*Question*
Read the article and select the best answer. Article: How is it that siblings can turn out so differently? One answer is that in fact each sibling grows up in a different family. The firstborn is, for a while, an only child, and therefore has a completely different experience of the parents than those born later. The next child is, for a while, the youngest, until the situation is changed by a new arrival. The mother and father themselves are changing and growing up too. One sibling might live in a stable and close family in the first few years; another might be raised in a family crisis, with a disappointed mother or an angry father. Sibling competition was identified as an important shaping force as early as in 1918. But more recently, researchers have found many ways in which brothers and sisters are a lasting force in each others' lives. Dr. Annette Henderson says firstborn children pick up vocabulary more quickly than their siblings. The reason for this might be that the later children aren't getting the same one-on-one time with parents. But that doesn't mean that the younger children have problems with language development. Later-borns don't enjoy that much talking time with parents, but instead they harvest lessons from bigger brothers and sisters, learning entire phrases and getting an understanding of social concepts such as the difference between "I" and "me". A Cambridge University study of 140 children found that siblings created a rich world of play that helped them grow socially. Love-hate relationships were common among the children. Even those siblings who fought the most had just as much positive communication as the other sibling pairs. One way children seek more attention from parents is by making themselves different from their siblings, particularly if they are close in age. Researchers have found that the first two children in a family are typically more different from each other than the second and third. Girls with brothers show their differences to a maximum degree by being more feminine than girls with sisters. A 2003 research paper... Question: The word "feminine" (in Para. 4) means " _ ". Options: A: having qualities of parents B: having qualities of women C: having defensive qualities D: having extraordinary qualities
**Answer**
B

*Question*
Read the article and select the best answer. Article: We can all contribute to a greener world.Just follow these ten golden rules: *Stop getting junk mail.Billions of junk mail can be sent every year.Half of it is never opened.Get-your name off mailing lists.If 100,000 people stopped getting junk mail today, it would save 150,000 trees a year. *Stop reading newspapers.All over the world, millions of newspapers are thrown away every day, 44 million newspapers in the USA alone --that's half a million trees a week.Either recycle your newspapers or read the hews online. *Buy clothes made from organic materials.Conventional cotton farming seriously pollutes the environment, most of which uses chemical pesticides and fertilizers.Organic is better! *Switch to solar energy.In one day, the sun will provide enough energy to power the planet.Why aren't we using it? *If you have to drive, share the ride.Most cars in the USA have only one occupant.Also, 25 percent of car rides are less than 1.5 kilometres.Get out and walk! *Unplug your PC, TV and VCR.Simply turning them off isn't enough.Sets _ are still using 25 percent of their power. *Hold on to your balloons.Helium-filled balloons which fly away usually end up in a lake or river, where they can choke aquatic creatures.Save your balloons and use them again.Or better still, don't use them at all. *Feed the birds.Wild birds need food, especially in v/inter when other sources can be scarce.The greater the range of foodstuffs you put out for them, the more types of birds you will attract. *Plant a garden at your school.Learn the connection between the land and the table.Plant vegetables to eat, flowers to admire and trees to improve the air. Question: What is the main purpose of the passage? Options: A: To provide some health advice on how to work. B: To suggest some ways how to make full use of solar energy. C: To advise protecting environment and saving energy. D: To advise on how to recycle waste and save energy.
**Answer**
C

*Question*
Read the article and select the best answer. Article: A little stream flowed down from a high mountain far, far away through many villages and forests, until it reached a desert. The stream then thought, "I've been through countless obstacles. I should have no problem crossing this desert!" But when she decided to start her journey, she found herself gradually disappearing into the mud and sand. After numerous tries, she found it was all in vain and was very upset. "Maybe it's my destiny ! I'm not destined to reach the vast ocean in the legend, " she murmured sadly to herself. At this time, a deep voice came, saying, "If a breeze can cross the desert, so can a river." It was the voice of the desert. Unconvinced, the little stream replied, "That's because a breeze can fly, but I can't." "That's because you stick to what you are. If you're willing to give it up, and let yourself evaporate into the breeze, it can take you across, and you can reach your destination," said the desert in its deep voice. The little stream had never heard of such a thing. "Give up what I am now and disappear into the breeze? No! No!" She could not accept this idea. After all, she had never experienced anything like it before. Wouldn't it be self-destruction to give up what she was now? "How do I know if this is true?" asked the little stream. "The breeze can carry the vapor across the desert and release it as rain at an appropriate site. The rain will form a river again to continue its course," answered the desert very patiently. "Will I still be what I am now?" asked the little stream. "Yes, and no. Whether you're a river or invisible vapor, your inner nature never changes. You stick to the fact that you're a river because you don't know your inner nature," answered the desert. Deep down, the stream vaguely remembered that before she became a river, it was perhaps also the breeze that carried her halfway up a high mountain, where she turned into rain and fell onto the ground and became what she was now. Finally the little stream gathered her courage and rushed into the open arms of... Question: In the text the writer compares the stream to _ . Options: A: the Truth B: the courage C: the course of life D: the obstacles in life
**Answer**
C