Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: I just finished the household chores for the night and was preparing to go to bed, when I heard a noise in the front of the house. I opened the door to the front room and to my surprise, Santa himself stepped out from behind the Christmas tree. He placed his finger over his mouth so I would not cry out. "What are you doing?" I started to ask. The words choked up in my throat, and I saw he had tears in his eyes. His usual jolly manner was gone. Gone was the eager, boisterous soul we all know. He then answered me with a simple statement"TEACH THE CHILDREN!" I was puzzled; what did he mean? Santa then reached in his bag and pulled out a FIR TREE ."Teach the children that the pure green color of the stately fir tree remains green all year round,describing the everlasting hope of mankind,all the needles point heavenward, making it a symbol of man's thoughts turning toward heaven." He again reached into his bag and pulled out a brilliant STAR. "Teach the children that the star was the heavenly sign of promises long ago. God promised a savior for the world, and the star was the sign of fulfillment of his promise." He then reached into his bag and pulled out a CANDLE. "Teach the children that the candle symbolizes that Christ is the light of the world, and when we see this great light we are reminded of he who displaces the darkness." Suddenly I heard a soft twinkling sound, and from his bag he pulled out a BELL. "Teach the children that as the lost sheep are found by the sound of the bell, it should ring mankind to the fold. The bell symbolizes guidance and return." Santa looked back and was pleased. I saw that the _ was back in his eyes. He said, "Remember, teach the children the true meaning of Christmas and do not put me in the center, for I am but an humble servant of the one that is, and I bow down to worship HIM, our LORD, our GOD." Question: According to Santa, the star was _ . Options: A: a symbol of man's thoughts turning towards heaven B: the sigh of fulfillment of the Santa's promise C: the symbol of the light of the world D: the sound of the bell which ring mankind to the fold
A: B

Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: Sometimes in the next century, the familiar early-newspaper on the front porch will disappear. And instead of reading your newspaper, it will read to you. You'll get up and turn on the computer newspaper just like switching on the TV. An electronic voice will distribute stories about the latest events, guided by a program that selects the type of news you want. You'll even get to choose the kind of voice you want to hear. Want more information on the brief story? A simple touch makes the entire text appear. Save it in your own personal computer if you like. These are among the predictions from communication experts working on the newspaper of the future. Pictured as part of broader home based media and entertainment systems, computer newspapers would unite print and broadcast reporting, offering news and analysis with video images of news events. Most of the technology is available now, but convincing more people that they don't need paper to read a newspaper is the next step. But resistance to computer newspapers may be stronger from within journalism. Since it is such a cultural change, it may be that the present generation of journalists and publishers will have to die off before the next generation realize that the newspaper industry is no longer a newspaper industry. Technology is making the end of traditional newspapers unavoidable. Despite technological advances, it could take decades to replace news-print with computer screens. It might take 30 to 40 years to complete the changeover because people need to buy computers and because newspapers have established financial interests in the paper industry. Question: We can infer from the passage that _ . Options: A: all technological changes are good B: all technologies will eventually replace old ones C: new technologies will replace old ones sooner or later D: traditional newspapers will stay for another century
A: C

Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: DALLAS - A suburban Dallas woman accused of killing her two young children told a 911 operator that she first tried to poison them because they were autistic and she wanted "normal kids," then choked them with a wire until they stopped moving, according to the recorded call. Irving police on Wednesday released recordings of the 911 call after Saiqa Akhter was charged with capital murder in the death of her 5-year-old son, Zain Akhter and her 2-year-old daughter, Faryaal Akhter. Police said the children were attacked at the family's apartment Monday night. In the recording released Wednesday, the woman identified herself as Saiqa Akhter and repeatedly told the operator she killed her two children. At one point, the woman hung up and the dispatcher called her back. "I killed both of them. I told you," she told the operator. Later, she explained that both children were lying motionless on the bed in the master bedroom. "They are not doing anything. They are just blue and they are not taking any breaths and ... their heart is not beating," she said. She told the operator she initially tried to poison the children with bathroom cleaner but they refused to drink it. When that didn't work, "I used a wire on their necks," she said. When the operator asked the woman why she attacked her children, she said, "They're both not normal, not normal. They're autistic. Both are autistic." Pressed further, she said, "I don't want my children to be like that. ... I want normal kids." Later, the dispatcher asked the woman what she was feeling. "Nothing," she responded. At one point, water could be heard running in the background and the dispatcher asked what the woman what she was doing. She told the operator she was trying to wash the smell of cleaner off of her hands. The dispatcher then told the woman to go sit on a couch in the living room and wait for police. At the end of the recording, police can be heard arriving at the home. Question: According to this passage, the killing happened _ . Options: A: on Wednesday B: on Monday night C: on Monday morning D: after the woman telephoned the 119
A: B

Q: Read the article and select the best answer. Article: "Bad luck always comes in three" and last Saturday seemed to prove it. After trouble with the car, the television, we spent the evening waiting for the next trouble. Shortly after dinner we both smelled smoke. My wife, who was often careless when cooking, ran to the kitchen but returned looking puzzled. I rushed up the stairs to see smoke coming from under our bedroom door. I went to the bathroom and tied a wet cloth over my face. Then I returned to the bedroom, opened the door andcrawled in--there would be less smoke at floor level. With one hand reaching out in front of me I advanced carefully feeling for the switch to turn off the electric blanket. At that moment I heard the bell of a coming fire engine. Thank goodness my wife had not been wasting her time. Question: The wife rushed into the kitchen because _ . Options: A: the smoke came out of the kitchen B: she left something in the kitchen C: she was afraid the smoke was caused by her carelessness D: things in the kitchen were easy to cause fire
A: C