questions list | article stringlengths 9 6.44k | id stringlengths 9 14 |
|---|---|---|
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Because its windows looked golden."
},
"options": [
"Because there was a small garden.",
"Because it's magic.",
"Because it's ordinary.",
"Because its windows looked golden."
],
"question": "Why did the girl lon... | A little girl lived in a small, very simple, poor house on a hill and as she grew she would play in the small garden. There, she was able to see over the garden fence and across the valley to a wonderful house high on the hill. This house had golden windows, so golden and shining that the little girl would dream of how magic it would be to grow up and live in a house with golden windows instead of an ordinary house like hers. Although she loved her parents and her family, she yearned to live in such a golden house and dreamed all day about how wonderful and exciting it must feel to live there.
When she got to an age when she gained enough skill and sensibility to go outside her garden fence, she asked her mother if she could go for a bike ride outside the gate and down the lane. After pleading with her, her mother finally allowed her to go, insisting that she should keep close to the house and not wander too far. The day was beautiful and the little girl knew exactly where she was heading! Down the lane and across the valley, she rode her bike until she got to the gate of the golden house across on the other hill.
As she dismounted her bike and leaned it against the gate post, she focused on the path that led to the house and then on the house itself. She was so disappointed as she realized all the windows were plain and rather dirty, reflecting nothing other than the sad neglect of the house that was derelict.
So sad she didn't go any further and turned, and heart broken as she remounted her bike. As she glanced up she saw a sight to amaze her. There across the way on her side of the valley was a little house and its windows glistened golden as the sun shone on her little home.
She realized that she had been living in her golden house and all the love and care she found there was what made her home the 'golden house'. Everything she dreamed was right there in front ofher nose! | high3297.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "see something unexpected"
},
"options": [
"see their friends in the street",
"see something unexpected",
"see something splendid",
"see something happy"
],
"question": "People may faint if they _ .",
"ques... | People faint when the normal blood supply to the brain is suddenly cut down. This can happen if they are surprised or shocked by sudden news or by something they see suddenly. Some people faint if they see others hurt .Some people faint in crowds. Others faint if they are in a room that is hot and stuffy.
If a person faints while standing, lay him down. If his face is pale, lift his feet .If he is sitting down when he faints, place his head between his knees, loosen any tight clothing that might keep him from breathing easily .If possible, place a wet cloth on his forehead. | high21613.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Muddy road"
},
"options": [
"Falling trees",
"Thick dust",
"Muddy road",
"Many discomforts"
],
"question": "Which of the following mainly prevented people from travelling fast in the past?",
"question_type":... | People who traveled in the past had to put up with many discomforts which we do not have nowadays, and of course they traveled far more slowly. Roads were bad indeed and you often found you could not get along at all because of the mud. In dry weather many places were thick in dust and when it was stormy, trees might fall across the road and it was nobody's business to clear _ away.
Ordinary people traveled on foot or on horseback, but everyone who could afford it kept a private coach. There were public coaches too. called "stage coaches" because long journeys took several days and were done in stages, with stops over night at inns. Some stage, coaches ran only in the summer months. Others all the year around. They were very slow and crowded and passengers often became in on the way because of the swaying .
Break downs were frequent, since many roads were not smooth. So a coach might very easily turn right over. Early in the century coach and wagon builders were encouraged to put very wide wheels on their vehicles. So that these might level the roads a little. But many people complained of this since it slowed travel down a good deal.
Most travelers during the 18th century wrote bitterly about the state of the roads. One visitor to Sussex took six hours to travel nine miles in his coach; another wrote to a friend that on time of his journeys "almost every mile was marked by the overturn of a carriage". | high11908.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "was difficult to find"
},
"options": [
"indicated tuna was a common dish for our early ancestors",
"showed the trend of sea movement",
"was difficult to find",
"was buried in cave shelters"
],
"question": "Accor... | The world's earliest known fish hooks show that humans fished in the open sea for much longer than previously thought. Past studies have shown that early humans were able to cross the open ocean as far back as 50,000 years ago, but evidence that they could fish while in the open sea dated back only to 12,000 years ago.
"In most areas of the world, evidence for our early ancestors' coastal exploitation was drowned by rising sea level," said researcher Sue O'Connor.
Now O'Connor and her colleagues have found evidence of prehistoric fishing tools and the remains of large fish such as tuna at a cave shelter known as Jerimalai, located in the Southeast Asian island nation of East Timor. Their discovery uncovered fishing hooks made from bone that dated back to about 42,000 years ago.
"It's possible that people caught the tuna in the deep channel that lies off the coast of the Jerimalai shelter," O'Connor said.
The site, first uncovered in 2005, also included bone points, shell beads, the remains of fish, turtles, bats and birds, and nearly 10,000 stone tools. The island of Timor has very few land animals overall and only small birds call the island home, perhaps explaining why the ancient people here went fishing. About half the fish remains at the site came from fish such as tuna. Catching such fast-moving fish requires much planning and complex technology, suggesting that early humans developed these skills earlier than previously thought.
Some other scientists might say that most of the fish bones seen are from young fish, and thus might have been caught more easily off the coast as opposed to in open waters. While this may be the case, it's still not easy to catch tuna -- it requires nets set in deep water. | high18092.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "what the earring owner said moved him"
},
"options": [
"what the earring owner said moved him",
"he didn't want to be a driver any more",
"his friends helped him become positive",
"he was offered a better job in a hospi... | Around twenty years ago I was going through hard times. I could not find a satisfying job. To my shame, I had to drive a school bus to make ends meet and lived in a friend's house.
One afternoon, while driving through a quiet suburban neighborhood I was so sad that I kept asking myself "Why has my life become so hard?" "What's wrong with the world?" Then I pulled over the bus to drop off a little girl and as she passed she handed me a pretty earring, saying she found it on the floor of the bus and I should keep it in case the owner came to look for it.
In the evening, the owner did come to look for her earring. When I handed it to her, she got very excited and continued saying "Thanks, you're a real gentleman." I told her that she should thank the little girl who had found it. She said, "Yes, and you are a good driver, too. What a lovely world it is!" Then she left with satisfaction. I was touched by her last words. I had thought something was wrong with the world just because of my poor condition. In fact, nothing was wrong with the world. I should change my attitude towards life. I should be positive about life.
At first it was hard, and then it got easier. Every day I could find things to make me happy. Then one night there was a phone call for me at my friend's house from a lady who was a manager in a large hospital. She said she had read my application form and asked me if I would like to work in the hospital. I said yes and got the job. Looking back at the experience I know the most important is to have a positive attitude towards life. | high2189.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "he can't have a pension and other benefits"
},
"options": [
"he cannot get any chance to get education",
"he can't have a pension and other benefits",
"his citizenship will be taken away",
"he has to take illegal part-t... | It has taken 90 years since she was born in a poor house in County Limerick for a woman considered America's oldest illegal immigrant to get her Irish passport.It will be a few more months before Josephine Stout will finally be declared a US citizen, entitling(...) her to a pension and other benefits.
Despite having lived in America for most of her life since she arrived in 1923, the great-grandmother was declared an undocumented alien in 1999, when she tried to claim state aid to help raise her seven grandchildren, who were left orphaned when her daughter was killed by a robber over$20.
Even though she has never considered herself Irish, noting "I don't even have an accent," she didn't officially exist as an American when officials in Chicago insisted that she prove her citizenship in order to qualify for benefits. But she had no birth certificate or passport when she arrived on an immigrant ship from Ireland from Ireland with her parents, who had 12 other children.
She never gave the matter much thought until 1999, when she was in her late 70s and needed assistance to raise her grandchildren. For 12 years, Mrs. Stout managed to support the family by doing various jobs. But her life was hard and marked by tragedy. Her husband died in 1996, and her son Thomas died in a car accident with his girlfriend in 1985. Her only surviving child, Rosemary, died of cancer in 2009.
A Catholic charity referred her case to Chicago Irish Immigrant Support(CIIS), which alerted the Irish Consulate . Through them, they tracked down her birth certificate, the website irishcentral.com reported. The document, in turn, allowed her to receive her Irish passport, and eventually her American green card in September 2011, which was dated back to November 1, 1923. | high5180.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Jack bribed the voters in order to gain a position of MP."
},
"options": [
"Jack was first educated by private tutors and eventually graduated from Cambridge University.",
"Jack joined the army and succeeded in defeating Napoleon's... | John "Mad Jack" Mytton (1796--1834) was a carefree English aristocrat who was born into immense wealth. However, he died a poor man after a life that was once described as " _ ". So, what went wrong?
As a young boy, Jack went to Westminster School, but after only one year he was expelled for fighting with a teacher. He was then sent to Harrow School but only lasted three days before he was also thrown out. He was eventually educated by private tutors.
After school, Jack went to Cambridge University. He arrived with 2,000 bottles of port, but left without graduating - he found university life boring. Later, he joined the army, enlisting with the 7th Hussars. As a young officer, he spent a year with the regiment in France as part of the occupation force after Napoleon's defeat in 1815. Jack passed the time gambling and drinking before resigning his commission. At the age of 21, he returned to his country house just in time to receive his inheritance.
With an annual income of over PS800,000 in today's money, Jack was extremely rich... but it didn't take him long to spend it all. In 1819, he became an MP. In order to secure his seat, he offered voters PS10 notes to vote for him, spending more than PS10,000 in total. However, he found politics dull and went to parliament only once. Back at home, he would often drop bank notes in the gardens of his estate, and gave his servants vast amounts of spending money. Once he lost his racetrack winnings (several thousand pounds) when the wind blew all the money away.
One of Jack's favorite pastimes was hunting. He would go in any kind of weather, occasionally with no clothes on. Sometimes, he would get up in the middle of the night, take off with a gun to look for something to shoot.
Jack also kept a large number of pets. These included about 2,000 dogs. Some were fed on steak and Champagne and even wore livery. A favorite horse had free range inside Halston Hall and would often lie with Jack in front of the fire.
Jack was a bit of a practical joker, too. He once left a horse in the bedroom of a guest. Another visitor fell asleep and woke up to find a live bear and two bulldogs in his bed. In 1826, as a result of a bet, Jack rode his horse into the Bedford Hotel, up the grand staircase and onto the balcony. Then, still sitting on the horse, he jumped off the balcony, landing among the diners in the restaurant below.
Another time, he invited a local doctor to dine at Halston Hall. As soon as the doctor had left, Jack put on a highwayman's costume and raced ahead to rob the unsuspecting man. On another occasion, a passenger in Jack's carriage admitted that he'd never been in an accident, so Jack drove the carriage up a hill and turned it over. He would also slip red-hot coals into people's pockets as a joke.
Eventually, Jack ran out of money and fell into debt. In 1830, he fled to France to avoid his creditors , but returned a couple of years later, ending up in prison in Southwark, London. Jack died there in 1834, a poor, lonely man. [(<<>> 20119 "Hell Raiser")] | high21175.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Put up a sign in his yard."
},
"options": [
"Advertise them in the newspaper.",
"Put up a sign in his yard.",
"Show them to his neighbors.",
"Send pictures to a magazine."
],
"question": "How did the farmer adve... | A farmer had some puppies to sell. He painted a sign advertising them on the edge of his yard.
One day, a little boy came to buy one of the puppies. With a whistle , the farmer called, "Here, Dolly!" Out from the doghouse ran Dolly followed by _ . The little boy stood against the fence . His eyes danced with happiness.
As the dogs made their way to the fence, the little boy noticed something else inside the doghouse. Slowly another little ball appeared, something wrong with its legs, doing its best to catch up.
"I want that one," the little boy said.
The farmer knelt down at the boy's side and said, "Son, you don't want that puppy. He will never be able to run and play with you like these other dogs would."
With that, the little boy stepped back from the fence, reached down and began rolling up one leg of his trousers. In doing so, he showed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe. Looking back up at the farmer, he said, "You see, sir, I don't run too well myself, and he will need someone who understands." | high2837.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Under the sea."
},
"options": [
"At the British Museum.",
"In New York.",
"In Egypt.",
"Under the sea."
],
"question": "According to the passage, where is the Egyptian mummy now?",
"question_type": null
},... | Is it possible that the sinking of the Titanic was caused by a ghost? A plot of the story below is true ... but did it really happen quite like this?
Our story begins not in the icy cold waters of the North Atlantic, but rather thousands of miles away in Egypt. It is here, perhaps, that we can find the start of the mystery of the Titanic, in the year 1910, in the great city of Cairo.
One day, a famous professor of Egyptian history called Douglas Murray was staying in Cairo, when he was contacted by an American adventurer.
The American had something unusual to offer Murray, something that was certain to thrill him: a beautiful ancient Egyptian mummy case, containing the mummy of an Egyptian queen. It was over 3,000 years old, but in beautiful condition -- gold, with bright paintings on it. Murray was delighted with both the object and the askingprice. He gave the man a cheque immediately.
The cheque was never cashed. That evening the American adventurer died. For his part, Murray arranged to have the treasure sent back to Britain. However, it was not long before he learnt more about the beautiful mummy case: On the walls of the tomb in which it had been discovered, there were messages which warned of terrible consequences to anyone who broke into the tomb. Murray was disbelieving of these warnings until a few days later, when a gun he was holding exploded in his hand, shattering his arm. The arm had to be cut off.
After the accident, Murray decided to return to his homeland. On the return journey, two of his companions died mysteriously, and two servants who had handled the mummy also passed away. The nowterrified Murray decided he would get rid of the _ case as soon as he arrived in London. A lady he knew named Janet Jones said she would like it, so he gave it to her. Shortly afterwards, Jones' mother died, and she herself caught a strange disease. She tried returning the mummy, but naturally Murray refused it. In the end, it was presented to the British Museum.
Even in the museum, the mummy apparently continued to cause strange events. A museum photographer died shortly after taking pictures of the new exhibit, and a manager also died for no apparent reason. In the end, the British Museum decided to get rid of the mummy too. They sold it to a collector in New York.
At the start of April 1912, arrangements for the transfer were complete, and the mummy began the journey to its new home. But the New Yorker never received the mummy or its case. For when the Titanic sank, one of the objects in its strongroom was the mummy case. Or so they say. | high13879.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "an advertisement"
},
"options": [
"a warning",
"a note",
"an advertisement",
"an announcement"
],
"question": "The passage is most probably _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer":... | How many coins nave you got in your pocket right now? Three? Two? A bent one?
With a phonecard you can make up to 200 calls without any change at all.
(1) What do you do with it?
Go to a telephone box marked(you guessed it) "phonecard".Put in your card, make your call and when you've finished, a screen tells you how much is left on your card.
(2) Now appear in a shop near you.
Near each Cardphone place you'll find a shop where you can buy one. They're at bus, train and city tube stations .
Many universities, hospitals and clubs. Restaurants and gas stations on the highway and shopping centres. At airports and seaports.
(3) No more broken payphones.
Most broken payphones are like that because they've been vandalized . There are no coins in Cardphone to excite thieves' interest in it. So you're not probably to find a vandalized one.
Get a phonecard yourself and try it out ,or get a bigger wallet. | high7797.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Delivering newspapers."
},
"options": [
"Repairing roofs.",
"Collecting old papers.",
"Picking rocks.",
"Delivering newspapers."
],
"question": "What work did the author do at the age of 12?",
"question_type... | I have forgotten the name of an old lady who was a customer on my paper route when I was a twelve-year-old boy back in 1954. Yet it seems like just yesterday that she taught me a lesson in forgiveness that I can only hope to pass on to someone else someday.
On a Saturday afternoon, a friend and I were throwing rocks onto the roof of the old lady's house. I found a smooth rock and sent it. The stone headed straight for a small window on the old lady's back door. At the sound of broken glass, we took off from the old lady's yard.
I was too scared about getting caught that first night. However, a few days later when I was sure that I hadn't been discovered, I started to feel guilty for her misfortune.
I decided to save my paper delivery money, and in three weeks I had the seven dollars that I thought would cover the cost of her window. I put the money in an envelope with a note explaining that I was sorry for breaking her window. Then I put the envelope through the letter slot in her door. My soul felt redeemed and I couldn't wait for the freedom of, once again, looking straight into the old lady's eyes.
The next day, I. handed the old lady her paper. She thanked me for the paper and said, "Here, I have something for you. " It was a bag of cookies. I thanked her and ate the cookies as I continued my route.
After several cookies, I felt an envelope and pulled it out of the bag. When I opened the envelope, I was shocked. Inside was the seven dollars and a short note that said, "I'm proud of you. " | high6489.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "He worked hard but he always complained."
},
"options": [
"He worked hard but he always complained.",
"He never showed respect to his co-workers.",
"Nobody liked Tony because of his bad temper.",
"He didn't care about h... | During his college years, Rogers spent his summer holidays at an Idaho logging camp . When Roy, the manager, had to leave for a few days, he put Rogers in charge. "What if the workers refuse to follow my orders?" Rogers asked. He thought of Tony, a worker who was always giving the other men a hard time. "Fire them," Roy said. Then, as if reading Rogers' mind, he added, "I suppose you want to fire Tony if you get the chance. I'd feel bad about that. Tony is the most reliable worker I've ever had. I know he complains a lot, but he comes first and leaves last. There has not been an accident on the hill where he works for eight years."
Rogers took over the manager's job the next day. He went to Tony and spoke to him, "Tony, did you know that I'm in charge today?" Tony didn't show any respect or interest. "I was going to fire you because you once gave me a hard time, but I want you to know I'm not," he told Tony, adding what Roy had said. When Rogers finished, tears streamed down Tony's face. That day Tony worked harder than ever before --and he smiled for the first time! Rogers went back to school after that summer.
Twelve years later he met Tony again. He was in charge of one of the largest logging companies in the West. Rogers asked him how he managed to become so successful. Tony replied, "If it were not for that time you spoke to me back in Idaho, I would not be myself today. That one minute changed my whole life."
Have you got one minute to appreciate someone? It can make a difference for a lifetime. | high23762.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Edison's building"
},
"options": [
"Edison's building",
"a small part of the city",
"the whole city",
"the world"
],
"question": "The generators they brought with them could produce as much as electricity as _... | Light for the City
Edison and his assistants came to New York to set up an electric power system. They hoped it would provide enough electricity to light up a part of the great city.
They bought several machines with them. These were called generators , which produced electricity power for lamps in Edison's building.
Soon there were lights for the building. Edison lived in a room facing the street and he often worked over night. The light burned brightly and steadily and he often worked over night. People often came and stopped their horse-drawn carriage to look. Everyone knew that Thomas Edison was in town.
First, the inventor and his assistants produced several large generators. A great deal of power would be needed to light up even a small part of the city. Then the workers were busy digging deep trenches in the hard earth below the city streets, and Edison had fourteen miles of wire laid into the trenches. The wire connected each building to a generator.
Setting up an electric power system was not an easy job. It took a year and a half. In September, 1882, the job was finished.
A small group of men stood around Edison inside the power house. The big moment came at last. The inventor, taking a deep breath, pulled a switch. The electric lights flashed up.
"Very good! Very good!" a man nearby shouted to praise Edison for what he had done.
"Sir," said Edison, "this is only the beginning!" And Edison was right. Soon Edison's lamp were lighting up cities all over the world. | high672.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Israel removed troops and all settlements from the Gaza Strip"
},
"options": [
"Israel removed troops and all settlements from the Gaza Strip",
"Israel had ten settlements in the West Bank",
"President Bush supported the prop... | President Bush this week announced his support for a proposal by Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.Details published Friday said Israel would remove troops and all settlements from the Gaza Strip by the end of next year.About seven-thousand settlers live there.
Israel would also remove four settlements in the West Bank.But six large settlements would remain.The ruling Likud party of Minister Sharon is expected to vote on the proposal on May second.
Minister Sharon visited the White House on Wednesday.President Bush praised what he called " historic and courageous actions." Mr.Bush said the plan gives the Palestinians, in his words, " a chance to create a reformed, just and free government."
Palestinian leaders have denounced the president.Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia said Bush is the first president to accept Jewish settlements in Palestinian territories.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair was at the White House Friday.He said he welcomed the plan.Blair urged other countries to get involved.
At least for now, Israel would continue to control airspace, waters and land passages.Minister Sharon says the plan is necessary because the Palestinian Authority has failed to stop attacks against Israelis.Diplomatic efforts also have not succeeded.
A Bush administration official said the president supports the plan because Israel is taking steps to remove existing settlements.Mr.Bush said removing all Jewish settlements in the West Bank would be unrealistic.
Palestinian officials called for an emergency meeting of the United Nations, the United States, Russia and the European Union.Palestinian President Yasser Arafat says the plan is hurting Palestinians and they will never stop seeking an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital.
Israel captured Gaza and the West Bank in the nineteen-sixty-seven Middle East War.It soon began to build settlements.Palestinians want their own state in all of the West Bank and Gaza.They also demand the right of return to lands that are now part of Israel.
On Friday, several thousand Palestinians protested against President Bush and Prime Minister Sharon. | high7783.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "ask you to go to the center"
},
"options": [
"give advice",
"introduce new ways of body-building",
"ask you to go to the center",
"introduce ways to lose weight"
],
"question": "The purpose of this passage is to... | With a busy life and job, pressure can make you look tired and aged.Kissi Health-Beauty Center gives classes, makes training plans according to your physical conditions, and sets up an individual file .All these things will help you to get to know your body and the way to keep it fit.
1)BODY-BUILDING
Imported gym equipment that will help you build up your body's muscle, making you look full of energy and strength.
2)GYMNASTIC EXERCISE
A bright and large exercise room with excellent equipment and music will give your body a chance to enjoy movement with rhythm.
3)SPECIAL "LAZY-BONE" FITNESS CENTER
'Lazy-bone' fitness equipment is the first body shaping set of seven beds in Beijing, which helps you to exercise your waist, abdomen, hips or legs.In the relaxing hours you may try them to strengthen your muscles and lose weight.
*Tuition: 'Lazy-bone' fitness card, 1,200 yuan/ month (gymnastic classes included)
*Class Time: Gymnastic Class, 18:30-19:30 every Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
*Tel: 5918570
*Address: 16 Dongsanhuan Beilu, Chaoyang District, Beijing | high22468.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Each reason mentioned above is possible."
},
"options": [
"Professional teachers spend only a little time in teaching them.",
"It is a time full of computers and voice recognition programs.",
"They don't master the skills in ... | Do American children still learn handwriting in school? In this age of the keyboard, some people seem to think handwriting lessons are on the way out. Steve Graham, a professor at Vanderbilt University, says he has been hearing about the death of handwriting in the past fifteen years. So is it still being taught? Steve Graham says, "If the results of a survey we have published this year are accurate, it is being taught by about ninety percent of the teachers in grades one to three." Ninety percent of the teachers also say they are required to teach handwriting. But studies have yet to answer the question of how well they are teaching it. Professor Graham says one study found that about three out of every four teachers say they are not prepared to teach handwriting."
Steve Graham says, "And then when you look at how it's taught, you have some teachers who are teaching handwriting by providing instruction for only ten to fifteen minutes a day, and some teachers who basically teach it for sixty to seventy minutes a day, meaning the death of handwriting." Many adults remember learning that way-by copying letters over and over again. Today's thinking is that short periods of practice are better. Many experts say it should be used as a way to get students to express ideas. After all, that is why we write.
Professor Graham says handwriting involves two skills. One is legibility, which means forming the letters so they can be easily read. The other is fluency-writing without having to think about it. The professor says fluency continues to develop up until high school. But not everyone can master these skills. Teachers commonly report that about one-fourth of their kids have poor handwriting. Some people might think handwriting is not important any more because of computers and voice recognition programs. | high23776.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "you can find public libraries almost everywhere"
},
"options": [
"you can find public libraries almost everywhere",
"there are too many McDonald's restaurants",
"restaurants are as important as libraries",
"it is conven... | On Monday, Sept.25, hundreds of people gathered outside the Library of Congress, in Washington D.C., to celebrate public libraries. For more than 100 years, libraries have played an important role in keeping America informed and educated. But how are these book-filled buildings changing with the times? You may be surprised to find out.
Benjamin Franklin famously founded America's first lending library in 1731 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. And the public library system developed greatly in the late 1800's. Businessman Andrew Carnegie donated millions of dollars to help build free public libraries across the country. Between 1886 and 1919, Carnegie's donations helped build 1,679 new libraries!
Carnegie believed in the opportunities that libraries could offer Americans young and old. He knew that the more libraries there were, the more people would have access to books, lectures, news and more. "There are now more public libraries in the United States than McDonald's restaurants," said Clara Hayden, of Baltimore's Enoch Pratt Free Library.
Chances are that there is a public library in or near your community . After all, the United States is home to 9,225 public libraries. Today, libraries continue to develop and grow. Seven out of ten libraries offer free Internet access. This opens any doors for community members who cannot go online at home, including the opportunity to apply for jobs online.
Libraries are also teaching kids about the fun of reading. One new program called Read! Play! ----- combines reading with playtime. As kids listen to a book being read aloud, they use Legos to build images from the story. "Today's libraries are always looking for creative programming to bring people into the library," Lego's Michael McNally said.
Benjamin Franklin once said, "The doors of wisdom are never shut." As long as the doors of public libraries are open, his statement is most certainly true! | high24019.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "The first sentence of the first paragraph."
},
"options": [
"The first sentence of the first paragraph.",
"The first sentence of the second paragraph.",
"The first sentence of the third paragraph.",
"The last sentence o... | Today just as technology changed the face of industry, farmers have undergone an "agricultural revolution". On the farm of today, machines provide all the power.
One of the most important benefits will be the farm computer. A few forward-looking farmers are already using computers to help them run their farms more efficiently. The computers help them keep more accurate records so they can make better decisions on what crops to plant, how much livestock to buy, when to sell their products, and how much profit they can expect. Many computer companies have been developing special computer programs just for farmers. Programs are being written for hog producers, grain farmers, potato farmers, and dairy farmers. In the future, farmers will be able to purchase computer programs made to their needs. Because of the growing importance of computers on the farm, students at agricultural colleges are required to take computer classes in addition to their normal agricultural courses. There can be no doubt that farmers will rely on computers even more in the future. While the old-time farm depended on horse power, and modern farms depend on machine power, farms of the future will depend on computer power.
Another technological advance which is still in the experimental stage is the robot, a real "mechanized hired hand" that will be able to move and, in some ways, think like a human being. Unlike farmers of the present, farmers of the future will find that many day-to-day tasks will be done for them. Scientists are now developing robots that will be able to shear sheep, drive tractors, and harvest fruit. Even complex jobs will be done by robots. For example, in order to milk their cows, farmers must first drive them into the special barn , then connect them to the milking machines, watch the machines, and disconnect them when they are finished. In the future, this will all be done by robots. In addition, when the milking is completed, the robots will automatically check to make sure that the milk is pure. The complete mobilization of the farm is far in the future, but engineers expect that some robots will be used before long. | high666.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "There are few color1-blind women."
},
"options": [
"Women are more careful.",
"There are few color1-blind women.",
"Women are fonder of driving than men.",
"Women are weaker but quicker in thinking"
],
"question... | About ten men in every hundred suffer from color1 blindness in some way. Women are luckier, only about one in two hundred is affected in this matter. Perhaps, after all, it is safer to be driven by a woman!
There are different forms of color1 blindness. In some cases a man can not see deep red. He may think that red, orange and yellow are all shades of green. Sometimes a person cannot tell the difference between blue and green. In rare cases an unlucky man may see everything in shades of green - a strange world indeed.
Color blindness in human beings is a strange thing to explain. In a single eye there are millions of very small things called "cones". These help us to see in a bright light and to tell difference between color1s. There are also millions of "rods" but these are used for seeing when it is nearly dark. They show us shape but no color1.
Some insects have favorite color1s. Mosquitoes like blue but do not like yellow. A red light will not attract insects, but a blue lamp will. In a similar way human beings also have favorite color1s. Yet we are lucky. With the aid of the cones in our eyes we can see many beautiful color1s by day, and with the aid of the rods we can see shapes at night. One day we may even learn more about the invisible color1s around. | high16915.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "gum chewers tend to be less stressed"
},
"options": [
"gum chewers may lack alertness",
"gum chewers tend to be less stressed",
"gum chewers can finish many jobs perfectly",
"gum chewers can reduce their anxiety and ang... | Everyone may all have the experience of feeling anxious and stressed when having a rough day or having some troubles. Different people may choose different ways to deal with it, and for most people a break for a 10-minute walk may be quite useful.www.zxxk.com
Anyway, here is another way around: to get a piece of chewing gum, and chew it. According to a Swinburne University of Technology study, gum-chewing has been found to "relieve anxiety, improve alertness and reduce stress among individuals in a laboratory setting."
Some may argue that a laboratory is not the same as an office. But check out the conditions of the study: individuals were monitored while performing "a group of 'multi-tasking' activities." Doesn't it sound like the situation in the office?www.zxxk.com
Here's a summary of some of the study's findings:
Gum chewers showed a reduction in anxiety as compared to non-gum chewers by nearly 17 percent during mild stress and nearly 10 percent in appropriate stress.
Gum chewers showed improvement in alertness over non-gum chewers by nearly 19 percent during mild stress and 8 percent in moderate stress.
Improved Performance: Chewing gum resulted in a big improvement in overall performance on multi-tasking activities.
Although these aren't major improvements, every little bit works and chewing a piece of gum is a lot quicker and easier than slipping outside for a 10-minute walk. So, how does gum work this magic? In part it does so by lowering the level of cortisol --a steroid hormone that is released in response to stress in your system.
A few words of advice before you reach for the gum: don't crack your gum, and be sure to chew it with your mouth closed. In fact, I'd say keep the gum out of meetings, because it really looks impolite to others around you. | high5194.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "hard"
},
"options": [
"enjoyable",
"wealthy",
"hard",
"comfortable"
],
"question": "According to the passage, the author is leading a/an _ life.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": ... | Like many men at some point, I dream about opening a bar. I plan to call it Work Out. It will cater to married women in need of a little fun. On Friday nights, they will be able to come here and enjoy themselves.
See, I have a gift for business. I am, as my wife Zsa Zsa likes to note, "A man with a million ideas, none of them very good." Speaking of Zsa Zsa, she is fed up with this plain little life I've made for us----too many kids, too many chores, mind - numbing debt. The other day, she said she thought we needed a new family car. _ I said, and saw my dear Zsa Zsa age about 20 years, and become her mother right before my eyes.
Yes, money is our madness. Last year, we thought we had found a little _ when I published a book about the life here in suburban America. It sold 12 copies----six of them to my mother. Four other copies went to various aunts and uncles, who used them for martini coasters , then sold them at yard sales. The two remaining copies went to perfect strangers. (I think I owe you dinner, whoever you are. Call me, OK? We'll arrange something.)
When the book didn't take off, I wrote a TV show. Then I penned a short novel based on the earlier TV idea that didn't sell. Currently, I am at work on a set of encyclopedias . In a month, I plan to sell them door - to - door.
Such is the life of a writer, sending off the most personal thoughts possible to his hard drive. I am a writer, but also the breadwinner in my family. I'm at the keyboard at 6 almost every morning, hoping to tap out one idea----just one----that will take us up the hill, to the mountain, to the top. | high2823.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "got to know \"grinnies\" was used only inside her family"
},
"options": [
"thought everyone knew the meaning of \"grinnies\"",
"equaled \"grinnies\" to bath or chocolate in meaning",
"got to know \"grinnies\" was used only in... | Until I was twelve years old, I thought everyone in the world knew about the grinnies, if I thought about the term at all -- which is unlikely. After all, everyone in my family used the word quite naturally, and we understood each other. So far as I knew, it was a word like any other word -- like bath, orchocolate, orhomework. But it was my homework which led to my discovery thatgrinnieswas a word not known outside my family.
My last report card had said that I was a "C" student in English, and my parents, both teachers, decided that no child of theirs would be just an average student of anything. So nightly I spelled words aloud and answered questions about the fine points of grammar. I wrote and rewrote and rewrote every composition until I convinced my mother that I could make no more improvements. And the hard work paid off. One day the teacher returned compositions, and there it was -- a big fat, bright red "A" on the top of my paper. Naturally, I was delighted, but I didn't know I was attracting attention until the teacher spoke sharply, "Helen, what are you doing?"
Called suddenly out of my happy thoughts, I said "Oh, I've got the grinnies!" The teacher and my classmates burst into laughter, and then I understood that grinnies were used inside my family. Other people were not so lucky.
And it is really lucky to have the grinnies, an uncontrollable, natural state of great pleasure. Grinnies are shown on the outside by sparkling eyes and a wide, wide smile -- not just any smile, but one that shows the teeth and stretches the mouth to its limits. A person experiencing the grinnies appears to be all mouth. On the inside grinnies are characterized by a feeling of joyful anxiety. Grinnies usually last just a few seconds, but they can come and go. Sometimes, when life seems just perfect, I have occasional attacks of the grinnies for a whole day.
The term originated in my mother's family. Her younger sister, Rose, who had deep dimples , often expressed her pleasure with such a grin that the dimples appeared to become permanent. When Rose was about four, she started explaining her funny look by saying, "I have the grinnies". The term caught on, and it has been an important word in our family now for two generations.
The occasion doesn't matter. Anything can bring on the grinnies -- just so long as one feels great delight. When my brother finally rode his bicycle -- without training wheels -- from our house to the corner and back, he came home with the grinnies. When I was little, my mother's announcement that we would have homemade ice cream for dessert always gave me the grinnies. My father had the grinnies when I was chosen to make a speech at the end-of-school-year ceremony. Grinnies can be brought on by a good meal, a sense of pride, a new friend, a telephone call from someone special, an achievement. Or sometimes one gets the grinnies for no reason at all: just a sudden sense of happiness can bring on a case. Whatever brings them on, an attack of the grinnies is among life's greatest pleasures.
In fact, now that I look back on the experience, I feel sorry for my seventh-grade teacher. I think it's a pity that she didn't know the word grinnies. It's such a useful term for saying, "I'm really, really pleased!" | high21161.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "negative"
},
"options": [
"satisfied",
"unconcerned",
"doubtful",
"negative"
],
"question": "Bobby Walker's attitude towards the media might be _",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer":... | What's your opinion about gun control in the US?
Figures tell a different story: Countries that allow their citizens to carry guns seem to have more killings than those that do not allow them. It's easy to kill with a gun. The media is filled with violence. People, especially young people, watch television. Having a gun does not cause someone to kill. The problem is within that person's mind. Controlling guns will not control killing. Changing the mindset will, however.
--- Bobby Walker, U.S.
Guns are deadly to all others who are near or know someone who has one. People don't understand the danger it holds, and don't realize what will happen just by cleaning it of if a younger child gets a hold of it. This weapon is dangerous and we don't need teens, kids, anyone to have them. Society can get along without guns.
---Ann Miller, U.S
I have a very large farm near Austin, Texas, USA. Because it is far from the city, I need to protect my property and cattle from thieves and wild dogs. The wildlife, such as coyotes and puma , can feed on deer, mice, rabbits--they don't bother me and I don't bother them. I lost 45 animals to thieves that cut a fence. This will never happen again. You ask if I would shoot--of course--that's why I carry a gun.
--- Texas Rancher, U.S
Some people think guns are very bad because they lead to violence. In my opinion, when people kill themselves or others, they do not have any feelings because they do not know anything about love, sympathy , and promise. The only way those persons can get these feelings is when they keep close to family, friends and people who matter to them. Now, having a gun is not a problem: the problem is what the people feel when they use one.
---Connie Faille, Colombia | high18938.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "convenience for exercise"
},
"options": [
"convenience for exercise",
"income from sightseeing",
"cleaner city streets",
"more plants and animals"
],
"question": "One of the advantages of the Greenbelt for peopl... | The Greenbelt, a wide belt of open land around the cities and towns of the San Francisco Bay Area, includes about 3.75 million of the Bay Area's 4.5 million acres. The Bay Area Greenbelt is one of the largest areas of open land in any U.S. urban area. Open land is land that has few buildings and lots of natural areas. The Greenbelt's open land includes parks, forests, beaches, and more than 8,500 farms.
What are the advantages of the Greenbelt?
The Greenbelt has many advantages for people in the Bay Area, which include:
l walking and biking areas close to the cities and towns;
l places for wild plants and animals;
l cleaner air and water;
l income from farms.
Is the Greenbelt in danger?
Five hundred seventy thousand acres of the Greenbelt are in danger. There are builders who want to build suburbs on them. If those acres become suburbs, many things will change:
l the urban and suburban area will almost double;
l many farms will disappear;
l traffic will become worse;
l the air will become dirtier.
What is Greenbelt Alliance ?
Greenbelt Alliance, an organization that saves land in the San Francisco Bay Area, works alone and with other groups to save the Greenbelt in four ways:
1.Try to persuade people to build new buildings on land that is already urban, not on open land.
2.Make sure that the city and town governments are all making plans to save the Greenbelt.
3.Help Bay Area towns and cities to buy pieces of open land to make into natural areas.
4.Teach people in the Bay Area why the Greenbelt is important and what they can do to help save it. | high3283.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "robots are all around us"
},
"options": [
"there are very few robots",
"we see robots only at certain times",
"robots are something new in our life",
"robots are all around us"
],
"question": "In thisstory the a... | There are robots all around us,Some do very complicated jobs like flying airplanes and driving subway trains. And some do a simple job. When an automatic washing machine is switched on, water pours in. The machine waits until the water is hot before washing the clothes. It does this by "feedback". Information about what is happening is "feedback"into the robot to tell it what to do next. Our eyes,ears and other senses are our feedback. They tell us what is going on around us. So robots are like people in two ways:They work and they have feedback.
There are robots all around, making our lives easier. Some of them, like the pocket calculator, can work much more quickly than human beings can. And they rarely make mistakes. In some ways robots are better than people. They work quickly, but do not make mistakes. They do not get bored doing the same job over andover again. And they never get tired.
Robots are very useful in factories. They can be taught to do many different jobs. First their electronic brains must be shown how the job is done. A person moves the robot's"arm"and"hand"through each part of the job. The robot's brain remembers each move. When the robot is put to work on its own, its brain controls the rods, wheels and motors which move its arm.
When the robot is needed for a new job, its electronic memory is"wiped clean."Then it is taught how to do its new task. If the robot's hand stops working, or if something gets in the way, it cannot do the next part of the job. So it stops and signals for help, then a human engineer repairs it.
The most"intelligent"robots can move and see. Their eyes are cameras. Their metal fingers can feel shapes and even find out how hot and cold objects are. These robots have computer brains, linked to their eyes and fingers, which control their actions. | high21607.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "a business aspect"
},
"options": [
"a business aspect",
"a military aspect",
"an academic aspect",
"an international aspect"
],
"question": "The proposal to lay a telegraph cable from Europe to America made ocea... | Oceanography has been defined as "The application of all sciences to the study of the sea".
Before the nineteenth century scientists with an interest in the sea were few and far between. Certainly Newton considered some theoretical aspects of it in his writings, but he was reluctant to go to sea to further his work.
For most people the sea was remote, and with the exception of early intercontinental travelers or others who earned a living from the sea, there was little reason to ask many questions about it, let alone to ask what lay beneath the surface. The first time that the question "What is at the bottom of the oceans?" had to be answered with any commercial consequence was when the laying of a telegraph cable from Europe to America was proposed. The engineer had to know the depth profile of the route to estimate the length of cable that had to be manufactured.
It was to Maury of the US Navy that the Atlantic Telegraph Company turned, in l853, for information on this matter. In the 1840s, Maury had been responsible for encouraging voyages during which soundings were taken to investigate the depths of the North Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Later, some of his findings aroused much popular interest in his book The Physical Geography of the Sea.
The cable was laid, but not until 1866 was the connection made permanent and reliable. At the early attempts, the cable failed and when it was taken out for repairs it was found to be covered in living growths, a fact which defied contemporary scientific opinion that there was no life in the deeper parts of the sea.
Within a few years oceanography was under way. In 1872 Thomson led a scientific expedition, which lasted for four years and brought home thousands of samples from the sea. Their classification and analysis occupied scientists for years and led to a five-volume report, the last volume being published in l895. | high19398.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "everybody has a sense of direction from birth"
},
"options": [
"some babies are born with a sense of direction",
"people learn a sense of direction as they grow older",
"people never lose their sense of direction",
"eve... | You either have it, or you don't-- a sense of direction, that is. But why is it that some people could find their way across the Sahara without a map, while others can lose themselves in the next street?
Scientists say we're all born with a sense of direction, but it is not properly understood how it works. One theory is that people with a good sense of direction have simply worked harder at developing it. Research being carried out at Liverpool University supports this idea and suggests that if we don't use it, we'll lose it.
"Children as young as seven have the ability to find their way around," says Jim Martland, Research director of the project. "However, if they are not allowed out alone or are taken everywhere by car, they never develop the skills."
Jim Martland also emphasizes that young people should be taught certain skills to improve their sense of direction. He makes the following suggestions:
If you are using a map, turn it so it relates to the way you are facing.
If you leave your bike in a strange place, put it near something like a big stone or a tree--something easy to recognize. Note landmarks on the route as you go away from your bike. When you return, go back along the same route.
Simplify the way for finding your direction by using lines such as streets in a town, streams, or walls in the countryside to guide you. Count your steps so that you know how far you have gone and note any landmarks such as tower blocks or hills which can help to find out where you are.
Now you will never get lost again! | high20519.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "he had already gained enough knowledge"
},
"options": [
"he should pay attention to details",
"he should keep learning every day",
"he had already gained enough knowledge",
"he should be very careful in order to succeed... | Once upon a time, there was a scholar who wanted to gain more knowledge each day even though he had already gained enough knowledge. One day, he came to visit a saint and wanted to be his student. The saint provided some tea. He slowly filled the scholar's cup: the cup was full, yet he kept pouring and pouring. The scholar burst out, "Stop! You can't add anything to something that's already full!" The saint set down the teapot and replied, "Exactly."
Whether it's the silence between notes in music, or some open time in your schedule, you need space to act effectively. Yet most of us, myself included, tend to stuff as much as possible into whatever room is available-closets, schedules, budgets, relationships, and even the mind itself.
However, some people know how to avoid overstuffing their life. For example, in Australia, it seemed that most people there operated at about 85% of their capacity ,unlike Americans pushing as close to 100% as possible. So when you run into Australians you know in the street, they have time to hang out and talk with you.
Remember the cup: its value is in the space, the emptiness it holds. How to empty your "cup"?
Be mindful of the element of space, openness , and emptiness in your life. This includes room in a drawer, the volume of air in a kitchen, and open-mindedness in a friend. Sometimes you're just stuck with a big bucket of tasks yet to do. But at least empty the bucket faster than you fill it with new tasks. Put some space between finishing one thing and staring another. For example, after sending one email, take a breath before replying to another one. Drop the stuff you can no longer afford to _ around. At sea level, you can run with a brick in your backpack, but if you're hiking on a mountain, that brick has got to go. | high100.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "give us advice on how to keep the brain healthy"
},
"options": [
"inform us how the brain works",
"give us advice on how to keep the brain healthy",
"tell us that the brain plays an important role in our lives",
"show h... | Work your brain!
Between 2 and 3 pounds of wonder, it controls everything we say, do or think, who we are and what we care about, the way we walk or laugh or figure out things, what we like and the talents we possess, how we see and talk and run and jump and process our food.
The brain uses 20 percent of our body's oxygen and 20 percent of its blood. Somewhere within its protein, fat, 100,000 miles of blood vessels and 100 billion nerve cells, it helps us remember where we put our gym shoes. Change our temperature so we don't die because of the heat or cold. Speed us up or slow us down. Help us choose between orange juice or orangeflavored drinks.
Its complexity are stunning, far beyond anything most of us can imagine. To keep this work of art as polished as possible we need to eat right, exercise and keep mentally stimulated.
Good nutrition helps brain cells communicate with each other. Exercise stimulates a hormone in our brain that improves memory. Mental stimulation keeps you sharp even as you age.
"It's very important that we tell people to be physically active and mentally active," said neurologist Malcolm Stewart.
"People cannot stop aging, but you're able to reduce the damage; you're able to keep the function up."
Following are Dr.Stewart's advice for improving brain health:
l Nutrition
Avoid fast food. Follow the old adage : For breakfast, eat like a king; for lunch, like a
queen; for supper, like a beggar.
l Exercise
Do a combination of stretching aerobic and musclestrengthening every day.
l Mental games
Try to have a sense of hope about the future. Do puzzles. Listen to music. Reach out to others to make their lives better. | high23010.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Positive."
},
"options": [
"Negative.",
"Positive.",
"Unknown.",
"Neutral."
],
"question": "What's Wu's attitude towards the 5G network technology?",
"question_type": null
},
{
"answer": {
"ans... | China started late in network technologies and has lagged behind for years. With the rapid development of wireless technologies, the concept of the Fifth Generation (5G) mobile communication system started to emerge . Although the development of 5G network technology in the international community is still in the research stage, a number of foreign countries and organizations are working on it. In order to catch up with the pace of the times, China also needs to have its own place in such a competitive environment.
Compared with 2G, 3G and 4G, 5G is not independent and brand-new. It is a combination and further development of present mobile communication technology. Besides the speed upgrade, 5G will also meet the requirements of large bandwidth, super high capacity, super dense site, super high reliability and whenever and wherever possible assess.
There are some rapid changes in China's telecom space. With the 3G network now widely used, and 4G just around the corner, China is now preparing to enter the 5G era. China has started research and development on the 5G network, and plan to launch the network testing by around 2020. It's expected that a unified standard will be adopted globally with the 5G technology.
"Under a same standard, different enterprises can be connected, and form a competition environment. Therefore, we can guarantee that enterprises can gain reasonable profits, and at the same time provide faster, better, more convenient and cheaper services to consumers." Wu Ku, Director of Dept. of Science & Tech., MIIT said.
Wu Hequan from Chinese academy of engineering said, "5G will make it possible to connect one million devices to the so-called Internet of Things within one square meter. In the future, it will also be available on high-speed trains moving as fast as 500 kilometers per hour. In the area of the Internet of Vehicles, it can be used in unmanned vehicles, assisted driving and the management of smart cities."
Wu believes China's future Internet will be faster, more intelligent and more reliable.
Chinese government pays more attention to the development of 5G and adopts a more open attitude. With the joint effort of the industry, China will play an increasing important role in the global 5G development. | high14864.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "explain why men have been making the effort to create a language shared by all"
},
"options": [
"explain why men have been making the effort to create a language shared by all",
"explain why men now speak different languages",
... | A story from the Bible tells of old Babylon, where the men decided to build a tower that would touch the sky.But God was unhappy, and he made them speak different languages.They couldn't understand each other, so their dream never came true.
Yet the dream remains alive: if all men speak the same language, they can do anything.L.L.Zamenhof from Poland was among the men who
this dream.He developed Esperanto between 1877 and 1885.
As the most successful man-made world language, it is spoken by over two million people around the world.Last month, the World Esperanto Congress , dealing with language rights, ended in Sweden.The 2004 conference will be held in Beijing.Most Esperanto speakers are in Central and Eastern Europe and in East Asia, particularly Chinese mainland.
Esperanto has two advantages.First, it's easy.Each letter has exactly one sound and there are just 16 basic grammar rules.The second advantage is that it belongs to no one country.But Esperanto has only reached a small number of people compared with natural languages widely used around the world-such as English or Chinese.While these languages are deeply connected with their nations and cultures, Esperanto doesn't have this background.
Will Esperanto really become a global language? It remains a question. | high16083.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "their bodies are preparing for sleep."
},
"options": [
"they are disturbed by others.",
"they are too tired to fall asleep.",
"their bodies are preparing for sleep.",
"they believe their lives are in danger."
],
... | Has this happened to you? You're about to drift off to sleep when suddenly you feel like you're falling or coming down on a roller coaster.
You then wake up to realize that you're safe in your bed. You may have been confused or frightened for a second or two and your heart may be beating faster. You may have also felt the muscles in your body jerk when this all happened. Did you ever wonder why?
This falling sensation, together with a body movement known as a "sleep start", is what doctors and scientists call a myoclonic jerk, and it usually happens right before going into deeper stages of sleep. Here's why doctors think the falling feeling and myoclonic jerks happen. When you fall asleep, normally your body temperature goes down and your heart start to beat just a little slower. This is because your brain signals your body to relax to prepare for sleep. When your muscles are relaxed, you go into the very first stages of sleep, but you're not sleeping too deeply yet.
This brain activity may cause your larger muscles to contract a little bit. In response, another part of your brain will make up a very quick mini-dream to go along with _ . You might think this would take a while, but your brain works so fast that it makes up the story almost at the same instant that your muscles jerk.
During this light sleep, you can be awakened easily. People who wake up during this light sleep believe they haven't fallen asleep yet. That's why you may think that your body jerked right before you were about to fall asleep.
Myoclonic jerk are a normal part of sleep. Most people have them at one time or another. But many people don't realize their muscles are jerking during night sleep if it doesn't wake them up.
So the next time you dream about falling and wake up in a sweat, don't worry! Your body is just telling your muscles to relax and get some rest! | high11934.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "be more easily touched by music"
},
"options": [
"be better at playing the violin",
"be more easily touched by music",
"have more spare time",
"have more music knowledge"
],
"question": "Compared to their parent... | On a cold January morning in a Washington, DC Metro Station, a man with a violin played six great pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time about two thousand people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.
After three minutes a middle-aged man noticed there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.
Four minutes later, the violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk. After 6 minutes, a young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at his watch and started to walk again. After ten minutes, a 3-year-old boy stopped but his mother dragged him along hurriedly. This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent, without exception, forced their children to move on quickly.
In the end, only 6 people stopped and listened for a short while. About 20 gave money, but continued to walk at their normal pace. The man collected a total of $32. When he finished playing, no one applauded, nor was there any recognition.
The violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most elegant pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars, two days before Joshua Bell had sold out a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100.
The performance was organized as part of a social experiment about perception, taste, and people's priorities. In a usual environment, at an inappropriate hour, do you perceive beauty? Do you stop to appreciate it? Do you recognize talent in an unexpected context?
If you do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing some of the finest music ever written, how many other things might you be missing? | high20531.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Dad was so hurt that he left home and never came back."
},
"options": [
"A good-bye kiss from Dad in public made Frank so embarrassing that he refused to have one more kiss, any kind.",
"Dad was so hurt that he left home and never ... | When Frank began his story, we all listened. "I grew up in San Pedro. My Dad was a fisherman, and he loved the sea. He had his own boat, but it was hard making a living on the sea. He worked hard and would stay out until he caught enough to feed the family. Not just enough for our family, but also for his Mom and Dad and the other kids that were still at home." He looked at us and said, "I wish you could have met my Dad. He was a big man, and he was _ from pulling the nets and fighting the seas for his catch. When you got close to him, he smelled the ocean."
Frank's voice dropped a bit. "When the weather was bad, he would drive me to school. He would pull right up in front, and it seemed like everybody would be standing around and watching. Then he would lean over and give me a big kiss on the cheek and tell me to be a good boy. It was so embarrassing for me. Here I was twelve years old, and my Dad would lean over and kiss me good-bye!"
He paused and then went on, "I remember the day I thought I was too old for a good-bye kiss. When we got to the school and came to a stop, he had his usual big smile. He started to lean toward me, but I put my hand up and said, 'No, Dad.' It was the first time I had ever talked to him that way, and he had this surprised look on his face. I said, ' Dad, I'm too old for a good-bye kiss. I'm too old for any kind of kiss.' My Dad looked at me for the longest time, and his eyes started to tear up. I had never seen him cry. He turned and looked our the windshield. ' You're right,' he said. ' You are a big boy... a man. I won't kiss you anymore..'"
For the moment, Frank got a funny look on his face, and the tears began to well up in his eyes. "It wasn't long after that when my Dad went to sea and never came back."
I looked at Frank and saw that tears were running down his cheeks. Frank spoke again. " Guys, you don't know what I would give to have my Dad give me just one more kiss on the cheek... to feel his rough old face... to smell the ocean on him... to feel his arm around my neck. I wish I had been a man then. If I had been a man, I would never have told my Dad I was too old for a good-bye kiss." | high128.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "9"
},
"options": [
"9",
"21",
"8",
"15"
],
"question": "The first Beijing Fair of National Culture and Art lasted _ days.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index":... | The first Beijing Fair of National Culture and Art kicked off August 3 and ran till August 12. The fair features more than 21 old Beijing business brands, more than 80 examples of intangible cultural heritage and 6 official Olympics merchandise. One of the highlights is a show featuring 15 lanterns.
The fair aims at starting cultivating the cultural atmosphere for the Beijing Olympic Games, by highlighting the long history and culture of the city. The fair is divided into 12 districts and is open from 430--930 pm. There are both exhibitions and performances and interactive items tourists can enjoy. Sports competitions and craftmaking are available to teenagers, who can learn from old masters.
Some of the most notable art elements include three luxury items worn by nobles in ancient China:a wooden craft called"pillow of Lu Ban", after a legendary civil engineer and carpenter who lived from 507--444 B.C., and whose designs are still used, and glass grapes. Some items are for sale and shoppers can hear about the history of the items from craftspeople.
The lantern show includes 15 pieces installed along the park's main roads, providing both light and decor. There will be lantern shows accompanied by music and some lanterns feature designs including flowers, the moon and animal paintings.
The fair also provides opportunities to teenagers to take part in interactive activities. For example, children can learn how to make dough figures from artist Wang Xingshan. They can also learn the art of papercutting, get some practice of braiding Chinese knots, and learn how to make sugar figures. | high23038.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Her dream career ."
},
"options": [
"Her experience and figure.",
"Her wonderful voice",
"Her age and simplicity.",
"Her dream career ."
],
"question": "What shocked the audience most before Susan started to sin... | Susan Boyle was once a Scottish church volunteer. She decided to enter a competition named "British got Talent" at the age of 47years. On April 15th 2009, when Susan got up to sing, the audience was shocked by her age and simplicity.
Middle-aged women were not the usual type of competitor on the show and the audience was even more surprised when she said before starting to sing that she wanted to become a professional singer. To them she looked well past such possibilities. However, she amazed everybody with her wonderful voice and became an overnight singing star. It was reported that the audience all stood up and clapped warmly and that within 9 days, 100 million people had watched her performances and interviews on the Internet.
This was a lot of progress for an unemployed woman who lived along with her cat. Most of her life had been spent looking after her mother who had died aged 92, two years earlier. She had never been married or in her words, "been kissed". Susan had learned difficulties and had only once been employed as an assistant cook.
Even though Susan did not win the "British got Talent Show" and came up second, two years later, she already released two successful albums. Many people are touched by her story because Susan Boyle is like each of us in one way or another--full of weakness, often disappointed and _ by others. However, unlike many of us who usually give up too soon, she had the determination to fight for her dream. Susan Boyle launched her successful music career at the age of 48 and you too can still achieve your dream. Just take courage. | high14694.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "they are concerned about the expense on the car"
},
"options": [
"they are not allowed by their parents",
"they are concerned about the expense on the car",
"they have no time to prepare for the driving test",
"they are... | Liz Parle can't drive. "I did try to learn," says the 24-year-old, Birmingham-born cafe owner, "but I failed my test a few times." Then she moved to London, where running a car can be a nightmare. Instead she cycles everywhere. "It's cheap, keeps me fit, and is of course better for the environment."
_ In Britain, the percentage of 17- to 20-year-olds with driving licences fell from 48% in the early 1990s to 35% last year. The number of miles travelled by all forms of domestic transport has remained unchanged for years. Meanwhile, road traffic figures for cars and taxis, having risen more or less every year since 1949, have continued to fall since 2007. Motoring groups put it down to oil prices and the economy. Others offer a more fundamental explanation: the golden age of motoring is over.
"The way we run cars is changing fast," says Tim Pollard, associate editor at CAR magazine, "Car manufacturers are worried that younger people in particular don't like to own cars like we used to in the 70s, 80s, or even the 90s, they were owning things for shorter periods. As hi-tech research and development budgets try to keep pace with the iPhone generation, Pollard says carmakers are also coming to terms with less possessive buyers.
This has led to a different ownership and rental schemes such as Streetcar, Zipcar and Whipcar. In response, the latest deals from the big carmakers are very unlike your usual deals. "Peugeot , for instance, has launched a European project called Mu," says Pollard. "You become a member and can then rent whichever Peugeot best suits your mobility needs that day. So you can borrow a truck to move house at the weekend.' Other car manufacturers are studying similar ideas. | high22326.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Large food portions and fast food are common."
},
"options": [
"They don't exercise enough.",
"Large food portions and fast food are common.",
"They use unhealthy dieting methods.",
"They believe that being fat is beaut... | The West is full of fast food and large amounts of food which contribute to many women's being fat. While many are fat, thin women are admired and seen as healthier. This has led to a culture of gym-going, strange dieting methods and, frequently, eating disorders. In the East, women tend to be smaller and many women take pills to keep their slim figures as they get older. However, you're mistaken if you think thinness is the beauty standard all over the world. The BBC reports that in Mauritania, Africa, the opposite is true.
In Mauritania, mothers force their daughters to eat a lot of food so that they get as fat as possible. The fatter they are, the more likely they are to marry well. Fat is also considered healthy, because in a country where HIV/AIDS is a very real problem, thin people are often sick and dying. However, "healthy" fat women are suffering from some problems of their own and many are dying in their 40s of weight-related diseases.
The Mauritanian government is trying to warn its people of the dangers of being overweight but it's not easy to change cultural views. Many women worry that if they lose weight, their husbands will leave them for fatter, more attractive women.
It seems that while education about the dangers of being too thin and too fat is very important, what the world really needs is to become less pre-occupied with the size, shape and weight of women's bodies. The promotion of healthy practices is easy but changing cultural beauty standards takes more time, imagination and effort. | high23986.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "doctors couldn't get praise for the hard job"
},
"options": [
"most patients were seriously ill",
"patients refused to express thanks",
"doctors had nothing to do on that day",
"doctors couldn't get praise for the hard ... | A Special Appointment
Years ago I moved to Woodland Hills to take a job in a small hospital's emergency department.No one wanted to work on Christmas Eve, so the shift went to me.I kissed my family goodbye and went off to spend the night in the hospital.It was a thankless job.
At 9 pm, the ambulance brought in a man in his 60s who was having a heart attack.His face was pale, and he was frightened. The whole night I did my best to save his life.Before I left in the morning to spend Christmas with my family, I stopped by to see how he was doing.It was still tough, but he had survived the night and was sleeping.
The following year I got Christmas Eve duty again.At 9 pm sharp, the ward clerk told me there was a couple who wanted to speak with me.When I approached them, the man introduced himself as Mr.Lee and said, "You probably don't remember me, but last Christmas Eve you saved my life.Thank you for the year you gave me." He and his wife hugged me, handed me a small gift, and left.
The following year a new doctor had joined the group, but I wanted to see if Mr.and Mrs.Lee would return.This time, I volunteered for the shift.I kept an eye on the door.Once again, at exactly 9 pm, the Lees appeared, carrying a warmly wrapped bundle.It was their new grandchild. Mr.Lee, his family and I spent 13 Christmas Eves together.In the later years the staff all knew about the story and would work to give me time with him in the break room, where we spent a half-hour each Christmas Eve.
The last year I saw him, he brought me a gift.I carefully opened the package and found a crystal bell inside.It was engraved with a single word: Friendship.Now, my family, friends and I ring that bell every Christmas Eve at exactly 9 pm and offer our best wishes to the man who we won't forget. | high12583.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "A new device that can check whether online rumors are true or not."
},
"options": [
"Tips on how to deal with rumors online.",
"Factors that make rumors so easy to spread.",
"A new device that can check whether online rumors ... | A baby mermaid was just born in Finland; Justin Bibber is getting married; iphone 6 is going to be released this year...We read rumors every day on the Internet. With the help of social media, rumors -- no matter whether they are true or false -- spread like wildfire, and sometimes we can't be sure what to believe.
Now, an international group of researchers might be able to make it easier for us. They are working on a lie detector that could separate online truth from lies, Discovery news reported.
Named after the Greek goddess Pheme, famed for spreading bad rumors, the system is far from a traditional lie detector, which works by attaching a machine to a potential liar. Instead, Pheme analyzes the rumor directly.
When a rumor comes out, on a micro blog, for example, Pheme can trace the source of information to see if it was released by reliable sources like experts or news agencies. If it wasn't, Pheme then examines the history and background of the account to identify whether it was created just to spread rumors -- whether it's what's called an "Internet bot."
After finding the source of the rumor, the system can keep a close eye on how other users react to the rumor -- either confirming or denying it -- to help analyze and further determine the reliability of the information.
Some people might find the Pheme system unnecessary based on the idea that false rumors never survive for long and people always get to the truth over time. While that's a fair point, there is a certain class of rumors, such as "a tiger is at large" or "an asteroid is about to hit the Earth", that can cause panic among people and thus lead to serious consequences.
These are cases when we need to be able to check for accuracy quickly. "Our system aims to help with that, by tracking and verifying information in real time," lead researcher Kalina Bontcheva, at the University of Sheffield, UK, told the BBC.
According to Bontcheva, Pheme is still under development and won't be ready for another 18 months.[:. . ]
Until then, there's an old fashioned technique that you can use to protect yourself from false information -- ask questions, check sources and don't believe any claim until you've seen the evidence for it. | high8498.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Because they couldn't sit together."
},
"options": [
"Because they couldn't sit together.",
"Because they wanted to enjoy the sea weaves.",
"Because there were no empty seats.",
"Because they preferred to stand."
],... | A few months ago I was at a bus stop in town in the evening. The bus came on time and I took the window seat. The bus was travelling by the seashore and I was enjoying the soft wind while watching the sea waves . After a few minutes the bus made its next stop. A young boy and a girl got on. They were standing on my left when the bus pulled off. I looked at them in surprise and realized that all the window seats were taken up. They could sit but not together. _ . I got up and offered them my seat. The young lady smiled kindly and said thanks. I took another seat and we parted our ways. I don't remember whether I got off the bus before them or not.
Months passed by. Suddenly one day while I was standing at the same bus stop waiting some time for the bus to arrive I heard a voice.
"Excuse me, Uncle." I looked in the direction of the voice. It was a beautiful young lady.
Puzzled, I said, "I do not recognize you."
She said, "Do you remember you gave us your window seat?"
Puzzled, I said, "Maybe, but what is so great in that?"
She said, "If you had not given your seat that day, perhaps I would have not sat with my friend. By sitting together it helped us bridge a misunderstanding that had been between us forever. Do you know we are getting married next month?"
"Good! God bless both of you," I replied.
The young lady again said thank you and went on her journey. I realized the importance of giving that day. | high896.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "are used widely by people all over the world"
},
"options": [
"have three basic parts in their system",
"are hardly able to heat water above 60degC",
"are used widely by people all over the world",
"can heat water even ... | Solar water heaters can use energy from the sun to heat water. They are used around the world. The solar water heater is based on a design developed some years ago in Afghanistan. Since then, it has been built and used in many countries. It can heat seventy liters of water to 60degC. It can do this between sunrise and noon on a clear day with an average temperature of 32degC.
There are two parts of the solar water heater. One part, the collector, is made of a metal plate painted black. This metal surface, placed in contact with the water, will heat the water. Black-painted surfaces that receive the sun's heat become hotter than those of any other color1. Metal plates that have raised parts on the surface work better than those without them. Once the water is heated, it is kept hot with special material, which allows the water to stay warm for a long time.
The second part of the solar water heater holds the water for the system. This water tank can hold about one hundred liters of water. Two rubber pipes are connected to the water tank. One pipe lets water go into the system. The other lets water go out.
When the water heater is working correctly, water will flow from the tank to the collector and back again. You can use the hot water at the top of the tank for washing and cleaning. This solar water heater is easy to build and operate. It will last about two years before the rubber pipes need to be replaced. | high22440.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Wooster used to be a quiet and peaceful city surrounded by farmland"
},
"options": [
"it is unavoidable to destroy farmland when a city grows",
"Wooster used to be a quiet and peaceful city surrounded by farmland",
"with many... | In a world today of immense technology, population growth and economic flourish, planning for future residential and commercial developments needs careful analysis with well thought through assumptions about effects on the environment and the people of the community.
One example of a growing city is Wooster, Ohio, my place of residency, Wooster in the last five years has grown considerably in population, leading to a growth in commercial business. Surrounded by farmland, Wooster's planning commission chose to extend the community into these farm areas in the form of residential and commercial areas.
Picture this--corn fields, old trees, clean air, country roads, and wildlife are all part of the area. Within four years, the people living on this farm step outside on their front porch to view an extensive shopping center containing Wal-Mart, McDonald's, Wendy's, TCBY, and a Cinemark movie theatre. The once quiet road is now a city street with traffic lights, busy with automobiles day and night. The air smells of car exhaust and fast food.
Some destruction of farmland is unavoidable when a city expands. Instead of expanding outward, planning commissions should consider interior _ of a city. Tearing down unusable buildings could remodel many areas inside the city. In addition, commercialized buildings could extend upwards to avoid unnecessary use of land.
Environmentally, commercial expansion is harmful to the land. Besides forms of pollution, wildlife, including both plants and animals, is put at risk. A planning commission could have realized the benefits of environmental protection. Why not preserve the beauty and naturalness of the land while at the same time allowing for growth?
With a steady growth of population and the need for more homes and more workplaces, many problems arise when planning for the future. The hillsides, fields and animal habitats need to be preserved while expanding cities. In the future, a world covered with concrete and asphalt could become reality. Serious research and analysis are needed when planning for the future of our home communities and for the entire globe to avoid such a miserable result. | high13845.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "placing more demands and restrictions on the design"
},
"options": [
"using south-facing windows to take in solar energy",
"Providing energy for taking a shower when it's rainy",
"supplying fresh air with a special heat recov... | Imagine a house that keeps itself warm in the wintertime. Think of the savings in terms of fuel bills and unfriendly emissions. Such houses in fact exist, called "passive houses". The concept of these highly energy-efficient buildings took root in the 1990s, before slowly consolidating as a niche construction concept in the 2000s. Are passive houses now actively moving into the mainstream as sustainable buildings?
For Brian McGarry, an economics lecturer who built a family house based on passive housing criteria in the Pyrenees this year, the arguments look convincing. As his first full winter in the low energy house draws in, we asked him to keep us informed. Do passive houses work?
I had never heard of a passive house in February 2012, when I purchased a plot of land. Nor did I expect that I would be persuaded to build a pre-constructed, custom-designed house based on energy-efficient passive house criteria. It promised to be easier and quicker to build, cheaper to run, and more comfortable to live in. The objective was to incorporate the fundamental concepts of passive energy management into my project: an airtight and highly insulated building envelope; large southfacing double or triple-glazed windows (if possible, filled with argon gas) that passively capture the energy of the sun; a heat recovery ventilation system to provide fresh air; and a simple, low-cost heating system consisting of a modern wood-burning stove, a bathroom heater and a portable radiator backup for when the sun doesn't shine and temperatures decline. No significant limitations were placed on the design, and it had excellent environmental credentials. Moreover, the cost was no more than a conventional build.
After six months in use, the house is proving to be both cheap to run and remarkably comfortable-staying cool in the hot summer was effortless, as long as the windows were shuttered or shaded from the sun. Nowstaying warm in the cold, high-altitude December climate also seems easy, so far.
Winter arrived in force in the Pyrenees in November, with abundant snowfalls and temperatures as low as minus 8deg Celsius. Though early days, the house has responded well: the stove is lit during cold evenings but the portable radiator has not yet been needed. This type of construction seems not only to make economic and environmental sense, but to enhance our quality of life, too. | high9786.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "To introduce some innovative ways to help us eat healthier."
},
"options": [
"To give advice on how to become slim.",
"To warn people that nutrition education is important for our daily life.",
"To tell us that someone childr... | Most nutrition education isn't very effective. People know that an apple is better than a Snickers bar, but they often eat the Snickers bar anyway. After conducting hundreds of studies on the psychology of how and why we eat, I've seen that it's good to understand nutrition, but it's much better to change your eating environment. Doing so can help you make better choices without even thinking about it.
Part 1
We all know children can be stubbornly habitual in what they want to eat. If kids had French fries yesterday, they want them again today. We came up with a simple way to interrupt this default. Instead of asking kids what they want, what if we ask them about someone they admire?
We studied this with elementary school-aged children one summer. We treated 22 kids to apple slices or fries at a fast-food restaurant. The first week, 20 of them ordered French fries, and two ordered apple slices. But the next week, we asked, "What would Batman eat: apple slices or French fries?" After they answered for Batman, we asked them what they wanted. This time, the number of kids who ordered apple slices jumped from two to ten-- almost half of them.
If you ask yourself before deciding between the salad and the cheesy bacon fries, "What would my role model choose?" you'll be a lot less tempted. Thinking about what a well-liked person would do makes us _ .
Part 2
If we knew what a skinny person's kitchen looked like, we could set up our own kitchens in a similar way. Once we got into people's homes, we took pictures of everything: their dishes, sinks, refrigerator shelves, counters, snacks, pet-food dishes, tables, lighting -- even random items held up by magnets on their refrigerators. Then we spent eight months coding these kitchens to see what thin people do differently.
We wondered if big kitchens turn us into big people. But it turns out that kitchen size isn't the problem. It's what you see in the kitchen. The average woman who kept potato chips on the counter weighed eight pounds more than her neighbor who didn't. "In sight, in stomach." We eat what we see, not what we don't. | high7973.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "it makes you eat more"
},
"options": [
"it makes you sweat",
"it' s hard work",
"it tires you out",
"it makes you eat more"
],
"question": "There seems nothing wrong with exercise EXCEPT that _",
"question_... | Some people don't mind being fat. Other people can keep slim( ) without any effort. But a lot of people do put on too much weight and don't like it. The question is : what can they do about it? Some believe exercise can be helpful. But the trouble is that it only makes you want to eat more. You might sweat out a couple of pounds playing tennis or climbing a mountain, but you put it all back on again with a big steak or bread and jam.
A helpful way is food - choosing. But what sort of food should you choose? Some believe that the less they eat, the slimmer they will be. They don' t eat anything until they become weak with hunger. Some stick to milk and bananas. You' 11 find you need a lot of bananas, and unless you live where they grow, they aren't cheap. Another theory says that if you eat things like hard - boiled eggs, apples with their skins on, and lean meat which are hard for your stomach to digest, the more you eat, the thinner you get. This is because you use up the fat in your body to get the energy to digest the food.
For most of us these methods are too extreme . The simplest way is just to cut down on the carbohydrates; that means not eating bread, potatoes, cakes, sugar, rice , and so on and eating anything else you like. It' s straight -- forward and often quite effective.
Still others like to be more scientific. They are calorie counters. They get a table which tells them that, for example, 100 grams of roast leg of lamb give you 330 calories and a 50 gram of Yorkshire pudding gives you 130 calories. | high24031.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "His defeating hardship."
},
"options": [
"His brilliant research.",
"His defeating hardship.",
"His serious disease.",
"His bestselling books."
],
"question": "What impressed the author most about Stephen Hawkin... | In my first week as a graduate student at Cambridge University in 1964 I met with a fellow student, two years ahead of me in his studies; he was unsteady on his feet and spoke with great difficulty. This was Stephen Hawking. I learned that he had a bad disease and might not live long enough even to finish his PhD degree.
But, amazingly, he has reached the age of 73. Even mere survival would have been a medical miracle, but of course, he didn't merely survive. He has become arguably the most famous scientist in the world for his brilliant research, for his bestselling books, and, above all, for his astonishing victory over hardship.
Stephen received his "death sentence" in 1964, when I thought it was hard for him to go on with his study. Stephen went from Albans School to Oxford University. He was said to be a "lazy" undergraduate, but his brilliance earned him a first-class degree, an "entry ticket" to a research career in Cambridge and a uniquely inspiring achievement.
Within a few years of the burst of his disease he was wheelchair-bound, and his speech was so unclear that it could only be understood by those who knew him well. But his scientific career went from strength to strength: he quickly came up with a series of insights into the nature of black holes (then a very new idea) and how the universe began. In 1974 he was elected to the Royal Society at the exceptionally early age of 32.
The great advances in science generally involve discovering a link between phenomena that were previously conceptually unconnected -- for instance, Isaac Newton realized that the force making an apple fall to earth was the same as the force that holds the moon and planets in their orbits. Stephen's revolutionary idea about a link between gravity and quantum theory has still not been tested. However, it has been hugely influential; indeed, one of the main achievements of string theory has been to confirm and build on his idea. He has undoubtedly done more than anyone else since Einstein to improve our knowledge of gravity and he is one of the top-ten living theoretical physicists. | high10394.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "She fell off her bike and broke her arm."
},
"options": [
"She fell down beside a tree.",
"She broke her arm at gymnastics.",
"She fell off her bike and broke her arm.",
"She broke her leg while learning to ride."
]... | "But what if I break my arm again?" my 5-year-old daughter asked. I knew how much she wanted to learn to ride. Yet ever since she'd fallen off her bike and broken her arm, she'd been afraid.
"Oh honey," I said. "I don't think you'll break another arm."
"But I could, couldn't I?"
"Yes," I admitted, and found myself struggling for the right thing to say. "I don't think I want to ride," she said and got off her bike.
We walked away and sat down beside a tree.
"Don't you want to ride with your friends?" I asked. "And I thought you were hoping to start riding your bike to school next year," I added.
"I was," she said in a low voice.
"You know, honey," I said. "Most everything you do comes with dangers. You could break your arm at gymnastics. Do you want to stop going to the gym?" "No, of course not!" she replied. And with a determined spirit, she stood up and agreed to try again. I held on to the back of her bike until she found the courage to say, "Let's go!"
I spent the rest of the afternoon at the park watching a very brave little girl overcome a fear, and congratulating myself for being an independent single parent.
As we walked home, pushing the bike as we made our way along the sidewalk, she asked me about a conversation she'd overheard me having with my mother the night before.
"Why were you and Grandma arguing last night?"
"It's nothing." I told her.
She shrugged . "Grandma said she just wanted you to find someone to love."
"What Grandma wants is for some guy to break my heart again," I snapped.
"But Mom ..."
"You're too young to understand." I told her.
She was quiet for the next few minutes. Then she looked up and in a small voice said, "So I guess love isn't like a broken arm."
Unable to answer, we walked the rest of the way in silence. When I got home, I let go and agreed to meet a man called Steve.
Steve was the man for me. We married less than a year later. It turned out my mother and my daughter were right. | high20257.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "by way of competition"
},
"options": [
"when given equality of opportunity",
"through doing business",
"by protecting their individual freedom",
"by way of competition"
],
"question": "Americans believe that the... | President Coolidge's statement, "The business of America is business," still points to an important truth today---that business institutions have more prestige in American society than any other kind of organization, including the government. Why do business institutions possess this great prestige?
One reason is that Americans view business as being more firmly based on the ideal of competition than other institutions in society. Since competition is seen as the major source of progress and prosperity by most Americans, competitive business institutions are respected. Competition is not only good in itself, it is the means by which other basic American values such as individual freedom, equality of opportunity, and hard work are protected.
Competition protects the freedom of the individual by ensuring that there is no monopoly of power. In contrast to one, all-powerful government, many businesses compete against each other for profits. Theoretically, if one business tries to take unfair advantage of its customers, it will lose to competing business which treats its customers more fairly. Where many businesses compete for the customers' dollar, they cannot afford to treat them like inferiors or slaves.
A contrast is often made between business, which is competitive, and government, which is a monopoly. Because business is competitive, many Americans believe that it is more supportive of freedom than government, even though government leaders are elected by the people and business leaders are not. Many Americans believe, then, that competition is as important, or even more important, than democracy in preserving freedom.
Competition in business is also believed to strengthen the ideal of equality of opportunity. Competition is seen as an open and fair race where success goes to the swiftest person regardless of his or her social class background. Competitive success is commonly seen as the American alternative to social rank based on family background. Business is therefore viewed as an expression of the idea of equality of opportunity rather than the noble idea of inherited privilege. | high21149.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "27."
},
"options": [
"25.",
"26.",
"27.",
"28"
],
"question": "Zhang becomes the captain after_years of work.",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"ans... | The capsized accident which happened in Yangtze River on June 1st, 2015 shocked the whole country.There are so many people related to this accident.Zhang Shunwen, the captain of the vessel , has been probably the person being mostly discussed now.
Born in 1963, Zhang has been working on this ship for 35 years and became captain of it in 2007.Until the accident, Zhang was regarded as an effective captain and his experience as a sailor was flawless with numerous awards.
Zhang Shunwen said the wind was coming from the South, and the wind then was about three to four grade.He first tried to ride the ship northward on the leeside in an effort to counter it with the vessel's speed.However, the wind suddenly gathered speed and he lost control of the ship."We couldn't fend off the wind even if we made a full left turn." he said.
Zhang escaped alive and is under watching by police, although he has not yet been accused of any wrongdoing. Every person has his opinion toward this kind behavior of police. Some of them think of it to be improper because the captain himself is also a victim in this accident, what's more, his wife, who also boarded on this boat, remains missing now. While others are in support of this action, to them, it is the captain who should shoulder the responsibility. For me, I agree with the former. Because the captain has made every effort to deal with the accident. | high18910.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "cover the wound with a clean, folded cloth and press it"
},
"options": [
"spread some salve on the wound",
"pressed the wound firmly with your finger",
"cover the wound with a clean, folded cloth and press it",
"place... | External bleeding
Apply direct pressure. Place a clean, folded cloth over the injured area and firmly apply pressure. If blood soaks through, do not remove it. Instead, cover that cloth with another one and continue to apply pressure to the wound for 7~10 minutes. If the bleeding is from the ear, place a clean bandage over the ear, lay the victim on his side, and allow the blood to drain out through the bandage.
Elevate the injury. Position the wounded part of the body above the level of the heart if possible while you apply direct pressure.
Know the pressure points. If direct pressure and elevation don't sufficiently slow the blood-flow, find a pressure point. Large arteries found close to the skin's surface supply blood to the head and to each arm and leg. The most common pressure points used during the first aid are located in the upper arms and in the creases above the upper legs. Apply pressure to the closest pressure point to the wound so that the artery is pressed between your fingers and the bone directly behind the artery. If using the pressure point on a leg, you may need to use the heel of your hand instead of your finger.
Resort to a tourniquet (,). On very rare occasions everything listed above may fail. To prevent the victim from dying, you should apply a tourniquet. Once a tourniquet is applied, it should not be loosened or removed until the victim has reached medical help. Use a tourniquet ONLY if everything listed above has failed. If you use a tourniquet, write down somewhere on the victim the time when it was applied, so medical personal will know how long it has been in place. | high10380.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "thought even the simplest thing was important"
},
"options": [
"was a great English scientist",
"always liked doing the experiments that others thought difficult",
"thought even the simplest thing was important",
"didn'... | Do you suppose Darwin, one of the greatest scientists of all time, really did fools' experiments? Or did he do experiments that were so simple and basic that other people just thought they were foolish?
Sometimes, people think they already know the answer to a question or the solution to a problem. Sometimes, they really do know an answer or a solution, but without thinking they are important.
Charles Darwin didn't settle for just thinking he knew something. And, he believed all things could be important however simple they seemed to be.
Suppose you drop sheets of paper that are of exactly the same size and shape. If you drop them at the same time in the same place, they will fall in the same way. Now make one of the sheets of paper into a tight little ball and let it drop along with the other sheets. What happens? You have done an experiment that is so simple that you might think it couldn't be worth anything.
But this simple experiment is important. It explains part of our present day understandings of physics ideas that were worked out long ago by Galileo and Newton. And these understandings set aside some of ancient Greek physics.
Scientist sometimes stops to look at very simple things and to think very hard about them. Even the simplest idea, which we might think is foolish, can shake the foundations of science. | high16929.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "experience different cultures"
},
"options": [
"see beautiful scenes",
"experience different cultures",
"save money",
"write traveling articles"
],
"question": "People choose couchsurfing while traveling mainly ... | While traveling satisfies different needs of various types of people, most serious adventurers hope to make some connections while they're experiencing another culture. Discovering another way of life is fascinating, and leads to a deeper understanding of one's own culture as well. However, it can be difficult to get to know people and customs if one's trip is spent at a hotel. A better choice for gaining insight into the culture of a country is couchsurfing.
Couchsurfing is free, and guarantees a close encounter of some sort, as it allows you to stay on a local's couch or in a guest room. Travelers can look up couchsurfing opportunities on Couchsurfing.com, where hosts and surfers can connect, create and view profiles, and exchange information. "Meeting their friends, seeing how they function and seeing how people were actually living are so personal. I really like the opportunity to gain a pure knowledge of someone's life," says Meghan Sinnott, who recently couchsurfed in Denmark, Holland, and Sweden.
The formal Couchsurfing Project has been around for a while. It was started in 1999 by Casey Fenton, who was on a cheap trip to Iceland from Boston. Finding himself without a place to stay, he e-mailed more than a thousand students at the University of Iceland and got more than 50 responses offering him a free couch. When he returned to his hometown Boston, he decided to turn the experience into a website-based network, which was created in 2004.
While some travelers might be afraid of the idea of sleeping on a previously unseen couch or getting a cup of coffee with a complete stranger halfway across the country, others jump at the chance to walk into the unknown.
And that tells us exactly what couchsurfing is all about--learning about the world and a stranger at a time. | high18904.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "She had a traffic accident on the way to work."
},
"options": [
"She got up late in the morning.",
"She changed her purse and other little things.",
"One of her shoe heels broke.",
"She had a traffic accident on the way... | I woke up late and had breakfast in a hurry. I had never been late and didn't want my boss to be unsatisfied. However, it seemed that day wasn't a lucky one for me from the very second I left my flat. The moment I wanted to rush downstairs one of my stiletto heels broke. I had to return to change my red shoes. I also had to change my purse and other little things that I had tried to match with the shoes. I was sure I would be late for work.
On my way to work I had to wait for over half an hour because of an accident. I had no choice but to wait. I phoned my boss and he told me that it was no problem, but he needed me for the meeting with the Japanese clients that morning.
Finally, I arrived at the office one hour later. I had to keep calm and be fresh for the meeting to make the clients sure that our plan was the best for their future commercial project. However, I left the plan I had made the night before at home and was going to present it to the clients. I was about to get angry when I realized that I had a draft of it in my office. At last, the presentation came to an end and it turned out to be a success. But I have to say that I had a terrible day, full of incidents . | high12597.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "An accident."
},
"options": [
"An accident.",
"Lake of food.",
"The war in Pear Harbor.",
"The bombing in Hiroshima."
],
"question": "What caused the death of Iwatake's father?",
"question_type": "factiod_qu... | When he was still a child, Iwatake's father was lost at sea off Hawaii. With no food, his family was forced to move to Japan, where Iwatake joined the army during the war. He lost a brother when the bomb fell on Hiroshima.
But over all the time one thing has remained unchanged.
His parents bought a Christmas tree in 1937, and his family brings it out every Christmas since then, even when doing so meat risking arrest. "This tree was a shining light, because it was a symbol of unity in my family," Iwatake said as he and his wife put the final touches on the tree, which is about 3 - foot - tall. They took it out once again this year, "We have put this tree up every year for 70 years."
Though he considers himself Buddhist, Iwatake was raised in a Christian tradition. He still keeps a photo of the tiny wooden church in Mauri where he and his five brothers went to church services and Sunday school.
Christmas was always a special time.
His father worked at a store, and Iwatake remembers the day he came home with a tree. It was nothing all that special, just metal - and - plastic, the kind of decoration that can easily be placed on a table, or in a corner somewhere. He got a string of lights, too, the kind with the big bulbs .
Soon after, his father died in a fishing accident. His body was never found.
Iwatake's mother had s in Japan, and took Iwatake's younger brothers there. Iwatake stayed behind to graduate from high school. In 1941, six months before Pearl Harbor , he moved to Japan as well. "Things were bad," he said. "There were war clouds hanging everywhere." | high22454.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Arguments on giving to beggars."
},
"options": [
"Moral deeds of people.",
"Arguments on giving to beggars.",
"Moral goodness of the giver.",
"Religious activities of the church."
],
"question": "What is mainly ... | When a rather dirty, poorly dressed person kneels at your feet and puts out his hands to beg for a few coins, do you hurry on, not knowing what to do, or do you feel sad and hurriedly hand over some money? What should our attitude to beggars be? There can be no question that the world is full of terribly sad stories. It must be terrible to have no idea where our next meal is going to come from. It seems cruel not to give some money to beggars.
Certainly, most of the world's great religions order us to be open-hearted and share what we have with those less fortunate than ourselves. _ ? Maybe what was morally right in the old days, when one knew exactly who in the village had suffered misfortune and needed help, is no longer the best idea. Quite a few people will not give to beggars. Let us look at their arguments.
First, some believe that many city beggars dress up on purpose to look pitiable and actually make a good living from begging. Giving to beggars only encourages this sort of evil .
Secondly, there is the worry that the money you give will be spent on beer, wine or drugs.
Thirdly, there is the opinion that there is no real excuse for begging. One might be poor, but that is no reason for losing one's sense of pride and self-dependence.
There is an opinion that the problem should be dealt with by the government rather than ordinary people. Some people think the local government department should help the beggars
It is hard to come to any final conclusion: there are various cases and we must deal with them differently. A few coins can save a life in some situations, and even if the money is wasted, that does not take away the moral goodness of the giver. | high882.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "The environment and artwork there are very easy to damage."
},
"options": [
"It was closed off for more than 30,000 years.",
"It is thought to be the origin of modern parietal art.",
"The environment and artwork there are ver... | Some 30,000 years ago, artists who lived in caves in Europe painted pictures of the animals around them: panthers, hyenas, rhinos, cave lions, mammoths and other creatures which have been extinct for a long time. The paintings were highly realistic. Some even showed movement.
The artwork, more than a thousand drawings, is considered the oldest group of human cave drawings which have ever been discovered. They were preserved because the cave was sealed---closed off--for more or less 23,000 years.
Fast forward to December 18, 1994, a group of French cave scientists were exploring caves in southern France. Jean Marie Chauvet, who led the group then, describes the process of discovering the cave paintings. "At that time I was in the front, Eliette just walked behind me, Christian behind. Eliette said she saw two marks with red ochre and she said, 'They came here.' And at this very moment everything began. The drawings and everything linked to the parietal art . That is where it is tarted."
Cave art expert Jean Clotttes reviewed the paintings. "I was amazed at the number of paintings there were and paintings of their quality and particularly in front of the panel of the horses."
Scientific analysis confirmed the prehistoric date of the artwork. Studies showed the drawings were created tens of thousands of years ago, before human history was written. The United Nations' cultural agency UNESCO lists the cave as a World Heritage Site. They say that the drawings form a remarkable expression of early human artistic creation of grand excellence and variety.
The Chauvet Cave has been named after the explorer who first entered it. However, its environment and drawings are too fragile to be visited by human beings. So the cave is closed, and only people there for scientific purposes can go inside and see the artwork.
However, French authorities asked experts to create an exact copy of the cave, called Pont d'Arc Cavern. The copy, which we also called replica, cost more than 59 million dollars to build. It opened at the end of April in France.
Pascal Terrasse is the president of the cavern. He says everyone will be able to experience the thrill of looking at drawings made by the first humans in Europe. He says the place is magic because it is done so well. Authorities say they think as many as 400,000 people will be allowed to visit Pont d'Arc Cavern every year. | high13851.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "try to use eye creams"
},
"options": [
"try your best to stop yourself aging",
"make up by using eye shadow",
"raise your hand to lift your eyes",
"try to use eye creams"
],
"question": "To deal with lines aroun... | Lines around the eyes mean the aging process in the body. Though aging is considered as one of the most unavoidable occurrence in one's life, it is not entirely the thing. You just need to know that you can deal with it in your life. For example, if you are willing to spend a considerable amount of money to make yourself look young again, then you can try eye lifts. However, if you are more of the money-conscious type, then you should decide to go for eye creams which bring the same results but with lower prices.
Despite of the advantages of using eye creams, however, there is a disadvantage in trying them. This is due to the hundreds of brands o eye creams being marketed at present. If you do not know how to choose the best eye cream in the countless brands available, then you might fall victim to eye creams that do not really fulfill their promised effects.
What's good is that looking for the best eye cream does not involve too much effort. You just have to look for eye cream reviews to know how a product performs and if it lives up to its promises. If you have a dermatologist , then you can ask for advice. If you have none, however, then you can just browse on the net for the best cream for your needs.
In searching for eye cream reviews, look for those with reviews based on the results of product testing. Doing so can ensure you that you are not basing your decision on fake review sites that are only made to build up an image of a certain product. Follow these tips and guidelines and you are sure to finally spot the best eye cream that can solve your aging problem. | high9792.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "At a house a kilometer away."
},
"options": [
"Back in Auckland Zoo.",
"In a river nearby.",
"At a house a kilometer away.",
"In the zoo hospital."
],
"question": "Where was Clyde found after his first escape?",... | Clyde, a small-clawed otter, was moved from Auckland Zoo to Wellington Zoo two months ago. The zookeepers hoped he and the other otter Bonnie might start a family together.
But only two days after he arrived, Clyde went missing. He had dug his way under one of the walls and was nowhere to be seen.
The zookeepers set up cages inside the zoo, with plates of Clyde's favorite fish in them, hoping to catch him. Two days went by and still there was no sign of Clyde.
At last a couple saw Clyde at their house --- a whole kilometer away in Newtown. Clyde was hiding in an out-of-reach hole outside their laundry.
The zookeepers arrived and set up some more traps to try to catch him. But Clyde is a pretty smart otter. Twice he managed to get the fish out of a trap without being caught.
Five days after he'd escaped, Clyde's days on the run came to an end when he was finally caught in one of the traps.
It was no good putting Clyde back in his old home---he'd only dig his way out again. So he and Bonnie were put into the zoo hospital. There was no chance of their escaping from there.
Meanwhile, the zookeepers were working hard to make Clyde's old home safer. They put an iron barrier underground to stop him digging their way out. Then Bonnie and Clyde went home again.
But a month after his first escape, Clyde was out again. Once more the zookeepers came hurrying to catch Clyde. They found him by following the bubbles he made in the river nearby.
Nobody knew how Clyde had escaped. But this time he was only out for an hour. So---back he went to the hospital again.
Poor Clyde. It seemed that he wasn't happy at Wellington Zoo, even though he and Bonnie were getting on well together. The keepers didn't like seeing him unhappy, so they planned to look for a home for him somewhere else. | high24025.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "The completed project adds to the attraction of this year's Festival."
},
"options": [
"The place where the Festival is held is near the Great Wall.",
"The completed project adds to the attraction of this year's Festival.",
"... | For one tired out from work, autumn is one of the best times to step into the open air to _ and enjoy some great music. And that's what many Beijingers have done this past weekend.
Family, friends, laughter; beautiful grass, fresh air and live music echoing off the forest and the Great Wall that surround this place. A weekend in this music paradise just seems too short. Besides, a brand new world-class outdoor theater has just been open at this year's festival, which will surely make the festival a better and more permanent experience.
A full house is before the new outdoor amphitheater . Even the thunderstorm couldn't break up the crowd completely absorbed in the music. Thanks to the new theater, this year's Great Wall Forest Festival offers even more superb acoustics and an overall outdoor theatrical experience, even though the project is still half complete.
The festival is now in its fourth year. Since its first show in 2010, the festival has seen a steady increase in festival-goers and has expanded its length from two days to four days, divided over two weekends. It has also been experimenting with a variety of styles, from classical to pop, with this year's theme "Celebrating 20 Years of Chinese Folk Song." Folk Song legend Lao Lang explains how folk songs have helped encourage more amateur folks to express themselves through music.
"Before music was reserved for the professionals. But folk songs made young people realize that they can express themselves through music as well. And that's what characterizes folk songs. It's popular music and it always has a story." said Lao Lang.
Unlike some of the other outdoor festivals, the Great Wall Forest Festival appeals to a wide range of audiences. It's a rare place where teens, parents and families can all enjoy the outdoors and have a great time.
Great music and scenery aside, many children's workshops, master music classes, and interactive art activities have also been introduced this year. If music is the reason to come to the festivals, you'll find even more reasons not to leave. | high7967.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "To ensure that they live better in a natural environment."
},
"options": [
"To protect them from being killed by the armed guards.",
"To ensure that they live better in a natural environment.",
"To keep the conservation a goo... | Wildlife conservationists in Kenya are trying to save a rare kind of rhinoceros .Somanynorthernwhiterhinoshavebeenhuntedandkilled that they are almost dying out. There were only five northern white rhinos left. So the workers hoped they could save the rhinos by helping them produce young.
Three northern white rhinos lived at The Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Workers with military weapons guarded the rhinos as they walked, played and ate over a large area of natural grass and trees. The three rhinos were brought to the conservancy in 2009 from a zoo in the Czech Republic. Workers hoped they would have a better chance of survival in a more natural habitat.
But breeding has not been as successful as they had hoped. And the number of northern white rhinos continues to decrease. One of the rhinos at the conservancy died in October. Another died at a zoo in the US city of San Diego, California earlier this month. The San Diego zoo still has one northern white rhino left. The zoo in the Czech Republic also has one.
The last wild northern white rhinos were hunted and killed during conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo over the past ten years. Rhinos are killed because many people in Asia want the animals'horns .They believe the horns will help with medical problems. But researchers say there is no medicine in the horn, just a kind of hair.
The last male northern white rhino is 41 years old. He has been unsuccessful in producing young with a female rhino. So conservationists will use artificial methods to make a young female become pregnant. If that is not successful, they will try to fertilize a northern rhino egg and put it into a southern white rhino, who will act as a surrogate mother. The last solution would be cross-breeding between the northern and southern white rhino species. If cross-breeding is successful, there is hope that some part of the northern white rhino species may still live on. | high13689.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "give advice on how to prepare for vacation"
},
"options": [
"give advice on how to prepare for vacation",
"make a plan for his summer vacation",
"share his experience about summer vacation",
"warn readers against cheate... | Are you taking a summer vacation this year? If you are, have you already started preparing for your trip? Online, there are a large number of preparation tips available for summer travelers. While preparation advice and tips may be of assistance to you, they are often hard to go by. This is because not everyone spends vacations at the same location.
No matter what your vacation destination is, you will need to take the climate into consideration. If you are visiting a tropical location, you will need to bring along the appropriate clothing. While you may be expecting warm and sunny weather, it is still advised that you prepare for the worst. Raincoats and an umbrella may be a great addition to your summer clothing.
Perhaps, the most popular summer vacation destination is the beach. Each year millions of individuals and families flock to beaches. When vacationing at the beach, it is important that you bring along proper clothing and sunscreen. Many vacationers do not realize the dangers of sunbathing without sunscreen. In addition to sunscreen, you will need to make sure that you have beach towels and plenty of water on hand.
For the most part, if you forget to bring along certain supplies you can purchase replacements. Many popular vacation destinations have inflated prices. To prevent unnecessary expenses, you are encouraged to check your luggage before you leave. In addition to the above mentioned preparation tips, you must inform friends and family of where you are going. In case something happens back home, you can easily be reached. | high14680.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Beijing Hongda Road Estate Co. Lid"
},
"options": [
"Fucheng Garden Villas",
"Beijing Hongda Road Estate Co. Lid",
"American Company----IDI",
"The Beijing Luftthansa"
],
"question": "The advertiser is _",
... | Fucheng Garden Villas is situated along the North 4th Ring Road, just 2 kilometres east away from the Asian Games Village with easy traffic connection. It is 5 kilometres from the Beijing Lufthansa Centre.
Fucheng Garden Villas occupies an area of 34.7 hectares , over 80% of which is covered by trees and green, just like a garden in the city.
All the 108 villas were designed by American Company IDI, in American style, luxurious besides comfortable.
All materials of the construction and decoration as well as equipment are famous American products.
From now to July 31st, preferential prices for sale and rent are offered. You can move into Fucheng Garden Villas on signing an agreement.
Bank will provide a 50% mortgage for 5 years.
Overseas sales License: NO.124.
Developer: Beijing Hongda Read Estate Co.Ltd.
60 East, North 4th Ring Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing.
Tel: (8610)64967050 64967049
Fax: (8610)64933575 (From Wednesday, June 25, 1997 CHINA DAILY) | high22332.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "points"
},
"options": [
"prizes.",
"books.",
"points",
"cheeses."
],
"question": "What can users get when making a reservation with OpenTable app?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer"... | Most people agree that eating healthy food is important. But sometimes making good food choices can be difficult. Now, there are apps that can help people learn about the food they eat to improve their health and their dining out experience.
OpenTable app
OpenTable app helps people choose restaurants when they want to go out to eat. It is a free service that shows users restaurant available based on where and when they want to dine. It gives users points when they make reservations, which can add up to discounts on restaurant visits.
Max McCalman's Cheese & Wine Pairing app
Wine and cheese can be a great combination. But which wines go best with which cheeses? Max McCalman's Cheese & Wine Pairing app can help. It provides information about hundreds of different cheeses and suggests wines to pair with each. Max McCalman's Cheese & Wine Pairing app is free.
HappyCow app
Vegetarians do not eat animal meat. Vegans do not eat any animal products. The HappyCow app is made for both groups. Users can search for vegetarian-vegan restaurants and stores around the world.
LocalEats app
Restaurant chains, like McDonalds, can be found almost anywhere a person might travel. But sometimes travelers want to eat like locals. The LocalEats app is designed for that. It can help you find local restaurants in major cities in the US. and in other countries. It costs about a dollar.
WhereChefsEat app
Where Chefs Eat is a 975-page book. Most people would not want to carry that around. But there is a much lighter app version of the same name for just $15. Six hundred chefs provide information on 3,000 restaurants around the world on the WhereChefsEat app. | high14858.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "A charity dinner held in Beijing by Mr. Buffett and Mr. Gates."
},
"options": [
"A brief analysis of future philanthropy.",
"The development of Chinese philanthropy.",
"An introduction on Mr. Buffett and Mr. Gates' trip in Ch... | BEIJING -- After a night of wining and dining with 50 of China's richest people, Warren Buffet and Bill Gates told the journalists on Thursday that the biggest difference between eating with Chinese tycoons and Western ones was the food.
"I was amazed last night, really, at how similar the questions and discussions and all that were to those in the dinners we had in the U.S.," said Mr. Buffett.
Mr. Buffett and Mr. Gates, two of the best known Westerners here, announced in September, 2010 that they planned to invite 50 wealthy Chinese tycoons to dinner in Beijing to encourage philanthropy among China's new rich.
On Thursday, the two men pronounced the dinner a great success, saying that two-thirds of those invited had shown up, and that more than half of them had offered their own ideas on how Chinese philanthropy should work.
The guest list wasn't made public, but the Chinese news media reported that it included Jet Li, the movie star; Niu Gensheng, the founder of a Chinese dairy business; and Pan Shiyi and Zhang Xin, who control the SOHO China real estate empire.
As with four earlier dinners held in the United States, Mr. Buffett and Mr. Gates said, no one at the Beijing event was asked to donate money or to promise to engage in charity. "Bill and I won't be calling anybody. What happens in China will depend on what the Chinese people feel about a project of this sort," said Mr. Buffett.
China is widely reported to be second only to the United States in the number of dollar billionaires. Mr. Gates and Mr. Buffett said the nation was unique because its wealthy class had arisen almost wholly in the past 30 years, so the philanthropic practices established among European and American dynasties are new here, and open to change.
The two said the dinner wasn't a long planned matter, but _ of a trip that Mr. Buffett had already scheduled to Guangdong and Hunan Provinces, where BYD Company, a maker of clean-energy automobiles, has factories. Mr. Buffett's company, Berkshire Hathaway, holds a 10% stake in the company.
But Mr. Gates suggested that their philanthropic trip wasn't yet over. "We may do an event in India," he said. | high20525.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "he is uncertain about what will happen to the dolphins"
},
"options": [
"the dolphins might affect the existence of fishes in Haifa port",
"he is curious about the dolphins",
"he will do research on the dolphins",
"he i... | Dozens of dolphins swam out of the polluted waters of Haifa Harbor on Tuesday.This was the first time that dolphins had visited this crowded Mediterranean port,and researchers were surprised and delighted by the unexpected event.
Between 40 and 50 of the dolphins appeared in the busy port on Tuesday morning,obviously drawn by the fishrich waters of Haifa Harbor.
However,the bay is also full of harmful chemicals. Aviad Sheinin,professor of Haifa University's Maritime Studies Department,said he didn't think the dolphins were harmed by the pollution,but he hoped that they would swim back to the sea soon. "It seems that they are quite relaxed. They don't seem to be stressed," he said.
Haifa Harbor is lined by chemical companies that have been pouring poisonous waste into the water for decades. While pollution levels have dropped in recent years,the water is still considered a health hazard.
"There are lots of fish in Haifa Harbor. Unfortunately we couldn't tell the dolphins that the fish are not healthy;and I don't know what the result will be," he told Israel Army Radio.Hundreds of Haifa residents gathered around Haifa Harbor to see the interesting sight,and researchers said this provided a rare chance to film and study the roughtoothed dolphins. In addition to the dozens of dolphins which swam into the port on Tuesday,a similar number stayed outside the breakwater .Later Tuesday the dolphins left the port but remained near the entrance and Israel's coast guard was patrolling the area to try to make sure the dolphins didn't reenter the poisonous waters.
Relatively little is known about roughtoothed dolphins,which are usually found in deep and warm tropical waters. | high18535.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "felt shy to be served by female nurses during the operation"
},
"options": [
"felt embarrassed to talk with women in hospital",
"felt disappointed about the female nurses' work",
"felt it embarrassing to have such an operatio... | Besides the pain, what bothered Yang Zhihong the most during an operation were the female nurses in the operation room.
"It couldn't be more embarrassing," said the 23-year-old senior student from Beijing Foreign Studies University, who underwent an operation at Peking University Third Hospital in March, for reasons of hygiene. "I just felt uneasy with women around me and my pants off, even if they're there to help with my operation."
That wasn't the first time Yang thought there should be more male nurses in the hospital.
"For a physical examination on private parts, it would be better to be helped by nurses of the same gender," he added.
While their numbers have increased in recent years, male nurses still only account for less than 1% of all nurses in China, according to the Ministry of Health.
In the United States and many European countries, the percentage of male nurses is around 10%, Beijing Peking University First Hospital head nurse Deng Jun said during a forum focusing on male nurses.
"We need to come up with more male nurses to meet the deficiency for male nurses in China," he said.
"The lack of male nurses is mainly due to the misconception that a nursing job is a disgraceful job requiring no technical skills with a comparatively poor salary," Deng said. "People hold the belief that men are too clumsy to clean a patient's body or take care of the sick. However, male nurses possess some unique features."
In some high-pressure and fast-paced working environments, such as operating rooms or emergency rooms, male nurses definitely have an advantage as well, Deng said. "It's difficult for a female nurse to turn over a paralyzed patient by herself in an intensive care unit. And during natural disasters, earthquakes for example, male nurses also play a vital role in rescuing victims and providing healthcare in a dangerous environment."
Men make up only 1,900 of the 69,000 registered nurses in the capital, and they mainly work in the departments that are "labor-demanding", according to the Beijing Municipal Health Bureau.
"I've seen so many male nurses quit or resign in the past few years," he said. "With a basic salary of around 1,500 yuan, most male nurses simply find themselves cornered."
"Many students even reject their identity as a male nurse, out of the long-existing discrimination," Zhao said. "But nursing truly needs the male because of their rational thinking, physical strength and calmness in face of emergency and disasters."
Nothing will change "until the public changes its attitude and nurses' pay is raised", he said. | high17606.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "9 months."
},
"options": [
"9 months.",
"10 months.",
"7 months.",
"6 months."
],
"question": "Whats the longest time the snow can last in Finland?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
{
"answer... | Finland lies in the north of Europe, and has Russia to the east. It is two different places in winter and summer. Summers there are fairly dry and hot, although by August things can already begin to get cold and unpleasant. Of course, winters are cold, but the cold is dry. In most parts snow comes in October and clears by the end of March, but in the northern parts snow can fall as early as September and stay until late May.
The tourist season in southern Finland is from early June to late August. This is when all the tourist attractions and summer programs are open, with steamboats and ferries traveling on the lakes and rivers, and festivals become very lively. Finnish holidays are from the summer high season in late June to the end of July. This is the time period of nights with sunlight, when Finland doesnt seem to sleep.
The tourist season in northern Finland is different. Mosquitoes can be annoying in July, but September is lovely with its autumn colors. October, February and March are good times to visit the north of Finland to view the aurora borealis , and enjoy winter activities such as skiing and dog sledding. The Christmas holiday period is also one of the best times in Finland --after all, this is the "official" home of Santa Claus. Helsinki, the capital of Finland, is popular all year round. | high10169.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "He hoped for something challenging and rewarding."
},
"options": [
"He hoped for a simpler life",
"He was fed up with a hard farm life.",
"Farm life was too demanding though he liked it.",
"He hoped for something challe... | Charlotte Hollins faces a battle. The 23-year-old British farmer and her 21-year-old brother Ben are fighting to save farm that their father worked on since he was 14. Although confident they will succeed, she is aware of farming's many challenges.
"You don't often get a day off. Supermarkets put a lot of pressure on farmers to keep prices low. With fewer people working on farms it can be isolating," she said. "There is a high rate of suicide and farming will never make you rich!"
Like others around the world, Charlotte's generation tend to leave the farm for cities.
Oliver Robinson, 25, grew up in Yorkshire. But he never considered staying on his father and grandfather's land. "I'm sure Dad hoped I'd stay," he said. "I guess it's a nice, straightforward life, but it doesn't appeal to me. For young, ambitious people, farm life is hard."
For Robinson, farming doesn't offer much "in terms of money or lifestyle". Hollins agrees that economic factors stop people from enjoying the rewards of farming. He describes it as a career that provides "for a vital human need", allowing people to work "outdoors with nature."
Farming is a big political issue in the UK. The "Buy British" campaigns urge consumers not to purchase cheaper imported foods. The 2001 foot and mouth crisis closed thousands of farms, stopped meat exports, and raised public consciousness about the troubles on UK farms.
Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver's 2005 campaign to get children eating healthily also highlighted the issue.
This national concern gives hope to farmers competing with powerful supermarkets. While most people buy food from the big supermarkets, hundreds of independent Farmers' Markets are becoming popular.
"I started going to Farmers' Markets in direct defiance of the big supermarkets. I seriously objected to the super-sizing of everything-what exactly do they put on our apples to make them so big and red? It's terrible," said Londoner Michaela Samson, 31. | high3730.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "spend years paying off their debts"
},
"options": [
"struggle to support their families",
"spend years paying off their debts",
"get through the hard times smoothly",
"are able to manage their own finances well"
],
... | Every year, thousands of new high school graduates pack their bags, move to new cities, and sign papers accepting loans, the money borrowed from a bank or lenders etc, which they might not be able to pay back. Without proper education on personal finance, especially as it relates to paying for college, young adults are guided into improper loan plans that result in years of debt after graduation. In order to set students up to succeed financially, it is important to educate students and parents on their financial options before school in the fall. The best way to support families heading for college is to require that every high school student take a personal finance class before graduation. This will help smooth the transition into adulthood.
The average student takes out at least one loan to cover the costs of their education each year. In 2014 the average student graduating from college carried a negative balance of about $20,000 in debt, which often spread over multiple lenders. Upon graduation, students rarely know exactly how much money they owe, and even though they are in the state of being unable to pay their debts, they cannot wipe out student loans. These students spend much of their adult lives paying off the gradual increasing debts.
A personal finance course would teach students how to manage their income and expenditures, while helping to significantly reduce the amount of debt students carry into adulthood. By teaching students how to save money and live within their means, this course will provide the next generation with a foundation to progress financially. Students choosing to get a job straight out of high school would also benefit from finance education for these very reasons. With education on how to manage their finances, all young people will have the knowledge to make healthy decisions, leading them to improve good credit and purchase needed items like cars and homes with skill and confidence.
While not every young person makes financial mistakes, those who do can face years of difficulty trying to get their finances back under control. Rather than help them through these hard times when they happen, we should try to prevent them from happening at all. Making the completion of personal finance coursework a requirement for graduation would ensure that young people are at least aware of the basics of preserving a financial stability. | high15011.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "incredible"
},
"options": [
"terrible",
"worried",
"incredible",
"moved"
],
"question": "What's the true feeling of the author when he saw both his parents in the recovery room?",
"question_type": null
},
... | The surgeries went well, and not long afterwards, my sister and I were allowed to go in to visit. Dad was in a great deal of pain but, again, all he could talk about was Mom, who donated her kidney to him. Was she okay? How was she feeling? As they were wheeling Mom out of the recovery room, they rolled her into a separate place in Dad's to visit him. It was like a dream to see both our parents hooked up to IVs and machines and trying to talk to each other through tears. The nurses allowed us to present the diamond ring, which was purchased by Dad before the surgery, to Mom so that Dad could watch her open it. Everybody was crying, even the nurses.
As I stood with digital camera in hand, I tried to keep the presence of mind to document the moment. My dad was having a hard time fighting back emotion, and suddenly my parents reached out to hold each other's hands. In my nearly 35 years of existence, I'd never seen my parents do that, and I was absorbed in. I snapped a picture and later rushed home to make sure I'd captured that enormous, life-defining moment. _ . After so many years of quarrels, it was apparent to me that they finally understood how much each loved the other actually .
It's as if the transplant healed our whole family. Dad is far gentler, and he has more patience now. He's not condescending to my mother anymore. Mom, too, has loosened up, since she's not dealing with all that anger. There's a closeness that they didn't have before, and the experience has deepened their faith.
For Christmas, my sister and I gave them two framed photos linked together by hooks. The top photo is of their clasped hands on their wedding day, August 7, 1965. It says, "For better or worse, for richer or poorer." The second photo is of that day in the recovery room. Their hands are intertwined and it says, "In sickness and in health, till death do us part." | high8665.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "It's a good idea to write a letter of apology as soon as something has gone wrong."
},
"options": [
"It's a good idea to write a letter of apology as soon as something has gone wrong.",
"It's a good idea to send several emails to a... | It is impossible not to make a mistake at some points in your life. We may as well accept that something will go wrong and we will be to blame. It is therefore sensible to work out some strategies for apologizing, and the best way to apologize is by letter. This way you can take care over every work you write-- which you can't do if you say sorry to someone in person.
We all say or do something that we wish we hadn't said or done. You may say something that accidentally hurts someone, or you may provide a service which doesn't come up to the standards that a client or customer expected.
You may feel that it was a genuine mistake which couldn't be avoided. Rather than dwell on the mistake, you should quickly try to remedy the problem. An effective letter of apology is an important part of that process.
For the contents of the letter, just remember TABS--Timing, Action, Brevity, Sincerity.
The timing of a letter of apology is essential--it must be sent as soon as possible. Any delay in our sending the letter will only compound the problem. In this case "Better late than never" is not the best motto! The longer you wait before you wait before writing a letter of apology, the more it will seem that you have been coerced into writing it.
Although it is important to recognize what has gone before, it is also essential to detail the action you plan to take to rectify whatever it was you did wrong. Research has shown that some indication that you have thought about what future action you plan to take is always well received.
A letter of apology should be brief and the word "sorry" should appear no more than twice. Indicate that you are aware using it a second time--"once again, I am so sorry for..." or "as I said earlier, I am really sorry about...". Finally, the tone of the letter has to be sincere. In fact, the combination of all the above factors will help in this respect.
And don't think that letters are out of date in the email--oriented 21st century. An apology email can be worse than no apology at all! | high7556.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "you are welcome and your friends all like to be with you"
},
"options": [
"you are traditional and prefer to stay with your family",
"you are easy to accept new ideas",
"you are welcome and your friends all like to be with yo... | This may be music to your ears.
Researchers P. Jason Rentfrow and Samuel Gosling gave 3,500 people a personality quiz. Then they asked them to name their favorite kind of music. "We found that the musical style people like are closely linked to their personalities," Gosling says.
RAP/HIP-HOP
Known for their quick speech, some rappers can say more than 700 syllables a minute!
If you like rap/hip-hop, you are energetic and have a way with words. _ , whether it's new moves on the dance floor or your hip style.
CLASSLCAL
In the 18thcentury, classical musicians were like rock stars. Beethoven and Mozart, for example, played in packed concert halls.
If you like classical, you are open to new ideas and like debating with friends. Creative and imaginative, you can easily spend many hours scrapbooking, writing or painting.
COUNTRY
Country music came from the folk songs of English, Scottish, and Irish settlers of the southeastern United States.
If you like country, you express your opinions well, which makes you the ideal class president or team captain. Traditional and loyal, you enjoy spending time with your family.
POP
Pop music is designed to appeal to almost everyone, and it does. Each year, the industry brings in about 30 billion dollars!
If you like pop, you are attractive to your friends. You can make big things happen, like planning for a huge party or inspiring your team to victory.
ROCK
In the 1950s, rock music created a brand-new culture. Teenagers, for the first time, had an identity separate from adults and children.
If you like rock, you are a risk-taker who never accepts no for an answer. You rise to any challenge, like doing very well in a big exam or landing the lead in the school play.
If these personality profiles don't match you, that's OK. These are just for fun. | high6890.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "Free market plus government intervention."
},
"options": [
"Free market plus government intervention.",
"Timely reform of government at all levels.",
"Heavy reliance on the hand of government.",
"Copying western-style e... | For most of the 20th century, Asia asked itself what it could learn from the modern, innovating West. Now the question must be reversed. What can the West's overly indebted and sluggish nations learn from a flourishing Asia?
Just a few decades ago, Asia's two giants were stagnating under faulty economic ideologies. However, once China began embracing free-market reforms in the 1980s, followed by India in the 1990s, both countries achieved rapid growth. Crucially, as they opened up their markets, they balanced market economy with sensible government direction. As the Indian economist Amartya Sen has wisely said, "The invisible hand of the market has often relied heavily on the visible hand of government."
Contrast this middle path with America and Europe, which have each gone ideologically over-board in their own ways. Since the 1980s, America has been increasingly clinging to the ideology of uncontrolled free markets and dismissing the role of government---following Ronald Regan's idea that "government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem. "Of course, when the markets came crashing down in 2007, it was decisive government intervention that saved the day. Despite this fact, many Americans are still strongly opposed to "big government."
If Americans could only free themselves from their antigovernment doctrine(,), they would begin to see that the America's problems are not insoluble. A few sensible federal measures could put the country back on the right path. A simple consumption tax of, say, 5% would significantly reduce the country's huge government deficit without damaging productivity. A small gasoline tax would help free America from its dependence on oil imports and create motivations for green energy development. In the same way, a significant reduction of wasteful agricultural subsidies could also lower the deficit. But in order to take advantage of these common-sense solutions, Americans will have to put aside their own attachment to the idea of smaller government and less regulation. American politicians will have to develop the courage to follow what is taught in all American public-policy schools: that there are good taxes and bad taxes. Asian countries have embraced this wisdom, and have built sound long-term fiscal policies as a result.
Meanwhile, Europe has fallen prey to a different ideological trap: the belief that European governments would always have infinite resources and could continue borrowing as if there were no tomorrow. Unlike the Americans, who felt that the markets knew best, the Europeans failed to expect how the markets would react to their endless borrowing. Today, the European Union is creating a $580 billion fund to prevent sovereign collapse. This will buy the EU time, but it will not solve the bloc's larger problem. | high22865.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "All the year around"
},
"options": [
"Only summer",
"All the year around",
"Holidays",
"Weekdays"
],
"question": "Which is the suitable time to visit Brighton ?",
"question_type": "factiod_questions"
},
... | Brighton: It is a seaside resort on the English Channel. Only 50 miles from London, it offers a good variety of lively entertainment. It is a cheerful place, busy and crowded in the summer, but alive in every season of the year. Its royal pavilion is a masterpiece of English architecture.
Durham: Whatever travelers see or don't see in England, they must see this city, in the northeast, just south of NewcastleuponTyne. No one will forget the sight of its cathedral and castle rising together on a steep hill overlooking a loop in the River Wear, which almost surrounds them. The cathedral itself is one of the great medieval(,476~1500)buildings in Europe.
Liverpool: A port in the northwest of England which possesses a quality that is not found in quite the same way anywhere else in England: the quality of grandeur . Liverpool has this grandeur in its site on the broad River Mersey (more than half a mile wide) with the houses rising near it; in its great dock buildings, its broad streets, and its two enormous cathedrals.
Edinburgh: It has long been the capital of Scotland. Edinburgh Castle is Edinburgh's important building, controlling the city from its perch on a rock over a hundred meters above sea level. Another important building is the Palace of Holyrood House, begun by James III around 1500. Between the castle and the palace is the Royal Mile, which was the center of Edinburgh life before the 17th century and is fascinating to visit now. | high6648.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "make their foods seen clearly"
},
"options": [
"make their foods seen clearly",
"make their foods look attractive",
"let customers know their guiding philosophy",
"show their foods are environmentally friendly"
],
... | Stubbornness(,) can push a business to hold on but can also kill your business if it keeps stopping you.
Because I'm stubborn. I chased my dream of creating a pet-food company that sells what it claims to sell and not some unidentifiable substance in a dressed-up bag. Originally we packed our foods in transparent bags, which became our guiding philosophy.
To start the company in 2003, I visited every pet-food store in Manhattan and some outside the city. By 2006 Stella&Chewy's was sold in 250 stores, mostly in New York City. In 2007 I moved the company to Wisconsin, with our earnings reaching almost $500,000 that year.But getting my product into stores was just the beginning. We were competing against much bigger pet-food companies whose monthly marketing budgets were more than our yearly sales. So we invested in advertisements and a website and even stood on sidewalks giving our samples.
With more customers came more feedback , much of which I ignored, I was also receiving complaints about ice crystals on the food, which form when the air temperature changes during transport. For this reason, most frozen foods are packaged in opaque bags or boxes. Studies have proved that ice crystals have little effect on either the quality or the taste of the food. So I ignored the complaints. After all, we were better than our competitors that wouldn't even show their products. We didn't hide anything.
In 2007 our sales kept growing, but not as fast as those of our competitors. We were told that new consumers were choosing products packaged in opaque bags. When I visited the stores and forced myself to consider my products objectively, I had to degree: The ice crystals reduced the look I wanted. The food looked as if a snowstorm had hit the inside of the bag.
We switched to opaque bags and tried to make ice crystals smaller. Customers responded: In 2009 Stella$Chewy's was sold in 2,500 stores across the country. | high14469.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "A 4-day travel."
},
"options": [
"A big meal in Chicago.",
"A 4-day travel.",
"A holiday abroad.",
"A get-together with family."
],
"question": "What did the author decide to treat himself to?",
"question_ty... | I decided a few months ago that l was going to treat myself to a 4-day getaway from Los Angeles and visit Chicago. I turned in some long-saved frequent flier miles for the airplane ticket, but had to shell out cash I really couldn't afford for the hotel. I found a travel website where a discounted promotional 3-night stay was purchased from a recently opened hotel.
About three weeks before the trip, I had to regretfully cancel and only then realized the room, while transferable to another person, couldn't be changed to a later date and wasn't refundable .For the next two weeks, I tried selling it on Craig's list with no success. Five days before the "big weekend" I gave up trying to spend any money and decided I'd contact some friends who live in Chicago and offer someone a free "staycation". After trying a handful of people all of whom already had their own plans, I was determined to have the room not go to waste.
That's when it suddenly occurred to me that I was looking at the rooms in the wrong way. Instead of viewing them for vacation purposes, surely there must be a way to put them to good use, and that was when the idea that some sort of shelter might be able to use it hit me. I finally found one whose focus is aiding victims of domestic violence. This particular one was willing to listen to my out-of-left-field story and facilitated the transfer of the rooms. The shelter was working with a desperate woman and her young daughter, who were fortunately able to make use of the room. | high13306.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "The development of economy"
},
"options": [
"The diversity of society.",
"The decline of the population.",
"The development of economy",
"The improvement of the environment."
],
"question": "What may endanger th... | Today, several of the world's nearly 7,000 languages face a serious risk of extinction. "For example, Ainu, a language in Japan, is now seriously threatened, with only 10 native speakers left," said lead study author Tatsuya Amano at the University of Cambridge in England.
The scientists found that 25 percent of the world's languages are threatened. After identifying where the endangered languages were, they looked for any environmental and social or economic factors those languages might have in common, such as rugged terrain or rapid population growth. "We found that at the global scale, language speaker declines are strongly linked to economic growth-that is, declines are particularly occurring in economically developed regions," Amano said.
One important implication of this new study "is that languages in the tropics and Himalayan region are likely to be increasingly threatened in the near future, because these regions still have many local indigenous languages with a small number of speakers, and at the same time are experiencing rapid economic growth," Amano said.
Economic growth may endanger languages for a variety of reasons. For instance, speakers of endangered languages may view another more dominant language as offering economic opportunities, and thus forego their own languages. There are other important factors that might endanger languages, the researchers said. For instance, policies regarding how languages are used and taught in schools can be very different among countries and even within each country, and these factors may explain more detailed patterns in language endangerment.
Amano suggested it could be possible to forecast future threats to linguistic diversity. "There exists detailed information on projected future changes in the environment, economies and climates," Amano said. "Using such information, together with the findings of this study and further analysis, we would like to understand what will happen to the world's languages, where it will happen and which languages will be threatened in particular." | high12018.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "has online classes and no real classrooms"
},
"options": [
"is set up after the rise of the Internet",
"uses textbooks as a main teaching resource",
"uses computer-based resources and has no teachers",
"has online class... | Forty-two of the fifty American states offered some kind of public online learning this past school year.One state,Michigan,now requires all students to have an online learning experience before they finish high school.Even the idea of a school has changed since the rise ofthe Internet in the 1990s.
A new report from the Center for Evaluation and Education Policy at Indiana University says eighteen states have full-time virtual schools.There are no buildings.All classes are online.
Florida started the first statewide public virtual school in the United States in 1997.Today,the Florida Virtual School offers more man ninety courses.56,000 students were enrolled as of December.Almost sixty percent were female.The school's website says each student was enrolled in an average of two classes.
Florida Virtual School has now opened the Florida Virtual Global School.Students in other countries pay for classes.Janet Heiking teaches an English class.She lives in Indianapolis, Indiana.Her students live as far away as Africa and Japan.She says they are taking her Advanced Placement class to prepare for attending an American college.They can earn college credits by passing the AP test.
So how good are virtual schools? Studies have shown mixed results, as a new report from Indiana University notes.For example, students at Florida Virtual School earned higher grades than those taking the same courses the traditional way.And they scored higher on a statewide
test.But virtual school students in Kansas and Colorado had lower test scores or performed at a lower level than traditional learners.Studies also find that virtual schools may not save much in operating costs.
Education experts say the mixed results suggest the need for more research to find the best ways to teach in virtual schools.A1so, they say schools of education need to train more teachers to work in both real and virtual classrooms. | high15777.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Bronte Beach--Bondi Beach--Palm Beach---Sydney Beach"
},
"options": [
"Palm Beach---Sydney Beach--Bronte Beach--Bondi Beach",
"Bronte Beach--Bondi Beach--Palm Beach---Sydney Beach",
"Sydney Beach--Palm Beach--Bondi Beach---Br... | Whether you're up for a Crocodile Dundee adventure or you'd just like a taste of the Australian sun, the beaches in and around Sydney can offer you all that and more.
Sydney Beach
Sydney Beach is located at Sydney's northernmost tip on an extension of land ending at Palm Beach. Before checking out the golden sand, take a quick tour of the houses of millionaires from the art and film industries.
Palm Beach
Only about an hour from downtown Sydney, Palm Beach offers a long stretch of clean sand and water. With parking near the center of the beach, that leaves the rest of it as a _ population and peaceful location from which you can surf or body board--but take care; without the huge crowds of other Sydney beaches, Palm Beach doesn't afford quite the safety level to be found elsewhere; volunteer lifesavers are on duty only on weekends and holidays.
Bondi Beach
For the big name beach, Bondi Beach has to be your choice. Parking is difficult to find even on slow days, so consider taking public transport to this world-known beach in the eastern Sydney suburbs. Easily reachable by taxi, bus, and rail, Bondi Beach offers sun bathing, swimming, snorkeling, and all sorts of water sports fun. If you're in the mood for a bit of exercise, two scenic coastal walks will afford you great views and sights along the shore. Take in views from Mackenzie's Point. It starts at Bondi and heads south to Bronte Beach. But don't try to swim in Mackenzie's Bay--it holds dangers such as hidden rocks.
Bronte Beach
Your second choice for a scenic coastal walk covers a little under two miles and takes you from Bronte Beach to Waverly Cemetery, where many famous Australians are buried, including poets Henry Kendall, Doreothea Mackellar, and Henry Lawson. | high8103.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "a travel book"
},
"options": [
"an advertisement",
"a news report",
"a research paper",
"a travel book"
],
"question": "This passage is most likely taken from _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
}
] | Visitors to Fiji enjoy not only some of the world's best _ , with beautiful blue waters and the famous Rainbow Reef,but also rich history and culture spanning thousands of years.While you'll surely spend plenty of time on the beach in Fiji, why not check out some of these cultural destinations to get a sense of traditional life in Fiji?
The Meke is a native dance performed by indigenous Fijians wearing leis and grass skirts.Although similar in importance to the hula dance of Hawaiian the Meke is like nothing you'll see on any other island.Experiencing this culturally and historically significant dance is something that visitors to Fiji simply must do.
Indigenous Fijians are very proud of their heritage,something you'll notice immediately upon walking into the National Museum.The Fiji Museum is located in the beautiful botanical gardens of Suva,the capital city of Fiji. There,you'll find an archaeological collection dating back thousands of years,evidence of Fiji's long history.The lengthy history of Fiji can also be seen in its buildings, including the Parliament Houses and Sri Siva Subramaniya, a Hindu temple.
While you're in Suva to visit the Fiji museum,take plenty of time to absorb the local culture. Suva offers a very active nightlife, including live bands and other forms of entertainment. If you're looking for a Meke show,Suva is a good bet on any night of the week. The city is also a popular destination for tourists looking for souvenirs,including carved Tiki masks and statues.
Like any tropical island vacation, Fiji offers white sandy beaches,palm trees,and beautiful blue skies .If you're planning a variation to Fiji,don't forget to schedule plenty of time to visit cultural and historical sites,and to take in the parts of Fiji that truly can't be found anywhere else in the world. | high1899.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Dance"
},
"options": [
"Sing",
"Dance",
"Direct",
"Act"
],
"question": "What did Eartha Kitt do when she first performed around the world? _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
... | "It's So Good" in French, was one of Eartha Mae Kitt's first hit songs. But her childhood wasn't so good. She was born into a poor family in South Carolina in nineteen twenty-seven. When Eartha was eight, her mother remarried. Her stepfather did not like her so she was sent to New York City to live with an aunt, who helped pay for her piano and dance lessons.
Eartha Kitt worked in a factory as a young teenager. But she kept up her dance lessons. One day she tried out for a famous African-American dance company. Soon, Eartha was performing in shows around the world with the Katherine Dunham Dance Troupe.
In Paris, Eartha left the dance company to sing in a nightclub. Her voice was very attracting. She learned French quickly and gained French fans. Soon the film director Orson Welles discovered Eartha Kitt singing in Paris. Welles asked her to play a lead part in a play he was directing. The play made her find her acting talent for the first time.
After that Eartha Kitt returned to New York and appeared in the Broadway show with "Monotonous", a song about a bored woman, and it became famous. She soon signed with a record company.
Then Eartha Kitt acted her first role in a film in nineteen fifty-seven in "Mark of the Hawk". Kitt was very careful about choosing her roles in films. She refused parts that were not respectful to black people. In nineteen sixty-seven, Eartha Kitt got the part of Catwoman on the popular television series "Batman". Fans loved the special way she said her "r"s to create a sound like a cat, which made her an unforgettable Catwoman.
She was strongly against the Vietnam War and in nineteen sixty-eight she became blacklisted in America. For about ten years, she could only find work in other countries. But that brought her a greater international achievement. | high7230.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "have a song sung in her movie"
},
"options": [
"own the copyright on a song",
"have it write a song for her movie",
"have it play a song in her movie",
"have a song sung in her movie"
],
"question": "Jennifer Ne... | Filmmaker Jennifer Nelson had to pay $1,500 to have "Happy Birthday to You" sung in the movie she's making. The money went to Warner Music Group, a company that claims to own the copyright on the song. A copyright is the legal right to use or sell a creative product such as a song, a TV show, a book, or a work of art. Warner has claimed the copyright for "Happy Birthday to You" since 1988.
"I never thought the song was owned by anyone," Nelson said in an e-mail to The New York Times. "I thought it belonged to everyone."
Nelson's movie is a documentary -- a film that uses pictures and/or interviews with people to create a factual report of real-life events -- and is actually about the history of the "Happy Birthday" song itself.
Two sisters named Mildred and Patty Hill wrote a song called "Good Morning to All" in 1893. Over a short period of time, people began to sing the words "happy birthday to you" in place of the original lyrics to the tune of the Hill sisters' song.
A number of history experts say that there is no record of who actually wrote the "Happy Birthday to You" lyrics . Historians also say there is no way to know when the general public began singing the "Happy Birthday" song, but they believe it was being sung by the public long before it was printed and owned by a company.
Nelson's lawyers say this piece of music's history proves that "Happy Birthday to You" belongs to everyone in the general public. That would mean Warner Music Group has no right to charge anyone a fee to sing the song in any setting.
Experts estimate that Warner/ Chappell, the publishing division of the Warner Music Group, has made about $2 million a year from licensing fees for "Happy Birthday to You."
Nelson's lawyers are asking a court in New York City to order Warner/Chappell to return fees they have collected over the past four years for use of the "Happy Birthday" song. | high11511.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "Because he could hardly hire a farmhand."
},
"options": [
"Because he needed hired hands all. the year round.",
"Because there was too much work to do on the farm.",
"Because he could hardly hire a farmhand.",
"Because ... | Years ago a farmer owned land along the Atlantic. He constantly advertised for hired hands. Most people were not willing to work on farms along the Atlantic because they worried about the terrible storms that destroy buildings and crops. The farmer received a steady stream of refusals at the interview for a farmhand
Finally, a short, thin man approached the farmer. "Are you a good farmhand?" the farmer asked him.
"Well, I can sleep when the wind blows. " answered the little man.
Although puzzled by this answer ,the farmer, desperate for help, hired him. The little man worked well around the farm ,busy from dawn to dusk, and the farmer felt satisfied with the man's work.
Then one night the wind howled loudly from offshore. Jumping out of bed,the farmer grabbed a lantern and rushed next door to the hired hand's sleeping quarters. He shook the little man and yelled, " Get up! A storm is coming! Tie things down before they are blown away! "
The little man rolled over in bed and said firmly, "No sir. I told you, I can sleep when the wind blows. "
Enraged by the response, the farmer was tempted to fire him on the spot ,Instead, he hurried outside to prepare for the storm. To his amazement,he discovered that all of the hay had been covered. The cows were in the bam,the chickens were in the coops,and the doors were barred The shutters were tightly secured. Everything was tied down, Nothing could be blown away.
The farmer then understood what his hired hand meant, so he also returned to his bed to sleep while the wind was still blowing. | high3056.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "loved performing at school"
},
"options": [
"had nine brothers and sisters",
"live a happy life as a child",
"loved performing at school",
"fell in love with music at the age of 11"
],
"question": "According to ... | Michael Joseph Jackson was born on August 29,1958 in Gary, Indiana. Being the seventh child in his family, Michael was often physically abused by his father, beaten up and also orally abused. But Michael also owed his success to his father's strict discipline.
Michael was always an entertainer. Even when he just started school, he would perform in front of his friends and classmates. He started his professional music career at the age of 11, as a member of The Jackson Five.
He is well-known for increasing the popularity of MTV through his music videos. Before this, music videos were made just to promote the album. But Michael's videos managed to change that by making them an art and a big business. Some of the music videos that are good examples of this are Beat It, Billie Jean, and thriller. Through these works the world got caught onto the idea of music videos and focused on music video channels.
Michael _ his fans and audience with his style of singing, dressing, and his complex dance moves, especially the moonwalks all around the world to show their love for him.
Through his work and various foundations , Michael raised and donated millions to charity, which is much more than any showman. He supported 39 charities in all. Apart from that, he had a great love for children, especially the poor ones, and he felt that children were the best thing than God.
Michael planned to start a 50-concert tour in July 2009. Sadly on June 25th, 2009, Michael passed away at home. Besides a great performer, showman and entertainer, he was a good and charitable person. Nobody can be another graeter entertainer like Michael Jackson ever again. | high2348.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "The majority of the residents are satisfied with their current life."
},
"options": [
"All the residents can make great fortunes by working hard.",
"The residents there are mostly educators.",
"All the residents enjoy enough ... | The Happiest Cities On Earth
If you're looking for a cheery destination for your next vacation, consider these four spots and get ready to take notes on how to really live the good life.
Singapore
With one of the highest population densities in the world and residents known for being workaholics, it's hard to imagine the city-state of Singapore having one of the happiest populations on earth. And yet in a recent survey, 95% of them said they were either very happy or quite happy.
They give their city high marks for cleanliness and safety--subways are pristine and unfailingly arrive on time, and police are seen as helpful and good at their jobs. What's more, they feel they can count on their neighbours--all 5.1 million of them.
Arhus, Denmark
The residents of Arhus cheerfully part with 68% of their income in taxes, knowing that in return they will be guaranteed free healthcare, free daycare, and a top-notch education for their children.
An energetic city of 300,000 with a lively cultural scene and a diverse number of religions represented, _ (the range in incomes is narrow), as well as easy access to the nearby sea and surrounding countryside, make Arhus seem more like a small town.
San Luis Obispo, CA
According to a 2008 Gallup-Healthways study, people who live in San Luis Obispo are more likely than residents of other U.S. cities to smile and experience joy and are less likely to experience pain or depression. About 64,000 of the 260,000 people in the greater metropolitan area , located halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco, volunteer at over 11,000 non-profit organizations.
Few journeys to work are longer than 10 minutes (one reason its members rank in the upper third for job satisfaction), so "it's easy to be involved," resident Pierre Rademaker said. Business signs are unobtrusive by law, fewer than 11% of residents smoke--the lower rate in the U.S.--there are lots of bike lanes, and the city's plaza draws crowds of people for free concerts on summer Fridays. What's not to love?
Monterrey, Mexico
The people of Monterrey don't enjoy high household incomes or access to good healthcare. Instead, there's a profound sense of gratitude for the new political freedom enjoyed since the oppressive Institutional Revolutionary Party lost power in 2000--the first time in nearly a century--as well as an emphasis on social life over work.
Another reason Monterrey residents may be so happy is their faith in God and family, and their ability to tough it out through bad times.
"We laugh at sickness, poverty and even death," says Basanez, a political scientist who lives in Monterrey. "We even have a holiday to celebrate death. November 2, the Day of the Dead, is one of the biggest holidays of the year." | high5427.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "adolescent sleep requirements"
},
"options": [
"the later public school start time",
"the change of class schedule",
"adolescent sleep requirements",
"the changes in school system"
],
"question": "The research c... | Dozens of school districts around the country have been looking at these studies and are considering ways to adjust their class schedules.
Eric Peterson is head of St. George's School, a private boarding school for grades 9-12 in the northeastern state of Rhode Island.
After looking at the medical research on adolescent sleep needs and observing students in his own school, Peterson consulted with Dr. Judy Owen, a famous pediatrician and sleep expert.
Armed with what he considered to be convincing data, Peterson decided to change his school's start time from 8:00 am to 8:30 am on a trial basis to see if a 30-minute change would make a difference. He was surprised by the results.
"What was really astonishing was how many benefits and how significant the benefits were," he says. "In the research itself, we saw just over a 50 percent decrease in health-center admissions for fatigue, or fatigue-related illness, or rest requests. We saw almost a 35 percent decrease in first-period lateness. Students reported that they were more attentive. They were less sleepy during the day."
And, according to Dr. Patricia Moss, assistant dean for Academic Affairs at St. George's School, students weren't the only ones reporting better results in the classroom. She says virtually all the teachers almost immediately noticed much more concentrated in the classroom, and there was definitely a more positive mood all around.
"Kids were happier to be there at 8:30 than they were at 8:00," she says. "So our experience across the total spectrum was, universally, extremely positive and surprisingly so."
Headmaster Peterson says there was another unexpected area of change when the school changed its start time.
"We saw probably a greater than 30 percent increase in student attendance at breakfast, and of the food that they were eating. We ate more than doubled the amount of milk, eggs, fruit and cereal. So it was quality breakfast foods that the kids were eating. So they were better fueled as well as better rested."
Ross and Peterson acknowledge that making schedule changes has been easier at a small, private boarding school than it might be for the larger U.S. public school system. But they are hopeful that others will find a way.
"In the end," says Peterson, "schools ought to do what's the right thing for their students, first and foremost, and this element of the program is very clear--certain for us as a school--but I think as a general example to other schools, is pretty convincing, and so I would argue that it's worth doing." | high18253.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "87 percent of kids in the USwho use the Internet"
},
"options": [
"66 percent of adults in the world who use the Internet",
"87 percent of kids in the USwho use the Internet",
"81 percent of kids in the USwho use the Internet... | When Nick Pasqua hits his bedroom after school, he's tired. The 14-year-old high school freshman from New Rochele, New York, plays computer video games online for a couple of hours, pausing only to instant-message his friends, check his blog or download a new song to his IPOD. When his cell phone vibrates , he scans the text message and fires back a reply.
"We're leagues behind," sighs Nick's mom, Kimberly Pasqua, 45. And many parents like her are feeling increasingly out of step with their children.
The technology gap between parents and kids is widening, says Amenda Lenhart, senior research specialist for Internet & American Life Project, a research group that explores the impact of the Internet on children and families. In a series of reports released last year, researchers found that 87 percent of the prefix = st1 /United States' kids aged 12 to 17 use the Internet, compared to only 66 percent of adults. Half of those teens go online daily. Eighty-one percent play games online and 75 percent use instant-messaging. Nearly half(45 percent) have a cell phone. One out of five has a blog.
Why are children increasing past their parents? Because today's kids learn to use computers by playing and think technology is fun, says Lenhart. But adults generally view computers as mere tools for work , not toys.
Despite this difference, most parents realize that computers, cell phones and the like are fixtures in their children's lives. With that acceptance comes worry about what makes appropriate usage and more important, what's safe. Experts say the best way to keep up is to learn the technology for yourself. Visit blogs. Send some instant and text messages. Download music. "This stuff may never be as necessary to your life as it is to your kids," says Susannah Stern, assistant professor in the Communications Department at UniversityofSan Diego, "but you won't get their respect about online issues if you don't know what they're talking about." Children can be great teachers, so let them show you the ropes. "It's empowering for them to share their knowledge," says Stern. Once you know what's what, try to keep the lines of communication open and carefully watch what they're doing. | high17160.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Opportunity."
},
"options": [
"Status.",
"Freedom.",
"Individuality.",
"Opportunity."
],
"question": "Which of the following doesn't a car represent,according to the passage?",
"question_type": null
},
{... | China's economy grows,salaries rise;and more city residents feel the need to hit the road in what has become a symbol of individuality and freedom--a car.China has a growing love affair with the car.This is clear at the Beijing Asian Games Village Automobile Exchange,where more and more people come to look and,increasingly,to buy.
The Asian Games Village Automobile Exchange is the biggest car dealership inBeijing.General manager Guo Yong says the business sells more than 2,000 cars each week.Guo says it is much easier for Chinese consumers to buy a car now.Also,the emergence of less expensive domestic brands like Chery and BYD means more Chinese can afford cars.
For decades,most Chinese city residents have got about by bicycle or public buses and trains.Now,in many areas,the number of new cars is growing faster than the road system,leaving city streets jammed with traffic.
Guo Liang has wanted to buy a car for a decade,and he will be the first in his family to own one.He is not prevented by Beijing's traffic jams.Guo says if the traffic is too bad,he will use the ear for leisure or holidays with his family.
World Bank transportation specialist Shomik Mendhiratta says a car is something people in any society would be eager to own."Getting a car makes people feel like they have arrived in the middle class."Mendhiratta said."It has got a huge status associated with it.It's a fantastic thing to have,if you have never had a car.A car gives you a mobility that's unbelievable." | high19159.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "They took the order even without being rewarded."
},
"options": [
"They took the order even without being rewarded.",
"They took the order only when rewarded.",
"They turned a deaf ear to repeated orders.",
"They hesita... | Dogs have an understanding of fair play and become angry if they feel that another dog is getting a better deal, a new study has found.
The study looked at how dogs react when a companion is rewarded for the same trick in an unequal way. Friederike Range, a researcher at the University of Vienna in Austria, and her colleagues did a series of experiments with dogs who knew how to respond to the command "give the paw ". The dogs were normally happy to repeatedly give the paw, whether they got a reward or not. But that changed if they saw that another dog was being rewarded with a piece of food, while they received nothing.
"We found that the dogs hesitated significantly longer when obeying the command to give the paw," the researchers write. The unrewarded dogs eventually stopped cooperating.
Scientists have long known that humans pay close attention to inequity. But researchers always assumed that animals didn't share the trait. "The argument was that this is a uniquely human phenomenon," says Frans de Waal, a professor of psychology at Emory University in Atlanta.
That changed in 2003 when he and a colleague did a study on monkeys. The monkeys had to hand a small rock to researchers to get a piece of cucumber in return. They were happy to do this. But if they saw that another monkey was getting a more delicious reward, a grape, for doing the same job, they would throw away the food and rock, and at some point just stopped performing.
In that experiment, the monkeys considered the fairness of two different types of payment. But when Range and her colleagues did a similar study with their trained dogs, testing to see if dogs would become upset if they only got dark bread when other dogs received sausage, they found that as long as the dogs got some kind of food payment, even if it wasn't the most delicious kind, the animals would play along. | high11505.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 2,
"answer_text": "he was a teenager"
},
"options": [
"it was winter",
"he traveled by train",
"he was a teenager",
"it was the year of 1969"
],
"question": "When the author had his unforgettable family vacation, _ .",
"que... | Before summer ends, you might want to consider reading The Shaping of A Christian Home by Elizabeth Elliot. She writes beautifully of her family summer cottage in Franconia, Maine. She mentions that every family should have a place to get away together.
The summer of my fourteenth year, Dad and Mom planned a wonderful family vacation that I'll never forget. We took a road trip in our 1969 Chrysler. We camped through the Great Smoky Mountain National Park and back home by way of Washington D.C. To save money, we stayed in a tent and cooked our own meals on a camp stove. It was a wonderful vacation. Whenever we could, we talked Dad into staying at a campground with a swimming pool.
We camped in a large tent big enough to sleep eight average-sized people who didn't mind sleeping close enough to hear one another breathe. It wasn't a cottage in Franconia, but served a similar purpose for our family. Most nights I slept in my own small tent. Each night I went to sleep listening to the music or sleep to the sound of frogs.
In Maine, we didn't have a cottage in the mountains or a house on the lake. I doubt if we ever will. But I have happy memories of a family vacation, looking into a campfire, swimming with my brothers and my sister and walking under the stars. | high20900.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "The Kurzweil machine can help blind people and short-sighted children."
},
"options": [
"Computers can solve all the problems people can't do.",
"Large computers can only solve one problem at a time.",
"When using the Kurzwei... | Computers have many uses today. Computers can solve difficult problems and control other machines. Many people use small computers called calculators to solve simple maths problems quickly. Scientists use large computers to solve many problems at the same time. You can play games with computers, and some computers can help you learn languages. The Kurzweil Reading Machine is a special kind of computer. It can read books for blind people.
To use the Kurzweil machine, a blind person can simply open the book and put it down on the scanner . The machine "reads" the words on the page. When one page is finished, the blind person turns the page and puts the book on the scanner again. The Kurzweil machine can read in a normal voice or in a special fast voice. _ can read words with small letters and large letters.
Blind people like the Kurzweil machine because they can "read" anything with it: newspapers, magazines, books, even typed letters. Many libraries now have Kurzweil Machine for blind people to use. The Kurzweil machine can also help short-sighted children learn to read. | high18247.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Rick Perry"
},
"options": [
"Katrina",
"Rick Perry",
"Flossie",
"Sandy"
],
"question": "It can be inferred that _ is one of the policymakers who believe that humans are not to blame for global warming.",
... | The environmental group 350.org has launched a new campaign called Climate Name Change that proposes to revise to how hurricanes are named: call them after policymakers who say that humans are not to blame for global warming.
This will save the Katrinas and Sandys of the world from the injustice of having their names attached to major disaster, the group says. And, as a bonus, it will produce some peculiar weather reports.
"Rick Perry leaves trail of death," appears under a broadcast titled "Rick Perry: The Tragedy."
"Michelle Bachman is incredibly dangerous. If you value your life, please seek shelter from Michelle Bachman," says an official while addressing a news conference.
The campaign is unlikely to influence the World Meteorological Organization, which has since 1954 named Atlantic tropical storms from an official list.
But the campaign's goal seems less to actually name a hurricane after the speaker of the house, and more to call attention to an issue that this month has reached an alarming level of seriousness. The campaign comes just a month before the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change will release its most recent report on the state of global warming and a week after a draft of the report was given away to Reuters.
In the draft, scientists concluded with near certainty - about 95 percent sure - that humans are to blame for the worldwide temperature hikes over the last few decades. That was a revision from the 2007 report, which put scientific certainty that human activities were driving global climate change at about 90 percent.
And global warming, the report said, is not slowing down - it, actually, is accelerating. That means that sea levels could balloon upward as much as three feet by the end of the century, if emissions continue at their current pace.
Still, as the Washington Post Climate notes, hurricanes are not the best sign of global warming. Though current data suggests that global warming will in the future stir up terrible super storms, there is still not enough evidence to support the idea that climate change strengthens the recent hurricanes that have torn at the US's eastern coastline. | high5433.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "usually think that advice from old people is not worth considering"
},
"options": [
"are willing to accept the advice from world-famous leaders",
"usually think that advice from old people is not worth considering",
"have a g... | LOS ANGELES--The advice offered from any other 82-year-olds might have made young people yawn and roll their eyes.
But when former South African President Nelson Mandela advised two dozenprefix = st1 /Los Angelesto take education seriously, his audience was listening.
The famed old man said to the young people that if they expected to improve the lives of others in the future, they must work at improving their own lives now. "Education is one of the most important weapons you have," Mandela advised, "it will place you in a far better position to serve yourself and your community."
"The point is, he was young once and rebellious once and he kept his dream alive, just as you each have dreams." ExplainedSouth Africa's ambassador to theUnited States, Sheita Sisulu, as she introduced Mandela to the young crowd.
Asked for specific advice about changing society by 21-year-old Ahmed Younis, Mandela suggested that somehow helping arouse more American interest in foreign affairs might be a start.
"There is an impression that Americans, in general, have not followed international developments properly," Mandela said, "I'm not making that statement myself, but there are serious political analysts who say Americans are not well informed as to what has happened in the world."
22-year-old Omari Trice said Mandela left him full of passion. "He's a person who set the tone for an entire nation." said Trice.
"You go away feeling you need to be Superman in order to get things done." Trice said. | high17174.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "swimmers"
},
"options": [
"runners",
"swimmers",
"cyclists",
"horse riders"
],
"question": "Lake Placid is the best place for _ .",
"question_type": "cloze_questions"
},
{
"answer": {
"answe... | Here are some interesting places in America:
Lake Placid
Lake Placid in New York State has everything you want: great downhill skiing , great golf courses, and ponds for swimming. It is also a beautiful village with shops, restaurants, and hotels.
It is well-known as the place of the 1932 and 1980 Winter Olympics. While many travelers visit here for outdoor activities, others come to this beautiful town simply to get away from cities and enjoy the clean mountain air. Whether you come to Lake Placid for adventure or rest, you'll surely enjoy your stay here.
Old Forge
Located in New York State, Old Forge is a deeply-wooded town with many rivers and lakes. It is a place where many people come to spend their summers. Biking, boating, and skiing are all popular sports in Old Forge. And on rainy days, the town's small shops become the best places for people to look for special local gifts. If you are looking for a quiet place to keep away from trouble, Old Forge is a good choice.
Leavenworth
This comfortable mountain village is just a few hours' drive to the east of Seattle. Many people from Seattle and from the rest of the country come here to enjoy the local shops and delicious German food.
Outside of Leavenworth, you will find some of the best views in Washington. High mountains rise from the wooded valleys and rivers run through the forests. There is no doubt that the environment is what makes Leavenworth such a special place for visitors. | high9209.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Our family members and good friends."
},
"options": [
"Friends not meeting for a long time.",
"Former teachers and friends.",
"People we want to get close to.",
"Our family members and good friends."
],
"questio... | In our life, we have rarely expressed our gratitude to the one who lived those years with us. In fact, we don't have to wait for anniversaries to thank the ones closest to us and the ones so easily overlooked. If I have learned anything about giving thanks, it is this: give it now! While your feeling of appreciation is alive and sincere, act on it. Saying thanks is such an easy way to add to the world's happiness.
Saying thanks not only brightens someone else's world, it brightens yours. If you're feeling left out, unloved or unappreciated, try reaching out to others. It may be just the medicine you need. Of course, there are times when you can't express gratitude immediately. In that case, don't let embarrassment sink you into silence and speak up the first time you have the chance.
Once a young minister, Mark Brian, was sent to a remote parish of Kwakiutl Indians in British Columbia. The Indians, he had been told, did not have a word for thank you. But Brian soon found that these people had unusual generosity. Instead of saying thanks, it is their custom to return every favor with a favor of their own, and every kindness with an equal or superior kindness. They do their thanks. I wonder if we had no words in our vocabulary for thank you, would we do a better job of communicating our gratitude? Would we be more responsive, more sensitive, more caring?
Thankfulness sets in motion a chain reaction that transforms people all around us-including ourselves. For no one ever misunderstands the melody of a grateful heart. Its message is universal; its poems transcend all earthly barriers; its music touches the heaven. | high1655.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 1,
"answer_text": "Public Awareness on Youngsters' Mental Diseases Expected"
},
"options": [
"Efforts to Mark World Mental Health Day",
"Public Awareness on Youngsters' Mental Diseases Expected",
"How to Maintain Mental Well-being",
"Seri... | China Daily Oct.11,2008-TheMinistry Of Health has called for more awareness from the public on the mental health of the young as part of efforts to mark World Mental Health Day which fell on Friday.
More than 15 percent of Chinese youths have been found with mental problems and about 30 million young people under 17 are suffering from depression,the Shanghai-based Wenhui Daily reported.The World Health Organization estimates that before 2020,the rate of children with mental problems will increase to 50 percent ,and mental problem will become a major factor behind deaths and illness in the young worldwide.
Dang Xianhong,the spokesperson for the Beijing Municipal Health Bureau,said rapid social change is one of the reasons behind the rising number of youngsters with psychological problems.If these mental dispenses are not addressed on time, science of crimes,drug-taking and other dangerous behaviors are expected to rise.Experts said mental diseases could be caused by many factors,such as the inability to handle interpersonal relations well, unstable emotions and pressures from an overload of studies.A number of experts have also said the one child policy is another reason leading to poor mental health in the young.Children are said to be too "spoiled" and "selfish" in a one child family.
It's reported that schools in many cities are rolling out measures to help students maintain their mental well-being.Yin Jingmiao, a teacher of the Beijing No,105 Middle School,told China Daily that the school invites psychologists to provide counseling to students three times a month."Students can be arranged to have 40-minute counseling sessions." Yin said."The school also gives lectures on mental health to senior grade students before they take the national college entrance exams to help ease any anxiety arising from the tests." | high13312.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "give up smoking"
},
"options": [
"say goodbye to his girlfriend",
"tell his friendship with Cigarette",
"tell his travelling plan",
"give up smoking"
],
"question": "By writing the letter, the author wants to ... | Dear friend,
For the past 17 years, you have been my best friend. I remember that you told me you were called Cigarette because of your features. You have seen me through difficult times, happy times and just about every stage of my life. You have always been here when I need you. Some of my family and friends didn't like you so much, but I've always been on your side. I thought you were a great friend, and I _ you at all times, especially when I was not very happy.
It's hard for me to tell you this, but in the past few months, I have been seriously thinking about ending our relationship. I think that I've just been too dependent on you, and I feel that at the age of 35 I should start being more independent. I thought about just maybe seeing you once in a while, but I don't think that would work. Eventually, I'd start relying on you all the time again. I feel the only way to end our relationship is to end it forever.
I've always included you in everything I've done. But next week, I'm going on a trip, and I've decided not to take you along. I feel this would be a good time to break up. I will be gone for a whole week without you and if I can make it on my own for that week, I know I can make it forever.
It is a little sad for me knowing that I won't be able to rely on you any more, but I think I will be a better person in the end. | high8117.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 0,
"answer_text": "give you a piece of advice on a job interview."
},
"options": [
"give you a piece of advice on a job interview.",
"tell you how to meet a job interviewer",
"describe the aptitude test.",
"advice you how to find a job"
... | The interview had been going on for about 20 minutes and everything seems to be going well.Then, suddenly, the interviewer asks an unexpected question, "Which is more important, law or love?"
Job applicants in the west increasingly find themselves asked strange questions like this.And the signs are that this is beginning to happen in China.
Employers want people skilled, enthusiastic and devoted.So these are the qualities that any reasonably intelligent job applicants will try to show no matter what his or her actual feelings are.In response, employers are increasingly using questions which try and show the applicant's true personality.
The question in the first paragraph comes from a test called Kiersey Personality Sorter.It is an attempt to discover how people solve problems, rather than what they know.This is often called aptitude testing.
According to Mark Baldwin of Alliance many job applicants in China are finding this type of questions difficult. When a Chinese person fills out an aptitude test he or she will think there is a right answer and they may fail because they try to guess what the examiner wants to see.
This is sometimes called the prisoner's dilemma .Applicants are trying to act cleverly in their own interest.But they fail because they don't understand what the interviewer is looking for.Remember that in an aptitude test, the correct answer is always the honest answer. | high15763.txt |
[
{
"answer": {
"answer_index": 3,
"answer_text": "Less than 250 years"
},
"options": [
"About 1767 years",
"More than 300 years",
"More than 250 years",
"Less than 250 years"
],
"question": "How long is the first solar cookers invented?",
"question_type": "... | Cooking food over a smoky fire is found everywhere in the world. It is often difficult to find wood for the fire. People who do not have wood must spend large amounts of money on cooking fuel. However, there is a much easier way to cook food using energy from the sun. Solar cookers, or ovens, have been used for centuries. A Swiss scientist made the first solar oven in 1767. Today, people are using solar cookers in many countries around the world. People use solar ovens to cook food and to heat drinking water to kill bacteria and other harmful organisms.
There are three kinds of solar ovens. The first is a box cooker. It is designed with a special wall that shines or reflects sunlight into the box. Heat gets trapped under a piece of glass or plastic covering the top of the cooker. A box oven is effective for slow cooking of large amounts of food.
The second kind of solar oven is a panel cooker. It includes several flat walls, or panels, which directly reflect the sun's light onto the food. The food is inside a separate container of plastic or glass that traps heat energy. People can build panel cookers quickly and with very few supplies. They do not cost much. In Kenya, for example, panel cookers are being manufactured for just two dollars.
The third kind of solar oven is a parabolic cooker. It has rounded walls that aim sunlight directly into the bottom of the oven. Food cooks quickly in parabolic ovens. However, these cookers are hard to make. They must be re-aimed often to follow the sun. Parabolic cookers can also cause burns and eye injuries if they are not used correctly.
You can make solar ovens from boxes or heavy paper. They will not catch fire. Paper burns at 232 degrees Celsius. A solar cooker never gets that hot. Solar ovens cook food at low temperatures over long periods of time. This permits people to leave food to cook while they do other things.
To learn more about solar cooking, you can write to Solar Cookers International. The postal address is nineteen-nineteen Twenty-First Street, Sacramento, California, nine-five-eight-one-one, USA. Or you can visit the group's Internet Web site. The address is www.solarcooking.org. | high7224.txt |
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