My mother's shopping lists were ordered by rules known only to her. As you slid your finger down the columns of groceries and toiletries, you would invariably be stopped by something along the lines of "2dozjumHerbal Essences" or "1pepperoni TC," with the "TC" underlined twice and flanked by gnarled masses of pencil scratch-outs. When we were kids, we dreaded accompanying her to Wal-Mart, or worse, the Cosco at the edge of town, where the echoing rafters and limitless aisles seemed to mock the confusion into which we were inevitably thrown when handed torn-off fragments of the list. Of course, it was easy enough to see in hindsight that "2dozjumHerbal Essences" was merely the bastard child of two drunkenly weaving columns--we had been supposed to get two dozen jumbo eggs and a bottle of my mother's favourite brand of shampoo (ever inventive in creating proprietary abbreviations--"TC" standing for, what else, thin crust pizza--my mother scrupulously wrote out brand names in full). It was a little like ordering chemicals for a laboratory, sans any knowledge of chemistry--or, for that matter, laboratories, although my ignorance of the distinction between baking soda and baking powder cannot be entirely the root of my confusion. Eventually I--and my siblings--learned the difference between tomato paste and tomato sauce, and could readily distinguish one brand of laundry detergent from a similarly-styled knock-off, but my shame-faced trips back to the mothercart never ceased. I would track her down, most often in the produce section--she was usually loath to trust us with the delicate task of selecting the very best fruits and vegetables--and hand her back my portion of the list, asking for an explanation. Usually it amounted to a failure of awareness on my part--get the kind of soap we always get, of course! According to the above context, choose the correct option to answer the following question. Question: When would the author ask for clarification on the grocery list? Options: A. Before the mother sent him/her off to find the items. B. After searching but not being able to find what she wanted. C. When the mother handed him/her the list. D. not enough information
B

SINGAPORE North Korean leader Kim Jong Un agreed Tuesday "to complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula" during a historic summit with U.S. President Donald Trump, who then unexpectedly said he was suspending military drills with South Korea. Kim's commitment to denuclearize was included in a document signed after the first-ever meeting between a sitting U.S. president and a North Korean leader. It calls for the two countries to jointly work on efforts to build a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, to establish new U.S.-North Korea relations and to recover the remains of prisoners of war and military members missing in action. The two sides promised to hold follow-up negotiations. While the document didn't lay out a specifics regarding denuclearization, Trump said at a news conference "We're starting that process very quickly. Very, very quickly, absolutely." "We're going to denuke North Korea," Trump also told VOA contributor Greta Van Susteren, adding that U.S. troops stationed in South Korea will remain in place, but announcing one concession long-sought by North Korea not included in the document signed earlier in the day. "We are going to get out of the war games that cost so much money," he said, referring to the U.S. participation in joint military exercises with South Korea. At his news conference, Trump said the war games were expensive, provocative and inappropriate. Later, a Pentagon spokesman said Defense Secretary Jim Mattis was "not surprised" by Trump's concession ending the war games and had been consulted, including discussions with Trump and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. "We welcome the outcomes," the defense spokesman said. "We support them." Trump struck an optimistic tone about his talks with Kim. "My meeting with Chairman Kim was honest, direct and productive. We got to know each other well in a very confined period of time." The U.S. leader stressed that existing U.S. sanctions will remain in place until North Korean nuclear weapons "are no longer a factor." According to the above context, choose the correct option to answer the following question. Question: Where will the next summit be held? Options: A. North Korea B. America C. Singapore D. not enough information
D

(Question)
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has unveiled a far-reaching list of demands for any new nuclear deal with Iran, and threatened economy-crushing sanctions if Tehran does not change its behavior. The 12-point list of demands came in a Monday speech at the conservative Heritage Foundation that laid out the Trump administration's strategy after pulling out of the Iran nuclear agreement earlier this month. Under any new deal, Pompeo insisted, Iran must indefinitely abandon nuclear weapons work and provide United Nations inspectors access to sites anywhere in the country.He said Tehran must also end its proliferation of ballistic missiles and stop its "destabilizing activities" across the Middle East. If Iran does not change course, the U.S. "will apply unprecedented financial pressure," Pompeo warned. "These will be the strongest sanctions in history by the time we are done," said Pompeo. "The [Iranian] regime has been fighting all over the Middle East for years. After our sanctions come into full force, it will be battling to keep its economy alive." Iran's President Hassan Rouhani dismissed the threats. "Who are you to decide for Iran and the world?" Rouhani said in a statement published by Iranian state media on Monday. "The world today does not accept that the United States decides for the world. Countries have their independence." The Trump administration has vowed to reimpose sanctions that were lifted as part of the 2015 nuclear agreement, which was signed between Iran, the United States, and several European countries, as well as Russia and China. Washington has also imposed additional sanctions. European countries are holding talks with Iran to try to salvage the deal. But it's not clear whether the effort can succeed. On Sunday, Iran's foreign minister, Javad Zarif, said the European Union's "political will is not enough to preserve the deal." EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini reacted to Pompeo's speech Monday by saying there is "no alternative" to the existing agreement, formally... According to the above context, choose the correct option to answer the following question. Question: What is the likelihood that new sanctions against Iran will force them into conpliance Options: A. is a waste of time. B. not enough information C. will not be very successful. D. not guaranteed to work.
(Answer)
B