Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: From bankers to factory staff, employees in the West face a cold _ of losing their jobs as a global recession starts to bite. For colleagues in the East, the pain is more likely to come through a pay cut. Human resource experts say cultural differences explain why Asian companies try harder to preserve jobs in difficult times, which will prevent unemployment and may help Asian economies survive at a time of slowing exports. The East Asian attitude may also make it easier for companies to recover quickly from the economic downturn since they will not need to rehire or train new staff, but build up a more loyal and devoted group. "In the Confucian mindset, the right thing to do is to share the burden, which is the sense of collective responsibility. While in the West, it's more about individual survival," said Michael Benoliel, associate professor of organizational behavior at Singapore Management University (SMU). In contrast, local Western companies from General Motors to Goldman Sachs plan to lay off workers by the thousand, but at the Asian units of Western multinationals or western units of Asian groups, job cuts will probably be less severe. Japan's jobless rate was 4 percent in September, up from 3.8 percent in January, while Hong Kong's was flat at 3.4 percent. But US unemployment is expected to have jumped to 6.3 percent last month from below 5 percent in January. Experts say that while there are noticeable differences in labor practices in East and West, the gap will narrow as more firms become more multinational and competition forces firms to adopt the best practices of rivals from abroad. Question: In which company can we infer the job cuts will be probably the most severe? - A local American group. - A small Japanese company. - A German branch of a Korean multinational. - A Hong Kong's unit of a French company.
A local American group.

Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: A British shopper, Emma Mumford, who was named "the Coupon Queen" has spent just PS350 on a luxury Christmas for her and her family--but got PS2,500 worth of food, drink and presents thanks to coupons and offers. Ms Mumford is a so-called "extreme couponer" and spends hours hunting out the best deals and bargains. She has been preparing for this Christmas since the end of the last one. Ms Mumford made the huge savings by checking price comparison websites and as a result collected more presents than she needed for Christmas. After sorting out gifts for all of her family, she has even been able to donate PS1,000 worth of presents to her local hospital. "It has been so nice to have Christmas sorted and not having to worry about _ . I wanted to get high quality presents for my family and show that you can do it without spending a fortune. There is a misconception that everyone who does couponing only gets value products but through my careful shopping I have managed to purchase designer perfumes , a high-end coffee machine." she explained. She said "What started as a hobby to help me save money has turned into my life and I am able to run a business helping people save money. I know what it feels like to struggle as my ex-partner had a lot of debt which I took on for him. We were in a poor situation where every penny counted. That's what really inspired me." She has now turned her bargain-hunting addiction into a business where she searches for the best deals and offers tips to the general public through video blogging and her Facebook Page. "I try and show people that it is just a little bit of work in the beginning but it will eventually pay off. One of the best things to do is just to be a bit forward thinking and save throughout the year." Question: What really inspired Emma to help people save money? - Her addiction to bargain-hunting. - The financial difficulties she shared with her ex-partner. - The poor situation people around her were going through. - Her experience of running an unsuccessful business.
The financial difficulties she shared with her ex-partner.

Q: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Arthur Miller (1915--2005) is universally recognized as one of the greatest dramatists of the 20th century. Miller's father had moved to the USA from Austria-Hungary, drawn like so many others by the "Great American Dream". However, he experienced severe financial hardship when his family business was ruined in the Great Depression of the early 1930s. Miller's most famous play,Death of a Salesman,is a powerful attack on the American system, with its aggressive way of doing business and its insistence on money and social status as indicators of worth. In Willy Loman, the hero of the play, we see a man who has got into trouble with this system. Willy is "burnt out" and in the cruel world of business there is no room for sentiment: if he can't do the work, then he is no good to his employer, the Wagner Company, and he must go. Willy is painfully aware of this, and at a loss as to what to do with his lack of success. He refuses to face the fact that he has failed and kills himself in the end. When it was first staged in 1949, the play was greeted with enthusiastic reviews, and it won the Tony Award for Best Play, the New York Drama Critics' Circle Award, and the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. It was the first play to win all three of these major awards. Miller died of heart failure at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut, on the evening of February 10, 2005, the 56th anniversary of the first performance ofDeath of a Salesmanon Broadway. Question: What is the text mainly about? - Arthur Miller and his family. - The awards Arthur Miller won. - The hardship Arthur Miller experienced. - Arthur Miller and his best-known play.
A: Arthur Miller and his best-known play.

(Question)
Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: Dear Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul, Mostpeopledon'treallyknowwhatpressuresatypicalteenager has to go through.Sure, our parents and grandparents were once teens, but things are so different now.It has never been tougher to a teenager. It had never been more important to be in the "right group" or to have the "right brand" of shoes.And those are the easy things to deal with.We also face problems with family, friends, relationships and school pressures. When it gets to be too much, I turn to my friends.One friend I could not live without is Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul.Your books have been so inspiring to me and have helped me to deal with and understand the problems I go through. For example, I went through aconfusing time with my friends when we got to junior high.I had known these friends since kindergarten, and when we began junior high it seemed like some of them began to change.We started hanging out with different groups, and we slowly grew so far apart that it seemed as if we had never been friends.I felt confused and hurt. Sometime during this period I read the story Friends Forever in Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul II.I felt so much better after reading it.It was like aweight had been lifted from me when I realized that many friendships went through changes and that we weren'tthe only friends to experience _ . Peoplechange, but that doesn'tmean we have to lose the friendships we once shared.My friends and I still spend time together when we can and care about each other alot.That things are different doesn'tmean I have to forget about all the good times we had.I will always keep the memories in asafe place in my heart. Sincerely, Peter Question: According to the author, parents and grandparents _ . - didn't have to overcome difficulties when in their teens. - don't fully understand the pressures of being a teenager now - can easily deal with things such as choosing friends and shoes. - don't need to give help to teenagers with pressures and problems
(Answer)
don't fully understand the pressures of being a teenager now