Ques:Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: A recent survey found that the French are the second-most insecure people in Europe after Italy about their proficiency in English. Only 13 percent of the French respondents believed they are proficient in the language, according to the European data agency Eurostat. The situation is no better in business circles, where three-quarters of French executives feel unprepared to hold an interview in English and only 16 percent say they feel comfortable with the language, a separate survey showed. The survey results aren't surprising. The French seem to have always had this cold and gloomy attitude toward the English language. But what struck me is that, despite the French pessimism, living in Paris without being able to speak the language of Moliere is easier these days than in the past. New immigrants are part of the reason. I can have an easy chat with the owner of the laundry in my neighborhood. Buying the medicine I need at the local pharmacy is effortless. Ordering a meal in English at the restaurant two blocks away from my apartment does not make me feel awkward. It is all because the people who run these businesses are immigrants. Greater tolerance and acceptance of non-French speakers is a reflection of the fact that France, willingly or not, has begun to embrace globalization more comfortably. For instance, you will never get the same look you would have had 15 years ago if you ask for directions in English on the streets of Paris. I have also met many native French who are happy to communicate in English. They are usually the kind of people who are open-minded and are sensitive to the changes beyond their own territories. They are very interested in gaining insight into what is happening on the other side of the globe. In my hometown, English is also being hotly debated since Beijing education authorities decided to reduce the importance of English proficiency in college entrance exams and increase that of the Chinese language and literature. The Chinese and the French share similarities in attitudes... Question: What is the passage mainly about? - French people have great difficulty speaking English. - English is becoming increasingly acceptable in France. - Great changes take place in France because of the immigrants. - English helps France to embrace globalization.

Ans:English is becoming increasingly acceptable in France.
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Ques:Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Category : prefix = st1 /Tours/ Guides Ad Number:508 Date Posted: 27/05/2006 Price:$1297 for 7 days Expires On: 03/12/2007 Description Subscribe to FREE Focus e - newsletter online. Focus on Mexicowebsite provides FREE comprehensive information about living, retiring, working or investing inLake Chapala,Mexico. Covering all topics; health care, cost of living, driving to Mexico, non - residency for Canadians, taxes, banking and investing, communications, real estate(renting or buying), immigration, Mexican legal system, safety, religion, the Lake, transportation, things to do, charities, clubs and organizations and more.... In addition, we offer 7- Day and 10- Day Focus on Mexico Programs where you can experience(test drive)Lake Chapala to see if it is for you. Hear from Experts at live conferences, all the meals are covered at excellent restaurants, all the trips included, even some cocktail parties. Meet the locals and get the straight goods. There is no better way to get all the information and the experience and no better way to find out in Mexicois right for you. "Mexicois the next destination of the Baby Boomer generation. And ' Focus onMexico' is the best way to get there. Whether it's real estate(buying or renting), immigration advice, health care, legal matters - or just about anything else, the friendly Focus on Mexico group can provide these services with expert advice and at a ridiculously low cost. Canadians and Americans couldn't hope for better." From Paul Jackson, Associate Editor, CalgarySun. Seller Information Contact: Marie Telephone: 376 - 766 - 3987 Dwyer - Bullock APDO 1179 Chapala, Jalisco E- mail: marie @ focusonmexico. com 45900 Mexico Web Site:http://focusonmexico.com Question: The advertisement uses words from Paul Jackson to_. - help readers know the ad better - provide more information about the program - encourage readers to invest in Mexico - sell Focus on Mexico Program

Ans:sell Focus on Mexico Program
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Ques:Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: There are hundreds of TV channels in the prefix = st1 /United States. Americans get a lot of entertainment and information from TV. Most people probably watch it for entertainment only. For some people, however, TV is where they get the news of the day. But some new TV programs or shows put entertainment and news together. This new kind of program in the United States is called "infotainment", which means information (info-) and entertainment (-tainment). These kinds of programs use actors to act out news stories, making the news of the day more interesting and exciting to people. The shows also use special effects. An example of infotainment is the show "America's Most Wanted". The producers of this program get stories from real cases that the police have dealt with. In most of these cases, the police never found the person who committed the crime . Sometimes they caught the criminal, but he or she ran away again. They use actors to play the parts of all the people in the case. At the end of the story, however, they always show "mug shots" , or police photographs, of the real criminals. Question: We can infer from the text that the producers of "America's Most Wanted" _ . - also work as police officers - hope to get money from the police - hope the program will help the police catch the criminals - often find it difficult to persuade people to act as criminals

Ans:hope the program will help the police catch the criminals
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Ques:Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Before the mid 1860's, the impact of the railroads in the United States was limited, in the sense that the tracks ended at this Missouri River, approximately the center of the country. At the point thetrains turned their freight, mail, and passengers over to steamboats, wagons, and stagecoaches. This meant that wagon freighting, stage coaching, and steam boating did not come to an end when the first train appeared; rather they became supplements or feeders. Each new "end of track" became a center for animal drawn or waterborne transportation. The major effect of the railroad was to shorten the distance that had to be covered by the older, slower, and more costly means. Wagon freighters continued operating throughout the 1870's and 1880's and into the 1890's. Although over constantly shrinking routes, and coaches and wagons continued to crisscross the West wherever the rails had not yet been laid. The beginning of a major change was foreshadowed in the later 1860's, when the Union Pacific Railroad at last began to build westward from the Central Plains city of Omaha to meet the Central Pacific Railroad advancing eastward from California through the formidable barrier of the Sierra Nevada. Although President Abraham Lincoln signed the original Pacific Railroad bill in 1862 and a revised, financially much more generous version in 1864, little construction was completed until 1865 on the Central Pacific and 1866 on the Union Pacific. The primary reason was skepticism that a Railroad built through so challenging and thinly settled a stretch of desert, mountain, and semiarid plain could pay a profit. In the words of an economist, this was a case of "premature enterprise", where not only the cost of construction but also the very high risk deterred private investment. In discussing the Pacific Railroad bill, the chair of the congressional committee bluntly stated that without government subsidy no one would undertake so unpromising a venture; yet it was a national necessity to link East and West together. Question: The author refers to the impact of railroads before the late 1860's as"limited" because _ . - the track did not take the direct route from one city to the next - passengers and freight had to transfer to other modes of transportation to reach western destinations - passengers preferred stagecoaches - railroad travel was quite expensive

Ans:
passengers and freight had to transfer to other modes of transportation to reach western destinations
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