Technology today has stolen away our voices and robbed our children of memories. I've been keeping count of how often people sing around the house these days. The fact is, they don't. My earliest memories are of my mother crooning lullabies in a gentle low voice as she rocked each infant in turn. She said she "didn't have a singing voice," but her low, wavering alto will always mean comfort to me. Every time I have sat through the night with a feverish body or held a pre - schooler through a nightmare, the melodies returned, words appearing and disappearing like fragments of a dream but held together by the hum of love. Today, young mothers are routinely presented with lullaby tapes at the baby shower. When baby cries, the idea goes, they will be able to switch on the high-tech audio system and _ with the voices of strangers in his ears, perfectly on pitch. If I had my way, new parents would learn the songs themselves, throw out their stereos, and give their child the gift of their own sleepy voices through the midnight hours. These days, when we go on a trip, my daughters take along tiny personal stereos and headphones. They are lost in their private worlds, and I can't help wishing that at least here, in the car my girls would be forced to listen to their mother's voice again, sure I'm out-of-tune songs that they might then pass down to another generation. Those sophisticated earphones have robbed them of something I think every kid should carry from childhood car trips into adulthood. I drove away from that party humming, and all the way home the good old songs kept tumbling out. Damm it , I thought, why did I ever stop singing in the car and start turning on the radio ? Why don't I sing anymore while I'm doing the dishes? I'm going to pull those stereo wires right out of the wall when I get home. We're going to sing grace before meals, sing carols around the piano, sing in the shower instead of switching on that waterproof radio that stole away our voices and our souls. The author hates today's technology because _ . A) driving a car requires high concentration B) children are learning pop songs from tapes C) children have lost touch with good old songs D) high - tech systems do not record the voices of aged people
C
Most people have some common sense. When we see something suspicious on TV, in the newspaper, or on the Internet, we roll our eyes and wonder how anyone could believe something so stupid. Nevertheless, there are stories that even educated people still believe. These tales may or may not be true, but they leave us wondering whether they are real or not. On National Geographic Channel, these stories are dissected in full detail in the series Is It Real. Thousands of years ago, aliens landed on the Earth. They tampered with the evolution of humans and the results of this can be seen practically everywhere. Sound ridiculous? Not to some people. Believe it or not, there are those who believe that alien astronauts had a hand in making the human race what it is today. Travel back in time with Ancient Astronauts and visit our "alien ancestors". In the autumn of 1888, Jack the Ripper roamed the streets of London's East End. After his reign of terror was over, five women had been killed. To this day, the mystery of who killed these ladies remains unsolved. No one knows for sure, but the truth may be revealed on Jack the Ripper. Vampires . Just the thought of these fictional beasts is enough to make your blood run cold. While we may think that they only come to life in books and movies, vampires are actually based on real people. Historians, folklorists, scientists and doctors all work together to investigate the plausibility of vampires. Take a bite into this juicy mystery on Vampires. No other channel can offer this type of programming other than National Geographic Channel. In this unique series, they've stripped away 12 myths that have stood the test of time to expose the truth and find out the answer to the question--Is it real? What type of person would believe these stories? A) Those with a fear of ghosts. B) Those without any common sense C) Those including the educated D) Only educated people.
C
*Question*
Apple is known for offering the best customer service in the consumer technology market, such as Lenovo, Google and Nokia, in customer satisfaction surveys every year . A particular story tells of how an Apple store manager broke a rule to earn a new, 10-year-old customer for life. Matt tells us this touching story: My daughter has been saving her birthday money and allowance for almost 9 months so that she could afford an iPod touch with a camera in it. As of this morning, she had saved the amount needed and headed to an Apple store in Utah with my wife. They arrived at 10:30 am, not realizing that the store would be closed from 11 am to 2 am that day. As they approach the store, two friendly Apple employees greeted them and said they were sorry, but they were closed. My wife pointed to my daughter who had a mason jar full of cash in her arms and explained why they were there and also pointed out that it was not quite 11 am yet. They again said they were sorry, but could not let them in. My wife and daughter were sad and regretful, but understood and made their way to another store in the mall. About three stores down, an Apple employee raced after them and explained that the manager was going to make an exception and let them in. Every one of the employees stopped what they were doing as my daughter approached the register. As she took all of the cash out of the mason jar, one employee stepped forward and said, "I don't mean to bother you, but I have to tell you that this made my day wonderful." After the transaction , my daughter and wife were on their way out, the store manager raised his voice and said to all of the employees, "Everyone, please give a round of applause for saving her money and buying an iPod today." According the passage, what is "a mason jar" ? A) a money box B) a pot for cooking C) a coffee cup D) a candy box
**Answer**
A