Article: Our love of music and appreciation of musical harmony is learnt and not based on natural ability, a new study by University of Melbourne researchers has found. The researchers said previous theories about how we appreciate music were based on the physical functions of sound, the ear itself and a born ability to hear harmony. The study shows that musical harmony can be learnt, and it is a matter of training the brain to hear the sounds. So if you thought that the music of some foreign culture (or Jazz) sounded like the crying of cats, it's simply because you haven't learnt to listen by their rules. The researchers used 66 volunteers with a range of musical training and tested their ability to hear combinations of notes to determine if they found the combinations familiar or pleasing. They found that people needed to be familiar with combinations of notes. If they couldn't recognize the notes, they found the notes _ . This finding put an end to centuries of theories claiming that physical functions of the ear determine what we find attractive. The study found that trained musicians were much more sensitive to unpleasant notes than non-musicians. When they couldn't find the note, the musicians reported that the sounds were unpleasant, while non-musicians were much less sensitive. This shows the importance of training or nurturing the brain to like particular sound of combinations of notes, like those found in jazz or rock. Depending on their training, a strange chord sound was pleasant to some musicians, but very unpleasant to others. This showed us that even the ability to hear a musical note is learnt. To confirm this finding, they trained 19 non-musicians to find the notes of a random selection of western chords. Not only did the participants' ability to hear notes improve rapidly; the chords they had learnt sounded more pleasant--regardless of how the chords were played. The question of why some combinations of musical notes are heard as pleasant or unpleasant has long been debated. "... Question: According to the passage, why do people sometimes find foreign music quite unpleasant? Yes or no, is the answer "Because they have no idea about how to listen."?
Yes
------
Article: The day began with clear sunlight and blue skies.It soon turned into years of war, economic breakdown and political division. Ten years after the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon on September 11,2001, America has come out of the smoke a very different country.Nearly 3,000 people died on September 11. Suddenly America had to wake up to the fact that not everyone loves the USS A.Members of al-Qaeda, the militant group that earned out the attacks, were angry about US support for the Israelis against Palestinians in the Middle East, about US troops in Saudi Arabia, and about sanctions against Iraq. "September 11 and the years that followed were a shock to our national consciousness," said Nicholas Bums, American ambassador to NATO at the time.The terrorists struck not only the buildings, but also Americans- faith in their power.The fear that America had lost control of events as widespread. In the name of fighting terrorism, the US launched wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.More than 6,000 Americans have died.Tens of thousands of ordinary people in those countries have also lost their lives. But deaths are only part of the story.The world was shocked by photographs of Americans torturing Iraqis in Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad.David Goldstein, a reporter with The Kansas City Star, questioned American behavior: "Has torturing so-called terrorists saved American lives or made the values we advocate around the world weaker? ..." Is that what we've become?" However, a brief moment of national unity did occur straight after 9/11."Americans were coming together in an unusually powerful way ...in the ashes.We live in a bittersweet memory of that collective tragedy and collective possibility," said filmmaker Ken Burns. September 11 was that kind of common moment.When it was over, the Harth still turned in its usual way and the stars in the sky shone as before.But the universe had shifted somehow. Though the world felt the consequence of September 11, more is to come.Ten years on, it still... Question: What can be inferred from the passage? Yes or no, is the answer "Some Americans are skeptical about America's armed behavior overseas."?
No
------
Article: Freda Bright says, _ ." It's true.You really can't love somebody to death.I've known people to die from no love, but I've never known anyone to be loved to death.We just can't love one another enough. A heart-warming story tells of a woman who finally decided to ask her boss for a raise in salary.All day she felt nervous and late in the afternoon she summoned the courage to approach her employer.To her delight, the boss agreed to a raise. The woman arrived home that evening to a beautiful table set with their best dishes.Candles were softly glowing.Her husband had come home early and prepared a festive meal.She wondered if someone from the office had tipped him off, or...did he just somehow know that she would not get turned down? She found him in the kitchen and told him the good news.They embraced and kissed, then sat down to the wonderful meal.Next to her plate the woman found a beautifully lettered note.It read: "Congratulations, darling! I knew you'd get the raise! These things will tell you how much I love you." Following the supper, her husband went into the kitchen to clean up.She noticed that a second card had fallen from his pocket.Picking it off the floor, she read: "Don't worry about not getting the raise! You deserve it anyway! These things will tell you how much I love you." Someone has said that the measure of love is when you love without measure.What this man feels for his wife is total acceptance and love, whether she succeeds or fails.His love celebrates her victories and soothes her wounds.He stands with her, no matter what life throws in their direction. Upon receiving the Nobel Peace Prize, Mother Teresa said: "What can you do to promote world peace? Go home and love your family." And love your friends.Love them without measure. Question: From the text, we might say the author _ . Yes or no, is the answer "thinks the true love does not expect repaym ent"?
No
------
Article: The UK's education system is ranked sixth best in the developed world, according to a global league table published by education firm Pearson in October,2012. The first and second places are taken by Finland and South Korea.The rankings combine international test results and data such as graduation rates between 2006 and 2010. Sir Michael Barber, Pearson's chief education adviser, says successful countries give teachers a high status and have a "culture" of education. International comparisons in education have become increasingly significant - and this latest league table is based upon a series of global test results combined with measures of education systems, such as how many people go on to university. The two education superpowers - Finland and South Korea - are followed by three other high-performing Asian education systems - Hong Kong, Japan and Singapore. The UK is then only ranked at the head of an above-average group including the Netherlands, New Zealand, Canada and Ireland. These are ahead of a middle-ranking group including the United States, Germany and France. At the lowest end are Mexico, Brazil and Indonesia. These _ draw upon tests that are taken every three or four years, in areas such as maths, science and literacy - and so present a picture lagging by several years. Looking at education systems that succeed, the study concludes that spending is important, but not as much as having a culture that is supportive of learning. It says that spending is easier to measure, but the more complex impact of a society's attitude to education can make a big difference. The success of Asian countries in these rankings reflects the high value attached to education and the expectations of parents. This can continue to be a factor when families migrate to other countries, says the report. Looking at the two top countries - Finland and South Korea - the report says that there are many big differences, but the common factor is a shared social belief in the importance of education and its "underlying moral purpose". Question: All of the following statements is NOT true EXCEPT _ . Yes or no, is the answer "The United States' education system is one of the best."?
No
------