Thanksgiving Day is always celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November. It is the most traditional American holiday. The first Thanksgiving Day was held in Massachusetts in 1621. After a year of great hardship, the colonist wanted to give thanks to God for their first harvest. They invited their Indian thanks. But it wasn't a regular national holiday until President Lincoln declared that the last Thursday in November would be there after Thanksgiving Day in 1863. It is a day of family reunion and it is customary to invite friends to share the meal. In some large cities, there are important football games that are played on Thanksgiving Day. For Americans, Thanksgiving Day is one of the few days of the year when the entire family gets together. Everyone is glad to see everyone else and there is a very busy exchange of greetings. The women soon disappear into the kitchen to help prepare the dinner. The men, meanwhile, settle down to watch a football game on television, or to discuss business or polities. If weather permits, some of the more athletic men go outside to play ball games with the children. Then everyone will sit down to dinner, in which traditional Thanksgiving foods such as stuffed turkey, sweet potatoes, chestnuts, and pumpkin pies are served. After dinner, people will sit around and talk. Which of the following statements about Thanksgiving Day is NOT true? A) It falls on the same day in November every year. B) It is the most traditional American holiday C) It is a regular national holiday. D) It is a day of family reunion.
A
Have you heard about Post Office Cats in Britain? They are mouse hunters. The post office has actually employed cats since 1868. They are not employed to sort or deliver mail, of course, but to protect the mail and keep the population of mice under control. They make sure your morning post arrives free from damages caused by rats and mice. London post offices were the first to try out the experiment. Within a few months the population of mice had _ sharply. Other post offices all over the country were soon using cats in the war against rats and mice as well. Within ten years the pay of the cats was improved from one and a half old pence a day to six or nine pence a day. Now the average rate of pay is about a few pounds a month. Some of the hard-working cats have become quite famous. In 1980, a cat named Lucky stopped an attempted robbery in a Worcestershire post office on her own. As the two burglars made their way in through the window, Lucky started an attack and they fled empty-handed. Another excellent cat was Jerry, of Earls Court post office in London. He served the building for 16 years and was on duty for 24 hours every day. He drove all the mice away. However, there are fewer cats employed by the post office than at any time in the past. With the faster movement of the mail and better surroundings, post office cats are not always needed. But many post offices still employ them and they become great friends with the postmen. According to the post office, there is no plan for their services to be discontinued in the foreseeable future. The cat named Lucky became famous because _ . A) She served the post office for 16 years around the clock. B) She alone drove two burglars away from the post office. C) She protected mails from being bitten by mice. D) She was employed to sort and deliver mail.
B
Q: Generally speaking, government regulations normally ban anything from smoking in public places to parking in certain zones. But officials in the Brazilian town of Biritiba Mirim, 70km (45miles) east of Sao Paulo, _ . They plan to prohibit residents from dying early because the local cemetery has reached full capacity. There's no more room to bury the dead, they can't be cremated and laws forbid a new cemetery. So the mayor has proposed a strange solution: outlaw death. Mayor Roberto Pereira says the bill is meant as a protest against federal regulations that prohibit new or expanded cemeteries in preservation areas. "They have not taken local demands into consideration", he claims. A 2003 decree by Brazil's National Environment Council forbids burial grounds in protected areas. Mr. Pereira wants to build a new cemetery, but the project has been stopped because 98% of Biritiba Mirim is considered as a preservation area. Biritiba Mirim, a town of 28,000 inhabitants, not only wants to prohibit residents from passing away. The bill also calls on people to take care of their health in order to avoid death. "I haven't got a job, nor am I healthy. And now they say I can't die. That's ridiculous," Amarido do Prado, an unemployed resident said. The city council is expected to vote on the regulation next week. "Of course the bill is laughable, illegal, and will never be approved," said Gilson Soares de Campos, an assistant of the mayor. "But can you think of a better resolution to persuade the government to change the environmental decree that is prohibiting us from building a new cemetery?" The bill states that "offenders will be held responsible for their acts." However, it does not say what the punishment will be. What is the bill to be proposed by the officials in Biritiba Mirim? A) Ban on building a new cemetery. B) Ban on parking in certain zones. C) Forbidding buried grounds in preservation. D) Prohibiting residents from dying early.
A: D
(Question)
For a small town, Manhattan, Kansas has some big surprises. And one of them is the Holiday Inn Hotel, with rooms built around a swimming pool and a friendly family atmosphere. The Holiday Inn is where Manhattan people often go for a special party, or a night out. A lot of them choose to eat in the brightly lit restaurant near the pool. And many of them will be served by Ellen Logan, who has worked as a waitress here for more than two years . Ellen, like most of the waitresses, is also a student. She comes from Nebraska, but she's planning one day to be a veterinary surgeon, and to care for small animals. But in order to support herself at college, she works twenty hours a week at the Holiday Inn. Ellen soon learned what every waitress finds out. Your best friend has a good pair of shoes. She paid forty - five dollars for hers, much more than she would usually spend. She's discovered something else too. You don't have to know much about food to be a good waitress, but you do have to know a lot about people. "A lot of business people always stay here when they come to Manhattan, " she explains. "They like you to recognize them and remember their favorite dishes. But some couples come for a night out together. They just want to be left alone. Then there are people who can't make up their minds. They look down the menu and say'What do you suggest?'So I ask them how hungry they are. If they say, 'Not very', I suggest the salad bar, with soup, salad, bread, and a fruit plate. But if they say they're very hungry, I suggest a Kansas Strip Steak, with potatoes or rice. You get salad and bread as well. It's very nice. Real good value." Ellen may get tired feet sometimes, but at least she's learning too much about people . She'll probably make a good animal doctor, but if she find she doesn't like it after all, she can always become a psychiatrist instead." The word"a veterinary surgeon" means _ . A) an animal doctor. B) an animal trainer C) a hotel manager D) a food expert
(Answer)
A