Q: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: The First of May is a Bank Holiday--the first public holiday of the year in England. Most people consider it a special day ,the beginning of summer ,a day when the light lasts long into the evening ,and when we can look for warm weather .We don't always get it .We feel disappointed ,but not surprised if there are cold winds and frosts at night in May .Winter should be over .Most people know that in the past ,when farming occupied almost everyone ,the changing seasons were of great importance .In that older time there was every reason to celebrate May Day .Customs of those celebrations remain. Of these customs ,the best known is the choosing of a May Queen and the dancing round Maypole .Even these customs are little more than memories now--but in the last century it was quite common in villages and small towns ,and even in schools and colleges ,for a pretty and popular girl to be chosen Queen of the May .It was a great honour to be chosen .For a day she wore a light and flowery dress, carried garlands ,and was ceremonially crowned with flowers .She presided over a procession ,as a rule with a number of attendants ,and over the Maypole dancing and all kinds of entertainment .The Maypole was slender tree trunk ,cut off its branches, with beautiful ribbons fastened to the top .The dancing was designed in such a way that the dancer's movements move the ribbons into a pattern. This, as you can imagine ,required skill from the dancer ,and was not achieved without practice . It's the Celtic people who celebrated the First of May as a spring festival .Their celebration seems to have had little to do with taking pleasure in early ,beautiful flowers and in warmer weather! They called it Beltane--the fire of the god Bel .They lit fires ,in the expectation that their blaze would help the sun in its struggle to regain its strength. They drove their cattle between banks of flame in the expectation that the terrified beasts would be purified and protected from disease .A tree ,which must have been blackened with smoke... Question: The main purpose of the passage is to show _ . - the reason why they celebrate May Day - the start and customs of May Day - the way they celebrate May Day - the choosing of a May Queen during May Day
A: the start and customs of May Day

Q: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: It's easy to see how to help some people, but what about those whose needs are not so clear? This story may have happened not long ago--- but it was a lesson which has stayed with me and helped me ever since. It was Thanksgiving and I was volunteering with my parents at a shelter for the needy. We served hot food to whoever came in. Most of our dinners looked like they had been having hard times; their clothes were worn out and dirty. Then, a man came in, who looked anything but needy. He was well dressed. I wondered what he was doing there and my jaw dropped in amazement when he joined the line for food. The closer he came to my service station , the more I muttered . What was this man doing? Surely he wasn't going to take food which was meant for those who were really in need! Then my mother quietly took me to one side. She said, "You have thought that the needs of the people who come here must be purely physical, hunger, etc. And this gentleman doesn't seem to have any of those problems. But what if his needs are emotional ? What if he needs comfort, friends, or just to be among other human beings? Her words hit me like a ton of bricks! I felt like I should apologize to the man--- but I didn't. About a week later the shelter received a large donation from an source. I can't help but wonder if it came from that man. Now, whenever I meet someone I remember my mother's lesson and try to send kindness their way, no matter how they look. Needs aren't always seen. But kindness always makes a difference. Question: What would be the best title for the text? - My mother's influence on my growth - The importance of volunteering - One of my most shameful experiences - My mother's simple lesson in kindness
A: My mother's simple lesson in kindness

Q: Read the following article and select the best answer. Article: A new argument has been put forward as to whether penguins are disturbed by the presence of tourists in Antarctica. Previous research by scientists from Keil University in Germany monitored Adelie penguins and noted that the birds' heart rates increased dramatically at the sight of a human as far as 30 meters away. But new research using an artificial egg, which is equipped to measure heart rates, disputes this. Scientists from the Scott Polar Research Institute at Cambridge say that a slow moving human who does not approach the nest too closely, is not viewed as a threat by penguins. The earlier findings have been used to partly explain the 20 per cent drop in populations of certain types of penguins near tourist sites. However, tour operators have continued to insist that their activities do not adversely affect wildlife in Antarctica, saying they encourage non-disruptive behavior in tourists, and that the decline in penguin numbers is caused by other factors. Amanda Nimon of the Scott Polar Research Institute spent three southern hemisphere summers at Cuverville Island in Antarctica studying penguin behavior towards humans. "A nesting penguin will react very differently to a person rapidly and closely approaching the nest," says Nimon. "First they exhibit large and prolonged heart rate changes and then they often flee the nest leaving it open for predators to fly in and remove eggs or chicks." The artificial egg, specially for the project, monitored both the parent who had been 'disturbed' when the egg was placed in the nest and the other parent as they both took it in turns to guard the nest. However, Boris Culik, who monitored the Adelie penguins, believes that Nimon's findings do not invalidate his own research. He points out that species behave differently - and Nimon's work was with Gentoo penguins. Nimon and her colleagues believe that Culik's research was methodologically flawed because the monitoring of penguins' responses needed capturing and restraining the birds and fitting them with... Question: According to the passage, what overall message is presented? - No firm conclusions are drawn. - Neither Culik's nor Nimon's findings are of much value. - Penguin reduction is closed related to tourist behavior. - Tourists are not responsible for the fall in penguin numbers.
A: No firm conclusions are drawn.