As the railroads and the highways shaped the American West in the past centuries, a new electhical generating and transmission systen for the 21 century will leave a lasting mark on the West, for better or worse. Much of the real significance of railroads and highways is not in their direct physical effect on the scenery, but in the ways that they affect the suurouding community. The same is true of big solar ppants and the power lines that will be laid dowm to move electricity around. The 19 century saw land grants offered to railroad companies to build the transcontinental railroads ,leaving public land in between privately owned land . In much of the west ,some of the railroad sections were developed while others remained undeveloped ,and in both cases the landownership has presented unique challenges to land management ,with the completion or the interstate highway system ,many of the small towns which sprang up as railway stops and developed well ,have lost their lifeblood and died . Big solar plants and their power lines will also have effects far beyond their direct footprint in the west .this is not an argument against building then ,we need alternative energy badly .and to really take advantage of it we need to be able to move electricity around far more readily than we can now . So trade-offs will have to be made .some scenic sport will be sacrificed .some species will be forced to move ,or will be carefully moved to special accommodations ,deals will be struck to reduce the immediate effects . The lasting effects of these trade-offs are another matter .the 21 century development of the American west as an ideal place for alternative energy is going to throw off a lot of power and money to do a lot of good .but it is just as likely that they will be spent wastefully and will leave new problems behind ,just like the railroad and the highway . The money set aside in negotiated trade -offs and the institution that control will shape the west far beyond the immediate footprint of power plants and... what is the author 's attitude towards building solar plants ? A) cautious B) approving C) doubtful D) disapproving
A
(Question)
Allen : I've never been a big fan of the bears ,especially the vacation show .On my last trip to Disneyland (1999) we passed it by ,because we didn't want to spend the time on something we didn't really enjoy. If we'd known it would be closed by our next visit, I'm sure we would have watched it one more time. I was just making the point that it wasn't until Disney announced the closing that this feeling suddenly sprang up for the Country Bear show at Disneyland. But I think the idea of keeping some attractions open forever regardless of the number of visitors it gets is a mistake .We all have great memories of the Bears ,but clearly very few kids today (or I should say families today) are making those same memories from this show . That may be a sad fact ,but it's a fact. For whatever reason, the show doesn't pull in the numbers. Isn't it right to use the Country Bear space to bring in a more popular attraction so that more kids today can make those magic memories of an attraction THEY like? Otherwise aren't we just telling kids today that they "have to" make great memories of the Bears ,when it's obvious that the kids themselves are not enjoying the Bears like we did? Roger: I am very disappointed that they have decided to retire the Country Bear Playhouse. I remember going to the show as a child ,and still enjoyed it as a teenager, and now young adult .It is true that there aren't a lot of shows left at DL and with this one closing even less .Being at DL does require a lot of walking ,and it is nice to have a few attractions that are a place to sit and enjoy a good show. I understand that DL has to develop ,but there has to be some history to the Disneyland that Walt Disney first designed .There should be some parts of DL that just never go away ,and this is one of them . By the time I have children it looks like there won't be any attractions that I can say I went to as a child at the rate they are going. Now the Bears are leaving .What I want to say is : stop trying to compete with... What news might get people talking about the problem of the Country Bears? A) The Country Bear Playhouse will be closed. B) There will be a new attraction for our guests at Disneyland. C) The number of visitors to the Country Bear Playhouse is falling. D) The Bears will retire because of old age and can't give shows any more.
(Answer)
A
Ques: Do you have memories of being kidnapped by aliens and taken away rapidly in a spaceship? You wouldn't be alone. Several thousand people worldwide reported to have had such experiences, researchers say. But in a new study, a psychology expert at London's Goldsmiths College says these experiences are proof of the weakness of the human memory, rather than evidence of life in outer space. "Maybe what we're dealing with here is false memories, and not that people are actually being kidnapped and taken aboard spaceships," says Professor Chris French, who surveyed 19 so-called victims. Several of the victims reported being taken away from their beds or cars by alien creatures around four feet high, with long and lean arms and legs and oversized heads, French said. Some men said they were forced to take painful medical examinations by the aliens. Many of the alien experiences could be explained by sleep paralysis, a condition in which a person is awake and aware of the surroundings but is unable to move. Sleep paralysis often leads to hallucinations --the experience of seeing or feeling something that is not really there and 40 percent of people experience the state at least once in their lives, French said. A rich imagination was also at play. Several of the alien victims were more likely to _ and reported to have seen ghosts and have unnatural abilities. "People have very rich fantasy lives," said French, who is due to present his findings at a public seminar at London's Science Museum on Wednesday. "So much that they often mix up what's happening in their heads with what is going on in the real world." What is the author's attitude towards alien experiences? A) Puzzling. B) Supportive. C) Respectful. D) Objective.
Ans: D
As many as 4 out of every 1,000 infants born today have permanent hearing loss. When parents learn that their child has hearing loss, they are faced with many difficult decisions. These decisions can include choosing therapies and schools, as well as finding financial help for hearing aids or cochlear implants . Help Me Hear Foundation is a public charity that gives the gift of hearing to deaf children from families existing on very low incomes around the world. Help Me Hear Foundation believes that a child's first years of development are critical. Being able to hear is vital to human, and Help Me Hear Foundation seeks to provide a positive lasting impression on society through its programs. Recipients of Help Me Hear Foundation's benefits receive state-of-the-art hearing devices that otherwise would cost thousands of dollars per child over the course of their lifetime. The Foundation raises money through donations for hearing aids and cochlear implants, which saves recipients and their families on average over $50,000 on related expenses. The Foundation tries to be a transparent charity, and wants to be a catalyst for allowing deaf and hearing-impaired children to develop in a typical fashion alongside their peers. Needy families can obtain information on specific services, and find out about deafness education by visiting the Help Me Hear Foundation's website. The website offers helpful information on how hearing aids work, and how hearing aids ease many of the learning and language challenges that hearing-impaired children deal with on a daily basis. Help Me Hear Foundation was probably set up to _ . A) build schools for deaf children B) research deaf children's behavior C) protect deaf children from being ignored D) offer real help to poor deaf children
D