You might think that "global warming" means nothing more than a rise in the world's temperature But rising sea levels caused by it have resulted in the first evacuation of an island nation--the citizens of Tuvalu will have to leave their homeland. During the 20th century , sea level rose 8--12 inches. As a result ,Tuvalu has experienced lowland flooding of salt water which has polluted the country's drinking water. Paani Laupepa , a Tuvaluan government official ,reported to the Earth Policy Institute that the nation suffered an unusually high number of fierce storms in the past ten years .Many scientists connect higher surface water temperatures resulting from global warming to greater and more damaging storms. Laupepa expressed dissatisfaction with the United States for refusing to sign the Kyoto Protocol, an international agreement calling for industrialized nations to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions ,which are a main cause of global warming . "By refusing to sign the agreement ,the US has effectively taken away the freedom of future generations of Tuvaluans to live where their forefathers have lived for thousands of years," Laupepa told the BBC. Tuvalu has asked Australia and New Zealand to allow the gradual move of its people to both countries . Tuvalu is not the only country that is vulnerable to rising sea levels .Maumoon Gayoon ,president of the Maldives ,told the United Nations that global warming has made his country of 311,000 an "endangered nation". The country whose situation is similar to that of Tuvalu is _ . A) Australia B) New Zealand C) the Maldives D) the United States
C
(Question)
The United States economy has dipped into economic recession . This caused discomfort and hardship in every level of society; but for many of the nation's poor, discomfort and hardship turned into misery . An increase in homelessness is probably the worst result of a nation's financial disaster. About 3 million Americans were homeless because of a lack of affordable housing. Experts suggest that a family should spend no more than 30 percent of its income on housing. In fact, in some families housing costs make up 50 percent or more. An unexpected event, such as losing work or illness, can quickly push a family into homelessness. An article in Time magazine tells a story of one such family. A young couple and their three children rented a two-bedroom apartment for about $350 a month. They could hardly go on with the husband's $920-a-month take-home pay; so when their rent was raised to $500 a month, they could no longer make ends meet. Another woman was found dead on a street in Washington D.C., the capital, and she died at a bus-stop across the street from the US Department of Housing and Urban Development. People become homeless for different reasons. Some may not be able to pay for housing, because they have lost their job and cannot find another place they can afford. Others have mental diseases, or are addicted to drugs or alcohol, many of whom do not live with their family. And what's more, there are not enough centers for shelter as the government doesn't pay enough attention to this social problem. People are making efforts to solve the problem. However, it will not be easy, because it is a personal and economical problem as well as a social problem. One main result that economic recession has led to is _ A) an increase of living costs B) more and more deaths C) an increase of homeless people D) less centers for poor people
(Answer)
C
Question: Half a year ago I came across a book called"Salt,Sugar and Fat. How the Food Giants Hooked US",but finished it only recently. I am far from being a fan of junk food,over-salty,or over-sweet stuff,and honestly this food doesn't appeal to me at all. Maybe it is related to the fact that I grew up in Russia and at that time we were not so exposed to the foreign, especially made in America foods. We knew Coca Cola,Pepsi,juice powder and Cheetos,but this stuff was not so cheap or available to buy it every day and we couldn't buy them in large quantities. We didn't know the word"fat"was not a bad thing but a normal of life for some people. We always had sweets and especially on holidays they were served as a dessert along with a cake. Russians like eating sweets when they drink tea. Even with my passion to desserts I still can'trelate myself to the people Michale Moss was writing about, those consumers who could not say"no" when it came to junk food. What I found interesting in the book was that the author didn't focus on diets, necessity to exercise,sleep well at night and all other things we all are pretty aware of. The aim was not to teach people how to live but instead,after having made a huge research,interviewed more than 100 people in the food industry,Moss reveals the ugly of the food business. It puts all the facts in front of us and offers a choice:to buy or not to buy. However,the answer was known at the very beginning. Moss mentions the well-known food like Coca,Cola,Pepsi,Nestle and some others and tells how skillfully the consumers can be cheated when it comes to choosing what to put in the food basket in the supermarket. We like this taste of a chocolate,the crispy chips,and sweet porridges because it was all put on test by groups of scientists who made experiments to reveal what kind of taste will be most appealing to us. It involves brain,of course. Apart from scientific researches, it was also due to successful marketing strategies and plans that people prefer to buy food. In this companies'money... The author wrote the passage mainly to _ . A) introduce a healthy diet B) expose the ugly side of food companies C) call on the potential readers to live healthily D) recommend the book written by Moss
Answer:
D