When you have a question about something, where do you go? For many people the answer is simple. They go online to a search engine like Google or Yahoo. But what about people in rural or underdeveloped areas who may have no way to get on the Internet? Luckily, Rose Shuman, a business and international development consultant in California, has found a way for them. Her amazing solution is "Question Box". Question Box is a service that provides answers--free of charge--for people who cannot search the Internet directly. They might not be able to read, or they simply have no access. Question Box began two years ago in India.People use a metal call box with a pushtotalk button to connect to a live operator, as Rose Shuman explains, "You just push a button, a big green button, and that will connect you directly to our operators who are sitting in front of computers, and speak your language. And you can ask them any sort of question you want, and they'll look it up in English or in Hindi, or whatever the main language is, and translate the answer right back for you." The service is currently offered in two villages. The latest version of the box uses mobile phone technology and solar panels in case the electrical power fails. Rose Shuman says the aim was to make the box as easy as possible for users. "Rather than try to bring a lot of infrastructure to them and expect them to learn how to use the Internet, the idea was to make a technology that even Grandma could use, figuring that Grandma could probably walk up to a box and push a button," added Shuman. In April, Question Box expanded to Uganda.Forty community workers with mobile phones connect villagers to call center operators in Kampala.The community workers go around telling people about the service. They wear Tshirts that say "Ask Me." But Internet service in Uganda proved slow and undependable. So Question Box teamed up with a local technology company to store information on a local server. That way, the researchers in Kampala can quickly search the... Which of the following is true about Question Box according to the passage? A) Uganda is the original place where the service started. B) Some modern technologies have been used for improving the service. C) Question Box won't be able to work if there is no electrical power. D) It was impossible for a grandma to use Question Box.
B
I always avoid going on field investigations with the toxics team, unless it's ly necessary. It's not that I mind the hard work, or am afraid of coming into contact with toxic substances. What I fear is quickly losing hope about the work I do. However, doing field research with the toxic team, all I see and feel is filth---nothing else. Even if I close my eyes, I can smell the smell of food processing, rotting organic waste from paper mills and chemicals from clothing manufacturers. One morning, I went to investigate a discharged pipe to document and collect samples of pollutants secretly being emitted by a textile mill. I had to work with the utmost secrecy in order to avoid being discovered by the textile mill. I dipped a long measuring pole into the large polluting pipe to measure the volume of polluted water being emitted. But the surface of the water, covered in oil and filth, made me feel as if to vomit . All of a sudden, I felt someone hit me on my back, it frightened me so much that I almost fell into the water. I grasped the pole and looked behind me to see an old man standing there. He asked: "Can you catch fish here?" I realized that he thought I was holding a fish pole, so I kept calm and said: "Yes, I heard that there's a kind of small fish living in this water, and it has medicinal benefits." The old man grew quite curious and replied: "That may be. If a fish can survive in water as dirty as this, it must have a lot of resistance. So it wouldn't be too strange if such fish had medicinal benefits." It was clear he was just passing by, so I answered: "Yeah, survival of the fittest. Fish that adapt can survive, just like us humans." He kept talking to me and didn't want to leave. He wanted to see whether or not I would catch the small fish with medicinal benefits. Why did the writer tell the old man he was fishing? A) Because he wanted to satisfy the old man's curiosity. B) Because the old man was interested in fishing too. C) Because he did the research secretly. D) Because the old man wanted to buy the fish.
C
Q: Another small animal that tigers eat in Ranthambhore (a wildlife park in northern India) is the porcupine .These animals are spread widely across India in open areas and grasslands; they often live in the earth and between rocks.They are good diggers, and in Ranthambhore are nocturnal ; they only come out at night.They weigh 12 to 16 kilograms and reach the length of 80 to 90 centimetres.They live usually on vegetables and fruit and seem to have a good sense of smell.Porcupines defend themselves when attacked by moving backwards with their quills upright, often making a strange noise. Several times, I have found the remains of quills where a tiger has killed and eaten a porcupine, but I have never actually seen the kill.In spite of the quills, experienced tigers will try to kill clearly by biting the porcupine's head, its weakest spot.But the quills are very sharp and can give painful injuries to young tigers.If the quills have gone in very deeply or if they are stuck in the tiger's paw, it will try to pull them out.Often, it will be successful, and the wound will get better.But, if the quills have gone in very deeply or if they are stuck in the tiger's neck or mouth, where they cannot be reached, the wound will often turn bad.If this happens, the tiger is in pain and is less able to hunt animals.It has to look for easier prey and so may turn to cows on the edges of the forest.From this, it is a small step to becoming a man-eater. The word "quill" here means _ . A) teeth of a porcupine B) feathers on a porcupine C) long, sharp needle-like parts on a porcupine D) paws of a porcupine
A: C