Vending machines are very popular now. You can find them here and there. People can buy different things from them, like snacks and soft drinks. Now we can even buy train tickets from it in the train station. They also sell newspapers in some busy areas. In some places, you can get a can of beer or Coke from the vending machine, but in some others, you can't. Some vending machines sell cigarettes . They are called "cigarettes machines". With these machines, people can get cigarettes easily. These machines once were popular in the United States. But they are not good for children. So you can't see them now. In many areas in the United States, only some clubs and bars have cigarette machines, because children can never get into these places. How does a vending machine work? If you want to buy a can of Coke, you can find its price on the machine. Put the money into the machine, and push the button of the Coke, then you can get your Coke and change. A vending machine makes our life easy and interesting. In some areas in the United States, people can't find cigarette machines because _ A) people don't need cigarette machines any more B) cigarettes are too expensive C) people don't want their children to get cigarettes D) children don't like cigarettes now
C
Our voice gives away a lot of information about ourselves. It can tell us our gender and age. And now, scientists say that it can also tell us our height. Scientists at Washington University, Indiana University and University of California found that listeners could accurately tell the height of speakers, just by their voices. And the key to this mystery is a sound known as the subglottal resonance . It _ with height and helps us build a mental picture of a person. "The best way to think about subglottal resonances is to imagine blowing into a glass bottle with water. The less water in the bottle, the lower sound," said John Morton, a scientist at Washington University. And it's the same for humans. The frequency of the subglottal resonance depends on the height. The taller we are, the deeper the resonance frequency is. In order to find out whether people could identify the resonance, scientists did experiments. A number of same-sex pairs of different heights were told to read the same sentence aloud. It was played back to listeners who had to choose which one of the pairs was taller. Then, other listeners had to rank the speakers from the shortest to the tallest. The listeners were able to identify the tall people 62.17% of time, much higher than a lucky guess. Why not try the experiment yourself? Find out if your tall friends have deeper voices. The scientists in some American universities found that people's voices _ . A) change more quickly as they get older B) can tell the height of the speaker C) sound different when they have water in their mouth D) can tell the speaker's gender, age and weight
B
Q: Have you ever heard of the group Westlife? Maybe you have, but I'm sure many of you don't know very much about it. Westlife is an Irish boy band group, which was made up of 6 boys in the beginning and called IOU. The group quickly became popular with young people thanks to their song Swear It Again, which was at the top of the UK charts in April 1999. Chinese fans got their first chance to see Westlife on March 6th, 2006 in Beijing. Although the four-member group has been singing pop for seven years, the young boys have all since grown up and their songs are still very popular. When they performed in Beijing, Westlife released their new album Face to Face in China. Face to Face has been at the top of the British charts for a long time. The album's most popular song You Raise Me Up mixes traditional Irish music with pop music. Although hip-hop is quite popular among the young, Westlife has no plans to change. They said, "Hip-hop is for the young, but pop can be enjoyed by moms who are busy cooking meals and raising the kids. The number of people in the group _ between 1999 and 2006. A) went from 6 to 4 B) went from 4 to 6 C) went from 5 to 4 D) didn't change
A: A
Question: Dear editor, I am 14. I am really outgoing when I am with my family at home, but I almost never talk at school. I really want to get over it, but I just don't know how. What should I do? A shy girl Rachel Dear Rachel, The following ways may be able to help you out. To begin with, you need to SMILE to others. If you are meeting someone and they look scared and angry, would you talk to them? Probably not. This may be how people feel about you. If you are smiling and if your eyes are saying that you're happy to see others, the conversation will be easier for you and them. Next, do some volunteer work at school. Many shy kids don't do these because they always wonder if they can do very well. In fact, when you take part in activities that interest you, you'll find you can really do very well, and you will meet people with the same interests. Start today one small step with one welcoming smile or one volunteer work and show the world inside you, and then you'll become a person who has interests and talents and self confidence. I believe that this is the person you want to be. Only you can make it happen. What's the matter with the girl? A) Shy. B) Lonely. C) Unhealthy. D) Outgoing.
Answer: A
*Question*
It's Jimmy's birthday and he is 9 years old. He gets a lot of presents from his family and one of them is a big drum . His grandfather buys it for him. Jimmy likes it very much. He plays with it every day and he often makes a terrible noise . His father works in the day and Jimmy is in bed when he gets home in the evening. So his father doesn't hear the noise. But Mrs Black doesn't like the noise, so one morning she takes a knife and goes to Jimmy's room when he hits his drum. She says to him, "Hello! Jimmy. Do you know there is something very nice in your drum? Here is a knife. Please open the drum and let's find it." Why does Mrs Black give Jimmy a knife? A) Because she likes Jimmy's drum. B) Because she knows there is something in the drum. C) Because she doesn't like the noise. D) Because she wants to know what is in the drum.
**Answer**
C
(Q).
Once there was an old farmer. He had a horse and the horse was almost as old as himself. One morning he set out with his young son to sell the horse before it died. The father and the son walked because the farmer did not want the horse to be too tired . They met two men on the road. They said, "Why are you walking, farmer? You have a horse. It's a long way to get to the market. "The farmer knew that this was true, so he rode on the horse while his son walked. Then they met two old ladies. "What are you doing up there, farmer? Can't you see how tired your son is? "So the farmer got down, and let his son ride on it. Twenty minutes later, three old men stopped them. One said, "Why are you walking, farmer? Get up; it's too hot for an old man like you to walk today. "So the farmer got up behind his son and they went on riding. Some time later, a young woman passed them. "Why aren't you walking?"She asked, "It isn't far to the market. Give your poor old horse a rest. " So the farmer and his son got down once again. It is a fact that you cannot please all the people all the time. What did the writer really want to tell us? A) The old man was a fool B) The horse was old and was going to die C) It is right to listen to others D) It is impossible for a man to make everyone satisfied all the time.
(A).
D