Q: I'm taking a test and have to guess the right answer to the question after the article. Article: Japanese people,who never miss a chance to be photographed,were lining up to get their pictures on a postage stamp.Vanity stamps with personal photographs went on sale for the first time in Japan as part of an international postage stamp exhibition.The customer's photo was taken with a digital camera and then printed on stamp sheets,a process that takes about five minutes.Sold in a sheet of 10 stamps for $8.80,little more than the cost of lunch in Tokyo,each stamp printed a different scene from a traditional painting along with the photo. The stamps can be used normally to mail a letter,and postal officials hope they will help encourage interest in letter writing in the Internet age."Certainly e-mail is a useful method of communication,but letters are fun in a different way,"said Hatsumi Shimizu an official in the Post Ministry."We want to show young people that letters can be fun too."[ While similar stamp sheets appeared in Australia in 1999 and are now sold in some nations and territories,Japan's fondness for commemorative photos is likely to make them especially popular here.Indeed,officials had prepared 1 000 sheets but they were sold out in less than 30 minutes.Although the stamps are currently only available as a special service during the exhibition,postal officials said they may start selling them on a regular basis in the future. Question: The purpose of this activity is _ . Options: A: to make the international postage stamp exhibition more interesting B: to make more stamps for normal use C: to draw interest in writing letters D: to satisfy Japan's fondness of commemorative photos
A: C

Q: I'm taking a test and have to guess the right answer to the question after the article. Article: Vans, Keds, Dollies--they sound like the names of rock bands, but if you have teenagers, you'll know they're actually the latest in teenage footwear. But experts are now warning that the current shoe fashions will be causing teenagers discomfort in the short term and storing up years of foot, knee and back pain in the future. Here, the experts identify the problems caused by teenagers' shoe choice. KEDS/VANS Slip-on shoes with elastic sides are particularly popular among teenage boys-with Keds and Vans the most sought-after brands. The main problem is that they are just too flat--so flat that the heel, which strikes the ground first, also becomes damaged and painful. BALLET PUMPS The worst shoes of all are such light and thin dolly shoes. The problem is partly their flatness, as with Keds and Vans. However ballet pumps, which have no string or heel, have other specific problems. "As the shoe has no fastening device, it relies on the toes to keep the shoe on, causing an awkward gait ,this leads to short-and long-term problems such as calluses ,heel and knee pain." WEDGES AND STILETTOS These shoes can also cause problems with gait, They may look good, but the heels on these are so high they can force the wearer's body weight forward, making them very unstable. Teens who wear these shoes regularly are also in danger of joining those millions of women with constant back pain. SCHOOL SHOES So what do podiatrists have on their wish list, especially for everyday wear? Something in a natural, breathable fabric, with a string to hold it on, with a small heel and a deep toe-box that does not press the toes, such as Clark's, Marks & Spencer or Rhino. If your teen insists on wearing 'bad' shoes, get them some simple foot orthotics in the shoes. These support and correct the movement of the foot and, properly fitted by a podiatrist, can often transform their walk and halt the damage. Question: In which column of Mail Online can you find this passage? Options: A: Sports . B: Science. C: Health. D: Shopping.
A: C

Q: I'm taking a test and have to guess the right answer to the question after the article. Article: Ever since farmers began to grow grain, they have had to protect their crops from birds. In the 1300's, English farmers hired children to protect their crops. They were called "bird scares". The children chased birds and threw stones at them. Bird scares were replaced in the 1800's by scarecrows. A scarecrow is anything that is set in a field to scare birds away. Often it is a pole dressed like a person. Some farms with small fields still use scarecrows today. Farming became big business in the twentieth century. Scarecrows could no longer protect the huge fields of grain, so farmers used poisonous chemicals on the fields. The poison made the grain bitter. The birds usually would not eat the bitter grain. Although they can prevent crops from being destroyed by insects and birds, some chemicals can be harmful to humans. Therefore, farmers are using fewer chemicals now than they did twenty years ago. Perhaps scarecrows may be seen more often in the fields in the future. Question: The author's purpose is to _ . Options: A: give information about children who worked as bird scares B: tell how crops have been protected from birds C: make the readers feel sorry for birds that eat poisoned grain D: entertain the readers with a funny story
A: B

Q: I'm taking a test and have to guess the right answer to the question after the article. 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 thousands, 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: The passage mainly tells us _ . Options: A: the difficulties all the companies around the world will meet with today B: the different labor solutions of Asian and Western in global recession C: the ways to cut down the cost of the companies in economic downturn D: the cultural differences between Eastern and Western world at present
A: B