"Soon,you're going to have to move out!"cried my neighbor upon seeing the largest tomato plant known to mankind,or at least known in my neighborhood. One tiny 9-inch plant,bought for $ 1.25 in the spring.has already taken over much of my rose bed,covering much of other plants,and is well on its way to the front door. Roses require a good deal of care,and if it weren't for the pleasure they give. it wouldn't be worth the work.As it is.I have a garden full of sweet-smelling roses for most of the year.Bushes must be pruned in early spring,leaving ugly woody branches until the new growth appears a few weeks later.It was the space available in the garden that led me into planting just one little tomato plant.A big mistake. Soil conditions made just perfect for roses turn out be even more perfect for tomatoes.The daily watering coupled with full sun and regular fertilizing have turned the little plant into a tall bush.The cage I placed around it as the plant grew has long since disappeared under the thick leaves. Now the task I face in harvesting the fruit is twofold.First.I have to find the red ones among the leaves,which means I almost have to stand on my head.and once found I have to reach down and under,pick the tomatoes and withdraw my full fist without dropping the prize so dearly won.I found two full-blown white roses completely hidden as I picked tomatoes in June. But they were weak and the leaves already yellow for lack of light. Here I am faced with a painful small decision:To tear up a wonderful and productive tomato plant that offers up between ten and twenty ripe sweet tomatoes each day or say goodbye to several expensive and treasured roses.Like Scarlett in Gone With the Wind.I'll think about that tomorrow. What are the requirements for the healthy growth of rose? A) A lot of care and the right soil. B) Frequent pruning and fertilizing. C) Tomato plants grown alongside. D) Cages placed around the roots.
A
(Question)
Christopher Thomas,27,was a writer by night and a teacher by day when he noticed he was always tired and was losing weight fast. Diagnosed with diabetes , Thomas would need to inject himself with insulin three times a day for the rest of his life or risk nerve damage, blindness and even death. And if that weren't bad enough, he had no health insurance. After a month of feeling upset, Thomas decided he' d better find a way to fight back. He left Canton,Michigan for New York, got a job waiting tables, nicknamed himself the Diabetic Rockstar, and created diabeticrockstar..com, a free online community for diabetics and their loved ones-a place where over l,100people share personal stories, information and resources. Jason Swencki' s son, Kody, was diagnosed with diabetes at six. Father and son visit the online children' s forums together most evenings. " Kody gets so excited, writing to kids from all over," says Swencki, one of the site ' s volunteers." They know what he' s going through, so he doesn' t feel alone. " Kody is anything but alone; Diabetes is now the seventh leading cause of death in the United States, with 24 million, diagnosed cases. And more people are being diagnosed at younger ages. These days, Thomas' s main focus is his charity,Fight It, which provides medicines and supplies to people--225 to date-- who can' t afford a diabetic' s huge expenses. Fight-it. Org has raised about $ 23,000 -- in products and in cash. In May, Thomas will hold the first annual Diabetic Rockstar Festival in the Caribbean. Even with a staff of 22 volunteers, Thomas often devotes up to 50 hours a week to his cause, while still doing his full-time job waiting tables. " Of the diabetes charities out there, most are putting money into finding a cure, " says Bentley Gubar, one of Rockstar ' s original members. " But Christopher is the only person I know saying people need help now. " Which of the following is true of Christopher Thomas? A) He needs to go to the doctor every day. B) He studies the leading cause of diabetes. C) He has a positive attitude to his disease. D) He encourages diabetics by writing articles.
(Answer)
C
Ques: Can you smell two things at once? This experiment comes from the research of two scientists from Rice University. Denise Chen and Wen Zhou have been experimenting with the science of smell, and have made some very interesting discoveries. To explore that, you will need two things with strong, characteristic smells and, of course, your nose. The idea is to smell a different smell with each nostril . Hold one smell very close to your right nostril, and the other smell very close to your left nostril. Then breathe in and pay close attention to what you smell. What you should find is that one smell will be very strong. After another sniff or two, the first smell will go away, and you will smell the other smell. Keep sniffing, and the first smell will come back. Instead of smelling the two smells evenly mixed, they will work in turns, one after the other. Why? Chen and Zhou found that your sense of smell acts much like your sense of sight. Hold a book in front of your nose, so that your left eye sees things on the left side of the book, and your right eye sees things on the right side of the book. You will find that your sight works in turns, first on the left side of the book and then on the right side. Notice that you can't focus your left eye on one object while focusing your right eye on another object. Your brain jumps back and forth , paying attention to one and then the other. The same thing happens with your nostrils. If they are smelling different smells, your brain pays attention to one and then the other. The main purpose of the text is to _ . A) report an important event B) describe a scientific experiment C) study how the sense of sight works D) introduce two scientists from Rice University
Ans: B
Have you ever noticed what happens to an idea once you express it ? Just talking about it or writing it down causes you to make it clear in your own mind. How can you use this to increase your brain power? Start writing. By putting thoughts into words, you are telling yourself the logic behind what you think, feel,or only partly understand. Often,explaining a thought is the process of understanding.In other words, you increase your brain power by exercising your"explain power". Another benefit of writing is that it helps you remember. Many,if not most,highly productive people are always taking notes.You can try keeping it all in your head,but if you keep a journal of your ideas the next time you're working on a big project, you'11 probably have more success. Want to understand a topic? Write a book about it.That's an extreme example, but if you are learning something new,write a letter to a friend about it,and you will understand it better. Want to invent something? Write an explanation of the problem---why you want to solve it,and why it is worth solving, and you're half-way there. Writers don't always write because they clearly understand something beforehand. Often,they write about something because they want to understand it. You can do the same. Writing will help bring you to all understanding. Give it a try. What would be the best title for the passage? A) A Way on How to Write B) Increase Your Brain Power Through Writing C) Brain Power Helps Improve Your Writing D) How to Start Your Writing
B