A class with tens or even hundreds of thousands of students might sound like a teacher's bad dream. But a big idea in higher education these days is the massive open online course, or MOOC. Some universities offer free, non-credit MOOCs available to anyone in the world. Others charge for courses and provide credits. The idea is still developing. So far, most massive open online courses are in computer science, technology, mechanics and engineering. For example, students around the world are taking a free course called "Building a Computer Search Engine." Two computer scientists, Sebastian Thrun and David Evans, are offering this course throughudacity.com. There are no education requirements for the course. The students watch short videos. Then, says Mr. Evans, they take informal quizzes after the videos each week for six weeks. DAVID EVANS: "Quizzes are part of the lecture to keep students engaged and keep them thinking, for students to be able to check that they understood what we covered. Those are not graded and students try those as often as they wish. They can repeatedly watch the videos and take the quizzes whenever they want." Students receive homework. They join online groups to exchange questions and answers about the course. The teachers hold office hours to answer questions that the students have voted to send them. They also present their own questions and observations to the students in order to help them make a deeper impression of the course. The students take a final examination to show where they rate in the class Everyone who finishes the course receives a grade and proof of completion. Top students get letters documenting their work. Mr. Thrun started Udacity, which supports free MOOCs.Udacityhopes to make a profit in the future by connecting possible employers with interested students. On his Stanford homepage he says he wants to " _ " education. "Education", he says, should be free, accessible for all, anywhere and any time Building a Computer Search Engine _ . A) is a free course that is provided on the Internet B) is mainly for students from American universities C) is offered by two scientists from the same university D) can be taken only by those excellent college students
A
(Question)
I decided to have dinner in the hotel, for I arrived late one night on a business trip. As I was finishing my meal, an elderly couple came in to dine. They were holding hands and had lovely smiles on their faces. They sat three tables from me. I was amazed at the love they showed for each other. It seemed to strike home all the more, because it was shortly after ending a 20-year marriage and I still had pain in my heart. My waiter was also their waiter. As I paid my bill, I inquired as to what their bill was. He informed me, and I gave him $40 to pay their bill. He asked if I knew them and I told him "No, I just wanted to repay them for the love that they were showing to each other," and then I departed. The next day I entered the restaurant to dine before my departure. After I had been seated, the waiter who served me the night before told me that the strangest thing happened after I left the restaurant. When the elderly couple went to pay for their meal, they were informed that it had been paid. When they inquired who had done this, the hostess told them they had no idea who I was, just retelling what I said. The couple were amazed. They looked around, asked for the bill of two young couples who were seated together, paid their bill and departed, saying "Love begets Love" to the amazement of the hostess and waiter. I smiled and said "That's nice," and proceeded to order my meal. About 45 minutes later, I finished my meal and was about to head out, but my waiter was nowhere to be found. I waited and waited and finally walked over to the hostess stand and explained that I needed to pay for my meal and hurry to the airport. She smiled and explained that I would not have to pay for my meal, because both the waiter and she felt compelled to pay my bill due to the joy that was brought to the faces of the elderly couple and the amazement of the young couples. When I told her that they didn't have to do that, she said with a smile "Love begets Love." Which of the following proverbs can best explain the theme of the story? A) A good beginning makes a good ending. B) Where there is love, there is life. C) Love me, love my dog. D) As a man sows, so shall he reap .
(Answer)
D
Ques: A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, 1,100 people went through the station, most of them on their way to work. Three minutes went by, and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace, and stopped for a few seconds, and then hurried up to meet his schedule. A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the money box without stopping, and continued to walk. A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work. The one who paid the most attention was a 3-year-old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried, but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally, the mother pushed hard, and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on. In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money, but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32. When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition. No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the most talented musicians in the world. He had just played one of the most beautiful pieces ever written, on a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theater in Boston where the seats averaged $100. This is a real story. Joshua Bell's playing in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment. The outlines were: in a common environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we enjoy beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected situation? One of the possible... The purpose of the passage is to _ . A) set us to think about our life B) show us how to play music C) tell us the importance of music D) report a subway performance
Ans:
A