Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: With more recognition than Halloween and less than Christmas, Valentine's Day as an imported festival faces a dangerous situation in China, where it's caught between forces of tradition and fashion. Valentine's Day has a natural enemy in China. And it is not the Chinese _ , which falls on the seventh day of the seventh month on the lunar calendar, usually around half a year away from Feb. 14. It is the Spring Festival, also known as the Chinese New Year, which will influence the Feast of Saint Valentine. The real disagreement between East and West probably took place over a century ago, when China's door was forced open by Western powers and Chinese scholars supported westernization as a means to strengthen our nation's ability to compete. The introduction of the solar calendar and Western measurements was both an acknowledgment of their influence and an effort to be accepted by the world order. For a full century, we have had two systems running in parallel. When it comes to the eventual outcome, practicality usually beats all other concerns. Laws can help, such as the three traditional festivals of Tomb Sweeping, Dragon Boat and Mid-Autumn gaining legal status in 2008 and giving every Chinese citizen a day off, but laws cannot push what people have no feelings for. So, the celebration or boycott of imported holidaysor homegrown ones should be no cause for worry. If they are irrelevant, no social media will change the public's mind; and if they are accepted, there must be a need which they happen to satisfy. Since we have no global Qin Shihuang to force one system on every country, we can always rely on a dual approach by which we share with the outside world on one hand but preserve our own ways of life on the other. Question: What does the author say about Valentine's Day in China? Options: A: It is better received than Christmas. B: It brings potential danger to people. C: It becomes increasingly popular. D: It happens to have a natural enemy.
A: D

Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: It happened to me recently that I was telling someone how much I had enjoyed reading Barack Obama'sDreamsfromMyFatherand how it had changed my views of the current US president.The person I was talking to agreed with me that it was,in his words,"a wonderfully written book". However,he then _ to talk about Mr Obama in a way that suggested he had no idea of his background at all.I sensed that I was talking to a book liar. And it seems that he is not the only one.Clearly two thirds of people have lied about reading a book which they haven't.In the World Book Day survey,DreamsfromMyFatheris at number 9.The survey lists top ten books,and various authors,which people have lied about reading.As I'm not one to lie too often,I'll admit here and now that I haven't read the entire ten books.But I am pleased to say that I have read the book at number one,GeorgeOrwell's1984.I think it's absolutely outstanding. Asked why they lied,the most common reason was to impress someone they were speaking to.This could be difficult if the conversation became more indepth! The World Book Day survey also has some other interesting information in it.It shows that many people lie about having read classical works by Jane Austen,the Bronte sisters,Charles Dickens and so on.But when asked which authors they actually enjoy,they named J.K.Rowling,Jilly Cooper,and Stephen King (ah,the big sellers,in other words).Fortyone percent of people asked admitted they turned to the back of the book to read the end before finishing the story. So which books have you lied about reading--if any--and which is your favourite? Question: The main reason why people lie about reading is to _ . Options: A: make fun of the listener B: impress the listener C: please the listener D: interest the listener
A: B

Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: People taking the stairs instead of lifts at work can expect to live longer, according to a Swiss study . Regularly walking from floor to floor in an office building decreased death risk by 15 percent, said Dr. Philippe Meyer, the main author of the study, which was done at the University Hospital of Geneva. Stopping the use of lifts led to better fitness, less body fat, thinner waistlines and a drop in blood pressure, the study found. "Using the stairs improves fitness, body shape, blood pressure" Meyer said to the fitness website Swissinfo . "The challenge remains to increase the people's awareness," he said. For the study, 77 employees who don't enjoy sports and exercise from prefix = st1 /GenevaUniversitywere asked to take only the stairs over a three-month period, Swissinfo reported. Results showed an increase in a _ in waist , weight, fat , blood pressure and cholesterol . "This suggests that stair climbing can have major public health effects." Meyer said. Professor Adam Timmis, at The London NHS Trust, said: "It's a small study but valuable because it provides a practical way for busy working people to increase their exercise. Although the amount of exercise appears small, the benefits were clear in improving physical fitness and reducing body fat and blood pressure. " Question: Stair climbing can do good to people in the following ways EXCEPT _ Options: A: lowering blood pressure B: losing weight C: shaping body D: curing heart disease
A: D

Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: In the hit film , Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman meet in hospital in California after they have been diagnosed with cancer. Between them they cook up a "bucket list" - a to-do list of all they want to do before they . The movie makes you wonder what would be on your bucket list. So let's pack up some and see what it would cost to go out and have a little fun. THE PYRAMIDS, GIZA, EGYPT On to the pyramids, surely on anyone's bucket list. Exotik Tours can take you there on a variety of trips, including their popular Egypt Express which includes three nights in Cairo and a three-night Nile Cruise . From $1,384, including four-and five-star accommodation, 12 meals and a ton of sightseeing. 416-646-3347 TAJ MAHAL, AGRA, INDIA One of the world's most fascinating images, India's Taj Mahal makes even Nicholson and Freeman look calm. Toronto's Goway Travel has many suggestions for India, including a three-day independent visit to Agra. Stay at the attractive Oberoi AmarVilas overlooking the Taj. Include two breakfasts, touring and airport transfer from $1,420. 416-322-1034 THE GREAT WALL, CHINA If the Great Wall of China is on your bucket list, check into Tour East Holiday's four-day Amazing Beijing Tour for $580 per person, four-star accommodation, sightseeing including the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, breakfasts and two lunches, transportation and guide. 416-929-0888 THE HIMALAYAS, NEPAL And on to the Himalayas. Talk about "something truly majestic . See the top of the world on GAP Adventures' Everest Adventure tour, a 15-day exploration including Everest Base Camp, teahouse lodge stays, and walking through Sherpa villages. Incredibly affordable at just $665 plus local payment of $250. GAP Adventures warns that this is a physically demanding trip. 416-260-0999 Question: According to the passage, where can you enjoy a view of the whole Taj Mahal? Options: A: In Sherpa village. B: Near the Forbidden City C: Through Egypt Express. D: At Oberoi AmarVilas
A: D