Just then, Ms Miles, the gym teacher, brought out a bunch of short jump ropes.
"Let's see how long each one of you can jump without missing," she said as she gave each student a short rope, "Ready, set. Go!"
Millie smiled for the first time ever in gym class. As she jumped, she sang rhymes quietly to herself.
After a while, Millie realized that everyone was cheering, "Go, Millie, go!"
She was the only one still jumping rope! The surprise almost made her miss a step, but she kept going. When at last she was too tired to go on, she stopped. The whole class cheered. Everyone was looking at her and smiling. Millie smiled back! | middle5139.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Five."
},
"options": [
"Two.",
"Three.",
"Four.",
"Five."
],
"question": "How many suggestions have you got from the text?",
"question_type": null
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"ans... | Are you afraid of tests? What will you do to prepare for a test? The following suggestions will be helpful.
Pay attention to what your teacher gives about a coming test. Write down exactly what you will be tested on. Knowing what the test will cover is half done.
Make a review list that includes important points from class and reading material. Then your studying notes will be in one place. What's more, rewriting the material will help you to remember it.
Don't cram !Test preparation begins the first day of class, so keep on doing your reading and homework. Then you just need to review for the test--not learn all the materials. If you wait until the night before to try to learn everything, you will only put more stress on yourself.
Get a good night's sleep before the test, but if you can't, don't be awake the whole night. Research shows that getting at least four hours of sleep produces the better test results.
Eat a healthy breakfast to keep your mind sharp . Avoid sugar, as it will weaken your ability to concentrate . | middle3548.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "It took her 30 years to get a tenth-degree black belt."
},
"options": [
"She is the first woman to achieve the highest rank in Judo.",
"It took her 30 years to get a tenth-degree black belt.",
"Her teacher wanted her to help ... | Is getting a black belt on your life's to-do list? Then this elderly woman in San Francisco just might be your hero.
Just two years before her 100th birthday, Sensei Keiko Fukuda has become the first woman to achieve a tenth-degree black belt --- the highest rank in Judo . Fukuda is now one of only four living people who have earned the tenth-degree black belt. Throughout history, only 16 people have ever achieved this honor.
Fukuda began practicing Judo in 1935 and is the only surviving student of its founder, Kano Jiguro.
At her teacher's requirement, she learned English to help spread Judo internationally.
During a time when getting married, building a family and becoming a housewife were the norms ,Fukuda broke from tradition, continuing Judo instead of getting married.
"All I did was Judo ... This was my marriage," Fukuda replied tearfully to the San Francisco Chronicle. "This is when my destiny was set. I just imagined how long the road would be."
She described the Jiguro's school as "old-fashioned and sexist about belts and ranks". In fact, an edict that prevented women from achieving any higher than a fifth-degree black belt kept Fukuda at that level for 30 years. She finally got the sixth degree in 1972 when a women's division was created.
Fukuda thinks Judo and her life to be "gentle, kind and beautiful, yet firm and strong, both mentally and physically". Fukuda says this kind of beauty is not external . She explained. "I believe this inner beauty is true beauty... All my life this has been my dream."
Her dream was turned into reality, and the 98-year-old Sensei Keiko Fukuda continues to teach Judo three times a week at a women's Judo training center. | middle2911.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "About 97% of water on the earth can't be drunk or used for watering plants directly"
},
"options": [
"3/4 of the earth is covered with water",
"we have enough sea water to use directly",
"we haven't used all the water in rive... | The world is not hungry, but it is thirsty. It seems strange that nearly 3/4 of the earth is covered with water while we say we are short of water. Why? Because about 97% of water on the earth is sea water which we can't drink or use for watering plants directly. Man can only drink and use the 3%--- the water that comes from rivers and lakes. And we can't even use all of that, because some of it has been polluted.
Now more water is needed. The problem is: Can we avoid a serious water shortage later on?
First we should all learn how to save water. Secondly, we should find out the ways to _ it. Scientists have always been making studies in the field. Today, in most large cities water is used only once and then runs to the sea or rivers. But it can be used again. Even if every large city reused its water, still there would not be enough. What could people turn to next?
The sea seems to have the best answer. There is a lot of water in the sea. All that needs to be done is to get the salt out of the sea water. This is expensive, but it's already used in many parts of the world. Scientists are trying to find a cheaper way of doing it. So you see, if we can find a way out, we'll be in no danger of drying up.
,,. | middle7869.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "What to Do in Case of Earthquake"
},
"options": [
"Dos and Don'ts Before an Earthquake.",
"What to Do in Case of Earthquake",
"Tips for Earthquake Preventions",
"Tips for Children in Earthquake."
],
"question": ... | Earthquakes can be very scary . But you need to keep your mind stable in order to make sure you are safe. Be calm and try not to run here and there.
If you manage to come out of your house, go to an open space like a garden or a park where you will be a lot safer. If you live quite some floors above in your building, try to find a place near a bulky object such as a bed. Curl up and sit on the floor and make sure you are not near a window, fireplace, gas stove and so on. Remember don't use lifts or escalators.
Some people say you should stand on a doorway. That is not true. If the doorway jambs are weak, they might fall on you. Also if people want to pass through that door, you may stop them. Leave all doorways free.
Another important thing to keep in mind is that you mustn't climb down the stairs during an Earthquake. If the tremors stop, after a few seconds, just climb down the stairs as quickly as you can and move out of the building, but don't run.
Earthquakes usually destroy gas pipes and electrical wires. Turn off the main gas. And don't light candles or lighters and create an even bigger disaster.
If you're driving and feel a shake, stop your car at the side of the road and get out. Make sure you are not on a bridge. Bridges and overhead roads have the biggest danger of falling. | middle754.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Walking in the Mountains"
},
"options": [
"Traveling through Asia",
"The People of Nepal",
"Exercise and Health",
"Walking in the Mountains"
],
"question": "What is the best title for this reading?",
"quest... | I spent my last vacation trekking in Nepal, a small country in the Himalaya Mountains of Asia. On a trekking vacation, you walk for long distances through the mountains. There are very few roads in Nepal, so trekking is the best way to travel. It's best if you hire a guide . The guides know the best paths to take and they also help trekkers with their bags. Our guide even cooked our food for us. Every day, we trekked for about four hours before lunch, and about two hours in the afternoon. At the end of the day's trek, we sat around a campfire and talked about the things we saw. Then we went to sleep in large tents. Every morning, our guide brought breakfast to our tent. It was great. At the end of the trip, I didn't want to go home! | middle5918.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Twiceaweek."
},
"options": [
"Everyday",
"Twiceaday",
"Twiceaweek.",
"Twiceamonth."
],
"question": "How often do most boys play basketball?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | There are 45 students in our class. I have made a survey, 36 students say they like to exercise. Most boys play basketball together twice a week. But girls think basketball is difficult for them, they'd like to play volleyball together twice a week. My friend, Tony, is good at running. He runs fastest in our class. He runs for 30 minutes on the playground every evening before he goes to bed. Is it interesting? Gray is good at swimming. He goes to the swimming club three times a month in winter, and three times a week in summer. So he is pretty healthy. Some of my classmates have good eating habits. They eat both meat and vegetables. 70% of them drink milk every day. 15 students say they drink milk three or four times a week. But some students like to eat junk food, especially Sally. What's worse is that she doesn't like to exercise, so she is very fat. She always says " I'm going to lose weight tomorrow." | middle998.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "The old man by the window."
},
"options": [
"The old man by the window.",
"The old man far from the window.",
"Both of the men.",
"Neither of the men."
],
"question": "Who do you think was kind in the story?",
... | Two old men lived in a room on the third floor of an old people's home. Both men were very old and badly ill, and they spent 24 hours a day in bed in the room.
Luckily, one of the old men had his bed by the window, and every day he spent hours telling his friend far from the window what he could see through the window. He told him about the traffic going by, the children playing in the park opposite, and the birds flying in trees. The old man far from the window got a lot of pleasure from hearing about the world outside, but after a time he began to get rather unhappy. How nice it would be, he thought, if he had the bed by the window and could see everything for him, instead of just hearing about it.
One night, the man by the window called to his friend, "Quick! Pull the alarm by your bed; I don't think I can get through the night!" But his friends, expecting an empty bed by the window, did nothing---he just closed his eyes and went back to sleep.
The next morning, the nurse found the man dead in his bed by the window.
The old man was very excited as they moved him into the empty bed by the window. He sat up in bed, pulled back the curtain, looked out --- and saw only a wall. | middle740.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Much"
},
"options": [
"Little",
"Many",
"Few",
"Much"
],
"question": "_ food is wasted in the restaurants of our country every day.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answe... | In China, parents often tell their kids not to waste food. However, it's reported that a lot of food is wasted in restaurants every day.
Many people say when they eat out, they usually order a lot of dishes and they can't eat them up. One person in Chengdu, Sichuan Province says he takes away the _ . "Usually we'll have some leftovers after meals, because when I invite friends to eat out, I don't know how much they can eat, so I order lots of dishes to make sure everybody has enough food."
While another person in Fuzhou, Fujian Province says she never packs what is left on the dining table. "What I usually experience during eating out is a big meal. I seldom take away the leftovers because we often have other activities after the meals, and it's not convenient to take the leftovers. And when no one suggests taking away leftovers, I won't do so."
Some people say they only take away leftovers when they eat out with family, but not if they eat with friends or colleagues .
Food waste means washing money as well as wasting precious resources . When food is thrown away, it becomes rubbish and can be harmful to the environment.
We should realize how important it is to save food. It's wise to order proper food for our meals. If there're leftovers, it's better to take home. To save food, we should start with ourselves and start from now. | middle2905.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "America"
},
"options": [
"Japan",
"France",
"Australia",
"America"
],
"question": "Where did Lisa often visit?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"... | My name is Lisa. Because of my job, I often went to the United States. I often felt worried during my trip because I didn't speak English well. So I decided to learn English.
I went to Mrs Brown's English class. Before I came to the class, I always walked away when I met any Americans. But now I try to talk to Americans in English. And I like going to supermarkets, cafes and restaurants to talk with local people.
I learn English in four ways. First , I listen to the teacher carefully and keep speaking in class. Second, I do my homework after I get home. I learn at least five words every day. Third, I listen to American radio and watch American TV programs. Finally, I surf the Internet to talk with different people in English.
To learn English well, I think you must learn to open your mouth. For me that is the key to opening the door of learning English. | middle7855.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "No one thinks the Olympics has anything to do with science."
},
"options": [
"When people talk about Olympics, they never think of the sports games.",
"The writer got some help from others in getting ready for the competition.",
... | When most people think of the Olympics, they don't think of science. But in the USA, each year, students take part in a kind of competition called the Science Olympiad.
It has a lot of different events. Students go there to show how much they know about the science of music, biology, chemistry and others. My best event is forestry . This time, I went to the Olympiad with my school's team. We had worked hard, but this was the state competition. It would be hard to win.
The Olympiad was out of town, so we got to ride on a bus and stay in a hotel for a night. The Olympiad was in three big rooms. When we got there, we set up our team's "camp" off to one side. The big day had come at last! First, I went to watch the tower building competition. That's when students build small towers and put heavy things on top of it. They hope they can hold them up. One of my schoolmates was putting things on her tower. She was nervous, and in the end it was too heavy for her tower to hold it--it broke! I felt bad for her. After lunch, I helped some teammates with their events. One was geography, and the other was history. I don't know much about those things, so I just watched my teammates do most of the work. At last, it was time for my favorite event--forestry. Another student was also in the forestry event. The rules were easy. We had to look at more than 40 different kinds of leaves and find out which plants they were from. We also had to answer some questions about the uses of each leaf. I knew almost all of the leaves and could answer most of the questions. I had spent more than a month studying on the Internet to get ready. At the end, it was time for the awards , I was nervous, because the forestry awards were last. We won second place in the whole state! A nice man gave me a medal and smiled at me.
I had a great time at the Science Olympiad. I can't wait for next year!
Choose the best answer according to the passage. | middle6593.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "eating"
},
"options": [
"looking",
"seeing",
"eating",
"drinking"
],
"question": "A young man is sitting by the road and _ something.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"... | A young man is sitting by the road. He is eating something. A policeman is coming over. At once the man gets up quickly and runs down the road.
The policeman runs after him. Te man runs very fast, but the policeman runs faster.
After a few minutes, the policeman catches him. "Where are you going?" says the policeman. "You must be a criminal if you run like that when you see a policeman."
"No, no," says the man. "I'm not a criminal. I'm just too fat, you see, and the doctor tells me I must always run fast after eating."
"I see," says the policeman. "You're running to help to lose weight." | middle4384.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Because the religious visitors thought that the dances did not dress properly."
},
"options": [
"Because the local government found the movements of the dance were rude.",
"Because the religious visitors thought that the dances did... | Hawaii is a truly beautiful place. Most people know Hawaii for its lovely beaches. However, Hawaii is also a land full of legends . One of the oldest legends tells of a special dance called the hula, which started here around 300 years ago.
One hula teacher tells the story of how the dance started. "The hula started, as far as the legend tells it, when Hi'iaki and her good friend Hopoe went down to the beach. And then, when they were there, they noticed the waves ...and they imitated the waves. And then started to use their hands...like showing the waves.That is how the hula started."
However,not everyone has always liked the hula.In 1820,some religious people from Western countries came to Hawaii.The visitors were shocked by the hula because the dancers were not wearing many clothes.So they asked the local government to ban the dance.
After that,most Hawaiians were not allowed to perform the hula in public for almost 60 years.But that did not mean the dancing stopping.Many dances still performed the hula in secret.The dance was always there.
Things have changed.At the moment,people of all ages want to study the old culture.They want to learn how to dance the hula.As a result,more and more people are attending halaus. Halaus are special schools that hula in the traditional way.
Kumano is a hula teacher. For him, the dance is a way to bring the best of old Hawaii culture to people today. Kumano says that the dance is not really about the body.He feels that it is more about the mind.He explains this feelings,"...the hula is more... not so much a physical thing,but more of a mental thing.For new dances,the dancing means very little,because for Hawaiians today,many of them don't speak the Hawaiian language. So,what I try to do is to mind the real thing they see today." | middle3399.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "student"
},
"options": [
"student",
"teacher",
"doctor",
"worker"
],
"question": "Mike is a _ in Jason School.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
... | Hello, my name is Mike.I am from England. I am a new student in Jason School. I am in Class 2, Grade 1. I go to school 5 days a week and there are 6 classes a day. There are 25 students in my class. I am very happy to meet them. English is my favorite lesson. Miss Green is my English teacher. She is 27 years old. I like having her class. There is a computer in my classroom. Miss Green likes playing English songs on the computer in her class and we like these songs. Now I can sing many English songs. There are some pictures in the classroom because some students like drawing pictures and they draw very well. I like my classroom and my new school. Welcome to my school! | middle4390.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "scientists"
},
"options": [
"farmers",
"workers",
"scientists",
"plants"
],
"question": "GM foods are made by _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
... | Today there are 6.4 billion people on the earth. By the year 2050 there may be 12.5 billion . There are a lot of people to feed. We need more and more food.
One way to produce more food is growing stronger plants. For thousands of years, farmers have made plants better. Every season, they pick the best plants for the next season. It works very slowly. Since 1983, scientists have been able to change plants more quickly by changing their genetic material. Foods from plants grown in this way are called genetically modified foods, or GM foods
By changing the genetic material of a plant, it is possible to make new plants. They make plants which are strong against plant diseases. They can also help in our diseases; a kind of rice is being prepared , for example , which stops people becoming blind.
Rich countries produce GM foods because they are easy to grow and bring in more money. Poor countries are interested in them because they help produce more food.
GM plants are not natural. No one knows how good or bad they are,. Making GM foods is only one way of feeding people in 2050. There are strong feelings against them, because they are unnatural. They may feed people , then hurt them or their children later. But both rich and poor countries are interested in their use, and they are not going to go away. In 2050, we may think differently about them. | middle2939.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "it's an important part of our lives"
},
"options": [
"it's an exciting part of our lives",
"it's an amazing part of our lives",
"it's an important part of our lives",
"i t's a relaxing part of our lives"
],
"que... | If someone asks me: "Do you like music?" I'm sure I will answer him or her: "Of course, I do." Because I think music is an important part of our lives.
Different people have different ideas about music. For me, I like rock music because it's so exciting. And my favorite rock band, the "Fox Ladies is one of the most famous rock banks in the world. I also like pop music. My classmate ,Li Lan, loves dance music, because she enjoys dancing. My best friend, Jane, likes jazz music . She thinks jazz is really cool.
"I like dance music and rock very much,: says my brother, "because they are amazing."
But my mother thinks rock is boring. "I like some relaxing music." She says. That's why she likes country music, I think. | middle7699.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "gets hurt because of his carelessness"
},
"options": [
"always plans things carefully",
"never takes care of the forest",
"decides to leave the forest forever",
"gets hurt because of his carelessness"
],
"questi... | How are you and your family going to celebrate Earth Day? It's great day to get outside and ride a bike, but there are other ways you could spend the day. Here are four books. You can learn more about the earth and the animals that make the world a special place to live.
The Busy Beaver, by Nicholas Oldland
Beaver is very busy, and he doesn't always think carefully. As a result, he makes a mess of the forest and ends up in hospital. Finally, he realizes how careless he's been and decides to make things right when he returns to the forest.
Lessons from Mother Earth, by Elaine Mcleod
Five-year-old Tess is visiting her grandmother and, for the first time, she visits the garden. Along the way, Tess's grandmother tells her the rules of the garden, "You must always take good care of our garden. Never throw rubbish around. There is plenty for everyone to share if we don't destroy the earth." The story is beautifully told as a caring conversation between a child and her grandmother.
Luz See the Light, by Claudia Davila
When Luz's community experiences a series of black-outs , she quickly comes to understand the need to save energy and find other ways of doing things . With the help of her friends and neighbors, she creates a community garden and park that everyone can use. The book attracts many young readers.
The Lorax, by Dr. Seuss
A young boy learns of the role of the Lorax as protector of the trees, and how his home became polluted. The book contains memorable of forestry conservation . | middle6587.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "telling the teacher the five students were the best in the class"
},
"options": [
"teaching the five children himself",
"asking the five children to find a new teacher",
"telling the five students to work harder than ever bef... | A famous study was done in a school by a professor from a university. At the start of the school year, the teachers were given the names of five children. They were told that these five were the most excellent students in the class. But the fact was that these students were only average ,and they were not the best students at all. Well, guess what? At the end of the year, all the five average students scored among the highest in the class.
What made these average students change so much to become top students?The only difference was the change in their teachers' attitude . Because the teachers believed that these five kids were the top students,they expected more from them. And so these five average students began to believe and expect more from themselves. So they worked harder to do as well as they could.
Do you know why? If you expect the best from people, they'll usually want to give you their best. A great leader said, "Treat a person just how he appears to be on the outside, and you'll make him even worse. But treat a person like he's already a success,and you'll help make him the best he can be."
Like the true story of 7-year-old Johnny, his teacher got so angry with him that one day she said,"Johnny,you're the naughtiest boy in this class. I'm sure you'll never change." The next year Johnny had a new teacher. And on the first day of class,she met with Johnny after school and said,"Johnny, I've heard a lot about you! But do you know that I don't believe a word of it." And every day after that, this new teacher treated Johnny as if he was one of the smartest students even when Johnny did naughty things. Later on, Johnny became a school leader. Because that's the power of our belief and attitude toward children. | middle797.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Six"
},
"options": [
"Five",
"Six",
"Three",
"Four"
],
"question": "_ members were chosen as volunteers.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer... | Chinese space trainer Wang Yuan has been chosen as one of the volunteers for the Mars-500 test project. He was very happy to be chosen and will accept the meaningful challenge Another five volunteers are all space lovers., including three Russians, an Italy-Colombian and a Frenchman. They are about to feel what it's like to travel to Mars, only without leaving the earth. They are locked up together for a year and a half under a similar condition to the red planet during the whole process. So the experiment is called Mars-500.
When reporters asked what they would miss most during the 520-day special life, French trainer Charles said:"For me, it will be mainly my family, the sun and fresh air."
The Mars-500 test will be in a special building in Moscow, Russia. Although the people won't leave the building, they will fell as if they are on a real trip to the Mars. The most difficult thing will be to be separated from the people that they used to live with. The trainer won't see sunsets, sunrises, won't feel rain for 18 months. That will be hard.
The main task is to study the "Man and environment". It'll care about the astronauts' getting experience and physical effects. The 520-day-test is divided into three parts,the first 250days to Mars, the middle 30days of landing on Mars, the last 240 days to return to the earth. Everyone will stay there alone for a long time and will work lonely. They will have to make decisions themselves and only then report to the earth, and the earth will tell them whether they do the right thing or not.
Each astronaut is preparing for the great challenge. It is learned that they will be launched early in June. And the experiment will end in November 2011. | middle1203.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "learn some knowledge about fishing before fishing"
},
"options": [
"often go to chat with others online",
"try to fish to get some experience on our own",
"learn some knowledge about fishing before fishing",
"often take... | Have you ever thought of taking fishing as a hobby? If not, it's time to think about it. Fishing is relaxing and it makes you go out to enjoy the beautiful nature.
There are many wonderful websites about fishing. For example, www. Bigfish.com has a lot of forums. There you can share your knowledge about fishing and get helpful advice from other fishermen. Http://fishingforbeginners.com is also a good website. It teaches how to fish.
I think there are many advantages of going fishing on the bank of a river under some green trees. You can forget the sad things when you are fishing. If you don't try fishing, you will never know what you are missing. Imagine standing on the bank of a river and catching a lot of fish. Allow the fish to bite the hook before pulling it up. When you catch the fish, you will feel quite happy and excited. You will never have this feeling until you give fishing a try.
Now that your interest is motivated, you may be thinking that you don't have a clue about how to fish. If that's the case, these tips will help. If you'd like to learn how to fish, there are a few things you can do.
Research the place of fishing.
Read a book about fishing.
Research online. There are hundreds of websites that give instructions on fishing. | middle5065.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Spain"
},
"options": [
"America",
"Spain",
"England",
"China"
],
"question": "Where did Tom and Simon visit?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"an... | Tom and Simon were Americans. Once they visited Spain. One day they came into a little restaurant for lunch. They did not know Spanish , and the waiter did not know their American English, either. They wanted the waiter to understand that they needed some milk and eggs. At first Tom read the word "milk"many times. Then Simon spelled it on the table. But the waiter could not understand them at all. At last Tom took out of a piece paper and began to draw a cow. The waiter looked at it and ran out of the restaurant.
"How clever you are!" Simon said to Tom, "He understood us at last!" After some time, the waiter came back, he brought no milk with him, but two tickets for a bull-fight down on their table! | middle5703.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "She is very nice to her parents."
},
"options": [
"She is good at making pocket money.",
"She doesn't love her father.",
"She is very nice to her parents.",
"She is a lazy girl."
],
"question": "What do you thin... | Alice needs some money for a Mother's Day present. She tells her father about her problem.
"I'll pay you to do some housework. You can clean up the yard ," her father says.
"You can also wash my car and Mum's. Both of them need to be washed because they're really dirty."
Alice works on the yard and washes her father's car.
"Too bad! You didn't have time to wash Mum's car," Dad says when he pays her.
The next morning Alice wakes up early. First she washes her mother's car. Then she goes to the flower shop. She also buys her mother's favourite bread on her way home. After breakfast Alice asks her mother to go to the garage . She opens the gate.
"Wow!" Alice's mother says. "My car is _ ."
"Open the door," Alice says.
Alice's mother opens the door. There on the seat she sees a bunch of flowers.
"Happy Mother's Day!" Alice says. | middle7114.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "It's pollution and traffic jams."
},
"options": [
"It's air pollution.",
"It's sound pollution.",
"It's dirty smoke.",
"It's pollution and traffic jams."
],
"question": "What's a big problem in Shenzhen today?",... | What's a big problem in Shenzhen today, do you think? Besides pollution, traffic is, of course.
There are too many people, too many cars but too little space so the roads are always busy. You can almost see traffic jams everywhere. It is even worse when everyone is going to school or to work. What's more, cars need fuel to move, so they let out a lot of dirty smoke and pollute the air.
However, the government is trying many ways to solve the problem. We can see more roads and footbridges over the main streets. And the workers are making some roads wider. It is said every car will have a computer. The computer can study the latest traffic news. Then it will look over its own map for the best way to drive and they won't get into traffic jams. | middle8227.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Four"
},
"options": [
"Two",
"Three",
"Four",
"Five"
],
"question": "kids have chickenpox from the passage ?",
"question_type": null
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "A... | One of Anna's friends has chickenpox . Two days later, Katie has chickenpox. Anna's mother says: " Your best friend has chickenpox . We have to keep an eye on you."
The next evening, Anna finds some red spots on her face. The next morning, she stays home from school. She can't go to her grandpa's birthday party. She can't go to her soccer practice. She can't go to the supermarket with her mother.Anna cries : " I don't like chickenpox. I miss school. I miss my friends."
Then Anna's mother has an idea.
After lunch, Katie, Mike and Danny come to Anna's home--- all with spots like her. Anna's mother says : " Let's have a chickenpox party!"
All the afternoon, the kids play games. When Anna's friends have to go home,
"See you at school." Katie says.
"Having chickenpox is not so bad." says Danny.
"I know," Anna says with a laugh , " Can we all have chickenpox again next week?" | middle1565.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "they reached the foot of the mountain"
},
"options": [
"they reached the foot of the mountain",
"they began to ski down the mountain",
"a team of workers found Jake",
"Jake lost on of his skis"
],
"question": "J... | Teenager Jake Deham was skiing with his family in the USA when he fell over and lost one of his skis.His family didn't know that he had a problem.They kept on skiing.When they got to the foot of the mountain,there was no sign of Jake.
Jake couldn't find his ski anywhere.In the end,he decided to take off his other ski and walk down the mountain.But he couldn't work out the right way to go.
It was now getting dark and he was a long way from any place of safety.He knew that he might die that night in the cold temperatures.But Jake kept calm .At home,Jake watched a lot of programmes about living in difficult situations.He remembered the advice from these programmes and knew that he should build a hole in the snow.He made a hole and pointed it up the hill so the wind couldn't blow into it.Outside his hole,the temperature fell to a dangerous-15degCthat night,but inside it Jake was safe from the cold.
But he had to get down the mountain.The TV programmes always said,"If you are lost,you should find someone else's tracks through the snow and follow them.""I wanted to live my life."remembers Jake."So I got up and I found some ski tracks and I followed those."He walked and walked and finally he saw lights.Nine hours after he lost his ski,he found a team of worker who came to save him.He was safe!
His mum was very happy when she heard the news.Amazingly,Jake didn't even have to go to hospital.He got through the terrible experience without any injuries.
So,the next time someone says that watching TV is a waste of time,think of Jake.Sometimes TV can save your life! | middle7100.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "five"
},
"options": [
"four",
"five",
"six",
"seven"
],
"question": "Most American children go to school when they are _ years old.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"... | American schools begin in September after a long summer holiday. There are two terms in a school. The first term is from September to January, and the second is from February to June. Most American children begin to go to school when they are five years old. Most children are seventeen or eighteen years old when they finish high school.
High school students study only four or five subjects each term. They usually go to the same class every day, and they have little homework for every class. After class they do many interesting things.
After high school, many students go to college. They can go to a small one or a large one. Many college students work after class to get some money for their studies. | middle8233.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "the tomato fight"
},
"options": [
"parades",
"street parties",
"the tomato fight",
"the musical bands show"
],
"question": "The most exciting activity of the festival is _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_ques... | Spain is famous for its tomato festival, called La Tomatina. It happens in a small town Hanoi on the last Wednesday of August every year. During the festival there are all kinds of activities, but the most exciting part is the tomato fight. It takes place at the end of long celebration . You are encouraged to throw tomatoes in the fight. There're many stories about how the festival began. One of the stories goes that during the 1940's, some friends started a tomato fight, while another story is about a local band. Anyway, everyone in Bunol seems to have a different story.
Before the tomato fight, there are parades ,musical bands, street parties and so on. On the day of the fight, shopkeepers cover their windows and doors in order to keep away from the tomato fight. At the same time, thousands of tourists and local people come to the town square together. Then large trucks full of tomatoes arrive. From theback of the large trucks, a great town band start to throw tomatoes at others. Then the crowds fight back, throwing the tomatoes at anything and anyone. Soon the streets are in the sea of red tomato juice.
Everyone is supposed to obey a small number of rules: You must squash the tomato before throwing it and you are allowed to throw nothing but tomatoes.
It is usually over in less than half an hour. Everyone then sets off to the river to clearup. Sounds like fun! | middle1571.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "The fist web browser was very expensive to buy"
},
"options": [
"The address system was used to make make web pages.",
"The World Wide Web was created in Swizerland.",
"The fist web browser was very expensive to buy",
"... | 1990 was a significant year in world enents. In Febbruary, Nelson Mandela was set free after 27 years in prison. In October, East and West Germany became one country again. Then at the end of 1990, the World Wide Web was born. For this final event we have one man to thank, Tim Berners-Lee, the father of the Web.
Berners-Lee was born on June 8, 1955 in London, England. His parents, both computer designers, encouraged him to think and work creativelhy as he grew up. He was an excellent student and naturally took an interest in computers and science.
After graduating from Oxford University, Tim went to work at a science research centre in Sfwitzerland. There be developed some of the different systems that would later become the Web. The first was HTML, the computer language used to make web pages. The second was an address system that let computers anhywhere find each other and send and receive information. In 1990, while still at the science centre in Switzerland, he put them together to make the first Internet browser. It could run on any computer and allowed people to create share their information with the rest of the world.
Tim knew that the more people used the Web, the more useful it would be. He wasn't interested in money but knowledge, so he gave out his invention for free to anyone who was interested. Many were interested and the growth of the Internet began.
Today Tim works as a professor at the MIT in America, researching new and interesting ways to use the Web. He has received many awards from governments and organizations for his efforts. He is still not very interested in money. That is why he is so admired by his students and workmates. It may also be one of the reasons that few people outside the world of technology know his name. | middle2078.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "sad"
},
"options": [
"happy",
"nervous",
"sad",
"comfortable"
],
"question": "When people compare the author with her sisters , she feels _",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | I Don't Have to Be Like Them
All students have to face their own problems when they are growing up. You may not think that having a good family is a problem. But for me , it was. I had to face the problem of being the youngest of the Smith girls.
We live in a small town in Pennsylvania, US. There are three girls in the Smith family, Amanda, Theresa and me . People often say things to me , like " Oh, the three of you , you're such nice girls. Your sisters are so pretty and so thin! You're really nothing like them . " That made me sad.
At school , all of my teachers had taught my sisters . On the first day of school , they said , "Oh , the youngest of the three! I hope you're just like your sisters. They're such wonderful students."
People always compared me with my sisters . So I couldn't help comparing myself with them , too. Theresa was smarter , Amanda was prettier . I began to work hard to be more like them . What my sisters did , I did , too. At last , I became drum major of our school 's marching band . Both Amanda and Theresa had been drum majors . I became editor of the school's newspaper . Theresa had been the editor two years before.
But last year, Amanda went to college , and Theresa went to high school . Now I'm by myself at junior high . Everyone knows me , because I'm the drum major and the newspaper's editor .
Now I don't feel like a Smith girl any more , I feel like myself . I'm proud of doing all of the same great things that my sisters did . But the best thing I did was to learn to stop comparing myself with them . | middle5717.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "respect"
},
"options": [
"loyalty",
"honesty",
"love",
"respect"
],
"question": "According to the passage, we are different from animals because of _",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answ... | _ join us together and set us apart. Today, our society has a terrible lack of values. Here are some social values that everyone needs.
Respect
Respect means to respect others in everyday life. Even if you are against a person, it is important to have respect. It is this respect that makes us human. Without respect, we become animals. We need to respect our friends for our friendship. We even need to respect our enemies because they help us to grow up and become stronger. Respect is one of the crucial values in a relationship.
Love
Love is everything. With love in our hearts, we feel no need to hurt another. With love in our hearts, we will pay more attention to the similarities in opinions rather than the disagreement. If we want others to be good to us, we need to be good to them. After all, we give love to get love, right?
Loyalty
People often ignore the meaning and importance of loyalty. Loyalty is necessary for people to believe in each other. In no matter what kind of friendship, we need to believe in each other so that we can work together towards the same goal.
Honesty
Honesty is to show other people who we really are. Honesty helps to do better, because it makes us realize our problems and find ways to solve them. It is this honesty that will make others help you out, not because you need it, but because they have problems, too, which you can help out with. This honesty will help us follow the other values in society and truly, "Heal the world!" | middle3366.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "She was not willing to do so."
},
"options": [
"She felt glad to do so.",
"She went mad with anger.",
"She was not willing to do so.",
"She was afraid of the man and his wife."
],
"question": "How did Mary feel ... | Mary was waiting for the airplane to take off. She was happy to get a seat by herself. Just then,an air hostess came up to her and asked. "Would you mind changing your seat? A man would like to sit with his wife." The only available seat was next to a girl with her arms broke, a black-and-blue face, and a sad expression. "I don't want to sit there," Mary thought immediately. But a soft voice spoke, "She needs help." Finally, Mary moved to that seat.
The girl was named Emily. She had been in a car accident and now was on her way for treatment.
When the snack and juice arrived, Mary realized that Emily could not feed herself. Mary considered offering to feed her but hesitated , as it seemed too impolite to offer a service to a stranger. But then Mary realized that Emily's need was more important. Mary offered to help her eat. Although Emily was uncomfortable to accept, _ . They became closer and closer in a short time. By the end of the five-hour trip, Mary's heart had warmed, and the time was really better spent than if she had just sat by herself.
Mary was very glad that she had sat next to Emily and fed her. Love sometimes goes beyond human borders and removes the fears that keep people away. When we reach our hands to serve another, we grow to live in a larger and more rewarding world. | middle3400.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Have you got a car?"
},
"options": [
"Good-bye. Have a good day!",
"Glad to know you!",
"Hi!",
"Have you got a car?"
],
"question": "The Americans hardly say \" _ \"",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
... | American and British people use different greetings. In the USA the commonest greeting is "Hi". In Britain it is "Hello!" or "How are you?" "Hi!" is creeping into British, too. When they are introduced to someone, the Americans say, "Glad to know you. " The British say, "How do you do?" or "Pleased to meet you. " When Americans say "Good-bye", they nearly always add, "Have a good day. " or "Have a good trip. " etc. to friends and strangers alike. Britons are already beginning to use "Have a good day. "
The British usually use "got" in the sense of "have". The Americans hardly ever do. AmE: Do you have a car, room, etc. ? Yes, I do. BrE: Have you got a car, room, etc. ? Yes, I have.
There are a number of differences between American and British English in the spelling of words, e. g. check(US)/cheque(UK). Many American words ending in "or", e. g. honor, labor are spelt in British English with an "our," e. g. honour, labour. Many verbs in American English with "ize" or "izing" forms, e. g. organize, realizing are spelt in BrE with "ise" or "ising", e. g. organise, realising. In American English, "practice" is used both for the verb and noun. In BrE, the verb is spelt "practise", and the noun "practice. " In AmE, one writes "traveler," while in BrE, one writes "traveller".
It was once _ that British and American English would become separate languages finally. But the opposite has happened. The links between the two countries are so strong that linguistically ,and probably culturally too, they are closer together than ever before.
AmE---- American English BrE----British English | middle1217.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "find the positions of people alive who are trapped in buildings"
},
"options": [
"take the place of man in rescue jobs",
"find the positions of people alive who are trapped in buildings",
"serve as food for people alive who a... | Everybody hates rats. But in the earthquake places of the world - Japan, Los Angeles, Turkey - rats will soon be man's new best friends.
What happens after an earthquake? We send in rescue dogs. Why? Because they can smell people. Dogs save lives. They help rescuers to find living people. But dogs are big and they can't get into small spaces. So now a new research project is using a smaller animal to save lives: the rat.
How does it work? First, the rat is trained to smell people. When this happens, the rat's brain gives a signal. This is sent to a small radio on its back, and then the rescuers follow the radio signals. When the rat's brain activity jumps, the rescuers know that someone is alive. The rat has smelled that person.
Although there are already robots which can do this job, rats are better. Christian Linster at Cornell University, New York, says, " 'Robot' noses don't work well when there are other smells around. Rats are good at that." Rats can also see in the dark. They are cheaper and quicker to train than dogs, and unlike robots, they don't need electricity.
The " rat project" is not finished, but Julie Ryan of International Rescue Corps in Scotland says, " It would be fantastic. A rat would get into spaces we couldn't get to and a rat would get out if it wasn't safe." Perhaps for the first time in history, people will be happy to see a rat in a building ( but only after an earthquake, of course.) | middle783.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "a son and a daughter"
},
"options": [
"a son and a daughter",
"Jack and Kate's sister",
"three children",
"a family of five"
],
"question": "Mr. and Mrs. Black have _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"... | This is a photo of Mr. Black's family. The man with glasses is Mr. Black, the father. The woman is the mother. They have a son and a daughter. The son is behind(....) Jack and Kate are in the same school, but they are in different grades. Jack is in Grade Three and Kate is in Grade One. They are good students. | middle6578.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "meat and cakes can make her fatter"
},
"options": [
"Mrs Brown likes them",
"meat and cakes can make her fatter",
"Mr Brown tells the doctor to say so",
"meat and cakes are not good food"
],
"question": "The doc... | Mrs Brown is very fat .
"Don't eat meat or cakes,"her doctor says to her.
"I'm going to stop her eating them, doctor,"her husband says.
The next morning, Mrs Brown makes a nice cake, and her husband eats half of it. After he goes out, Mrs Brown cuts a very small piece of the cake and eats it. It is very good. She cuts a bigger piece and eats it. In a few minutes she finishes the cake."My husband is going to be very angry ,"she says."What am I going to do?"
She makes another cake very quickly, eats half of that, and leaves half on the table.
Her husband comes back later. He sees the half of the cake on the table and he is very happy. | middle7666.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "how many hours a plane flies"
},
"options": [
"how many hours a plane flies",
"what kind of planes they are",
"the airline companies assign",
"what the pilot likes"
],
"question": "The number of pilots depends o... | Here's an interview to a pilot about his life.
(R="Reporter;" P= Pilot)
R: How much time do pilots actually spend flying a plane?
P: It varies (WES'J) from about 20 minutes on some domestic flights to as much as 18 hours on international flights. It all depends on if the flight is a short- or long-haul flight.
R: Do pilots take breaks during flights or do they fly the whole time?
P: Yes, we take breaks during long-haul flights. Airlines assign three or four pilots to long flights. We take turns flying the plane.
R: If pilots are traveling all the time, how do they deal with jet lag ?
P: Jet lag is annoying for almost all pilots. I try to go to sleep as I would at home.
R: How important is it to know the weight and size of the plane you are flying?
P: It is very important. We weigh almost everything put into the airplane and make estimates according to the number of people on each flight.
R: Do pilots eat the airplane food?
P: Yes, we eat business class food! Airplane food changes every season and is very delicious if you don't hate eating lobster every day! The pilots on the same plane are supposed to make different meal choices so that if one of the dishes causes food _ , only one of them will be sick. That way, at least one pilot will always be well enough to fly the plane! | middle3428.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "To offer help to the people of his town."
},
"options": [
"To offer help to the people of his town.",
"To show his people how rich he was.",
"To give money to anybody in need.",
"To find out how good his people are."
... | Many years ago,there lived a very rich man who wanted to do something for the people of his town. But first he wanted to find out whether they were good enough to get his help. So he placed a very large stone in the center of the main road into town. Then he hid behind a tree and waited.
Soon an old man came along with his cow. "Who put this stone in the center of the road?" said the old man,but he did not try to move the stone away. Instead,he passed around the stone and continued on his way. Another man came along and did the same thing; then another came,and another. All of them complained about the stone in the center of the road,but none of them tried to move it away.
Late in the afternoon, a young man came along. He saw the stone and said, "It will be very dark at night. Some people will come along later in the dark and will fall against the stone."
The young man then began to move the stone. He pulled with all his strength to move it to one side. But imagine his surprise when he found a bag full of money and this message under the stone: "This money is for the thoughtful person who takes this stone away from the road. Thank you." | middle4347.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "That he wants to save homeless dogs."
},
"options": [
"That he lives at a shelter.",
"That he wants to save homeless dogs.",
"That he loves animals very much.",
"That he loves watching superhero movies."
],
"que... | Most young boys like spending time on things like video games, superhero movies and sports, but Ken, a 9-year-old boy from the Philippines, is spending his free time trying to start an animal shelter for at-risk dogs.
In February, photos of Ken feeding dogs on the street circled the Internet and immediately attracted many people who wanted to help. "I feel sorry for the dogs with no owners while other dogs around the world are being pampered ," Ken tells Pet360 in an email. "It really wasn't fair. And they are really thin."
When Ken began feeding the dogs which had health problems, they would not let the boy come close. But after several feedings, the dogs warmed up to Ken and allowed the boy to help them. When animal lovers found out what Ken was doing, donations started to roll in, and Ken and his father were able to start a non-profit animal shelter called Happy Animals Club. The donations helped three dogs, Blackie, Brownie and White Puppy, receive high-quality canned food and treatment. After two months with Ken at Happy Animals Club, the dogs look like completely different animals and will be adopted soon.
In May, Ken and his father hiring a 10,000-square-foot lot , where Ken hopes to build a no-kill animal shelter to help more dogs in need. "I want the dogs to have a home, where they can have shelter, eat and have fun," says Ken.
Ken wants to save dogs from the city pound where most animals are put down. Right now, Ken doesn't have enough money to start the shelter. If you also want to save homeless dogs, you can visit the Happy Animals Club's website and offer some help. | middle5059.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "When he was 6 years old."
},
"options": [
"When he was 14 years old.",
"When he was 8 years old.",
"When he was 6 years old.",
"When he was born."
],
"question": "When did Melvin start to do charity work?",
... | Taking part in charity is not just for adult people. Kids can do it too! Melvin Sheppard, 14, an American student, has done charity work for 8 years. He has also encouraged his classmates to join him.
Melvin studies at William Allen Middle School in Philadelphia. Recently, he collected $ 1,500 by himself and $487 from his classmates to donate to Cooper University Hospital.
Melvin was born nine weeks premature in Cooper University Hospital, weighing 2.6kg. His father told him how Cooper saved his life, so he feels thankful to the hospital.
Melvin's classmates joined him once they found out about his kind behavior. Their teacher, Michael Bemer, also held a class with them about helping others. "It wasn't really about the money," Bemer said. "It was about the fact that they were doing something good."
"It feels great, helping someone that I know." said Jordan, Melvin' s classmate. Melvin's neighbors also helped out.
Since Melvin was 6, he and his parents have given money to Cooper University Hospital every year. This year, Gray E. Stahl, the head of Cooper's division of neonatology , went to Melvin's school to accept the money.
The money goes to a part of the hospital that helps about 500 young patients every year.
"When they leave, we call them graduates," Stahl said, "my co - workers and I are pleased when our graduates and their families do well, like Melvin and his family." | middle2736.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "No.2 Middle School"
},
"options": [
"his home",
"No.10 Middle School",
"a TV station",
"No.2 Middle School"
],
"question": "The writer did a survey at _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
... | Last week I did a survey about TV shows at No. 2 Middle School. Some students' answers are interesting.
Li Ming's favorite shows are sports shows. He often watches basketball games on CCTV-5.And he likes Kobe Bryant beastlier Yuan, a 12-year-old girl, says she can't stand sitcoms. But they're her grandmother's favorite.Liu Yuan loves cartoons very much. She watches Pleasant Goat and Big Wolf every day. She thinks cartoons are interesting and relaxing. Sun Jing doesn't mind game shows.Liu Hui likes talk shows. She thinks she can learn more about life from them.
And there is another interesting thing. Most moms like Healthy Living but most dads like the news. | middle6550.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "A great boxer."
},
"options": [
"A great runner.",
"A great boxer.",
"A P.E. teacher.",
"A great thinker."
],
"question": "Who was Tom Black?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | Once a great boxer ,Tom Black, went to a restaurant for supper. He took off his coat and left it at the door, but he was afraid that somebody would take it away. So he took out a piece of paper and wrote on it,"The great boxer, Tom Black, has left his coat here.He'll be back in a few minutes."He put the paper on his coat and went to have his dinner. When he returned, however, his coat was not there. He just found a piece of paper in its place. It said,"A great runner has taken away you coat, and he will never come back again."
,A, B, C, D(10) | middle973.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "They are expensive, though, in fact, they are cheaper than the usual lights."
},
"options": [
"They are too expensive for many families.",
"They can save energy but they can't last long.",
"They are expensive but they are bri... | We all want to protect our planet, but we're mostly too busy or too lazy to put up big change that would improve our lifestyle and save the environment.
Here are some tips you can take to improve our environment.
Use compact fluorescent light bulbs . It is true that these bulbs are more expensive, but they last much longer and they can save energy and in the long term your electricity bill would be reduced.
Donate. You have lots of clothes or things you want to throw away. If they are still usable, give them to someone who needs them. You may also choose to give them to associations .
Turn off your devices. When you do not use a house device, turn it off. For example, if you don't watch TV, turn it off. Turn off the light when you leave a room. It's an easy habit to take up which will help you save a lot of money.
Walk or cycle. Driving is one of the biggest causes of pollution. If you want to use your car, ask yourself the following question: do I really need my car? Walk or use your bike if the journey is a short one. | middle7128.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "shape"
},
"options": [
"colour",
"size",
"shape",
"taste"
],
"question": "Jack's pumpkins were famous because they have the perfect _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | Jack was a pumpkin farmer. He lived in a big house on the edge of a town and grew the largest
Pumpkin farm around the town. Jack's pumpkins were famous , for they always had the perfect shape and never rotted ( ) until well after Halloween . Every year around Halloween , people came from all over the town to buy his pumpkins to make their jack-o-lanterns ( )
One year, Jack was thinking about his pumpkin harvest ( ) of the year when his good friend Pete came to visit him.
I have some bad news , Jack ," Pete said.
"What is it ? " Jack asked . a little worried.
The town decided not to have Halloween this year! They said there was simply no reason for it and they didn't have time to celebrate it because many other holidays were coming up soon . Peter told him. He knew this was very bad news for jack.
Jack became very sad and lowered ( ) his head . "What can I do now , Peter?" I have all these beautiful pumpkins and I can't keep them until next Halloween ."
Peter replied, " Well , there are always pumpkin pies and pumpkin bread for other holidays."
Jack was worried and said, "I sell most of my pumpkins for the Halloween . I can only sell a few pumpkins during the rest of the year. And Pete, it's not so much about the money . I live a simple life out here in the country and I don't need much money . But I feel happy every year when thousands of people get my pumpkins and take them and make them into beautiful jack-o-lanterns.
Now all these pumpkins will be useless because people won't make jack-o-lanterns this year. oh, this is very bad news ." Jack began to weep . large tears ran down his face. | middle6236.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "ordinary"
},
"options": [
"ordinary",
"successful",
"famous",
"educated"
],
"question": "You will be a/an _ person if you are afraid to face more challenges.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{... | People often complain they face too many problems. Every day and everywhere there are problems. Many times we find it hard to stay happy. When one problem is solved, another one comes up.
People have money problems, work problems, family problems, health problems..... the list goes on. And we usually think that people who are happy and successful are having fewer problems than us. Look at the successful people we often mention. They have money they need, they have jobs they love, they have good friends, they have obedient kids, they have the successful business, they have loving families etc. Everything goes well with them. That is why they are happy and successful. But in fact, the more successful you are, the more problems you have to face. More success means more challenges they have to face, and more success means more risks they have to take.
Young and old, rich and poor, successful and unsuccessful, educated and uneducated, all have problems. The difference is that their problems are different from each other. Rich and successful have big problems. Poor and unsuccessful have small problems. Still they all have problems which they can face. Successful people are successful just because they are ready to face challenges larger than ordinary people.
Winning the US elections makes Obama very happy. As a new US president, he has to face bigger challenges. He has to be more careful about his work he does, or he will lose his position . Looking at him, we may say he is lucky, happy and successful. But, I think, as the US president, he has more pressure than an ordinary person. | middle1559.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "enjoyable"
},
"options": [
"helpful",
"awful",
"frightening",
"enjoyable"
],
"question": "The family's visit to the Magic Kingdom was _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | Dear Disney,
Last weekend, the four members of my family spent an enjoyable holiday at the Magic Kingdom - Disneyland. And one event made our visit seem truly magical.
We got to the front of the line at Space Mountain, only to find out that our little daughter Gloria
couldn't take her ice-cream on the ride. We were so excited that we all forgot ice-cream was not allowed on the ride.
Gloria broke into tears and we all had no idea what to do. Then Murphy, one of the staff members, came over. She bent down and told Gloria that she would hold the ice-cream for her and give it to her when she finished the ride. Gloria said, "Promise?" Then she gave Murphy her ice-cream, and she completely enjoyed the ride.
Sure enough, as we walked out the exit, there was Gloria's new friend with "her" ice-cream.
Now you and I both know what happened, because we know that an ice-cream won't last twenty minutes on a summer afternoon in Florida. Murphy knew what time we would get off the ride. she went to the nearest shop and bought a brand-new ice-cream thirty seconds before we walked out the exit. Gloria said, "Thank you," but I'm sure she thought it was the same ice-cream.
We know that _ tried hard to make our visit special. Thanks so much for going above and beyond!
Your fan,
Carmen Rivera | middle2050.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "she had no time to be with him"
},
"options": [
"she didn't care for him.",
"she had no time to be with him",
"she was a drug addict.",
"she was too strict with him."
],
"question": "The writer used to hate his ... | I used to hate my mother because she worked a lot and didn't spend much time with me. Then one Friday morning I took part in a three-day self-help program for teenagers. Whether you believe it or not, that weekend changed my life.
About 100 other teenagers were there. During the first two days I met a lot of great people. I was glad because I made so many friends there.
On Sunday, the leader did an interesting exercise called "Chocolate or Toys". He asked a girl which she liked better, chocolate or toys. She chose chocolate. Then he asked her to choose again between chocolate and chocolate. Of course, she didn't have a choice.
This exercise told us that sometimes we don't have a choice in life, and that sometimes we have to accept something, rather than complaining .
A girl stood up and started talking about her mom who was a drug addict and how much she hated her mother.
"I want a new mom," she cried.
"Unluckily, you can't have one," the leader replied.
"You have to accept the mother that you have."
This hit me hard. I realized that, for better or worse, my mom was my mom. I couldn't choose another mom, but I could try to make the best of the situation. | middle4421.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "eighteen"
},
"options": [
"seventeen",
"twenty",
"eighteen",
"twenty-two"
],
"question": "Colin was _ when he finished middle school.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"... | Passage 2
Colin is a twenty-year-old young man. Two years ago, when he finished middle school, he got a job in a store. Usually he works until ten o'clock in the evening. He is very tired when he gets home. After a quick supper he goes to bed and soon falls asleep. His grandma who lives downstairs is satisfied with him.
One day, on his way home, he met Nancy. They were both happy. He asked the girl to his house. She agreed happily. He bought some fruit and drinks for her. And they talked about the school life they spent together, their teachers, classmates and their future . They talked for a long time.
"Have a look at your watch, please," said the girl. "What time is it now?"
"Sorry, something is wrong with my watch," said Colin. "Where's yours?"
"I left it at home."
Colin thought for a moment and found a way. He began to stamp his foot on the floor, "Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The sound woke his grandma up. The old woman shouted downstairs, "It's twelve o'clock in the night, Colin. Why are you still jumping upstairs?" | middle2044.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "eggs and bread"
},
"options": [
"eggs and bread",
"eggs and fish",
"bread, soup and meat",
"coffee and oranges"
],
"question": "Most English people have _ for breakfast.",
"question_type": "cloze_question... | In many English homes people eat four meals a day. They have breakfast at any time from seven to nine in the morning. They eat porridge , eggs and bread and drink tea or coffee for breakfast. Lunch comes at one o'clock. Afternoon tea is from four to five in the afternoon and dinner is at about seven thirty. First they have soup, then they have meat or fish with vegetables. After that, they eat other things, like bananas, oranges or apples. But not all English people eat like that. Some of them have their dinner in the middle of the day. Their meals are breakfast, dinner, tea and supper. And all these meals are very simple . | middle4435.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "taking photos for the family"
},
"options": [
"making roller skates",
"helping mom wash clothes",
"watering the flowers in the garden",
"taking photos for the family"
],
"question": "Father did a lot of things a... | When I was a little kid, a father was like the light in the fridge. Every house had one, but no one really knew what either of them did when the door was shut.
My dad left the house every morning and always seemed glad to see every one again at night. He opened the jar of pickles when no one else at home could. He was the only one in the house who wasn't afraid to go into the basement by himself.
Whenever it rained, he got into the car and brought it around to the door. When anyone was sick, he went out to get the prescription filled. He set mousetraps. He cut back the roses so the thorns wouldn't hurt you when you came to the front door. He oiled my roller skates, and they went faster. When I got my bike, he ran alongside me for at least a thousand miles until I _ . He signed all my report and cards. He took a lot of pictures, but was never in them. He tightened up Mother's sagging clothesline every week or so.
I was afraid of everyone else's father, but not my own.
Whenever I played house , the mother doll had a lot to do. I never knew what to do with the daddy doll, so I had him say, "I'm going off to work now," and threw him under the bed.
When I was nine years old, my father didn't get up one morning and go to work, he went to the hospital and died the next day.
There were a lot of people in the house who brought all kinds of good food and cakes. We had never had so much company before.
He never did anything; I didn't know his leaving would hurt so much. | middle6222.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "384000"
},
"options": [
"384000",
"348000",
"3840",
"3480"
],
"question": "The moon is about _ kilometers away from the earth.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_in... | Scientists have always wanted to know more about the other _ in space.
Years ago, they knew many facts about the moon. They knew how big it was and how far away it was from the earth. But they wanted to know more about it .They thought and thought. At last they found the only way to know more was to send men to the moon.
The moon is about three hundred and eighty-four thousand kilometers away from the earth. A plane can not fly to the moon because the air reaches only 240 kilometers. Then there is no air. But something can fly even when there is no air. That is a rocket.
How does a rocket fly? There is gas in the rocket. When the gas is made very hot inside the rocket, it will rush out of the end of the rocket, so it can make the rocket fly up into the sky.
Rockets can fly far out into space. Rockets with men in them have already reached the moon. Some rockets without men in them have flown to other planets much farther away than the moon. One day rockets may be able to go to any place.
,A, B, C, D,. | middle7882.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "sixty-three"
},
"options": [
"twenty-four",
"thirty-nine",
"sixty-three",
"eighty"
],
"question": "Mrs. Clark is _ years old now.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answ... | Mrs. Clark moved to the small village when she was twenty-four. And she has lived there for thirty-nine years. She has a poor farm. She works hard on it, but she is often hungry. Her son Henry joined the army eight years ago and then found a job at a post office in London after he left the army.
One day, he wrote to his poor mother and asked her to go to the capital. The old woman was very happy when she received the letter. The next morning she started. Because it was the first time, her daughter took her to a small station and bought a ticket for her. A train came and she hurried to get on. Before long, a conductor came up to her and said, 'Ticket, please.' The old woman showed her ticket to the conductor. The man looked at it and said, 'You must take a train to London. But it is a train to Manchester. I am afraid you've taken a wrong train.' 'Is it possible?' Mrs. Clark said angrily, 'I am sure it's your driver's fault . | middle967.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "At about 9:00."
},
"options": [
"At about 7:00.",
"At about 8:00.",
"At about 9:00.",
"At about 10:00."
],
"question": "What time does Jack have breakfast at weekends?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
... | I'm Jack. I'm a middle school student. I have lessons from Monday to Friday. At weekends, I usually get up very late. I wash my face, brush my teeth and then go out to do morning exercises. I eat my breakfast at about nine o'clock. After that, I often go to the park with my parents. The park is a little far from our home, so we go there by bus. It often takes us about twenty minutes to get there by bus. The park is very beautiful. There are always lots of people in the park. There are men and women, old and young. Parents must take good care of their children. There is a large lake in the middle of the park. I often go swimming there. Sometimes, I fly kites. We always have a good time there. | middle4353.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "In the morning."
},
"options": [
"In the morning.",
"In the afternoon.",
"At lunch time.",
"In the evening."
],
"question": "When does Kyle walk into Ernie's Pet World?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"... | When Kyle walks into Ernie's Pet World, he looks very _ . The shop owner, Ernie, jumps out of his seat to greet Kyle. He is the shop's first customer of the day.
"Good morning, sir!" Ernie says, "What can I help you with?"
"Well, I... "Kyle starts to say.
"Wait, don't tell me," Ernie stops him, "You're looking for a...a little dog... for your daughter's birthday. Right?"
"Not really, I just... "
Ernie doesn't let him finish. "Ah, I've got it. You just moved to a new office, and you want some fish for it, I have some very nice fish bowls over here."
"In fact, I..."Kyle starts to look very _ and strange .
"No fish? Ah, a cat! You look like a cat person. At Ernie's Pet World, we have the best cats. Take a look at this lovely one with long, white hair. She's looking at you. She's thinking, 'Take me home. Take me home. 'Would you like some cat food and toys, too?"
"No, thank you," Kyle says. By this time, he is walking up and down. He has a terrible look on his face. "Really, I'm not interested in cats or fish or little dogs."
"What do you want, then?" Ernie asks.
Kyle looks like he is going to cry. "I just want to know if I can use your toilet!" he says at last. | middle4804.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "three"
},
"options": [
"five",
"four",
"three",
"two"
],
"question": "Rio de Janeiro beat the other _ cities to win the bid For the 2016 Olympic Games.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"an... | Rio de Janeiro will host the 2016 Olympic Games. The International Olympic Committee announced it on October 2,2009.Rio de Janeiro beat Chicago, Tokyo and Madrid to win the bid .It will be the first South American city to host the Olympics. The city will also host the 2014 World Cup. Rio de Janeiro is the second largest city in Brazil.
*Population: 6 million
*Language: Portuguese
* Rio de Janeiro has the world's largest urban forest ,Which is made up of many kinds of green plants.
*Every year Rio de Janeiro holds a carnival . It is like a big party. People dress up, dance samba and have fun. It usually lasts for a week. More than two million tourists come to Rio de- Janeiro every year. About half a million people visit the city for the carnival each year. | middle556.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "They use sounds to find the way."
},
"options": [
"They use their noses to smell the way.",
"They use their ears to hear the sounds.",
"They use their eyes to see the way.",
"They use sounds to find the way."
],
... | Dolphins are not fish. They are mammals .They live in groups and speak to each other in their own language. But they are quite different from almost all land animals. Their brain is as big as men's and they live a long life at least 20 or 30 years.
Like some animals, dolphins use sounds to help them find their way around. They also use these sounds to talk to each other and to help them find food. They do not use their ears to receive sounds,but use the jaw--the lower part of the mouth.
It is strange that dolphins are friendly to men, and for thousands of years, there are many stories about dolphins and men. In the 19th century, in a dangerous part of the sea near New Zealand,there was a dolphin. The seamen liked him very much and gave him a very good name, Jack. From 1871 to 1903 ,Jack met every boat in the area and showed it the way. In 1903 a passenger on a boat with the name of The Penguin shot and hurt Jack. Luckily the dolphin didn't die, and after a long time he was well again. He guided the ships through the area for nine more years, but he refused to help the boat of the Penguin.
Today, some people still kill dolphins, but many countries in the world now protect them. In these places, people are not allowed to kill them. | middle542.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "point out people's obsession with taking pictures"
},
"options": [
"complain about some tourists' bad habits",
"give suggestions on how to enjoy one's tour",
"describe the great view of the Grand Canyon",
"point out peo... | Pictures That Don't Last
"YEARS ago when I was at the Grand Canyon, I remember someone coming up to the canyon's edge, taking a shot with their camera and then walking away, like 'got it - done', barely even glancing at the magnificent scene sprawling in front of them," Linda Henkel, a scientist at Fairfield University, US told Live Science.
Henkel was surprised by how obsessed people are with taking pictures these days - before dinner, during friends' birthday parties, on museum tours and so on.You know people just like that, don't you?
They keep taking pictures because they think that it helps record the moment, but as Henkel's latest study has just found out, this obsession may prevent their brains from remembering what actually happened, reported The Guardian.
In her study, Henkel led a group of college students around a museum and asked them to simply observe 15 objects and to photograph 15 others.The next day the students' memory of the tour was tested, and the results showed that they were less accurate in recognizing the objects and they remembered fewer details about them if they photographed them.
"When people rely on technology to remember for them - counting on the camera to record the event and thus not needing to attend to it fully themselves, it can have a negative effect on how well they remember their experiences," Henkel explained.
But there is also an exception: if students zoomed in to photograph part of an object, their memory actually improved, and those who focused the lens on a specific area could even recall parts that weren't in the frame.
So basically, this study is saying that constantly taking pictures can harm your memory.But shouldn't reviewing pictures we have taken help wake up our memories? This is true, but only if we spend enough time doing it.
"In order to remember, we have to access and interact with the photos, rather than just amassing them," Henkel told The Telegraph.However, previous research has shown that most people never take the time to look over their digital pictures simply because there are too many of them and they aren't usually very organized on their computers. | middle6961.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "she was very angry"
},
"options": [
"she was very angry",
"she was very happy",
"she didn't like eating strawberries",
"Doris wasn't friendly"
],
"question": "Molly opened the door very hard because _",
"q... | Molly Daniels opened the door so hard that the door nearly broke it. Then she looked through the window at her neighbor across the yard. " She is in my garden again. Those are my strawberries, not hers. Maybe I should call the police."
Her friend, Doris, was sitting at the table with a cup of coffee in her hands. "You want to call the police because she picks your strawberries?" she asked.
"Of course," Molly answered angrily. "What would you do if your neighbor walked into your yard without your _ and picked your strawberries?"
"I would say, better here the bees."
"The bees don't take my strawberries."
"But the birds do," Doris continued. "That old lady only picks a few strawberries every year, and the only ones she picks are those you leave to the birds. Why don't you pick some of your good strawberries and give them to her?"
"Are you crazy? What are you thinking?'
"Don't you remember what happened when you were in hospital last year? She went to see you and gave you a pot full of chicken soup. When you give her the strawberries you can tell her that you still remember that."
Molly was shocked. She had almost forgotten that little kindness because she was too angry. Then she picked a basket of good strawberries and went out. Through the window, Doris could see that the anger on Molly's face changed into a bright smile. | middle224.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "interesting for children"
},
"options": [
"difficult for boys",
"interesting for children",
"difficult for girls",
"interesting for old people"
],
"question": "To play jacks is _ .",
"question_type": "clo... | Jack is the name of a game. It is quite popular with children. To play jacks, you will need a small ball and ten small metal objects called jacks.
The rules for this game are quite easy. To begin with, put the ten jacks on the floor or ground in front of you. Toss the ball high, pick up one jack and then catch the ball. Keep the jack in your hand and go on to pick up the other jack one at a time. You lose your turn if you do not catch the ball, or if you do not pick up a jack, or if you drop any of the jacks from your hand.
When you finish all the ten jacks, you now try to do the same thing again but with two jacks at one time. This is more difficult, of course. You lose your turn if you make any of the above three mistakes or if you do not pick up two jacks each time. | middle1940.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "everybody must be careful and obey the traffic rules"
},
"options": [
"everybody must be careful and obey the traffic rules",
"traffic should keep to the right [:Zxxk.Com]",
"don't cross the road too often",
"roads must... | Every year several thousand people die in the car accidents in Great Britain. And between one and two hundred thousand people are hurt.
There are rules to make the roads safe, but people do not always obey the rules. They are careless. If everybody obeys the rules, the road will be much safer. How can we make the roads safer?
Remember this rule. In Great Britain traffic keeps to the left. Cars, buses and bikes must all keep to the left side of the road. In most other countries traffic keeps to the right.
Before crossing the road, we should stop and look at both ways. Look right and left. Then, if you are sure that the road is clear, it is safe to cross the road. If you see small children or very old people, help them to cross the road. We must teach our children to cross the road safely. We must always give them a good example. Small children must not play in the street. | middle2291.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Because they share a lot of genes with humans."
},
"options": [
"Because they have a similar diet to humans.",
"Because they have a history as long as apples.",
"Because they share a lot of genes with humans.",
"Because... | You are probably familiar with the saying:An apple a day keeps the doctor away. A recent research carried out by the Chinese University of Hong Kong may change the saying:
An apple a day may keep aging away.
The research chose fruit flies , as they share many genes with humans. The fruit flies were either fed normally or had an apple extract added to their diet.
It turned out that those fruit flies that were given apple extract lived about 55 days--five days longer than the flies that were normally fed. The research group also found it easier for the flies to walk,climb and move about as they aged.
According to the result, the researchers believed that the antioxidants in the apple extract helped clean up dangerous chemicals that cause illnesses,as well as aging.
In another study,researchers examined diets of thousands of women. They discovered that those who regularly ate apples were 20 percent less likely to suffer heart illnesses and stroke.
The apples' genetic code was discovered recently. It allows scientists to develop nicer and healthier fruits. Researchers are already using the information to grow a kind of apples full of antioxidants that can keep eyes and joints healthy and protect humans against heart illnesses and cancer.
Apples that kill the desire to eat could also be produced, with the first"extra-healthy''apples on supermarket shelves within just four or five years.
The team that keeps studying apple DNA includes 100 scientists from five countries. Their research also suggests that around 65 million years ago, when dinosaurs began to die off the plant,which would finally become today's apple tree, experienced a great genetic change. The number of many of its genes doubled. The extra genes allowed the apple to get used to worse conditions and go through a different development from peaches,strawberries and other related fruits. | middle4838.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "a photo"
},
"options": [
"a school",
"a friend",
"a photo",
"an English friend"
],
"question": "What's this? It's _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,... | Look ! What's this in English? Ah, it's a photo. Who's that in the photo? It's Li Yan. Li Yan is my good friend. She is a beautiful girl. Who's that? The boy in black? It's Jim. He is an English boy. He is very cool . He is my friend, too. We are all in the same school. I like Jim and Li Yan. | middle4186.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "a writer"
},
"options": [
"a musician",
"a writer",
"a basketball player",
"a teacher"
],
"question": "Jack London was _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index"... | Jack London was a famous American writer. He was born on January 12, 1876, in San Francisco, California. His family was very poor, and Jack had to leave school to make money.He worked hard in many different jobs.
Later, Jack returned to school, but he didn't stay. He wrote," Life and pocketbook were both too short. "
In 1897, he went to Alaska to find gold. Instead, he found ideas there for his books and stories. He returned home and started to write. His writings were successful, and he became rich and famous in his twenties.
Jack London was not a happy man, however. In poor health, he took his own life in 1916. He was only 40 years old. | middle3831.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "American national day"
},
"options": [
"French national day",
"English national day",
"Chinese national day",
"American national day"
],
"question": "Thanksgiving Day is a (n) _ .",
"question_type": "cloze... | Thanksgiving Day is an American national holiday. It usually lasts four days. Americans celebrate it on the fourth Thursday of November each year. It's a time for people to give thanks to God, and it's also a time for family members to get together.
Thanksgiving Day is like a warm family meeting. On the Eve of Thanksgiving, members of the family will drive and even fly home. The next day, they sit around the table, enjoying a traditional dinner together. Turkey ,sweet potatoes and a pudding are always ready for the Thanksgiving dinner.
Thanksgiving Day is also a day for students to give thanks to parents and teachers who give them help and who love them very much. | middle6791.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "American"
},
"options": [
"American boy",
"Chinese",
"American",
"China"
],
"question": "John is _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_tex... | John is an American boy. His family is in China now. John likes chocolate very much. But his mother doesn't give him. Chocolate is not good for him, she thinks. But John has a very nice uncle. The old man loves him very much, and sometimes he buys John some chocolate. Then his mother lets him eat them. Because she wants to make the old man happy. One Sunday evening, John says in his room," Please, God makes them give me a big box of chocolate tomorrow , it's my eighth birthday!" His mother says to him , "God can't hear you, my boy." "I know, but my uncle is in the next room, and he can hear." John says to his mother. | middle6949.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "a teacher can't teach the students everything"
},
"options": [
"the students are taught everything at school",
"a teacher can't teach the students everything",
"school is really not important and useful",
"Edison learne... | School education is very important and useful. The students both learn knowledge and get an education. Yet, no one can learn everything from school. The scientists,such as Edison,Newton,Galileo and Einstein, didn't learn everything from school. They learned a lot of knowledge outside school or in practice by themselves. A teacher, even he knows a lot, can't teach his students everything.
The teacher's job is to show his students how to learn, how to read and how to think. A good teacher with rich experience in teaching can teach his students the methods(=" ways)of" study. Through these methods the students are able to learn and get a lot of things by themselves.
Usually it is very easy for the students to remember some knowledge, but it is very difficult to use it for problems. If a teacher really shows the students the ability of how to use knowledge, it means the teacher has learned lots of knowledge by himself (or herself). The success in learning shows he or she knows how to study. | middle6785.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "The 39th."
},
"options": [
"The 36th.",
"The 37th.",
"The 38th.",
"The 39th."
],
"question": "Which Rotten Sneaker Contest did Casey win?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | Who has the smelliest sneakers ?
How can you get $2,500 easily? All you need is a pair of smelly sneakers.This is the true story in America in the Rotten Sneaker Contest. This year in March, there was the annual Rotten Sneaker Contest in America.This contest first came out in 1975.The person who had a sporting goods store first had the idea to promote a kind of new shoes. This year the winner was a girl named Casey Adams. She walked her dog and cleaned out her chicken coop with this pair of sneakers. So with her sneakers, there was the smell of dog and chicken poop . Other children in this contest all wore their sneakers to join the contest. However, who has the smelliest sneakers? Casey's sneakers were so smelly that she had to take them inside some bags by car. Finally, Casey got the prize money and a trip to New York to watch a show for free.
,. | middle4192.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "tennis"
},
"options": [
"soccer",
"tennis",
"volleyball",
"football"
],
"question": "Today Tom plays _ for two hours.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0... | Tom is a young man. He has a very big dog and he has a very small car, too. He likes playing tennis. Today he plays tennis for two hours at the club and then he wants to go home by car. His dog comes after him, but it does not jump into the same car. It jumps into the next car. "Come here, foolish dog!" Tom shouts at it, but the dog still stays in the next car. Tom puts his key into the lock of the car, but the key does not turn . Then he looks at the car again. It is not his car! He is in the wrong car! And the dog is in the right car! | middle3825.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "It's in a shopping mall."
},
"options": [
"It's in a supermarket.",
"It's in a shopping mall.",
"It's in a garden.",
"It's on the Internet."
],
"question": "Where is Gadgets?",
"question_type": "factiod_ques... | We Love Gadgets
If you love the latest gadgets or you want to be the next James Bond, come to Gadgets in the Garden Shopping Mall.
Gadgets is a cool new shop. It sells all the latest gadgets and toys from MP3 players and cameras phones to toy robots. It's a great place to go to check out the latest things.
Jon Lee and his best friend Tom Green own Gadgets. They love gadgets and toys very much. They are already running a successful Internet shop but want to give their customers a chance to play with all the latest gadgets before they buy.
Jon says, "Tom and I are always buying the latest gadgets. We love new ideas and we know that our customers love them too." They both think their new shop will be a big success and we think so too!
Gadgets opens at 9 0'clock on Wednesday August 1st, 2012. John and Tom are planning a fantastic opening. Don't miss it. | middle2285.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Thirty"
},
"options": [
"Thirty",
"Twenty-five",
"Twenty-two",
"Twenty"
],
"question": "How old is Mary?",
"question_type": null
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Walks ... | Here I'd like to tell you something about my aunt Mary. She is thirty years old. She has a lot of hobbies. She usually gets up early in the morning. And then she walks her dog near the river. She sometimes likes to chat with others near her home after work. She often goes fishing on Saturdays. She loves music. She always goes to the Singing Club on Sundays. She also likes going shopping. Every time she goes to the parks on fine days. She doesn't like watching TV. She is a happy woman. | middle1954.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "a big cat and a small one"
},
"options": [
"two small cats",
"two big cats",
"a big cat and a small one",
"a cat and a bird"
],
"question": "Mr. Smith has _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{... | Mr. Smith has two cats. One is big and the other is small. He likes them very much. One day his good friend Mr. White comes to see him. He is very surprised .He finds there are two holes in the door, a big hole and a small hole. He says, "My dear friend, why are there two holes in your door?" "To let them in and out." Mr. Black answers. "But why are there two holes?" his friend asks, "How can the big cat go through the small hole?" | middle218.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "It grows quickly."
},
"options": [
"It grows quickly.",
"It's wood.",
"It is easy to cut.",
"It is very thin."
],
"question": "How is bamboo like grass?",
"question_type": null
},
{
"answer": {
... | Bamboo is one of nature's most surprising plants.Many people call this plant a tree,but it is a kind of grass.
Like other kinds of grass,a bamboo plant may be cut very low to the ground,but it will grow back very quickly.A Japanese scientist reported one bamboo plant which grew 1.5 meters in 24 hours ! Bamboo grows almost everywhere in the world except Europe.There are more than 1,000 kinds of bamboo.
Not all bamboo looks the same.Some bamboo plants are very thin.They may only grow to be a few centimeters wide while others may grow to more than 3 0 centimeters across.This plant also comes in different colors,from yellow to black to green.
Bamboo has been used to make things such as hats and kitchen tools.Because it is strong, bamboo is also used to build buildings.
Many Asian countries have used bamboo for hundreds of years.They often use bamboo for buildings and supporting new buildings and bridges while they are being built.
In Africa ,poor farmers are taught how to find water using bamboo.These African countries need cheap way to find water because they have no money ,and their fields often die from no rain and no water.Bamboo pipes help poor farmers bring water to their fields without spending a lot of money. | middle7316.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Because he didn't want the writer to go through the bill carefully."
},
"options": [
"Because he didn't want the writer to go through the bill carefully.",
"Because it was really a fine day.",
"Because he wanted the writer to... | Our village carpenter , John, came one day and made a dining table for my wife. He made it just the right size for the space between the two windows. When I got home that evening, John was drinking a cup of tea and writing out his bill for the job.
My wife said to me quietly,"That's his ninth cup of tea today. "But she said, in a loud voice,"It's a beautiful table, dear, isn't it?"
"I'll decide about that when I see the bill. "I said.
John laughed and gave me his bill for the work. I read:
One dining table 10 November, 1998
Cost of wood $17. 00
Paint $1. 50
Work, 8 hours ( $1 an hour ) $8. 00
Total $36. 50
When I was looking at the bill, John said, "It's been a nice day, hasn't it?Quite sunny. "
"Yes. "I said. " I'm glad it's only the tenth of November. "
"Me, too. "said John. "You wait -- it'll be a lot colder by the end of the month. "
"Yes,colder -- and more expensive! A dining table will be $20 more expensive on November 30, won't it, John?"
John looked hard at me for half a minute. Was there a little smile in his two blue eyes?I gave his bill back to him.
"If there isn't too much trouble, John," I said,"please add it up again. You can forget the date..."
I paid him $26. 50 and he was happy to get it. | middle3170.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "remember words in a song"
},
"options": [
"read and write more",
"listen to the teacher carefully",
"copy the words many times.",
"remember words in a song"
],
"question": "According to the passage, the best way... | Sing the Language You're Learning
How can you remember a song from your childhood to this day? Why do your teachers use songs to teach you English? It seems there is a scientific reason for this.
Researchers are now studying the relationship between music and remembering a foreign language. They find that remembering words in a song is the best way to remember even the most difficult language.
"Singing could be a new way of learning a foreign language. The brain likes to remember things when they are used in a _ and meaningful way", said Dr, Karen Ludke. The findings may help those who have difficulties learning foreign languages. On his blog, Dr. Ludke writes, "A listen-and-repeat singing method can support foreign language learning, and opens the door for future research in this area."
Many language teachers know the value of using music and singing. Hua Zhuying, a teacher at a Chinese language school in Washington, D.C. depends heavily on songs in teaching Chinese. She says, "I use music all the time to teach children Chinese. For little kids usually we use the music. Not only does it work, but it is fun for kids."
"Sometimes, I think if I were taught English that way, maybe I could speak much better English than now," Hua Zhuying adds.
Our brain likes music, especially for remembering. So, if you're still struggling in learning a language, why not try singing it out ? | middle5501.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "see"
},
"options": [
"see",
"walk",
"hear",
"speak"
],
"question": "The boy in the passage can not _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_t... | A blind boy sat on the steps of a building with a hat by his feet. He _ a sign which said, "I am blind, please help." There were only a few coins in the hat.
A man was walking by. He took a few coins from his pocket and dropped them into the hat. He then took the sign, turned it around, and wrote some words. He put the sign back so that everyone who walked by would see the new words.
Soon the hat began to fill up. A lot more people were giving money to the blind boy. That afternoon the man who had changed the sign came to see how things were. The boy recognized his footsteps and asked, "Were you the one who changed my sign this morning? What did you write?"
The man said, "I only wrote the truth. I said what you said but in a different way."
What he had written was, "Today is a beautiful day; I can not see it."
Of course both signs told people the boy was blind. But the first sign simply sign the boy was blind. The second sign told people they were so lucky that they were not blind. Should we be surprised that the second sign was more effective ? | middle2508.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "mental problems"
},
"options": [
"mental problems",
"a headache",
"knives with them",
"no parents"
],
"question": "The students who often become worried or have trouble getting on with others may have _ .",
... | Young people can have problems with their minds.Some students become worried because they have to study very hard.Others have trouble getting on well with people like their parents and classmates.
Liu Wei,a junior 2 student from Hefei,could not understand his teacher and was doing badly in his lessons.He became so worried about it that he started to cut his finger with a knife.
Another student,14-year-old Yan Fang from Guangzhou,was afraid of exams.She got very worried when she looked at the exam paper.She couldn't think of anything to write.
A recent report from Jiefang Daily says about 18% of Shanghai teenagers have mental problems.Their troubles include being worried and very unhappy.And they have problems in learning and getting on with people.Many students who have problems won't ask others for advice or help.Some think they will look stupid if they go to see a doctor.Others don't want to talk about their secret.
Liang Yuezhu,an expert on teenagers from Beijing Anding Hospital has the following advice for teenagers:
* Talk to your parents or teachers often
* Take part in group activities and play sports
* Go to see a doctor if you feel unhappy or unwell | middle5267.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "classmates"
},
"options": [
"brothers",
"friends",
"classmates",
"cousins."
],
"question": "The two boys Tom and Fred are _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_ind... | Tom and Fred are students. They are twelve years old, and they are in the same class in their school. On Monday morning, they have a fight in class, and their teacher is angry. She says to the boys, "Come here after school this afternoon, and write your names 1,000 times ."
After the last class, Tom and Fred are in the classroom with their teacher and write their names. But Fred cries . The teacher looks at him and asks why.
"Because his name is Tom King, and my name is Frederick Hollingsworth," Fred says ," It is bad . I have a very, very long name!" | middle4179.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "need less fuel than ordinary cars"
},
"options": [
"increase air pollution",
"run only on electricity",
"have no engines inside",
"need less fuel than ordinary cars"
],
"question": "Hybrid cars _ .",
"que... | Imagine a world where air pollution is no longer a problem. Clean air is all around us. People don't have to worry about polluting the air every time they drive their cars. They no longer need to face the problem of not having enough fuel either.
Although scientists have been trying for many years to develop a new kind of car that does not need gasoline , _ have been unsuccessful. Recently, however, car engineers have succeeded in creating a new kind of car that runs on gasoline and electricity . This is the famous "hybrid car". This car gets its name from the fact that it has a gasoline engine and an electric motor inside. Hybrid cars do not pollute the environment as much as the cars that are commonly used today. They also cost drivers less money because they need less fuel than ordinary cars.
Hybrid cars are becoming widely popular in the United States. They are soon expected to become widely used around the world. If scientists and engineers continue to work on car development, perhaps the world with clean air that we imagined earlier just might become real in the future. | middle3616.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Using sleeping pills."
},
"options": [
"Listening to music.",
"Drinking warm milk.",
"Keeping far away from caffeine.",
"Using sleeping pills."
],
"question": "Which of the following is NOT mentioned in this te... | Here are some easy tips for getting to sleep. They can help you deal with tension, stress and anxiety, and enjoy a good night sleep. Not every one of these tips alone will get you to sleep, but a few of them at least should be useful.
Get some physical exercise during the day. Even 15 minutes a day of exercise (at least half an hour before going to bed, so your body will have a chance to slow down) will give your body the activity and oxygen it needs to help you relax more and sleep better.
Listen to the light music. Play some soft, smooth music that help you sleep. Of course you must have a recorder or CD player that will automatically turn off because if you get up and turn it off in the end, it'll lose its effect.
Drink warm milk. A glass of warm milk 15 minutes before going to bed will keep you calm.
Keep regular bedtime hours. Your body likes regular routines ,.It likes to know that it's going to get up at the same time each day, eat at the same time, and go to bed at the same time. Keep far away from caffeine, alcohol and tobacco. Before you go to sleep, you'd better not drink coffee or cola which has caffeine. Don't drink wine, beer or champagne which has alcohol and don't smoke.
Don't watch TV or read before going to bed. Wait at least half an hour before going to bed after reading or watching TV. | middle7470.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "in front of"
},
"options": [
"behind",
"in front of",
"next to",
"across from"
],
"question": "There is a small garden _ my house.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answe... | This is my beautiful home. There is a small garden in front of my house. There are many beautiful flowers in the garden. Behind my house there is a big tree. Near the tree, you can see a garage. My father's beautiful car is in it now.
On the first floor, there is a large living room, a dining room, a kitchen and a bathroom. I like watching TV in the living room. On the second floor, there is a small study room and two bedrooms. I love playing with the computer in my study.
What a nice home! I like it very much. | middle595.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "in his car"
},
"options": [
"by bus",
"by bike",
"in his car",
"by plane"
],
"question": "Mr. Hunt went to the city _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0... | Mr. Hunt was living in a village and he wanted to go to an office one day. He got into his car and drove to the city. He went there without any trouble and stopped in front of the door. He locked his car and started to go into the office, but then he turned around and went back to his car. "I've left my keys in it!" he said to himself. Then he called his wife and said, "Excuse me, but I've locked my keys in my car, please bring your keys to me."
Mrs. Hunt got into their second car and drove thirty kilometers to her husband. But while Mr. Hunt was waiting, he walked around his car and tried the other door. It was not locked. He locked it quickly before his wife arrived.
,. | middle7464.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "385000"
},
"options": [
"385",
"3850",
"38500",
"385000"
],
"question": "The moon is _ kilometres away from the earth.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index":... | July 20th, 1969 was an important day.Two American landed on the moon.Their names were Armstrong and Aldrin.They went there in a spaceship.Its name was Apollo 11.
Apollo 11 left Cape Kennedy on July 16th and went three hundred and eighty-five thousand kilometres.It took the two American three days to get there.On July 20th the spaceship landed in the Sea of Tranquility .Armstrong first stepped onto the moon.They picked up some rocks and put them in the spaceship.They jumped up and down.They were tired after their moonwalk,so they rested.
On July 21st, Apollo 11 left the moon and returned to the Earth.Three days later, it came down in the Pacific Ocean.A ship took the men to America. | middle1015.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "offer something positive to cheer people up"
},
"options": [
"provide a place for those who want to post their videos",
"discover something positive, honest and good",
"recommend positive voicemails on the website to people",... | Sometimes, you feel down or unhappy and it is hard to come back to your high spirit. So if you're having a bad day and need a boost,then help is just a click away.
A website is trying to offer people positive messages from strangers to cheer them up. It announces to be"the nicest place on the Internet",where happy people can present their positive thoughts and feelings to those who are in low spirits.
The website, thenicestplaceontheinter.net, lets people post videos of themselves blowing kisses and leaving positive and encouraging messages to lift visitors' spirits.
The website was created by Jeff Lam and is considered to help many people out when they feel low. The well-known artist who lives in San Francisco said he came up with the idea when he and his friend Lauren were having one of those bad days.
"We tried to become cheerful,but none of the usual methods seemed to be working. Not music. Not food. What we hoped was something positive, honest and good.So with only a camera and work-free weekend, we created'The Nicest Place On The Internet," he explained on his website.
One user of the site, Joseph Meehan, 27, from Birmingham, said,"it's a fun and
exciting website. I visit every once in a while when I'm missing my friends or family. I think it could really be a help to people that are feeling down or sad. It may even stop them from doing something stupid. You can also post your video to the website, and they add it to the series. It's very easy to share the love."
Mr. Lam is now working on a new project that allows people to leave positive voicemails for strangers. The idea is that strangers send an audio diary by leaving a voicemail and then anyone can listen to it. | middle5273.txt |
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