Tough new rules for pubs and clubs - including a ban on drinking games like the infamous "dentist's chair" - will be introduced in Britain this year in a bid to prevent the heavy drinking culture that costs the country billions of pounds a year. Other promotions like "all you can drink for 10 pounds", speed drinking competitions and "women drink free" nights will also be forbidden. But on the other hand, a large amount of offers of cheap alcohol in supermarkets - widely regarded as one of the main sources of Britain's problems with under-age and excessive drinking - will not be affected. Doctors and health experts argue that the government has failed to use its most effective weapon, the taxation of minimum price controls on alcohol. Home Secretary Alan Johnson said he did not want to target responsible drinkers on low incomes, but that the government and the industry had a duty to act on heavy drinking. "These practices have a real impact on society, not to mention the lives of those who just want to enjoy a good night out." he said. The "dentist's chair", where drinks are poured directly into the mouth by others, was made famous by the celebrations of footballer Paul Gascoigne. That game and others that promote mass consumption will be banned from April and publicans will have to ensure free tap water is made available to the drinkers. A second set of rules enforcing compulsory ID checks and making sure smaller alcoholic measures are on sale will come into effect in October. The government says excessive drinking costs Britain up to 12 billion pounds a year and has announced that any pubs that go against the new rule will face severe punishment. Publicans and vendors could lose their licenses, be fined up to 20,000 pounds or face six months in prison. New rules for pubs and clubs will be introduced in Britain to ban heavy drinking because _ . A) people drink too much without paying taxes B) drinking in the country costs too much C) drinking competitions are very crazy D) drinking games are infamous
B
People usually have to cany passports to travel from one country to another. But should animals? Groups around the word are working to create parks that cross country borders. They hope that the parks will help die environment and bring peace and cooperation to neighboring countries. "People draw lines on a map and call them countries," said Steve Thompson of the National Parks Conservation Association. "But animals don' t understand international borders. " When animals are kept in small areas,they can spread diseases more easily. They can also hurt the environment by eating too many plants and other animals. Allowing animals to cross borders would help improve these conditions,experts say. But that's just one reason why people to create international parks. People have named the parks "peace parks" because these people believe the parks can help countries learn to work together. The parks create a link between communities and a common desire to learn more about one another. According to Steve Thompson, the parks can "help nations resolve international conflict or even war. " Today there are dozens of peace parks on five continents, The parks play an important role in southern Africa. The Kgalagadi Trausfrontier Park is in the Kalahari Desert in South Africa and Botswana. The countries work together to manage the land and the animals that live there. Other countries ,such as Zimbabwe and Lesotho, are also forming parks. The parks will let animals wander over larger parts of southern Africa, much as they did centuries ago, and it really helps expand elephant and lion populations, which are now damaged by, confinement in smaller parks. The parks can also help countries attracting tourists and creating jobs. But many issues still remain, such as illegal killing of animals, pollution, and population pressure on the land. Peace parks play many important roles except that A) they can make the neighbor countries get on well with each other B) they can help to improve the environment C) they attract tourists and create jobs for the countries D) they can increase the output of the crops
D
Q: A mother came to the police station and put cash totaling $19.53 on a table. Her young son added another 85 cents to the little pile. It turned out that, after two days, they were the only people to return money picked up from a truck that fell over on an overpass and rained more than half a million dollars onto the street below. Police said that witnesses reported seeing people load money into their cars and drive off while the truck driver lay bleeding. Police required people to return the money, but sadly they got nothing but laughter until a mother and a boy came in. "I have children and I need to set a good example," said the mother of six, who could have used a little extra cash to _ her low wage. When this mother one day passes away, she will leave her children a lot to benefit from. Maybe not a pile of money, but she will leave them an example of life of honesty and self-respect. She will leave them something far more important than wealth. Most people talk about values and what they believe to be right and wrong. But I've noticed that our real values can be seen by the way we live. It is the things we do and the choices we make that show what we truly believe. The mother and son went to the police station to _ . A) gave their money to the police B) return the money from the truck C) report an accident to the police D) comfort the unfortunate driver
A: B
*Question*
If sustainable competitive advantage depends on workforce skills, American firms have a problem. Human-resource management is not traditionally seen as central to the competitive survival of the firm in the United States. Skill acquisition is considered an individual responsibility. Labour is simply another factor of production to be hired--rented at the lowest possible cost--much as one buys materials or equipment. The lack of importance attached to human-resource management can be seen in the corporate management. In an American firm the chief financial officer is almost always second in command. The post of head of human-resource management is usually a specialized job, off at the edge of the corporate hierarchy. The executive who holds it is never consulted on major strategic decisions and has no chance to move up to Chief Executive Officer(CEO). By way of contrast, in Japan the head of human-resource management is central--usually the second most important executive, after the CEO, in the firm's hierarchy. While American firms often talk about the vast amounts spent on training their work force, in fact they invest less in the skills of their employees than do either Japanese or German firms. The money they do invest is also more highly concentrated on professional and managerial employees. And the limited investments that are made in training workers are also much more narrowly focused on the specific skills necessary to do the next job rather than on the basic background skills that make it possible to absorb new technologies. As a result, problems arise when new breakthrough technologies arrive. If American workers, for example, take much longer to learn how to operate new flexible manufacturing stations than workers on Germany (as they do), the effective cost of those stations is lower in Germany than it is in the United States. More time is required before equipment is up and running in production, and the need for extensive retraining generates costs and creates bottlenecks that limit the speed... Which of the following applies to the management of human resources in American companies? A) They hire people at the lowest cost with ly best skills. B) They see the gaining of skills as their employees' own business. C) They attach more importance to workers than to equipment. D) They only hire skilled workers because of keen competition.
**Answer**
B